Daily Current Affairs Quiz: October 18 2024

Ans (B)

Nityanand Rai, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, represented India at the 2024 Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (APMCDRR) in Manila, Philippines.

The focus of the conference is on enhanced action for disaster risk reduction.

The Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction is the main platform for monitoring and enhancing cooperation in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.

The Philippines government and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) are organizing the 2024 APMCDRR.

The conference is being held in Manila, Philippines, from 14-18 October 2024.

The theme of the 2024 APMCDRR is “Surge to 2030: Enhancing ambition in Asia-Pacific to accelerate disaster risk reduction”.

Ans (C)

India and Colombia signed an Audio-Visual Co-Production Agreement to boost collaboration in the film industry.

Colombia is the 17th country with which India has signed such an agreement.

The agreement allows Indian and Colombian filmmakers to shoot films in each other’s countries.

India has signed Audio-Visual Co-Production Agreements with 17 countries, including Italy(2005), the United Kingdom(2005), Germany (2007), Brazil (2007), France (2010), New Zealand (2011), Poland (2012), Spain (2012), Canada (2014), China (2014), South Korea (2015), Bangladesh (2016), Portugal (2017), Israel (2018), Russia (2019), Australia (2023 ).

Ans (A)

Omar Abdullah of the National Conference party was sworn in as the first chief minister of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir on 16 October 2024.

Along with Omar Abdullah, five ministers were sworn in, four from the National Conference Party and one independent.

Surinder Kumar Choudhary, the National Conference MLA from the Jammu region, was sworn in as deputy chief minister.

The oath of office was administered by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha at the Sheri-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) in Srinagar.

The President’s rule was revoked after 6 years on 13 October 2024.

This is Omar Abdullah’s second term as chief minister; he first served from January 2009 to 8 January 2014.

Ans (B)

India is hosting the 19th International Conference of Drug Regulatory Authorities (ICDRA) meeting in New Delhi from 14 to 18 October 2024.

The event was originally scheduled for 2020 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is the first time India is hosting the ICDRA meeting.

The 18th ICDRA meeting was held in Dublin, Ireland in 2018.

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) is hosting the meeting in collaboration with the WHO.

The theme of the 19th ICDRA meeting is “Smart Regulation: Delivering Quality-Assured Medical Products for All.”

The meeting was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Jagat Parkash Nadda.

Ans (A)

President Droupadi Murmu was conferred the Degree of Honorary Doctorate in Political Science in Algeria on 15 November 2024.

She is on a three-nation tour of Algeria, Mauritania, and Malawi from 13-19 October 2024.

President Murmu is the first Indian President to visit these three African countries.

During her visit, she is accompanied by Sukanata Majumdar, Minister of State, and Members of Parliament Mukesh Kumar Dalal and Atul Garg.

President Murmu paid floral tributes to Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam on his birth anniversary on 15 October at Algiers.

Diplomatic ties between India and Algeria were established in July 1962 after Algeria gained independence from France.

The bilateral trade between India and Algeria was USD 17,733.7 million in 2023-24.

Ans (C)

Neetu David has been inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame, becoming the second female cricketer from India to receive this honor.

She was inducted a year after former captain Diana Edulji.

David holds the record for the best figures (8/53) by a woman in an individual Test innings.

Alongside David, South African legend AB de Villiers and former England captain Alastair Cook were also inducted.

David made over 100 appearances for India, including 10 Tests and 97 ODIs, as a prolific left-arm spinner.

She is the second-highest wicket-taker for India in ODI cricket, with 141 wickets.

David was the first female player from India to claim 100 wickets in One Day Internationals.

She topped the wicket-taking list at the World Cup in 2005, helping India reach their first-ever final.

Ans (C)

Aishath Azeema is set to replace Ibrahim Shaheeb as the Maldivian envoy to India.

The appointment aims to repair and reinforce ties with India, which is considered one of the Maldives’ closest bilateral partners.

This development follows President Mohamed Muizzu’s first state visit to India earlier this month.

Azeema has been in the foreign service since 1988 and served as the Maldivian ambassador to China from June 2019 to September 2023.

She has also held roles such as deputy ambassador to the UK and served in various senior positions in the Foreign Ministry, including additional secretary and joint secretary.

Ibrahim Shaheeb was appointed as the Maldivian ambassador to India in October 2022.

Ans (A)

Rajnath Singh laid the foundation for the Navy’s second Very Low Frequency (VLF) radar station in Telangana.

The VLF station will be located in the Pudur block and will cover an area of 2,900 acres.

The project will be built at a cost of ₹3,200 crore.

Once operational, the station will serve as a strategic asset of national importance, not just a military establishment.

This will be the Navy’s second VLF communication transmission station in India, following the INS Kattabomman Radar Station in Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu.

Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy noted that land allotment and funding for the project were completed during the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government in 2017.

Ans (D)

NASA has launched a mission to investigate Jupiter and its moon, Europa.

The mission is named Europa Clipper and aims to study Europa’s icy surface and subsurface ocean.

Europa is considered one of the prime locations in the search for life beyond Earth.

The Europa Clipper spacecraft was launched on a Monday.

Europa is slightly smaller than Earth’s moon and has an ice sheet estimated to be 10 to 15 miles (15 to 24 km) thick.

Scientists believe that beneath Europa’s frozen surface lies a vast ocean, potentially up to 80 miles (120 km) deep.

The subsurface ocean could provide a rich environment for life due to the presence of water, organic compounds, and energy sources like thermal vents.

Europa is one of Jupiter’s 95 known moons.

Ans (D)

HDFC Bank has inaugurated its first branch in Singapore.

The inauguration took place after receiving a wholesale banking license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

The branch was inaugurated by Rakesh Singh, the Group Head of International Banking.

HDFC Bank’s international operations now include 5 branches: Hong Kong, Bahrain, Dubai, and Singapore.

The bank also has an IFSC Banking Unit (IBU) in Gujarat International Finance Tech City.