10 PM Current Affairs Quiz : February 27, 2019

India successfully test-fired two indigenously developed Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air missiles (QR-SAM) from a test range off the Odisha coast. The QR-SAM weapon system has been jointly developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Bharat Electronics Ltd. It is a quick reaction, all-weather, network-centric missile system capable of search-on-the-move. It is a truck-mounted missile with a 360° rotatable, electro-mechanically operated, turret-based launch unit.

The fighters, manufactured by French planemaker Dassault Aviation, can carry a mix of bombs and missiles on its nine hard points.Apart from India, Dassault sold the Mirage 2000 to 8 other countries, including the home country of France, Egypt, UAE, Peru, Taiwan, Peru, Greece and Brazil.

The Mirage-2000 can carry out precision strikes during day and night and had played a decisive role in the 1999 war of Kargil.

The President of India has presented the Gandhi Peace Prize for the years 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018.The Gandhi Peace Prize was presented to a) the Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari for 2015; b) jointly to the Akshaya Patra Foundation and the Sulabh International for 2016; c) to the Ekal Abhiyan Trust for 2017; and d) to Shri Yohei Sasakawa (from Japan) for 2018.

Vivekananda Kendra, a Spiritual Oriented Service Organization, has been awarded for its contribution in promoting self-help, sustainability and development throughout India, especially in tribal areas.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation, an NGO for children, has been awarded for efforts in advancing education and cognition by working to remove hunger and enhance nutrition.

Gandhi Peace Prize for Social, Economic and Political transformation through Non-violence is an annual award instituted in the year 1995. The award is dedicated to the ideals and principles of peace and harmony propagated by the Mahatma Gandhi.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill amends the Citizenship Act, 1955. Legal provisions relating to acquisition and termination of citizenship of India are contained in the Citizenship Act, 1955

The bill seeks to make illegal migrants who are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, eligible for Indian citizenship. The Bill also seeks to reduce the requirement of 11 years of continuous stay in the country to six years to obtain citizenship by naturalisation. The bill was passed in the Lok Sabha in January 2019.  However, the bill lapsed as it could not be passed in the Rajya Sabha

Statements 1 is Incorrect – ECB can be raised in Indian Rupees (INR) and / or any convertible currency. Any entity raising INR denominated ECB is not permitted to convert the liability arising out of this ECB into foreign currency liability in any manner or assuming foreign currency risk is any manner by either entering into a derivative contract or otherwise.

Statements 2 is Incorrect – In a bid to improve ease of doing business, the Reserve Bank of India has decided to liberalise external commercial borrowing (ECB) norms, allowing all companies that are eligible for receiving foreign direct investment, to raise funds through the ECB route.The list of eligible borrowers has been expanded. All entities eligible to receive foreign direct investment can borrow under the ECB framework. The new framework takes immediate effect as per RBI Statement.

It has now been decided, in consultation with the Government of India, to rationalise the extant framework for ECB and Rupee denominated bonds to further improve the ease of doing business, the RBI said.

Statements 3 is Incorrect -The RBI has decided to keep the minimum average maturity period at 3 years for all ECBs, irrespective of the amount of borrowing, except for borrowers specifically permitted to borrow for a shorter period. Earlier, the minimum average maturity period was five years. The ceiling for borrowing remains at $750 million.

1. Angkor is located in Cambodia’s northern province of Siem Reap. It was the capital of the Khmer Kingdom. The Khmer empire was a powerful state in South East Asia, lasting from 802 CE to 1431 CE. It was a Hindu-Buddhist empire.
2. Two important monuments in Angkor are a) Angkor Wat, a temple complex built by King Suryavarman II and b) Angkor Thom, a temple complex built by King Jayavarman VII. Angkor is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.