Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - September, 2017

Notes:
The 3-day International Hindu Conference has started in Kathmandu, Nepal with the theme of ‘Emerging spiritualism: Renaissance of Hinduism’ on August 31, 2017. The aim of the conference is to make Kathmandu the global capital of Hinduism. Approx 500 Hindu scholars, religious leaders, Hindu activists and officials from different countries including India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, the US and the UK are are taking part in the conference. The conference will discuss papers on various contemporary issues including, scientific basis of Hinduism, climate change and global warming.

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Ahmedabad, the commercial capital of Gujarat, has been formally accorded the status of India’s first World Heritage City (WHC) by UNESCO. Irina Bokova, the Director General of UNESCO, has handed over the certificate declaring Ahmedabad as a ‘World Heritage City’ to Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani in Gandhinagar on September 1, 2017. The 606-year-old walled city of Ahmedabad was founded by Sultan Ahmed Shah on the eastern bank of the Sabarmati River, presents a rich architectural heritage. It has 28 Archaeological Survey of India’s centrally protected monuments. The city was also the center for India’s non-violent freedom struggle led by Mahatma Gandhi. In July 2017, the UN agency had inscribed Ahmedabad as India’s first World Heritage City (WHC) at the 41st session of UNESCO’s world heritage committee at Krakow in Poland.

Notes:
The Indian pair of Rohan Kapoor and Kuhoo Garg bagged the mixed doubles title at the Hellas Open International badminton series after registering a straight-game victory in Livadia on September 3, 2017. The top-seeded Indian combination of Garg and Kapoor defeated compatriots Karishma Wadkar and Utkarsh Arora by 21-19 21-19 in the final.

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Lewis Hamilton, a British racing driver who races in Formula Onefor the Mercedes AMG Petronas team, has won the 2017 Italian Formula One Grand Prix tournament on September 3, 2017 at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Monza, Italy.

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Kenneth I. Juster, the Deputy Director of the National Economic Council at the White House, has been nominated as the next U.S ambassador to India. The appointment will take effect once the U.S Senate confirms him. The post is vacant since January 20, 2017. Juster has been a strong supporter of India-U.S ties and played a key role in the civil nuclear deal and in the advancement of defence ties between the two countries when he was under secretary of Commerce under former president George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the co-chair of the U.S.-India High Technology Cooperation Group set up during the George W. Bush presidency, and was instrumental in the formation of the Next Steps in Strategic Partnership, a diplomatic initiative between the United States and India on cooperation in strategic areas such as nuclear, space and military, in 2004.

Notes:
Star India acquired digital as well as media rights for Indian Premier League for a term of five years 2018-2023 with a whooping bid of Rs. 16,347.50 crore on September 4, 2017. The staggering deal has turned out to be a financial windfall for the BCCI despite the administrative crisis it is facing at the moment. The testimony to IPL’s growth as the premier sporting property of the country is reflected by the fact that the previous 10-year bid for TV rights only was bought by Sony at Rs. 8200 crore in 2008. Now, the BCCI stands to earn nearly double that amount in half the duration of five years, with earnings of Rs 3270 crore from IPL media rights per year. The BCCI will now earn Rs 55 crore approximately from an IPL match compared to Rs 43 crore, ironically, for each international match that India play. The media rights include broadcast (TV) and digital (mobile and internet) for various segments namely India, Middle East, Africa, Europe and America.

Notes:
The biennial Joint Indo-Lanka Maritime Fleet Exercise – SLINEX 2017 is scheduled to be conducted from September 7-to-14. The focus of SLINEX 2017 will be on fleet work, seamanship, communication, replenishment at sea as well as helicopter operations. Approx, a complement of 368 Sri Lanka Navy personnel comprising 43 naval officers and 60 mid-shipmen are taking part in the exercise. Sri Lanka Navy’s offshore patrol vessels, SLNS Sayura and Sagara will arrive at Port of Visakhapatnam soon to participate in the joint maritime naval exercise with the Indian Navy. The joint naval operations enable both Navies to rehearse and improve own capabilities and enhance operational effectiveness required to maintain maritime security in the region.

Notes:
Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy and Mumbai-born scientist Veena Sahajwalla have been conferred the PLuS Alliance Prize – a prestigious honour that recognises Research Innovation, Education Innovation, Global Leadership and Global Innovation. The Prize of $ 50,000 was awarded in two categories; Education Innovation and Research Innovation. Both winners were recognised for the development and implementation of innovative solutions to significant global issues. Murthy was presented the PLuS Alliance Prize for Global Leadership while Professor Sahajwalla was awarded the PLuS Alliance Prize for Research Innovation for her project ‘The new science of green manufacturing’. The awards were presented to Murthy, Sahajwalla and the other winners by Professor Sir Malcolm Grant, Chairman of NHS England and Chair of the PLuS Alliance Advisory Board, at a ceremony at the T-H-E World Academic Summit in London on September 3, 2017. The PLuS Alliance is an international collaboration between Arizona State University, King’s College London, and UNSW Sydney.

Notes:
India will host the 2019 edition of the Commonwealth (Youth, Junior and Senior) Weightlifting Championships. It was decided by the Executive Board of Commonwealth Weightlifting Federation to allot the 2019 edition of the competitions to India at Gold Coast, Australia. The 2018 edition of the tournament is being held at the Gold Coast.

Notes:
The 2-day event ‘North East Calling’ will be organized by the Union government under its Destination North East series at India Gate lawns in New Delhi on September 9, 2017. The purpose of the event is to promote the art, culture, handicrafts, business and tourism of North East India. The event will showcase all activities and products of North-East and the entry for the general public is free. The event will include music festival for bands of North-East, Cultural night for dances of North-East and Handloom Demo Show presenting the clothes of North-East.