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General Awareness Updates (February 2015)

GA Updates (February 2015) Page : 1

IOB bond issue to raise Rs.1,000 crore Indian Overseas Bank has said it has planned to raise up to Rs.1,000 crore through a bond issue to augment additional Tier-I capital and overall capital of the Bank. It has launched an issue of unsecured, non-convertible, additional Tier – I, Basel III Compliant Perpetual Bonds to the extent of Rs.1,000 crore including a green shoe option of Rs.300 crore. The Bond will have a face value of Rs.10 lakh and carry a coupon rate of 10 per cent payable annually. The Bond issue was opened on January 23 for subscription and would close on February 4. India, China emerging as biggest trading partners with GCC countries India and China are emerging as the biggest trading partners with Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries ahead of other regions. India-GCC bilateral trade has crossed $160 billion. The region is India’s principal energy source and a major trade, investments and joint venture partner. It also contributes to around 40 percent of the annual remittances by the expatriates. The report titled, GCC Trade and Investment Flows, by the Economist Intelligence Unit shows that GCC exports to India registered annual growth of 43% over the last decade. Indian membership of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce rose by 41% between 2009 and 2012, more than 26,000 companies have been registered in Dubai now. The report says that India is the third-largest investor in the United Arab Emirates. It sums up there is ample scope for broadening of trade and investment ties between India and GCC. India reclaims leading position in gold consumption India reclaimed its position as the leading consumer of gold in 2014 with an estimated 880 tonnes against the erstwhile leader China’s 866 tonnes. An industry report by GFMS analysts at Thomson Reuters said that this was amidst global demand for gold declining 18.7 per cent in 2014. Indian jewellery fabrication demand rose by 14 per cent to a record 690 tonnes in 2014 with most of the growth occurring during the third and fourth quarters of 2014 “as retailers restocked when local premia eased and gold prices fell.’’ Reliance Industries, Aditya Birla, Future Group in race for niche bank licences Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd and Kishore Biyani’s Future Group have sought permission from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to set up payments banks. Bharti Airtel was the first business house to announce its payments bank plan with Kotak Mahindra as a partner. RIL said it will partner with State Bank of India to float a payment bank. It will be the promoter and SBI will be the joint venture partner with equity investment of up to 30 per cent. The payments bank will leverage SBI’s nationwide distribution network and risk management capabilities alongwith the substantial investments made by RIL in its retail and telecom businesses. RBI rules say that payment banks would not be allowed to undertake lending activities. The proposed niche banking entities will initially be restricted to holding a maximum balance of Rs 1 lakh per individual customer. They will be allowed to issue ATM/debit cards as also other prepaid payment instruments, but not the credit cards. RBI cuts SLR by 50 basis points to provide liquidity In an attempt to provide more liquidity to the banking system, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has reduced the Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) by 50 basis points to 21.50 per cent from 22 per cent with effect from February 7. This is likely to pump in around Rs.45,000 crore to the system, which is likely to prod banks to cut their lending rates. The RBI kept the short-term policy rate (repo rate) unchanged at 7.75 per cent, which the central bank had reduced by 25 basis points from 8 per cent on January 15. It also maintained status quo in the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 4 per cent. The SLR is the portion of deposits banks are required to hold in the form of gold or government securities before providing credit to customers. The repo rate is the rate at which the central bank lends money to banks. CRR is the portion of total deposits of customers, which commercial banks have to hold as reserves either in cash or as deposits with the central bank.

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RBI raises forex limit The central bank has doubled the amount of foreign exchange that an individual can remit in a year under a scheme that allows asset purchase outside India. An individual can now remit up to $250,000 a year under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, which was started in 2004 with a view to simplify foreign exchange avenues available to Indians. This is the second time the limit has been raised since a drastic 62.5 per cent cut in the limit to $75,000 in August 2013, when the RBI was fighting hard to stem the free fall in rupee against the dollar. The conditions are far different this time. The rupee has strengthened against the dollar in 2015. RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan noted other positives, including on managing inflation, the growth pick-up as well as a low current account deficit. Bank of Maharashtra launches MahaMobile Bank of Maharashtra launched its new mobile banking app — MahaMobile, which will enable the bank’s customers to view all their deposit and loan accounts, do fund transfers, bill payments and raise a variety of service requests on their mobile anytime, anywhere. Any Bank of Maharashtra customer, with a debit card and registered mobile number, can register for this facility even without visiting the branch. The app is available for download on all the major app stores. FMC issues norms for implementing provisions of PML Act In a bid to prevent money laundering and to combat financing terrorism, the Forward Markets Commission-FMC has issued guidelines for commodity markets. The FMC circular issued in Mumbai gives directions to bourses and their members relating to implementation of the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering (PML) Act 2002. As per the circular, the FMC has asked commexes to maintain all records of transactions and preserve information related to nature, amount, date and parties of transactions. FMC has further asked intermediaries to designate a director and principal officer for monitoring and reporting of all transactions and sharing of information as required under the PML Act. In February 2013, commodity exchanges and their members were brought under the ambit of the Prevention of Money Laundering (PML) Act 2002. Liquidity mismatch forces RBI to intervene A liquidity mismatch in the banking system prompted the RBI to step in and offer a two-day window to banks to tide over the situation. The rates in the collateralized borrowing and lending obligation (CBLO) a facility through which banks can adjust their liquidity position jumped to a record 76%. Because of this, the RBI intervened a day later by opening a half-hour window, a highly unusual step. The RBI said that it would conduct an additional marginal standing facility (MSF) a liquidity adjustment mechanism. 1,195 Indians have accounts in HSBC bank A cache of secret bank files shows that HSBC's Swiss banking arm helped wealthy customers avoid taxes and hide millions of dollars, according to a report by a network of investigative journalists. The files, analyzed by reporters in the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), showed that British banking giant HSBC provided accounts to international criminals, corrupt businessmen, politicians and celebrities. The files list a range of former and current politicians from Britain, Russia, India and a range of African countries, Saudi, Bahraini, Jordanian and Moroccan royalty, and the late Australian press magnate Kerry Packer.

