1. As a Covid distress mitigating measure, PSBs in India announced to provide unsecured loans to individuals up to which amount?
[A] Rs 1 lakh
[B] Rs 2 lakh
[C] Rs 5 lakh
[D] Rs 25 lakh
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Rs 5 lakh]
Notes:
As a measure to mitigate the distress caused due to COVID 19 pandemic, Public Sector Banks (PSBs) in India have announced to provide financial assistance to individuals in the form of unsecured loans up to a limit of Rs 5 lakh.
This is a part of the three new loan products introduced by the PSBs to provide financial support to vaccine manufacturers, hospitals/dispensaries, pathology labs etc.
2. When is the “World No Tobacco Day” observed by WHO every year?
[A] May 31
[B] June 1
[C] June 10
[D] June 20
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [May 31]
Notes:
Every year, 31st May is observed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as the “World No Tobacco Day”. The theme for this year is “Commit to quit”.
This day was created by the WHO members in the year 1987 to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the deaths associated with using tobacco. A resolution was passed in 1988 to observe 31st May as the No Tobacco Day.
3. Japanese player Naomi Osaka plays which sports?
[A] Badminton
[B] Tennis
[C] Archery
[D] Weight Lifting
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Tennis]
Notes:
Leading Tennis champion and world number two Naomi Osaka has announced that she would withdraw from the French Open and would spend some time away from the court.
She had posted that she would boycott the mandatory post-match press conferences on the grounds of mental health reasons. In turn, the organisers imposed a penalty on the player.
4. Which institution implements the “Horticulture Cluster Development Programme”?
[A] Food and Agricultural Organisation
[B] National Horticulture Board
[C] NABARD
[D] Ministry of Food Processing Industries
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [National Horticulture Board]
Notes:
The Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has launched the Horticulture Cluster Development Programme. The programme has been launched on a pilot basis in 12 clusters covering 11 States/UTs.
This is a central sector programme implemented by the National Horticulture Board (NHB), which aims to make identified horticulture clusters globally competitive.
5. Oleg Novitsky and Pyotr Dubrov, who performed a 7-hour spacewalk recently, are from which country?
[A] USA
[B] Russia
[C] Israel
[D] France
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Russia]
Notes:
Two Russian cosmonauts named Oleg Novitsky and Pyotr Dubrov ventured out of the International Space Station on a 7-hour spacewalk to prepare for the arrival of a new Russian module.
It’s the first spacewalk for both the cosmonauts, who arrived at the space station in April. They conducted technical works including replacing the old batteries outside the International Space Station, before the arrival of the new Nauka (Science) multipurpose laboratory module.
6. CSIR-NCL developed a technology called ‘SWASTIIK’, to disinfect water using which medicinal system?
[A] Siddha
[B] Ayurveda
[C] Homeopathy
[D] Sowa-Rigpa
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Ayurveda]
Notes:
CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory (CSIR-NCL) Pune has developed a hybrid technology called “SWASTIIK”, for disinfecting water by using natural oils.
With support from the Water Technology Initiative of the department of science and technology (DST), the team has developed the technology. It involves boiling of a liquid as a result of pressure reduction (cavitation) and also uses natural oils having antimicrobial properties, to disinfect.
7. What would be the rate of global unemployment in the year 2022, as per ILO estimates?
[A] 1%
[B] 3%
[C] 5.7%
[D] 10.4%
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [5.7%]
Notes:
The rate of global unemployment in the year 2022 is estimated to be 5.7% by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
ILO has estimated that nearly 205 million unemployed people would exist around the world, which is higher than the 2019 level of 187 million. Further the ILO has stated that 108 million more number of workers have been categorized as poor or extremely poor.
8. Who is the winner of the 2021 International Booker Prize?
[A] David Diop
[B] Douglas Stuart
[C] Margaret Atwood
[D] Bernardine Evaristo
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [David Diop]
Notes:
David Diop has become the first French writer to win the International Booker Prize, as he was selected for the prestigious award in 2021.
His second novel, At Night All Blood is Black, was translated by the US author and poet Anna Moschovakis. The book was inspired by his Senegalese great-grandfather’s silence about his experiences in First World War.
9. Which global institution launched the ‘Programmable Digital Fiber’?
[A] Oxford University
[B] MIT
[C] Yale University
[D] Harvard University
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [MIT]
Notes:
Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has developed a first-of-its kind ‘Programmable Digital Fiber’.
This digital fiber contains memory, temperature sensors, and a neural network program to infer physical activity. It was created by placing hundreds of square silicon microscale digital chips into a preform, which was then used to create a polymer fiber.
10. NACH facility, which was seen in the news recently, stands for?
[A] National Automobile Clearing House
[B] National Automated Clearing House
[C] National Accreditation Council of Higher Education
[D] None of the above
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [National Automated Clearing House]
Notes:
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) implemented “National Automated Clearing House (NACH)”, which can be used for making bulk transactions towards distribution and collection of payments.
NACH is a centralised system which consolidates multiple ECS systems running across the country. As per the RBI’s recent monetary policy committee meeting, the NACH facility would be available on all days of the week from August 1.