Current Affairs Quiz - February 2022

Notes:
Massive flooding in Ecuador’s capital Quito and a resulting landslide have killed at least 24 people. Ecuador is a country in South America, touching the Equator.
The floods were caused by heavy rains on the slopes of the Pichincha volcano, which overlooks the city.

Notes:
Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO), proposed to be the world’s largest radio telescope, will be built in Australia and South Africa within this decade. It is headquartered in the United Kingdom
India recently signed an interim agreement to work on ‘Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO)’ project. The agreement will be valid for one year. India can make monetary contribution towards the construction while it has not become a Member Country.

Notes:
Nehru Trophy Boat Race, a famous event held in Alappuzha of Kerala, is set to be held in Ras al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this year.
The race will be held in the month of March in partnership with International Marine Sports Club Ras Al Khaimah at the Al Marjan Island, UAE. The name of the water race was set after Jawaharlal Nehru’s visit to Kerala Boat Race in 1952.

Notes:
‘International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation’ is observed on February 6, every year.
Female genital mutilation (FGM) includes all procedures that involve altering or injuring the female genitalia for non-medical reasons. It is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women. This year’s theme is ‘Accelerating Investment to End Female Genital Mutilation’

Notes:
The Cyclone Batsirai has recently hit the towns of Madagascar. It killed 21 people and displaced more than 60,000 before moving away.
The UN Food Aid Agency announced that the cyclone also destroyed crops of rice, fruits and vegetable. The towns were already struggling with the consequences of a severe drought.

Notes:
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) provides the Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan for the ‘Project for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR)’.
Surat is set to become the first station for the project. The MAHSR corridor will cover 12 stations in total- Surat, Vadodara, Anand, Ahmedabad, Sabarmati, Bilimora, Bharuch, Mumbai, Thane, Virar, Boisar, Vapi stations.

Notes:
India has agreed to provide a grant to Sri Lanka to implement a ‘Unitary Digital Identity framework’. It is modelled similar to India’s flagship Aadhaar card.
Sri Lanka’s Cabinet decided that the Government will prioritise the implementation of the Framework as a national level programme. It will introduce personal identity verification device based on biometric data for citizens.

Notes:
Seven Indian Army personnel, who were part of a patrol team, were struck by an avalanche in the high-altitude area in the Kameng sector of Arunachal Pradesh.
All the seven personnel were later found deceased. The area is located at an altitude of 14,500 feet and had been witnessing heavy snowfall since the last few days. The Army had lost six personnel to avalanches and snow-slides in the Siachen Glacier in 2019, and 11 others in other parts of the country.

Notes:
India is the fifth largest exporter of millets in the world, according to 2020 data, with exports increasing at around 3 per cent CAGR in the last five years ending with 2020.
In 2020-21, India exported millets worth USD 26.97 million against USD 28.5 million in 2019-20. World export of millet has increased from USD 380 million in 2019 to USD 402.7 million in 2020.

Notes:
Karnataka’s Department of Primary and Secondary Education has developed an application named ‘Namma Shaale Nanna Koduge’ app.
This aims to address infrastructure needs of government schools, shortage of teachers, better use of learning aids and utilisation of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds.