Daily Current Affairs and GK | 11 December 2019

1. Earth Observation satellite RISAT-2BR1 launched successfully

• PSLV C-48 launched the Earth Observation satellite RISAT-2BR1 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
• This was the 50^th mission being lifted off by the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.
• In addition to RISAT-2BR1, nine customer satellites were also placed precisely into a 576 km orbit. 
• The customer satellites were launched under an agreement with NewSpace India Limited (a commercial arms of ISRO).
• This was the 75^th launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
• RISAT-2BR1 satellite will assist in agriculture, mining, forestry and coastal management, disaster management and 24x7 border surveillance.
• RISAT-2BR1 is the second radar imaging satellite of the RISAT-2B series.
• This satellite, along with CARTOSAT-3, will enhance India’s earth imaging capabilities.
• RISAT satellites consist of a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), which is capable of taking pictures even under cloudy conditions.
• Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO):
  • It is the space agency of the Indian government that was established in 1969.
  • Headquarters: Bengaluru
  • Founder: Vikram Sarabhai

2. Ethiopia’s PM conferred Nobel Peace Prize

• Abiy Ahmed, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, has been conferred the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize.
• He has been awarded this prestigious prize for his contribution to peacemaking efforts with Eritrea.
• In 2018, Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki officially ended a 20-year-old border conflict between their countries.
• This year, it is the 100^th Nobel Peace Prize to be awarded.
• The Nobel Peace Prize winner is given a diploma, a gold medal, and a nine million Sedewish Kronor cheque.
• The first Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Jean Henry Dunant and Frederic Passy in 1901.

3. 126^th Constitutional Amendment Bill 2019 passed in Lok Sabha

• The 126^th Constitutional Amendment Bill 2019 has been passed in Lok Sabha, with all 355 members voting in favour of the bill.
• The amendment bill will extend the reservation of seats for Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes in Lok Sabha and State assemblies by 10 years.
• The reservation for SCs and STs was to expire by 25^th January 2020.
• Currently, 84 seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes and 47 for Scheduled Tribes in Lok Sabha.

4. 6^th Indian Ocean Dialogue and Delhi Dialogue XI to be held in New Delhi

• The 6^th Indian Ocean Dialogue and Delhi Dialogue XI will be hosted by the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi on 13-14 December 2019.
• It will be the first time that these two tracks 1.5 dialogues will be held together and on the same theme.
• The theme for Indian Ocean Dialogue is “Indo-Pacific: Re-imagining the Indian Ocean through an Expanded Geography”.
• The theme for Delhi Dialogue XI is “Advancing Partnership in Indo-Pacific”.
• Indian Ocean Dialogue is an initiative of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) and the first IOD was held in Kerala in 2014.

5. Climate Change Performance Index 2020 released

• Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2020 has been released at the CoP 25 Climate summit.
• It is the first time that India has been ranked among the top 10 countries in CCPI.
• India has been ranked 9^th in the current levels of per capita emission and energy usage.
• India’s rating in the renewable energy category is medium while it’s renewable energy target is rated high as it is compatible with Paris climate targets.
• None of the countries occupied the first three places of the ranking.
• Sweden is ranked 4^th, followed by Denmark.
• China has slightly improved its ranking to 30^th position.
• Only two G-20 countries- the UK (7^th) and India (9^th) are ranked high, while eight of the G-20 countries are in the worst category.
• CCPI is being published every year since 2005 by Germanwatch, the NewClimate Institute and the Climate Action Network.

6. More than 65 lakh persons treated under PMJAY

• Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan stated in Rajya Sabha that more than 65 lakh persons had undergone treatment under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (PMJAY).
• Over 20,000 hospitals are enrolled under this scheme and till 5^th November, 9,549 crore rupees have been spent for the treatment of patients.
• Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (PMJAY):
  • Ayushman Bharat is a flagship scheme of the government that aims to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
  • PMJAY is the second component of Ayushman Bharat that provides a health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh per family per year.

7. George Laurer, inventor of Bar code, passes away

• The inventor of Universal Product Code (UPC), George J. Laurer, passed away at the age of 94.
• He was an electrical engineer with IBM, where he invented the UPC or bar code.
• Universal Product Code or Bar code:
  • It is a type of code that is printed on retail products for their identification.
  • It has two parts- a machine-readable bar code (a series of unique black bars) and a unique 12-digit number written below it.

8. World’s 1^st fully electric commercial aircraft takes flight in Canada

• The world’s first fully-electric commercial aircraft took its inaugural test flight in Vancouver, Canada.
•  Australian engineering firm magniX designed the plane’s motor and worked in collaboration with Harbour Air.
• It is a 6 passenger DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver seaplane, which is retrofitted with a 750hp electric motor.

9. Human Development Index (HDI) 2019 released

• 2019 Human Development Index rankings have been released in which Norway gained the top spot.
• Norway is followed by Switzerland and Ireland in HDI rankings.
• India is ranked at the 129^th place, which is one rank above the last year’s ranking.
• According to the index, India is still home to 28% of the world’s poor despite its measures to lift 271 million people out of poverty between 2005-15. 
• Human Development Index (HDI):
  • HDI is released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) annually.
  • The index assesses 189 countries based on three major indicators: Life Expectancy at Birth, Mean and expected years of schooling and Gross National Income per capita.

10. National award for outstanding services in the field of Prevention of Alcoholism and Drug abuse

• National award for outstanding services in the area of Prevention of Alcoholism and Drug abuse has been started by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment.
• The awards will be presented to the institutions as well as individuals for their contribution to the prevention of alcoholism and drug use.
• The award will be given to the winners on the occasion of International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, i.e. 26^th June 2020.

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

1. Which of the following statements is not correct?

a)      ISRO has successfully launched RISAT-2BR1.

b)      It was launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.

c)       It was launched by PSLV C-47.

d)      This was the 50^th mission of PSLV.

2. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was conferred the Nobel Peace Prize 2019 for his peacemaking efforts with which of the following countries?

a)      Eritrea

b)      Kenya

c)       South Africa

d)      Somalia

3. 6^th Indian Ocean Dialogue will be organized in which of the following countries?

a)      Laos

b)      Vietnam

c)       Bangladesh

d)      India

4. What is the ranking of India in Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2020?

a)      5^th

b)      8^th

c)       9^th

d)      11^th

5. Recently, 126^th Constitutional Amendment Bill has been passed by the Lok Sabha. This bill pertains to-

a)      Rights of Transgender persons

b)      SC/ST reservation in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies

c)       Chit Funds

d)      Citizenship

6. Under the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana, a BPL family will be provided a health insurance coverage of _________.

a)      Rs. 3,00,000

b)      Rs. 5,00,000

c)       Rs. 8,00,000

d)      Rs. 10,00,000

7. Who is the inventor of Bar code?

a)      Simon Moorey

b)      Martin Philips

c)       Gregor Chaplin

d)      George Laurer

8. What is the ranking of India in Human Development Index 2019?

a)      131^st

b)      138^th

c)       129^th

d)      130^th

9. Recently which of the following conducted inaugural flight test of fully electric commercial plane?

a)      India

b)      Canada

c)       Japan

d)      Russia

10. When is International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking is observed globally?

a)      2^nd October

b)      25^th November

c)       26^th June

d)      30^th January

Solution:

1. c)

2. a)

3. b)

4. d)

5. c)

6. b)

7. d)

8. c)

9. b)

10. c)