Daily Current Affairs, 18th May 2020

1) World Telecommunication and Information Society Day: 17th May

•World Telecommunication and Information Society Day is observed globally on 17th May every year. The main aim to celebrates the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD) is to help raise awareness of the possibilities that the use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) can bring to societies and economies.

•The theme of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day of 2020: “Connect 2030: ICTs for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”

2) World Hypertension Day observed globally on 17th May

•World Hypertension Day is observed globally on 17th May every year. The main aim of celebrates the day is to promote public awareness of increasing high blood pressure (BP) and to encourage citizens of all countries to prevent and control this silent killer. The day was celebrated for the 1st time in May 2005. World Hypertension Day (WHD) is an initiative of the World Hypertension League (WHL), an affiliated section of the International Society of Hypertension.

•The theme for World Hypertension Day 2020: Measure Your Blood Pressure, Control It, Live Longer. The theme focuses on increasing high blood pressure (BP) awareness in all populations around the world.

•The WHL has announced that it will postpone the celebration of World Hypertension Day (WHD) 2020 until October 17, 2020, due to global COVID-19 pandemic.

3) International Museum Day celebrated on 18 May

•International Museum Day is celebrated every year on 18 May to raise awareness about the fact that, “Museums are an important means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, cooperation and peace among peoples.” The International Museum Day 2020 was celebrated with the theme “Museums for Equality: Diversity and Inclusion”.

•International Museum Day was celebrated for the first time 40 years ago. The day is being celebrated all around the world and also features the participation of more and more museums from the worldwide.

4) NDMA develops dashboard “National Migrant Information System”

•An online dashboard “National Migrant Information System (NMIS)” has been developed by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The dashboard has been developed by NDMA to secure information regarding the movement of migrants and to facilitate the smooth movement of stranded persons across States.

•A central repository on migrant workers would be maintained by the dashboard NMIS. It will also support in speedy inter-State communication/co-ordination to facilitate the smooth movement of migrant workers to their native places. It also comprises of additional advantages such as contact tracing, which may be beneficial in the overall COVID-19 response work. With the help of the data integrated in the dashboard, the states will be able to visualize how many people are going out from where and how many are reaching their destination States.

5) Defence Testing Infrastructure scheme approved by Defence Minister

•A Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme (DTIS) has been approved by the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The scheme with an outlay of Rs 400 crore, has been approved to offer private sector defence and aerospace companies affordable facilities to test as well as validate the weaponry designed by them. The DTIS scheme has been approved to promote indigenous defence capability, specifically amongst micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and start-ups. Under this scheme, the private sector will also have access to facilities such as sophisticated and costly testing facilities for firearms, ammunition, electronics and radar at government expense.

•The Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme intends to set up Greenfield Defence Testing Infrastructure as a common facility in Defence Industrial Corridors (DICs), under the private sector with government assistance. The scheme will run for 5 years and envisages the setting up of six to eight test facilities in partnership with private industry.

6) Benjamin Netanyahu secures 5th term as Israeli Prime Minister

•Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has won the Israeli national election, securing a record fifth term in office, after a controversial power-sharing deal with rival-turned-partner Benny Gantz. President Reuven Rivlin officially granted Netanyahu, two-week mandate to form his government, following which, Netanyahu announced the formation of his coalition government on 17 May 2020.

Under the three-year coalition deal:

•Netanyahu will serve as Prime Minister for the coming 18 months, which would keep him in power until November 13, 2021.

•Till then Benny Gantz will serve as the Defence Minister of the country.

•After 18 months, both of them will swap their roles and Netanyahu will become Defence Minister while Gantz will be the new Prime Minister.

7) NRAI tie-up with DotPe to build tech platform

•National Restaurants Association of India (NRAI) has partnered with fintech start-up DotPe to build its own tech platform. This platform enables them with online payments for digital ordering, bill settlements, and contactless dining. DotPe will provide us with a tech solution.

•NRAI is the apex body of the Food and Beverage Industry in India. This partnership would directly take on existing food-tech aggregators, Zomato and Swiggy. NRAI represents over five lakh restaurant businesses. It is also looking for different delivery and logistics companies. It is also exploring synergies with social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram to provide and ordering facilities and visibility for restaurant partners who could potentially be its members.

8) HDFC’s Zubair Iqbal becomes new MD of J&K Bank

•Senior vice president of HDFC Bank, Zubair Iqbal has appointed as new managing director of Jammu and Kashmir Bank by Jammu and Kashmir Government. Iqbal will have a three-year tenure.

•RK Chibber, who currently holds the position of Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of J&K Bank, will continue to serve as the Chairman of the bank for the next three years. The appointments are based upon the continuous directions by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to separate the positions of Chairman and Managing Director for better governance.

9) A Book titled “Wuhan Diary: Dispatches from a Quarantined City” authored by Fang Fang

•The book called “Wuhan Diary: Dispatches from a Quarantined City” authored by Chinese literary writer Fang Fang. This book is a compilation of online diary entries and social media posts that document 60 days of lockdown during COVID-19. The book was published by HarperNonFiction.

•On January 25, 2020, after the Chinese central government imposed a lockdown in Wuhan, Fang Fang began publishing an online diary. In the following days & weeks, author’s nightly postings gave voice to the fears, frustrations, anger, and hope of millions of her fellow citizens, which reflects the psychological impact of forced isolation, the role of the internet as both community lifeline and source of misinformation, and the lives of neighbours and friends taken by the deadly virus.