Current Affairs Questions & Answers - May 31, 2017

ANSWER: Constantine Mitsotakis

Explanation:
Former Greek Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis passed away on 29 May 2017. He was 98.

Mitsotakis was an early proponent of austerity cuts that Greece eventually had to adopt during the economic crisis of 2010.

Mitsotakis had quit politics in 2004 after serving as the country’s longest-serving parliamentarian.

Mitsotakis served as the Prime Minister of Greece from 1990 to 1993. He had been serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) of Greece since 1946, except for a ten-year break during and immediately after Greece’s 1967-1974 military rule in the country.

He was the Head of the conservative New Democracy party of the country from 1984 to 1993.

On the domestic front, Mitsotakis championed a tight budget and privatisation policies that sparked major union strikes and protests.

His support for budget cuts earned him the nickname ‘Dracula’ from his enemies. Professionally a lawyer by training, Mitsotakis was active in the resistance against the Nazi occupation during World War II on his native island of Crete, Greece.

ANSWER: Fiji

Explanation:
India has hosted a two-day Pacific Islands Conference in Suva, the capital city of Fiji. The India-Pacific Islands Sustainable Development Conference held between 25 and 26 May 2017 was hosted by Ministry of External Affairs.

The conference that was inaugurated by the Acting Fijian Prime Minister Aiyaz Sayed- Khaiyum saw the signing of eight MoUs on the day of inauguration.

These MoUs were signed on 25 May 2017 by five participating nations, namely Fiji, Cook Islands, Nauru, Samoa and Niue. On behalf of India, the inaugural session of the conference was addressed by Gen. (Dr) V.K. Singh (Retd), Minister of State for External Affairs.

List of Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) signed during the Inaugural session of India-Pacific Islands Sustainable Development Conference:

Serial No.	Country	MoU
1.	Fiji	MOU for cooperation on broadcasting between Prasar Bharti, New Delhi, India and Fiji Broadcasting Corporation for Exchange of Audio Visual Programmes.
2.	Fiji	MoU between Ministry of New and Renewable Energy of the Government of the Republic of India and Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport of the Government of the Republic of Fiji on Co-operation in the field of Renewable Energy.
3.	Fiji	MoU between the Government of Republic of India and the Government of the Republic of Fiji for establishing India - Fiji Centre of Excellence in IT.
4.	Fiji	MoU between the Ministry of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Fiji and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports of the Republic of India on Cooperation in the field of Youth Development.
5.	Cook Islands	MoU between the Government of Republic of India and the Government of Cook Islands for Establishing India - Cook Islands Centre of Excellence in IT.
6.	Nauru	MoU between the Government of Republic of India and the Government of Republic of Nauru for establishing India - Nauru ICT Learning Centre of Excellence in IT.
7.	Samoa	MoU between the Government of Republic of India and the Government of Independent State of Samoa for Establishing India - Samoa Centre of Excellence in IT.
8.	Niue	MoU between the Government of Republic of India and the Government of Niue for Establishing India - Niue Centre of Excellence in IT.

India will contribute USD 1 million to Fiji’s Trust Fund for their Presidency of COP-23 to be held in November 2017.

The conference was held under the framework of the Forum for India Pacific Islands Co-operation (FIPIC).

The conference was organised by the Ministry of External Affairs wanted to boost the bilateral relations with the 14 Pacific Island countries.

The event saw Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the Pacific Islands Development Forum (PIDF). India-Pacific Islands Countries discuss on a wide range of issues including climate change.

FIPIC was formed in November 2014, to strengthen India’s relationship with the Pacific Island Countries.

The first FIPIC summit was held at the level of Heads of Government in November 2014 in Suva, Fiji, which was followed by the FIPIC-II summit held in August 2015, in Jaipur, India.

ANSWER: 338B

Explanation:
The new National Commission for Backward Classes will be constituted under Article 338B and will commence functioning as a constitutional authority, in the same manner as the National Commission for Scheduled Castes under article 338 and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes under Article 338A.

The new Commission will exercise the function of hearing the complaints/grievances of socially and educationally backward classes. It will have the powers of a Civil Court for this purpose.

It will have the duty of advising of the socio economic development of the socially and educationally backward classes and evaluate the progress of their development, unlike the present Commission which does not have this role.

The Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled Castes is to promote entrepreneurship amongst the Scheduled Caste and to provide concessional finance to them.

The projects/units are promoted in manufacturing and services sector ensuring asset creation. The Scheme provides higher level of loans ranging from INR 50 lakhs to 15 crores.

Till date loans amounting to INR 242.36 crores were sanctioned to 65 Scheduled Cast entrepreneurs and INR 118.99 crores has been disbursed.

