GK & Current Affairs: October 7, 2015

1. As per IMF predictions, Indian economy is expected to grow at how much percentage in 2016-17?
[A]6.3%
[B]7.4%
[C]7.5 %
[D]6.8%
Answer: 7.5 %
As per the International Monetary Fund (IMF) IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) report, the Indian economy is expected to grow at 7.5% in 2016-17 as against China’s 6.3%.
2. Which of the following city is host of 2016 Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) ?
[A]New Delhi
[B]Bhopal
[C]Lucknow
[D]Hyderabad
Answer: New Delhi
The 2016 Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Conference is to be held in New Delhi from January 8-10, 2016. The purpose of this annual event is to bring together Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) and help forge stronger links between them and India. The PBD Conference 2016 is being planned with the objective of developing a new paradigm for engagement with the diaspora over the next decade.
3. Amo doli programme has been launched by which state?
[A]West Bengal
[B]Odisha
[C]Bihar
[D]Jharkhand
Answer: Odisha
In order to help patients and pregnant women from inaccessible areas reach their nearest hospital or motorable road, the healthcare programme ‘Amo Doli Programme’ has been launched by the State Government of Odisha in naxal-affected area Rayagada District. Under this programme, a stretcher has been designed as a sling to carry patients smoothly and with less effort. It will replace the traditional method of shifting patients in remote areas by converting a bed into a sling by tying rope to its both ends. Each sling costs around Rs. 9000 and the programme is being funded under the Integrated Action Plan (IAP) which is meant for Maoist-affected districts. The benefits of this programme are as follows: a) It will help the patients and pregnant women from inaccessible areas to reach their nearest hospital or motorable road. B) After reaching the nearest motorable point, the villagers can call ambulance by dialling 102 for pregnant women or 108 for emergency services to shift a patient to the nearest hospital. The slings will be kept either at village welfare committees or with ASHA workers.
4. Which of the following is the correct full form of KISAN in the KISAN Project launched recently?
[A]Crop Insurance using Space technology And geoiNformatics
[B]Kisan Insurance using Space technology And geoiNformatics
[C]Cluster Insurance using Space technology And geoiNformatics
[D]Control Insurance using Space technology And geoiNformatics
Answer: Crop Insurance using Space technology And geoiNformatics
The Central Government launched its flagship project C(K)rop Insurance using Space technology And geoiNformatics (KISAN) to speed up payment of crop insurance claims to farmers and provide accurate assessment of crop damage. The project will use satellite and drone- based imaging and other geospatial technology to get timely and precise data on crop yields. The pilot study will be carried out in one district each of Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra during Kharif season of 2015 and two districts each of these states during Rabi season of 2015-2016. The government also launched an Android-based app for collection of data of hailstorm with assistance from Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to assess large-scale damage to standing crops. The state agriculture officials will use the facility to help the Central Government make quick assessment of damage to crops.
5. Which bank has registered highest increase in gross Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) in the 2014-15 fiscal year?
[A]UCO Bank
[B]Punjab National Bank
[C]State Bank of India
[D]Central Bank
Answer: UCO Bank
The UCO Bank registered the highest increase in gross Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) in percentage terms against total loans in the 2014-2015 fiscal year. With this, UCO Bank became the worst performer among the other Public Sector Banks (PSBs). As per the provisional Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data taking into account domestic operations of banks, gross NPA to gross advances ratio of Kolkata-based UCO Bank increased to 8.05% at the end of March 2015 from 4.47%, an accretion of 3.58 on an annual basis. The UCO Bank is followed by Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) and Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) with their gross NPA rising to 8.30 % and 6.18 % respectively at the end of March 2015.
6. For which of the following discovery, Nobel Prize for 2015 Chemistry was awarded?
[A]for discoveries in RNA repair
[B]for discoveries in kidney repair
[C]for discoveries in lungs repair
[D]for discoveries in DNA repair
Answer: for discoveries in DNA repair
The 2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry jointly awarded to Tomas Lindahl, Paul Modrich and Aziz Sancar for having mapped, at a molecular level, how cells repair damaged DNA and safeguard the genetic information. Tomas Lindahl is from the Francis Crick Institute, UK; Paul Modrich is from Duke University School of Medicine, USA and Aziz Sancar belongs to University of North Carolina School of Medicine, USA. Their work provided fundamental knowledge of how a living cell functions and how it is used for the development of new cancer treatments. The winners will share the 8 million Swedish kronor (about $960,000) prize money. Each winner will also get a diploma and a gold medal at the annual award ceremony on Dec. 10, the anniversary of the death of prize founder Alfred Nobel.
7. Who among the following is the winner of 2015 PEN Pinter Prize?
[A]David Hare
[B]Tom Stoppard
[C]Salman Rushdie
[D]James Fenton
Answer: James Fenton
For speaking “truth to power – forcefully, fearlessly, and beautifully, the 2015 PEN Pinter Prize has been won by British poet and journalist Mr. James Fenton. Beside this award, the Saudi blogger and activist Mr. Raif Badawi won the 2015 International Writer of Courage Award. Though, due to Mr. Badawi’s imprisonment, his award was accepted by Jimmy Wales, co-founder of Wikipedia and campaigner for Raif Badawi.
8. Which of the following organizations releases World Economic Outlook from time to time?
[A]World Economic Forum
[B]World Bank
[C]International Monetary Fund
[D]World Trade Organization
Answer: International Monetary Fund
The World Economic Outlook (WEO) October 2015 Update titled ‘Adjusting to Lower Commodity Prices’ has been released by International Monetary Fund (IMF). The report projects global growth for 2015 at 3.1 %, which is 0.3 % point lower than in 2014, and 0.2 % point below the forecasts in the July 2015 World Economic Outlook (WEO) Update. India’s growth is expected to strengthen from 7.3 % 2015 and last year to 7.5 % in 2016.
9. The winner of 2015 FIDE World Chess Cup is __?
[A]Peter Svidler
[B]Garry Kasparov
[C]Sergey Karjakin
[D]Viswanathan Anand
Answer: Sergey Karjakin
The Russian chess player, Mr. Sergey Karjakin won the 2015 FIDE World Chess Cup held at Baku, Azerbaijan. The Chess World Cup is the highly regarded tournaments in chess after the World Championship and the Candidates Tournament.
10. Which of the following is India’s first indigenously-designed and built Torpedo launch and recovery vessel (TRV)?
[A]INS Astradharani
[B]INS DhruvaK
[C]INS Ambuda
[D]INS Pulakesin-1
Answer: INS Astradharani
The INS Astradharani has been commissioned into Indian Navy at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. It is Indian Navy’s first totally indigenously-designed and built Torpedo launch and recovery vessel (TRV). It is advanced replacement for INS Astravahini which was decommissioned from India Navy in July, 2015. This 50-metre twin-hulled warship is also the first to be built at a private yard with armament fixtures.

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