Current Affairs Questions & Answers - June 09, 2016

ANSWER: Bihar

Explanation:
States are being rated on ease of doing business in real time. The evaluation is done on 340 parameters as against 91 in the previous year. Bihar outperformed the 30 other states and UTs being ranked in ease of doing business with a score of 8.53 percent.
In the previous year’s final rankings Bihar was 21
Last year, Gujarat topped the list and is currently on the 6th position

ANSWER: FDI

Explanation:
Aiming to make FDI policy simpler, government on June 8 2016 released an updated compendium for incorporating policy changes and doing away with unneeded explanations

• The earlier’s regime’s policy for opening multi-brand retail for foreign investment has also been carried forward
• FDI policy has been made simpler and investor friendly and the compendium also provides provisions for the issue of sweat equity to NRI employees and directors and defines the term private security agencies, private security and armoured car service.
• Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion also said it clarified on private security agencies by borrowing definition of few terms from Private Security Agencies Regulation Act 2005

ANSWER: Both a and b

Explanation:
Cotton exports from India, the world’s biggest producer has nearly halted as local prices have rallied due to tight supplies because of drought forcing key importers like Bangladesh, Pakistan and Vietnam to turn to other suppliers. Freeze in Indian export will promote Australia, Brazil and the US to raise shipments and push global prices to their highest since August.

• Price rise could substantially push up fabric and clothing prices and put pressure on the margins of garment making
• Landed cost is Indian cotton is around 75-76 cents per lb for Pakistan and Bangladeshi buyers and this is around 73 cents for Brazilian cotton
• Pakistan and Bangladesh prefer Indian cotton due to low freight charges and local cotton spot market prices have risen by 10 percent from a month ago to 38,4000 rupees per 356 kg due to limited supplies after consecutive droughts cut production
• India may produce 334.1 million bales of cotton in 2015-2016 starting on October 1 from last year’s output of 38.3 million, according to estimates by Cotton Association of India.

ANSWER: US India Clean Energy Finance

Explanation:
India and the US announced the setting up of two financial assistance programmes worth US $60 million for supporting India’s much needed clean energy initiatives including solar power and other renewables

• US is committed to bear its technical capacity, resources and private sector and is jointly lunching initiatives with India for clean energy development
• Apart from the US India Clean Energy Finance Initiative, two leaders Modi and Obama also agreed on a US $40 million US-India Catalytic Solar Finance Programme

ANSWER: Three Person IVF

Explanation:
Scientists have unveiled an improved method of transferring DNA between human egg cells, a technique called pronuclear transfer or three person IVF to create embryos free of genetic defects and impairments

• Method involves extracting healthy DNA of mother and father from the nucleus of the fertilised egg
• Each egg cell also contains different types of DNA residing in tiny cell structures known as mitochondria
• Sometimes the mitochondrial DNA undergo mutations which can be transmitted to offspring and can cause an array of disorders.
• The nuclear DNA is transferred into a donated egg cell -- with healthy mitochondrial DNA -- from which the nucleus has been removed.
• This marks significant progress towards a safer form of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) for women who carry disease-causing mitochondrial mutations.
• Estimates vary widely, but about one in 5,000 children is thought to be born with these mutations which can affect the muscles, eye, brain or heart.
• Mitochondria are tiny structures inside our cells which turn sugar and oxygen into energy- they are known as powerhouses or batteries of the cells
• Mitochondria have their own DNA separate from DNA within the cell nucleus.
• In 2015, Britain became the first country in the world to legalise pronuclear transfer for women with mitochondrial disorders.
• The new study, using over 500 eggs from 64 donor women, showed that small tweaks to the existing procedure can reduce the risk of mutant mitochondrial DNA transferral.
• It worked best to perform the procedure on the day of the egg's fertilisation, not later, the scientists found and it was better to freeze the egg of the patient, rather than that of the donor.

ANSWER: Maria Sharapova

Explanation:
Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova was banned for 2 years by the International Tennis Federation on 8th June after a failed drugs test.

