Current Affairs - December 4, 2019 Current Affairs

The UN climate change conference COP25 has started in Madrid, Spain on behalf of the United Nations. It was earlier scheduled to be held in Santiago, Chile, but the government there has expressed its inability to organize COP-25. This conference will be held from 2 December to 13 December in Madrid. The venue was changed in view of the growing protests in Chile.

King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden are on a five-day visit to India aimed at strengthening bilateral ties. The Swedish royal couple, who arrived in India on December 2,2019 were accorded a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Lewis Hamilton ended another title-winning Formula One season by cruising to victory at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. In his 250th grand prix, Mercedes' six-time world champion qualified on pole for the first time since July's German Grand Prix and eased clear of the field to claim an easy victory at the Yas Marina Circuit.

A powerful typhoon is blowing through the central Philippines, damaging homes and heading toward the capital, Manila. Typhoon Kammuri hit the eastern coast overnight and was moving west through Quezon province ripping off roofs, toppling trees and knocking out power. It had maximum sustained winds of 155 km per hour and gusts of up to 190 kph. Nearly 90,000 residents were evacuating coastal and low-lying areas prone to flash floods and landslides.

Maharashtra government approved Rs.606 crores to monitor all schemes related to farmers on a regular basis. The new government aims to introduce new approaches to resolve issues related to cultivators, who have suffered crop losses in unseasonal rains in October. The government said that it will provide any negligible assistance and satisfactory provision for farmers.

Neenu Ittyerah has assumed charge as the Principal Chief Operations Manager (PCOM) of Southern Railway. Ms. Ittyerah, a 1988 batch Indian Railway Traffic Service officer, is the first woman to be appointed to the PCOM post. She comes in place of S. Anantharaman who had retired recently. A Fulbright scholar, she has held high ranking posts as Divisional Railway Manager of Madurai Division and in other departments including Infrastructure Planning, Freight Operations and Marketing and Ticketing systems. She had also served as the Chairman of the Railway Recruitment Board in Thiruvananthapuram.

Walmart India, in partnership with HDFC Bank, on December 2 launched a co-branded credit card exclusively for members of its Best Price Modern Wholesale "B2B Cash & Carry" stores, offering "free credit up to 50 days. The card was launched in Hyderabad at Best Price Store. Simultaneously, the card was launched at 26 other Best Price Modern Wholesale Store locations across the country.

NASA satellite orbiting the Moon has found India's Chandrayaan-2 Vikram lander which crashed on the lunar surface in September. NASA released an image taken by its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) that showed the site of the spacecraft's impact (September 6 in India and September 7 in the U.S.) and associated debris field, with parts scattered over almost two dozen locations spanning several kilometers.

The objective of this flagship scheme of the government is to immunize children below 2 years of age and protect pregnant women from preventable diseases. Vaccines for diphtheria, cough, tetanus, polio, tuberculosis, measles, meningitis and hepatitis B have been included in this campaign. The mission will be held from 02 December 2019 to 02 March 2020. It will cover 272 districts of 27 states across India.

The Awards for the first-ever VATAVARAN-2019 Short Film Competition and Festival on Environment was presented in New Delhi. It was organized by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and Centre for Media Studies (CMS). The award was presented in three categories namely: School students, Amateur and College students and Professionals.

The objective of this flagship scheme of the government is to immunize children below 2 years of age and protect pregnant women from preventable diseases. Vaccines for diphtheria, cough, tetanus, polio, tuberculosis, measles, meningitis and hepatitis B have been included in this campaign. The mission will be held from 02 December 2019 to 02 March 2020. It will cover 272 districts of 27 states across India.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on December 2 oversaw the launch of a landmark pipeline that will transport natural gas from Siberia to northeast China, an economic and political boost to ties between Moscow and Beijing. The 3,000-km-long (1,865 mile) Power of Siberia pipeline will transport gas from the Chayandinskoye and Kovytka fields in eastern Siberia, a project expected to last for three decades and to generate $400 billion for Russian state coffers.

Lt Gen Podali Shankar Rajeshwar took over as the 14th Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman and Nicobar Command (CINCAN). He is a graduate of Indian Military Academy and was commissioned into the Regiment of Artillery in December 1980.

Saudi Arabia has accepted the Presidency of the G20 group and the conference will be held in Riyadh in 2020. Saudi Arabia has pledged to continue the group's current operations and build multinational consensus on various issues. Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has described it as an important opportunity to shape international synergy.

English author Tony Joseph has won 12th 'Shakti Bhatt First Book Prize' for his 2018 book, 'Early Indians: The Story of Our Ancestors and Where We Came'. Tony Joseph, a journalist-author won against four other debut writers and the award was announced Shakti Bhatt Foundation.

Rating agency Crisil on December 2 sharply cut its growth forecast for the current financial year to 5.1 percent from an earlier estimate of 6.3 per cent. Growth in the second half of 2019-20 will go up to 5.5 percent, up from the 4.75 percent in the first half.

The Indigenous Faith Day (IFD) 2019 was celebrated in Tezu, Arunachal Pradesh. The Day aims to preserve the rich culture and identity of the State. The function was presided by Tezu legislator Karikho Kri. The programme was organized by the Indigenous Faith and Cultural Society of Arunachal Pradesh (IFCSAP) of Tezu. The tribes of the district showcased their cultures in a colourful programme.

Lionel Messi claimed a record sixth men's Ballon d'Or award on December 2, beating Liverpool's four leading nominees to claim soccer's most prestigious individual trophy. He beat Virgil van Dijk, the runner-up, and third-placed Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal, who has won the award five times.

Sub-lieutenant Shivangi became the first woman pilot for the Indian Navy on December 2. Shivangi was born in the city of Muzaffarpur in Bihar. Shivangi was commissioned into the Indian Navy last year after her initial training. Shivangi joined operational duties at the Kochi naval base. She will be flying the Dornier surveillance aircraft of the Indian Navy.

The Nagaland Hornbill Festival began at Naga Heritage Village at Kisama in Nagaland from 1 December 2019 to 10 December 2019 a. The year 2019 celebrates the 20th edition of Hornbill Festival and the festival this year coincides with Nagaland Statehood Day. The much-awaited festival began with a colourful blend of culture and tradition with a modern twist. Hornbill festival is also known as 'Festival of Festivals' and is named after hornbill bird. This festival symbolises 'Respect and 'Folklore' among Nagas.