Current Affairs Quiz - March, 2019

Notes:
Chinmoy Roy (79), the veteran Bengali actor, has passed away in Kolkata on March 18, 2019. Born in Kumilla district in present day Bangladesh in 1940, Roy had started his career in Bengali films in the 60s and became indispensable to the film makers for his portrayal of comic characters retaining the very essence of Bengaliness. He was equally noticed along with big names such as Soumitra Chatterjee and Rabi Ghosh in films like ‘Basanta Bilap’ and ‘Dhonni Meye’. Roy was cast by Satyajit Ray in a small role in children’s fantasy ‘Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne’. He had immortalised the character of Tenyda in the film ‘Charmurti’ which became a major hit in the 1980s.

Notes:
For the first time, Uttar Pradesh has undertaken census of otters in its protected areas. The exercise that began in the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR) will be completed by the end of March 2019. Otters are an important part of the forest ecosystem. A thriving population of otters means a healthy river ecosystem. These mammals, listed in schedule II of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972, are rarely seen due to their extremely shy nature. They feed on fish, bird eggs and small creatures like frogs. The den of an otter is known as holt and it is close to water bodies. The PTR is in the foothills of the Himalayas, south of Nepal. Covering an area of approximately 800 square kilometres, the reserve sprawls across parts of Pilibhit, Lakhimpur Kheri and Bahraich districts. With the Sharda and Ghaghara rivers encircling a considerable part of the reserve, it is rich in water bodies. The forests of PTR are to home to tigers, leopards, elephants, different species of deer and monkeys and reptiles like snakes, mugger crocodiles and gharials.

Notes:
The 3rd edition of Namaste Thailand Festival (NTF-2019) was held at Select Citywalk in New Delhi on March 15, 2019. The 3-day fest was organised by the Royal Thai Embassy with an aim to strengthen bilateral ties and increase cultural exchange between India and Thailand. The festival featured stage performances by Thai artistes including the much popular Thai folk-jazz band Asia-7. Along with the traditional Thai cuisines, the Namaste Thailand festival will feature a series of Thai craft activities including mulberry paper mini umbrella making, fan painting, body paint, and button badge making.

Notes:
Bengaluru FC won the 5th edition of the Indian Super League (ISL-2019) by defeating FC Goa 1-0 in the final at the Mumbai Football arena on 17th March 2019. It’s their first-ever ISL title. The two teams were locked 0-0 after 90 minutes. Even the first extra time saw no goals but Bengaluru got better of a 10-men Goan team 1-0, 4 minutes from the end of the second extra half. In it, Bengaluru FC defender Rahul Bheke became the match winner for the team in the dying minutes of the final.

Notes:
The first-ever joint military exercise of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) titled “Sary Arka Antiterror 2019” is scheduled to be held in grasslands of Kazakhstan in the Sary Arka region. The decision to hold the joint exercise ‘Sary-Arka-Antiterror 2019’ was announced during the 34th meeting of the SCO’s Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) council held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The SCO, in which China plays an influential role, is also comprised of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan. India and Pakistan were admitted into the bloc in 2017. Delegations of the competent authorities of India, Kazakhstan, China, the Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and the RATS Executive Committee attended the meeting. RATS is a permanent organ of the SCO which serves to promote cooperation of member states against the three evils of terrorism, separatism and extremism. It is headquartered in Tashkent. The next meeting of the Council of the RATS SCO is scheduled to be held in Russia in September 2019.

Notes:
Recently, Italian Premier Premier Giuseppe Conte has pledged to make Italy the first Group of Seven nation to join China’s ambitious Belt and Road initiative, despite objections from the United States and concerns within his governing coalition. While, on 20th March 2019, India signalled that it will boycott China’s second Belt and Road Forum (BRF) for a second time. It stated that no country can participate in an initiative that ignores its core concerns on sovereignty and territorial integrity. India boycotted the first BRF in 2017 after protesting to Beijing over the controversial China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which is being laid through the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) overriding New Delhi’s sovereignty concerns. China has already deepened its commitment to expand the USD 60 billion CPEC, which aims to connect China’s Xinjiang province with Pakistan’s Gwadar port with a host of road, rail, gas and oil pipelines.

Notes:
The Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) has launched smart garbage bins made of stainless steel. These smart garbage bins will be able to send a signal to the garbage collection vehicle about the ‘fill-up’ position of the bin, aiding better cleaning and lower human intervention. The environment-friendly garbage bins will be made of SAIL SALEM stainless steel. These will be installed in underground Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) pits at the Smart Garbage Station. This will help prevent the spread of stink and diseases. There will be separate bins for recyclable and non-recyclable wastes. The pits in which the bins will be placed, will be covered with a pit cover fabricated out of stainless steel slip-free sheets. Suitable openings on the pit cover will allow the sanitation crew to dump the collected garbage into the stainless steel bins placed underground. SAIL will supply stainless steel garbage bins to Smart Garbage Stations at Bhikaji Cama Place in Delhi, which is being developed by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC).

Notes:
Brazilian physicist and astronomer Marcelo Gleiser (60) has been awarded the prestigious $1.4 million Templeton Prize for year 2019 for his work on blending science and spirituality. He is the first Latin American to win the prestigious prize. Gleiser is theoretical physicist and views that science and religion are not enemies. He has also explored in depth how science and religion both try to respond to questions on the origins of life and the universe. The Templeton Prize honors a living person who has made an exceptional contribution to affirming life’s spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical works.

Notes:
Kazakhstan has officially renamed its capital Astana to Nursultan to honour outgoing leader Nursultan Nazarbayev who stepped down as President after three decades in office. The change was announced after Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was sworn-in as president. He will serve for the remainder of the presidential term which expires in April 2020. Mr. Nazarbayev ruled Kazakhstan since before it gained independence with the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. He steered the country through a major transformation, developing huge energy reserves and boosting its international influence, but was accused of cracking down on dissent and tolerating little opposition. Mr. Nazarbayev will continue to enjoy significant powers thanks to his Constitutional status as “Leader of the Nation”, life-time position as chief of the security council and head of the ruling Nur Otan party. Astana was previously known as Akmola, Tselinograd and Akmolinsk.

Notes:
SpiceJet has become the first Indian low-cost carrier to get the membership of global airlines’ grouping International Air Transport Association (IATA). The membership also allows SpiceJet to explore and grow its collaborations with international member airlines of IATA through interlining and code shares. This will enable SpiceJet to seamlessly expand the network options for its passengers in future. The IATA represents more than 290 airlines, including Air India, Jet Airways and Vistara.