Current Affairs Quiz , 29 Oct 2018

1) When is International Women Day celebrated?

a) 8th March.
b) 18th June
c) 28th July
d) 20th August

Answer: a
• Every Year, Ministry of Women & Child Development celebrates International Women Day on 8th March.
• The significance of the International Women’s Day lies in our re-affirmation of improve the condition of women, especially those at the margins of our society and empower them to take rightful place in society.
• Ministry of Women and Child Development has revised the guidelines for Women Awards for conferring on eminent women, organisations and institutions. These awards will be called “Nari Shakti Puruskars.
• The awards will be conferred on 8th March on the occasion of International Women’s Day (IWD).
• The Award in each category shall carry a Certificate and a cash amount.
• The award would be given to eminent or outstanding Institutions or organizations and individuals.

2) India’s first container movement on inland waterways vessel post-independence is from which of the following cities?

a) Surat
b) Kochi
c) Kolkata
d) Chennai

Answer: c
• The country’s first container movement on inland waterways vessel post-independence scheduled from Kolkata would start with a consignment of the PepsiCo.
• Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) will transport container cargo belonging to the food and beverage giant PepsiCo (India) from Kolkata to Varanasi on river Ganga.
• This would be the country’s first container movement on inland vessel post-independence, and a milestone moment in the history of India’s IWT sector.
• PepsiCo (India) will move 16 containers – equivalent to 16 truckloads- filled with food and snacks in the vessel MV RN Tagore.
• Significance:
o Container cargo transport comes with several inherent advantages.
o Even as it reduces the handling cost.
o Allows easier modal shift.
o Reduces pilferages and damage.
o It also enables cargo owners to reduce their carbon footprints.

3) India’s first Mega Food Park is located in which of the following states?

a) Punjab
b) Maharashtra
c) Odisha
d) Gujarat

Answer: d
• Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Smt Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurated the first Mega Food Park in Gujarat.
• The scheme of Mega Food Park aims at providing a mechanism to link agricultural production to the market by bringing together farmers, processors and retailers so as to ensure maximizing value addition, minimizing wastage, increasing farmers income and creating employment opportunities particularly in rural sector.
• The Mega Food Park Scheme is based on “Cluster” approach and envisages creation of state of art support infrastructure in a well-defined agri / horticultural zone for setting up of modern food processing units in the industrial plots provided in the park with well-established supply chain.
• Mega food parks typically consist of supply chain infrastructure including collection centers, primary processing centers, central processing centers, cold chain and around 30-35 fully developed plots for entrepreneurs to set up food processing units.
• The Mega Food Park project is implemented by a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) which is a Body Corporate registered under the Companies Act.
• State Government, State Government entities and Cooperatives are not required to form a separate SPV for implementation of Mega Food Park project.

4) Less Polluting Firecrackers named – SWAS, SAFAL and STAR were developed by

a) CSIR
b) Indian Institute of Science
c) Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
d) DRDO

Answer: a
• CSIR develops Less Polluting Firecrackers named – SWAS, SAFAL and STAR .
• CSIR scientists have developed Less Polluting Firecrackers which are not only environment friendly but 15-20 % cheaper than the conventional ones.
• These crackers have been named as safe water releaser (SWAS), safe minimal aluminium (SAFAL) and safe thermite cracker (STAR).
• This endeavour of CSIR aims at addressing the pollution concerns at the same time protecting the livelihoods of those involved in this trade.
• SWAS:
o SWAS crackers eliminates usage of (KNO3) Potassium nitrate and Sulphur with consequent reduction in particulate matter (30-35%) SO2 and Nox.
o It has matching sound intensity with commercial crackers in the range of 105-110 dBA.
o SWAS has been tested for shelf life up to 3 weeks with consistent performance.
• STAR:
o STAR eliminates usage of KNO3 and S with consequent reduction in particulate matter (35-40%), SO2 and Nox.
o It has matching sound intensity with commercial crackers in the range of 105-110 dBA.
• SAFAL:
o SAFAL has minimal usage of aluminium (only in flash powder for initiation)with consequent significant reduction in particulate matter(35-40 %) compared to commercial crackers.
o It has matching sound intensity with commercial crackers in the range of 110-115 dBA

5) India’s largest Dry Dock is being built in which of the following sites?

a) Kochi
b) Mumbai
c) Goa
d) Chennai

Answer: a
• The Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport & Highways, Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation will lay the foundation for India’s largest Dry Dock at Cochin Shipyard.
• The Dry Dock will give an impetus to “Make in India” initiative under Sagarmala and raise India’s share in global shipbuilding to 2 percent.
• India currently occupies 0.66 % share in global shipbuilding market.
• The dock will be designed to handle both ship building and repairs, and bear a load up to 600 T/m.
• It will be equipped with international safety standards.
• Significance:
o Equipped with this Dry Dock, Cochin Shipyard will be able to build specialized and technologically advanced large vessels like LNG Carriers, drill ships, jack up rigs, large dredgers, aircraft carriers for Indian Navy and high end research vessels.