November 3rd Week 2020 Current Affairs Online Test English

• As per the recent announcement of the Central Government, digital or online Media, films and audio–visual programmes, news and current affairs content would be brought under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. At present, there is no law or autonomous body governing the digital content in the country. The President is said to have signed the order.

• World number one Table tennis player Chen Meng clinched the ITTF Women’s World Cup title of this year. The 26–year old player beat Chinese compatriot Sun Yingsha to win her maiden ITTF Women’s World Cup title in Weihai. She also became the first winner of the ITTF’s #RESTART series.

• The World Cities Day is observed on October.31 to promote the international community’s interest in global urbanization, push forward cooperation among countries in meeting opportunities and addressing challenges of urbanization, and contributing to sustainable urban development around the world.

• The World Pneumonia Day is observed every year on 12th of November to promote interventions to protect against, prevent, and treat pneumonia and to highlight proven approaches and solutions in need of additional resources and attention. The 2020 theme is “Every Breath Counts”.

• The Internal Market Bill is designed to protect the trade between Britain’s four nations after the process of Brexit. Recently, the House of Lords voted against the clauses in the bill which would allow the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to breach Britain’s EU exit treaty. This is seen as a defeat to the ruling Conservative Party in the upper chamber.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will co–chair the virtual 17th India–ASEAN summit, along with the Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. The leaders are expected to note the adoption of ASEAN–India Plan of Action (2021–2025). The Prime Minister attended the 16th ASEAN–India Summit in Bangkok in November last year.

• The Union Cabinet has recently approved Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme worth up to Rs 1.46 lakh crore for 10 key sectors. This move is expected to boost India’s manufacturing sector and exports. The ten sectors include white goods manufacturing, pharmaceutical, specialised steel, automobiles, telecom, textile, food products, solar photovoltaic and cell battery.

• Researchers have recently discovered a new hidden gene in the novel coronavirus named ORF3d. The new overlapping gene is expected to contribute to the unique biology and pandemic potential. This may also lead to the development of new vaccines against the virus. The study has been published in the journal ‘eLife’.

• The World Diabetes Day is observed every year on November 14 to raise awareness among families to discover, prevent and manage diabetes. It is the primary global awareness campaign focusing on diabetes mellitus. The theme for World Diabetes Day 2020 is “The Nurse and Diabetes”.

• Typhoon Vamco is expected to hit the eastern coasts of Philippines. Hence, the state authorities have ordered thousands of residents in eastern coastal communities to evacuate the area and move to safe shelters. This cyclone is the 21st tropical cyclone of this year in Philippines.

• India–Brazil–South Africa (IBSA) report titled ‘Deepening Cooperation in IBSA: Perspectives from Key Sectors’ has been launched recently. The report has been launched by the Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs Rahul Chhabra. The report has been prepared by the 2nd batch of Fellows under the IBSA Visiting Fellowship Program.

• ‘Hunar Haat’ is the flagship programme of the Minority Affairs Ministry aimed to create employment opportunities for artisans across India. After a gap of about seven months due to the COVID–19 pandemic, the Hunar Haat is set to restart at Delhi Haat at Pitampura, New Delhi. The theme of this event is “Vocal for Local”.

• Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia was named as the World Book Capital for the year 2020 by UNESCO. Every year, April 23 is celebrated as the World Book and Copyright Day across the world. UNESCO along with the international organizations associated with publishers, booksellers and libraries, select the World Book Capital for a year. This year, Kuala Lumpur has been named for 2020.

• India’s Index of Industrial Production (IIP) has grown by 0.2 percent in September on a year on year basis. After continuous contraction of six months, IIP has entered into the positive side of growth. During the month of August, a 7.36 percent contraction was recorded. Recovery in consumer goods, electricity and mining sectors was noted.

• India’s second largest oil producer Oil India Ltd has recently made a natural gas discovery at a well drilled in Tinsukia, Assam. As per the statement issued by the organisation, the Dinjan–1 well in Tinsukia in upper Assam basin found 10 meters of hydrocarbon–bearing sands. This discovery will help them explore new areas for further oil and gas exploration in Assam.

• Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) launched the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evem Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM) Scheme.
• Recently, the Ministry has amended the guidelines of the scheme as solar power plants can also be installed on pasture land and marshy land of farmers. Earlier, only barren, fallow and agricultural lands were used for installing solar plants.

• Kamarajar Port located in Ennore, on the Coromandel Coast is the only corporatized major port of India. It is also the first port in India which is a public company. The Port was seen in news recently, as it has handled the largest ever container vessel – MSC Faith. As per the company, the new generation terminal is equipped with latest gantry cranes and sufficient backup yard.

