Current Affairs Quiz January 2021

On 20th January 2021, Joseph R. Biden Jr. (Joe Biden) took oath as the 46th President of the United States of America(USA) at a ceremony organized at the West Front of the US Capitol building, Washington, USA. 78-year-old Joe Biden became the oldest President in the history of the USA. He was sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts. He belongs to the Democratic Political Party. Kamala Harris took an oath as the 49th Vice President. She is the first woman and first person of South Asian origin to take the office of Vice President of the USA.

Air India’s first non-stop flight service between San Francisco and Bengaluru has commenced recently.
It was in the news because the flight is operated by an all-women crew led by the accomplished pilot Captain Zoya Aggarwal. Boeing 777-200LR aircraft is used in the service and is operated on Saturdays and Tuesdays.

On January 23, 2021, Union Minister Amit Shah, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) attended a function in Guwahati, Assam where he launched the ‘Ayushman CAPF’ scheme for personnel and dependents of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), which will be fully implemented by May 1, 2021.It will cover around 28 lakh personnel of CAPF, Assam Rifles and National Security Guard (NSG) and their families under ‘Ayushman Bharat: Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana’ (AB PM-JAY).

On January 27, 2021, India has pledged USD 150,000 to activities of the United Nations (UN) Peacebuilding Fund (PFB) for 2021. It was announced by India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador TS Tirumurti during a virtual address to the High-Level Replenishment Conference for the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund. Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) is the UN’s financial instrument to sustain peace in countries or situations at risk or affected by violent conflict.

The Book, “The Making of Aadhaar: World’s Largest Identity Platform” was authored by Ram Sewak Sharma, the first director general of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) — the body that designed, implemented and manages Aadhaar — the “proof of the pudding” came after May 2014, when the use of Aadhaar under the Narendra Modi government exploded.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States has recently issued new guidelines on Drones also called unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
As per the rules, small drones will be allowed to fly over people and at night in the United States. The Drone manufacturers and operators require a Remote ID, under the new rules. This will increase security by identification of the UAVs from the ground.

Malayali is a tribal group from the Eastern Ghats residing in North Tamil Nadu. They also form the largest Scheduled tribes in that region, with over 3.5 lakh population.
Giant Rock Bee Honey sourced from the Tribes was recently added to Tribes India Collection, as per the press release by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. Over 35 new organic tribal products have been listed in the Tribes India outlets and website under ‘From Our Home to your Home’ campaign.

On January 21, 2021, Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Youth Affairs and Sports inaugurated the 1st ever Khelo India Zanskar Winter Sports & Youth Festival 2021 at Padum in Zanskar of Kargil, Ladakh UT. It will take place for 13 days from January 18-30, 2021, and is organized by Ladakh’s Sports & Youth Services Department and Tourism Department under the Khelo India program. Some of the events in the Festival are Ice Climbing, trekking on the frozen Zanskar River, Ice Hockey, snow sculpture & ethnic food festival.

The Awards have been decided by the IFFI 51 International Jury comprising eminent filmmakers from across the world, with Pablo Cesar (Argentina) as its Chairman. The members are Prasanna Vithanage (Sri Lanka), filmmaker Abu Bakr Shawky (Austria), writer and director Priyadarshan (India), director, screenwriter, and producer Rubaiyat Hossain (Bangladesh), director, writer, and producer.

The Parliament of Kazakhstan signed the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
It is a document that commits the signatories to abolish capital punishment. Life imprisonment was introduced in the country in 2004 as an alternative punishment. While ICCPR was adopted in 1966, the second optional protocol was adopted in 1989.

Veteran IPS Officer Subodh Kumar Jaiswal took charge as the new Director-General of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).
The 58-year-old officer was serving as the DGP heading the Maharashtra Police since 2019. He had earlier served with the Special Protection Group (SPG) of the country, securing the Prime Minister.

“Big Billion Startup: The Untold Flipkart Story”, written by investigative journalist Mihir Dalal, is a definitive account of the biggest start-up that redefined India’s e-commerce. The book was announced as the winner of the Gaja Capital Business Book Prize 2020.

Iran has announced to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that it plans to enrich its uranium to 20% purity, which was a level achieved before the 2015 accord. This is supposed to be done at its Fordow site which is buried into a mountain.
Iran has been continuously breaching the 2015 deals with IAEA since 2019, in response to the USA’s withdrawal from the agreement and imposition of sanctions against Iran.

The 51st International Film Festival of India (IFFI) was held from 16 to 24 January 2021 at Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium in Panaji, Goa. Due to COVID-19, it was conducted in hybrid mode i.e. 50 films out of 224 films across various categories are scheduled to be screened online. This hybrid mode format of IFFI was first in India and in Asia too.

London approved the removal of the Statues of William Beckford and Sir John Cass from its iconic Guildhall home of statues.
After the Black Lives Matter protests, the city corporation set up a task force on tackling racism, which recommended removing the statues of the two figures. The city’s elected representatives voted for the decision.

The country’s maiden Solar Electric Roll-on/roll-off (RORO) service and Kerala’s first amphibious water bus will be introduced during the year 2021-2022. Utilizing the potential of the National Waterway corridors in the State, the Department of Water Transport will gear up to introduce Barge Service for cargo movement.

As per the recent gazette notification, a High-Level Committee, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has been constituted to commemorate the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
As per the Union Culture Ministry, the Committee will decide on the nation-wide activities for the one year-long commemoration, starting from 23rd January 2021. Several historians, authors, and family members of Netaji are among the members of the Committee.

Interpol has issued a “Purple Notice” to all its member countries. The notice warns all the member countries against investment frauds via dating applications.
It has been stated that artificial romance is established with users of the apps in the initial stages and once a certain level of trust is achieved, criminals encourage users to join Ponzi investment schemes.

As a tribute to Freedom fighter ‘Netaji’ Subhas Chandra Bose, the Indian Railways has renamed the Howrah-Kalka Mail, one of the oldest running trains in India, as “Netaji Express” with effect on 23rd January 2021, the 125th Birth Anniversary of Subhas Chandra Bose. The train was first operated on 1st January 1866 as Howrah-Peshawar Express.

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) successfully Test Fired the Indigenous Smart Anti Airfield Weapon (SAAW) from the Hawk-i aircraft close to the coast of Odisha. It is the 1st Smart Weapon to be fired from an Indian Hawk-Mk132. It has been developed by Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad of Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) under HAL’s Hawk-i Program. SAAW is a precision strike weapon of 125 kg category, it has a range of 100 kms and can be used to attack enemy assets like radars, bunkers, taxi tracks and runways.