Current Affairs Questions and Answers - Apr 10, 2015

ANSWER: C. Six.

The decision was taken by the Home Ministry on 9th Apr’15 after it was found that the NGO has prejudicially affected the public interests and economic interests of the country in violation of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. According to the show cause notice served by the ministry, the licence of Greenpeace India will be cancelled permanently if it fails to make a satisfactory presentation to the government.

ANSWER: A. Dhanush

It is a naval variant of Prithvi-II, was launched by personnel of the Strategic Forces Command from an Offshore Patrolling Vessel. Dhanush, a manoeuvring missile, can carry a nuclear payload of 500 kg and target both land-based and sea-based targets. The missile has already been inducted into the armed forces.

ANSWER: D. 23%.

Roaming calls will be cheaper by up to 23 per cent, while sending SMSs will cost up to 75 per cent less from 1st May. In a statement, TRAI said that it has cut the maximum or ceiling rate that a telecom operator can charge for STD calls on roaming to Rs 1.15 per minute from Rs 1.50. Similarly, national SMS rate has been reduced to 38 paise from Rs 1.05 per SMS.

ANSWER: B. Onion.

Earlier the minimum export price was USD 300 per tonne. Directorate General of Foreign Trade has issued a notification in this regard. India produces around 17-18 million tonnes of onion a year. The country exported 13.58 lakh tonnes of onion in 2013-14.

ANSWER: C. Nasim Zaidi

The President has appointed the senior-most Election Commissioner, Dr. Nasim Zaidi as the Chief Election Commissioner. A 1976 batch IAS officer, Dr Zaidi has worked in the Civil Aviation Ministry for a long time. The incumbent Chief Election Commissioner Harishankar Brahma will demit the office on the 18th of this month.

ANSWER: A. 90%.

India has made a significant progress in increasing the net ratio of children in primary education globally. UNESCO's 2015 Education for All, EFA global Monitoring Report, which was released by Minister of Human Resource Development on 9th Apr’15. Globally, just one third of countries have achieved all of the measurable Education for All goals set in 2000. While releasing the report, HRD Minister Smriti Irani said that India has successfully moved toward reaching the EFA goals especially backed by the Right of Children to free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. The one measurable EFA goal India did not reach was to reduced its adult illiteracy by 50 percent. Since 2000 India has reduced its adult illiteracy rate by 26 percent.

ANSWER: C. United States.

Mr Obama's statement was in response to an online petition calling for a ban on conversion therapies, which gained over 120,000 signatures in three months. The petition was inspired by Leelah Alcorn, a 17-year-old transgender youth who committed suicide in December. Some conservative groups and religious doctors support conversion therapy.

ANSWER: B. Canada.

Two Canadian CF-18s successfully targeted an Islamic State (IS) garrison near Raqqa, Syria. In March the Canadian Parliament agreed to expand the country's campaign against IS into Syria. Canadian air strikes against IS were previously limited to Iraq. Canada is the first NATO country, other than the US, to strike inside Syria. Canada's mission against IS has also been extended for one year, beyond October's election and well into 2016.

ANSWER: D. Nepal.

State-run China Daily reported that a proposed extension of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway to the China-Nepal border through Tibet would boost bilateral trade and tourism as there is currently no rail line linking the two countries. The rail line is expected to be completed by 2020. The 1,956-km long Qinghai-Tibet railway already links the rest of China with the Tibetan capital Lhasa and beyond.

ANSWER: A. Jayakanthan.

Jayakanthan authored over 35 novels and novellas, innumerable short stories and two autobiographies besides writing articles and composing poems.

ANSWER: C. Navin Sinha.

On 9th April’15 Justice Navin Sinha sworn-in as Chief Justice of Chhattisgarh High Court. Governor Balramji Das Tandon administered the oath of office to Mr. Sinha at Rajbhawan today. Till now Justice Sinha was the acting Chief Justice of Chhattisgarh High court.