GK & Current Affairs Quiz: June 22, 2017

Notes:
The renowned Ayurveda physician ‘Vaidya’ Rajesh Kotecha has been appointed as new special secretary in Ministry of Ayush for three years on a contract basis. Kotecha is the chief consultant of Chakrapani Ayurveda Clinic, Jaipur. The appointment is in line with the Centre’s efforts to bring in specialists from the private sector in the government.

Notes:
Luanda, the capital of Angola, has topped the list of most expensive cities for expatriates, according to Mercer’s 23rd annual Cost of Living Survey. Hong Kong has acquired 2nd position, followed by Tokyo, Zurich, Singapore, Seoul and Geneva. From India, Mumbai is the most expensive city for expatriates that has ranked 57th on the list, followed by New Delhi (99), Chennai (135), Bangalore (166) and Kolkata (184). The Mercer’s survey includes 209 cities across five continents. The world’s least expensive cities for expatriates, according to Mercer’s survey, are Tunis (209), Bishkek (208) and Skopje (206). Mercer’s authoritative survey is one of the world’s most comprehensive, and is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees.

Notes:
Narendra Kumar Sinha, the 1980 batch IAS officer of Bihar cadre, will be the new secretary of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry. Currently, Sinha is posted as cultural secretary. He will succeed Ajay Mittal who has been appointed as the new secretary of Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT). The current DoPT Secretary B P Sharma will retire from the post on June 30, 2017.

Notes:
The world’s first-ever data embassy will be established by the Estonian government in Luxembourg in 2018. For this, Prime Minister of Estonia Jüri Ratas and Prime Minister of Luxembourg Xavier Bettel has signed an agreement on housing data and information systems, that will pave the way to open data embassy in Luxembourg. Its establishment is part of the Estonian general strategy of data management and fundamentally a double guarantee to their data and services. In addition, the data embassy will have the same rights as any other physical embassy of Estonia.

Notes:
Russian diplomat Vladimir Ivanovich Voronkov has been appointed as the head of the newly created United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office (UNCTO) and will hold the title of Under-Secretary-General. The Under-Secretary-General will provide strategic leadership to United Nations counter-terrorism efforts, participate in the decision-making process of the United Nations and ensure that the cross-cutting origins and impact of terrorism are reflected in the work of the United Nations. The purpose of the UNCTO is to strengthen counterterrorism efforts of 36 UN-funded programs under the ambit of a variety of UN agencies, 12 inter-agency working groups, Interpol and the World Customs Organisation (WCO). Currently, Voronkov is the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the International Organizations in Vienna.

Notes:
Subhash C. Garg, a 1983 batch lAS officer of Rajasthan cadre, has been appointed as the new the economic affairs secretary in the Union Finance Ministry. The post fell vacant after Shaktikanta Das retired on May 31, 2017. Currently, Tapan Ray, the corporate affairs secretary, has the additional charge of the economic affairs department. Prior to this appointment, Garg was Executive Director at World Bank for Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Sri Lanka.

Notes:
Carla Fendi (79), the Italian luxury fashion designer, has passed away in Rome, Italy. She played a key role along with her four sisters in developing and expanding her parents’ small leather workshop, transforming the business into a global luxury fashion brand.

Notes:
The Bhawal National Park is located at Gazipur in Dhaka Division of Bangladesh.The core area of the park covers 940 hectares but extends to 5,022 ha of surrounding forest. Its purpose is to protect important habitats as well as to provide opportunities for recreation. The park has 345 plant species, including 152 different tree species, 53 shrubs, 106 herbs and 34 climber species.

Notes:
The book titled ‘Hope in a challenged democracy; An Indian narrative’ has authored by Dr. Ashwini Kumar, the renowned lawyer, author and veteran parliamentarian. The principal themes of the book are firstly on the incestuous relationship between wealth and power’ and its impact on the credibility and moral authority of the government and secondly on an insufferable atmosphere of intolerance. The book was launched by former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on April 10, 2017.

Notes:
The World Hydrography Day (WHD) is observed every year on June 21 to publicise the work of hydrographers and to create awareness about hydrography which is an essential science before undertaking any activity on or under the sea. The 2017 theme is “Mapping our seas, oceans and waterways – more important than ever”.