January 12, 2018 - Current Affairs Quiz - Current Affairs MCQ

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the events of the National Youth Festival (NYF) through Video conferencing. This is the 22nd edition of National Youth Festival. The inaugural function was co-presided by Union Minister for State (Independent Charge) of Youth Affairs and Sports, Col. Rajyavardhan Rathore and Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath. Union Minister for Culture (Independent Charge), Mahesh Sharma was the guest of honour on the occasion. 22nd National Youth Festival is a five-day event being held at Gautam Buddha University, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh from 12thto 16th January, 2018. It has been organised by Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India in collaboration with State Government of Uttar Pradesh. Theme of 22ndNational Youth Festival is ‘Sankalp Se Siddhi’. The theme reflects country’s aspiration to capitalize on the demographic dividend of young India.

The Kerala government gave permission to prisoners in Kerala jails to donate organs to their close relatives. This decision was taken at the cabinet meeting chaired by Pinarayi Vijayan, Kerala Chief Minister. Permission must be taken from the concerned court and medical board for the convicted prisoner to make organ donation. Also, necessary amendments are to be made in the Kerala prisons correctional services act 2014. The period of admission in hospital will be taken as parole period for the prisoner. The hospital expenses will be taken care by the jail authorities. In the statement it is clearly mentioned that ‘no relaxation in prison term’ for the prisoner performing organ donation will be provided.

4th ASEAN-INDIA Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry was held in New Delhi on January 12, 2018. Abbreviation ASEAN stands for Association of SouthEast Asian Nations. The Meeting was Co-chaired by Radha Mohan Singh, Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India and Grisada Boonrach, Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand. Objective of the meeting was to promote joint research for development of technologies for increasing production and productivity of crops, livestock, fisheries, and natural resources management in the ASEAN region. Discussions during the meeting also focused on enhancing cooperation on exchange of expertise to promote resilience in food security and to address the price volatility of food supplies in the region. 5th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry will be held in Brunei Darussalam in 2019.

At the ‘Transformation of Aspirational Districts’ conference, held in New Delhi in first week of January 2018, NITI Aayog said it will come out with a ranking of 115 aspirational districts by April 2018. In this context, aspirational districts refer to selected 115 backward districts that are lagging on specific development parameters. Central Government has undertaken a major policy initiative for rapid transformation of these districts and senior government officials have been assigned responsibility to coordinate the efforts of the Centre and states in facilitating development in such districts. NITI Aayog will rank these districts on 10 parameters which will include education, nutrition and health. A dashboard will be created, which will reflect the change in ranking of districts on continuous basis. By April 2018, NITI Aayog will also set up a mechanism for real-time monitoring of government’s development programmes.

The Election Commission has formed a 14-member panel to study the usage of social media and other digital platforms before elections and to suggest modifications in the Model Code of Conduct. Currently, the Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act bans all campaigning 48 hours before voting. The new panel will suggest changes to thisin 3 months. Umesh Sinha, Deputy Election Commissioner, will be the head of the panel. It will comprise of 8 Election Commission officers, 1 member each from the ministries of information and broadcasting, law, and information and technology, 1 senior representative each from the National Broadcasters Association and the Press Council of India. The panel will also suggest regulations required for several media platforms in the 48-hour period before voting.

As per a survey by travel app ‘ixigo’, Kozhikode railway station in Kerala was ranked the best railway station in India by travellers in terms of cleanliness. ixigo, which has 7 million users, works closely with Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to facilitate train ticket bookings on its app. The findings are based on aggregated data of ixigo users. While Kozhikode railway station has attained highest rating, Hazrat Nizamuddin (one of the five main stations in Delhi) was given the lowest ratings. The survey outlined that out of all the cleanest station, 40% are located in south India followed by 20 per cent in central India and 20% in the west. Among trains, Swarna Jayanti Rajdhani has been rated as the cleanest train while Karnataka Express was given lowest ratings.

Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Bhutan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Lyonpo Damcho Dorji jointly unveiled the ‘Special logo’ for the Golden Jubilee celebrations in New Delhi and Thimphu through video-conference. i. Golden Jubilee of the establishment of formal diplomatic relations between Bhutan and India is being celebrated in the year 2018. The Special logo was unveiled to mark the launch of Golden Jubilee celebrations. During 2018, India and Bhutan will conduct several high-level exchanges. Besides, a series of special commemorative initiatives, exhibitions, cultural activities and seminars will be held throughout the year in both the countries.

