11. Pardeep Singh, who was seen in news recently, is associated with which sports?
[A] Boxing
[B] Archery
[C] Weight-lifting
[D] Tennis
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Weight-lifting]
Notes:
Indian weight-lifter Pardeep Singh was seen in news recently, as he won the men’s 102kg gold medal in the National weightlifting championships, recently held in Kolkata.
He improved his performance than what he did in the Asian championships in China, last year. Another leading lifter Vikas Thakur won gold medal in the men’s 96kg category. Both the lifters are in the promising list for the upcoming Asian championships in Kazakhstan. Mirabai Chanu and Jeremy Lalrinnunga were named as ‘Best Lifters’ of the championships.
12. Recently, Esperanza Base on the Antarctic Peninsula reached a temperature of 18.3 °C , thus becoming the hottest on record for continental Antarctica. Esperanza Base is a research station of which country on Antarctica?
[A] France
[B] Portugal
[C] Argentina
[D] England
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Argentina]
Notes:
Esperanza Base (Hope Base) is a permanent, all-year-round Argentine research station in Hope Bay, Trinity Peninsula in Antarctica.
13. Municipal Performance Index (MPI), is an index recently launched by which organisation/ Ministry?
[A] NITI Aayog
[B] Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs
[C] Ministry of Home Affairs
[D] National Development Council
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs]
Notes:
The Union Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has recently launched two Assessment Frameworks, namely Ease of Living Index (EoLI) and Municipal Performance Index (MPI) 2019.
The two indices are expected to assess the quality of life of citizens in 100 Smart Cities and 14 other cities, with more than 1 million population. The MPI assesses the performance of municipalities based on five parameters of Service, Finance, Planning, Technology and Governance.
14. Which state announced that a centre called ‘Bharosa centre’, to monitor the impact of social media on youth?
[A] Uttar Pradesh
[B] Maharashtra
[C] Madhya Pradesh
[D] Odisha
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Maharashtra]
Notes:
The state of Maharashtra recently announced that ‘Bharosa Centre’ would be launched in the state to monitor the impact of social media on youth.
The proposed Centre would comprise a psychologist, woman police officer and counsellor in the Raigad district of the state to monitor the impact of social media on youth. The announcement was made during the closing ceremony of the seventh Aurangabad International Film Festival.
15. When is the ‘International Day of Women and Girls in Science’ celebrated across the world?
[A] 10 February
[B] 11 February
[C] 12 February
[D] 13 February
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [11 February]
Notes:
The ‘International Day of Women and Girls in Science’ is celebrated across the world on 11 February. The United Nations General Assembly adopted the resolution in 2015 and declared 11 February as the day of Women and Girls in Science. Since then, the day is celebrated annually.
The day is aimed to achieve complete gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls and to encourage more women to take up their career in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) field.
16. What is the theme of the ‘World Radio Day, 2020’, observed on February 13?
[A] Radio and Diversity
[B] Radio across World
[C] Radio and Multilingualism
[D] Connecting through Air
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Radio and Diversity]
Notes:
The proclamation of UNESCO member states was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2013 to celebrate February 13 as the World Radio Day. The theme of this year’s celebration is “Radio and Diversity’.
The day celebrated to raise awareness about the importance of radio and access to information. This year, the day is celebrated across the world, led by UNESCO. It has started a campaign called ‘We are Radio; We are Diversity’.
17. Pradhan Mantri Van Dhan Yojana is the flagship scheme of which Union Ministry?
[A] Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
[B] Ministry of Tribal Affairs
[C] Ministry of Earth Sciences
[D] Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Ministry of Tribal Affairs]
Notes:
The Ministry of Tribal Affairs launched the ‘Pradhan Mantri Van Dhan Yojana’ in 2019, through TRIFED. It aims at creating livelihood for tribal people by using the forest produce. Van Dhan Kendras are set up to add branding and packaging their products.
Recently, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda inaugurated the “Workshop on Van Dhan and Entrepreneurship Development” organized by TRIFED (Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India).
18. What is the capital package recently approved for infusion in three state-owned general insurance companies?
[A] Rs. 1000 Cr
[B] Rs. 2500 Cr
[C] Rs. 3000 Cr
[D] Rs. 5000 Cr
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Rs. 2500 Cr]
Notes:
The Union Cabinet approved a proposal for capital infusion and immediate release of Rs 2,500 crore to three state-owned general insurance companies. The three public sector companies are: United India Insurance, National Insurance Company and Oriental Insurance Company.
The capital infusion is announced at the backdrop of their critical financial position and breach of regulatory solvency requirements, stipulated by the insurance regulator IRDAI. The companies are expected to be merged in this year.
19. Which country has unveiled its first Artificial Intelligence (AI) Police officer Ella?
[A] Japan
[B] Singapore
[C] New Zealand
[D] Saudi Arabia
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [New Zealand]
Notes:
The New Zealand Police have recently unveiled their first Artificial Intelligence (AI) Police officer Ella. Ella stands for ‘Electronic Lifelike Assistant’, which will be configured at the digital kiosks, to resolve the queries of public and reduce queues in stations.
Ella will be made available in the headquarters building initially, and will be expanded to other parts of the country soon. The virtual assistant has been designed as a mix of 26 different people.
20. ‘Apiary on Wheels’ is an initiative of which statutory body of India?
[A] National Commission for Women
[B] National Commission for Minorities
[C] National Green Tribunal
[D] Khadi and Village Industries Commission
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Khadi and Village Industries Commission ]
Notes:
‘Apiary on wheels’ means ‘Collection of bees on wheels’. The ‘Apiary on Wheels’ initiative is designed by the Indian statutory body, ‘Khadi and Village Industries Commission’.
The initiative includes effective migration of Bee boxes with live bee colonies/ collection. It is a platform by which 20 Bee boxes can be carried from one place to another without any difficulty. The unique scheme of KVIC was recently inaugurated by the Union Minister of MSME Shri Nitin Gadkari.