Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - May, 2018

Notes:
US-based Kathak dancer Anindita Anaam has been honoured with the prestigious ‘Shri Jayadev Rastriya Yuva Pratibha Puraskar 2018’ for outstanding contribution to the field of art. The award was presented to the Kathak exponent during the ‘Jayadev International Dance Festival’.The 4-day festival that began on May 13 has been organised under the aegis of Odisha’s culture department and National Culture Mission.

Notes:
As per latest UN World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) report of mid 2018, India’s economy is projected to grow 7.6% in fiscal year 2018-19 and 7.5% for FY 18. This is a substantial recovery from the 6.7% growth India registered in fiscal year 2017. As per report, India is gaining momentum among major economies and although capital spending has shown signs of revival, a more widespread and sustained recovery in private investment remains a crucial challenge. The prediction is largely in line with 2018 Economic Survey that pegged growth at 7% to 7.5% in 2018-19. The Central Statistics Office (CSO) estimates 2017-18 GDP growth at 6.6% compared with 7.1% in the previous year.

Notes:
Rajinder Singh has taken charge as the new President of Hockey India (HI). He succeeded Mariamma Koshy. Prior to this post, Singh was the senior Vice President of HI. He was earlier the Treasurer of HI and currently serves as the Treasurer of Hockey Jammu & Kashmir (J&K).

Notes:
Uttam Pacharne, the noted artist and sculptor, has been appointed as the new Chairman of Lalit Kala Akademi by the President of India. He will hold office for a term of three years from the date on which he assumes the charge of his office. Pacharne is a widely respected person in the field of art and has held various important positions. Currently, he is Member of Advisory Committee of Kala Academy (Goa) and Member of Advisory Committee of P.L. Deshpande State Lalit Kala Academy and Director of Janseva Sahakari Bank (Borivali). Previously in March 2018, M.L. Srivastava, Joint Secretary (Akademies) of Ministry of Culture, was appointed Protem Chairman of the Lalit Kala Akademi.

Notes:
The 26th BASIC Ministerial Meeting of Environment Ministers was held in Durban, South Africa. India was represented by Union Environment Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan. In it, Dr Vardhan reiterated his appeal to make joint efforts to create a societal movement in combating climate change through “Green Good Deeds”. He told his counterparts from BASIC countries and Michal Kurtyka of Poland, who will take over as next president of Conference of Parties (COP-24), that India has shown the vision and the political will to act. The Basic countries is a bloc of four countries – Brazil, South Africa, India and China, formed by an agreement on November 28, 2009. In a joint statement issued, the Basic countries had committed to work together with other parties to ensure the full, effective and sustained implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), its Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement.

Notes:
Anil Kumar Jha has been appointed as chairman-cum-managing director (CMD) of Coal India Limited (CIL) till his superannuation i.e. January 31, 2020. Prior to this post, He was CMD of subsidiary Mahanadi Coalfields. Jha replaced acting chairman Suresh Kumar, who has been holding the post of additional secretary at the ministry of coal. The CIL is a state-owned coal mining company headquartered in Kolkata.

Notes:
Russia has launched the world’s first floating nuclear power station ” Akademik Lomonosov ” at a ceremony in the port of the far northern city of Murmansk, where it will be loaded with nuclear fuel before heading to eastern Siberia. The 21,500-tonne ship was named after Academician Mikhail Lomonosov. Akademik Lomonosov, which is constructed by the state nuclear power firm Rosatom, has a length of 144 metres and width of 30 metres (98 ft). It has a displacement of 21,500 tonnes and a crew of 69 people. It will be primarily used to power oil rigs as Russia pushes further north into the Arctic to drill for oil and gas and needs electricity in far-flung locations.

Notes:
The Indian charity ‘Jagriti Yatra’ has won the Charity Clarity award for Outstanding Impact at the 3rd annual Asian Voice Charity Awards 2018 in London, United Kingdom on May 18. The Jagriti Yatra organizes a 15-day long train journeys, covering 800 km for 400 young change-makers across India every year, to understand and build the India of smaller towns and villages through enterprise. The event was organized by Britain’s oldest Asian diaspora publication ‘Asian Voice’ and Europe’s first independent charity due diligence platform ‘Charity Clarity’. Meanwhile, the ‘Cleft Lip and Palate Association’ won the Charity of the Year award & ‘Road To Freedom’ won Startup Of The Year. The awards are about rewarding charities that think big and solve the most pressing social issues of our time, both in Britain and globally.

Notes:
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) has named Stacey Cunningham its first female President in the history of the 226-year-old exchange. She will succeed Thomas Farley on May 25, 2018. Currently, she is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of NYSE. With Cunningham’s promotion, America’s leading two stock exchanges will be led by women after Adena Friedman took over as CEO of Nasdaq in January 2017.

Notes:
The 5th edition of Kalinga literary festival 2018 is scheduled to be held in Bhubaneswar, Odisha that will explore concepts of equality, equity and humanity in literature. The 3-day festival will witness innovative sessions on radio, poetry recitation, short story, lyrics and cinema by speakers like writer Amish Tripathi, politician-author Pavan Verma, Urdu poet and lyricist Rahat Indori, writer Mridula Garg, entrepreneur-author Ravi Singh, and commentator and journalist Vinod Dua among others. Discussions on issues ranging from youth to inclusion, transgender to equality, women to equity, and governance to justice will be held at the festival. Over 250 speakers, poets, musicians, artists and performers will participate in the fest.