Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2019

Notes:
Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) has launched an Automated Real Time Performance Smart-board for effective monitoring and measurement of the key programmes of the government such as Digital India, Aadhaar, Digital Payments etc. The aim of Smart-board is to be a single window access for Centre, State or District specific projects implemented by MeitY. It will provide real-time, dynamic analytical project monitoring for critical and high priority Programme of the ministry.

Notes:
Indian Army has started its  first-of -its kind biggest ever mountain combat exercise titled ‘Him Vijay’ in Arunachal Pradesh. It is the first-ever such drill that the military is holding in the northeastern state i.e., 100 km away from the Line of Actual Control (LAC).  The exercise is to test mobility, communication and coordination of such huge body of fast-moving troops in difficult terrain. The exercise is to be conducted in two phases. The first phase will be held between 7th to 10th October 2019  and the other phase will be from 20th- 24th October 2019.

Notes:
The Nobel Prize 2019 for Chemistry has jointly been awarded to three scientists – John D. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino – for the development of lithium-ion batteries that we use in everyday life from mobile phones to electric vehicles.

Notes:
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2019 was awarded jointly to William G. Kaelin Jr, Sir Peter J. Ratcliffe and Gregg L. Semenza “for their discoveries of how cells sense and adapt to oxygen availability”. The discoveries made by these scientists have fundamental importance for physiology and have paved the way for promising new strategies to fight anemia, cancer and many other diseases.

Notes:
India has slipped sharply by 10 places to rank 68th on the 2019 WEF Global Competitiveness Index due to improvements witnessed by several other economies. The index is compiled by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum (WEF). In the overall competitiveness ranking, Singapore replaced the US to take the first position.

Notes:
In Uttar Pradesh, the first -ever National Hindi Science writers conference has started on 11th of October in Lucknow with an aim to release science writing from the clutches of English and to promote use of Hindi and other Vernacular languages. More than one thousand science writers from across the country are participating in this conference which is aimed to bring all Hindi and vernacular language science writers at one platform and to promote Hindi in the field of science writing.

Notes:
NASA has recently launched its new Ionospheric Connection Explorer (Icon)  satellite  from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to explore the mysterious, dynamic region where air meets space. The refrigerator-size Icon satellite will study the airglow formed from gases in the ionosphere and also measure the charged environment right around the 360-mile-high (580-kilometer-high) spacecraft. Apart from this, a NASA satellite ‘Gold’ ( launched in 2018) is also studying the upper atmosphere, but from much higher up. 

Notes:
A research team led by Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) has discovered a unique species of miniature well-dwelling subterranean fish ‘Pangio bhujia’ from Kozhikode. It  is the first species of eel-loach in the world that has been discovered to be living in subterranean environments. Eel-loaches are generally found in fast-flowing streams in the south and the south-east Asia. The Pangio bhujia is approximately 3 centimetres long & pinkish-red in colour, and resides in the purest waters of deep subterranean aquifers. 

Notes:
Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu has been   conferred the highest Civilian Honour of East African island nation Comoros — The Order of the Green Crescent – at its capital Moroni. The honour was conferred by the President of the Union of Comoros Azali Assoumani. India and Comoros signed 6 agreements on defence, health and culture. Both the countries also decided to exempt each other from Visa for diplomatic and official passport holders for short visits. India has also extended over 60 million dollar line of credit  to Comoros in the field of energy and maritime defence cooperation.

Notes:
In Madhya Pradesh, brides from economically backward sections under the ”Mukhya Mantri Kanya Vivah / Nikah Yojna” are being eligible to receive Rs 51,000 provided they prove that the groom’s house has a toilet before the wedding. And for that, it has been made mandatory for the groom to click a selfie while standing in the toilet in his residence. The aim of the initiative is to ensure that toilets are constructed in every household in the state.