TNPSC Current Affairs August 31, 2020

www.tnpsc.academy – TNPSC Current Affairs August 31, 2020 (31/08/2020)

Topic: India and Its Foreign Policy

India Pulls Out of Kavkaz 2020

Recently, India has withdrawn its participation from Kavkaz 2020, a multinational tri-services exercise in Russia, citing Covid-19 as the official reason.

Other Possible Reasons for Withdrawal:

Participation of Chinese, Turkish and Pakistani troops.

The standoff at Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China has been ongoing since May 2020 and several rounds of talks for disengagement have failed to end the impasse.

However, in June 2020, Indian and Chinese military contingents marched at the Victory Day Parade at Red Square in Moscow to mark the 75th anniversary of World War II.

Kavkaz-2020 Exercise:

It is a strategic command-post exercise, and also known as Caucasus-2020. The tri-service exercise is part of a four-year exercise cycle of the Russian army. Previous editions of the exercise were held in 2012 and 2016.

In 2020 it will be conducted in the Astrakhan province of Southern Russia.

Member countries of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and Central Asian countries would be participating.

Topic: Places in News

Shetrunji and Bhadar Dams of Gujarat

Due to heavy rains, Shetrunji and Bhadar dams, the two largest reservoirs in the Saurashtra region (Gujarat), have overflowed simultaneously. This monsoon, rain is centred over south Gujarat, Saurashtra and Kutch regions while north and central Gujarat regions are highly rain-deficient.

Key facts:

Saurashtra region has received more than 100% of its average rainfall this year. However, in this peninsular region, almost every fourth monsoon remains a deficient monsoon.

Even within 11 districts of Saurashtra, spatial distribution of rainfall remains skewed, as evidenced by 12 different years in which either only Bhadar or Shetrunji dam overflowed.

Shetrunji River: It originates from the Amreli district. It is an east flowing river and outfalls into the Gulf of Khambhat.

Bhadar River: It originates from Jasdan taluka of Rajkot.

Topic: Terms in News

BIPOC

The term BIPOC became popular on the internet during the Black Lives Matter movement. It stands for “Black, Indigenous and People of Color”.

Key facts:

The BIPOC movement urges to acknowledge the diversity in skin color, race, and hair and advocates for inclusivity and representation across all areas of life, from politics to skin care.

It speaks against the invisible discrimation that exists in various industries.

For eg. In cosmetic industries, most of the products cater to only fair skin colours, excluding indigenous people of color and black people.

Standardization of beauty standards have adverse effects on the mental well-being of people who don’t meet the conventional standards.

It is been seen as a substitute to degrading and offensive terms like negro, african-american and minority.

The term People of Colour (POC) came into use during the 1960s to replace the words blacks, browns or coloured people.

The civil rights challenges, systemic oppression and racism faced by people under BIPOC are similar and thus, the term is used to reinforce the collective experience between Black and Indigenous people and to unite them.

Criticism: However, some people criticize the use of the term as it puts the separate problems of different groups of people in one basket thus erasing the chances of specialized solutions for each.

It is also being said that all groups in BIPOC do not face equal levels of injustice. Also, it is said to be a colonial tendency to homogenize different sets of people.

Topic: General Administration, Latest Diary of Events

RORO service of South Western Railway

First ever RORO service of South Western Railway from Nelamangla (near Bengaluru) to Bale (near Solapur) has been started. This shall be the only privately operated RORO train services on Indian Railways.

What is RORO?

Roll On Roll Off (RORO) is a concept of carrying road vehicles loaded with various commodities, on open flat railway wagons.

RORO services are combination of best features of road and rail transports in the sense that they offer door to door service with minimal handling transported by fat and direct rail link.

Advantages of RO-RO:

Faster movement of goods and essentials, reducing Time taken by trucks to reach destinations due to traffic congestion in between cities.

Reduces congestion on the roads.

Saves precious fuel.

Reduces carbon footprint.

Relief to crew of truck as it avoids long distance driving.

No hassles of check posts/toll gates etc.

Seamless Inter-operability between roadways & railways-Inter-modal transport on existing track.

Ensuring uninterrupted supply of essential commodities.

Topic: Persons in News

Noor Inayat Khan

She was Britain’s World War II spy. She became the first Indian-origin woman to be honoured with a memorial Blue Plaque in central London recently.

Khan was an undercover radio operator in Nazi-captured France in 1943 working for Britain’s Special Operations Executive (SOE).

The memorial plaque will be installed at her family home in central London, where she lived before leaving for France as a spy.

What is the Blue Plaque scheme?

It is run by English Heritage charity. It honours notable people and organisations connected with particular buildings across London.

About Spy Noor Inayat Khan:

Khan was born in 1914 to a Sufi saint Hazrat Inayat Khan and an American mother. She was also a descendent of Mysore king, Tipu Sultan. She received her education in London and Paris.

Later on, she joined Britain’s SOE in 1943 and became its first female radio operator to be sent to Nazi-occupied France. While undercover, she eluded the Nazi forces and transmitted messages to London.

It is said that when she was arrested by the Nazis, Khan did not reveal anything about her mission, not even her name. Eventually, she was shot in the head on September 11, 1944, at Dachau concentration camp.

Topic: Terms in News, Sports

An Armageddon in chess

It’s similar to a Super Over in cricket or a penalty shootout in hockey or football. In an Armageddon game White has more thinking time on the clock than Black but a draw on the board scores as a Black win. Normally White has five or six minutes and Black four or five for the entire game.

Black, considered at a disadvantage, is given a minute less to process the game and the handicap effectively puts the responsibility of a win on White.

Topic: Profile of States

Channapatna Toys

Channapatna toys are a particular form of wooden toys (and dolls) that are manufactured in the town of Channapatna in the Ramanagara district of Karnataka state. This traditional craft is protected as a geographical indication(GI).

As a result of the popularity of these toys, Channapatna is known as Gombegala Ooru (toy-town) of Karnataka.

Why in News? COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a crippling blow to the industry. It has forced many workers to scout for sundry jobs for survival.

Topic: Latest Diary of Events

Former President Pranab Mukherjee Passes Away

On August 31, 2020, the former President Pranab Mukherjee passed away at 84 after testing positive for COVID-19. The Government of India has announced seven-day state mourning.

Key facts:

The Bharat Ratna Pranab Mukherjee was being treated at the Army Research and Referral Hospital in Delhi. He had undergone an emergency surgery to remove a brain clot after testing positive for COVID-19 on August 10.

After the surgery, he was placed on ventilator support. He developed lung infection and the doctors found his renal parameters damaged. His condition declined further on August 31.