Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2021

Notes:
The 6th ministerial meeting of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) began in Nur-Sultan, the capital city of Kazakhstan.
The CICA is an intergovernmental forum aimed at strengthening regional cooperation and ensuring peace, security, and stability in Asia. The first CICA summit was held in June of 2002. The members include 27 Asian countries, including India, China, Russia, nine observer states, and five international organizations.

Notes:
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh virtually conducted the final breakthrough blast of the Sela tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh, recently. The construction of the tunnel is expected to be over by June 2022.
Sela tunnel is expected be the world’s largest bi-lane tunnel at an altitude of more than 13,000 feet. The construction is being undertaken by Border Roads Organisation (BRO). The tunnel goes through Sela Pass and will cut down the distance to the China border through Arunachal Pradesh by 10 km.

Notes:
The Chief of the World Health Organisation honored the late Henrietta Lacks with the Director-General award.
She an American woman whose cancer cells were taken without her knowledge during the 1950s. The cells provided the foundation for vast scientific inventions, including research about the coronavirus. The ‘HeLa’ cell line, derived from the first two letters of Henrietta Lacks, helped in the development of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines.

Notes:
The Government of Delhi has launched an App named “MyParkings”, which permits people to book parking slots online in areas under the jurisdiction of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation.
The app has been designed to provide information about the present number of parked vehicles, total free parking spaces available etc. The app has been built by Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited.

Notes:
The first meeting of the Foreign ministers of India, Israel, the UAE and the USA held recently. It is dubbed as the New QUAD.
The virtual meeting discussed on increasing trade, enhancing cooperation in maritime security and global public health, as well as joint infrastructure projects in transportation and technology. Indian foreign minister S. Jaishankar held discussions with his counterparts.

Notes:
Egyptian-Sudanese Joint Exercise “Guardian of the South – 1” began recently at Egypt’s Mohamed Nagib Military Base.
The exercise is being executed by Egyptian Border Guard Force elements, and Sudanese infantry elements trained on border security. It includes lectures, practical exercises on achieving integration among forces, Exhibition of arms and equipment used in border security is also held.

Notes:
Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and AYUSH Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated Ayush Van, a dedicated forest for Ayurvedic plants, at Gandhidham, Gujarat.
The Ayush Van was set up in 30 acres of land allotted by the Deendayal Port Trust (DPT). Tree plantation is being done to improve greenery in urban area and increase density of tree cover in the Kutch region.

Notes:
The world-renowned Kung Fu Nuns of the Drukpa order of Buddhism has won the prestigious Martial Arts Education Prize 2021 from the UNESCO International Centre for Martial Arts for their brave acts of service.
Through martial arts, the Drukpa nuns empower young girls to defend themselves, build confidence, and take on leadership roles in their communities.

Notes:
In the World Bank’s ease of doing business report, under the construction permits category, India’s rank jumped to 27th out of 190 nations from 181st rank last year.
Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has recently announced that ‘Online building permission system’, which has been implemented in about 2,500 cities so far, will be made operational across all cities by March next year. This will help improve the ‘Ease of Doing Business’ in the country.

Notes:
South Korea has launched its first homegrown rocket. It is named as the Korean Satellite Launch Vehicle II, also known as Nuri.
The vehicle took off from Goheung, about 500km (310 miles) south of Seoul. Though it completed its full flight sequence, the vehicle failed in its goal of putting a dummy satellite in orbit. South Korea plans to carry out four more launches of the Nuri until 2027 to increase reliability.