Current Affairs Quiz - April, 2021

Notes:
“World Economic Outlook” is the annual flagship report released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
This year, the report is to be released on April 6. The International Monetary Fund has announced that India’s economy is on the path of gradual recovery. It highlighted the return to positive territory in fourth quarter of 2020.

Notes:
The Uttar Pradesh Cabinet headed by the Chief Minister has approved the Affordable Rental Housing and Complexes (ARHC) scheme.
he scheme would offer affordable rental housing for poor people living in cities, urban migrants/poor labourers, those belonging to economically weaker sections, including factory workers, educational institutions, and those associated with hospitality and students.

Notes:
As per a latest forecast by the World Bank, China is set to lead economic recovery of East Asian and Pacific economies in the year 2021.
The report predicts that China will grow by 8.1% in 2021, compared with 2.3% the previous year. The East Asian and Pacific region would grow by 7.4% compared to 1.2 per cent growth in 2020.

Notes:
The Union Commerce Ministry laid down a four-point strategy to handle the situation of total blockage at the Suez Canal.
It organised a meeting with the Ministry of ports, shipping and waterways and other stake holders. As per the government’s assessment, total backlog at the waterway will likely be cleared in a week’s time.

Notes:
Veteran American children’s author Beverly Cleary, has recently passed away at the age of 104. She was famous for her books including “Henry Huggins” (1950) and “Ramona and Her Father,” (1978).
The famous author was named as “Living Legend” by the US Library of Congress in 2000. She was also awarded the National Medal of Art from the ‘National Endowment for the Arts’ in 2003.

Notes:
The United Kingdom is set to launch HEAL-COVID (Helping to Alleviate the Longer-term consequences of COVID-19), a national drug trial.
The trials would test the selection of safe, existing drugs already available in the market on patients across the country, in order to find effective treatments. The trial aims to find drugs to reduce deaths and hospital readmissions among patients.

Notes:
The Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has decided to utilise the services of retired combat canines / dogs as ‘therapy dogs’. They would help early recovery of personnel undergoing medical treatment. Also, they are to be used in treatment of the soldier’s specially abled children.
This is the first time in India, that retired canine elements are being used to serve the soldiers.

Notes:
Norway has recently got the approval to construct what’s being claimed as the world’s first ship tunnel, to help vessels navigate the Stadhavet Sea
It is to be constructed as a mile-long 118-feet-wide tunnel, that will burrow through the Stadhavet peninsula in north-west Norway. This project will cost around 2.8 billion Norwegian kroner (USD 330 million) and will take between three to four years.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina has recently inaugurated the new passenger train named ‘Mithali Express’.
It connects Dhaka Cantonment and New Jalpaiguri in West Bengal via Chilahati, a border railway station in Bangladesh. This is the third passenger train after Maitree Express (Dhaka-Kolkata) and Bandhan Express (Khulna-Kolkata).

Notes:
As per a recent report by Rystad Energy, by replacing humans with robots on oil rigs, the US oil industry could save more than $7 billion in wages
The report suggested that two out of every 10 oil workers in drilling, operational support and maintenance of oil rigs could be replaced by automation over the next decade.