DAILY GK 10-11 JULY 2024

 DAILY GK 10-11 JULY 2024

1.       DRDO INTRODUCES INDIGENOUS LIGHT TANK NAMED ZORAWAR

·         The Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO) unveiled the "Zorawar" Light Tank at its facility in Hazira, Gujarat to propel indigenization and modernization efforts of the Indian armed forces.

·         Collaboration and Development: The Light Tank was developed as a public-private venture with DRDO collaborating with Larsen & Toubro (L&T).

·         The 25-ton vehicle was designed and developed in a record time of 2 years.

 

2.       BRITISH GRAND PRIX 2024

·         British Formula One (F1) Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton won the F1 British Grand Prix 2024 held at Silverstone Circuit in England, the United Kingdom (UK).

·         He has become the first F1 driver to have won this race for the 9th time extending the record, which he previously shared with Michael Schumacher.

·         Red Bull’s three times world champion Red Bull’s Max Verstappen finished 2nd in the race followed by McLaren’s Lando Norris on the 3rd spot respectively.

 


3.       CHEF-DE-MISSION OF INDIAN CONTINGENT FOR PARIS 2024 OLYMPICS

·         Shooter Gagan Narang, four-time Olympian and London 2012 Olympic Games men’s 10m Air Rifle bronze medalist, has been appointed as the Chef-de-Mission for the Indian at the Paris 2024 Olympics, officially, ‘Games of the XXXIII Olympiad’ in Paris, France.

·         He was elevated from the deputy chef-de-mission position following the resignation of Padma Vibhushan awardee MC Mary Kom from Chef-de-Mission position in April 2024 amid personal reasons.

·         The Chef-de-Mission serves as the spokesperson for the team ahead of the Olympics, attending seminars with athletes, management, and the Mission Team.

·         They maintain a diplomatic stance to resolve conflicts or controversies and ensure adherence to Olympic protocols.

·         India’s two-time Olympic medallist badminton player, PV Sindhu, and 13-time Commonwealth Games medallist table tennis veteran A Sharath Kamal will be flag bearer during the Opening Ceremony of Paris Olympics.

·         Olympic gold medalist in javelin throw Neeraj Chopra will lead the 28-member Indian athletics contingent at the Paris Olympics.

·         Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President – P. T. Usha

·         Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi

·         Formed – 1927

 

4.       SAINT-DENIS REUNION BADMINTON OPEN 2024

·         Indian badminton players Tasnim Mir and Tharun Mannepalli won the women’s and men’s singles titles at the Saint-Denis Reunion Open 2024 (3rd Edition) held in Saint-Denis, the capital of the French overseas departement of Reunion in the Western Indian Ocean and region of France.

·         In the Men’s Singles Title, Tharun Mannepalli defeated Yudai Okimoto of Japan.

·         In the Women’s Singles Title, Tasnim Mir won by defeating compatriot(from India) Rakshitha Sree

·         In the men’s doubles, the duo of Prakash Raj and Gouse Shaik was defeated by Julien Maio and William Villeger of France and secured the runner -up position.

 

5.       ASIAN BILLIARDS CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE

·         Ace Indian cueist Pankaj Advani fell short in his quest to secure a hat-trick of titles, losing 2-5 to compatriot Dhruv Sitwala in the final of the 2024 Asian Billiards Championship.

·         2024 Asian Billiards Championship was held in  Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

·         Anupama Ramachandran emerged victorious in the women’s snooker categories 

 

6.       UKRAINE'S YAROSLAVA MAHUCHIKH SETTING A NEW HIGH JUMP WORLD RECORD

·         Ukraine's Yaroslava Mahuchikh set a new world record in the women's high jump at the Paris Diamond League, clearing 10 meters and breaking a record that had stood since 1987.

 

7.       10 KIRTI CHAKRAS, 26 SHAURYA CHAKRAS CONFERRED

·         President of India, Droupadi Murmu conferred 36 Peacetime Gallantry Awards including, 10 Kirti Chakras, of which 7 were given posthumously and 26 Shaurya Chakras, of which 7 were given posthumously to the personnel of the Armed Forces, Central Armed Police Forces and State or Union Territory (UT) Police.

·         Among the recipients of Kirti Chakra given posthumously, 4 were from  Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF): Inspector Dilip Kumar Das, Head Constable Bablu Rabha and Constable Sambhu Roy and Raj Kumar Yadava of 210 Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) Battalion.

·         Apart from 6 other personnel from the India Army, Constable Safiullah Qadri of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) Police was also bestowed a Shaurya Chakra posthumously.

 

8.       CHEVALIER DE LA LÉGION D’HONNEUR BY FRANCE

·         Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Chairperson of HCL Technologies Limited (HCLTech), Indian multinational information technology (IT) consulting company, has been honoured with France’s highest civilian Award  – the “Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur” (Knight of the Legion of Honour).

