1) World Hepatitis Day celebrated on 28th July
•World Health Organization is observed on 28th July every year as “World Hepatitis Day”. This day is celebrated to enhance awareness of viral hepatitis, an inflammation of the liver that causes a range of health problems, including liver cancer.
•This year’s theme is “Hepatitis-free future,” with a strong focus on preventing hepatitis B among mothers and newborns.
•The date of 28 July was chosen because it is the birthday of Nobel-prize winning scientist Dr Baruch Blumberg, who discovered the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and developed a diagnostic test and vaccine for the virus. There are five main strains of the hepatitis virus – A, B, C, D and E. Together, hepatitis B and C are the most common cause of deaths, with 1.3 million lives lost each year.
2) World Nature Conservation Day: 28th July
•World Nature Conservation Day is observed on 28th July every year. World Conservation Day is celebrated internationally to increase awareness about the best practices to protect our natural resources. The Earth is supplied a limited amount of properties that we all rely upon each day like water, air, soil and trees.
3) PM launches High Throughput COVID testing facilities
•Three high throughput COVID-19 testing facilities have been launched by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. The three testing facilities located at the National Institutes of Indian Council of Medical Research, at Kolkata, Noida and Mumbai, will increase the testing capacity by almost 10,000 daily tests. Hence, it will help in the early detection and treatment of the virus, thereby helping fight the spread of the COVID-19.
•These testing facilities will not be limited to testing for COVID, and will also be able to test for Hepatitis B and C, HIV, Dengue and several other diseases. It will also decrease turn-around-time and exposure of lab personnel to infectious clinical materials. These facilities have been set up strategically at ICMR-National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research, Noida; ICMR-National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health, Mumbai; and ICMR-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Kolkata.
4) Dr Harsh Vardhan launched “Mausam” app for weather forecasts
•Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr Harsh Vardhan has launched the mobile app “Mausam” for weather forecasts. This app is launched on the occasion of the 14th foundation day of Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES). This app is designed and developed by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune and the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
5) India hands over 10 broad-gauge railway locos to Bangladesh
•India has handed over 10 broad-gauge railway locomotives to Bangladesh. The locomotives were flagged off from the Gede station of the Easter Railway in West Bengal’s Nadia district while the receiving station will be of Darshana on the other side. With this, India aims to offer Bangladesh mobility solutions for both intra-country and inter-country movement. These locomotives will help in managing the increasing volume of passenger and freight train operations in Bangladesh.
•The rail collaboration between India & Bangladesh is a vital element of bilateral collaboration to promote trade and connectivity as well as boosting the economic partnership. Currently there are four operational rail links between the two countries connecting West Bengal with Bangladesh.
6) DRDO launches ‘Dare to Dream 2.0’ contest
•An innovation contest ‘Dare to Dream 2.0’ has been launched by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). The contest was launched on the 5th death anniversary of former President and noted scientist Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. ‘Dare to Dream 2.0’ has been launched as an open challenge to promote the innovators and startups of the country.
•The contest has been launched for emerging technologies to encourage the individuals & startups for innovation in defence and aerospace technologies in the country. After due evaluation, an expert committee will decide the winners of the contest. The winners would be awarded with prize money of up to Rs 10 lakh for startup and Rs five lakh to individual category.
7) Hichem Mechichi becomes new Prime Minister of Tunisia
•Tunisia’s interior minister, Hichem Mechichi has been appointed as the new Prime Minister of the country. He succeeded Elyes Fakhfakh, who resigned over allegations of a conflict of interest. He has a month to form a government.
•As well as being the interior minister in the outgoing government, Mechichi has been a counsellor to President Saied, handling legal matters. He has previously been chief of staff at the Ministry of Transport and also served in the Ministry of Social Affairs.
8) India-Indonesia Defence Ministers’ Dialogue held in New Delhi
•Defence Ministers’ Dialogue between India and Indonesia was held in New Delhi. The Indian delegation was led by the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh while the Indonesian delegation was led by Defence Minister General Prabowo Subianto. During the defence ministers dialogue, General Subianto was honored with ceremonial Guard of Honour.
•Defence Ministers’ Dialogue led to the agreement between the participants to further improve the bilateral defence cooperation in mutually agreed areas. They also identified the potential areas of cooperation such as in the field of defence industries and defence technology and committed themselves to bolster bilateral cooperation in these areas and take them to the next level of deliverables.
9) “Quest for Restoring Financial Stability in India” authored by Viral V.Acharya
•The book titled “Quest for Restoring Financial Stability in India” authored by former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) deputy governor Viral V.Acharya. The book is published by SAGE Publications India Pvt Ltd. The book portrays his quest to restore financial stability in India and offers a concrete plan for sustained improvement.
10) “The India Way: Strategies for an Uncertain World” authored by Dr. S Jaishankar
•The former diplomat, and current Minister of External Affairs in the Government of India, S Jaishankar, is releasing his new book “The India Way: Strategies for an Uncertain World”. The book was published under the HarperCollins India publications.
