Daily GK and Current Affairs Quiz – 24th November 2020

Correct Answer: B. 3

Explanation: The Comptroller & Auditor General of India Girish Chandra Murmu has been elected as External Auditor of Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU), Geneva for three years. Murmu will assume the position shortly by taking charge from the Supreme Audit Institution of Switzerland. The election took place at the virtual meeting of the 284th session of the IPU which is a 179 countries Parliamentarians body.

Correct Answer – C. Amazon

Explanation: The correct answer is Amazon has launched its flagship leadership development programme ‘Amazon Future Builders Program’ for students enrolled in premier B-Schools in India. It will prepare the students for leadership roles at the company. The programme will allow students to gain a breadth of experience across Amazon’s businesses through a two-month ‘incubator’ period.

Correct Answer – D. Hyderabad

Explanation: Hyderabad boy Agastya Jaiswal has claimed himself to be the first Indian student to complete his graduation at a young age. The 14-year-old has completed his BA Mass Communication and Journalism Degree from Osmania University, which recently published its results. He claimed that he was the first boy in Telangana to pass Class 10 at the age of 9 years with 7.5 GPA.

Correct Answer – C. Dinabandhu Mohapatra

Explanation:  Indiabulls Housing Finance’s Board has approved the appointment of Dinabandhu Mohapatra as an independent director of the company for 3 years, with effect from 23 November 2020. He is the former MD & CEO of Bank of India. He had joined Bank of India as a Direct Recruit Officer in 1984. He held various high-level positions, including CEO of Hong Kong and Singapore Centres of Bank of India.

Correct Answer – B. Narendra Modi

Explanation: The virtual 20th Summit of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of State (CHS) 2020 was chaired by President of Russia Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin where Indian Delegation was led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This was the first SCO Summit held in Virtual Format and the third meeting that India participated after becoming a full member in 2017. It should be noted that President Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan will assume the chairmanship of SCO in 2021.

Correct Answer – C. 186th

Explanation: A review of BMI (Body Mass Index) of various countries’ teenagers has been recently published in the international medical journal “The Lancet”, according to which India is placed at 196th rank with respect to BMI in boys & ranks 198th in girls. India’s 19-year-old boys and girls have a BMI of 20.1 means they are also among the shortest in the world. India’s boys ranked 180th with an average height of 5.46 feet while girls ranked 182nd with an average height of 5.06 feet.

Correct Answer – C. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

Explanation: Government of India issued an order to bring digital or online Media, films and audio-visual programmes, news portal and current affairs content under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (Ministry of I&B). This will include OTT (over-the-top) platforms such as Netflix, Hotstar, Prime Video & Online News Portal. In order to do bring this under Ministry of I&B President amended the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961.

Digital Media Platforms were under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) while other media such as print, television and radio came under the I&B Ministry. Youtube, Facebook which generates user generated content continue to remain under MeitY.

Correct Answer – A. Maunakea

Explanation: The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) project which is being installed at Maunakea in Hawaii. The project will revolutionize the understanding of the universe and mysteries surrounding it. The TMT project is an international partnership project between CalTech, Universities of California, Canada, Japan, China, and India; through the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). Indian Astronomers had worked closely with 2020 Physics Nobel Laureate Professor Andrea Ghez for designing the back-end instruments and possible science prospects of the project.

Correct Answer – D. New Delhi

Explanation:  The 13th Urban Mobility India (UMI) Conference 2020 was held virtually on the theme “Emerging Trends in Urban Mobility” from New Delhi. It was inaugurated by Minister of State-MoS (Independent Charge-IC) Hardeep Singh Puri, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA). This was the first virtual UMI conference amid COVID 19 and was also held for a day as against the usual format of three days without any exhibition. The 14th Urban Mobility India (UMI) Conference and Expo 2021 will be held on October 29-31, 2021 in Kochi, Kerala.

Correct Answer – C. London

Explanation: Vancouver-based Resonance Consultancy Ltd., which deals in real estate, released its “World’s Best Cities for 2021” list, naming London as the best city. London was followed by USA’s New York. Only one Indian city Delhi, made it to the list, taking the 62nd position. Paris (France), Moscow (Russia), Tokyo (Japan), Dubai (UAE), Singapore, Barcelona (Spain), Los Angeles (USA), and Madrid (Spain) took the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth rank respectively.The other cities that were named are Rome (Italy) and Toronto (Canada).

Correct Answer – C. USAID

Explanation: Mastercard and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have collaborated under Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative (W-GDP) to launch ‘Project Kirana’ in India, to help women entrepreneurs grow and thrive. Project Kirana is a two-year programme, and initially, it will be rolled out in select cities of Uttar Pradesh, including Lucknow, Kanpur and Varanasi. The programme will be implemented by DAI Digital Frontiers and ACCESS Development Services.

Correct Answer – D. 30th

Explanation: The 30th edition of India-Thailand Coordinated Patrol (Indo-Thai CORPAT) was held between the Indian Navy and the Royal Thai Navy. The Indian Naval Ship (INS) Karmuk, an indigenously built Missile Corvette and Thailand Ship (HTMS) Kraburi, a Chao Phraya Class Frigate along with Dornier Maritime Patrol Aircraft from both the navies participated in the CORPAT.

Correct Answer – B. 4.5%

Explanation:  Forecasting firm Oxford Economics predicts that India’s post-COVID-19 scars could be among the worst in the world. It expects India’s growth equilibrium to worsen substantially over the medium term, with potential growth averaging just 4.5% over 2020-2025, from its pre-pandemic projection of 6.5%. The fiscal deficit is also expected to widen 7% of GDP in 2020-21.

Correct Answer – B. Telugu

Explanation: Noted Telugu poet, journalist, scriptwriter, and Kendra Sahitya Academy award winner Shaik Khaja Hussain, popularly known as Devi Priya, passed away. He was born in Tadikonda in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh. He bagged the Sahitya Akademi Award 2017, for his book Gaali Rangu. His “Running Commentary” on contemporary politics in Udayam Telugu daily was very popular and thought-provoking.

Apart from penning poetry, he has also written several lyrics for Telugu movies. His song Jambhal Bhari Bhai penned for Maa Bhoomi was very popular among all. He authored several books including Gareebi Geetaalu, Amma Chettu Chepa Chiluka, and others. During his journalism stint, Devipriya was instrumental in making noted Telugu poet Sri Sri to write his autobiography.