Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2020

Notes:
Major E-commerce giant Amazon has launched its new Fulfilment Centre in Tamil Nadu. This is aimed to strengthening the firm’s network in the state.
This facility is expected to offer significant employment opportunities in Tamil Nadu and give a boost to the Economy. The facility has a 7 lakh cubic feet of storage space and can accommodate lakhs of products, appliances and furniture.

Notes:
The Environment Minister of France has announced that it would impose a gradual ban on using wild animals including bears, tigers, lions and elephants in circuses.
It also includes the ban on keeping dolphins and killer whales in captivity in marine parks and raising mink on fur farms. However, the ban does not apply to wild animals in other permanent shows and in zoos.

Notes:
The Island nation of Sri Lanka has recently announced to ban slaughtering of cows across the country.
The Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa has announced that a legislature to implement the decision would be moved soon. The Cabinet has decided to import beef and provide it at a lower price to people who consume it.

Notes:
The 19th round of Foreign Office Consultations between India and Myanmar was recently held through virtual mode.
India committed to provide debt service relief under the G-20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative, for the period May 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020. Both the countries agreed to enhance their mutual cooperation. A Joint Trade Committee Ministerial Meeting is also to be held on October 20.

Notes:
RAISE 2020 – `Responsible Artificial Intelligence for Social Empowerment 2020’ would be organized jointly by Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology and the national think tank NITI Aayog.
The event would be held from October 5 – 9, 2020 in a virtual mode. Prime Minister Narendra Modi would inaugurate the summit.

Notes:
The South Pacific territory of New Caledonia has recently rejected independence from France. It chose to remain French in a recent referendum.
In the referendum made two years ago in 2018, the percentage of votes rejecting the breakaway was 56.7 percent, while this year, the percentage was 53.26 percent. French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed this result.

Notes:
The Wildlife Day celebration started in 1955 in India and it was later expanded to Wildlife week celebration in 1957. It aims to spread awareness on conservation and protection of wildlife.
This year the 66th Wildlife Week was celebrated with the theme RoaR (Roar and Revive) – Exploring Human-Animal Relationships. Union Environment Minister Prakash Javdekar presented the Prani Mitra awards to encourage the zoo officers and staff.

Notes:
The 12th summit of the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) countries is to be held virtually held on November 17 via video conference.
This is set to be the first virtual multilateral meeting to be joined by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping since the border standoff in Ladakh in May. The theme for the meeting will be “BRICS partnership for global stability, shared security and innovative growth”.

Notes:
Indian Telecom operator Bharti Airtel has extended its contract with Ericsson for deployment of 5G-ready radio and transport solutions.
The Made-in-India 5G-ready Ericsson Radio System products are expected to enhance the network capacity and customer experience. India has the highest usage per smartphone per month.

Notes:
The Indian Foreign Service (IFS) day is celebrated on 9 October every year since 2011, to commemorate the day the Indian Cabinet created the Indian Foreign Service.
Several National Leaders including the Prime Minister and the External Affairs Minister extended their greetings to all Indian Foreign Service officers in the country. The Prime Minister also mentioned their contribution in the Vande Bharat Mission.