Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2022

Notes:
Indian scientist Professor Thalappil Pradeep, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras received VinFuture special prize on 20th Dec. 2022 in Hanoi.
He was awarded for innovation of a low-cost filtration system to remove arsenic and other heavy metals from groundwater. Thalappil was earlier conferred with the Padma Shri in honour of his work to develop affordable and safe drinking water solutions using nanomaterials.

Notes:
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has extended a USD 400-million loan to mortgage major HDFC for financing green affordable housing units.
The loan will help close the urban housing gap and improve access to climate-smart affordable homes by boosting green housing, creating jobs and ensuring long-term business growth.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid respects to Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh, the sons of Tenth Sikh Guru Guru Gobind Singh’s sons who laid down their lives while defending their faith.
December 26 is observed as Veer Bal Diwas in Idia. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee as well as Akal Takht, the highest temporal body of the Sikhs, opposed the government’s initiative.

Notes:
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has mandated banks in the country to renew their locker agreements with existing locker customers by January 1, 2023.
All the existing locker depositors are required to furnish proof of eligibility for a renewed locker arrangement. RBI also advised the banks to install CCTV camera at entry and exit points of strong room and preserve its recording for a period of not less than 180 days.

Notes:
The Union Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways has published its annual report ‘Road accidents in India 2021’.
This report is based on the information received from police departments of States/Union Territories collected on calendar year basis in standardized formats. The formats are provided by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP). As per the report, there were 4,12,432 incidences of road accidents during 2021 which claimed 1, 53,972 lives.

Notes:
Union Ministry of Power and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) have recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to set up early warning systems for vulnerable hydro projects or power stations.
Specific tasks will be formulated between DRDO and respective project developer, under this agreement.

Notes:
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has been appointed as the nodal ministry for matters relating to online gaming with monetary risks.
The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) has been tasked with regulating esports (video games not involving money). India’s gaming market is currently estimated at USD 2.6 billion and expected to be worth USD 8.6 billion by 2027.

Notes:
According to a report by Save the Children, the number of people facing hunger in Afghanistan increased from 2.25 million people in 2019 to 6.6 million in 2022.
Afghanistan is suffering from a severe hunger crisis and is now counted amongst the top eight countries worst hit by hunger. The eight countries include Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, DRC, Haiti, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Yemen.

Notes:
‘Forks in the Road: My Days at RBI and Beyond’ book is a memoir of Dr C. Rangarajan, the 19th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India and a former Member of Parliament.
The book includes his journey as an economist and RBI Governor and sheds lights on some of the hidden truths surrounding India’s economic history including the account of 1991 reforms.

Notes:
The Election Commission has initiated the delimitation of assembly and parliamentary constituencies in Assam.
It will use the 2001 census figures for the readjustment of seats. The move to redraw the assembly and parliamentary seats of Assam as per Section 8A of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 has been initiated after a request from the Union Law Ministry.