Current Affairs 4th October 2018

Current Affairs 4th October 2018 - Important Points

• Arthur Ashkin, Gerard Mourou and Donna Strickland win  - 2018 Nobel Physics Prize
• Supreme Court judge Madan Bhimarao Lokur appointed Executive Chairman of NALSA by - President Ramnath Kovind 
• World’s largest dome inaugurated in Pune  on - 2nd October 2018
• WHO launches first Global Guidelines on -Sanitation and Health
• Prime Minister inaugurates first Assembly of International Solar Alliance in - New Delhi 

 Current Affairs 4th October 2018 - Details

Arthur Ashkin, Gerard Mourou and Donna Strickland win  - 2018 Nobel Physics Prize

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has nominated 3 scientists Arthur Ashkin from United States, Gerard Mourou from France and Donna Strickland from Canada for the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physics. They were nominated for ground-breaking discoveries in the field of laser physics. Arthur Ashkin acknowledged the half prize and remaining half was shared likewise by Gérard Mourou and Donna Strickland. With this, Strickland became 3rd woman to receive Nobel Prize in Physics, after Marie Curie in 1903 and Maria Goeppert Mayer in 1963.
More about Arthur Ashkin

• He is 96 years old which counts him oldest scientist ever to be bestowed a Nobel Prize. He got prize for optical tweezers and their apps to biological systems.
• His optical tweezers are capable to hold particles, atoms, viruses and other living cells with their laser-beam fingers, permitting usage of radiation pressure of light to displace physical objects.
  Gerard Mourou and Donna Strickland
• They were mutually awarded for their technique of producing high-intensity, ultra-short optical pulses.
• They have formed ultra-short high-intensity laser pulses without damaging amplifying material, thus shaping way towards shortest and most intense laser pulses ever formed by mankind.
• Their innovative method is known as “Chirped Pulse Amplification”, has now become standard for high-intensity lasers, consisting ultra-sharp beams utilised in corrective eye surgeries.

Supreme Court judge Madan Bhimarao Lokur appointed Executive Chairman of NALSA by - President Ramnath Kovind 

President Ramnath Kovind has nominated senior judge of Supreme Court Madan Bhimarao Lokur as
Executive Chairman of National Legal Services Authority of India- NALSA. He was nominated by
President in exercise of power conferred under Clause (b) of sub-section (2) of Section 3 of the Legal
Authorities Act, 1987.
More about Madan Bhimarao Lokur

• Madan Bhimarao is graduate of Delhi’s Modern School and St. Stephen’s College.
• He had registered as Advocate in 1977. He has massive experience in Civil, Criminal, Constitutional, Revenue and Service laws. He got registered as an Advocate-on-Record in the Supreme Court in 1981.
• He had worked as Additional Solicitor General of India from July 1998 to Feb 1999. He was nominated as Additional Judge of Delhi High Court in February 1999.
• He also worked as Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court from June 2010 to Nov 2011 and then as Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh High Court.
• He was nominated as Judge of the Supreme Court in June 2012.

National Legal Services Authority of India

• National Legal Services Authority of India issues for free legal help inter-alia to all individuals in custody.
• It has been established under Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.
• It delivers services of free legal assistance in civil and criminal issues for poor and marginalised people.
• National Legal Services Authority of India goals to make sure that chances for securing justice are not deprived-off to any resident by reasons of economic or other disabilities.
• It also classifies specific categories of marginalised and excepted groups and articulates various plans for implementation of legal service programs.
• It also held Lok Adalats for amicable and speedy settlement of disputes.

