Best PSC / PCS / STATE PCS online Current Affairs

Current Affairs JUNE-2020

Showing 241 - 260 of 260 entries

241. Which technology company has banned Police from using its facial recognition software “Rekognition”?

A
Google

B
Amazon

D
Apple

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Amazon]

Explaination : [Technology Major Amazon banned Police from using its facial recognition software “Rekognition”, for a year, amid the nation-wide protests in the United States. The use of facial recognition systems has faced criticism for incorrectly identifying people with darker skin. Though law enforcement agencies use facial recognition only to identify suspects, the critics say it can be misused. Earlier, IBM revoked its facial recognition software. Microsoft also joined the companies in banning Police use its recognition software. ]

242. Government has issued advisory for import and possession of exotic live species under which agreement?

A
CITES

B
UNFCCC

Show Answer

Correct Answer : A [CITES]

Explaination : [The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is an international agreement between governments. India is also a signatory to CITES. It seeks to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. The Environment ministry has issued rules for dealing with the import of exotic species and for assessing scale of possession within the country, as per the CITES agreement. Exotic live species are defined as plants and animals that are moved from their original habitat to a new one by human intervention ]

243. Who is the Chairperson of the committee reconstituted to look into the welfare of freedom fighters?

A
N K Singh

B
G. Kishan Reddy

C
Ajay Kumar Bhalla

D
Nityanand Rai

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [G. Kishan Reddy]

Explaination : [The Ministry of Home Affairs has reconstituted a committee to look into the welfare of freedom fighters. Minister of state for home affairs G Kishan Reddy has been named the Chairman of the committee, which also has nine eminent freedom fighters from across the country as its members. Home Ministry has another division which disburses pension to about 30,000 freedom fighters and their families. ]

244. Which ship builder delivered the Fast Patrol Vessel named ‘ICGS Kanaklata Barua’ for the Coast Guard?

A
Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers

B
Cochin Shipyard

C
Mazagon Dock Shipyard

D
Goa Shipyard

Show Answer

Correct Answer : A [Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers]

Explaination : [India’s leading shipbuilder, Kolkata-based Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) has recently delivered the Fast Patrol Vessel named ‘ICGS Kanaklata Barua’. It is the fifth and final ship in the series of Fast Patrol Vessels (FPV) for the Indian Coast Guard. This is also the 105th vessel delivered by the GRSE shipyard, a state-owned defence enterprise. It had earlier delivered vessels named ICGS Priyadarshini, ICGS Annie Besant and ICGS Amrit Kaur in this series to the Coast Guard. ]

245. Which Indian state/UT has launched Rozgar Setu portal to find employment for migrant workers?

A
Uttar Pradesh

B
Bihar

C
Madhya Pradesh

D
West Bengal

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [Madhya Pradesh]

Explaination : [The Madhya Pradesh government has recently launched the Rozgar Setu portal that will provide employment to migrant labourers. It was announced that all migrant workers who have returned to their home state have been registered on the portal. The portal also has the details of the employers who are looking for workers as they re-start economic activities. The state will also hold Rozgar melas in the next two months to employ these workers. ]

246. As per the latest Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University rankings, how many Indian institutions feature among the top-200?

B
Three

C
Five

D
Seven

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Three]

Explaination : [The QS World University Rankings has been released by global higher education consultancy QS Quacquarelli Symonds. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) topped the list for the ninth consecutive year, followed by Stanford University and Harvard University all being American. Only three Indian institutions namely IIT-Bombay (172nd), IISc Bangalore (185th) and IIT Delhi (193rd) feature among the top 200 in the list, with none in the top-100. ]

247. General Charles Brown is the first African-American Chief of the Air Force of which country?

A
United States

B
United Kingdom

C
Brazil

D
Germany

Show Answer

Correct Answer : A [United States]

Explaination : [The United States has confirmed General Charles Q. Brown Jr. as the Chief of the Air Force of the country. Charles Q. Brown is currently serving as the four-star general and is the first African-American to hold the position. The General recently opened up about his experience with racism in the United States. The Senate has unanimously confirmed the General for the post with full vote. ]

