Daily GK and Current Affairs Quiz – 1st February 2021

Correct Answer: C. Smriti Irani

Explanation: Textiles Minister Smriti Irani inaugurated the 8th India International Silk Fair on Virtual Portal. The fair is considered to be India’s biggest silk fair, being held under one roof on Indian Silk Export Promotion Council’s virtual platform.The five days event is being held virtually due to COVID-19 pandemic.India has long history of silk production and is the 2nd largest producer of Silk. India is the only country in the world which produces all the four major varieties of silk – Mulberry, Eri, Tassar, and Muga.

Correct Answer – C. RS Sharma

Explanation:The National Health Authority (NHA) has appointed RS Sharma as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of country’s flagship public health insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat, also called Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana.He would replace Indu Bhushan, who is serving as the Chief Executive of the Ayushman scheme since its inception in 2018.RS Sharma, a former chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), who would take charge of the NHA from February 1.

Correct Answer – B. Shivam Sahakari Bank Ltd

Explanation: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)cancelled the licence of Shivam Sahakari Bank Ltd, a co-operative bank in Ichalkaranji, Kolhapur, Maharashtra.Following the cancellation of its license, the bank will stop to carry on the banking business, which includes accepting and repaying deposits as defined in Section 5(b) read with Section 56 of the Banking Regulation (BR) Act, 1949, with effect from the close of business on January 29, 2021.The bank can start the liquidation proceeding, with the cancellation of the license.

Correct Answer – B. Reliance Jio

Explanation: Indian telecom giant Reliance Jio has emerged as the fifth strongest brand in the globe as per the ‘Brand Finance Global 500 2021 Ranking.’The Reliance Industries subsidiary had a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 91.7 out of 100.The list is topped by WeChat with a BSI score of 95.4 followed by Ferrari with 93.9 BSI score.Russian bank Sber is spotted in 3rd rank with 92.0 BSI score followed by Coca-Cola with 91.7 BSI score.

Correct Answer – C. Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE)

Explanation: Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has set up an ‘Innovation Sandbox’ web portal, a workflow based platform.It is a testing environment that enables FinTech firms and individuals to do offline testing of their applications.The innovation sandbox is set up as per the guidelines of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).The aim of the portal is to create an ecosystem which promotes innovation in the securities market.The applicants can access the APIs, test data of stock exchanges, depositories and Qualified Registrar and Share Transfer Agents (QRTAs) etc. through this portal.

Correct Answer – E. Maharashtra

Explanation: The second edition of the India Justice Report, India’s only ranking of states on delivery of Justice to people, announced. Maharashtra once again at the top of the 18 Large and Mid-sized states (with a population of over one crore each) in the 2nd Edition of the India Justice Report, an initiative of Tata Trusts, followed by Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Punjab, and Kerala.

Through a rigorous 14-month quantitative research, the India Justice Report 2020 once again tracks the progress states have made incapacitating their justice delivery structures to effectively deliver services to all. It takes account of latest statistics and situations as they existed prior to March 2020. It brings together otherwise siloed statistics from authoritative government sources, on the four pillars of Justice delivery–Police, Judiciary, Prisons and Legal Aid.

About the India Justice Report:

The India Justice Report (IJR) is an initiative of Tata Trusts in collaboration with Centre for Social Justice, Common Cause, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, DAKSH, TISS–Prayas, Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy and How India Lives. The maiden IJR was announced in 2019.

Correct Answer – A. Jay Shah

Explanation: Jay Shah, the incumbent Secretary of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been appointed as the new President of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC). He is the youngest person ever to be appointed to the office. He replaces Nazmul Hussain, Chief of Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) who was the previous chief of the ACC.

About the Asian Cricket Council:

The ACC is Asia’s regional administrative body and it currently consists of 24 member associations. ACC is responsible for organizing the Asia Cup tournaments. The 2020 edition of the Asia Cup was postponed to June this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pakistan was to originally host the tournament but the tournament is now expected to be held in either Sri Lanka or Bangladesh.

Important Points:

• Asian Cricket Council Headquarters: Colombo, Sri Lanka.
• Asian Cricket Council Chairman: Amitabh Choudhary.
• Asian Cricket Council Founded: 19 September 1983.

