Current Affairs Quiz - August, 2022

Notes:
The Government has raised the thresholds for prosecutions and arrests under the Customs Act from ₹20 lakh to ₹50 lakh for smuggling and illegal imports of goods in baggage.
The limits were also raised from ₹1 crore to ₹2 crore for cases involving commercial fraud. The thresholds will not apply for offences relating to fake currency notes, arms, ammunitions and explosives, antiques, art treasures, wildlife items and endangered species of flora and fauna.

Notes:
Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari launched India’s first Double Decker AC electric bus in Mumbai.
Switch, a subsidiary of Ashok Leyland unveiled India’s first electric double-decker air-conditioned bus – Switch EiV 22. It is the first – semi low floor, air conditioned, electric double-decker with wider door on rear overhang and a rear staircase.

Notes:
Rajasthan accounted for the highest share in the total cost of projects sanctioned by banks and financial institutions in 2021-22.
As per an article published in RBI bulletin, Rajasthan has retained the top place for two consecutive years. It was followed by Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat. The share of the top five states viz., Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu increased to more than 50 per cent during the last two years.

Notes:
The Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated the National Seed Congress in 2022 in Gwalior.
The State Academy of Agricultural and Allied Sciences (SAAS) was launched. The efforts of NAAS at the national level and SAAS at the regional level will further accelerate the activities of agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry science and promotion of related research and education.

Notes:
International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence based on Religion or Belief is observed on 22 August.
Freedom of religion or belief, freedom of opinion and expression, right to peaceful assembly and right to freedom of association are enshrined in articles 18, 19 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Notes:
17-year-old Indian chess prodigy, R. Praggnanandhaa recorded a third consecutive win in his career against the Norwegian great Magnus Carlsen.
Praggnanandhaa defeated the reigning 5-time World Chess Champion in his final match at the FTX Crypto Cup.  Carlsen went on to win the FTX Crypto Cup while the Indian Grand Master finished at second place in the tournament.

Notes:
Indian General Insurance Company, HDFC ERGO has launched the country’s first one-stop-solution portal for Electric Vehicles (EV) named ‘All Things EV’.
It aims to cater to the needs of existing and potential Electric Vehicles (EV) users. The platform helps the existing users with information on nearby charging stations, locations of charging stations, route for intercity commute and rich content around the maintenance of their EVs.

Notes:
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed senior Indian bureaucrat Alkesh Kumar Sharma to the inaugural Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Leadership Panel.
He is among 10 distinguished digital governance experts selected from across the globe. He is a 1990 batch IAS officer from Rajasthan and a former Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat. He has earlier served the UNDP as the national project director for Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation.

Notes:
The government issued an order directing all companies to sell their products under a single brand name of ‘Bharat’, under the ‘One Nation, One Fertiliser’ plan, to bring uniformity.
The fertilisers will have brand name as ‘Bharat Urea’, ‘Bharat DAP’, ‘Bharat MOP’ and ‘Bharat NPK’ irrespective of the company that manufactures it, both in the public or the private sector.The logo of Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janurvarak Pariyojana (PMBJP) will also have to be displayed on the bags.

Notes:
The seventy-second session of the UN World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee for Africa in Lomé, Togo, adopted the strategy, known as PEN-PLUS.
That plan will be implemented as a regional strategy to address severe non-communicable diseases at first-level referral health facilities. The strategy supports building the capacity of district hospitals and other first-level referral facilities to diagnose and manage severe non-communicable diseases.