Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2020

Notes:
The companies of USA and China have dominated the global arms market in the year 2019, as per a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
The arms industry of USA accounts for nearly 61% of the sales by top 25 arms manufacturers. Chinese firms account for 15.7% of the sales by top 25 arms manufacturers.

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.

Notes:
India’s largest food delivery platform Swiggy has announced that it is set to onboard over 36000 street vendors under PM SVANidhi scheme.
The platform is to expand its Street Food Vendors programme to 125 cities. Earlier, Swiggy had partnered with Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA), to onboard over 300 street vendors in select cities.

Notes:
The state Government of Madhya Pradesh government has issued a directive to form Matru Sahyogini Samiti’ or Mothers’ Cooperation Committees.
These committees will comprise 10 mothers at each anganwadi, to ensure better monitoring of services delivered at anganwadis. This is ultimately aimed to check malnutrition among children in the state.

Notes:
According to a study released by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), over 75 per cent districts in India are hotspots of extreme climate events.
The districts, which are home to more than 63.8 crore people, are hotspots of extreme climate events such as cyclones, floods, droughts, heat and cold waves. This is the first time the extreme weather event hotspots in the country are being mapped.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev participated in a virtual bilateral summit.
Both the countries signed 9 pacts and agreed to widen counter-terror partnership. They also decided to explore connectivity routes via International North–South Transport Corridor (INSTC).

Notes:
Plasmodium Ovale, a malaria causing parasite has been detected in the state of Kerala. This has been detected in a soldier who had come from Sudan.
Malaria is caused by plasmodium parasites, that are transmitted to humans by bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. There are five parasite species that cause malaria and two among them – Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax are the greatest threats.

Notes:
The International Mountain Day is celebrated across the world on December 11 every year. The day aims to encourage sustainable development in mountains. The theme of this year’s International Mountain Day is ‘Mountain biodiversity’.
United Nations General Assembly designated the Mountain Day in the year 2003. The UN also declared 2002 as the UN International Year of Mountains.

Notes:
Social media major Facebook has launched a new iOS app called Collab, which lets users create collaborative musical videos.
Launched as a rival to the Chinese short-video making platform TikTok, this experimental app is now available on the App Store in the United States. Facebook had earlier launched Reels feature on Instagram and another app Lasso.

Notes:
Project Loon is the subsidiary of Technology giant Google. It undertakes the project of delivering internet access to remote parts of the world.
The project uses helium-filled balloons for this purpose. In the month of October, the company has announced that the balloons set a new record for the longest stratospheric flight by staying in air for 312 days.