General Awareness Test (March - 15) - Set 6

1)   Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has been conferred with India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna by the President of India Pranab Mukherjee on 27th Mar’15. He became the ______ Prime Minister to receive the award?

a. First
b. Fourth
c. Seventh
d. Second
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Seventh

Explanation:
Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee is the seventh prime minister to receive the Bharat Ratna award after Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Morarji Desai, Lal Bahadur Shastri and Gulzarilal Nanda. He is 44th awardee of Bharat Ratna Award. His birthday 25th December was declared as Good Governance Day by the Narendra Modi government.


2)   On 25th Mar’15 the Ministry of Railways has decided to constitute a Committee to review the existing Public Private Partnership (PPP) Cell in the Railway Board. Who has been appointed as the Head of the Committee?

a. Bhakti Sharma
b. Ajay Shanker
c. Roopesh Kumar
d. Anil Garg
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Ajay Shanker

Explanation:
He is an IAS (Retd.), former Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (Govt. of India). The Committee will recommend measures to make the cell more effective, customer friendly and result oriented.


3)   Name the Hindi film that bagged the awards for Best Choreography, costume, dialogues, and music direction in the 62nd National Awards?

a. Queen
b. Asha Jaor Majhe
c. Haider
d. Saivam
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Haider

Explanation:
Haider movie bagged the 5 Awards.


4)   Name the singer who got the Best Male Playback singer award for his song 'Bismil'in Haider movie?

a. Sukhwinder Singh
b. Himesh Reshamiya
c. Atif Aslam
d. Shreya Ghosal
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Sukhwinder Singh

Explanation:
Tamil singer Uttara Unnikrishanan bagged the Best Female Playback Singer prize for the song 'Azhagu'in the movie 'Saivam'.


5)   Which film has bagged the best feature film at the 62nd National Awards?

a. Colt
b. Birdman
c. Boyhood
d. Court
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Court

Explanation:
First-time director Chaitanya Tamhane's Court takes a look at India's judicial system. The drama generated strong buzz on the festival circuit last year, playing at 19 festivals and winning 10 jury prizes.


6)   Which Malayali movie received Best Film award on Environment Conservation in the 62nd National Awards?

a. Idukki
b. The Ornate Lock
c. Drishyam
d. Ottaal
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Ottaal

Explanation:
Two Malayalam films, Sidhartha Siva's "Ain"and Jayaraj's "Ottaal"have also found a place in the prestigious awards list.


7)   Name the Kannada actor who was awarded “Best Actor Award” in the 62nd National Awards?

a. Ram Charan Teja
b. Vijay
c. Aditya
d. Sudeep
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Vijay

Explanation:
Vijay has bagged the National Award for Best Actor for his role in the film ‘Naanu Avanalla Avalu’.


8)   Name the director of Bengali film Asha Jaoar Majhe who won the Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut film?

a. Aditya Vikram Sengupta
b. Goutam Ghose
c. Arundhati Devi
d. Riingo Banerjee
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Aditya Vikram Sengupta

Explanation:
No explanation is available for this question!


9)   Which two movies shared the Best Children’s Film Award at the 62nd National Awards?

a. Kaakkaa Muttai & Elizabeth Ekadashi
b. Court & Saivam
c. Elizabeth Ekadashi & Court
d. Saivam & Kaakkaa Muttai
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Kaakkaa Muttai & Elizabeth Ekadashi

Explanation:
Tamil film, Kaakkaa Muttai and Marathi movie Elizabeth Ekadashi shared the Best Children's Film award.


10)   After which Martyrs name Prime Minister announced to name Institute of Horticulture?

a. Subhash Chandra Bose
b. Shaheed Bhagat Singh
c. Rajguru
d. Chandrasekhar Azad
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Shaheed Bhagat Singh

Explanation:
The institute will help in educating the youth and also in research for better crop.


11)   How many mega food parks have been approved by the government for food processing across the country?

a. 12
b. 10
c. 8
d. 17
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: 17

Explanation:
Out of 17 Mega Food Parks, 7 parks have been allotted to state agencies whereas 10 to private players in 11 states, envisaging an investment of over 6,000 crore rupees.


