Current Affairs Quiz - November, 2023

Notes:
Recently, the Nagaland Legislative Assembly unanimously approved legislation maintaining a 33 percent reservation for women in urban local bodies.
This has been a divisive issue, halting municipal elections in the state for nearly twenty years. However, the Nagaland Municipal Bill 2023 has removed the reservation for women in the position of chairperson in municipal bodies.

Notes:
The song ‘Abundance in Millets’, featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sung by Indian-American singer Falguni Shah and her husband Gaurav Shah, has been nominated in the best global music performance category at the 2024 Grammy Awards.
The song was created to raise awareness of the super-grain as another potential key to minimizing world hunger.

Notes:
Ayodhya made a world record when about 22.23 lakh earthen lamps were lit during Deepotsav celebrations on the eve of Diwali.
In 2022, more than 17 lakh diyas were lit across the ghats of Ram ki Pairi.  The city, which is located on the bank of the Saryu River, broke its own world record.

Notes:
The Joint summit of the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) was held in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
During the summit, Saudi Arabia and several other Arab nations reportedly blocked a move to cut diplomatic and economic ties with Israel.

Notes:
Israel unveiled a €317 million ($340 million) agreement for the sale of the David’s Sling air defense system to Finland, a new NATO member.
This announcement follows Israel’s signing of a significant $3.5-billion contract in September, marking its largest-ever deal in the arms sector, to provide Germany with its Arrow 3 hypersonic missile system.

Notes:
The Smart Cities Mission approaches its June 2024 deadline. As per the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry data, about 22% of total projects (1,745 of 7,947) that account for 33% of the total cost are still ongoing. As of November 10, Surat (Gujarat) topped in terms of completion of projects, fund usage and other criteria, followed by Agra (UP), Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Varanasi (UP) and Bhopal (MP) in the top five.
Union Territories (UTs) and cities in Northeastern states are among the lowest 10 performers out of the 100 cities involved in the initiative.

Notes:
A day after Deepavali was celebrated in most parts of the country, three Indian metropolises featured on the list of the most polluted cities in the world, according to a ranking by Swiss air purifier company, IQAir.
On November 13, Delhi was the most polluted city in the world with an air quality index (AQI) of 287 followed by Lahore, Pakistan, at 195. Mumbai, at 153, and Kolkata, 166, were also present among the top 10 of the most polluted cities. The IQAir’s AQI measures data from 109 countries.

Notes:
November 15 marks the Jharkhand Foundation Day. It was formed as the 28th state on November 15, 2000.
Every year November 15th is celebrated as the Jharkhand Foundation Day across the state. Before this, the state was part of southern half of Bihar.

Notes:
Mount Etna in Italy, renowned as one of the world’s most active volcanoes, had raised public concerns due to its eruption the previous year.
This volcanic activity has a long history, with recorded eruptions dating back to 1500 B.C., totaling over 200 eruptions since then.

Notes:
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) have jointly introduced IGBC-Nest, focusing on the individual housing sector with the objective of managing and reducing carbon emissions.
This initiative aligns with India’s ambition to reach a net-zero carbon emissions goal by the year 2070.