Quiz on Current Affairs: 27 January 2015

1) Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 24 January 2015 has lifted ban on carrying Indian bank notes of Rs 1,000 and 500 denominations to and from which countries?

(A) Nepal and Bhutan

(B) Pakistan and Bangladesh

(C) China and Srilanka

(D) Myanmar and Thailand

2) National Girl Child Day was observed on?

(A) January 26

(B) January 25

(C) January 24

(D) January 23 

3) Who is now the world’s oldest living monarch following the death of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, at age 90 recently?

(A) Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, King of Bhutan

(B) Elizabeth II, Britain’s Queen

(C) Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said, King of Oman

(D) Sonja, Queen of Norway

4) Who has recently won the inaugural Khushwant Singh Memorial Prize for Poetry?

(A) Amita Kanekar

(B) Jhumpa Lahiri

(C) Priya Davidar

(D) Arundhathi Subramaniam

5) Who will inaugurate the 35th National Games, to be hosted by Kerala from January 31 to February 14, as announced recently?

(A) Pranab Mukherjee

(B) Arun Jaitley

(C) Venkaiah Naidu

(D) Narendra Modi

6) Hockey India League 2015 started on 22 January 2015 at Kalinga Stadium in _____ with inaugural match between Kalinga Lancers and Ranchi Rays?

(A) New Delhi

(B) Bhubaneswar

(C) Pune

(D) Ahamedabad

7) TRAI recently issued draft rules for full mobile number portability. Full mobile number portability is set to start from which date?

(A) May 3, 2015

(B) August 15, 2015

(C) April 1, 2015

(D) March 8, 2015

8) Who recently won his seventh senior National snooker title beating Varun Madan by six frames to three?

(A) Subhash Agarwal

(B) Pankaj Advani

(C) Geet Sethi

(D) Aditya Mehta

9) National Voters’ Day (NVD) was observed on 25th January 2015. What was the theme for the day this year?

(A) Ethical Voting

(B) Inclusion

(C) Greater Participation for a Stronger Democracy

(D) Easy Registration, Easy Correction

10) Which Wing Commander on 25 January 2015 became the first woman officer to lead the ceremonial Guard of Honour at Rashtrapathi Bhavan?

(A) Pooja Thakur

(B) Sandhya Chauhan

(C) Divya Ajith

(D) Sneha Shekhawat

Answers

1) Ans. (A) Nepal and Bhutan

2) Ans. (C) January 24

3) Ans. (B) Elizabeth II, Britain’s Queen

4) Ans. (D) Arundhathi Subramaniam

5) Ans. (C) Venkaiah Naidu

6) Ans. (B) Bhubaneswar

7) Ans. (A) May 3, 2015

8) Ans. (B) Pankaj Advani

9) Ans. (D) Easy Registration, Easy Correction

10) Ans. (A) Pooja Thakur

26th January 2015 Current Affairs Updates

1) Nation celebrated its 66th Republic Day: India on 26 January 2015 celebrated its 66th Republic Day. US President Barack Obama has become the first American President to be Chief Guest on Republic Day celebrations. India’s military might and cultural diversity was showcased in the nearly two-hour-long republic day parade. President Barack Obama broke Secret Service's sacred security protocol by remaining in the open for more than two hours when he graced the Republic Day celebrations as the Chief Guest. Obama spent over two hours in the open as the Chief Guest of India's 66th Republic Day celebrations. The security guidelines of Secret Service, the exclusive agency responsible for an American President's security, mandate that he does not spend more than 45 minutes at any open-air venue.

2) DP Sinha appointed security secretary: The government on 26 January 2015 appointed special director with Intelligence Bureau, Divya Prakash Sinha, as secretary (security) in the Cabinet secretariat. The post had been lying vacant since November 2013 when Yashovardhan Azad, holding the post then, was appointed information commissioner by the government.

