Current Affairs Quiz - March, 2019

Notes:
The National Science Day (NSD) is observed every yearon 28th of February to mark the discovery of Raman effect by Physicist C V Raman on 28th February, 1928. For his discovery, Sir CV Raman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930. In honour of this discovery and as a mark of tribute to the scientist, National Science Day was marked for the first time on February 28, 1987. The purpose of the day is to spread the message of importance of science and its application among the people. This year, the theme for the 2019 NSD is, ‘Science for the People and the People for Science’. The Raman Effect is the inelastic scattering of a photon by molecules which are excited to higher energy levels. It forms the basis for Raman spectroscopy which is used by chemists and physicists to gain information about materials.

Notes:
Eminent Indian playwright Mahesh Elkunchwar has been chosen for the 2019 META Lifetime Achievement Award. He will be conferred upon with the award on March 12, along with the winners of the 14th Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META) festival. Elkunchwar is critically-acclaimed and widely-known for having experimented with a wide range of drama and is considered a powerful force in both Indian and Marathi theatre scene. He has over 30 plays and essays to his credit including works like ‘Sultan’, ‘Holi’, ‘Garbo’, ‘Yatanaghar’, and ‘Atmakatha’. His 1985 play ‘Wada Chirebandi’ (Old Stone Mansion) has been staged in Marathi, Hindi and Bengali, besides being adapted for television.

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Suresh Raina has become the first Indian batsman to cross 8000 runs in T20 cricket. He achieved this feat when he scored 12 runs against Puducherry in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at Delhi on Feb 25. With those 12 runs, Raina has now scored 8,001 from 300 T20s which consisted of 284 innings. It was incidentally his 300th T20. Beside this, Raina is the second Indian after MS Dhoni to have played 300 T20 matches. Apart from Raina, Virat Kohli (7833) and Rohit Sharma (7795) are the only other batsmen in the top 10 list of the highest run-getters in T20 cricket. Overall, Raina is the sixth highest with David Warner (8111 runs), Shoaib Malik (8603), Kieron Pollard (8839), Brendon McCullum (9922) and Chris Gayle (12,298).

Notes:
Karnataka has launched a major water conservation scheme titled ‘Jalamrutha’, which focusses on drought-proofing measures, including protection and rejuvenation of water bodies. The state the largest swathe of drought-prone land in the country next only to Rajasthan. ‘Jalamrutha’ will deploy scientific approaches to water budgeting, water harvesting and water conservation through the use of geospatial data, satellite imagery, topographical and geological data. It will be a community driven movement, which will be implemented by key line departments of the government, Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs), non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and private sector institutions. Water conservation strategy under this scheme comprises four components of water literacy, rejuvenation of waterbodies, creation of new waterbodies as well as development of watersheds and afforestation activities. It will operate on a four-tier institutional structure with planning and execution committees being set up at village, taluk, district and State levels.

Notes:
In Tripura, the joint border guarding exercise “Mainamati Maitree Exercise 2019’ was held between the Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) as a part of ‘Confidence Building Measures’ between the two border guards. The exercise was named after the Mainamati hill range situated 8 km west of Comilla township in Bangladesh, which is home to an ancient Buddhist archaeological site in the region. The main purpose of this exercise was to plan and conduct anti-smuggling and anti-criminal activity related operations with an aim of achieving better joint operational efficiency and border management in the area.

Notes:
On 1st of March 2019, the Supreme Court pulled up the Haryana government for passing amendments to an act which allows construction in the ecologically-sensitive Aravalli hills. A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Deepak Gupta stated that the step will destroy the forest and it cannot be permitted. Terming the move as shocking, the bench asked the state not to take any further action on the law. It said that the Haryana government has taken the step despite the apex court’s directive in this regard. On 27th Feb 2019, the state assembly had passed an amendment to the centuries-old Punjab Land Preservation Act, 1900 (PLPA) Act & opened up thousands of acres of land for real estate developers and for mining in the Aravallis and Shivalik ranges. The decision meant it would not only burden the already ecologically-fragile system, but would also pose a major environmental and ecological threat to the national capital region.

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The Zero Discrimination Day (ZDD) is observed every year on 1st of March to promote equality before the law and in practice throughout all of the member countries of the UN. The days aims to tell people that nobody should be differentiated based on their HIV status, age, sex, gender identity, race, ethnicity, language, geographical location or migrant status. The 2019 campaign ‘Act to change laws that Discriminate’ challenges people to act against laws that discriminate in their country. The campaign encourages people to ask themselves “What if …” and to think about their own actions. For example: ‘What if your neighbour had tuberculosis? Would you stop to chat?’

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The Lignocellulosic biomass (or LC biomass) refers to plant biomass that is composed of carbohydrate polymers (cellulose, hemicellulose), and an aromatic polymer (lignin). It is the most abundantly available raw material on the Earth for the production of biofuels, mainly bio-ethanol. It is in news recently because the Union Cabinet has approved the “Pradhan Mantri JI-VAN (Jaiv Indhan- Vatavaran Anukool fasal awashesh Nivaran) Yojana” for providing financial support to Integrated Bioethanol Projects using lignocellulosic biomass and other renewable feedstock. It has been launched as a tool to create 2G Ethanol capacity in the country and attract investments in this new sector. The scheme focuses to incentivize 2G Ethanol sector and support this nascent industry by creating a suitable ecosystem for setting up commercial projects and increasing Research & Development in this area. The ethanol produced by the scheme beneficiaries will be mandatorily supplied to Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to further enhance the blending percentage under Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) programme. The JI-VAN Yojana will be supported with total financial outlay of Rs.1969.50 crore for the period from 2018-19 to 2023-24.

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The 8th edition of joint military exercise ‘Sampriti-2019’ between the armies of India and Bangladesh has recently started at Bongobondhu Cantonment in Tangail, Bangladesh. The aim of the 14-day exercise is to increase mutual cooperation, bonhomie and camaraderie between the armies of two countries. The exercise is a part of the ongoing India-Bangladesh defence cooperation. The Bangladesh contingent was represented by 36 East Bengal Battalion, while Indian side was represented by 9th Battalion of the Rajputana Rifles.

Notes:
On 5th March, the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has inaugurated the project BOLD-QIT (Border Electronically Dominated QRT Interception Technique) on India-Bangladesh border in Dhubri District of Assam. The project is a part of the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS), which many countries including Israel have adopted to ensure proper border management. Hence, the implementation of the BOLD-QIT project will not only help Border Security Force (BSF) to curb all types of cross border crimes but also provide respite to the troops from round the clock human surveillance. Now, the entire span of River Brahmaputra has been covered with data network generated by Microwave communication, OFC Cables, DMR Communication, day and night surveillance Cameras and intrusion detection system. These modern gadgets provide feeds to BSF Control Rooms on the Border and enable BSF Quick Reaction Teams to thwart any possibility of Illegal Cross Border Crossing/ Crimes. The BSF is responsible for safeguarding of over 4,000km long International Border with Bangladesh.