Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2019

Notes:
Dr. Virendra Kumar, the 7-time Lok Sabha MP from Tikamgarh in Madhya Pradesh, has been sworn-in as the pro-tem speaker of Lok Sabha. President Ram Nath Kovind administered oath to Dr Kumar at Rashtrapati Bhavan. As pro-tem speaker, Kumar will preside over the first sitting of the Lok Sabha and administer the oath to the newly elected MPs. He will also oversee the election of the 17th Lok Sabha speaker. The first session of the newly constituted Lok Sabha will be held from June 17 to July 26.

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The World Food India (WFI- 2019) event will be held in New Delhi from November 1-4 as part of the government’s effort to boost investment into this growing sector. The event aims to promote food processing sector and to position India as food processing destination of the World. The tagline of the event will be “Forging Partnerships for Growth”. This will be the 2nd edition of World Food India (WFI), with first one held in 2017 that saw the participation of 61 countries and signing of MoUs worth $14 billion.

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For the first time, India will host the 14th session of the Conference of Parties (COP-14) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in New Delhi between September 2 -14, 2019. It will see participation from at least 5,000 delegates from nearly 197 countries. Ahead of the COP-14, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar launched a flagship project (a part of a larger international initiative called the Bonn Challenge) to enhance India’s capacity for Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR). It will be implemented during a pilot phase of three-and-a-half years in Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland and Karnataka. The project will aim to develop and adapt the best practices and monitoring protocols for the country, and build capacity within the five pilot States. The Bonn Challenge is a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded land under restoration by 2020, and 350 million hectares by 2030. The United Nations has three major Conventions: UNFCCC, UNCCD and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Established in 1994, the UNCCD is the only legally binding international agreement linking environment and development issues to the land agenda.

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Gary Woodland of the United States has clinched the 2019 US Open Golf Championship by three strokes at Pebble Beach Golf Links in California. It is his first major championship and sixth professional victory. He is known as one of the longest hitters on tour.

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The Maharashtra government has decided to launch a pilot project providing smoke-free environment in the kitchen for women. The project, named “Chullah (wood-fired stove)-free and smoke-free Maharashtra”, will target the women who have not benefited under the Ujjwala or any other LPG distribution scheme. The pilot project will be implemented in Naxal- affected areas as well as the districts where farmer suicide rate is high.

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According to the Randstad Employer Brand Research (REBR) 2019, E-commerce giant Amazon India is the most attractive employer brand in India followed by Microsoft India and Sony India. Others in the top 10 most-attractive employer brands in India for 2019 include Mercedes-Benz at 4th position, IBM (5th), Larsen & Toubro (6th), Nestle (7th), Infosys (8th), Samsung (9th) and Dell (10th). As per report, Amazon has scored high on financial health, utilisation of latest technologies and a strong reputation. The survey further noted that a vast majority (55%) of Indians prefer to work for a large multi-national corporation, while a negligible 9% preferred start-ups. The preference for Multi-National Companies (MNCs) can be strongly attributed to job security, financial health and career progression opportunities, which these organisations offer to their employees. The survey also noted that the Indian workforce prefers to work for companies operating in sectors like IT, ITeS and telecom (67%), retail, FMCG and e-commerce (67%), followed by automotive (66%) and BFSI (65%).

Notes:
The Bangalore-based electronics engineer, Nitesh Kumar Jangir has won the 2019 Commonwealth Secretary-General’s Innovation for Sustainable Development Award in London, United Kingdom (UK). He received his award in the ‘People’ category alongside 14 other innovators from across the 53 member-countries of the Commonwealth. Jangir created Saans as a breathing support device to tackle avoidable deaths of premature babies from respiratory distress syndrome due to a lack of immediate access to complex medical equipment. His low-cost neonatal breathing device has saved the lives of new-born babies across small towns of India. Jangir is the co-founder of Coeo Labs, a medical device company with a vision to prevent preventable deaths in the field of emergency and critical care. Each of the 15 winners of the inaugural Commonwealth Innovation Awards receive a trophy, a certificate and 2,000 pounds in prize money.

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Global internet body Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and Indian IT industry body Nasscom has collaborated to develop identifier technology that can be used for managing devices and infrastructure using internet. Under the collaboration, both the bodies will focus on updating Internet of Things (IoT) devices using Domain Name System (DNS) even in situation when the manufacturer or supplier has closed down the business. The ICANN is a nonprofit organization responsible for coordinating the maintenance and procedures of several databases related to the namespaces and numerical spaces of the Internet, ensuring the network’s stable and secure operation. Its’ headquarters is located at Los Angeles in California, United States.

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In Nepal, thousands of people came onto roads in capital Kathmandu against controversial “Guthi Bill” on 19th June 2019. The local residents of Kathmandu valley, especially ethnic Newar community members are protesting against the controversial bill, claiming that the bill had provisions in favour of land mafias and could be a threat to the centuries-old culture and traditions of Nepal. Guthis are socio-economic institutions (trusts), both public and private, that fund their obligations from incomes from cultivated or leased land assets. Depending on their obligations, Guthis fulfil religious, public service or social roles and could either involve members from a common lineage, or several. The Government of Nepal had tabled the Guthi Bill in National Assembly, the Upper House of Parliament in April to amend Guthi Act and nationalise both public and private Guthis or trusts and regulate all religious sites under a powerful commission. Though the Guthi Bill was withdrawn by the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation but protesters are demanding that it should be completely scrapped.

Notes:
Karnataka and Maharashtra have jointly got the Geographical Indication (GI) tag for Namma Kolhapuri chappal. These leather chappals are hand-crafted and tanned using vegetable dyes. The art of making them is passed down one generation to another. The traditional chappal making will get a modern touch. LIDKAR has in-house fashion designers who will design the footwear. According to LIDKAR officials, there are 5,000 people from villages in Belagavi, Bagalkote and even Dharwad making Kolhapuri chappals at their houses. Their market is restricted to nearest towns. The GI tag approvals implies that the artisans producing Kolhapuris in these districts will now be able to make and market their product in domestic and international markets. This also means the artisans can tie up with leading e-commerce players for higher profits. More importantly, it also prohibit the usage of the term “Kolhapuris” for similar products made in other parts of the country.