Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2017

Notes:
The 17th International Seminar on Counter Terrorism has been held at Manesar in Haryana on February 8, 2017. The seminar is organised by National Security Guard (NSA) and inaugurated by the Broadcasting Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting. Apart from this, the Minister also unveiled the NSG annual magazine ‘The Bombshell’, which contains details of various IED explosions that occurred in various parts of the world in 2016.

Notes:
The Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers and Chemicals (GNFC) township in Bharuch has become the India’s first-ever cashless township, which is recently inaugurated by Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani on February 13, 2017. The GNFC is the first integrated industrial township in the country to go 100% digital in all financial transactions. All the shops in the GNFC township, which include paan shops, laundries, vegetable shops, barber shops, provision stores, cycle repairing shops, flour mills, conduct their business only through cashless transactions using PoS machines, e-wallets like BHIM, UPI, SBI Buddy, etc. Even a paan is purchased cashless and a cup of tea is also available cashless only. The GNFC has a population of around 5,000 and has facilities like a big shopping centre, restaurants, eateries, schools and colleges, hospital, stadium, guest house, etc.

Notes:
The Indian government has sanctioned $340 million soft loan to Nepal for various infrastructure development programmes at Nepal Infrastructure Summit 2017 at Kathmandu, Nepal on February 19, 2017. Under this programme, Mahalaki bridge and 15 roads will be constructed in various parts of Nepal.

Notes:
V. K. Srinivasan (76), the noted bureaucrat, columnist and director of the Institute of Economic Studies (IES), has recently passed away in Hyderabad. He was known for his candid views and uprightness in the Services, Srinivasan ruffled many feathers in the corridors of power during his career. It resulted in several transfers as well. He served as Collector in Karimnagar and Anantapur districts, and was known for his simple habits.

Notes:
India’s first dedicated Heliport, built by Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd (PHHL), will be inaugurated by the Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju at Rohini area of New Delhi on February 28, 2017. It consists of terminal building having a capacity of 150 passengers, 4-hangers with parking capacity of 16 helicopters and nine parking bays. The helicopter services shall enable citizens to fly in and out of Delhi to nearby areas in choppers. The heliport will also be used for operating services for disaster management, emergency medical services, law and order surveillance as well as a centre for the skill development of pilots and engineers. Rohini heliport will also promote regional air connectivity through helicopters in the northern region.

Notes:
The Andhra Pradesh government has signed MoU with Visa to transform Vishakhapatnam into India’s first ‘less cash’ city. As per MoU, this initiative is designed to provide the foundation for the city to emerge as India’s ‘Fintech Valley’. For this, Visa will focus on driving payments digitisation, and work with the city to help build the talent pool required in city organisations and in academia on emerging technologies like blockchain. Visa will also provide support to FinTech start-ups by providing access to Visa’s APIs, providing subject matter expertise, and participating in boot camps and hackathons. The state government has also signed a MoU with Thomson Reuters for cooperation in Fintech initiatives in the state.

Notes:
The IATA is a trade association of the world’s airlines. It is headquartered at Montreal, Canada with Executive Offices in Geneva, Switzerland.

Notes:
On 1 March 2017, Bakri Hassan Saleh has been appointed by President Omar al-Bashir as Sudan’s first Prime Minister since the post was abolished in 1989. The post of Prime Minister was re-established with limited powers, while most power remained in the hands of the President. As Prime Minister, Saleh retained his post as First Vice President of SUdan.

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.

Notes:
Diphan Sivakumar (47), the noted Malayalam film director, has recently passed away in Kochi, Kerala. He is known for the Prithviraj starrer superhit movie Puthiya Mugham. His other noted movies include – Hero, SIM, Dolphin Bar, etc. His upcoming movie with Jayaram titled Sathya is in the post production stage.