Daily GK and Current Affairs Quiz – 27th May 2023

Correct Answer:  B. Chhattisgarh

Explanation:  In a First In India, Chhattisgarh’s Gevra Coal Mine Records 50 Million Tonne Production Gevra Mega project in Chhattisgarh recently became the first mine in the country to achieve 50 Million Tonne (MT) of coal production annually. The feat is quite remarkable, considering the fact that no Indian mine, until now, has produced more than 50 million tonne of coal in a year.

Correct Answer:  B. Second

Explanation:  The second meeting of the G-20 Disaster Risk Reduction Working Group (DRRWG) began in Mumbai. The objective of the meeting is to reduce the impact of disasters on vulnerable communities. The meeting aims to identify opportunities and examine creative financing mechanisms for disaster risk reduction. Government officials, industry experts, private sector representatives and stakeholders from more than twenty countries participated in the three-day meeting. The meeting is based on the theme of “Financing for DRR” from the first DRRWG meeting held in Gandhinagar. The Coastal Road Project in Mumbai was discussed during the DRRWG meeting.

Correct Answer:  C. Asian Development Bank

Explanation:  The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed, a $141.12 million loan to support the development of high-quality internal infrastructure such as roads, water supply systems and electricity distribution network in three industrial clusters in the state of Andhra Pradesh. This financing is the second tranche of the $500 million multi-tranche financing facility (MFF) for the program approved by ADB in 2016 to build infrastructure three industrial clusters in the Visakhapatnam and Srikalahasthi-Chittoor nodes in the state.

Correct Answer:  B. Microsoft

Explanation:  Microsoft introduces ‘Jugalbandi,’ an AI chatbot for rural India. It is an AI assistant for rural India from AI4Bharat, a government-supported initiative, using reasoning models from Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service. Users can engage in a conversation with the chatbot, creating a duet of sorts, thus the name. Jugalbandi can retrieve information on government programs and provide the information to the users in their local language. The chatbot is like a personalized agent that understands the user’s problem and delivers the right information, even if it is in some other language in a database somewhere. This AI assistant can be accessed through WhatsApp.

The chatbot is powered by the AI models from AI4Bharat, using data from Indian government databases, which are being constantly added over time.  Jugalbandi was first introduced to villagers in Bhiwani, in April. Since then, it has grown to cover 10 out of India’s 22 official languages and 171 out of approximately 20,000 government programs.

Correct Answer:  B. Dr. Rajesh Gopal

Explanation:   the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), under the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change has constituted an 11-member Cheetah Project Steering Committee to oversee the implementation of ‘Project Cheetah’. The NTCA, the nodal agency for Project Cheetah formed the 11-member Committee including the national and international experts which will be headed by Rajesh Gopal, Secretary-General of Global Tiger Forum as its chairman. This move comes following the death of six cheetahs, including three newborn cubs, within a period of two and half months at Kuno National Park (KNP) in Madhya Pradesh. Thus the committee would review, progress, monitor and advice on the Cheetah reintroduction programme to the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department and NTCA.

Members of the Committee:

• Dr. Rajesh Gopal, Secretary General, Global Tiger Forum, New Delhi –  Chairman
• R. N. Mehrotra, former Principal Chief Conservator of Forests & HoFF/CWLW, Rajasthan- Member
• P. R. Sinha, former Director, Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradu (Uttarakhand)
• Dr. H. S. Negi, former Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (APCCF) Wildlife
• Dr. P. K. Malik, former Faculty at WII
• G. S. Rawat, former Dean, Wildlife Institute of India/ Member WII Society
• Ms Mittal Patel Social Worker, Founder Vicharta Samuday Samarthan Manch (VSSM), Ahmedabad (Gujarat)
• Shubhoranjan Sen, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) & Chief Wildlife Warden, Madhya Pradesh
• Prof. Qamar Qureshi, Scientist, WII, Dehradun,Inspector General, NTCA, New Delhi, Delhi.

Note – H. S. Negi and P. K. Malik are also members of the NTCA.

