Best PSC / PCS / STATE PCS online Current Affairs

Current Affairs Oct-2020

Showing 121 - 140 of 235 entries

121. As per a recent study, the habitat of which species has been estimated to decline by 2050, due to climate change?

A
Gangetic Dolphin

B
Bengal Tiger

C
Himalayan brown bear

D
Great Indian Bustard

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [Himalayan brown bear]

Explaination : [A recent study on the Himalayan brown bear by scientists of Zoological Survey of India, has forecast that there is a decline in their suitable habitat, due to climate change. The study has urged scientists to suggest an adaptive planning of protected area network in the western Himalayas, to conserve the Himalayan brown bear species (Ursus arctos isabellinus).]

122. Which country has issued warning to its citizens about a mysterious cloud of ‘Yellow dust’?

A
Philippines

B
North Korea

C
Japan

D
India

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [North Korea]

Explaination : [The authorities of North Korea have urged the citizens to avoid contact with a mysterious cloud of ‘yellow dust’. As per the authorities, the yellow dust blowing in from China could bring SARS CoV-2 with it. The country has directed its citizens to remain indoor to avoid contact with the dust storm, which is expected to land in the country.]

123. Which organisation has launched the facility to file NIL GST statement through SMS

A
Finance Commission

B
GSTN

C
Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs

D
Central Board of Direct Taxes

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [GSTN]

Explaination : [The Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has launched the facility, whereby composition tax payers can file NIL GST in form GST CMP-08 through SMS mode without logging in to GST Portal. As per a GSTN statistics, total of 17.11 lakh taxpayers have opted for Composition Scheme. Out of the 17.11 lakh, 20% taxpayers are the ones who file NIL statement.]

124. India has recently commenced Air-bubble service with which country?

A
Malaysia

B
Bangladesh

C
Sri Lanka

D
Singapore

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Bangladesh]

Explaination : [The air-connectivity between Bangladesh and India resumed under the air-bubble arrangement between the two countries, after nearly eight months. The Bangladeshi airlines will be operating flights from Dhaka to Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai while the Indian carriers will have flights from Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai to Dhaka.]

125. What is ‘Ganga Avalokan’, that was seen in news recently?

A
Campaign

B
Museum

C
Commemorative Stamp

D
Channel

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Museum]

Explaination : [Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated six mega development projects in Uttarakhand under the Namami Gange Mission. A first of its kind Museum named ‘Ganga Avalokan’ on the River Ganga at Haridwar, was also inaugurated. The Prime Minister also released a book titled “Rowing Down the Ganges” and a new logo for the Jal Jeevan Mission.]

126. Who has topped the IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List 2020?

A
Ratan Tata

B
Mukesh Ambani

C
Azim Premji

D
Anil Ambani

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Mukesh Ambani]

Explaination : [The Chairman of Reliance Industries Limited – Mukesh Ambani, has topped the IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List 2020. He has been in the top of the list for 9 consecutive years. His total wealth amounts to Rs. 6,58,400 crore and it has grown by 73% in the past one year.]

127. India is set to acquire 72,000 assault rifles from which country?

A
Israel

B
Iran

D
Russia

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [USA]

Explaination : [The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved capital acquisition proposals in Defence sector worth Rs.229 crore. The proposals include acquisition of 72,000 assault rifles from the United States of America. These proposals include material acquisitions from both Indian and foreign players and is aligned with Atma Nirbhar Policy of Self Reliance.]

128. Which public sector organisation has signed with the Ministry of Power, and set its targets for the year 2020-21?

A
ONGC

B
NTPC

D
GAIL

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [NTPC]

Explaination : [Leading Power Sector organisation, NTPC Ltd has recently signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Ministry of Power. Under the MoU, the key targets were fixed for the year 2020-21, which include 340 BU of electricity generation, 15 MMT of coal production under excellent category. It also includes other financial parameters including Capex and Revenue from operations.]

129. Which company has started exploration of Kolar Gold Fields after 16 years?

A
Reliance Industries Limited

B
Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited

C
National Mineral Development Corporation

D
Coal India Limited

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited]

Explaination : [Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited (MECL) has commenced the exploration of the Kolar Gold Fields (KGF) in Karnataka. MECL is a Mini Ratna PSU under the Ministry of Mines. This mining activity is expected to help resolve Bharat Gold Mines Limited (BGML) issue over exploration of the gold field, which is pending for past 16 years.]

130. Which Union Ministry launched the ‘CSIR- Technologies for rural development’?

A
Ministry of Science and Technology

B
Ministry of Education

C
Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare

D
Ministry of Rural Development

Show Answer

Correct Answer : A [Ministry of Science and Technology]

Explaination : [Union Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan has launched the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Technologies for Rural Development. The technologies have been launched under a joint initiative of CSIR, Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA), Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD) and Vijnana Bharti (VIBHA). The technologies include improved beehive, dehumidified drier and agricultural waste-based biodegradable plates.]

