Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2019

Notes:
The Government of India (GoI) has constituted a 7-member Group of Ministers (GoM) to boost the real estate sector under the GST regime. Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat Nitin Patel will be the convener of the GoM. The panel will analyse tax rate of GST and suggest a composition scheme for residential construction units. It will also look into the issue of the legality of inclusion or exclusion of land or any other ingredient in the composition scheme and suggest valuation mechanism. It will also examine various aspects of the GST levy on Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) and Development Rights in a joint Development Agreement and suitable model. Currently, GST on the under-construction flats and houses is 12% whereas ready-to-move-in flats with a completion certificate attract no GST. There are also complaints about the builders not passing on the benefit of input tax credit to the consumers. The Council’s law and fitment committee will assist the panel. The officers from the Centre and states can also be invited in the committee for inputs, if required.

Notes:
Prof. Sir Michael Atiyah (89), the noted British mathematician has passed away in United Kingdom on 11th January 2019. He was best known for his co-development of a branch of mathematics called topological K-theory and the Atiyah-Singer index theorem. His research also involved deep insights relating to mathematical concepts known as “vector bundles”. Sir Michael was also a recipient of the Abel Prize (2004) and Fields Medal (1966), and was the former president of the Royal Society in London. He was one of the foremost mathematicians whose work encompassed topology and geometry, and worked with several Indian mathematicians such as Indian-American mathematician Harish-Chandra and Vijay Kumar Patodi, during his career.

Notes:
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has recently launched ‘Ama Ghare LED’ scheme, under which about 95 lakh families in the State will each get four LED bulbs free of cost. Under the scheme, each beneficiary registered under National Food Security Act (NFSA) and the State Food Security Scheme (SFSS) will be provided four LED bulbs of 9 watt each free of cost. To implement the scheme, the bulbs will be distributed at Panchayat offices as well as PEETHA (People’s Empowerment—Enabling Transparency and Accountability of Odisha Initiative) camps across the state. The beneficiaries will have to produce biometric authentication to get the benefits of the scheme.

Notes:
On 14th January 2019, the 1st National Level Sports Meet for the students of Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) was held at G.M.C Balayogi Stadium in Gachibowli, Hyderabad. The event has a participation of 1777 students comprising of 975 boys and 802 girls representing 20 States of the country. The striking feature of Sports meet has been the platform made available to tribal students studying in EMRS from the remote corners of North East India to Himachal Pradesh in North to Kerala in South and Gujarat in West to exhibit their latent talent in sports which would otherwise not be possible in normal course. The three day event had competitions in 13 different disciplines of track and field that includes Hockey, Wrestling, Football, Archery, Volley Ball, Kabaddi, Handball, Kho Kho and Athletics.The scheme of EMRSs is one of the flagship intervention of the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs introduced in the year 1997-98 to ensure tribal students get access to quality education in the remote tribal areas.

Notes:
Mohammed Ali Qamar, India’s first Commonwealth Games gold medal in boxing, has been named as the chief coach for the Indian women boxers. With this new role, he became the youngest ever person to get the top job. Ali Qamar replaced veteran Shiv Singh as the women’s coach. Prior to this, Ali Qamar was an assistant coach in the national camp for more than a year. Ali Qamar had created history in the 2002 Manchester edition of the Commonwealth Games, when he became the first Indian ever to win a Commonwealth Boxing Gold.

Notes:
In a first, the government of Delhi has proposed a specialised treatment facility for birds in the National Capital Territory, as part of its Animal Health and Welfare Policy 2018. It aims to strengthen overall animal health cover through prevention, control and eradication of various disease conditions, disease monitoring, surveillance and extension of veterinary services. It also aims to animal welfare through sensitization of public, rehabilitation of animals, crisis/disaster management for animals, infirmary for sick or injured, hostel facility for farm, stray or abandoned animals.

Notes:
Ace Indian female wrestler Vinesh Phogat from Haryana has become the first Indian athlete to receive a nomination in the prestigious Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award. Vinesh made a sensational comeback after battling a long injury lay-off to win a gold medal at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and Jakarta Asian Games. She has been nominated alongside US Tour Championship winner Tiger Woods, who won his first tournament in five years. The Awards will be presented in Monaco on the 18th of February 2019. Monaco is a tiny independent city-state on France’s Mediterranean coastline.

Notes:
On 19th January, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the National Museum of Indian Cinema (NMIC) in Mumbai, Maharshtra. The state-of-the-art Museum has been built at a cost of over Rs 140 crore. The objective of the Museum is to take its visitors through an absorbing journey of over a century of Indian cinema in a story telling mode with the help of visuals, graphics, artifacts, interactive exhibits and multimedia expositions. The Museum is housed in two buildings – the New Museum Building and the 19th century historic palace Gulshan Mahal in the Films Division campus in Mumbai. The New Museum Building has four Exhibition Halls which encapsulate Gandhi and Cinema, Children’s Film Studio, Technology, creativity and Indian Cinema and Cinema across India. The museum will not only cater to the needs of film critics and enthusiasts but also enthral visitors through visuals, graphics, interactive exhibits and multimedia expositions about India’s century-long cinematic journey.

Notes:
The Government of India (GoI) has approved setting up of three new naval air squadrons in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu as part of efforts to bolster the Indian Navy’s overall strength. Besides this, the Central Government has also sanctioned manpower towards manning additional aircraft in existing Dornier Surveillance Squadrons in Kerala and Andaman Islands. A contract for procurement of 12 Dornier aircraft was signed with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) two years back and their delivery is commencing soon. The new Dornier 228 maritime surveillance aircraft to be delivered to the Navy are fitted with improved ‘state of the art’ sensors and equipment which includes glass cockpit, advanced surveillance radar, optical sensors and networking features. The aircraft will enhance maritime domain awareness of Indian Navy through round the clock sensor based surveillance and provide targeting data in areas of operation to ward off terror and other threats from sea.The addition will further strengthen Indian Navy’s efforts at Coastal Security of India’s vast coastline of over 7 thousand kilometres.

Notes:
The German parliament has recently adopted a draft law that classifies the North African states of Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco as well as Georgia as safe countries of origin. The move is meant to deter migrants from those countries and streamline the handling of asylum applications. Once the law is approved by the German Federal Council, asylum procedures for people arriving from these countries will be accelerated. The return procedure of rejected applicants to their home country will also be sped up. According to the German constitution, safe countries of origin are countries in which there is neither political persecution nor inhuman or degrading punishment and treatment. The law has yet to be approved by the German Federal Council.