Current Affairs Quiz-December, 2019

Notes:
Researchers from the National Astronomical Observatory of China have discovered a black hole in the Milky Way. The black hole is so huge that it challenged the existing models of the evolution of stars. The black hole was discovered by an international team of scientists using China’s sophisticated Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fibre Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) telescope. The black hole, LB-1, is located 15,000 light-years away from Earth.

Notes:
Particles, the French-Swiss film directed by Blaise Harrison won the Golden Peacock Award at the 50th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa. The IFFI 2019 concluded on November 28, 2019. The Golden Peacock Award includes a cash prize worth Rs 40 lakh, a trophy and a citation. The jury described ‘Particles’, which is produced by Estelle Fialon, as an “ambitious yet modest film about the mysteries of being a teenager.” The prize money is to be distributed equally between the director and producer.

Notes:
Seeking to address some of the most pressing issues facing India, including air pollution, through innovation, the United Nations Development Programme on November 28 launched the country chapter of its Accelerator Lab in New Delhi. The laboratory that will be housed in the UNDP India office has partnered with the Indian government’s Atal Innovation Mission to achieve its objectives.

Notes:
Supplementary, additional or excess grants and Votes on account, votes of credit and exceptional grants are mentioned in the Constitution of India 1949.Article 115: Supplementary, additional or excess grants.Article 116: Votes on account, votes of credit and exceptional grants.When grants, authorised by the Parliament, fall short of the required expenditure, an estimate is presented before the Parliament for Supplementary or Additional grants. These grants are presented and passed by the Parliament before the end of the financial year.

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:
The book titled “The Legacy of Militancy in Punjab: Long Road to Normalcy” have been authored by civil rights activist Inderjit Singh Jaijee and journalist Dona Suri. The book provide details how militancy in Punjab affected judiciary by delaying trials, how it influenced the popular culture and how the youth today are still responding to conditions in the northern state. It also aims at holding up a mirror to developments in post-militancy Punjab regarding politics, government policies, and functioning of police and courts among other things.

Notes:
The fish species, that has a scientific name Schistura syngkai, has been discovered in  West Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya. It was discovered at Twahdidoh stream (a tributary of Wahblei river) by a team of scientists led by Prof Khlur Mukhim of Shillong’s Lady Keane College. Both sexes of the fish have golden-brown bodies with blackish lateral stripes and slightly emarginate tail fins. Earlier, Mukhim had discovered a blind fish species that lives 1,600 feet inside a limestone cave in East Jaintia Hills district of the state.

Notes:
NASA satellite orbiting the Moon has found India’s Chandrayaan-2 Vikram lander which crashed on the lunar surface in September. NASA released an image taken by its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) that showed the site of the spacecraft’s impact (September 6 in India and September 7 in the U.S.) and associated debris field, with parts scattered over almost two dozen locations spanning several kilometers.

Notes:
The 8th India-China joint training exercise ‘HAND-IN-HAND 2019’ with the theme counter terrorism under United Nations mandate is scheduled to be conduct at Umroi, Meghalaya from 07 to 20 December 2019. The aim of the exercise is to practice joint planning and conduct of counter terrorist operations in semi urban terrain.The exercise schedule is focused upon training on various lectures & drills associated with counter terrorist handling & firing with each others weapons, special heliborne operations and case studies of various operations carried out in counter terrorist environment. Two tactical exercises are scheduled during the training; one on counter terrorism scenario and the other on Humanitarian and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations.

Notes:
The National Capital has been witnessing soaring popularity and wellness tourism across the world. According to Euro Monitor International, Delhi currently ranks 11th in the list of tops 100 destination of the world and is to gain 8th rank in 2019. The ranking was released by the organization on December 3, 2019 under the title “Top 100 city destination ranking”. The report says that various cultural traditions and enriching history makes Delhi the most favorite places among international tourists. Also, air connectivity and world class airports have helped the city to increase its position in the ranking. India is also gaining attention for its Ayurvedic and Yoga practices.