Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2018

Notes:
The Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) is an Indian research and teaching institute located in Mysuru, Karnataka. It is part of the Language Bureau of the Ministry of Human Resource Development. The aim of the institute is to protect and document minor, minority and tribal languages. It promotes Linguistic harmony by teaching 15 Indian languages to non-native learners. It was founded on 17 July 1969.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has inaugurated the third edition of the geo-political conference – Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi on January 16, 2018. The event is jointly organised by the External Affairs Ministry and Observer Research Foundation (ORF). The theme of the dialogue this year is ‘Managing Disruptive Transitions: Ideas, Institutions and Idioms’. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj are also part of the inaugural session of the three-day event, which has an impressive line up of more than 150 speakers and over 550 delegates. Army chief General Bipin Rawat and Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba will also address a session, along with Admiral Harry Harris, Commander, US Pacific Command, General Chris Deverell, Joint Forces Commander, UK, among others. Former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, former prime minister of Canada Stephen Harper and former prime minister of Sweden Carl Bildt are among more than 150 speakers and over 550 delegates from around 90 countries who are participating in the dialogue.

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Charu Rohatgi, the Bollywood and TV actor, has passed away in Mumbai, Maharashtra on January 15, 2018. She is known for working in Parineeti Chopra – Arjun Kapoor starrer film ‘Ishaqzaade’. She was also an integral part of daily soaps like Pratigya and Uttaran. Her filmography includes films like 1920 London, Second Marriage Dot Com and 15 Park Avenue.

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The NITI Aayog has launched the first Global Initiative on Academic Network (GIAN) course on Sustainable Urban planning using remote sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS) has been launched at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur’s outreach center in Noida on January 15, 2018. The purpose of the course is to give participants state-of-the-art remote sensing and GIS skills which will allow them to rise to the challenge of managing the rapidly changing urban environment of Indian cities. The focus will be on issues such as water resource management, water pollution and strategic emplacements for water treatment facilities. The course is being coordinated by Professor Rajiv Sinha from the Department of Earth Sciences at IIT Kanpur and Dr. Patrice Carbonneau from the Department of Geography, University of Durham, UK.

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The Maharashtra Government has approved a Rs 4,000-crore Nanaji Deshmukh Krishi Sanjivani Yojna project to promote climate-resilient agriculture. It will be implemented in 5,142 villages across 15 districts. The purpose of the project is to improve soil quality, develop foodgrain varieties which can sustain climate variations and effect necessary changes in the crop pattern as per the availability of water in a particular region. The scheme would cover small- and medium- scale farmers, who are more vulnerable to the impact of climate change. About 70% of the project’s cost will be borne by the World Bank while the state will contribute 30% over six years. The project will roll out in the upcoming financial year.

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India has become the 43rd member of the Australia Group export control regime on January 19, 2018. The inclusion is expected to raise India’s stature in the field of non-proliferation and help in acquiring critical technologies. With this, India has managed entry into Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the Wassenaar Arrangement and Australia Group despite not being a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).The Australia Group is an informal forum which seeks to ensure that exports do not contribute to the development of chemical or biological weapons.

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Thaawarchand Gehlot, the Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, has launched 100 accessible websites for Divyangs on January 19, 2018. These 100 government websites are now divyang friendly. The Accessible Websites are those websites into which Persons with Disabilities can perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with the Web, and that they can contribute to the Web. The divyang-friendly websites, especially for visually impaired, use features such as screen readers and screen magnifiers, which can relay website content to the user in audio format. Approx, 900 such websites will be launched in a phased manner.

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Indian cricket team has won the 5th edition of Blind Cricket World Cup 2018 by defeating Pakistan in the final by two wickets at Sharjah in United Arab Emirates (UAE). With this, India has retained the World Cup for the Blind. In the final, Pakistan batted first and managed to score 308/8 after being put into bat by India. India chased down the target of 309 with 16 balls to spare to clinch the title. Thus, India maintained their unbeaten record in the tournament.

Notes:
The garbage festival ’Kachra Mahotsav’ was organized by the Raipur Municipal Corporation in Chhattisgarh from January 19 to 21, 2018. This unique fest was organized by the Raipur Municipal Corporation. According to the municipal corporation, it was the India’s first such festival. The purpose of this Garbage festival was to increase awareness, to guide people on waste management and to showcase multiple techniques for reusing things that are labelled as garbage. During the 3-day festival, talks, competitions and cultural performances were organized. In addition, different types of workshops were held to educate people on how effectively they can start managing their waste. In this fest, there were different stalls of utility items made out of waste.

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Sudeep Lakhtakia, the 1984-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, has been appointed as the new DG of National Security Guard (NSG) and will hold the post till July 2019. He will take over from S P Singh, the current chief of the elite counter terror force, who retires on January 31, 2018. Currently, Lakhtakia is serving as a Special Director General in the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) headquarters in New Delhi.