248. Which Indian state has approved an ordinance to insert imprisonment and fine for acts related to cow slaughter?

A
Madhya Pradesh

B
Uttar Pradesh

C
Bihar

D
Jharkhand

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Uttar Pradesh]

Explaination : [The Uttar Pradesh Cabinet has recently approved Cow-Slaughter Prevention (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 by amending Cow slaughter act, 1955. The amendments seek to protect cows and prevent crimes related to cow slaughter. The ordinance has also inserted an imprisonment provision of up to 7 years for physical damage to cow and fine up to Rs 3 lakh for cases related to cow slaughter. ]

249. National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has signed a MoU with which foundation to telecast e-learning content for school children?

A
Rotary India

B
Child Rights and You

C
Smile Foundation

D
Akshaya Patra Foundation

Show Answer

Correct Answer : A [Rotary India]

Explaination : [National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has digitally signed a MoU with Rotary India to telecast e-learning content for school children. The Union HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank was present during the event. The learning content is to be telecasted in all NCERT TV channels for class 1-12. Under the ‘Vidya Daan 2.0’ programme, Rotary International will provide the e – content in Hindi language to NCERT. Material for special children and Adult Literacy Mission will also be provided. ]

250. Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited (BECIL), that was seen in news, is a public sector enterprise under which Ministry?

A
Minister of Communication

B
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

C
Ministry of Electronics and IT

D
Ministry of Commerce and Industry

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Ministry of Information and Broadcasting]

Explaination : [Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited (BECIL) is a central public sector enterprise (CPSE) under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The CPSE was seen in news as it has recently released a tender that invited agencies to provide solutions and services related to fact verification and detection of misinformation on social media platforms. BECIL seeks to empanel the agencies and it has also announced that the bidding firms should be able to identify the geo-location of the source of the news. ]

251. Baghjan oil well of Oil India Limited, that was seen in news recently, is located in which state?

A
Rajasthan

B
Odisha

C
Assam

D
West Bengal

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [Assam]

Explaination : [The Baghjan oil well of Oil India Limited located in Tinsukia district of upper Assam has been leaking for more than 14 days. Recently, the oil well caught massive fire. A team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has reached the place. The Baghjan well is adjacent to the rich biodiversity-filled Dibru-Saikhowa National Park of Assam. The Indian Air Force and the Army are assisting in the firefighting operations. ]

252. Which social media platform has launched a new feature called ‘Fleets’ in India?

A
Facebook

B
Twitter

C
TikTok

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Twitter]

Explaination : [Social media giant Twitter has recently launched a new test feature named ‘Fleets’ in India, which allows users post messages that would disappear after 24 hours. This feature is similar to the ‘stories’ feature introduced on Instagram or Facebook. However, Fleets do not have features such as likes, retweets, or public replies. Twitter has introduced the fleets in India after Brazil and Italy. This will be available on the latest version of the Twitter application. ]

253. Which international financial institution releases its flagship ‘Global Economic Prospects report’?

A
World Economic Forum

B
World Bank

C
Asian Development Bank

D
BRICS Bank

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [World Bank]

Explaination : [‘Global Economic Prospects report’ is the flagship report of World Bank. As per the latest report released, India’s economy is estimated to contract by 3.2% in the current fiscal year 2020-21. The report also expects the Indian economy would grow at 3.1% in the next fiscal year. In the earlier report released in April, the GDP growth rate for this fiscal year was predicted at 1.5%-2.8% growth. The growth of next year was also earlier predicted at 6.1%. The report also highlighted that global economy will contract by 5.2% in 2020. ]

254. Which country has ratified a landmark free trade agreement with the European Union?

A
South Korea

B
Japan

C
China

D
Vietnam

Show Answer

Correct Answer : D [Vietnam]