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GDP growth estimated at 7.4% for 2014-15, Oct-Dec growth at 7.5% The Indian economy is forecast to grow 7.4% in 2014-15 after a robust 7.5% expansion in the October-December quarter, overtaking China as one of the fastest growing major economies but the data surprised economists. Data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) showed the economy is expected to grow faster than previous fiscal's 6.9% and above the expected 5.5% growth under the old series. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had forecast that the India will outpace China's growth in 2016-17. Govt to infuse Rs. 6,990 crore in nine public sector banks Government will infuse Rs. 6,990 crore in nine public sector banks including SBI, Bank of Baroda (BoB) and Punjab National Bank (PNB) for enhancing their capital and meeting global risk norms. This is the first tranche of capital infusion for which the government had allocated Rs. 11,200 crore in the budget for 2014-15. Among the beneficiaries, SBI leads the pack with a capitalization of Rs. 2,970 crore, followed by BoB Rs. 1,260, PNB Rs. 870 crore and Canara Bank Rs. 570 crore. Govt. gives Gauri Shankar additional charge of PNB MD The Union government gave additional charge of Managing Director and CEO of Punjab National Bank to Gauri Shankar, senior most executive director at the bank. He has been entrusted the additional charge with immediate effect. ICICI Bank launches digital service ‘Pockets’ ICICI Bank has launched the first digital bank in the country, ‘Pockets’, on a mobile phone. Anyone, including those who are not ICICI Bank customers, can easily download the e-wallet from Google Playstore, fund it from any bank account, and start transacting immediately. This wallet uses a virtual Visa card, which enables the users to transact on any website or mobile application in India. Customers can also request for a physical card to use it at any retail outlet. The wallet allows users to instantly send money to any e-mail id, mobile number, friends on Facebook and bank account. The limit for transaction is of worth Rs.10,000, if it is not linked to a savings account of ICICI Bank. NCDEX to upgrade trading system Commodities and derivatives exchange NCDEX has selected MillenniumIT as its partner for scaling up its trading and surveillance system for futures and forwards segments. The new system — NextGen — will provide enhanced functionality, enable additional products and offer trendsetting speed by NCDEX. MillenniumIT is the leading ultralow-latency technology provider and part of the London Stock Exchange group. Mahindra & Mahindra to acquire Pipavav Defence in Rs 3,000-crore deal Mahindra & Mahindra, one of India's largest diversified conglomerates, will purchase a majority stake in Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering (PDOE) for roughly Rs 3,000 crore at Rs 66 a share in a three-phase deal. Along with debt of around Rs 6,800 crore and fresh equity that will be issued, the deal is seen as having an enterprise value of Rs 12,000 crore. In the first phase, Mahindra Defence Systems (MDS), which supplies various types of launchers for ships, along with systems and components to customers other than the Indian Navy, will purchase a 19% stake in Pipavav Defence from the founders, Chairman Nikhil Gandhi and his younger brother and Managing Director Bhavesh Gandhi, who own about 45% of the company.

