Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - May, 2018

Notes:
Radhakrishnan Nair, the former IRDAI member, has been appointed to ICICI Bank’s board as an Additional (Independent) Director. His appointment will be for a period of five years and is subject to shareholders’ approval. Nair has around 40 years of experience in the banking industry and in the field of securities and insurance regulation. He is already an independent director of three subsidiaries of ICICI Bank — ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Ltd; ICICI Prudential Trust Ltd and ICICI Securities Primary Dealership Ltd. Meanwhile, the Board of Directors of ICICI Bank Limited (IBN) has appointed Dr. Tushaar Shah as a non-executive Director effective May 3, 2010

Notes:
Keyur Bhushan (90), the well-known Gandhian, freedom fighter and writer, has passed away in Raipur, Chhattisgarh on May 3, 2018. Bhushan, born at Janta in Bemetara district, took part in the 1942 Quit India movement as a student in Raipur, and was incarcerated. During the 1980s, when terrorism was raging in Punjab, he had undertaken a foot-march to promote peace. He penned novels, collections of short stories and poems. He also edited `Sapthahik Chhattisgarh’ and `Antyoday’. Bhushan represented Raipur constituency in the Lok Sabha in the 1990s.

Notes:
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has developed an indigenous atomic clock that will be used in navigation satellites to measure precise location data. It is being developed by the Ahmedabad-based Space Applications Centre (SAC). This clock is currently undergoing a series of qualification tests. Once it successfully clears all tests, the desi atomic clock will be used in an experimental navigation satellite to test its accuracy and durability in space. At present, ISRO imports atomic clocks from European aerospace manufacturer Astrium for its navigation satellites. With the development of indigenous atomic clocks, the space agency sure gets a mark of technological advancement.

Notes:
Pradeep Kumar Sinha, a 1977-batch IAS officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre, has been given one year extension to the post of Cabinet Secretary. With this, he will continue as cabinet secretary till June 12, 2019 as against his current retirement date of 12th June 2018. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the extension. In May 2015, Mr Sinha was appointed as cabinet secretary for a fixed two-year term. This is his second extension. As per government rules, no government servant shall be granted extension in service beyond age of retirement of 60 years but as per rule FR 56, extension in public interest may be given “for a period not exceeding four years in the case of Cabinet Secretary”. The Cabinet Secretary is the top-most executive official and senior-most civil servant of the Government of India. He is the ex-officio head of the Civil Services Board, the Cabinet Secretariat, the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and head of all civil services under the rules of business of the government.

Notes:
India has signed a loan agreement of $200-million with the World Bank for the National Nutrition Mission (POSHAN Abhiyaan) to achieve its goal of reducing stunting in children aged 0-6 years from 38.4% to 25% by 2022. The loan will support the first phase of scaling up of interventions in 315 districts across all states and union territories. A large component of POSHAN Abhiyaan involves gradual scaling-up of the interventions supported by the ongoing World Bank assisted Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Systems Strengthening and Nutrition Improvement Project (ISSNIP) to all districts in the country over a 3-year period. The project will ensure convergence of all nutrition-related schemes and provide performance-based incentives to states and community nutrition and health workers, facilitating a focus on results. The POSHAN Abhiyaan was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 8 in Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan.

Notes:
On May 9, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has launched the website of Digital India Internship Scheme in New Delhi. Under this scheme, 25 interns will be inducted for a period of three months. These interns will be paid a stipend of Rs. 10, 000 per month. The internship is an opportunity for a student to secure first hand and practical work experience under the guidance of qualified and experienced Supervisor and Mentor. It also aims at active participation in the learning process through experimentation and putting into practice the knowledge acquired in the classrooms.

Notes:
In its second-quarter Sovereign Credit Overview for Asia Pacific region, Credit rating agency Fitch has said that India’s economic growth will accelerate to 7.3% in the current financial year FY19 and 7.5% in the next fiscal. The growth rate will accelerate as money supply has recovered to its pre-demonetisation level and disruptions related to the rollout of GST have diminished. The rating agency said India’s ratings balance a strong medium-term growth outlook and favourable external balances against a weak fiscal position and difficult business environment. But the country’s business environment is likely to improve gradually with the implementation and continued broadening of the government’s structural-reform agenda.

Notes:
India and Peru signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of Renewable Energy at Lima on May 11, 2018. The pact was signed in the presence of Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and the Prime Minister Cesar Villanueva Arevalo. Beside this, Peru’s External Affairs Ministry organized a special programme in Lima to commemorate the 55 years of diplomatic ties with India. Peru is a founder member of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), established with India taking the initiative.

Notes:
The 5th meeting of the BIMSTEC Sub-Group on Prevention of Illicit Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and precursor Chemicals to be held in Kathmandu, Nepal on 23 May 2018. The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is an international organisation of 7 nations of South Asia and South East Asia, including Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan, and Nepal.

Notes:
Legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar has been honoured with the Swara Mauli title by Shankarcharya Vidyanarsimha Bharati Swami at her residence Prabhu Kunj in Mumbai on May 13, 2018. The veteran singer has several awards to her credit in her over 7-decade-long career, including three National Awards. Mangeshkar was awarded the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in the country, in 2001 – the second vocalist, after MS Subbulakshmi to receive the honour.