Daily GK and Current Affairs Quiz – 13th April 2021

Correct Answer: B. Netherlands

Explanation: Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mr Mark Rutte, held a Virtual Summit.During the India- Netherlands virtual Summit, the two leaders reviewed the existing bilateral engagements and also exchanged views on further expanding and diversifying the relationship in trade and economy, water management, agriculture sector, smart cities, science & technology, healthcare and space.

In Summit:

• Apart from this the two Prime Ministers also agreed on instituting a ‘Strategic Partnership on Water’ to further deepen the Indo-Dutch cooperation in the water-related sector and upgrading the Joint Working Group on the water to Ministerial-level.
• They also exchanged views on regional and global challenges such as climate change, counter-terrorism and the Covid-19 pandemic and agreed to leverage the emerging convergences in new areas like Indo-Pacific, Resilient Supply Chains and Global Digital Governance.

Important Points:

• Netherlands Capital: Amsterdam; Currency: Euro.

Correct Answer – A. Sonu Sood

Explanation: Bollywood actor Sonu Sood has been made the brand ambassador for Punjab’s anti-coronavirus vaccination programme. During the coronavirus-induced lockdown last year, the actor had helped migrants reach their home states. Sood catapulted to the national spotlight for feeding thousands of underprivileged people amid the COVID-19 pandemic. During his meeting with Punjab Chief Minister, the actor presented his book ‘I am no Messiah’, which he said captures the experiences of his journey from Moga to Mumbai.

Important Points:

• Punjab CM: Captain Amarinder Singh.
• Punjab Governor: V.P.Singh Badnore.

Correct Answer – E. April 12

Explanation: The International Day of Human Space Flight is observed globally on April 12 every year. The UN General Assembly passed a resolution on April 7, 2011, had declared April 12 to be celebrated as International Day of Human Space Flight.

History of the day:

On 12 April 1961, was the date of the 1st human space flight was carried out by Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet citizen, who became the first person to journey into outer space. This historic incident opened the way for space exploration for the benefit of all mankind. 12 April was also the date of the 1st Space Shuttle STS-1 of Columbia launched in 1981, which is also commemorated on this date.

Correct Answer – B. Airtel Payments Bank

Explanation:  Airtel Payments Bank launched its new ‘Rewards123’ savings account, which provides customers with perks and rewards. The Rewards123 Savings Account is built specifically that allows you to get access to a variety of perks when you save and transact digitally. The company claims that its newly introduced saving account is designed to offer consistent value, with assured rewards on different types of digital transactions throughout the year.

About the Rewards123 savings account:

Airtel Payments Bank says that its Rewards123 savings bank account will give multiple benefits to users with annual earnings of up to ₹960.In addition to that, users will get 1% cashback when they load ₹1,000 through UPI in their account. Users will get a maximum of ₹10 per month as a part of this benefit.

Important Points:

• Airtel Payments Bank’s MD and CEO: Nubrata Biswas.
• Airtel Payments Bank Headquarters: New Delhi.
• Airtel Payments Bank Founded: January 2017.

Correct Answer – B. Filmmaker

Explanation: Acclaimed filmmaker, Guneet Monga to be conferred with honour of the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier dans I’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres). It is the second-highest civilian French honour and has earlier been awarded to big Hollywood names like Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Bruce Willis.As a producer, Guneet has several critically acclaimed films to her credit. The list includes Masaan, Lunchbox, Haraamkhor, Peddlers; Oscar-winning short film documentary — Period, End of Sentence, among others.Earlier, Indian celebrities like Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Amitabh Bachchan, Nandita Das, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Anurag Kashyap, Kalki Koechlin, among others, have been felicitated with the honour.

Correct Answer – A. Noura al-Matroushi

Explanation: The United Arab Emirates named the next two astronauts in its space programme on 10th April, including the country’s first female astronaut.Noura al-Matroushi is the UAE’s first female astronaut.The announcement gave no biographical information about her or her male counterpart, Mohammed al-Mulla.

Correct Answer – E. Shooting

Explanation: Legendary shooting coach Sanjay Chakravarty passed away due to Covid-19. The Dronacharya awardee had trained some of the finest Indian shooters including Abhinav Bindra, Gagan Narang, Anjali Bhagwat and Suma Shirur, Deepali Deshpande, Anuja Jung and Ayonika Paul.

Correct Answer – B. Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan

Explanation: Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have launched the construction of an international center for trade and economic cooperation named ‘Central Asia’ on the borders of the two countries, the Uzbek Government.Uzbek Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov and his Kazkazh counterpart Askar Mamim, laid a capsule at the construction site of the logistic centre, which is located in the vicinity of the border check post Gisht Kuprik.According to a News release on Kazakh Prime Minister’s official website, the center, which occupies 400 hectares of land, will have a capacity of accommodating 35,000 people and 5,000 trucks per day in both directions.

Correct Answer – A. Sushil Chandra

Explanation: President Ram Nath Kovind appointed Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra as the next Chief Election Commissioner of India.He succeeded Sunil Arora, whose tenure ended on April 12.Mr. Chandra took office as an Election Commissioner on February 15, 2019 after retiring as the chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes.A 1980 batch Indian Revenue Service officer, Mr. Chandra had worked in the areas of international taxation and investigation.

Correct Answer – C. Yusuffali MA

Explanation:  Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan has honoured Indian-origin businessman Yusuffali MA and 11 other individuals with Abu Dhabi’s top civilian award for their noble and charitable contributions to the community.The prestigious award was given to Mr Yusuffali, who was born in Kerala, for his outstanding contribution to Abu Dhabi’s business, industry and support to various philanthropic initiatives.

Correct Answer – D. Microsoft Corporation

Explanation: Microsoft Corporation has agreed to acquire speech-recognition firm Nuance Communications Inc. for $16 billion.The all-cash deal pays $56 per Nuance share, a 23% premium over Friday’s closing price.Nuance, based in Burlington, Mass., is a pioneer in speech recognition and artificial intelligence technology.Its software formed the basis of Apple Inc.’s Siri voice assistant

Correct Answer – B. Harsh Vardhan

Explanation: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan launched “Aahaar Kranti” on 13 April 2021.It is a mission aimed at spreading the message of the need for a nutritionally balanced diet and to understand the importance of accessibility to all local fruits and vegetables.Vijnana Bharati (Vibha) and the Global Indian Scientists’ and Technocrats’ Forum (GIST) have come together to launch the mission.

Correct Answer – C. 970

Explanation: Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) registered over 970 million digital transactions in March 2021.With over 64 million accounts, the bank’s total deposits have crossed over ₹3200 crores.PPBL claims to be the largest beneficiary bank for UPI transactions and registers the highest success rate in the industry.It is also rapidly gaining traction as a remitter bank for UPI payments.

Correct Answer: E. All 1, 2 and 3

Explanation: The 2021 Davis Cup Finals will be held in three cities, with Innsbruck and Turin joining Madrid as hosts.The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has announced that Madrid, Austrian city Innsbruck, and Turin in Italy would host two of the six groups each, with the latter two staging one quarter-final.The finals will run from 25th November to 5th December 2021.