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Reliance Power to set up solar projects in Rajasthan Reliance Power and the Rajasthan Government have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop 6,000 MW of solar power projects in the State in the next ten years. The Chief Minister also dedicated to the nation the company’s 100 MW concentrated solar power (CSP) project, located at the Dhirubhai Ambani Solar Park at Pokaran in Jaisalmer district. The park is the integrated utility-scale solar power generation complex, comprising CSP and photo voltaic (PV) plants. This is also the largest plant in the world based on compact linear fresnel technology (CLFR). The state-of-the-art CLFR technology for the project is provided by Areva Solar, the U.S. subsidiary of AREVA SA of France, which is having minimal environmental spill, lesser land requirement, and is more efficient than other solar thermal technologies available. Reserve Bank to bring back currency note of one rupee denomination After a gap of almost two decades, the Reserve Bank is all set to bring back the currency note of one rupee denomination. An RBI press release issued from Mumbai has informed that the notes, to be printed by the Government of India will soon be back into circulation. The government had discontinued printing of one rupee notes in November 1994 due to higher printing costs. These currency notes are legal tender as provided in The Coinage Act 2011. The note will contain the bilingual signature of Rajiv Mehrishi, Finance Secretary. Achievers call for responsible corporate rivalry at 3rd ET Bengal Awards The ITC chairman was conferred with this year's Indian Visionary Business Leader award. The third edition of ET Bengal Corporate Awards had 16 awards which were conferred on the companies and corporate personalities for their outstanding achievements. Awards were presented in six categories, best financial performance, highest job creator, fastest growth, Innovation in business, lifetime achievement award and Indian visionary business leader award. Age limit under EPFO pension scheme may be raised to 60 Retirement fund body EPFO's trustees will consider a proposal to raise the age limit from 58 to 60 years for vesting of pension under the Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS-95). At present, a formal sector worker covered under the EPS-95 can make contributions towards pension scheme till the age of 58 years and can claim pension after that. The pension implementation committee (PIC) has recommended an increase in the age for vesting pension to 60 years, while suggesting that the actuary should be asked to develop a model to give incentive to those persons who opt for drawing pension at the age of 60 years. At present, members can ask for fixing pension at attaining the age of 50 years provided they have served for at least 10 years. Yes Bank launches green infrastructure bond Yes Bank would raise Rs.500 crore with a greenshoe option through an issue of green infrastructure bonds. The bonds are for a tenor of ten years. The amount raised would be used by the bank to finance green infrastructure projects in renewable energy and energy efficiency projects including solar power, wind power, biomass, and small hydel projects. IRDA fines LIC Rs 10 lakh for breaching policy sale norms The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) has fined the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India Rs 10 lakh for lapses in policyholder protection and for breaching statutory limits for investing in a single company. By imposing the penalty, the insurance regulator appears to have hardened its stance on investment limits — norms which were contested by the corporation on the grounds that the LIC Act of 1956 predated the IRDA norms and were more liberal.

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RBI lifts ban on import of gold coins, medallions by banks RBI has lifted the ban on imports of gold coins and medallions by banks and trading houses. RBI said that banks have also been permitted to import gold on consignment basis. The domestic sales will be permitted against upfront payment only. RBI has said that banks are free to grant gold metal loans, adding that Star and Premier Trading Houses can import the metal as per entitlement without any end use restrictions. Gold imports surged by 8.13 per cent year-on-year to 1.55 billion US Dollars in January on easing of restrictions by the RBI. India is the largest importer of gold, which is mainly utilized to meet the demand of jewelry industry. RBI had prohibited imports of gold coins and medallions in August 2013, besides restricting inbound shipments of the metal. RBI had withdrawn certain restrictions on import of the metal on November 28, 2014. NPCI to unveil virtual form of RuPay debit card National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is all set to launch the virtual form of RuPay debit card. NPCI Managing Director and Chief Executive AP Hota said, the pilot of a virtual RuPay card will be in place in the next 4-5 months. The initiative will enable all account-holders send and receive money from their smart-phones with a single identifier which may include the Aadhaar number, mobile number or virtual payment address without entering any bank account information. The physical plastic RuPay card carries a 16-digit number. Under its virtual form, there will be no need of a physical card and a transaction can be done with the help of this 16-digit number alone. Currently, only around 20 per cent of the total transactions of around 8,000 crore rupees are taking place through IMPS or immediate payment service per month. NPCI is the nodal agency for all retail payment systems under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana. EPFO launches online help desk to trace inoperative accounts With a balance of Rs 27,000 crore lying in inoperative PF accounts, retirement fund body EPFO has set up an online help desk for subscribers to trace such accounts and seek final settlement. There are about 8.15 crore inoperative provident fund accounts. The new scheme, which would significantly streamline the process, would be launched in a month or so. Using the help desk, holders of the inoperative accounts can trace their accounts and go in for either settlement or transfer of PF to their present accounts. The inoperative accounts are those accounts wherein the contribution has not been received for 36 months. EPFO had stopped payment of interest to such accounts from April 1, 2011. UK banks to use fingerprint as passwords Account holders of two of Britain's largest banks - Royal Bank of Scotland and NatWest will become the first to log into their accounts using their fingerprint as the password. RBS and NatWest customers will be the first of any UK-based bank to be able to login to their mobile banking app using only their finger print. Using Apple's new Touch ID fingerprint sensor, RBS and NatWest customers who have an iPhone 5S, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 plus will be able to access their mobile banking app within seconds. The technology recognises the customer's unique finger print, meaning they don't have to remember a tricky password - making it easier and more convenient to access their finances. Govt launches single window e-biz portal to foster business environment The government has launched a single window e-Biz portal for 11 Central government services to bring transparency and ease of doing business in the country. The project will help in fostering the business environment in the country in a holistic manner. The government's approach includes leveraging technology to bring transparency and to improve efficiency and promote convenience. The portal will provide four services from Ministry of Corporate Affairs, two services of Central Board of Direct Taxes, two services of Reserve Bank of India and one service each from Directorate General of Foreign Trade, Employees Provident Fund Organization and Petroleum and explosives Safety Organization. A business user can avail the service any time from February 20, 2015.

