Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2020

Notes:
The birth anniversary of the social reformer and the first female teacher of India, Savitribai Phule was observed across the country on January 3. The Prime Minister of India and various other leaders paid tributes to her on her birth anniversary. Savitribai Phule along with her husband Jyotirao Phule founded the country’s first girls’ school in Pune in 1848. Born in Maharashtra, Phule worked hard to abolish discrimination against women and suppressed classes of people.

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The 19-year-old Table Tennis player of India, Manav Thakkar is in news as he reached the top position in the latest International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) rankings in Under-21 men’s single category. This coveted rank could be achieved after he won the Under-21 men’s singles title at the ITTF Challenge Plus North American Open last year. Manav is only the fourth Indian to become World No.1 in the ITTF rankings.

Notes:
The 18-year-old student from a tribal family of Telengana and the famous mountain climber Malavath Poorna recently scaled the highest mountain peak of Antartica, Mt. Vinson Massif. By conquering this 4987 m high peak, Poorna became the first and youngest tribal woman in the world to climb six tallest mountain peaks across six continents. She is now preparing for her next venture of scaling North America’s highest mountain peak, Mt. Denali.

Notes:
India has extended a line of credit (LOC) of $75 million through its Exim Bank to Cuba for financing solar parks. An MoU was signed between the Export- Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) and the nominated agency of Cuban Government, Banco Exterior De Cuba last year. Based on the agreement, the Exim bank extends the finance, which is nearly Rs.500 Crores. With this credit, 75 MW Solar Parks are to be installed in Cuba in the next five years.

Notes:
The third ‘International Symposium on Marine ecosystems- challenges and opportunities’ (MECOS-3) is to be held in Cochin from January 7 to 10, 2020. The summit will be organised by the Marine Biological Association of India at the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Cochin. A veteran Marine Fisheries Researcher of Finland, Petri Suuronen will be the Chief Guest. The event will focus on United Nation’s SDG Goal of ‘Life Under water’ and sustainable utilisation of marine wealth.

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The Chief Minister of Gujarat, Vijay Rupani recently announced that a new centre for fostering innovation among the children would be set up in the state of Gujarat. It is named as the Vikram Sarabhai Children Innovation Centre.
The announcement was made during the Children Innovation Festival held at Gandhinagar, Gujarat. This festival was organised by the Gujarat University’s start up council, GUSEC in association with UNICEF. During the event, a letter of intent was also exchanged between the Gujarat University and UNICEF.

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Madhavpur Mela is a weeklong cultural festival of Gujarat to be held at Madhavpur Ghed in Porbandar district in April, 2020, a day after Ram Navami festival. This year, eight states of the Northern Eastern region will participate.

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The World Economic Forum, held annually at Davos, is a meeting in which world leaders discuss economic matters. This year’s summit will take place on January 21- 24.

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The ruler of Oman and one of the longest serving rulers in the Middle East countries, Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said recently passed away. He was not keeping well for a long time and was undergoing medical treatment in Belgium last month.
After his demise, the former culture minister of Oman, Haitham bin Tariq was named as the successor of Sultan Qaboos. It is mandatory to name the successor of the vacant throne within three days, as per the constitution of Oman.

Notes:
The ‘State Energy Efficiency Index 2019’ was developed by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) in association with the Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy. The index was prepared based on efforts and achievements of states towards implementation of energy efficiency.
Haryana, Karnataka and Kerala have topped this year’s index and are placed in the ‘Achievers’ category. On the basis of Total Primary Energy Supply (TPES) required to meet the state’s actual energy demand, Karnataka, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Puducherry topped their groups.