Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2021

Notes:
The Centre has constituted a Central Vista Oversight Committee to directly oversee the Rs 20,000 crore project for a period of two years.
As per the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, former Finance Secretary Ratan P Watal has been appointed the Chairman of the five-member Central Vista Oversight Committee. Joint Secretary, MoHUA will be Convenor of the committee.

Notes:
Spanish Footballer Alexia Putellas has been awarded the Ballon d’Or Feminin for 2021 during the 2021 Ballon d’Or France Football award.
FC Barcelona’s midfielder Alexia Putell is just the third female player to win the prize after Ada Hegerberg and Megan Rapinoe. Argentina’s Lionel Messi has bagged the Ballon d’Or award for a record-extending seventh time. 19-year-old Pedri of Barcelona won the Kopa Trophy for the best player aged under-21.

Notes:
Archaeological ruins of Liangzhu City are a World Heritage site. Archeologists have resolved the mystery of the Liangzhu culture in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD).
It was among the world’s most advanced Neolithic cultures. Archeological evidence suggests that the Liangzhu ancient city was abandoned, and then the culture collapsed. In a recent research, a layer of clay points to a possible connection between the demise of the civilisation and floods of the Yangtze River or floods from the East China Sea.

Notes:
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra was appointed as the chairman of India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.
ACC has approved the Tourism Ministry’s proposal to split the post of chairman and managing director of India Tourism Development Corporation into chairman, ITDC, and Managing director (MD), ITDC. GKV Rao, IAS Officer will hold the post of managing director of ITDC.

Notes:
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), under the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), is an intelligence and enforcement agency of the Government of India on anti-smuggling matters.
The Union Finance Minister Ms Nirmala Sitharaman was addressing the 64th ‘Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Foundation Day’. DRI released a report on the occasion, which said that gold smuggling shifted from the Middle East to Myanmar during 2020-21.

Notes:
President Ram Nath Kovind was speaking at the centenary celebration of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the Parliament.
He said that the PAC ensures “administrative accountability of the executive towards the legislature”. The President released a souvenir depicting the 100 glorious years of the PAC’s journey and 67 articles, including 15 from the Commonwealth countries.

Notes:
Every year, International Volunteer Day is observed on December 5 to encourage the role of volunteers at national and international level for achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs).
This day recognises the contribution of volunteers across the globe. UNGA signified 2001 as International Year of Volunteers (IYV). The theme of this year’s ‘International Volunteer Day’ is ‘Volunteer now for our common future’.

Notes:
The 22nd missile vessel Squadron was formally established at Mumbai in October 199. Indian President Ram Nath kovind will award the President’s standard to the 22nd missile vessel Squadron also known as the Killer Squadron
The President’s standard is the same honour as the President’s colours award given to a smaller military unit.

Notes:
The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), a United Nations body, is the nodal agency to manage and ensure cooperation among various air carriers. It is headquartered at Canada.
International Civil Aviation Day is observed on December 7 to raise awareness about the role aviation plays in the social and economic development.  ICAO Council establishes a theme for International Civil Aviation Day every five years. The theme till 2023 will be: “Advancing Innovation for Global Aviation Development”.

Notes:
A new data has been released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). As per the report, sales of arms and military services by the 100 largest companies totalled $531 billion in 202, which is an increase of 1.3 per cent compared with the previous year.
The United States hosted the highest number of companies ranked in the Top 100. It is followed by China. Even though the global growth contracted, the arms sales increased across the world.