Daily GK Update: 17th July 2022

 Sports

1. Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa wins 2022 Paracin Open Chess title in Serbia

• Young Indian Grandmaster, R Praggnanandhaa (16) has won the Paracin Open 'A' chess tournament 2022 in Serbia.
• Alexandr Predke (Russian player) grabbed the second spot with 7.5 points ahead of Alisher Suleymenov (Kazakhastan player), who took third place.
• Young Indian International Master, V Pranav has ended in fifth place with 6.5 points and GM Arjun Kalyan from India settled for seventh place.
• Serbia Capital: Belgrade; Currency: dinar
• International Chess Day: 20 July 

 State Affairs

2. Uttarakhand government introduced e-FIR service and police app

• CM of Uttarakhand, Pushkar Singh Dhami has launched an e-FIR service and the Uttarakhand police app.
• All five online services of the Uttarakhand police, are integrated into the police app to provide better services to the public.
• Five online services: Lakshya Nasha Mukt Uttarakhand, Meri Yatra, Gaura Shakti, traffic eye, and public eye.
• Additionally, the app also linked to the cyber hotline number 1930 and the emergency number 112.

 Banking & Finance

3. Trade deficit increases to record $26.1 billion in June

• India's commodities trade deficit has been raised to a record $26.1 billion in June 2022 (172% higher than June 2021), higher than the government's initial estimates of $25.6 billion.
• Reason:  Continuing global commodity supercycle kept the prices of key energy and metal imports high.
• The exports in June 2022 has been increased by 23.5% to $40.13 billion and imports raised by 57.5% to $66.31 billion.
• Trade deficit: difference between total exports and imports

 Honours & Awards

4. Dia Mirza and Afroz Shah conferred with Mother Teresa Memorial Award

• Governor of Maharashtra, Bhagat Singh Koshyari has presented the Mother Teresa Memorial Award for 2021 to Dia Mirza and Afroz Shah for their outstanding work for the protection of the environment.
• Dia Mirza is a UN Goodwill Ambassador for Environment and Afroz Shah has been awarded ‘UN Champion of the Earth’ in 2016.
• The awards was instituted by the Harmony Foundation.
• Founder of Harmony Foundation: Abraham Mathai and Susan Abraham.

 Science & Technology

5. SpaceX launches 25th International Space Station resupply mission

• CRS-25 SpaceX Cargo Dragon spacecraft has launched from “launch complex 39A” of the Kennedy Space Centre.
• The spacecraft was lifted off on Falcon 9.
• CRS-25 was initially scheduled to launch in June 2022, but it was delayed due to a hydrazine leak on the spacecraft.
• Hydrazine: Used by Dragon's Draco thrusters and is highly corrosive to components not designed to interact with the fuel.
• SpaceX was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk.

 National Affairs

6. WCD issues Guidelines for Mission Shakti Scheme

• Ministry of Women and Child Development has issued detailed guidelines for ‘Mission Shakti' scheme, will be applicable with effect from April 1st, 2022.
• Mission Shakti is an integrated women empowerment programme for the safety, security and empowerment of women for implementation during the 15th Finance Commission.
• ‘Mission Shakti’ has two sub-schemes:  'Sambal' and 'Samarthya'.
  • Sambal: Safety and security of women.
  • Samarthya: Empowerment of women. 

 Important Dates

7. World Day for International Justice: 17th July

• World Day for International Justice is observed annually on July 17 to celebrate the organisations that work for bringing justice to the victims of international criminal acts.
• 120 countries came together on July 17, 1998, to sign a treaty titled Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
• The establishment came to be known as the International Criminal Court, which came into force on July 1, 2002.
• Theme 2022: Achieving Social Justice through Formal Employment

 National Affairs

8. Govt launches “Jagriti” mascot for creating awareness for consumer rights

• The Department of Consumer Affairs has launched “Jagriti” (mascot) for empowering consumers and generating awareness about their rights.
• Themes includes: Consumer Protection Act 2019, Hallmarking, National Consumer Helpline no. 1915, provisions of weights and measures Act, decisions of the Central Consumer Protection Authority and grievance redressal.
• Tagline “Jago Grahak Jago” in all its media campaigns. 

 International Affairs

9. British govt launches "Aviation Passenger Charter" for passengers rights

• The British government has launched an "Aviation Passenger Charter" with an aim to help passengers know their rights.
• The new charter will help passengers know what to do if they are confronted by cancellations, delays or missing baggage.
• The passengers will be properly compensated if things don't go to plan, and the chaotic scenes at airports are unacceptable.
• In June 2022, the UK government has published a 22-point support plan to avoid further disruption.

 Sports

10. Tokyo to host 2025 World Athletics Championships

• At the World Athletics Council Meeting held in Oregon, USA, the Council has also announced that the 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships will be held in Medulin and Pula in Croatia.
• The Council has also selected Tokyo (Japan) to host the 2025 World Athletics Championships.
• The 2026 World Athletics Cross Country Championships will be held in Tallahassee, Florida.
• The 19th edition of the World Athletics Championships will be held in Budapest in Hungary(2023).