Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2022

Notes:
Political parties received Rs 676.26 crore in the 23rd phase of the sale of electoral bonds (EBs) between November 11 and 15.
This period is ahead of the Assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. Around 97 percent of the bonds sold (worth Rs 660 crore) were encashed by political parties at the New Delhi Main branch of State Bank of India. Anonymous donors gave Rs 545 crore in the 22nd sale of EBs conducted between October 1 and 10.

Notes:
The Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said in Lok Sabha that 30 River-linking components have been identified.
National Water Development Agency (NWDA) under the Ministry of Jal Shakti identified 16 links under peninsular rivers component and 14 links under Himalayan component of National Perspective Plan (NPP) for inter basin transfer. Ken-Betwa river link project has been approved with estimated cost of ₹44,605 crore with central support of ₹39,317 crore.

Notes:
Pradhan Mantri National Apprenticeship Mela is an initiative of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
Pradhan Mantri National Apprenticeship Mela will take place on 12 December 2022 in 197 locations throughout 25 states and Union Territories. It is a part of the Skill India Mission, to increase the number of job opportunities for young people in India.

Notes:
Russia has remained India’s top oil supplier in November for the second month in a row, surpassing traditional sellers Iraq and Saudi Arabia,
According to Vortexa, an energy intelligence firm, Russia supplied 9,09,403 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil to India in November. India imported 8,61,461 bpd of oil from Iraq in November and 5,70,922 bpd from Saudi Arabia.

Notes:
The Ministry of Tourism has set up a 24×7 Multi-Lingual Tourist Info-Helpline on the toll free number 1800111363 or on a short code 1363.
The helpline has been set up in 12 Languages including 10 international languages (German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Arabic), Hindi and English for domestic and foreign tourists to provide information relating to Travel in India and guidance to tourists in distress while travelling in India.

Notes:
The Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar announced that India is the largest connected nation in the world today with more than 800 million broadband users.
The announcement was made during ‘India Internet Governance Forum 2022’, held on the theme ‘Leveraging Techade for Empowering Bharat’. It is an initiative associated with the UN Internet Governance Forum (UN-IGF).

Notes:
The Okavango delta is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in southern African country Botswana and Murchison Falls is Uganda’s oldest and largest national park.
As per the report ‘Who is Financing Fossil Fuel Expansion in Africa?’, Oil companies are threatening these biodiversity hotspots in an effort to drill for oil, which will benefit other rich countries.

Notes:
Former Vice President Venkaiah Naidu has been conferred with the 25th Sri Chandrasekarendra Saraswathi National Eminence Award (SIES).
Awardees in other categories include the Governor of Kerala Arif Mohammed Khan, industrialist Ratan Tata, cardiologist and Padma Vibhushan awardee Dr Marthanda Varma Sankaran Valianathan, Scientific Advisor to the Government of India Ajay Sood and famous Harikatha artiste Vishakha Hari.

Notes:
Kerala Assembly recently passed a Bill to remove the Governor as the ex-officio Chancellor of 14 universities in the state.
The CPI(M) government introduced the University Laws (Amendments) Bill in the Assembly after repeated issues with Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on administration and appointments at these universities. The Bill will now be sent for the governor’s consent before it becomes a law.

Notes:
According to a new report, India currently has around 350 million online transacting users across e-commerce, shopping, travel and hospitality, and OTT.
There are about 40-45 million mature users who spend a significant share of their wallet online. The report also estimates that these mature users would account for USD 400 billion online spending by 2030. With 780 million, India is home to the second-largest Internet user base in the world.