Correct Answer – B. Last Sunday of January

Explanation: World Leprosy Day is observed around the world on the last Sunday of January every year. This year World Leprosy Day held on 31 January. The day is celebrated to raise global awareness of this deadly ancient disease and call attention to the fact that it can be prevented, treated and cured.

This year theme of World Leprosy Day 2021 is “Beat Leprosy, End Stigma and advocate for Mental Wellbeing ”.

History of the day:

The day was initiated in 1954 by French philanthropist and writer, Raoul Follereau, as a tribute to the life of the Mahatma Gandhi who had compassion for people afflicted with leprosy.

What is leprosy?

Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease caused by a bacillus, Mycobacterium leprae (M. laprae). The symptoms of the disease occur generally after a long period of getting an infection on average 5 years, as M. leprae multiplies very slowly. The disease mainly affects the skin, the peripheral nerves, mucosa of the upper respiratory tract, and the eyes.

Correct Answer – C. Lucknow Metro

Explanation: :  Lucknow Metro has become the 1st metro in the country to use ultraviolet rays to sanitise train coaches. For this, the LMRC has procured UV sanitization apparatus from M/s FB TECH, an Indian firm in Jaipur, Rajasthan. The Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) has taken inspiration from the New York Metro’s experiment to sanitise trains with UV lamp rays.

About the Apparatus:

The apparatus, which was certified by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in October 2020, sanitizes the entire coach in just seven minutes.  However, in order to keep the train bacteria-free, the LMRC is sanitising each coach for 15 minutes.This is the same apparatus which was also used by the medical industry to sanitise cinema halls and medical equipment at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic in India.This apparatus is operated through a remote and has a switch on/off button.The radiation starts after a minute of pressing the on button. In addition, the initiative is economically cheaper than sanitization through manual mode.

Important Points:

• Uttar Pradesh Capital: Lucknow.
• Uttar Pradesh Governor: Anandiben Patel.
• Uttar Pradesh Chief minister: Yogi Adityanath

Correct Answer – C. Chemistry

Explanation:The Nobel Prize-winning chemist Paul J. Crutzen, has passed away. He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1995, jointly with Mario J. Molina and F. Sherwood Rowland, for their work in atmospheric chemistry, particularly concerning the formation and decomposition of ozone. He was known for his work on the ozone layer and climate change and for popularizing the term ‘Anthropocene’ to describe a proposed new era when human actions have a drastic effect on the Earth.

Correct Answer –A. 100

Explanation: The privatization of Air India Limited will be completed during the upcoming financial year 2021-22.The government plans to sell its entire 100% stake in Air India, which has not made profits since its merger with Indian Airlines in 2007.The winning bidder will also get 100% stake in the national carrier’s low-cost arm Air India Express and 50% stake in Air India SATS (AISATS).

Correct Answer – D. 1500

Explanation:Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced incentives worth ₹1500 crores to further drive adoption of such cashless modes of payment.It is for a proposed scheme that will provide financial incentive to promote digital modes of payment.The additional corpus is expected to boost the spread of payments infrastructure in the country.

Correct Answer –A. 1,19,847

Explanation:The GST revenue collection for January 2021 has touched 1 lakh 19 thousand 847 crore rupees.Of this, CGST is 21 thousand 923 crore rupees, SGST is 29 thousand 14 crore rupees, IGST is 60 thousand 288 crore rupees including 27 thousand 424 crore rupees collected on import of goods.Cess is 8 thousand 622 crore rupees including 883 crore rupees collected on import of goods.

Correct Answer: D. Gujarat

Explanation:In Gujarat, the second phase of vaccination against the Covid-19 to cover the frontline Corona warriors began from 31 January 2021.Total 3 lakh 30 thousand frontline workers would be covered in this second phase.More than 2 lakh 45 thousand people have received vaccines in the state till now.One lakh people were given the vaccination on the first day of the second phase on 31 Jan 2021.

Gujarat:

Chief Minister – Vijay Rupani.

Governor – Acharya Devvrat.

Number of Districts – 33