Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - November, 2017

Notes:
The Union Ministry of Human Resources Development (HRD) has launched a Digital Signature campaign on Constitution Day affirming faith in Indian Constitution and to generate awareness on fundamental duties enshrined in the Constitution. People can join the campaign by filling a form online. The Constitution Day is celebrated every year in India on 26 November to commemorate the adoption of Constitution of India. On this day in 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution of India, and it came into effect on 26 January 1950.

Notes:
The 36th edition of International Geological Congress (IGC – 2020) will be held in New Delhi, India in the year 2020. The event is being jointly funded by the Ministry of Mines (MoM) and Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) with the active support of the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) and the Science Academies of the other neighbouring co-host countries – Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. It is expected to attract 7000+ geoscientists from all over the world. The event is to be organized under the aegis of International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) and as per the statutes of IUGS-IGC Council.

Notes:
The 2017 Constitution Day (or Samvidhan Divas) is celebrated every year in India on November 26 to commemorate the adoption of Constitution of India. On this day in 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution of India, and it came into effect on 26 January 1950. From 2015, the Government of India (GoI) is observing 26th November as Constitution Day. On the occasion of Constitution Day, in 2017, the Union Ministry of Human Resources Development (HRD) has launched a Digital Signature campaign to generate awareness on fundamental duties enshrined in the Constitution. People can join the campaign by filling a form online.

Notes:
World no. 1 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei has won the women’s singles title at the Hong Kong Super Series badminton tournament by defeating P V Sindhu in the final at Kowloon on November 26, 2017. This was Tai’s 8th win against Sindhu in 11 meetings and fourth on the trot. This is also Sindhu’s second loss in the four finals that she reached this season. She had lost to Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara at the World Championship final, while clinched two titles at India and Korea this year.

Notes:
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is the apex body in India for the formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical research. It funded by the Government of India through the Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, who is the Director General (DG) of ICMR, is a globally recognised researcher on tuberculosis and HIV. Currently, Dr. Swaminathan is in news because she will assume the charge of Deputy Director General of Programmes (DDP) at the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Geneva in December 2017. It is the second-highest position in the WHO. Dr. Swaminathan is the daughter of agriculture scientist M S Swaminathan who is hailed as the father of the ‘Green Revolution’ in India.

Notes:
Ace shuttler Kidambi Srikanth, who won four Super Series titles in 2017, has won the Sportsman of the Year award at the first edition of Indian Sports Honours (ISH) in Mumbai on November 27, 2017. Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu was the Sportswoman of the Year award in the individual sport category. In the Team Sport category. Ravichandran Ashwin, who has became the fastest bowler to reach ‘Club 300’ in Test cricket, was awarded Sportsman of the Year award while women’s cricket team skipper Mithali Raj was awarded Sportswoman of the Year award. The Indian Women’s Cricket Team, which ended as runners-up in the ICC Women’s World Cup, were named as the Team of the Year. The ISH is an initiative partnered by India skipper Virat Kohli and Sanjiv Goenka, in line with their vision to support the development of Indian sports.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President’s adviser Ivanka Trump jointly inaugurated the 8th edition of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES-2017) in Hyderabad on November 28, 2017. The 3-day event is co-hosted by India and the USA and for the first time it is held in South Asia. The NITI Ayog in partnership with the US State Department and other agencies and in coordination with the Telangana state Government is organising the prestigious event. This year’s theme “Women First, Prosperity for All” will demonstrate the commitment of the United States and Indian governments to the principle that when women are economically empowered, their communities and countries thrive. About 1500 delegates from over 150 countries are taking part in the three-day Summit. Ten countries are being represented by all women delegations.

Notes:
Karen Pierce, the Foreign Office (FCO) political director, has been appointed the first-ever female UK ambassador to the United Nations (UN). She had previously served as Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN in New York, and more recently as the Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva. Pierce succeeded Matthew Rycroft under whom UK suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of India in the recent election to the International Court of Justice (ICJ). This is for the first time in 70 years that Britain would have no judge in the 15-member panel of the ICJ.

Notes:
Mirabai Chanu from Manipur has become the first Indian in over two decades to claim a gold medal at the International Weightlifting Federation World Weightlifting Championship (IWFWWC) in Anaheim, USA on November 30, 2017. Chanu lifted 85kg in snatch and 109kg in clean and jerk to total an impressive 194kg in the women’s 48kg, in the process setting a new national record. Two decades earlier, Olympic bronze medalist Karnam Malleshwari had won the top prize in worlds twice – in 1994 and 1995.

Notes:
The Bhitarkanika National Park (BNP) is located in Kendrapara district of Odisha and is spread over 672 square kilometers. It is in news recently because the national park has registered an impressive rise in mammal population due to adequate conservation measures and vigil by anti-poaching squad of the forest department. According to the latest head count report released by the forest department, the enumerators spotted 7,129 mammals of 14 species in Kendrapara district while the figure stood at 6,122 in 2016. According to wildlife staff, there are couple of factors are contributing to the rising graph. First, the rich and lush-green mangrove forest has turned out to be an ideal habitat for hyenas, boars and deer. Besides, lack of human interference in their habitation corridors has also emerged favourable. There is also imbalance in predator-prey base in Bhitarkanika. Unlike the Sundarbans, Bhitarkanika mangroves are devoid of tigers.