ENGLISH QUIZ 22.01.2020

1. Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Kiren Rijiju flagged off the ‘Fit India Cyclothon’ from which city of India?

A. Panaji, Goa

B. Mumbai, Maharashtra

C. Bhubaneswar, Odisha

D. New Delhi, Delhi

2. Name the company that acquired the Uber Eats business in India in an all-stock deal.

A. Domino’s

B. Zomato

C. Pizza Hut

D. Amazon

3. Name the Integrated Check-Post (ICP) at India-Nepal border that was inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nepalese Prime Minister K.P.Sharma Oli on January 21st, 2020?

A. Galgalia-Bhadrapur

B. Nappalganj Road – Napalganj

C. Jogbani-Biratnagar

D. Sukhia Pokhari-Pashupatinagar

4. Who among the following has been conferred with the 26th Annual Crystal Award for the year 2020 by the World Economic Forum (WEF)?

A. Rani Mukherjee

B. Madhuri Dixit

C. Alia Bhatt

D. Deepika Padukone

5. The team of the Indian Consulate has won the ‘Diplomat Cup Cricket Championship of 2020’ held in _______.

A. Sharjah

B. New York

C. London

D. Wellington

6. Which state has been ranked the best for parameters on efficiency targets in the review of state and Central government water departments by the ministry of Jal Shakti?

A. Rajasthan

B. Gujarat

C. Telangana

D. Maharashtra

7. What is the theme of the National Informatic Center Tech Conclave 2020 held in New Delhi?

A. Rethinking Global Consumption, Production and Investment

B. Science and Technology: Rural Development

C. Technologies for Next-Gen Governance.

D. Stakeholders for a Cohesive and Sustainable World

8. What is the rank of India in WEF’s 1st Social Mobility Index?

A. 70

B. 71

C. 72

D. 76

9. Which of the following personalities has been honoured with Australia’s Highest Civilian Honour “The Order of Australia”?

A. Kiran M Shaw

B. Shahrukh Khan

C. Amitabh Bachchan

D. Azim Hashim Premji

10. Who will become the first woman to officiate as the third umpire in a men’s international?

A. Anjum Chopra

B. Jacqueline Williams

C. Mithali Raj

D. Sasikala Sirivardine

11. Consider the following statements:

1. Sikhs to be counted as separate ethnic group in US census for first time.

2. Describing this as a milestone, the United Sikhs said that this will be the first time the minority group will be counted and coded in the decennial US Census.

3. The US Census Bureau considers race and ethnicity as two distinct and separate concepts. It adheres to the 1987 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) standards on race and ethnicity.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A. 1 and 2 are correct

B. 1 and 3 are correct

C. 2 and 3 are correct

D. All of the above

12. Consider the following statements:

1. Centre for tougher law against sexual harassment at work.

2. The highest number of such cases were reported in the year 2017 in Delhi (28), Bangalore (20), Pune (12) and Mumbai (12).

3. In the year 2018, a total of 20,962 cases of sexual harassment were reported in public places, shelter homes and other places.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A. 1 and 2 are correct

B. 1 and 3 are correct

C. 2 and 3 are correct

D. All of the above

13. Consider the following statements:

1. A report titled Unilateral Decisions, Bilateral Losses was published by BRIEF.

2. At least 9,354 families, roughly 50,000 people, in Punjab and about 900 families in Kashmir have been directly impacted. Both countries have lost billions of dollars and hundreds of job days.

Which of the above statement/statements are correct?

A. 1 only

B. 2 only

C. Both 1 and 2

D. Neither 1 nor 2

14. Consider the following statements related to National Informatics Centre:

1. NIC Sets-Up CoE For Blockchain In Karnataka To Enhance Citizen Services.

2. The applications of Blockchain in the Government are expected to enhance transparency, traceability and trust in e-governance systems.

3. The National Informatics Centre is an institute set up by the Indian government in 1976 to drive its technology and e-governance initiatives in the country.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A. 1 and 2 are correct

B. 1 and 3 are correct

C. 2 and 3 are correct

D. All of the above

15. Consider the following statements:

1. Social Mobility Index: India ranks low at 76th place; Denmark tops.

2. The report, released ahead of the 49th Annual Meeting of the WEF, also lists India among the five countries that stand to gain the most from a better social mobility score.

Which of the above statement/statements are correct?

