Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - November, 2018

Notes:
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has appointed Siddharth Tiwari as the Chief Representative for Asia and the Pacific. He succeeded Eli Remolona. At BIS, he will work to strengthen the connection between BIS and the central banks in the area he oversees. He will lead efforts to enhance understanding of issues that are important to central banks and supervisors in the region, contributing significantly to the BIS’s global work on central bank cooperation and financial stability issues. BIS is an international financial institution owned by central banks which fosters international monetary and financial cooperation and serves as a bank for central banks. It is based in Basel, Switzerland,

Notes:
South African president Cyril Ramaphosa will be chief guest at the 2019 Republic Day parade of India. With this, Ramaphosa would become 2nd leader from his country to attend the event. Former president Nelson Mandela was the chief guest at the 1995 parade. An anti-apatheid activist and a Mahatma Gandhi follower, Ramaphosa became the 5th president of South Africa after the resignation of Jacob Zuma in December 2017. In April 2018, he led around 5,000 people at the annual ‘Gandhi Walk’ event in Lenasia near Johannesburg, to promote community awareness and fitness. Hence, the move to invite Ramaphosa also coincides with Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary. South Africa is also a key BRICS association partner for India. Generally, chief guests of the parade are heads of states of countries that are strategically important to India, or heads of neighbouring countries.

Notes:
The World Pneumonia Day (WPD) is observed every year on 12th of November to promote interventions to protect against, prevent, and treat pneumonia and to highlight proven approaches and solutions in need of additional resources and attention. Pneumonia is one of the leading causes of deaths in children under five years old despite being easily preventable and treatable. Although vaccines and other preventative efforts are decreasing the burden of the disease, much more work is still required. Those living in poor communities are at highest risk of pneumonia. Every child, regardless of where they are born, deserves access to lifesaving vaccines and medicines. The 2018 theme is ‘Stop Pneumonia: Invest in Child Health’.

Notes:
Induslnd Bank has recently launched the India’s first interactive credit card with buttons called the IndusInd Bank Nexxt Credit Card. The card provides customers with the flexibility of 3 payment options at a Point of Sale (POS) terminal – credit, converting transactions into EMIs with 4 tenure options (6, 12, 18 and 24 months) or using accumulated reward points, by simply pushing a button on the card. The card has been created in partnership with Dynamics Inc, which is headquartered in Pittsburgh, USA. It indicates a customer’s desired payment choice using LED lights associated with the three options. With this card, the customer does not need to fill any paperwork, or call their bank, or log in to any banking channel to convert their POS transactions into EMIs, or to redeem their rewards points. It gives customers the freedom to pay the way they want, by giving them payment options like EMI, Rewards and Credit, at the push of a button.

Notes:
In New Delhi, the Government of India (GoI) has signed a $300 million loan agreement with Asian Development Bank (ADB) to support India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd (IIFCL) that provides long-term finance to infrastructure projects. The move is expected to enhance the availability of long-term finance for Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects, improve operational capacity of IIFCL, and expand the portfolio of infrastructure financing instruments available to the company. The $300 million ADB loan is expected to help catalyze the financial closing of $2.4 billion in investments. In addition, the attached technical assistance will support IIFCL capacity development and will focus on IIFCL’s financial management and social and environmental safeguards.

Notes:
In Himachal Pradesh, the 26th edition of Central and State Statistical Organizations(COCSSO) Conference was held at Dharamshala with theme “Quality Assurance in Official Statistics” on 15th and 16th November 2018. It was organized by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) in collaboration with Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Government of Himachal Pradesh. The COCSSO is an annual conference which provides a platform for the Central and State statisticians to exchange views and discuss common issues relating to statistical activities.

Notes:
William Goldman (87), the Oscar-winning screenwriter and novelist, has passed away in New York on November 16, 2018. He was best known for his works such as ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’, ‘All the President’s Men’ and ‘The Princess Bride’.

Notes:
The 14th edition of International theatre festival for children “Jashne Bachpan 2018” has started in New Delhi from November 17. It is being organised by National School of Drama’s (NSD) Theatre in Education (TIE) Company, which is also known as Sanskar Rang Toli. The 9-day theatre festival for children will see 21 productions from India and three foreign groups including Sri Lanka (non-verbal), Switzerland (English) and Indonesia (Javanese). The plays will be performed in vernacular languages like Bengali, Marathi, Assamese, and Malayalam besides non-verbal, English, Hindi and other foreign languages. The idea behind this initiative is to bring those children to the mainstream and inculcate enthusiasm for art and culture along with entertainment at a global platform like Jashne bachpan.

Notes:
The Indo-Japan Business Council (IJBC) hosted the first of its kind business festival “Konnichiwa Pune” in Pune, Maharashtra on 17th November, 2018. The aim of the 2-day fest was to promote exchange of trade, culture and educational ties between India and Japan in a friendly festive manner. It gave a platform to both Japan and India to come together under one umbrella and explore further opportunities in terms of business, culture, education and other areas of interests.

Notes:
On 20th of November, the Bangladesh Krida Shiksha Prothishtan (BKSP) clinched the 59th edition of the junior boys Subroto Cup International Football Tournament 2018. In the final, BKSP defeated Amini School of Afghanistan by a solitary goal at the Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi. A total of 95 teams participated in the tournament, including 8 teams from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.