Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2019

Notes:
In Nepal, thousands of people came onto roads in capital Kathmandu against controversial “Guthi Bill” on 19th June 2019. The local residents of Kathmandu valley, especially ethnic Newar community members are protesting against the controversial bill, claiming that the bill had provisions in favour of land mafias and could be a threat to the centuries-old culture and traditions of Nepal. Guthis are socio-economic institutions (trusts), both public and private, that fund their obligations from incomes from cultivated or leased land assets. Depending on their obligations, Guthis fulfil religious, public service or social roles and could either involve members from a common lineage, or several. The Government of Nepal had tabled the Guthi Bill in National Assembly, the Upper House of Parliament in April to amend Guthi Act and nationalise both public and private Guthis or trusts and regulate all religious sites under a powerful commission. Though the Guthi Bill was withdrawn by the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation but protesters are demanding that it should be completely scrapped.

Notes:
Shefali Juneja, a 1992 batch officer of Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax cadre), has been appointed to the post of Representative of India in the council of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in Montreal, Canada for a period of 3 years. She will replace senior IAS officer Alok Shekhar.

Notes:
India has opened its first specialised hydrotherapy treatment center (water clinic) for elephants suffering from arthritis, joint pain and foot ailments on the banks of the Yamuna in Mathura. It is opened near the Wildlife SOS’ Elephant Conservation and Care Centre (ECCC), which currently houses 20 rescued elephants. The new hydrotherapy jumbo pool is 11-foot-deep and has 21 high pressure jet sprays that create water pressure that massage the elephants’ feet and body and help in increasing blood circulation. The center is a joint collaboration of Uttar Pradesh Forest Department and the NGO Wildlife SOS.

Notes:
Thanjavoor Ramamoorthy (90), the noted mridangam exponent and former top grade staff artist of All India Radio (AIR), has passed away in Trichy, Tamil Nadu on June 22, 2019. He had the unique distinction of having accompanied four generations of Carnatic stalwarts starting from violin genius Muringapuri Gopalakrishna Iyer, right up to renowned vocalist ML Vasanthakumari. He was the recipient of the Kalaimamani award of the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Notes:
On 21st June 2019, India’s ace cueist Pankaj Advani clinched the 35th men’s Asian Snooker Championship in Doha to complete a career grand slam in cue sports. In the final, he defeated Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon 6-3 to become the only one to win the Asian and World championships in all formats. He is also the only one to do so in two sports, both Billiards and Snooker. He conquered the ACBS Asian Snooker events – 6-red (short format) and 15-red (long format) – along with the IBSF World Championships in both formats too. Pankaj will now take part in IBSF World Cup next week in Doha.

Notes:
In Boxing, Indian team has been adjudged the best team of the tournament in the Black Forest Cup in Villingen, Schwenningen, Germany. In the tournament, the Indian junior women pugilists clinched 7 medals, including five gold. Haryana’s Neha (54kg) and Karnataka’s Anju Devi (50kg) claimed the honours of best boxer and promising player of the tournament. Ten countries including India, Ukraine, Germany, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Hungary, Lithuania, Mongolia, Greece, and Poland took part in this tournament. India’s powerful performances helped the contingent win the best team trophy.

Notes:
The Congress government in Madhya Pradesh has recently approved a proposal to provide 10% reservation for the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) of the general category in jobs and education. The family should not own more than 5 acres of agricultural land or a house measuring more than 1,200 square feet in municipal corporation limits. The size limit for the house would be 1,500 square feet in municipality areas and 1,800 square feet in Nagar Panchayat areas. In rural areas, size of the house won’t matter. The state cabinet also approved a proposal to enter into a tripartite agreement with the Union government and Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Company for metro rail projects in Bhopal and Indore.

Notes:
India’s chief national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand has been bestowed an honorary doctorate by IIT Kanpur on the occasion of their 52nd convocation on June 28, 2019. He received the honour from former ISRO chairman and Chairman of the board of Governors of IIT Kanpur, Prof K Radhakrishnan. The past recipients of the honour are Former President Prof. APJ Abdul Kalam and former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh. Gopichand, as a player, won the 2001 All England Open Badminton Championship. He became the second Indian after Prakash Padukone to achieve this feat. Post retirement, the Hyderabad-based shuttler started his own badminton academy — Gopichand Badminton Academy — in 2008. Many top Indian players including the likes of Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, Srikanth Kidambi, Parupalli Kashyap etc. have been trained at Pullela Gopichand’s academy in Hyderabad.

Notes:
The Rajasthan government has decided to set up Vedic education board and culture board in the state. It was announced by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot at the 25th ‘Bhamashah Sammelan’ at Birla Auditorium in Jaipur. The board will help future generations take inspiration from Vedic culture.

Notes:
Vijaya Nirmala (75), the veteran actress and filmmaker , has passed away in Hyderabad on June 27, 2019. Born on 20th February 1946, Nirmala made her acting debut in 1950 as a child artiste in the Tamil movie ‘Machcha Rekhai’. She holds a record in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the first woman to direct as many as 47 films in different languages. She was also feted with the Raghupathi Venkaiah Award in 2008 for her contributions to Telugu cinema. She featured in over 200 films in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam.