Current Affairs Quiz 12th February 2024 Quiz

Exp. India and ADB sign $200 million loan to tackle flood and erosion risk along Brahmaputra River

The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $200 million loan to strengthen flood and riverbank erosion risk management along the 650 kilometres (km) long main stem of the Brahmaputra River in the state of Assam.

The project interventions include stabilising 60 km of riverbanks, installing 32 km of pro-siltation measures, and building 4 km of climate-resilient flood embankments in five high-priority districts (Dibrugarh, Goalpara, Kamrup Rural, Morigaon, and Tinsukia).

These will result in securing living spaces, supporting livelihoods and creating employment opportunities.

Recent Loan approved by ADB

• India, ADB sign $250 million for Delhi-Meerut RRTS
• India, ADB sign $250 million loan for Industrial Corridor Development in India
• India, ADB signed $200 million loan agreement for Uttarakhand power system project
• India, ADB signed $175 million loan deal to improve Madhya Pradesh roads
• India, ADB approved $181 Million to Improve Ahmedabad’s Peri-urban Areas
• ADB and Fourth Partner Energy Collaborate for Solar Power Plant worth Rs 120 cr in Tamil Nadu

Exp. VP Dhankhar inaugurates World Sustainable Development Summit in Delhi

Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar has inaugurated the World Sustainable Development Summit in New Delhi in the presence of Prime Minister of Guyana Mark Phillips and Union Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav.

Objective – To drive the mainstreaming of environmental protection and climate justice at all levels, embedding these principles in the very fabric of our societies

The Summit was organized by ‘The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI).

Exp. Tata Steel and South East Railway join hands to develop green infra

Private steel major Tata Steel will jointly work with South Eastern Railway (SER) to develop sustainable rail infrastructure by utilising its slag-based aggregates.

Tata Aggreto, a greener substitute of natural aggregates used in road construction, and Tata Nirman, used as a raw material in manufacturing fly ash bricks and cement making, will be used in the construction of blanketing layers in railway tracks.

In the endeavour to transform steel slag into sustainable aggregates, Tata Steel has set-up an accelerated weathering facility for processing LD slag through steam ageing.

The use of slag-based manufactured aggregates helps in the preservation of biodiversity by reducing the need for mining of natural aggregates and eliminates the requirement of transportation of aggregates across large distances.

Exp. Miss World pageant to take place in India from February 18 to March 9

The 71st edition of Miss World will be held in India from February 18 to March 9.

With its latest edition, the coveted international beauty pageant is making a return to the country after nearly three decades.

The pageant will commence with “The Opening Ceremony” and “India Welcomes the World Gala” by the India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) in New Delhi on February 20.

It will conclude with a grand finale at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai on March 9 and will be streamed and telecast across the world.

The pageant will unfold across various venues, including the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi and will see 120 contestants from countries across the globe participate in various competitions and charitable initiatives.

India last hosted the international pageant in 1996. Chhillar was the most recent Indian to win the pageant, having bagged the crown in 2017.

A Earlier, Reita Faria Powell, Aishwarya Rai, Diana Hayden, Yukta Mookhey and Priyanka Chopra Jonas won the competition.

Exp. RPF to host the 67th All India Police Duty Meet in Lucknow

Railway Protection Force (RPF) will host the 67th All India Police Duty Meet (AIPDM) in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.

It will last from February 12th to 16th 2024.

The chief guest of the opening ceremony on February 12th will be Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister of Railways, Communications and Electronics & Information Technology.

Whereas Shri Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh, will be Chief Guest at the Closing Ceremony on February 16th.

The RPF was entrusted with organizing the event by the Central Coordinating Committee of AIPDM.

This event aims to promote excellence and collaboration among police officers. In turn, it enhances scientific detection and investigation of crimes in order to strengthen internal security.

About Railway Protection Force (RPF)

• Formed – 1872
• Headquarters – New Delhi
• Direct General – Manoj Yadava
• Motto – “Attain Honour”

Exp. RBI Grants Payment Aggregator Licences to Juspay, Zoho, and Decentro

Fintech firms Juspay and Decentro and software-as-a-service company Zoho have received the final authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as payment aggregators.

With this, the three players join the likes of Stripe, Zomato and Tata Pay who were a part of the regulator’s approval list in January, besides fintech majors like Razorpay and Cashfree who secured the licence last year.

A payments aggregator, or PA, licence allows companies to provide payment services to merchants (online businesses or e-commerce firms) by accepting payment instruments from customers.

As part of the process, PAs pool the funds received from customers and transfer them to merchants after a certain time period.

