31. Finance Ministry is to infuse a capital of ……………… into the three state-owned general insurance companies.
[A] Rs 1000 crore
[B] Rs 2000 crore
[C] Rs 3000 crore
[D] Rs 5000 crore
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Rs 3000 crore]
Notes:
Union Finance Ministry is set to infuse Rs 3,000 crore capital into state-owned general insurance companies, during the current quarter.
The cabinet decided to increase the authorised share capital of National Insurance Company Limited (NICL) to Rs 7,500 crore and that of United India Insurance Company Limited (UIICL) and Oriental Insurance Company Limited (OICL) to Rs 5,000 crore each.
32. Which Indian state/UT has launched the ‘Maa’ scheme, to provide meal at Rs 5 to the poor people?
[A] Tamil Nadu
[B] West Bengal
[C] Odisha
[D] Madhya Pradesh
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [West Bengal]
Notes:
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has virtually launched the ‘Maa’ scheme under which the state government would provide meal at Rs 5 to poor people.
A platter of food including vegetable and egg curry is to provided at Rs 5 with the state bearing a subsidy of Rs 15 per plate.
33. The Long-Range Surface-to-Air Missile (LRSAM), which was in news recently, was developed by which organisation?
[A] HAL
[B] BEL
[C] ISRO
[D] DRDO
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [DRDO]
Notes:
The final production batch of Long-Range Surface-to-Air Missile (LRSAM) was recently flagged off at DRDL, A P J Abdul Kalam Missile Complex, Hyderabad.
The missiles have been designed and developed by DRDO in collaboration with various industry partners and integrated by Bharat Dynamics Limited. The missile system provides defence against aerial targets including fighter aircrafts and missiles.
34. Nigerian American economist Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been appointed as the director-general of which organisation?
[A] UNICEF
[B] IMF
[C] WTO
[D] World Bank
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [WTO]
Notes:
Nigerian American economist Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been appointed as the new director-general of World Trade Organization (WTO). With this appointment, she becomes the first African women to be the Chief of WTO.
WTO is an intergovernmental organization that is regulates the trade between nations. It is headquartered at Geneva.
35. A nodal agency called ‘Digital Intelligence Unit’ (DIU) is to be set up by which Union Ministry?
[A] Ministry of Finance
[B] Ministry of Communication
[C] Ministry of Corporate Affairs
[D] Ministry of Education
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Ministry of Communication]
Notes:
The high-level meeting chaired by Union Communications minister Ravi Shankar Prasad announced that a Digital Intelligence Unit (DIU) will be set up.
It will address the matters regarding Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC) and financial frauds done through mobile phones. The Ministry would also set up a web/mobile application and SMS-based system for redressal mechanism.
36. ‘Pahela Phagun’, the spring festival, is celebrated in which country?
[A] India
[B] Bangladesh
[C] Nepal
[D] Myanmar
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Bangladesh]
Notes:
The first day of the spring called ‘Pahela Phagun’ is celebrated in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The country’s top cultural organisations including the Bangladesh Shilpa Kala Academy held programmes to celebrate the beginning of the spring.
On account of the Covid pandemic, the traditional programme of ‘Basanta Utsab’ at the Fine Arts faculty in Dhaka university was cancelled.
37. India signed amended MoU for space cooperation with which country recently?
[A] United Kingdom
[B] Australia
[C] Japan
[D] France
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Australia]
Notes:
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Australian Space Agency signed an amendment to the Memorandum of Understanding, for space cooperation with Australia.
The Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison last year.
38. Who is the only Indian activist to feature in the 2021 TIME100 Next, TIME magazine’s annual list of 100 emerging leaders?
[A] Chandrashekhar Azad
[B] Kailash Satyarthi
[C] Disha Ravi
[D] Safoora Zargar
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Chandrashekhar Azad]
Notes:
The TIME magazine’s annual list of 100 “emerging leaders who are shaping the future”, named the “2021 TIME100 Next”, was released recently.
Chandrashekhar Azad, the leader of the Bhim army, which runs school to educate Dalit children and works to curb caste-based violence, featured in the list. Other 5 Indian origin personalities are UK finance minister Rishi Sunak, Twitter lawyer Vijaya Gadde, Instacart founder and CEO Apoorva Mehta, ED of nonprofit Get Us PPE Shikha Gupta and founder of nonprofit Upsolve Rohan Pavuluri.
39. Which Indian personality has been appointed as the Under-Secretary-General and Associate Administrator of the UNDP?
[A] Urjit Patel
[B] Usha Rao-Monari
[C] R Gandhi
[D] Bimal Jalan
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Usha Rao-Monari]
Notes:
India’s leading investment professional, Usha Rao-Monari, has been appointed by the UN chief Antonio Guterres as Under-Secretary-General and Associate Administrator of the UNDP.
She has served in several senior positions in the area of infrastructure investment, including Director of the Sustainable Business Advisory Group at the International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank Group.
40. The Agriculture Ministry has obtained approval from DGCA for use of drones for which scheme?
[A] PMFBY
[B] PMJJBY
[C] PMSBY
[D] PMKSY
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [PMFBY]
Notes:
The Union Ministry of Agriculture has obtained approval from DGCA for use of drones to implement Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
The Agriculture Ministry has planned to fly drones over 100 districts of the country to capture images of rice and wheat fields for assessing crop yields. It would also be used for claim settlement under the crop insurance scheme.