Current Affairs Quiz - March, 2019

Notes:
Vinod Kashyap (88), the veteran Hindi Newsreader, has passed in New Delhi on March 10, 2019. She served All India Radio (AIR) for about 30 years. She started her career in Radio as a drama artist.

Notes:
The 5th edition of the SAFF Women’s Championship 2019 has started in Biratnagar, Nepal on March 12. Defending champion India has been drawn in Group B in the six-team competition alongside Maldives and Sri Lanka, while host Nepal has been kept in Group A with Bangladesh and Bhutan. The opening match was played between Nepal and Bhutan. Unbeaten in 19 matches from the last four editions, India will take on Maldives on March 13. Indian coach Maymol Rocky has expressed confidence in her side. The tournament will be last opportunity for Indian coach Maymol Rocky to fine tune her team for the crucial 2020 Olympic Qualifiers Round 2, which is scheduled to be held in Myanmar from April 1-9.

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In USA, the researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed an imaging system which could be deployed to find tiny tumours, as small as a couple of hundred cells, deep within the body. They used their imaging system, named “DOLPHIN,” which relies on near-infrared light, to track a 0.1-millimetre fluorescent probe through the digestive tract of a living mouse. They also showed that they can detect a signal to a tissue depth of eight centimeters, far deeper than any existing biomedical optical imaging technique. The researchers hope to adapt their imaging technology for early diagnosis of ovarian and other cancers that are currently difficult to detect until late stages. According to the study published in the journal Scientific Reports, existing methods for imaging tumours all have limitations that prevent them from being useful for early cancer diagnosis.

Notes:
The World Kidney Day (WKD) is observed every year on 2nd Thursday of March as a global health awareness campaign to raise awareness about impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems worldwide. In 2019, the WKD is been observed on March 14 with theme “Kidney Health for Everyone Everywhere”. The 2019 WKD theme calls for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) for prevention and early treatment of kidney diseases.

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The World Health Organisation (WHO) has recently launched new Global Influenza Strategy for 2019-2030 aimed at protecting people in all countries from the threat of influenza. The strategy will provide a framework for WHO alongside countries and other partners to work to prevent seasonal influenza, control the spread of the infection from animals to humans and prepare for the next pandemic. A global influenza pandemic was listed as one of the WHO’s top ten threats to global health in 2019. Influenza is one of the world’s greatest public health challenges.Every year across the globe, there are an estimated 1 billion cases, of which 3 to 5 million are severe cases, resulting in 290 000 to 650 000 influenza-related respiratory deaths. WHO recommends annual influenza vaccination as the most effective way to prevent influenza.

Notes:
The Union Cabinet has recently approved the proposal for accession of India to (i) The Nice Agreement concerning the International classification of Goods and Services for the purposes of registration of marks, (ii) The Vienna Agreement establishing an International Classification of the figurative elements of marks, and (iii) The Locarno Agreement establishing an International classification for industrial designs. The accession to the Nice, Vienna and Locarno Agreements will help the Intellectual Property (IP) office in India to harmonise the classification systems for examinational of trademark and design applications, in line with the classification systems followed globally. It would give an opportunity to include Indian designs, figurative elements and goods in the international classification systems. The accession is expected to instill confidence in foreign investors in relation to protection of IPs in India. The accession would also facilitate in exercising rights in decision making processes regarding review and revision of the classifications under the agreement.

Notes:
M R Kumar has been appointed the new Chairman of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and will hold the post for a period of five years. Prior to this post, he was Zonal Manager (in-charge) of North Zone. LIC is the largest insurance company in India headquartered in Mumbai. It was founded in 1956 when the Parliament of India passed the Life Insurance of India Act that nationalised the private insurance industry in India. Over 245 insurance companies and provident societies were merged to create the state owned Life Insurance Corporation.

Notes:
The State Bank of India (SBI) has launched doorstep banking service for senior citizens over 70 years of age, differently-abled customers and infirm customers, including visually-impaired customers. Eligible customers can avail this service at a nominal fee of Rs. 100 per transaction for financial transactions and Rs. 60 for non-financial transactions. The doorstep banking services are available to KYC- compliant account holders, with a valid mobile number registered with the bank and residing within 5km radius from their home branch. This service will not be available for accounts operated jointly, minor accounts, and accounts of non-personal nature. The list of specific services will include – Cash pickup & delivery, Cheque pickup, Cheque book requisition slip pickup, Delivery of drafts & Term deposit advice, Life certificate pick-up and Pickup of Form 15H for Income Tax purposes.

Notes:
Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old Swedish environmental activist, has been nominated for 2019 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts in climate activism and fighting global warming. Ms. Thunberg is the founder of the School Strike for Climate movement, which is a global, growing movement of students demanding more action from authorities regarding global warming and climate change. The movement began last year as a solo protest by Thunberg outside the Swedish Parliament building. She encouraged students to skip school to join protests demanding faster action on climate change. It has since grown, and on 15th March 2019, thousands of students from across continents skipped school and take part in protests. It is said to be the largest such protest. If she won, Thunberg would be the youngest person to become a Nobel peace prize laureate, a title Malala Yousafzai took as a 17-year-old in 2014for her work on the right to education. The winner of the Nobel peace prize will be announced in October 2019.

Notes:
The Soyuz spacecraft carrying NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Christina Koch, and cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin of Roscosmos has successfully docked to the International Space Station (ISS) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The crew members will spend more than six months conducting about 250 science investigations in fields such as biology, Earth science, human research, physical sciences, and technology development. The Soyuz (SAW-yooz) is a Russian spacecraft. It transports crews to the ISS and returns them to Earth after their missions. The crew rides in the part of the spacecraft called a capsule. Up to three astronauts or cosmonauts can ride in a Soyuz capsule. The Soyuz is like a lifeboat for the space station. At least one Soyuz is always docked at the space station. If there is an emergency, the station crew can use the Soyuz to return to Earth.