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Govt to remove minimum export price on potato The Government has decided to remove the minimum export price of 450 dollars per tonne on the export of potato in view of the prevailing lower prices and higher domestic availability of potato. The removal of existing MEP on potato will help farmers in realising better and remunerative prices. It will also help the exporters in earning valuable foreign exchange for the country through exports. In 2014, Commerce and Industry Ministry had imposed MEP of 450 US dollars per tonne on potato to check its rising prices and augment domestic supplies. SEBI cracks down on 33 entities over Rs1800 cr tax evasion In a fresh clampdown on entities misusing stock markets for evading taxes, SEBI has imposed trading restrictions on 33 entities and suspended trading in one listed company, which have been found to have made undue gains of over 1,800 crore rupees. While 24 entities have been barred from the entire capital markets, nine have been restrained from trading in the shares of Kamalakshi Finance Corp Ltd. The trading has also been suspended in its shares till further orders. Greece wins eurozone bailout deal with strict conditions Europe has granted Greece a crucial four-month extension to its massive debt bailout, but at the cost of huge concessions including a commitment to spell out reforms within two days. The 19 eurozone finance ministers reached the hard-won deal at tense talks pitting Greece against an angry Germany, suspicious that the new radical leftist government in Athens was looking to ditch its austerity obligations. In exchange for the extension, Greece agreed it will submit a list of economic and other reforms which its eurozone partners will then review to see if they go far enough. Bank staff get 15% hike, 6 monthly offs Branches of public sector banks, the RBI and insurance companies will be shut alternate Saturdays and will work full time on all other days according to the terms of an agreement between employee unions and the Indian Banks Association. Following a breakthrough in negotiations, which resulted in a 15% wage hike for bank employees, unions have withdrawn a call for a four-day strike beginning February 25. States in the red get lifetime from Finance Commission The Finance Commission has announced a revenue-deficit grant of 1.95 lakh crore for 11 states, including West Bengal and Kerala, which had been demanding relief from financial stress. Post-devolution, Punjab, which has also been demanding a relief package, becomes revenue-surplus with Rs 1,542 crore in 2015-16. J&K and Himachal are the biggest beneficiaries of the grants. Over five years J&K will receive Rs 59,666 crore. Himachal will get Rs 40,625 crore. Both hill states face difficulties raising resources. Over five years, Kerala has been awarded Rs 9,519 crore while Bengal gets Rs 11,760 crore. Post-devolution, Bengal will be revenue surplus 2017-18 onwards. Kerala will get into the same mode from 2018-19. Cabinet approves agreement on BRICS development bank The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave approval for establishing the New Development Bank (NDB) and the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA). Heads of the five nation BRICS group — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — decided at their sixth summit in Fortaleza in July 2014 to create a development bank as well as a reserve fund to finance infrastructure projects and other sustainable development projects. The $100 billion BRICS CRA would help countries deal with short-term liquidity pressures provide mutual support and further strengthen financial stability. The agreement will enter

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into force and the Bank begin operations only after all member-countries deposit their instruments of ratification with Brazil. India will hold the Presidency of the New Development Bank for the first six years. The Bank will be based in Shanghai, China’s financial hub. SEBI disposes of case against four companies Securities and Exchange Board of India, SEBI, has disposed off cases against four companies pertaining to investor grievances and failing to obtain registration with its online complaint redressal system, as the companies are in the process of liquidation. In four separate orders, the regulator noted that companies namely, Arihant Cotysn, Crystal Credit Corporation, Wilwayfort India and Vidiani Engineers have been issued show-cause notices. It stated that under the Companies Act, when a winding up order has been passed, or a provisional liquidator has been appointed, no suit or legal proceedings can be commenced, or proceeded with against the firm. As per Sebi norms, all the listed companies are required to get SCORES authentication, failing which they would have to face enforcement action. NSE to set up international exchange in Gujarat The National Stock Exchange (NSE) has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City to establish an international exchange at the city-based financial hub. The GIFT Special Economic Zone, spread over 886 acres, is being developed as India’s first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). The expected investment in this 'multi-service' SEZ is to the tune of Rs.78,000 crore, and an estimated five lakh persons are claimed to get direct employment in this mega commercial centre. Sebi cancels Sahara’s portfolio management licence Market regulator Sebi has cancelled the portfolio management licence of Sahara Asset Management (AMC). Under this business, Sahara AMC managed nearly Rs 77 lakh worth of funds for six clients as of January 2015. The Sebi decision, however, will not impact Sahara's mutual fund business under which the conglomerate managed assets worth nearly Rs 148 crore as of December 2014. India ranks below most BRICS nations in innovation Even as the research and development (R&D) sector has been witnessing double-digit growth in the last few years, India ranks lower than most BRICS nations in capacity for innovation, according to the Economic Survey 2014-15. The report ranks India at 48 in capacity for innovation, Brazil at 44, China 40 and South Africa 35. Russia is ranked 66. Even in quality of scientific research institutions, India scores lower than China, Brazil, and South Africa. This is also exhibited through its poor score on university-industry collaboration on R&D as compared to some other BRICS nations like China and South Africa. Only in terms of availability of scientists and engineers, India scores better or is equal to other BRICS countries. The R&D sector in the country grew 20.8 per cent in 2012-13. India fourth largest start-up hub in the world With over 3,100 start-ups, India is ranked as the fourth largest start-up hub in the world, according to the Economic Survey 2014-15. This was mainly driven by ‘hyper-growth’ in the technology start-up and software product landscape. As per the Central Statistics Office, computer and related services, whose share in GDP is 3.3 per cent, grew by 14.4 per cent in 2013-14. The survey said the IT-BPM industry, which posted revenues of $119 billion in 2014-15, is being driven by greater automation, expanding omni-channel presence and application of analytics across the entire value chain.

