Student’s Guide Series CURRENT AFFAIRS GENERAL AWARENESS

Brush your knowledge on the significant developments and events within and outside India over the past few weeks

any important devel- the . The people in the a more systematic way to be aware of opments took place in news recently included Milas Raonic, Current Affairs is to regularly read and around us recently Venkatesh Varma, Daniel Ortega, Sid- newspapers and watch informative that caught our atten- dharth Varadarajan, Amjad Ali Khan programmes on the television. Inter- tion.M Prominent among them were the among others for achievements in net is yet another source to keep you 99th edition of the prestigious Indian their respective work areas. Revisit- abreast of the latest happenings. A Science Congress, the sinking of the ing events and developments such as good revision of facts and figures will cruise ship Costa Concordia, Auto above have been carried out in this not only help you in achieving your Expo at New Delhi, Jaipur Litera- booklet to help you recall and test your immediate objective of scoring well in ture Festival, the 69th Golden Globe knowledge in different fields. Since the general awareness section but also Awards and ’ remarkable every competitive examination car- go a long way in enriching your overall double’s win with Radek Stepanek at ries a section on General Knowledge, understanding.

1. The city of Medellin has been installed with outdoor escalators to solve the problem of people getting up and down steep terrain. In which country is this city located? (A) Bolivia (B) Brazil (C) Colombia (D) Peru

2. Which court has thrown out a petition that sought to ban a translation of the Bhagavad Gita as “extremist” literature? (A) Russian (B) Siberian (C) Ukrainian (D) Romanian

3. Realty giant DLF, along with its partner Hubtown in a joint venture, has sold itsITspecialeconomic zone(SEZ)inPuneto private equity firm Blackstone for ______(A) Rs. 810 crore (B) Rs 500 crore (C) Rs 450 crore (D) Rs 100 crore

4. The infant mortality rate (IMR) in India has shown a decline, dropping from 50 deaths per 1,000 live births to __. (A) 44 (B) 45 (C) 46 (D) 47

COMPETITION360 1 Student’s Guide Series CURRENT AFFAIRS

5. The infant mortality rate (IMR) has increased by one point in which of the fol- 13. Which airline in India has been sanctioned Rs. 150 crore for payment of portion lowing? of pending salaries and allowances of its employees, including pilots? (A) Kerala, Mizoram and Dadra and Nagar Haveli (A) Go air (B) Kerala, Mizoram and Puducherry (B) Air India (C) Kerala, Mizoram and Lakshwadeep (C) Kingfisher (D) Kerala, Mizoram and Andamans (D) Indigo

6. President Cristina Kirchner has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer two months 14. Accepting a major demand of the cash-strapped aviation industry, the government after being re-elected in a landslide vote. Kirchner is the president of which has said it will soon launch the process to allow foreign airlines ______country? percent stake in Indian carriers. (A) Argentina (A) 50 (B) 49 (B) Uruguay (C) 48 (D) 47 (C) Paraguay (D) Brazil 15. Which 2 countries signed a border mechanism framework to maintain peace on the disputed boundaries between them? The framework was signed at the end of the 7. Which country’s court ordered the country’s army to stop forced virginity tests 15th round of boundary talks between special representatives of the- two coun on women detainees which the military claimed were performed so that they do tries. It will facilitate real-time contact between the foreign office of the two not later claim they were raped? countries in case of intrusions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) -- the (A) Egypt de facto border. (B) Saudi Arabia (A) India and China (C) Bahrain (B) India and Nepal (D) Iraq (C) India and Pakistan (D) India and Bhutan 8. Moving past the global economic powerhouses like the UK, Germany and France, the Indian economy would become the world’s ____ largest by 2020 — a major jump 16. Which pop star has become the first person in the world to boast 18 million fol- from its 10th rank currently economic think-tank Centre for Economics and Busi - lowers on social networking site Twitter ness Research (CEBR) has said in its latest World Economic League Table report. (A) Madonna (B) Justein Beiber (A) 6th (B) 5th (C) Lady Gaga (D) Adele (C) 2nd (D) 4th 17. Who has been appointed as the Chairman of the National Film Development Corpo- 9. Which movie won The 69th Golden Globe Awards 2012 for Best Motion Picture? ration (NFDC) replacing veteran actor Om Puri? (A) The Descendants (A) Ramesh Sippy (B) The Help (B) Karan Johar (C) Hugo (C) Aditya Chopra (D) The Ides of March (D) Ravi Chopra

