Thursday, August 16, 2012

Welfare Schemes for Women

Many welfare schemes for women are implemented by Government of India, State Governments and Union Territory Administrations. The details of major schemes under implementation by Ministry of Women and Child Development for the welfare of women are as under :-

i. RAJIV GANDHI NATIONAL CRECHE SCHEME FOR THE CHILDREN OF WORKING MOTHERS (RGNCS) provides day care facilities to the children in the age group 0-6 years from families with monthly income of less than 12000/-. In addition to being a safe space for the children, the crèches provide services such as supplementary nutrition, pre-school education and emergency health care, etc.

ii. CENTRAL SOCIAL WELFARE BOARD: The main women welfare related schemes and programmes being implemented by CSWB are family counselling centres, awareness generation programme and condensed courses of education for women.

iii. NATIONAL MISSION FOR EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN (NMEW) is an initiative of the Government of India for empowering women holistically. It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme sanctioned in April 2011 and acts as an umbrella Mission with a mandate to strengthen inter-sectoral convergence.

iv. WORKING WOMEN’S HOSTEL (WWH) Scheme envisages provision of safe and affordable hostel accommodation to working women, single working women, women working at places away from their home-towns and for women being trained for employment.

v. SUPPORT TO TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT PROGRAMME (STEP) for Women was launched as a Central Sector Scheme during 1986-87. It aims at making a significant impact on women by upgrading skills for self and wage employment. The target group includes the marginalized assetless rural women and urban poor.

vi. RASHTRIYA MAHILA KOSH (RMK) with a corpus of Rs.100 crore extends micro-finance services to bring about the socio-economic upliftment of poor women.

vii. INDIRA GANDHI MATRITVA SAHYOG YOJANA (IGMSY) is a Conditional Cash Transfer scheme for pregnant and lactating (P&L) women introduced in the October 2010 to contribute to better enabling environment by providing cash incentives for improved health and nutrition to pregnant and nursing mothers.

viii. SWADHAR SCHEME: The Ministry of Women and Child Development had been administering Swadhar scheme since 2001 for Women in difficult circumstances. Under the Scheme, temporary accommodation, maintenance and rehabilitative services are provided to women and girls rendered homeless due to family discord, crime, violence, mental stress, social ostracism. Another scheme with similar objectives/target groups namely Short Stay Home (SSH) is being implemented by Central Social Welfare Board.

ix. UJJAWALA is a comprehensive scheme for prevention of trafficking and rescue, rehabilitation and reintegration of victims of trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

House sparrow declared Delhi's state bird


The humble House Sparrow was declared as 'state bird' of Delhi by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on 14 August, 2012. Expressing concern over dwindling number of house sparrows in the city, Dikshit hoped that the new status of the bird would help in its conservation.

The Chief Minister, known for her environment-friendly initiatives, announced the decision after launching a campaign "Rise for the Sparrows" aimed at conserving the species.

In her address, Dikshit said her Government will consider incorporate monitoring of the common bird in the school curriculum to make aware the students about conservation of House Sparow and other birds.

Government of India Launched Anti-Ragging Website

The Government of India launched an anti-ragging website. Kapil Sibal, the Union Human Resource Minister inaugurated the ‘Anti-Ragging Web Portal’ on 26 July 2012.

The portal has been developed by The University Grants Commission (UGC) in collaboration with Ed.CIL (India) Ltd. and Planet E-Com Solutions. Rajendra Kachroo, father of Aman who lost his life to ragging at a medical college in Himachal Pradesh in 2009 has also contributed In the UGC managed portal.
 
Supreme Court, in its judgment dated 8 May 2009 ordered implementation of a ragging prevention programme comprising, inter-alia, setting up toll-free anti-ragging helpline /call centre, database of institutions/students, engaging an independent non-government agency.

All calls that would be received by the Anti-ragging Helpline (18001805522) will be managed and followed up in a structured software system. Moreover, students can see the progress of their complaint any time on www.antiragging.in. Online anti ragging affidavits can be downloaded by students from the site, www.antiragging.in.
 

Pak Government Honoured Saadat Hasan Manto with the Nisan-i-Imtiaz

Acclaimed Pakistani writer Saadat Hasan Manto on 14 August 2012 was honoured with the Nisan-i-Imtiaz, Pakistan's highest civilian award. Manto is best known for his Urdu short stories, especially those that explored the impact of the partition of the subcontinent into India and Pakistan in 1947. Toba Tek Singh, Bu (Odour), Khol Do (Open It) and Thanda Gosht (Cold Meat) were written by him.

