Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2019

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:
The 3rd edition of “Words in the Garden” festival 2019 is scheduled to be held on February 22 in New Delhi and will pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi with the theme — ‘Bapu ki Dilli’. The 3-day festival will celebrate the creativity, imagination and ideas that Delhi generates, sustains and embodies. Commemorating 150 years of Gandhi’s birth anniversary, the event will feature plays, recitals, readings, discussions honoring the life and ideology of Bapu. Highlights include M K Raina’s play “Stay Yet A While”, poems, recitals, acts and music by Gandhi Ambedkar Circle of St Stephen’s College, storytelling by Mahmood Farooqui on Gandhi’s final journey and Madhup Mudgal’s “Ashram Bhajanavali”. The fest is free and open to all, and will see participation by stalwarts from the fields of literature, art, and social sciences among others. The fest is the brain child of renowned Hindi writer Ashok Vajpeyi.

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:
At Aero India show 2019, Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) has launched its new product “Atmospheric Water Generator (AWG)” to meet the ever-increasing need for drinking water worldwide. The AWG employs a novel technology to extract water from the humidity present in the atmosphere and purify it. It uses heat exchange for condensing the atmospheric moisture to produce pure, safe and clean potable water. The AWG comes with a Mineralisation Unit, which is used to add minerals which are required to make the water potable. The AWG is configurable in static and mobile (vehicular) versions and is available in 30 litres/day, 100 litres/day, 500 litres/day and 1,000 litres/day capacities. The Atmospheric Water Generator can be used to provide drinking water in community centres and public places like health care centres, schools, colleges, offices, railway stations, bus stands, airports, sea ports, off-shore oil rigs, military establishments, remote field areas and remote establishments and residential complexes. It is manufactured by BEL in collaboration with CSIR-IICT and MAITHRI, a start-up company based in Hyderabad.

Notes:
An Iranian naval force has started a massive three-day drill, codenamed “Velayat 97”, across two million square kilometers of sea between the Straits of Hormuz and the Indian Ocean, including a sensitive global shipping route. The drill will showcase Iran’s submarines, warships, helicopters and drones. It is being held from the Strait of Hormuz to the southeastern coasts of Makran, the Sea of Oman and the northern parts of the Indian Ocean, down to the 10-degrees latitude. The naval exercise comes at a time of tensions with the US, after Washington condemned Iran at the summit in Warsaw. In addition Iran has upped tensions with Saudi Arabia after a terror attack in southeastern Iran, which Tehran blamed partly on Riyadh. Iran has also recently condemned the United Arab Emirates, Israel and the US. Sending its navy to the Strait of Hormuz, a major chokepoint for the world’s oil, is provocative. The Strait of Hormuz is an international transit route where American forces routinely pass and which has seen tense encounters between them and Iranian forces in the past.

Notes:
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has formed a four-member committee to look into the matter of taxation related pain points and submit its final report and recommendations by mid-March 2019. Its recommendations could include applying a filter for tax officer before a notice is issued and setting a time limit for concluding an investigation. The committee is head by income tax commissioner Sanjeev Sharma.

Notes:
Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh has been elected third time unopposed as the President of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI). The elections of the office bearers and executive committee members of WFI for the next four-year term (2019-2023) were held at the Constitution Club of India (CCI). Along with Brij Bhushan, I.D. Nanavati has been elected as the Senior Vice President, V.N. Prasood as the Secretary General and Satyapal Singh Deshwal as the Treasurer. Singh, who is also a Member of Parliament (MP) from the Kaiserganj constituency of Uttar Pradesh, was the chef-de-mission of the Indian contingent for the Asian Games 2018 held in Jakarta and Palembang.

Notes:
The landlocked & war-torn nation, Afghanistan has recently launched new export route to India through the strategic Chabahar Port of Iran to boost regional connectivity. According to officials, the first shipment of 57 tonnes consists of dried fruits, textiles, carpets and mineral products in 23 trucks products were dispatched from western Afghan city of Zaranj to Chabahar port. The consignment will be shipped to the Indian city of Mumbai. The Iranian port provides easy access to the sea to Afghanistan and India has helped developed this route to allow both countries to engage in trade bypassing Pakistan.

Notes:
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, a member of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) party, has been re-elected for a second four year term. The 76-year-old Buhari defeated his main rival, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar with a margin of around 4 million votes. Buhari has been lauded for his progress against the insurgent group Boko Haram, which has killed more than 10,000 and displaced millions.

Notes:
Leg-spinner Rashid Khan claimed a hat-trick and became the first-ever bowler to bag four wickets in four deliveries in Twenty20 Internationals (T20I) on February 17, 2019. Rashid’s impressive bowling performance in the third and final T20I also helped Afghanistan sweep the T20I series by a margin of 3-0 against Ireland in Dehradun. With this feat, Rashid also became the 7th bowler in the T20I history to bag a hat-trick and in the process also completed his second five-wicket haul in the format. Overall, Khan became the 2nd bowler in the history of the sport to do so in international cricket after Sri Lankan veteran Lasith Malinga pick up 4 wickets in 4 balls. Malinga achieved the milestone during the 2007 Cricket World Cup against South Africa.