Current Affairs Quiz - November, 2020

Notes:
As per the Schmidt Ocean Institute, its research vessel ‘Falkor’ has discovered a massive coral reef in Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
The research vessel has been undertaking a 12-month exploration mission of the ocean surrounding Australia. The 500-meter-high reef has been discovered for the first time in 120 years. ‘SuBastian’, the underwater robot of the institute is deployed to explore the new reef.

Notes:
External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar recently virtually addressed the first India -Nordic – Baltic Conclave.
The Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8) co-operation framework includes eight countries namely Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden.

Notes:
Over 50 people have been killed by landslides in Guatemala after the Storm named ‘Eta’ caused torrential rain and winds.
After the storm hit the Central American country, it was later downgraded to a tropical storm. A hillside in a single town of the country collapsed which buried several houses under mud. It also mae landfall in the neighbouring country Nicaragua.

Notes:
Vidisha Maitra, an Indian Diplomat has been elected to the UN’s Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ).
She won the election contesting for the only post in Asia-Pacific group, with 126 UN members supporting her candidature. She is a 2008 batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer.

Notes:
India’s latest earth observation satellite named EOS-01 will be launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
The satellite along with 9 other customer satellites would be carried to space by ISRO using its PSLV-C49 rocket. The rocket would be launched from the first launch pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

Notes:
Joe Biden of the Democratic Party has been elected as the 46th President of United States of America and Kamala Harris has been elected as the Vice President of the country.
She is a member of the Democratic Party and is set to assume the office of the Vice President on January 20, 2021.

Notes:
The 20th Summit of SCO Council of Heads of State was held in Video Conference Format. The Meeting was chaired by the Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the Indian delegation to the summit. Other SCO Member States were represented by their Presidents, while India and Pakistan were represented by their respective Prime Ministers.

Notes:
Nepal has recently released a pictorial anthology on Mahatma Gandhi titled Maile Bujheko Gandhi or the Gandhi as I understood. It has been released in Nepali language by the country’s President Bidya Devi Bhandari.
This special anthology was launched to mark Gandhi’s 151st birth anniversary. The book has been published by the Embassy of India along with the B P Koirala India-Nepal Foundation.

Notes:
The Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman represented India in the first BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting.
The meeting was held under the Russian Chairmanship. The meeting is expected to include discussions on the outcomes of the G20 Saudi Presidency in 2020, a digital platform for the New Development Bank and to expand membership of the New Development Bank.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will co-chair the virtual 17th India-ASEAN summit, along with the Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
The leaders are expected to note the adoption of ASEAN-India Plan of Action (2021-2025). The Prime Minister attended the 16th ASEAN-India Summit in Bangkok in November last year.