A. 1 only

B. 2 only

C. Both 1 and 2

D. Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWERS:-

Answer: 1) A

Explanation

On January 21st, 2020, the Fit India Mission under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports organized the inaugural event of ‘Fit India Cyclothon’. The Cyclothon was flagged off by Union Minister Kiren Rijiju and Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant from the Campal Parade Ground in Panaji, Goa. The event witnessed participation by over 500 cyclists who cycle through a five-kilometer stretch within the Panaji city.

Answer: 2) B

Explanation

Food delivery startup and restaurant aggregator “Zomato” has announced the acquisition of Uber Eats business in India in an all-stock deal. The deals provide Uber with a 9.99% ownership in Zomato after the acquisition. The deal is estimated to be pegged at $300-350 million. Uber Eats, having about 26,000 restaurant partners entered the food delivery business in 2017 in India.

Uber Eats business in India

• Uber had recently forecast a loss of Rs 2197 crore in 5 months till December 2019. Uber Eats stepped into India in 2017.
• Its platform currently has over 26000 restaurants in 41 cities.
• This acquisition is only for Uber Eats in India, Uber Eats will continue its services in other countries of the world. Speaking of Zomato,
• Its food delivery platform has 1.5 million restaurants in 24 countries and every month it has 7 crore customers. She is giving her service.

Answer: 3) C

Explanation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Nepali counterpart KP Sharma Oli will on jointly inaugurate the second Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Jogbani-Biratnagar, built with Indian assistance to facilitate trade and people’s movement. The Prime Minister’s Office had said that the two Prime Ministers will jointly inaugurate the Integrated Check-Post (ICP) at Jogbani-Biratnagar border between the two countries.

Answer: 4) D

Explanation

The26th Annual Crystal Award for the year 2020 by the World Economic Forum (WEF) has been awarded to Deepika Padukone. Deepika Padukone was honored for her contribution to the field of mental health. The award was organized ate World Economic Forum in Davos. The Crystal Awards recognizes as well as celebrates the achievements of leading artists and cultural figures whose leadership inspires inclusive and sustainable change.

World Economic Forum

• The World Economic Forum (WEF), based in Cologny-Geneva, Switzerland, is an NGO, founded in 1971.
• The WEF’s mission is cited as “committed to improving the state of the world by engaging business, political, academic, and other leaders of society to shape global, regional, and industry agendas”.
• It is a membership-based organization, and membership is made up of the world’s largest corporations.
• The WEF hosts an annual meeting at the end of January in Davos, a mountain resort in Graubünden, in the eastern Alps region of Switzerland.
• The meeting brings together some 3,000 business leaders, international political leaders, economists, celebrities and journalists for up to five days to discuss global issues, across 500 public and private sessions.

Answer: 5) A

Explanation

The team of the Indian Consulate in Dubai has won the Diplomat Cup Cricket Championship of 2020 by defeating the team of the Pakistan Consulate in Sharjah, UAE. The event was organized by Skyline University College in Sharjah to unite the officials and employees of different Consulates based in UAE. The Consulate team of India, Australia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, South Africa, Pakistan, and the US participated.

Answer: 6) B

Explanation

The Ministry of Jal Shakti released a report on efficiency targets in the review of state and Central government water departments. As per the report, Gujarat has topped in the list. Rajasthan is the third-best and Delhi is among the worst-performing states. Among the seven Central departs reviewed, the Survey of India has got the top billing followed by the National Institute of Hydrology and Central Water Commission.

Parameters of water efficiency ranking

• Ranked under the National Hydrology Project.
• The aim is to improve drought and flood management, create a state-specific database on availability, reduce leakage in canals and dams and weather forecasts for water resources information system.
• The ranking is part of a mid-term review by the central and state governments working with water to achieve the goal of providing piped drinking water connections to every household over the next five years.

Answer: 7) C

Explanation

Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, Law & Justice and Communications, Ravi Shankar Prasad will inaugurate the ‘NIC TechConclave 2020’ at Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. This second edition of the TechConclave will be organised by the National Informatics Centre (NIC).

Theme:

• The theme of the NIC TechConclave 2020 is Technologies for NextGen Governance.

Highlights:

• The conclave will discuss the steering application of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) at various levels in the Government.
• The Conclave will contribute immensely to the capacity building of Government officers across the country and help in delivering high-quality citizen-centric services.

Participants:

• The speakers in the Conclave are experts from the IT industry who will share their expertise in various areas like Cyber Security, Design Thinking, Hyperscale Architecture, etc.

Answer: 8) D

Explanation

The World Economic Forum (WEF) released the 1st edition of its Social Mobility Index on January 20, 2020, ahead of its 50th Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. The titled of the report is “The Global Social Mobility Report 2020: Equality, Opportunity and a New Economic Imperative”. India has been ranked very low at 76th place out of 82 countries while Denmark has topped the charts.