12)   Name the Indian author among 10 finalists for this year's Man Booker International Prize for his contribution to the English language writing?

a. Arundhati Roy
b. Vikram Singh
c. Anvay Kumar
d. Amitav Ghosh
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Amitav Ghosh

Explanation:
The 58-year-old Amitav Ghosh had narrowly missed out on the Booker Prize back in 2008 when he was shortlisted for his work 'Sea of Poppies'. The finalists were announced at the University of CapeTown in South Africa by writer and academic Professor Marina Warner, chair of the five-person judging panel.


13)   Which state government has announced that those involved in the sale of Gutkha will be booked under non-bailable sections regarding the offence?

a. Delhi
b. Maharashtra
c. Odisha
d. Kerala
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Maharashtra

Explanation:
The manufacture and sale of Gutka is banned in Maharashtra, but it is not implemented effectively as there are no such restrictions in neighbouring states due to which the tobacco-laced chewing products are smuggled in.


14)   As per the announcement made by Union minister Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy which state will have country’s first National Skill Development University?

a. Bihar
b. Gujarat
c. Andhra Pradesh
d. Chhattisgarh
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Chhattisgarh

Explanation:
To setting up the university the policy would be finalized in the next three months.


15)   Who took oath as the Chief Justice of Rajasthan High Court at Raj Bhawan in Jaipur on 24th Mar’15?

a. H L Dattu
b. Sunil Ambwani
c. Sanjay Krishan Kaul
d. Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Sunil Ambwani

Explanation:
Justice Sunil Ambwani was the acting Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court.


16)   For which states the North-East Textile Promotion Scheme has been formally launched by Union Minister of State for Textiles (independent charge) Santosh Kumar Gangwar along with State Chief Minister?

a. Nagaland
b. Mizoram
c. Arunachal Pradesh
d. Manipur
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Manipur

Explanation:
The new scheme will cover Manipur Sericulture Project Phase-II and Integrated Sericulture Development Programme of the state.


17)   In which city the Sunrise India Open Badminton Super Series was played from 24th Mar’15?

a. Panaji
b. Bangalore
c. Lucknow
d. New Delhi
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: New Delhi

Explanation:
The qualifying rounds were played on 24th March and the main games will begin from 25th March.


18)   On 25th Mar’15, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched multi-purpose and multi-modal platform to address public grievances. Name the platform launched?

a. UNNATI
b. PRAGATI
c. VIKAAS
d. VAIBHAV
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: PRAGATI

Explanation:
Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation, PRAGATI. The ambitious platform also aims at monitoring and reviewing important programmes and projects of the Centre and States. The platform also offers a unique combination in the direction of cooperative federalism since it brings at one stage the Secretaries of Government of India and the Chief Secretaries of the States. From now onwards, such interaction will be held once in every month on Fourth Wednesday at 3.30 PM which will be known as PRAGATI Day.


19)   Name the platform launched by the government in association with social networking service Twitter to facilitate direct communication between leaders, government agencies and citizens?

a. PRAGATI
b. Twitter Samadhan
c. Twitter Samvad
d. Social Samvad
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Twitter Samvad

Explanation:
The service was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his meeting with Twitter Chief Executive Dick Costolo in New Delhi.


20)   In which country, did the Houthi rebels backed by allied army units, seized the country's largest air base, al-Anad near Aden early on 25th mar’15 from forces loyal to President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi?

a. Syria
b. Nigeria
c. Somalia
d. Yemen
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Yemen

Explanation:
The rebels took full control of the capital in January, placing the President under house arrest and declaring that a five-member Presidential Council would rule the country.


21)   Which country won the prestigious Women in Parliaments (WIP) Award for regional leadership in closing the gender gap in politics?

a. India
b. Japan
c. Bangladesh
d. China
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Bangladesh

Explanation:
On behalf of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Shahriar Alam received the award at the Women in Parliaments Summit held in Adis Ababa on 24th Mar’15. Women in Parliament Awards are given based on World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Reports. Bangladesh has been placed among the top 10 countries in the world in reducing gender gap by the World Economic Forum.


