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General Awareness Updates (January 2015)

GA Updates (January 2015) Page : 1

BANKING AND ECONOMY NEWS

Government splits Chairman and MD posts in PSBs

As part of plans to reform the banking sector, the government announced splitting the post of Chairman and Managing Director into two for the public sector banks. The government has also appointed managing director and chief executive officers (MD & CEO) for four public sector banks. While R. Koteeswaran has been appointed as MD & CEO of Indian Overseas Bank; Animesh Chauhan will head Oriental Bank of Commerce. Both Mr. Koteeswaran and Mr. Chauhan presently are Executive Directors at Bank of India. Besides, Kishore Kumar Sansi, presently serving as the Executive Director, Punjab and Sind Bank, has been appointed as MD and CEO of Vijaya Bank, and P. Srinivas, who is an Executive Director at Bank of Baroda, will move to United Bank of India as the MD & CEO. The appointments, based on the recommendations of the Appointments Board chaired by the Reserve Bank of India Governor, are for a period of three years or till the date of superannuation, whichever is earlier, according to an official release.

Fortum commissions 10 MW solar plant in MP

Fortum Finnsurya Energy completed its 10 MW solar power project in Madhya Pradesh, making it the first project to be connected to the grid under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission Phase II initiative. The solar power plant spreads over about 70 acres in Kapeli, Ujjain and was expected to be formally inaugurated in early 2015.

Norms for foreign VCs in core investment firms

Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has notified new norms that will allow Foreign Venture Capital Investors (FVCIs) in Core Investment Companies (CICs) for infrastructure sector to help attract overseas funds in this space. The move would remove any hindrance for investment in the infrastructure sector through the FVCI route and to boost the infrastructure sector in the country. According to the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17), India requires Rs.65 lakh crore investments in infrastructure.

Govt approves 8 FDI proposals worth Rs. 35 crore

Government has cleared eight foreign investment proposals worth about Rs.34.77 crore including that of CSC Computer Sciences International Operations and Life Positive Private Ltd. “Based on the recommendations of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)...government has approved eight proposals of Foreign Direct Investment amounting to Rs.34.77 crore approximately.

RBI eases KYC norms for NBFCs Amending rules for non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) with regard to their Know-Your-Customer (KYC) exercise, the Reserve Bank of India relaxed the time limit during which such due diligence is required. The rules have been eased due to practical difficulties and constraints in getting KYC documents at frequent intervals. Full KYC exercise will be required to be done at least every two years for high risk individuals and entities, at least every 10 years for low risk and at least every 8 years for medium risk individuals and entities, taking into account whether and when client due diligence measures have previously been undertaken and the adequacy of data obtained. However, it added that physical presence of clients may not be insisted at such periodic updations.

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Economist Arvind Panagariya appointed Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog

Economist Arvind Panagariya has been appointed as the Vice Chairman of National Institution for Transforming India, NITI Aayog. Another economist, Bibek Debroy and former Defence Secretary V K Saraswat have been appointed as full-time members. The appointments were made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is Chairman of the Aayog. Union Ministers Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley, Suresh Prabhu and Radha Mohan Singh will be the ex-officio members. Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari, Thawar Chand Gehlot and Smriti Irani will be the special invitees in the body. On January 1, 2015, the government had replaced the nearly 64-year old Planning Commission with NITI. It will serve as the Think Tank of the Government. The NITI Aayog will provide the Centre and the States with relevant strategic and technical advice across key elements of policy.

Cabinet clears 2G auction

The Union Cabinet has approved the largest ever telecom spectrum auction that is targeted to fetch at least Rs.64,840 crore from the sale in February 2015. The government will sell 380.75 megahertz of second generation (2G) spectrum in three bands — the premium 800 MHz, 900 MHz and 1800 MHz. Spectrum in 2100 MHz may also be put on auction simultaneously after Defence Ministry vacates it.

Over 40 Indians in Forbes annual list of global prodigies

Over 40 Indians and people of Indian-origin, including technology wizards, inventors and policymakers, have been named by Forbes in its annual list of "young game changers, movers and makers" under the age of 30 from around the globe. The fourth annual compilation by Forbes includes 600 millennials in 20 fields, including consumer technology, retail, entertainment, science, finance, media, social entrepreneurs, law and policy and enterprise technology. The list includes big names like Harry Potter actress and UN Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson, actor Zac Efron, basketball player James Harden and NBA star Chris Paul.

India will catch up with China's growth rate in 2016-17

The World Bank has said that India will catch up with China's growth at 7 per cent in the year 2016-17. The World Bank's forecast came as it released the 'Global Outlook: Disappointments, Divergences, and Expectations Global Economic Prospects' in Washington. World Bank Chief Economist and Senior Vice-President Kaushik Basu told that India's economy has recovered in the wake of the economic reform measures taken by the new Indian government, falling oil prices and lower interest rates, due to which it will catch up with China's growth. He said, China's growth will remain high, but will begin to taper very gently, reaching 6.9 per cent in 2017.

