41. Who has been nominated to be the Vice-Chairman of the International Union of Railways (UIC)?
[A] Arun Kumar
[B] Sylendra Babu
[C] Rajiv Ranjan Verma
[D] Rajan Bhagat
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Arun Kumar]
Notes:
The Director General of the Railway Protection Force (RPF), Arun Kumar, has been nominated to be the Vice-Chairman of the Security Platform of International Union of Railways (UIC).
The Paris-based union also called as Union Internationale Des Chemins, is a global platform for railway systems for improving inter-operability and developing common standards. India has been working closely with the UIC in several initiatives. After the two-year tenure of vice-chairmanship, the DG will hold the chairmanship for the next two years.
42. Who is the winner of the Australian 2020 Miles Franklin Literary Award?
[A] Tara June Winch
[B] Tony Birch
[C] Bruce Pascoe
[D] Melissa Lucashenko
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Tara June Winch]
Notes:
The 36-year old Australian writer Tara June Winch has won the prestigious 2020 Miles Franklin Literary Award.
She has been awarded the prize for her book titled THE YIELD. The award has been presented since 1957, to the best novel focussing on Australian life. Tara June Winch is a Wiradjuri author who is famous for her novels including Swallow the Air and short story collection After the Carnage.
43. India is developing a 30-second rapid testing kit for Covid-19, in collaboration with which country?
[A] United States
[B] Russia
[C] Israel
[D] Germany
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Israel]
Notes:
India is in the process of developing a rapid testing kit for Covid-19, in collaboration with Israel. The proposed kit is expected to give results in less than 30 seconds.
A team from Israel’s Research and Development (R&D) Team of Defence Ministry will arrive in India to develop the rapid testing kit. The team has been working with India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Principal scientific adviser, K. Vijay Raghavan.
44. ‘Honey Testing Laboratory’ of National Dairy Development Board was inaugurated in which state?
[A] Uttar Pradesh
[B] Gujarat
[C] Assam
[D] Meghalaya
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Gujarat]
Notes:
Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar has virtually inaugurated a world-class Honey Testing Laboratory.
The state of Art laboratory has been established by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) with support of National Bee Board (NBB), in Anand, Gujarat. Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers’ Welfare has approved the National Bee Keeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) for a period of 2 years.
45. Who has been appointed as the Managing Director & CEO of Indian Overseas Bank?
[A] Partha Pratim Sengupta
[B] Padmaja Chundru
[C] A K Goel
[D] Sankara Narayanan
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Partha Pratim Sengupta]
Notes:
Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) announced that Partha Pratim Sengupta has been appointed as its new Managing Director and Chief Executive.
He was a former Deputy Managing Director at the State Bank of India (SBI). The appointment is made up to the date of attaining the age of superannuation in 2022. He is to succeed the previous MD & CEO Karnam Sekar.
46. Which country has relaxed standards for exporting drones to its friendly countries?
[A] China
[B] Russia
[C] United States
[D] France
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [United States]
Notes:
The United States has announced that it has relaxed standards for exporting drones that fly at below 800 km per hour to its friendly countries.
This step has been taken to increase the national security of the United States by improving the capacities of its partners. The exposure of drone market to the US industry will also improve its economic security. However, higher-speed systems such as cruise missiles and advanced unmanned combat aerial vehicles are not affected by this revision.
47. When was the Kargil war fought between the armies of India and Pakistan?
[A] 1961
[B] 1975
[C] 1999
[D] 2001
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [1999]
Notes:
India and Pakistan fought the Kargil War between May and July in the year 1999. India launched ‘Operation Vijay’ and cleared the posts in the Kargil sector that was occupied by the Pakistani soldiers on the Indian side of the Line of Control (LoC).
To commemorate its victory over Pakistan, India has been observing ‘Kargil Vijay Diwas’ on July 26 every year, on the day the war ended. It resulted in 527 deaths in the Indian side. On the Vijay Diwas, India pays tributes to the soldiers who laid down their lives during the war.
48. As on July 2020, what is the average completion of time of houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana- Gramin scheme?
[A] 514 days
[B] 314 days
[C] 114 days
[D] 54 days
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [114 days]
Notes:
Ministry of Rural Development has announced that the average completion time for houses under restructured Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G) has come down to 114 days.
Earlier, the number of days for construction under the scheme used to be 314 days. The scheme was launched the scheme in the year 2016, with an objective of Housing for all by the year 2022. It strives to construct as many as 2.95 crore houses with all basic amenities by the year 2022.
49. What is the name of the Medical Bed Isolation System developed by the Defence Institute of Advanced Technology (DIAT)?
[A] Aashray
[B] Arjun
[C] Abhimanyu
[D] Aarya
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Aashray ]
Notes:
Pune based Defence Institute of Advanced Technology (DIAT) has developed a Medical Bed Isolation System named Aashray, to fight COVID-19.
The system has individual envelopes made up of specialized material that stops the virus spread from patient to others. It consists of negative pressure suction near exhale and tools to filter and disinfect aerosol. The portable and reusable system can be used in quarantine facilities.
50. Which country’s people are the largest international community to be granted Australian citizenship?
[A] United States
[B] India
[C] England
[D] Indonesia
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [India]
Notes:
Australian Minister for Immigration and Citizenship recently announced that out of the over 2,00,000 people who became Australian citizens in 2019-2020, around 38,000 were Indians.
They are the largest international community to be granted the Australian citizenship. This figure is also 60 per cent increase from the previous year. India is followed by the people of the UK, China and Pakistan.