Current Affairs Quiz- November, 2019

Notes:
The World Thrift Day (WTD) is celebrated every year on 31st October worldwide to promote savings and financial security of individual and nation as a whole. In India, due to death of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on the same day in 1984 this day is being celebrated on 30th October. The day was established to inform people all around the world about the idea of saving their money in a bank rather than keeping it under their mattress or at home.  

Notes:
The 35th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit 2019 has started in Bangkok, Thailand on 1st of November with theme ‘Advancing Partnership for sustainability’. During 5-days summit East Asia summit (EAS) and Regional Comprehensive Economic Summit (RCEP) will be also held. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend this summit on 3rd and 4th November. The ASEAN is a group of 10 member countries that encourages political,economic and social co-operation in the region. The summit would  discuss comprehensive and sustainable ASEAN economic development and s on negotiations related to the RCEP including market opening. The RCEP is a proposed Free Trade Agreement ( FTA) between the 10 members state of ASEAN and its partner countries.

Notes:
Internationally acclaimed sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik has been selected for the prestigious Italian Golden Sand Art Award 2019. He will be felicitated during the International Scorrana Sand Nativity in Italy, which is going to held from 13th to 18th Nov.  He will also represent India in this fest.

Notes:
President Ram Nath Kovind has recently launched the IIT Delhi global alumni endowment fund at Rashtrapati Bhavan that will have an initial commitment of more than Rs 250 crore. As per the scheme, the student will receive an aid of $10,000 from the alumni endowment fund. The aim of the endowment model is to achieve a target corpus of USD 1 billion over a period of 7 years. This first-of-its-kind fund in India will work towards the development of the University, nurturing innovation, and keeping alive the entrepreneurial spirit among the youth of India. 

Notes:
The 15th meeting of the Governing Council of South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) is being held in Dhaka, Bangladesh. In it, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar is leading the Indian delegation. The SACEP is an inter-governmental organization established in 1982 by the South Asian governments to promote and support protection, management and enhancement of the environment in the region. Its member countries are – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Notes:
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has recently launched two new IT Initiatives – ICEDASH and ATITHI – for improved monitoring and pace of customs clearance of imported goods and facilitating arriving international passengers. ICEDASH is an Ease of Doing Business (EODB) monitoring dashboard of the Indian Customs that allows public see and compare import clearance times at all ports and airports across India.  The ATITHI app will facilitate hassle-free and faster clearance by Indian Customs at the airports and increase the experience of international tourists and other visitors at the airports. 

Notes:
In New Delhi, the International Conference on Soil and Water Resources Management for Climate has been organized jointly by the Soil Conservation Society of India in association with World Association of Soil and Water Conservation (WASWAC), China and International Soil Conservation Organization (ISCO), USA  on November 6, 2019. The aim of the 5-day long conference is to deliberate upon the various issues and challenges of soil and water conservation. Over 400 national and international experts are expected to share effective cutting-edge technological breakthroughs in ensuring global food security. 

Notes:
The World Tsunami Awareness Day (WTAD) is observed every year on 5th of November to spread awareness about precautionary measures against tsunami and share innovative approaches to risk reduction. In 2019, the day promotes Target (d) of the “Sendai Seven Campaign,” which focuses on reducing disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services.

Notes:
The Danakil Depression is the northern part of the Afar Triangle or Afar Depression in Ethiopia. It is one of the world’s hottest as well as lowest places on Earth (100 m below sea level). The hot springs in Danakil Depression offer a research opportunity for studying extremophile microbes. It is in news recently because according to new study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, active and naturally occurring life cannot be sustained at Danakil. It identifies two barriers: a) magnesium-dominated brines that cause cells to break down; and b) an environment having simultaneously very low pH and high salt. Hence, the combination of both  barriers makes adaptation highly difficult.

Notes:
According to an analysis published in Carbon Brief, India’s Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions growth is expected to slow down by 2% in 2019. The emissions are lower than the annual increase seen in any year since 2001 due to a slower growth in coal-based power generation and rise in renewable power generation.  The Oil demand growth slowed to 2.6% in the first eight months of 2019, compared with 4.6% in 2018, and 5% on average over the past 10 years. Carbon Brief is a site that tracks emission and CO2 trends.