General Awareness Quiz for Bank Mains Exams 2024-20th March

Q1. Considering the recent data on India’s coking coal imports and its position in the global steel industry, which statement best reflects the current scenario?
(a) India’s coking coal imports have significantly decreased in the April-November period of the current fiscal year.
(b) Russia has recently become the primary supplier of coking coal to India, surpassing Australia and Indonesia.
(c) For the April-November period of this fiscal year, India’s coking coal imports reached a five-year high at 38.14 million tonnes, with Russia emerging as the third largest supplier.
(d) Despite being the largest importer of coking coal, India predominantly relies on domestic supplies for its crude steel production.
(e) Canada and Mozambique continue to be the leading suppliers of coking coal to India, even in the current fiscal year.

Q2. Given the recent announcement of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics, which trio of scientists was honored for their pioneering contributions to the field, specifically for their development of experimental methods that create attosecond pulses of light, a breakthrough enabling the study of electron dynamics in matter?
(a) Donna Strickland, Gérard Mourou, and Arthur Ashkin
(b) Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel, and Andrea Ghez
(c) Barry Barish, Kip Thorne, and Rainer Weiss
(d) Pierre Agostini, Ferenc Krausz, and Anne L’Huillier
(e) James Peebles, Michel Mayor, and Didier Queloz

Q3. Which foundation has partnered with the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to set up a Technical Support Unit for facilitating climate action in India’s agriculture, natural resources, and rural development sector?
(a) The Rockefeller Foundation
(b) The Ford Foundation
(c) The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
(d) The MacArthur Foundation
(e) The Carnegie Foundation

Q4. What is India’s position in the global sugar market?
(a) Largest consumer and largest producer
(b) Second largest consumer and largest producer
(c) Third largest consumer and largest producer
(d) Second largest consumer and second largest producer
(e) Largest consumer and second largest producer

Q5. Which event related to the Santali community did President Droupadi Murmu attend in the Mayurbhanj district, Odisha, in November 2023?
(a) The foundation ceremony for the Santali Cultural Centre
(b) The inauguration of the Santali Language Research Institute
(c) The 36th Annual Conference and Literary Festival of All India Santali Writers Association
(d) The launch of the Santali Folk Art and Craft Exhibition
(e) The opening of the Santali Tribal Heritage Museum

Q6. What are the names of the two domestically produced sophisticated cruise missiles recently added to Iran’s naval arsenal, which have arrived at a naval base near the Indian Ocean in the southern Iranian port of Konarak?
(a) Ghadir and Qader
(b) Talaeieh and Nasir
(c) Emad and Sejjil
(d) Fajr and Zulfiqar
(e) Noor and Raad

Q7. As part of the GOBARdhan scheme aimed at promoting natural farming, the Indian government plans to establish a significant number of Bio-Input Resource Centres across the country. How many Bio-Input Resource Centres are to be set up as per the recent announcement?
(a) 5,000
(b) 7,500
(c) 10,000
(d) 12,500
(e) 15,000

Q8. Which Indian badminton player is listed as the sole representative of her country in the Forbes World’s Highest-Paid Female Athletes list for 2023, ranking at number 16 alongside USA Gymnastics star Simone Biles?
(a) Saina Nehwal
(b) Jwala Gutta
(c) P.V. Sindhu
(d) Ashwini Ponnappa
(e) Aparna Popat

Q9. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued regulations for entities operating as Payment Aggregators – Cross Border (PA-CB), focusing on online cross-border export/import transactions. As per the RBI’s circular, what is the minimum net worth required for non-bank entities providing PA-CB services at the time of application for authorization?
(a) Rs 5 crore
(b) Rs 10 crore
(c) Rs 20 crore
(d) Rs 15 crore
(e) Rs 25 crore

Q10. The Sony Sports Network has recently made a significant announcement regarding its brand ambassador for football, selecting a renowned Bollywood actor for the role. Who has been chosen to represent the sport in this capacity?
(a) Ranveer Singh
(b) Kartik Aaryan
(c) Varun Dhawan
(d) Ayushmann Khurrana
(e) Siddharth Malhotra

