Today's Event – 21st November 2021

• 1620 – Plymouth Colony settlers sign the Mayflower Compact (November 11, O.S.)

• 1676 – The Danish astronomer Ole Rømer presents the first quantitative measurements of the speed of light.

• 1783 – In Paris, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent d'Arlandes make the first untethered hot air balloon flight.

• 1789 – North Carolina ratifies the United States Constitution and is admitted as the 12th U.S. state.

• 1861 – American Civil War: Confederate President Jefferson Davis appoints Judah Benjamin Secretary of War.

• 1877 – Thomas Edison announces his invention of the phonograph, a machine that can record and play sound.

• 1894 – Port Arthur, China, falls to the Japanese, a decisive victory of the First Sino-Japanese War; Japanese troops are accused of massacring the remaining inhabitants.

• 1900 – Claude Monet's paintings shown at Gallery Durand-Ruel in Paris

• 1902 – The Philadelphia Football Athletics defeat the Kanaweola Athletic Club of Elmira, New York, 39–0, in the first-ever professional American football night game.

• 1905 – Albert Einstein's paper that leads to the mass–energy equivalence formula, E = mc², is published in the journal Annalen der Physik.

• 1910 – Sailors on board Brazil's warships including the Minas Gerais, São Paulo, and Bahia, violently rebel in what is now known as the Revolta da Chibata (Revolt of the Lash).

• 1916 – Mines from SM U-73 sink the HMHS Britannic, the largest ship lost in the First World War.

• 1918 – The Flag of Estonia, previously used by pro-independence activists, is formally adopted as the national flag of the Republic of Estonia.

• 1918 – The Parliament (Qualification of Women) Act 1918 is passed, allowing women to stand for Parliament in the UK.

• 1918 – A pogrom takes place in Lwów (now Lviv); over three days, at least 50 Jews and 270 Ukrainian Christians are killed by Poles.

• 1920 – Irish War of Independence: On "Bloody Sunday" in Dublin, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) assassinated a group of British Intelligence agents, and British forces killed 14 civilians at a Gaelic football match at Croke Park.

• 1922 – Rebecca Latimer Felton of Georgia takes the oath of office, becoming the first female United States Senator.

• 1927 – Columbine Mine massacre: Striking coal miners are allegedly attacked with machine guns by a detachment of state police dressed in civilian clothes.

• 1942 – The completion of the Alaska Highway (also known as the Alcan Highway) is celebrated (however, the highway is not usable by standard road vehicles until 1943)

• 1945 – The United Auto Workers strike 92 General Motors plants in 50 cities to back up worker demands for a 30-percent raise.

• 1950 – Two Canadian National Railway trains collide in northeastern British Columbia in the Canoe River train crash; the death toll is 21, with 17 of them Canadian troops bound for Korea.

• 1953 – The Natural History Museum, London announces that the "Piltdown Man" skull, initially believed to be one of the most important fossilized hominid skulls ever found, is a hoax.

• 1959 – American disc jockey Alan Freed, who had popularized the term "rock and roll" and music of that style, is fired from WABC radio over allegations he had participated in the payola scandal.

• 1961 – The "La Ronde" opens in Honolulu, first revolving restaurant in the United States.

• 1962 – The Chinese People's Liberation Army declares a unilateral ceasefire in the Sino-Indian War.

• 1964 – The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge opens to traffic. At the time it is the world's longest bridge span.

• 1964 – Second Vatican Council: The third session of the Roman Catholic Church's ecumenical council closes.

• 1969 – U.S. President Richard Nixon and Japanese Premier Eisaku Satō agree on the return of Okinawa to Japanese control in 1972. The U.S. retains rights to bases on the island, but these are to be nuclear-free.

• 1969 – The first permanent ARPANET link is established between UCLA and SRI.

• 1971 – Indian troops, partly aided by Mukti Bahini (Bengali guerrillas),defeat the Pakistan army in the Battle of Garibpur.

• 1972 – Voters in South Korea overwhelmingly approve a new constitution, giving legitimacy to Park Chung-hee and the Fourth Republic.

• 1974 – The Birmingham pub bombings kill 21 people. The Birmingham Six are sentenced to life in prison for the crime but subsequently acquitted.

• 1977 – Minister of Internal Affairs Allan Highet announces that the national anthems of New Zealand shall be the traditional anthem "God Save the Queen" and "God Defend New Zealand".