Explaination : [One of the developing countries in Asia, Vietnam has recently ratified a landmark free trade agreement with the European Union. The lawmakers in Vietnam’s National Assembly voted to pass the deal known as ‘EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA)’. This is described as EU’s most ambitious deal with a developing country. Under the deal, EU will lift 85% of its tariffs on Vietnamese goods and cut the other tariffs over 7 years. Vietnam will lift 49% of its import duties on EU exports and shed the others by 10 years. ]

255. What is the ratio of central taxes -to-GDP in the fiscal year 2019-20?

A
11.25%

B
10.95%

C
10.25%

D
9.88%

Show Answer

Correct Answer : D [9.88%]

Explaination : [The ratio of central taxes -to-GDP fell further in the fiscal year 2019-20 to 9.88 per cent, mostly due to the decline in collection from customs duties and corporation tax. This measure is reported to be a ten-year low, as the ratio stood at 10.97 per cent in FY19 and at 11.22 per cent in FY18. Due to the stagnation in economic activity, this indicator is expected to decline further. The gross tax revenue also fell 3.39 per cent in FY20, with a shortfall of Rs 1.5-trillion as compared to the revised Budget target for the year. ]

256. The Government has allowed filing of GST monthly return through SMS service, up to which limit?

A
NIL return

B
Rs 1000

C
Rs 10000

D
Rs 50000

Show Answer

Correct Answer : A [NIL return]

Explaination : [The Government has allowed filing of NIL GST monthly return in FORM GSTR-3B through SMS. The taxpayers with NIL liability are not required to log on to the GST Portal. This step is expected to make the tax compliance easy for over 22 lakh registered taxpayers who had to otherwise log into their account and file returns every month. India ranks 115 out of around 190 countries in ease of paying taxes. ]

257. As of 2020, which was the safest year in the Indian Railways, with zero passenger fatality for the first time?

A
2011-12

B
2014-15

C
2018-19

D
2019-20

Show Answer

Correct Answer : D [2019-20]

Explaination : [As per the statement of the Indian Railways, the best ever safety record has been created during April 2019 – March 2020. There has been no fatality of any railway passenger in any train accident during this period. This feat has been achieved for the first time since 1853, when the Indian Railway system was introduced in the country. About 1274 Manned Level Crossings have been eliminated in 2019-20, which is also the highest ever. More than 1000 bridges were rehabilitated and rails were renewed ]

258. Which Indian state has launched a dedicated Online Shramik Employment Exchange for migrant workers?

A
Uttar Pradesh

B
Rajasthan

C
Bihar

D
Odisha

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Rajasthan]

Explaination : [The Chief Minister of Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot has recently launched the Raj Kaushal Portal and Online Shramik Employment Exchange through video conferencing. This initiative will enable the migrant labourers who have lost their livelihoods, to get employment and to provide suitable labour force to the industries facing shortage in labour. The portals have been developed by the State IT Department Rajasthan Skill and Livelihoods Development Corporation. The portal has data of nearly 53 lakh workers and 11.18 lakh industries. ]

259. Which economic measure of India recently surged to an all-time high of USD 493.48 billion?

A
Gold Reserve

B
Foreign Exchange Reserve

C
Special Drawing Rights

D
GST collection

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Foreign Exchange Reserve]

Explaination : [As per the recent notification of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the foreign exchange reserves raised USD 3.43 billion to an all-time high of USD 493.48 billion. The reserves announced were recorded in the week ended May 29, 2020. In the previous week, the forex reserves had raised to USD 490.44 billion. The major component of the overall reserves, foreign currency assets increased to USD 455.21 billion; gold reserves at 32.682 billion and India’s reserve position with the IMF at USD 4.16 billion. ]

260. Joe Biden, who was seen in news recently, is the nominee for which country’s Presidential elections?

A
New Zealand

B
Brazil

C
United States

D
United Kingdom

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [United States]

Explaination : [Former Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden has formally obtained the nomination of the Democratic Party for the upcoming U.S Presidential elections. The 77-year-old leader had served as the 47th U.S Vice President from 2009 to 2017 during the presidency of Barack Obama. In the elections to be held on November 3, Joe Biden will challenge the incumbent President and Republican Donald Trump, who is seeking re-election. ]