United Bank first to cut base rate, others to follow

United Bank of India has been the first off the block to revise its Base Rate — the benchmark rate for all floating rate loans — following Reserve Bank of India's 25 basis point repo rate cut. Most public sector banks which have their Base Rates at 10.25% and above are expected to now cut rates to remain competitive in the market. Announcing the rate cut, P Srinivas, chairman, United Bank of India said that the bank has chosen to cut rates because it is holding surplus funds. The base rate of public sector banks ranges from 10 to 10.4% with a median rate of 10.25%. For private banks the Base Rate ranges from 10.00 to 11.50% while for foreign banks it is from 7.5% to 15.5% with a median level of 9.75%.

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RBI allows banks to act as Insurance brokers to increase insurance penetration

Seeking to increase insurance penetration in the country, the Reserve Bank of India has allowed banks to act as brokers for insurers, set up their own subsidiaries and also undertake referral services for multiple companies. In the guidelines for entry of banks into insurance business, RBI said that the banks may undertake insurance agency or broking business departmentally and or through subsidiary. The banks have also been allowed to set up subsidiaries and joint venture companies for undertaking insurance business with risk participation. They can also act as corporate agents without seeking prior approval from the RBI. However, they will have to comply with IRDA guidelines. There are 52 insurance companies operating in India; of which 24 are in the life insurance business and 28 are in general insurance business. In addition, GIC is the sole national reinsurer.

RBI asks banks not to transfer funds without govt's permission from Greenpeace, 9 others

Concerned over violation of norms by banks, the Reserve Bank of India has asked them not to transfer overseas funds without government's permission from 10 specified donor agencies, including Greenpeace International. The RBI said that a couple of instances of some banks crediting fund flow from one of the foreign donor agencies without obtaining prior permission of the Ministry of Home Affairs have been noticed, which is a matter of serious concern. The apex bank asked them to ensure meticulous compliance to the directions issued by the Government.

SEBI warns public against illicit money pooling schemes

Making public a list of 63 companies running illegal money pooling schemes, market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has cautioned investors and general public against dealing with such entities and advised them not be lured by promises of high returns. The latest list released by Sebi is an expansion to the previous one in December, 2014, wherein it had named 51 entities. The warning to investors comes after Sebi observed that certain entities were mobilising money through illegal investment schemes even after the regulator had directed them not to raise any further money and not to launch any new schemes, among others. Accordingly, listing out 63 entities, Sebi has issued a caution to the investors and general public not to invest in illegal schemes offered by such companies that claim to offer much higher returns than banks and other registered entities. The list of entities banned by Sebi from raising funds include names like Saradha Realty India, Rose Valley Real Estate & Constructions, Sai Prasad Properties, PACL, Sumangal Industries, MVL Ltd, KBCL India, Nicer Green, Alchemist Infra Realty, HBN Dairies, Kim Infrastructure & Developers.

Union Bank cuts deposit rates

Union Bank of India will reduce the base rate by 25 basis points (bps) from 10.25 per cent to 10 per cent, effective January 27. UBI also reduced interest rate on deposits in various buckets under retail and bulk deposits from 10 bps to 50 bps.

'HDFC Bank among world's 50 most valued banks in 2014' HDFC Bank is the lone Indian entity among the world's 50 most valued lenders in 2014 with a market capitalisation of close to $41 billion. Ranked at the 45th position, the private sector bank is ahead of global majors Credit Suisse, DBS Group, and Standard Chartered with a market capitalisation of $40.58 billion. In the top 50 list compiled by Relbanks, SBI has been ranked at 51th with market capitalisation of $36.40 while ICICI Bank with $33.42 billion is 55th.

