ANSWER : A

Current Context : Manu Bhaker wins India’s first medal of Paris Olympics.

• She became the first Indian woman to win a medal in shooting at the Olympics in 20 years to reach a shooting final in an individual event of the Olympics since Suma Shirur in 2004.
• She won a bronze medal with a score of 7 in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol event.

ANSWER : B

Current Context : Sri Lanka secured  their first Women’s Asia Cup title by beating India.

• Sri Lanka won by 8 wickets in the final by beating India.
• Final was held at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium in Dambulla.

ABOUT WOMEN’S ASIA CUP:

• The Women’s Asia Cup (Asian Women’s Cricket Championships) is a women’s One Day International and Twenty20 International cricket tournament.
• Established in 2004 and is a biennial tournament.
• The tournament is contested by cricket teams from Asia.
• The first Women’s Asia Cup was held in 2004 on Colombo and Kandy in the Sri Lanka.

ANSWER : D

Current Context : Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh is conferred the prestigious “Lifetime Achievement Award” For Research In Diabetes.

ABOUT:

• Jitendra Singh is an Indian physician and politician who is serving as the 18th Minister of Science and Technology and Minister of Earth Sciences since 2024.
• He is also an author of eight books and three Monograms on various aspects of Diabetes.
• His books titled “Diabetes Made Easy” was included in the Best-seller section of the World Book Fair held at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.
• Achievements : ‘Gold Medal for Oration’ from Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research (JIPMER) Puducherry and the coveted ‘Jamna Devi Gian Devi Award’ for journalism.
• Singh’s achievements also include his role as the Lifetime Patron of the Research Society for the Study of Diabetes in India (RSSDI), the country’s largest academic association for diabetologists.

ANSWER : C

Current Context : Shah Rukh Khan becomes first Indian actor to be honoured with special gold coins by Paris’ Grevin Museum.

• Recently, the global icon was honored with customised gold coins by Paris’ Grevin Museum.
• Grevin Glasse of Paris issued the coins featuring the actor’s picture and his name to celebrate the Jawan star.
• The Grevin Museum, located on the Grands Boulevards in Paris, is renowned for its wax statues of celebrities.

IN ADDITION :

• He is also set to receive the prestigious Pardo alla Carriera award at the 77th edition of the Locarno Film Festival on Piazza Grande on August 10.

ANSWER : B

Current Context : Recently, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar unveiled a special commemorative stamp set showcasing Ram Lalla’s idol from Ayodhya during visit in Laos.

• It is the first postage stamp in the world to be dedicated to Lord Ram’s Ayodhya idol.
• The set which comprises two stamps has Lord Ram’s Ayodhya idol’s image on one and on the other stamp, Lord Buddha is depicted.

ABOUT POSTAGE STAMP

• Postage stamps are pieces of paper which signal that payment has been made for the item to be mailed.
• On 1 May 1840, the the Penny Black, the first adhesive postage stamp, was issued in the United Kingdom.
• In India : Lord Dalhousie started the postage stamps in India in 1854 which gave Indians a new way to communicate through postcards.
• The First Stamp of Independent India was issued on 21 November 1947. It depicts the Indian Flag with the patriots’ slogan, Jai Hind (Long Live India).

ANSWER : A

Current Context :  Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has paid tributes to Lokmanya Tilak on his birth anniversary on 23 July.

ABOUT BAL GANGADHAR TILAK

• Bal Gangadhar Tilak was a freedom fighter, social thinker, philosopher, and educator known for playing an instrumental role in India’s Independence effort.
• He was born as Keshav Gangadhar Tilak on July 23, 1856 in Mahrashtra’s Ratnagiri.
• Tilak was called ‘Lokmanya,’ which means ‘accepted as the people’s leader.’
• He graduated from Government Law College with an LLB in 1879.
• He established the Deccan Education Society in 1884 with a vision to impart nationalist principles to young people.
• Tilak popularised the celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi and Shivaji Jayanti to unite people and inculcate a sense of pride in Indian culture and history.
• He was often referred to as the “Father of Indian Unrest” by the British colonial authorities.
• His famous declaration, “Swaraj is my birthright, and I shall have it,” became a rallying cry for the Indian independence movement.
• He started two newspapers, ‘Kesari’ in Marathi and ‘The Mahratta’ in English.
• He supported widow remarriage, opposed child marriage, and advocated for women’s education, understanding the importance of social progress alongside political freedom.

ANSWER : C

Current Context : Veteran filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, has been appointed festival director for the International Film Festival of India (IFFI).

ABOUT SHEKHAR KAPUR

• Kapur, 78, is an influential name in Indian cinema and one of the earliest directors to establish a name for himself in Hollywood with his film “Elizabeth” and its sequel “Elizabeth: The Golden Age”.
• He is known for films such as “Mr India”, “Bandit Queen” and “Elizabeth”.
• Most recently, he directed the British comedy “What’s Love Got to Do with It?”.
• Kapur served as the head of the chairperson of the International competition Jury at the 54th IFFI.
• He also served as chairperson of the Pune-based Film and Television Institute of India from 2020-2023.

ANSWER : B

Current Context : Two women in Brazil became world’s first humans to die due to outbreak of Oropouche virus.

ABOUT

• Oropouche virus disease is an arboviral disease caused by the Oropouche virus (OROV), a segmented single-stranded RNA virus that is part of the genus Orthobunyavirus of the Peribunyaviridae family.
• Transmission : by bites of midges, a kind of small flies, though it can also be spread via mosquitoes.
• It cannot be spread from person to person.
• Symptoms are similar to dengue, includes fever, chills, muscle pain, headache, joint pain.
• There is no cure for Oropouche so far with no specific antiviral drugs or vaccines available for the disease.
• It was first detected in Trinidad and Tobago in 1955, with the initial epidemic occurring in Belem, Brazil, in 1961

ANSWER : A

Current Context : The Supreme Court commenced its week-long special Lok Adalat drive to amicably settle long-pending disputes as a part of its 75th anniversary celebrations.

• Lok Adalats began hearing cases from 2 p.m. after the judges finished their day’s list cases on the regular Benches.
• The Lok Adalat drive would continue from July 29 to August 3.
• It involves seven benches of the Supreme Court, each comprising two Supreme Court judges, a senior advocate, and an Advocate-on-Record.
• To facilitate participation, the Registry has created dedicated video conference links for each court.

ABOUT LOK ADALAT

• Lok Adalats are alternative dispute resolution mechanisms designed to resolve disputes amicably and include both cases pending in court and those at the pre-litigation stage.
• Established under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.
• Lok Adalats are a crucial part of the judicial system, aimed at expediting and encouraging amicable settlements.

ANSWER : D

Current Context : Education Ministry launched week-long ‘Shiksha Saptah’ campaign to celebrate 4 years of NEP 2020.

• On the 7^th day of Shiksha Saptah campaign, schools nationwide are emphasising community involvement in education through the Vidyanjali and Tithi Bhojan initiatives.

ABOUT VIDYANJALI :

• It is a school volunteer management programme run by the Department of School Education and Literacy of the Ministry of Education.
• Launched on September 7, 2021.
• Aim: to strengthen schools and improve the quality of education through community, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and private sector involvement across the country.

ABOUT TITHI BHOJAN

• It is a community participation programme was originally initiated by the State Government of Gujarat under the erstwhile Mid-Day Meal Scheme.
• It was relying on the Indian traditional practice of providing food to large number of people on special occasions such as festivals, anniversaries.
• It is voluntarily served by the community/family among school children in several forms such as sweets and savoury snacks, along with regular MDM, full meals, supplementary nutritive items.