Current Affairs Questions & Answers - May 03, 2016

ANSWER: USD 37.53 billion

Explanation:
Foreign direct investment has increased to USD 37.53 billion during the April-February period of the previous fiscal. Parliament was given the information it was USD 30.93 billion in 2014-2015. FDI equity inflow has risen from USD 22.42 billion in 2012-2013 to USD 37.53 billion in 2015-2016 in February.

• Services attracted the most (USD 5.95 billion) during the first eleven months of 2015-2016
• This was followed by computer software and hardware, trading and automobile

ANSWER: Oracle

Explanation:
US software giant Oracle Corp will purchase Opower Inc, a maker of software for utilities for USD 548 million in cash. Opower provides cloud data solutions to the utilities industry. Company also analyses close to 600 billion meter readings from 60 million utility customers through cloud service as per Oracle. Data lets subscribers stay ahead of customer and regulatory requirements to attain greater efficiency.

ANSWER: Both of the above

Explanation:
The two board members who will be resigning are Lorenzo Grabau and Erik Mitteregger. The members from long standing investor Kinnevik are resigning after Swedish fund hit shares in the German e-commerce firm through cutting valuations for joint holdings.

• Rocket Internet has been funding companies such as Jabong.
• The two would be replaced by board members independent of shareholders- former Deutsche Bank CFO Stefan Krause and Orange deputy chief executive Pierre Louette.

ANSWER: Red and blue ring around the sun

Explanation:
A red and blue ring around the sun, known as the 22 degree circular halo was seen on 30th April 2016 in the city.

• This phenomenon was observed between 12:10 to 12:40 pm
• The phenomenon commonly called the 22 degree circular halo of the sun or occasionally the Moon (also moon ring or winter halo) takes place when the rays of the sun or moon get deflected or refracted through hexagonal ice crystals present in cirrus clouds
• These cirrus clouds are formed when water vapour freezes into ice crystals at altitudes 5 to 10 km above the surface of the earth
• This phenomenon is common in cold countries but in India, the occurrence is rare and cannot be predicted
• 22 degree halo was last observed on April 2013

ANSWER: 39 light years

Explanation:
A global team of scientists discovered a trio of Earth like planets to find life outside the solar system most likely. The study published in the journal Nature found that the three planets orbiting the ultra cool dwarf star 39 light years away are comparable in size and temperature to Venus and Earth.

• This marks the first time chemical traces of life have been found outside the solar system
• The three planets had a winning combination of being similar in size to earth, easily habitable and close enough for their atmosphere to be analysed
• Scientists calibrated a 60-centimetre telescope in Chile, known as TRAPPIST, to track several dozen dwarf stars that are neither big nor hot enough to be visible with optical telescopes.
• They zeroed in on a particularly promising one — now known as TRAPPIST-1 — about one eighth the size of the Sun, and significantly cooler.
• The innermost two circle their dwarf star every 1.5 and 2.4 days

ANSWER: Low Surface Brightness

Explanation:
Hubble Space Telescope has spotted a galaxy hidden in the night sky located 110 million light years away in the constellation of Pisces (The Fish).

• Galaxy UGC 477 is a low surface brightness galaxy
• This LSB galaxy was first discovered in 1986 and proposed in 1976 by Mike Disney
• MSB galaxies are more diffusely distributed than others like the Milky Way and Andromeda
• Most of the matter present in the LSB galaxies is in the form of hydrogen gas rather than stars
• These galaxies have surface brightness close to 250 times fainter than the night sky
• Matter present in the LSB galaxies is in form of hydrogen gas rather than stars
• Unlike normal spiral galaxies, the centres of LSB galaxies do not have large number of stars

ANSWER: Both a and b

Explanation:
The Mekong region comprises Vietnam, Thailand and Laos. The importance of South east Asian economic prosperity was also affirmed to Japan. Around 750 billion yen was pledged in funding during the coming years for promoting growth and development in the region.

ANSWER: In Mobi

Explanation:
InMobi Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Manish Dugar has resigned to take up another job. Mr. Dugar has been appointed as the global CFO of healthcare tech start-up Practo, which provides an app and web service for scheduling appointments with doctors.

ANSWER: Reliance Defence

Explanation:
With 25 industrial licences in its bag, Reliance Defence has emerged as the private sector firm that has the highest number of permits across the spectrum.

• A subsidiary of Reliance Infrastructure Limited, the company last week received 15 industrial licences for making a wide array of high technology equipment ranging from heavy weapons, armoured vehicles, ammunition, electronic warfare systems, UAVs and directed energy weapon systems.
• Reliance had already got 10 licences before.
• Of the 15 new licences given to it, 10 pertain to land systems, three for the naval systems and remaining two covering niche technologies across the defence spectrum, industry sources said.

ANSWER: ADB

Explanation:
China-sponsored Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has chosen a Pakistan based highway construction program among the first batch of projects it will finance.

• The Asian Development Bank has also joined as a co-financer.
• In effect, the two banks have agreed to support one of the projects in the $46 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is the first program under the Silk Road plan introduced by Chinese president Xi Jinping.

ANSWER: All of the above

Explanation:
Following a request by Germany, France, Austria, Denmark and Sweden, the European Union (EU) is set to allow countries to extend border control in the passport-free Schengen area as a result of the migrant crisis and recent terror attacks.