• The 29 year old has been banned in March after testing positive for banned substance Meldonium at the Australian Open
• The drug was banned in January 2016. The athlete said she hd been taking the drug since 2006 for health issues.
• The 5 time Grand Slam winner has said she will appeal against the verdict

ANSWER: India

Explanation:
India has beaten Japan to become the world’s third largest oil consumer with oil demand galloping 8.1 percent in 2015, according to BP Statistical Review of World Energy released on June 8, 2016

• With demand of 4.1 million barrels in a day, India is the third largest consumer after the US and China at 19.39 million bpd and 11.96 million bpd.
• India accounted for 4.5 percent of world oil consumption in 2015
• India’s demand growth surpassed China’s 6.3 percent expansion.
• Japan slipped to 4th spot after oil usage contracted 3.9 percent to 4.15 million bpd in 2015
• In 2014, it used 4.3 million bpd ahead of India’s 3.48 million bpd
• Review shows global demand for primary energy grew by 1 percent in 2015 which is slower than the 10 year average
• This shows continued weakness in the global economy and lower growth in Chinese energy consumption as the country shifts from industrial to service driven economy
• Oil is the world’s leading fuel with 32.9 percent of international energy consumption and market share for the first time since 1999
• Coal is the second largest fuel in market share at 29.2 percent. Market share of private energy consumption stood at 23.8 percent.

ANSWER: 4

Explanation:
Four Indian women including SBI MD Arundhati Bhattacharya and ICICI Bank MD Chandra Kochhar are in the new list of Forbes world’s 100 most powerful women who are building billion dollar brands and calling the shots in the financial market. Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women in the world list 2016 topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel includes PepsiCo Chief Indra Nooyi and Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar Shaw as well as HT Media head Shobhana Bhartia.

• Forbes indicated this year’s most powerful women are the smartest and toughest female leaders of their time making the mark in the world
• Bhattacharya, 60 ranked 25th on the list with SBI facing mounting bad loans at USD 11 billion in December according to Forbes
• Kochchar occupied the 40th position while Mazumdar Shaw was 77th and Bhartia was 93rd
• Nooyi was 14th on this list

ANSWER: Euro 2016

Explanation:
A new smartphone app to alert users to possible terror attacks was launched by the French government on June 8 in time for start of Euro 2016

• The app which is free to download in both French and English will send users a warning in the event of suspected attacks, says the Interior Ministry which piloted and introduced the service
• Users will also be alerted about unexpected events such as breaching of flood defences

ANSWER: Rajasthan

Explanation:
Rajasthan Government on 5 June 2016 launched mobile application RajVayu for sharing information about Air Quality Index of Jaipur, Udaipur and Jodhpur. The app was launched by Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje on the eve of World Environment Day.

• With this, Rajasthan became first state in country to launch such app for sharing information about air quality index of cities.
• Information provided on RajVayu app is based on the data collected by sophisticated air quality monitoring equipment and weather sensors.
• The app has been designed by Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board (RSPCB) jointly with Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM).

ANSWER: Shahid Rasool

Explanation:
Shahid Rasool, a communication technology specialist, on 7 June 2016 took charge as the Director of the Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (CEMCA).

• Rasool will guide CEMCA in its mission to ensure effective utilisation of educational media resources for distance education.
• He was earlier the Director of the Educational Multimedia Research Centre, University of Kashmir.
• He earned his MS Degree in Communication Technology from Syracuse University and has a doctorate in mass communication and journalism from the University of Kashmir.
• CEMCA is an arm of the Vancouver-based Commonwealth of Learning (COL).
• CEMCA works in eight Commonwealth Countries of Asia including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia and Singapore.

ANSWER: Tintu Luka

Explanation:
To win the medal, she covered the distance with her season's best timing of 2:00.61 (2 minutes point Six One seconds).

