Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2019

Notes:
Eminent scientist and recipient of Bharat Ratna, C N R Rao has been chosen for the first Sheikh Saud International Prize for Materials Research, given by the Centre for Advanced Materials of the UAE. The award includes a plaque, a medal and a cash prize of $100000. The award will be presented to Rao at the International Workshop on Advanced Materials in Ras Al Khaima on February 25. Professor Rao is the National Research Professor, Linus Pauling Research Professor and Honorary President of Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR). He was awarded the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award of India in 2014.

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The insolvency regulator Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) has set up a 11-member working group under the Chairmanship of former SEBI chief UK Sinha to go into the concept of ‘Group Insolvency’ and suggest a suitable framework. This Working Group has been tasked to submit a report — within two months and will recommend a complete regulatory framework to facilitate insolvency resolution and liquidation of corporate debtors in a corporate group within the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). At present, the IBC provides for the resolution or liquidation of only individual stressed companies. So a framework within the IBC is sought to be created for the resolution/liquidation of an entire stressed corporate group having several entities in multiple NCLT jurisdictions.

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An Indian-American philanthropist and entrepreneur, Gurinder Singh Khalsa has been conferred with the prestigious 2019 Rosa Park Trailblazer award for his campaign that forced US authorities to change their policy towards headgear of the Sikh community. In 2007, Khalsa was refused access to board an aeroplane because of his turban. Thereafter Khalsa mobilised more than 67,000 people nationwide for petitions and took the issue to all the way to the US Congress, which forced Transportation and Security Administration (TSA) to change its headgear policy towards the Sikh community. As a result, Sikhs can now wear their turban through airport security in the US. Khalsa natively belongs to village Adhoi in Barara block of the Ambala district.

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The states of Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura celebrated their 47th statehood day on 21st January 2019. On this day in 1972, all the three states became full-fledged states under the North Eastern Region (Reorganisation) Act, 1971.The erstwhile princely states of Tripura and Manipur were merged with India in 1949 and became full-fledged states in 1972. Meghalaya was a part of Assam before it was carved out as a full-fledged state under the NER Act of 1971.

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According to recent Union Home Ministry communique, Aadhaar cards are now valid travel documents for Indians under 15 and over 65 years travelling to Nepal and Bhutan. Indians other than those in the two age brackets will not be able to use Aadhaar to travel to the two neighbouring countries, for which no visas are needed. Indian citizens going to Nepal and Bhutan don’t need a visa if they have a valid passport, a photo identity card issued by the Government of India (GoI) or an election ID card issued by the Election Commission (EC). Earlier, persons over 65 and under 15 could show their PAN card, driving licence, Central Government Health Service (CGHS) card or ration card, but not the Aadhaar, to prove their identity and visit the two countries.

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India Steel 2019 Exhibition and Conference has started in Mumbai on January 23. The three-day event organised by Ministry of Steel will help chart out the future growth path of the steel industry. The event will provide an opportunity for all the stakeholders to deliberate and identify ways to contribute towards building a robust roadmap for the further growth of the steel sector. Over 250 exhibiting companies from 15 countries, over 200 International buyers and large number of delegates are expected to hold business meetings during this event. More than 10 thousand business visitors both from India and abroad are expected to visit.

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On 23rd January, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Subhash Chandra Bose museum at the iconic Red Fort in New Delhi to mark the leader’s 122nd birth anniversary. The Museum on Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and Indian National Army provides a detailed account of Subhash Chandra Bose and the history of Indian National Army (INA). It also showcases various artefacts related to Subhash Chandra Bose and INA. The artefacts include wooden chair and sword used by Netaji, medals, badges, uniforms and other artefacts related to INA. Beside this, Prime Minister also inaugurated the Yaad-e-Jallian Museum on the Jallianwala Bagh and World War I, the Museum on 1857- India’s first war of Independence and Drishyakala-Museum on Indian Art within the Red Fort complex.

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Microsoft India has launched a new e-commerce platform re-weave.in for handloom weavers under its Project ReWeave, as part of its philanthropic initiatives. This e-commerce platform will help connect artisans to buyers directly and enables them to expand to newer customers and markets. The new e-commerce website hosts signature collections created by weaver communities and showcases traditional designs and products created from natural dyes. This e-marketplace will help sell to a broad set of customers, helping weavers to increase their income and earn a sustainable livelihood, while also reviving forgotten Indian art. The Indian handloom industry is the second-largest employment provider for the rural population in India, with almost 43 lakh weavers. Project ReWeave also aims to help weavers with working capital support through non-profit organisations.

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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recently released its biannual World Economic Outlook (WEO) update at the World Economic Forum (WEF-2019) in Davos. In it, IMF estimates India’s economic growth at 7.3% in 2018-19, 7.5% in 2019-20 and 7.7% in 2020-21. With the latest outlook, India will remain the fastest-growing economy in the world, at least for the next two years. The IMF report stated that India’s economy is poised to pick up in 2019, benefiting from low oil prices and a slower pace of monetary tightening than previously expected as inflation pressures ease. The latest growth projection by the IMF is a tad higher than the Central Statistics Office’s (CSO) estimate of 7.2%, but lower than the RBI’s estimate of 7.4%. But it is in line with the World Bank’s estimate of 7.3%.

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The Arunachal Pradesh government has recently declared the Pakke Paga Hornbill Festival (PPHF)–the state’s only conservation festival, as a “State Festival”. The purpose of the fest is to recognise the role played by the resident Nyishi tribe in conserving hornbills in the Pakke Tiger Reserve (PTR), to devise alternative sources of income for a region that relies on hunting and logging, and to tell the rest of the country about the wonders of the PTR and its surrounding areas. As part of the festival, visitors are treated to cultural programmes, food stalls, plays, sightseeing, river and village walks, bird-watching, screenings of short films as well as local tribal sports and dances.