Current Affairs Quiz 14th and 15th December 2024 Quiz

Exp. Ist India Maritime Heritage Conclave 2024 Concludes in New Delhi

The two-day first India Maritime Heritage Conclave 2024 concluded in New Delhi. The Conclave highlighted India’s rich maritime legacy since the Harappan period.

Apart from highlighting India’s rich maritime heritage, the Conclave also deliberated on developing the maritime sector in India to create employment opportunities and make India a global hub and a leading maritime player.

Four State Governments – Gujarat, Goa, Bihar and Arunachal Pradesh participated in the Conclave.

The Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways organised the India Maritime Heritage Conclave 2024.

The Union Ministry for Labour and Employment, the Union Ministry for Youth Affairs and Sports, the Union Ministry for Education, and the Union Ministry for Tourism and Culture collaborated with the Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.

Exp. CM Dhami inaugurated 10th World Ayurveda Congress 2024 at Dehradun

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the 10th World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo 2024 at Dehradun.  The 10th World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo 2024 will be held in Dehradun from 12-15th December 2024.

Theme 2024 – Digital Health- an Ayurveda Perspective

The first Ayurveda Conference was organised in Kochi, Kerala, in 2002.

It is organised every two years, and the 9th edition of the World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo was held in Goa from 8-11 December 2022.

The World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo 2024 are being organised by the Union Ministry of Ayush and the World Ayurveda Foundation.

About the World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo

The World Ayurveda Foundation established the World Ayurveda Congress to promote Ayurveda as a healthcare system in India and Abroad.

People from all disciplines from India and abroad participate in the Congress and present their research works related to Ayurveda and allied sciences.

Exp. Nobel Prize 2024 winners Honoured in Stockholm and Oslo

The winners of the 2024 Nobel Prizes were awarded in a ceremony

held in the Swedish capital city of Stockholm and the Norwegian capital of Oslo on 10 December 2024.

The Nobel Prize instituted in the memory of Alfred Noble by the Noble Foundation is conferred to the winners on 10th December every year.

The Stockholm-born Swedish inventor and businessman Alfred Nobel died on 10 December 1896.

The prize winner of Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine and Economic Science is honoured at a ceremony in Stockholm, while the Peace prize winner is facilitated in Oslo.

Nobel Prize 2024

Physiology or Medicine Nobel Prize 2024

• Given By – The Royal Swedish Academy of Science, Stockholm, Sweden
• Awardee – Victor Ambros (USA) and Gary Ruvkun (USA)
• Achievement – For the discovery of microRNA and its role in gene regulation.

Physics Nobel Prize 2024

• Given By – The Royal Swedish Academy of Science, Stockholm, Sweden
• Awardee – John J. Hopfield (USA) and Geoffrey E. Hinton (British Canadian)
• Achievement – For foundational discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks

Chemistry Nobel Prize 2024

• Given By – The Royal Swedish Academy of Science, Stockholm, Sweden
  Awardee – David Baker (USA), Demis Hassabis (British), and John M. Jumper (USA)
• Achievement – David Baker (for computational protein design)

Demis Hassabi & John M. Jumper (for protein structure prediction)

Literature Nobel Prize 2024

• Given By – The Royal Swedish Academy of Science, Stockholm, Sweden
• Awardee – Novelist Han Kang (South Korea)
• Achievement – For her intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life

Peace Nobel Prize 2024

• Given by – Norwegian Nobel Committee
• Awardee – Japanese organization Nihon Hidankyo (also known as Hibakusha)
• Achievement – For its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again

Economics Nobel Prize 2024

• Given By – The Royal Swedish Academy of Science, Stockholm, Sweden
• Awardee – Daron Acemoglu (USA), Simon Johnson (USA), and James A Robinson (USA)
• Achievement – For studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity

Exp. Himachal Pradesh Govt launched Him Bhog Atta and five Welfare scheme

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has launched six welfare schemes in the state to mark the two years of the completion of his government. The recently launched welfare schemes are as follows.

Him Bhog Atta’

• ‘Him Bhog Atta’ was launched by the Chief Minister, made from maize grown by farmers in Uttarakhand through natural farming methods.
• Natural farming systems involve traditional techniques like biomass mulching, round-the-year green cover, and indigenous cow-based dung and urine formulations.
• The state government procured maize from 1,506 farmers across ten districts of the state.
• To promote natural farming, the government aims to enroll 36,000 farmers in the Rajiv Gandhi Natural Farming Start-up Scheme, part of the Rajiv Gandhi Start-up Scheme.

Indira Gandhi Sukh Shiksha Yojna

• Indira Gandhi Sukh Shiksha Yojna aims to prevent child exploitation and support vulnerable children from widows, destitute women, divorced women, and disabled parents.
• The scheme targets 23,000 children and provides monthly financial assistance of Rs 1000 for children under 18 to cover educational costs.
• The annual budget for the scheme is Rs 53.21 crore.