Skill Training is under taken by the three corporations of the Ministry viz. National Scheduled Caste Finance and Development Corporations (NSFDC), National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation (NBCFDC) and National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC).

During the last three years i.e. from 2014-15 to 2016-17, 2.5 lakh beneficiaries have been trained under the skill development programme of the Corporations and the Scheduled Castes Sub Plan. Out of these beneficiaries, 48.42% have got wage/self-employment.

Five places relating to Dr. Ambedkar such as Janam Bhoomi, Mhow; Shiksha Bhoomi 10, King Henry Road, London; Deeksha Bhoomi, Nagpur; Chaitya Bhoomi, Mumbai; and Parinirvan Bhoomi, 26 Alipur Road, New Delhi were declared ‘Panchtirth’ by the Government of India.

Besides this, the Dr. Ambedkar Foundation under Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment had sponsored 100 students for study tour to Universities of Columbia and London School of Economics (UK) where Dr. Ambedkar studied.

The Minister informed that the Government of India declared 26th November as Constitution Day. Various programmes by Ministries/Departments/ State Government’s were organised throughout the country and Indian Mission abroad.

Department of Empowerment of PwD: Know More

• Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities has created 4 Guinness World Records, during the year 2016-17, as detailed in the list below : -
• First record, created by Biggest Wheelchair Logo/Image by 1000 PwDs at Navsari, Gujarat;
• Second world record, created by fitting 1200 Hearing Aids to 600 persons within 8 hours at a single location at Navsari, Gujarat;
• Third world record, created in Gujarat by lighting most oil lamps simultaneously at a single venue by Divyangjans; and
• Fourth Guinness World Record was created when 3911 persons with hearing impairment were fitted with hearing aids in 8 hours in Manipur.

ANSWER: Shri George Kurien

Explanation:
The Minister of State for Minority Affairs (Independent Charge) Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has appointed Shri George Kurien as Vice-Chairman of National Commission for Minorities.

Shri Kurien is a renowned social and educational activist from Kerala.

Earlier, noted social activist from Uttar Pradesh, Syed Ghayorul Hasan Rizvi was appointed as Chairman of National Commission for Minorities.

Other appointed members of the Commission are Ms Sulekha Kumbhare, Shri Sunil Singhi and Shri Vada Dasturji Khurshed Kaikobad Dastoor.

ANSWER: Delhi

Explanation:
The Union Minister of State for Home Affairs flagged off the “Bicycle Patrols” launched by the Delhi Police. The first batch of 65 bicycles were allotted to the Eastern Range of Delhi Police.

As a ‘green' initiative for patrolling the parks, congested lanes and by-lanes, the cooperative societies etc, the Delhi Police has introduced bicycle patrols to complement and supplement its existing motorcycle and PCR patrols which focus mainly on crime prevention along the arterial and main roads of Delhi.

Cycle patrols can go where traditional patrol vehicles cannot. The bicycle patrols will reach the narrow and heavily congested areas where mechanized vehicles find it difficult to reach and maintain a steady presence.

They will also be utilized for patrolling during odd hours when the residents are taking rest, since they are less disturbing.

One of the main areas of focus of these bicycle patrols will be parks where citizens including senior citizens and women go for morning and evening walks.

The bicycle patrols will also be introduced in the University campus areas and near schools/colleges where the police officers can have a friendly interface with the student community.

With zero environmental costs and additional health benefits for the riders, the bicycle patrol parties will also bring the concept of ‘Policing by community involvement’ close to the largely immigrant and working class population which inhabits several areas of these three districts.

The credibility and legitimacy of policing largely depends on the community support that follows from transparency in police functioning, integrity in exercise of its functions/services, and the accountability in doing so.

The camaraderie developed by the bicycle patrol officers will further strengthen the strong community-oriented policing practised by Delhi Police.

The bicycle patrols will mostly be in ‘buddy pairs' and will normally cover a distance of 2 to 5 kilometres per patrol.

The patrolling officers are equipped with standard police communication equipment which will operate in ‘hands-free mode' and function like mobile police posts of the local Police Station.

Each bicycle has been fitted with cell phone docks and equipment for keeping other accessories.

While focusing on the ‘Policing by community involvement’ model, the bicycle patrols will, apart from assuring the law abiding citizenry of their friendly and protective presence, also play the role of area domination, sending out a message of deterrence to the law breakers in the vicinity.

Being slow paced, the spectrum of observation of bicycle patrol officers will be qualitatively much more meaningful in detecting unwarranted movements and questionable/suspicious presence in the areas of patrol.

The officers are being specifically trained to make a note of the happenings around them for sharing and validation.

