SOCIO ECONOMIC AWARENESS QUESTIONS

 

1. As per advance estimates of CSO for the year 2011-12, the GDP growth rate has been estimated at—

(A) 7.6%
(B) 6.9%
(C) 6.4%      
(D) 6.1%

2. The primary sector growth in advance estimate for 2011-12 was2.5% which was......in 2010-11 (Quick Estimates).

(A) 5.4%
(B) 6.4%
(C) 7.0%       
(D) 7.3%

3. 'Sensitive Sector' as defined by RBI includes—

(A) Capital Market
(B) Real Estate
(C) Commodities
(D) All of the above

4. PMEAC has revised its GDP growth estimates for 2011-12 to 7-1% and projected GDP growth for 2012-13 at—

(A) 7-0%-7-4%
(B) 7-5%-8-0%
(C) 8-l%-8-3%
(D) 8-5%

5. The newly launched CPI-based inflation for January 2012 on point to point basis is 7-65%. This inflation has the base year—

(A) 2004
(B) 2006
(C) 2008       
(D) 2010

6. The new Chairman of FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry) who took charge in January 2012 is—

(A) Harsh Mariwala
(B) R.V.Kanoria
(C) Naina Lai Kidwai
(D) Siddharth Birla

7. As per advance estimates of CSO, the estimated growth rate in tertiary (service) sector for 2011-12 is—

(A) 8-6%
(B) 9-0%
(C) 9-4%      
(D) 9-8%

8. Which of the following sector show the negative growth in the advance estimates of CSO for the year 2011-12 ?

(A) Mining and Quarrying
(B) Agriculture and Fisheries
(C) Manufacturing
(D) Electricity, Gas and Water supply

9. Which organisation is meant to ensure exports from India ?

(A) EXIMBank
(B) ECGC
(C) Ministry of Commerce
(D) None of the above

10. Which of the following is considered lending for promotion of exports ?

(A) Packing Credit
(B) Overdraft
(C) Cash Credit Account
(D) Bill Discounting

11. Which of the major port in India celebrated its Golden Jubilee in January 2012 ?

(A) Kolkata/Haldia Port
(B) ParadeepPort
(C) Vishakhapatnam Port
(D) KandlaPort

12. As per India State of Forest Report 2011, the State having the maximum forest area is—

(A) Arunachal Pradesh
(B) Rajasthan
(C) Madhya Pradesh
(D) Uttar Pradesh

13. India State of Forest Report 2011 puts forest area in the country at—

(A) Below 25%
(B) Between 25% and 27%
(C) Between 27% to 30%
(D) Above 30%

14. At the end-December 2011, the teledensity in the country stood at—

(A) 72.38%
(B) 76.86%
(C) 79.03%
(D) 80.76%

15. As per the changed import duty structure on gold and silver, the import duty on gold and silver will be charged at.................respectively of the value of the imported metal.

(A) 1.5% and 5%
(B) 2.0% and 6%
(C) 1.5% and 6%
(D) 2.5% and 6%

16. As per the status of end-December 2011, which of the following company holds the maximum share in telephone services ?

(A) Vodafone
(B) BhartiAirtel
(C) Reliance
(D) BSNL

17. Which type of bank account can be opened by a Non-Resident Indian (NRI) in India ?

(A) Current Account
(B) Fixed Deposit Account
(C) Savings Account
(D) Locker Account

18. 'HUNGAMA' report of Nandi Foundation is related to—

(A) Hunger and Malnutrition
(B) 2-G Spectrum Scam
(C) Tax-evasion
(D) Black Money deposited in foreign banks

19. 'Trust Card' has been launched by an organisation to make consumer's payment more easier. The organisation is—

(A) Delhi Metro
(B) ICERT
(C) BSNL
(D) BhartiAirtel

20. The Sixth Economic Census of commercial units was/will be done in the year—

(A) 2011
(B) 2012
(C) 2013       
(D) 2014

21. As per the HUNGAMA report, the percentage of underweight (malnourished) children younger than five years in India is—

(A) 65%
(B) 54%
(C) 42%
(D) 31%

22. As per the second advance foodgrains estimates for 2011-12, foodgrains production during 2011-12 is estimated at—

(A) 246-46 MT
(B) 250-42 MT
(C) 254-68 MT
(D) 262-32 MT

23. As per final estimates, wheat and rice production in 2010-11 stood at—

(A) 86-87 MT and 95-98 MT respectively
(B) 95-98 MT and 86-87 MT respectively
(C) 88-31 MT and 102-75 MT respectively
(D) 86-87 MT and 102-75 MT respectively

24. The Fourth Rail Coach Manufacturing Factory (The first in India to be built on PPP model) is being made in—

(A) Andhra Pradesh
(B) Kerala
(C) Karnataka
(D) Tamil Nadu

25. In which of the following currencies, India has decided to make payment to buy crude oil from Iran ?

(A) US Dollar
(B) Indian Rupee
(C) Pound Sterling
(D) Euro

Answers

1.  (B) 2.  (C) 3.  (D) 4.  (B) 5.  (D)
6.  (B) 7.  (C) 8.  (A) 9.  (B) 10. (A)
11. (B) 12. (C) 13. (A) 14. (B) 15. (C)
16. (B) 17. (B) 18. (A) 19. (C) 20. (B)
21. (C) 22. (B) 23. (A) 24. (B) 25. (B)

11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas to be held in Cochin

The 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) will be held from 7 to 9 January, 2013 in Cochin. Vayalar Ravi, Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs said that the Prime Minister will inaugurate this annual flagship event of the Ministry on 2013 January 8, and the President of India will deliver the valedictory address on 2013 January 9 and also confer the Pravasi Bhartiya Samman Awards. The pre-conference seminars will also be organized on  7 January.

The Minister said that the PBD has become a significant forum to connect the overseas Indians from all over the world and the PBD-2013 will be focusing on more connectivity with overseas Indians. He further said that Kerala will be the partner State of the 11th PBD, which would provide the Diaspora an opportunity to understand the vibrant culture and potential of the State. The Minister said that more than 2000 delegates are expected to participate in PBD-2013 from all over the world.

Economy & Banking Awareness Questions for IBPS Exams

1. Which Hyderabad-based drug discovery research and development organisationon 28 November 2011 entered into an alliance with the Moulder Centre for Drug Discovery Research at Temple University, Philadelphia?
a. Ranbaxy
b. Cipla
c. GVK Biosciences (GVK BIO)
d. Sanofi-Aventis
Answer: (c)

2. Which of the following companies mentioned below launched its cruiser bike Intruder M800 priced at Rs 8.88 lakh on 28 November 2011?
a. Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd
b. Hero Moto group
c. Yamaha
d. Bajaj Auto
Answer: (c)

3. Afghanistan on 28 November 2011 awarded mining rights for three of the four Hajigak blocks located at the central Bamyan province to an Indian consortium led by which of the following PSUs?
a. BHEL
b. SAIL
c. National Mineral Development Corporation
d. Rashtriya Ispat Nigam
Answer: (b)

4. Who did British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC re-elected as Chairman on 29 November 2011 in the company’s annual general meeting in London?
a. James Murdoch
b. Rupert Murdoch
c. Martin Gilbert
d. Matthieu Pigasse
Answer: (a)

5. Which drug maker on 30 November 2011 launched the generic version of blockbuster cholesterol-busting drug Lipitor, dubbing it the largest generic product launch in US history?
a. Pfizer
b. Watson Pharma
c. Dr.Reddy’s
d. Cipla
Answer: (b)

6. Which real eastate major company acquired the additional 26 per cent stake in its joint venture company with Hilton Hotel from Aro Participation Ltd and Splendid Property Company Ltd, affiliates of Hilton International?
a. Larsen & Toubro Limited
b. DLF
c. Punj Lloyd Limited
d. Tata Construction & Projects Ltd
Answer: (b)

7. Which Power distribution company on 5 December 2011 announced change of its name to Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited?
a. North Delhi Power Limited (NDPL)
b. Adani Power
c. Lanco Infratech
d. CLP Power
Answer: (a)

