Important G.K. & Current Affairs Questions – 13th January 2019

Correct Answer – B. New Delhi

Explanation: India and the US recently discussed ways to expand bilateral cooperation on defence and foreign policy issues and exchanged views on regional developments as stakeholders for a free, open, inclusive and peaceful Indo-Pacific. The inaugural round of the India-US 2+2 inter-sessional meeting was held in New Delhi with the Indian delegation led jointly by Gourangalal Das, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs and Shambhu S Kumaran, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Defence, while the US side was headed jointly by Ambassador Alice Wells, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and Randall Schriver, Assistant Secretary of Defense.

Correct Answer – C. Chattisgarh

Explanation: After West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh, the Congress-led Chhattisgarh government withdrew general consent accorded to the CBI to probe cases in the state, officials said. The state government has written to the Home Ministry and the Ministry of Personnel to convey its decision in this regard, they said. With this, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) would now require permission of the state government to conduct raids and probe in Chhattisgarh, the officials said. Earlier, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh had withdrawn general consent accorded to the CBI to probe cases.

Correct Answer – B. Odisha

Explanation: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched the ‘Ama Ghare LED’ (LED bulbs in our houses) scheme which will benefit about 95 lakh families in the State. Each beneficiary family will get four LED bulbs free of cost under the scheme. Launching the scheme during the ‘Ama Gaon, Ama Bikash’ programme, the Chief Minister said the LED bulbs (9-watt each) will be distributed to the beneficiaries registered under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and the State Food Security Scheme (SFSS). Distribution of the bulbs will be started at the PEETHA (Peoples Empowerment – Enabling Transparency and Accountability of Odisha Initiatives) schemes on January 15. Odisha Power Transmission Corporation Limited (OPTCL) will be implementing the scheme and the bulbs will be distributed through camps and PDS outlets across the State.

Correct Answer – B. Chennai

Explanation: The 64th National Symposium of Poets, organised by All India Radio, started in Chennai on Thursday evening. 23 poets, representing all 22 languages in the Ninth Schedule of the Indian Constitution are participating in the symposium. Inaugurating the Sarva Bhasha Kavi Sammelan, Tamil Nadu Governor Bunwarilal Purohit said poems enlighten hearts and minds, apart from helping in contributing to national integration and linguistic harmony.

Correct Answer – B. Agra

Explanation: The Indian Paint Association (IPA), the apex body of the country’s paint industry announced that the 29th biennial Indian Paint Conference would be held in Agra, Uttar Pradesh from 11th to 13th January 2019. This would be the largest trade show of the estimated INR 500 billion (50,000 Crore) Indian Paints & Coatings industry.

Correct Answer – E. None of these

Explanation: To mark employment generation for 1.06 lakh youths in a year, Government of Jharkhand on Thursday organized Global Skill Summit – 2019 in Ranchi during which appointment letters were given to all the candidates. Chief Minister Raghubar Das, addressing a gathering during the summit, said that Jharkhand created history by giving one lakh jobs to the youths from a single platform in a day. Jharkhand is the only state in the country where three global summits were organized in a row merely in four years by this government, where delegates from different countries took part in it, who also expressed their desire for investment in Jharkhand, he added.

Correct Answer – A. Women & Child Development

Explanation: The Ministry of Women and Child Development is organizing the three-day 6th ‘Women of India Organic Festival’. The aim of the festival is to celebrate and promote women farmers and entrepreneurs in the organic sector from the remotest parts of India.The Women of India Organic Festival has been held annually in New Delhi since 2015, and makes its debut in Chandigarh this year. It will bring the joy of going organic to the evergreen Leisure Valley, which is a continuum of gardens, to showcase the varied products of women farmers and entrepreneurs. With each year, the sales and footfalls at the Organic Festival have only increased, indicating a growing interest in organic produce.

Correct Answer – C. FICCI

Explanation: The PwC-FICCI report, ‘Manufacturing Barometer’ said that in the next one year, over 7% growth in the gross domestic product (GDP) looks achievable for the country. India Inc. is upbeat about the future of the economy as they expect growth to be driven by strong domestic demand and an increased focus on export markets, says a new survey of manufacturers by global consulting firm PwC and industry body Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

Correct Answer – A. Purna Chandra Thapa

Explanation: President Ram Nath Kovind recently conferred the honorary rank of General of the Indian Army to General Purna Chandra Thapa, the Army Chief of Nepal. Thapa assumed the command of the Nepal Army in September last year. Commissioned into the Nepali Army in 1980, the general is a graduate of the National Defence College, India and Army Command and Staff College, Nepal.

Correct Answer  – B. Brahm Dutt

Explanation: The Reserve Bank of India has approved the appointment of Brahm Dutt as non-executive part time Chairman of the board of private sector lender Yes Bank. The appointment is till July 2020 as Dutt will then attain the age of 70 years. Dutt has been on the Board of Yes Bank since July 2013 as an Independent Director. He is a former IAS officer and was Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat and in the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways.