Daily GK and Current Affairs Quiz – 21st September 2021

Correct Answer: C. IRCTC

Explanation: The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has joined hands and signed the agreement with Cordelia Cruises being operated by M/s Waterways Leisure Tourism Pvt. Ltd for promotion and marketing of the first indigenous luxury cruise in India. This is another incredible luxury travel offering under IRCTC”s umbrella of tourism services to the public. The luxury travel offering in the form of the indigenous cruise will take guests on-boards to some of the most popular Indian and international tourist destinations – such as Goa, Diu, Kochi, the Lakshadweep islands, and Sri Lanka.

About the Cordelia Cruises:

Cordelia Cruises is one of India’s premium cruise liners and aspires to promote and drive the cruise culture in India through experiences that are “stylish, luxurious, and most importantly, inherently Indian.”

Correct Answer – D. Prabhleen Singh

Explanation: The Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has released a book titled ‘Shining Sikh Youth of India’ in New Delhi, as a part of the commemoration of the 400th birth anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Guru of Sikhs. The book has been authored by Dr Prabhleen Singh, administrative officer at the Punjabi University, Patiala. It covers 100 inspirational and motivational success stories of Sikh youth in India who have done exemplary work in their respective fields.

Correct Answer – D. PRAGATI

Explanation: Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has launched a new mobile app ‘PRAGATI’ for the exclusive use of its Development Officers. PRAGATI stands for “Performance Review Application, Growth And Trend Indicator”. LIC has been taking a lot of customer-centric and digital initiatives for ease of operations for its customers and field force.

About the ‘PRAGATI’ app:

The Pragati app will help the Development Officers to get near real-time information about the performance of their agency force in critical areas of business performance like premium collection, agency activisation, prospective outperformers, etc apart from monitoring their team on activities such as usage of agents mobile app and NACH validation. The app also provides development officers with a calculator to measure their cost ratio.

Important Points:

• LIC Headquarters: Mumbai;
• LIC Founded: 1 September 1956;
• LIC Chairman: M R Kumar

Correct Answer – C. 1500m

Explanation: Harmilan Kaur Bains of Punjab has created a new national record in the women’s 1500m race by clocking 4:05.39 to bag the gold at the 60th National Open Athletics Championships in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Hanamkonda in Telangana. With this achievement, the 23-year-old athlete has erased the 19-year-old record held by Sunita Rani in 1500m at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan by clocking 4:06.03.

Correct Answer – A. R Raja Rithvik

Explanation: India’s R Raja Rithvik became chess Grandmaster after he crossed the ELO Rating of 2500. The 17-year-old achieved this GM title in Vezerkepzo Grandmaster Chess Tournament at Budapest, Hungary. He thus became the 70th Grandmaster from the country. A native of Warangal, Rithvik has been undergoing advanced coaching at RACE Chess Academy under reputed coach N.V.S. Rama Raju.

Correct Answer – C. Manipur

Explanation: Two famous products of Manipur, Hathei chilli, which is found in Manipur’s Ukrul district and is known for its unique flavour, and Tamenglong mandarin orange have been granted the Geographical Indication (GI) tag. This is a historic milestone in the history of Manipur and it will increase the income of farmers in Manipur.

About the Hathei chilly:

The Hathei chilly works as a good anti-oxidant and possesses high calcium and Vitamin C levels. It has an extremely high American Spice Trade Association (ASTA) colour value of 164. The extractable colour of chilli is usually expressed using ASTA values.

About the Tamenglong mandarin orange:

The Tamenglong mandarin orange is bigger in size, weighing 232.76 grams on average. It is a unique sweet and sour flavour. It has high juice content (around 45 per cent) and is rich in ascorbic acid (48.12 mg/100ml). These oranges are grown over areas spanning 1,800 hectares in the hills of Tamenglong, out of which 400 hectares are certified as organic by MOMA.

Important Points:

• Chief Minister of Manipur: N. Biren Singh;
• Governor: La. Ganesan.

Correct Answer – A. Liquid Group

Explanation: Department of Justice under the Ministry of Law and Justice has launched the “Ek Pahal”  campaign to encourage mass registration under Tele-Law. The Ek Pahal campaign will run across the country from 17th September till 2nd October. The “Ek Pahal” campaign will cover 51,434 Common Service Centres in 50,000 Gram Panchayats in 633 districts across 34 States and UTs.

