Current Affairs - 2019-20

Notes:
The Punjab government has decided to collaborate with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as part of its efforts to root out the drug menace in the State. The MoU will be signed between the health department, the Special Task Force (STF) on drugs and the UNODC in the second week of June 2017. It was also decided to develop a roadmap for the project implementation for which a project committee will be set up. The committee will be headed by principal secretary (Health) with STF chief ADGP Harpreet Singh Sidhu as co-convenor, besides two representatives of UNODC.

Notes:
India and the United States established a Joint Working Group on Counter-terrorism as early as February 2000. It had its ninth meeting recently. Our two countries signed a Counter-terrorism Cooperation Initiative in July 2010. There are other institutional mechanisms, such as the Working Group on Aviation Security, Working Group on Information and Communication Technology and the Defence Policy Group, which provide avenues for our cooperation. India’s membership of FATF has strengthened our ability to work with each other on the financial aspects of terrorism.
 

Notes:
The International Day of Forests is observed every year on March 21 to celebrate and raise awareness of the importance of all types of forests and of trees outside forests for the benefit of current and future generations. The 2017 theme is ‘Forests and Energy’. The theme highlights the importance of wood energy in improving people’s lives, powering sustainable development and mitigating climate change.
 

Notes:
Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) is a voluntary initiative that helps countries manage chemicals to reduce their harmful impact on human health and the environment. The goal of SAICM is to ensure that by 2020, chemicals are produced and used in ways that minimize significant adverse impacts on the environment and human health.
SAICM is administered by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The development of SAICM was endorsed by Heads of State and Government at their summits in Johannesburg in 2002 and in New York in 2005.

Notes:
The new missions will be opened in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Swaziland and Togo. Currently, India has 29 resident missions in Africa.

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In January 2018, the Turkish military began an operation in the Kurdish- majority Afrin Canton and the Tel Rifaat Area of Shahba Canton in Northern Syria. Turkey code-named the operation as Operation Olive Branch.

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As per the Indian State of Forest Report 2017, the total carbon stock is estimated to be 7083 million tonnes. Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) is the largest pool of carbon followed by Above Ground Biomass (AGB), Below Ground Biomass (BGB), Litter and dead wood The report shows that the per hectare carbon stock of different states/UTs as Andaman & Nicobar Islands (170.68 tonnes) with highest carbon stock per hectare, followed by Arunachal Pradesh (148.52 tonnes), Sikkim (145.14 tonnes) and Karnataka (126.52 tonnes).

Notes:
First option is the correct answer
Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) launched the “Sachet” portal to curb illegal collection of money by companies. This website will enable public to obtain information regarding entities that accept deposits, lodge complaints and also share information regarding illegal acceptance of deposits.

Notes:
Mandi in Himachal Pradesh and Sindhudurg in Maharashtra have emerged the cleanest districts in India according Gramin Swachh Survekshan. Sindhudurg was judged as the cleanest in the ‘Plains’ category and Mandi in the cleanest district in ‘Hills’ category. The Gramin Swachh Survekshan report was released by the Union Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj.

Notes:
Base Movement is the newly formed little know terror group active in south India. It has extended its operations to Kerala from Tamil Nadu. Base Movement had suspected allegiance to Al Qaeda as the word ‘Al Qaeda” means base and the movement was said to be a South Indian outfit of Al Qaeda. This mysterious outfit has announced launch of its operations by sending letters and emails to various institutions in South India.