Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - March, 2018

Notes:
The Union Government has constituted a 3-member Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal to adjudicate the dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh over sharing the river’s water. Supreme Court Judge AM Khanwilkar will be the Chairman of the tribunal, with Justice Ravi Ranjan of the Patna High Court and Justice Indermeet Kaur Kochhar of the Delhi High Court being the other two members. The Tribunal, which will have its headquarters in Delhi, has been constituted following the Supreme Court orders in January in a suit filed by the Odisha Government. The apex court had sought to refer the dispute to a Tribunal for adjudication under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956.

Notes:
President Ram Nath Kovind has inaugurated the World Hindi Secretariat building in Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius, on March 13, 2018. The Secretariat is fully financed by India and a grant of Rs 33 crore was provided. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone of this building in 2015. The purpose of the secretariat is to present Hindi as a common man’s language ‘Janbhasha’ in front of the world.

Notes:
Narendra Jha (55), the noted film and television actor, has passed away in Nashik, Maharashtra on March 14, 2018. He was born in Madhubani, Bihar. He began his small screen journey with Mandira Bedi’s Shanti and went on to model in TV ads. He is best known for his performances in films such as “Raees”, “Kaabil”, “Mohenjo Daro” and “Haider”.

Notes:
The first regional conference on ‘Mass Rapid Transport System (MRTS) for Urban Areas – Opportunities and Challenges was held in Kolkata, West Bengal on March 13, 2018. The conference was jointly organized by Ministry of Finance, AIIB, ASSOCHAM and Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS). Before the 3rd annual meeting of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) to be held in Mumbai from June 2018, eight such regional conferences will be held on the issues relating to infrastructures development, sustainable infrastructure, mass rapid transportation system, port and coastal infrastructure, urban development and the like in eight different cities of India.

Notes:
The 5th edition of Nadi Mahotsava has started at Bandrabhan of Hoshangabad District of Madhya Pradesh on March 16, 2018. It was inaugurated by Nitin Gadkari, who is Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation. The 2-day mahotsava with various sessions of discussion is taking place for the conservation of Narmada River.

Notes:
KL Rahul has been named as the ‘Cricketer of the Year’ in the 6th edition of Wisden India Almanack. Beside this, Shantha Rangaswamy, India’s first woman superstar, has been inducted into the Wisden India Hall of Fame alongside Erapalli Prasanna. Shantha was the first lady to captain the Indian women’s team. The Almanack pays a tribute to India’s women cricketers, with a wonderful cover picture of celebration at the World Cup. With over 900 pages of essays, commentary, statistics, portraits, and images, Wisden India Almanack is a joyful ride through the entire last season. The magazine also provides insights into the future challenges that are to come.

Notes:
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and the Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University (RGNAU) on March 13, 2018 to strengthen human resource possibility over India’s aviation industry. Under the agreement, the signatory institutions would leverage the existing infrastructure for training in India to expand the reach of vocational training in aviation disciplines. The IATA is a trade association of the world’s airlines and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada.

Notes:
The Government of India (GoI) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have signed a $120 million loan agreement for completion of works for double-tracking and electrification of railways tracks along high-density corridors to improve operational efficiency of Indian railways. The tranche 3 loan is part of the $500 million multi-tranche financing facility for Railway Sector Investment Program approved by the ADB Board in 2011. The loan amount will be used to complete the ongoing works commenced under earlier tranches. The purpose of the project is to increase the efficiency of the rail infrastructure through electrification, introduction of modern signaling system, and doubling rail tracks on key routes in the country. ADB loan has a 20-year term, including a grace period of 5 years, an annual interest rate determined in accordance with ADB’s London interbank offered rate (LIBOR)-based lending facility, and a commitment charge of 0.15% per year.

Notes:
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has recently released the Andhra Pradesh Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) Report 2017. According to the report, the State secured an Index value of 0.0825 (value ranges from 0 to 1; 0 being the best and 1 being the worst). It is equivalent to 51st rank globally. India, with an Index value of 0.1911 is at the 66th position. Within the state, East Godavari is the top district with a value of 0.0468 and Vizianagaram is at the bottom of the table with a value of 0.1271. The study was conducted by the Vision Management Unit (VMU) of the Planning Department in collaboration with the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) of the University of Oxford, UK. By conducting MPI study, the Andhra Pradesh has become the first Indian state to conduct a household survey exclusively to estimate the MPI at the State and district levels.

Notes:
Actor Jackie Shroff’s short film ‘Shunyata’ has won the best film award at 2018 Best of India Short Film Festival at Mack Sennett Studios in Los Angeles, United States on March 3. The 22-minute fiction film directed by Chintan Sarda was selected to be in top 6 from amongst thousands of entries and was played at a theatre in Los Angeles. An industry based jury then adjudged it the best film. The prize includes a cash prize of $1,000. In “Shunyata”, Jackie is seen as hitman Madhur, who leads a gloomy existence with regrets. He is friendly with a child, who lives on the street and sees him getting into the world of crime.