8. Name the mobile phone operator in India which decided to renew its contract with Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) to manage and maintain its networks in eight circles for three years.
a. BSNL
b. Idea Cellular
c. Bharti Airtel
d. Uninor
Answer: (c)

9. Retail entrepreneur Kishore Biyani exited his financial services through two separate transactions worth over Rs 1000 crore. Which company purchased Pantaloon's 26% stake in its insurance Future group’s joint venture Future Generali Life for Rs 250-300 crore?
a. Deccan Chronicle
b. Investment Trust ( IITL)
c. RIL
d. Tata group
Answer: (b)

10. Which bank signed a memorandum of understanding with Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to use the National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) facility to facilitate electronic funds transfer of policy payments to policyholders?
a. IDBI
b. Corp Bank
c. Indian Overseas Bank
d. Dhanlaxmi Bank
Answer: (d)

11. Which digital technology major received an award for its Air conditioners at the National Energy Conservation Awards, 2011?
a. Samsung Electronics
b. Phillips
c. Hitachi
d. Videocon
Answer: (a)

12. Swedish multinational SKF launched the company's Global Technical Centre in which of the following cities in India on 14 December 2011?
a. Chennai
b. Hyderabad
c. Bangalore
d. New Delhi
Answer: (c)

13. Which PSU lender decided to aggressively market its gold loan scheme for farmers to prevent defaults after the agriculture sector witnessed a sharp spike in bad debt in the past one year?
a. Union Bank
b. United Bank of India
c. Industrial Development Bank of India
d. State Bank of India
Answer: (d)

14. Who did the Central Government appoint as Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Andhra Bank?
a. B. A. Prabhakar
b. O. P. Bhatt
c. Pratip Chaudhuri
d. S. Vishvanathan
Answer: (a)

15. The directorate general of hydrocarbons (DGH), the technical arm of the oil ministry approved which company’s proposal to commence production from Bhagyam, the second-largest oil field in the Rajasthan block?
a. Essar Oil
b. ONGC
c. Cairn India
d. Indian Oil
Answer: (c)

16. Who did Colgate-Palmolive India (CPIL) on 20 December 2011 appoint as Managing Director for five years from 1 February 2012?
a. Prabha Parameswaran
b. Mukul Deora
c. R. A. Shah
d. P. K. Ghosh
Answer: (a)

17. AstraZeneca, a biopharmaceutical company in December 2011 chose which of the following companies as a strategic infrastructure outsourcing partner?
a. Infosys
b. HCL Technologies
c. Wipro BPO
d. Cape Gemini
Answer: (b)

18. Which of India's leading commodity bourses on 20 December 2011 became the world's fifth-largest commodity futures exchange?
a. National Multi Commodity Exchange of India
b. Bharat Diamond Bourse
c. Multi Commodity Exchange
d. Bombay Stock Exchange
Answer: (d)

19. Ravi Ruia decided on 21 December 2011 to step down as chairman of which of the following London-listed after a trial court admitted a criminal chargesheet filed by the investigating agency, CBI?
a. Essar Energy
b. Essar Shipping
c. Essar Oil
d. Eaasr Technologies
Answer: (a)

20. Which company won the award for Alternative Thinking and Driving Positive Change in the Fleet Owner category at the Mahindra Navistar Transport Excellence Awards 2011 at Hotel Ashok here on 20 December 2011?
a. Tata Motors
b. Hero Group
c. Edu Comp
d. Agarwal Packers & Movers
Answer: (d)

21. Oman Investment Fund (OIF), the Sultanate of Oman’s sovereign wealth fund, filed application with the government to buy a stake in which of the software solutions company, IT People promoted exchange?
a. Universal Commodity Exchange
b. Agri bourse NCDEX
c. Intercontinental Exchange
d. National Spot Exchange Limited
Answer: (a)

22. Which company on 27 Deember 2011 mentioned that it would acquire the remaining 51 per cent stake from BP Alternative Energy Holdings in the joint venture that it formed with BP?
a. Reliance Power
b. Tata Power
c. Adani Power Limited
d. ABB Ltd
Answer: (b)

23. Which paharmaceutical company announced in December 2011 the launch of Supamovecream used for treating pain and inflammation in India?
a. Cipla
b. Ranbaxy
c. Dr. Reddy’s
d. Sun Pharmaceuticals
Answer: (c)

24. Name the state-run Mumbai-headquartered bank which on 29 December 2011 surprised the market by cutting its base rate, the minimum lending rate, by 10 basis points, thereby becoming the first banker this year to do so when others are waiting for a signal from the central bank.
a. State Bank of India
b. Union Bank
c. United Bank of India
d. Allahabad Bank
Answer: (b)

25. The $35-billion Aditya Birla group plans to set up a viscose staple fibre (VSF) plant in the Adana Organised Industrial Zone in which of the following countries?
a. Tunisia
b. Tanzania
c. Turkey
d. Tibet
Answer: (c)

26. Which PSU announced on 2 January 2012 that its board approved in a meeting held on 30 December 2011 the switching over to internationally-accepted Gross Caloric Value-based pricing mechanism?
a. BHEL
b. ISPAT
c. CIL
d. IOC
Answer: (c)

27. Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) entered the media and entertainment sector by making a major investment in one of India’s largest broadcast companies. Name the broadcast company.
a. Network18 Group
b. Adlabs Films
c. Balaji Telefilms
d. Bag Films
Answer: (a)

28. Credit Suisse upgraded which company to neutral from underperform, citing valuation comfort at current?
a. Essar Energy
b. Reliance Power
c. Bajaj Auto
d. Tata Steel
Answer: (d)

29. Which PSU lender called off its plans to set up a joint venture with Visa Inc and Elavon Inc to enter the merchant acquiring business over differences on sharing technology?
a. Union Bank
b. State Bank of India
c. Syndicate Bank
d. Corp Bank
Answer: (b)

30. This company acquired Star more than 500 films like blockbusters like Salman Khan's Dabangg, Ready, Golmaal 3, Tees Maar Khan, Thank You, No One Killed Jessica, Guzaarish, Kites and Raavan from a general entertainment channel owned by the Viacom 18 Group?
a. Sony
b. UTV movies
c. Colors
d. Sab TV
Answer: (c)

31. State-run Northern Coalfields (NCL) agreed to surrender land required to mine two blocks attached to the Sasan ultra mega power plant to which of the following companies giving the comapany the benefit of over Rs 6000 crore over the life of the venture?
a. Reliance Power
b. Adani Power
c. Birla Power Solutions
d. DLF Power
Answer: (a)

32. Which car took home the crown of Indian Car Of The Year 2012 in January 2012?
a. Toyota Etios Liva
b. Maruti Suzuki Swift
c. Hyundai Verna
d. Hyundai Eon
Answer: (b)

33. B. D. Park was appointed the President and CEO of this electronic major’s South West Asia Operations and Managing Director of its India operations. Which electronic major is in question here?
a. Phillips
b. Videocon
c. Samsung
d. LG
Answer: (c)

34. Maldives authorities allowed Male International Airport operator to collect airport development and insurance charges from passengers, nearly a month after a local court barred the Bangalore-based company from doing so. Name the operator.
a. GMR Infrastructure
b. International Air Transport Association (IATA)
c. Fraport AG
d. DIAL
Answer: (a)

35. Which French construction major entered the Indian market by buying out 100 per cent stake in NAPC, a Chennai-based construction company?
a. Sinopec Engineering
b. Uhde
c. Vinci
d. Snamprogetti
Answer: (c)

36. Which of the following companies infused Rs 520 crore equity into BSES Delhi distribution companies as part of Rs 5,100 crore financial package being worked by IDBI
a. NTPC
b. RIL
c. Adani Power Ltd
d. Birla Group
Answer: (b)

37. Suzlon Energy signed a memorandum of understanding with this State Government as a part of the CII's Partnership Summit that concluded on 13 January 2012. As per the MoU, Suzlon Energy will develop wind power projects totalling 3,000 MW in Andhra Pradesh over the next four years, involving potential investment of up to Rs.18,000 crore. Name the state government with which the MoU was signed.
a. Andhra Pradesh government
b. Gujarat governemnt
c. Orissa government
d. Arunachal Pradesh government
Answer: (a)