Saadat Hasan Manto worked for the Urdu Service of All India Radio in 1941 for several months. Manto ended a career as a scriptwriter in Mumbai to move to Pakistan in 1948. He died at the age of 42 in 1955. His frank style angered conservatives in Pakistan and he faced trial three times on charges of obscenity.

 Besides Manto, renowned singer Mehdi Hassan, Lt.Gen (retired) Khalid Kidwai and Munir Ahmed Khan were honoured with civilian awards for their contributions in fields like arts and literature, nuclear science, education and sports, healthcare and public service. The awards will be given away at a ceremony to be held on Pakistan Day on 23 March 2013.

A Web-based System developed for advising Farmers on Fertilizers

The Indian Institute of Soil Science developed a web-based system for advising farmers the right quantity of fertilizers that they should use in their soils for a particular type of crop.
The software takes into account the soil type in different districts of the country and available nutrient in the soil. It takes into consideration the crop and cropping season in calculating the nutrient requirement. In some cases, it takes care of even different available varieties of main crops. Finally, the system converts the nutrient data into the quantities of main fertilizers-urea, MOP and SSP that are required to be used by the farmer.
This system is presently available district-wise for these 11 states: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

Monday, August 13, 2012

London Olympics 2012 Medals Tally





Country Gold Silver Bronze Total
USA 46 29 29 104

China 38 27 22 87

Great Britain 29 17 19 65

Russia 24 25 33 82

Republic of Korea 13 8 7 28

Germany 11 19 14 44

France 11 11 12 34

Italy 8 9 11 28

Hungary 8 4 5 17

Australia 7 16 12 35

Japan 7 14 17 38

Kazakhstan 7 1 5 13

Netherlands 6 6 8 20

Ukraine 6 5 9 20

Cuba 5 3 6 14

New Zealand 5 3 5 13

Islamic Republic of Iran 4 5 3 12

Jamaica 4 4 4 12

Czech Republic 4 3 3 10

DPR Korea 4 0 2 6

Spain 3 10 4 17

Brazil 3 5 9 17

Belarus 3 5 5 13

South Africa 3 2 1 6

Ethiopia 3 1 3 7

Croatia 3 1 2 6

Romania 2 5 2 9

Kenya 2 4 5 11

Denmark 2 4 3 9

Poland 2 2 6 10

Azerbaijan 2 2 6 10

Turkey 2 2 1 5

Switzerland 2 2 0 4

Lithuania 2 1 2 5

Norway 2 1 1 4

Canada 1 5 12 18

Sweden 1 4 3 8

Colombia 1 3 4 8

Georgia 1 3 3 7

Mexico 1 3 3 7

Ireland 1 1 3 5

Serbia 1 1 2 4

Argentina 1 1 2 4

Slovenia 1 1 2 4

Tunisia 1 1 1 3

Dominican Republic 1 1 0 2

Trinidad & Tobago 1 0 3 4

Uzbekistan 1 0 3 4

Latvia 1 0 1 2

Algeria 1 0 0 1

Grenada 1 0 0 1

Bahamas 1 0 0 1

Uganda 1 0 0 1

Venezuela 1 0 0 1

India 0 2 4 6

Mongolia 0 2 3 5

Thailand 0 2 1 3

Egypt 0 2 0 2

Slovakia 0 1 3 4

Armenia 0 1 2 3

Belgium 0 1 2 3

Finland 0 1 2 3

Puerto Rico 0 1 1 2

Taipei (Chinese Taipei) 0 1 1 2

Indonesia 0 1 1 2

Estonia 0 1 1 2

Bulgaria 0 1 1 2

Malaysia 0 1 1 2

Gabon 0 1 0 1

Botswana 0 1 0 1

Guatemala 0 1 0 1

Cyprus 0 1 0 1

Portugal 0 1 0 1

Greece 0 0 2 2

Singapore 0 0 2 2

Qatar 0 0 2 2

Republic of Moldova 0 0 2 2

Bahrain 0 0 1 1

Afghanistan 0 0 1 1

Honk Kong, China 0 0 1 1

Tajikistan 0 0 1 1

Saudi Arabia 0 0 1 1

Kuwait 0 0 1 1

Morocco 0 0 1 1

London Olympics 2012 Medal Tally India

Silver
● Vijay Kumar - Shooting (Men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol)
● Sushil Kumar - Wrestling (Men's 66kg Freestyle)
Bronze 
● Saina Nehwal - Badminton (Women's Singles)
● Chungneijang Mery Kom Hmangte - Boxing  [Women's Fly (51kg)]
● Gagan Narang - Shooting (Men's 10m Air Rifle)
● Yogeshwar Dutt - Wrestling (Men's 60kg Freestyle)

