Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2021

Notes:
The International Maritime Organization is a specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for regulating shipping. It is headquartered at London.
World Maritime Day 2021 is celebrated every year on 30 September. IMO has declared 2021 a year of action for seafarers, who are facing hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The World Maritime Theme for 2021 is “Seafarers: at the core of shipping’s future”. The IMO building, including the Seafarer Memorial, will be lit in blue light on World Maritime Day, to unite the maritime community.

Notes:
The Cabinet approved the continuation of the National Export Insurance Account (NEIA) scheme. The Government has announced an infusion of Rs 1,650 crore grant-in-aid over five years from FY 2021-2022 to FY 2025-2026.
The Cabinet also approved the listing of Export Credit Guarantee Corporation Ltd. (ECCG), an unlisted CPSE, on the stock exchange. Rs 4,400 crore will be invested in ECGC Ltd in five years, starting from the financial year 2021-22.

Notes:
Canada observed its first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30. It is an annual commemoration honouring the children who died while attending residential schools.
It united the survivors, families and communities still affected by the legacy of the residential school system. In 2017, a private member’s bill was introduced to make National Day for Truth and Reconciliation an official holiday. Recently, hundreds of potential burial sites and unmarked graves were discovered near former residential schools.

Notes:
The expert group on minimum wages and national-floor wages has been reconstituted under economist and statistician SP Mukherjee.
He replaces the previous head Ajit Mishra. The group has been constituted for a term of three years. The Labour Code on Wages 2019, gives legislative protection of minimum wages to all workers.  The Satpathy-led panel had suggested a national minimum wage at Rs 375 per day or Rs 9,750 per month irrespective of sectors, skills, occupations and rural-urban locations.

Notes:
National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) announced that Chacha Chaudhary, the popular comic book character, has been declared as a mascot of Namami Gange Programme.
The character would be used for sensitising children and youths about the cleaning of Ganga and other rivers. ‘Ganga ki Baat, Chacha Choudhary Ke Sath’ is a public engagement activity under the  public outreach activities of Namami Gange mission.”

Notes:
A discussion document titled ‘India’s Path to Power: Strategy in a World Adrift’ was released by Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research. The policymakers include former NSA Shivshankar Menon.
As per the paper, India should maintain an outward orientation of its economy and avoid being pushed to the margins of regional and global economy, to enhance its growth prospects and improve people’s welfare. They recommended that India should further strengthen its partnership with the United States, Japan and Europe.

Notes:
The Deendayal Antayodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY NRLM) is a flagship scheme launched by the Union Ministry of Rural Development in the year 2011, which creates an institutional platform for rural poor and enhance their livelihood.
Under the scheme, recently 50,000 women SHG members have been dedicated to the nation as B C Sakhi, who would provide doorstep services in every Gram Panchayat.

Notes:
A framed iron bridge named “Ponte di Ferro” also known as “Ponte dell’ Industria” located in Rome, Italy has been completely damaged by a fire. The bridge collapsed and plunged into the River Tiber.
This bridge was opened in 1863 and connects the densely populated Ostiense and Portuense regions. This is one of the very few iron bridges in the city as most of the others are made of stone.

Notes:
The Delhi government has identified 150 pollution hot spots in the city this year, up from 13 last year, for strict monitoring and control measures.
The government also launched an advanced ‘Green war room’ and Green app that will look into the problems pertaining to ‘10 kinds of pollution’ throughout winter. A 21-member team has been formed to manage the green war room, which will work 24×7 to monitor the pollution situation in the UT.

Notes:
Assam Fisheries Ministry recently launched an application, stated to be India’s first e-fish market app named ‘Fishwaale’.
The application will help both buyers and sellers to place orders and sell fish, aquaculture equipment and medicine, fish feed and fish seed online. Products such as Freshwater and seawater frozen fish, dry fish and processed fish items will be sold. The app was developed by Aqua Blue Global Aquaculture Solutions, in collaboration with the state fisheries department.