GK & Current Affairs Quiz: February 08, 2018

Notes:
Nirmala Sitharaman, the Union Defence Minister, has constituted a 13-member advisory committee to monitor and expedite capital acquisition projects for the modernization of the armed forces. The committee will undertake an independent review and check the status of ongoing critical projects worth more than Rs 500 crore. It will also suggest measures to improve the capital acquisition process. The committee, headed by Vinay Sheel Oberoi, will have to present an initial status report on identified projects to the Defence Minister by March 31.

Notes:
Bermuda has become the world’s first country to legalise and then repeal same-sex marriage. The governor of the British island territory John Rankin approved a bill reversing the right of gay couples to marry, despite 2017 Supreme Court ruling that authorized same-sex marriage. It is a step towards seeking to balance opposition to same-sex marriage on the socially conservative island while complying with European court rulings that make sure same-sex couples are recognized and protected in the territory.

Notes:
The National Informatics Centre (NIC) is organizing a three-day National Meet on Grassroot Informatics- VIVID 2018 in New Delhi from February 8, 2018. The event has be inaugurated by Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad at India Habitat Centre. The theme for VIVID 2018 is – Cyber Security and Innovation. The aim of the meet is to showcase the various initiatives of NIC in creating and enhancing the security of Digital Infrastructure in the country. VIVID would be an extensive platform for knowledge sharing which would empower 240 NIC district officials from across the country to interact and leverage on each other’s experience and best practices.

Notes:
Madavoor Vasudevan Nair (89), the Kathakali maestro, has passed away while performing at Agasthyacodu Mahadeva Temple in Anchal, Kerala on February 6, 2018. A recipient of several awards, including Padma Bhushan, he was the follower of the Kaplingattu School, the particular style of south Kerala. Madvoor had also worked as a faculty in the Thekkan Kalari (Southern school of Kathakali) of Kerala Kalamandalam and was the principal of Kalabharathi performing art institute.

Notes:
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has signed a pact with Google to integrate a course on ‘Digital Citizenship and Safety’ in information and communication technology curriculum. The integrated course will be implemented in more than 1.4 million schools across the country from next academic session in April 2018. NCERT has curriculum on IT and communication technologies embedded in teachers training programme. The curriculum developed by NCERT in collaboration with Google will be used to train students from class I – class XII across 1.4 million schools in India where they will learn how to become good and responsible digital citizens. The curriculum is spread into four themes – being smart, being safe, being a digital citizen and being future ready.

Notes:
Jhulan Goswami, India’s veteran pacer, has become the first female cricketer in the world to take 200 wickets in One-Day Internationals (ODI) cricket. She achieved the feat when she bagged the wicket of South Africa opener Laura Wolvaardt during the 2nd ODI of the 3-match series at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley. Beside her, Australia’s Cathryn Fitzpatrick is at 2nd spot with 180 wickets followed by compatriot Lisa Sthalekar on 146. India’s Neetu David occupies the fifth spot with 141 wickets. Interestingly, the first male cricketer to pick 200 ODI wickets was also an Indian – the great Kapil Dev.

Notes:
The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) is a not-for-profit public interest research and advocacy organisation based in New Delhi. It works as a think tank on environment-development issues in India, poor planning, climate shifts devastating India’s Sundarbans and advocates for policy changes and better implementation of the already existing policies. It is in news recently because the CSE has been ranked the top environment policy think tanks in India while it has secured the 16th position in global rankings by the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) of the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania. The TTCSP conducts a research on the role policy institutes play in governments and civil societies around the world.

Notes:
As per Prime Minister’s Research Fellows scheme, the Union Government will give fellowships to 1,000 meritorious students of B. Tech and M. Tech every year. The fellowship amount will be Rs. 70 to 80 thousand per month. Apart from this, a research grant of Rs. two lakh will be provided to each of the fellows for a period of five years. Under the scheme, the best students, who have completed or are in the final year of B. Tech or Integrated M.Tech or M.Sc. in Science and Technology streams from IISc/IITs/NITs/IISERs/IIITs, will be offered direct admission in PhD programme in the IITs/IISc.

Notes:
John Mahoney (77), an English-American actor of stage, film and television, has passed away in Chicago, United States on February 4, 2018. He was best known for playing the blue-collar patriarch Martin Crane in the American sitcom Frasier, which aired on NBC from 1993 to 2004. In addition to his film and television work, Mahoney also worked as a voice actor and was particularly passionate about his stage work on Broadway and in Chicago theatre. He was born in UK but he got US citizenship in 1959.

Notes:
The 6th edition of World Government Summit (WGS) 2018 will be held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) from February 11 to 13. The Indian delegation will be led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The summit acts as a knowledge exchangehub between government officials, thought leaders, policy makers and private sector leaders, and as an analysis platform for the future trends, issues and opportunities facing humanity.