About the campaign:

Tele-Law means the use of communications and information technology for the delivery of legal information and advice. Department of Justice has partnered with NALSA and CSC e-Governance Service India Limited for mainstreaming legal aid to the marginalized communities through Common Services Center (CSC). This e-interaction between lawyers and people would be through the video-conferencing infrastructure available at the CSCs.

Important Points:

• Union Minister of Law and Justice: Kiren Rijiju.

Correct Answer – D. India Post Payments Bank

Explanation: India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) has announced a strategic alliance with Bajaj Allianz General Insurance to distribute their non-life insurance products across the country.The Gramin Dak Sevaks or postmen have been certified for Point of Sales Person or POSP (under POSP Model) and trained for products allowed for sale through point of sale. As part of the alliance, IPPB will strive to make available affordable insurance products through its robust network of 650 branches and over 136,000 banking access points to citizens at large.

Correct Answer – B. Power Finance Corp. Ltd

Explanation:  This comes against the backdrop of the government using power sector lenders such as PFC and REC Ltd to instil financial discipline at state-owned electricity distribution companies (discoms).The Maharatna dispensation was ushered in by the Union government for mega CPSEs to become global giants. PFC, India’s largest non-banking financial company (NBFC) and among the 14 Navratna CPSEs, can invest up to ₹5,000 crore, or 15% of its net worth, in a single project apart from being granted enhanced powers by the government for undertaking mergers and acquisitions once it gets the Maharatna status. Navratna and Miniratna CPSEs can invest up to ₹1,000 crore and ₹500 crore, respectively.

Correct Answer – D. Celebrating Thriving Deaf Communities

Explanation: International Week of the Deaf (IWD) is observed every year in the full week ending on the last Sunday of September.This year, IWD is being observed from September 20 to 26, 2021.Theme of IWD 2021 IWD: Celebrating Thriving Deaf Communities.The day is an initiative of World Federation of the Deaf (WFD) and was first launched in 1958 in Rome, Italy to commemorate the month when the first World Congress of the WFD was held.Last Sunday of September is celebrated as the World Day of Deaf or International Day of the Deaf (September 26, 2021).

Correct Answer – C. 46th

Explanation: India has been ranked at 46th place in Global Innovation Index (GII) 2021, that captures the innovation ecosystem performance of 132 economies and tracks the most recent global innovation trends.India was ranked 48th in GII 2020.Under the Lower middle-income category group, India has been ranked at the second spot after Vietnam.The GII report is published by WIPO in partnership with the Portulans Institute, with support of corporate network partners, such as the Confederation of Indian Industry, Brazilian National Confederation of Industry, Ecopetrol Group (Colombia), and the Turkish Exporters Assembly.Switzerland topped the league table, followed by Sweden, the US , UK and South Korea

Correct Answer – A. Yes Bank

Explanation: Yes Bank has partnered with Visa to offer credit cards to its customers. The suite consists of nine credit card variants on the Visa platform that service all segments – consumer cards, business cards, and corporate cards across YES First, YES Premia, and YES Prosperity. With the partnership, the bank has commenced issuance of select credit card variants on Visa’s payment network.

The Visa co-branded cards come with loyalty programs, under which reward points never expire and can also be shared or transferred to Yes bank credit card holders. Other benefits include attractive foreign currency markup and a bouquet of lifestyle privileges including airport lounge access and golf course privileges.

Correct Answer – C. Gautam Adani

Explanation: Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani was conferred with Ramkrishna Bajaj Memorial Global Award on 20 September 2021 at the Priyadarshni Academy’s 37th Anniversary.These awards are conferred on national and international dignitaries for outstanding contributions in their respective fields. Priyadarshni Academy is a premier non-profit, socio-cultural and educational organization.

Correct Answer – E. Disha Patani

Explanation: Ambrane has signed with Bollywood Diva Disha Patani as its brand ambassador in India. Disha is the latest to join the Ambrane family, which already includes the likes of the famous Cricketer Ravindra Jadeja as its Brand Ambassador. Ambrane boasts a strong portfolio of high-quality products in India ranging from power bank, audio, wearables, and more.