1. Which Indian state celebrated its statehood day on March 30?
[A] Gujarat
[B] Rajasthan
[C] Maharashtra
[D] Karnataka
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Rajasthan]
Notes:
Every year, March 30 is being celebrated as ‘Rajasthan Day’, to commemorate the day on which the state, which was earlier known as Rajputana came into existence.
The state of Rajasthan came into existence on March 30, 1949. Rajasthan is the largest state of India in terms of the area. It comprised of around 21 small and big princely states before Independence. Rajasthan was inaugurated as a unified state by the first Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on April 18, 1948.
2. In the context of measures taken to combat Covid-19, what is ‘CoNTeC’, that was making news recently?
[A] Tele-medicine Hub
[B] Mobile Application
[C] Portal to buy medicines
[D] Database of Hospitals
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Tele-medicine Hub]
Notes:
The Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Harsh Vardhan recently launched the ‘National Teleconsultation Centre (CoNTeC)’.
CoNTeC is a Tele-medicine Hub, which has been implemented by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi. Expert doctors from various domains will be available to resolve and answer the questions from all over the country.
3. Ken Shimura, a Japanese personality who recently passed away, was associated with which field?
[A] Entertainment
[B] Business
[C] Politics
[D] Research
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Entertainment]
Notes:
Veteran comic actor of Japan, Ken Shimura who tested positive for COVID-19 has recently passed away at the age of 70.
He has been in the entertainment media field since 1970. He joined the Japanese rock band and comedy group called ‘The Drifters’. He became very popular in the country, when he appeared in the group’s comedy show “Hachijidayo Zeninshugo!” (It’s 8 o’clock, assemble everyone!)
4. As per the recent changes in the direct tax system, what is the number of days NRIs needed to spend in India to qualify as Indian tax resident?
[A] 120
[B] 150
[C] 175
[D] 180
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [120 ]
Notes:
From April 1, 2020, several changes are coming into force in the direct tax regime of India, with the changes in provision of Finance Act.
The prime change is with respect to the Non-Resident Indians. The NRIs with over ₹15 lakh income from Indian sources will be deemed as Indian residents for the purpose of taxation, if they had spent 120 days in India in the previous year. Earlier the number of days needed to be spent was 182.
5. What is the name of the first indigenous testing kit for COVID-19 in India, which was launched at Pune?
[A] Patho Detect
[B] Covid Detect
[C] India Detect
[D] Mylab Detect
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Patho Detect]
Notes:
The Research and Development team of the Pune-based Mylab Discovery, headed by the virologist Minal Dakhave Bhosale has designed the first made-in-India testing kit for the Covid-19 disease.
This first indigenous kit, which has been developed in a record time of six weeks, is called ‘Patho Detect’. Usually developing such testing kits would take three to four months. Mylab Discovery is a molecular diagnostic company, which is also the first Indian firm to get full approval to make and sell Covid-19 testing kits.
6. As per the recent notification of the Reserve Bank of India, what is the new deadline for exporters to realise their export proceeds for exports made up to July 31?
[A] 9 months
[B] 12 months
[C] 15 months
[D] 18 months
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [15 months]
Notes:
The Reserve Bank of India recently released some measures to deal with the consequence of the coronavirus pandemic. As per the new export norms, the exporters can take 15 months to realise their export proceeds, for exports made up to July 31 against the earlier 9 months.
RBI also increased the Ways and Means Advances limit for state governments and UTs by 30 % till September 30. It also said that the banks are not required to activate counter-cyclical capital buffers for one more year.
7. What is the name of the Nobel Prize-winning physicist known for his work on magnetism and superconductivity, who recently passed away?
[A] Adam Schlesinger
[B] Philip Anderson
[C] Sir James Gowans
[D] Vincent Marzello
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Philip Anderson]
Notes:
The Nobel Prize-winning physicist, Philip Anderson recently passed away in the United States at the age of 96.
The physicist was known for making the science community understand about magnetism and superconductivity and for starting solid state physics as a field. He had been the inspiration for other Nobel-prize winning physicists including Brian Josephson (1973) and F. Duncan Haldane (2016).
8. The Government of India has recently set up a “cargo air-bridge” with which country, to transport critical medical supplies?
[A] Sri Lanka
[B] Nepal
[C] China
[D] Bangladesh
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [China]
Notes:
The government of India recently announced the establishment of “cargo air-bridge” between India and China.
This air bridge uses regular cargo flights for transporting critical medical supplies between the two countries. This initiative is operated by Air India from April 3. This is implemented under the ‘Lifeline Udan’ initiative of the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation.
9. The Union Agriculture Minister launched new features of National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) platform amid the lockdown. When was e-NAM launched in India?
[A] 2000
[B] 2005
[C] 2016
[D] 2019
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [2016]
Notes:
The Union Agriculture Minister launched new features of National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) platform amid the lockdown, which includes Warehouse based trading module in e-NAM software, FPO trading module in e-NAM where FPOs can trade their produce from the collection centre and enhanced version of logistic module.
e-NAM platform was launched in India on 14 April 2016 as a nation-wide electronic trade portal, which links APMCs across the state. 585 mandis in 16 States and 2 Union Territories have been integrated on e-NAM portal.
10. Tony-Lewis, who devised DLS method, recently passed away. DLS is a mathematical formula associated with which game?
[A] Football
[B] Cricket
[C] Tennis
[D] Squash
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Cricket]
Notes:
Tony Lewis devised the Duckworth-Lewis along with a mathematician Frank Duckworth, which is a mathematical formula used to determine the winner in cricket games that are affected by bad weather.
The method was introduced in 1997 and adopted by the International cricket council (ICC) in 1999. It was renamed as Duckworth-Lewis-Stern Method in 2014. Tony Lewis was a recipient of the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) for his outstanding work in the field of Mathematics and Cricket.