Instamojo, Paytm Payments Services, Freecharge were among many players whose applications were returned as they failed to fulfil the eligibility criteria and were directed to halt new merchant onboarding.

fintech major PhonePe, Infibeam, Pine Labs and Easebuzz, await the final nod after being granted the in-principal approval, while application of Cred (Dreamplug Paytech) and PayU remain under process.

Exp. EPFO Raises Interest Rate on PF Deposits to 8.25%

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has fixed 8.25% interest rate on provident fund deposits for 2023-24, the highest in three years.

For 2022-23, the retirement fund body offered 8.15% interest, higher than 8.10% in 2021-22.

In March 2020, the EPFO reduced the interest rate on provident fund deposits to a seven-year low of 8.5 percent for 2019-20, down from 8.65 percent in 2018-19.

About Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO)

• Founded – 1952
• Headquarters – New Delhi
• EPFO is the statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Labour and Employment

Exp. IRS Officer Narendra Kumar Yadav appointed as Brand Ambassador for Fit India Movement

IRS officer Narendra Kumar Yadav, Additional Director GST, has been appointed as the new brand ambassador of The Fit India movement, a flagship initiative by the Government of India.

The Fit India movement is a nationwide initiative launched by the Centre, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to encourage Indians to develop physical activity and sports into their daily lives.

About Narendra Kumar Yadav

• Narendra Kumar Yadav is one the the youngest IRS officer who was appointed at the age of 22 in 2009.
• He cleared the Civil Services Examination in his first attempt.
• Narendra Yadav, who is well-known for his passion, commitment, and steadfast dedication to public service, has often motivated and mentored aspiring civil servants through his inspirational speeche.

Recent Brand Ambassador

• Hrithik Roshan – 3rd RuPay Prime Volleyball League
• Katie Moon – 19th edition of the Tata Mumbai Marathon ambassador
• Rishabh Pant – Iodex Ultra Gel+
• Deepika Padukone – Bisleri (Campaign Name – #DrinkItUp)
• Kartik Aaryan – Brand Ambassador for Football by Sony Sports Network

Exp. Embraer teams up with Mahindra to bid for IAF’s medium transport aircraft deal

With the Indian Air Force assessing its requirements for medium transport aircraft (MTA), Brazilian aerospace giant Embraer and Indian conglomerate Mahindra Group have announced a collaboration to work on C-390 Millennium aircraft.

The objective of the MoU is to jointly fulfil the acquisition of the C-390 Millennium multi-mission aircraft by the Indian Air Force in its upcoming MTA procurement project.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is looking for an MTA that can lift 18-30 tonnes, a process it expects to complete by 2025-26.

The C390 began operations with the Brazilian Air Force in 2019, has since been selected by the militaries of Portugal, Hungary, the Netherlands, Austria, the Czech Republic and, most recently, South Korea.

Exp. NIMHANS receives WHO Nelson Mandela Award for health promotion

The National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) has been awarded the 2024 Nelson Mandela Award (NMA) by the World Health Organization (WHO) for Health Promotion.

The Nelson Mandela Award for Health Promotion, established by WHO in 2019, recognizes individuals, institutions and governmental or non-governmental organizations that have demonstrated remarkable contributions to health promotion.

This year, the award has been jointly presented to Professor Bontle Mbongwe of Botswana and NIMHANS.

The award is a testament to institute’s dedication and outstanding contributions to promoting mental health and well-being.

NIMHANS has been at the forefront of mental health and neurosciences, championing innovative approaches to research, education, and patient care.

Exp. Pyarelal Sharma awarded Lakshminarayana International Award

Pyarelal Sharma, one half of the iconic composer duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal, has been felicitated with the Lakshminarayana International Award.

The award was presented to the ‘My Name Is Lakhan’ composer by musicians L Subramaniam and Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam as part of the Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival

Pyarelal is one of the most successful music composers in Hindi cinema in his career spanning over eight decades. The legendary musician has given iconic songs in collaboration with music maestro Laxmikant Shantaram Kudalkar.

The duo- Laxmikant-Pyarelal composed evergreen songs including ‘Dosti’, ‘Hum Sab Ustad Hain’, Aaye Din Bahar Ke, ‘Mere Hamdam Mere Dost’, ‘Mera Gaon Mera Desh’, ‘Bobby’, ‘Roti’ ‘Kapda Aur Makaan’, ‘Amar Akbar Anthony, Aasha, Prem Rog, ‘Meri Jung’, ‘Ram Lakhan’, among others.

