Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2020

Notes:
Based on the shadow of the earth falling on the moon, the lunar eclipse is classified into three categories. Full, Partial or Penumbral Lunar Eclipse.
The Penumbral Lunar Eclipse occurs when the moon passes through the outer shadow of the earth. The last full moon occurring in November, before the winter solstice, is also called as the ‘Beaver moon’, named after Beavers, the rodents found in temperate regions.

Notes:
Russia has successfully test fired a ‘Tsirkon’ hypersonic cruise missile in the Arctic Region recently. The missile was fired from a frigate war ship named Admiral Gorshkov.
The missile was fired from the white sea on to a naval target located 450 km away in the Barents Sea. The missile cruised at a speed of over Mach 8 and brought down the target.

Notes:
The insurance sector regulator – Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has accorded “in principle” approval for merger of Bharti AXA General Insurance with ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company.
On successful merger, the consolidated entity would have a market share of 8.7% in non-life business. Bharti Enterprises own 51% share in Bharti AXA General Insurance and the remaining 49% is owned by French insurer AXA.

Notes:
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed to increase the limit for contactless card transactions to Rs 5,000 from Rs 2,000 per transaction from January 1, 2021.
This announcement was part of the RBI’s Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies, announced during the RBI’s bi-monetary policy announcement. The limit for e-mandates for recurring transactions using cards and UPI is also raised to Rs 5000.

Notes:
One of the two lesser florican birds that was tagged by the Gujarat forest department has flown all the way to the state of Telangana.
The bird was tagged at the Blackbuck National Park (BBNP), Velavadar, in Bhavnagar. This has confirmed a research finding that lesser florican birds migrate to peninsular India from the western part of India after their breeding season.

Notes:
A comic book depicting India’s glorious Naval past and maritime heritage has been released by the Navy Vice Chief Vice Admiral G Ashok Kumar.
The book has been published in association with Amar Chitra Katha and has been released on the occasion of Naval Day Celebrations. The book is the first in series of three comic books.

Notes:
The famous stone chariot in front of the Vijaya Vittala Temple in the UNESCO World Heritage site of Hampi, has been covered by a protective ring by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
This chariot is among three famous stone chariots in India while the other two are in Konark, Odisha, and Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu. Hampi chariot, was built during the dynasty of Vijayanagara rulers who ruled from 14th to 17th century CE.

Notes:
“Go for zero” is a policy proposal released by Grattan Institute, a non-profit think tank that advises the government.
As a part of the policy, the Australian Government introduced several measures with the goal of eventually reaching zero new cases and not just to flatten the curve. As a result, the country passed three weeks without any local transmission of Covid-19.

Notes:
Google India has recently released its annual ‘Year in Search’ results, which highlighted the most popular searches on Google.
As per the report, US President-elect Joe Biden was the most searched personality on Google this year. The IPL was the top trending search of the year and Searches about Covid-19 pandemic featured the most in the list.

Notes:
Two elephants, a calf and a female adult in Assam, were found dead in the in the Joypur range of Dehing Patkai wildlife sanctuary. The elephants were tested positive for Anthrax, a zoonotic disease caused by Bacillus anthracis.
On account of the incident, the state forest department has started an immediate vaccination drive. All livestock and cattle in a 5km radius would be vaccinated.