22)   In which state, Dukhtaran-e-Millat chief Aasiya Andrabi was booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act for allegedly hoisting Pakistani flag on Pakistan National Day?

a. Myamnar
b. Punjab
c. Uttar Pradesh
d. Jammu &Kashmir
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Jammu &Kashmir

Explanation:
The case against Andrabi has been registered at Nowhatta Police station under Section 13 of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.


23)   Name the two-year old child from Vijaywada who achieved a stunning feat by setting a new record in Archery and entering her name into the India Book of Records?

a. Shivani
b. Sonia
c. Sarita
d. Soni
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Shivani

Explanation:
Two-year-old girl Cherukuli Dalli Shivani from Vijaywada has achieved a stunning feat and became the youngest Indian to score 200 points over five and seven-metre distances. At a show in Vijaywada in the presence of seniors ports personalities and India Book of Records officials, she shot 36 arrows each from five metres and seven metres to score 388 points.


24)   What amount of money was fetched by the government in the Spectrum auction that concluded on 25th Mar’15?

a. 1 Thousand Crore
b. 1.10 Lakh Crore
c. 110 Lakh Crore
d. 1100 Crore
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: 1.10 Lakh Crore

Explanation:
The auction concluded today after 19 days and 115 rounds of bidding. However, 11 percent airwaves stayed unsold. The process of auction was conducted for 800 MHz, 900 Mhz, 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz covering both mobile telephony and broadband, including 4G.


25)   Name the bank that collaborated with the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) and IRCTC for Ru-pay Debit Card Service launched on 23rd Mar’15?

a. SBI Bank
b. ICICI Bank
c. UBI Bank
d. HDFC Bank
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: UBI Bank

Explanation:
Union Bank of India collaborated with IRCTC and NPCI and on 23rd Mar’15 launched its RuPay pre-paid debit card service for the benefit of railway passengers. Passengers would be able to book railway tickets and make online payments through this debit card launched by the IRCTC.


26)   Name the country invited by India to participate in creating mega industrial manufacturing corridors including Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor?

a. China
b. Japan
c. Canada
d. Qatar
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Qatar

Explanation:
On 26th Mar’15 a joint statement issued in New Delhi at the end of two day visit of the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said, the Indian side highlighted the considerable experience and expertise its companies had acquired in infrastructure development including power generation and transmission.


27)   Bangladesh celebrated its 45th Independence Day on ____.

a. 27th March 2015
b. 26th January 2015
c. 26th March 2015
d. 31st March 2015
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: 26th March 2015

Explanation:
The day was marked with the beginning of nation's nine-month long Liberation War which culminated in free Bangladesh on December 16, 1971.


28)   Which state got its first cyber police station dedicated to check cyber crimes on 26th Mar’15?

a. Himachal Pradesh
b. Uttarakhand
c. Uttar Pradesh
d. Gujarat
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Uttarakhand

Explanation:
The station is opened in Dehradun which is fully equipped to tackle bank and online frauds including crimes committed through social networking websites and mobile applications.


29)   At which border the Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman inaugurated a land customs station on 26th Mar’15?

a. Indo-Tibet Border
b. Indo-Pak Border
c. Indo-China Border
d. Indo-Myanmar Border
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Indo-Myanmar Border

Explanation:
Land Customs station at the Indo-Myanmar border trade centre at Zokhawthar in Champhai district of Mizoram.


30)   Name the organization that became the first-ever public sector undertaking (PSU) to issue bonus debentures as done by it on 26th Mar’15?

a. HAL
b. HLL LifeCare Ltd
c. NTPC
d. BHEL
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: NTPC

Explanation:
It issued bonus debentures amounting to Rs. 7725.76 crore to Government of India by virtue of its 74.96% shareholding in NTPC.


31)   Which telecom company emerged as the largest spender in the telecom spectrum auctions that concluded on 25th Mar’15?

a. Reliance
b. Idea
c. Airtel
d. Vodafone
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Idea

Explanation:
Idea Cellular, the country’s third largest operator bid a maximum of Rs.30,306.98 Crore to buy spectrum in the 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2,100 MHz bands. Airtel and Vodafone bid Rs.29,130.20 crore and Rs.29,959.74 crore, respectively, in the same bands.