• The reigning Asian champion was second behind 2013 World Youth Championship gold winner Anita Hinriksdottir of Iceland who ran the distance in 2:00.54 (2 minutes point five four seconds).
• 27-year-old Luka is still a long way to go as she is placed at 30th spot among the season's top list.
• Former world champion and London Olympics silver medallist Caster Semenya of South Africa is leading with 1:56.64 (1 minute, 56.six Four seconds).
• Semenya is followed by world indoor champion Francine Niyonsaba of Burundi with 1:56.92 (1 minute, 56.92 seconds) and Renelle Lamote of France with 1:58.01 (1 minute, 58.01 second).
• The Kerala runner, Luka holds the national record of 1:59.17 (1 minute, 59.17 second) which she did way back in 2010 at Continental Cup, Croatia.

ANSWER: Sri Lanka

Explanation:
IMF on June 7th 2016 approved the US $1.5 billion loan to Sri Lanka. IMF has transferred 168 million US dollars as the first instalment with immediate effect to provide support for the country’s economy

• IMF executive board accepted the 36 month extended arrangement under Extended Fund Facility with Sri Lanka under SDR
• With an early disbursement of 168.1 million US dollars to be made immediately, the remaining amount will be settled in 6 instalments on quarterly review
• Additional 650 million US dollars support will be brought to other multilateral and bilateral loans bring total support to US 2.2 billion US dollars

ANSWER: Justice Mirza Imtiyaz Murtaza

Explanation:
UP CM Akhilesh Yadav on June 7th 2016 appointed the judicial commission to probe into the recent Mathura violence

• Judicial commission will be headed by retired Allahabad HC judge Justice Mirza Imtiaz Murtaza
• It will submit its report within two months
• Commission has been mandated to conduct inquiry on 6 points of reference including finding the reason why this incident occurred and the plan and preparedness of district administration and its effectiveness
• Administrative inquiry by Aligarh commissioner has been disbanded

ANSWER: Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory

Explanation:
LISA Pathfinder Mission has tested a key technology to build space based observatory for detecting of gravitational waves

• Mission was led by ESA scientists with the contribution of NASA
• Research was published in Physical Review Letters on June 7, 2016
• Mission demonstrated that two test masses can be put in free fall with relative acceleration free of noise to meet requirements for space based gravitation wave detection
• These tiny ripples in the fabric of space were first seen in 2015 by ground based LIGO
• These ripples were predicted by Albert Einstein a hundred years ago
• The frequency of thermal, seismic and other noise sources limit LIGO to higher frequency gravitational waves around 100 cycles per second (hertz)
• Finding signals from mergers of supermassive black holes in colliding galaxies requires the ability to see frequencies at 1 hertz or less
• Space based observatory works through tracking of test masses that only movie under the influence of gravity

ANSWER: Maharana Pratap

Explanation:
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has announced that a new Indian Reserve Battalion in Rajasthan will be named after Maharana Pratap, the great warrior of Mewar region. The Home Minister, who is on a two-day visit to the state, made the announcement at a programme. Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje had made a request to Singh in this regard.

• The Indian Reserve Battalion will be named after Maharana Pratap, a Rajput ruler who had fought against the Mughals and never bowed before them, Singh said. The government will make sure that his contribution is highlighted.
  
• The Union minister also announced setting up of a global centre for counter terrorism at Sardar Patel University of Police, Security and Criminal Justice at Jodhpur and said the process of police modernisation will be expedited.
• Pratap Singh or Pratap Singh popularly known as Maharana Pratap the ruler of Mewar, a region in north-western India in the present day state of Rajasthan.

ANSWER: 141

Explanation:
India has ranked 141 on the Global Peace Index making it less peaceful than countries like Burkina Faso and Burundi

• Violence took a USD 680-billion toll on its economy in 2015. In a ranking of 163 countries, compiled by global think tank Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP),
• Syria has been named the least peaceful, followed by South Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia.
• On the other hand, Iceland was ranked as the world’s most peaceful country, followed by Denmark and Austria.

ANSWER: MadRat

Explanation:
MadRat Games is an innovative startup with an aim to provide the world a more wholesome, happy and healthy way of living.

