Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2021

Notes:
The ongoing 74th World Health Assembly declared January 30 as ‘World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day’.
The proposal to recognise the day was initiated by the United Arab Emirates and it was adopted unanimously by the member countries. NTDs are a group of infections caused by a variety of pathogens such as viruses, bacteria, protozoa and parasitic worms.

Notes:
Every year, 31st May is observed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as the “World No Tobacco Day”. The theme for this year is “Commit to quit”.
This day was created by the WHO members in the year 1987 to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the deaths associated with using tobacco. A resolution was passed in 1988 to observe 31st May as the No Tobacco Day.

Notes:
Mumbai-based startup Indra Water has developed a disinfection system named Vajra Kavach, which helps in reusing the PPEs and other materials used by healthcare workers.
It removes any possible traces of the disease-causing SARS-Cov-2 virus from Personal Protective Equipment, N95 masks, coats, gloves and gowns. It is also an environment-friendly system and will reduce load wastage.

Notes:
The State Bank of India, in its economic research report “Ecowrap” has predicted India’s GDP to grow at 7.9% for the FY 2021-22.
Earlier the report had predicted a growth of 10.4%, and it has now been downgraded due to the large impact of the second wave of Covid-19 pandemic in the country.

Notes:
NASA has planned to send 128 baby squids and some 5,000 tardigrades, also called as Water Bears to the International Space Station for research purposes.
The water animals will be launched aboard SpaceX’s 22nd cargo resupply mission to the ISS. The experiments will also help to understand how beneficial microbes interact with animals. The experiments would also help design protective measures for astronauts going for long space travel.

Notes:
Isaac Herzog has been elected as the 11th president of Israel, by way of a secret ballot. He is a labour leader and son of a former President.
Isaac Herzog won a majority vote of 87 out of the 120-member house there by defeating his opponent Miriam Peretz by a large margin.

Notes:
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index is a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities including cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and sugar.
According to the recent index, food prices in May were 4.8% higher than April. This is registered as the biggest monthly rise since October 2010. The prices was also 39.7% higher than this time last year, May 2020.

Notes:
Every year, 5th of June is observed as the World Environment Day by the United Nations. This day first came into being in the year 1972.
The theme for this year is “Reimagine – Recreate – Restore” and the Global Host for 2021 World Environment Day is Pakistan.

Notes:
The State Horticulture Ministry of Himachal Pradesh announced that the Government will test the use of indigenously developed ‘Anti-hail guns, to help horticulturists facing crop damage due to hailstorms.
An anti-hail gun is a machine which generates shock waves to disrupt the growth of hailstones in clouds. The gun is fired by feeding explosive mixture of acetylene gas and air into its lower chamber, which releases a shock wave.

Notes:
The Delhi government is set to celebrate ‘Van Mahotsav’ from June 26 to July 11 as part of a mega plantation drive.
Under the initiative, 33 lakh saplings will be planted across the city this year. Saplings of various medicinal plants will be available to government-run nurseries free of cost. Delhi’s environment department released a booklet with the description of all the plants available in the nurseries.