Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2021

Notes:
Indian Railways has successfully completed the 180kmph trial run of the new Vistadome tourist coaches.
The luxurious coaches were manufactured by the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai. The Vistadome coaches have see-through glass rooftops and wide windows offering panoramic view. At present, there are 13 Vistadome coaches that are operational.

Notes:
The Union Cabinet has recently approved the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU0 between India and Bhutan on cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space.
The MoU was signed on November 19 by representatives of both the countries sides at Bangalore as well as Thimpu and exchanged. This will enable cooperation in fields like remote sensing, satellite communication and satellite- based navigation, use of spacecraft and space systems among others.

Notes:
The Ministry of Electronics and IT (Meity) is to select an agency that will do an impact assessment of the UMANG application.
UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance) app was launched in 2017. It aimed to provide over 2000 government services on a single platform. The Government wants to analyse why some citizens are not using the application.

Notes:
As per the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the Interconnect usage charges (IUC) has been made zero from January 1, 2021.
IUC is the charge paid by a telecom company, for every call made from its network to different service providers. Prior to this move, the telecom company has been paying 6 paise per minute as the IUC.

Notes:
Private sector bank of India, IDBI Bank has completed the sale of 23 per cent stake in IDBI Federal Life Insurance Company Ltd (IFLI) to Ageas Insurance International.
With the deal amounting Rs 507 crore, Ageas will hold 49 per cent stake in the insurance company, while IDBI will hold 21 per cent. The company is now rebranded as Ageas Federal Life Insurance Company.

Notes:
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed a loan agreement recently.
As per the agreement, the ADB will provide a USD 231-million loan to improve electricity generation capacity in Assam by construction of a 120- (MW) hydroelectric power plant. The proposed hydroelectric project is a project over Kopili river.

Notes:
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) considered the condition of the sailors as a suo-motto step and asked the Ministry of External Affairs to take care of the crew members.
In response, the Ministry has asked China to provide urgent assistance to as many as 39 cre members of the stranded cargo vessels, which have been stuck for months near the Chinese ports of Jingtang and Caofeidian.

Notes:
The 51st edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) to be held in Goa from 16th to 24th of January, 2021.
Recently, the registrations have commenced for media delegates, who desire to attend the event, which will be held in a hybrid mode, on account of the Covid-19 pandemic. The registration will be open till January 10, 2021.

Notes:
The annual waterbird census is to be conducted in the state of Andhra Pradesh, by the state forest department.
The regions included are the Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary, areas near Godavari estuary, Kolleru Lake, Atapaka Bird Sanctuary and Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary in Krishna estuary. Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and Wetland International will provide technical support.

Notes:
The first hill-top Buddhist monastery of the Gangetic Valley has been found at Lal Pahari in Lakhisarai district of Bihar.
This is the first monastery located at the top of a hill. This is discovered during a joint collaboration of Bihar Heritage Development Society and the Visva-Bharati University, West Bengal. It was a Vihara, named as Srimaddharmaviharik aryabhiksusanghasya.