Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2021

Notes:
James Webb is a space telescope, which is regarded as the successor to Nasa’s Hubble space telescope, is set to be launched into space from French Guiana onboard an Ariane 5 rocket on 25th December.
It is said to be 100 times more powerful than the Hubble space telescope is built to research through space and time on formation of the universe and our solar system.

Notes:
NITI Aayog has entered into an agreement with United Nations World Food Program (WFP) to address issues related to inclusion of millets in government programmes.
This agreement aims to diversify the food basket under its free food distribution programme by mainstreaming millets and strengthening of climate resilient agriculture.

Notes:
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel launched the Gujarati version of Indian multilingual micro-blogging site ‘Koo’.
The application enables people to share content and connect with others using their mother tongue. With Gujarati launch Koo is now available in 10 languages, including Hindi, Marathi, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Assamese, Punjabi, Bengali and English.

Notes:
The Government of India and the German Development Bank – KFW (Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau) signed agreements loan and grant for Energy Reform Programme in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
The project includes 2 components namely, implementation of smart meters & Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) and separation of agriculture & non-agriculture feeders.

Notes:
Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has proposed some strict norms in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).
The MCA proposed that the IBC should provide the adjudicating authority with 30 days for approving or rejecting a resolution plan. The government has sought public comments on the proposal by January 13.

Notes:
Kisan Diwas or National Farmers Day is observed on December 23 across the country to praise the farmers.
The day was chosen to honour the birth anniversary of the fifth Prime Minister of India, Choudhary Charan Singh. Farmers day is celebrated every year, to highlight the contribution of farmers to society, since 2001.

Notes:
The cabinet of Japan has approved a record high defence budget of 5.4 trillion yen ($47.2 billion) for the next financial year. The approved defence budget has exceeded the ceiling of 1% of the gross domestic product of the country.
This record high defence budget comes amidst threats from neighbouring China and frequent clashes between the two defence forces.

Notes:
NASA is working on the Psyche mission, which is to be launched in the year 2022. The target of the mission is a metal-rich asteroid, also called Psyche, in the main belt between Mars and Jupiter.
This place has never been visited by any other spacecraft. The spacecraft would arrive at the asteroid belt in 2026. From radar data, it has been observed that the asteroid is shaped like a potato and it spins on its side.

Notes:
Tsongmo or Changu Lake, is located in the state of Sikkim, near India’s boundary with China. It was seen in the news, as many tourists were stuck near the lake in Sikkim due to heavy snowfall.
Over 1024 tourists were given shelter by the Indian Army near Nathula pass. They were then guided to reach Gangtok, which is around 40 km away, on foot.

Notes:
The Trace Gas Orbiter, also called as ExoMars TGO is a collaborative project between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Russian Roscosmos agency.
Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) arrived at Mars in 2016 and began its full mission in 2018. Recently, a new image taken by the spacecraft shows a small crater in the Vastitas Borealis region. The crater is partially filled with water ice.