Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2020

Notes:
The prestigious Mystic Kalinga Literary Award (Indian and Global Languages) is to be presented to the noted Odia and English writer Manoj Das. The award would be presented during the Mystic Kalinga Festival (MKF) which commences in Bhubaneswar on February 8.
The Mystic Kalinga Literary Award is conferred to a person who has made significant contribution to the literature and culture of Odia. The bilingual writer recently received the country’s third-highest civilian award- Padma Bhushan, for his contribution in the field of literature and education. He had also been conferred with the Saraswati Samman award.

Notes:
Leading car-maker Ford recently inaugurated its technology and innovation centre in the southern Indian city, Chennai. The Centre was inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Edapadi K Palaniswami along with the President and MD of Ford India.
The centre spanning over 15,000 sq. ft, is located at the Global Technology and Business Centre (GTBC) campus of Ford, in the Special Economic Zone of the city. The Centre has several state-of-the -art facilities including Mobility Experience Lab. It also has simulations for the Office Raid, an application-based mobility solution of Ford.

Notes:
Esperanza Base (Hope Base) is a permanent, all-year-round Argentine research station in Hope Bay, Trinity Peninsula in Antarctica.

Notes:
Christina Koch has set the record for the longest stay in space by a woman. The U.S. astronaut landed in Kazakhstan on February 6 after 328 days on the International Space Station (ISS).

Notes:
The state government of Kerala has recently unveiled a scheme to establish hotels to provide meals at subsidised rates called ‘Kudumbashree’ hotels. The announcement was made during the presentation of state’s budget.
The hotels are to be set up in in each of the 1034 local bodies and Kerala meals is to be available at a subsidised price of Rs 25. Kudumbashree is an initiative of the state government for poverty eradication and women empowerment.

Notes:
The state of Maharashtra recently announced that ‘Bharosa Centre’ would be launched in the state to monitor the impact of social media on youth.
The proposed Centre would comprise a psychologist, woman police officer and counsellor in the Raigad district of the state to monitor the impact of social media on youth. The announcement was made during the closing ceremony of the seventh Aurangabad International Film Festival.

Notes:
The Great Indian Bustard is named the mascot of the UN Convention of Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) (COP 13). India has recently proposed to include three species- the Asian elephant, the Great Indian Bustard and the Bengal Florican in the list of ‘migratory species threatened with extinction’, under the CMS-COP 13.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has recently unveiled a draft Visionary Perspective Plan (2020-2030), for conserving the bird species and their eco-systems.

Notes:
Ace Indian hockey player Lalremsiami has been named as the ‘2019 FIH Women’s Rising Star of the Year’, by the International Hockey Federation (FIH). The 19-year-old player from the state of Mizoram, is the first Indian woman player to win the award.
In the men’s category, the Indian men’s team midfielder Vivek Sagar Prasad was named as the ‘2019 Rising Star of the year’ by FIH.

Notes:
The 2nd Seven-nation BIMSTEC Disaster Management Exercise, 2020 was recently inaugurated at Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Odisha by its Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
The Exercise is hosted by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) as the nodal agency. The theme of the exercise is- “Response to a cultural heritage site that suffers severe damage in an earthquake” & “Response to a Cultural Heritage site that is affected by flooding or storm surge”.

Notes:
Gulmarg is a popular skiing destination and a hill-station town located in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is situated in the Pir Panjal Range in the western Himalayas.
The town is set to host the five-day national winter games event under Khelo India, from March 7. As many as 30 events are scheduled to be organised under five major activities namely snowboarding, snow skiing, cross country and snow show.