Himachal Pradesh Subtropical Horticulture, Irrigation and Value Addition Project (HP Shiva)

• Total budget for the scheme -Rs1292 crore
• Aim -to encourage horticulture development in nine districts.
• It will cover 6,000 hectares and promote the cultivation of fruits like oranges, guavas, litchi and plums,
• Expected to benefit 15,000 farming families directly. The target is to produce 1.3 lakh metric tonnes of fruit annually by 2032 with a market value of Rs. 400 crore.

E-taxi under the Rajiv Gandhi Start-up Swarojgar Yojna

• The Chief Minister symbolically handed keys to 16 electric taxi owners under the Rajiv Gandhi Self-Employment Start-up Scheme 2023.
• The beneficiary of the scheme receives a 50 % subsidy for the purchase of vehicles. Electric vehicles will be leased to the state government for five years.

Cow dung purchase scheme

• The state government will buy organic and vermicompost directly from farmers at Rs 300 per quintal. The amount is directly transferred into the farmer’s account.
• This is expected to boost farmer’s income.

Mobile Ayush healthcare units

• Five mobile units were flagged off by the Chief Minister, which will provide Ayurveda, Unani, or Homeopathy treatments to the residents in the remote tribal regions of Kinnaur, Lahaul & Spiti, Chamba and Shillai block of Sirmaur district.

Mukhyamantri Sukh-Ashray Yojana

• The Chief Minister released financial assistance worth Rs 1.90 crore to the eligible beneficiaries under the Mukhyamantri Sukh-Ashray Yojana.
• The Sukhu government launched the scheme in February 2023 to provide education, care, and support to the state’s orphan children until they reach the age of 27.

Exp. TransUnion CIBIL appoints Bhavesh Jain as MD & CEO

 TransUnion CIBIL has appointed Bhavesh Jain as its Managing Director and CEO. He replaces Rajesh Kumar, who stepped down after five years in the role.

Rajesh has decided to move on after a continuous 32-year career in financial services. Jain, who served as chief revenue officer for five years, now assumes the top role.

Recent Appointment in Banking & Insurance Sector

• Governor of RBI – Sanjay Malhotra;26th (replace Shaktikanta Das)
• RBI representative at IBBI board – Vaibhav Chaturvedi
• MD & CEO of SBI Funds Management – Nand Kishore (replace Shamsher Singh)
• MD and CEO of Indian Bank – Binod Kumar (replace S L Jain) final approval pending
• DBS Bank India – Rajat Verma (replace Surojit Shome)

Exp. Uber launches women-only bike taxi service ‘Moto Women’ in Bengaluru

Ride-hailing giant Uber India has introduced ‘Uber Moto Women’ in Bengaluru, marking its first women-exclusive bike taxi service globally.

The service, which connects female riders with female drivers, is set to expand to other major metropolitan cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, and Hyderabad.

Uber Moto Women drivers will have the option to switch between accepting only female riders or all passengers.

Additionally, to ensure passenger safety, Uber has integrated real-time trip sharing with up to five trusted contacts, phone number anonymisation, and RideCheck – a system that monitors route deviations and unexpected stops.

A dedicated 24×7 safety helpline also offers priority support for women users.

Exp. Asian Development Bank approves $788 million loan for Amaravati in AP

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has sanctioned a USD 788.8 million (over Rs 6,600 crore) results-based loan to Andhra Pradesh for the development of Amaravati as a green and smart capital city that offers world-class infrastructure.

The loan will be provided in Japanese yen, amounting to 121.97 billion yen.

The Amaravati Inclusive and Sustainable Capital City Development Programme is designed to transform Amaravati into a growth hub for the region, enhancing economic prospects, providing job opportunities, and improving living conditions of the residents.

ADB and other multilateral development banks (MDBs) will bring global expertise and technical support to the Government of Andhra Pradesh, establishing a strong foundation for a dynamic, sustainable, and vibrant capital city.

Recent Loan approved by ADB

• India and ADB sign $50 million loan for climate-resilient water security in Meghalaya
• India and ADB sign $98 million loan agreement to boost horticulture productivity
• India and ADB signed a $200 million loan to help upgrade water supply, sanitation, urban mobility, and other urban services in the state of
• India and ADB sign $434.25 million for solar facility in Assam
• India and ADB sign 530 crore to boost drinking water supply in 12 cities of Tripura state
• India and ADB sign $500 million to improve healthcare in Maharashtra

Exp. ADB approves $500 million loan to boost India’s sustainable infrastructure

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $500 million loan to support India’s economic growth by promoting environmentally sustainable infrastructure.

The ADB loan, with a sovereign guarantee, to India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited (IIFCL) will advance sustainable infrastructure development.

This will help IIFCL provide long-term capital for infrastructure projects focusing on connectivity and energy transition as well as under-resourced sectors like urban projects, education, and health care.