As a beginning, a total of 65 high-end bicycles have been operationalised, - 30 for North East district, 20 for East district and 15 for Shahdara district.

ANSWER: Deep Ocean Mission

Explanation:
Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India is all set to launch ‘Deep Ocean Mission’ by January 2018. This will improve India’s position in ocean research field.

The program on Poly metallic nodules (Pioneer) an ocean research project was initiated at CSIR-NIO with the collection of the first nodule sample from Arabian Sea on board the first Research Vessel Gaveshani on 26 January 1981.

India was the first country in the world to have been given the Pioneer Area for exploration of deep-sea mineral.

This was based on the extensive surveys carried out by the scientists of CSIR-NIO, on several research ships leading to the allocation of an area of 150,000 sq km to the country with exclusive rights under the UN Law of the sea.

Environment Impact Assessment studies for nodule mining by CSIR-NIO, development of metal extraction process by CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur and CSIR- Institute for Minerals and Metals Technology, Bhubaneswar and development of mining technology by National Institute of Ocean Technology, Chennai, have been taken up under the national program on Polymetallic nodules funded by Ministry of Earth Sciences.

India has now retained an area of 75,000 sq km with an estimated resource of about 100 million tons of strategic metals such Copper, Nickel, Cobalt besides Manganese and Iron.

A First Generation Mine-site (FGM) with an area of 18,000 sq km has been identified. Latest technologies for extraction of metals from the minerals have also been developed under the programme.

Detailed environmental data has been collected for compliance with International Seabed Authorities requirements.

Besides identifying the mineral resource and developing technologies for mining and extraction, the programme has also resulted in high impact research as well as manpower development.

ANSWER: HAL

Explanation:
Minister of Defence, Finance & Corporate Affairs Shri Arun Jaitley gave away Raksha Mantri’s Awards for Excellence for the years 2014-15 and 2015-16 in recognition of exemplary performance amongst Ordnance Factories and the Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs).

For the year 2015-16 : -

INSTITUTIONAL AWARDS

S.No.	Award	Institution
1.	Excellence in Performance	Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Bengaluru
2.	Best Performance in Exports	Bharat Electronics Limited, Bengaluru

BEST PERFORMING DIVISION/FACTORY/SHIPYARD AWARDS

S.No.	Award	Institution
1.	Best performing Division among DPSUs	Naval Systems (Radar Systems & Fire Control Systems), Bharat Electronics Limited, Bengaluru
2.	Best performing Factory of OFB	Ordnance Factory Medak, Telangana
3.	Best performing Shipyard among Shipyards	Goa Shipyard Limited, Goa

GROUP/INDIVIDUAL AWARDS

S.No.	Award	Sub Category	Institution
1.	Indigenisation	On Order Projects Own initiative Projects	1. Development & Engineering Division, Light Weight Portable Laser Target Designator (LWPLTD) Group, Bharat Electronics Limited, Pune for Light Weight Portable Laser Target Designator 2. Indigenization Cell, Engine Division, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Bengaluru for Indigenous Development of Adour - 871 Low Pressure Compressor Vane – 1 Assembly
2.	Design Effort	On Order Projects	1.Development & Engineering Network Centric System 3 (NCS3) Group / Air Defence Control and Reporting System [ADC&RS], NSC-Strategic Business Unit (SBU), Bharat Electronics Limited, Ghaziabad for Test Bed for Automated Air Defence Control and Reporting System (ADC&RS) for the Field Force of Army. 2.Central Design Office, Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Limited, Kolkata forDetailed Design of CGS Barracuda.
3.	Innovation	On Order Projects Own initiative projects	Aircraft Upgrade Research & Design Centre (AURDC), Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Ojhar, (MIG) Nasik for Integration of BrahMos Missile on Su-30MKI. Awarded jointly to 1. Engineering Deptt., Shipbuilding Div., Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Visakhapatnam for Shafting Work. 2. Shipbuilding Div., Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Visakhapatnam for Innovation in welding techniques at HSL. 3.Engineering Ship Repair Complex, Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Visakhapatnam for Rudder Carrier Bearing Modification.

ANSWER: None of the above

Explanation:
The civil aviation industry in India has emerged as one of the fastest growing industries in the country during the last three years.

With a 19 percent growth in domestic passenger traffic from about 6.1 crore in 2014 to 10 crore in 2016-17, India is now the third largest aviation market in the world, with the promise to grow even further.

What is most impressive about this growth is its inclusive nature defined by the Regional Connectivity Scheme - UDAN, that has made air travel possible for even the common man in remote areas.

The average or median airfares fell by 18 percent during 2016-17, making flying more affordable for the common man.

Scheduled domestic flight movements also rose from 7 lakh in 2014 to 8.2 lakh in 2016, an 8.2 percent CAGR growth.

As against 395 aircrafts in the fleet of Indian carriers, there are 496 aircrafts in operation today, and another 654 are under purchase.

Route Dispersal Guidelines have been rationalized, multiple provisions have been made for MRO service providers and a slew of initiatives like the AirSewa portal, enhanced compensation for cancellation and boarding denial have been taken for improving passenger convenience

The Regional Connectivity Scheme UDAN has been by far the most path-breaking achievement of the Ministry.

31 currently served, 12 under-served and 27 unserved airports are now connecting 128 RCS routes across the country.

50 airports are being revived and 13 lakh new UDAN seats are being added annually under the first round of UDAN for a Viability Gap Funding of INR 205 crore.

The Ease of Doing Business by allowing 100 % FDI in domestic scheduled air transport, Open Skies Service Agreements offers to 49 countries and 5 SAARC nations etc, developing a robust security architecture by complying with ICAO requirements, Anti Hijacking Act etc, promoting innovative technology like GAGAN, India’s first navigation based system to improve accuracy of air navigation services and focusing on skill development in the aviation sector has been benefiting India.

The first Executive Aviation Course was launched by India’s first Aviation University in February 2017. 800 ATCs were recruited by AAI in the last 2 years and more than 400 are planned to be recruited in 2017.

Aerospace and Aviation Skill Sector Council has been formed to monitor growth of skill development.

The civil aviation sector in India has undergone a complete transformation in the last three years with India emerging as the world’s third largest aviation market.

As against 70-75 airports in the country in all these years, India has more than 100 airports with the implementation of UDAN.

ANSWER: 1989

Explanation:
The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presented the Hindi Sevi Samman Awards for the year 2015 today (May 30, 2017) at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

These Awards were instituted by Central Hindi Institute, Agra in 1989.

The scholars received awards in 12 different categories for their contribution in the field of Hindi language and literature.

Hindi Scholars from Japan and the United States of America are among 26 individuals given awards by President Pranab Mukherjee for promoting Hindi language.

Fujii Takeshi (Japan) and Gabriela Nik Ilieva (US) were presented the George Grearson Award for promoting Hindi language.

Also, Pushpita Avasthi (the Netherlands) and Padmesh Gupta (London) were honoured under Padma Bhushan Moturi Satyanarayan award category.

The awardees in different categories include:

The awardees in different categories include:

Ganga Sharan Singh Award: For work in the field of promotion and training of Hindi S. Shesharatnam M. Govind Rajan Harmahendra Singh Bedi H. Subadani Devi

Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Award: For work in the field of journalism and creative literature Baldev Bhai Sharma Rahul Dev

Atmaram Award: For work in the field of Science and Technology literature and Machinery growth Girish Chandra Saxena Phani Bhushan Das

Subramanyam Bharti Award: For work for promotion of Hindi in constructive or criticism way Surya Prasad Dixit Chandrakanta

Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan Award: For work in the field exploration and research as well as for description on its journey Chitra Mudgal Jai Prakash Kardam

Dr. George Grierson Award: Awarded to people of foreign origin for promotion and training of Hindi outside India Fujii Takeshi (Japan) Gabriela Nik Ilieva (New York)

Padmabhushan Dr. Moturi Satyanarayan Award: Awarded to people of Indian origin for promotion and training of Hindi outside India Pushpita Avasthi (Netherlands) Padmesh Gupt (London)

Source: Press Information Bureau

ANSWER: India Mobile Congress

Explanation:
The India Mobile Congress 2017 (IMC 2017), country’s first & the biggest platform to bring together all stakeholders from the domain of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) will take the Indian telecom industry at par with its international counterparts.

The three-day IMC will be held from 27th to 29th September 2017 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi and will see participation of government bodies, Telecom Service Providers (TSPs), telecom equipment manufacturers, handset manufacturers and app providers.

IMC 2017 will bring together the global mobile industry, showcase exciting new products & innovation and share the India story, bringing the world to Delhi.

The event is being organised by Department of Telecommunications along with Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) and other stakeholders.

Besides the stalwarts of the Indian telecom industry, the event will also see participation of various top notch international players who would be exploring avenues for investment in the country.

India is on the cusp of a digital revolution and the telecom industry is gradually evolving from a pure voice market to a mix of voice and data services.

The proliferation of data will enable the spread of financial services and improves access to education governance and health services.

With the Government's favourable regulation policies and 4G services hitting the market, the Indian telecommunication sector is expected to witness a fast growth in the coming years.