Current Affairs Quiz -18th September, 2018 - Current Affairs MCQ

ISRO chairman Dr. K Sivan has launched an S-band Polarimetry Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota spaceport, Andhra Pradesh on September 16, 2018. This Radar was indigenously developed by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Bangalore under Technology Transfer from ISRO. This is the 7th Radar manufactured in the country under "Make in India" Concept. The Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) is used for the observation of the weather system up to a range of 500 km and helps in early warning of severe weather events. The DWR provides detailed information on a storm's internal wind flow and structure, while conventional radars are able to track and predict cyclones. The polarimetric capability of the DWR will significantly improve the accuracy of rainfall estimation leading to accurate and timely flash flood warnings.

Anna Rajam Malhotra, first Indian woman IAS officer after Independence, died in Mumbai on 17th September. She was 91 years old. The officer worked under seven Chief Ministers and at the Central government. Rajaji had cited Ms.Malhotra as an example of progressive women. The officer served in the Madras State under then Chief Minister C.Rajagopalachari. She also served with Rajiv Gandhi, when as an MP in 1982. She also accompanied former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on an eight-nation tour and had served in the personnel section of the Union Home Ministry. During her tenure, the construction of India's first computerised port Nhava Sheva (Jawaharlal Nehru Port) in Mumbai was completed.

Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) confirmed that Hangzhou in China will host the fourth edition of Asian Para Games in 2022. Hangzhou will now be represented at the Closing Ceremony of 2018 Asian Para Games, which will begin in Indonesian capital Jakarta on October 6.

Uttar Pradesh Police to launch first-ever 'dial-FIR' scheme. In this scheme, a common man can register regular crimes without going to a police station, by dialing the emergency number UP 100 and file an FIR, a call-based FIR. An e-FIR or dial-FIR scheme is the FIR (first information report) that sets the law into motion and to start investigation. To combat crime, an online dossier of over 1-lakh small and big criminals in the state has also been prepared. UP is the only second state to prepare such a localised online criminal database after Punjab.

Canada based Brookfield Asset Management is set to buy loss-making East West Pipeline Ltd (EWPL), earlier known as Reliance Gas Transportation Infrastructure, for an enterprise valuation of Rs 14,000 crore ($2 billion). In a separate report, Grocery startups BigBasket and Grofers have revived talks for a merger. Flipkart has held talks to buy a stake in Hotstar, to enter Amazon Prime Video, Netflix arena.

PayU India has received Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) approval to operate its own non-banking financial company (NBFC). The move will help PayU promote inclusive growth in the country by catering to the diverse financial needs of various segments of the society. The approval from the central bank is subject to "certain pending RBI compliance".

Kerala Tourism has won two prestigious gold awards of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) for its innovative marketing campaigns. The awards were presented at a glittering function in Langkawi, Malaysia during PATA Travel Mart 2018. Sudeshna Ramkumar, Assistant Director, India Tourism, Singapore received the award on behalf of Kerala tourism. Kerala Tourism got the first gold for its 'Yalla Kerala' travel advertisement print media campaign in the Gulf countries. The second gold award came for an innovative poster Kerala Tourism had developed for the third edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB), the biggest contemporary art show in South Asia.

India cricket captain Virat Kohli and World champion weightlifter Mirabai Chanu were jointly recommended for this year's Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award - the country's highest sporting honour. If approved by Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Kohli will become the third cricketer to get the Khel Ratna after the legendary Sachin Tendulkar (1997) and the double world cup-winning captain skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (2007). Chanu was recommended for the prestigious award following her gold medal in 48kg category at the World Championships last year.

Germany launched the world's first hydrogen-powered train. The hydrogen-powered train technology is costlier but eco-friendly. The two bright blue Coradia iLint trains are built by French TGV-maker Alstom. It runs a 100km between the towns and cities of Cuxhaven, Bremerhaven, Bremervoerde and Buxtehude in northern Germany. Similar to the range of diesel trains, these trains can also run for around 1,000 km on a single tank of hydrogen, Hydrogen trains are equipped with fuel cells that produce electricity through a combination of hydrogen and oxygen. This process leaves steam and water as the only emissions. As an alternate, excess energy is stored in ion-lithium batteries on board the train. Countries including Britain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Italy and Canada are planning to introduce the pollution free hydrogen trains.

Kent RO Systems, a healthcare products firm, is to set up its second manufacturing plant at Noida. For this project, it has invested more than Rs.150 crore. The facility will be ready in 4-5 years. Earlier, Kent RO signed a MoU with the U.P. government to invest Rs.200 crore. Kent is aiming to cross Rs.950 crore revenue during the current fiscal. Despite its other products like air purifiers, vegetable and fruit purifiers and water softeners besides a few home appliances, the water purifiers contribute more than 85% of the total revenue of the company.

Flipkart has held talks to buy a stake in Hotstar, Star India's video streaming service, as part of India's largest online retailer's strategy to bet big on video content and attract more Internet consumers and shoppers. Flipkart already has some ties with Hotstar, having launched a new video advertisement platform with Hotstar in July. Hotstar is also one of the many Internet partners that Flipkart has brought on board for its relaunched customer loyalty programme, Flipkart Plus.

The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) in Mumbai has become the first campus in India to have a gender-neutral hostel. This comes after the efforts by 'Queer Collective', an informal student body advocating a safe space for LGBTQ+ students. The decision was taken after the Supreme Court's historic verdict to scrap Section 377 of the IPC that criminalized homosexuality in India.

Mountaineers Satyarup Siddhanta and Mousumi Khatua created history by climbing Asia's highest volcanic peak Mount Damavand in Iran. Mount Damavand is the highest peak and also a potentially active volcano. Mountain Damavand is known for its Sulphur discharge near its peak which can cause irreparable damage if exposed for a longer duration.

The Indian Coast Guard observed International Coastal Cleanup-2018 day on September 15 in Mumbai. The International Coastal Clean-up day is observed in various parts of the world on 3rd Saturday of September every year. It is organized under the guidance of United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and South Asia Co-operative Environment Program in the South Asian Region. Indian Coast Guard has been observing this practice since 2006. Nearly, 5000 kg of garbage was collected and handed to BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) for disposal.

All-women crew of INSV Tarini has bagged the prestigious Tenzing Norgay National Adventure award for beating the odds in water with their enduring skills and sailing across the world for eight long months. The award is the highest national recognition for outstanding achievements in the field of adventure on land, sea and air. The crew was also bestowed with Nav Sena Medal on the occasion of 72nd Independence Day.

The 70th annual primetime Emmy honors handed out at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. Michael Che and Colin Jost hosted the show. Matthew Rhys won the tittle of Best Actor, Drama for "The Americans". And Best Actress, Drama is Claire Foy for "The Crown".