• The five countries wrote to the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, saying the border situation remains "extremely volatile" and asked to prolong their right to keep frontier checks.
• Sources said the Commission was set to approve the measure in line with its so-called "roadmap" for the restoration of the normal functioning of Schengen "by the end of the year".

ANSWER: US Commission for International Religious Freedom

Explanation:
Religious freedom in India was on a "negative trajectory" in 2015 as religious tolerance "deteriorated" and religious freedom violations "increased", alleged US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) in its 2016 annual report.

• The USCIRF suggested that the Indian government publicly rebuke officials and religious leaders that make derogatory statements about religious communities.
• USCIRF reports are not binding on the State Department.

ANSWER: C. Maheswaran

Explanation:
Jettys community of wrestlers knew the science of wrestling much before, according to C. Maheshwaran, author of the book Legacy of Jettys to be launched next week by Prince Yaduveer in Bengaluru.

• Maheshwaran took 10 years for research on the wrestling community and studied Royal kingdom of Mysore, apart from Thanjavur, Krishnadevaraya, Tipu Sultan, Gaekwads of Baroda and the Rajput King, Prithviraj Chauhan of Ajmer which patronised this community.
• The community’s original settlers were from Modhera in Gujarat. Nearly 400 families subsequently migrated to the south looking for royal patronage to the art in 1025 A.D., i.e., 991 years ago.

ANSWER: RasGas

Explanation:
Petronet LNG Limited (PLL) has signed a revised contract with RasGas of Qatar. Petronet LNG Limited has a 7.5 MMTPA FOB LNG supply agreement with RasGas, Qatar on long term basis for 25 years.

• The supply under this agreement commenced in 2004.
• PLL has successfully negotiated the revised price formula for the said contract effective from 1st January, 2016 thereby aligning prices with the world gas market.
• Further, PLL has executed agreement for additional supply of 1.0 MMTPA of LNG from RasGas, Qatar for a period of about 12 years w.e.f. January 1, 2016 at the prevailing market prices.

ANSWER: New Zealand

Explanation:
India and New Zealand have signed an air services agreement in a bid to boost connectivity, tourism and trade between both countries.Since the Government’s Air Transport policy was introduced in 2012, Bridges said 50 new or amended air agreements had been negotiated, bringing the total to 78. Most of the major airlines in the world are now able to operate services to New Zealand without restriction, with 18 new air routes announced in 2015 alone.

ANSWER: Pradhan Mantri Ujwala Yojana

Explanation:
Pradhan Mantri Ujwala Yojana in Ballia aims to provide cooking gas connections to five crore below-poverty-line beneficiaries over the next three years.

• Noting that May 1st is observed as Labour Day, the Prime Minister said that in this century, the aim of all workers across the world should be to unite the world.
• The Prime Minister also said that Ballia is the land of the revolutionary Mangal Pandey, and said that while the development of Eastern Uttar Pradesh has suffered for decades, connectivity is now being strengthened in the region.

ANSWER: 100 years of the Tank

Explanation:
A symposium on “100 years of the Tank” was organised by South Asia Defence & Strategic Review on 2nd May 2016 at Kothari Auditorium, DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi on the occasion of the Armoured Corps Day. Former Governor of Assam Ajai Singh inaugurated the session.

ANSWER: Sriram Ramaswamy

Explanation:
Physicist Sriram Ramaswamy, Director of TIFR Centre for Interdisciplinary Sciences, Hyderabad, has been elected as the Fellow of The Royal Society.

• His name appeared on the list of 50 new fellows and 10 new Foreign Members announced by the Royal Society.
• Besides, biochemist Ramanujan Hegde, MRC Laboratory of Microbiology, U.K. and applied mathematician Lakshminarayanan Mahadevan, Harvard University, are the other two Indian names who were also elected as the fellows of the premier scientific academy of the U.K. and the Commonwealth.

ANSWER: Bitcoin

Explanation:
Australian entrepreneur Craig Wright has identified himself as Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto.
His admission follows years of speculation about who came up with the original ideas underlying the digital cash system.

• Mr Wright has provided technical proof to back up his claim using coins known to be owned by Bitcoin’s creator.
• Prominent members of the Bitcoin community and its core development team say they have confirmed his claims.

ANSWER: SAARC Development Fund

Explanation:
SIDBI has signed an MoU with SAARC Development Fund for mutual cooperation and collaboration. The MoU envisages SDF and SIDBI to work together in co-funding of projects in Indian MSMEs on risk sharing basis in identified sectors.

• The MoU also focuses on the development of suitable financial products for SME financing for MSMEs of other SAARC states.
• The MoU further deals with technology transfer and making available software to MFIs regarding loan tracking systems in other SAARC states.

ANSWER: 3rd May

Explanation:
The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee has extended his greetings and felicitations to the Government and people of Poland on the occasion of their National Day(May 03, 2016).
Mr. Andrzej Sebastian Duda is president the Republic of Poland.

ANSWER: May 3rd

Explanation:
The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee has extended his greetings and felicitations to Government and people of the State of Israel on the occasion of their National Day (May 03, 2016).

• In a message to H.E. Mr. Reuven Rivlin, President of the State of Israel, the president extended his cordial greetings and best wishes
• He also recalled his first state visit to October in 2015