10. Who won the best actress award at 69th Golden Globe Awards 2012? 18. Prestigious Rijks museum recently conducted an X-ray of its thousand-year-old (A) Viola Davis monumental Shiva-Nataraja statue as a part of research and was surprised to know (B) Rooney Mara that it was cast in solid bronze. In which country/city is this museum located? (C) Tilda Swinton (A) Oslo (B) Amsterdam (D) Meryl Streep (C) Dublin (D) Glasglow

11. Which website was shut down for a day in protest against US anti-piracy legis- 19. Dr. Sheikh Sultan III bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, ruler of conservative Sharjah lations - Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect Intellectual Property Act? Emirate in United Arab Emirates (UAE), has reportedly gifted about 10 acres of (A) Amazon.com land for a new crematorium for Hindus and Sikhs in which state of USA? (B) Wikipedi(A)com (A) Nevada (C) Facebook.com (B) Sacramento (D) Ebay.com (C) Arizona (D) Atlanta 12. If elected to power in Uttarakhand, which political party will encourage the production of filtered Gau Mootra (cow urine) in the State, according to its20. The Global Post quoted Obama as telling Time Magazine’s Fareed Zakaria in an rather ambitious party manifesto? interview that Prime Minister ___ is one of the five world leaders- whom US presi (A) Congress dent Barack Obama considers to be his nearest and dearest pals on the global (B) BJP stage. (C) Samajwadi (A) Manmohan Singh (B) Angela Merkel (D) BSP (C) Recep Tayyip Erdogan (D) David Cameron

2 COMPETITION360 COMPETITION360 3 Student’s Guide Series CURRENT AFFAIRS

21. Which author has been banned from Jaipur Literature Festival after authorities 28. Coal India agreed to a wage hike of ______for its three lakh-odd mine work- warned the controversial author he was a potential target of assassins at the ers, in line with what the market was expecting but much higher than what the event, following threats of protests from Muslim groups at his planned appear- management of the public sector coal producer was hoping for. ance? (A) 25% (B) 30% (A) Tom Stoppard (C) 40% (D) 50% (B) Richard Dawkins (C) Ariel Dorfman 29. The Costa Concordia carrying more than 3,200 passengers and 1,000 crew hit a (D) Salman Rushdie rock and sank in the shallow waters off the island of Giglio. The 114,500-ton Costa Concordia is the largest ship ever to sink. In which country did this 22. As per a recent research, the song ‘Someone like you’ was the most sung karaoke disaster happen? tune of 2011 which accounted for 14% of the 3-million songs sung by 100,000 (A) France (B) Germany users of the Lucky Voice website. Who is the singer of this song who was crowned (C) Italy ‘karaoke queen’? (A) Rihanna (D) Ireland (B) Beyonce (C) Adele 30. The government of which Indian state has extended a helping hand to the ailing (D) Britney Spears ghazal maestro Mehndi Hassan, as he was born in the state but had to leave for Pakistan post partition. 23. Which Indian company has been featured by ‘Harvard Business Review’ on the list (A) Gujarat of 10 companies globally that has grown their net income by 5 per cent every (B) Rajasthan year for the 10-year period ended 2009? (C) Punjab (A) ICICI (B) SBI (D) Kashmir (C) HDFC (D) CITI 31. Who was addressing a press conference on black money at the Constitution Club 24. State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) is in talks with energy- firm Cono in New Delhi when he was attacked by a man who threw black ink on his face to coPhillips to explore possibilities of joining hands for exploration of oil and exhibit his anger against the topic? gas in Indian deep sea and shale gas in North America. ConocoPhillips belongs (A) Anna Hazare to which country? (B) Arvind Kejriwal (A) UK (B) USA (C) Kiran Bedi (C) USSR (D) UAE (D) Baba Ramdev