Thursday, August 9, 2012

National Population Register: My Identity My Pride


The National Population Register  (NPR) is a comprehensive identity database to be maintained by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India, Ministry of Home Affairs .
As per Section 14A of the Citizenship Act 1955  as amended in 2004, it is compulsory for every citizen of the country to register in the National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC). The creation of the National Population Register (NPR) is the first step towards preparation of the NRIC. Out of the universal dataset of residents, the subset of citizens would be derived after due verification of the citizenship status. Therefore, it is compulsory for all usual residents to register under the NPR.

The objective of creating this identity database is to help in better utilization and implementation of the benefits and services under the government schemes, improve planning and security in the country.
The Government of India has initiated the creation of this database, by collecting specific information of all usual residents in the country during the House listing and Housing Census phase of Census 2011 during April 2010 to September 2010. It is planned that the collected information of the Usual Residency (aged 5 and above) of 17 states and 2 UTs  will now be digitized, and biometric data will be collected from these residents for further integration.

National Register of Indian Citizens
The National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC) will be a Register of citizens of the country. It will be prepared at the local (Village level), sub District (Tehsil/Taluk level), District, State and National level after verifying the details in the NPR and establishing the citizenship of each individual. The NRIC, therefore, would be a sub-set of the NPR.


Mary Kom bagged Bronze in Women Flyweight Boxing at London Olympics 2012

In a bout fought on 8 August 2012 at the Excel Arena, star Indian female Boxer Mary Kom got India its fourth medal in the London Olympics 2012, giving the country its biggest medal haul in the history of modern Olympics. The ace pugilist, however, knocked out of the Olympic Games flyweight (51 kg) semi-finals after she suffered an 11-6 defeat in the hand of Britain’s Nicola Adams.
Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom popularly called Mary Kom or Magnificent Mary got her place secured at London Olympics 2012 after winning 2012 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championship held in Qinhuangdao, China from 9 May to 22 May 2012. There too she had suffered a defeat to Nicola Adams in the quarter-finals.
Kicking off her Olympics campaign on 5 August 2012, Mary Kom had beat Karolina Michalczuk of Poland 19-14 in the in the first round. In the quarter-final, the following day, she defeated Maroua Rahali of Tunisia 15-6, securing one medal for the country. This was the first time when the women boxing event was introduced in the Olympic games.
Born on 1 March 1983 in Kangathei  in Manipur, India, Mary Kom turned professional boxer after her victory in the Manipur state women's boxing championship in 2000. Mary made her international debut at the first AIBA Women's World Boxing Championship held in the United States, where she bagged a silver medal in the 48 kg weight category. Subsequently she won a gold medal in the 45 kg class at the second AIBA Women's WorldBoxing Championship in Turkey in 2002. Kom has total 5 world boxing championship titles in his name.
The government of India had awarded her with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, country’s highest award given to sports persons, in 2009. Besides she was also given the Arjuna Award in 2003 and Padma Shree Award in 2006. She was also appointed the International Boxing Association’s Ambassador for Women’s Boxing in 2009.

Jamaican Sprinter Usain Bolt won Gold in Men’s 100 Meter Race, set Olympic Record

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt won gold in men’s 100 meter race with 9.63 seconds, fastest in the history of Olympics. His compatriot Yohan Blake came second as he took 9.75 second to complete the race. US’ sprinter Justin Gatlin grabbed bronze with 9.79 seconds.
Bolt holds a world record of 9.58 second in 100 meter racing, the record he set at the Berlin World Championships in 2009. With it, he now has the three fastest 100 meters in history next to his name. He is only the second Olympic champion in the 100 meters to defend his title after United State's Carl Lewis.

