Current Affairs Quiz- November, 2019

Notes:
In New Delhi, the first-ever National Agrochemicals Congress (NAC) was conducted by Society of Pesticide Science India at IARI, Pusa under the theme “Country’s Status on various fronts of Agro chemicals”. The 4-day long Congress is conducted in view of the role chemical pesticides still continue to play in pest management as more and more target specific and environment friendly products are being introduced. 

Notes:
In India, the National Epilepsy Day (NED) is observed every year on 17th of November to create awareness about epilepsy.  Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of brain characterized by recurrent ‘seizures’ or ‘fits’. The seizures are caused as a result of sudden, excessive electrical discharges in the neurons (brain cells).   The condition can affect people at any age and each age group has unique concerns and problems.  

Notes:
The Jayakwadi Dam  is located on Godavari river at the site of Jayakwadi village in Paithan taluka of Aurangabad district in Maharashtra. It is in news because the seismometer , piezometer, earth pressure cell, slope meter and several other key instruments installed at the dam have stopped functioning properly. The seismometer was installed at the Jayakwadi dam after the devastating earthquake in Killari in Latur district in 1993. This instrument is powerful as it has a range of 10,000 kms. In the past, it has recorded the epicentres of earthquakes in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Russia, Nepal, etc. 

Notes:
The Assam government has decided to start Arundhati gold scheme by January 2020 for the registered newly married couples. Under the scheme, an amount of 30 thousand rupees will be given to the bride to purchase gold. The purpose of the scheme is to promote marriage registrations and prevent under-age marriages in the state.  To get the benefit, the annual income of the bride and her father should not be more than 5 lakh rupees per year. As per the scheme, the minimum age of the bride and groom to be 18 and 21 years to avail the benefit.

Notes:
The Union Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals has appointed senior Andhra Pradesh bureaucrat Rajat Bhargava as head of a high-level committee to suggest necessary policy initiatives for attracting more investments into the Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemical Investment Regions (PCPIR) in the country. This is the first time the Union government  is seeking to amend the PCPIR Policy after it was introduced. As per the PCPIR Policy, the Centre approved four PCPIRs at Dahej (Gujarat) on the west coast and Visakhapatnam- Kakinada (Andhra Pradesh), Paradeep (Odisha) and Cuddalore- Nagapattinam (Tamil Nadu) on the east coast. The VK-PCPIR is the largest in the country spread over an area of 640 sq km along the Bay of Bengal coast.

Notes:
Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, Pema Khandu has recently launched the first Hindi daily Titled ‘Arun Bhoomi’ of the state to promote Hindi amongst the new generation of Arunachalees. The Hindi daily will be published and edited by Takam Sonia. Takam also heads the Arunachal Hindi Sanstha, an organization working for promotion and propagation of Hindi language in the state.

Notes:
The 2nd edition of South Asia Safety Summit 2019 was held in New Delhi to highlight the issue of safety while individuals and communities are connected on the digital platform. It was organized by Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) and Facebook. During the Summit, Union Minister Smriti Zubin Irani launched “We Think Digital” website. The website is a four-part course designed to empower students with the knowledge to use, understand, evaluate, communicate and create with digital technologies. The programme will focus on online safety, privacy and misinformation.

Notes:
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, CMD of Biocon, has been conferred with Lifetime Achievement Award by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for her outstanding achievement in healthcare and contribution to the society at large. She was also recognised for her philanthropic efforts and providing better healthcare to people in India and globally through cost-effective life-saving therapies and increasing access to healthcare at the grassroots. Bill Gates gave away this award to Mazumdar-Shaw in New Delhi on Nov 17 at an event to mark the celebration of 108th Foundation Day of ICMR. 

Notes:
The Living Root Bridges (LRB) (or jing kieng jri) are the aerial bridges built by weaving and manipulating the roots of the Indian rubber tree. They have been serving as connectors for generations in Meghalaya. These bridges spans between 15 and 250 feet and are built over centuries. Primarily, the bridges are a means to cross streams and rivers & have also become world-famous tourist attractions. Now, new research investigates these structures and proposes to integrate them in modern architecture around the world, and potentially help make cities more environment-friendly. 

Notes:
The Oxford Dictionaries has declared “climate emergency” as its 2019 Word of the Year. In 2019, “climate” became the most common word associated with “emergency”.  The Word of the Year citation is intended to highlight a word or expression shown through usage evidence to reflect the ethos, mood, or preoccupations of the passing year, and have a lasting potential as a term of cultural significance.