Current Affairs Quiz - March, 2021

Notes:
A historic kangaroo painting created over 17,000 years ago by Aboriginal artists has been identified in Australia.
This is claimed to be the oldest intact rock art of Australia. The two-metre-long artwork has been found in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

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As per a Finance ministry communication, all private sector banks are allowed to participate in government-related business.
At present, only a select few large private sector are allowed to conduct government-related business, like collection of taxes, pension payments and small savings schemes. The Government has also conveyed its decision to RBI.

Notes:
The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021 has been framed recently, which was released by the Electronics and IT Ministry.
Under the rules, platforms such as WhatsApp will have to provide information on identity verification to the authorised agencies within 72 hours. The originator of unlawful messages would be zeroed on and the platforms will have to set up grievance redressal mechanism.

Notes:
The World Employment and Social Outlook 2021 is released by the International Labour Organisation.
This report is one of ILO’s flagship publications that gives details on transformation of way work is organised. It also depicts the experience of workers and businesses on online web-based and location-based platforms.

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B.1.526 – a new highly contagious Covid-19 mutant is fast spreading in New York of the United States of America.
As per a study by researchers of Columbia University, this new variant carries a highly dangerous mutation that can weaken vaccine efficacy.

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A consortium led by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has decided to launch a Covid-19 Oxygen Emergency Taskforce.
This decision comes amidst the pressure on health systems of low-and-middle-income countries, many of those are running out of oxygen. WHO, under the proposed taskforce aims to increase the supply of oxygen to health systems across the globe.

Notes:
As per the second advanced estimates of GDP released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), the GDP for the financial year 2020-21 is recorded as -8 per cent.
NSO, MoSPI also released the quarterly estimates. After two consecutive quarters of contraction, India’s GDP for the October-December quarter (Q3) grew by 0.4 per cent. With this the country is said to have exited recession.

Notes:
China celebrates its traditional Lantern festival, on the 15th day of the first Chinese lunar month.
The festival also marks the final day of the Chinese New Year or ‘Spring Festival’ period. This year, the country entered the ‘Year of the Ox’ on February 12, 2021. This Festival also falls the first full moon night in the Chinese calendar.

Notes:
Madhya Pradesh approved a law to give life imprisonment to food adulterators, with the cabinet recently approving a Penal Law (Madhya Pradesh Amendment) Bill, 2021.
In 2019, a massive rally was organised in the state against food adulteration, with the participation of several citizens of all age groups.

Notes:
MapMyIndia, the Indian Digital Mapping company has integrated into the government’s Co-WIN portal. This aimed to help people locate nearest COVID vaccination centres around them.
The company has also stated that it has launched new maps and nearby search features in its website.