December 2020 Flashcards
How much money has the government of India allocated to Mission COVID Suraksha ?
INR 3000 crore in a timeline of 12 to 18 months.
This has been divided in three phases.
INR 900 crore must be allocated in each phase.
The mission has been led by Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and implemented Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC).
So far DBT has supported 10 vaccines, 5 of which are in human trials including the Russian Vaccine Sputnik-V and 3 of which are in an advanced stage.
The mission has been approved by National Technical Advisory Group (NTAGI)
What are the three vaccine candidates under Phase 3 in India of the mission COVID Suraksha?
- Sputnik V Vaccine of Russia is at Phase 3 human trials in India by Hyderabad based Hetero Biopharma
- Covaxin, an indigenously developed Corona vaccine candidate is produced and tested by Bharat Biotech in partnership with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)
- Covishield, developed by Pune based Serum Institute of India, in phase 3 with Oxford University vaccine
Who is developing the Sputnik V Vaccine?
Hyderabad based Hetero Biopharma
The vaccine is being Russia is at Phase 3 of human trials.
Who is developing the Covaxin?
It is being produced and tested by Bharat Biotech in partnership with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)
Who is developing “Covishield’ ?
Pune based Serum Institute of India (SII). It is in phase 3 and is being developed with Oxford University.
What is the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) ?
The DCGI is the central organisation of the Government of India to provide licenses to drugs and also to set standards for manufacturing, sales, imports and distribution of drugs in India
It falls under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Union Minister, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Dr. Harsh Vardhan
Minister of State, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Ashwini Kumar Choubey
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Founded in 1946
When was Department of Biotechnology (DBT) formed?
1986
Falls under the Ministry of Science and Technology
Department of Biotechnology (DBT) Secretary
Dr. Renu Swarup
What country has topped the list for sending most number of Educated Migrants to OECD Countries?
India
According to data released by “Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development” (OECD)”, India sent 3.12 million highly educated migrants living in the OECD nations. 65% of India’s migrants have received vocation or academic training.
China was second on the list with 2.25 million (48.6%)
Philippines came third on the list with 1.89 million (53.3%)
The ILO stated that the most high skilled migrants belonged to the fields of health care, nurses.
How many migrants in OECD countries according to the latest data released are highly educated ?
120 million migrants (30-35%) in OECD countries are highly educated
When was the OECD founded and how many members does it have?
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development” (OECD)
It was founded in 1961.
It has 37 members
OECD countries are mostly high income economies with high Human Development Index (HDI) and are regarded as developed countries.
The member countries of OECD comprise 62.2% of the world’s GDP
What are OECD member countries?
Australia, Austria Belgium Canada Chile Columbia Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Israel Italy Japan Korea Latvia Lithuania Luxemborg Mexico Netherlands New Zealand Norway Poland Portugal Slovak Republic Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey UK USA
OECD Secretary General
Angel Gurria
OECD Headquarters
Paris, France
What is the name of the latest report authored by Food and Agriculture Organisation which has been published in 2020 ?
“The State of Food and Agriculture” (SOFA) 2020
The theme of 2020 is - Overcoming Water Challenges in Agriculture
The report states that around 1.2 billion people across the globe are under high levels of water stress. This means that 1 out of every 6 people in the world are facing a severe water stress.
As per the report, the annual amount of freshwater available per person has declined by more than 20% for the past years.
SOFA presents three major entry points for action thet depend on each other, i.e,:-
(i) Technical and management options
(ii) The institutions and legal frameworks needed
(iii) the overall policy environment to promote sutainable water use
More than 520 million out of the 1.2 billion people at risk live in rural areas and around 660 million people live in small urban centres and agricultural areas.
Around 50% of the 1.2 billion people lived in South Asia and 460 million people lived in east and southeast Asia. More than 20% of the population of Central Asia, West Asia and North Africa lived in agricultural areas with very high water shortage or scarcity.
What two countries have launched a joint committee for Bilateral Fast Track Mechanism to increase investments ?
India and France
to increase investments in 18th Session of India France Joint Committee
Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs
Hardeep Singh Puri
Minister delegate for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness
Franck Riester
What two countries are the biggest FDI Sources of India during April - September 2020?
