GK & Current Affairs Quiz: June 20, 2017

Notes:
The first-ever BRICS Games has started at the Guangzhou Baiyun International Convention Center in Guangzhou, China on June 17, 2017. It featured some 300 athletes from five countries- Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa with 10 events in 3 sports – men’s basketball, women’s volleyball and Wushu. Recently, India has won six medals in the Wushu competition of the first ever BRICS Games. The medals haul comprised two each in gold, silver and bronze. M. Gyandas and Anjul Namdev won one gold each. The two silver medals came through Bidheswari Devi and Toshibala while L. Sanatgombhi Chanu and Sajan Lama settled for bronze in the Wushu competition.

Notes:
The Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal has launched Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) 2017 in New Delhi to prescribe the energy performance standards for new commercial buildings to be constructed across India. The updated version of ECBC provides current as well as futuristic advancements in building technology to further reduce building energy consumption and promote low-carbon growth. The purpose of the code is to optimize energy savings with the comfort level for occupants, and prefers life-cycle cost effectiveness to achieve energy neutrality in commercial building. The ECBC 2017 was developed by Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) with technical support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the U.S.-India bilateral Partnership to Advance Clean Energy – Deployment Technical Assistance (PACE-D TA) Program.

Notes:
Baldwin Jacobson Lonsdale (67), the current President of Vanuatu, has passed away in Port Vila, Vanuatu on June 17, 2017. He was a former senior civil servant and served as the secretary general of the Torba provincial government before becoming an Anglican priest. Father Lonsdale was the 2nd Anglican priest to become head of state in Vanuatu. He served the nation from September 22, 2014 until his death.

Notes:
The iconic Taj Mahal Palace hotel of Mumbai has acquired an `image trademark’ under the Trademark Act of 1999. Thus, the Palace has become the first building in India to get intellectual property rights protection for its architectural design. Now, it is will be difficult to use Taj Mahal Palace’s images for commercial purposes without paying the company a licensing fee. Though, it does not prevent locals and tourists from clicking pictures of the iconic building as long as it is not sold for commercial benefits. The Trade Marks Act of 1999 is the current governing law relating to registered trademarks which replaced The Trade and Merchandise Marks Act of 1958.The act enables to deal with the precise nature of rights which a person can acquire in respect of trademarks.

Notes:
The World Refugee Day (WRD) is observed every year on June 20 to honor the courage, strength and determination of women, men and children who are forced to flee their homeland under threat of persecution, conflict and violence. This year, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has appointed Syrian refugee Muzoon Almellehan as its newest and youngest Goodwill Ambassador on June 20, 2017 to promote child education. The WRD 2017 has marked a key moment for the public to show support for families.

Notes:
The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has appointed Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan as new brand ambassador for Goods and Services Tax (GST). A 40-second video “GST – An initiative to create a unified national market” featuring him has already been shot and is being circulated by the Finance Ministry. In the video, Bachchan explains GST as a unifying force just like the three colours in the national flag. The GST will simplify a web of taxes, regulations and border levies by subsuming an array of central and state levies including excise duty, service tax and VAT.

Notes:
The Union Minister for Science & Technology Dr. Harsh Vardhan has launched a mobile app “Celebrating Yoga” in New Delhi to connect people through Yoga for scientific healthy living. The mobile app has been developed by Department of Science & Technology on the occasion of International Yoga Day (IYD) 2017. The aim of the app is to popularize Yoga and encourage people to practice yoga for a scientifically healthy living.

Notes:
India has re-nominated Justice Dalveer Bhandari as its candidate for another term as judge at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). His current term runs through February 2018. The ICJ elections will be held in November and if elected, he will serve a term of 9 years. During his term at the ICJ, Justice Bhandari has been engaged actively in the work of the Court. He has delivered individual opinions in eleven cases covering a broad spectrum of subjects such as maritime disputes, whaling in Antarctica, crime of genocide, nuclear disarmament, financing of terrorism and violation of sovereign rights. ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations based in The Hague in the Netherlands.

Notes:
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has appointed Syrian refugee Muzoon Almellehan as its newest and youngest Goodwill Ambassador on World Refugee Day (WRD) on June 20, 2017. With this, the 19-year-old female education activist Muzoon has become the first goodwill ambassador with official refugee status.

Notes:
Prof Predhiman Krishan Kaw (69), an internationally recognised plasma physicist and pioneer of thermo-nuclear fusion in India, has passed away in Gandhinagar, Gujarat on June 18, 2017. He was the founder director of the Institute of Plasma Research (IPR), Gandhinagar and served as the Professor of Department of Science and Technology (DST) at the institute till he breathed his last. The veteran scientist was honoured with Padma Shri in 1985 for his contribution in the field of producing energy through thermonuclear fusion. He was internationally known for his outstanding contribution to the physics of non-linear collective phenomena in plasmas with special emphasis on applications to thermonuclear fusion.