1. Which word has been selected as the ‘Top Word of 2020’, by Merriam-Webster?
[A] Lock down
[B] Pandemic
[C] Vaccine
[D] Immunity
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Pandemic]
Notes:
US based- Merriam-Webster, known for its dictionaries, has recently announced ‘pandemic’ as its 2020 word of the year.
As per the company, when the World Health Organisation declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic on March 11, the searches on the site for ‘pandemic’ rose hugely. The word has roots in Latin and Greek. It is a combination of pan, meaning all, and demos, meaning people.
2. Sadiq al-Mahdi, who died recently, was the former Prime Minister of which country?
[A] UAE
[B] Saudi Arabia
[C] Sudan
[D] Oman
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Sudan]
Notes:
Sadiq al-Mahdi was Sudan’s last democratically elected prime minister and also the leader of the nation’s largest political party. He died recently of COVID-19 at United Arab Emirates.
He was 84 years old. Al-Mahdi was overthrown from power in a 1989 by an autocrat Omar al-Bashir. Al-Mahdi’s party allied with pro-democracy uprising and the military overthrow al-Bashir in April 2019.
3. Hayabusa2, which was making news recently, is a spacecraft of which country?
[A] China
[B] Japan
[C] South Korea
[D] UAE
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Japan]
Notes:
Japan’s spacecraft named ‘Hayabusa2’ is approaching the Earth after a year-long journey from an asteroid Ryugu, about 300 million kilometers from earth.
As per the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, the spacecraft will bring soil samples and data that could provide clues to the origins of the solar system and life on Earth. The agency would drop the capsule containing the samples, in southern Australia.
4. Which state has implemented a PPP model for rescue and rehabilitation of leopards?
[A] Himachal Pradesh
[B] Haryana
[C] Jammu and Kashmir
[D] Gujarat
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Gujarat]
Notes:
As many as 12 leopards from Sakkar Baug Zoological Park, which came in conflict with the humans, have been transferred to a private rehabilitation centre by Gujarat Forest Department.
The leopard’s maintenance would be done in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode by the Government of Gujarat and Reliance Industries Ltd- RIL’s Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Kingdom. This is the first of its kind PPP model for protection of wild animals in India.
5. Which country has detected Avian Influenza outbreak and decided to cull over 1 million chicken?
[A] China
[B] Japan
[C] Philippines
[D] Indonesia
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Japan]
Notes:
Avian Influenza, commonly called as the Bird flu, has been detected in a fourth region in Japan. This can be the country’s worst outbreak in over 4 years.
Avian influenza was discovered at a poultry farm in Hyuga city in Honshu island in southwestern Japan. However, the country announced that there is no possibility that humans will contract bird flu from eating poultry or eggs. It has also decided to cull over 1.8 million chickens.
6. Which North Indian city has recently got its bonds listed on Bombay Stock Exchange?
[A] Kanpur
[B] Surat
[C] Gandhinagar
[D] Lucknow
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Lucknow]
Notes:
The Municipal Bonds issued by Lucknow Municipal Corporation has been listed in the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
The bonds amount to Rs.200 crore and offer 8.5 per cent interest per annum with a tenure of 10 years. Lucknow joins the 8 other smart cities whose Municipal Bonds have been listed in stock exchanges.
7. Which country has banned cotton imports from China citing ‘slave labour’?
[A] India
[B] United States
[C] Russia
[D] United Kingdom
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [United States]
Notes:
The United States has issued an order to ban the cotton and cotton products from the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), one of the largest producers of China.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency issued “Withhold Release Order” to increase economic pressure on the Xinjiang region. US cites the reason for the ban as ‘slave labour’ of detained Uighur Muslims used by China.
8. Which organization has released the provisional 2020 State of the Global Climate report?
[A] UNFCC
[B] WMO
[C] IMF
[D] UNESCO
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [WMO]
Notes:
As per the provisional 2020 State of the Global Climate report released by U.N.’s World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the last 6 years from 2015 to 2020 are the hottest years on record.
The report has stated that the average global temperature in 2020 would be 1.2 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial level
9. Which country has eliminated per country cap on employment-based immigration visas?
[A] China
[B] Japan
[C] UK
[D] USA
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [USA]
Notes:
The Senate of United States of America has passed a bill which envisages to remove the restrictions on number of employment related immigration visas from a particular country.
This bill has been passed unanimously by the Senate. This relaxed legislation is expected to benefit many Indian professionals in America.
10. What is the new repo rate after the RBIS’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting of December 2020?
[A] 4.2 per cent
[B] 4.0 per cent
[C] 3.8 per cent
[D] 3.5 per cent
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [4.0 per cent]
Notes:
The Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held on December 4, 2020 decided to keep interest rates unchanged with an “accommodative” policy stance.
The MPC has kept repo rate unchanged at 4% and maintained reverse repo rate at 3.35%. RBI also predicted a real GDP growth of -7.5% for FY21, from the earlier prediction of -9.5%. MPC also expected that the inflation rate will remain high.
