Current Affairs Quiz - 28 March, 2018 - Current Affairs MCQ

The Export-Import Bank, Exim Bank announced that it will provide a USD 500 million credit facility to Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to fund various development projects in western-south Africa. According to the Bank, with the signing of line of credit (LoC) agreement, the Bank till date has extended four LoCs to the Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) of West African States, taking the total value of LOCs to USD 1,000 million. The LoC of USD 500 million is an umbrella limit for financing developmental projects in 15-member countries.

Union Ministry of Finance has approved Government guarantee of Rs. 5000 crore in financial year 2017-18 for Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) bonds to be subscribed by Life Insurance Corporation (LIC).

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani stated that a seawater desalination plant, with capacity to desalinate 100 million litre water per day will be set up near Jodiya town in Jamnagar district. It is to be noted that Jamnagar in Saurashtra region of Gujarat faces severe water shortage especially during summer season. The proposed desalination plant will thus help to reduce water shortage. However, no information related to timeline for setting up this plant or related cost has been disclosed so far.

SWIFT (Society for World Interbank Financial Telecommunication System platform) has announced the extension of its gpi (Global Payment Innovation) Tracker to cover all payment instructions sent across the network. SWIFT system is used by banks across the world to transmit messages relating to cross border financial transactions. gpi Tracker, developed by SWIFT, gives end-to-end visibility on the status of a payment transaction from the moment it is sent until it is confirmed. gpi tracker was introduced in May 2017 and now accounts for 10 per cent of entire SWIFT cross border payment traffic. Extending the tracker to cover all payment instructions sent across the network will enhance the transparency and reliability of the process.

nish Bhanwala won gold medal in the men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Junior event at the ISSF Junior World Cup Rifle / Pistol / Shotgun in Sydney, Australia. Anish Bhanwala scored 29 hits and won gold medal in the men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Junior event. This is the 3rd individual gold medal for India in the ISSF Junior World Cup. China's Cheng Zhipeng scored 27 hits and won silver medal. China's Zhang Jueming scored 23 hits and won bronze medal in the men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Junior event. China won the team gold medal and created a new Junior World Record with 1733 points. India's Anish Bhanwala, Anhad Jawanda and Adarsh Singh won silver medal.

Technology giant Google acquired US-based Tenor, a GIF platform for Android, iOS, and desktop. Tenor's GIF-searching functionality will be integrated into Google Images and Gboard, the company's virtual keyboard. However, Tenor will continue to operate as a separate brand and Google will invest in their technology.

Malaysia's government proposed new legislation to counter fake news, under which, offender will be penalised with 10-year jail term. The bill defines fake news as any news, information, data and reports presented in the form of print, visuals or audio, which contains wholly or partly false content. Individuals who create, offer, circulate, print or publish fake news or publications containing fake news will be penalised with a 10-year jail term, a fine of up to 500000 ringgit or both. Although incumbent Government has stated that this law is needed to protect public harmony and national security, opposition members consider it as an attack on the press and an attempt to instil fear among people before the general election in August 2018.

A Rs 5 crore insect museum with the state-of-the-art amenities was unveiled by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswamy at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University. The museum, established at a 6,691 sqft area, is fully dedicated to insects and is first of its kind in the country. It would display insects preserved as specimens as also live ones depicting their different developmental stages, images, videos and models of their unique behavior, habits, and habitats.

Department of Posts, Ministry of Communications launched the Cool EMS Service between India and Japan. Cool EMS service is one-way service from Japan to India which allows customers in India to import Japanese food items for personal use which is allowed under Indian regulations. Initially, Cool EMS Service will be available in Delhi only. Food items will be carried by Japan Post in special cool boxes containing refrigerant to preserve the quality of the food items. All other features like track and trace, etc of Express Mail Service (EMS) will be available for Cool EMS service as well.

On 24th March 2018, Earth Hour 2018 was observed all over the world. India pledged "Give Up To Give Back" on Earth Hour 2018. People all over the world observed the Earth Hour 2018 by switching off non-essential lights for an hour between 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm. In India, Rashtrapati Bhavan, India Gate, Akshardham Temple in New Delhi and Buddha Statue in Hyderabad, Howrah Bridge in Kolkata and Gateway of India in Mumbai are the landmarks where lights were switched off between 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm. The Earth Hour started in 2007 in Australia. The Earth Hour is organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The Earth Hour aims to create awareness on the importance of conserving the environment and wildlife. The worldwide campaign for Earth Hour 2018 trended as #CONNECT2EARTH.

The World Theatre Day (WTD) was initiated in 1961 by the International Theatre Institute (ITI). The first World Theatre Day Message was written by Jean Cocteau in 1962. Ever since, it is celebrated all over the world on 27th March to draw attention to the power of the stage. The day is a celebration for those who can see the value and importance of the art form "theatre", and acts as a wake-up-call for governments, politicians and institutions which have not yet recognised its value to the people and to the individual and have not yet realised its potential for economic growth. This year, in 2018, Playwright Nina Lee Aquino will deliver the WTD message.

Microsoft opened the 'Garage' at the Microsoft India Development Centre in Hyderabad, Telangana. The Garage was inaugurated at the Microsoft India Development Centre in Hyderabad by Telangana IT Minister K T Rama Rao. It is a platform for Microsoft employees that encourages experimentation, working together across organisations and to discover ideas and develop prototypes, adding value to existing products. This facility has been developed on a 8,000 sq ft space. It will support Microsoft teams for different projects. It consists of a Hub for hackathons and workshops, a Makerspace and an Advanced Makerspace with electronic workbench, 3D printers, laser cutter, PCB milling machine for creating prototypes.

Sebastian Vettel, a German racing driver currently driving in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari, has won the 2018 Formula One Australian Grand Prix tournament on March 25, 2018 in Melbourne, Victoria. He is a four-time Formula One World Champion, having won the championship in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 with Red Bull Racing. He is regarded by fellow and former drivers as one of the greatest Formula One drivers in the history of the sport.

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Republic of Congo and Indonesia have signed Brazzaville Declaration that promotes better management and conservation of Cuvette Centrale region in the Congo Basin, the world's largest tropical peatlands. Peatlands are wetlands that contain a mixture of partially decomposed organic material. The declaration was signed on the sidelines of the Third Partners Meeting of the Global Peatlands Initiative, that was held in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, from 21st - 23rd March 2018. Indonesia has been made a party to this agreement as it is considered as most experienced country in the world on peat management issues. Equivalent of three years of global greenhouse gas emissions are stored in peatland of Cuvette Centrale region in the Congo Basin, which are about the size of England.

The 12th edition of Earth Hour was observed across the world by turning off non-essential electric lights for one hour from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm on March 24, 2018. It is the world's largest grassroots movement for the environment where people around the globe unite to take a stand against climate change by turning off non-essential lights for one hour. It is a global initiative of the World Wide Fund for Nature India or WWF-India. This year, in 2018, WWF-India has launched the "Give Up to Give Back" initiative to inspire organisations, institutions and individuals to make the choice to curb some habits, practices and lifestyles that burden lives and environment. The campaign includes taking steps like giving up single-use plastics, fossil fuels and e-waste among others.