Daily GK and Current Affairs Quiz – 17th March 2021

Correct Answer: B. Renew Power

Explanation: ReNew Power has been named to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Lighthouse Network, which recognises companies using new technologies to achieve environmentally sustainable, community supportive, profitable growth. ReNew Power is an Indian renewable energy company. It has an asset base of over 8 GW, with around 5 GW operational. ReNew Power is one of the two Indian companies to be recognised by the Global Lighthouse Network this year.The WEF Global Lighthouse Network is a group of 69 factories that serve as a platform to develop, replicate, and scale innovations, creating opportunities for cross-company learning and collaboration while setting new benchmarks for the global manufacturing community.

Important Points:

• World Economic Forum Headquarters: Cologny, Switzerland.
• World Economic Forum Founder: Klaus Schwab.
• World Economic Forum Founded: January 1971.

Correct Answer – D. P K Sinha

Explanation: Former Cabinet Secretary and Principal Advisor in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) P.K. Sinha has relinquished his high-profile position on personal grounds. He was appointed in the PMO first as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) briefly and then as Principal Advisor, a specially created position for him, in September 2019 after the 2019 parliamentary polls. Besides him, two senior officials are serving as Advisors in the PMO: Bhaskar Khulbe and Amarjit Sinha, both 1983 batch retired IAS officials. Mr. Sinha is a retired 1977 batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre and served in various capacities during the UPA and the NDA regimes. His is the second high profile exit from the PMO after PM’s Principal Secretary Nripendra Misra had resigned after the last Lok Sabha polls. Earlier, he was Secretary, Ministry of Power in the government of India and served as Cabinet Secretary for four years from 2015.

Correct Answer – A. Nokia

Explanation: The Finnish telecom equipment maker, Nokia has announced on March 16 that it has partnered with Microsoft, Amazon web services and Google so as to develop a new cloud-based 5G radio solution. This solution will be developed with its radio access network (RNA) technology. This partnership was gone with the objective of developing new business cases.

About Radio Access Network (RAN)

RAN is part of a mobile telecommunication system. This system implements radio access technology. RAN resides between a device like a computer, mobile phone or any remotely controlled machine. It also provides a connection with the core network.Based on the standard mobile phones and other wireless connected devices are called user equipment, terminal equipment or mobile station etc. The functionality of RAN is typically provided by the silicon chip which resides in both the core network and the user equipment.

Features of RAN

• The single handset or phone can be connected to multiple radio access networks simultaneously.
• The Handsets which are capable of this feature are called dual-mode handsets. For example, a handset can commonly support both GSM and UMTS or “3G” radio access technologies. Such devices also transfer the ongoing call across different radio access networks without any disruption to users.

Important Points:

• Nokia CEO: Pekka Lundmark.
• Nokia Founded: 12 May 1865.
• Nokia Headquarters: Espoo, Finland.

Correct Answer – A. UAE

Explanation: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has imposed eight years ban on former UAE players Mohammad Naveed and Shaiman Anwar Butt from all cricket, for trying to fix matches during the T20 World Cup qualifiers in 2019. The ICC Anti-Corruption Tribunal had found them guilty of breaching the Anti-Corruption Code in January 2021.The bans are backdated to 16 October 2019, when they were provisionally suspended for attempting to corrupt matches of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier 2019 in the UAE. Naveed was the captain and leading wicket-taker. Anwar was the opening bat. Both had long international careers and were well versed in the threat from match-fixers.Both have been charged with two breaches each, the first of which is Article 2.2.1, which stands for ‘contriving, or being party to an agreement or effort to fix or contrive or otherwise influence improperly, the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of matches in the upcoming ICC World T20 Qualifiers 2019.’

Important Points:

• Chairman of ICC: Greg Barclay.
• CEO of ICC: Manu Sawhney.
• Headquarters of ICC: Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Correct Answer – E. El Salvador

Explanation :  El Salvador is the first country in Central America to be certified malaria-free by the World Health Organization. WHO grants a certification of malaria elimination when a country proves “beyond a reasonable doubt” that there has been no indigenous transmission of the disease nationwide for the previous three consecutive years.

El Salvador hasn’t had a malaria outbreak since 1996 and has reported no indigenous cases since 2017. In 1990, the country had 9,000 cases per year, a figure that declined to 26 by 2010. WHO credited El Salvador’s sustained domestic funding for malaria prevention, detection, and treatment for the success.

