Current Affairs - 2019-20

Notes:
S Ganesh Kumar has been appointed the new Executive Director (ED) of Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He succeeded Chandan Sinha, who has taken voluntary retirement on May 31, 2017. As Executive Director (ED), Kumar will look after the departments of Information Technology, Payment and Settlement Systems and External Investments and Operations. Prior to being promoted as ED, he was Chief General Manager-in-Charge, Department of Information Technology. Currently, the central bank has 11 Executive Directors.

Notes:
Chandrayaan was launched on October 22nd 2008 and successfully reached the lunar surface on November 14, 2008. The ISRO lost communication with Chandrayaan-1 on August 29, 2009, almost a year after it was launched on October 22, 2008. It operated for 312 days.
In 2017 NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have found India’s first lunar probe, Chandrayaan-1 which was considered lost, is still orbiting the moon.

Notes:
On December 1, 2016, Yoga was listed as UNESCO’s Intangible cultural heritage.

Notes:
Recently, the Ministry of Power has directed NTPC Ltd to source up to 10 per cent of its thermal fuel requirements from straw pellets, especially buying those generated in Punjab and Haryana during the winter season. The move is aimed at luring farmers away from stubble burning. As per recent reports from NASA, crop stubble burning is the major reason behind smog pollution in Delhi.

Notes:
Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation project is an ambitious project of Telangana state government to provide water to farmers by December 2017.

Notes:
The international conference on the VISION ZERO and its relevance to Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) is being organized from 15th to 17th, March 2017 at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi by Directorate General Factory Advice and Labour Institutes (DGFASLI).

Notes:
Operation Resolute Support is a NATO-led counter-terror mission in Islamic Republic of Afghanistan which began on January 1, 2015. The mission aims to assist the Afghan security forces and institutions as well as counter-terror and combat.

Notes:
Diyarbakir is one of the largest cities of Turkey. It is situated on the banks of the Tigris River. The city was in news for in news for revolutionary activities led by Kurdish militants for self-rule.

Notes:
Trixi Worrack is the most successful rider in the 2018 UCI Road World Championship. She has won a total of 6 medals. She is from Germany.

Notes:
The Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network “TRAFFIC” has recently revealed a new report titled ‘Skin and Bones Unresolved: An Analysis of Tiger Seizures from 2000-2018’. As per new TRAFFIC analysis, India topped in the trafficking of tigers and tiger body parts over 19 years since 2000. Apart from tiger skin and bones, live tigers are also traded illegally in a number of cases. It accounted for 40.5% of total incidents (463) and 26.5% of tigers seized (626). Overall, the analysis estimated that 2,359 tigers and tiger body parts were seized during the period across 32 countries and territories globally, resulting from 1,142 seizure incidents. Around 95% of these seizures were recorded in countries that are home to tigers. The study was launched to coincide with discussions around the trade in tigers and other big cat species at the 18th meeting of governments that are parties to the Convention in International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES. It must be noted here that India has the world’s largest wild tiger population. The headquarters of TRAFFIC is located in Cambridge, United Kingdom (UK).