• Union minister for Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal delivered the keynote address at Conference “India: Drivers of Change”. In the conference organized by the Bank of America, the Minister urged the global investors to invest in India. He also highlighted about the production–linked incentives provided for the manufacturing sector.

• In India, the National Cancer Awareness Day is observed every year on 7th of November to remove all stops to lower the national cancer burden by generating awareness about early detection and avoiding leading cancer–causing lifestyles.

• The World Tsunami Awareness Day is observed every year on November 5 to raise awareness about precautionary measures against tsunami and share innovative approaches to risk reduction. Tsunamis are rare events, but can be extremely deadly.
• In the past 100 years, 58 tsunamis have claimed more than 260,000 lives, which is the highest number of deaths than in any other natural hazard.

• The West Bengal government has planned to constitute anti–electrocution cells to protect wild elephants in the state. These multi–departmental cells will have members including those from the Forest Directorate, Electricity Department, District Administration and Police along with the Local Panchayat members. It was also decided to alter the high–tension lines and electric poles to avoid hurting the animals.

• The Mukhya Mantri Rural Street Vendor Scheme has been launched by the state government of Madhya Pradesh, on the lines of Pradhan Mantri street vendor scheme Recently, the Chief Minister transferred the interest–free loan of 10,000 rupees each into the accounts of rural street vendors. He also launched a roadmap to Aatma Nirbhar Madhya Pradesh, with special focus on education and health.

• The Jharkhand assembly has unanimously passed a resolution seeking to include Sarna as a separate religion in Census 2021. As per the Chief minister Hemant Soren, the resolution which was passed during a special one–day assembly session, will be sent to the Centre for approval. The followers of Sarna faith believe praying to nature with the principle of ‘Jal, Jungle, Zameen’.

• ‘National Rail and Transportation Institute’ (NRTI) is the first and only transportation university of India, which is located in Vadodara, Gujarat. NRTI has recently launched seven new programmes including Undergraduate, MBA and MSc.
• The MSc programme is offered in partnership with the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom whereas the MBA programs focus at Transportation and Supply Chain Management.

• China has become the world’s first country to have successfully launched the 6G communications test satellite. It was launched using Long March 6 rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in the Shanxi Province. The 6G technology is expected to be over 100 times faster than the 5G technology.

• The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has decided to organise ‘Bharat Darshan–Dakshin Bharat Yatra’. It would be launched from Hyderabad and Secunderabad from December 12 to December 18. The theme of the yatra is “Show India to Indians”. It would cover Sri Rangam (Ranganathaswamy temple), Brihadeeswara temple at Thanjavur, Rameswaram, Madurai Meenakshi Temple and Kanyakumari.

• The World Toilet Day is observed every year on 19th of November to inspire action to tackle the global sanitation crisis. The 2020 theme is “Sustainable Sanitation and Climate Change”. The main aim of this day is to create awareness among the people about basic toilet facilities.

• The Public Service Broadcasting Day is observed every year on November.12 to commemorate the first and last visit of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi to the studio of All India Radio, Delhi in 1947. He addressed the displaced people, who had temporarily settled at Kurukshetra in Haryana after partition.

• The National Press Day is celebrated every year on 16th of November as symbolic of free and responsible press in India. This was the day on which the Press Council of India (PCI) started functioning as a moral watchdog.

• In India, the National Epilepsy Day is observed every year on 17th of November to create awareness about epilepsy. Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of brain characterized by recurrent ‘seizures’ or ‘fits’. The seizures are caused as a result of sudden, excessive electrical discharges in the neurons (brain cells). The condition can affect people at any age and each age group has unique concerns and problems.

• The Quick Reaction Surface–to–Air Missile (QRSAM) was indigenously developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Recently, the missile was seen in the news, it was tested by the Chandipur Test range, Odisha. It registered a significant milestone as it achieved a direct hit on a pilotless target aircraft (PTA), during the test.

• Surat became the first city to finalise a project under the Affordable Rental Housing Complex (ARHC) scheme for migrant workers. The ARHC scheme was announced under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana–Urban (PMAY–U) of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).

• National Ayurveda Day is celebrated on the same day of Dhanwantri Jayanti since 2016. This year it was celebrated on November 13. National Ayurveda Day was celebrated across the country on the theme of ‘Ayurveda for COVID–19’. The day is observed to spread awareness on the importance of Ayurveda in our daily lives.

• Veteran journalist and writer of Karnataka, Ravi Belagere has recently passed away at the age of 62. He was working for the popular Kannada tabloid Hai Bangalore.
• The writer has been honoured with many awards including the Karnataka Sahitya Academy award, Kannada Rajyothsava award and Karnataka Media Academy award among others. He also started school named ‘Prarthana’ in the state.

