Current Affairs Questions & Answers - Feb 13, 2017

ANSWER: None of the above

Explanation:
India defeated Pakistan by nine wickets to lift the T20 World Cup for Blind title on 12^th Feb 2017 in Bangalore.

Set a target of 198 runs to win, India chased down the total with the loss of just one wicket and with 14 balls to spare.

This was the second edition of the tournament, with India having won the inaugural edition back in 2012.

India had beaten Pakistan in the final of the 2012 tournament too, winning that match by 29 runs.

Sports Minister Vijay Goel congratulated the Indian team for lifting T20 World Cup for Blind for the second successive edition after defeating arch-rivals Pakistan in the final at Bengaluru.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also joined those congratulating the Indian team.

"Delighted that India won the Blind T20 World Cup. Congratulations to the team. India is proud of their accomplishment," the PM tweeted.

ANSWER: Crafts Aur Cuisine Ka Sangam

Explanation:
Union Minister of State for Minority Affairs (Independent Charge) and Parliamentary Affairs Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi inaugurated the second edition of “Hunar Haat”.

It is being organized by the Minority Affairs Ministry to encourage, promote and provide national and international market to master artisans/craftsmen belonging to the Minority communities from across the country.

With the theme “Craft Aur Cuisine Ka Sangam”, the second “Hunar Haat” is being organized from 11th to 26th February, 2017 at Connaught Place, New Delhi.

“Hunar Haat” is unique in the sense that it is showcasing crafts and traditional cuisines brought from different parts of the country.

“Hunar Haat” is being organized through National Minorities Development & Finance Corporation (NMDFC) under USTTAD (Upgrading the Skills & Training in Traditional Arts/Crafts for Development) scheme of Ministry of Minority Affairs.

100 artisans and 30 culinary experts from about 24 states and Union Territories are participating at about 130 stalls in the second “Hunar Haat.”

This also has a “Bawarchikhana” where various cuisine from different parts of the country are being showcased and the visitors can enjoy them.

For the first time in this exhibition very exquisite pieces of Handicraft & Handloom work are featured like:

• Makrana Marble products,
• Bandhej from Sikar,
• Mojri from Rajasthan,
• Banjara Embroidery from Telangana,
• Handmade Locks & Door Handles along with Phool-Patti works from Aligarh, Cocoon decorated products from Nagaland,
• Mizoram Traditional Crafts,

Different cuisines from 13 states are being brought by culinary experts for this second “Hunar Haat”.

Awadhi Mughlai foods from Lucknow, Dal Bati Churma & Thali from Rajasthan, Sandesh & Rasogolla from West Bengal, Malabari food from Kerala are just some of these.

Litti-Chokha of Bihar, Puran-Poli from Maharashtra, Dhokla & Jalebi from Gujarat, Kashmiri Wazwan from J&K, Bhutte Ki Khees, Sabudana-Kheer & Khichri from Madhya Pradesh are also featured.

The selected master artisans/craftsmen belong to states such as UP (29), Rajasthan (9), Jammu and Kashmir (9), Gujarat (6), Manipur (3), Assam (2), Odisha (2) and Kerala, Telangana and Bihar etc.

In “Bawarchikhana”, the people can enjoy food from states such as UP (3), Jammu and Kashmir (3), West Bengal (2), Gujarat (2) and Bihar, Maharashtra, Rajasthan etc.

ANSWER: Airborne Early Warning and Control System

Explanation:
The first indigenous Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AEW&C) in IOC configuration shall be handed over to the Indian Air Force (IAF), on 14th February during Aero India 2017.

This is at the Yelahanka Air base in Bengaluru.

This was announced by Chairman DRDO and Secretary Department of Defence (R&D), Dr. S. Christopher while addressing the media in Bengaluru, during the curtain raiser on DRDO’s participation in Aero India-2017.

The Airborne Surveillance System is a game changer in air warfare.

The AEW&C System is a system of systems populated with state-of-the art:

• Active Electronically Scanned Radar,
• Secondary Surveillance Radar,
• Electronic and Communication Counter Measures,
• LOS (Line of Sight) and beyond LOS data link,
• voice communication system and self protection suite.

It is built on an Emb-145 platform, having an air to air refuelling capability to enhance surveillance time.

A Complex tactical software has been developed for fusion of information from the sensors, to provide the air situation picture along with intelligence to handle identification/classification threat assessment.

Battle management functions are built in house to work as a network centric system of Integrated Air Command & Control System (IACCS) node.

This system has been developed and evaluated through collaborative efforts between DRDO and the IAF, with coordination for certification clearance and quality assurance by CEMILAC and DGAQA.