Saina Nehwal clinched Bronze in Women’s Singles Badminton Event at London Olympics 2012

Indian shuttler Saina Nehawal won India its third medal at London Olympics 2012 after she clinched a bronze in women's singles badminton event played at Wembley Arena on 4 August 2012. Saina bagged the bronze after her Chinese opponent  Xin Wang conceded the match due to a knee injury. Xin Wang was one game point ahead of Saina when she decided to quit the game due to the unbearable pain. Chinese shuttlers Li Xuerui and Wang Yihan won the gold and silver medals respectively.
Saina’s bronze marked India’s third medal at London Olympics 2012 and twelfth individual medal in the history of modern oympics. The previous two medals came in shooting events. While Gagan Narang won India its first bronze in the London Olympics on 30 July 2012, Vijay Kumar clinched silver on 3 August 2012. With this victory, Saina became the second Indian woman after Karanam Malleshwari to win a medal in the history of olympics. Karnam Malleshwari had earned India a bronze in weight lifting event in 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Born in Hisar, Haryana on 17 March 1990, Saina Nehwal turned a professional shuttler in 2006. Year 2008 saw her winning the World Junior Badminton Championships. In 2008 Beijing Olympics she had reached the quarter-finals round becoming the first Indian woman to reach the quarter finals in the Olympic Games. In year 2009, she won the Indonesia Open Title, becoming the first Indian to win a BWF Super Series title. Saina’s career best ranking came in 2010 when she rose to world number two position.
Former Indonesian badminton great Atil Jauhari is the present coach of Saina while, national coach Pullela Gopichand is her mentor.
Saina was awarded with the Arjuna Award in 2009 and Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, the highest award given to a sportsperson in the country, in year 2010. The government of India also conferred Padm Shree, the fourth highest civilian award in India, upon her in 2010.

Saina Nehwal’s Medal Tally
2008: BWF World Junior Championships (Gold)
2009: Indonesia Super Series (Gold)
2009: Indian Open Grand Prix (Gold)
2010: Badminton Asia Championships (Bronze)
2010: Indian Open Grand Prix (Gold)
2010: Singapore Open Super Series (Gold)
2010: Indonesia Open Super Series (Gold)
2010: Commonwealth Games (Gold)
2010: Hong Kong Super Series (Gold)
2011: Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold (Gold)
2011: Malaysia Open Grand Prix Gold (Silver)
2011: Indonesia Open Super Series Premier (Silver)
2012: Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold (Gold)

Vijay Kumar bagged Silver in Olympics 25 Metre Rapid Fire Pistol Event

In a nerve-wracking battle for Olympic medal in the individual 25 metre rapid fire pistol event, Indian shooter Vijay Kumar clinched the silver on 3 August 2012. Kumar hit the target 30 times out of 40 attempts in the series comprising eight rounds of five shots each. Leuris Pupo of Cuba, whi clinced the gold clinched scored 34 out of 40. Chinese marksman Ding Feng bagged the bronze.
Born on 19 August 1985 in Hamirpur district of Himachal Pradesh is presently a Subedar in the Indian Army’s 16th Dogra Regiment. He booked his place at the London Olympics when he won a silver medal at the shooting World Cup in Fort Benning, US in 2011. The persevering shooter has more than 20 international medals and 75 national medals to his credit. He had won 3 gold medals and one silver medal in the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in Delhi. 2006 Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne saw him winning two gold medals in two separate shooting events. In one of the major achievements in 2009 ISSF World Cup held in Beijing he bagged Silver missing the gold by mere 0.1 point. Acknowledging his excellent track record and medal winning performances, the India government awarded him with the Arjuna Award in year 2007.

Gagan Narang won Bronze in the men's 10 meter air rifle event at London Olympics

Ace Indian Shooter won India its first medal in the London Olympics 2012 after he clinched the bronze medal in the men's 10 meter air rifle event on 30 July 2012. While Abhinav Bindra, who had won a gold medal in the Beijing Olympics 2008, failed to qualify for finals and finished sixteenth.
Romania’s shooter Alin George Moldoveanu claimed the gold medal with a total score of 702.1 while Italy's Niccolo Campriani clinched the silver with a score of 701.5. Narang came third with a total score of 701.1.
It was third time when Gagan Narang was participating in Olympics. In previous Athens and Beijing Olympic games he could not turn his performance into medal. This was India’s third medal in shooting events in the history of Olympics. Earlier Rajyawardhan Singh Rathore and Abhinav Bondra had won India silver and Gold medal respectively in 2004 and 2008 olympic games. Narang’s bronze also marked India’s tenth individual medal in the history of Olympic games.
Gagan Narang, who hails from Amritsar in Punjab was conferred with the Padma Shree Award in 2010. Considering his tremendous contribution to the field of sports, in year 2010, Gagan Narang was chosen for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the highest sports award in the country.