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CURRENT AFFAIR QUESTIONS 1. Who won the women’s single title of Australian Open 2015? (1) Serena Williams (2) Maria Sharapova (3) Venus Williams (4) Caroline Wozniacki (5) Li Na 2. Who among the following Bollywood actors has been conferred ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ for his

contribution to Indian cinema at the Jaipur International Film Festival (JIFF)? (1) Anumpam Kher (2) Dilip Kumar (3) Amitabh Bachchan (4) Rajinikanth (5) Dharmendra 3. Who won a gold medal in the men’s 61kg freestyle event at the Dave Schultz Memorial International

Wrestling Championship in USA? (1) Narsingh Yadav (2) Yogeshwar Dutt (3) Bijneesh Bajrang (4) Sushil Kumar (5) Manoj kumar 4. In which district of Tamil Nadu a granite headless statue of Buddha was recently discovered belonging to

Chola period of 10th or 11th Century AD? (1) Tiruchirappalli (2) Coimbatore (3) Krishnagiri (4) Thanjavur (5) Sivakasi 5. The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has announced to create India's first fenced

elephant sanctuary within the Bannerghatta Biological Park in: (1) Karnataka (2) Kerala (3) Assam (4) Tamil Nadu (5) Maharashtra 6. Which state government has decided to provide free education to Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled

Tribes (ST) and girl students till Post Graduation (PG) level in the State? (1) Rajasthan (2) Bihar (3) Haryana (4) Uttar Pradesh (5) Madhya Pradesh 7. Which of the following states recently has roll out Pentavalent vaccine to prevent infant mortality? (1) Uttar Pradesh (2) Madhya Pradesh (3) Assam (4) Rajasthan (5) Bihar 8. Which of the following is the NASA’s first Earth satellite, designed to collect global observations of the vital

soil moisture, has launched aboard United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California?

(1) SMAP (2) ERBS (3) ATLAS – 1 (4) CHAMP (4) SWAMP 9. The Union Government has constituted a High Level Panel to suggest a framework to assess Corporate

Social Responsibility (CSR) activities under the chairmanship of: (1) Deepak Nayyar (2) Anil Baijal (3) Kiran Karnik (4) Onkar S Kanwar (5) Anil Goswami 10. World Cancer Day is observed across the world on: (1) February 4 (2) February 5 (3) February 1 (4) February 2 (5) February 9

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11. Which among the following is the India’s biggest and world’s third largest smartphone vendor? (1) Samsung (2) Karbonn (3) Micromax (4) Lava (5) Intex 12. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reduced the Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) with effect from February 7,

2015 by 50 basis points to: (1) 21.50 per cent (2) 20.50 per cent (3) 22.50 per cent (4) 21.00 per cent (5) 23.00 per cent 13. Which pharmaceutical company has received final approval from US Food and Drugs Administration

(USFDA) for its vancomycin hydrochloride capsules used for treating diarrhea? (1) Ranbaxy (2) Cipla (3) Lupin (4) Novartis (4) Glaxo 14. Which country has successfully test-fired Air Launched Cruise Missile Ra’ad? (1) China (2) Pakistan (3) Iran (4) North Korea (5) Israel 15. Which among the following States won the 10th National Award for excellent work in MGNREGA? (1) Madhya Pradesh (2) Rajasthan (3) Haryana (4) Karnataka (5) Chattishgarh 16. Who among the following has won the Men’s Singles title of Australian Open Tennis Tournament 2015? (1) Andy Murray (2) Kei Nishikori (3) Stanislas Wawrinka (4) Novak Djokovic (5) Rafel Nadal 17. Who among the following has been sworn-in as the 12th President of Italy since the country became a

Republic after World War II? (1) Giorgio Napolitano (2) Sergio Mattarella (3) Carlo Azeglio Ciampi (4) Oscar Luigi Scalfaro (5) Lucio Da Martoli 18. Which country has successfully launched the Information Gathering Satellite, a spy satellite, by the H-2A

(H-IIA) carrier rocket to survey the globe night and day in all weather conditions from an orbit about 300 miles above Earth?

(1) Japan (2) China (3) India (4) South Korea (5) North Korea 19. Who among the following novelist has been awarded with Shrilal Shukla Sahitya IFFCO Award 2014? (1) Shekhar Joshi (2) Sanjeev (3) Mithileshwar (4) Vidya Sagar Nautial (5) Mudrarakshasha 20. Which among the following State governments has granted NOCs for open field trials of five genetically

modified (GM) crops (rice, chana (chickpeas), maize, brinjal and cotton) on the basis of recommendations of Anil Kakodkar Committee?

