Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2017

Notes:
Asim Basu (81), the renowned theatre artiste and director, art director, painter and playwright, has recently passed away in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. He was known for his set design work in Ollywood movies and designing Oriya book covers and movie posters. He directed around 200 plays and did stage designing for over 500 plays and was the art director for several Odia films. Some of his major works are Indradhanura Chhai, Dadagiri and apana Banika.

Notes:
The 7th edition of Indian Seed Congress (ISC) has been organized by the National Seed Association of India (NSAI) in Kolkata, West Bengal on February 12-14, 2017. The theme of Seed Congress is “Seed of Joy” which is very much in line with vision of this government to bring happiness and prosperity in the lives of farmers by doubling their farm income by 2022. The ISC is an annual forum that provides a platform for the Seed Industry to interact closely with technology developers, sector development officials and policy makers. It also provides a chance to showcase new product ranges and services and network for better business development.

Notes:
The 10th edition of International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV-2017) will take place in New Delhi, India from 7th to 9th March 2017. The ICEGOV series brings together academia, governments, international organizations, civil society and the private sector to share the insights and experiences in theory and practice of Digital Government. The 2017 theme is “Building Knowledge Societies – From Digital Government to Digital Empowerment”.

Notes:
The Canara Bank has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) to operationalise the Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA). HEFA has been formed as a special purpose vehicle. It would leverage the equity to raise up to Rs. 20,000 crore for funding projects for infrastructure and development of world class Labs in IITs/IIMs/NITs and such other institutions. HEFA would also mobilise CSR funds from PSUs/corporates, which would in turn be released for promoting research and innovation in these institutions on a grant basis. The purpose of the HEFA is to create high quality infrastructure/capital assets in premier educational institutions. All the centrally funded higher educational institutions would be eligible for joining as members of HEFA.

Notes:
Pooja Ghatkar from India, the former Asian champion, has won the bronze in the women’s 10 metre air rifle event in the 2017 International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup at the Karni Singh Shooting Range in New Delhi. Ghatkar shot 228.8 score in the final to finish third.

Notes:
The Ministry of Minority Affairs will host Cultural Harmony Conclave under Hamari Dharohar Scheme in New Delhi on April-May 2017. It has been decided recently in the first meeting of high-level committee on Cultural Harmony Conclave under “Hamari Dharohar (Our Heritage)” scheme of Minority Affairs Ministry. The meeting was chaired by Minister of State for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi in New Delhi. It was attended by several renowned artists, musicians, writers.

Notes:
The dance festival ‘Brahan Natyanjali 2017’ has started at ancient Big temple in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu from February 24, which will continue till March 2. More than 600 artistes from all different parts of the world will take part in the festival, being organised by the Brahan Natyanjali Foundation. Besides Bharatanatiyam, ‘Kathak’, ‘Odissi’, ‘Mohiniyattam,’ and Kuchipudi would also be performed. Classical dancers from New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Manipal, Guruvayur and countries like Dubai, Australia, England and Malaysia would be among those taking part in the fest.

Notes:
Yumnam Yaima Singh (95), the Veteran politician and former Member of Parliament, has recently passed away in Imphal, Manipur. Y Yaima Singh was first elected to the Territorial Council in 1957. He was elected seven times continuously to the Manipur Assembly from Oinam Constituency from 1962 to 1985. He had held various Ministerial posts such as Education, IFCD, and Law & Legislative Affairs. He was the Speaker of Manipur Legislative Assembly form 1980 – 85. He was elected to the 10th Lok Sabha in 1991 on the Manipur People’s Party (MPP) ticket, representing the Inner Manipur Parliamentary Constituency. He was also a brilliant writer, who wrote a book titled “A Piece of Tenth Lok Sabha” in English, amongst many others.

Notes:
The 2nd edition of joint military exercise “Al Nagah-II” has started between India and Oman in the Dhauladhar Ranges at Bakloh in Himachal Pradesh from March 6, 2017. The purpose of the 14-day exercise is to build and promote bilateral Army-to-Army relations and enhance inter-operability while exchanging skills and experiences between the Indian Army and the Royal Army of Oman. The exercise would be mainly focused on counter terrorism and forest warfare and approx 60 troops from both countries will participate in the exercise.

Notes:
The Union Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu has recently inaugurated India’s largest waste-to-power plant at Narela-Bawana in New Delhi. The 24 Mega Watt plant would not only dispose of 1,300 Metric Tonne waste on a daily basis but also produce compost and energy. The project, built at a cost of Rs. 650 crore and spread across around 100 acres at Narela-Bawana, will use 2,000 metric tonnes of solid waste every day to generate 24 MW of energy. The power generated would be sold to distribution companies for a price fixed by electricity regulator.