Current Affairs Quiz- September, 2019

Notes:
The Union Government has instituted the highest civilian award in the field of contribution to the unity and integrity of India, in the name of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The award seeks to recognize notable and inspiring contributions to promote the cause of national unity and integrity and to reinforce the value of a strong and united India. The award will be announced on the occasion of the National Unity Day (NUD) on the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel on 31st of October. The award would consist of a medal and a citation. No monetary grant or cash award would be attached to this Award. Not more than 3 awards would be given in a year. It would not be conferred posthumously except in very rare and highly deserving cases.

Notes:
At Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated the 6th edition of ”India Water Week (IWW-2019)”, which is organised by Ministry of Jal Shakti with the theme of ”Water cooperation-coping with 21st-century challenge’ . Japan and European Union have been associated as partner countries for this mega event. Under this campaign, the entire Government of India (GoI) machinery of over 1000 senior Central Government officers have joined the States to promote focused interventions for water collection and conservation, including restoration and renovation of traditional water bodies.

Notes:
The 17-year old Payal Jangid from Rajasthan has become the first Indian to win the Goalkeepers Global Goals Changemaker Award by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in New York. She  was recognised for her campaign to end child labour and child marriage. Jangid, who fought against her own marriage at a young age, work towards the abolition of child marriage in her village “Hinsla”, which is a child-friendly village (Bal Mitra Gram), and other neighbouring villages. Her campaign includes organizing rallies, putting up posters, paining walls and going door-to-door to speak to families on the same.

Notes:
During the 52nd IAAF Congress at Doha, Sebastian Coe from Britain has been re-elected as president of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) for a second term for 4 years. Coe is the former Olympic and world champion middle-distance runner. Beside this, Adille Sumariwalla (the President of Athletics Federation of India (AFI)) was re-elected as member of the Council of IAAF for a 2nd four-year term.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted the first-ever India-Caricom summit in New York with a focus on fighting climate change and increasing India’s participation with the grouping. Mr Modi announced a 14 million US dollar grant for community development projects in the Caricom and another 150 million line of credit for solar, renewable energy and climate change related projects. The Caricom grouping has 15 members-states and 5 associate members. Mr. Modi also invited them to join the International Solar Alliance (IAS) and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure.

Notes:
Infosys has won the prestigious United Nations Global Climate Action Award in the ‘Climate Neutral Now’ category. With this feat, Infosys has become the only corporate from India to earn the recognition for its efforts to combat climate change. The award will be presented to Infosys at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP25) in Santiago, Chile on December 2019.   

Notes:
The National Film Archive of India (NFAI) has recently discovered 30 reels of unedited footage on Mahatma Gandhi that amounts to almost 6 hours of duration. These 35mm celluloid footages, unedited and stock shots with title cards in between, belonged to several prominent film studios of the time like Paramount, Pathe, Warner, Universal, British Movietone and Wadia Movietone. The major highlight of the discovery is a rare half-an-hour footage that has visuals of a special train carrying Mahatma Gandhi’s ashes, after his assasination on 30th January 1948, from Madras to Rameshwaram. In 1964, the NFAI was established as a media unit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) with headquarters at Pune, Maharashtra.

Notes:
The National Tourism Awards 2017-18 were recently presented by Vice President Venkaiah Naidu on the occasion of World Tourism Day (WTD-2019). In it, Andhra Pradesh has bagged 3 national tourism awards in different categories viz. ‘Best State for comprehensive development of tourism’, ‘Excellence in publishing in English’ and the ‘Best tourist-friendly Railway Station (Visakhapatnam). Goa and Madhya Pradesh were the joint winners in the Adventure Tourism category and Uttarakhand won the award for the Best Film Promotion-Friendly State. Telangana won the award for the Best State for the innovative use of IT.

Notes:
England wicketkeeper Sarah Taylor, who is regarded as one of the world’s best wicketkeepers, has recently retired from international cricket because of her ongoing battle with anxiety. Sarah made her England debut in 2006 and scored 6,553 international runs. She was also a magnetic keeper behind the stumps, creating waves with her innovative methods that led her to 232 dismissals, the most in women’s cricket. Taylor had previously gone on an indefinite break from cricket after the 2016 World T20 in India before returning for the 2017 World Cup.

Notes:
The World Tourism Day (WTD) is observed every year on 27th of September to create awareness on the role of tourism among the international community and to demonstrate how it affects social, cultural, political and economic values worldwide. The 2019 theme is “Tourism and Jobs: A Better Future for All”.