Current Affairs Quiz - April, 2021

Notes:
Special forces of India and Kyrgyzstan began a two-week military exercise in Bishkek. The eighth edition of special forces exercise, ‘Khanjar’ was inaugurated with a focus on counter-terror drills.
Initiated in 2011, this is the eighth edition of special forces exercise. This year, the focus is on high-altitude warfare. In 2015, India and Kyrgyzstan signed an agreement on bolstering defence cooperation.

Notes:
Russia’s COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V is developed by Russia. Bala Venkatesh Varma, who is the Indian Ambassador to Russia has stated that the first dose of Sputnik V vaccines would be delivered to India in the month of April 2021.
Recently, the Subject expert committee (SEC) for Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) has granted approval to Russia’s Sputnik V making it the 3rd in India to get clearance.

Notes:
The Lyrids are comets, which appear to move fairly fast, streaking through our atmosphere at an average velocity of 48 kilometers per second.
This modestly bright comet was discovered in April 1861 by an amateur astronomer, A.E. Thatcher. The Earth’s orbit coincides with the comet around April 22 each year. This year also, the annual Lyrid meteor shower is t take place on April 22.

Notes:
As per the ‘2021 Norton Cyber Safety Insights Report,’ by NortonLifeLock, a consumer security company, around 59 per cent experienced cybercrime in the last 12 months.
As per the report, more than 27 million Indian adults experienced identity theft in the past 12 months and 52 per cent of Indian adults admitted they don’t know how to protect themselves from cybercrime.

Notes:
Recently, researchers have identified a new and distinct shark species, by recognising the 300-million-year-old shark’s single tooth on its lower jaw.
The researchers named the 6.7-foot shark as “Dracopristis hoffmanorum”, or Hoffman’s Dragon Shark. The fossils were found in the Manzano Mountains, New Mexico. The skeleton of the species was found in 2013 in New Mexico.

Notes:
The U.N Security council is to deploy six-month-old cease-fire agreement in Libya, which has been in political crisis, after the removal of dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011
Libya is heading toward December elections after over ten years of political chaos. Libya’s transitional government welcomed the UNSC decision to deploy international monitors to watch the old cease-fire.

Notes:
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved subsidy for urea to be produced by state-run Talcher Fertilizers (TFL), by means of coal gasification technology.
The company is to set up the urea plant based on coal gasification at Odisha. Talcher Fertilizers is a joint venture company between Coal India, GAIL, Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers, Fertilizer Corporation of India.

Notes:
The Government of India has recently extended the insurance scheme under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package for health workers for a period of one year.
This insurance scheme convers loss of life due to COVID 19 and accidental death due to COVID related duty. A sum of Rs. 50 lakh would be paid to the claimant of insured person.

Notes:
Sankha Ghosh, who is a noted Bengali Poet, died recently in Kolkata at the age of 90 years. He was tested COVID positive.
He is a recipient of Padma Bhushan, Jnanpith, Sahitya Akademi awards, and Rabindra Puraskar awards for his literature works. Ghosh was known for raising voice for various social and political issues.

Notes:
The International Energy Agency (IEA) in its recent report has stated that the carbon di oxide (CO2) emissions in India for the year 2021 would be 1.4% more that that in the year 2020 (i.e) 30 million tonnes more than the year 2020.
Also, the report has stated that the expected rise in coal based electricity generation would be 3 times more than the generation from other sources.