Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2020

Notes:
The Raisina Dialogue is an annual joint conference organized since 2016, by the Ministry of External Affairs in association with the leading think-tank Observer Research Foundation (ORF).  The conference hosts various global leaders from all sectors to discuss the challenges faced by the global community. The title of this year’s event is ‘Navigating the Alpha Century’ and will be held from January 14 to 16 in New Delhi. The Australian Prime Minister who was expected to be the key speaker cancelled his participation recently after severe bush fires in his country.

Notes:
The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) inaugurated their first silk processing plant at Surendranagar district in Gujarat. The Patola is a trademark saree variety of Gujarat. It is regarded as a royal attire as it is priced very high. The reason for high price is the non-availability of processing plants in Gujarat. The silk yarn required to weave the saree is usually purchased from other states. This new plant set up by KVIC would cut down the price of silk yarn and boost production of Patola sarees.

Notes:
Palau, a small island nation in the West Pacific Ocean imposed a ban on sun screens that contain chemicals affecting the coral reefs and other aquatic species. The step is also taken to conserve its Rock Islands Southern Lagoon, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The sun cream with the toxic chemicals including oxybenzone, will not be permitted to be used or sold in the country. Palau is a famous destination among international tourists and is mainly acclaimed for its coral reefs.

Notes:
The Ministry of External Affairs recently announced that it would set up a new division under its aegis called the New, emerging and strategic technologies (NEST) division’. The proposed NEST would act as the nodal division under the ministry for addressing the issues related to emerging technologies. It will help our country to closely work with foreign partners in the field of 5G and artificial intelligence. Recently all companies including the Chinese major Huawei were allowed to participate in 5G trials.  

Notes:
The ace Indian all-rounder and bowler famous for his swings, Irfan Pathan announced his retirement from all forms of cricket recently. Irfan made his debut in 2003 when he was only 19 years old. In his professional cricket career spanning 16 years, he made several records including the hat-trick wicket in the first over of the test match. Irfan was also a part of the winning team of the 2007 T20 World cup.

Notes:
For his commended performance in the movie ‘Joker’, American actor Joaquin Phoenix won the ‘Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama’ award in the Golden Globe awards 2020. The Joker movie was nominated in four categories in the ceremony and won two awards namely Best Actor (Drama) and Best Original Score. Joker is a psychological thriller film which was directed by Todd Philips. The movie was released in October 2019 and created records by collecting revenues in box offices world-wide.

Notes:
The Director General of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) recently announced that the ‘Farmers’ Innovation Fund’ would be set by next financial year. The announcement was made during the Farmers’ Science Congress, the first of its kind event, organised as a part of the National Science Congress.
He announced that an innovation centre would be established in New Delhi, which would assist the farmers in their research and would authenticate the innovations of the farmers. At present, the Krishi Vigyan Kendras record the innovations of farmers.

Notes:
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has released a chart of world’s fastest growing cities based on the data provided by the United Nation’s Population Division. Malappuram, a city of Northern Kerala topped the list. Two other cities of Kerala, Kozhikode and Kollam were ranked 4th and 10th respectively.
As per the report, Malappuram has recorded 44% rise in population between 2015 and 2020. In the report, three Kerala cities were in the top 10 list while six Indian cities were placed in the top 30 list.

Notes:
The Union Ministry of Steel is to launch a program called ‘Purvodaya-Accelerated Development of Eastern Region through an Integrated Steel hub’. The Union Minister for Steel and Petroleum & Natural Gas, Dharmendra Pradhan will launch the program.
The Eastern states of India such as Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal and Northern Andhra Pradesh possess a huge share of reserves but lag in development. This proposed Integrated Steel Hub in the Eastern region would lead to an inclusive socio-economic development in the region.

Notes:
The State Government of Uttar Pradesh recently announced that special text-books would be prepared for the children of the state, who have learning disabilities.
The children with intellectual disabilities due to disorders such as Down syndrome, Attention deficit disorder (ADD), Autism and Dyslexia will be enrolled in the primary and secondary schools run by the state. Textbooks for classes 1 to 5 on the subjects of English, Hindi and Mathematics are being designed.