• 1979 – The United States Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan, is attacked by a mob and set on fire, killing four.

• 1980 – A deadly fire breaks out at the MGM Grand Hotel in Paradise, Nevada (now Bally's Las Vegas). Eighty-five people are killed and more than 650 are injured in the worst disaster in Nevada history.

• 1985 – United States Navy intelligence analyst Jonathan Pollard is arrested for spying after being caught giving Israel classified information on Arab nations. He is subsequently sentenced to life in prison.

• 1986 – National Security Council member Oliver North and his secretary start to shred documents allegedly implicating them in the Iran–Contra affair.

• 1990 – Bangkok Airways Flight 125 crashes on approach to Samui Airport, killing 38

• 1992 – A major tornado strikes the Houston, Texas area during the afternoon. Over the next two days the largest tornado outbreak ever to occur in the US during November spawns over 100 tornadoes.

• 1995 – The Dayton Agreement is initialed at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, near Dayton, Ohio, ending three and a half years of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

• 1996 – Humberto Vidal explosion: Thirty-three people die when a Humberto Vidal shoe shop in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico explodes.

• 1998 – Finnish satanist Jarno Elg kills a 23-year-old man and performs a ritual-like cutting and eating of body parts in Hyvinkää, Finland

• 2002 – NATO invites Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia to become members.

• 2002 – Arturo Guzmán Decena, founder of Los Zetas and high-member of the Gulf Cartel, is killed in a shoot-out with the Mexican Army and the police.

• 2004 – The second round of the Ukrainian presidential election is held, giving rise to massive protests and controversy over the election's integrity.

• 2004 – Dominica is hit by the most destructive earthquake in its history. The northern half of the island sustains the most damage, especially the town of Portsmouth. In neighboring Guadeloupe, one person is killed.

• 2004 – The Paris Club agrees to write off 80% (up to $100 billion) of Iraq's external debt.

• 2006 – Anti-Syrian Lebanese politician and government minister Pierre Gemayel is assassinated in suburban Beirut.

• 2009 – A mine explosion in Heilongjiang, China kills 108.

• 2012 – At least 28 are wounded after a bomb is thrown onto a bus in Tel Aviv.

• 2013 – Fifty-four people are killed when the roof of a shopping center collapses in Riga, Latvia.

• 2013 – Massive protests start in Ukraine after President Viktor Yanukovych suspended signing the Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement.

• 2014 – A stampede in Kwekwe, Zimbabwe caused by the police firing tear gas kills at least eleven people and injures 40 others.

• 2015 – The government of Belgium imposes a security lockdown on Brussels, including the closure of shops, schools, and public transportation, due to potential terrorist attacks.

• 2017 – Robert Mugabe formally resigns as President of Zimbabwe, after thirty-seven years in office.

• 2019 – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is indicted on charges of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust.

• 2019 – Tesla launches the SUV Cybertruck. A gaffe occurs during the launch event when its "unbreakable" windows shatter during demonstration.

National Events- 

•  The Centre has allowed SII to export 50 Lakh doses of Covishied under the UN-backed COVAX global vaccine sharing programme to Nepal, Tajikistan and Mozambique. SII will also export Covishield to Bangladesh under COVAX, an official source said.

•  Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Friday announced on the occasion of Gurupurab the government's intention to withdraw the laws in the interest of the nation.

•  Days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the contentious farm laws will be repealed, Unnao BJP MP Sakshi Maharaj has stated that the laws can be brought again, if needed.

• In a press conference held at the Singhu border on Sunday, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) said that protest events will take place as per schedule for the time being. It further added that a meeting will be held on November 27 to decide on the future course of action. Farmer unions will also write an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighting their remaining demands 

• In a veiled dig at China, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said “some irresponsible nations” with their narrow partisan interests and hegemonic tendencies are coming up with wrong definitions of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

International Events- 

•  Former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s first diplomatic posting was in India and he developed such a special connection that even 50 years later, he tells the Indian people that half of his “heart belongs in their country”.

•  Pop star Justin Bieber is facing growing calls to cancel his concert in Saudi Arabia next month as the fiancee of slain Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi joined a chorus of voices on Sunday urging him not to perform at the kingdom’s Formula One race.

•  Thousands took to the streets across Europe and Australia on Saturday to protest fresh rounds of COVID restrictions.

