Current Affairs Quiz-December, 2019

Notes:
2019 Gold-Medalist from Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IIT-R) & founder of International Changemaker Olympiad Rahul Adhikari, was conferred with 2019 Karmaveer Chakra Award REX Karmaveer Global Fellowship at the REX CONCLiVE held in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.  The award was given for his contribution in the education sector.

Notes:
Renowened theatre artiste of Odisha, Paramananda Sahu (72) has passed away in Balasore  on 30th of November . He had directed and acted in more than a hundred dramas, besides being an artiste in All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan.

Notes:
Eminent Malayalam poet Akkitham Achuthan Namboothiri has been chosen as the recipient of the 55th Jnanpith Award for the year 2019. Born in 1926, Akkitham is one of the most revered names in Malayalam poetry. Apart from poetry, his literary excellence has footprints in genres like drama, reminiscence, critical essays, children literature, short stories and translation. He has authored 55 books out of which 45 are collections of poems including “Khanda Kavyas”, “Katha Kavyas”, “Charitha Kavyas” and songs. His works have also been translated into many Indian and foreign languages.

Notes:
‘Surya Kiran XIV’ between India and Nepal will be conducted at Salijhandi, Rupendehi district of Nepal from 3 to 16 December 2019. The exercise will comprise of 300 soldiers from both the Indian Army and Nepal Army who will be sharing their experiences in the conduct of various counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations, as also various humanitarian assistance missions by both Armies.
 

Notes:
The Government of India has proposed increasing the fine for illegal and improper use of national emblems for commercial gains from Rs.500 to Rs.1 lakh. It also suggested change also includes jail time and a fine of Rs.5 lakh for repeat offenders. The aim is to crack down on their misuse. The Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act, 1950 of India prohibits the misuse of the national flag, the Ashoka Chakra, the official seal of the President or Governor, the coat-of-arms used by a government department, the pictorial representation of Mahatma Gandhi and the Prime Minister.

Notes:
Punjab CM Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh made it clear that devotees applying online to visit Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan were not being charged facilitation fee by ‘sewa kendras’ set up by the state government. In a statement he said, anyone asked to pay any fee should inform his office directly. He asserted the application process was totally free of cost.

Notes:
Namibia’s President Hage Geingob has been re-elected for a second term, the country’s electoral commission says.Mr. Geingob polled 56.3% in election, well ahead of his nearest rival Panduleni Itula with 29.4%.However, Mr. Geingob’s tally was well down from 87% with which he won his first term in 2014.

Notes:
The Punjab cabinet on December 2, 2019, approved the amendment of Punjab Village Common Land (Regulation) rules, 1964. It aims at creating land banks in rural areas to boost industrial development in the state.
The amendment has included Rule 12-B that provides special provision to transfer shamlat land or common land to the development of industrial projects. According to GoI, Shamlat land is the land that does not come under cultivation and habitation. It is the consolidated land holdings that are held by the state governments for common use.Under the amendment, the Gram Panchayat can transfer the shamlat land to the industries with prior approval from the state government. Land Banks are to be set up under Gram Panchayat to implement this amendment.

Notes:
On December 2, 2019, the Ministry of Human Resource Development informed Lok Sabha that the “Indian Ranking Society” was approved by the ministry in August 2019. The aim of the society is to develop methodologies and systems to rank higher educational institutions in the country. The proposal was approved in the 127th meeting of the AICTE Executive Council. At present, the educational institutes of the country are ranked according to the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF).

Notes:
The world’s best loved species are being slaughtered by widespread and dangerous criminal networks. On December 4, 2012, the first time that World Wildlife Conservation Day was officially recognized around the world and calls on individuals around the globe to sign its Wildlife Pledge to respect and protect wild animals.