·         The award recognises her contributions to the business her efforts to strengthen economic ties between France and India and her commitment to social and environmental causes.

·         Thierry Mathou, Ambassador of France to India presented the award on behalf of the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, at a ceremony held at the Residence of France in Delhi.

·         Roshni Nadar Malhotra took charge as the Chairperson of HCLTech from her Father Shiv Nadar, founder of HCLTech,  in July 2020 and became the 1st woman to lead a listed IT company in India.

·         Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur was established in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte.

·         The award is given by the French Republic for outstanding service to France, regardless of the recipient’s nationality.

 

9.       HANS VON HENTIG AWARD

·         In a significant recognition of his contributions to the field of victimology, retired professor K. Chockalingam from Tamil Nadu, India, has been selected for the esteemed Hans von Hentig award.

·         This honour highlights the global impact of Indian scholarship in the study of crime victims and their experiences within the criminal justice system.

·         The Hans von Hentig award is named after the renowned German criminologist Hans von Hentig, who made significant contributions to the field of victimology in the mid-20th century.

·         This award is considered one of the highest honors in the field of victimology and criminal justice studies.

 

10.    DR. C. NARAYANA REDDY NATIONAL LITERARY AWARD 2024

·         Tamil author Sivashankari has been honoured with the prestigious Dr. C. Narayana Reddy National Literary Award by the Sushila Narayana Reddy Trust for her significant contributions to Tamil literature.

·         Prize of award ₹5 lakh, a memento, and a shawl.

 

11.    PM MODI AWARDED 'ORDER OF ST. ANDREW THE APOSTLE' BY RUSSIA

·         Prime Minister Narendra Modi was officially awarded the ‘Order of St. Andrew the Apostle’ by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

·         This award recognizes Modi’s exceptional contributions to strengthening the bilateral relations between India and Russia.

·         The Order of St. Andrew the Apostle is Russia’s highest order of chivalry.

·         It was established by Tsar Peter the Great in 1698 to honour Saint Andrew, Russia’s patron saint and the first apostle of Jesus.

·         The insignia includes a blue sash, a badge featuring the cross of St. Andrew, and a star worn on the chest.

·         The badge is a golden cross with an image of Saint Andrew crucified on an X-shaped cross.

 

12.    GRSE ACCELERATED INNOVATION NURTURING SCHEME 2024

·         Minister of State (MoS) Sanjay Seth, Ministry of Defence (MoD), launched the 2nd edition of the “GRSE Accelerated Innovation Nurturing Scheme (GAINS 2024)” in Kolkata, West Bengal.

·         This innovative scheme by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Limited (GRSE) aims to find solutions for shipyard-related problems and promote technology development through Indian start-ups.

·         GAINS is a national initiative launched by GRSE in 2023 as an open challenge to inspire start-ups and other entities to create innovative solutions.

·         It has a two-stage selection process Stage I: Initiation/Familiarization phase.

·         Stage II: Submission of a detailed Project Report with technical descriptions.

·         The themes for GAINS 2024 are same as 2023 edition viz Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Shipbuilding, Renewable/Green Energy and Energy Efficiency,Efficiency Enhancement in Shipyard Operations

·         Participants can receive up to Rs 5 lakh each for delivering the Project Report in Stage II, based on GRSE’s evaluation.

 

13.    VIETNAM TOPS LIST OF MOST AFFORDABLE COUNTRIES FOR EXPATS

·         According to the Expat Insider 2024 Survey, for the Personal Finance Index category conducted by Inter Nations, Vietnam topped the list of most affordable countries for expatriates or immigrants for 4th consecutive term as 86% of expats in the country rated the cost of living positively, 65% are satisfied with the financial situation and 68% considered their household income comfortable enough for survival.

·         India was ranked at 6th spot among the top 10 most affordable countries for immigrants in the list.

·         Colombia, a Latin American country has improved its ranking from 7th (in 2023) to 2nd position (2024), followed by Indonesia and Panama ranked at 3rd and 4th position in the list respectively.

·         It has evaluated destinations based on key factors such as: quality of life, digital connectivity, housing availability, career prospects, salary levels, and job security.

·         Among the top 10 countries in the rankings, are from Asia region: Vietnam(1st), Indonesia (3rd ), the Philippines (5th ), India (6th),Thailand(8th) and China (10th ) spot.

·         For the 1st time, Brazil made it to top 10 affordable countries for expats by replacing Malaysia which slipped to 11th position in 2024 rankings.

·         The top 5 least affordable countries in 2024 rankings are: Canada (53th), Finland (52nd), the United Kingdom (UK) (51st), Ireland (50th) and Norway (49th).

·         Except, Canada, remaining 4 least affordable countries are from Europe.

·         Among the new bottom 10 countries in 2024 rankings, 3 are from Middle-Eastern countries: Bahrain (46th ), TUrkiye (45th ) and Kuwait (44th ).