Key facts related to the report:

• The WEF said that a ten percent increase in social change would benefit social unity and the global economy could grow by five percent by 2030.
• Countries have been tested on five criteria for ranking. It consists of ten base pillars. These categories are health and education (access, quality and equality); There are technology and work (opportunities, salaries, working conditions) and conservation and institutes (social protection and inclusive institutions).
• It shows that fair wages, social security and lifelong education are the biggest contributors to social change.
• According to the report, only certain economies have the right conditions to promote such social change. If social change is encouraged, then China, America, India, Japan and Germany can be the biggest beneficiaries.

India’s ranking

• India is ranked 41st in terms of lifelong education and 53rd in terms of working conditions. India ranks 76th in social security and 79th in fair pay distribution. India needs to improve a lot in these areas.

Ranking of other countries

• Nordic countries occupy the top five places in this list. Denmark (85 points) ranks first in this list. It is followed by Norway, Finland, Sweden and Iceland. The Netherlands (6th), Switzerland (7th), Austria (8th), Belgium (9th) and Luxembourg (10th) are in the list of top ten countries.

Answer: 9) A

Explanation

Australia conferred its highest civilian honour, the Order of Australia honour, on Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw for her contribution towards advancing the country’s relationship with India. An alumnus of Federation University Australia, Mazumdar-Shaw is the founder of Biocon, a biopharma company. Honorary appointments in the Order of Australia are made to foreigners who have made an outstanding contribution to Australia or humanity.

Answer: 10) B

Explanation

Jacqueline Williams of the West Indies will become the first woman to officiate as the third umpire in a men’s international. She will be an umpire for the first of three T20Is against the visiting Ireland team. The 43-year-old Williams oversaw all 3 matches of the Twenty20 International (T20I) series in Grenada, West Indies between West Indies and Ireland.

Answer: 11) A

Explanation

Sikhs in the US will be counted as a separate ethnic group in the 2020 census for the first time, as per an organisation of the minority community. Describing this as a milestone, the United Sikhs said that this will be the first time the minority group will be counted and coded in the decennial US Census.

How are race and ethnicity defined under the US Census?

• The US Census Bureau considers race and ethnicity as two distinct and separate concepts. It adheres to the 1997 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) standards on race and ethnicity.
• There are five broad categories under which race is categorised. These are White, Black or African American, Asian, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander. This is a social definition of race recognised and not an attempt to define race biologically, anthropologically, or genetically.
• Ethnicity determines whether a person is of Hispanic origin or not. For consideration under the US Census, ethnicity is broken down into two categories: Hispanic or Latino and Not Hispanic or Latino.

What are the benefits of this move?

• Ensure an accurate count of Sikhs in the United States.
• Help in tracking and measuring hate crimes against the community.
• Ensure an equal and accurate representation of Sikhs.
• Useful in providing access to members of Congress and other essential government services for the needs of the community.

Status of Sikhs in Britain and New Zealand

• Apart from the US, Sikhs in Britain have also demanded inclusion as a separate ethnic group. In November 2019, British Sikhs took the government to court over the “unlawful” refusal to treat them as a separate ethnic group. It is estimated that there are over 800,000 Sikhs in the UK.
• Furthermore, Sikhs are one of the fastest-growing religious minorities in New Zealand, where they are considered to be a distinct ethnic group.
• Other ethnic groups in New Zealand include Punjabis, Bengalis, Indian Tamils and Fijian Indian, among others.

Answer: 12) B

Explanation

The Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Home Minister Amit Shah, which was constituted to strengthen the legal framework to prevent sexual harassment at the workplace, has finalised its recommendations, a senior official said.

The recommendations, which include addition of new provisions to the Indian Penal Code, will be put up for comments from the public, the official said. The GoM was constituted first in October 2018 in the aftermath of the #MeToo movement after many women shared their ordeal on social media. It was reconstituted in July 2019 under Mr. Shah.

Definition of sexual harassment:

• Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition And Redressal) Act, 2013 defines sexual harassment: It includes “any one or more” of the following
• “unwelcome acts or behaviour”committed directly or by implication:
• Physical contact and advances, Sexually coloured remarks, Showing pornography, A demand or request for sexual favours, Any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.

Statistics related to incidents of sexual abuse at the workplace:

According to the National Crime Records Bureau- NCRB, the year 2017 under section 509 (injuring a woman’s modesty or honor by a word, gesture or act) in the ‘workplace or office premises’ In 2018, 479 and 401 cases were registered respectively.

