Current Affairs Quiz - February 2022

Notes:
Padma Shri awardee and social worker Ibrahim Sutar passed away in Karnataka at the age of 82. He is fondly referred to as the “Kabir of Kannada”
Ibrahim Sutar was known for his work towards spreading social and communal harmony. Ibrahim is also popular among the public for his spiritual discourses. He was awarded the Padma Shri award in the year 2018.

Notes:
In a recent study, a team of scientists scaled the world’s highest peak to monitor the mountain’s highest-altitude glacier — the South Col Glacier, for signs of climate-related ice loss.
It stands at standing nearly 26,000 feet (8,000 meters) above sea level. The study revealed that South Col is losing ice roughly 80 times faster than it took for the ice to accumulate on the glacier’s surface.

Notes:
A piece of amber with a well-preserved juvenile ‘Retinosaurus hkamtiensis’ was recovered from the near the Jade mines in Myanmar
The newly-identified lizard species was trapped in an araucarian tree resin about 110 million years ago. It is a representative of Scincoidea, a superfamily that includes skinks, armoured lizards and night lizards.

Notes:
Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) launched the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evem Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM) Scheme for farmers for installation of solar pumps and grid connected solar and other renewable power plants.
Recently, the Central government has set the target for replacing diesel with renewable energy in the agricultural sector by 2024.

Notes:
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) recently launched an agro ecology-based programme JIVA.
It aims to promote natural farming under NABARD’s watershed and wadi programmes in 11 states covering five agro-ecological zones. It aims to nudge the farming community towards natural farming.

Notes:
DigitalSky is a single window Platform through which a DGCA-approved drone school provides Remote Pilot Certificate (RPC).
Recently, the Civil Aviation ministry scrapped the requirement of drone pilot licence for operating drones in the country. The RPC is sufficient to operate drones in India

Notes:
The US Congress passed a legislation that ends forced arbitration in sexual assault and harassment disputes at workplaces.
After getting signed by the President Joe Biden, the bill will allow survivors to sue their abusers in a public court even if they have signed employment agreements that require them to settle disputes internally through an arbitrator.

Notes:
The Andhra Pradesh Police has initiated ‘Operation Parivartan’, a special operation to eliminate the cultivation of cannabis.
This operation was led by the Andhra Pradesh Police with the Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB) in Visakhapatnam. Recently, around 2 lakh kilograms of processed cannabis was seized while it was being shipped out.

Notes:
Environment clearance has been issued to as many as 60 mining areas and legal mining of Bajri (riverbed sand) is initiated in Rajasthan.
Four years ago, the Supreme Court banned the sand mining activities in riverbeds until a scientific replenishment study was completed. The apex court later appointed a Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to probe the issue of illegal sand mining.

Notes:
Philippines has signed a USD 375 million deal with India to buy three batteries of the BrahMos cruise missile from India.
Recently India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held discussions with his Philippines counterpart Teodoro L Locsin, on mutual national security and development aspirations. External Affairs Minister Jaishankar has undergone a three-day maiden visit to the Philippines.