38. Name the auto making company which launched three new variants of the Eon-D — Lite plus, Era plus and Magna plus in the Indian market in January 2012.
a. Tata Motors
b. Hyundai Motor India
c. Volkswagen
d. Maruti Suzuki
Answer: (b)

39. The Government of which of the following countries acquired 1.09 per cent stake, currently worth about Rs.2500 crore, in Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL), the company's latest shareholding data show?
a. Malaysia
b. Japan
c. Phillipines
d. Singapore
Answer: (d)

40. Which Photography Pioneer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on 19 January 2012 making it likely for the 132-year-old trailblazer to become the most storied casualty of a digital age?
a. Eastman Kodak Company
b. Fuji
c. Nikon
d. Canon
Answer: (a)

41. Which company retained its top position in Interbrand's list of the top 100 global brands in 2011?
a. Apple
b. Coca cola
c. Microsoft
d. Google
Answer: (b)

42. The Bangalore-based pharmaceutical major, Strides Arcolab, sold its 94 per cent stake in Ascent Pharmahealth, a subsidiary with operations in Australia and Southeast Asia, to which of the following U.S.-based pharma companies?
a. Watson Pharmaceuticals
b. Abbott Laboratories
c. Pfizer
d. Derma Sciences
Answer: (a)

43. The Board of Approval (BoA) under the Commerce Ministry on 24 January 2012 approved the proposal of this company to set up a special economic zone (SEZ) at Indore in Madhya Pradesh. Identify the company.
a. Reliance Industries
b. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)
c. Hero Motors
d. Infosys
Answer: (b)

44. Which private life insurance company from India on 25 January 2012 launched its first international operations with the opening of its representative office in Dubai?
a. Kotak Insurance
b. New India Insurance
c. HDFC Life
d. Religare Insurnce
Answer: (c)

45. Name the world’s largest biotechnology company, agreed to buy Micromet in a $1.16 billion deal to gain an experimental leukemia drug.
a. Celgene Drug
b. B B Biotech
c. Dechert
d. Amgen
Answer: (d)

46. Which channel developed a 52-week special India: Wild Encounters to focuss on India's enchanting wildlife s well as take viewers on an exploration spree ?
a. Discovery India
b. Animal Planet
c. Sony
d. National Gepgraphy
Answer: (b)

47. Which electronic gadget maker predicting a fourth consecutive year of losses, named Kazuo Hirai as chief executive officer, replacing Howard Stringer?
a. Sony
b. Samsung Electronics
c. Videocon
d. Hitachi
Answer: (a)

48. Binani Industries, the holding company of Braj Binani group, cquired a Belgian fibreglass company for 275 million euros. The Belgian company is a leading manufacturer of fibreglass in Europe. Name the Belgian company.
1. 1B
2. 2B
3. 3B
4. F2B
Answer: (c)

49. Which state run company signed an agreement with its trade unions for increase in the wages under which minimum guaranteed benefit would be 25% of gross?
a. BHEL
b. CIL
c. IOC
d. ONGC
Answer: (b)

50. Which of the following banks filed a criminal complaint against Sterling Biotech, and its six directors, for allegedly defaulting on repayments on credit facilities provided by the public sector lender?
a. State Bank of Travancore
b. State Bank of Mysore
c. State Bank of Patiala
d. State Bank of Indore
Answer: (b)

51. Shailesh Rao, managing director (media & platforms) at Google’s Asia-Pacific operations, left the world’s biggest Internet search company to set up the international business of which of the following companies?
a. Yahoo
b. Rediffmail
c. Skype
d. Twitter
Answer: (d)

52. Consider the following statements and using the code given below identify the personality with whom these statements are associated
1. He was the founder of Max Telecom
2. He is the founder and Chairman of Max India
3. He has been appointed the Non-Executive Chairman of Vodafone India
4. He is a veteran of Telecom Industry
(a). Deepak Parekh
(b). Sunil Bharati Mittal
(c). KP Singh
(d). Analjeet Singh
Answer: (d)

53. Which of the following Indian Telecom company on 16 February 2012 got the RBI nod for FCCB redemption?
(a). Reliance Telecom
(b). Uninor
(c). Airtel
(d). Vodafone
Answer: (a)

54. Cognizant which on 13 February 2012 inked a 5-year deal with Future Group is a
(a). Logistic Company
(b). Aviation Company
(c). Online Retail Company
(d). Technology Solution Company
Answer: (d)

55. Kintetsu World Express of Japan and Gati on 13 February 2012 entered into a Joint Venture of which of the following sector?
(a). Electronic Equipments
(b). Supply Chain
(c). Single Brand Retail
(d). Technology Solution
Answer: (b)

56. Legrand, the French electronic and digital equipments company on 9 February 2012 acquired the UPS business of which of the following Indian brand?
(a). Luminous
(b). Onida
(c). Numeric Power
(d). Invertabular
Answer: (c)

57. Consider the following statements and using the code given below identify the personality with whom these statements are associated
2. He is the Chairman of HDFC
3. He has been given the Ernst & Young Lifetime Achievement Award 2011
4. He is one of the pioneer in the Housing Finance in the country
5. He is on the board of Castrol India Limited
(a) Deepak Parekh
(b) Rahul Bhatia
(c) Ratan Tata
(d) Analjeet Singh
Answer: (a)

58. Rahul Bhatia, who was chosen for Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award is the Managing Director of
(a) Qualcomm Communications
(b) Jet Airways
(c) Vodafone
(d) InterGlobe Enterprises
Answer: (d)

59. Etisalat Which has initiated the legal proceeding against the promoters of Swan Telecom, its joint venture partner in India, is a
(a) Baharain Based Company
(b) UAE Based Company
(c) Australia Based Company
(d) Russia Based Company
Answer: (b)

60. The Competition Commission of India, under the Competition Act, 2002of Parliament, has been empowered to look into
(a) high voltage merger and acquisition deals
(b) market activities
(c) security market tradings
(d) client base of different companies
Answer: (a)

61. World’s largest two wheeler manufacturer Hero MotoCorp on 22 February 2012 inked a pact with Erik Buell Racing [EBR]. EBR is an
(a) USA based company
(b) UAE based company
(c) Argentina based company
(d) UK based company
Answer: (a)

62. Consider the following statements and using the code given below identify the personality with whom these statements are associated
1. He has recently joined the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited as its Chairman
2. He is one of the few outsiders to head HAL
3. He started his career with ONGC in 1976
4. He has also served as the head of Pawan Hans Limited
(a) RK Sharma
(b) RK Tyagi
(c) AM Naik
(d) Pratip Chaudhury
Answer: (b)


63. Which of the following Indian company has formed a joint venture with South African firm Exxaro
(a) Reliance Industries
(b) Essar
(c) Tata Power
(d) Vodafone India
Answer: (c)

64. Who has been appointed the new Managing Director of Hyundai India?
(a) Bo Shin Seo
(b) Andrew Mark
(c) Anil Aggarwal
(d) Anand Mahindra
Answer: (a)

65. Admax, South Asia’s largest digital media network was acquired by which Indian company
(a) Komli Media
(b) Mindtree
(c) Tata Teleservices
(d) Google India
Answer: (a)

66. James Murdoch, who on 29 February 2012 stepped down as Executive Chairman of News International is son of
(a) Rupert Grint
(b) Steve Murdoch
(c) Mark Rupert
(d) Rupert Murdoch
Answer: (d)

67. Consider the following statements using the code given below identify the personality with whom these statements are associated
2. He has recently been appointed as the Chairman of Mindtree Limited
3. He is also the co-founder of Mindtree limited
4. He has replaced Ashok Soota as the Chairman of Mindtree Limited
5. He has also served as the Vice Chaiman of Mindtree
(a) Subroto Bagchi
(b) Vivek Hooda
(c) Ashok Malik
(d) Pradeep Rungta
Answer: (a)

68. Which one of the following statements is wrong
(a) Varun Berry resigned from the Pepsi Co India on 29 February 2012
(b) He was the Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo India Food
(c) He joined the company in 2006
(d) As the CEO of PepsiCo India Foods, he promoted brands like Lay’s, Quaker, Kurkure and Lehar
Answer: (c)