• The Group of 77 (G–77) was established on 15 June 1964 by 77 developing countries. At present, the members of the coalition have increased to 134 countries. Recently, the 44th Annual Meeting of the G–77 Foreign Ministers was held recently. India’s Permanent Representative to the UN T S Tirumurti attended the forum and reaffirmed India’s commitment towards G77 bloc.

• City of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh has entered the Guinness World Records for the ‘largest display of Oil Lamps’. During the ‘Deepotsav’ celebrations, over 5.8 lakh earthen lamps were lit on the banks of river Saryu on November 13. The lamps were kept lit for 45 minutes and retained Guinness World Record for the second year.

• The 8th BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation Ministerial meeting was held virtually, which was organised by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Russia. Russia is the Chair of the 12th BRICS Summit. The Ministerial meeting unanimously adopted BRICS STI Declaration 2020. The Members applauded India’s ‘SERB–POWER’ (Promoting Opportunities for Women in Exploratory Research) scheme.

• Every year the World Day of Remembrance for Road Accident Victims observed on 15th November, by the United Nations. The Day is seen as a tool to reduce road casualties. It draws attention to the devastation caused by road crashes and gives recognition to the road crash victims.

• The Union Ministry of Labour and Employment has recently notified draft rules under the Code on Social Security, 2020.
• As per the new rules, the unorganised workers, gig workers and platform workers can avail social security benefits by Aadhaar based registration including self–registration on the government portal. It also clarifies about payment of contribution by the aggregators.

• The 12th BRICS summit 2020 was held in a virtual mode recently. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the virtual summit, chaired by the Russian President Vladimir Putin.
• The theme of the summit is “Global stability, shared security and innovative growth”. Other agendas of the summit include intra–BRICS cooperation, mitigating the effect of Covid–19, counter–terrorism cooperation, among others.
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A team of researchers from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur have developed environment safe food packaging material using cucumber peels. According to them, cucumber peels have greater cellulose content and the nanocrystals derived from the peels makes it suitable for making bio–degradable food packaging material.

Asia–Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), an inter–governmental forum for 21 member nations is headquartered at Singapore. It is a free trade association among the Pacific Rim nations. Recently, the Ministers of all the 21 member countries have vowed for working together to support the economic recovery post the COVID–19 pandemic

The International Day of Tolerance observed every year on November 16th. It aims to promote tolerance among cultures and people and make them understand that tolerance is an integral part of society. “The UNESCO Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non–Violence” has been awarded to the NGO named Résolution Conflits (Centre for Resolution of Conflicts) in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Reserve Bank of India has placed Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB) under moratorium and has capped its deposit withdrawals. The RBI has also proposed to amalgamate the bank with DBS Bank India. This decision followed the steep deterioration of the financial position of LVB over the past three years. Due to the rise in bad loans and provisions, the bank has been witnessing heavy loans.

The United Nations (UN) has collaborated with the Vaccine Confidence Project at the University of London, to launch a new initiative named ‘Halo’. It aims to tackle the issue of misinformation around COVID–19 vaccines.
Over 100 scientists have come together to share authentic information on safety and effectiveness of vaccines via the social media. Over 22 scientists have joined Team Halo from India.

High Commission of India has launched Special Edition wrist watches to commemorate the Centenary year of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Bangladesh is celebrating the birth centenary year of its founder president and Father of Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as Mujib Centenary year ‘Mujib Borsho’. The wristwatches in the limited–edition series bear the image and the signature of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved the first coronavirus diagnostic kit for self–testing at home. The Lucira COVID–19 All–In–One Test Kit is a molecular single–use test. It is also the first test that can be fully self–administered and provide results in 30 minutes or less. It can be self–administered for those who are above 14 years old.

The Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan has recently announced that a Cow cabinet will be formed for the protection of cows in the state. The state cabinet will also include Animal Husbandry, Forest, Panchayat and Rural Development, Revenue, Home and Farmers Welfare Department. The first meeting of the cabinet is to be held on November 22.

The World Fisheries Day is observed every year on 21st of November throughout the world by fishing communities. This day is celebrated through rallies, workshops, public meetings, cultural programs, dramas, exhibition, music show, and demonstrations to highlight the importance of maintaining the world’s fisheries.

Union Minister of Culture Prahlad Singh Patel recently handed over the bronze idols of Lord Rama, Lakshmana and Goddess Sita to Idol Wing of Tamil Nadu Government. These Bronze idols were handed over to High Commission of India in London by the London Metropolitan Police, in September 2020. These idols belong to a temple in Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu, from where they were stolen in 1978.