- Which of the following countries is/are part of the Afghan quad group?
(A) US
(B) Afghanistan
(C) Pakistan
(D) All of these
Answers With Explanation : (D) The US, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan have agreed in principle to establish a new quadrilateral diplomatic platform focused on enhancing regional connectivity. The parties consider long-term peace and stability in Afghanistan critical to regional connectivity and agree that peace and regional connectivity are mutually reinforcing.
- Reserve Bank of India has barred which of the following foreign cards?
(A) Mastercard
(B) American Express
(C) Diners Club
(D) All of these
Answers With Explanation : (D) Reserve Bank of India has barred Mastercard, American Express and Diners Club from taking new customers on board over the issue of storing data in India. The RBI imposed restrictions on Mastercard Asia Pacific Pte Ltd from onboarding new domestic customers (debit, credit or prepaid) in India from July 22, citing non-compliance with guidelines for storage of data in India.
- In which of the following states EWS reservation is being implemented?
(A) Odisha
(B) Karnataka
(C) Uttar Pradesh
(D) Andhra Pradesh
Answers With Explanation : (D) The state government of Andhra Pradesh has issued orders for implementation of 10 per cent EWS reservation in all government recruitments henceforth. The order is in accordance with The Constitution (103rd) Amendment Act 2019 that provides for the creation of the special EWS quota to be implemented by the state.
- Which of the following space agency returned the Hubble Space Telescope to Science Operations?
(A) ISRO
(B) NASA
(C) JAXA
(D) SpaceX
Answers With Explanation : (B) NASA returned the science instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope to operational status, and the collection of science data will now resume. The Hubble, launched in 1990, is considered by many to be the most important scientific tool ever to be built, having churned out more than 15 lakh observations that have been used to publish around 18,000 research papers.
- Salma Dam, recently seen in news, is located in which country?
(A) Pakistan
(B) Nepal
(C) Afghanistan
(D) Bangladesh
Answers With Explanation : (C) India faces a situation in which it may have no role to play in Afghanistan, and in the worst case scenario, not even a diplomatic presence, as the Taliban push ahead with military offensives across Afghanistan. The 42MW Salma Dam in Herat province was inaugurated in 2016 and is known as the Afghan-India Friendship Dam.
- Doppler radar is used to
(A) Determine the military Location
(B) Determine the air objects
(C) Determine the structure of storms
(D) Determine the submarines
Answers With Explanation : (C) The Doppler radar of India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) in Mumbai, which surveys weather patterns and forecast, stopped working recently, when the city was witnessing rainfall. In radars, a beam of energy– called radio waves– is emitted from an antenna. When this beam strikes an object in the atmosphere, the energy scatters in all directions, with some reflecting directly back to the radar.
- Cars with internal combustion engines will disappear from European showrooms by which year?
(A) 2025
(B) 2030
(C) 2035
(D) 2040
Answers With Explanation : (C) The European Commission adopted a package of proposals to make the EU’s climate, energy, land use, transport and taxation policies fit for reducing net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. Cars with internal combustion engines will disappear from European showrooms by 2035. Steel producers and cement makers will pay for every ton of carbon dioxide their factories emit.
- Which of the following Article of the Indian Constitution deals with ‘Dismissal, removal or reduction in rank of persons employed in civil capacities under the Union or a State’?
(A) Article 301
(B) Article 307
(C) Article 311
(D) Article 317
Answers With Explanation : (C) Manoj Sinha, Lt Governor of J&K recently dismissed 11 Jammu and Kashmir government employees for alleged terror links under provisions of Article 311(2)(c) of the Constitution. Article 311 of the Constitution deals with ‘Dismissal, removal or reduction in rank of persons employed in civil capacities under the Union or a State’.
- Kanwar Yatra is observed in which state?
(A) Punjab
(B) Gujarat
(C) Mizoram
(D) Uttar Pradesh
Answers With Explanation : (D) The Supreme Court has asked the Uttar Pradesh government to reconsider its decision to allow “symbolic” Kanwar Yatra in the state this year. The Kanwar Yatra is a pilgrimage organised in the Hindu calendar month of Shravana (Saavan).
- In which state Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is located?
(A) Assam
(B) Bihar
(C) Kerala
(D) Karnataka
Answers With Explanation : (C) The recent attempt of Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR) to reintroduce into the wild an abandoned nine-month-old cub named Mangala after rearing it in ‘captivity’ for two years has once again brought the controversial concept of ‘re-wilding’ of abandoned or injured animals under the lens. Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, wildlife Preserve in south-central Kerala state, southern India. The sanctuary is noted for herds of Asian elephants, sometimes having 50 members.
