Monthly Current Affairs Quiz - October, 2017

Notes:
Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, has launch the nationwide Free Eye Check-up Campaign and distribution of spectacles for truck drivers, cleaners and helpers on October 2, 2017 at Panjari Toll Plaza, Nagpur Bypass in Maharashtra. The objective of this initiative is to ensure clearer vision and safe travel for truck drivers who are the most frequent users of national highways. The campaign will continue for five days. The cleaners can also avail of this facility by producing a valid driving license. Fifty free eye check-up camps will be set up on identified national highways on either side and will be manned by eye specialists and support staff volunteers. Any other defect like cataract will be identified and medicines will be prescribed. Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), governments, social enterprises and private businesses are being roped in for facilitating the provision of these facilities.

Notes:
The Karlapat Wildlife Sanctuary (KWS) is located in Kalahandi district of Odisha and covers an area of 75 square kilometres. This sanctuary is home to many wildlife species like tiger, leopard, sambar, nilgai, barking deer, mouse deer, a wide variety of birds like green munia, Great Eared-nightjar and various reptiles.

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 Chakrashila Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS) is located under Dhubriand Kokrajhar districts of Assam and covers an area of 45.568 square kilometers. It is famous for the golden langur and is the second protected habitat for golden langur in India. Some species of mammals recorded in this sanctuary are short nosed fruit bat, Indian false vampire, Indian pipistrelle, rhesus macaque, Chinese pangolin, Asiatic jackal, etc.

Notes:
The Union government has set up a high-level committee for proper management of water resources in the North-Eastern region. The Committee will be headed by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar. It will facilitate optimising benefits of appropriate water management in the form of hydro-electric power, agriculture, bio-diversity conservation, reduced flood damage erosion, inland water transport, forestry, fishery and eco tourism. The committee is also tasked with spelling out actionable steps for optimizing water resources in the region and chalking out an action plan for dovetailing of Central schemes. The high-level committee will submit its report by June 2018.

Notes:
Bangladesh has signed $4.5 billion third line of credit (LoC) agreement with India for its infrastructure and social sector development on October 4, 2017. The new Indian line of credit will be used to fund 17 major projects in Bangladesh, which include electricity, railroads, roads, shipping and ports. As with previous LoC agreements, Bangladesh will pay an interest rate of 1 % a year. It will have 20 years to pay back the loans, with a grace period of five years. Under the agreement, Bangladesh would have to purchase 65 to 75% of the services, goods or works from the Indian market with the money to be provided under the third LoC following the precedence of the previous two nearly identical agreements. Bangladesh has two other LoCs open with India: the first one was signed in 2010, and the second one in 2016. These LOCs are collectively worth Tk3.06 billion, but till last year, Bangladesh government has been able to use only USD 576 million.

Notes:
Banwarilal Purohit, a veteran political leader from Vidarbha district of Maharashtra, has been sworn-in as the new Governor of Tamil Nadu in a function held at Raj Bhavan in Chennai on October 6, 2017. Mr Purohit was sworn in as the State’s 20th Governor. The Madras High Court Chief Justice Indira Banerjee administered the oath of office and secrecy to him.

Notes:
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed the Finance Contract with India to € 300 million for Bangalore Metro Rail Project Phase II Line R6. The objective of the project is to bring in a quantum improvement in the transportation sector in the city in tandem with the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) and other modes of urban transport. This project will be jointly financed by the European Investment Bank (€500 million) and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (€300 million). The agreement signed recently was for first tranche of €300 million. The project implementation period is five years from date of commencement of the work.

Notes:
Kannada journalist Gauri Lankesh, who was shot dead in Bengaluru on September 5, 2017, has been awarded a prestigious global Anna Politkovskaya Award, which is given in the memory of a slain Russian reporter and political activist. With this, she became the first person from India to receive the honour. Lankesh shared the award with Gulalai Ismail, a Pakistani peace activist who has faced death threats for speaking out against the Taliban. The award marks the 11th anniversary of the killing of Anna Politkovskaya, a Russian investigative reporter and activist who uncovered state corruption and rights abuses, especially in Chechnya. The award is presented annually by Reach All Women in War (the RAW in WAR organisation) and honours women human rights defenders from around the world.

Notes:
The Supreme Court of India (SCI) has appointed senior advocate and former additional solicitor general Amrender Sharan as amicus curiae on a petition seeking reprobe into the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. The matter is posted for further hearing on October 30, 2017. The petition filed by Mumbai-based Dr. Pankaj Phadnis , a researcher and a trustee of Abhinav Bharat, has sought reopening of the probe on several grounds, claiming it was one of the biggest cover-ups in history. According to petition, there is possibility of involvement of more people in the murder. Mahatma Gandhi was shot dead at point blank range in New Delhi on January 30, 1948 by Nathuram Vinayak Godse, a right-wing advocate of Hindu nationalism.