Kerala Launched Online Incubator for Student Startups
• Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan launched SV.CO, purportedly world’s first digital student incubator, as a digital makeover of the Startup Village in Kochi on July 14. 2016.
• The digital incubator will function on Public Private Partnership (PPP) with Central government, State government and a private company.
• It will provide them a completely digital incubation framework, ranging from application for admission to teaching, mentoring and graduation.
• It will thus provide opportunities to students in far-flung cities and towns who may not have access to physical infrastructure or the mentoring that they need in the early stages of entrepreneurship.
Bihar Signed MoU with Bangkok Firm for Disaster Risk Reduction
• The State government signed a Memorandum of Understandings (MoU) with Bangkok-based Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (ADPC) to implement the Roadmap for Disaster Risk Reduction in Bihar (2015-30) on July 13, 2016.
• As per provisions of the MoU, the ADPC will provide technical assistance to the State government to implement the Roadmap for Disaster Risk Reduction in Bihar (2015-30).
• Despite such irregular rainfall, Bihar has been afflicted by floods due to discharge of water from rivers in Nepal, he said and recalled the Koshi tragedy of 2008 which caused large scale loss of lives and damage to properties.
Maharashtra Police Launched Four Apps to Strengthen Public Security System
• In order to strengthen public security system, Maharashtra police has launched four mobile apps for timely intervention into emergency situations on July 11, 2016.
• The four applications—Pratisaad-Ask, Police Milra, Vahanchoritakrar and Railway helpline app were launched by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Nagpur.
• With the launch of these apps, dependency on police emergency dumber 100 would reduce substantially and citizens can reach out to police to report any emergency situation or crime like robbery or assault on women 24×7.
Second Unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant got Operational in Tamil Nadu
• The second unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tamil Nadu gets operational. Nuclear Power Corporation of India Chairman and Managing Director fCMD) SK Sharma said that 1000 MW plants attained criticality on July 10,2016.
• Atomic Energy Regulatory Board had given its consent to the Nuclear Power Corporation of India, a PSU under the Department of Atomic Energy which manages the plant, to begin the criticality process.
• Power generation will be stepped-up to full capacity of 1000 MW soon. The atomic reactor will provide electricity to Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala and Karnataka.
Kerala Government Imposed ‘Fat Tax’ to Slow Obesity Rates
• Kerala became the first State in the country to impose a ‘fat tax’ on junk food in a bid to counter rising obesity on July 8,2016.
• The Kerala government imposed a 14.5% tax on burgers, pizzas, doughnuts, sandwiches and pasta sold through branded restaurants is one that is expected to have a positive impact on public health.
• In October, 2011, Denmark became the first country to introduce a tax on saturated fat, Hungary taxes food high in fat and sugar, France, soft drinks, and Mexico, junk food and sugar-sweetened beverages.
• In the USA. 34 States and the district of Columbia have food taxes that affect sugar-sweetened drinks.
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Punjab Government Launched Rapid Rural Police Response System
• Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal launched nation’s first Rapid Rural Police Response System across the State to ensure prompt and effective police response in villages to counter any crime or law and order situation on July 3, 2016.
• Under this response system, any residents from rural area would only have to make a call on police helpline 100 for any kind of assistance from the police force.
• The new system would be available for 24 hours a day, 7 day s a week to respond to all kinds of emergencies or ‘call-for-hefp’ from the citizens of the State.
• 446 villages of the district have been divided into 25 beats and a computerised control room will be set-up at district level.
Brazil Declared ‘Measles-Free’
• The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared Brazil free of measles in July, 2016, after no case of the disease was registered in the year of 2015.
• Brazil saw no domestic cases of measles from 1985 to 2000, although it broke out in 2013 in the north-eastern States of Pernambuco and Ceara.
• The WHO had worked alongside the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) to stamp out the disease.
• Measles can be transmitted orally, through mucus or saliva and mainly affects children, ft can be spread rapidly through the air due to sneezing or a cough, and the first symptoms appear after 10 days with red spots on the skin.
China Unveiled World’s Largest Amphibious Aircraft
• China inaugurated the world’s largest amphibious aircraft to fight forest fires and perform marine rescue missions on July 23, 2016.
• The aircraft has a maximum take-off weight of 53.5 tonnes, a maximum flight range of 4500 km, and it can collect 12 tonnes of water in 20 seconds, according to state aircraft maker the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC).
• The plane is part of a massive program to modernise China’s armed forces, the world’s largest, which includes the development of aircraft carriers, anti-satellite missiles and stealth fighters.
State of Emergency Declared in Turkey
• Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared a three-month State of emergency following a botched coup attempt on July 20, 2016.
• The schools and other institutions are suspected by Turkish authorities of having Jinks to Gulen, who has many followers in Turkey. Gulen denies any involvement in the coup attempt in which at least 246 people were killed.
• The State of Emergency announcement needs to be published in a State gazette and lawmakers have to approve it for it to take effect.
• Turkey imposed emergency rule in the South-East in 1987, allowing officials to set curfews, issue search and arrest warrants and restrict gatherings as the security forces fought Kurdish rebels. It was gradually lifted by 2002.