3) Eminent cartoonist R K Laxman died: R K Laxman, the country's best-known cartoonist, passed away on 26 January 2015, at the Dinanath Mangeshkar hospital in Pune, where he was on life support for the past few days. He was 93. Born in 1921 in Mysore, Laxman had no formal training in cartooning but the work he put out over decades was sheer genius. He began by drawing for local papers, and illustrating the stories of his famous elder brother, novelist R K Narayan, while still at college. The recipient of numerous awards, among them the Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan and Magsaysay Award, Laxman's fan base ran into millions. He is best known for creation of iconic character ‘The Common Man’, for his daily cartoon strip, ‘You Said It’ in The Times of India(TOI) started in 1951.

4) Durga Prasad appointed special DG of CRPF:  Government on 24 January 2015 appointed K Durga Prasad, previously sacked as the director of the Special Protection Group, as the special director general of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). Prasad, a 1981 batch IPS officer of Andhra Pradesh cadre, was unceremoniously removed as chief of the SPG — which provides security to the prime minister, former prime ministers and their family members — during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to Nepal to attend the Saarc summit. 

5) First ever all-women contingent marched through the 66th Republic Day Parade: For the first time in the history of India’s Republic Day, all-women contingent from the three forces Army, Air Force and Navy marched down in the parade. Army contingent was led by Capt Divya Ajith. Navy contingent was led by Lt Commander Sandhya Chauhan. Air Force contingent was led by Squadron Leader Sneha Shekhawat. While women officers have been participating in previous Republic Day parades, this was for the first time that an all-women contingent of the armed forces participated.

6) Colombia’s Paulina Vega crowned Miss Universe 2014: Colombia’s Paulina Vega was crowned 63rd Miss Universe after beating out contenders from the United States, Ukraine, Jamaica and Netherlands. Miss USA Nia Sanchez from Las Vegas was named a runner-up, along with Miss Ukraine Diana Harkusha. The event is actually the 2014 Miss Universe pageant. The competition was pushed back until now to try to get a bigger television audience.

7) Major Mukund Varadarajan, Naik Neeraj Kumar Singh posthumously awarded Ashok Chakra: Major Mukund Varadarajan and Naik Neeraj Kumar Singh, the two army personnel who laid down their lives combating militants in Kashmir Valley, were on 26 January 2015 awarded posthumously the highest peacetime military honour, the Ashok Chakra, by President Pranab Mukherjee. The awards were received by their wives at the 66th Republic Day celebrations, which was graced by US President Barack Obama.

8) Alexis Tsipras sworn in as prime minister of Greece: Greek left-wing leader Alexis Tsipras was sworn in on 26 Jan 2015 as the Prime Minister of a new hard-line, anti-bailout government determined to face down international lenders and end nearly five years of tough economic measures. 40-year old Alexis Tsipras will be Greece’s youngest Prime Minister.

Daily General Knowledge Quiz: 27 January 2015

1) Name the clarion call of National Games 2015 to be held in Kerala? -'Get Set Play'

2) Which is the only ocean to be named after a country? - Indian Ocean 

3) The book "My Truth" is on the life of? - Indira Gandhi

4) Electron is discovered by? - J.J Thomson

5) The resolution of Swadeshi was adopted in which session of Congress? - Calcutta session of 1906

6) C.V Raman got Nobel Prize in which year? - 1930

7) Dilwara Temple is situated at? - Rajasthan

8) International Nurses Day? - May 12

9) 'Cricket My Style' is a book written by? - Kapil Dev

10) Who was the first cricket player to take ten wickets in one innings of a Test Cricket Match? - Jim Lecker

Daily Current Affairs: 25 January 2015

1) LK Advani, Amitabh Bachchan, Dilip Kumar among Padma Vibhushan awardees: Former Deputy Prime Minister and BJP veteran L K Advani, film stars Amitabh Bachchan and Dilip Kumar and Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal are among the nine personalities who have been selected for Padma Vibhushan this year. Twenty personalities including Constitutional expert Subhash Kashyap, lawyer Harish Salve, Microsoft Chief Bill Gates and his wife Melinda, journalists Rajat Sharma and Swapan Dasgupta will be conferred with Padma Bhushan. Film maker Sanjay Leela Bhansali is among the 75 personalities who have been selected for Padma Shri. The Awards are given in various disciplines including art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, and sports, every year on the occasion of Republic Day. 