First Meeting of the India-CELAC Troika Foreign Ministers was held in New Delhi

First meeting of the India-CELAC Troika foreign ministers was held in New Delhi. The first meeting of the India-CELAC (The Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) Troika foreign ministers was held in New Delhi on 7 August 2012. The CELAC Troika was led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile Alfredo Moreno Charme, the pro-tempore President of CELAC. The Foreign Minister of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro and the Vice Foreign Minister of Cuba, Rogelio Sierra participated in the meeting as members of the Troika. The Indian delegation was led by the External Affairs Minister of India, SM Krishna.
The meeting was held with the objective of strengthening India-CELAC relationship.

Delhi High Court approved the Guidelines for Media Reporting on Children

Delhi High Court approved the guidelines for media reporting on children which stipulates various curbs including that the identity of kids be not revealed under any circumstances while covering stories of sexual offences, elopement and drug abuse.
A committee, appointed by the court in February 2012, had submitted the guidelines before a bench of Acting Chief Justice A K Sikri and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw. The Committee set the guidelines that the media shall ensure that a child's identity is not revealed in any manner, including but not limited to, disclosure of personal information, photographs, school or locality and information of the family including their residential or official address.

Foreign Tourist Arrivals in India Registered 2.1 Percent growth in July 2012

Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India during the Month of July 2012 stood at 5.25 lakh as compared to 5.14 lakh in July 2011 and 4.67 lakh in July 2010. This translated into FTAs growth of 2.1 percent in July 2012 over July 2011 as compared to a growth of 10.1 percent registered in July 2011 over July 2010. FTAs during the period January-July 2012 were 37.62 lakh with a growth of 6.6 percent, as compared to the FTAs of 35.29 lakh with a growth of 10.7 percent during January-July 2011 over the corresponding period of 2010.

Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEE) in the month of July 2012 stood at 8389 crore rupees as compared to 7116 crore rupees in July 2011 and 5444 crore rupees in July 2010. The FEE recorded a 17.9 percent growth in July 2012 over July 2011. FEE from tourism in rupee terms during January-July 2012 stood at 52149 crore rupees with a growth of 23.3 percent, as compared to the FEE of 42279 crore rupees during January-July 2011.
Tourism Ministry presents estimates of Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) and Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEE) from tourism every month on the basis of data received from major airports in the country.

India’s Industrial Output declined to 1.8 Percent in June 2012

India’s industrial output plunged to 1.8 per cent in June 2012 compared to 9.5 per cent growth registered during June 2011. For the first quarter, the index of industrial production (IIP) declined 0.1 per cent against 6.9 per cent growth in the same quarter of fiscal 2011-12. The figure released by the Central Statistics Office of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on 9 August 2012.
Manufacturing sector at -3.2 per cent and mining sector at 0.6 per cent largely hurt the overall IIP growth in June 2012. Manufacturing sector had recorded 11.1 per cent growth and mining sector output declined by 1.4 per cent in June 2011.
The capital goods category recorded a decline of 27.9 per cent in output in June 2012, while, the category had seen a 38.9 percent growth in the same month in 2011.
Basic goods output grew 4.1 per cent in June against 7.8 per cent growth in the June 2011. Growth of Intermediate goods remained unchanged at 1.6 per cent.
Consumer durables witnessed a growth of 9.1 per cent. However, consumer non-durables declined 1 per cent in June against a growth of 4.3 per cent in the same month last year.
Power sector registered a marginal 8.8 per cent growth in June 2012, higher than 8 per cent growth recorded in the same month in 2011.
The weak number of IIP could force Reserve Bank of India to cut policy rates at the next mid-quarter monetary policy review meeting slated for mid-September. Thus far the central bank has been counting on tight monetary policy to keep inflation in check. RBI had left the key policy rates unchanged in its mid-quarterly monetary policy review in July 2012.

Index of Industrial Production (IIP)
(Index of Industrial Production IIP) is compiled using data received form 16 source agencies including Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP); Indian Bureau of Mines; Central Electricity Authority; Joint Plant Committee; Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas; Office of Textile Commissioner; Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals; Directorate of Sugar; Department of Fertilizers; Directorate of Vanaspati, Vegetable Oils & Fats; Tea Board; Office of Jute Commissioner; Office of Coal Controller; Railway Board; Office of Salt Commissioner and Coffee Board.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

DR. Zaidi takes Over as New Election Commissioner


Dr. Syed Nasim Ahmad Zaidi On August 7 assumed the charge as Election Commissioner in the Election Commission of India. He fills the vacancy in the Election Commission caused by the assumption of charge by Sh. V.S. Sampath as the 18th Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) succeeding Dr. S.Y. Quraishi.

