Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - April, 2018

Notes:
Anupama Bhatnagar, the senior Indian Information Service (IIS) officer, has assumed charge as the new secretary of the Press Council of India (PCI) on April 2. She succeeded Vibha Bhargava. Prior to her new assignment, Bhatnagar was posted as the additional director general (news) in All India Radio (AIR).

Notes:
Inspector General KR Nautiyal, on promotion to the rank of Additional Director General, has been appointed as the new Coast Guard Commander (Eastern Seaboard). He will succeed Inspector General KS Sheoran on April 12, 2018. Nautiyal has commanded all type of Coast Guard ships and was Deputy Director-General (operations and CS) at CGHQ, New Delhi, Commander CGRHQ (NE) in Kolkata and Commander CGRHQ (W) in Mumbai.

Notes:
The National Safe Motherhood (NSMD) is celebrated every year on April 11 to create awareness on proper healthcare and maternity celebrities to pregnant and lactating women. It also seeks to create awareness about the institutional delivery, reducing anemia among women and better pre and postal natal health care and necessary for mothers. The theme of 2018 NSMD is “Respectful Maternity Care”.

Notes:
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully launched the navigation satellite IRNSS-1I into the orbit with the help of PSLV-C41 launch vehicle from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on April 12, 2018. IRNSS-1I is the 8th such satellite to be a part of the NavIC navigation satellite constellation. It is expected to replace IRNSS-1A, the first of the seven navigation satellites, which was rendered ineffective after its three rubidium atomic clocks failed. The IRNSS 1I mission is critical for the space agency as it is ISRO’s second attempt to replace the IRNSS 1A satellite, after the failure of the IRNSS 1H mission in August 2017. The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) is a constellation of seven satellites that provides indigenously developed regional GPS services called NavIC.

Notes:
Veena Sahajwalla, an Indian-origin scientist in Australia, has launched the world’s first microfactory that can transform the components from electronic waste items such as smartphones and laptops into valuable materials for re-use. The modular microfactories can operate on a site as small as 50 square metres and can be located wherever waste may be stockpiled. A microfactory is one or a series of small machines and devices that uses patented technology to perform one or more functions in the reforming of waste products into new and usable resources. The e-waste microfactory that reforms discarded computers, mobile phones and printers has a number of small modules for this process and fits into a small site. The discarded devices are first placed into a module to break them down. The next module may involve a special robot for the identification of useful parts, she said. Another module then involves using a small furnace which transforms these parts into valuable materials by using a precisely controlled temperature process developed via extensive research. These transformed materials include metal alloys and a range of micro-materials.

Notes:
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has decided to scrap the quota system in government services after thousands of students marched across the country in protest against a controversial policy of setting aside jobs for special groups. The students began the protests against discriminatory quotas for government jobs, leaving scores of people injured at the Dhaka University. According to the Bangladesh government’s existing quota system, 56% of jobs in the public sector are reserved for children of freedom fighters, women, ethnic minorities, people with disabilities and citizens of some backward districts.

Notes:
The 2018 India Mobile Congress will be held at Aerocity in New Delhi from October 25th to 27th. It is one of the biggest marquee Mobile, Internet and Technology events in Asia, organized by Department of Telecommunications and Cellular Operators Association of India. The event will be an excellent platform for policymakers, industry and regulators to engage in meaningful deliberations to drive the future direction of this important sector. More than one thousand 300 exhibitor’s companies will participate in the exhibition at the event.

Notes:
Manika Batra has created history by becoming the first Indian woman table tennis player to win a singles gold at the Commonwealth Games. She defeated Yu Mengyu of Singapore 4-0 in the final at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games 2018 on April 14, 2018. Apart from her, Sharath Kamal and G Sathiyan settled for Silver in men’s doubles. Besides guiding India to team gold, Batra had paired up with veteran Mouma Das to win the country’s maiden women’s doubles silver. Batra also claimed mixed doubles bronze in table tennis with Sathiyan.

Notes:
The Union home ministry has recently launched the e-FRRO (e-Foreigners Regional Registration Office) scheme to expedite visa services for foreigners visiting India. The aim of the scheme is to build a centralized, transparent online platform for foreigners to avail visa related services and to provide faceless, cashless and paperless services to the foreigners with a user-friendly experience. Using the e-FRRO application, foreigners can apply online and obtain the services through email or post without appearing in person at the FRO/FRRO office.

Notes:
The Sasan Ultra Mega Power Project is located in Sasan village in Singrauli district in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The power plant is operated by Sasan Power Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Power. Sasan UMPP along with the coal mine is the largest integrated coal-cum-power plant in the World. It is India’s first domestic coal-based UMPP.