25. ______, commonly known by her pseudonym “Dalda 13,” was India’s first32. The policy holders of which insurance company will now be getting credit cards woman photojournalist, to be awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 2011. She had been as part of the insurance scheme they opt for? suffering from interstitial lung disease which resulted in her death on 15th (A) New India January 2012. (B) Oriental insurance (A) Santosh Mehta (C) LIC (B) Homai Vyarawalla (D) None (C) Zakia Sharer (D) Tina Dalal 33. Which Indian technology group has been chosen by Michelin to display its elec- tric mobility (eMO) engineering study EV at North American International Auto 26. Who was conferred an honorary doctorate of Tripura University by Indian Vice Show (NAIAS) in Detroit? The company unveiled the prototype for a $20,000 elec- President Hamid Ansari which was for the first time that the Tripura University tric car that can carry up to four passengers. has conferred the honorary (D)Litt on any person after the university was set (A) Bajaj auto up in 1987? (B) Maruti (A) Sheikh Hasina (C) TATA (B) Baburam Bhattarai (D) Infosys (C) (D) M. Jayaratne (D) Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck 34. Dozens of workers assembling ____video game consoles climbed to a - factory dor mitory roof, and some threatened to jump to their death, in a dispute over 27. State-run BSNL, which is mulling various options to raise funds to meet day- job transfers that was defused but highlights growing labour unrest as China’s to-day requirements, has hired ______to arrange a long-term loan of up economy slows. (A) Play station to Rs 15,000 crore. The PSU had registered a loss of over Rs 6,000 crore for FY 11, mainly due to high staff cost and payments made for acquiring BWA spectrum. (B) Blackberry (A) SBI (B) Indian bank (C) Iphone (C) Syndicate bank (D) Andhra bank (D) Xbox

4 COMPETITION360 COMPETITION360 5 Student’s Guide Series CURRENT AFFAIRS

35. The FIFA Ballon d’Or is an association football award given annually to the 42. With which company has Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) said it would invest in player who is considered to have performed the best in the previous season. It making a major foray into the media sector by the energy-focused conglomerate is awarded based on votes by coaches and captains of international teams, as and giving a boost to its plans to launch 4G services? well as journalists from around the world. Who won 2011 the FIFA World Player (A) NDTV (B) CNBC of the Year? (A) Lionel Messi (C) CNN (B) Andrés Iniesta (D) TV18 (C) Xavi (D) Cristiano Ronaldo 43. Which of the following chief minister‘s in India with movable assets worth only Rs. 6.15 lakhs and a flat in Delhi, is India’s poorest chief minister? 36. Which city was the venue for the 2012 Pravasi Bhartiya Divas? (A) Shiela Dixit (A) Hyderabad (B) Nitish Kumar (B) Bengaluru (C) Narendra Modi (C) Jaipur (D) Mamata Banerjee (D) Chandigarh 44. Where did Prime Minister Manmohan Singh inaugurate the 99th edition of the 37. Who was the Chief Guest of the 2012 Pravasi Bhartiya Divas? prestigious Indian Science Congress, the biggest congregation of the country’s (A) Sheikh Hasina bright scientists? (B) Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck (A) KIIT University (C) Kamla Persad Bissessar (B) ICFAI University (D) None (C) IIT Delhi (D) NIT Rourkela 38. Which country has started refining uranium deep inside a mountain, at the Fordow underground site near the city of Qom, signalling country’s defiance in the face45. What was the theme for the 99th Indian Science Congress 2012? of intensifying Western pressure to curb such activity? (A) Science and Technology for Inclusive Innovation – Role of Women (A) Iraq (B) Science and Technology for Inclusive Innovation – role of communications (B) Iran (C) Science and Technology for Inclusive Innovation – role of mobile technol- (C) Bahrain ogy (D) Saudi Arabia (D) Science and Technology for Inclusive Innovation