32)   Who was appointed as the Chairman of the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) as announced on 25th Mar’15?

a. Abdul Rahim
b. K.M. Mani
c. Ravi Shanker
d. Arun Jaitely
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: K.M. Mani

Explanation:
KM Mani, the finance minister of Kerala, has been appointed as the chairman of the empowered committee of state finance ministers with the crucial mandate to work in coordination with the Centre to usher in the Goods and Services Tax (GST).


33)   In which city the Carpet Export Promotion Council organized the 29th Edition of India Carpet Expo from 27th to 30th March 2015 under the aegis of Govt. of India?

a. Pune
b. Bhubaneshwar
c. New Delhi
d. Hyderabad
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: New Delhi

Explanation:
The Expo aims to promote the cultural heritage and weaving skills of Indian hand-made carpets and other floor coverings amongst the visiting overseas carpet buyers.


34)   On which Television Channel, the Ministry of AYUSH launched a new weekly program ‘Ayushman Bharat’ from March 28, 2015?

a. Prasar Bharti
b. Colors
c. Discovery India
d. Doordarshan
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Doordarshan

Explanation:
‘Ayushman Bharat’ as the title of the programme suggests aims at popularizing traditional Indian medicines among the masses. Through this programme, masses will be able to have interaction with the experts of Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy and people will be able to get solutions to their problems.


35)   Which High Court became the first court in India to set up commercial courts for speedy disposal of cases on 25th Mar’15?

a. Kerala High Court
b. Allahabad High Court
c. Delhi High Court
d. Gujarat High Court
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Delhi High Court

Explanation:
Chief Justice of Delhi HC G Rohini designated four benches to act as commercial courts. Out of this, two single judge benches with original jurisdiction will deal with the suits involving commercial disputes relating to intellectual property rights, arbitration, insurance, banking, taxation, company cases etc and the other two benches with appellate jurisdiction will hear appeals against the commercial disputes cases.


36)   Under the convenership of which state’s Chief Minister the first meeting of the Sub-Group on rationalization of Centrally Sponsored Schemes was held at NITI Aayog in New Delhi in 27th Mar’15?

a. Uttar Pradesh
b. Maharashtra
c. Gujarat
d. Madhya Pradesh
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Madhya Pradesh

Explanation:
The Sub-group on rationalization of Centrally Sponsored Schemes has been constituted as per decision taken in the first meeting of the Governing Council chaired by the Prime Minister last month. Chief Ministers of Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Nagaland, Rajasthan, and Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands attended the meeting.


37)   Name the organisation that has been selected for the Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2014?

a. ISRO
b. BHEL
c. DRDO
d. NTPC
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: ISRO

Explanation:
The ISRO is engaged in making space technology a catalyst of development to bring about societal transformation. In the process it has become one of the six largest space agencies of the world. The Gandhi Peace Prize for social, economic and political transformation through non-violence was instituted in 1995. The Award comprises an amount of Rs.1 Crore and a citation.


38)   Which organization organized the Web Ratna Awards 2014 announced on 25th Mar’15?

a. C-DAC
b. IIT-Kanpur
c. NIC
d. NIELIT
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: NIC

Explanation:
National Informatics Centre (NIC). Comprehensive Web Presence- Ministry, the Platinum was bagged by Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Golf by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and Silver by Controller General of Accounts. For Comprehensive Web Presence -State category the Platinum award has been won by Maharashtra followed by Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand in the Gold and Silver section respectively.


39)   Who has been appointed as the Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs?

a. Syed Akbaruddin
b. Ramesh Kumar
c. Aaditya Sharma
d. Vikas Swarup
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Vikas Swarup

Explanation:
Vikas Swarup (IFS Officer) is an Indian writer and a career diplomat who is best known as the author of the novel Q & A, adapted in film version as Slumdog Millionaire, the winner of Best Film for the year 2009 at Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards and BAFTA Awards.


40)   International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade was observed on ____.

a. 25th March
b. 15th May
c. 1st May
d. 24th February
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: 25th March

Explanation:
The theme for the year 2015 is Women and Slavery.