11. What is ‘Raccoon Stealer’ which was seen in the news?
[A] Animal
[B] Malware
[C] Crypto-currency
[D] Super computer
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Malware]
Notes:
Raccoon Stealer is an information stealing malware that is usually delivered via email. It was used to target 8 central government entities of India, including the IT Department and central paramilitary forces.
National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), a specialised intelligence agency under the National Security Advisor, wrote to the affected agencies informing them of the attack.
12. Project CAVForth is the first registered service of which country to use full-sized autonomous buses?
[A] USA
[B] UK
[C] India
[D] China
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [UK]
Notes:
Project CAVForth was launched in 2019 to provide fully autonomous full-sized bus service across the Forth Road Bridge.
CAVForth is a joint project of various institutions and it is part funded by the UK Government’s Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles. It will be the first registered service in the UK to use full-sized autonomous buses. Bus services under this project will be launched in Scotland soon.
13. Who is the head of the committee set up by the Urban Affairs Ministry to examine stalled real estate projects?
[A] Parameswaran
[B] Amitabh Kant
[C] Saraswat
[D] Urjit Patel
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Amitabh Kant]
Notes:
Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has set up a committee headed by Amitabh Kant to examine stalled real estate projects.
It seeks to examine the issues related to legacy stalled real estate projects in the country and recommend ways to complete them.
14. Which state/UT recently received the GI tag for its famous Wood carving?
[A] Jharkhand
[B] Rajasthan
[C] Ladakh
[D] Kerala
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Ladakh]
Notes:
Ladakh’s Wood Carving recently received GI (Geographical Indications) tag. In December last year, the government also granted GI Tag for Raktsey Karpo apricot of Ladakh.
Wood carving of Ladakh has been a vibrant art form in the Ladakh region, including the capital Leh and Kargil.
15. As per the ‘Global Energy Monitor’s 9th Annual Survey’, which country accounted for the highest coal capacity as of 2023?
[A] India
[B] China
[C] USA
[D] Bangladesh
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [China]
Notes:
As per the report released by US-based Global Energy Monitor, the operating coal fleet grew by 19.5 gigawatt in 2022 globally.
As per the report, the war between Russia and Ukraine resulted in a slowdown of coal retirements. China accounted for 59 per cent of the new coal capacity while Bangladesh ranked the 9th among the rest of the countries after India, Pakistan, Vietnam and Indonesia, among others.
16. When is the ‘National Maritime Day’ celebrated in India?
[A] April 2
[B] April 5
[C] April 7
[D] April 10
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [April 5]
Notes:
‘National Maritime Day’ is celebrated on April 5 across the country to commemorate the sailing of the first Indian commercial vessel, SS Loyalty.
The ship sailed from Mumbai to London. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the ‘Maritime India Vision 2030’ in November 2020 at the Maritime India Summit. It is a 10-year blueprint for the development of the Indian maritime sector.
17. Which country hosted the ‘High-Level Conference on Accelerating Rail Digital Transformation in Asia and Pacific Region’?
[A] India
[B] Nepal
[C] Bangladesh
[D] Thailand
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [India]
Notes:
A High-Level Conference on Accelerating Rail Digital Transformation in Asia and Pacific Region was held recently in New Delhi.
It was jointly organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the Union Ministry of Railways.
18. Genome India Project aims to sequence how many Indian human genomes?
[A] 1000
[B] 10000
[C] 1 lakh
[D] 1 crore
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [10000]
Notes:
Genome India Project is an initiative of the Central Government that involves sequencing of 10,000 Indian human genomes and creating a database.
The Department of Biotechnology has sequenced close to 7,000 genomes and 3,000 of these are already available for public access.
19. ‘Prasthan Exercise’ the bi-annual coordinated exercise, held near which city in 2023?
[A] Chennai
[B] Panjim
[C] Mumbai
[D] Kolkata
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Mumbai]
Notes:
Prasthan Exercise is a bi-annual coordinated exercise held among Indian defence, state and civilian agencies twice a year.
It was conducted recently in the offshore development area off Mumbai. It validates the measures to address contingencies that may occur in oil production platforms.
20. Which Union Ministry appointed the ‘Committee on Digital Competition Law’?
[A] Ministry of Finance
[B] Ministry of Corporate Affairs
[C] Ministry of External Affairs
[D] Ministry of Corporate Affairs
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Ministry of Corporate Affairs]
Notes:
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs had appointed 10-Member Committee on Digital Competition Law, consisting of lawyers representing the Big Tech.
It is set to meet shortly to discuss provisions of the draft Digital Competition Law. The committee is responsible for examining the need for an ex-ante regulatory mechanism for digital markets via a separate legislation.