1) As part of its initiative to sensitize the masses about the issue of climate change, the Union Govt. on 15 October 2015 flagged off a special train on the subject of climate change action. What is the name of this train that was flagged off from Delhi? – ‘Science Express Climate Action Special (Climate Change Special)’
Explanation: ‘Science Express Climate Action Special’ is a 16-coach air-conditioned train that was launched on 15 October from Delhi in the run-up to the global climate summit in Paris slated for December. The exhibits on the train would cover specific topics like adaptation, mitigation, India’s action on mitigation, international climate change negotiations, nature conservation, innovations in India, science lab, biotechnology applications and others.
- Over 190 countries would meet in Paris in December 2015 under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to strike a new global climate deal aimed at controlling global carbon emissions for tackling global warming.
- The train will run till 7 May 2016 and during the course of these eight months, it would stop at 64 locations across India, covering over 19,500 kilometres. Some of these locations are Patiala, Jaisalmer, Agra, Ambala, New Jalpaiguri, Vishakhapatnam, Vellore, Rameswaram, Mangalore and Gandhinagar.
2) What was the significance of President Pranab Mukherjee’s three-nation visit to Jordan, Palestine and Israel that concluded on 15 October 2015? – This was the first-ever visit of these three countries by an Indian President
Explanation: President Pranab Mukherjee’s state visit to three nations – Jordan, Palestine and Israel was significant because it was the first-ever visit of an Indian head-of-state to these countries. The President left for the visit on 10 October 2015.
Jordan Visit
- The first leg of the visit took the President to the Kingdom of Jordan. This visit was the first by an Indian President to Jordan in the last 65 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had visited Jordan in 1988. He met Jordan’s King Abdullah-II Ibn Al Hussein and delivered a speech at the University of Jordan.
Palestine Visit
- The second leg of President’s visit was of Palestine, which was also the first by an Indian Head of State. Reflecting the complicated situation, the President and his entourage drove from the Ben-Gurion airport of Israel to the Bitunia checkpoint which divides Israel from the Palestinian territory. At the checkpoint the President and members of his delegation had to change from Israeli vehicles to those arranged on the Palestinian side. In Palestine, with which India shares ties over a long period, the President met his counterpart Mahmoud Abbas, besides Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah.
Israel Visit
- The third and final leg of the visit was the 3-day visit of Israel. Apart from becoming the first Indian President to visit Israel, President Mukherjee also became the first Indian Head of State to address Israeli Parliament Knesset. India established diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992 and since then the relationship has evolved into a multi-dimensional partnership.
3) The Australian government on 15 October 2015 gave its approval to India’s Adani Group to go ahead with the $7-billion coal mine project. The approval was given subject to 36 of the strictest conditions in Australian history. This Adani project, which has been in news for quite some time now, is in which Australian state? – Queensland
Explanation: The $7-billion coal mine project comprises of two mines in Australia’s state of Queensland – the Carmichael Mine and the North Galilee Basin Rail (NGBR) mine. The project is at the heart of Adani’s plans to build a long-term future with Queensland. The project was given an approval in 2014 but that approval was set aside at the request of the Australian government in August 2015 as a precautionary measure.
- The new approval is based on the protection and improvement of 31,000 hectares of the southern black-throated finch habitat. This will also require $1 million of funding for research programmes to improve conservation of the threatened species in the Galilee Basin.
4) A pan-India strike was observed by chemists (medical stores or pharmacies) on 14 October 2015. Around eight lakh pharmacies across the country were closed on the strike call given by the All India Organization of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD). What was the reason for this strike? – To protest against the trend of online drug sales in the country
Explanation: Chemists are protesting the growing trend of online sale of drugs in the country as they feel this can prove hazardous for consumers. A slew of companies opened shop online in India last year to tap a market worth more than an estimated $10 billion.
- But India has no specific rules covering e-retailers, and bricks-and-mortar sellers (medical store owners) feel drugs are being sold online without proper verification. AIOCD has made its representations to the Union Govt. to take steps to close down all illegal online pharma companies immediately.
- At present, as per the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, only registered pharmacists are permitted to sell drugs on production of a valid prescription. But the chemists say that government is considering bringing in changes in the Act – which would pave way for online sale of drugs.
5) What was the brand-value of India during 2015 as estimated by London-based Brand Finance, a leading independent brand valuation and strategy consultancy? – $2.14 trillion
Explanation: Brand Finance’s 2015 edition of Nation Brands report was released during October 2015. India’s brand-value was evaluated at $2.14 trillion, a huge 32% increase as compared with $1.62 trillion last year. Not only has India’s rate of increase been the highest among the top 10 by brand value, it has also helped the country improve its global ranking by a notch to seventh.
- The report measures the strength and value of 100 countries using a method based on the royalty-relief mechanism employed to value large companies. Only three Asian nations – China, India and South Korea – figure among the top 20 most valuable nation brands.
- The US remains the most valuable nation brand in the report. Germany, the third-most-valuable nation brand, has been replaced in the strongest nation brand by Singapore. This is mainly due to the Volkswagen controversy that engulfed Germany recently.
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