Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2017

Notes:
Rajni Kant Mishra, a U.P. Cadre IPS officer of 1984 batch, has taken charge as new Director General (DG) of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB). He succeeded Archana Ramasundaram, who is set to retire on September 30, 2017. The decision was taken by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet. Mishra will hold the post till his superannuation on August 31, 2019, from the date of assumption of charge of the post or until further orders. Mr R. K. Mishra is a recipient of Police Medal in 2003 and Prestigious President Police Medal in 2009.

Notes:
The Gautala Autramghat Sanctuary (GAS) is a protected area of Aurangabad District and Jalgaon District of Maharashtra and covers an area of 26,061.19 hectares. It houses a variety of wildlife including chinkara, nilgai, sloth bears, jungle cat, wanderoo, leopard cat, etc.

Notes:
President Ram Nath Kovind has recently appointed Governors in five states and Lieutenant Governor in one Union Territory. These are as follows: Brigadier (Retd) B D Mishra has been appointed as the new Governor of Arunachal Pradesh and former member of Bihar Legislative Council Ganga Prasad as new Governor of Meghalaya. Satya Pal Malik, the former Union Minister, has been appointed as the new Governor of Bihar while Assam Governor Banwarilal Purohit will now be the new Governor of Tamil Nadu. Admiral (Retd) Devendra Kumar Joshi will be the Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar while Prof. Jagdish Mukhi will be the new Governor of Assam. The above appointments will take effect from the dates the incumbents assume charge of their respective offices.

Notes:
President Ram Nath Kovind has recently appointed a Commission to examine the sub-categorisation of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs). Justice (Retd.) G. Rohini will be the chairperson of the Commission which will present its report to the President within 12 weeks. The Commission will examine the extent of inequitable distribution of benefits of reservation among the castes or communities included in the broad category of OBCs with reference to such classes included in the Central List. It will work out the mechanism, criteria, norms and parameters in a scientific approach for sub-categorisation within such OBCs. On receipt of the report, the Central Government will consider ways and means for equitable distribution of the benefits of the reservation in Central Government jobs and admission in Central Government Institutions amongst all strata of the OBC.

Notes:
The Global Wildlife Programme (GWP) conference has started in New Delhi on October 2, 2017. India is hosting the programme jointly with World Bank (WB) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to address illegal wildlife trade across 19 Asian and African countries. In it, Environment Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan unveiled the 3rd National Wildlife Action Plan (NWAP) for 2017-2031 to spell out the future road map for wildlife conservation. The 4-day conference will act as a platform for knowledge exchange and coordination on the action taken on the ground to combat illegal poaching of wildlife and improve governance on wildlife conservation. It will provide an opportunity for India to showcase its conservation efforts through joint forest management, vana sanrakshan samitis, eco-development committees in and around protected areas.

Notes:
Dr Soumya Swaminathan has become the first Indian to hold deputy director general post for Programmes at the World Health Organisation (WHO). Currently, she is the Director General (DG) of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Dr Swaminathan is a paediatrician and is known for her research in tuberculosis and HIV. She is daughter of MS Swaminathan, the acclaimed geneticist and father of green revolution. Beside her, Jane Ellison from Britain has been appointed as a Deputy Director General for Corporate Operations (DDC).

Notes:
Ganga Prasad, the former member of Bihar Legislative Council (BLC), has been sworn-in as the new Governor of Meghalaya at Raj Bhavan in Shillong on October 5. Prasad has been a member of the legislative council in Bihar for 18 years. He was a businessman by profession, joined politics as a Jan Sangh member in 1967 and held various organisational posts in it as well as in the BJP.

Notes:
The Union Ministry of Tourism has started a festival of Tourism ‘Paryatan Parv’ from Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi from October 5, 2017 & will continue across the country till 25th of this month. The event is being organized by the Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with other Central Ministries, State Governments and Stakeholders. The objective is to draw focus on the benefits of tourism, to showcase the cultural diversity of the country and reinforce the principle of Tourism for All. It will have three main components, Dekho Apna Desh, Tourism for All and Tourism & Governance. The components aims to encourage Indians to visit their own country, tourism events at sites across all states and interactive Sessions and workshops with stakeholders on varied themes.

Notes:
Pooja Kadian has created history by becoming the first Indian to clinch a gold medal at Wushu World Championships in the 75 kilogram women Sanda category after defeating Evgeniya Stepanova in the final at Kazan on October 5, 2017. Apart from her, four other members of the Indian contingent – Rameshchandra Singh Moirangthem, Bhanu Pratap Singh, Rajinder Singh, and Arunpama Devi Keisham – won bronze medals in the tournament held at Kazan, Russia. Wushu is one of the two umbrella words used to describe Chinese Marial arts, the other one being Kung-Fu. It is also a full contact sport and is governed by the International Wushu Federation.

Notes:
India’s first-ever Industrial Training Institute (ITI) for the Divyangans will come up in Assam. Recently, the foundation stone for the institute was laid at Dibrugarh ITI Complex at Borboruah in Assam. As per the guidelines of National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT), the ITI will have sixty seats for three different trades with 20 seats per trade. The three different trades included in the curriculum are Computer Operator and Programming Assistant, Cutting and Sewing Technology and Hair & Skin Care.