Current Affairs Quiz-December, 2019

Notes:
Japanese movie ‘They Say Nothing Stays the Same’, directed by actor and musician Joe Odagiri bagged the ‘Suvarna Chakoram’ (The Golden Crow Pheasant) award at the 24rd edition of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK). The movie recites a poetic tale of idyllic rural life being threatened by change in an uncompromising visual style. Brazilian director Allan Deberton was awarded the ‘Rajatha Chakoram’ (The Silver Crow Pheasant), for the best director for his movie ‘Pacarrete’, which brings out the bold dynamic life and dreams of an ageing artiste in a changing world.

Notes:
India is to host the 36th International Geological Congress (IGC) in New Delhi during the first week of March 2020. It is popularly described as the Olympics of Geosciences. The theme of the event is Geosciences: The Basic Science for a Sustainable Development. The IGCs are global geoscientific events held once in four years.The event aims to provide a platform for international cooperation in all major fields of geosciences including the provision of investment opportunities in mining, launching of collaborative programs, mineral exploration and environmental management and related enterprises

Notes:
Thailand’s famous 2000-year-old massage, Nuad Thai was added to UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) prestigious heritage list. Nuad Thai is an intense form of massage in which the body is pulled and rotated well with the help of the thumb, elbow, knees and feet. Thai massage originated in India and brought it to Thailand about 2,500 years ago by doctors and monks who carried its secrets for generations.

Notes:
West Bengal has got the first prize in 100-day work programme for promoting livelihoods. State’s Bankura and Cooch Behar stood first and second respectively among districts in the country in implementation of the rural job scheme. Baburmahal GP (gram panchayat) of Kulpi, South 24 Paraganas also got the best performance award.

Notes:
The judiciary of Pakistan recently handed the death sentence to Pervez Musharraf in December. The penalty was handed by a special court against the former military dictator for high treason. Musharraf was a 4 star general of the Pakistani Army and the 10^th president of the country. Musharraf seized power in a military coup in 1999 and ruled Pakistan as President until 2008.

Notes:
The Gosper Mountain Fire is a bushfire incident in Australia. It was formed by the combination of several bushfires and raged along the north west of Sydney. It was formed due to severe heat wave conditions in Australia. It also affected the Wollemi National Park in the Blue Mountains.

Notes:
The supersonic cruise missile BrahMos was recently test fired from Odisha’s Chandipur Integrated Test Range. The land based version of the missile was launched from mobile autonomous launcher at Complex- III of the facility. The launch facility is located on the Abdul Kalam Island.

Notes:
The laser fencing of the Indo-Nepal border is being put up by the Sashastra Seema Bal. The project was commenced in December to curb the entry of Third Party nationals into the country without permission. The SSB is involved in guarding the Indian border with Bhutan and Nepal.

Notes:
The African Swine Flu is a disease that affects pigs. It is currently affecting China’s pork industry. It is reported that the epidemic from China has killed 1/4^th of the pigs in the world. This is because infected animals are required to be culled and reported to curb the spread of the virus.

Notes:
Author Kirpal Kazak is a noted writer in Punjabi. He is being conferred the 2019 Sahitya Akademi Award for Punjabi category for his short story collection called ‘Antheen’ (which means ‘endless’). The award is to be presented on February 25^th, 2020 in New Delhi.