Sri Lanka has removed a 38-year long ban on selling alcohol to women and employing them in places where alcohol is produced and sold. Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera signed the notification removing the ban on selling alcohol to women and employing them in such places, in order to ensure gender equality and promote tourism. This ban had been in act from 1979. The Sri Lankan government has also allowed alcohol selling units to stay open till 10 p.m., one hour late than the earlier allowed time.

Government of South Australia (a state in the southern central part of Australia) has given approval to build a major solar thermal plant in the state which, on completion would be the largest of its kind ever built. The plant will be developed by a US company, Solar Reserve at an estimated cost of Australian Dollar 650 million. Construction of this plant will begin during 2018. Solar Reserve has claimed that this plant will be able to power around 35 per cent of all of the households in South Australia. In context of this news, it is important to note that, Solar Thermal is different from Solar photovoltaic (PV). In solar PV, solar energy is converted into electricity while in solar thermal, solar energy is converted in to heat energy, which in turn is used to spin turbines for generating electricity.

India has extended financial assistance of USD 45.27 million to Sri Lanka for upgrading Kankesanthurai (KKS) Harbour (located in northern Sri Lanka) into a commercial port. Agreement in this regard was signed by Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Finance and Export and Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) signed on January 10, 2018. This financial assistance is part of memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Indian and Sri Lankan Government for rehabilitation of KKS Harbour. Four out of the six phases of the rehabilitation of KKS Harbour have already been completed. The financial assistance of USD 45.27 million will used for executing remaining two phases, which includes works related to installation of port infrastructure. KKS port holds lot of significance as it connects Jaffna peninsula with the rest of Sri Lanka. The port was destroyed by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the civil war in Sri Lanka.

India has become the top borrower from Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) with USD 1.5 billion worth of loans in 2017. India is the top borrower from AIIB with USD 1.5 billion worth of loans in 2017. Indonesia is in the second position with USD 600 million worth loans. Also, for 2018, USD 3.5 billion worth loans for Mumbai Metro, Andhra Pradesh’s new capital Amaravati’s development and irrigation network in West Bengal are in line. India is also the second largest shared holder in AIIB. China is the largest shareholder of AIIB. Lot of countries prefer to borrow from AIIB, as it charges only 1 to 1.5 % interest with long term repayment and also a five-year grace period.

Kazakhstan has surpassed Iraq as the biggest oil over-producer in the pact between Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies to control oil output. Kazakhstan’s oil output in November and December 2017 was nearly 1,30,000 barrels a day more than the target decided with OPEC. Kazakhstan had promised to pump out 20,000 barrels a day less as per the pact. Earlier, Iraq had produced nearly 70,000 barrels a day more than its target. Recently, the OPEC pact was extended throughout 2018. The members ignored Kazakhstan’s non-compliance with the pact as all the member countries’ combined output target was fulfilled, in spite of Kazakhstan’s over-production.

As per data released by global aviation body, International Air Transport Association (IATA), India topped the worldwide growth chart of domestic air passenger traffic for the month of November 2017. For the month of November 2017, domestic air passenger traffic in India grew by 16.4 per cent, highest in the world. On a month-on-month basis, India has witnessed double-digit growth for the 39th consecutive month. As per IATA data, total revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) in November 2017 marked 8 per cent growth as compared to November 2016. However, IATA has outlined infrastructure constraints, security threats and growing fees and charges as the major concerns for growth of civil aviation sector in upcoming years.

GAIL India, the largest government-owned natural gas processing and distribution company in India will now be setting up ‘coal to synthesis gas’ conversion plants. Announcement in this regard was made by Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Dharmendra Pradhan while addressing the FICCI conference on Unleashing India’s Domestic Exploration and Production Potential in New Delhi on January 11, 2018. GAIL India’s coal to synthesis gas plants will be set up in Odisha. Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) will be a technology partner in this project. Synthesis gas is expected to be cheaper than domestic gas. Synthesis gas (Syngas) is a mixture comprising of hydrogen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. It is produced by gasification of a carbon containing fuel to a gaseous product that has some heating value.