Dr. Zaidi superannuated as Civil Aviation Secretary on July 31. Dr. Zaidi had earlier worked as Director-General of Civil Aviation, and was India’s representative in the International Civil Aviation Organisation. He was also the Joint Secretary in the Civil Aviation Ministry, and Commissioner of Bareilly Development Authority.

Union Government approved Relaxation in Policies Related to Transfer of Government Land

The Union Government of India on 2 August 2012 approved relaxation in policies relating to transfer of government land. The objective of the policy is to speed up private-public partnership in the country and to fast-track pending infrastructure projects. The decision will ensure that infrastructure projects are not held up for procedural delays.
A ban was imposed in 2011 on transfer of government-owned land to any entity except in cases where land was to be transferred from one government department to another.This ban however excluded the cases where the land was to be transferred from one government department to another. The policy has also been relaxed for all land transfers from ministries to statutory authorities or PSUs (Public Sector Units).
Besides, the government allowed use and development of railway land by Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA), as per the provisions of Railways Amendment Act, 2005.

SBI CLERKS GENERAL AWARENESS PRACTICE MCQs


1.  The limit of overseas investment in government bonds/securities has been raised
     from $15 billion to _________.
  
     a) $20 billion
     b) $25 billion
     c) $30 billion
     d) $35 billion
     e) None of the above


2.  According to “World Investment Report 2012″, the total FDI inflow in India in
     2011 stood at ________.
     a) $67 billion
     b) $87 billion
     c) $52 billion
     d) $78 billion
     e) None of the above

3.  According to The Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012, India ranks at ____.
     a) 42nd
     b) 36th
     c) 56th 
     d) 53rd
     e) 62nd

4.  Which country tops the overall rankings in The Global Competitiveness Report
     2011-2012?

     a) Sweden
     b) Singapore
     c) Netherland
     d) Switzerland 
     e) None of the above

5. The World Bank Group have entered into an agreement with which among the
     following industrial bodies to establish the India Wildlife Business Council (IWBC)
     to promote tiger and biodiversity conservation for sustainable development?
     a) Industrial Development Bank of India
     b) Indian Industries Association
     c) Confederation of Indian Industry
     d) The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India
     e) None of the above

6.  The country’s first indigenously designed microwave imaging satellite, Radar
      Imaging Satellite  (RISAT-1) was launched by Indian Space Research Organisation
      on April 26, 2012. Which of the following statments about RISAT-1 is/are correct?
      1. The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV C-19 was used to launch RISAT-1.
      2. It has cloud penetrating capability and can imaging even without sunlight.
      3. The RISAT-1 is an advanced C-band Synthetic Aperture Radar Satellite
           working in 5.35 Giga Hertz frequency.
      4. It was launched from Sriharikota located in Rajasthan.
      a) 1 and 2 only
      b) 2 and 3 only
      c) 1, 2and 3 only
      d) 1, 3 and 4 only
      e) All 1, 2, 3 and 4

7.  Who among the following has been appointed as chairman of Expert Committee
     on GAAR for examining issues on General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR)?
     a) Sudhir Gupta
     b) C. Rangarajan
     c) N. Rangachary
     d) Parthasarathi Shome
     e) None of the above

8.  Which of the followings scheme(s) is/are launched by Ministry of Panchayati Raj
     (MoPR)?
      1. Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF)
      2. Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Yojana (RGSY)
      3. Panchayat Mahila Evam Yuva Shakti Abhiyan (PMEYSA)
    a) Only 1     a) Only 2     a) Only 3     a) 2 and 3 only     a) All 1, 2 and 3

9.  Name the person who took oath as the 25th Prime Minister of Pakistan recently?
     a) Yusuf Raza Gilani
     b) Makhdoom Shahbuddin
     c) Hina Rabbani Khar
     d) Raja Pervaiz Ashraf
     e) None of the above

10. Which country became a major non-NATO ally of the United States recently?
      a) Japan
      b) Israel
      c) Pakistan
      d) Newzeland
      e) Afghanistan

11. Jim Yong Kim who assumed the World Bank presidency recently, is the _____
      president of the World Bank Group.
      a) 12th 
      b) 13th
      c) 14th
      d) 15th
      e) None of the above

12. A highly controversial book ‘Beyond the Lines’ is an autobiography written by 
      a) Aravind Adiga
      b) Salman Rushdie
      c) Kuldip Nayyar
      d) Khushwant Singh
      e) Taslima Nasreen

