Places in News Current Affairs MCQs

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A state of emergency was declared in Kursk, Russia, after a Ukrainian incursion. Kursk is a city in southwestern Russia, near the Ukrainian border, located along the Seym River, 450 km south of Moscow. It’s known for its fertile soil and moderately continental climate. Kursk is one of Russia’s oldest cities, first mentioned in 1032, and was rebuilt in 1586 as a military outpost. It was the site of the largest tank battle in WWII, the Battle of Kursk, in 1943. Today, Kursk is known for its industries, including machine building, food processing, and a nuclear power station.

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Diego Garcia is a strategically important island in the southern Indian Ocean, despite its small size of 30 square kilometers. The island is owned by Mauritius, controlled by the U.K., and occupied by the U.S. It serves as a key military base for the U.S., with a lease extending to 2036, reflecting its strategic significance in regional security and surveillance. The island’s status is complex, with historical issues dating back to 1965 when Britain created the British Indian Ocean Territory, excluding Mauritius’ claims and forcibly removing the Chagossians, the island’s indigenous people.

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Climbers from the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute in Darjeeling recently scaled Uhuru Peak, the highest point of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Mount Kilimanjaro is Africa’s tallest mountain and the world’s largest free-standing mountain.
It is located in northeastern Tanzania near the Kenya border. Kilimanjaro has three volcanic cones: Kibo (dormant), Mawenzi, and Shira (both extinct). Uhuru Peak is on Kibo and is Africa’s highest free-standing peak. The mountain is famous for its snow-capped summit and has five vegetation zones. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

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A British man set a new Guinness World Record for the highest altitude ski BASE jump, leaping from 18,753 feet on Mera Peak in Nepal. Mera Peak is located in the Khumbu region of Nepal, standing at 6,476m above sea level, making it the highest trekking peak in the country. The peak dominates the area between the Hinku and Hongu Drangkas valleys and is considered the gateway to Everest. Trekkers usually climb Mera Central, although Mera North Peak is the highest. Mera Peak was first climbed in 1953 by Col. Jimmy Roberts and Sen Tenzing.

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Recent tensions between Japan and China have increased due to a Chinese military aircraft violating Japanese airspace. A Chinese Y-9 surveillance plane breached Japanese airspace near the Danjo Islands for about two minutes. This is the first confirmed airspace incursion by a Chinese military aircraft into Japanese airspace. The Danjo Islands, situated in the East China Sea off Japan’s southern Nagasaki prefecture, are strategically important with potential resources. The incident adds to ongoing maritime provocations by Chinese vessels near these disputed islands.

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The Arbaat Dam in eastern Sudan collapsed after heavy rainfall, leading to severe flooding. Sudan, located in northeastern Africa, was Africa’s largest country before South Sudan’s secession in 2011. It is now the third largest. The country is bordered by Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan, and the Red Sea.
Sudan is home to the River Nile, the longest river in the world, with the White and Blue Niles meeting in Khartoum, the capital, and flowing to the Mediterranean Sea via Egypt.

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Oceanographers found a new seamount on the Nazca Ridge, 900 miles off Chile’s coast. Nazca Ridge is a submarine ridge in the southeastern Pacific Ocean near South America. It is around 1,100 kilometers long and varies in width. The ridge starts at the Nazca Plate off Peru and extends southwest towards Easter Island, Chile. It was created by volcanic activity from a hotspot in the Earth’s mantle. The ridge consists of unusually thick basaltic ocean crust.
It is tectonically active, subducting beneath the South American Plate at the Peru-Chile Trench.

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The Prime Minister of India expressed a desire for stronger ties with Brunei, focusing on enhancing commercial and cultural connections during his visit to Bandar Seri Begawan. Brunei is located on the northern coast of Borneo Island in Southeast Asia and sits in both the Northern and Eastern hemispheres. It is bordered by the South China Sea to the north and surrounded by Malaysia, with two non-contiguous parts divided by Sarawak. The capital and largest city is Bandar Seri Begawan, and the highest point is Bukit Pagon, reaching 6,069 feet along the border with Malaysia. Brunei has several rivers, including Belait, Pandaruan, and Tutong, and is a significant oil producer in Southeast Asia.

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The central government has designated the international trans-shipment hub at Galathea Bay in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands as a ‘Major Port.’ It is located on Great Nicobar Island and is being developed as an International Container Transshipment Port (ICTP). The project will receive central funding and be developed under a public-private partnership model. Phase 1 is set to begin in 2028 with a handling capacity of 4 million TEUs, growing to 16 million TEUs by 2058. The port’s strategic location near international trade routes and its deep water depth make it significant for capturing transshipment cargo from other ports.

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A Russian missile strike on Poltava, Ukraine, killed 51 people and injured 271 others. Poltava is a city in east-central Ukraine, located 300 km east of Kyiv, along the Vorskla River. Archaeological evidence traces its origins to the 8th-9th centuries; it was first referenced in 1174. The city was destroyed by Tatars in the 13th century and became a Cossack regiment center by the 17th century. In 1709, Peter the Great defeated Sweden’s Charles XII at Poltava, marking Russia’s rise as a power. Modern Poltava was rebuilt after World War II and is a key agricultural hub.