Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - September, 2017

Notes:
M C Mary Kom, the five-time world champion and Olympic bronze-medallist, has become the first Indian to be picked as the International Boxing Association’s (AIBA) representative for the IOC Athletes’ Forum scheduled in November 2017. She has been invited to attend the 8th International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Athletes’ Forum in Lausanne from November 11th to 13th. Regarding to this, AIBA has sent an invitation letter to the Boxing Federation of India (BFI). However, the event overlaps with the Asian Championship in Vietnam, which is scheduled from November 2 to 12. If Mary Kom is selected for the tournament after trials later this month, her participation at the IOC event would become uncertain.

Notes:
The 2-day Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise “Pralay Sahayam” was held in twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad in Telangana on September 22, 2017. The exercise was for all agencies involved in search, rescue and relief operations during natural disasters, to interact and evolve a seamless and optimized disaster management strategy. The purpose of the exercise is to create public awareness about man-made and natural climate change and urban disasters including floodings.

Notes:
The Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS) is a wildlife sanctuary and estuary situated in Andhra Pradesh. It covers an area of 235.7 square kilometers. It is the second largest stretch of mangrove forests in India with 24 mangrove tree species and more than 120 bird species. It is home to the critically endangered white-backed vulture and the long billed vulture.

Notes:
The 7th ASEM Economic Ministers’ Meeting (ASEM EMM7) was held in Seoul, South Korea on September 21-22, 2017. The 2017 theme is ‘Innovative Partnership for Inclusive Prosperity’. The meeting was conducted under the Chairmanship of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of the Republic of Korea. In it, 51 member countries signed a joint statement on supporting the multilateral trade system.

Notes:
The Union government has set up the Dairy Processing and Infrastructure Development Fund (DPIDF) worth Rs 10,881 crore to boost the dairy sector. With this investment, 95 lakh farmers from about 50,000 villages would be benefited. The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and the National Cooperative Development Cooperation (NCDC) will utilise DPIDF to provide the loan for building an efficient milk procurement system and other infrastructure. The DPIDF will focus on building an efficient milk procurement system by setting up infrastructure and installing electronic milk adulteration testing equipment, besides creating and expanding infrastructure and manufacturing faculties for the value-added products for milk unions and milk companies.

Notes:
Joao Manuel Goncalves Lourenco, the leader of People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), has been officially sworn-in as the new President of Angola on September 26, 2017. With this, he became the first new leader in the oil-rich southern African nation in almost four decades. He succeeded Jose Eduardo dos Santos, who has been in power since 1979. Lourenco will be Angola’s first head of state to be constitutionally limited to serving two five-year terms.

Notes:
The Odisha Government has launched Sishu Abond Matru Mrityuhara Purna Nirakaran Abhijan (Sampurna) Yojna for pregnant women, in Odisha. Under the scheme, the state government will provide Rs.1,000 as transport cost for pregnant women to travel to the hospital. The main purpose of this scheme is to reduce the death ration of the newborn child and mother mortality rate. Around 7853 villages will be covered under the scheme. This scheme will be implemented in the areas where 102/108 ambulances cannot reach.

Notes:
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will increase its annual lending to India to a maximum of $4 billion between 2018 and 2022 to help fasten inclusive economic transformation towards upper middle income status. The ADB’s programme in India will focus on three main pillars of activity during the 5-year period: boost economic competitiveness to create more and well-paid jobs, improve access to infrastructure and services, and address climate change and improving climate resilience. The new lending programme, which includes private sector operations, is much higher than the average $2.65 billion a year in loans extended during 2012 and 2016.

Notes:
The Sitanadi Wildlife Sanctuary (SWS) is located in Dhamtari District, Chhattisgarh and covers an area of 556 square kilometers. It is a famous tourist attraction which is frequented by wildlife enthusiasts throughout the year. It is named after Sitanadi River which originates from this sanctuary and joins Mahanadi River near Deokhut. Sitanadi Wildlife Sanctuary is known for its lush green flora and rich and unique and diverse fauna and has great potential to emerge as one of the finest wildlife destinations in Central India.

Notes:
Hugh M Hefner (91), American Icon and the founder of the iconic Playboy magazine, has passed away in Los Angeles on September 27, 2017. He was also the founder and chief creative officer of Playboy Enterprises, the publishing group that operates the magazine.