Singapore and USA
(According to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)’s Foreign Direct Investment Data)
Singapore has invested INR 62,084 (USD 8.30 billion).
USA has invested INR 53,266 crore (USD 7.12 billion)
USA overtook Mauritius, which was second during the first half of the current financial year.
Other top investors include:-
- Netherlands (INR 11,306 crore)
- UK (INR 10,155 crore)
- France (INR 8,494 crore)
- Japan (INR 4932 crore)
- Germany (INR 1498 crore)
- Cyprus (INR 355 crore)
According to the DPIIT what sector in India has received the maximum amount of FDI equity flows?
Computer hardware and software sector
INR 1,31,169 crore
This was followed by services sector (INR 16,995 crores) and trading (INR 7,140 crores)
What states in India received the most amount of FDI inflows so far in FY21?
Gujarat
followed by Maharashtra, Karnataka and Delhi
What is the word of the year according to Cambridge dictionary?
Quarantine (based on its data that “quarantine” is one of the most searched words in Cambridge dictionary this year)
Runners up for the word of the year - lockdown and pandemic
Word of the year 2020 as per Colin’s dictionary
Lockdown
Cambridge’s word of the year 2019
Upcycling
______ dictionary has for the first time decided not to select a word of the year
Oxford
Who has been appointed as the ambassador for BAFTA Breakthrough India 2020-21?
AR Rahman
He debuted as a music director in 1991 for the film “Roja”
He has also won 2 academy awards for original score and song in Slumdog Millionaire
India Grid Trust has signed a share purchase agreement to acquire 74% stake in _______
Parbati Koldam Transmission Company Ltd. (PKCL) from Reliance Infrastructure Ltd. (RInfra)
The remaining 26% is going to be held by the Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL)
Parbati Koldam Transmission Company (OKTCL)
Joint Venture between Reliance Infrastructure Limited (74%)
and
Power Grid Corporation of India Limited
It was incorporated in September 2, 2002
It is headquartered in Gurgaon
What is India Trust Grid ?
It is India’s first listed power sector infrastructure investment trust, sponsored by KKR and Sterlite Power Grid Ventures Limited (SPGVL)
CEO and Whole time Director of India Trust Grid
Harsh Shah
India Trust Grid HQ
New Delhi
When was India Trust Grid established ?
2016
Who won the F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2020?.
Lewis Hamilton
Max Verstappen (Netherlands) was second and Alexander Albon (Thailand) was third
This is Hamilton’s 11th win of the season.
The Championships were held at Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain. It was organised by Federation Internationale De Automobile (FIA)
Federation Internationale De Automobile (FIA) President
Jean Todt
Federation Internationale De Automobile (FIA) HQ
Paris, France
What veteran actor/ weightlifter of England has recently died at the age of 85?
Dave Prowse
He represented England in the Commonwealth Games in 1962 and played the role of Darth Vader in the original “Star Wars” trilogy
He won the British Weightlifting Championship in 1962
What organisation has authored the book “Future of Regional Cooperation in Asia and the Pacific” ?
Asian Development Bank
The book explores ways for economies in the Asia and Pacific region to work together to recover from COVID19.
As per the book, India was the 4th major host of Greenfield Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects and 8th Major host of cross border merger and Acquisition.
_______ state government has signed an agreement with International Digital Health & Artificial Intelligence Research Collaborative (I-DAIR) hosted at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva, Switzerland to develop and deploy digital technology in health sector
Punjab
It is the first government partner of I-DAIR to develop models of people centric digital infrastructures for health
_________ has set a new record for successfully manufacturing and testing India’s highest rated auto transformer ‘500 MVA at the National High Power Test Lab (NHNPTL) ?
BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electronics Limited)
Day of Remembrance for all Victims of Chemical Warfare 2020
November 30
The United Nation annually celebrates this day to pay tribute to the victims of chemical warfare and to reaffirm the commitment of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to eliminate chemicals weapons and promote world peace.
The day was first observed in 2016
Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Director General
Fernando Arias
Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) HQ
Hague, Netherlands
When was Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) founded ?
April 29, 1997
International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People 2020
November 29
Adopted by the UN by a resolution in 1947 for partitioning Palestine into an Arab and Jewish states.