69. Who has been appointed the new Managing Director of Hyundai India?
(a) Bo Shin Seo
(b) Andrew Mark
(c) Anil Aggarwal
(d) Anand Mahindra
Answer: (a)

70. Company Law Board on 1 March 2012, returned the petitions of
(a) Telenor and Unitech
(b) Reliance Telecom
(c) Etisalat DB
(d) STel
Answer: (a)

71. Which of the following public sector bank has appointed Madhukant Girdharlal Sanghvi as its new Chairman
(a) Bank of Baroda
(b) Allahabad Bank
(c) State Bank of Maharashtra
(d) Syndicate Bank
Answer: (d)

72. Consider the following statements and using the code given below identify the personality with whom these statements are associated
1. He the CEO of Mahindra Satyam
2. He is to be appointed as the CEO of Mahindra Satyam-Tech Mahindra
3. He was instrumental in recreating the image of fraud-hit-firm and giving it a new lease of life Satyam
4. In 2007, he was nominated for the Entrepreneur of the Year Award bestowed by Ernst & Young.
(a) AM Naik
(b) CP Gurnani
(c) Shiv Nadar
(d) Anand Mahindra
Answer: (c)

73. Which of the following car company on 23 March 2012 hiked the price of its cars by 2.2 – 5.1 per cent
(a) Skoda India
(b) Volkswagen India
(c) Tata Motores
(d) Hyundai
Answer: (a)

74. Indigo Manza is the car manufactured by _ _ _ _ _ _
(a) Tata Motors
(b) Honda Motors
(c) Hyundai Motors
(d) Nissan Motors
Answer: (a)

75. Which of the following banks on 20 March 2012, launched its new card product named Sapphiro
(a) HDFC
(b) State Bank of India
(c) Kotak Mahindra
(d) ICICI
Answer: (a)

76. Which of the following companies on 12 March 2012 unveiled India’s first CDMA network technology driven tablet computers
(a) Airtel
(b) Dell
(c) Reliance Communications
(d) Idea Cellular
Answer: (c)

77. Consider the following statements and using the code given below identify the personality with whom these statements are associated
2. He is the deputy chairman of Tata Group
3. He is to be appointed as the Chairman of Tata Group in December 2012
4. He was appointed on the Board of Directors of TCS on 1 April 2012
5. He is the first person out of Tata family, who has selected to head the Tata group after Ratan Tata
(a) OP Bhatt
(b) Cyrus Mistry
(c) Noel Tata
(d) Kumar Mangalam Birla
Answer: (b)

78. Which of the following nationalized bank on 1 April 2012 appointed D Sarkar as chairman and Managing Director
(a) Indian Bank
(b) Allahabad Bank
(c) Union Bank of India
(d) Canara Bank
Answer: (c)

79. Naresh Goyal is the chairman of _ _ _ _ _ _
(a) Jet Airways
(b) Indigo Airlines
(c) Air India
(d) Go Indigo
Answer: (a)

80. S Narsing Rao has been appointed as the CMD of Coal India Limited. Which of the following statements related to Coal India Limited is wrong?
(a) Coal India Limited is an Indian state-controlled coal mining company
(b) It acquired the Maharatna status in April 2011
(c) Coal India Limited was formed in 1973 as Coal Mines Authority Limited
(d) All the statements are wrong
Answer: (d)

81. Volkswagen launched the new IPL edition of Vento and Polo. Volkswagen is a carmaker headquartered in_ _ _ _ __ _ _.
(a) South Korea
(b) Italy
(c) Japan
(d) Germany
Answer: (d)

82. Consider the following statements and using the code given below identify the personality with whom these statements are associated
1. He is the Chairman of Hindustan Zinc Limited
2. He also heads MALCO, Sterlite Iron and Steel Company Ltd and Sterlite Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd
3. He is the son of Vedanta Group Chairman Anil Agarwal
4. He has recently picked up 60 per cent stake in Chennai-based nascent Primex Healthcare
(a) Agnivesh Agarwal
(b) Ramesh Agarwal
(c) Brajesh Agarwal
(d) Ajay Agarwal
Answer: (b)

83. Which of the following Indian companies has announced to supply Cholera vaccines to the African nation Haiti?
(a) Ranbaxy
(b) Pfizer
(c) Glaxo
(d) Shantha Biotechnics.
Answer: (d)

84. Samsung, which announced to launch its new version of the 7-inch tablet in Indian market in early May this year, is headquartered in _ _ _ _ _ _.
(a) South Korea
(b) North Korea
(c) Taiwan
(d) Thailand
Answer: (a)

85. Which one of the following given statements is wrong?
(a) IDBI is a public sector bank
(b) It has recently launched a Swiss Franc (CHF) denominated bond for an amount of 620 crore Rupees
(c) RM Malla is presently the CMD of the bank
(d) The bank provides loan only to the government
Answer: (d)

86. Which one of the following personalities was appointed as the MD of Sun TV?
(a) K Vijay Kumar
(b) Dayanidhi Maran
(c) Vinod Goenka
(d) None of the above
Answer: (a)

87. Consider the following statements using the code given below identify the personality with whom these statements are associated
1. She is the chairman of Biotechnology company Biocon limited
2. She was awarded with the Economic Times Businesswoman of the Year award in 2004
3. Her company has announced a dividend of 5 rupees per share
4. She is also the founder of Biocon
(a) Naina lal Kidwai
(b) Sunita Narain
(c) Kiran Bedi
(d) Kiran Mazumdar Shaw
Answer: (d)

88. Which one of the following statements is wrong
(a) NTPC has successfully completed the automation package for the Simhadri Stage-II
(b) It is NTPC's first coastal-based coal-fired thermal power project
(c) The super thermal power project located near Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh
(d) NTPC is a private energy company, based in China
Answer: (d)

89. Telecom giant Vodafone on 23 April 2012 inked pact to acquire which of the following company?
(a) Motorola
(b) Stel
(c) CWW
(d) Docomo
Answer: (c)

90. Food major Nestle acquired Pfizer's infant nutrition business for 11.85 billion dollar, Nestle is a _ _ _ _ _ _ based company.
(a) USA
(b) Britain
(c) Switzerland
(d) Norway
Answer: (c)

Obama nominates Indian-American on US Court of Appeals

US President Barack Obama has nominated Indian-American, Srikanth Srinivasan to a key judiciary position and termed him as a trailblazer. 
 

Srinivasan has been nominated to serve on the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit along with Caitlin Halligan.

"Caitlin Halligan and Sri Srinivasan are dedicated public servants who will bring their tremendous experience, intellect, and integrity to the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit," Obama said.

"This important court is often called the Nation's second-highest court, and it stands more than a quarter vacant. Srinivasan will be a trailblazer and, like Halligan, will serve the court with distinction and excellence," Obama added.

Born in Chandigarh and brought up in Kansas, Srinivasan is the Principal Deputy Solicitor General of the US.

"He is a highly-respected appellate advocate who has spent a distinguished career litigating before the US Supreme Court and the US Courts of Appeals, both on behalf of the United States and in private practice," the White House said.

Srinivasan began his legal career by serving as a law clerk for Judge J Harvie Wilkinson on the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit from 1995 to 1996.

He then spent a year as a Bristow Fellow in the Office of the Solicitor General before clerking for Justice Sandra Day O'Connor during the Supreme Court's 1997-98 term.

He was an associate at the law firm of OMelveny & Myers LLP in Washington, DC, from 1998 until 2002. In 2002, he returned to the Solicitor General's Office as an Assistant, representing the US in litigation before the Supreme Court.

In 2007, Srinivasan became a partner with OMelveny & Myers LLP. In 2011, he was named the Chair of the firms Appellate Practice Group. He was named as the Principal Deputy Solicitor General in August 2011.

13th IIFA AWARDS

The International Indian Film Academy Awards, also known as the IIFA Awards are presented annually by the International Indian Film Academy to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in Bollywood, the Hindi language film industry. Instituted in 2000, the ceremony is held in different countries around the world every year. This award ceremony has been organised by Wizcraft International Entertainment Pvt Ltd – one of India’s premier event management and entertainment agencies - since its inception. The first awards were presented in 2000 at The Millennium Dome in London, United Kingdom. From then on the awards were held at locations around the world signifying the international success of Bollywood. The award ceremonies are held in various places around the world.

