Top Current Affairs 25 November 2020

Top Current Affairs 25 November 2020

Top Current Affairs 25 November 2020: This post contains the latest current affairs for 25 November 2020 that are important for all competitive exams like Bank, SSC, IBPS, SBI exams. You can also attempt our Current Affairs Quiz after reading our daily current affairs.

National

IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad launches International version of UMANG to mark 3 years of App

• On November 23, 2020, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, the Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Communications and Law & Justice launched the international version of the UMANG app, to mark the occasion of 3 years of UMANG and also celebrate over 2000 services milestone.
• The international app has been launched for select countries that include USA, UK, Canada, Australia, UAE, Netherlands, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand.
• The international version of the UMANG App will help Indian international students, NRIs and Indian tourists abroad, to avail government of India services, anytime.
• The UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance) was launched on 23 November 2017 by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the fifth edition of the Global Conference on Cyberspace in New Delhi.
• It is a Government of India all-in-one single, unified, secure, multi-channel, multi-lingual, multi-service mobile app, to provide access to high impact services of various Departments of Central and State Governments.

Pilibhit Tiger Reserve gets global award ‘TX2’ for doubling tiger population

• The Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR), situated in the Pilibhit district and Shahjahanpur District of Uttar Pradesh has won the first-ever international award, TX2, along with the state Forest department, for doubling the number of tigers.
• *TX2 stands for ‘Tigers times two’, signalling the goal to double wild tigers.
• PTR is the first to receive the award among all the 13 tiger range countries. (India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.)
• It achieved the goal of doubling the tiger’s population in just four years, against the target of 10 years.
• In 2014, PTR had 25 tigers which went up to 65 in 2018.

Indian Army Successfully Testfires Land-attack version of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from Andaman and Nicobar Islands 

• India successfully test-fired a land-attack version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands territory on 24 November 2020.
• The supersonic cruise missile successfully hit its target, which was on another island.
• The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile is the world`s fastest operational system in its class.
• DRDO has recently extended the range of the missile system from the existing 298 km to around 450 km.
• Brahmos is a universal long-range supersonic cruise missile system that can be launched from land, sea and air.
• The missile has been jointly developed by DRDO, India, and NPOM, Russia, through the joint venture BrahMos Aerospace.

Deep Depression over South West Bay of Bengal intensifies into Cyclonic Storm ‘Nivar’

• The Deep Depression over the South West Bay of Bengal has intensified into the Cyclonic Storm “Nivar,” on 24 November 2020.
• The cyclone is currently located 410 km east-southeast of Puducherry and 450 km southeast of Chennai.
• As per the India Meteorological Department, Cyclone Nivar is very likely to intensify into a severe cyclonic storm in the next 24-hours. 
• The storm shall cross Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts between Karaikal and Mamallapuram around Puducherry on November 25 evening.
• The impact of the Cyclone shall be faced by the governments of Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka.
• Maximum hazard will be caused to Tamil Nadu, which has been placed under ‘red’ (take action) alert.
• The NDRF has formed 30 teams to launch rescue and relief operations in these states in view of the cyclone ‘Nivar.’

International

China launches historic ‘Chang’e-5’ mission to collect & return samples from moon

• On 24 November 2020, China launched a historic mission ‘Chang’e 5‘ to moon to collect ‘first lunar samples’.
• The spacecraft “Chang’e-5” was launched on China’s indigenous Long March-5 rocket from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site on the coast of southern island province of Hainan province.
• This is China’s first attempt to retrieve samples from an extraterrestrial body.
• It is the world’s first moon-sample mission in more than 40 years.
• Till date, only two nations, US and Soviet Union have been able to collect lunar sample. The last mission was undertaken by Soviet Union’s Luna 24 mission in 1976.
• The China’s spacecraft will collect and return samples from the moon. If successful, China will become only third nation to have collected lunar sample.
• The mission aims at investigation of the landing area to obtain the on-site analysis data related to the lunar samples, as well as systematic and long-term laboratory analysis of the lunar samples.

Projects & Agreements

India announces major high-impact projects worth USD 80 million for Afghanistan

• The 2020 Afghanistan Conference was organized in Geneva from 23-24 November 2020 virtually.
• The External Affairs Minister of India, Dr S. Jaishankar led the Indian delegation at the conference.
• The Conference was co-hosted by the United Nations, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and the Government of Finland.
• India announced a slew of new development projects for Afghanistan during the conference, which includes:
  • Construction of the Shatoot Dam, which would provide safe drinking water to 2 million residents of Kabul city. This dam will be built on the 202-kilometre Phul-e-Khumri transmission line, which was built by India in 2019 to provide electricity to Kabul city.
  • Launch of Phase-IV of the High Impact Community Development Projects in Afghanistan. It involves more than 100 projects worth US$ 80 million that India would undertake in Afghanistan.

Awards

ISRO Chairman K Sivan Conferred with Doctor of Science honorary doctorate by Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala

• The Visvesvaraya Technological University, of the Government of Karnataka, has conferred the Doctor of Science honorary doctorate upon ISRO Chairman K Sivan.
• The doctorate was presented to the ISRO Chief by Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala on 21 November 2020.

Delhi Crime bags Best Drama Series at the International Emmy Awards 2020

• The Netflix show, Delhi Crime, has won the Best Drama Series award at the 48th International Emmy Awards 2020.
• Delhi Crime is the first web-series from India to win an International Emmy Award.
• The show is written and directed by Richie Mehta and features actress Shefali Shah as the main character.

Obituary

Veteran TV actor Ashiesh Roy passes away at 55 due to kidney failure

• Television actor Ashiesh Roy has passed away, suffering from kidney ailment during the coronavirus lockdown. He was 55.
• The actor had appeared in a number of TV shows and films in his long acting career which began in 1997
• Some of his famous television shows includes Movers & Shakers, Yes Boss, Remix, Baa Bahoo Aur Baby, Chaldi Da Naam Gaddi, Burey Bhi Hum Bhale Bhi Hum, Sasural Simar Ka, Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi, Mere Angne Mein, Aarambh.
• Ashiesh Roy was also a voice actor who has been dubbing for foreign films.

Days

Martyrdom Day of ‘Guru Tegh Bahadur’ being observed on 24 November

• Every year, November 24 is celebrated as Martyrdom Day of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Guru of Sikhs, of Sikh religion.
• The day is celebrated as Shaheedi Divas of Guru Tegh Bahadur across the country.
• It was on 24 November 1675, Guru Tegh Bahadur sacrificed his life for the sake of people who did not even belong to his community. to protect religion, human values, ideals and principles. 

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women: 25 November

• The United Nations designated International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women is celebrated worldwide on November 25.
• Purpose: to raise awareness of the fact that women around the world are subject to various forms of violence and true nature of the issue is often hidden.
• 2020 Theme “Orange the World: Fund, Respond, Prevent, Collect!”.
• The day was officially designated by UNGA on December 17, 1999.