(1) Tamil Nadu (2) Maharashtra (3) Punjab (4) Haryana (5) Kerala 21. What is the name of mascot of 35th National Games which has been named in Limca Book of Records? (1) Chhaua (2) Ammu (3) Rongmon (4) Spartacat (5) Sheru

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22. Recently tablets to all girls student studying in class 9, 10, 11 and 12 in government Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) has been supplied. Which state government has implemented this?

(1) Jharkhand (2) Rajasthan (3) Haryana (4) Punjab (5) Chattishgarh 23. Which among the following European country’s Parliament has recently voted to allow creation of babies

with DNA from three people? (1) Norway (2) Germany (3) Britain (4) Sweden (5) Denmark 24. Which state government has launched the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System Project that will

enable the State Police to further raise the benchmark of professional efficiency besides catching interstate criminals more quickly?

(1) Kerala (2) Maharashtra (3) Goa (4) Himachal Pradesh (5) Haryana 25. Name the first country which would contribute 50 million dollars to a new IMF fund to help West African

countries hit by Ebola to service their debts so they can use their own money to help save lives. (1) Germany (2) Britain (3) Japan (4) USA (5) China 26. Which state government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Adani Enterprises Ltd

(AEL) to jointly set up India’s largest solar park with capacity of 10000 MW of electricity in state? (1) Rajasthan (2) Gujarat (3) Haryana (4) Andhra Pradesh (5) Madhya Pradesh 27. Which among the following teams won the gold of football in the 35th National Games 2015? (1) Punjab (2) Maharashtra (3) Mizoram (4) Goa (5) Haryana 28. Which state government has tied up with leading cosmetic and beauty care firms for imparting vocational

training in beautician courses to girls across villages of the State at free of cost? (1) Punjab (2) West Bengal (3) Karnataka (4) Mizoram (5) Haryana 29. Which tribal district of Himachal Pradesh has an excellent record in maintaining the best sex ratio not only

in the state but in the country also? (1) Chamba (2) Kangra (3) Kinnaur (4) Lahaul-Spiti (5) Shimla 30. Recently who among the following has been given Maharani Ahilyabai Holkar award by Uttar Pradesh

Government? (1) Resham Fatima (2) Seema Tiwari (3) Alka Tomar (4) Shubha Mudgal (5) Nidhi Singh 31. Who among the following playback singers has been honoured with the prestigious Yash Bharti award? (1) Kailash Kher (2) Abhijeet Sawant (3) Kumar Sanu (4) Pankaj Udhas (5) Shaan

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32. Name the Australian cyclist who has become the latest rider to break the world hour record completing 52.491 kilometers on the track in Granges, Switzerland.

(1) Baden Cooke (2) Bradley McGee (3) Rohan Dennis (4) Neil Stephens (5) Thomas Edward 33. In National Geographic's 'Top 10 Nightlife Cities' list, which city has been ranked first in the list? (1) Dublin in Ireland (2) Belgrade in Serbia (3) La Paz in Bolivia (4) Sao Paulo in Brazil (5) Tokyo in Japan 34. With around 1.5 lakh disabled workers enrolled under the employment guarantee scheme in the state

since 2012, which state has the maximum number of disabled workers under MGNREGS in the country? (1) Bihar (2) Uttar Pradesh (3) Haryana (4) Tamil Nadu (5) Kerala 35. Which among the following days has been declared as National Deworming Day? (1) February 10 (2) February 12 (3) February 11 (4) February 14 (5) February 15 36. Who among the following eminent Indian economists won Charleston-EFG John Maynard Keynes Prize

2015? (1) Jagdish N. Bhagwati (2) Amartya Sen (3) Raghuram G. Rajan (4) Kaushik Basu (5) Arvind Panagariya 37. Name the Japanese industrial designer, whose most famous work was the red-capped Kikkoman soy

sauce dispenser, has died aged 85. (1) Naoto Fukasawa (2) Tokujin Yoshioka (3) Kenji Ekuan (4) Kazuo Kawasaki (5) Nanua Suzuki 38. Which bank has launched India's first digital bank ‘Pockets’, the digital e-wallet that uses a virtual VISA

card that enables the users to transact on any website or mobile application in India? (1) HDFC Bank (2) ICICI Bank (3) Axis Bank (4) Kotak Mahindra Bank (5) Yes Bank 39. Due to the ongoing political instability and the uncertain security situation the United States and Britain

have temporarily closed their embassies in Sanaa. Sanaa is the capital of (1) Somalia (2) Bahrain (3) Oman (4) Yemen (5) Yuganda 40. The First World Ocean Science Congress (WOSC) was held recently in: (1) Kochi, Kerala (2) Panaji, Goa (3) Mumbai, Maharashtra (4) Kolkata, West Bengal (5) Gangtok, Sikkim 41. Recently which country has signed bilateral agreements on civil nuclear cooperation, Cultural cooperation

and Cooperation in the field of Agriculture with India? (1) Sri Lanka (2) Singapore (3) Indonesia (4) Maldives (5) Thailand 42. Which state government has been awarded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for being one of the best-

performing states in the Renewable Energy Sector in India? (1) Uttar Pradesh (2) Chhattisgarh (3) Rajasthan (4) Madhya Pradesh (5) Maharashtra

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43. Which among the following films won Golden Bear for Best Film in the 65th annual Berlin International Film Festival?

