1. In what is considered a major step forward in biotechnology research, a group of 300 scientists from across the world, including India, have sequenced the genome of :
[A]Potato
[B]Tomato
[C]Brinjal
[D]Bell Pepper
Tomato
The achievement is expected to lower the costs and speed up efforts to improve tomato production, making it better equipped to combat pests and pathogens, and to tolerate droughts. The ‘Tomato Genome Consortium' was established after a scientific conference organised in 2003 in the U.S. Its members were drawn from the U.S., the U.K., China, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, the Netherlands, South Korea, Israel, Spain, Argentina, and Belgium. Tomato belongs to a family of vegetables called ‘Solanaceae,' which have a lot of global importance as they serve as sources of food, spices, medicines and ornamentals. The other members include potato, pepper and brinjal.
2. The issues where Indo-Bangladesh relations have hit a roadblock are :
1. Teesta river water sharing
2. Tipaimukh Project
3. Implementation of land boundary protocols.
[A]Only 1
[B]Only 2
[C]2 and 3
[D]1, 2 and 3
Option [D]
Link
3. Andaman and Nicobar( Protection of Aboriginal tribes )Amendment Regulation 2012 has been promulgated under Article 240 of the Constitution, which empowers the President to take such measures for the protection of Aboriginal tribes in case of Union Territories. This regulation will protect which of the following tribes?
[A]Onges
[B]Shompens
[C]Sentilese
[D]Jarawas
Jarawas
4. India has signed Tax Information Exchange Agreement with which of the following nations known infamously as 'tax havens' ?
1. Bahrain
2. Bermuda
3. Bahamas
4. Liberia
5. Nauru
[A]1, 2 and 3
[B]1, 2 and 4
[C]1, 2, 3 and 4
[D]2, 3, 4 and 5
1, 2, 3 and 4
5. Sultan Azlan Shah Cup is related to which among the following Sports?
[A]Badminton
[B]Hockey
[C]Table Tennis
[D]Golf
Option [B]
The Sultan Azlan Shah Cup is an annual international men's field hockey tournament held in Malaysia. It began in 1983 as a biennial contest. The tournament became an annual event after 1998, following its growth and popularity. The tournament is named after the ninth Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King) of Malaysia, Sultan Azlan Shah, an avid fan of field hockey.
6. Charles Taylor, the former president of which country has been sentenced to 50 years in jail by a U.N.-backed war crimes court for arming rebels in Sierra Leone in return for “blood diamonds" ?
[A]Mauritania
[B]Cote di'voire
[C]Rwanda
[D]Liberia
Liberia
7. Marine fisheries experts will soon cast their nets in different parts of the Bay of Bengal to assess the genetic stock of Indian mackerel. The assessment forms part of the multi-nation Bay of Bengal Large Marine Ecosystem (BoBLME) project, in which India is a participant. In this context which of the following statement(s) is/are correct regarding BoBLME ?
1. The project is funded by the IMF and the FAO besides the participating governments.
2.The otherparticipating nations are Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Maldives, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.
[A]Only 1
[B]Only 2
[C]Both 1 and 2
[D]Neither 1 nor 2
Both 1 and 2
The project is funded by the Global Environmental Facility in Norway and the Food and Agricultural Organisation besides the participating governments.
8. Which Indian State/UT has registered the maximum growth rate in 2011-2012 as per the lastest estimates of Ministry of Stastics and Proogramme Implementaion?
[A]Punjab
[B]Bihar
[C]Delhi
[D]Puducherry
Option [B]
Bihar recorded a remarkable growth of 13.1% and topped the list for the second consecutive year.
9. In a move which is expected to give a major boost to India’s neighbourhood diplomacy following similar bus links between New Delhi and Lahore and Kolkata and Dhaka; India and Myanmar are expected to sign an agreement for starting a bus service between :
[A]Imphal and Mandalay
[B]Raxaul and Yangon
[C]Kohima and Naypyidaw
[D]Dimapur and Bago
Option [A]
Aiming at establishing regional connectivity between India and Myanmar which share a 1,640-long land border for development of road transport, trade, investment, tourism and transit of goods and people across the border, the conveyance service will connect Imphal in Manipur and Mandalay in Myanmar. The objective is to ensure people-to-people interaction and enhance connectivity between the NE States and Myanmar, besides paving the way for greater interactivity in the border region so as to contribute to security and stability along the border. Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram share a border with Myanmar. India even shares a maritime boundary in the Bay of Bengal with Myanmar.
10. 'SpaceX' became the first commercial outfit to dock its own cargo capsule at the International Space Station, marking a new era for private spaceflight. The California-based SpaceX is owned by Internet entrepreneur :
[A]Jeff Bezos
[B]Elon Musk
[C]Reed Hastings
[D]Jack Dorsey
Elon Musk
11. The Rural Development Ministry has started working on the second version of the rural road programme which will focus on upgrade of roads while providing a window for new connectivity.Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY)-2 will address concerns of six States which have completed their targets under the scheme. These states are:
[A] Maharashtra, Haryana, Nagaland,Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan
[B] Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Nagaland and Rajasthan
[C]Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Kerela and Uttar Pradesh
[D]Himachal Pradesh,Uttarakhand,Assam, Nagaland, Gujarat and Rajasthan
Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Nagaland and Rajasthan
12. Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) aims to safeguard the valuable traditional knowledge from being patented by other countries . Which of the following Statement(s) is/are correct regarding TKDL?
1.The Health Ministry has fixed 1960 as the “cut-off year” for the purpose of including transcriptions of all Indian traditional works in the database of the TKDL.
2.TKDL is a collaborative project between the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and AYUSH.
[A]Only 1
[B]Only 2
[C]Both 1 and 2
[D]Neither 1 nor 2
Only 2
Waking up to piracy threat to traditional Indian medicine, the Health Ministry has now finally fixed 1950 as the “cut-off year” for the purpose of including transcriptions of all Indian traditional works in the database of the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL). The step taken for the first time aims to safeguard the valuable traditional knowledge from being patented by other countries. This means that under the TKDL, which is a collaborative project between the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the AYUSH Department of the Union Health Ministry, all literature existing before 1950 in the public domain pertaining to Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha will be converted in digitized format in five international languages — English, French, German, Spanish and Japanese.
13. The Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) is headed by:
[A]R.K.Pachauri
[B]Vandana Shiva
[C]Madhav Gadgil
[D]Pradip Krishen
Madhav Gadgil
14. The P5+1 is a group of countries which in 2006 joined the diplomatic efforts with Iran in regards to its nuclear program.The term refers to the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus ________ :
[A]Germany
[B]India
[C]Japan
[D]Brazil
Germany
15. Russia has successfully test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile capable of piercing defence systems being developed by the U.S.. It was the second launch of what is believed to be a deeply modernised Yars missile named ________.
[A]Avangard
[B]Javelin
[C]Avangard
[D]Satrun
Avangard
awesome.