• A cyberattack on Sunday disrupted access to Iran’s privately owned Mahan Air, state TV reported, marking the latest in a series of cyberattacks on Iranian infrastructure that has put the country on edge. 

• Venezuela’s National System of Youth and Children’s Orchestras – known as “El Sistema” – has set a new Guinness record for the world’s largest orchestra with 8,573 musicians playing together, the country’s government said on Saturday.

Job alerts-

• AIIMS Patna Jobs for Engineers and other posts. Last date 20-12-2021

• DRDO Jobs for Apprentice, JRF, RA and other posts. Last date 10-12-2021

• South Eastern Railway Jobs for Apprentice and other posts. Last date 14-12-2021

• Ministry of Defence Jobs for  Apprentice and other posts. Last date 14-12-2021

• Bank of Baroda Jobs for IT Specialist Officers and other posts. Last date 06-12-2021

Sports-

• Tim Paine on Friday quit Australia's Test captaincy after his four-year-old alleged lewd conversation with a then female colleague came to light recently. 

•  Gujarat top-order batter Priyank Panchal will lead the India A squad for the tour of South Africa beginning from November 23.

•  Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is no longer the manager of Manchester United.

•  With a year to go, almost half the field for the 2022 World Cup is set. Thirteen countries have already booked their places for the tournament, which opens in Qatar next Nov. 21: some with ease, cruising through qualifying, and some with a touch more drama.

• Zlatan Ibrahimovic became the oldest player to score multiple goals in a Serie A game, but his brace still wasn’t enough for AC Milan to win on Saturday.

Technology-

• Indian police said they had charged senior executives of Amazon.com's local unit under narcotics laws in a case of alleged marijuana smuggling via the online retailer. 

•  Fire-Boltt replaced Huami for the third position in the India smartwatch market recently, as its share jumped to 15.3% in 3Q21 from 5.5% from a quarter before. 

Economy – 

• The foreign exchange — forex — reserves fell by $763 million to $640.112 billion in the week ended November 12, according to data released by the RBI.

•  To be held on November 23, the fifth National Conclave on Mines and Minerals will have many significant segments that will encourage exploration activities, auction regime and sustainable mining practices.

•  The government has listed for sale real estate assets of state-run telecom firms MTNL and BSNL at a reserve price of around Rs 970 crore, according to documents uploaded on the DIPAM website.

• The Central Board of Trustees (CBT) of retirement fund body EPFO on Saturday approved investment of up to 5 per cent of its annual deposits in new asset classes of alternative investment funds (AIFs),including infrastructure investment trusts (InvITs). 

• Ola Electric on Saturday said it has expanded the customer test rides for its electric scooters across the country.

Local –

•  The Delhi Police arrested a 38-year-old man Hitesh Rajput from Haryana who was allegedly selling firearms on social media platforms.

•  Maharashtra opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis of BJP on Sunday dared the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government to ban Raza Academy in the state.

•  Faced with vaccine hesitancy among a section of people, the West Bengal government plans a door-a-door survey to identify and inoculate people who are due for their second Covid-19 dose.

•  The Tamil Nadu government Saturday released a policy specifically aimed at ensuring the well-being of children across a range of indices such as health, nutrition, and access to schooling.

• Bengaluru city police are looking for a security guard and his wife who allegedly fled after stealing over Rs 50 lakh from the house they were working at in East Bengaluru on November 15. A police officer said three teams have been sent to Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata in search of the couple.

GK – 

Which Indian state has topped the Public Affairs Index (PAI 2021)?

[A] Tamil Nadu
[B] Kerala
[C] Telangana
[D] Gujarat

What is the new name given to the species of human ancestors, who lived in Africa during the Middle Pleistocene?

[A] Homo bodoensis
[B] Homo Africane
[C] Home chibanian
[D] Homo Neanderthals

Which country is set to launch trade promotion event ‘Time for India’ to boost bilateral trade with India?

[A] Switzerland
[B] Sweden
[C] Germany
[D] Denmark

Puneeth Rajkumar, who passed away recently, was a famous actor in which language?

[A] Tamil
[B] Kannada
[C] Telugu
[D] Malayalam

‘Plogging’, which was seen in the news recently, is associated with which field?

[A] Agriculture and Fitness
[B] Fitness and cleanliness
[C] Yoga and Cleanliness
[D] Painting and Fitness