Current Affairs Quiz - March, 2020

Notes:
The Banking Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2020 was introduced in the Lok Sabha by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
This proposed bill is expected to provide more powers to the RBI for regulating cooperative banks. The bill seeks to strengthen cooperative banks by improving professionalism, access to capital and banking practices through the RBI. The administrative issues will remain to be guided by the Registrar of Cooperative.

Notes:
Veteran architect duo- Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara were recently selected as the recipients of the 2020 Pritzker Prize, the highest honour in the field of Architecture.
The Dublin-based architects are the first two women to share the prestigious global award. Their remarkable projects include the University of Engineering and Technology in Lima, Peru, which also won the RIBA International Prize. It is referred to as “modern-day Machu Picchu”.

Notes:
Union Minister of Women & Child Development Smriti Zubin Irani released a book titled “Chronicles of Change Champions”. It is a compilation of 25 innovative initiatives taken at the State and District levels under Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) scheme.
The scheme was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015 at Panipat, Haryana. It is a tri-ministerial initiative of the Union ministries of Women & Child Development, Human Resource Development and Health & Family Welfare.

Notes:
‘Chapchar Kut’ is a popular and the biggest festival celebrated across the state of Mizoram. It is celebrated to welcome the spring season.
The festival is celebrated by all the people of the state with many cultural events associated with it. People participate in dance and musical events including the traditional bamboo dance – Cheraw.

Notes:
Researchers at Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST) Guwahati have found that the endophytic Actinobacteria have antifungal growth-promoting activities. They have also discovered that application of endophytic Actinobacteria could reduce chemical inputs in Tea plantation crop.
IASST is an autonomous institute under Department of Science & Technology. This discovery would help decrease the pesticide content and increase our exports to many countries.

Notes:
The Lieutenant Governor of Jammu & Kashmir Girish Chandra Murmu recently launched the ‘Student Health Card’ in Jammu.
This scheme is a part of the government’s comprehensive school health education plan which ensures better healthcare for school children. Under this scheme, all government schools will maintain health records of enrolled students including immunisation record and developmental delays.

Notes:
US President Donald Trump recently signed an $ 8.3 billion emergency fund to assist the tackling measures of coronavirus outbreak.
The Senate passed the legislation yesterday to help tackle the outbreak, that has killed 12 people in the US and infected more than 200 people. Last week, it was announced that the US will announce $2.5 billion, but it was incresed after the legislation and the President’s consent.

Notes:
On the occasion of International Women’s day, President Ram Nath Kovind recently presented the ‘Nari Shakti Puraskar’ to IAF’s first women fighter pilots, Mohana Jitarwal, Avani Chaturvedi and Bhawana Kanth, among the 15 total wardees.
After the Government of India decided to open fighter stream in the Air force for women on an experimental basis, these three young women were inducted into the IAF’s fighter squadron.
They were also the first to be inducted into the squadron and conduct a solo flight in MIG-21 in the year 2018.

Notes:
The Indian Ocean Commission, IOC (COI in French) is an inter-governmental organisation comprised of five African Indian Ocean nations: Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, Réunion (an overseas region of France), and Seychelles.
Recently, India joined the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) as the fifth observer. As it is an important regional institution in the Western Indian Ocean, this is a strategic step in India’s maritime governance.

Notes:
Andhra Pradesh government has recently launched a mobile application which aims at curbing the malpractices occurring during the election.
Through the application, any person can file complaints about the corruption or malpractices during the campaign in the upcoming civil polls. With the photos, audio or video files sent by the people, suitable actions will be taken by the government.