The AEW&C system has undergone all weather and environmental trials and has been accepted by the IAF for induction.

ANSWER: For Responsible Healthcare

Explanation:
Union Minister for Chemicals & Fertilizers and Parliamentary Affairs, Shri Ananthkumar inaugurated the 2nd edition of India Pharma & India Medical Device International Conference in Bengaluru on 12th Feb 2017.

The three day event, with the Vision - ‘For Responsible Healthcare’, is being organized by the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) from 11th-13th February, 2017.

The event was called a ‘Pharma and Medical Devices Kumbh.'

The medical industry has achieved a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of over 15%.

The sector would be worth $55 billion by 2020 from the present $32 billion.

India accounts for around 20% of the World’s generic medicine supply chain, exporting to over 250 countries globally.

Indian Pharma Industry provides over 60% of global vaccines.

Indian Pharma sector has received Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) close to $14 billion and has generated employment for over 2.5 million people across India.

The Pharma Ministry also announced from the podium that Bengaluru, being the hub of Information technology and skilled manpower, would prove to be the ideal location to set up a Pharma and Med Tech Zone and hence the Ministry would work with the State Government to establish it soon.

This step would give a boost to domestic manufacturing of pharmaceuticals and medical devices in India under the Make in India mission, he added.

This marks the second time Karnataka is hosting this conference on Medical Device & Pharmaceutical sector.

This is giving the State an opportunity to emerge as the desired destination for investments under pharma & medical devices sector and give a boost to Make in India Mission in this sector.

The state pharma industry constitutes 264 manufacturing units that include small-medium, large, public sector and multinational companies.

The State stands 5th in Pharmaceuticals exports with 40% of its Pharma produce being exported overseas.

Pharma and Med Tech zone in Andhra Pradesh has attracted over 30 investment proposals from domestic and international pharma companies which has the potential to reduce the manufacturing cost of drugs and medical devices by around 30% as compared to global prices.

The India Pharma exhibition, being held as part of the event, will cover all the segments of the pharmaceutical industry starting from finished formulations, APIs, bio-pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals & intermediates, natural extracts and excipients.

India Medical Device exhibition will showcase med-tech innovations in India across segments from preventive to therapeutic care.

Leading Pharmaceutical & Medical Device companies will showcase their expertise and products to Indian and International Healthcare community at the exhibition that will result in creating new business opportunities.

ANSWER: Welspun

Explanation:
Textile maker Welspun India announced on 9^th Feb 2017 that it has entered into a strategic agreement with the Cotton Egypt Association (CEA).

This allows it to market its Egyptian cotton products with the CEA’s logo for the next five years until 2022.

CEA is a non-profit body set up in 2005 by Egypt’s ministry of industry and foreign trade set up to certify Egyptian cotton products made by textile manufacturers worldwide and ensure they maintain sourcing and supply quality.

CEA has allowed us to use the logo.

Welspun India announced it will spend $3 million in the next five years for marketing and promoting its Egyptian cotton products with the new logo.

The company said it is also exploring setting up a manufacturing facility in Egypt.

American retail chain Target Corp. terminated its contract with Welspun India in August 2016, accusing Welspun of passing off ordinary cotton products as Egyptian cotton.

This is considered higher quality and is more expensive.

Target was Welspun’s largest client, bringing in $90 million in sales last financial year.

Profits declined and Welspun faces class action lawsuits for violating American consumer laws, two of which were filed in September 2016.

Welspun’s business is largely export-oriented and it sells in 50 countries, including the US, Europe and the UK.

ANSWER: Comptel

Explanation:
Nokia is buying Comptel, a company that specialises in building software-based data communications solutions for mobile carriers.

Nokia’s offer is to pay €3.04 in cash, valuing Comptel at €347 million ($370 million).

Comptel’s software is today in use by more than 300 operators, covering 1.2 customers in 90 countries, and it processes 20% of the world’s mobile data usage daily, with an emphasis on developing markets.

The key thing here is the software element: Nokia’s legacy has been in “kit” or equipment - the expensive and more difficult-to-upgrade hardware of the telco enterprise world.

Nokia may also still be a big player in carrier equipment (and some newer things like VR cameras) but that business is in decline, so it is trying to show that it’s changing with the times.

The company is innovating quickly enough to catch the trend in quite the way that Apple, Android maker Google, and eventually dozens of OEMs making Android handsets did.

After its initial partnership with and eventual sale of its handset business to Microsoft the future has been changing for this company.

Specifically, Nokia will be combining Comptel with its own carrier solutions business, and will be aiming it at those carriers looking to “automate as much of their network and business operations as possible.” according to a company statement.