(1) ‘600 Millas’ (2) ‘Hosanna’ (3) ‘Taxi’ (4) ‘Love letter to cinema’ (5) Billion dollor baby 44. Which among the following scientists has been named for Dr. Y Nayudamma Memorial Award 2014? (1) K. Kasturirangan (2) Sam Pitroda (3) R.A. Mashelkar (4) Tessy Thomas (5) Anil Kumar 45. Name the first ‘National Tribal Festival’ which was held in New Delhi recently. (1) ‘Vanaj’ (2) ‘Vanraja’ (3) ‘Vanvasi’ (4) ‘Van Raj’ (5) ‘Vanseva’ 46. Who among the following is the first Indian cricket player to score century against Pakistan in World Cup? (1) Sachin Tendulkar (2) Virat Kohli (3) Mahendra Singh Dhoni (4) Yuvraj Singh (5) Shikhar Dhawan 47. BrahMos missile, one of the fastest cruise missiles in the world with top speed of Mach 2.8, recently has

been successfully test-fired from which of the following warship? (1) INS Airavat (2) INS Chakra (3) INS Kolkata (4) INS Arihant (5) INS Kamorta 48. Who is the present Director General of Washington based International Food Policy Research Institute

(IFPRI)? (1) Derek Reinbold (2) Shenggen Fan (3) Jomo Kwame Sundaram (4) Maximo Torero (5) Shanrei Fukuwa 49. Which pharmaceutical company has signed an agreement with Celon Pharma for developing generic

version of asthma drug? (1) Pfizer (2) Sanofi (3) Merck & Co. (4) Lupin (5) Glaxo 50. Which among the following festivals is celebrated with religious and traditional fervor in the Ladakh region

of Jammu and Kashmir in every year in February? (1) ‘Dosmoche’ (2) ‘Tak-Tok’ (3) ‘Losar’ (4) ‘Sindhu Darshan’ (5) ‘Lihare’ 51. Who among the following cricket players has been awarded Honorary Life Membership of Marylebone

Cricket Club (MCC) in 2015? (1) Sachin Tendulkar (2) Anil Kumble (3) Saurav Ganguly (4) Rahul Dravid (5) Kapil Dev 52. Which of the following telecom company has tied-up with UNICEF to provide education content in 17

African Countries? (1) Reliance (2) Bharti Airtel (3) Tata Indicom (4) Idea (5) Vodafone 53. Who of the following is the Croatia’s first female President and overall fourth President since Croatia

gained independence from Yugoslavia in 1991? (1) Jadranka Kosor (2) Dubravka Šuica (3) Ivana Dulić-Marković (4) Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic (5) Wavarinka Fedric

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54. Who among the following appointed as Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) Limited?

(1) Dilip Bhatia (2) Balasubramaniam Venkataramani (3) Satyanand Mishra (4) Anil Mishra (5) Hariom Satyanand 55. Who among the following won Rotterdam World Tennis tournament 2015? (1) Tomas Berdych (2) Daniela Hantuchova (3) Stan Wawrinka (4) Ajla Tomljanovic (5) Serena Williams 56. Who among the following governors has become United States’ first-ever openly bisexual governor? (1) Kate Brown (2) Mary Fallin (3) Gina Raimondo (4) Susana Martinez (5) Thamas Govalio 57. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched a nationwide scheme ‘Soil Health Card’ to analyze the soil of

farms in the country scientifically from: (1) Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh (2) Sriganganagar, Rajasthan (3) Hisar, Haryana (4) Jodhpur, Rajasthan (5) Kapurthala, Punjab 58. India’s first air quality checking Mobile App ‘SAFAR-Air’ was developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical

Meteorology (IITM). IITM is located in: (1) Pune (2) Bengaluru (3) Hyderabad (4) Bhopal (5) Lucknow 59. Who among the following Indian-American has been appointed as special envoy and coordinator for

strategic counter-terrorism communication in the United States? (1) Asra Nomani (2) Muzaffar Alam (3) Rashad Hussain (4) Saqib Ali (5) Muzzamil Ibrahim 60. Which state won Krishi Karman Awards 2013-14 in Category-I States (total food grains production

exceeds 10 million tonnes)? (1) Uttar Pradesh (2) Punjab (3) Haryana (4) Madhya Pradesh (5) Karnataka 61. Which among the following Ministry has launched an e-portal ‘Madad’? (1) Ministry of External Affairs (2) Ministry of Commerce and Industry (3) Ministry of Agriculture (4) Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (5) Ministry of HRD 62. Which of the following Presidents of Maldives has been arrested under anti-terror law? (1) Mohammed Waheed Hassan (2) Mohamed Nasheed (3) Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (4) Ibrahim Nasir (5) Abdulla Yameen 63. Who won Indian Open title of Golf? (1) Jyoti S Randhawa (2) Shiv S P Chowrasia (3) Anirban Lahiri (4) Shiv Kapur (5) Jeev Milkha Singh 64. Who among the following Indian cricket players has been inducted into ICC Cricket Hall of Fame 2015? (1) Sunil Gavaskar (2) Anil Kumble (3) Kapil Dev (4) Sachin Tendulkar (5) Rahul Dravid

