Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - May, 2018

Notes:
The 15th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBS-2019) will be held in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh from January 21 to 23, 2019. The event would be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Mauritian counterpart Pravind Jugnauth. There will be provision for the participants to participate in the Kumbh Snan (in Allahabad) and then travel to New Delhi to be part of the Republic Day Parade on January 26. It will be organised by the Ministry of External Affairs in association with the Uttar Pradesh government with theme “Role of Indian Diaspora in building a New India”.

Notes:
The first-ever joint Army exercise “Harimau Shakti 2018” has started between the troops of the Indian and Malaysian armies at Wardieburn Camp in Kuala Lumpur on April 30. The focus will remain on tactical operations in jungle warfare.The aim of the two-week long exercise is to bolster cooperation and coordination between armed forces of both the nations and to share the expertise of both the contingents in conduct of counter insurgency operations in jungle terrain. Both armies stand to hone their tactical and technical skills in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations under the UN mandate. Overall, the exercise will not only provide an excellent opportunity to both the armies to hone their operational skills but will also contribute to enhance the strategic partnership between India and Malaysia.

Notes:
Kottayam Pushpanath (80), the renowned Malayalam detective novelist, has passed away in Kottayam, Kerala on May 2, 2018. He expanded the world of horror fiction in Malayalam literature and wrote over 100 detective and horror novels in Malayalam. His original name was Pushpanathan Pillai. It was Kottayam Pushpanath who translated Bram Stoker’s ‘Dracula’ into Malayalam. Among his novels, ‘Brahmarakshas’ and ‘Chuvanna Anki’ were later adapted into movies. Many of his works were translated into various languages including Tamil, Telugu and Kannada.

Notes:
Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, an MP from Gulbarga (Karnataka), has been re-appointed chairman of the 22-member Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament for its fresh term starting on May 1. Kharge, is the leader of Congress party in Lok Sabha. A majority of the members of this parliamentary panel, which is headed by an opposition leader, are from the ruling NDA. It is the oldest parliamentary committee that examines the accounts showing the appropriation of sums granted by Parliament for expenditure of Government of India and such other accounts of autonomous and semi-autonomous bodies.

Notes:
The Mettur Dam is one of the largest dams in India and the largest in Tamil Nadu located across the river Cauvery where it enters the plains. The total length of the dam is 1,700 metres and has the capacity of 93.4 billion cubic feet. The dam creates Stanley Reservoir.

Notes:
The 2-day national workshop on Data Requirements for Disaster Risk Reduction Database successfully concluded in New Delhi on May 3, 2018. It has set the stage for the creation of a national-level disaster database. Developing the integrated database with locally obtained and validated data is crucial for tracking the risks and progress towards resilience without which India will not be able to meet its developmental goals. It will also play a vital role in implementing the Prime Minister’s 10-point agenda to address disaster risks. The workshop was organised by National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in collaboration with UNICEF, UNDP and UNISDR. The discussions held at the workshop will lead to the formation of a Steering Group to oversee the setting up of the database, and guiding trainings and capacity building for operating, maintaining, updating and using the database. The group will also identify pilot States and draw a roadmap for implementation of the project.

Notes:
Indian pugilist Neeraj Goyat has been conferred with theWBC Asia Boxer of the Year Award. Neeraj is the current WBC Asia champion in welter weight category. Since turning pro in 2011, Neeraj has won nine fights including two knockouts.

Notes:
Keyur Bhushan (90), the well-known Gandhian, freedom fighter and writer, has passed away in Raipur, Chhattisgarh on May 3, 2018. Bhushan, born at Janta in Bemetara district, took part in the 1942 Quit India movement as a student in Raipur, and was incarcerated. During the 1980s, when terrorism was raging in Punjab, he had undertaken a foot-march to promote peace. He penned novels, collections of short stories and poems. He also edited `Sapthahik Chhattisgarh’ and `Antyoday’. Bhushan represented Raipur constituency in the Lok Sabha in the 1990s.

Notes:
The 15th Asia Media Summit (AMS-2018) will be held in New Delhi on May 10-12 with theme “Telling our Stories- Asia and More”. The summit will provide a unique opportunity for broadcasters in Asia to share their thoughts on broadcasting and information. It is being organised by Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) in collaboration with its partners and international organisations. The decision makers, media professionals, scholars, and stakeholders of news and programming from Asia, Pacific, Africa, Europe, Middle East and North America will attend the annual conference.

Notes:
The first organised census of Indus Dolphins will be carried out by the Punjab government along with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) -India for the conservation of Indus dolphins, which are one of the world’s rarest mammals. This is India’s first organized Dolphin Census, which will be completed within a span of five years. The main purpose of this census is to find out the exact population of this species of dolphins. After this, their protection program will be run. The Indus dolphins are found only in India and Pakistan and are confined to only a 185 km stretch between Talwara and Harike Barrage in India’s Beas river in Punjab.