39. Indian rock musician, promoter of rock music, publisher and impresario who 46. Hindi is a foreign language to farmers of which state, as it is not the language founded the music magazine Rock Street Journal and promoted alternative music in of the region, the High Court observed while dealing with a petition object- India. He was also termed as “Papa Rock” by the rock music community of India, ing to National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) publishing a notification in was drowned to death due to unknown reasons at Bogmalo beach in Goa. Identify Hindi? the person in news. (A) Rajasthan (A) Palash Sen (B) Gujarat (B) Raghu Ram (C) Maharashtra (C) Amit Saigal (D) Andhra Pradesh (D) Sheela Raman 47. All India Chess Federation has decided to recommend Grandmaster Viswanathan 40. India along with which country has set to have their first ever “hotline” or Anand for which award? direct communication between the home secretaries shortly. The hotline, which (A) Padma Vibhushan will be non-encrypted, will be used to share real-time information with regard (B) Padma Bhushan to terror threats, movement of militants — thus reiterating the commitment of (C) Padma Shri (D) Bharat Ratna both sides to fight terrorism? (A) Afghanistan (B) Nepal 48. Well known dance Guru KJ Sarasa who expired in Chennai had the distinction of (C) Bangladesh being one of the first and most successful women nattuvanars of the traditional (D) Pakistan community in modern times. This famous natyacharya who initially sang for dance and soon took to nattuvangam, carried aloft the flag of the Vazhuvoor tradition 41. Four years after they showcased its ‘small car’ at the 2008 Auto Expo, the auto of which dance most impressively for more than five decades? (A) Kathak giant has unveiled what it calls the RE60. It will deliver close to 40 kmpl (B) Kuchipudi and emit only 60g/km of CO2, making it one of the most fuel-efficient and green (C) Mohini attam vehicles in the market. Which company has launched this car? (A) TATA (B) TVS (D) Bharatanatyam (C) Kinetic (D) Bajaj