That includes customer services, self-optimization, management and orchestration.

“Comptel would help with this objective by bringing catalogue-driven fulfilment and digital service lifecycle management, complex event processing, applications for customer engagement and service monetization; and emerging technologies for context-aware on-device commerce and IoT pattern detection,” Nokia has added.

Comptel and Nokia are based in Finland so in one regard this is part of regional consolidation that may have been long on the anvil.

Comptel, founded in 1986 and traded on Nasdaq.

Comptel: Know More

• CEO: Juhani Hintikka (3 Jan 2011–present)
• Headquarters: Helsinki, Finland
• Number of employees: 750
• Founded: 1986, Finland
• Type of business: Public (NASDAQ OMX Helsinki: CTL1V)

ANSWER: Sudarsan Pattnaik

Explanation:
Famous sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik on 11^th Feb 2017 created a Guinness World Record by building the world’s tallest sand castle which is 48 feet and 8 inch (14.84 metre) at the Puri beach in Odisha.

Sudarsan has broken the record of 45 feet and 10 inch sand castle which was created in USA, a Guinness World Records official said.

After verifying all the criteria of the sand castle, the official of Guinness World Records Swapnil Dangarikar presented a certificate to Sudarsan for the achievement.

Sudarsan and his 45 students took about 9 days to prepare this sculpture. The sand sculpture was built with theme of “World Peace.”

The previous Guinness record was reserved in the name of American artist Ted Siebert, who had built a 13.97 metre high (45 ft) sand castle at Miami beach in 2015.

39-year-old Sudarsan, a Padma Shri awardee, achieved the rare fete in just four days whereas the previous record holder had completed his art in seven days, official sources said.

Sudarsan along with his 45 students started chasing the coveted record from February 7.

Previously, Pattnaik had already created 23 world records registered in the Limca Book of Records.

In 2008, he won world sand art championship in Berlin.

He has also broken his own records almost every year by making sand arts on different themes, mostly spreading the message of world peace,

All About Guinness World Records

• Editor: Craig Glenday
• Cover artist: Simon Jones
• Subject: World Records
• Genre: Reference
• Publisher: Jim Pattison Group
• Publication date: November 10, 1951–present
• Published in English: 1955 - present
• Media type: Book, Television

ANSWER: 13th Feb

Explanation:
World Radio Day is observed on February 13 to celebrate radio as a medium to promote and access information.

After originally proposed by the Kingdom of Spain, UNESCO in its 36th General Conference proclaimed World Radio Day on November 3, 2011.

Last year, the UNESCO’s theme for World Radio Day is “Radio in Times of Emergency and Disaster”.

The theme for the 2017 edition of World Radio Day is “Radio is You!”

World Radio Day was first celebrated in 2012 and was later adopted as an International Day by the United Nations General Assembly.

Previous themes have included gender equality, youth participation, and radio in humanitarian and disaster situations.

As a part of the celebrations held in 2016, more than 380 World Radio Day events were held in more than 80 different countries.

In India, Outreach, an Indian social organisation, will organise a three-day ‘Radio Fair’ in Bhubaneswar between February 12 and 14.

This year the radio community calls for greater participation of audiences and communities in the planning of radio broadcasting.

On this day, radio stations can register for World Radio Day on their official website and promote World Radio Day events on the UNESCO map of activities.

World Radio Day: Know More

• Also called: WRD
• Observed by: UN Member States
• Celebrations: UNESCO
• Frequency: annual

ANSWER: INS Sarvekshak

Explanation:
For the first time in the country, solar panels have been installed on an Indian warship.

The survey class vessel INS Sarvekshak, attached with the southern naval command, has been fitted with 18 sheets of solar panels atop its hangar.

It took about six months to put the entire system in place. We are now using solar energy for lights and a couple of air conditioners.

Captain Rajesh Bargoti is the commanding officer of the ship.

The 300-watt panels generate about 5.4kW power.

Biggest challenge was that marine environments were not suitable for normal solar panels, as saline and humid surroundings would damage it.

Also, the wind speed can affect the panels, which may get uprooted while at sea.

Therefore scientists had to look at flexible panels that had anti-rust properties, were marine compatible, could withstand high wind speeds, perform on flat installations and had very low weight.

There are 10 batteries which are used for storage.

Only solar power for the purpose of lighting during sail.

When anchored the ship uses power supplied by the state electricity board and not diesel.

Ship personnel were noting down meter reading of solar power consumption so as to carry out a power audit and look at using solar power for more devices.

PM Narendra Modi had appreciated the innovation when the project was put on display at the exhibition organised by the Navy headquarters