GK & Current Affairs – December 12, 13, 2015

1. Sharad Joshi, who passed away recently, was related to which of the following fields?
[A]Industrialist
[B]Politician
[C]Agro-economist
[D]Scientist
Answer: Agro-economist
The veteran Agro-economist, prolific journalist and stalwart farmer leader, Sharad Anantrao Joshi (81) passed away in Pune, Maharashtra. He was the founder of Shetakari Sanghtana (farmers’ Organisation), an NGO dedicated to the cause of farmers in Maharashtra. He was also the member of the Rajya Sabha during the period 2004 and 2010. Mr. Joshi was the only MP in Rajya Sabha to vote against the bill providing 33% reservation for women in Indian parliament and assemblies. He argued that it was much preferable to make women strong electorally first through the entire Panchayat Raj system before partial reservations were introduced at the Centre and State levels.
2. Which of the following organisations has won the 2015 Aegis Graham Bell Award?
[A]Wipro
[B]Tata Consultancy Services
[C]Reliance
[D]Flipkart
Answer: Wipro
The global software major, Wipro Limited’s IoT solution ‘Universal Data Parser’ (UDP) has won the 2015 Aegis Graham Bell Award for Innovation in the field of Internet of Things (IoT). The UDP enables flexible adaptation of data streams from a wide range of end devices to IoT platforms and data stores. The Aegis Graham Bell Award is India’s largest and the only innovation award in the field of Telecom, Internet, Media and Entertainment (TIME) and Social, Mobility Analytics and Cloud (SMAC). The award is intended to promote innovation, entrepreneurship in the field of Telecom, Internet, Media & Edutainment (TIME) and to provide recognition for outstanding contributions in this field in India.
3. Lasoong festival is celebrated in which of the following states?
[A]Arunachal Pradesh
[B]Nagaland
[C]Sikkim
[D]Meghalaya
Answer: Sikkim
The Lasoong festival is the most popular festival of Sikkim. It is usually celebrated at the end of the tenth Tibetan lunar month (usually December). It is the most important festival among the Bhutias in India and is marked by the traditional Chaan dancing and merry-making. Losoong is celebrated across the monasteries in Bhutan, Nepal and India. In Sikkim, during the festival of Losoong, often dance forms depict narrativized tales from the life of Padmasambhava (or Guru Ugyen).
4. Which of the following countries has successfully test fired the nuclear-capable Shaheen-III missile?
[A]Iran
[B]Saudi Arabia
[C]Pakistan
[D]Syria
Answer: Pakistan
Recently, Pakistan has successfully test-fired the medium-range Shaheen-III surface-to-surface ballistic missile. The missile can carry nuclear warheads within a range of 2,750 kms. Shaheen-I is also capable of carrying nuclear as well as conventional warheads and has a range of 900 kms while the Shaheen-II missile can also carry nuclear and conventional warheads up to a range of 1,500 kms.
5. Elizabeth Susan Koshy, is related to which of the following sports?
[A]Swimming
[B]Cricket
[C]Chess
[D]Shooting
Answer: Shooting
Elizabeth Susan Koshy from Kerala has won gold in the Women’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions at the 59th National Shooting Championships held at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting range in New Delhi. Beside her, Anjum Moudgil from Haryana has won the silver and N Gaayathri from Tamil Nadu bagged bronze in the championship. For Elizabeth, it is the hat-trick.
6. Who of the following Indian-origin writer has won the prestigious South East Asia Write Award 2015?
[A]Anita Desai
[B]Jhumpa Lahiri
[C]Jamaludeen Mohamed Sali
[D]Salman Rushide
Answer: Jamaludeen Mohamed Sali
Indian-origin Jamaludeen Mohamed Sali has been declared as the winner of this year’s prestigious South East Asia Write Award. Jamaludeen Mohamed Sali is the author of the 7 books, 80 plays and more than 400 short stories including Vellai Kodugal (White Lines) Alaigal Pesuginrana (the Sound Of The Waves) that are now studied by Tamil Literature students in Singapore and Indian universities. The South East Asia Write Awards, started in 1979, are presented annually to poets and writers in Southeast Asia.
7. Which of the following states is hosting the 26th conference of the Southern Zonal Council?
[A]Andhra Pradesh
[B]Kerala
[C]Karnataka
[D]Telangana
Answer: Andhra Pradesh
The Zonal Councils in India are created under the State Reorganization Act, 1956. They are advisory bodies that discuss and advise the Central and State Governments on various matters of common interest. There are five Councils, one for each Zone viz., Eastern, Western, Northern, Southern, and Central. The Southern Zonal Council comprises of the States of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana and Puducherry. The meeting of each Zonal Council needs to be held once in a year to iron out the differences between the governments on issues of development concerning regional interest and national programmes. The 26th conference of the Southern Zonal Council is hosted in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh.
8. Who of the following is the current President and CEO of the World Resources Institute (WRI)?
[A]Andrew Steer
[B]James Gustave Speth
[C]James A. Harmon
[D]Susan Tierney
Answer: Andrew Steer
Andrew Steer is the current President and CEO of the World Resources Institute, a global research organization that works in more than 50 countries. The NGO was established in 1982 with funding from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation under the leadership of James Gustave Speth. WRI’s mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations.
9. On which date, the International Mountain day is observed?
[A]December 11
[B]January 5
[C]November 31
[D]December 13
Answer: December 11
The International Mountain Day is observed every year on December 11. It has been observed every year to create awareness about the importance of mountains to life, to highlight the opportunities and constraints in mountain development and to build alliances that will bring positive change to mountain peoples and environments around the world. This years’ theme is “Promoting mountain products for better livelihoods”.
10. India’s largest National Cancer Institute is set up in which of the following states?
[A]Andhra Pradesh
[B]Haryana
[C]Gujarat
[D]West Bengal
Answer: Haryana
Recently, the Union Health Minister has laid the foundation stone for India’s largest National Cancer Institute at AIIMS campus in Haryana’s Jhajjar district. The Cancer Institute in Badsa will be “independent India’s largest government-funded hospital project”. The project is planned to be completed within three years. The Cancer Institute will be modelled after the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of USA and the government has already entered into a MoU with NCI USA during the visit of Prime Minister to USA in October 2014.

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