6 COMPETITION360 COMPETITION360 7 Student’s Guide Series CURRENT AFFAIRS

49. The State Bank of India (SBI), which has attracted the urban poor with its Rs. 56. Forests of which Indian State will soon be having fodder banks? (A) Tamil Nadu one-rupee bank account facility in different parts of the country, has now come up with a Rs. one crore account exclusively for the high net worth individu- (B) Karnataka (C) Kerala als (HNIs). The first of its kind branch of the SBI was opened in which city in India? (D) Andhra Pradesh (A) Hyderabad (B) Mumbai 57. The three-day CII Partnership Summit 2012 saw a flurry of MoUs being signed across (C) Kolkata sectors such as power, refinery, gas, mining and education. With more agreements (D) Chennai the summit ended with investment proposals worth over a staggering Rs. 50,000 crore involving top private and public sector companies. In which city was the 50. In a major policy decision, the Centre said it would allow Qualified Foreign summit held? (A) Mumbai Investors (QFIs) to directly invest in Indian ______market in order to widen (B) Delhi the class of investors, attract more foreign funds, reduce market volatility (C) Hyderabad and deepen the Indian capital market. (A) Medicines (D) Chennai (B) Agriculture (C) Food 58. Who won 2012 Aircel Chennai Open singles title? (D) Equity (A) (B) Janko Tipsarević (C) Stanislas Wawrinka 51. Which two countries of Asia have recently joined the UN Security Council? (A) Guatemala, Morocco (D) Go Soeda (B) Pakistan, Azerbaijan (C) Togo and Tabago 59. Who won 2012 Aircel Chennai Open doubles title? (D) None (A) Leander Paes and Janko Tipsarević (B) Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram (C) Stanislas Wawrinka and Go Soeda 52. The proposed districts — Sukma, Kondagaon, Gariabandh, Balodbazar, Mungeli, Balod, Bemetara, Surajpur, and Balrampur — have started functioning from Janu- (D) Milos Raonic and Janko Tipsarević ary 1, 2012. Which state of India announced the creation of nine new districts in the state? 60. China will start work on the world’s highest airport next year, in Nagqu county. (A) Jharkhand Nagqu is located in which country? (B) Chhattisgarh (A) Tibet (C) Uttaranchal (B) Mongolia (D) Dadar (C) Nepal (D) Bhutan 53. Kalachakraa festival of teachings and meditations for World Peace was held in Washington, DC in 2011. It was it held this year from January 1, 2012 also 61. Syria rejected an ______plan for President Bashar al-Assad to transfer attended by Tibetan Spiritual Leader the Dalai Lama. Which State hosted it in power to his deputy, calling the initiative a “flagrant interference,” India? (A) Arab League plan (A) Bihar (B) West Bengal (B) UN plan (C) Odisha (D) Assam (C) International Court of Justice (D) None of the above 54. Prince Harry will follow up on a promise he made last year to the ‘Walking With the Wounded’ charity for soldiers and join them on a trek up on which mountain62. Chiefs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis who made ______the must-have Smart- in 2012? phone for almost a decade have stepped down as co-chief executives of its maker, (A) Mount Everest after failing to reverse the company’s decline. (B) K2 (A) Samsung (C) Kilimanjaro (B) Blackberry (D) Kanchenjunga (C) HTC (D) Apple 55. Which party won by far the biggest share of seats allocated to party lists in Egypt’s first freely-elected Parliament in decades, final results confirmed, -giv 63. Actress Mallika Sherawat has out-shadowed which other actress to the finish line ing it a major role in drafting the country’s new constitution? of the ‘Sexiest Vegetarian Female’ poll conducted by PETA 2012? (A) The Muslim Brotherhood (A) Priyanka Chopra (B) Hosni Mubarak’s party (B) Lara Dutta (C) The Brotherhood’s Freedom (C) Vidya Balan (D) Justice Party (D) Diya Mirza

8 COMPETITION360 COMPETITION360 9 Student’s Guide Series CURRENT AFFAIRS

64. Datawind, the maker of the lowest priced tablet ‘Aakash’, has requested the 71. Ramachandra Guha won the Sahitya Akademi award in English for his book on ______Human Resource Development Ministry to include which clause in the proposed in 2012. tender for the low-priced device? (A) Narrative History (A) Made in India (B) The short India (B) Made in UK (C) The dark side of India (C) Made in Canada (D) None (D) Made in USA 72. Pakistani authorities cleared the import of 16 vegetables and raw jute from 65. Britain, America and France delivered a pointed signal to __for sending 6 war- which country through the land border in order to bring down prices in the domes- ships led by a 100,000 ton aircraft carrier through the highly sensitive waters tic market and added 18 more items to the list of goods that can be imported of the Strait of Hormuz from the neighbouring country. (A) Iraq (A) Afghanistan (B) Iran (B) India (C) Syria (C) China (D) Oman (D) Nepal

