Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2019

Notes:
The Punjab government has decided to make it mandatory for all online aggregators to ensure that food supplied by them have hygiene rating as per the guidelines of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The online order and delivery mechanism of food supply has created a physical disconnect between the consumer and the food maker. Hence, the onus of ensuring the quality of food and the hygienic condition under which food is prepared, has shifted to the intermediate food delivery mechanism. Thus, keeping this in mind, the state government has decided that all the online food order-delivery companies shall ensure that FBO’s registered or affiliated with them have their hygiene rating done from the FSSAI empanelled companies.

Notes:
The Medical & Health Department of Rajasthan government has won the prestigious 2019 World Health Organization (WHO) award in recognition of its achievements in the field of tobacco control. The department’s Additional Chief Secretary, Rohit Kumar Singh, received the award at a function to mark 2019 World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) in New Delhi. The Health Department of the State is the only government body in India which is awarded for its Tobacco-Free Initiatives (TFIs). Beside this, WHO has selected five organisations from the South-East Asian region for the prestigious award. Three other organizations in the South-East Asian region have been selected from Thailand and Indonesia, while the Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute (of New Delhi) is also among the recipients of the award. Every year, WHO recognizes individuals or organizations in each of the six WHO Regions for their accomplishments in the area of tobacco control. This recognition takes the form of WHO Director-General Special Recognition Award and WNTD Awards.

Notes:
The 10th edition of National Science Film Festival of India (NSFFl) is scheduled to be held in Agartala, Tripura on January and February 2020. The aim of the fest is to raise awareness about science and environment through films. This the second time the show will be held in a North Eastern city. The film festival is being held with the objective of highlighting science, technology, innovation, energy, environment, agriculture and traditional knowledge in a simple way that would bring science closer to common people through simple ways of explanation. The film festival would include films produced by UNICEF, UNESCO and filmmakers from different countries. It will also include entries from Tripura and other states.

Notes:
The World Milk Day (WMD) is observed every year on 1st of June to provide an opportunity to focus attention on milk and to publicise activities connected with milk and the milk industry. In 2001, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) selected June 1st as World Milk Day, which celebrates the important contributions of the dairy sector to sustainability, economic development, livelihoods and nutrition. The 2019 theme is “Drink Milk: Today & Everyday”.

Notes:
The researchers at the University of Warwick in the UK have discovered a rogue exoplanet – NGTS-4b – with its own atmosphere in the Neptunian Desert. The Neptunian Desert is the region close to stars where no Neptune-sized planets are found. This area receives strong irradiation from the star, meaning the planets do not retain their gaseous atmosphere as they evaporate leaving just a rocky core. However, NGTS-4b still has its atmosphere of gas. NGTS-4b, nick-named ‘The Forbidden Planet’ is smaller than Neptune but three times the size of Earth. The exoplanet has a mass of 20 Earth masses, a radius 20% smaller than Neptune, and temperature of 1000 degrees Celsius. It orbits around the star in only 1.3 days — the equivalent of Earth’s orbit around the Sun of one year. It is the first exoplanet of its kind to have been found in the Neptunian Desert. The NGTS telescopes are situated at the European Southern Observatory’s Paranal Observatory in the heart of the Atacama Desert, Chile.

Notes:
Mrutyunjay Mahapatra, the renowned scientist and cyclone warning specialist, has been appointed as the chief of India Meteorological Department (IMD). Popularly known as the ‘Cyclone man of India’, he will take charge of his new assignment on August 1 for a period of five years. Mohapatra and his team at the Cyclone Warning Division (CWD) of the IMD have earned praise for their accurate forecasts on cyclones, its wind-speed and likely impact on life and property including during the recent cyclone ‘Fani’, when their timely warnings enabled the authorities to ensure early evacuation of millions of people. Over the last six years, the CWD has given accurate forecasts on cyclones including when Phailin (2013), Hudhud (2014) and Titli (2018) hit the eastern coast. The IMD is responsible for weather and climate-related forecasts in the country. It is also mandated to issue warning to people about severe weather phenomenon like cyclones, dust storms, heavy rain and snow, cold and heatwaves, among others.

Notes:
Sunil Chhetri has become the India’s highest capped footballer by surpassing Bhaichung Bhutia’s 107 international matches. In his milestone match of the King’s Cup football tournament in Buriram, Thailand, he scored the lone goal for his side in the 31st minute from a spot kick for his 69th goal. However, his effort did not make any difference as India ranked 101, lost 1-3 to higher ranked Curacao. The 82nd ranked Caribbean island nation has two players associated with English Premier League and some others in European leagues. They scored three goals in the space of 18 minutes through Roly Bonevacia, Elson Hooi and Leandro Bacuna.

Notes:
The US aircraft maker Boeing co and national airports body Airports Authority of India (AAI) have signed a technical assistance agreement for developing a comprehensive roadmap for modernisation of air traffic services in the country. The air traffic services comprise Communication, Navigation and Surveillance (CNS) and Air Traffic Management (ATM). The 10-year modernisation roadmap will be undertaken with a grant from the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA ). The agreement is aimed at developing a roadmap for AAI to use as guidance in the modernisation of the Indian National Airspace System (NAS) based on global and local best practices to optimally utilize airspace capacity, enhance CNS/ATM. Under the agreement, Boeing will analyse current technologies and processes to identify efficiency improvements that can be implemented while maintaining a practical and safe airspace system.

Notes:
Indian-American Congresswoman, Pramila Jayapal has become the first South Asian American woman to preside over the US House of Representatives. She is a Democrat from Washington DC. The 116th Congress broke records with women and lawmakers crossing racial and religious barriers, including an all time high for Asian American lawmakers. A record number of 17 Asian Americans serve in Congress, with 14 in the House and three in the Senate.

Notes:
The Delhi Metro has become the India’s first-ever project to receive power generated from a waste-to-energy plant. According to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), the project is also in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Swachh Bharat Mission”. This will also help in creating awareness on the importance of waste management and utilizing waste in a sustainable manner. The DMRC has started receiving 2 MW power from a 12 MW capacity plant in Ghazipur. The DMRC will take approximately 17.5 million units per annum from this plant. However, the energy off-take will depend upon the actual generation of the plant. The waste-to-energy plant set up by East Delhi Waste Processing Company Limited (EDWPCL) is based on a public private partnership (PPP) involving the Delhi government, the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) and EDWPCL. The waste-to-energy plant will mitigate over 8 million tons of greenhouse gases (GHG) over the life of the project.