15th April 2019 Current Affairs
Medical devices to get CDSCO certification
- All imported, as well as locally manufactured medical devices sold in India will soon be required to clear specific safety and quality standards.
- The move is aimed at preventing fiascos such as the one involving Johnson and Johnson hip implants.
- The import, manufacture, and sale of all medical devices will need to be certified by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).
Additional post of Deputy CAG cleared
- The government has decided to create an additional post of Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General, which will oversee coordination of audits of states as well as telecommunication.
- The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 April 2019.
- Expenditure on account of the creation of this post will be about Rs 21 lakh.
Burka and Milaw won Paris Marathon
- Ethiopians Abrha Milaw and Gelete Burka won the men and women’s races to end Kenya’s dominance at Paris Marathon on 14 April 2019.
- Milaw won it in 2 hours, 07 minutes and 04 seconds.
- Clémence Calvin of France settled fourth in a personal best of 2:23:36.
Jean Michel: New PM of Haiti
- President Jovenel Moise announced that Jean Michel Lapin will be the new Prime Minister of Haiti, a French-speaking Caribbean Community country.
- Lapin had been serving as acting prime minister ever since 93 of the 103 members of the Chamber of Deputies voted in favour of removing Prime Minister Jean-Henry Ceant.
- The capital of Haiti is Port-au-Prince and Haitian gourde is its currency.
Lewis Hamilton won Formula One’s 1,000th race
- In motor racing, Lewis Hamilton won the Chinese Grand Prix for a record sixth time on 14 April 2019.
- He seized the overall lead from his Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas in Formula One’s 1,000th world championship race.
- Valtteri Bottas was second for his team’s third one-two finish in as many races this season. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel took third place.
Tiger Woods clinched his 5th Masters
- Golfer Tiger Woods clinched his fifth Masters and a 15th major title.
- He finished with a two-under-par 70 to win on 13 under, one clear of fellow Americans Dustin Johnson, Xander Schauffele and Brooks Koepka.
- He is just three majors behind the all-time record of Jack Nicklaus.
Kento Momota won Singapore Open
- Japan’s Kento Momota won the Singapore Open final 10-21, 21-19, 21-13 on 14 April 2019.
- The World champion dug deep to fight back from 16-11 behind in the second game to force a decider.
- In the women’s final, Tai Tzu-ying claimed her second Singapore Open title with a 21-19, 21-15 victory over Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara.
UNESCO Cano Press Freedom Prize announced
- The UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize 2019 has been awarded to Reuters reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo.
- The prize carries a reward of $25,000 Prize.
- It recognises the exceptional courage in reporting on alleged human rights violations in Myanmar’s state of Rakhine.
- The award was established in 1997 and named after Guillermo Cano Isaza.
Steel Minister Birendra Singh resigns
- Union Steel Minister Chaudhry Birendra Singh resigned from the Union Cabinet as well as from the membership of Rajya Sabha.
- However, he will continue to be a member of the ‘Bhartiya Janata Party’ (BJP).
- Birendra Singh was elected to Rajya Sabha in 2016 for a six years term which means he still has more than three years left in the upper house of the Parliament.
Unique oil-eating bacteria discovered
- At the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the Earth’s oceans, scientists have discovered unique oil-eating bacteria.
- But the new research reveals the Mariana Trench is home to the greatest concentration of these life forms anywhere in the world.
- The 2,550km long ocean trench is located in the western Pacific Ocean and reaches a maximum depth of about 11,000 metres.
Mamata Banerjee's welfare schemes win UN award
- Bengal has won the United Nations World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) awards.
- According to chief minister Mamata Banerjee, “Utkarsh Bangla” and “Sabooj Sathi” projects have won the prestigious World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) awards under the aegis of the United Nations.
- The “Utkarsh Bangla” project aims at creating a pool of skilled candidates who are industry ready.
- Under the “Sabooj Sathi” scheme, bicycles are distributed to students between class IX and XII studying in government-run and government-aided schools and madrashas of the state.
Julian Assange arrested in London
- Wikileaks co-founder Julian Assange has been arrested at the Ecuadorian embassy in London.
- He took refuge in the embassy in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over a sexual assault case that has since been dropped.
- He will face up to five years in US prison if convicted on the charges of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion.
Try out the quiz ?
1. Union Cabinet has approved the continuation of which phase of GSLV programme?
The Union Cabinet has approved the continuation of the GSLV Phase - 4 programmes consisting of five GSLV flights during the period from 2021 to 2024.
2. Cabinet has approved the creation of one post of 'Deputy CAG' in the office of CAG of India. What is the full form of CAG?
The Union Cabinet has given its approval to create one post of Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General (Coordination, Communication and Information System) in the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.
3. Which party has won the general elections in Finland?
Finland's leftist Social Democrats have recorded a razor-thin victory in general elections, holding off the far-right Finns Party.
4. The world's largest aeroplane with two fuselages and six Boeing 747 engines, made its first test flight in which state of USA?
The world's largest aeroplane designed by Stratolaunch with two fuselages and six Boeing 747 engines, made its first test flight in California, USA.
5. India has announced their 15-man squad for the ICC World Cup. This world cup will organize in which country?
India announced their 15-man squad for the ICC World Cup to be played in England from 30th of next month.
6. Who has clinched Dutch International Badminton Title?
Former junior national champion Harsheel Dani rallied from a game down against Mads Christophersen of Denmark to clinch the Dutch International badminton title in The Hague, Netherlands.
7. Who has been honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award 2019 for his contributions in life sciences, aerospace and aeronautics?
Dr A K Singh, Director at Life Sciences has been honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award 2019 for contributions in life sciences, aerospace and aeronautics at Chandigarh University, Mohali.
8. India has successfully test fired Sub-Sonic cruise missile ‘Nirbhay' from Chandipur Odisha. Nirbhay missile is of which range?
India Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully test fired indigenously designed and developed Long Range Sub-Sonic Cruise Missile 'Nirbhay' from the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur Odisha.
9. Actress Bibi Andersson has passed away. She was from which country?
The Swedish actress Bibi Andersson (83-years) passed away at Stockholm, Sweden.
10. India’s first exotic Bird Park ‘Essel World Bird Park’ will stablished in which city?
India’s first exotic Bird Park ‘Essel World Bird Park’ was launched by EsselWorld Leisure Pvt. Ltd, the entertainment arm of the $6-billion Essel Group in Mumbai.