66. BJP president Nitin Gadkari has endorsed chief minister ______for 73. Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, India-born US citizen whose pioneering work - in molecu the top posts of prime minister and party , stirring a fresh debate among lar biology won him the 2009 Nobel Prize in chemistry, has been honoured with GenNext leaders positioning themselves for the 2014 sweepstakes. a knighthood by the royal establishment in a rare recognition of achievements (A) Shivraj Chauhan by foreigners based in which country? (B) Narendra Modi (A) Britain (C) Vasundhra Raje (B) France (D) None (C) Germany (D) Ireland 67. Which country announced its first annual trade deficit in more than 30 years at an equivalent US $32 bn for 2011? 74. The face of Delhi Metro, _____ retired on 31st December 2011. He gave Delhi (A) Japan its new identity and achieved the near-impossible breaking through red tape to (B) Korea build the Delhi Metro. He handed over the reign to his chosen successor Mangu (C) Australia Singh. (D) New Zealand (A) E Sreedharan (B) Rajiv Singh 68. Amid raucous cheers from thousands of admirers, which international celebrity (C) Prabhat Kumar praised the contrast of calm and chaos in India at the annual Jaipur Literature (D) None Festival fast becoming a global cultural gala? (A) Oprah Winfrey 75. MP Rajniti Prasad tore papers of Lokpal Bill and threw it in the well of the (B) Tom Stoppard House shouting slogans against it. His party colleague Ramkripal Yadav also (C) Michael Ondaatje protested against the Bill. The two MP’s belonged to which political party? (D) Richard Dawkins (A) BJP (B) INC (C) RJD (D) BSP 69. Farahnaz Ispahani, wife of former envoy to US Husain Haqqani, claimed that she fled the country as she feared being kidnapped by the ISI to force her husband 76. Controversial TV personality Jeremy Clarkson has been accused of racism after to confess and implicate Zardari in the memogate issue. What designation does mocking Indian culture in a ‘Top Gear’ Christmas Special, works for - which inter Farahnaz Ispahani hold in the Pakistani government? national media channel? (A) President Asif Ali Zardari’s media adviser (A) CNN (B) FTV (B) President Asif Ali Zardari’s economic adviser (C) BBC (D) CNBC (C) President Asif Ali Zardari’s lawyer (D) President Asif Ali Zardari’s secretary 77. Which country will help Nepal in modernizing its immigration facilities and strengthening security at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in Kath- 70. Noted Kashmiri poetess Naseem Shafaie has been chosen for this year’s mandu in a move that may not only help both the countries in averting any type ______awards for her poetic collection, becoming the first Kashmiri woman of hijacking, but also help in preventing terrorists from using TIA as ‘soft’ to get the prestigious literary awar(D) exit or entry point? (A) Sahitya Akademi (A) India (B) Jnanpeeth (B) China (C) Booker (C) Tibet (D) Pulitzer (D) Bhutan

