Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2019

Notes:
Rishabh Pant became the first Indian wicket-keeper to claim 20 catches in Test series, during the final day of the ‘Boxing Day Test’ in Melbourne against Australia on December 30. He surpassed former cricketers Naren Tamhane and Syed Kirmani who had recorded nineteen dismissals in 1954-55 and 1979-80 respectively. Brad Haddin from Australia holds the record for taking most catches in a Test series (29). In ‘Boxing Day Test’, India beat Australia by 137 runs to take an unassailable 2-1 lead in the four-match series. India took a giant stride towards winning their first ever test series on Australian soil in seven decades.

Notes:
Justice Thottathil B. Radhakrishnan has taken charge as first Chief Justice of Telangana High Court. Governor ESL Narasimhan administered the oath to him at a ceremony held at Raj Bhavan. The separate High Court for Telangana came into existence on 1st January 2, 2019 after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014. Later, Governor Narasimhan administered oath to Justice Chagari Praveen Kumar as the first Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh High Court in Vijayawada on the same day. With this, the separate high courts for Telugu states became functional.

Notes:
India has slashed import taxes on crude and refined palm oil sourced from Southeast Asian (ASEAN) countries after a request from suppliers. According to the official notification, the duty on crude palm oil was lowered to 40% from 44%, while the tax on refined palm oil was cut to 45% from 54% if imported from Malaysia and to 50%, if purchased from Indonesia or other member-nations of ASEAN. India imports 60% — 15.5 million tonnes annually — of its edible oil requirements, largely from Malaysia, Indonesia, Argentina and Ukraine. The reduction will lead to higher imports of palm oil by the world’s biggest edible oil buyer in coming months as it would narrow the difference between the tropical vegetable oil and competitors such as soyabean oil and sunflower oil.

Notes:
On January 2, US-based Kathak exponent Anindita Neogy Anaam has been honoured with the National Nritya Shiromani award for promoting the dance form across the world. The award was conferred on her in Cuttack at the 10th Cuttack Mahotsav : International Dance and Music festival in Odisha. The fest is organised by Utkal Yuva Sanskrutik Sangh (UYSS) in association with Cuttack district administration. Anindita Anaam is also recipient of prestigious national awards like Jayadev Rashtriya Puraskar and Bidagdha Nartaki Samman for her outstanding achievement in the preservation and promotion of Indian art in India and abroad.

Notes:
Recently, German authorities approved an $8 billion rail and road tunnel linking Denmark and Germany, despite environmental objections. The project comprises a four-lane motorway and a two-track railway. It is part-funded by the European Union (EU). The 19 km Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link is a planned immersed tunnel that is proposed to connect the Danish island of Lolland with the German island of Fehmarn. It was due to be completed in 2024, but has been delayed by environmental protests in Germany. The link would cross over the Fehmarn Belt in the Baltic Sea – 18 km wide – hence providing a direct link by railway and highway between northern Germany and Lolland, and thence to the Danish island of Zealand and Copenhagen. Once completed, it will become the world’s longest road and rail tunnel, and will open new socio-economic opportunities on both sides of the border.

Notes:
France has recently introduced a new “GAFA tax” – named after the large internet and technology companies viz. Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon – to ensure the global giants pay a fair share of taxes on their massive businesses in Europe. The so-called GAFA tax targeting major digital firms comes into force on 1st January 2019. Some other EU member states such as Britain, Spain and Italy are also working on national versions of a digital tax, with Singapore and India also planning their own schemes.

Notes:
Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah has become the highest international wicket-taker all formats in the calendar year 2018. He took 48 wickets in 9 Tests, 22 wickets in 13 ODIs and 8 wickets in 8 T20I matches. Hence, a total of 78 wickets in 2018 was taken by Bumrah. He surpassed South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada’s tally of 77 wickets to reach the milestone. While on the third position is Bumrah’s countryman Kuldeep Yadav who took 76 scalps.

Notes:
The 106th Indian Science Congress (ISC-2019) has been inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Jalandhar, Punjab from 3rd January 2019. The theme of the 5-day science congress is ‘Future India: Science & Technology’. Approx 30,000 delegates, including 300 top scientists and Nobel Laureates from across world are attending the congress. In it, around 100 plus conferences and events of scientific and technology origin will also be held, where eminent personalities from DRDO, ISRO, DST, AIIMS, UGC, AICTE, and many elite universities of the USA, UK, India and other countries will participate. The event will play a pivotal role in stimulating scientific research effort and raising the scientific temperament in the country and the world. There will also be four parallel mega events, including the children’s science conference; women’s science conference; science communicators’ meet; and, science exhibition. The exhibition will see participation from the national and international science companies, especially from the US, Australia, Germany and Switzerland.

Notes:
Saurabh Kumar, a 1982-batch Indian Ordnance Factory Service officer, has taken charge as new Director General of Ordnance Factories (DGOF) and chairman of the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) in Kolkata. An expert in the manufacture of ordnance, Kumar was on deputation to the Ministry of Defense as the director of planning and coordination from 2002 to 2009. During this period, he was involved in drafting the Indian offset policy for defence purchases and the ‘Make’ procedure in the Defence Procurement Procedure of 2003-04. He was also instrumental in piloting the proposals and obtaining the approval of the government for setting up two new greenfield ordnance factories at Nalanda and Korwa in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh respectively.

Notes:
C. H. Lokanath (91), a noted Indian Kannada language veteran stage and cine artist, has passed away in Bengaluru, Karnataka on 31st December 2018. He had acted in more than 1000 plays and 650 films. He is affectionately addressed as “Uncle Lokanath” or “Uppinakayi” by the industry people. Some of his noted characters he has played are: Galileo in “Galileo”, Rajaram in “Aspota”, Dr. Faustus in “Dr. Faustus”, Dushtabudhi in “Chandrahasa” and many such plays. His most famous films include “Bhootayyana Maga Ayyu”, “Collegu Ranga”, “Hosa Neeru” and Mane Mane Kathe. He has even acted in several episodes of Malgudi Days.