Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Limited (TPEML), a subsidiary of Tata Motors, and Ford India Private Limited (FIPL), on  on Aug 7 signed a Unit Transfer Agreement (UTA) for the acquisition of FIPL’s manufacturing plant situated at Sanand, Gujarat, which inter-alia includes: (i) entire land & buildings; (ii) Vehicle Manufacturing Plant along with machinery and equipment situated therein; and (iii) transfer of all eligible employees of FIPL’s vehicle manufacturing operations at Sanand, for a total consideration, exclusive of taxes, of Rs 725.7 crore.

This acquisition for Tata Motors will unlock a state-of-the-art manufacturing capacity of 300,000 units per annum which is scalable to 420,000 units per annum.

Ford, the iconic American car brand whose founder Henry Ford revolutionized the automotive industry in the early 20th Century, last year announced it will stop manufacturing vehicles in India due to accumulating losses. According to industry estimates, there are currently over 3,000 direct jobs and about 20,000 indirect jobs being provided at the plant in Sanand.

India is an agrarian economy and one of the world’s leading importers of fertilisers.

Fertilisers are being offered at a discount of anywhere between 10 to 25 per cent from Russia as a result of which nearly 20 per cent of the fertiliser imported between April and July came from Russia.

"India imported 7.74 lakh metric tonnes of fertilisers from Russia during the first quarter of the ongoing financial year which is more than a fifth of the total 36.4 lakh metric tonnes imported from across the globe," Minister of Chemicals and Fertilisers Dr Mansukh Mandaviya had stated in the Parliament.

Out of the 7.74 lakh mt fertiliser imported from Russia, urea comprised 47,000 mt, DAP (diammonium phosphate) 1.32 lakh mt and NPK (a complex fertiliser containing nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium) 5.95 lakh mt.

Unlike oil, fertilisers is not under the list of sanctions imposed on Russia by the US following the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine.

Even if Russia gave DAP at 10 per cent discount compared to global prices it would work out well for India. For instance, India could buy DAP at $920 a tonne when global prices ranged around $1000 per tonne.

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recently said that the world is facing a food security `catastrophe’ as shortages around the globe increase. He further warned that farmers in Asia, Africa and the Americas will be hit by the rising cost of fertiliser and fuel.

After the conflict in Ukraine, fertiliser supply has taken a hit causing a hike in prices.

India has entered a long-term agreement to offtake 10 mt urea annually from Oman on Free on Board (FOB) basis through OQ trading for a period of three years.

The minister has travelled to various countries to secure the supply of fertilisers.

After visiting Jordan, earlier this year, a long-term agreement for supplying 30 lakh mt of rock phosphate, 2.75 lakh mt of MOP and 2.5 lakh mt of DAP has been made for a period of five years. Similarly, an agreement has been signed with Phosagro of Russia for the supply of DAP.

Meanwhile, during the last financial year out of the 341.73 lakh mt of urea consumed in India, 250.72 lakh tonnes was met through indigenous production and 91.36 lakh mt through imports – primarily from China (25.91 lakh mt), Oman (15.88 lakh mt) and UAE (7.95 lakh mt), according to government statistics.

Imports in April-June

7.74 lakh MT fertiliser imported from Russia during April June 2022

Urea: 47,000 MT

DAP (diammonium phosphate): 1.32 lakh MT

NPK (a complex fertiliser containing nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium): 5.59 lakh MT

Air India on Aug 7 said it will bring back its 10 grounded wide-body aircraft to service by early 2023.

A wide-body aircraft has a bigger fuel tank that allows it to travel on long-haul international routes like India-US and India-Canada.

"Air India's wide-body fleet currently stands at 43 aircraft, of which 33 are operational. This is a significant improvement from 28 aircraft that the airline was operating till recently," its statement said.

The remaining aircraft will be progressively returned to service by early 2023, it added.

The carrier  has announced that it will operate daily flight between Delhi in India and Vancouver in Canada from August 31 onwards.

It was a rewind back to Lord's in 2017. If it was England then, this time India, once again came close to making history before falling short against Australia in the final moments at Edgbaston, bagging silver in their maiden appearance at the Commonwealth Games.

