Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2018

Notes:
Former world silver medallist Sarjubala Devi representing Manipur claimed the gold in 48kg category in the 2018 National Women’s Boxing Championships in Rohtak on January 13. She was also given the best boxer trophy. Former world and Asian champion L Sarita Devi representing the All India Police, AIP picked up a gold medal in the 60 kg category. The other gold winners were Sonia Lather representing Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) in 57 kg category, Meena Kumari of AIP in 54 kg category and Rajesh Narwal from RSPB in 48 kg category. RSPB emerged as the overall champions.

Notes:
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has ranked India at 30th position on a Global Manufacturing Index (GMI). In its first “Readiness for the future of production” report, Japan has been found to have the best structure of production and is followed by South Korea, Germany, Switzerland, China, Czech Republic, the US, Sweden, Austria and Ireland. Among BRICS nations, Russia is ranked 35th, Brazil 41st and South Africa at 45th place. The report has placed India in the Legacy group along with Hungary, Mexico, Philippines, Russia, Thailand and Turkey, among others. China figures among ‘leading countries while Brazil and South Africa are in nascent ones. The report which was published ahead of its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland said the 25 leading countries are in the best position to gain as production systems stand on the brink of exponential change. In the India context the report said, the country’s manufacturing sector has grown by over 7% per year on average in the past three decades and accounts for 16-20% of India’s GDP.

Notes:
The 7th edition of the Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav (RSM), under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat matrix, has started in Karnataka on January 14, 2018. The event, organised by the Ministry of Culture, will continue till the 20th of this month. The state paired with Karnataka is Uttarakhand. An official release said the event will cover a profusion of art forms from classical and folk, music and dance, theatre to literature and visual arts. The Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme was launched in 2017 to promote engagement among the people of different states to enhance mutual understanding and bonding. It also took note of the government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative to make the country a global manufacturing hub and of a significant push to improve key enablers and move towards a more connected economy with announcement of a 59 billion dollars investment in infrastructure in 2017.

Notes:
The 44 MW Chutak Hydroelectric Plant is located in Kargil District of Jammu & Kashmir. The barrage site is located about 14 km upstream of Kargil near village Sarzhe. The project is a run-off-river scheme on the river Suru, to generate 216 MU in a 90% dependable year having installed capacity of 44 MW (4 x 11 MW) utlising a rated head of 52m developed by construction of a 15.0 m high barrage and through 4780 m long 5.9M dia horse shoe shaped Head race tunnel.

Notes:
Rajnath Singh, the Union Home Minister, has inaugurated a two-day International Workshop on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (IWDRI) in New Delhi on January 15, 2018. The workshop is organized by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in collaboration with United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR). The workshop will bring together countries from different parts of the world – from Chile to Australia and from Japan to Sri Lanka – with different socio-economic backgrounds and geographical features. This will be a great opportunity to learn from their unique experiences in their efforts towards building disaster resilient infrastructure. The workshop will also see multilateral development banks, the United Nations, the private sector and academics coming together to identify best practices in the infrastructure sector, as well as key issues in existing practices and ways to address them.

Notes:
NK Trikha (82), the veteran journalist, has passed away at AIIMS in New Delhi on Janauary 15, 2018. Trikha had worked at the Times of India Group’s Hindi newspaper ‘Navbharat Times’ for a long time and was also the editor of its Lucknow edition. He also served as a member of the Press Council of India and he was twice president of the National Union of Journalists (India).

Notes:
Shripad Naik, the Union minister of state for Ayush (independent charge), has inaugurated a Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) wellness centre in Bambolim, Goa on January 16, 2018. State health minister Vishwajit Rane was also present at the occasion. It will be attached to Goa Medical College and the state government would provide all assistance to facilitate CGHS operations for beneficiaries in the state. The facility would provide Allelopathy, Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddhi and Homeopathy services. Over 3,000 serving central government employees and around 1,500 pensioners would be benefitted.

Notes:
Raghunath Jha (78), the senior Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and former Union Minister , has passed away in Delhi on January 15, 2018. He was Union Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprise in the UPA government led by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, as a RJD representative. He was elected Member of Parliament (MP) twice from Gopalgunj and Bettiah Lok Sabha constituencies in Bihar and was also six-time legislator from Sheohar Assembly constituency of the State.

Notes:
India has contributed $50,000 to the UN’s youth mission which works to raise awareness and attention to youth issues globally. UN Youth Envoy Jayathma Wickramanayake received the cheque from Paulomi Tripathi, a First Secretary in India’s UN mission at the UN headquarters in New York on Jan 12, 2018. The contribution is voluntary with no strings attached and is in addition to the regular payments India makes to the UN’s general and peacekeeping budgets. The Youth Envoy’s mission is to promote the engagement of youth and advocate for them across all the four pillars of the UN’s work – sustainable development, human rights, peace and security and humanitarian action.

Notes:
The Mahi Bajaj Sagar Dam is a dam across the Mahi River and is located 16kms from Banswara town in Banswara district Rajasthan. It is the second largest dam in Rajasthan and is named after Jamnalal Bajaj. The dam has an installed capacity of 140 MW.