2) Barack Obama arrived in India for 03 day visit: U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in India on 25 January 2015 on his historic 3-day visit. Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke with protocol to meet the President as he landed in New Delhi. Obama becomes the first sitting U.S. president to visit India twice. Obama has already made a state visit of India during November 2010. Obama will also become the first American President to become Chief Guest at India’s Republic Day Celebrations.

3) PM Modi congratulated bankers for Jan Dhan Yojana’s success: Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has sent an email to all bankers, congratulating them on the success of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana. In the email, the Prime Minister said that the target set for opening bank accounts has surpassed well ahead of the target date of 26th of January this year. He said, by opening 11.5 crore new accounts in a very short span, the country achieved a coverage of 99.74 per cent of all households in the country. The Prime Minister said there is need to redouble efforts on financial literacy and linking of Aadhaar needs to improve further.

4) For the first time, woman officer leads Guard of Honour at Rashtrapati Bhavan: Wing Commander Pooja Thakur became the first woman to lead the ceremonial Guard of Honour which was inspected by the U.S. President Barack Obama at Rashtrapti Bhavan on 25 January 2015. Wing Commander Thakur belongs to the administrative branch of the Indian Air Force and is currently posted at ‘Disha’, the publicity cell under the Directorate of Personnel Officers at the Air Force Headquarters. She hails from Rajasthan and is active in para-jumping and adventure sports.

5) Zambia's new president Edgar Lungu sworn into office: Zambia's new President Edgar Lungu was sworn in on 25 January 2015 to become the country's sixth president after narrowly winning a vote rejected by the opposition. Lungu placed his hand on a bible to pledge allegiance to the people of Zambia in front of thousands of jubilant supporters, regional heads of state and diplomats.

6) Saina Nehwal defeated Carolina Marin to retain Syed Modi Grand Prix: Saina Nehwal staged a scintillating comeback to defeat reigning world champion Carolina Marin of Spain and retain the women's singles title, while Parupalli Kashyap beat K Srikanth in an all-India final to win men's singles crown of the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold badminton tournament on 25 January 2015. India's third seed Parupalli Kashyap defeated top seed and compatriot Kidambi Srikanth to win the men's singles title of the $120,000 Syed Modi International Badminton Championships.

7) National Voters Day observed: Fifth National Voters’ Day (NVD) was observed on 25 January 2015. Theme of this year was Easy Registration, Easy Correction. On this occasion, awards for best electoral practices are given to Chief Electoral Officers and District Election Officers. Media houses and civil society organisations are also given awards for best campaign in Voters’ Education and Awareness.

8) US, India signed pact for developing smart cities in Ajmer, Allahabad & Visakhapatnam: India on 25 January 2015 signed three agreements with the US for developing smart cities in Ajmer, Allahabad and Visakhapatnam, with the government saying that the agreements would make significant contribution to building such cities in the country. The agreements were signed by the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) with state governments of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh in the presence of Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu.

9) World Leprosy Day observed: World Leprosy Day was observed internationally on 25 Jnauary 2015. The day was observed internationally on January 26 or its nearest Sunday.

10) India and US announced nuclear 'breakthrough' after Modi-Obama talks: India and the United States reached an agreement on 25 January 2015 to break a deadlock that has been stalling the implementation of a landmark civilian nuclear deal between the world’s two largest democracies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India was moving towards commercial cooperation on civil nuclear trade with the United States, six years after the two sides signed the deal.

Latest Current Affairs Questions: 26 January 2015

1)  Abdullah bin Abdulaziz who died on 23 January 2015 was the King of which Gulf nation?

(A) Oman

(B) Saudi Arabia

(C) Bahrain

(D) Kuwait

2) Who among the following has defeated four-time champion Roger Federer in the third round of Australian Open 2015 on 23 January 2015?

(A) Mikhail Youzhny

(B) Simone Bolelli

(C) Andrey Kuznetsov

(D) Andreas Seppi

3) Actor and comedian M.S. Narayana who passed away on 23 Jnauary 2015 was famous in which film industry?

(A) Telugu

(B) Tamil

(C) Malayalam

(D) Kannada

4) Nation remembered which veteran freedom fighter on his birth anniversary on 23 January 2015?

