Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2019

Notes:
In badminton, Sourabh Verma has won the Men’s Singles event at the Yonex-Sunrise 83rd Senior National Badminton Championships 2019 in Guwahati. In the final, he defeated Lakshya Sen in straight games of 21-18, 21-13. This is Verma’s 3rd nationals title. Earlier, the second seeded makeshift pair of Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Chirag Shetty clinched the men’s doubles title after beating top seeds Arjun M R and Shlok Ramchandran 21-13 22-20 in 33 minutes.

Notes:
The Union Environment Minister, Dr Harsha Vardhan has recently inaugurated the North Karnataka Agromet Forecasting and Research Centre (NKAFC) at the Farmers’ Knowledge Centre on University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS) in Dharwad . It is the first of its kind in India to boost agricultural activities across the country by taking modern technology to farmers. The main purpose of the centre is to give accurate reports on the weather which would enable the farmers to protect the crops and get a good yield. The centre will also forecast on lightning which causes large-scale destruction of livestock and to farmers. About 25 lakhfarmers in the region would be kept updated with information via various platforms like WhatsApp, SMS, social networking sites and community radio stations. The centre has been established by the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences and the India Metrological Department (IMD), in association with UAS.

Notes:
India emerged as winners in the team event at the first-ever Mallakhamb World Championship at Shivaji Park in central Mumbai on February 17. In the two-day tournament, approx 100 participants from 15 countries – Spain, Germany, Czech Republic, Italy, USA, Iran, Norway, England, France, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Vietnam, Bahrain, and hosts India – competed. The team championship was won by India with 244.73 points, while Singapore stood second with 44.45 and Malaysia came third with 30.22 points. During the event, German mallakhamb team coach Ruth Anzenberger presented an audio-visual presentation about the workshops and practice of the ancient Indian sport held in his country. The German team also demonstrated their skills on rope as well as pole mallakhamb. The traditional sport is characterised by athletes performing a variety of yogic and gymnastic poses while suspended from a rope or on a pole.

Notes:
K Dhanya Sanal, a spokesperson for the defence ministry in Thiruvananthapuram, has created history by becoming the first woman to climb the peak of 1,868-metre-high Agasthyarkoodam in January 2019 after the High court removed traditional restrictions on women from scaling the peak. Agasthyarkoodam is a part of the Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve which lies on the border between the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Kani tribe that lives on the foothills opposes women attempting the trek. The mountain range is considered the holy abode of celibate sage Agastya Muni. The tribe has protested against letting women climb the peak, but has not stopped anyone. Over 100 of them sang folk songs as a mark of protest.

Notes:
Gymnast Simone Biles and tennis player Novak Djokovic won the top prizes at the 2019 Laureus World Sports Awards in Monaco. Djokovic won the Sportsman of the Year award after claiming victory at both the US Open and Wimbledon. While, Biles was named Sportswoman of the Year after winning four gold medals, one silver and one bronze at the 2018 World Championships. Golfer Tiger Woods won the Comeback award, while tennis player Naomi Osaka won Breakthrough of the Year. The other winners of the night were Chloe Kim (Action Sportsperson), Eliud Kipchoge, Arsene Wenger (Lifetime Achievement), Lindsey Vonn (Spirit for Sports), Jharkhand-based NGO Yuwa (Sport for Good) and Xia Boyu (Sporting Moment), the man who climbed Mount Everest, 44 years after he lost both his lower legs due to frostbite on his first attempt.

Notes:
The Madhya Pradesh government has decided to host the 79th session of Indian History Congress (IHC) at Barkatullah University in Bhopal from February 26 to 28, 2019. The 79th session was earlier supposed to be held at the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) from December 28 but was cancelled due to financial reasons. Over 1,000 delegates including prominent historians are expected to participate in the IHC. This will be 2nd time Madhya Pradesh will host IHC after it was held earlier in 2011. IHC is the largest professional and academic body of Indian historians with over 10,000 members. It was established in 1935 and its first session was held at Bharat Itihas Sanshodhak Mandal, Pune. Its primary objective is to promote and encourage scientific study of Indian history.

Notes:
The Spain government has recently conferred Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj with a prestigious award ‘Grand Cross of Order of Civil Merit’. The award was conferred in recognition of India’s support in evacuating 71 Spanish nationals through Operation Maitri from Nepal in April 2015 during the disastrous earthquake, which killed nearly 9,000 people and injured as many as 22,000 people.

Notes:
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has recently launched KALIA Chhatra Brutti Scholarship at the Secretariat for the children of the KALIA Scheme beneficiaries, who are studying and aspiring for technical and professional education. The state government is implementing the KALIA (Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation) scheme for the benefit of the farmers. Under the scheme, named after Lord Jagannath, the government would provide financial assistance of Rs. 10,000 per family to small and marginal farmers as assistance for cultivation. Each family will get Rs 5,000 separately in the kharif and rabi seasons, for five cropping seasons between 2018-19 and 2021-22. The scheme is not linked to the amount of land owned. Besides, landless households would be provided Rs 12,500 to take up activities like goat rearing units, mini layer units, duckery units, fishery kits for fishermen and women, mushroom cultivation and beekeeping.

Notes:
President Donald Trump has recently signed an executive order ‘Space Policy Directive-4 (SPD-4)’ to establish its Space Force as a new military service within the Department of Air Force. The main goal of the Space Force is to secure and extend American dominance of the space domain. As per the order, the Space Force would be an armed branch of the military and include both combat and combat support functions to enable prompt and sustained offensive and defensive space operations in all domains. The force will be organized, trained, and equipped to meet and protect the US national interests in the space, consistent with international laws. Currently, the Air Force is the US military branch that currently has responsibility for space.

Notes:
On 22nd February, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been honored with the prestigious Seoul Peace Prize – 2018 for his contribution to international cooperation and fostering global economic growth. The award credited ‘Modinomics’ for reducing social and economic disparity between the rich and the poor. The Peace Prize committee also credited him for his contribution toward reginal and global peace through a proactive policy with countries around the world.The award was presented to him by the Seoul Peace Prize Foundation at a grand ceremony in Seoul. A short film on the life and achievements of Prime Minister Modi was also screened at the event. He dedicated the $200,000 prize money to ‘Namami Gange Programme’, which is flagship programme of his government to accomplish the twin objectives of effective abatement of pollution, conservation and rejuvenation of River Ganga.Modi is the 14th recipient of the award and the past laureates included former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and renowned international relief organizations like Doctors Without Borders and Oxfam.