Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2019

Notes:
Punit Goenka, MD and CEO of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL), has been elected as the new chairman of Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC). He succeeded Nakul Chopra. It may be recalled that Goenka was the founder chairman of BARC India and played an instrumental role in setting up of the TV Viewership measurement company. It was under his leadership that BARC India established its measurement system. BARC India is a joint industry company founded by stakeholder bodies that represent Broadcasters, Advertisers and Advertising & Media Agencies. Its headquarters is located in Mumbai.

Notes:
After Srinagar (J&K), India’s second Tulip Garden will come up at Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand over 50 hectares of forest land near Chandak hill top at a cost of Rs 50 crore. The proposed tulip garden will be developed by the ONGC under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme. Tulip is the flower from Holland that blooms from mid March to May. The site in Mad village near Chandak hilltop for the garden has been selected under the state Government’s ’13 districts, 13 new destinations’ scheme to attract more tourists to the district. According to the project officer of the scheme the land available for the project in Chandak hill top is ideal for the growth of the flower as it is situated at a height of 1,950 metres from the sea surface and remains sunny and cold throughout the year. Tulip is the flower from Holland that blooms from mid March to May.

Notes:
Indian captain Mithali Raj has scripted history by becoming the first female cricketer to play 200 ODIs when she played 3rd and final ODI against New Zealand on February 1. Though, she could not make a big impact in her 200th game, scoring nine off 28 balls as India were bowled out for 149 in the third and final ODI against New Zealand at Hamilton. Mithali is also the highest run-getter in ODIs with 6622 runs at an average of 51.33, including seven hundreds. She also holds the record for having captained the India Women team 123 times with England’s Charlotte Edwards again second on this list having captained the Three Lions for 117 matches. Mithali made her ODI debut way back in 1999 and has featured in 200 games out of the 263 ODIs India have played. She has also played 10 Tests and 85 T20.

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:
The Mizoram government has banned import of pigs and piglets from other countries in view of possible outbreak of the Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) that has cost the lives of thousands of swines in the state. The orders were issued as the dreaded PRRS outbreak always occurred from March to July, during a dry spell after pre-monsoon downpours. According to the records of the Veterinary department, the PRRS has cost the lives of over 10,000 swines in Mizoram since 2013 and it is believed that it happened due to import of pigs and piglets from Myanmar where the disease was known to be prevalent. The PRRS is also known as blue-ear pig disease, which affectes domestic pigs. The symptoms include reproductive failure, pneumonia and increased susceptibility to secondary bacterial infection.

Notes:
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has prepared the report titled ‘The Future of Rail’ in association with the International Union of Railways (UIC). This first-ever global report has a specific focus on India, where rail passenger traffic increased by nearly 200% since 2000. The report stated that Indian railways will account for nearly 40% of total global rail activity by 2050. The investments in Indian urban rail infrastructure are estimated to reach nearly 190bn by 2050. As a result, India can save up to 64bn on fuel expenses by that time. The IAEA report analyses the current and future importance of rail around the world through the perspective of its energy and environmental implications. As per the report, the rail sector carries 8% of the world’s passengers and 7% of global freight transport but it utilises only 2% of total transport energy demand. The regions with the highest share of electric train activity are Europe, Japan and Russia, while North and South America still rely heavily on diesel. Most conventional rail networks are located in North America, Europe, China, Russia, India, and Japan.

Notes:
The 12th edition of the India’s premier air show – Aero India 2019 will be held at Air Force Station at Yelahanka in Bengaluru from February 20 to 24. The Ministry of Defence has lined up programmes for Start-Ups Day, Women’s Day, Daily Students’ Day, Drone Olympics and photography contests as sideshows to make it an interactive affair. More than 350 exhibitors will be accommodated in five hangers at the Air Force Station. This year, the aero show is themed ‘The Runway to a Billion Opportunities’, to communicate India’s value proposition in addressing the immense opportunities in the aerospace and aviation sectors in the country today. The logo for Aero India 2019 is inspired by the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).

Notes:
As per latest survey conducted by Transparency International (TI), Assam has occupied the top slot in the ranking of best practices followed by states in Budget formulation and is followed by Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. The states which figured lower in the ranking were Meghalaya, Manipur and Punjab. The survey was carried out on the basis of four parameters – public disclosure, budgetary process, post budget fiscal management and efforts to make budget more transparent and citizen friendly. Transparency International has stated in its survey report that Assam is the only state out of the 29 states and two union territories which has published a Citizens Budget in the public domain. It also stated that the Assam Government is the only government that has conducted budget awareness campaigns across 17 districts.

Notes:
Rishi Kumar Shukla, a 1983-batch IPS officer of Madhya Pradesh Cadre, has been appointed the new Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). He will serve in the post for a period of two years. The High-Level Committee chaired by Prime Minister approved the appointment of Mr Shukla to the post. He succeeded M. Nageshwara Rao, who was working as Interim Chief of the Agency. The post of CBI Chief has been lying vacant since 10th of January 2019 after the exit of Alok Kumar Verma following accusations of corruption against him by former CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana who is also allegedly accused of corruption charges. Prior to being appointed as the director of the CBI, Mr. Shukla has served as Madhya Pradesh DGP in 2016 and was presently the chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Police Housing Corporation (PHC) in Bhopal.

Notes:
An acclaimed cinematographer and screenwriter and filmmaker, Govind Nihalani will be honoured with the Kalamaharshi Baburao Painter Award for his contribution to the film industry at the 2019 Kolhapur International Film Festival (KIFF). The 7th edition of the film festival is scheduled to be held from February 7 to 14. The award is named after Painter, a native of Kolhapur who was a painter, sculptor and a filmmaker of the silent film era. More than 50 feature and short films, including those from Japan, South Korea, France and Iran, among others, will be screened at a well-known multiplex here as part of the 2019 KIFF. The country focus will be on Hungarian cinema.