Current Affairs Quiz 21st October 2024 Quiz

Exp. Neetu David, AB de Villiers, Alastair Cook inducted into ICC Hall of Fame

Former spinner Neetu David became only the second Indian woman to be inducted into the ICC’s Hall of Fame.

For the 47-year-old, it was an emotional moment when ICC named her alongside men’s greats A B de Villiers and Alastair Cook as the latest entrants to the select club.

David is currently the chief selector of the Indian women’s cricket team.

Former India spinner Neetu David, who still holds the record for the best figures (8/53) by a woman in an individual Test innings against England in 1995.

About International Cricket Council (ICC)

• Formation – 15 June 1909
• Headquarters – Dubai, UAE
• Chairman – Jay Shah (replace Greg Barclay) effect from 1 Dec 2024
• Deputy Chairman – Imran Khwaja (Singapore)
• CEO – Geoff Allardice (Australia)
• General Manager – Wasim Khan
• Membership – 108 members

Exp. Surgeon Vice Admiral Kavita Sahai appointed as DG of Medical Services (Navy)

Surgeon Vice Admiral Kavita Sahai, SM, VSM, assumed charge as Director General Medical Services (Navy).

Commissioned into the Army Medical Corps on December 30, 1986, Vice Admiral Sahai has had an illustrious career in military medicine, underscored by exceptional achievements and leadership roles.

Recent Appointment in Defence Sector

• Director General of Indian Coast Guard – Paramesh Sivamani (26th)
• Vice Chief of Air Staff – Air Marshal SP Dharkar (replace AP Singh)
• First woman DG of Armed Forces Medical Services – Arti Sarin
• Chief of Indian Air Force – Amar Preet Singh (replace V.R. Chaudhari)
• DG of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) -Amrit Mohan Prasad

Exp. Mohanji honored with Humanitarian Award at 2024 Conscious Companies Awards

Mohanji, renowned humanitarian and spiritual leader, was honored with a special recognition for his global humanitarian leadership at the 9th Conscious Companies Awards held in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The prestigious annual event celebrates ethical and visionary leaders who demonstrate conscious leadership within their organizations, aligning people, profit, and purpose in the service of all stakeholders to create a better world.

The Conscious Companies Awards are dedicated to recognizing individuals and organizations that promote ethical behavior and sustainable practices, fostering leadership that not only prioritizes profits but also enhances the well-being of people and the planet.

Recent Award

• Femina Miss India 2024 – Nikita Porwal (from Madhya Pradesh)
• 54th Dadasaheb Phalke Award (for 2022)- Mithun Chakraborty
• 32nd Ekalabya Puraskar by Odisha govt – Pratyasa Ray (Swimming)
• FIDE 100 Awards – Men’s – Magnus Carlsen (Norway); Women’s – Judit Polgar (Hungary)
• Miss Universe India 2024 title – Rhea Singha (Gujarat); Pranjal Priya (1st Runner-up); Chhavi Verg (2nd runner-up)

Exp. Chiratae Ventures honours Narayana Murthy with the Patrick J. McGovern Award

Chiratae Ventures, a prominent Indian venture capital fund, has recognized three influential leaders with the 2024 Patrick J. McGovern Awards.

Narayana Murthy, the Founder of Infosys, received the India Lifetime Achievement Award for his groundbreaking contributions to the tech industry.

While, Shantanu Narayen, Chair and CEO of Adobe, was awarded the Global Lifetime Achievement Award, while Abhinav Asthana, CEO and Founder of Postman, received the Exceptional Entrepreneurial Achievement Award.

The awards honor the legacy of Patrick J. McGovern, a pioneer in technology media and an early supporter of Indian entrepreneurship

About Chiratae Ventures

Chiratae Ventures is one of India’s largest homegrown VC funds.

Established in 2016, the awards commemorate Patrick J. McGovern, anchor investor of Chiratae’s first fund and the founder of International Data Group (IDG).

Exp. Abhyuday Jindal assumes charge as  President of Indian Chamber of Commerce

Abhyuday Jindal, the Managing Director of Jindal Stainless, has been appointed as president of industry body Indian Chamber of Commerce.

