GK & Current Affairs Quiz: March 28, 2017

Notes:
Dr. Neena Srivastava has been bestowed with the Hari Om Ashram Alembic Research Award for 2016 to recognize the basic research in medical science. The award was presented by the honourable President of India, Pranab Mukherjee at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan on March 28, 2017.

Notes:
Ahmed Kathrada (87), the veteran Indian-origin South African anti-apartheid activist, has recently passed away in Johannesburg, South Africa. He was one of the Nelson Mandela’s closest colleagues in the struggle against white minority rule and a fellow Robben Island prisoner. Kathrada was among three political prisoners who were sentenced to life imprisonment together with the South African anti-apartheid icon after the infamous Rivonia Trial of 1964. The two others were Andrew Mlangeni and Denis Goldberg. They played major roles in shaping the country’s policies after Mandela’s election as the first democratic President of South Africa in 1994. In 2005, Kathrada also received the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award from Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, the then President of India.

Notes:
The National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) is the India’s premier R&D institution responsible for the country’s research activities in the polar and Southern Ocean realms. Recently, it is in news because the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has joined the 36th scientific mission to Antarctica(36-ISEA) i.e. organised by the NCAOR. The climate change is the thrust area of the 36-ISEA. The main purpose of this expedition is to install stakes on ice for Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) measurements around Bharati and Maitri to validate glacier surface velocity derived from satellite data to estimate thickness of snow over land and sea ice using Ground Penetrating Radars (GPR’s) and also to verify conditions of snow over sea and land ice. The headquarters of the NCAOR is located at Vasco da Gama in Goa.

Notes:
The Karnataka Bank has recently launched “MoneyPlant RuPay International Platinum Debit Card” to provide more privileges to its premium & HNI customers. This card can be used for domestic as well as international cash withdrawal & purchase transactions. The card has superior features & privileges such as enhanced withdrawal limit of `75,000/- & purchase (POS/ecommerce) limit of `2,00,000/- per day, Personal Accident Insurance Coverage of `2 lakh, Two Free lounge access per quarter across 30+ airports in India and 300+ airports worldwide, Fuel surcharge waiver, Utility bill cash back offers & various other merchant offers.

Notes:
The first-ever Houston India Conference was hosted by Asia Society Texas Center in Houston, United States with the theme of ‘Make in India -The Inside Story’ from March 24, 2017. The 2-day conference is designed to bring together the various constituencies that have an interest in India, and discuss with them the latest developments and the best practices of doing business in India. The central focus of the conference is to provide a collaboration platform and share today’s India story with the audience in Texas who are interested in investing in India, by the people who are playing an important role in shaping up the modern.

Notes:
Odisha has become the first Indian state to carry financial inclusion and extend banking services to unbanked areas through Self Help Groups (SHGs). For this, the state government has signed an agreement with State Bank of India (SBI) to provide banking facilities to people in unbanked areas. In the first phase, SHGs would be engaged as Banking Correspondents (BCs) in around 1,000 remote Gram Panchayats having no banking facilities. Gradually, it would be extended to 4,000 non-banked panchayats. The system would be of great help to people in rural areas under social security schemes like Pradhan Mantri Bima Surakshya Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Yojana, Atal Pension Yojana etc and would also be helpful in promotion of digital banking.

Notes:
Tehmtan R. Andhyarujina (84), the senior Advocate and eminent jurist, has recently passed away. He was the Solicitor General of India from 1996 to 1998. He authored “The Kesavananda Bharati Case: The untold story of struggle for supremacy by Supreme Court and Parliament “about the landmark Judgment in Kesavananda Bharati Case in which he was also appeared. He was widely regarded for his expertise in a branch of constitutional law relating to parliamentary privileges.

Notes:
Indian-American Vanita Gupta has been appointed as President and CEO of ‘The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights’. The conference is an umbrella group of American civil rights interest groups. With this, she has become the first woman to head the prestigious organisation. She will succeed Wade Henderson on June 1, 2017. She is known for her fearless advocacy of all human beings and also headed civil rights division in the Department of Justice in the Obama Administration. Vanita will also lead its sister organisation ‘The Leadership Conference Education Fund’.

Notes:
The category-4 cyclone “Debbie” has recently hit north-east Australian coast with the speed of 263km/h and caused major damage, torrential rain and power cuts to tens of thousands of homes. landfall in Queensland, northeastern Australia. This powerful cyclone has left at least 45,000 homes without power and damaged buildings. More than 25,000 people were asked to evacuate their homes ahead of predictions that the cyclone would be Queensland’s most damaging since 2011.

Notes:
Recently, Indian men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty has clinched the $20,000 Vietnam Open International challenger badminton title at Hanoi by defeating the Thai duo of Trawut Potieng and Nanthakam Yordphaisong in three games by 17-21, 21-9, 21-15.