The 2012 IIFA Awards, officially the 13th International Indian Film Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the International Indian Film Academy honoring the films of 2011 took place on June 9, 2012, at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore.

List of Awards: 

Best Actor	Ranbir Kapoor (Rock Star)
Best Actress	Vidya Balan (The Dirty Picture)
Best Movie	Zindagi Na Milegi Dobra
Best Director	Zoya Akhtar (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobra)
Best Story	Zoya Akhtar (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobra)
Best Supporting Actor	Farhan Akhtar (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobra)
Best Music Director	AR Rahman (Rock Star)
Best Female Debutante
Best Supporting Actress	Parineeti Chopra (Ladies vs Ricky Bahl)
Best Male Deutante	Vidyut Jamwal (Force)
Best Negative Role Actor	Prakash Raj (Singham)
Best Comic Role Actor	Ritesh Deshmukh (Double Dhamaal)
Best Male Playback Singer	Mohit Chauhan (Naadan Parindey - Rockstar)
Best Lyrics	Irshad Kamil (Naadan Parindey-Rockstar)
Best Female Playback Singer	Shreya Ghosal (Teri Meri - Bodyguard)
LIV ULLMANN	Honoured for her outstanding contribution to international Cinema
REKHA	Honoured for her outstanding achievement in Indian Cinema
RAMESH SIPPY	Honoured for the outstanding contribution to Indian Cinema Award

Technical awards

Best Action: Jai Singh Nijjar for Singham
Best Special Effects: Red Chillies VFX for Ra.One
Best Choreography: Bosco-Caesar for Senorita from Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
Best Cinematography: Carlos Catalan for Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
Best Costume Design: Niharika Khan for The Dirty Picture
Best Dialogue: Rajat Aroraa for The Dirty Picture
Best Editing: Anand Subaya for Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
Best Makeup: Vikram Gaikwad for The Dirty Picture
Best Production Design: Sabu Cyril for Ra.One
Best Screenplay: Reema Kagti and Zoya Akhtar
Best Sound Re-Recording: Anuj Mathur and Baylon Fonseca for Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
Best Sound Recording: Resul Pookutty and Amrit Pritam Dutta for Ra.One

Sachin Tendulkar was presented the Wisden India Outstanding Achievement Award

India’s Batting great Sachin Tendulkar was conferred upon the Wisden India Outstanding Achievement award for completing a century of 100 international hundreds, in Dubai on 11 June 2012. The legendary batsman was presented a trophy at an event organised by FidelisWorld. The trophy was made from crystal, it resembles a cricket ball resting on the open pages of a book.
Tendulakar achieved the incredible feat while playing against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup in March 2012. The batting genius has total 49 One-Day International centuries and 51 Test centuries to his credit.
Tendulkar, while receiving the award spoke on range of aspects of his career, like his favourite innings, the match-winning fourth innings hundred against England at Chennai in December 2008, balancing play and personal life, and the influence that his late father had in shaping his career.

Union Commerce Ministry unveiled New Trade Policy to boost India's Export

The Union Government of India on 5 June 2012 announced a new trade policy aimed at achieving 20 per cent increase in exports to 360 billion dollar in the fiscal year 2012-13. India's exports grew by 21 per cent and touched 303.7 billion dollar in 2011-12, while the trade deficit during the same period expanded to 185 billion dollar.
The government also announced to come out with new guidelines to restore Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and Export Oriented Unit (EOU) schemes to further boost the shipments.
As the part of the new trade policy, the Union Commerce Ministry had added seven new markets to the focus market scheme (FMS) and an equal number of new markets to the special FMS. Countries like Algeria, Aruba, Austria, Cambodia, Myanmar, the Netherland Antilles and Ukraine have been added to FMS; while countries including Belize, Chile, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Morocco and Uruguay have been added to special FMS. The FMS and SFMS scheme will help India to explore new markets and promote the product diversification.

The highlights of the new trade policy are as follows:
•    Government set the export target for 2012-13 at 20 per cent
•    2 per cent interest subsidy scheme extended till March 2013
•    Government to announce new guidelines to promote SEZs
•    Incentives for exports from north-eastern states
•    Shipments from Delhi, Mumbai through post, courier or e-commerce to get export benefits
•    Foreign Trade Policy document to be more user friendly
•    13 shows abroad to promote Brand India
•    Single revolving bank guarantee for different export deals
•    Seven new markets added to Focus Market Scheme
•    Market linked focus product scheme extended till March'13 for apparel export to USA and EU

Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain visited India

Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain visited India on 30-31 May 2012. During this visit, the following Agreement/ Memorandum of Understanding were signed: 
(i) Agreement between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain for Exchange of Information with respect to Taxes.

(ii) Memorandum of Understanding between Government of the Republic of India and Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain on Cooperation in the Field Of Information and Communication Technology.

India and Bahrain agreed on the importance of maintaining high-level contacts and increase the frequency of interactions in order to broaden and deepen bilateral ties. India expressed its appreciation to Bahrain in ensuring the safety and well-being of the Indian community in Bahrain. Issues of mutual concern in the region were discussed and the importance attached by India to peace and stability in the entire region was emphasized. Both nations also underlined the need to resolve all differences through peaceful dialogue and without recourse to violence.

Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic to claim his Seventh French Open Singles Title

Spaniard Rafael Nadal on 11 June 2012 defeated Serbian Novak Djokovic to clinch his seventh French Open Singles Title 2012. Second seeded Nadal beat top seed Djokovic in a final clash which lasted four sets. With this victory the Spaniard also surpassed the Legend Bjorn Borg’s 6 title feat. Earlier Nadal had defeated Daid Ferrer in the Semi Finals to make to the finals of the tournament; While Djokovic had overwhelmed Swiss Roger Federer. The French Open title marked his 11th Gand Slam in a career marked by 16 Grand Slam finals. Currently he is one short off Roy Emerson, three off Pete Sampras and five title away from the arch rival Roger Federer’s record 16 grand slam titles.
Earlier

Russian Tennis Player Maria Yuryevna Sharapova won French Open 2012

Maria Yuryevna Sharapova won French Open 2012 on 9 June 2012. She defeated Saria Erani from Italy by 6-3 and 6-2. Sharapova is a Russian Lawn Tennis Player.  She won French open for the first time in her career.

French open was held at Rolland Garros in Paris. The tournament was run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). French Open 2012 was a sixteen-day long tournament. The tournament consists of both men's and women's singles and doubles and as well as a mixed doubles events.

Moreover, Sharapova was the winner of Wimbledon in 2004, the US Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2008.

Veeravalli Sundaram Sampath appointed New Chief Election Commissioner of India

President Pratibha Patil appointed senior-most Election Commissioner Veeravalli Sundaram Sampath as the 18th Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India. He replaced S.Y. Quraishi on the constitutional position, whose term as the CEC is coming to an end on 10 June 2012.
Born at Vellore in Tamil Nadu on 16 January 1950, VS Sampath joined the elite Indian Administrative Service in 1973 as the officer of Andhra Pradesh cadre. He took over as Election Commissioner on 21 April 2009. He will carry out his term till 16 January 2015 — either for six years in the Commission or till the age of 65, whichever comes earlier. H.S. Brahma is the other Election Commissioner. The other Election Commissioner is yet to be appointed by the President.
Chief Election Commissioner is the head of the three-member election commission, which is a constitutional entity responsible for conducting free and fairs elections in the country. Article 324 of the Indian constitution provides for the institution of Election Commission of India. The commission was set up on 25 January 1950 with an aim to make electoral process in the world’s largest democracy more transparent and free from any external interference. Sukumar Sen was the first Election Commissioner of India.
The Election Commission was originally a one-member body when it started functioning but the number was later expanded to 3 on 16 October 1989. But the other two members in the body had a very short tenure as they left the office on 1 January 1990. Subsequently, on 1 October 1993 two additional Election Commissioners were appointed. The concept of multi-member Commission has been in operation since then, with decision making power by majority vote. The three-member body is headed by the Chief Election Commissioner who is appointed by the President of India.
The Chief Election Commissioner along with two other Election Commissioners enjoy the official status, salary and perks equivalent to judges of the Supreme Court of India. The Chief Election Commissioner can be removed only through impeachment by the Parliament. In order of precedence the Chief Election Commissioner stands at 9th position along with the judges of the Supreme Court of India, Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Chief Election Commissioner of India , Chairman of Union Public Service Commission.

