Current Affairs Quiz - September, 2021

Notes:

• Noted Bengali writer Buddhadeb Guha, who authored several popular books including Madhukari, recently passed away.
• The writer passed away at the age of 85. He had won several awards including the Ananda Purashkar and Sharat Puraskar.
• The author of Bengali literature, has written notable books, including ‘Koel’, ‘Kojagar’, ‘Madhukari’, ‘Jangalmahal’, ‘Charibeti’ etc.
• He is also the creator of two popular fictional characters in Bengali literature named ‘Rivu and Rijuda’.

Notes:

• The United Nations have observed August 31, 2021 as the first ever “International Day for People of African Descent”.
• This day has been dedicated by the UN to commemorate the contributions of the African diaspora in every field of human existence.
• International Decade for People of African Descent is observed from 2015-2024.
• The year 2020 marked the midterm of the International Decade for People of African Descent.

Notes:

• UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) published a report titled ‘Uncertain Pathways’ recently.
• As per the report, more girls and boys than ever are migrated, with 35.5 million having lived outside their country of birth in 2020 and an additional 23.3 million displaced internally.
• The report found that over the course of the year, there were almost 15 million new displacements or 41,000 each day, and that boys outnumber girls.
• Afghanistan is on the top of the list of the top 10 countries of origin, with the largest number of unaccompanied children seeking asylum in Europe.
• In camps, girls are 2.5 times more likely to be out of school than boys.

Notes:

• Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu appointed Dr. Parasaram Pattabhi Kesava Ramacharyulu as the new Secretary General of the Rajya Sabha.
• Ramacharyulu has been working as Secretary in the Rajya Sabha Secretariat since 2018.
• He succeeds Desh Dipak Verma, who demitted office after serving for four years in the post.
• As per the Rajya Sabha Secretariat, Ramacharyulu is the first ever Upper House employee to have reached the Secretary General’s post.

Notes:

• Senior bureaucrat J B Mohapatra has been appointed the chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).
• Mohapatra, is a 1985-batch Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax) officer, is currently the member in the board that frames the policy for the Income Tax department.
• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of J B Mohapatra, as the Chairman of CBDT.
• After the extended tenure of incumbent P C Mody had ended, Mohapatra has been holding the additional charge of CBDT chairman since May 31.

Notes:

• India’s state-owned PSU – Coal India Limited (CIL) has commenced the process of retrofitting LNG kits in trucks engaged in transportation of coal.
• This move is aimed to reduce its carbon footprint and bring a positive impact on the environment.
• The company uses over 4 lakh kilolitres of diesel per annum, which costs about Rs.3500 crore

Notes:

• The Fukutoku-Okanoba volcano, is situated in Japan.
• It is located at about 80 feet below the sea, five kilometres north of Japan’s South Iwo Jima Island.
• As per the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the underwater volcano that exploded in the Pacific Ocean, mid-August, poses a risk to the passage of planes and ships.
• This is regarded as unusual as the eruptions from submarine volcanoes did not reach the height that the plume did.

Notes:
Kasai River is located in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was seen in the news because the Kasai River had turned red recently.

The bodies of hippos and dead fish were seen floating in the river. The pollution was first detected in a tributary of the Kasai River, named the Tshikapa. The Kasai is a tributary of the Congo River. The pollution originates from a major spill at three mining facilities around in Angola. Researchers also fear the potential for lasting contamination of groundwater.

Notes:
According to the Ladakh Resident Certificate Order 2021 passed on September 4, 2021, the Ladakh administration has decided to issue “Resident Certificate” only to Permanent Resident Certificate holders of the region unlike J&K, where new domicile laws allowed outsiders too to apply for jobs, land and other facilities.

Notes:
Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav has virtually inaugurated the first functional smog tower in India at Anand Vihar, Delhi. A smog tower is a structure designed as large/medium scale air purifiers to reduce air pollution, usually by forcing the air through filters. The tower has been built by Tata Projects Limited with NBCC (India) Ltd. as the project management consultant.