Correct Answer:  B. Telangana

Explanation:  Telangana has achieved 100% coverage of Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY).  As per the Social Security Administration survey, the state has achieved 100 percent coverage and the benefits of 135 welfare schemes and programmes under 20 departments are credited to these zero-balance bank accounts of the beneficiaries. Similarly, Telangana state has over 1 crore 11 lakh Jan Dhan bank account holders by the middle of this month. As per the official records, these accounts have a balance of over 3 thousand crore rupees.

However, as the footprint of banking services has expanded to the nook and corner of the state, over 61 lakh people have opened their Jan Dhan accounts in rural areas whereas, nearly 50 lakh people in urban areas have zero balance accounts. Out of these JDY account holders, over 84 lakh people are availing the services of the RuPay cards through which they are able to get other benefits like credit facilities.

Correct Answer:  D. Chandigarh

Explanation:  Department of Animal Husbandry, Chandigarh bags Skoch Silver Award. The Department of Animal Husbandry and Fisheries, Chandigarh got Skoch SILVER Award 2023 for e-Governance for the computerization of medical records of livestock being treated by the department. This is the first of its kind project in the country. The main objective of this application is to facilitate animal owners for online registration of their animals for treatment and other services like artificial insemination, vaccination etc. To maintain all records of Veterinary Hospitals and Sub-Centres like OPD, Stock book, daily medicine expenditure and artificial insemination.

Correct Answer:  C. Jaisamand Wildlife Sanctuary

Explanation:  Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot virtually inaugurated ‘Jungle Safari’ at Jaisamand Wildlife Sanctuary. Leopards, sloth bears, chinkara, wild boar, and the number of birds are found in this Wildlife Sanctuary. Ashok Gehlot also addressed the inaugural function of the Peace and Non-violence Cell offices in all districts. Peace and non-violence are the basis of culture, harmony, and brotherhood. Rajasthan is the only state where Peace and Non-Violence Department exist.

Jaisamand Wildlife Sanctuary:

• It is situated in the Udaipur district of Rajasthan.
• It is on the bank of Debar Lake, the second-largest artificial lake in Asia.
• It was established in 1957 and has an area of 160 sq km.

Correct Answer:  C. Harsh Jain

Explanation:  In a significant development, the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has elected Harsh Jain, the founder of Dream11, as its new chairperson. With this appointment, Indian entrepreneurs are seeking to assert their influence over policy-making in the rapidly evolving technology and startup sector. Rajesh Magow of MakeMyTrip has been appointed as the vice chairperson, and Satyan Gajwani of Times Internet will serve as the Treasurer. The newly formed 24-member governing council, devoid of any Big Tech representation, aims to pave the way for an industry-focused approach to foster growth and innovation.

A Diverse Lineup of Industry Experts The newly formed governing council of IAMAI comprises a diverse group of 24 industry leaders, representing various sectors within the technology and startup ecosystem. These individuals have been elected to the council based on their exceptional contributions and expertise. Among the notable members are Ajay Kaushal of Billdesk, Alok Mittal of Indifi, Aloke Bajpai of Ixigo, and Anant Goenka of Indian Express. Each member is expected to bring unique insights and perspectives to the table, fostering collaboration and innovation.

Correct Answer:  B. Singing

Explanation:  Tina Turner, the ‘Queen of Rock’n’Roll’ has passed away at the age of 83 after a long illness in her home in Kusnacht near Zurich, Switzerland. The singer, Tina Turner, rose to prominence after performing with her husband Ike Turner in the 1960s before overcoming his violent, abusive behavior to go on to become a chart-topping solo artist. Turner earned fans all over the world for her riveting live performances, and was best known for songs such as “Private Dancer”, “The Best”, “What’s Love Got to Do With It” and “Proud Mary”. Turner was diagnosed with intestinal cancer in 2016 and received a kidney transplant in 2017.

