Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2019

Notes:
The International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction  (IDDR) is observed every year on 13th of October to promote a global culture of risk-awareness and disaster reduction. The 2019 theme “Reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services” is based on Target (d) of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030: ‘Substantially reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption services, among them health and education facilities, including through developing their resilience by 2030’.

Notes:
Indian-American Abhijit Banerjee, his wife Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer have jointly won the 2019 Nobel Economics Prize for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty. Mr Banerjee was educated at the University of Calcutta, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Harvard University, where he received his Ph.D in 1988. He is currently the Ford Foundation International Professor of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Ms Duflo is the 2nd woman to be awarded a Nobel in economics after Elinor Ostrom (2009) and  is also the youngest person-ever to receive the Economics Prize. The prize amount of 9 million Swedish krona will be shared equally between the three Laureates.

Notes:
I&B Secretary Amit Khare,  an IAS officer of 1985 batch from Jharkhand cadre, has been given the additional charge of Secretary of Department of School Education and Literacy in Ministry of Human Resources Development (HRD). The Department of Higher Education is in charge of secondary and post-secondary education. It is empowered to grant deemed university status to educational institutions on the advice of the University Grants Commission (UGC) under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission (UGC) Act of 1956.

Notes:
The Global Handwashing Day (GHD) is observed every year on 15th of October to motivate and mobilize people around the world to improve their handwashing habits. It is a  global campaign to raise awareness of handwashing with soap as a key factor in disease prevention. The 2019 theme is ‘Clean Hands for All’.

Notes:
India has been ranked 82nd among the 128 countries  in the 2019 World Giving Index (WGI), which is surveyed by the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF). The average figures for India over the past decade show that 34% people helped a stranger, 24% donated money and 19% volunteered or donated their time. The United States stood at the top followed Myanmar, New Zealand and Australia. The CAF is an international organization that promotes giving to transform lives and communities across the world. 

Notes:
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S Jaganmohan Reddy has launched YSR Rythu Bharosa – PM Kisan Samman Yojana in Nellore district. Under the crop investment support scheme, farmers will get financial assistance of Rs 13,500 per annum in three instalments, with the State Government contributing Rs 7,500 and the Centre Rs 6,000. Rythu Bharosa is one of the 9 major promises (Navaratnalu, or nine gems) made by the ruling YSR Congress Party in its manifesto.

Notes:
In Washington DC, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman led the Indian delegation at G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors as well as the BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meetings on the side-lines of the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings. The focus of discussions in the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting was on the current challenges to the global economy and possible responses to mitigate them.

Notes:
The 7th edition of Military World Games (MWG-2019) is being held from October 18–27 in Wuhan, China with theme ‘Military Glory and Peace’. It is for the first time that China is hosting the MWG, which is also known as Military Olympics.  In it, more than 10,000 military officials from over 140 counties, including India are expected to participate with a record-high 329 events across 27 sports. The first MWG was inaugurated in Rome in 1955, and since then, it is held in every 4 years by the International Military Sports Council (or CISM).

Notes:
In Jakarta, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has been sworn-in for a second and final 5-year term with a pledge to take bolder actions in the course of a string of fresh challenges around security, corruption and economic slowdown. Widodo clinched victory with 55.5% of the vote in the April presidential election.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has recently a book titled ‘Bridgital Nation’ in New Delhi. The book has been authored by Chairman of Tata Sons, N Chandrasekaran and Roopa Purushothaman. The book presents a powerful vision of the future where technology and human beings co-exist in a mutually beneficial ecosystem.