Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2020

Notes:
US President-elect Joe Biden has recently appointed the country’s first all-female White House communications team.
He also appointed Jen Psaki, who earlier served as the spokesperson in Barack Obama administration, as the White House Press Secretary. Six other women who had held important positions, were appointed in the official Press Team.

Notes:
Every year, November 27th is observed as Indian organ donation day by the Government of India. This year marks the 11th Organ Donation Day event.
Tamil Nadu received the ‘Best State award’ for organ donation, by the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. This is the sixth consecutive year of the state receiving the award.

Notes:
As per the recent statement, India recorded the highest reduction in Malaria cases, in the South-East Asian region.
As per the ‘World Malaria Report 2020’, India reduced the number of cases from 20 million in 2000 to about 5.6 million in 2019. India also recorded a reduction in the number of deaths from malaria. Globally there were 229 malaria cases in 2019.

Notes:
The festival named Dev Deepawali is celebrated in Indian city. This is a festival of lights and is celebrated in the Poornima day of the Karthik Month of Hindu calendar.
This year’s celebration is attended by the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi. During the event, 11 lakh earthern lamps were lit on both sides of river Ganga.

Notes:
Avian Influenza, commonly called as the Bird flu, has been detected in a fourth region in Japan. This can be the country’s worst outbreak in over 4 years.
Avian influenza was discovered at a poultry farm in Hyuga city in Honshu island in southwestern Japan. However, the country announced that there is no possibility that humans will contract bird flu from eating poultry or eggs. It has also decided to cull over 1.8 million chickens.

Notes:
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has recently launched the nation’s first 100 Octane petrol. Union Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched the petrol.
The 100-octane petrol also called as XP100 premium petrol will be initially available at select outlet of IOC in 10 cities. The fuel is manufactured at IOC’s Mathura refinery in Uttar Pradesh. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) had earlier launched Octane 99. Higher the octane number of a fuel, higher will be its compression and performance.

Notes:
Pune City Police has recently inaugurated the ‘Balsnehi (Child-Friendly) Police Station’, on the premises of Lashkar Police Station in Pune Camp.
The Police Station has a room designated for children, who would come to report cases to the station. It also aims to create a set-up to rehabilitate children in need. Earlier, a Child-friendly Police Station was set up in Krishna District on the premises of Machilipatnam.

Notes:
The 18th-century idol of Goddess Annapurna that was stolen from a temple in Varanasi, is being returned by Canada.
As per a government statement, the ancient idol was stolen about 100 years ago. The idol is said to have housed in Canada’s MacKenzie Art Gallery. It was handed over to India’s High Commissioner to Ottawa.

Notes:
As per the provisional 2020 State of the Global Climate report released by U.N.’s World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the last 6 years from 2015 to 2020 are the hottest years on record.
The report has stated that the average global temperature in 2020 would be 1.2 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial level

Notes:
The Senate of United States of America has passed a bill which envisages to remove the restrictions on number of employment related immigration visas from a particular country.
This bill has been passed unanimously by the Senate. This relaxed legislation is expected to benefit many Indian professionals in America.