Current Affairs Quiz - November, 2020

Notes:
Alphabet Inc’s Google has recently announced that it is set to launch a virtual private networks (VPN) service for its consumers.
The VPN service would be available for its Google One cloud storage services. VPN is used by individuals in countries where access to certain sites and services have been banned by governments.

Notes:
The 15th Finance Commission (FFC) has announced that it is set to submit its report to Indian President Ram Nath Kovind on 9 November, this year.
The report will have recommendations for next five years beginning the financial year 2021-22. The report may be tabled in the Parliament along with action taken report by the government, during the next budget session.

Notes:
The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2020 was recently released, by conducting a phone survey of 60,000-odd students across rural India.
As per the report, only 11 per cent of the surveyed children had access to live online classes. Only one-third of the surveyed children had access to online learning. The report reveals the digital inequality prevalent in the country.

Notes:
The Indian Air Force has successfully test-fired an air launched version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from a Sukhoi fighter aircraft in the Bay of Bengal.
The aircraft belongs to the Thanjavur-based Tigersharks squadron. India has recently test fired a new version of the surface-to-surface supersonic cruise missile BrahMos and an anti-radiation missile named Rudram-1.

Notes:
Food Corporation of India and other Government agencies are set to procure 742 Lakh Metric tonnes of paddy during the ongoing Kharif season.
This is seen as a record high paddy procurement. The paddy procurement made by the Government last year was 627 Lakh Metric Tonnes. The number of purchase-centres this year have been increased from 30,791 to 39,122.

Notes:
The people of New Zealand, in a recent referendum have voted to legalise euthanasia. Preliminary results of the referendum showed that 65.2% of voters supported the End of Life Choice Act coming into force as a new law.
The proposed law will permit terminally ill people with less than 6 months of life to choose assisted dying, if approved by 2 doctors.

Notes:
The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad has recently launched an on-site COVID-19 testing laboratory.
As per the GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited (GHIAL), the air passengers will have an option to get themselves tested on their arrival. GHIAL has collaborated with the ICMR certified agency and Mapmygenome.

Notes:
As per the recent report released by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), 30 Indian cities will face increasing water risks in the next few decades.
According to the WWF Water Risk Filter report, 30 Indian cities, including Jaipur, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Mumbai among others, will face acute water risks. The report estimates that hundreds of millions of people in cities across the globe could face water risks.

Notes:
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has recently issued notice to seek response from Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) and four State Governments regarding the ban on use of fire crackers from November 7 to 30 in the interest of public health and environment.
The NGT has also appointed a senior advocate Raj Panjwani and advocate Shibhani Ghosh to assist the tribunal as amicus curiae in the matter.

Notes:
The Union Minister of Science and Technology Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan and Minister of State for Posts Sanjay Dhotre have released a Special Cover of Department of Posts.
The special postal cover was released in New Delhi, in order to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Department of Science and Technology.