10 COMPETITION360 COMPETITION360 11 Student’s Guide Series CURRENT AFFAIRS

78. Radek Stepanek and Leander Paes won the 2012 Australian Open men’s doubles 85. Which organization has formally adopted an oil embargo against Iran and a freeze titles claiming a 7-6 (7-1), 6-2 victory. Who did they beat in the finals? of the assets of the country’s central bank as part of sanctions meant to pres - (A) and sure the country to resume talks on its nuclear program? (B) Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau (A) UN (C) Michaël Llodra and Nenad Zimonjić (B) The European Union (D) Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor (C) OPEC (D) ILO 79. After a long wait for government approval, Reliance Industries have begin work on development of four satellite fields -- D-2, D-6, D-19 and D-22 in India’s 86. Maharashtra ATS have made a major breakthrough in solving the blast case, in largest gas field, block D6 in the which basin? the city that claimed 27 lives, with the arrest of two of the accused hailing (A) Krishna-Godavari basin from Bihar. The accused of which bomb blast incident have been arrested? (B) Narmada-Tapi basin (A) 26/11 (B) 26/7 (C) Tungabhadra –Godavari basin (C) 13/7 (D) None (D) Ganga-Yamuna basin 87. An Indian couple in Norway recently have been battling for the custody of their 80. According to a report by the US Security firm Stratfor, which cartel has recent- two children who were sent to foster care by the Child Protective Services. What ly become the largest drug gang in Mexico, operating in more than half of all was/were the basis of objection to which External Affairs Minister SM Krishna Mexican states? hopes that the settlement would be up to India’s expectation? (A) Sinaloa or the Pacific Cartel (B) Los Zetas (A) Norwegian authorities objected to them hand feeding the children, equating (C) Tijuana it to force feeding. (D) Juárez (B) Norwegian authorities objected to them sharing a bed with the kids. (C) Both A and B (D) None of the above 81. Jay Leno, the host of the popular The Tonight Show on NBC channel, flashed a picture of the Golden Temple, the holiest Sikh shrine, in Amritsar- on his pro gramme and termed it as a possible summer home of which Republican presidential 88. Newt Gingrich jolted the Republican presidential race with a resounding victory candidate? in which American state, where voters rejected frontrunner Mitt Romney’s pitch (A) Mitt Romney that he is the best bet to fix a broken economy and defeat President Barack Obama (B) Newt Gingrich (A) South Carolina (C) Ron Paul (B) North Carolina (D) Rick Santorum (C) Georgia (D) Florida 82. Which government has decided to develop a 7-km stretch, believed to be the route taken by Gautam Buddha to reach Rajgir, as an international tourist site in the 89. At the 57th National school athletic meet in Ludhiana which State won 10 gold, state? 8 silver, and 4 bronze medals bagging the first position? (A) Nepal (B) Bihar (A) Kerala (C) Uttar Pradesh (D) West Bengal (B) Punjab (C) New Delhi (D) Haryana 83. A team led by Indian-origin scientists Kasturi Haldar and Souvik Bhattacharjee of the University of Notre Dame’s Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases have made a fundamental breakthrough in understanding how parasites target proteins 90. Two powerful bombs exploded at Ningombam in the Thoubal Assembly constituency, to the surface of the red blood cell that enables sticking to and blocking blood the stronghold of Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh. In which State is Thoubal vessels. The cause of which deadly disease has been discovered by the duo? Assembly constituency located? (A) Plague (A) Tripura (B) Malaria (B) Assam (C) Cholera (C) Manipur (D) Rickets (D) Arunachal Pradesh

84. K-152 Nerpa nuclear-powered attack submarine has been handed over to the Indian91. In what is being hailed as a “great leap forward” in ______growing economic Navy, In line with the contract worth over $900 million, the Project 971 Shchuka- presence in Britain, the nation’s Investment Corporation has bought a 8.68-per B (NATO: Akula II) class sub has been leased to India’s Navy for ten years. It cent stake in Thames Water, Britain’s largest water and sewerage company serv - will be renamed the INS Chakra. Which country has handed over this submarine? ing about 14 million customers. (A) France (A) Japan (B) Germany (B) Korea (C) Italy (C) China (D) Russia (D) Singapore

12 COMPETITION360 COMPETITION360 13

Student’s Guide Series CURRENT AFFAIRS

.8 (B) 80 Q. (A) 60 Q. (D) 40 Q. 92. Which city did the former Indian President, APJ Abdul Kalam, recently visit, (A) 20 Q.

since the establishment of a memorial for the Indian Peace Keeping Force.

.9 (A) 99 Q. (A) 79 Q. (A) 59 Q. (C) 39 Q. (A) Kandy (B) Colombo (A) 19 Q.

(C) Anuradhapura (D) Jaffna

.9 (A) 98 Q. (A) 78 Q. (A) 58 Q. (B) 38 Q.

93. Indian Railways in September 2011 constituted an expert committee to recom- (B) 18 Q.

.9 (A) 97 Q. (A) 77 Q. (C) 57 Q. (C) 37 Q. mend modernisation of the public transporter with a focus on track, signalling, (A) 17 Q.

rolling stock, stations and terminals, for improving efficiency and safety. The

.9 (A) 96 Q. (C) 76 Q. (A) 56 Q. (C) 36 Q. committee which is likely to submit its report before the railway budget was (C) 16 Q. constituted under the chairmanship of?

(A) Sam Pitroda (B) D Raja

.9 (D) 95 Q. (C) 75 Q. (A) 55 Q. (A) 35 Q.

(C) E Sreedharan (D) Vinod Dua (A) 15 Q.