Important Points:

• El Salvador President: Nayib Bukele.
• El Salvador Capital: San Salvador; Currency: El Salvador colon.

Correct Answer – D. State Bank of India

Explanation: Reserve Bank of India imposed a penalty of Rs 2 crore on State Bank of India (SBI) for contravention of norms, including specific directions to the lender on remuneration to its employees in the form of commission.The penalty has been imposed for contravention of certain sections of Banking Regulation Act and its specific directions of RBI issued to the bank on payment of remuneration to employees in the form of commission.The statutory inspection of the bank with reference to its financial position as on March 31, 2017 and March 31, 2018 and the Risk Assessment Reports (RARs) pertaining thereto, and examination of the correspondence with the bank regarding payment of remuneration to its employees in the form of commission, revealed contravention of the provisions of the Act and the directions.

Correct Answer – B. Aster DM Healthcare

Explanation: Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog signed a Statement of Intent (SoI) with Aster DM Healthcare to change and improve health care innovations & outcomes in IndiaAster Digital Health Incubator (ADHI), a unit of Aster DM Healthcare Group will also support AIM’s initiatives such as Atal Incubation Centers (AICs), Established Incubation Centres (EICs), Atal Community Innovation Centres (ACICs) & Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs).Aster will provide access to Aster Clinical Simulation Lab, Aster Federated Learning Data bank for Artificial Intelligence (AI) healthcare research, ADHI, Aster Digital Health Centre of Excellence, and other facilities to startups under various AIM initiatives.The partnership aims to make use of AI & Deep Learning to transform India’s medical devices & healthcare ecosystem & to make health care accessible and affordable in India.

Correct Answer – A. New Delhi

Explanation: International Boxing Association (AIBA) announced that 2021’s Edition of Asian Boxing Championship will be held between May 21-31 at New Delhi, India.This will be the 1st boxing tournament in Asia in 2021, acting towards evaluating boxers’ readiness for the Olympic games.For the 1st time in the tournament’s history both men & women fought in the same championship.

Correct Answer – A. Kuldiep Singh

Explanation:  Senior IPS officer Kuldiep Singh has been appointed as the new Director General (DG) of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).Mr. Singh is currently Special DG of CRPF where the post of DG is vacant following superannuation of A.P. Maheshwari on February 28th.Mr Singh is a 1986 batch officer of West Bengal cadre.

Correct Answer – B. Sadananda Gowda

Explanation: Chemicals and Fertilizer Minister Sadananda Gowda inaugurated the 11th edition of India Chem-2021 on 17 March 2021.Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals, in association with FICCI, is organizing the 3-day India Chem in New Delhi.The theme for the event is – “India: Global Manufacturing Hub for Chemicals and Petrochemicals”.

Correct Answer – D. Himachal Pradesh

Explanation: BJP MP from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, Ram Swaroop Sharma passed away in March 2021.He was found hanging in his room.Sharma was first elected to Lok Sabha in 2014.He was re-elected from Mandi in the 2019 general elections.He also served in the parliamentary standing committee on external affairs.

Himachal Pradesh:

• Chief Minister – Jai Ram Thakur.
• Governor – Bandaru Dattatreya.
• Number of Districts – 12.

Correct Answer – B. New Delhi

Explanation: The India-Bangladesh Water Resources Secretary-level meeting under the framework of the Joint Rivers Commission- JRC took place on 16 March 2021 in New Delhi.Both have agreed to expand cooperation across an entire gamut of water resources issues including a framework for sharing of river waters.India and Bangladesh share 54 common rivers.

Bangladesh: 

• Capital – Dhaka.
• Currency – Bangladeshi Taka.
• President – Abdul Hamid.
• Prime Minister – Sheikh Hasina.

Correct Answer – B. 2022

Explanation: Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors will become operational in 2022 informed Railways’ Minister Piyush Goyal on 16 March 2021.Railways is planning to start 44 Vande Bharat trains across the country. He announced this while participating in a discussion on demands for grants of the Ministry of Railways for 2021-22.Rs 2,15,000 cr have been allocated for Railways in the budget.

Correct Answer: A. 7

Explanation: The government has informed that the average rate of inflation in the country has remained low in the last seven years except for a rise in the prices of a few items.The rise in prices of some items was due to a mismatch in demand and supply chain during the COVID-19 pandemic.Food items in the Consumer Price Index are showing a declining trend month by month.