Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2021

Notes:
A new species of fruit fly which was discovered from Coimbatore district, Tamil Nadu has been named after Siruvani.
Siruvani is considered as an ecological hotspot in the Western Ghats. The fruit fly ‘Euphranta siruvani’, which is the new addition to the list of 104 known species across the world and 14 species across India. The new fruit fly has a unique ‘V’ shaped black band on the wing.

Notes:
The Financial Stability Report (FSR) released by Reserve Bank of India has predicted that gross non-performing assets of Banks in India, may rise to 13.5% by September 2021 from the level of 7.5% in September 2020.
The report has also stated that in case of a severe stress scenario, the Gross NPA may further worsen to 14.8%.

Notes:
The national initiative named “Kayakalp” was launched by the Union Ministry of Health and Family welfare in the year 2015. The initiative aimed to improve hygiene, sanitation and cleanliness in Public Health Facilities in India.
Recently, Kayakalp award was given to Public and Private Health Facilities for high standards of Sanitation and Hygiene.

Notes:
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has launched a dedicated portal for receiving and processing complaints related to regarding tax evasion, foreign undisclosed assets and benami properties.
This step is seen a move to enhance e-governance and to involve public participation to abolish tax evasion.

Notes:
Recently, researchers of Durham University have developed a supercomputer simulation to explain the formation of moon.
The researchers have stated that Earth collided with a Mars like planet named Theia about 4.5 billion years ago. The resulting debris is found to be a self-gravitating body, which has a great resemblance to moon in term of mass and ferric properties.

Notes:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami flagged off the famous jallikattu event at Alanganallur in Madurai District of the state.
Jallikattu is a bull-taming sport traditionally organised in the state, as an important part of the Pongal Festival called the ‘Maatu Pongal’. Amidst concerns on animal rights, the event is continued after the state passed an ordinance to conserve the tradition.

Notes:
The “Start-up India International Summit” named Prarambh is organised by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce. It is a 2-day event.
The summit aims to bring some of the leading minds from around the world on one platform and deliberate about the collaboration between countries on start-up ecosystems.

Notes:
India has planned to achieve 20% ethanol-blending with gasoline by the year 2025, which is 5 years ahead of its previous target. This is aimed to reduce India’s dependence on crude oil import and narrow down the Current Account Deficit (CAD).
India is the world’s third largest importer of oil, relying on foreign suppliers to meet more than 80% of its demand.

Notes:
The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) was launched in the year 2015 and is implemented by the Union Ministry of Skill Development.
The 3rd Phase of the scheme has been launched recently, that aims to impart training to of eight lakh candidates over a scheme period of 2020-2021 with an outlay of Rs 949 crore.

Notes:
India’s first Labour Movement Museum is to be launched in the Houseboat tourism hub, Alappuzha in the state of Kerala.
The Museum aims to showcase the history of world labour movement, by showcasing the important documents of the World Labour movement and the exhibits of Kerala’s labour movement. Conservation architect Dr Benny Kuriakose is leading the project of outlay Rs 9.95 Crore.