The highest number of such cases were reported in the year 2018 in Delhi (28), Bangalore (20), Pune (12) and Mumbai (12).

In the year 2018, a total of 20,962 cases of sexual harassment were reported in public places, shelter homes and other places.

In December 2018, the Ministry of Home Affairs had informed all the states to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee under the ‘Sexual Harassment of Women (Prevention, Prohibition and Diagnosis) Act, 2013’ and to notify the police departments in its context.

Need for stricter provisions:

• The 2013 Act has entrusted the powers of a civil court to the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC)without specifying if the members need to have a legal background. This was a major lacuna given that the ICC formed an important grievance redressal mechanism under the framework of the act.
• The 2013 act only imposed a fine of ₹50,000 on employers for non-compliance with respect to the constitution of the ICC. This proved to be insufficient in ensuring that the employers constituted the ICC in a time-bound manner.

Key provisions of the act:

• This Act lays down the procedures for a complaint and inquiry and the action to be taken.
• It mandates that every employer constitute an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) at each office or branch with 10 or more employees.
• It lays down the procedures and defines various aspects of sexual harassment.
• A woman can be of any age, whether employed or not, who “alleges to have been subjected to any act of sexual harassment”, that means the rights of all the women working or visiting any workplace, in any capacity, are protected under the Act.

Answer: 13) C

Explanation

The Bureau of Research on Industry and Economic Fundamentals (BRIEF) has released a report highlighting the impact of trade shutdown between India and Pakistan on people across borders.The report is called “Unilateral Decisions, Bilateral Losses”.

Following the Pulwama attacks, trade between India and Pakistan across the Wagah-Attari border and the Line of Control (LoC) Salamabad-Chakhan da Bagh routes was closed in 2019. MFN (most favoured nation) status to Pakistan was also cancelled.

Impacts of these decisions:

• The decisions on trade were meant to be a tough message for Pakistan and would impact Pakistan’s economy even more than India’s. Even though ties have been much worse in the past like after the Parliament attack, trade had never been touched.
• Now, at least 9,354 families, roughly 50,000 people, in Punjab and about 900 families in Kashmir have been directly impacted. Both countries have lost billions of dollars and hundreds of job days.
• These measures that led to a 200% duty increase on imports from Pakistan at Punjab saw even the relatively meagre bilateral trade of $2.56 billion in 2018-2019 dropping to $547.22 million (April-August 2019) – imports dropping from about $500 million to just $11.45 million. Similarly, the closure of LoC trading points in Jammu and Kashmir has put small trade, handicrafts sellers, truckers, labourers, and hotel owners near the LoC in Baramulla and Poonch out of business.

What is Most Favoured Nation status?

• A treatment accorded to a trade partner to ensure non-discriminatory trade between two countries vis-a-vis other trade partners.
• It is the first clause in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Under WTO rules, a member country cannot discriminate between its trade partners.
• If a special status is granted to a trade partner, it must be extended to all members of the WTO.

Answer: 14) D

Explanation

National Informatics Centre (NIC) has recently set up the Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Blockchain Technology in Bengaluru, which aims  to provide Blockchain as a service and allowing all stakeholders to benefit from shared learning, experiences and resources. The CoE was inaugurated by Ravi Shankar Prasad, the Union Minister for Law & Justice, Communications and Electronics & Information Technology. NIC has also successfully set-up CoE in Data Analytics in partnership with NICSI and CoE in Artificial Intelligence some time back.

About Blockchain technology

• Blockchain technology is upcoming & niche technology and adoption of the same in sectors such as health, finance, agriculture and various other sectors would aid the government in implementing various programmes and provide trust and immutability to the assets.
• The applications of Blockchain in the Government are expected to enhance transparency, traceability and trust in e-governance systems.

About the National Informatics Centre

• The National Informatics Centre is an institute set up by the Indian government in 1976 to drive its technology and e-governance initiatives in the country.
• The institute is part of the Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s Department.
• NIC has been an active catalyst and facilitator in “informatics-led-development” programme of the government (could also be termed as an e-Government programme, an e-Governance Programme).

Answer: 15) A

Explanation

India has been ranked very low at 76th place out of 82 countries on a new Social Mobility Index compiled by the World Economic Forum. Denmark has topped the charts. The report, released ahead of the 50th Annual Meeting of the WEF, also lists India among the five countries that stand to gain the most from a better social mobility score. The top five are all Scandinavian, while the five economies with the most to gain from boosting social mobility are China, the United States, India, Japan and Germany.