GENERAL AWARENESS PRACTICE MCQs

1. Which is the Indian Share Price Index ?
(A) Dolex
(B) Sensex
(C) Nifty Fifty
(D) All of these
Answer: Sensex

2. NIKKEI is the Share Price Index of—
(A) India
(B) USA
(C) Tokyo
(D) Bangladesh
Answer: Tokyo

3. NSE-50 is renamed as—
(A) SIMEX
(B) Top 100
(C) S $ PCNX Nifty
(D) MID–100
Answer: S $ PCNX Nifty

4. Debt Recovery Tribunals is situated at—
(A) Delhi
(B) Agra
(C) Kota
(D) Chandigarh
Answer: Delhi

5. What is CRAR for all Indian banks ?
(A) 3%
(B) 9%
(C) 6%
(D) 8%
Answer: 9%

6. Who has replaced Harsh Mariwala as President FICCI in January 2012 ?
(A) Sunil Kanoria
(B) R.V. Kanoria
(C) Raj Kumar Dhoot
(D) Siddharth Birla
Answer: R.V. Kanoria

7. RBI introduced a Banking Ombudsman Scheme in the country on—
(A) June 1, 2010 
(B) June 1, 2009
(C) June 14, 1995 
(D) June 1, 2011
Answer: June 14, 1995

8. When Narasimhan Committee constituted by the Government of India ?
(A) August 14, 1991 
(B) July 1, 2005
(C) July 1, 2009 
(D) July 1, 2010
Answer: August 14, 1991

9. Which committee is set up for financial reforms?
(A) Narasimhan Committee
(B) Khanna Committee
(C) K.R. Birala Committee
(D) None of these
Answer: Narasimhan Committee

10. RBI constituted a committee under the Chairmanship of Sri M.N. Goiporia in—
(A) Sept. 1, 1992 
(B) Sept. 1, 1990
(C) Sept. 1, 2009 
(D) Sept. 1, 2010
Answer: Sept. 1, 1990

11. In case of NPA norms interest on advance should be more than—
(A) 170 days 
(B) 365 days
(C) 180 days 
(D) 95 days
Answer: 180 days

12. MIBOR and MIBID was launched by NSE on—
(A) June 15, 1998 
(B) June 1, 2007
(C) June 1, 2009 
(D) July 1, 2010
Answer: June 15, 1998

13. Which is a reference rate of NSE ?
(A) YES 
(B) SARFAESI
(C) MIBID 
(D) MID DAX
Answer: MIBID

14. SEBI was constituted on—
(A) April 1, 1956 
(B) April 1, 1979
(C) April 12, 1988 
(D) April 1, 2007
Answer: April 12, 1988

15. Mutual Fund controlled and regulated by—
(A) SEBI 
(B) RBI
(C) IRDA 
(D) SBI
Answer: SEBI

16. The paid up capital of National Housing Bank stood at (on June 30, 2009)—
(A) Rs. 400 crore 
(B) Rs. 450 crore
(C) Rs. 1300 crore 
(D) Rs. 1800 crore
Answer: Rs. 450 crore

17. NABARD was established on—
(A) July 12, 1982 
(B) July 1, 1990
(C) July 1, 2005 
(D) July 1, 2009
Answer: July 12, 1982

18. The paid up capital of NABARD stood at ......... on March 31, 2010.
(A) Rs. 12000 crore 
(B) Rs. 2000 crore
(C) Rs. 500 crore 
(D) Rs. 5000 crore
Answer: Rs. 2000 crore

19. Which is not Monetary aggregates ?
(A) M₀ 
(B) M₁
(C) M₃ 
(D) M₄
Answer: M₄

20. L1 is used for—
(A) Liquidity aggregates
(B) Lower Rate
(C) Liability Rate
(D) All of these
Answer: Liquidity aggregates

GENERAL AWARENESS PRACTICE MCQs FOR IBPS EXAMS

1. Which Indian-American won the Scripps National Spelling Bee competition in Maryland, USA, in June 2012? (This is the 5th consecutive win for Indian-Americans)
1) Stuti Mishra
2) Arvind Mahamkali
3) Snigdha Nandipati
4) Vanya Shivshankar
5) None of these

2. Who became the 25th Chief of the Indian Army on May 31, 2012?
1) J.J.Singh
2) Bikram Singh
3) V.K.Singh
4) Dalbir Singh Suhag
5) None of these

3 Which country's Prime Minister was India's chief guest of honor at the 63rd Republic Day Parade on January 26, 2012?
1) Cambodia
2) Australia
3) Bangladesh
4) Thailand
5) Russia

4. Which is India's highest peacetime gallantry award?
1) Param Vir Chakra
2) Maha Vir Chakra
3) Ashok Chakra
4) Kirti Chakra
5) Shourya Chakra

5. The 10th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) conclave was held in Jaipur from January 7 to 9, 2012. Who was the chief guest for this conference?
1) Lakshmi Nivas Mittal
2) Datuk S.Subramaniam
3) Yingluck Shinawatra
4) Anand Satyanand
5) Kamla Persad Bissessar

6. Which city hosted the 99th Indian Science Congress in January 2012?
1) Chennai
2) Pune
3) New Delhi
4) Bhubaneshwar
5) Bangalore

7. According to a report on hunger and malnutrition (HUNGaMA), what percent of India's children are malnourished and underw-eight?
1) 42
2) 32
3) 38
4) 48
5) 53

8. The proposed National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) will work as an integral part of which of the following agencies?
1) Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)
2) Intelligence Bureau (IB)
3) National Investigation Agency (NIA)
4) Research and Analysis Wing (RAW)
5) National Security Guard (NSG)

9. India and Thailand have decided to develop a seaport at Dawei, earlier known as Tavoy. In which Asian country is this town located?
1) Thailand
2) Cambodia
3) Myanmar
4) Vietnam
5) Laos

10. Who is the defense secretary of the United States of America?
1) Leon Panetta
 2) John Bryson
3) Tom Vilsack
4) Eric Holder
5) None of these

11. Nathpa Jhakri, India's largest hydroelectric project generated 7,610 million units of electricity in 2011-12 which is a record. In which state is this project located?
1) Assam
2) Arunachal Pradesh
3) West Bengal
4) Himachal Pradesh
5) None of these

12. Which state has instituted the Mallikarjun Mansur award?
1) Madhya Pradesh
2) Maharashtra
3) Odisha
4) Goa
5) Karnataka

13. Which state made Chess classes compulsory in schools to impr-ove cognitive skills of students from this academic year? (Gujarat is the first state to start chess programmes in schools)
1) Andhra Pradesh
2) Tamil Nadu
3) Kerala
4) Bihar
5) Jharkhand

14. Who became the new President of the Federation of Indian Cha-mbers of Commerce and Industry
(FICCI) in January 2012?
1) Naina Lal Kidwai
2) Sidharth Birla
3) R.V. Kanoria
4) Shikha Sharma
5) None of these

15. Homai Vyarawala passed away recently. She is India's first woman?
1) Jnanpith award winner
2) Photo journalist
3) Mountaineer
4) Cricketer
5) None of these

16. Which of the following is not a National Bravery Award?
1) Geeta Chopra Award
2) Sanjay Chopra Award
3) Bharat Award
4) Bapu Gaidhani Award
5) Chameli Devi Jain Award

17. Who was given the Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Peace and Reconciliation in Bodh Gaya in 2012?
1) Aung San Suu Kyi
2) Nelson Mandela
3) Dalai Lama
4) Ela Bhatt
5) Sheikh Hasina

18. Who won the best actor award at the 57th Filmfare Awards 2011?
1) Hrithik Roshan
2) Shah Rukh Khan
 3) Aamir Khan
4) Ranbir Kapoor
5) None of these

