GK & Current Affairs: January 31, 2017

1. Who has been appointed as the new chairman of the Commission of the African Union (AU)?
[A]Jean Ping
[B]Nkosazana Zuma
[C]Thomas Quartey
[D]Moussa Faki
Answer: Moussa Faki
Notes:
Moussa Faki Mahamat, the former Prime Minister of Chad, has been appointed as the new chairperson of the African Union Commission. He succeeded Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. The Commission of the African Union (AU) acts as the administrative branch or secretariat of the AU and is headquarters is located at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
2. What is the India’s GDP growth forecast for FY 18, according to the Economic Survey of India (ESI) 2017?
[A]6.55 % to 7.25%
[B]6.25 % to 7.5%
[C]6.55 % to 7.25%
[D]6.75 % to 7.5%
Answer: 6.75 % to 7.5%
Notes:
The Economic Survey for 2016-17, which is recently tabled by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in Parliament, has expected India’s GDP growth forecast to be in 6.75 % to 7.5% for FY 18. The range comes due to uncertainties in the world, including protectionist tendencies. The GDP growth rate at constant market prices for the current year FY 17 (2016-17) has projected at 7.1% in the survey.The survey highlights difficulties in privatizing public enterprises, even for firms where economists have made strong arguments that they belong in the private sector. In this context, the Survey points towards the need to further privatize the Civil Aviation, Banking and Fertilizer sectors. The survey was prepared by the finance ministry’s chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian.
3. Who has been appointed as the new chief of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)?
[A]Diana Edulji
[B]Vikram Lamaye
[C]Vinod Rai
[D]Rahul Johri
Answer: Vinod Rai
Notes:
Vinod Rai, the former Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), has been appointed as the new chief of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) by the Supreme Court of India (SCI). Rai will head the 4-member committee of administrators to run the affairs of the BCCI. The committee consists of former women cricket captain Diana Edulji, historian Ramachandra Guha and IDFC CEO Vikram Lamaye. Apart from this, Amitabh Chaudhary of BCCI and Vikram Limaye will represent the Indian cricket board at the International Cricket Council (ICC) meeting in February 2017.
4. Emmanuelle Riva, who passed away recently, was the well-known actress of which country?
[A]Germany
[B]England
[C]Undited States
[D]France
Answer: France
Notes:
Emmanuelle Riva (89), who was best known for her roles in the films Hiroshima mon amour and Amour, has recently passed away at Paris, France.
5. India’s largest start-up incubator will be set up in which of the following states?
[A]West Bengal
[B]Telangana
[C]Andhra Pradesh
[D]Karnataka
Answer: Karnataka
Notes:
India’s largest start-up incubator will be set up by the Gururaj Deshpande at Hubballi, about 400km from Bengaluru, Karnataka. Deshpande is the Indian-American entrepreneur, philanthropist and venture capitalist. The purpose of the Hubballi programme is to encourage problem-solvers from the local community and allow them to come with solutions with help from the foundation in terms of management, a financial model and connections to global innovators. The 82,000-sqft facility is expected to open in September 2017. It will have the capacity to seat over 1,200 people, which means it can accommodate at least 200 startups. Currently, India’s biggest incubator is at T-Hub in Telangana, housed in a 70,000 sqft building.
6. Which state tourism department has tied up with an online travel company “MakeMyTrip” to promote its home-stay scheme?
[A]Rajasthan
[B]Madhya Pradesh
[C]Odisha
[D]Assam
Answer: Madhya Pradesh
Notes:
The Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation (MPSTDC) has signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with an online travel company “MakeMyTrip” to promote its home-stay scheme. The travel company would promote and help in implementing the State-run MPSTDC’s scheme for tourists.
7. The book “The man who could never say No” has been authored by whom?
[A]N N Saxena
[B]Vikram Seth
[C]S Muthiah
[D]Gopalkrishna Gandhi
Answer: S Muthiah
Notes:
The book “The man who could never say No” has been authored by S Muthiah, the well-known historian. The subject of the book is T. T. Vasu, last son of the famous industrialist T. T. Krishnamachari.
8. The Digital Radio Round Table Conference has been launched by which union minister?
[A]Arun Jaitley
[B]Raj Nath Singh
[C]M Venkaiah Naidu
[D]Narendra Modi
Answer: M Venkaiah Naidu
Notes:
The Digital Radio for All Round Table Conference has been inaugurated by M Venkaiah Naidu, the Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting. The conference was organised by Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) along with Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited (BECIL). The purpose of the conference is to stimulate the interests of the key Indian stakeholders in the public phase launch of the project to digitize radio in India.
9. Which operation has been launched by the Income Tax Department (ITD) to track deposits post demonetisation?
[A]Operation Track Black Money
[B]Operation Clean Money
[C]Operation Clean Deposits
[D]Operation Track Money
Answer: Operation Clean Money
Notes:
The Income Tax Department (ITD) has recently launched “Operation Clean Money” to track deposits post demonetisation. The initial phase of the operation involves e-verification of large cash deposits made during 9th November to 30th December 2016. In the first phase of verification, approx 18 lakh accounts have been identified where tax-paying profile does not match with the income of account holders. ITD has enabled online verification of these transactions to reduce compliance cost for the taxpayers while optimising its resources. The information in respect of these cases is being made available in the e-filing window of the PAN holder (after log in) at the portal https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in. The PAN holder can view the information using the link Cash Transactions 2016 under Compliance section of the portal. The taxpayer will be able to submit online explanation without any need to visit Income Tax office.
10. The Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University (RGNAU) is located in which state?
[A] Andhra Pradesh
[B] Telangana
[C]Uttar Pradesh
[D] Madhya Pradesh
Answer: Uttar Pradesh
Notes:
The Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University (RGNAU) is an autonomous public central university located in the Fursatganj Airfield, Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh. It is in news because RGNAU in collaboration with US-India Aviation Cooperation Programme is launching its first Executive Development Programme on February 2, 2017. The programme will be delivered by highly-learned experts in the aviation sector and shall cover key topics such as Next Generation Transportation Systems, Airport Planning, Air Traffic Flow Management, Safety and Security and Sustainability in Aviation.The programme will help senior professionals keep abreast with latest trends in the sector. The programme will also provide a platform for active exchange of ideas on opportunities and challenges in the areas of growth and development of Indian aviation sector. .

The above 5 questions are part of Daily Current Affairs 20 MCQs Series in GKToday Android Application. This series can be subscribed in the app only for Rs. 799/- for entire year. Download Now