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India to outpace China growth by FY17: IMF India's economic growth is expected to overtake China's by 2016, the International Monetary Fund (IMF)'s projection showed as the multilateral agency revised down global growth due to new risks. IMF's World Economic Outlook update showed India's economy is expected to grow 6.5% in 2016-17, outpacing China's 6.3% expansion. India is estimated to grow 5.8% in 2014-15 and 6.3% in 2015-16, while China is forecast to expand 7.4% in 2014 and 6.8% in 2015. The government expects the growth to pick up to 5.5% in the current fiscal and then accelerate to 6-6.5% in 2015-16. EU to lift Indian mangoes ban The European Union (EU) has agreed to lift the ban on import of Alphonso mangoes from India before the start of next season. Experts from the UK government's Plant Health and Seeds Inspectorate worked with the Indian authorities to help them prepare for an EU audit of their export system which led to the EU Plant health Standing Committee voting to lift restrictions much earlier than expected. EU's 28 member states endorsed on March 26, 2014 emergency measures to ban the import of certain fruits and vegetables from India. The ban put in force by EU's Standing Committee on Plant Health came into force from May 1. The EU ban was due to remain until December 2015. Kotak Mahindra launches social savings bank account Kotak Mahindra Bank launched Jifi Saver, a social savings bank account which can be seamlessly managed via Twitter and Facebook, in this region. Developed for today's tech savvy and socially connected consumers with an active digital life, Jifi saver will take care of their needs such as online shopping, on-the-go transactions and financial planning. This will also offer all benefits and functionalities of a regular savings bank account, adding that it enables the customers to earn savings interest rate of six percent per annum on balance of above Rs 1 lakh and five per cent on balance up to Rs 1 lakh. RBI directs banks to display all loan costs Borrowers availing home, auto and personal loans can now be assured of a fair deal with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) making it compulsory for banks to set out every possible cost in respect of the loan in a fact sheet at the processing stage. Banks will also have to publish the 'annual percentage rate' representing the total cost of credit to an individual borrower. Besides, they will have to display on their website the interest rate range for various contracted loans for the past quarter for different categories of advances. India's gold imports from Switzerland crosses Rs1.2 lakh cr in 2014

Switzerland's gold exports to India have crossed 1.2 lakh crore rupees in 2014. According to Swiss government, gold worth 17.1 billion Swiss Francs or an over 1.2 lakh crore rupees have been imported during the 11-month period, from January to November end in 2014. More than 457 kilograms of gold was exported from Switzerland to India during January-November 2014 period. According to latest figures, gold imports surged over six-fold to over 35,000 crore rupees in November 2014.

RBI lifts ban on carrying 1,000 & 500 bank notes to and from Nepal

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has lifted a ban on carrying Indian bank notes of Rs 1,000 and 500 denominations to and from Nepal. RBI issued a circular eased the restriction on export and import of bank notes of 1,000 and 500 denominations for Nepal and Bhutan that it had imposed since May, 2000. The Indian central bank, however, has put a limit of carrying such notes at Rs 25,000 per person. Following the request of Indian government to curb smuggling of counterfeit currency, Nepal had also imposed a ban on carrying 500 and 1,000 denominated Indian bank notes in Nepal.

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Yes Bank inks MoU with OPIC for $220 m

Yes Bank has signed an agreement with OPIC, an arm of the U.S. government’s development finance institution, for $220 million loan for on-lending to micro, small and medium enterprises. The loan is part of the $1 billion OPIC assistance for India, announced by President Barack Obama at the India-U.S. Business Summit. The loan is for 12 years and the bank will draw it one go.

China's yuan joins top 5 most-used global currencies

China's yuan has become one of the five most widely used currencies in global payments, an international financial transactions agency announced. The yuan passed the Canadian and Australian dollars in popularity in December, according to the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, which provides communications between financial institutions and companies. It said the yuan now ranks behind the dollar, the euro, the British pound and Japanese yen. The yuan, also known as the renminbi, accounted for 2.17 percent of global payments in December, behind the yen's share of 2.69, according to Swift. The U.S. dollar's share is about 45 percent.

HDFC Bank, Lupin proposals get CCEA nod

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has cleared the proposal of HDFC Bank to raise Rs.10,000 crore from foreign investors. The meeting, chaired by the Prime Minister, approved the HDFC Bank proposal that will raise its foreign holding to 74 per cent, enabling inflow of around Rs.10,000 crore from overseas investors. Total foreign investment in HDFC Bank was 73.39 per cent at the end of June, 2014. The funds would be raised by issuing shares to non-resident Indians or FIIs or foreign portfolio investors subjected to aggregate foreign shareholding not exceeding 74 per cent of the post-issue paid-up capital. The CCEA also cleared a proposal of Lupin Limited for increase in aggregate limit of investment from 33 percent to 49 percent by Foreign Institutional Investors and their sub-accounts registered with SEBI. The move will result in foreign investment of around 6099 crore rupees in the country.

Packaging of foodgrains & sugar in jute material to be mandatory

Packaging of food grains and sugar in jute material will be mandatory. It will be minimum of 90 per cent of production in case of food grains and 20 per cent for sugar. The decision was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, CCEA. The decision will help the jute sector which generates a lot of livelihoods for farmers and workers. CCEA has approved providing financial support to the Jute Corporation of India, JCI. The subsidy will be provided subsidy to JCI on a continuous basis to off-set the losses on account of Minimum Support Price (MSP) operations. The quantum of subsidy will include the difference between the Purchase and Sale Price of MSP Raw Jute.

