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GS-2
Pulwama reference cut for UN listing of Azhar
Britain’s most senior diplomat Simon McDonald has said that China had agreed to the listing of the JeM chief after all references to terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, including the Pulwama strike, were dropped.
India, Australia to adopt classified communications: official
A senior Australian Navy spokesperson has said though the Australian Navy is, at present, “hanging off” COMCASA — India’s secure communications agreement with the U.S. — Australia and India are “moving forward” toward a classified-level communications environment
U.S. FDA warns of faulty pacemaker batteries
Following the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) alert about batteries in certain Medtronic implantable pacemakers draining more quickly than expected, patients in India using the device have claimed that they are yet to be alerted about the issue.
U.S. positions Patriot missile off Iran
The United States is deploying an amphibious assault ship and a Patriot missile battery to bolster an aircraft carrier and B-52 bombers already sent to the Gulf, ratcheting up pressure on arch-foe Iran.
Trump orders tariff hike on remaining Chinese imports
U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered a tariff hike on almost all remaining imports from China
GS-3
Initial estimate pegs Fani crop damage at Rs. 150 crore
The initial estimate of Cyclone Fani’s damage to standing crops in Odisha has been pegged at Rs. 150 crore, but the State Agriculture Department warns that the destruction of storage facilities and harvested crops stored in the open could further spike the losses.
IAF receives first AH-64E Apache attack helicopter
The first AH-64E Apache attack helicopter built for India was formally handed over to the Indian Air Force (IAF) at the Boeing production facility in Mesa, Arizona in the U.S.
IS claims it has set up a ‘province’ in India
IS has claimed that it has set up a ‘province’ in India. It has also claimed that the IS inflicted casualties on soldiers at Amshipora in Shopian district.
Kolkata researchers use novel compound to kill cancer cells
Researchers at Kolkata’s the Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (CSIR-IICB) and the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS) have designed and synthesised about 25 quinoline derivatives that show potent anticancer activity.
Fast neutrino oscillations may hold key to supernovae formation
A new theoretical study from Tata Institute of Fundamental Research has found that Neutrinos could be the driving force behind supernova explosions
NBRI: Arsenic bioremediation using two soil bacteria
Using two indigenous strains of bacterium isolated from arsenic-contaminated field, researchers from CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute (CSIR-NBRI), Lucknow and the University of Lucknow have shown that arsenic can be effectively removed from contaminated soil with the help of microbes.
CCMB scientists sequence Asiatic lion genome
For the first time, the entire genome of Asiatic lion, an endangered species, has been sequenced by scientists from CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad.
Obesity rising faster in rural areas
According to a new study published in the journal Nature, obesity is increasing more rapidly in the world’s rural areas than in cities
