કોમન પ્રવેશ પરીક્ષા (CET) 2024-25 માટેની પરીક્ષા માટેનું જાહેરનામું જાહેર

Current Affairs 25^th March 2020

ICMR recommended Hydroxychloroquine for treatment of corona virus

Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), sold under the brand name Plaquenil among others, is a medication used for the prevention and treatment of certain types of malaria.

Specifically it is used for chloroquine-sensitive malaria. Other uses include treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and porphyria cutanea tarda. It is taken by mouth.

It is also being used as an experimental treatment for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This protocol has been approved by the Drug Controller General of India (DGCI), Dr. V. G. Somani.

South Korea and Italy used this medicine to prevent outbreak of COVID-19.

ICMR: Indian Council of Medical Research
Formation: 1911 (as IRFA- Indian Research Fund Association)
Type: Government Organization
Headquarters: New Delhi
Director General: Dr. Balaram Bhargava

Sri Lanka contributes $5 million to SAARC corona emergency fund

The Government of Sri Lanka has pledged to contribute $5 million to the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) Corona Emergency Fund proposed by Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi on March 15, 2020 with an initial grant of $10 million from India to deal with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Before Sri Lanka Governments of Bangladesh, Nepal and Afghanistan have pledged to contribute $1.5 million, $1 million and $1 million respectively to the fund. Earlier, the governments of Maldives & Bhutan also pledged to provide $200,000 and 100,000 respectively. The remaining one nation of SAARC.

India also provided material assistance in the forms of masks, gloves and disinfectants with a cost of $1 million to SAARC countries in the wake of the outbreak of Covid-19.

SAARC: South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation

Establishment: 8 December 1985
Headquarter: Kathmandu, Nepal
Secretary General: Amjad Hussain

Members: 8 – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Afghanistan, Nepal. Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka

Make in India: Pune-based Mylab becomes the 1st Indian firm to make diagnostic test kits for coronavirus

The National Institute of Virology (NIV) has given its nod to Pune (Maharashtra) based Mylab Discovery Solutions Pvt. Ltd to make diagnostic test kits (also known as Mylab PathoDetect COVID-19 Qualitative PCR kit) for novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

With this, it becomes the 1st Indian company to develop the first made-in-India test kit for the disease in a period of 6- weeks. Germany-based Altona Diagnostics has also received the approval.

India’s first Global Hyperloop Pod Competition organized by IIT-Madras

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras will organize India’s 1st Global Hyperloop Pod Competition named as ‘Indian Hyperloop Pod Competition’, to increase the awareness & enthusiasm about Hyperloop in India.

The competition aims to encourage student teams in India & abroad to develop a Hyperloop Pod & compete to construct the fastest, highly innovative, effective design & also prototypes of related technologies.

The final round to take place in the IIT-Madras campus in July 2020. On March 14, 2020 IIT-Madras launched Career Back 2 Women (CB2 Women) initiative through its “Digital Skills Academy” to skill women who want to return to a technical profession after a break in their career.

HYPERLOOP POD:

Hyperloop is the 5th transportation mode, a high speed train that travels in a vacuum tube. It is a sealed pipe where a pod can travel with reduced air resistance or friction. While being very efficient, the reduced air resistance allows the capsule within the tube to reach speeds of up to 1000 km/h conveying people or objects at high speed.
SpaceX & Tesla’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Elon Musk proposed the idea of Hyperloop to the world in 2013 through a white paper “Hyperloop Alpha.”

RBI opens Rs 59000cr emergency credit line for Yes Bank; a move after 16 years

After the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) reconstruction plan for Yes Bank, the latter has resumed its standard operations from last week. Now, to keep the liquidity of the bank for paying back to its depositors stable, RBI has opened an emergency line of credit of Rs 59,000 crore.

RBI: Reserve Bank of India
Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
Established: 1 April 1935; 84 years ago
Governor: Shaktikanta Das
Currency: Indian Rupee
Bank rate: 5.40%
Interest on reserves: 4.00%

India’s first dedicated COVID-19 Centre set up by Reliance in Mumbai, to produce 1,00,000 face-masks per day

As a measure to curb deadly coronavirus (COVID-19), Sir H.N. Reliance Foundation Hospital in collaboration with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), has set up India’s first 100 bedded center at Seven Hills Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra for positive COVID 19 patients.

The Centre fully funded by Reliance Foundation, includes a negative pressure room that helps in preventing cross contamination and helps control infection, among necessary infrastructure and bio-medical equipment.

Short Notes

• Recently, Huntington disease (HD) affected only brain of human body.
• India ranked at 120^th place in the latest Heritage Foundation Index of Economic Freedom.
• The oldest fossil of a modern bird, dating from the age of dinosaurs has been discovered whose nicknamed: WONDERCHICKEN
• Canada become the first country to back out of Tokyo Olympic 2020.
• United States successfully tested its first nuclear capable hypersonic missile.
• Romesh Sobti retires from Indsind Bank as MD and CEO.
• Shivraj Singh Chouhan become the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh.
• Zoya Akhter honored with IIFTC Tourism Impact Award 2020 held in Mumbai.
• Author Ruchika ZTomar wins PEN/Hemingway Award 2020.