Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2017

Notes:
President Ram Nath Kovind will inaugurate the 5th edition of India Water Week (IWW) on October 10 with theme “Water and Energy for Inclusive Growth” in New Delhi. About 1500 delegates from India and 13 other countries will attend the five day international event. The event will be celebrated with a multi-disciplinary conference and a concurrently running exhibition enriching the theme and showcasing the technologies and solutions available for the areas under deliberation of the meet. The event will have the many major components like water, food and energy security – essential requirement for sustainable development, water for inclusive growth, sustainable energy development – Key for all round economic growth and water and society.

Notes:
Anupama Ramachandran from India has clinched the World Open Under-16 Snooker Championship title at St. Petersburg in Russia on October 8, 2017. In the girls category, second seed Anupama knocked out her compatriot and top seed Keerthana Pandian in the final by 3-1 to become World Open Under-16 champion. Federation of Billiards Sports of Russia hosted this first ever World Open championships for Under-16 boys and girls. Dylan Emery of Wales has claimed the title in the boys category. Total 73 cueists from across the world have participated in this championship.

Notes:
Commonwealth Games bronze medallist RMV Gurusaidutt has clinched the men’s singles title at the Bulgarian International Future Series Badminton tournament on October 9, 2017. Gurusaidutt, who has been out of action since the US Open in July 2016 due to an injury, defeated Muhammed Ali Kurt in the final by 21- 17, 21-16.

Notes:
The Melkote Temple Wildlife Sanctuary (MTWS) is located in Mandya district of Karnataka and is spread over 45.82 square kilometres. This sanctuary is primarily to house wolves. Other mammals found in this sanctuary include the jungle cat, leopard, bonnet macaque, langur and pangolin. Around 230 species of birds have been observed here over the years. The Sanctuary has been known for its once abundant Cycas circinalis species, which in the recent time has been over exploited by the flower decorators and local doctors.

Notes:
T D Ramakrishnan has been chosen for the 2017 Vayalar Ramavarma Literary Prize for his novel “Sugandhi Enna Andal Devanayaki”. The 40th award ceremony will be held on 27th October 2017, the death anniversary of the late poet and lyricist Vayalar Ramavarma. The Vayalar Award is given for the best literary work in Malayalam. It carries a cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh, a citation, and a statuette designed by sculptor Kanayi Kunhiraman.

Notes:
IIT-Kharagpur has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Samsung India for the setting up of a digital academy on the institute’s campus. The Department of Computer Science and Engineering in the institute will host the Samsung Innovation Lab and train students on the Internet of Things (IoT) through Tizen-based operating systems, commonly used by the company for its mobile phones and home appliances. The academy was a part of Samsung’s corporate social initiative that aims at bridging the digital divide in the country by imparting skills to students on cutting-edge technology, Through this partnership with IIT-KGP, the academy planned to train over 100 students in the next three years. The course would be taught over 14 weeks through classroom lectures, assignments, lab room sessions, self-study and mini projects.

Notes:
President Ram Nath Kovind has inaugurated the 5th edition of India Water Week (IWW) on October 10 with theme “Water and Energy for Inclusive Growth” in New Delhi. The IWW is being held with a multi disciplinary conference and a concurrently running exhibition enriching the theme and showcasing the technologies and solutions available for the areas under deliberation of the meet. It will have the following major components: Water, food and energy security – essential requirement for sustainable development, water for inclusive growth, sustainable energy development – Key for all round economic growth and water and society. About 1500 delegates from India and 13 other countries are attending the 5-day international event.

Notes:
The World Bank (WB), in its biannual economic update “South Asia Economic Focus (Fall 2017)”, has reduced India’s GDP growth forecast to 7.0% for 2017-18 from 7.2% estimated earlier. As per report, the unexpected slowdown in India’s growth story is because of the delayed consequence of demonetization, sharp decline in the growth rate of public expenditures and uncertainty created by the introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST). Apart from WB, Both the Asian Development Bank (ADB) as well as the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have also cut their growth projections for India to 7% and 6.7%, respectively, for fiscal 2017-18.

Notes:
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recently released its October 2017 World Economic Outlook. In it, IMF slashed India’s growth forecast by 0.5% points to 6.7% in FY 18 due to the lingering effects of disruption caused by demonetisation and transition costs of GST. Earlier, in April, the IMF had pegged India’s GDP growth at 7.2% for FY18. It has also lowered the growth projection for FY 19 ( 2018-19) to 7.4% from its earlier estimate in April and June of 7.7%. Though, the IMF was more optimistic about medium-term growth prospects for India through gains from the new indirect tax levy. Apart from IMF, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has also lowered its growth projection to 6.7% for the current financial year from its earlier estimate of 7.3% due to adverse impact on economic growth by the implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Notes:
Film actor Anupam Kher has been appointed as the new chairman of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII). He succeeded Gajendra Chauhan. Kher has worked in more than 500 films and over 100 plays in last three decades. He was conferred the Padma Shri in 2004 and the Padma Bhushan in 2016 by the Indian government. Some of his prominent films include Saaransh, Daddy, Lamhe, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge and Maine Gandhi Ko Nahi Maara. He has also been a part of international projects such as Bend It Like Beckham, Lust, Caution, and David O Russell’s 2013 Oscar-winning Silver Linings Playbook.