Current Affairs Quiz - April, 2021

Notes:
Saurabh Garg – a senior bureaucrat and 1991 batch IAS officer of Odisha cadre, has been appointed as the Chief Officer (CEO) of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). This has been announced by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC).
The committee has appointed him in the rank of Additional Secretary.

Notes:
The Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has mandated all companies to disclose their investments in cryptocurrencies and expenditures made in corporate social responsibility.
In this regard, the ministry has brought about suitable amendments in the Companies Act 2013. These amendments would come in force from the financial year 2021-22 starting April 1st 2021.

Notes:
As per a recent release by the Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), it has registered more than 1.55 lakh companies in the financial year 2020-21 compared to a registration of to 1.22 Lakh companies during the previous FY 2019-20.
This increase in number of company registration is significant amidst the COVID 19 pandemic. It has been the result of various measures undertaken by the Government of India under “Ease of Doing Business” reforms.

Notes:
The Government of India had signed the India-Mauritius Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) on 22nd February, 2021.
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has notified that all the legal formalities pertaining to the CCEA has been completed and the agreement has come into force on 1st April 2021.

Notes:
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) released the ‘Forest Governance by Indigenous and Tribal Peoples’ report recently.
As per the report, deforestation rates in Latin America and the Caribbean are significantly lower in Indigenous and Tribal territories. The report was jointly released by Fund for the Development of Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean (FILAC).

Notes:
The Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) 2020, also known as the Shanghai Ranking has been released recently.
As per the ranking, Calcutta University has been ranked 1st among the Indian Universities and 3rd among higher educational institutions in the country. 15 India Universities have made it into the ARWU 2020 list.

Notes:
The Government of India has promulgated an Ordinance that allows the use of pre-packs as an insolvency resolution mechanism for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). This is applicable for defaults upto an amount of Rs. 1 crore.
A pre-pack is an agreement for the resolution of debt of a distressed MSME through an agreement between secured creditors and investors instead of a public bidding process.

Notes:
Shabir Hussein Shekhadam Khandwawala- former DGP of Gujarat, has been appointed as the head of the BCCI’s Anti-Corruption Unit. He succeeds Ajit Singh, whose term ended in March 2021.
Khandwawala is a 1973 batch IPS officer and retired from his IPS service in 2010. He has been appointed ahead of the IPL beginning April 9.

Notes:
The market regulator – Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has asked Indian companies to fasten the process of separating the roles of chairperson and managing director (MD).
Initially, the deadline for the above process was fixed by SEBI as April 01, 2020. Based on representations from various stakeholders, SEBI has revised the deadline as April 01, 2022 for top 500 listed companies of India.

Notes:
The President of Russia Vladimir Putin has recently approved a legislation that allows him to hold office for an additional two “six-year term”. The President, who is in power for the last 2 decades, can remain in power till 2036 (up to his age of 80 years).
This change is a part of constitutional reforms brought by Putin last year.