Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2020

Notes:
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of India has contracted by 7.5 % in the second quarter of the financial year 2020-21. The contraction in GDP is registered for the second consecutive quarter and hence India is said to have entered ‘Technical Recession’.
The real GDP in the first quarter of 2020-21 (April – June) registered a record low of 23.9% contraction.

Notes:
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India has recently signed a USD132.8 million loan to modernize the distribution network and improve the quality of power supplied in Meghalaya.
This project supports the state government’s initiative “24×7 Power for All” initiative. This will also help the state reduce its high technical and commercial losses. Meghalaya has achieved 100 per cent electrification while there were incidents of frequent power interruptions.

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:
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 government of Maharashtra has decided to rename the settlements in the state having names based on caste.
Habitations like Maharwada, Mangwada, Bramhanwada etc that have indications of caste-based settlements would be changed and named after leaders of the nation. The State Cabinet has recently approved to change the names of those settlements.

Notes:
As per the Union Ministry of Finance, the Indian Economy is registering a V Shaped recovery of GDP. This was expressed in the latest Monthly Economic Review.
The contraction of GDP in Q1 of current financial year was 23.9% where as the economy has contracted by 7.5 % in Q2. Maximum growth is registered by Agriculture sector followed by Construction.

Notes:
The Parliament of Australia has recently passed a legislation that permits the country to block any agreement made between the country and a foreign government.
The legislation empowers foreign minister to veto any international agreement that are inconsistent with the foreign policy of Australia or is seen to affect Australia’s interest.

Notes:
Microsoft India and the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) have partnered for the India edition of the Microsoft Imagine Cup 2021.
Imagine Cup is an annual innovation challenge held by Microsoft for students and technology enthusiasts. It aims to empower students to apply artificial intelligence and other technologies to solve the sustainability issues of the world.

Notes:
CLMV countries are Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. They are also the members of the Association of South East Nations (ASEAN).
During the Inaugural Session of the 6th India – CLMV Business Conclave 2020, India invited the CLMV countries to join the International Solar Alliance and the Resilient Supply Chain Initiative by India.

Notes:
The 3D-object creation platform named “Poly” is operated by the Technology company Google.
Google has proposed to shut down the poly platform from next year, since its service will expire in June 2020. From then on, users will not be able to upload 3D models on the platform.