Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2020

Notes:
The fossil of Stegodon, a variety of the elephant, was recently discovered near Saharanpur in the state of Uttar Pradesh.
Stegodon is an extinct type of elephant with unique tusks and molars, that was found at an early age in Asia and Africa. The fossil found is claimed to be five to eight million years old and from the Dhok Pathan formation of Siwalik range. More researches are to be carried out in the vicinity of the place.

Notes:
Union Defence Minister of India Rajnath Singh is to attend the Russian Victory Parade on June 24, to be held at Russia’s capital Moscow.
The Victory Parade is organised to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the victory of Russia in the Second World War. Earlier, it was announced that a Tri-Service 75- Member Indian Military Contingent has reached Moscow to participate in the Victory Parade, along with other invited troops.

Notes:
Plantation of Kharif, or summer-sown crops has raised 40% year-on-year, supported by the strong start of the monsoon season.
The increase in planting has been led by oilseeds particularly groundnut, which has been sown in a large area of Gujarat. Total oilseeds area is about eight times more than that of last year. Total area under cultivation has also increased to 13.13 million hectares, from 9.42 million hectares a year ago.

Notes:
According to the data from the US Treasury Department, India has become the 12th largest holder of US government securities at the end of April.
Japan stood at the first position by holding securities worth 157.4 billion dollars. It is followed by China at 1.1 trillion dollars and the UK at 368.5 billion dollars. At the end of April, India had an exposure of 157.4 billion dollars.

Notes:
The United Nations designated June 21 as International Day of Yoga by passing a resolution on December 11, 2014, during the 69th session of the General Assembly.
The first International Day of Yoga was celebrated in the year 2015, across the world. This year, the celebration marks the 6th International Yoga Day. The United Nations theme for this year is ‘Yoga for Health – Yoga at Home’.

Notes:
Indian Government’s think tank NITI Aayog in collaboration with International Transport Forum (ITF) will launch the “Decarbonising Transport in India” project on 24 June.
The project seeks to promote low-carbon transport system for India. Since 2008, India has been a member of ITF, which is an intergovernmental organisation for transport policy. The project is part of the “Decarbonising Transport in Emerging Economies” (DTEE) family of projects. India, Argentina, Azerbaijan, and Morocco are the present participants of DTEE.

Notes:
The Department of Economic Affairs, Finance Ministry has recently announced that there is no objection to the proposal of contributions from individuals or institutions towards the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).
The proposal has been accepted based on the Disaster Management Act, 2005. The NDRF was constituted under the same act and it supplements SDRF of a state, when adequate funds are not available in SDRF in case of a severe disaster. The central government may constitute a fund to be called the NDRF for meeting any severe disaster.

Notes:
Invest India was set up as a non-profit venture under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry in 2009.
It focusses on sector-specific investor targeting and develops new partnerships for investments in India. Recently, the Minister of Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal launched the Food Processing Edition of the Exclusive Investment Forum, designed by Invest India.

Notes:
According to the latest report by the economic wing of State Bank of India (SBI), India’s per capita income (PCI) is to decrease by 5.4 per cent in 2020-21.
The main reason for this dip is due to the effect of Covid-19 pandemic. The report also revealed that this decline in PCI is higher than the nominal GDP decline of 3.8 per cent. The states that would witness the maximum hit in PCI would be Delhi, Chandigarh, and Gujarat with 15.4 per cent, 13.9 per cent and 11.6 per cent, respectively.

Notes:
World Olympic Day or the International Olympic Day is celebrated across the world on June 23. It was introduced in 1948 to commemorate the birth of the modern Olympic Games on 23 June 1894.
The objective of celebrating the Olympic Day was to promote participation in sports and games across the globe, regardless of age, gender, or other abilities. This year, the world’s largest 24 hour digital-first Olympic workout is organised, to celebrate the day virtually. The campaign is named ‘Stay Healthy, Stay Strong, Stay Active with the #Olympicday Workout On 23 June’.