Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2022

Notes:
The United Nations Security Council urged Myanmar’s military to release Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been in prison for the past two years when the army staged a coup and ousted her civilian government.
The UN body adopted its first-ever resolution on the situation in Myanmar. The last council resolution regarding Myanmar was the one the UN passed in 1948. The resolution was adopted after attaining 12 votes, with permanent members China and Russia abstaining.

Notes:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. K. Stalin launched the Mananala Nallaadharavu Mandram (Mind Health Support Forum) at government medical colleges to offer counselling and support to school students.
A helpline 14416 was also introduced to reach out to psychiatrists at government medical colleges. In all medical colleges, the forum has been created to offer programmes to improve the mental health of students. The programme will be extended to all colleges and schools.

Notes:
Union Cabinet decided to provide free food-grains to all 81 crore beneficiaries covered under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) till December 2023.
The beneficiary families which used to pay ₹1 for coarse cereals, ₹2 for wheat and ₹3 for rice per kg will now get 35kg of food-grains free for the next one year and others will get 5kg for free in a month till December 2023. The Centre has estimated an additional amount of ₹2 lakh crore for the scheme.

Notes:
The minimum support prices are announced by the Government of India at the beginning of the sowing season for 22 crops on the basis of the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP).
The Union Cabinet approved minimum support prices (MSPs) for copra for 2023 season, based on recommendations of CACP and prices and views of major coconut-growing states. MSP is fixed at Rs 10,860 per quintal for milling copra and at Rs 11,750 per quintal for ball copra.

Notes:
As per a new research, two-thirds of Antarctica’s native species, including emperor penguins, are under threat of extinction or major population declines by 2100.
This is due to current trajectories of global heating. The study was conducted by scientists, conservationists and policymakers from 12 countries.  It has identified emperor penguins as the Antarctic species at greatest risk of extinction, followed by other seabirds and dry soil nematodes.

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:
As per the Article IV Consultation report is based on International Monetary Fund bilateral discussions with the Indian authorities.
As per the report, for India’s economic growth is expected to moderate to 6.1% in FY24 from 6.8% estimated for the current fiscal because of high oil prices, weaker external demand, and tighter financial conditions. IMF cautioned that the emergence of a more contagious coronavirus variant could impact trade and growth further.

Notes:
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has been named as the secretariat for Science 20 (S20), one of the G20’s groupings.
The G20 is being presided over by India and the theme of the S20 in 2023 is ‘Disruptive Science for Innovative and Sustainable Development’.  Discussions will take place throughout the year in various regions of India.

Notes:
Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the country’s first ever metro rail line in its capital city Dhaka.
Dhaka is regarded as one of the world’s most densely populated cities. The Metro project has been mostly funded by Japan and the train network has been in development for nearly 10 years.

Notes:
Tamil Nadu government has issued orders to conserve the Nilgiri tahr, the state animal, at a cost of Rs 25.14 crore.
This is regarded as the first Nilgiri Tahr conservation project in the country. The project would be implemented during a 5-year period from 2022-2027, and follow a strategy including synchronised surveys to estimate numbers of the tahrs. The tahr is an endangered species and is protected under Schedule-I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act of India, 1972.