1. India’s first automobile in-plant railway siding project was inaugurated in which state?
(A) Himachal Pradesh
(B) Haryana
(C) Uttar Pradesh
(D) Gujarat
(E) Tamil Nadu
Solution: Option D.)
Ans (D)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated India’s first automobile in-plant railway siding project at Maruti Suzuki India’s plant in Hansalpur, Gujarat.
This railway siding project is a collaborative initiative between Maruti and Gujarat Rail Infrastructure Development (G-RIDE).
2. Which Union Minister launched the credit assistance program for Jan Aushadhi Kendras?
(A) Dr Mansukh Mandaviya
(B) Smriti Irani
(C) Anurag Thakur
(D) Giriraj Singh
(E) Narendra Modi
Solution: Option A.)
Ans (A)
Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers and Health and Family Welfare, Dr Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated a loan assistance program for Jan Aushadhi Kendras.
Under this, an agreement was also signed between the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Bureau of India (PMBI).
He also launched a website related to it.
3. With whom has SBI partnered for its transaction banking platform?
(A) Google
(B) Rogerpay
(C) Aurionpro
(D) Meta
(E) Amazon
Solution: Option C.)
Ans (C)
State Bank of India (SBI) has entered into an agreement with Aurionpro Solutions for the license and operation of the cash management and transaction banking platform iCashpro+.
This deal, worth approximately Rs 100 crore, includes license and maintenance for 6 years.
Aurionpro’s iCashpro+ is based on advanced cloud technology and microservices.
4. India recently signed an agreement with which country to establish a Joint Economic and Trade Committee.
(A) Kenya
(B) South Africa
(C) Argentina
(D) Spain
(E) Dominican Republic
Solution: Option E.)
Ans (E)
India has recently signed the protocol for the establishment of the Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) with the Dominican Republic.
The Union Cabinet had approved the proposal to sign the said protocol for the establishment of JETCO on January 24 this year.
The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean nation.
5. According to the SIPRI report, which country is the world’s top arms importer between 2019 2023?
(A) China
(B) Pakistan
(C) India
(D) Iran
(E) Ukraine
Solution: Option C.)
Ans (C)
According to the latest data from Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), India is the world’s top arms importer between 2019-2023.
Between 2019 and 2023, India imported 9.8% of total global arms imports.
After India, there are Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Ukraine, Pakistan, Japan, Egypt, Australia, South Korea and China.
There is an international institute located in ‘Sipri’.
It was established in the year 1966.
6. Where did PM Modi lay the foundation stone of India’s first commercial semiconductor fabrication service?
(A) Punjab
(B) Gujarat
(C) Rajasthan
(D) Uttar Pradesh
(E) Haryana
Solution: Option B.)
Ans (B)
PM Modi laid the foundation stone of Tata-Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp’s chip fabrication unit in Dholera Gujarat.
This will be India’s first commercial semiconductor fabrication service. This includes three projects worth more than Rs 1.25 lakh crore.
The capacity of the Dholera unit will be 50,000 wafer starts per month.
7. Recently inaugurated the regional airline service Fly91 connects which island of Lakshadweep to Goa?
(A) Agatti
(B) Kavaratti
(C) Amini
(D) Kadmat
(E) Kiltan
Solution: Option A.)
Ans (A)
Union Civil Aviation and Steel Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia inaugurated Fly91, a regional airline service, and flagged off the first flight between Manohar International Airport in Goa and the Agatti Islands of Lakshadweep.
Airline Fly91 will start commercial services on March 18.
Fly91 is a Goa-based airline, its MD and CEO is Manoj Chacko.
8. Where is the largest mass burial of plague victims ever found in Europe discovered?
(A) Lund, Sweden
(B) Nuremberg, Germany
(C) Haugesund, Norway
(D) Jyväskylä, Finland
(E) Moscow, Russia
Solution: Option B.)
Ans (B)
The largest mass burial of plague victims ever found in Europe has been discovered in Nuremberg, Germany.
Archaeologists found over 1,500 skeletons of plague victims in mass graves during excavations preceding the construction of a retirement home.
This discovery is significant and is likely to be the largest mass burial of plague victims in Europe.
The burial pits were identified to be established around the first half of the 17th century, although precise dating is pending.
Radiocarbon dating indicates that the older group of remains dates back to the 1632-1633 epidemic, possibly involving nearly 2,000 people buried near St Sebastian Spital in Nuremberg.
9. Which state government has announced an extra 10 days of casual leave per year for women government employees?
(A) Odisha
(B) Tripura
(C) Assam
(D) Kerala
(E) Bihar
Solution: Option A.)
Ans (A)
The government of Odisha announced an extra 10 days of casual leave per year for women government employees.
This decision was made to address the domestic responsibilities and other challenges faced by women employees.
With the addition of 10 extra leaves, women government employees in Odisha will now have a total of 25 days of casual leave annually.
Odisha was also the first state to announce 33 percent reservation for women in government jobs during the 90’s, showcasing its commitment to women’s empowerment in the workforce.
10. What is the name of the newly discovered scorpion species that has eight eyes and eight legs, found in Thailand?
(A) Euscorpiops Thailandicus
(B) Euscorpiops Mountainensis
(C) Euscorpiops Krachan
(D) Euscorpiops Timbaktu
(E) Euscorpiops Asthenurus
Solution: Option C.)
Ans (C)
The newly discovered scorpion species is named Euscorpiops Krachan.
It belongs to the subgenus Euscopiops and was found during a wildlife expedition in the Kaeng Krachan National Park, Thailand.
The species was discovered by a team of researchers camping near the Tenasserim Mountain Range.
Euscorpiops Krachan has distinctive features, including eight eyes and eight legs, and is brownish in color.
It is believed to employ ambush or sit-and-wait type of foraging strategies while hunting.
The discovery highlights the need for further exploration in unexplored areas of Thailand to uncover more species.