13. Which of the followings recommendations were made by National Commission for
      Women (NCW) in concern to the proposed amendments to the Dowry Prohibition
      Act, 1961?
      1. Amendment to definition of Dowry
      2. Provision for registration of lists of gifts received at the time of marriage.
      3. Penalties for non-maintenance of lists of gifts received at the time of the marriage.
      4. Protection officers appointed under the Protection of Women from Domestic
          Violence Act, 2005 to carry out the duties of the Dowry Prohibition Officers.
      a) 1, 2 and 3 only
      b) 2, 3 and 4 only
      c) 1, 2 and 4 only
      d) 1, 3 and 4 only
      e) All 1, 2, 3 and 4

14. An e-TDS return should be filed under ________ of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
      a) Section 206
      b) Section 205 
      c) Section 208
      d) Section 192
      e) None of the above

15. The e-TDS prepared by the deductor has to be submitted at
      a) TIN Facilitation Centres 
      b) TAN Facilitation Centres
      c) PIN Facilitation Centres
      d) PAN Facilitation Centres
      e) None of the above

16. Which is the largest stock exchange in the world by dollar volume/market value?
      a) Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE)
      b) London Stock Exchange (LSE)
      c) New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
      d) Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE)
      e) None of the above

17. FBI’s two-year investigation project called “Operation Ghost Click” was aimed
      to uncovered a network of
      a) Rogue DNS Servers
      b) Rogue FTP Servers
      c) Rogue Proxy Servers
      d) Rogue HTTP Servers
      e) None of the above

18. Internet’s phone book is :  
      a) ISP
      b) FTP
      c) TCP
      d) DNS
      e) Gopher

19. A collection of infected computers under the control of one or more attackers is:
      a) Bolnet
      b) Botnet
      c) Spybot
      d) Intranet
      e) Web spider

20. Which country ranks at the top in Bt.Cotton cultivation (Area wise)?
      a) USA
      b) Britain 
      c) Russia
      d) China
      e) India

21. According to the ILO, a worker under the following age is a child labourer:
      a) 14 years
      b) 15 years  
      c) 16 years
      d) 17 years
      e) None of the above

22. The largest share (nearly 60 percent) of child labourers is found in
      a) Mining Sector
      b) Service sector
      c) Industrial sector
      d) Agricultural sector 
      e) Construction and contracting sector

23. In which year, ILO establishes the International Programme on the Elimination of
      Child Labour (IPEC)?
      a) 1990 
      b) 1991
      c) 1992
      d) 1994
      e) None of the above

24. Alan Isaac has recently been elected as new President of
      a) ICC 
      b) WWF
      c) AITA
      d) FIFA
      e) FIDE

25. Which of the following terms is NOT associated with the game of Cricket?
      a) LBW
      b) DRS
      c) Duck
      d) Cow Corner
      e) None of above

26.  Which of the following banks removes minimum balance stipulations for Saving Bank
     accounts recently?

     a) SBI
     b) PNB
     c) OBC
     d) HDFC
     e) ICICI

27.  Which of the following statements correctly define the meaning of reverse repo rate?
     a) The rate at which apex bank RBI lends money to commercial banks.
     b) The rate at which the apex bank RBI borrows money from commercial banks.
     c) The amount of funds that the commercial banks have to keep with the RBI.
     d) The rate at which apex bank RBI allows finance to commercial banks.
     e) None of the above

28.  Which is the name of new air station opened by Indian Navy at Campbell bay recently,
      to keep an eagle eye on China’s strategic moves in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR)?
     a) INS Baaz
     b) INS Eagle
     c) INS Garuda
     d) INS Prahar
     e) None of the above

29.  The government of India has decided to permit a citizen of Pakistan or any entity
     incorporated in Pakistan to make investments in India under government route.
     Pakistani citizens and companies will be allowed to invest in all sectors other than
     a) Space
     b) Defence
     c) Atomic Energy
     d) Both (a) & (c)
     e) All (a), (b) & (c)

30. According to the latest edition of Forbes magazine, which of the following oil and gas
      companies became the world’s most profitable company in 2011?

      a) ONGC
      b) Areva
      c) Aramco
      d) Gazprom
      e) ExxonMobil

31.  Which computing giant has recently posted its first ever loss since becoming a public
       company 26 years ago?
      a) IBM
      b) Apple
      c) Google
      d) Facebook
      e) Microsoft

32. Which city ranks at the top in India City Competitiveness Report-2012, compiled
      by the Institute for Competitiveness (IFC) recently?
      a) Delhi
      b) Mumbai
      c) Chennai
      d) Banglore
      e) Hyderabad