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65. International Mother Language Day is observed on: (1) February 21 (2) February 24 (3) February 25 (4) February 27 (5) February 11 66. Which of the following films has been awarded 87th Academy Award 2015, popularly called Oscar Awards

in Hollywood? (1) ‘Whiplash’ (2) ‘Still Alice’ (3) ‘Boyhood’ (4) ‘Birdman’ (5) Two Days, One Night 67. Which state government has launched mLiquorSaleCheck Mobile App to put cap on sale of illicit liquor? (1) Delhi (2) Maharashtra (3) Gujarat (4) Rajasthan (5) Chattishgarh 68. Name the chairperson of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) who stepped down from

the post recently. (1) Renate Christ (2) Rajendra K Pachauri (3) Carlos Martin-Novella (4) Jonathan Lynn (5) Dharindra Nath Sanyal 69. Which among the following test kit, developed by Corgenix, has been approved by World Health

Organization (WHO) for Ebola virus disease (EVD) that can give the result in 15 minutes? (1) MAC ELISA (2) RT-PCR Kit (3) rRT-PCR Test (4) ReEBOV Antigen rapid test kit (5) CHARLIE TAKE 70. Which among the following teams won Champions of Hero Hockey India League 2015? (1) Jaypee Punjab Warriors (2) Delhi Waveriders (3) Ranchi Rays (4) Dabang Mumbai (5) Kalinga Lancers 71. Which among the following countries has signed an agreement to give Russian navy ships access to its

ports in the Mediterranean Sea? (1) Turkey (2) Cyprus (3) Greece (4) Albania (5) Italy 72. Who among the following Indian- American has won the J. Calvin Giddings Award 2015 of American

Chemical Society for Excellence in Education? (1) Thomas Kailath (2) Narayan S. Hosmane (3) Anil K. Jain (4) Purnendu Dasgupta (5) Duggubuti Srinath 73. Who among the following cricket player has become the first person to make double century in any Cricket

World Cup? (1) Rohit Sharma (2) Chris Gayle (3) Virender Sehwag (4) Sachin Tendulkar (5) AB Devilliars 74. Name the former President of Guatemala who has been released from a U.S. prison after serving a nearly

six-year sentence for taking $2.5 million in bribes from Taiwan and laundering funds through U.S. banks? (1) Alfonso Portillo (2) Álvaro Colom (3) Óscar Berger (4) Álvaro Arzú (5) Jonathan Poly 75. Who has been honoured on February 26, with an honorary Doctorate of Automotive Engineering by the

Clemson University? (1) R. C. Bhargava (2) Ratan Tata (3) Cyrus P. Mistry (4) S P Hinduja (5) Aziz Premji

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76. Forbes released Asia’s 50 Power Businesswomen 2015 list on February 26, 2015. How many Indian women CEO and Managing Director (CMD) listed in this list?

(1) Six (2) Four (3) Eight (4) Two (5) Ten 77. Who of the following took the Golden Palm Tree prize for her drama ‘Complain’ at the Saudi Film Festival? (1) Hana al-Omair (2) Shahad Ameen (3) Haifaa al-Mansour (4) Rabia Ameen (5) Rukhsana Haseen 78. Name the Indian-American who has been appointed as Executive Director for Regions and Centre

Operations at Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). (1) Ravi Chaudhary (2) Ramesh K. Agarwal (3) Satya N. Atluri (4) Siva S. Banda (5) Samarth Sharma 79. Supreme Court (SC) appointed panel on road safety under the chairmanship of: (1) Justice R.V. Raveendran (2) Justice KS Radhakrishnan (3) Justice A.K. Patnaik (4) Justice J.M. Panchal (5) Justice Ashok Ganguly 80. Name the former Jatiya Party MP who has been sentenced to life imprisonment for war crimes by the

International Crimes Tribunal-1 in Bangladesh? (1) Md. Altaf Ali (2) Tajul Islam Choudhury (3) Shariful Islam Jinnah (4) Abdul Jabbar (5) Rahat Ali Zavidi

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Answer Key

1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 1 6 2 7 3 8 1 9 2 10 1

11 3 12 1 13 3 14 2 15 1 16 4 17 2 18 1 19 3 20 2

21 2 22 1 23 3 24 4 25 2 26 1 27 3 28 2 29 4 30 2

31 1 32 3 33 1 34 4 35 1 36 2 37 3 38 2 39 4 40 1

41 1 42 2 43 3 44 4 45 1 46 2 47 3 48 2 49 4 50 1

51 3 52 2 53 4 54 2 55 3 56 1 57 2 58 1 59 3 60 2

61 1 62 2 63 3 64 2 65 1 66 4 67 1 68 2 69 4 70 3

71 2 72 4 73 2 74 1 75 2 76 1 77 1 78 1 79 2 80 4

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