Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2019

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:
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.

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An international team of more than 200 astronomers from 18 countries has published the first phase of a major new radio sky survey at unprecedented sensitivity using the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) telescope in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. The survey discovered 3,00,000 hidden galaxies using radio astronomy in a tiny corner of the northern hemisphere at low radio frequency. It is believed that these findings will help shed new light on some of the Universe’s deepest secrets. This includes the physics of black holes as well as research into how galaxy clusters evolve. The LOFAR telescope is operated by ASTRON in The Netherlands and is considered to be the world’s leading telescope of its type. It is made up of a network of radio antenna across seven countries, forming the equivalent of a 1,300-km diameter satellite dish. It is capable of detecting light source beyond the power of optical instruments. Radio astronomy allows scientists to detect radiation produced when massive celestial objects interact.

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.

Notes:
The Supreme Court has appointed former apex court judge Justice DK Jain as the first court-appointed ombudsman for the BCCI under the terms of newly approved constitution of the cricket board. The role of the ombudsman would be to resolve the disputes relating to the players within the state cricket associations as also financial issues. The ombudsman will have to hold hearings at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) headquarters in Mumbai. It must be noted that Article 40, chapter nine of the BCCI constitution deals with the issue of appointment of ombudsman for the purpose of providing an independent dispute resolution mechanism. The types of disputes that come under the ambit of ombudsman pertain to members, associations and IPL franchisee.

Notes:
Mohd Mushtaque Ahmad from India has been elected as the new Vice-President of the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) for a four-year term at the AHF Congress in Gifu, Japan. Beside him, Ms. Asima Ali has been elected unopposed as one of the executive board members of the AHF. Mushtaque Ahmad is currently serving as the President of Hockey India, while Ali of Hockey Jammu & Kashmir is the Vice-President of the national federation. The AHF Executive Board manages the affairs of the continental federation, implements the decisions of the AHF Congress, supervises over the AHF CEO and professional staff, as well as appoints the AHF Committees.

Notes:
On 21 Feb, the 2019 edition of Medical Fair India (MFI) was kick started in New Delhi in which global medical device manufacturers, healthcare experts, industry bodies, think tanks and policy makers from over 25 countries are participating. The 3-day medical trade show ‘MFI’ is organised by Messe Dusseldorf India, a fully owned subsidiary of Messe D sseldorf GmbH, the world’s leading trade fair organiser and exhibitions service provider. The MFI is well known for its ability to detect trends and respond to new innovations. Therefore, each edition is unique as it explores new sub-segments and opportunities for diversification. It will act as a platform for healthcare experts and stakeholders to share and discuss tangible solutions to diverse healthcare bottlenecks, challenges and issues of concerns.

Notes:
Justice Uma Nath Singh, the former Chief Justice of Meghalaya High Court, has been sworn-in as the first Lokayukta of Nagaland and will hold the office for a term of 5 years or till he attains the age of 70. Governor PB Acharya administered the oath to Justice Singh him at a function held at Raj Bhavan in Kohima on 22nd Feb 2019. The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states. Once appointed, Lokayukta cannot be dismissed nor transferred by the government, and can only be removed by passing an impeachment motion by the state assembly. Maharashtra was the first state to introduce the institution of Lokayukta through The Lokayukta and Upa-Lokayuktas Act in 1971. This was followed by similar acts that were enacted by the states of Odisha, Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Delhi.

Notes:
The first-ever Skill Saathi Youth Conclave has inaugurated by Union Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan at Rail Auditorium in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The program aims to create a mass movement around skill development in the state and inspire youth to make the most of various skill development opportunities in the country. The conclave was aired live across 427 locations in Odisha, where more than 2 lakh candidates were mobilized for career counseling under Skill Saathi initiative. The initiative provides information on vocational training programs under Skill India mission, conduct psychometric test and provide face-to-face counselling interventions to guide aspirants to make the right choice of based on their interest and aptitude.

Notes:
The horrific forest fire has recently broken out in the Bandipur Tiger Reserve (BTR) in Chamarajanagar district of Karnataka. The fire is estimated to have gutted 2,000 hectares of the forest. Hundreds of forest department officials along with local volunteers have been trying to douse the fire. However, strong winds and dry grass have aided the fire to spread towards the roads on National Highway 67. As a result, NH 67 (which connects Ooty to Mysore) had to be closed for vehicles. There have been reports of loss of wildlife, but nothing has been confirmed so far. The Bandipur reserve is one of the first national parks in India and has the highest tiger density anywhere in the world. It has also been declared as an important area for elephant conservation. The reserve covers an area of 87,400 hectares and along with the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary and the Nagarahole National Park form one of India’s ecologically diverse regions. It is home to vulnerable species like elephants, gaurs, tigers and Indian rock pythons.