1. Fausta, a female black rhino, believed to be the world’s oldest rhino, had recently died in Tanzanian conservation area. What is the IUCN status of the black rhinos?
[A] Least concern
[B] Endangered
[C] Critically Endangered
[D] Near threatened
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Critically Endangered]
Notes:
Also known as “hook-lipped rhinoceros”, these species, though called “black” are in varying colours of brown and grey. They are found in South and East Africa, including Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe. Its IUCN status is critically endangered, though the South-Western status of the black rhinoceros is classified under vulnerable.
2. Captain Vikram Batra, after whom Delhi is to rename it’s Mubarak Chowk, was martyred in which war?
[A] Sino-Indian war of 1962
[B] Indo-Pakistan war of 1947
[C] Kargil War
[D] Bangladesh Liberation War
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Kargil War]
Notes:
The Delhi government’s naming committee had recommended the renaming of Pragati Maidan metro station as Supreme Court metro station. It had also decided to rename the Mubarak Chowk and its flyover after the Kargil War martyr Captain Vikram Batra.
3. What are ‘the camel’, ‘the mongoose’, ‘kaboom’ and ‘aluminum’ that have been in news recently?
[A] Cricket bats
[B] Military codes
[C] Squadrons
[D] Chess moves
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Cricket bats]
Notes:
These terms were mentioned in the news recently to indicate the different the cricket bats used. “The Camel” bat was recently used by Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan. Mangoose, Kaboom and Aluminium are some of the other names used to describe different cricket bats.
4. On January 2, 2020, Prakash Parv was celebrated as birth anniversary of which Sikh Guru?
[A] Guru Harkrishan Sahib
[B] Guru Har Rai
[C] Guru Gobind Singh
[D] Guru Teg Bahadur
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Guru Gobind Singh]
Notes:
The birth anniversary of the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh was celebrated across the country and many parts of the world on January 2, 2020. The birth anniversary of a Sikh Guru is also called as “Prakash Parv”. As per the traditional Sikh calendar (Nanakshahi) , birthday of Guru Gobind Singh falls on January 2, this year (Though he was born on 5 January 1666 by Gregorian Calendar). Guru Gobind Singh was named as the tenth Sikh guru, at the age of 9, after the ninth Guru and his father Guru Teg Bahadur was killed.
5. What is the annual financial assistance given to eligible farmers under the PM-KISAN scheme?
[A] Rs. 10000
[B] Rs. 8000
[C] Rs. 6000
[D] Rs. 5000
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Rs. 6000]
Notes:
The 3rd installment of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM- KISAN) scheme was released by the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi in Tumakuru, Karnataka. This latest installment is expected to benefit nearly six crore beneficiaries. The PM- KISAN scheme was launched by the Prime Minister on February 2019 to provide financial assistance of Rs.6000 per year to eligible farmers in three installments of Rs.2000 each. The payment of second installment began from April 2019.
6. The ancient festival of ‘Lai Haraoba’ is recently celebrated in which state?
[A] Assam
[B] Himachal Pradesh
[C] Meghalaya
[D] Tripura
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Tripura]
Notes:
The ancient ritualistic festival observed by the people of ‘Meiti’ community of Manipur is recently celebrated in the capital city of Tripura, Agartala. Department of Information and Cultural Affairs of the Tripura state Government jointly organised this festival along with the cultural committees of the state. The festival is celebrated for five days, hosting many cultural events that include folk dance, oral literature and music.
7. The first silk processing plant of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) is set up in which state, to boost production of Patola sarees?
[A] Maharashtra
[B] Gujarat
[C] Rajasthan
[D] Madhya Pradesh
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Gujarat]
Notes:
The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) inaugurated their first silk processing plant at Surendranagar district in Gujarat. The Patola is a trademark saree variety of Gujarat. It is regarded as a royal attire as it is priced very high. The reason for high price is the non-availability of processing plants in Gujarat. The silk yarn required to weave the saree is usually purchased from other states. This new plant set up by KVIC would cut down the price of silk yarn and boost production of Patola sarees.
8. Which Indian city hosts the All India Police Judo Cluster Championship 2019?
[A] Guwahati
[B] Cuttack
[C] New Delhi
[D] Goa
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [New Delhi]
Notes:
The Central Reserve Police Force organised the 4th edition of the All India Police Judo Cluster Championship in New Delhi. The event will be held from January 4 to January 7, 2020. More than thousand sportspersons across the country are participating in the tournament. The event was inaugurated by the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai. The previous edition of the championship was organized by the Odisha Police.
9. Ratna Ojha, who recently passed away was a theatre artist and activist of which state?
[A] Odisha
[B] Meghalaya
[C] Assam
[D] West Bengal
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Assam]
Notes:
Veteran Theatre artist and Social Activist of Assam, Ratna Ojha passed away at Guwahati. He played an instrumental role in reviving the theatre play movement of the state. He had also actively participated and addressed demonstrations in several social issues of the country including those against Citizenship amendment act. For his great contribution towards the theatre art, he was honoured with the ‘Natasurya Award’ by the Assam Government.
10. Who is the first and youngest tribal woman in the world to climb six tallest mountain peaks across six continents?
[A] Malavath Poorna
[B] Shivangi Pathak
[C] Aditi Vaidya
[D] Anuja Vaidya
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Malavath Poorna]
Notes:
The 18-year-old student from a tribal family of Telengana and the famous mountain climber Malavath Poorna recently scaled the highest mountain peak of Antartica, Mt. Vinson Massif. By conquering this 4987 m high peak, Poorna became the first and youngest tribal woman in the world to climb six tallest mountain peaks across six continents. She is now preparing for her next venture of scaling North America’s highest mountain peak, Mt. Denali.
