11. ‘VAYAM RAKSHAMAH (We Protect) is the motto of which armed force?
[A] Indian Army
[B] Indian Navy
[C] Indian Air Force
[D] Indian Coast Guard
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Indian Coast Guard]
Notes:
The Indian Coast Guard celebrated its 47th anniversary of its distinguished service’ to the nation. Its motto is ‘VAYAM RAKSHAMAH’ meaning ‘We Protect’.
The Indian Coast Guard over these four and half decades has been patrolling the country’s maritime border. It stands tall as the fourth largest Coast Guard in the world.
12. What is the GST collection in India in January 2023?
[A] Rs 0.97 Lakh crore
[B] Rs 1.21 Lakh crore
[C] Rs 1.55 Lakh crore
[D] Rs 2.01 Lakh crore
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Rs 1.55 Lakh crore]
Notes:
The GST collection in January surged to over ₹ 1.55 lakh crore, second highest-ever collection recorded.
This is for the third time, in the current financial year that the GST collection has crossed ₹ 1.50 lakh crore mark. The highest collection so far is the ₹ 1.68 lakh crore gross mop-up reported in April 2022.
13. Which neighbouring country of India marked its 75th independence anniversary on 4th February 2023?
[A] Bangladesh
[B] Afghanistan
[C] Sri Lanka
[D] Nepal
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Sri Lanka]
Notes:
Sri Lanka marked its 75th independence anniversary on 4th February 2023. Several activists, Buddhists and Christian clergy announced a boycott of the celebration in the capital.
A group of activists began a silent protest in the capital, condemning government’s independence celebration and failure to ease the economic burden. University students also attempted a protest march.
14. Union Sports Ministry formed an Oversight Committee to probe allegations against federation of which sports?
[A] Chess
[B] Wrestling
[C] Hockey
[D] Badminton
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Wrestling]
Notes:
Union Sports Ministry formed an Oversight Committee to probe allegations against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI).
Former wrestler Babita Phogat has joined the Oversight Committee panel. The Oversight Committee is also conducting an enquiry into the allegations of sexual misconduct, harassment, intimidation, financial irregularities and administrative lapses of WFI.
15. As per the proposed ‘National Data Governance Policy’, India Data Management Office (IDMO) will be formed under which Ministry?
[A] Electronics and IT Ministry
[B] Home Affairs Ministry
[C] Science and Technology Ministry
[D] External Affairs Ministry
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Electronics and IT Ministry]
Notes:
The Union Budget 2023 announced that the ‘National Data Governance Policy’ will be brought out to aid innovation and research by start-ups and academia.
It seeks for the formation of an India Data Management Office (IDMO) under the IT ministry. The new policy reform is that the anonymized datasets will be offered as part of the India datasets programmes to the Artificial intelligence ecosystem.
16. Which institution released the ‘Prospects for children in the polycrisis’ Report?
[A] NITI Aayog
[B] World Bank
[C] UNICEF
[D] World Economic Forum
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [UNICEF]
Notes:
The UNICEF recently released the ‘Prospects for Children in the Polycrisis: A 2023 Global Outlook’, report.
It explains ‘polycrisis’ as multiple, simultaneous crises that are strongly interdependent. As per the report some effects of the crises include higher food and energy prices leading to global hunger and malnourishment, limited access to healthcare, slow recovery from learning losses etc.
17. ‘MISHTI’ which was announced in the Union Budget 2023, is related to which field?
[A] Man-hole cleaning
[B] Mangrove plantations
[C] Motor vehicles
[D] Make in India
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Mangrove plantations]
Notes:
Union Finance Minister announced an initiative called MISHTI ‘Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats and Tangible Incomes’.
Under the scheme, mangrove plantations will be taken up along the country’s coastline apart from salt pans, wherever feasible, through the convergence of the job guarantee scheme MGNREGS, the Compensatory Afforestation Fund, and other sources.
18. What is the total a capital outlay allotted for the Railways in the Union Budget 2023?
[A] Rs 1.4 lakh crore
[B] Rs 2.4 lakh crore
[C] Rs 3.4 lakh crore
[D] Rs 4.4 lakh crore
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Rs 2.4 lakh crore]
Notes:
The Indian Railways has been allocated a capital outlay of Rs 2.4 lakh crore in the Union Budget 2023-24.
This is the highest ever allocation to the national transporter. Last year, a gross budgetary support of Rs 1.37 lakh crore was allotted in fiscal 2022-23.It is estimated that there is a need to lay 1 lakh kilometres of tracks over the coming 25 years as more goods movement shifts from roads to railways.
19. Which Union Ministry along with the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment implements the NAMASTE scheme?
[A] Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
[B] Ministry of Rural Development
[C] Ministry of MSME
[D] Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs]
Notes:
NAMASTE is a Central Sector Scheme of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) as a joint initiative of the MoSJE and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
NAMASTE stands for National Action Plan for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem). This year’s Union Budget has allotted Rs 100 crore to the scheme. Finance Minister announced that the government is looking to enable 100% mechanical de-sludging of septic tanks and sewers in all cities and towns.
20. As per the recent guidelines of 2023, what is the minimum download speed of Broadband in India?
[A] 512 kbps
[B] 1 mbps
[C] 2 mbps
[D] 5 mbps
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [2 mbps]
Notes:
According to a recent gazette notification, the government has revised the definition of broadband connectivity, specifying a higher minimum download speed of 2 megabits per second.
Earlier, the definition notified by the Telecom Department in 2013 had benchmarked it to 512 kbps (kilobits per second) as minimum download speed. As of November 30, 2022, India had about 825.4 million broadband subscribers, of which 793.5 million were wireless broadband users.