Current Affairs Quiz - April, 2020

Notes:
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has recently announced that it has completed the construction of 3979 km of highways in the financial year 2019-20.
Its official statement also read that this is the highest ever highway construction achieved in a financial year by NHAI, since its inception in 1995. Though NHAI could not meet the target of 4500 km for the current fiscal, it has seen a steady growth in the construction phase.

Notes:
The Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe recently declared a state of emergency in the country, due to the rise in the coronavirus cases.
A month-long state of emergency starting from April 7 has been declared in the capital city Tokyo and six other parts of the country. This move gives powers to local governments to contain the spread of the coronavirus, by urging residents to stay at home and calling for businesses to close.

Notes:
Representatives of SAARC had a discussion on the impact of Covid-19 situation on intra-regional trade through video-conferencing.
The senior trade officials of all SAARC countries except Pakistan, also discussed the impact of travel restrictions. This is the follow-up of the first virtual meeting held on March 15. The eight member countries of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Notes:
England all-rounder Ben Stokes has been recently named the ‘Leading Cricketer in the World’ in the 2020 edition of the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack. He becomes the first English cricketer to win the award since 2005 after Andrew Flintoff.
Ben Stokes replaced the Indian skipper Virat Kohli who had won the award three straight times till last year’s edition. Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry won the leading woman player in the world award. England’s Jofra Archer, South Africa’s Simon Harmer, Australians Pat Cummins, Marnus Labuschagne and Ellyse Perry were named as the five Wisden Cricketers of the year.

Notes:
According to a recent report released by the government, India’s fiscal deficit stood at 5.07% of gross domestic product (GDP) in February. Industrial output, measured in terms of Index of Industrial Production (IIP), was also at 4.5% in February.
The Government has revised its fiscal deficit target of 3.8% of GDP for FY20, during the 2020 Union Budget presentation. With a 5.07% fiscal deficit, it is expected that the revised target for the year 2019-20 would be difficult to be achieved.

Notes:
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is celebrating the ‘Play True Day 2020’ on April 9, which has been celebrated since 2014.
Canada-based World Anti-Doping Agency is a foundation launched by the International Olympic Committee, to promote awareness against drugs in sports. WADA is celebrating the day this year with the theme ‘Play Safe on Play True Day 2020’.

Notes:
The United Nations General Assembly declared 12 April as the International Day of Human Space Flight in the year 2011.
12 April 1961 was the date of the first human space flight, carried out by the Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who was the first person to fly in space. The day is celebrated to commemorate this historic event which opened the way for space exploration across the globe.

Notes:
India is the largest producer and exporter of Hydroxychloroquine with nearly 70 per cent of annual global production.
As per the recent announcement from the Department of Pharmaceuticals, our country has enough stock and manufacturing capacity of the formulation to cater both the domestic requirement and export commitments. Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) had recommended hydroxychloroquine to be used as a preventive medication for persons in the high-risk group.

Notes:
The multilateral funding agency Asian Development Bank (ADB) has tripled its Covid-19 response package initially announced for developing member countries to $20 billion.
Last month, ADB had announced a $6.5 billion package for its 31 DMC (developing member countries) to assist them in recovering the economies. The lender has also announced that $2 billion will be provided through loans for private sector and financial institutions and microfinance loans for medium-sized enterprises.

Notes:
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) has recently inked an agreement with the Indian non-profit organisation CUTS International, to empower consumers during the coronavirus pandemic.
Consumer Unity and Trust Society (CUTS) International is a Rajasthan-based non-profit organisation founded in 1983. UNIDO and CUTS have also planned to develop a BRICS e-commerce project, which was implemented as a pilot project by UNIDO in the BRICS countries between 2016 and 2018.