Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2017

Notes:
The 8th Conference of the Association of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians will be held in Colombo, Sri Lanka from October 4, 2017. The 3-day conference will be inaugurated by Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena. The Indian delegation will be lead by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, who will deliver the lead speech on the topic Association of the SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians, a platform for the Parliamentarians of South Asia to work together to reach the 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development. She is accompanied by a delegation of MPs and senior officials of Lok Sabha.

Notes:
The 2017 World Habitat Day (WHD) is observed on October 2 with theme “Housing Policies: Affordable Homes” to bring attention to UN-Habitat’s mandate to promote sustainable development policies that ensure adequate shelter for all. The purpose of day is to reflect on the state of our towns and cities, and on the basic right of all to adequate shelter. It is also intended to remind the world that we all have the power and the responsibility to shape the future of our cities and towns. The United Nations (UN) has officially designated the first Monday of October of every year as World Habitat Day.

Notes:
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recently released its 4th bi-monthly monetary policy statement for the year 2017-18. As per the monetary policy statement, the policy repo rate under the Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF) has remain unchanged at 6%. The reverse repo rate, at which RBI borrows from banks will continue to be at 5.75%.

Notes:
The 8th Conference of the Association of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians has started in Colombo, Sri Lanka from October 4, 2017, which is inaugurated by Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena. In the 3-day conference, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan is leading the Indian delegation. She delivered the lead speech on the topic Association of the SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians, a platform for the Parliamentarians of South Asia to work together to reach the 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development. She is accompanied by a delegation of MPs and senior officials of Lok Sabha.

Notes:
The World Animal Day (WAD) is observed every year on October 4 to raise the status of animals in order to improve welfare standards around the globe. It is done by encouraging individuals, animal welfare organisations, community groups, youth and children’s clubs and businesses to organise events in celebration of this day.

Notes:
Purushottam Lal Kaushik (87), the former Minister for Information and Broadcasting, has passed away in Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh on October 5, 2017. He was elected to the Lok Sabha twice in 1977 and 1989. The departed leader was the Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation in the Morarji Desai Ministry and later, the Minister for Information and Broadcasting in the Charan Singh government.

Notes:
The Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary is located in Ballari district in Karnataka and covers an area of 82.72 square kilometers. The sanctuary’s flagship species is the Indian sloth bear (Melursus ursinus). Some species of mammals recorded in this sanctuary are leopards, monitor lizards, mongoose, pangolins, star tortoises, etc.

Notes:
The first ever ASEAN-India Music Festival has started at Purana Quila in New Delhi on October 6, 2017. The 3-day festival is organised by External Affairs Ministry in collaboration with Culture Ministry to celebrate the 25th year anniversary of ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations. The festival aims to boost cultural influences among the peoples of the ASEAN member states and India. It will witness eclectic performances by musicians from ASEAN countries’ bands such as The Ugly Band, Cherpen, Tim De Cotta, Red Bamboo among others. Famous Indian bands like the Raghu Dixit Project, Avial, Papon LIVE, Bipul Chettri and the Travelling Band, and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy will also participate in the festival. There will be no entry fee for the mega music event.

Notes:
The Union Government has set up a study group to examine the problems being faced by the people living near the International Border (IB) and the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) due to ever-present threat of cross-border firing from Pakistan. The group will meet people living in the border areas of Jammu and Kashmir, security forces deployed there, district administration officials and local public representatives and submit its report within two months. Special secretary in the home ministry Rina Mitra will head the team. The study group will look into broadly three issues – demand for land for relocation in case of shelling, construction of more bunkers and compensation issues related to shelling. The panel will prepare a detailed report on the issues being faced by the people living near the IB and the LoC and submit recommendations. India shares a 3,323-km long border with Pakistan of which 221 km IB and 740 km LoC fall in J&K.

Notes:
The 2017 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons. The ICAN is a coalition of non-governmental organisations from over 100 countries around the globe. The headquarters of ICAN is located in Geneva, Switzerland. The purpose of the ICAN is to promote adherence to and full implementation of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The Nobel Peace Prize, worth 9 million Swedish crowns ($1.10 million), will be presented in Oslo on December 10, 2017.