Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2022

Notes:
Alphabet Inc’s Google has announced to set up its first cloud region in Greece, as the country is making efforts to become a world cloud computing hub.
The deal is estimated to contribute some USD 2.13 billion to the GDP of Greece and create some 20,000 jobs by 2030. A cloud region is based around a cluster of data centres. Microsoft has also decided to build a data centre hub in the country.

Notes:
Uttarakhand received the first prize in two categories, for the best adventure tourism destination and all-around development of tourism from the Ministry of Tourism.
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar presented National Tourism Awards 2018-19, on the occasion of World Tourism Day. He also launched photography and videography contest during the event.

Notes:
In the category of best performing states in ‘Swachh Survekshan Awards 2022’, Indore was declared the cleanest city for sixth time in a row. It is followed by Surat and Navi Mumbai.
In the state category, Madhya Pradesh secured the first position, followed by Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. The 7th edition of Swachh Survekshan was conducted to study the progress of the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) and rank Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) based on various cleanliness and sanitation parameters.

Notes:
The University Grants Commission (UGC) has issued guidelines for engaging ‘Professors of Practice’ or distinguished experts from different fields at Higher Education institutions.
As per the guidelines, these professors are not required to have the educational qualifications generally mandated for teaching and they can be paid through corporate sponsorship or an honorarium. Distinguished experts with an experience of at least 15 years will be eligible for the scheme.

Notes:
Power Finance Corporation has partnered with Valley of Words initiative to present PFC-VoW Book Awards.
The sixth edition of the award was presented recently. Anees Salim’s The Odd Book of Baby Names and Rudrangshu Mukherjee’s Tagore & Gandhi: Walking Alone, Walking Together were adjudged the best books of the year in English fiction and English non-fiction categories.

Notes:
Sri Lankan government has slashed taxes on female sanitary products, to help women and girls who are unable to afford them because of the country’s economic crisis.
As per study this year by a policy advocacy group, ‘period poverty’, which is being unable to afford sanitary products, was about 50 per cent among Sri Lanka’s 5.3 million women of reproductive age.

Notes:
As per the government data, over 69% of houses constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), are either wholly or jointly owned by women in rural areas.
The data also showed that as on September 29, 2022, a total of two crore houses had been constructed out of the 2.46 crore houses that were sanctioned.

Notes:
A massive avalanche has recently occurred in the Kedar Peak area of Chorabari glacial lake region, near Kedarnath shrine in Uttarakhand.
As per the authorities, no increase in the water level was observed in the Saraswati River. It is a tributary of Mandakini River that flows through the Kedarnath shrine. An avalanche was reported in the same region last month.

Notes:
The Wildlife Week is being celebrated across the country from October 2 to October 8. It aims to bring awareness among the citizens to preserve the wildlife.
Every year on October 4th, National Wildlife Day honours animal rights and welfare all across the world.

Notes:
Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel was named as the recipient of Nansen Award given by UN High Commissioner for Refugees
The former scientist, who led her country for 16 years, was awarded for offering haven to over 1.2 million refugees and asylum seekers fleeing violence during Syrian conflict, when other countries were turning their backs on them.