GK & Current Affairs – November 28, 2015
1. Who will be the first woman Secretary-General of the Commonwealth?
[A]Gareth Peirce
[B]Justline Thornton
[C]Baroness Patricia
[D]Cherie Blair
Answer: Baroness Patricia
Dominica-born British lawyer Patricia Scotland (60) has been elected as the new Secretary General of the Commonwealth. She becomes the first woman and also first British citizen to be elected as secretary-general of the 53-member Commonwealth bloc’s history. She will succeed Kamalesh Sharma from India and enter into the office on 1 April 2016 for four-year term i.e. till 2020. The Commonwealth Secretary-General is the head of the Commonwealth Secretariat which is the central body that has served the Commonwealth of Nations. Commonwealth Secretariat was established in 1965 and responsible for representing the Commonwealth publicly. Its headquarter is at Marlborough House in London.
2. Which of the following states will be the second to set up NRI Commission?
[A]Maharashtra
[B]Kerala
[C]Andhra Pradesh
[D]Karnataka
Answer: Kerala
Recently, Kerala cabinet has approved to set up a NRI Commission. With this, Kerala becomes the 2nd state after Punjab to have such a body. The NRI commission will be a quasi judicial body and it will address all issues of the diaspora including fake recruitments as well as disputes over properties, and investment. The commission will be headed by a retired high court judge and the members will comprise a retired Indian Administrative Service officer, two representatives of the Kerala diaspora and a state government official of the rank of a joint secretary.
3. In what context, ‘Advance Pricing Agreements’ are used?
[A]Intellectual Property Rights
[B]Taxation
[C]Nuclear co-operation
[D]Climate change
Answer: Taxation
The Advance Pricing Agreements (APA) Programme was introduced in the Income-tax Act, 1961 in 2012. The APA Scheme seeks to provide certainty to taxpayers in the field of transfer pricing through an agreement in advance. Such agreements are entered into by the CBDT with the approval of the Central Government, with the tax payers on the transfer price of international transactions between associated entities.
4. Which of the following states will build a 55-metre replica of Eiffel Tower in its capital city?
[A]Maharashtra
[B]Telangana
[C]West Bengal
[D]Kerala
Answer: West Bengal
In memory of 13/11 terror attack in France, the West Bengal government has planned to construct a 55-metre replica of Eiffel Tower in Kolkata. It will take three years to complete the structure. The replica is going to be a part of the “Seven Wonders of the World” theme-park at the Eco Park in Rajarhat, Kolkata. The list of “wonders” replicated at the park include the Taj Mahal from India, Christ the Redeemer from Brazil, Chichen Itza from Mexico, Petra in Jordan, the Great Wall of China, Machu Picchu in Peru and the Colosseum in Rome. Kolkata already has a scaled down version of the Big Ben clock.
5. Which country has planned to build world’s first salt lake data centre?
[A]USA
[B]India
[C]China
[D]Japan
Answer: China
China’s Qinghai province plans to build the world’s first salt lake data centre. It will serve domestic resource planning and provide technical support to other countries. China has more than thousand salt lakes, located mainly in Qinghai and Xinjiang.
6. India co-developed the Barak-8 missile with which country?
[A]Brazil
[B]Indonesia
[C]Israel
[D]France
Answer: Israel
Recently, Israel has successfully tested Barak-8 missile, an advanced surface-to-air missile. It will play a crucial role in securing the Israel’s offshore gas fields. The missile is being jointly developed by the India’s DRDO, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Israel’s Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure, Elta Systems and other companies.
7. Which of the following countries is a member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)?
[A]India
[B]Pakistan
[C]Brazil
[D]Iran
Answer: Brazil
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a group of 48 nuclear supplier countries that seeks to contribute to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of two sets of Guidelines for nuclear exports and nuclear-related exports. Presently India is not a member of the group.
8. Antonio Costa is the Prime Minister of which country?
[A]Spain
[B]Portugal
[C]Italy
[D]Sweden
Answer: Portugal
Indian-origin Atonio Costa, the leader of Portugal’s Socialist Party is the Prime Minister of Portugal. Recently, he was appointed as PM by President Anibal Cavaco Silva and President has tasked him to form a new government due to political instability caused by an inconclusive 2015 general election results. Antonio Costa was born in Lisbon, Portugal. By profession he is lawyer. He traces his paternal roots to Goa (India) and is son of Orlando Costa, an accomplished poet and writer. His grandfather, Luis Afonso Maria da Costa hailed from Goa.
9. Who among the following has unveiled a stationary bicycle that can generate electricity in India?
[A]Bharat Desai
[B]C R Rao
[C]Manoj Bhargava
[D]Thomas Kailath
Answer: Manoj Bhargava
NRI billionaire and Philanthropist Manoj Bhargava has unveiled an electricity-generating hybrid bicycle called ‘Free Electric’. The bicycle converts human mechanical energy into electricity. Based on the usage, the device can provide up to 24 hours of electricity after an hour of peddling. It is to be priced between Rs 12,000 and Rs 15,000. The device is meant to provide an affordable and clean source of electricity to the economically weaker sections in India. The vehicle was designed and developed in the US. It will be produced in India under licence by companies chosen by Bhargava. Initially, the device will be introduced in Uttarakhand and later will distributed across India. Bhargava became fame with his energy drink ‘5-Hour ENERGY’ in 2004. He also started the ‘Billions in Change’ initiative to finance development and commercialisation of technologies to help combat poverty.
10. Which of the following institutes are placed within 100th rank in QS Graduate Employability rankings in the world?
[A]IIT Kharagpur and IISC Bangalore
[B]IIT Bombay and IIT Delhi
[C]IIT Bombay and IISC Bangalore
[D]IIT Kharagpur and IIT Bombay
Answer: IIT Kharagpur and IIT Bombay
The first edition of Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Graduate Employability Rankings has placed IIT Kharagpur and IIT Bombay among the top 100 institutes in the world. IIT Kharagpur ranked at 77 and IIT Bombay ranked at 93. The top 3 universities in this ranking are Stanford University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University.
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