Brief scores: Australia 161/8

Indian table tennis legend Achanta Sharath Kamal defied age to team up with young Sreeja Akula to win the mixed doubles gold medal at the Commonwealth Games .

Barring a blip in the second game, Sharath and Akula pair was in complete control of the tie, comfortably beating Javen Choong and Karen Lyne of Malaysia 11-4, 9-11, 11-5, 11-6 in the gold medal contest.

The 40-year-old paddler, who won a bronze medal in the last edition in Gold Coast, defeated home country's Paul Drinkhall 11-8, 11-8, 8-11, 11-7, 9-11, 11-8 to reach his second CWG final.

The only other time Sharath, fourth-seeded, made it to the final, he returned with a gold in the 2006 edition in Melbourne.

By reaching the final, Sharath has already assured himself of silver and has increased his CWG medal count to 13.

For Akula, it was her maiden CWG medal.

Earlier in the day, the seasoned pair of Sharath and G Sathiyan was outsmarted by familiar foes Drinkhall and Liam Pitchford of England in the men's doubles final.

The Indian duo had to settle for silver for the second successive edition after losing 11-8, 8-11, 3-11, 11-7, 4-11 to the English combine.

Q1. Name the country which  has reformed its immigration laws to attract foreign workers as it faces a labour shortage in tourism and construction?

1. Spain
2. Norway
3. Germany
4. Portugal
5. None of These

Q2. Name the ex-rebel  who took  oath as the  president  of Colombia?

1. Álvaro Uribe Vélez 
2.  Juan Manuel  Santos Calderón
3. Gustavo Petro
4. Iván   Duque Márquez
5. None of These

Q3. Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Limited (TPEML), a subsidiary of Tata Motors, and Ford India Private Limited (FIPL), on  on Aug 7 signed a Unit Transfer Agreement (UTA) for the acquisition of FIPL’s manufacturing plant situated at

1. Pune , Maharashtra
2. Sanand, Gujarat
3. Bhadravati , Karnataka
4. Noida , UP
5. None of These

Q4. Which of the following country has won the gold medal in women's cricket at the  Commonwealth Games 2022 ?

1. India
2. Australia
3. New Zealand
4. England
5. None of These

Q5. Which country uses the shekel as currency?

1. Israel
2. Ireland
3. Denmark
4. Sweden
5. None of These

Answers

1-----------------  4   Portugal

2-----------------3    Gustavo Petro

3------------------  2 Sanand, Gujarat

4------------------2    Australia

5----------------- 1   Israel 

National Democratic Alliance (NDA)'s candidate Jagdeep Dhankhar has been elected India's 14th Vice President on Aug 6 . He secured 528 votes. Opposition pick Margaret Alva who got 182 votes has lost.

Lok Sabha Secretary General Utpal Kumar Singh, who was the presiding officer for the 16th Vice Presidential election, said that of the 780 MPs eligible to cast votes, 725 MPs cast their vote. Fifteen votes were found invalid and 710 votes were valid.

He was appointed as the Governor of West Bengal in 2019.

The Vice President of India, which is the second-highest constitutional post in the country, is elected through an electoral college consisting of members of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha.

All MPs of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, including nominated members, are entitled to vote in the vice presidential election.

Senior scientist Nallathamby Kalaiselvi has become the first woman director general of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), a consortium of 38 research institutes across the country.

She succeeds Shekhar Mande, who superannuated in April.

Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, was given the additional charge of the CSIR upon Mande's retirement.

Known for her work in the field of lithium ion batteries, Kalaiselvi is at present director of the CSIR-Central Electrochemical Research Institute at Karaikudi in Tamil Nadu.

Kalaiselvi will also hold the charge as secretary, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research.

Her appointment is for a period of two years with effect from the date of assumption of charge of the post or until further orders, whichever is earlier.

Kalaiselvi has risen through the ranks in CSIR and had broken the proverbial glass ceiling by becoming the first woman scientist to head the Central Electrochemical Research Institute (CSIR-CECRI) in February 2019.

She had started her career in research as an entry-level scientist at the same institute.

Hailing from Ambasamudhram, a small town in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu, Kalaiselvi did her schooling in Tamil medium, which, she said, helped her grasp the concepts of sciences in college.