19. Francois Hollande became the President of which of the following countries in May 2012?
1) Netherlands
2) Germany
3) France
 4) Greece
5) Spain

20. Rahul Khullar took charge as the Chairman of which of the following regulators on May 14, 2012?
1) Insurance Regulatory Development Authority
2) Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
3) Pension Fund Regulatory Development Authority
4) Securities Exchange Board of India
5) None of these

21. The Standing Committee of the Inter State Council has been reconstituted. Who is the Chairman of this committee?
1) P.Chidambaram
2) Pranab Mukherjee
3) Sharad Pawar
4) M.Veerappa Moily
5) Mukul Roy

22. Who is the Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission and Secretary of the Department of Atomic Energy?
1) K.Radhakrishnan
2) V.K.Saraswat
3) Avinash Chander
4) Ratan Kumar Sinha
5) None of these

23. Who has been nominated for the first 'Tagore Award for Cultural Harmony' in May 2012? (It was instituted by the Government to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore)
1) Anna Hazare
2) Pandit Ravishankar
3) Amartya Sen
4) Shanta Sinha
5) None of these

24. Which country has launched Hatf III (Ghaznavi), a short range ballistic missile capable of carry-ing both nuclear and conven-tional warheads across 290 km?
1) Iran
2) Afghanistan
3) Pakistan
4) Iraq
 5) Syria

25. The Union Cabinet cleared a Rs.8500 crore project under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) to connect how many habitations in the 78 naxalite affected districts of nine states?
1) 6000
2) 5000
3) 10000
4) 4000
5) 20000

26. Who among the following is not a woman squash player?
1) Joshna Chinappa
2) Dipika Pallikal
3) Anaka Alankamony
4) Aparajitha Balamurukan
5) Preeja Sreedharan

27. Which city hosted the Nuclear Security Summit in March 2012?
1) Washington D.C.
2) Perth
3) Seoul
4) Paris
5) None of these

28. India has voted against which of the following countries at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva for its alleged war crimes?
1) Sudan
2) North Korea
3) Rwanda
4) Sri Lanka
5) None of these

29. Who was chosen for the Saraswati Samman 2011 for his book on Ramayana? (This literary prize is awarded by the K.K. Birla Foundation)
1) Surjit Paatar
2) A.A.Manavalan
3) Lakshmi Nandan Bora
4) K.Ayyappa Panicker
5) Jagannath Prasad Das

30. In the Union Budget for 2012-13, how many crores of rupees are allocated for the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM)?
1) 3,534
2) 5,615
3) 3,915
4) 2,914
5) 4,535

31. Which of the following Cups/Trophies is associated with Lawn tennis?
1) Santosh Trophy
2) Davis Cup
3) FIFA Cup
4) Subrato Cup
5) Copa America

32. Coin of which of the following denominations is called small coin?
1) Rs.5/-
2) Rs.2/-
3) 50 paisa
4) Rs.1/-
5) None of these

33. Who among the following is not a Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India at present?
1) K.C.Chakraborty
2) Anand Sinha
3) Subir Gokarn
4) H.R.Khan
5) Usha Thorat

34. What does the letter F denote in NBFC, a banking term?
1) Fiscal
2) Financial
3) Functional
4) Formal
5) None of these

35. Who is the author of the book "Unleashing India"?
1) Kamal Nath
2) S.Jaipal Reddy
3) Veerappa Moily
4) P.Chidambaram
5) Pranab Mukherjee

36. Which programme was launched in 2009 to create a slum free India?
1) Indira Awas Yojana
2) Rajiv Awas Yojana
3) Bharat Nirman
4) PURA
5) None of these

37. Which of the following is a credit rating agency of Indian origin?
1) FMC
2) SEBI
3) CRISIL
4) IBA
5) None of these

38. Sensex is a term associated with which of the following stock exchanges?
1) BSE
2) NSE
3) USE
4) OTCEI
5) None of these

39. Who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2011?
1) Ralph Steinman
2) Bruce Beutler
3) Jules Hoffman
4) Tomas Transtromer
5) None of these

40. Who is the present Solicitor-General of India?
1) Rohinton Nariman
2) Vinod Rai 3) Ashok Chawla
4) Soli Sorabjee
5) None of these

KEY
1) 3 2) 2 3) 4 4) 3 5) 5 6) 4 7) 1 8) 2 9) 3 10) 1
11) 4 12) 5 13) 2 14) 3 15) 2 16) 5 17) 3 18) 4 19) 3 20) 2
21) 1 22) 4 23) 2 24) 3 25) 1 26) 5 27) 3 28) 4 29) 2 30) 3
31) 2 32) 3 33) 5 34) 2 35) 3 36) 2 37) 3 38) 1 39) 4 40) 1

India and Bahrain inked Tax Information Exchange Agreement

India and Bahrain, on 31 May 2012 inked a Tax Information Exchange Agreement to promote economic cooperation and joint investment between the two countries. The agreement is aimed at increasing bilateral trade that stands at 1.7 billion dollar. The agreement with its provision for effective exchange of information between the two countries, will help in reducing tax evasion and tax avoidance.
The agreement was signed by Indian Minister of State for Finance Namo Narain Meena and Bahrain’s Minister of Transportation and Acting Chief Executive of Economic Development Board Kamal Ahmed in New Delhi. The Bahrain delegation was led by Prince Salman Bin HamadAl-Khalifa, the Crown Prince of Bahrain and chairman of the Bahrain Economic Development Board.
The two countries also inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to make the ties on technological front more effective. Under the newly signed MoU India will provide technical assistance to Bahrain and help it to develop its own IT sector in Bahrain.
Besides Tax Information Exchange Agreement, several other commercial and economic cooperation agreements were also signed. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop business and commercial was signed between the industrial bodies of two countries.
The two countries historically enjoy an intimate and friendly relation with each other. Indian diaspora constitutes nearly a quarter of Bahrain’s entire 1.2 million population.

Union Government announced to constitute Panel on Implementaion of Dharmadhikari Committee Report

The Union Government of India on 1 June 2012 announced to constitute an implementation panel to look into the ways of implementing the Dharmadhikari committee report on Air India and earstwhile Indian Airlines merger. The implementation panel will suggest the government of ways to implement the recommendations of Dharmadhikari Committee on issues including pay, allowances and career progression structure.
The implementation committee will submit its report within 45 days of its constitution. The committee will also be given the task of ‘level mapping’ of employees of Air India and erstwhile Indian Airlines.
The four-member Dharmadhikari committee on integration of nearly 29000 employees of Air India and Indian Airlines was headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice D. M. Dharmadhikari. The committee had submitted its report in January 2012. The committee had consulted all the concerned parties including pilots and management staffs before submitting its findings. The committee was constituted in March 2011.
Some of the major recommendations of Dharmadhikari committee are as follows:
•    Air India should continue to maintain two separate lines of seniority for pilots belonging to the pre-merger Indian Airlines and Air India
•    Pilots of both erstwhile carriers must be allowed to fly aircraft of all types
•    A 10-15 per cent salary cut for pilots and engineers to bring their salaries on par with industry standards
•    Uniform salaries for both sets of pilots
•    Cross-utilisation of pilots, which means Indian Airlines pilots can fly Dreamliners, and Air India pilots can fly Airbus aircraft after obtaining requisite endorsements and training
The Government of India in 2007 announced the merger of Air India with Indian Airlines. Subsequently a new company called the National Aviation Company of India Limited (NACIL) was established, into which both Air India (along with Air India Express) and Indian Airlines (along with Alliance Air) was merged. On 27 February 2011, Air India and Indian Airlines merged along with their subsidiaries to form Air India Limited. The merger did not go down well with the national carrier as it got trapped under a huge debt of 10 billion dollar. Besides the post merger days have also been marred with the reports of controversies and rifts among the management. The pilots of Air India have been on indefinite strike since 8 May 2012.

