VINTAGE

IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF NOVEMBER 1st to 2nd   2019

              IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF NOVEMBER 1st to 2nd 2019 

1.      1st November 2019 was observed as World Vegan Day.

a.       This day was established in 1994 by Louise Wallis, then President & Chair of The Vegan Society.

2.      Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reached Bangkok for a 3-day visit to Thailand. 

a.       During this visit, he will address the Indian diaspora in Bangkok this evening. 

b.       The name of the event is 'Sawasdee PM MODI'.

c.       During the event, Prime Minister Modi will release special commemorative coin marking the 550th Birth Anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji and Thai translation of Tirukkural (Tamil Classic).

d.       Tomorrow Prime Minister Modi will co-chair the 16th  India-ASEAN summit to take stock of the progress made in the relationship between ASEAN and India. 

e.       Prime Minister will also hold bilateral meetings with the leaders of Thailand, Indonesia and Myanmar. 

f.        On Monday, Modi will take part in the 14th East Asia Summit to review the future direction of East Asia Cooperation and exchange views on regional and international issues. 

g.       Modi will also participate in the 3rd Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) summit.

3.      German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrived in India on a 3-day visit.

a.       She co-chaired the fifth India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and also hold talks with President Ram Nath Kovind.

b.       After themeeting she announced €200 million (around ₹1,600 crore) will be earmarked to reform the bus sector in Tamil Nadu. 

4.      Defence Minister Rajnath Singh attended the 18th Meeting of Council of SCO Heads of Government in Tashkent as the Special Envoy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

a.       During this meet, she has said that the only way to fight the scourge of terrorism is to strengthen and implement all existing international laws and mechanisms without exceptions or double standards.

5.      In the recently released National Health Profile 2019, Indian government admitted that in 2016, India's public spending on health was 1.17% of the GDP, which is lower than the nations classified as the 'Low Income Countries'. 

a.       India's public health expenditure is also lower than South-Asian countries like Nepal, Bhutan. Country's health budget for 2019-20 stood at almost ₹62,000 crore.

6.      Jharkhand Assembly elections to the 81 constituencies will be held in 5 phases from November 30 and counting of votes will take place on December 23, Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora has announced. 

a.       Note : In 2014, BJP had won 37 seats, while Congress managed seven seats in the state.

7.      Hyderabad has been adjudged as 'Creative City' in gastronomy category by the UNESCO. 

a.       Hyderabad is one of the two cities from India, among the total 66 creative cities selected by the UNESCO across the globe. 

b.       The other city from India, Mumbai, has been selected as a 'Creative City' for its contribution to the world of films.

8.      In order to raise awareness about plastic waste management and reduce the usage of single-use plastic, Noida Authority has installed a plastic bottle crusher machine at its campus. 

9.      A WTO panel has cleared China to impose levies on American goods worth $3.6 billion annually in a case that predates the current trade war. 

a.       China argued that US anti-dumping duties on steel and other products were illegally inflated. 

b.       The damages, the third-highest awarded in WTO history, are about half of what China had sought.

10. Late singer Michael Jackson has been named the highest-paid dead celebrity for the 7th consecutive year by Forbes.

a.       Jackson, who died in 2009, topped the list with the earnings of $60 million (₹424 crore). 

11. Uttar Pradesh government on Friday allotted ₹447.46 crore for building a digital museum on Lord Ram in Ayodhya. 

a.       The money will also be used for acquiring 61 hectares of land in Ayodhya for building a 251-metre high statue of Lord Ram. 

12. Telecom regulator TRAI has fixed mobile phone call ring at 30 seconds, in case the call is neither answered nor rejected. 

a.       This comes after Airtel reduced its ring time, alleging that Jio's ring duration results in a missed call and forces the receiver to dial back. 

13. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is on a two-day visit to India, held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, following which 22 wide-ranging agreements were signed between the two nations to strengthen their bilateral ties. 

a.       The pacts include joint declarations for cooperation on strategic projects, green urban mobility, smart cities, startups and agricultural market development.

14. At least two dozen Indian academics, lawyers, Dalit activists and journalists were targeted for surveillance for two weeks until May 2019 on WhatsApp. 

a.       Israeli cybersecurity firm NSO's technology 'Pegasus' sent 'exploit links' to people to penetrate their phone's security without their knowledge. 

b.       Once installed, Pegasus could extract users' private data, passwords, texts, and even voice calls.

15. Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi has tied up with national space agency ISRO to set up a research centre that will carry out projects in space technology. 

a.       The centre is also aimed at providing scientific solutions to India's first human space mission Gaganyaan and other future missions. 

16. Guido van Rossum, the creator of computer programming language Python, has announced that he is leaving cloud file hosting service Dropbox after over 6.5 years and is now retired. 

17. Telugu actress Geetanjali Ramakrishna (72) passed away.

a.       She has acted in more than 500 films and is known for her role in films like 'Seetha Rama Kalyanam', 'Abbaigaru Ammaigaru' and 'Sambarala Rambabu'. 

18. Film producer Champak Jain, who produced the Akshay Kumar starrer 'Main Khiladi Tu Anari', passed awa.

a.       Champak was also the owner of Venus Records & Tapes and United 7. 

19. Actor Rajinikanth will be honoured with the Icon of Golden Jubilee award for "his outstanding contribution to Indian cinema" at the 50th International Film Festival of India (IFFI).  

a.       French actress Isabelle Huppert, who was nominated for 2017 Oscars for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the festival.

20. Sand artist and Padma Shri awardee Sudarsan Pattnaik has been selected for the Italian Golden Sand Art Award 2019. 

a.       He will be honoured at the International Scorrana Sand Nativity in Italy scheduled to be held from November 13 to 18. 

21. Bollywood Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui was awarded the Golden Dragon at the Cardiff International Film Festival for his 'excellence in cinema' in the global arena. 

22. Bollywood Actress Kareena Kapoor Khan unveiled the trophies of both the Men's and Women's T20 World Cups to be held next year in Australia. 

a.       The Women's T20 World Cup will start from February 21, 2020 followed by the Men's World Cup which will start on October 18.

23. The Indian women's hockey team moved a step towards Olympic qualification with a 5-1 win over USA in the first-leg of the two-match FIH Qualifier in Bhubaneswar. D 

24. Subedar Anandan Gunasekaran who won 3 gold medals in the 7th Military World Games recently in Wuhan in China was felicitated at the Madras Engineering Group and Centre in Bengaluru.

a.       Subedar Anandan had won Gold in 100 meters, 200 meter and 400 meter race as a para-athlete.

b.       Note : He is the 1st Indian Para Athlete in T-44 category to bag medal for the Army in the World Para Military Games and break the Asian record.