The annual survey of Gallup International has placed Prime Minister Narendra Modi at 3rd rank among world leaders. The survey was conducted with people from 50 countries. The survey has ranked French president Emmanuel Macron as number 1 world leader with a score of 21. Second position was secured by German chancellor Angela Merkel with a score of 20. Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds the 3rd rank with a score of 8.

Anil Khanna was appointed as the Chairman of the Finance Commission of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). The IOA has also set up a Medical Commission and Games Technical Conduct Committee.The Finance Commission is headed by Anil Khanna. Its members are Sahdev Yadav, Secretary General, Indian Weightlifting Federation and DK Singh, Secretary, Uttarakhand Olympic Association. Mukesh Kumar, President, Judo Federation of India, has been made the Chairman of the Games Technical Conduct Committee for National Games. Pawan Deep Singh Kohli, was appointed as the Chairman of the Medical Commission.

Actress Kajol has become an advocacy ambassador for Swachh Aadat Swachh Bharat initiative. Kajol has been an active supporter of eradicating preventable deaths from hygiene-related issues. She has insisted people to become “swachhta doot” and contribute to Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

The Supreme Court collegium recommended Indu Malhotra as the first woman lawyer to be directly appointed as a judge of Supreme Court. Also, K M Joseph, Uttarakhand High Court Chief Justice, has also been recommended to the judge position in Supreme Court. Indu Malhotra became a senior advocate in 2007. She would become the first woman lawyer to be directly appointed as a Supreme Court judge, instead of getting elevated from a high court. She will become the seventh woman judge to serve in the Supreme Court. The first woman judge of Supreme Court was Justice M Fathima Beevi in 1989.

Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO’s) Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSL-C40 successfully lifted off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. PSLV-C40 carried total 31 satellites, out of which three were Indian satellites and 28 satellites from six other countries. 710 kg Cartosat-2 Series Satellite, the primary satellite carried by PSLV-C40 marked ISRO’s 100th satellite launch. It is a remote sensing satellite and has a similar configuration to earlier satellites in the series. Cartosat-2 Series is the seventh remote sensing satellite in its series and has the mission life of 5 years. It is intended to augment data services to the users.

China became Nepal’s second internet service provider, ending India’s position as Nepal’s only internet service provider. China Telecom Global (CTG) has tied up with Nepal Telecom to provide alternate cyber-connectivity to Nepal. Nepal was linked to the global internet network only through Indian telecom operators, so far. Optical fiber connections were used for this in Biratnagar, Bhairahawa and Birgunj, etc. Now CTG’s terrestrial fiber cable will be used to connect Nepal and China through the Jilong (Rasuwagadhi) border gateway.

Sukhchain Singh Cheema, wrestler and Asian Games bronze medalist, died in a car accident in Patiala, Punjab. Sukhchain Singh Cheema was 68 years old. He was the winner of bronze medal in the 1974 Tehran Asiad. He had also received Dronacharya award. His car met with an accident in the Patiala bypass, Punjab. He was taken to Government Rajindra Hospital, but was declared dead by doctors.

Bindu Lal, former BJP MLA died due to cardiac arrest, in Uttar Pradesh. Bindu Lal was 90 years old. He was a three time BJP MLA from Uttar Pradesh. He was MLA from Gaisadi seat in 1977, 1991 and 1997. He had close ties with former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He is survived by his son

“Majuli: Resources and Challenges” is a book that appreciates the beauty and challenges of Majuli, in Assam. “Majuli: Resources and Challenges” was edited by Sanjib Kumar Borkakoti. It was published by Authorspress. This book is a collection of essays written by experts. It is filled with photographs, maps, diagrams and charts. Majuli is considered to be the world’s largest freshwater river island and the single island district in India. Sanjib Kumar Borkakoti is an author and academician. He has expressed strong concern in the book to make Majuli a World Heritage Site.

On 12th January 2018, National Youth Day was celebrated all over India. National Youth Day is celebrated in India on 12 January every year to mark the birthday of Swami Vivekananda. Indian government declared 12 January as the National Youth Day in 1984. The first National Youth Day was celebrated in 1985. On the National Youth Day processions, speeches, recitations, music, youth conventions, seminars, sports competitions etc. are conducted in schools and colleges all over India.