Current Affairs Questions & Answers - June 10, 2016

ANSWER: Business Consumer Index

Explanation:
Business confidence has fallen 6.7 percent in Q4 in the previous fiscal based on subdued sentiments according to an NCAER survey. The 96th round of Business Expectations Survey indicates that the Business Confidence Index registered a decrease of 6.7 percent in April over January 2016 on the quarter to quarter basis.

• This indicates business sentiments have been subdued since the previous quarter
• BCI has continued to fall on a Y-O-Y basis and a survey by economic think tank National Council of Applied Economic Research. Three of the four components of BCI have shown a deterioration in sentiments between January and April 2016
• One component has increased marginally. Only 43.8 percent of the firms expected the financial position would be better in the coming six months versus 59.8 percent of firms in January 2016.
• As many as 44.8 percent of firms perceive financial position would remain the same in the coming six months
• Maximum decline in BCI of over 11.4 percent has been recorded by firms with annual turnover of INR 1-10 crore
• Survey has also recorded improvement in political sentiments with in April over January 2016 with the Political Confidence Index showing q-o-q rise of 2.1 percent.
• NCAER has been conducting Business Expectations Survey each quarter since 1991 tracking business sentiments of close to 500 Indian companies

ANSWER: Liberia

Explanation:
West African nation Liberia has been declared Ebola free for the second time. The country has passed the WHO threshold of 42 days-twice the incubation period for the virus-since the last known patient tested negative for the second time.

• Liberia’s health ministry indicated the country was free of Ebola and there are no new cases of the deadly tropical virus left in West Africa.
• Liberia is a country hit by an outbreak beginning in neighbouring Guinea in December 2013 with more than 4800 Liberians killed by Ebola
• The virus was at its peak in 2014 and sparked anxiety about a possible global pandemic leading countries to enforce travel bans on three most affected places- Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone
• Guinea was declared Ebola-free by the WHO on June 1 and Sierra Leone on March 17.

ANSWER: Atacama Large Millimetre/Submillimetre Array

Explanation:
Marking the first direct evidence to support the theory that black holes feed on clouds of cold gas, astronomers have detected billowy clouds of cold, clumpy has streaming into the huge black hole at speeds greater than 80,00 miles per hour

• Using one of the most powerful telescopes in the world- the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submilliter Array or ALMA, team found the feeding process to be chaotic and clumpy, as against a smooth, clean and simple process
• Nature provides a clear view of the complicated process permitting us to understand supermassive black holes in ways never seen before
• Data provides a snapshot of what is happening around the black hole at one precise time so black hole has an even bigger appetite and is devouring more of the cold clouds of gas surrounding it
• Previous models have indicated gradual growth of large black holes(process called accretion) happens when the surrounding hot gas accumulates smoothly onto the black hole, in a manner similar to a slow graze.

ANSWER: PK Purwar

Explanation:
State run firm MTNL has indicated chairman and managing director Narendra Kumar Yadav has resigned. Director (Finance) PK Purwar has been provided additional charge of the CMD post according to a BSE filing by MTNL

• Telecom firm operating in Delhi and Mumbai circles will post operational profits towards the close of the current financial year and turn profitable in 2017-2018
• It has been running losses since 2009

ANSWER: 2030

Explanation:
This includes time bound international targets to be reached over the next five years and ending epidemic as a public threat by 2030. Health Minister JP Nadda reiterated Indian commitment to fast track progress on ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030

• Member states adopted a new political declaration at the meeting including time bound international targets to be reached over the next five years and end the epidemic as a public health threat by 2030
• UNGA meeting has brought together state and government heads, people living with HIV and donor organisations to reiterate commitments in Political Declaration on HIV AIDS and set the world to end the epidemic by 2030 within the framework of SDGs
• A five point strategy was also proposed to end AIDS

ANSWER: TS John

Explanation:
Ex Kerala Assembly Speaker TS John passed away at a Chertala hospital in Alapuzha on June 9 at the age of 74. He passed away on account of old age related ailments survived by a son.