Bihar prohibited Sale and Manufacturing of All Tobacco Products for Next One Year

Bihar Government on 30 May 2012 prohibited the sale and manufacturing of all the tobacco products for next one year. The decision taken on the eve of 'World No-Tobacco Day', made Bihar the third state in the country to ban tobacco products. Earlier Madhya Pradesh and Kerala had come out with the same decision.
The state government’s move is based on the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India regulation no 2.3.4 which seeks to ban tobacco or nicotine products. The regulation was issued by the Union Government of India on 1 August 2011. People who found violating the order would be awarded with a punishment ranging from monetary fine of upto 3 lakh rupees to imprisonment of one year.
Earlier Madhya Pradesh had become the first state to ban all the food products containing tobacco. The state had issued a notification in this regard on 7 May 2012.

World Environment Day 2012 observed across the World

The world community observed the World Environment Day (WED) on 5 June 2012. The World Environment Day is observed every year on 5 June to raise public awareness on the issues related to global environment. The World Environment Day activities keep going on through out the year, but culminate on 5 June every year.
Theme for the World Environment Day 2012 is: Green Economy: Does it include you? The host for World Environment Day 2012 was the Federative Republic of Brazil. Theme for the World Environment Day 2011 was Forests-Nature At Your Service and India was the global host for the year's events.
World Environment Day 2012 is the 40th edition of the global. The UN General Assembly started observing the day in 1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment.

What does Green Economy means:

As per the definition of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), a Green Economy is 'one that results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities.'

Green economy widely refers to an economic situation where the economic developments take place without hurting the environment. In the green economy the income of people is driven by the private and public investments which helps in the reduction of carbon emissions and pollution and stimulates energy and resource efficiency, and ultimately helps in the prevention of loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services.

Justice Madan Bhimarao Lokur took Oath as the Supreme Court Judge

Justice Madan Bhimarao Lokur took the oath as the Supreme Court judge on 4 June 2012. Prior to his elevation to the apex court he was serving as the chief justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court. The joining of Justice Lokur has taken the total number of the apex court judge to 26, which is still five short of the total strength of 31 judges.
Supreme Court Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia administered the oath to Justice Lokur. This is the first time in the history of the apex court that a judge has sworn in during the summer vacation.
Born on 31 December 1953, Justice Lokur became Additional Judge of Delhi High Court on 19 February 1999 and Permanent Judge of the high court on 5 July 1999. He was appointed as Chief Justice of Guahati High Court on 24 June 2010. He took over as chief justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court on 15 November 2011.
In one of his landmark verdicts as chief justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court, Justice Lokur had voided the Union government’s decision to provide 4.5 percent reservation in educational institutions and government jobs for Muslims within the existing reservation quota.

SUMMITS HELD ON 2012

1. 20th ASEAN Summit - Phnom Penh (Cambodia)
2. 4th BRICS summit - New Delhi
3. 10th BASIC Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change - New Delhi
4. Arab summit 2012 - Baghdad (Iraq)
5. Nuclear security summit 2012 – Seoul (South Korea)
6. 12th Annual summit of European Union and India - New Delhi
7. G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting - Mexico City
8. Friends of Syria Meeting – Istanbul (Turkey)
9. 5th Ministerial level India-UK Economic Financial Dialogue – New Delhi
10. United Nation Conference on Sustainable Development 2012 – Rio de janeiro (Brazil)
11. 17th National youth Festival – Mangalore (Karnataka)
12. World Economic Forum – Davos (Switzerland)
13. World Polio Summit 2012 - New Delhi

BANKING SYSTEM IN INDIA

Bank is a lawful organisation, which accepts deposits that can be withdrawn on demand. It also lends money to individuals and business houses that need it. Banks also render many other useful services – like collection of bills, payment of foreign bills, safe-keeping of jewellery and other valuable items, certifying the credit-worthiness of business, and so on. Banks give two assurances to the depositors – a)  Safety of deposit, and b)  Withdrawal of deposit, whenever needed They play a significant role in the economy of a nation such as: • It encourages savings habit amongst people and thereby makes funds available for productive use. • It acts as an intermediary between people having surplus money and those requiring money for various business activities. • It facilitates business transactions through receipts and payments by cheques instead of currency. • It provides loans and advances to businessmen for short term and long-term purposes. • It also facilitates import export transactions. • It helps in national development by providing credit to farmers, small-scale industries and self-employed people as well as to large business houses which lead to balanced economic development in the country. • It helps in raising the standard of living of people in general by providing loans for purchase of consumer durable goods, houses, automobiles, etc. TYPES OF BANKS IN INDIA 1) Reserve Bank of India The Reserve Bank of India Act of 1934 established the Reserve Bank as the central banking institution of India which controls the monetary policy of the rupee as well as the currency reserves.  The shares were entirely owned by private shareholders. Finally Reserve Bank of India was nationalized in the year 1949. The Bank was constituted for the following basic functions: • To regulate the issue of Bank Notes • To maintain reserves with a view to securing monetary stability and • To operate the credit and currency system of the country to its advantage. 2) Commercial Banks Commercial Banks are banking institutions that accept deposits and grant short-term loans and advances to their customers. In addition to giving short-term loans, commercial banks also give medium-term and long-term loan to business enterprises. Now-a-days some of the commercial banks are also providing housing loan on a long-term basis to individuals. There are also many other functions of commercial banks, which are discussed later in this lesson. Types of Commercial banks:  (i) Public Sector Banks: These are banks where majority stake is held by the Government of India or Reserve Bank of India. Examples of public sector banks are: State Bank of India, Corporation Bank, Bank of Baroda and Dena Bank, etc. (ii) Private Sectors Banks: In case of private sector banks majority of share capital of the bank is held by private individuals. These banks are registered as companies with limited liability.  For example: The Jammu and Kashmir Bank Ltd., Bank of Rajasthan Ltd., Development Credit Bank Ltd, Lord Krishna Bank Ltd., Bharat Overseas Bank Ltd., Global Trust Bank, Vysya Bank, etc. (iii) Foreign Banks: These banks are registered and have their headquarters in a foreign country but operate their branches in our country. Some of the foreign banks operating in our country are Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC), Citibank, American Express Bank, Standard & Chartered Bank, Grindlay’s Bank, etc. The number of foreign banks operating in our country has increased since the financial sector reforms of 1991. 3) Regional Rural Banks  Regional Rural Banks were established under the provisions of an Ordinance promulgated on the 26th September 1975 and the RRB Act, 1976 with an objective to ensure sufficient institutional credit for agriculture and other rural sectors. The RRBs mobilize financial resources from rural / semi-urban areas and grant loans and advances mostly to small and marginal farmers, agricultural labourers and rural artisans. The area of operation of RRBs is limited to the area as notified by Government of India covering one or more districts in the State. RRBs are jointly owned by Government of India, the concerned State Government and Sponsor Banks (27 scheduled commercial banks and one State Cooperative Bank); the issued capital of a RRB is shared by the owners in the proportion of 50%, 15% and 35% respectively. 4) Co-operative Banks Co-operative banks are small-sized units organized in the co-operative sector which operate both in urban and non-urban centers.  Co-operative Banks in India are registered under the Co-operative Societies Act. The cooperative bank is also regulated by the RBI. They are governed by the Banking Regulations Act 1949 and Banking Laws (Co-operative Societies) Act, 1965. Types of Co-operative Banks (i) Primary Credit Societies:  These are formed at the village or town level with borrower and non-borrower members residing in one locality.  The operations of each society are restricted to a small area so that the members know each other and are able to watch over the activities of all members to prevent frauds. (ii) Central Co-operative Banks:  These banks operate at the district level having some of the primary credit societies belonging to the same district as their members. These banks provide loans to their members (i.e., primary credit societies) and function as a link between the primary credit societies and state co-operative banks. (iii) State Co-operative Banks: These are the apex (highest level) co-operative banks in all the states of the country.  They mobilise funds and help in its proper channelisation among various sectors.  The money reaches the individual borrowers from the state co-operative banks through the central co-operative banks and the primary credit societies Cooperative banks in India finance rural areas under: a) Farming b) Cattle c) Milk d) Hatchery e) Personal finance Cooperative banks in India finance urban areas under: a) Self-employment b) Industries c) Small scale units d) Home finance e) Consumer finance f) Personal finance