Food and Agricultural Organisation HQ
Rome, Italy
Food and Agricultural Organisation Director General
Qu Dongyu
____ parts of India have witnessed a higher increase in pollution levels as compared to _______ according to a study conducted by the Satellite Data from 2000-2019
Southern and Eastern parts
as compared to the Indo Gangetic plains
This is the first survey of its kind to look at air pollution spatially
Study also found that air pollution in rural India has increased at par with urban India
Kerala, Goa and Andhra Pradesh recorded the highest levels of pollution
The study has been commissioned by the central pollution control board,
The author of the study is professor Sagnik Dey from IIT Delhi
What state government has recently organised a sand art festival?
Orissa
Sand artist from all over the world participate. It is conducted at the Golden Beach of Chandrabhaga, Orissa.
Theme of 2020 - “Environment” and “COVID 19”
India’s renowned sand Artist and Padmashree award is Sudarshan Patnaik is the chief curator of the event``
Where is the 31st edition of Konark Dance Festival being conducted?
Sun temple at Konark.
The 13th century Sun temple is dedicated to Hindu Sun god Surya. The temple is attributed to king Narsingh Deva - I of the Eastern Ganga Dynasty.
The ____ edition of the India Suriname Joint Commission Meeting was held virtually
7th
The meeting was co-chaired by Minister of State for External Affairs of India and minister of Foreign Affairs international business and international cooperation of the Republic of Suriname
Minister of State External Affairs of India
V Muraleedharan
Where is the next joint Commission meeting between India and Tsunami being held?
Paramaribo
In 2022
President of Suriname
Chan Santokhi
Capital of Suriname
Paramaribo
Currency of Suriname
Surinamese Dollar (SRD)
Ministry of External Affairs Union Minister
Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar
Minister of state for the ministry of external affairs
V Muraleedharan
What is the name of of the annual conference between theIndia Sweden Healthcare Innovation Centre?
“Health Talks”
This conference is being conducted in light of the 13th Sweden India Nobel Memorial Week 2020.
During the conference it was also announced that the innovation Centre is in the process of setting up a Centre for Excellence at AIIMS Jodhpur for cancer care
The centre is also organising an event titled “SHE STEM: Women Leading the Way” in partnership with Atal Innovation Mission, to encourage young girls to pursue stem fields
It is also organising a Sweden India Nobel Memorial quiz. The winner gets a prize of INR 1 lakh
What is the India Sweden Healthcare Innovation Centre
It is a tripartite collaboration between the
- Swedish trade Commissioner Office
- All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi
- All India Institute of Medical Sciences Jodhpur
For developing innovative solutions for Healthcare
Why was the Swedish India Nobel Memorial week instituted?
It was instituted in the memory of Swedish inventor and philanthropist Alfred Nobel. It celebrates biggest contributions in the fields of innovation Entrepreneurship and creativity
Sweden capital
Stockholm
Sweden currency
Swedish Krona
Sweden Prime Minister
Stefan lofven
Where was 6th BRICS youth Summit 2020 held?
Ulyanonovsk, Russia
The meeting was addressed by Union Minister of youth affairs and sports of India
Theme of the 6th BRICS youth Summit 2020?
“BRICS: Challenges of the Time for young People”
Who is the Union Minister of youth affairs and sports in India
Kiren Rijiju
What country will host the BRICS games in 2021?
India
This will also be on the occasion of Khelo India Games.
When was BRICS formed?
2009
What country hosted the 12th BRICS summit?
Russia
India has formed a counter narcotics working group with what country?
United States
In its inaugural meeting, India was represented by Sachin Jain, Deputy Director General, Narcotics Control Board (NCB), Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA)
Narcotics Control board (NCB) HQ
New Delhi
Narcotics Control board (NCB) Director General
Rakesh Asthana
The national payment Corporation of India has completed private placement of how much of equity shares?
4.63 percent
Worth INR 81.64 crores
Each firm can hold up to 0.44% shares of the NCPI. With this placement total shareholder entities for NPCI stand at 67.
Some of the Shareholders are - AU Small Finance Bank Ltd, India Post Payments Bank Ltd, etc. along with digital payment fintechs including Amazon Pay, PayU India, PhonePe, Pine Labs, MobiKwik, BillDesk, etc.
