Current Affairs Quiz 20 January 2021 | Current Affairs for SSC, IBPS, Railway, UPSC Exams

Explanation:

Furfura, a village in West Bengal’s Hooghly district, about 50 km from Kolkata, transforms every Friday morning into a major pilgrimage centre. Before the afternoon prayers, people queue up at the mazar (shrine) of Hazrat Abu Baqar Siddique (1846-1939), a prominent peer (holy person) of the town. Furfura Sharif (also known as Furfura, Phurphura, Furfura Darbar Sharif) is a village in Hooghly District, West Bengal. It is a holy place for Bengali Muslims.

Explanation:

Gujarat ranks fourth among the top five States with highly polluted rivers, with as many as 20 rivers in the critically polluted category. According to data from the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF), the Sabarmati is among the most polluted rivers in the country. As per the official parameters, if the chemical oxygen demand (COD), which indicates organic pollutant load, is higher than 250 mg per litre, then it should not be released into the rivers.

Explanation:

The Finance Ministry is examining other avenues for affordable capital infusion, including setting up of a Bank Investment Company (BIC) with the RBI raising concerns over the issuance of zero-coupon bonds for recapitalisation of public sector banks (PSBs). Setting up a BIC as a holding company or a core investment company was suggested by the P.J. Nayak Committee in its report on ‘Governance of Boards of Banks in India’. The report recommended transferring shares of the government in the banks to the BIC which would become the parent holding company of all these banks; as a result of this, all the PSBs would become ‘limited’ banks.

Explanation:

Winter migratory water birds using the central Asian flyway have started making a beeline to Punjab’s Harike wetland, offering a delight for bird lovers. Harike Wetland also known as "Hari-ke-Pattan", with the Harike Lake in the deeper part of it, is the largest wetland in northern India in the border of Tarn Taran Sahib district and Ferozepur district of Punjab.

Explanation:

Indian-American Dr. Raj Iyer has taken over as the first Chief Information Officer of the US Army, after the Pentagon created the position in July 2020. One of the highest ranking Indian-American civilians in the U.S. Department of Defense, Dr. Iyer, serves as the Principal Adviser to the Secretary of the Army and directs representation of the Secretary in matters relating to information management/ information technology (IT).

Explanation:

Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa laid the foundation stone for the ‘New Anubhava Mantapa’ in Basavakalyan, the place where 12th century poet-philosopher Basavanna lived for most of his life. Basavakalyan, an important pilgrim centre for Lingayats. The New Anubhava Mantapa, as envisaged now, will be a six-floor structure in the midst of the 7.5 acre plot and represent various principles of Basaveshwara’s philosophy. The building will adopt the Kalyana Chalukya style of architecture.

Explanation:

World food prices rose for a seventh consecutive month in December, with all the major categories, barring sugar, posting gains last month. The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index is a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities. It consists of the average of five commodity group price indices [cereal, vegetable, dairy, meat and sugar], weighted with the average export shares.

Explanation:

The directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) has accorded aerodrome licence for public use to Orvakal greenfield airport in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh. Orvakal is one of 50 low-cost airports proposed across the country to enhance air connectivity to remote areas by grounding no-frills facilities which are energy-efficient with minimum security hold.

Explanation:

The National Road Safety Month (January 18-February 17) was inaugurated with the inaugural function held at the Vigyan Bhavan. During the last few years, a road safety week was being organised, but considering the importance of the issue, a month-long programme has been made this year. The first-ever National Road Safety Month was inaugurated, to build awareness about road safety and reduce road accidents in India. In India, a total of 1.5 lakh people died, while more than 4.5 lakh people got injured in road accidents every year.

Explanation:

Defence Research and Development Organisation handed over Motor Bike Ambulance Rakshita to the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). Rakshita is fitted with a customized reclining Casualty Evacuation Seat (CES), which can be fitted in and taken out as per requirement.