Jindal succeeds Ameya Prabhu, the Managing Director of NAFA Capital, whose tenure as ICC President ended October 18.

ICC, which was founded in 1925, plays a key role in working with the government to solve challenges faced by different industries

Recent Appointment

• Director of Cricket at JSW Sports – Saurav Ganguly
• CM of Haryana – Nayab Singh Saini (2nd time)
• CM of UTs of Jammu and Kashmir – Omar Abdullah
• Deputy of UTs of Jammu and Kashmir – Surinder Kumar Choudhary
• MD and CEO of Indian Railways Financial Corporation (IRFC) – Manoj Kumar Dubey
• Chairman of Tata Trusts – Noel Tata (replace Ratan Tata)

Exp. Karnataka Launches AI Tool Shiksha Copilot for Teacher

Karnataka’s School Education and Literacy Minister, Madhu Bangarappa, launched “Shiksha Copilot,” a digital tool powered by artificial intelligence (AI).

This tool aims to improve the education system in government schools, helping both teachers and students perform better academically. It was developed in partnership with the Sikshana Foundation and Microsoft Research India.

The main goal of Shiksha Copilot is to make teaching easier by helping teachers with lesson planning and providing resources like activities and videos.

This allows teachers to focus more on the individual needs of their students, making their teaching more personalized and effective. By improving classroom management, the tool aims to enhance students’ board exam results in Karnataka.

Shiksha Copilot is designed to quickly create lesson plans that include engaging activities, videos, and quizzes that match the school curriculum. It uses Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Service, which means it can process textbook content and other materials to create rich learning resources.

The tool can handle different types of media, including text, images, and videos, making learning more interactive.

About Karnataka

• Capital – Bengaluru
• Chief Minister –Siddaramaiah
• Deputy Chief Minister – DK Shivakumar
• Governor – Thawar Chand Gehlot

Exp. Shivraj Singh Chouhan inaugurated International Workshop on Modern Technologies in Survey-Resurvey for Urban Land Records

Union Rural Development Minister, Shivraj Singh Chouhan has inaugurated the International Workshop on Modern Technologies in Survey-Resurvey for Urban Land Records in New Delhi.

The primary objective of the workshop is to showcase global best practices in urban land record modernization, present applicable technological solutions, and facilitate pilot project planning for selected urban areas.

The workshop also addressed challenges such as lack of standardization, data security, and capacity building for stakeholders.  

Exp. President Droupadi Murmu conferred 5th National Water Awards 2023

President Droupadi Murmu has conferred the 5th National Water Awards 2023 in New Delhi.

Union Jal Shakti Ministry has announced 38 winners in nine categories including Best State, Best District, Best Village Panchayat, Best Urban Local Body, Best Water User Association and Best Civil Society.

In the category of Best State, the first prize has been conferred upon Odisha, with Uttar Pradesh securing the second position, and Gujarat and Puducherry jointly securing the third position.

Each, award winner will be conferred with a citation and a trophy as well as cash prizes in certain categories.

Government has been undertaking a comprehensive campaign to spread awareness about water management and water conservation on a national level.  

Exp. First G-7 Defence Ministers meeting hosted by Italy in Naples

For the first time in Group of Seven (G-7) history, the defence ministers of the G7 countries met in Naples, Italy. Italian defence minister Guido Crosetto hosted the meeting.

Italy holds the rotating presidency of the G-7 for 2024.

The meeting was also attended by the representatives of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the European Union, and Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov.

The G-7 is a group of advanced industrialised western countries: Italy, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, and the United States.  

Exp. Vijaya Rahatkar appointed as Chairperson of National Commission for Women

The Government of India has appointed Vijaya Rahatkar as the  9th chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW).

The post was vacant after the term of Rekha Sharma ended on 6 August 2024.

Vijaya Rahatkar has previously served as the chairperson of the Maharashtra State Commission for Women from 2016 to 2021.

The central government has also appointed Dr Archana Majumdar as a member of the National Commission for Women.

Currently, Ms Delina Khongdup and Mrs Mamta Kumari are the other members of the Commission.

