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Current Affairs - Sep 23, 2018

Current Affairs

PM launched Ayushman Bharat

  • Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched the Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) at Ranchi, Jharkhand, on September 23, 2018.
  • Under this scheme, over 10 crore families (i.e. 50 crore people), the poorest 40% of India’s population will be provided with health assurance every year.
  • PMJAY will provide insurance up to Rs. 500,000 per family per year for in-patient secondary and tertiary treatment.
  • A list of 1,350 procedures across 23 specializations, including pre- and post-hospitalization, diagnostics, and medicines have been prepared along with their rates for the scheme.
  • A cadre of frontline health service professionals called Pradhan Mantri Aarogya Mitras (PMAMs) are being trained to facilitate the provision of treatment to beneficiaries at hospitals.

Kakrapar Atomic Power Station

  • Two units of Pressurised heavy water reactors in Kakrapur Atomic Power station recently attained 'criticality', that means now they have attained self-sustaining nuclear fission chain reaction in the reactor (a good thing).
  • Two years ago, KAPS-1 automatically shut down due to a leak of heavy coolant water, leaving both reactors non-operational.
  • Kakrapar Atomic Power Station has total four units divided into KAPS-1 (two units of 220 MW reactors) and KAPS-2 (two units of 700 MW reactors); these went critical for the first time in 1992 and 1993 respectively.

India in Asia Cup Final

  • India secured its place in the final match of 10th Asia Cup Cricket 2018 (ODI).
  • It became confirmed after India defeated Pakistan and Afghanistan's defeat by Bangladesh.
  • Now India will play with the winner of Pakistan vs Bangladesh in final.

India's biggest cyclotron - VECC

  • Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre (VECC) is now India's biggest cyclotron facility after starting its operations last week, it houses the machine, Cyclotron-30.
  • VECC is under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) which is directly under the Prime Minister of India.
  • What is Cyclotron? An apparatus in which charged atomic and subatomic particles are accelerated by an alternating electric field while following an outward spiral or circular path in a magnetic field. This cyclotron facility will produce radioisotopes vital for diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
  • At present, many radioisotopes are imported while some are produced in Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and remaining in cyclotrons facilities run by private hospitals.

One-Liners

  • Kenyan runner and Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge has set a new world record, winning the Berlin marathon in 2 hours, 1 minute and 39 seconds. He broke the record of Kenyan Dennis Kimetto by 1 minute and 18 seconds.
  • The first General Assembly of the International Solar Alliance, ISA, will be inaugurated on the 2nd of October in New Delhi.
  • The Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU) has set up a flightless bird research center. The center has been set up on the university campus at Pookode in Wayanad district.
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