(A) Mangal Pandey

(B) Chandra Shekhar Azad

(C) Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

(D) Bhagat Singh

5) Which regulatory body on 23 January 2015 has asked commercial banks to display loan interest rates on their websites, a move aimed at enhancing transparency for borrowers?

(A) TRAI

(B) RBI

(C) IRDA

(D) PFRDA

6) Which IIT in Indian has recently developed a 10-inch netbook, which it claims could be the world's cheapest, at around Rs 6,000?

(A) IIT Bombay

(B) IIT Madras

(C) IIT Delhi

(D) IIT Kanpur

7) Lee Wan Koo was recently named as the new Prime Minister of which Asian Country?

(A) China

(B) Japan

(C) South Korea

(D) Mauritius 

8) Yingluck Shinawatra who was on 23 January 2015 impeached by military-appointed legislature, for her role in overseeing a government rice subsidy program that lost billions of dollars, was the former Prime Minsiter of?

(A) South Korea

(B) Bhutan

(C) Nepal

(D) Thailand

9) Name the eminent Indian academician who has been named on advisory panel to Review UN Peace-Building Architecture recently?

(A) Saraswathi Menon

(B) Atul Khare

(C) Vikas Swarup

(D) Nalini Sharma

10) Vodafone has recently appointed whom as the India CEO?

(A) Martin Pieters

(B) A.K. Sinha

(C) R.K. Upadhyay

(D) Sunil Sood

Answers

1) Ans. (B) Saudi Arabia

2) Ans. (D) Andreas Seppi

3) Ans. (A) Telugu

4) Ans. (C) Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

5) Ans. (B) RBI

6) Ans. (A) IIT Bombay

7) Ans. (C) South Korea

8) Ans. (D) Thailand

9) Ans. (A) Saraswathi Menon

10) Ans. (D) Sunil Sood

Daily Current Affairs Updates: 24 January 2015

1) National Girl Child Day observed on 24 January: National Girl Child Day is observed on 24 January 2015 across the nation. This celebration was started to offer more supports and new opportunities to the girls in the country. It is celebrated to increase the awareness among people about all the inequalities faced by the girl child in the society. This day is being observed every year on 24 January since 2008.

2) 49th Death Anniversary of Homi Jahangir Bhabha observed: 49th Death Anniversary of Homi Jahangir Bhabha was observed on 24 Jnauary 2015. He is the Father of Indian Nuclear Programme. He was born on 30th October 1909 and died on 24th January 1966.

3) Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu to inaugurate 35th National Games in Kerala: The 35th National Games, to be hosted by Kerala from January 31 to February 14, will be inaugurated by Union Minister for Urban Development and Parliamentary Affairs Venkaiah Naidu. The opening ceremony will be held at the newly-built Greenfield Stadium at Karyavattom on the evening of January 31. Cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar, the Goodwill Ambassador of the event, will handover the games flame to sprint queen PT Usha and international long-jumper Anju Bobby George, beginning the much-awaited gala.

4) Hockey India League began on Jan 22: On January 22, 2015, the Hockey India League started for the year at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar with inaugural match between Kalinga Lancers and Ranchi Rays. Kalinga Lancers defeated Ranchi Rays by 6-3.

5) Pankaj Advani wins his seventh National title, Amee is women’s champ: Pankaj Advani won his seventh senior National snooker title beating Varun Madan by six frames to three in a well-fought final of the BRC Gloster National billiards and snooker championship at the BRC on 24 January 2015. The victory also gave Advani a fourth double, having won the billiards and snooker crowns in 2007, 08 and 2009 also. In women's event, Amee Kamani won her maiden senior snooker title defeating defending champion Vidya Pillay of Karnataka 63-39, 21-59, 60-47, 57-32, 32-64, 45-44.

6) TRAI issued draft rules for full mobile number portability: Telecom regulator TRAI has issued draft regulations to facilitate full mobile number portability which is set to start from May 3. The full or nationwide mobile number portability (MNP) will allow consumers to change service provider in any part of the country while retaining their existing number. At present, mobile number portability allows consumers to change their service provider within a telecom circle which in most cases is limited to a state.

7) India observed national mourning to condole death of King Abdullah: India on 24 January 2015 observed day-long national mourning the death of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, of Saudi Arabia. The national flags were flown at half-mast throughout the country as mark of respect to the King, who was also the custodian of two holy mosques.