Vijaya Rahatkar and Dr Archana Majumdar have been appointed for a three-year term.

About the National Commission for Women

• The National Commission for Women is a statutory body, setup by the GoI in January 1992 under the provision of the National Commission for Women Act 1990.
• The body is under the administrative control of the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development.
• Its head office is in New Delhi.
• Jayanti Patnaik was the first chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW).

Exp. Prabowo Subianto takes oath as Indonesia President

Indonesia’s newly minted leader, President Prabowo Subianto, officially swore in his cabinet.

Prabowo took office as the eighth Indonesian president, taking the mantle from Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.

Prabowo’s cabinet has 48 ministries with over 100 ministers and deputies, including re-appointments of Sri Mulyani Indrawati as finance minister and Bahlil Lahadalia as energy minister.

Newly Appointed Prime Minister & President

• President of Tunisia – Kais Saied (2^nd time)
• President of Mexico – Claudia Sheinbaum (first woman president of nation)
• PM of Japan – Shigeru Ishiba (replace Fumio Kishida)
• President of Sri Lanka – Anura Kumara Dissanayake;9th (replace Ranil Wickremesinghe)
• PM of Jordan – Jafar Hassan
• President of Algeria – Abdelmadjid Tebboune

Exp. PM Modi launches ‘Karmayogi Saptah’ in New Delhi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the ‘Karmayogi Saptah’—National Learning Week at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi.

Through Mission Karmayogi, the goal is to create human resources that would become the driving force of our country’s development.

The new learnings and experiences during the National Learning Week will provide strength and help in improving working systems, which will help us achieve our goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047.

Mission Karmayogi was launched in September 2020, envisioning a future-ready civil service rooted in Indian ethos with a global perspective.

National Learning Week will provide fresh impetus towards individual and organisational capacity development for civil servants, creating a One Government message, aligning everyone with national goals, and promoting lifelong learning.

Exp. Indian Overseas Bank launched Mahila Saksham scheme to empower women entrepreneurs

Public sector lender Indian Overseas Bank has launched the ‘Mahila Shaksham’ scheme designed to finance individual Women Self-Help Group members under the Centre’s Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission initiative.

Aimed at benefitting women entrepreneurs by ensuring financial self-reliance, the scheme is in line with the Ministry of Rural Development’s ‘Lakhpati Didi Yojana’ scheme which is designed to improve the financial standing of women self-help group members.

Some of the key features of the IOB-Mahila Shaksham Scheme include — financing for individual women self-help group members to foster entrepreneurship, credit support of up to ₹10 lakh to individual members of ‘Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission scheme’ among others.

It also promotes the financial independence of women and aims to deepen credit outreach to self-help group members.

Recent Facilities Launched in Banking & Insurance Sector

• Magma HDI General Insurance launches ‘Double Suraksha’: Affordable Insurance for Every Income Group
• Bank of Baroda introduces 400-day ‘Utsav Deposit Scheme’ at 7.3%
• PhonePe launches new plan Firecracker Insurance for Diwali with Bajaj Allianz General Insurance
• SBI Card launches KrisFlyer SBI Card in partnership with Singapore Airlines
• Reliance Nippon Life Insurance unveils ‘Nishchit Pension’ to help Indians secure guaranteed long-term retirement incom
• Arka Fincap launches ‘Uday’ to boost MSME Growth with Small Ticket Loans

Exp. 21 October – National Police Commemoration Day

National Police Commemoration Day is observed on October 21 to pay tribute to police officers who die while on duty.

This solemn day provides an opportunity to express gratitude to the officers currently serving and their families who stand by them every day.

The roots of Police Commemoration Day are traced back to the tumultuous events of 1958 and 1959 when the relationship between India and China was strained due to political and geographical issues.

Exp. 20 October – World Osteoporosis Day

World Osteoporosis Day is observed every year on October 20.

Objective – To raise awareness around the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis and metabolic bone disease.

Osteoporosis is a metabolic bone disease wherein your new bone formation doesn’t keep up with the loss of old bone.

It results from loss of bone mass and mineralisation leading to fragile bones and sometimes fractures even with minor falls, therefore termed as fragility fractures.