• John was a leader of the faction of the Kerala Congress (Secular)
• He also served as minister in the AK Antony cabinet

ANSWER: NATO

Explanation:
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) members and partners on 6 June 2016 launched Anaconda-16 Exercise, the biggest ever joint military exercise in Poland.

• The drill is part of NATO's exercise program and is being held just weeks before NATO's summit in Warsaw that is expected to decide that significant numbers of NATO troops and equipment will be based in Poland and in the Baltic states.
• The exercise was launched at the crucial time when central and eastern European nations are seeking strong security guarantees amid concerns about Russia.
• The exercise is organised and coordinated by Poland's military Operational Command.

ANSWER: 8

Explanation:
India and the United States on June 8, 2016 signed 8 agreements or MoUs in numerous fields including Clean Energy, Climate Change and Energy Security.

• Agreements were inked after Modi met Obama on a 2 day visit from 6-8 June 2016
• The inked MoUs/Agreements include:
• Arrangement for the exchange of Terrorist Screening Information
• MoU to enhance cooperation on Energy Security, Clean Energy and Climate Change
• MoU to enhance co-operation on Wildlife Conservation, management and Combating Wildlife Trafficking
• MoU for the Development of an International Expedited Traveler Initiative (the Global Entry Programme)
• Technical Arrangement concerning Unclassified Maritime Information Sharing
• MoU for Cooperation in Gas Hydrates
• Information Exchange Annex (IEA) to the Master Information Exchange Agreement concerning Aircraft Carrier Technologies
• Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement

ANSWER: Ban ki Moon

Explanation:
Russian President Vladimir Putin on 8 June 2016 signed a decree awarding the Order of Friendship to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

• The officially published decree said that the decoration was awarded to Ban for special merits in strengthening peace, friendship, cooperation and mutual understanding between peoples.
• Among those awarded are Prince Michael of Kent, Oscar Niemeyer, the architect of the Brazilian capital, and former President of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge.
• The order, set up in 1994, is meant to reward Russian citizens and foreign nationals for outstanding accomplishments

ANSWER: HATS-18b

Explanation:
International team of astronomers found an alien world named HATS-18b. It is a giant hot Jupiter exoplanet tidally spinning up its parent star.

• The team led by Kaloyan Penev of Princeton University carried out the observation campaign between April 2011 and July 2013.
• The new findings were published online on 2 June 2016 on arXiv.org.
• The newly discovered planetary system could be a great laboratory for to test the theories of planet–star interactions.

ANSWER: Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg

Explanation:
For the fifth consecutive year, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg has been named the most powerful woman in technology on the Forbes’ 100 Most Powerful Women list, placing at No. 7 on the list overall.

• With a personal fortune of $1.4 billion, Sandberg is powerful not only as a billionaire and top executive at the world’s fifth most valuable brand, but also as a voice for female empowerment in the workplace and shared responsibilities at home.
• After Sandberg, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki (No. 8 overall) took the No. 2 spot in tech followed in quick succession by HP CEO Meg Whitman (No. 9), IBM CEO Virginia “Ginni” Rometty (No. 11), Apple Senior VP Angela Ahrendts (No. 15), Oracle co-CEO Safra Catz (No. 20), Alphabet CFO Ruth Porat (No. 27) and Ursula Burns (No. 34), the CEO of Xerox since 2009.
• Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer (No. 55), down the list 33 spots, is currently overseeing a sale of the embattled tech pioneer’s core business amid falling traffic and ad revenue.

ANSWER: clinched

Explanation:
Hillary Clinton has cemented her position as the presumptive Democratic nominee, seizing her place in history as the first woman to contest a US presidential election at the head of a major political party.