• Tina Turner born on 26^thNovember 1939 was an American-born Swiss singer. She was Known as the “Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll”. Turner began her career with Ike Turner’s Kings of Rhythm in 1957. Under the name Little Ann, she appeared on her first record, “Boxtop”, in 1958. In 1960, she debuted as Tina Turner with the hit duet single “A Fool in Love”.
• The duo Ike & Tina Turner became“one of the most formidable live acts in history”. They released hits such as “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine”, “River Deep – Mountain High”, “Proud Mary”, and “Nutbush City Limits”, before disbanding in 1976.
• Turner previously held a Guinness World Recordfor the largest paying audience (180,000 in 1988) for a solo performer. Turner was the first artist in the UK to have a top 40 hit in seven consecutive decades; she has a total of 35 UK top 40 hits. She sold over 100 million records worldwide, including certified RIAA album sales of 10 million.
• Turner won a total of 12 Grammy Awards. These awards include eight competitive Grammy Awards; she shares the record (with Pat Benatar) for most awards given for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. Three of her recordings, “River Deep – Mountain High” (1999), “Proud Mary” (2003), and “What’s Love Got to Do with It” (2012) are in the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Correct Answer:  C. 2025

Explanation:  Prime Minister Modi launched the Tuberculosis (TB) Free India campaign, an ambitious plan to eliminate tuberculosis by 2025. India has the highest burden of TB in the world, with nearly 423,000 TB patients dying in 2016. The UN’s sustainable development goals had set a target to eliminate TB by 2030. Tobacco use is an important factor in TB-related deaths in India, with 7.9% of deaths.​ 

Correct Answer:  B. Six

Explanation:   The Union Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the 6 States Governments of Assam, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh (MP), Odisha, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh (UP) to initiate the digital crop survey. The agreement was signed during the National Conference of State Agriculture Secretaries & State Revenue Secretaries on Digital Crop Survey, which was organised by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (MoA&FW) in New Delhi, Delhi to discuss with the state governments for the implementation of digital crop survey plan. A manual for web portal and mobile application for digital crop survey was also unveiled. To create one verified source of truth about the farmer and his/her crop-sown data.

What is Digital crop survey?

• It is a part of the Government’s Agristack or India Digital Ecosystem for Agriculture (IDEA) that has been under development since 2020, to create a robust, effective, on-time, transparent digitally driven crop survey system.
• The implementation of Agristack and the Krishi-Decision Support System (Krishi-DSS) aims to address the challenges and problems faced in the agriculture sector.
• The survey will provide comprehensive information on the crops cultivated throughout India during various agricultural seasons, thus facilitating, more accurate understanding of the farming landscape.
• The survey will use GIS (Geographic Information Systems )-GPS (Global Positioning System) technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning.

Correct Answer:  C. 5.5%

Explanation:  According to the Ecowrap report of the State Bank of India (SBI) released on May 26, 2023, India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in the fourth quarter (Q4) of Financial Year 2022-23 (FY23) is projected to be 5.5%. India’s growth for FY23 is projected at 7.1% due to growth in manufacturing sector. SBI’s projection is in line with the advance estimates released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) in January 2023, which projected the growth for the FY23, at 7%. RBI has estimated Q4FY23 Real GDP growth to be 5.1%. As per the report, domestic consumption and investment benefited from stronger prospects for agricultural and allied activities. The GDP growht projection by Ecowrap was made SBI’s ANN (Artificial Neural Network) model, based on 30 high-frequency indicators from key sectors which are tuned/trained to project the GDP numbers forecasts.

Correct Answer:  D. South Korea

Explanation:  South Korea successfully launched ‘Next Generation Small Satellite 2(NEXTSat-2), the first commercial-grade satellite aboard Korean Satellite Launch Vehicle Two (KSLV-II), nicknamed Nuri, from the launch pad at Naro Space Centre in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, South of Seoul, South Korea. NEXTSat-2 is the main payload of Nuri, whose mission is to deploy a total of 8 satellites (NEXTSat-2 and 7 small-sized cube satellites (CubeSats)) into a solar synchronous orbit circling the earth at an altitude of 550 kilometres. This also marks the 3rd launch of Korea’s domestically developed Nuri rocket. Mission of NEXTSat-2: To verify radar imaging technology and observe cosmic radiation in a near-Earth orbit. The 179.9-kilogram NEXTSat-2 was developed by the Satellite Technology Research Center at KAIST(Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology). It is equipped with a small-sized synthetic aperture radar that can capture high-resolution images regardless of weather conditions.