8) Arundhathi Subramaniam  won inaugural Khushwant Singh Memorial Prize: Poet Arundhathi Subramaniam on 24 January 2015 won the inaugural Khushwant Singh Memorial Prize for Poetry for her work When God is a Traveller. The winner was announced at a prize ceremony at the ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival, attended by over 2,500 poetry lovers.

9) Queen Elizabeth is world's oldest monarch after death of Saudi king: The death of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia , at age 90, leaves British Queen Elizabeth II as the oldest living reigning monarch in the world. The queen is 88, and will turn 89 on April 21, although her birthday is typically celebrated in June when the weather is better.

10) RBI lifted ban on carrying 1000, 500 bank notes via Bhutan, Nepal: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has lifted a ban on carrying Indian bank notes of Rs 1,000 and 500 denominations to and from Nepal, Bhutan. In this regard RBI has issued a circular that eased the restriction on export and import of bank notes of 1,000 and 500 denominations for Nepal and Bhutan. However, RBI has put a limit of carrying such notes at Rs 25,000 per person. Earlier in May 2000, RBI had imposed ban following the request of Union government to curb smuggling of counterfeit currency. It will provide a great relief to workers from both nations as well as Indian tourists travelling to Nepal and Bhutan.

Paulina Vega is Miss Universe 2014

* Colombia’s Paulina Vega was crowned Miss Universe on 26 January 2015, beating out contenders from the United States, Ukraine, Jamaica and The Netherlands at the world’s top beauty pageant in Florida.

* The 22-year-old model and business student triumphed over 87 other women from around the world, and is only the second beauty queen from Colombia to take home the prize.

* Miss USA Nia Sanchez and Miss Ukraine Diana Harkusha were the runners-up

* The last time Colombia won the crown was in 1956 when Luz Marina Zuluaga took home the title.

* The 63rd edition of the Miss Universe pageant was held at Florida International University in the city of Doral, USA.

* The event is actually the 2014 Miss Universe pageant. The competition was pushed back until now to try to get a bigger television audience.

Complete List of Padma Award 2015 Winners

Central Government on 25 January 2015 on the occasion of 66th Republic Day has announced the Padma Awardees for 2015. 

* Padma Awards - one of the highest civilian Awards of the country, are conferred in three categories, namely, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri. The Awards are given in various disciplines/ fields of activities, viz.- art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service, etc. ‘Padma Vibhushan’ is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service; ‘Padma Bhushan’ for distinguished service of high order and ‘Padma Shri’ for distinguished service in any field. The awards are announced on the occasion of Republic Day every year.

* These awards are conferred by the President of India at ceremonial functions which are held at Rashtrapati Bhawan usually around March/ April every year. This year the President of India has approved conferment of Padma Awards to 104 persons as per the list below. The list comprises of 9 Padma Vibhushan, 20 Padma Bhushan and 75 Padma Shri Awardees.  17 of the awardees are women and the list also includes 17 persons from the category of foreigners, NRIs, PIOs and 4 Posthumous awardees.

Here is the list of Padma Vibhushan Award Winners 2015. The complete list of Padma Awards 2015 (Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri) can be viewed/downloaded from the PDF link below.

Download as PDF-

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Padma Vibhushan
S. No.	Name of the Awardee	Discipline	State/Domicile
1.	Shri L. K. Advani	Public Affairs	Gujarat
2.	Shri Amitabh Bachchan	Art	Maharashtra
3.	Shri Prakash Singh Badal	Public Affairs	Punjab
4.	Dr. D. Veerendra Heggade	Social Work	Karnataka
5.	Shri Mohammad Yusuf Khan alias Dilip Kumar	Art	Maharashtra
6.	Shri Jagadguru Ramanandacharya Swami Rambhadracharya	Others	Uttar Pradesh
7.	Prof. Malur Ramaswamy Srinivasan	Science and Engineering	Tamil Nadu
8.	Shri Kottayan K. Venugopal	Public Affairs	Delhi
9.	Shri Karim Al Hussaini Aga Khan (Foreigner)	Trade and Industry	France/UK