Recent Awards

• Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award – Stunning Sleepy Polar Bear (Ice Bed); clicked by Nima Sarikhani.
• Lifetime Achievement award by Sports Journalists Federation of India & Delhi Sports Journalists Association – PT Usha
• Outstanding Business Woman of the Year 2023 by Rajnath Singh – Dr. Bina Modi
• Maha Gaurav 2024 award by Maharashtra govt – Nikhil Mukund Wagh.
• The UK’s Blavatnik Awards – 3 Indian Scientist (Rahul R Nair, Mehul Malik, and Tanmay Bharat)

Exp. Neeraj Chopra honoured by Swiss tourism with plaque at Jungfrau’s Ice Palace

India’s Olympic and world champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra has been honoured with a plaque at the famous Ice Palace at Jungfraujoch, known as the ‘Top of Europe’, in Switzerland.

Acknowledging Chopra’s remarkable accomplishments, Jungfraujoch welcomed the sports icon to unveil the commemorative plaque.

The Wall of Fame at Jungfraujoch serves as a testament to the spirit of accomplishment and dedication.

Q.13. Consider the following statements about Under-19 Men’s World Cup 2024:

(i) Australia has won the Under 19 Men’s ODI World Cup beating India.

(ii) This is the sixth title of Australia.  

(iii) New Zealand was the host country of this world cup.

How many of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) only one

(b) only two

(c) All are correct

(d) All are incorrect

Statements

(i) Australia has won the Under 19 Men's ODI World Cup beating India. (Correct)

(ii) This is the sixth title of Australia.  (Incorrect)

(iii) New Zealand was the host country of this world cup. (Incorrect)

Exp. Australia lift the Under-19 Men's World Cup trophy 2024

Australia has won the Under 19 Men's ODI World Cup beating India by 79 runs in the final at Benoni in South Africa.

This is the fourth title of Australia. Before this, Aussies also won the title in 1988, 2002 and 2010.

While, India are U19 WC defending champions and have won the U19 World Cup title 5 times – 2000, 2008, 2012, 2018, and 2022.

Chasing a target of 254 runs, team India was all out for 174 runs in 43.5 overs.

Earlier, Australia had scored 253 for 7 wickets in the stipulated 50 overs.

Australia are now the champions of the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup, the World Test Championship, the Women's T20 World Cup, the Women's ODI World Cup and now the U19 Men's World Cup.

India Under-19 captain - Uday Saharan

Australia Under 19 captain - Hugh Weibgen

Venue - Willowmoore Park, Benoni

U19 Cricket World Cup Player of the Tournament - Kwena Maphaka (South Africa)

Player of the Match - Mahli Beardman (Australia)

Exp. Drass Warriors clinch victory in 15th CEC Ice Hockey Cup Championship

The Drass Warriors clinched victory in the 15th CEC Ice Hockey Cup Championship at Khree Sultan Choo Ice Hockey Rink, Kargil, Ladakh.

They secured a resounding win of 7 goals against United Chiktan, with Wasim Bilal earning the prestigious titles of Man of the Series and Man of the Match.

The tournament, organized by the District Youth Service and Sports Department, drew 31 men’s teams and 4 women’s teams from across Kargil.

The Bodhkharbo Women Team also celebrated success, claiming the Women’s Cup after defeating Wakha Mulbkeh.

Exp. 12 February – International Day for the Prevention of Violent Extremism as and When Conducive to Terrorism 2024

International Day for the Prevention of Violent Extremism as and When Conducive to Terrorism (PVE Day) is observed every year on 12 February.

This crucial day serves as a platform to raise awareness about the dangers of violent extremism and promote international cooperation in tackling this complex issue.

Theme 2024 – Living Together: Fostering Community Resilience to Prevent Violent Extremism as and When Conducive to Terrorism

Exp. 11 February – World Day of the Sick

World Day of the Sick is observed every year on 11 February.

Objective – To raise awareness about the importance of healthcare and the need for compassion and support for the sick.

This day was first established by Pope John Paul II in 1992. He had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease a year earlier but the Vatican Church kept this secret for almost 12 years.

The World Day of the Sick was established on 13 May 1992, in response to his neuro-degenerative condition. Pope John Paul II chose 11 February, because it is the Memorial Day of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Exp. 12 February – National Productivity Day

National Productivity Day is celebrated every year in India on 12 February to commemorate the founding of the National Productivity Council (NPC).

The goal of the NPC is to raise national awareness of the need to boost productivity.

Theme 2024 – Artificial Intelligence (AI)- Productivity Engine for Economic Growth

It is as an integral part of the Indian Productivity Week which is observed from February 12 to February 18.

On National Productivity Day, people can start forming positive habits that will boost productivity and raise awareness of the role that productivity plays in enhancing life quality in general.