31. Which global technological company was first to launch a web portal which tracks COVID-19 infections worldwide?
[A] Google
[B] Microsoft
[C] Facebook
[D] Amazon
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Microsoft]
Notes:
Microsoft Bing team has launched a web portal for tracking COVID-19 infections worldwide. The interactive website has been developed to provide up-to-date infection statistics for each country.
It also features an interactive map for number of cases for specific location and related articles from publishers. The portal hosts the data from reliable sources like the World Health Organization (WHO), the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
32. A village called “Amin” is set to be renamed as “Abhimanyupur”. In which state, the village is located?
[A] Uttar Pradesh
[B] Haryana
[C] Uttarakhand
[D] Gujarat
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Haryana]
Notes:
After the state government of Haryana requested to rename its village in Kurukshetra district, the centre has given approval for renaming.
The decision has been taken by the Union Home Ministry after getting formal approval and a No objection certificate from a few central organisations including Ministry of Railways, Department of Posts and Survey of India.
33. Which Indian institution has launched a re-skilling programme for women called ‘Career Back 2 Women’?
[A] Indian Institute of Science
[B] Indian Institute of Management-Ahmadabad
[C] Indian Institute of Technology-Madras
[D] Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Indian Institute of Technology-Madras]
Notes:
The Indian Institute of Technology-Madras has recently launched a re-skilling programme for women called ‘Career Back 2 Women’.
The programme aims at offering 150 hours of training to re-skill women who have taken a break from their career. The certification course comprises of artificial intelligence, machine learning, cyber security data science and big data. This programme is done through the Institute’s Digital Skills Academy.
34. ‘Hemostat’ which was in news recently, is a material developed to stop rapid blood loss during accidents. It is made up of which component?
[A] Starch
[B] Plastic
[C] Cotton
[D] Paper
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Starch]
Notes:
Scientists from the Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST), an autonomous institute under the Department of Science & Technology, have developed a material called ‘Hemostat’.
It is a starch-based ‘hemostat’ developed to stop rapid blood loss during accidents, as it physically absorbs excess fluid and concentrates the natural clotting factors in blood. The product possesses increased absorption capacity, improved absorption, inexpensive and biodegradable.
35. As per the recent notification from the Reserve Bank of India, PAs are to be regulated by the central bank. What does ‘PA’ stand for?
[A] Payment Agency
[B] Payment Aggregator
[C] Payment Authority
[D] Processing Authority
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Payment Aggregator]
Notes:
The Reserve Bank of India recently announced that it will regulate the entire activities of Payment Aggregators (PAs). Payment Aggregators enable the e-commerce sites and merchants to accept various payment instruments from the customers.
As per the guidelines on regulation of PAs and Payment gateways (PGs), the existing PAs should attain a net-worth of Rs 15 crore by March 31, 2021 and a net-worth of Rs 25 crore on or before March 31, 2023. Thereafter the net-worth of Rs 25 crore shall be maintained at all times.
36. Rishi Sunak, the Finance Minister of which country unveiled a 330-Billion Pound Rescue Package to help fight corona virus?
[A] Sri Lanka
[B] Thailand
[C] United Kingdom
[D] Italy
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [United Kingdom]
Notes:
The first Indian-origin Finance Minister of the United Kingdom Rishi Sunak unveiled a 330-Billion Pound Rescue Package, which aims to help the businesses of the country to survive the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The £330 billion of loan guarantees will help them meet their day to day needs during the lock-down. He also extended a business rates holiday and cash grant to all businesses in the retail and hospitality sector for 12 months.
37. Noel Quinn has been appointed as the Chief executive officer of which multi-national bank?
[A] HSBC
[B] NatWest
[C] BNP Paribas
[D] Standard Chartered
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [HSBC]
Notes:
Europe’s largest bank and multinational investment bank HSBC recently announced that it appointed Noel Quinn as Chief Executive officer.
Noel Quinn joined the HSBC bank in 1987 and took interim charge of HSBC last August after the sudden exit of the previous CEO John Flint. There have been several speculations regarding the appointment, which ended now as an insider has been appointed.
38. The Scientists of which institution have developed a chemical-free hand sanitiser in India?
[A] Council of Scientific & Industrial Research
[B] Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
[C] National Institute of Biomedical Genomics
[D] Agharkar Research Institute
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Council of Scientific & Industrial Research ]
Notes:
The scientists at Himachal Pradesh based Council of Scientific & Industrial Research -Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (CSIR-IHBT) have developed a chemical-free hand sanitiser in India.
Due to the increasing demand for sanitisers amid the corona virus scare, many companies manufacture fake products. Hence the Scientists have developed this product with the natural constituents and alcohol content as per the guidelines of the World Health Organisation (WHO). Another firm is to commercially produce this sanitiser as per a new agreement.
39. Which famous application introduced a unique feed named ‘Discover’, which lets users report negative content and provides customised articles?
[A] Google
[B] Facebook
[C] Twitter
[D] LinkedIn
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Google]
Notes:
Technological Major Google introduced a unique feed named ‘Discover’ which provides curated articles to Google Pixel and Google app users based on their interests.
In its latest update to the app, this new feature has been introduced which enables the users to report misleading articles on the ‘Discover’ feed. Users can now report misleading content as various categories which includes violent, misleading, abusive and others.
40. Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh unveiled an updated manual DPP-2020. What does DPP stand for?
[A] Direct Procurement Procedure
[B] Direct Promotion Proposal
[C] Defence Procurement Procedure
[D] Defence Promotion Proposal
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Defence Procurement Procedure]
Notes:
Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh unveiled an updated manual DPP-2020 (Defence Procurement Procedure-2020).
For the last 18 years, this DPP is the procurement manual that has been used for governing the purchase of weapons and equipment from the defence capital budget. The 2020 draft version aims to promote more indigenous content in defence equipment which are manufactured in India. It also introduced ‘leasing’ as another category to make defence equipment affordable.