Solutions

S1. Ans. (c)
Sol. The correct answer is (c) For the April-November period of this fiscal year, India’s coking coal imports reached a five-year high at 38.14 million tonnes, with Russia emerging as the third largest supplier.
Details:

• This statement is factual, reflecting India’s status as the second largest producer of crude steel globally and its reliance on imports for coking coal, with a notable increase in imports from Russia.
• Other options present incorrect facts or misinterpretations of India’s coking coal import trends and supplier dynamics.
• Options (a), (b), (d), and (e) are inconsistent with the provided information regarding the volume of imports, the ranking of suppliers, and the reliance on domestic versus imported coking coal.

S2. Ans. (d)
Sol. The correct answer is (d) Pierre Agostini, Ferenc Krausz, and Anne L’Huillier.
Details:

• These esteemed scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2023 for their innovative work in generating attosecond pulses of light, enhancing the understanding of electron dynamics in matter.

S3. Ans. (c)
Sol. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has partnered with Nabard and ADB to establish a Technical Support Unit.
Details:

• Nabard and ADB team up, aided by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to tackle climate challenges in India’s agriculture and rural sectors.
• They establish a Technical Support Unit at Nabard to address climate change threats, emphasizing resilience, as 55% of Indian banking assets face climate risks.

S4. Ans. (e)
Sol. India has been the largest consumer and second-largest producer of sugar in the world.
Details:

• With about 15% share in global sugar consumption and about 20% production of sugar, Indian sugar trends affect the global markets profusely.
• This leading position makes India as the most suitable nation to lead the International Sugar Organisation (ISO) which is the apex international body on sugar and related products having about 90 countries as members.

S5. Ans. (c)
Sol. President Droupadi Murmu attended the 36th Annual Conference and Literary Festival of the All India Santali Writers Association at Bripada, in Mayurbhanj district, Odisha.
Details:

• This event highlights the importance of cultural and literary celebrations in preserving and promoting the Santali language and literature, which is a crucial aspect of India’s diverse cultural heritage.

S6. Ans. (b)
Sol. The Talaeieh and Nasir cruise missiles are the names of the two sophisticated domestically produced cruise missiles recently added to Iran’s navy.
Details:

• Iran’s navy added domestically produced sophisticated cruise missiles to its arsenal.
• Talaeieh and Nasir cruise missiles have arrived at a naval base near the Indian Ocean in the southern Iranian port of Konarak, some 1,400 kilometers (850 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran.

S7. Ans. (c)
Sol. In a recent announcement under the GOBARdhan scheme, the Indian government has proposed the establishment of 10,000 Bio-Input Resource Centres.
Details:

• 500 new ‘waste to wealth’ plants under GOBARdhan (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan) scheme to be established for promoting circular economy at total investment of Rs 10,000 crore.
• 5 per cent compressed biogas mandate to be introduced for all organizations marketing natural and bio gas.
• Centre to facilitate one crore farmers to adopt natural farming over the next three years.
• For this, 10,000 Bio-Input Resource Centres to be set-up, creating a national-level distributed micro-fertilizer and pesticide manufacturing network.

S8. Ans. (c)
Sol. P.V. Sindhu, the renowned Indian badminton player, has made it to the Forbes World’s Highest-Paid Female Athletes list for the year 2023.
Details:

• She is the only athlete from India to be featured in this prestigious list, securing the 16th position.
• Sindhu comes in at number 16, jointly with the United States of America Gymnastics star Simone Biles, with her off-filed partnerships carrying the brunt of her 2023 earnings.

S9. Ans. (d)
Sol. According to the RBI’s circular, non-banking entities that wish to provide PA-CB services are required to maintain a minimum net worth of Rs 15 crore at the time of submitting their application for authorization to the RBI.
Details:

• RBI has decided to regulate entities facilitating payment and settlement for online cross-border export /import transactions as Payment Aggregators – Cross Border (PA-CB) under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act.

S10. Ans. (b)
Sol. Kartik Aaryan, a popular Bollywood actor, has been named as the brand ambassador for football by the Sony Sports Network.