131. Which department of the Union Government has organized “Shramdan” drive, to commemorate Gandhi Jayanti?

A
Department of Financial Services

B
Department of Justice

C
Department of Science and Technology

D
Department of Fertilizers

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Department of Justice]

Explaination : [In order to commemorate the Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, “Shramdan” drive was organized by the Department of Justice, Government of India at New Delhi on 2nd October, 2020. During the event, all the officers and staff members of Department of Justice participated in a cleanliness drive to clean the office premises.]

132. ‘World Day for Farmed Animals’ is celebrated on the birth anniversary of which leader?

A
Mahatma Gandhi

B
Martin Luther King

C
Abraham Lincoln

D
Dalai Lama

Show Answer

Correct Answer : A [Mahatma Gandhi]

Explaination : [The ‘World Day for Farmed Animals’ is celebrated on October 2, the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The Day is being observed since 1983 by various international organisations including ‘World Day for Farmed Animals Asia’, World Animal Protection and Asia for Animals coalition. In this year, a campaign of ‘Pledge to #FastAgainstSlaughter’ was held.]

133. API integration of the PM SVANidhi Portal has been launched with the eMudra portal of which bank?

A
Punjab National Bank

B
State Bank of India

C
Axis Bank

D
ICICI Bank

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [State Bank of India]

Explaination : [The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs Secretary launched the Application Programming Interface (API) integration between the PM SVANidhi Portal and the State Bank of India’s (SBI) eMudra Portal portal. This integration would enable seamless flow of data between the two portals in a secure environment, which would lead to faster loan sanctioning and disbursement process.]

134. E-invoicing will be available to taxpayers up to what limit of turn over, from January 2021?

A
Rs 50 crore

B
Rs 100 crore

C
Rs 200 crore

D
Rs 500 crore

Show Answer

Correct Answer : B [Rs 100 crore]

Explaination : [As per the recent statement from the Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey, e-invoicing will be available to taxpayers having turnover more than Rs. 100 crore a year by January 2021. He also said that e-invoicing will be finally made available to all taxpayers for B2B (Business to Business) transactions from 1st April 2021. E-invoicing replaces the physical invoice and it will also replace the existing e-way bill system.]

135. According to a recent Oxfam report, what is the rank of India in Health Spending Index?

Show Answer

Correct Answer : D [155]

Explaination : [According to Oxfam, an international confederation of charitable organisations India is ranked at 155 in Health Spending Index. The survey data revealed that India spent only 4 per cent of its budget on health. India is also ranked at 129 out of 158 countries in the Commitment to Reducing Inequality (CRI) Index. India is also one among the world’s worst-performing countries in tackling inequality amidst the pandemic.]

136. Which country has released a new version of its passport to differentiate from China?

A
Thailand

B
Vietnam

C
Taiwan

D
Laos

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [Taiwan]

Explaination : [Taiwan has recently released a new version of its passport which contains the highlighted print of the English word for ‘Taiwan’. This activity of Taiwan is seen as a clear and strategic move in drawing a distinction between Taiwan and China. The words ‘Republic of China (ROC)’ has been made significantly smaller than the previous edition.]

137. When is World Mental Health Day observed annually across the world?

A
October 10

B
October 12

C
October 14

D
October 16

Show Answer

Correct Answer : A [October 10]

Explaination : [World Mental Health Day is observed every year on 10 October across the world. It aims to create awareness about mental health issues around the world. The First World Mental Health Day was observed on 10 October 1992. As per the World Health Organisation, the goal of this year’s World Mental Health Day campaign is ‘Increased investment in mental health’.]

138. Rashtriya Kamdhenu Aayog’ has been constituted under which Union Ministry?

A
Ministry of Rural Development

B
Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare

C
Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying

D
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying]

Explaination : [The Government of India has constituted the ‘Rashtriya Kamdhenu Aayog’, under the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying It aims to promote animal husbandry on modern and scientific means and to preserve and improve breeds of cattle. Recently, RKA started a nation-wide campaign to celebrate Kamdhenu Deepawali Abhiyan on the occasion of Diwali festival.]

139. Which Technology major has partnered with IIIT Hyderabad, Public Health Foundation of India and the Telangana government, for an AI Research Centre?

A
Google

B
Amazon

C
Intel

D
Facebook

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [Intel]

Explaination : [The Indian arm of the technology major Intel has partnered with IIIT Hyderabad, Public Health Foundation of India and Government of Telangana and has set up an Artificial Intelligence Research Centre in Telangana. The AI research facility aims at solving India’s population-related challenges in sectors such as smart mobility and health.]

140. The Central government has allowed how many states to borrow Rs.68,825 crore from the market?

Show Answer

Correct Answer : C [20]

Explaination : [The Union Government has allowed 20 states to raise Rs.68,825 crore from the market through open market borrowing. This would help the states to bridge the GST revenue shortfall. The estimated shortfall in GST compensation to states is Rs.2.35 lakh crore. The central Government had given 2 options to the states – either borrower Rs.97,000 crore through a special window of RBI or borrower Rs.2.35 lakh crore from the market]