About Asian Development Bank (ADB)

• Founded – 19 December 1966
• Headquarters – Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines
• President – Masato Kanda (replace Masatsugu Asakawa) effect from 24 Feb 2025
• Vice President – Ashok Lavasa
• Director of ADB for India – Mio Oka (replace Takeo Konishi)
• Executive Director – Vikas Sheel
• Adviser to the Executive Director – Smita Sarangi
• Member Countries – 69 (Israel)

Exp. HSBC, IFC launch $1 bn trade finance programme for emerging markets

HSBC and the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) will jointly provide funding to trade transactions valued at up to $1 billion, in a move to help fill a gap in financing for emerging market trade.

They would equally share the risk on a portfolio of trade-related assets held by emerging-market banks in 20 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.

The deal aims to support cross-border trade and bolster exports in critical industries as economies face geopolitical tensions and trade barriers that could create uncertainty for supply chains and threaten economic growth.

Exp. Indian Grandmaster D. Gukesh becomes youngest World chess champion

Indian Grandmaster Dommaraju Gukesh became the youngest chess champion in the world.

Gukesh made history as he clinched 18th World Chess Championship defeating Ding Liren of China in the 14th and the final match of the FIDE World Chess Championship in Singapore.

With the endgame dragging out into the fifth hour, Ding made a blunder in the 55th move which cost him the match and the crown.

India’s 18-year-old prodigy capped his meteoric rise scoring 7.5 points while defending champion Ding got 6.5 points in the championship. In total 14 matches, Gukesh won three while Ding succeeded in two, rest nine matches were drawn.

 Gukesh beat the record previously held by Garry Kasparov who got the crown at age of 22. Gukesh is the second world champion from India after Viswanathan Anand, who won the title four times.     

Exp. 12 December – International Day of Neutrality

International Day of Neutrality is commemorated on December 12 every year to raise awareness regarding the importance of neutrality in intergovernmental relations and to strengthen peace and security at the global level.

On 2 February 2017, the UN General Assembly adopted without a vote resolution 71/275 introduced by Turkmenistan, recognised by the UN as a permanently neutral state since 12 December 1995 which noted the link between the preservation of peace and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and declared 12 December as the International Day of Neutrality.

What is Neutrality?

According to international law, a neutral country is also called a sovereign state. A neutral country is one that remains neutral by keeping itself away from the war between other countries. That is, that country does not support any of the warring countries.

Switzerland is a country which is very famous for its policy of ‘neutrality’. Due to this policy, Switzerland has been largely successful in avoiding the destruction of the First and Second World Wars.

Exp. Mumbai Indians appoint Carl Hopkinson as new fielding coach

Mumbai Indians have appointed Carl Hopkinson as their new fielding coach ahead of IPL 2025.

Hopkinson has replaced James Pamment, who was MI’s fielding coach for seven years.

Hopkinson recently finished his stint as England’s long-standing fielding coach, a role which he took up in 2018.

He was involved in England’s ODI World Cup win on home soil in 2019 and the T20 World Cup triumph in Australia in November 2022. Hopkinson was also the head fielding coach for the England U19 team in the 2022 ICC U19 World Cup.

Exp. Prasar Bharati signs MoU with Hockey India to provide live broadcast of upcoming Hockey India League

Prasar Bharati has signed an MoU with Hockey India to provide a live broadcast of the upcoming Hockey India League. With this MoU, Doordarshan has become the official broadcast partner for Hockey India League 2024-25.

On the occasion, Hockey India League (HIL) governing committee members Bhola Nath Singh and Prasar Bharti Chairman Navneet Sehgal exchanged the MoU.

CEO of Prasar Bharti  – Gaurav Dwivedi

DG of Akashvani – Pragya Paliwal Gaur

DG of Doordarshan- Kanchan Prashad

DG of Doordarshan (News) – Priya Kumar

Exp. 11 December – International Mountain Day

International Mountain Day is celebrated every year on 11 December.

Objective –  To raise awareness about the importance of mountains to life, highlight opportunities and constraints in mountain development.

Theme 2024 –  Mountain solutions for a sustainable future – innovation, adaptation and youth

This day, which was instituted by the UN in 2003, emphasizes the need for protecting mountain ecosystems and sustaining the means of subsistence for mountain populations.

Exp. 11 December – UNICEF Day

UNICEF Day is celebrated annually on 11 December to commemorate the establishment of the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) in 1946.

This day highlights the organization’s critical role in advocating for and protecting the rights of children worldwide.

The day also stresses the significance of worldwide collaboration in tackling children’s difficulties, campaigning for equal chances, and ensuring impoverished children have access to important services.

On December 11, 1946, the United Nations General Assembly and Ludwik Rajchman established UNICEF to address the needs of children in World War II-affected nations and give emergency aid to war-affected children and mothers.