Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2018

Notes:
President Ram Nath Kovind has unveiled a book on heartfulness techniques and principles titled ‘The Heartfulness Way’. It was authored by Kamlesh Patel & Joshua Pollock. The books reflects the essence of prayer and yogic transmission aimed at deconstructing and demystifying the act of meditation based on meditation tips. It will enable us to live beyond the filters of our sensory limitations and discover unity within ourselves. To practise heartfulness is to seek the essence beyond the form, the reality behind the ritual. It is to centre oneself at the core of one’s heart and find true meaning and contentment there. Heartfulness is an approach to the Raja Yoga system of meditation called Sahaj Marg or the Natural Path, founded at the turn of the twentieth century and formalised into the Shri Ram Chandra Mission in 1945 in India. The book was launched by Commerce and Industries Minister Suresh Prabhu.

Notes:
The 8th edition of the International Conference on Wild Silk Moths has started in Guwahati, Assam on January 22, 2018. The conference would help in increasing income of the people of the region who are involved with silk industry. India is holding the event for the second time with an aim to explore latest research and development. The conference is being organized by the Central Silk Board and International Society for Wild Silk Moths.

Notes:
India has been ranked at the 62nd place among emerging economies on an Inclusive Development Index (IDI-2018) released by World Economic Forum (WEF). India’s position is much below China (26th) and Pakistan (47th). The 2018 index, which measures the progress of 103 economies on three individual pillars – growth and development; inclusion; and inter-generational equity – has been divided into two parts. The first part covers 29 advanced economies and the second 74 emerging economies. Norway remains the world’s most inclusive advanced economy, while Lithuania again tops the list of emerging economies. The index takes into account the living standards, environmental sustainability and protection of future generations from further indebtedness.

Notes:
Om Prakash Rawat, the senior-most Election Commissioner, has been appointed as the new Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). He will succeed A.K. Joti on January 23, 2018 and will have tenure of almost a year till his retirement in December 2018. Mr Rawat will oversee elections in Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland scheduled next month. Crucial States like Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh will also go to the polls under his watch. Election Commissioners have a fixed term of six years but have to step down if they reach 65 years of age before their term expires.

Notes:
Mauritius was the largest source of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India in FY17, according to recent census by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). It has 21.8% share at market value. As per RBI’s data on Census on Foreign Liabilities and Assets of Indian Direct Investment Companies 2016-17, United States has acquired 2nd position followed by UK, Singapore and Japan. Beside this, Singapore (19.7% was the major FDI destination, followed by the Netherlands, Mauritius, and the USA. According to the data, manufacturing sector accounted for nearly half of the total FDI at market prices. Information and communication services, and financial and insurance activities were the other major sectors that attracted FDI.

Notes:
The 48th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF-2018) has started in Davos, Switzerland on January 22, 2018. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is leading the largest-ever Indian delegation. The theme of the 5-day summit is ‘Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World’, which aims to set an agenda to address political, economic and Social challenges of recent times. More than 3,000 world leaders from business, politics, art, academia and civil society would be participating in the summit and the Indian presence is the largest ever with over 130 participants.

Notes:
The International Conference on dam safety has started in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala on January 23, 2018. The two-day conference will be jointly inaugurated by Union Minister of State for Water Resources Arjun Ram Meghwal and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The conference will see the participation of 550 delegates from over 20 countries. The dam safety conferences are organized as an annual event under the Dam Safety Rehabilitation and Improvement Project being run by the Water Resources Ministry. During the conference, dam safety guidelines and manuals developed under DRIP will also be released for implementation. Besides, a software programme – Dam Health and Rehabilitation Monitoring Application – will also be launched during the event. DHARMA is a web tool to digitize all dam related data effectively. It will help document authentic asset and health information pertaining to the large dams in the country, enabling appropriate actions to ensure need based rehabilitation.

Notes:
India will host the Ministerial Meeting of International Energy Forum in New Delhi from April 10 to 12, 2018. More than 60 Energy Ministers will participate in the event and it will be the largest global gathering of Energy Ministers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the event and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will deliver the concluding address. The International Energy Forum (IEF), with a membership of 71 countries (both producers and consumers), is the most representative international organization in the field of oil and gas. India is the member of IEF and currently the Chair of its Executive Board.

Notes:
N Biren Singh, the Chief Minister of Manipur, has launched a pioneering health assurance scheme “Chief Minister-gi Hakshelgi Tengbang (CMHT)” for the poor and disabled people on January 21, 2018. The CMHT will provide cashless treatment to the poor at government hospitals, health centres and other empanelled selected private hospitals. The scheme will provide cover up to Rs 2 lakh per eligible family identified from the Socio Economic Caste Census (SECC) in the treatment of seven critical identified critical ailments – cardiovascular diseases, kidney ailments, neurological conditions, liver ailments, cancer, neo-natal diseases and burns per year. The beneficiaries may get themselves enrolled for the scheme with the help of ASHA workers at the kiosks opened in nearby PHCs, CHCs and District Hospitals.

Notes:
The Andhra Pradesh government has signed a sister-state agreement with the Canton of Zurich in a bid to strengthen the friendly ties and promote mutual understanding. The Letter of Intent (LOI) was signed by Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu and Zurich Councillor and Head of the Department for Economic Affairs Carmen Walker Späh in the presence of Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. The purpose of LOI is to achieve mutual prosperity and development. The agreement will strengthen economic and scientific relations between the two governments in the areas such as information and communication technology, environmental technology, life sciences and urban and regional Development.