World’s largest dome inaugurated in Pune  on - 2nd October 2018

The world’s largest dome was initiated at aharashtra Institute of Technology’s World Peace University-
MIT-WPU campus at Loni Kalbhor, Pune. It was initiated by Vice President Venkaiah Naidu along with
Peace Centre on the eve of 150th birthday of Mahatma Gandhi.
More about World Peace Monument dome

• The dome has been constructed atop Maharashtra Institute of Technology World Peace Library and
  World Peace Prayer Hall, which are termed following 13th century poet-saint and philosopher
  Dnyaneshwar who was pivotal figure of Bhakti movement in Maharashtra.
•   The dome has width of 160 feet, overtaking previous record holding Vatican Dome having width of 139.6ft.
• It stands 263ft tall with bell limp from centre and has prayer hall with area of around 30,000 square feet. It is braced by 24 massive columns, each 63ft tall.
• The periphery of the dome and underneath has bronze statues of 54 of biggest names in world history stand, irrespective of nationality/religion.

WHO launches first Global Guidelines on -Sanitation and Health

The World Health Organization has released 1st global rules on sanitation and health. These rules summarize indication on effectiveness of range of sanitation interventions. They also coherent role of health sector in exploiting health impact of sanitation interventions.
Key Features of WHO Guidelines

• World Health Organization’s Sanitation and Health Guidelines are focused at securing health and
  wellbeing for everybody, everywhere by seeing sanitation as fundamental foundation of human health and development.
• These rules provide comprehensive framework for health safeguarding sanitation, covering policy and governance measures, execution of sanitation technologies, systems and behavioural involvements, risk related management, and monitoring methods.
• They also recognize gaps in evidence- base to guide upcoming research efforts to advance the effectiveness of sanitation interventions.
• By accepting these new rules, nations can expressively decrease diarrhoeal deaths due to impure water, sanitation and hygiene. For every US $One invested in sanitation, it is projected nearly 6-fold return as measured by lower health costs, amplified productivity and fewer premature deaths.
  Did you know?

As per to World Health Organization, 2.3 billion people around the world deprive basic sanitation and
almost half of the world population is pushed to defecate in open areas. They are among 4.5 billion people without admittance to safely managed sanitation services, that are, do not have toilet linked to septic tank that treats human waste. Without adequate access to sanitation, millions of people worldwide are lacking dignity, safety and convenience of decent toilet. Poor sanitation is also major issue accountable for transmission of abandoned tropical diseases.

Prime Minister inaugurates first Assembly of International Solar Alliance in - New Delhi

PM Narendra Modi initiated 1st Assembly of International Solar Alliance- ISA, in New Delhi. The similar
programme also pointed initiation of 2nd Indian Ocean Rim Association Renewable Energy Ministerial
Meeting and second Global RE-Invest- Renewable Energy Investors’ Meet and Expo. UNs Secretary
General Antonio Guterres witnessed the occasion.
International Solar Alliance

• International Solar Alliance is an alliance devoted to the promotion of solar energy among its member nations.
• The International Solar Alliance Framework Agreement had arrived into force in December 2017 and officially became de-jure treaty based International Intergovernmental Organization.
• It is HQ at Gurugram, India. The key aim of International Solar Alliance is to comprise global deployment of over 1,000GigaWatt of solar generation capacity and mobilisation of investment of more than US$ 1000 billion into solar energy by 2030.
• International Solar Alliance also goals to work as an action-oriented firm by carrying together nations with rich solar potential to combined global demand, thereby dropping prices through bulk purchase.
• It also pursues to simplify deployment of present solar technologies at scale, and promoting collaborative solar Research & Development and capacity building.
  More about Indian Ocean Rim Association
• Indian Ocean Rim Association was formed with an aim of fortifying regional cooperation and sustainable development within Indian Ocean Region with 21-member states and seven Dialogue Partners.
• In second Indian Ocean Rim Association, Renewable Energy Ministerial meet, ministers from 9-member nations and representatives from all 21-member nations participated.
• Indian Ocean Rim Association is International firm entailing of coastal states bordering Indian Ocean.
• It works as a regional forum, three-way in nature, bringing together representatives of Government, Business and Academia, for encouraging cooperation and closer interaction among them.