GK & Current Affairs – August 21, 22, 2016

1. Which Indian personality has been chosen for the coveted French honour of Chevalier Award?
[A]Naseeruddin Shah
[B]Kamal Haasan
[C]Sumitra Ghosh
[D]Amitabh Bachchan
Answer: Kamal Haasan
Kamal Haasan, the well-known film actor, has been chosen for the coveted French honour of Chevalier de L’Ordre Arts et Lettres (or The Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters). The Order is part of France’s premier award. He will be the 2nd Tamil actor after thespian Sivaji Ganesan to be honoured with the French award.
2. Who has been appointed as the new Vice Chancellor of Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI)?
[A]Madhu Joshi
[B]Nishant Jain
[C]P D Gupta
[D]Suman Ghosh
Answer: P D Gupta
The well-known scientist P D Gupta has been appointed as the new Vice Chancellor of Mumbai-based Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI) for 5 years. The HBNI is an aided institution of the Department of Atomic Energy and is a deemed to be university under the UGC Act. The institute is dedicated to encourage pursuit of excellence in sciences (including engineering sciences) and mathematics in a manner that has major significance for the progress of indigenous nuclear technological capability.
3. The 2016 BRICS Disaster Management conference has started in which city of India?
[A]New Delhi
[B]Bhopal
[C]Raipur
[D]Udaipur
Answer: Udaipur
The 2nd edition of BRICS Disaster Management conference 2016 has started in Udaipur, Rajasthan from August 22 to focus on two themes of ‘Flood Risk Management’ and ‘Forecasting of Extreme Weather Events in the context of Changing Climate’. The purpose of the 2-day meeting is to share experiences on flood risk management, current systems in each country for forecasting extreme weather events and to identify opportunities for collaboration between institutions of respective BRICS countries in the area of flood risk management and extreme weather-related events.
4. Which state police of India has recently launched the DNA Index System (DIS) to control crime?
[A]Odisha
[B]Andhra Pradesh
[C]Haryana
[D]Punjab
Answer: Andhra Pradesh
The Andhra Pradesh Police has recently launched the DNA Index System (DIS), the first-of-its-kind initiative that allows generation of DNA profiles from live samples like saliva and blood stains within 90 to 120 minutes. The DNA profiling plays a crucial role in solving crimes and also has the potential to link a series of crimes by placing the suspects by linking them with the crime scene. It could also help the suspects prove their innocence. The system uses the latest DNA technology tool (also known as RapidHIT DNA System) developed by IntegenX of USA.
5. What is the India’s rank in the technology-driven start-ups, as per the latest report by Assocham?
[A]4th
[B]3rd
[C]2nd
[D]5th
Answer: 3rd
As per the latest report by Assocham in association with Thought Arbitrage Research Institute, India is home to 3rd largest number of technology-driven start-ups in the world.The top two positions are acquired by US and UK. The study has also revealed that Bengaluru is host to the largest share of technology start-ups in India,followed by Delhi NCR and Mumbai. The study recommended that synergizing ‘Startup India’ with ‘Make in India’ and ‘Digital India’ initiatives has the potential to expand the domestic ecosystem for new entrepreneurs.
6. The Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited(BSNL) has signed MoU with which technology giant to offer telecom and IT solutions?
[A]Wipro
[B]Infosys
[C]Google
[D]Microsoft
Answer: Microsoft
The Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Microsoft India to offer telecom and IT solutions for big businesses to meet the demand for IT and cloud services. The MoU will help audio and video needs of the BSNL’s enterprise customers, including government organizations.
7. The World Mosquito Day is observed on which day?
[A]August 21
[B]August 22
[C]August 20
[D]August 23
Answer: August 20
The World Mosquito Day is observed every year on August 20 to raise awareness about the causes of malaria and how it can be prevented and also to fundraise for research into the cure of malaria. The day also marks the historic discovery by British doctor Sir Ronald Ross in 1897 that female Anopheles mosquitoes transmit malaria between humans and that laid foundations for scientists across the world to better understand the deadly role of mosquitoes in disease transmission and come up with effective innovative interventions.
8. Subrata Banerjee, who passed away recently, was related to which sports?
[A]Cricket
[B]Badminton
[C]Boxing
[D]Football
Answer: Cricket
Subrata Banerjee (71), the former international umpire, has recently passed away in Kolkata, West Bengal. His international career lasted for 15 years, with the match between India and Kenya in Gwalior in May 1998 marking his final international appearance. He also worked as an umpire coach for the BCCI in addition to serving as an umpire’s educator.
9. Who has been bestowed with the Olympic Order award?
[A]Joachim Low
[B]Carolina Marin
[C]Thomas Bach
[D]N Ramachandran
Answer: N Ramachandran
N Ramachandran, the President of Indian Olympic Association (IOA), has bestowed with the Olympic Order for his outstanding services to the Olympic movement. It is awarded by Thomas Bach, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).The Olympic Order is the highest award of the Olympic Movement and is awarded for particularly distinguished contributions to the Olympic Movement i.e. recognition of efforts worthy of merit in the cause of sport.
10. The book “Selection Day” has been authored by whom?
[A]Mohan Kumar
[B]Nita Menon
[C]Keshava Guha
[D]Aravind Adiga
Answer: Aravind Adiga
The book “Selection Day” has been authored by Aravind Adiga, the man booker prize-winning author. The novel is a moving, unsettling and absorbing story of aspiration and its discontents in contemporary urban India. The vehicle of the aspirations is cricket; more specifically, batting. It is one of the finest novels written about the game, combining astute judgments with accounts of individual innings marked by an unremarkable lyricism..

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