Also added Standard Chartered Bank, Dhanlaxmi Bank and IDFC first bank limited.
Currently government banks such as Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, Canara bank and State Bank of India on more than 40% of the stake.
The private placement was done on the instruction of RBI to broaden its share Holdings representing largest segment of participants. However this was also recommended by the Watal Committee back in December 2016
Who headed the Watal Committee?
Ratan Watal
_______ partnered with _____ bank to offer Collateral free instant digital loans to MSMEs.
Paytm
and
Suryoday Small Finance Bank (SFB)
Paytm founder and CEO
Vijay Shekhar Sharma
Paytm headquarters
Noida
When was Paytm founded?
August 2010
Paytm lending business CEO
Bhavesh gupta
Suryoday Small Finance Bank (SFB) Managing Director and CEO
Baskar Babu Ramachandran
Suryoday Small Finance Bank (SFB) HQ
Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra
When was Suryoday Small Finance Bank (SFB) launched?
January 23, 2017
NABARD has signed an agreement with _____ bank to take up joint intervention projects in Karnataka?
SBI
The agreement provide concessional refinance facility to beneficiaries of watershed development and tribal development projects.
This consequently aids the beneficiaries of:-
- Tribal Development Fund
- Watershed Development Fund
- Farmer Producer Organisation (FPOs)
- Self Help Group
- Joint Liability Groups
Agreement enables SBI to act as an implementing agency for digitising NABARD’s SHGs and to on board NABARD’s e shaktu portal across Karnataka.
National bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) chairman
Doctor Govinda Rajulu Chintala
NABARD HQ
Mumbai
SBI Chairman
Dinesh Kumar Khara
SBI HQ
Mumbai Maharashtra
What is the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) ?
It was established in 1994.
It is a voluntary Membership organisation of insurance supervisors and regulator from more than two hundred constituting 97% of the world’s insurance premium.
It is the international standard setting body responsible for developing and assisting in the supervision of the insurance sector.
IRDAI is also a part of IAIS.
International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) HQ
Switzerland
Who is the newest member of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) ?
International Financial Services Centre Authority
This membership is believed to aid in developing a global insurance hub at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT)
_____ and ______ digital payment banks partnered to enable Indian MSMEs to accept international payments.
Razorpay
and
PayPal
Razorpay CEO and Co Founder
Harshil Mathur
Razorpay HQ
Bangalore, Karnataka
PayPal HQ
San Jose, California
PayPal President and CEO
Dan Schulman
____________ has become India’s first full fledged Consumer Neobank in Partnership with SBM Bank India
Finin (in partnership with SBM Bank India )
Finin has launched a Hyper personalised SmartBanking platform which helps users manage their money in a smarter and more secure way. It allows users to open a Savings Account in under 2 minutes.
SBM Bank India Limited HQ
Mumbai
SBM Bank India MD & CEO
Siddharth Rath
SBM Bank India established
December 2018
Finin established
2019
Finin Founder and CEO
Suman Gandham
Finin Co founder and Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Sudheer Maram
Finin HQ
Bangalore
What two zoos in India have been recognised by the Central Zoo Authority ?
Rajgir Zoo Safari, Nalanda, Bihar
Shaheed Ashfaque Ullah Khan Prani Udyaan, Gorakhpur
Who chairs the Central Zoo Authority ?
Union Minister for Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Union Minister for Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Prakash Javadekar
HQ of Central Zoo Authority
New Delhi
What bank has launched the “Atmanirbhar Women Scheme” ?
Bank of Baroda
Under the scheme women can get loans at a 0.50% concession. The bank also offers agri gold loans at a concession of 0.25% and retail loans at 0.50% concessions
Bank of Baroda HQ
Vadodara (previously known as Baroda), Gujarat
MD & CEO of Bank of Baroda
Sanjiv Chadha
What are the projections of Fitch Rating, w.r.t Indian GDP growth in its Global Economic Outlook of December 2020 ?
GDP forecast changed to 9.4% (from a previous 10.5%)
for FY22 - 11%
and FY23 - 6.3%
What was Indian GDP growth in FY20?
4.2%