Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2019

Notes:
On January 29, UNESCO official launched the International Year of the Period Table of Chemical Elements (IYPT-2019) at its headquarters in Paris to raise awareness of chemistry and its applications for sustainable development. The year 2019 also marks the 150th anniversary of its creation by Russian scientist Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev. The aim of the year-long celebration is to recognize the importance of the periodic table as one of the most important and influential achievements in modern science, reflecting the essence not only of chemistry, but also of physics, biology and other basic sciences disciplines. The Periodic Table of Chemical Elements is a unique tool that enables scientist to predict the appearance and properties of matter on the Earth and in the rest of the Universe.

Notes:
The 13th International Oil & Gas Conference & Exhibition ‘PETROTECH-2019’ is being organised under the aegis of the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas in Greater Noida from 10th to 12th February, 2019. India’s flagship hydrocarbon international conference is expected to be inaugurated by Prime Minister of India. Over 95 Energy Ministers from partner countries have been invited by the Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas to participate in the Conference. The 3-day mega event will showcase the recent market and investor friendly developments that have taken place in the India’s oil and gas sector. It is expected to see participation of over 86 eminent speakers and 7000 delegates from around 70 countries, including technologists, scientists, planners, policy-makers, management experts, entrepreneurs, service-providers and vendors.

Notes:
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has recently signed agreements worth $93 million for providing Naval MRSAM (Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missile) systems to India. The contracts for the air defence system were entered with the Indian Navy and the Cochin Shipyard. Under the contracts, IAI will provide complementary systems for the air defense system (ADS). The MRSAM family is an operational air-defense system used by Israel’s navy as well as by India’s naval, air and ground forces. It provides broad as well as topical defense against a range of assault air, marine and ground threats. MRSAM comprises several key state-of-the-art systems, including a digital radar, command and control, launchers, and interceptors with advanced homing seekers.

Notes:
Lt Gen Rajeev Chopra has taken charge as new Director General of National Cadet Corps (NCC) in New Delhi. Commissioned in the Madras Regiment in December 1980, Lt Gen Chopra is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla and Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. The NCC is an Indian military cadet corps with its headquarters at New Delhi, It is the world’s largest uniformed youth organization. Its motto is ‘Unity and Discipline’.

Notes:
Germany, France and the UK have officially set up a payment channel with Iran called INSTEX, to help continue trade and circumvent US sanctions. The long-awaited special payment system will help save the Iran nuclear deal by allowing Tehran to keep trading with EU companies despite Washington re-imposing sanctions after US President Donald Trump abruptly quit the accord in 2018. The three countries have launched the device at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Bucharest, Romania. The new institution ‘INSTEX’ is a project of the three governments and will receive the formal endorsement of all 28 EU members. The Instrument In Support Of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX) is registered in France and will be headed by German banker Per Fischer, a former Commerzbank director.

Notes:
On 1st February, a music and dance festival ‘Sopan 2019’ has started at Central Park in New Delhi to encourage young and upcoming artistes to take up traditional art forms. The fest is organised by Sahitya Kala Parishad and the Delhi government in association with New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC). It is an attempts to take forward the traditional Indian art forms. This 6-day long festival is an opportunity for upcoming talents from vocals and instruments to dance forms to set an audience base for themselves. Young artistes such as Odissi dancers Madhur Gupta and Premananda Sahoo, vocalist Shivam Bhardwaj, percussionists Aamir Hussan and Amaan Jamil, and Kathak dancers Mrinalini among others will perform during the musical extravaganza.

Notes:
On 2nd February, the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival (KGAF-2019) has started in Mumbai to commemorate 20 years of its inception. The fest is the India’s largest multi-cultural street festival, which will celebrate two glorious decades of art and culture through cinema, theatre, dance, literature and sculpture through various spots on Mumbai’s map. The festival will also host exhibition at the historic Jehangir Art Gallery to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and some rich history of Mumbai. Some of the festival highlights include screening of Khalil Mohammad’s documentary on Iranian cafes, performances by Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia, Shaan, Prakriti and Sukriti Kakar, panel discussion on 26/11 attacks and its survivors, a session on working of drones, heritage walks, dances and shopping at Rampart Row. The festival will end on 10th February.

Notes:
Vani Kapoor has become the first Indian golfer to earn a card for the Australian Ladies PGA Tour (LPGA) after coming through its first-ever Qualifying Tournament at the Ballarat Golf Club. Vani shot rounds of 71, 78 and 69 to finish at two-over 218 and was tied-12th with three others. Vani has also qualified for Vic Open, co-sanctioned by the Australian LPGA and the US LPGA.

Notes:
The Qatar national football team has won their first major football title after defeating four-time champion Japan 3-1 in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup final on 1st of February in United Arab Emirates (UAE). It was an improbable run to glory for the Gulf nation as it prepares to host the 2022 World Cup. In it, Almoez Ali has broken the record for the most goals ever scored by a single player at an Asian Cup tournament (9) and won most valuable player award of 2019 tournament. Earlier, the record was held by Ali Daei who scored eight for Iran in the 1996 edition. Almoez Ali is a Qatari professional footballer of Sudanese descent who plays for Qatar and Al-Duhail in the Qatar Stars League as a forward.

Notes:
A team from INS Dronacharya has won the Regetta trophy (also called The Cock) in the Kochi Area Pulling Regatta 2019 of the Southern Naval Command (SNC) in the Ernakulam Channel on January 31. The Boat Pulling regatta is one of the most prestigious and traditional naval sporting activities conducted in the Navy. The boats used in the regatta are 27-feet-long ‘whalers’ — a type of seaboat — each having a crew of five ‘pullers’ (rowers) and one coxswain (helm). The boats are named as ‘whalers’ as they were used in ancient times for hunting whales at sea. Races during the regatta were held in four different categories – – junior sailors, senior sailors, officers and best whaler. The boats had to cover a distance of 1.6 km in the Ernakulam Channel, starting from the Venduruthy-Vikrant Bridge and finishing at the North Jetty of the navy. The regatta is considered a signature event of the Command, which requires the highest standards of physical and mental fitness and sustained hard work.