Important Current Affairs 1st July 2021

INTERNATIONAL

China’s Baihetan Dam is world’s 2nd-biggest hydropower dam

•The Government of China officially turned on the first two generating units of the Baihetan Dam, the world’s second-biggest hydroelectric dam, to start generating energy. The Baihetan Dam is set up on the Jinsha River, in southwestern China.

•The dam is a 289-meter-tall (954-foot-tall) double-curvature arch dam, having 16 generating units.

•Each unit will have to generate a capacity of 1 million kilowatts, making it the second biggest in size after the “Three Gorges Dam” opened in 2003 on the Yangtze, with 22.5 million kilowatts of generating capacity.

•Through the Baihetan Dam, the Chinese government aims to curb surging fossil fuel demand by building more hydropower capacity.

•Both the dams have been built by the state-owned Three Gorges Group Corp., the world’s biggest investor in hydro, solar and wind generation.

NATIONAL

PM Modi virtually inaugurated Japanese-style Zen Garden and Kaizen Academy at Ahmedabad

•Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated a Zen Garden and Kaizen Academy at Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA) premises in Ahmedabad. These two new initiatives are part of PM’s vision of creating a ‘Mini-Japan’ in Gujarat. The newly launched Zen Garden in Ahmedabad will showcase several elements of Japanese art, culture, landscape and architecture.

•The Zen garden features a statue of Lord Buddha. The garden is built in partnership with the Japan Information and Study Centre at AMA and Indo-Japan Friendship Association (IJFA), Gujarat, supported by the Hyogo International Association (HIA), Japan.

Central minister Prakash Javadekar has inaugurated Asia’s longest and world’s fifth-longest High Speed Track

•Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Prakash Javadekar has inaugurated NATRAX- the High-Speed Track(HST) in Indore which is the longest such track in Asia. NATRAX, developed in an area of 1000 acres of land, is a one-stop solution for all sorts of high-speed performance tests for the widest categories of vehicles from 2 wheelers to heavy tractor-trailers. Launching the world-class 11.3 km High-Speed Track, Javadekar stated that India is destined to become a hub of automobiles, manufacturing, and spare parts.

•The NATRAX centre has multiple test capabilities like measurements of maximum speed, acceleration, constant speed fuel consumption, emission tests through real road driving simulation, high-speed handling and stability evaluation during manoeuvred such as lane change, high-speed durability testing, etc. and is a Centre of excellence for Vehicle Dynamics.

•According to the ministry, HST is used for measuring the maximum speed capability of high-end cars like BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Tesla and so forth which cannot be measured on any of the Indian test tracks. Being centrally located in Madhya Pradesh, it is accessible to most of the major OEMs. Foreign OEMs will be looking at NATRAX HST for the development of prototype cars for Indian conditions. At present, foreign OEMs go to their respective high-speed track abroad for high-speed test requirements.

SPORTS

Indian woman cricketer Shafali Verma became youngest Indian to make debut in all formats

•Opener Shafali Verma has become the youngest Indian cricketer to make a debut in all formats, when India took on England in the first ODI in Bristol. She took 17 years and 150 days to make her debut in all formats. She has become the fifth-youngest cricketer overall in the list of all format debuts.

•The list is topped by Afghanistan’s Mujeeb Ur Rahman at 17 years and 78 days is the youngest player to play all formats, followed by former England wicket-keeper Sarah Taylor. Australia’s Elysse Perry is third on the list, followed by Mohammad Amir.

ISSF shooting World Cup: India’s Rahi Sarnobat wins gold medal in the women’s 25m pistol event

•India’s Rahi Sarnobat clinched the gold medal in the women’s 25m pistol event at the ISSF shooting World Cup. She is the first Indian to win one silver and two bronze medals in the ongoing tournament. She scored 591 out of a maximum of 600 in the qualifying stage.

•France’s Mathilde Lamolle won a silver medal in the final. Russian Vitalina Batsarashkina won the bronze medal. Indian shooter Manu Bhaker finished at 7 positions. This is the last competition before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. ISSF World Cup 2021 is being held in Osijek, Croatia.

OBITUARY

Padma Shri awardee, K.V. Sampath Kumar Passed Away

•Editor of ‘Sudharma’ Sanskrit Daily, K.V. Sampath Kumar has passed away. He, along with his wife, was selected for the Padma Shri honour from the Government of India in 2020 for his contribution to the field of Literature & Education. He has also received several awards like the Siddarudha award, the Shivaratri Deshikendra Media award, the Abdul Kalam award and others.

•Sampath Kumar’s father Pandit Varadaraja Iyengar had launched ‘Sudharma’ in 1970. Sudharma is the only Sanskrit Daily in the world, printed and published from Mysuru.

IMPORTANT DAYS

National Chartered Accountants Day 2021: 01 July

•National Chartered Accountants Day or CA Day is celebrated on July 1 every year. This day is celebrated to commemorate the finding of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) by the parliament of India in 1949. Every year on the day of the establishment of the ICAI, CA Day is celebrated to honour the Chartered Accountant.

•ICAI is India’s national professional accounting body and also the second biggest accounting organization in the world. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) was established on this day in the year 1949 under an Act passed in Parliament. The ICAI is the sole licensing and regulatory body for the financial audit and accounting profession in India, and its recommendations are followed by everyone – from the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) to companies and accounting organizations.

National Postal Worker Day 2021: 01 July

•The National Postal Worker Day is marked every year on July 1 globally in recognition of the contribution made by postal workers in our society. The day is a unique opportunity to say ‘thank you not only to postmen but also to all delivery personnel, as online shopping has become a lifeline for many of us.

•The day was initiated by a popular postal service provider from Seattle, the United States of America in 1997 to felicitate and honour the co-postal workers for their dedication.

National Doctors’ Day 2021: 01 July

•The National Doctors’ Day is organized on 01 July annually in India by the Indian Medical Association (IMA). The day is celebrated to honour the great physicians and help us understand the importance of doctors in our lives and value them, to offer them our respects by commemorating one of their greatest representatives.

•The day commemorates the birth anniversary of the second Chief Minister of West Bengal, Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy who was born on July 1, 1882, and died on the same date in 1962.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS

Book “Anomalies in Law and Justice” released by CJI NV Ramana

•Chief Justice of India Justice NV Ramana has released former Supreme Court judge RV Raveendran’s book “Anomalies in Law and Justice”.

•The book is an attempt to explain to the layman that the law and the legal system is still evolving and that it requires more critical thinking to resolve issues that have persisted in the system for a long time. The book covers procedural as well as substantive law relating to civil procedure, electoral reforms and the alternate dispute resolution mechanism.