1. India has recently signed MoU with which country for technical cooperation in rail sector especially on safety related subjects?
[A] France
[B] Italy
[C] Japan
[D] Germany
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Italy]
Notes:
The Union Ministry of Railways has recently signed MoU with Italy’s public sector rail company Ferrovie Dello Stato Italiane Group (FS Group) for technical cooperation in rail sector especially in the areas safety in train operations. The cooperation areas identified in this MoU includes safety audit of Indian Railways and measures required for enhancing safety in train operation, assessment and certification of advanced technology based safety products and systems to Safety Integrity Level (SIL4), training and competency development with focus of safety, modern trends in maintenance and diagnostic etc.
2. Which Indian-American musician has won the best world Music Album awar for “Sing Me Home” at the 2017 Grammy Awards?
[A] Sabyasachi Mukherjee
[B] Sandeep Das
[C] Shubha Mudgal
[D] Anoushka Shankar
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Sandeep Das]
Notes:
Sandeep Das, an Indian-American tabla player, has won the Best World Music Album at the 59th edition of Grammy Awards-2017 in California, United States for his album “Sing Me Home”.
3. GNFC township, which has become the India’s first-ever cashless township, is in which state?
[A] Maharashtra
[B] Gujarat
[C] West Bengal
[D] Assam
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Gujarat ]
Notes:
The Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers and Chemicals (GNFC) township in Bharuch has become the India’s first-ever cashless township, which is recently inaugurated by Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani on February 13, 2017. The GNFC is the first integrated industrial township in the country to go 100% digital in all financial transactions. All the shops in the GNFC township, which include paan shops, laundries, vegetable shops, barber shops, provision stores, cycle repairing shops, flour mills, conduct their business only through cashless transactions using PoS machines, e-wallets like BHIM, UPI, SBI Buddy, etc. Even a paan is purchased cashless and a cup of tea is also available cashless only. The GNFC has a population of around 5,000 and has facilities like a big shopping centre, restaurants, eateries, schools and colleges, hospital, stadium, guest house, etc.
4. Which Indian sportsperson will represent IOC’s Athletes’ Commission (AC) in the Badminton World Federation (BWF)
[A] Saina Nehwal
[B] P V Sindhu
[C] Pullela Gopichand
[D] Prakash Padukone
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Saina Nehwal]
Notes:
Ace Indian badminton player, Saina Nehwal will represent International Olympic Committee’s Athletes’ Commission (IOC AC) in the Badminton World Federation (BWF). She will join the BWF Athletes’ Commission as a representative of the IOC AC. It’s a rare honour for an Indian sportsperson. Before this, she was appointed a member of the IOC Athletes’ Commission (AC) in 2016.
5. Yumnam Yaima Singh, who passed away recently, was related to which field?
[A] Politics
[B] Sports
[C] Journalism
[D] Marine Science
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Politics]
Notes:
Yumnam Yaima Singh (95), the Veteran politician and former Member of Parliament, has recently passed away in Imphal, Manipur. Y Yaima Singh was first elected to the Territorial Council in 1957. He was elected seven times continuously to the Manipur Assembly from Oinam Constituency from 1962 to 1985. He had held various Ministerial posts such as Education, IFCD, and Law & Legislative Affairs. He was the Speaker of Manipur Legislative Assembly form 1980 – 85. He was elected to the 10th Lok Sabha in 1991 on the Manipur People’s Party (MPP) ticket, representing the Inner Manipur Parliamentary Constituency. He was also a brilliant writer, who wrote a book titled “A Piece of Tenth Lok Sabha” in English, amongst many others.
6. M Chandrakasu, who passed away recently, was related to which field?
[A] Sports
[B] Politics
[C] Journalism
[D] Film Industry
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Politics]
Notes:
M Chandrakasu (67), the Former Puducherry Minister, has recently passed away in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He represented Nedungad constituency in the outlying enclave of Karaikal for six terms. He was Agriculture Minister in the All India N R Congress (AINRC) government formed by N Rangasamy in 2011.
7. Who has been bestowed with the 2016 Saraswati Samman?
[A] Naiyer Masud
[B] Sugatha Kumari
[C] Surjit Paatar
[D] Mahabaleshwar Sail
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Mahabaleshwar Sail]
Notes:
Mahabaleshwar Sail, the noted Konkani writer, has been honoured with the 2017 Saraswati Samman for his novel ‘Hawthan’. The Goa-based Sail is a renowned bi-lingual writer who has four Marathi dramas and seven Konkani novels to his credit. The award carries a cash prize of Rs.15 lakh and a citation.
8. Who has been appointed as the new Ambassador of India to Nepal?
[A] Anita Karwal
[B] U Venkateswarlu
[C] Manjeev Singh Puri
[D] Ruby Srivastava
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Manjeev Singh Puri]
Notes:
Manjeev Singh Puri, a 1982 batch IFS officer, has been appointed as the new Ambassador of India to Nepal. He will succeed Ranjit Rae. Currently, Puri is India’s Ambassador to the European Union, Belgium and Luxembourg.
9. The 6th edition of the International Engineering Sourcing Show (IESS) has started in which city?
[A] Chennai
[B] Kolkata
[C] Kochi
[D] Guwahati
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Chennai]
Notes:
The 6th edition of the International Engineering Sourcing Show (IESS) has started in Chennai, Tamil Nadu from March 16, 2017. It is the largest Engineering sourcing show in India for International visitors, which is organized under the aegis of Union Ministry of Commerce & Industry. The focus sectors of the IESS are industrial supply, metal & shop floor, industrial & electrical machinery, automotive component, etc. The 3-day event has exclusive Technology and Innovation Pavilions with representations from BARC, IIT Mumbai, IIT Madras, Fluid Control Research Institute (FCRI), International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials, Central Manufacturing Technology Institute (CMTI) and MSME Tools Room.
10. The first-ever Haryana Sahitya Sangam has started in which city?
[A] Faridabad
[B] Panchkula
[C] Gurgaon
[D] Karnal
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Panchkula]
Notes:
The first-ever Haryana Sahitya Sangam has started at Indradhanush Auditorium in Panchkula in which more than 2,000 scholars, writers and thinkers from across the country are participating. The aim of the festival is to highlight the contribution of the State in the field of literature and culture and to provide a platform for young and budding writers to get wide-ranging and genuine guidance.