• Founded by IIT Mumbai and Carnegie Mellon alumnus Rajat Dhariwal along with his team Madhumita Halder and Manuj Dhariwal in 2010, the offline product gaming startup will use the proceeds for product development and pre-order campaign.
• Initially, it built offline educational games such as board games, learning puzzles, toys and mobile games.
• Ratan Tata, Ola’s founders Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati, Flipkart’s founder Binny Bansal, and Girish Mathrubootham of Freshdesk have funded the company. The total amount raised by the company comes to over $2.5 million with this funding round.

ANSWER: Osamu Suzuki

Explanation:
Suzuki Motor Corp CEO Osamu Suzuki is stepping down and the Japanese automaker promised to cut executive pay and slash 2015 bonuses, hoping to draw a line under the bruising admission of major flaws in its fuel tests.

• Executive vice president Osamu Honda, who also served as chief technical officer, will retire, taking responsibility for the research and development team at the heart of the testing scandal.
• Japan’s No. 4 automaker by sales said it had used the wrong methods to calculate mileage for models going back to 2010, widening a mileage testing storm that had already rocked smaller rival Mitsubishi Motors Corp.
• The testing scandals at Suzuki and Mitsubishi come after Volkswagen AG was first discovered last year to have cheated diesel emissions tests in the United States.

ANSWER: Thailand

Explanation:
The World Health Organization has announced that Thailand became the first Asian country to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV, a milestone in the fight against the disease. The announcement is a boost for a generation of Thai health workers who have transformed the nation from one of Asia’s most HIV-ravaged societies to a pin-up for how to effectively tackle the crisis.

• According to Thai government figures, the number of babies born with HIV has dropped from 1,000 in 2000 to just 85 last year, a large enough fall for the WHO to declare mother-to-child transmission over.
• It is a major turnaround for Thailand.

ANSWER: Ehang

Explanation:
The world’s first passenger drone capable of autonomously carrying a person in the air for 23 minutes has been given clearance for testing in Nevada.

• Chinese firm Ehang, which unveiled the electric Ehang 184 passenger drone at CES in Las Vegas in January, has partnered with the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems (NIAS) and the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (Goed) to put the drone through testing and regulatory approval.
• The founder and chief executive of Ehang, Huazhi Hu, said the move would lay the foundation for the 184’s commercialisation and kickstart the autonomous aerial transportation industry.

ANSWER: KK Katyal

Explanation:
The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee has condoled the passing away of veteran journalist Shri K.K. Katyal. Shri Katyal was a much loved and admired personality in the world of media. He had a long and distinguished career, especially with “The Hindu”, “The Statesman” and “Hindustan Times”.

Shri Katyal was widely travelled and had extensive contacts in political and diplomatic circles. His services as President of the South Asia Free Media Association will be remembered by members of the media across the region.

Shri Katyal made important contribution to making the newspapers he worked for symbols of excellence in journalism.

ANSWER: Nellore

Explanation:
The Ministry of Commerce & Industry has given approval to establishment of Mega Leather Cluster at Kota Mandal, Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh. The project sanctioned under Indian Leather Development program would create state of the art infrastructure for labour intensive units and is expected to generate employment for 20,000 people and leverage an investment of at least Rs 500 Crores in the first phase itself. The Minister requested the Chief Minister that due process related to award of contract etc be completed so that the central government could release the funds to start the project as soon as possible.

ANSWER: Jadavpur University

Explanation:
Jadavpur University, Kolkata has won the 12th National Youth Parliament Competition for Universities and Colleges conducted by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs. Thirty institutions from across the country participated in the competition.

• Merit Trophies were presented to : Dayalbagh Educational Institute, Agra, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, University of Mumbai, Mumbai, Jawaharlal Nehru Rajkeeya Mahavidyalaya, Port Blair and Assam Rajiv Gandhi University of Cooperative Management, Sivsagar, Assam.
• National Youth Parliament Competition for Universities/Colleges is being organized since 1997-98 to promote among the younger generations the spirit of discipline, tolerance of diverse opinion, righteous expression of views and democratic virtues