33. A Committee was constituted under the Chairmanship of Dr. Mihir Shah, Member,
      Planning Commission for suggesting revisions to

      a) SABLA Operational Guidelines
      b) MGNREGA Operational Guidelines
      c) JNNURM  Operational Guidelines
      d) Swavalamban Operational Guidelines
      e) None of the above
 
34. India’s first ever bio toilets developed by DRDO, has been launched in which of
      the following States?
     a) Bihar
     b) Kerala
     c) Gujarat
     d) Rajasthan
     e) Odisha

35. India’s largest industrial solar power plant became operational in
      a) Punjab 
      b) Gujarat
      c) Rajasthan
      d) Maharashtra
      e) None of the above

36. The Andmans and Nicobars are separated by
      e) Coco Channels
      b) Great Channles
      c) Ten Degree Channles
      d) Duncan Passage
      e) None of the above

37. The Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission was launched by the Indian
      government in
      a) 2008
      b) 2009
      c) 2010
      d) 2011
      e) None of the above

38. Shri Pranab Mukherjee took oath as India’s ________ president.
      a) 13th
      b) 14th
      c) 15th
      d) 16th
      e) None of the above

39. Who administers the oath of office to the president of India?
      a) Prime Minister
      b) Lok Sabha Speaker
      c) Chairman of Rajya Sabha
      d) Chief Justice of India
      e) None of the above

40. Who won the first gold medal of the 2012 London Olympic Games?
      a) Yu Dan
      b) Yi Siling
      c) Katrina Emmons
      d) Sylwia Bogacka
      e) None of the above

41. India’s flag- bearer at opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic Games was
      a) Sushil Kumar
      b) Gagan Narang
      c) Leander Paes
      d) Saina Nehwal
      e) None of the above

42. Google Fibre, an ultra-high speed internet service offers
      a) 10Mbps download and upload speeds
      b) 100Mbps download and upload speeds
      c) 500Mbps download and upload speeds
      d) 1Gbps download and upload speeds
      e) None of the above

43. The annual Amarnath yatra to Holy Amarnath Cave is organized every year by the
      a) Tamilnadu State Government
      b) Jammu & Kashmir State Government
      c) Maharashtra State Government
      d) Karanatka State Government
      e) None of the above

44. Amarnath Yatra is a pride for Hindu devotees who have faith in
      e) Lord Vishnu
      b) Lord Krishna
      c) Lord Shiva
      d) Lord Brahma
      e) None of the above

45. Which of the following statements is/are correct about ‘Amarnath yatra’?
      1. A person cannot take Amarnath Yatra without taking the permission from
         Government of India.
      2. A prior Amarnath Yatra registration is must.
      3. Helicopter can be used to go Amarnath Cave.
      a) Only 1    
       b) Only 2    
      c) Only 3    
      d) 1 and 2 Only    
       e) All 1, 2 and 3

46.  Which is the projected target of power generation for the Twelfth Five Year Plan?
     a) 72,864 MW
     b) 75,785 MW
     c) 78,385 MW
     d) 76,765 MW
     e) None of the above


47.  The Working Group on Power constituted by Planning Commission for formulation
     of the 12th Five Year Plan has estimated total fund requirement of __________ for
     the power sector during the 12th Plan.
     a) Rs.15,35,765 Crore
     b) Rs.12,42,543 Crore
     c) Rs.13,72,580 Crore
     d) Rs.18,64,382 Crore
     e) None of the above

48.  To what percent of the country’s population, the National Food Security Bill, 2011
     confers a legal right to cheaper food grains?
     a) 63.5 per cent
     b) 65.0 per cent
     c) 70.5 per cent
     d) 75.0 per cent
     e) None of the above

49.  The contribution by the IT sector in India’s GDP has increased from 6.4% in the
     year 2008 to _______in year 2012.

     a) 6.8%
     b) 7.2%
     c) 7.5%
     d) 8.2%
     e) None of the above

50.  In the first quarter review of monetary policy of FY 2012-13, RBI cut the statutory
     liquidity ratio (SLR) by a percentage point to ease the flow of credit to industry.
     Consider the follwoing statements about SLR:
     1. SLR is the amount of deposits banks park in government bonds/securities.
     2. The maximum limit of SLR has been reduced from 24% to 23%.
     3. SLR ensures that banks do not provide all the deposits as loan.
     Which of the above statements is/are correct?
     a) Only 1
     b) Only 2
     c) 1 and 2 only
     d) 1 and 3 only
     e) All 1, 2 and 3