.9 (B) 94 Q. (A) 74 Q. (A) 54 Q. (D) 34 Q. 94. Sand has been his preferred medium in the past to give shape to his ideas and (B) 14 Q.

now celebrated artist Sudarsan Pattnaik will prove his mettle once again, this

.9 (A) 93 Q. (A) 73 Q. (A) 53 Q. (C) 33 Q. time in Japan by creating a sculpture on the ill-effects of climate change by (B) 13 Q. which natural product?

(A) Cement (B) Snow

.9 (B) 92 Q. (B) 72 Q. (B) 52 Q. (C) 32 Q.

(C) Limestone (D) Marble powder (B) 12 Q.

.9 (C) 91 Q. (A) 71 Q. (B) 51 Q. (D) 31 Q. 95. Which part of Delhi city, comprising largely of Human Resource Development Min- (B) 11 Q.

ister Kapil Sibal’s parliamentary constituency has been included in the list of

.9 (C) 90 Q. (A) 70 Q. (D) 50 Q. (B) 30 Q. 419 special focus districts (SFDs) for 2012-13 under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (D) 10 Q. (SSA)?

(A) South Delhi (B) North Delhi .8 (A) 89 Q. (A) 69 Q. (A) 49 Q. (C) 29 Q.

(C) East Delhi (D) Central Delhi (A) 9 Q.

.8 (A) 88 Q. (A) 68 Q. (D) 48 Q. (A) 28 Q.

96. The death toll in Mexico from an outbreak of A (H1N1) has hit nine, with 573 (B) 8 Q.

cases detected. The strain represents some 90 percent of detected cases of

.8 (C) 87 Q. (A) 67 Q. (D) 47 Q. (A) 27 Q.

influenza in the country, the health ministry said in a statement. Which deadly (A) 7 Q.

disease has been spread in the country?

.8 (C) 86 Q. (B) 66 Q. (B) 46 Q. (A) 26 Q. (A) Swine flu (B) Plague (A) 6 Q.

(C) Dengue (D) Hay fever

.8 (B) 85 Q. (B) 65 Q. (A) 45 Q. (B) 25 Q.

97. Which company won the Rs 11,000 crore tax case, as the Supreme Court in India, (A) 5 Q.

set aside an earlier Bombay High Court judgement that directed the company to

.8 (D) 84 Q. (A) 64 Q. (A) 44 Q. (B) 24 Q. pay-up the tax on a deal abroad? (D) 4 Q.

(A) Vodafone International Holding

.8 (B) 83 Q. (C) 63 Q. (B) 43 Q. (C) 23 Q. (B) Wipro (A) 3 Q.

(C) Arvind Mills

.8 (B) 82 Q. (B) 62 Q. (D) 42 Q. (C) 22 Q. (D) Jumbo Electronics (B) Q.2

.8 (A) 81 Q. (A) 61 Q. (D) 41 Q. (D) 21 Q.

98. The Seattle-based company Starbucks Corp, the world’s largest coffee company, (C) Q.1

has signed a pact with which Indian company to buy coffee from India and explore opening retail stores in the country? Answers (A) Tata Coffee Ltd (B) Café coffee day

(C) Barista (D) Nestle

tions. The same shall also be printed in the April 2012 issue. We deeply regret the inconvenience caused to the readers. the to caused inconvenience the regret deeply We issue. 2012 April the in printed be also shall same The tions.

99. Free LPG cylinder to every family living below poverty line and free laptop to ques- the with along reference, your for key answer correct the post We booklet. free the in questions Affairs Current 99 every student of Class 11 and 12 of all government schools in the state are some the for printed was key answer wrong a where issue 2012 March Competition360 latest the in error an been has There

of promises made by which political party in its election manifesto of Punjab?

(A) Shiromani Akali Dal (B) Dera Sacha Sauda AFFAIRS CURRENT ON QUESTIONS 99 – SERIES GUIDE STUDENT’S

(C) INC (D) BJP CORRIGENDUM - 2012 MARCH COMPETITION 360 360 COMPETITION

14 COMPETITION360 COMPETITION360 15