• The former Secretary of State cruised to victory in four of the week’s six state primaries including, crucially, California – where her rival, Bernie Sanders, had hoped to fuel his flagging campaign.
• When she conceded defeat to Barack Obama at the end of a long and gruelling primary season in 2008, Ms Clinton expressed regret that she had been unable to “shatter that highest and hardest glass ceiling”, the presidential nomination.
• Reaching for history, Mrs. Clinton pledged to build on the achievements of pioneers like the 19th-century leaders at Seneca Falls, N.Y., who began the fight for women’s rights in America.

ANSWER: June 10

Explanation:
The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee has extended his greetings and felicitations to the Government and people of Portugal on the eve of their National Day (June 10, 2016).

• In a message to His Excellency Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, the President of the Portuguese Republic, the President has said warm greetings and extended his cordial wishes

ANSWER: Mexico

Explanation:
At the invitation of His Excellency Mr. Enrique Peña Nieto, President of the United Mexican States, His Excellency Mr. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India paid a working visit to Mexico on 8th June 2016, with the objective to continue the dialogue held by the two leaders on the margins of the 70th regular session of the United Nations General Assembly on 28th September 2015.

• The leaders recognised the opportunities to define the path of the India-Mexico Privileged Partnership for the 21st Century that allows the growth of bilateral relations in economic field, in science and technology and in the most important issues of the global agenda reflecting a broad convergence of long-term political, economic and strategic goals.

ANSWER: Qatar Investment Authority

Explanation:
With a view to attracting investments from Qatar under the umbrella of NIIF, the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) Ltd. entered into an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) on 5th June, 2016 during the visit of the Prime Minister of India to Doha on June 4th and 5th , 2016.

• The MoU was signed by Mr. Abdullah Bin Mohamed Al Thani, CEO of Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and Mr. Amar Sinha, Secretary (Economic Relations), Ministry of External Affairs on behalf of NIIF Ltd.
• The objective of the MoU is to facilitate QIA to study investment opportunities in the infrastructure sector in India and develop a framework for exchange of information with regard to such investments opportunities, in order to enable both sides to decide on joint investments.

ANSWER: Road Accidents in 2015

Explanation:
The Minister of Road Transport & Highways Shri Nitin Gadkari launched the report “Road Accidents in India 2015” in New Delhi on June 9, 2016.

• Road accidents have emerged as a major public health problem globally, and more so in India where almost 5 lakh accidents occurred last year, killing 1,46000 people and leaving thrice the number injured.
• With one of the highest motorisation growth rate in the world, accompanied by rapid expansion in road network and urbanisation over the years, India is faced with serious impacts on road safety levels.
• According to the report compiled by the Transport Research Wing, the total number of road accidents increased by 2.5 per cent from 4,89,400 in 2014 to 5,01,423 in 2015.
• Thirteen top states namely Tamil Nadu (69,059), Maharashtra (63,805), Madhya Pradesh (54,947), Karnataka (44,011), Kerala (39,014), Uttar Pradesh (32,385), Andhra Pradesh (24,258), Rajasthan (24,072), Gujarat (23,183), Telengana (21,252), Chattisgarh (14,446),West Bengal (13,208) and Haryana (11,174) together accounted for 86.7 per cent of all road accidents in the country. Around 83.6 per cent of all road accidents fatalities also occurred in the top thirteen states.

ANSWER: AP

Explanation:
Andhra Pradesh Government through its AP Food Processing Society has entered into a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the National Research Development Corporation, an Enterprise of the Department of Scientific & Industrial Research, Ministry of Science & Technology, Govt. of India, New Delhi (NRDC)

• The agreement is to strengthen the agribusiness & food processing sector by establishing Smart Agribusiness Platform Networks of Andhra Pradesh (SAPNAP).
• These networks will focus on creation of enabling ecosystem for accelerated growth of agribusiness by involving all the stakeholders.
• SAPNAP will have two key development platform
• Smart Agribusiness Value-chains and
• Smart Agribusiness Incubators & Accelerators
• NRDC will be the knowledge partner