Over 9.35 cr consumers join LPG cash-subsidy scheme

More than 64 per cent of 15.3 crore LPG consumers in the country have joined the ambitious PAHAL scheme to receive cash subsidy in their bank accounts so they can buy the cooking gas at market price. The Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG Scheme was launched on 15th November 2014 in 54 districts and in the rest of the country from 1st of January 2015. The scheme has become world's largest direct cash transfer scheme. The MyLPG.in portal, which provides one stop solutions to cooking gas consumers - from joining DBTL to knowing their status of their refil bookings and cash subsidy received, will be also be available in 10 regional languages.

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LPG consumers have time till 31st March to join the scheme, failing which they will not get any subsidy and will be forced to buy LPG at market rate. Similar cash transfer scheme in Brazil and China had a total of about 2.2 crore beneficiaries.

Reserve price of 2,100-MHz spectrum stands at Rs 3,705 cr

The Union Cabinet has approved a reserve price of Rs 3,705 crore per MHz for the auction of 2,100-MHz telecom spectrum from March 4, as recommended by the Telecom Commission. Auction of spectrum in the 800, 900, 1,800 and 2,100-MHz bands is expected to fetch the government Rs 90,000-100,000 crore. The price approved by the Cabinet is about 35 per cent higher than what the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) had recommended (Rs 2,720 crore for the 2,100-MHz band).

Cabinet goes by HC tax relief for Vodafone

In a move aimed at improving the investment climate in the country, the Union Cabinet has decided not to challenge a Bombay High Court ruling that said Vodafone was not liable to pay a tax demand of Rs. 3,200 crore in a transfer pricing case. The Cabinet also decided not to appeal against similar verdicts in other cases against taxpayers. The decision follows Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi’s advice to the Income Tax Department not to appeal against the High Court judgment.

Govt to sell up to 10% of its stake in Coal India Limited

The government will offer to offload up to ten per cent of its stake in Coal India Limited (CIL) as part of its ambitious divestment programme. In the biggest ever share sale, government is expecting to garner about 22,600 crore rupees from sale. The government has fixed 358 rupees per share as the floor price, which is at a discount of about 5 per cent from the current market price of Coal India shares. The government presently holds nearly 90 per cent stake in the CIL. The Coal India's divestment will play a crucial role in curtailing the fiscal deficit. The divestment target this year is 58,425 crore rupees, out of which 43,425 crore rupees is expected to come via share sale in the PSUs. The government targets to double the coal production to one billion tonnes in the next few years.

India's FDI increased by 26 per cent in 2014

India's FDI increased by 26 per cent in 2014 to an estimated 35 billion US dollar with maximum growth in the services sector, despite the decline in global Foreign Direct Investment inflows. This was revealed in the latest 'Global Investment Trade Monitor' report released by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Maximum growth was noticed in services sector especially in electricity, gas, water, waste management and information and communication. China toppled the US in 2014 as the world's largest recipient of the FDI -- a position that the US had been holding almost consistently since the 1980's -- though with a modest increase of 3 per cent. The top five FDI hosts in 2014 were China with 128 billion US dollar, followed by Hong Kong 111 billion dollar, the United States 86 billion, Singapore 81 billion dollar and Brazil 62 billion dollar. In 2014 global FDI inflows declined by 8 per cent to an estimated 1.26 trillion US dollar due to fragility of the global economy, policy uncertainty and geo-political risks.

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RBI allows FIIs to hold 100% equity in Veritas Ltd

The Reserve Bank has allowed foreign investors to have 100 per cent holding in chemical products distributor Veritas (India) Ltd. The raising of foreign investment limit to 100 per cent follows passage of a special resolution by the company, agreeing to enhance the limit for purchase of its equity shares and convertible debentures by FIIs/RFPIs. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs)/Registered Foreign Portfolios Investors (RFPIs) can now invest up to 100 per cent of the paid up capital of Veritas (India) Limited under the Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS).

SBI settles debenture probe case with Sebi, pays Rs 6.8 lakh

State-run banking giant SBI has settled a probe by markets watchdog Sebi into alleged violations of debenture trustee regulations during certain public and private bond issues four-and-a-half years ago. The case has been settled after State Bank of India (SBI) agreed to pay Rs 6.8 lakh towards 'settlement charges'. The case relates to a Sebi inspection of the Debenture Trustee (DT) operations of State Bank of India during July 26, 2010 to July 30, 2010.

RBI constitutes high level panel on urban cooperative banks

RBI has constituted a High Powered Committee under the Chairmanship of Deputy Governor R Gandhi to re-examine and recommend appropriate set of businesses, size, conversion and licensing terms for the Urban Cooperative Banking Sector. The committee will examine the line of businesses that UCBs may be permitted to undertake and their benchmark in terms of size of business, capital requirement, regulatory regime etc. The committee will further suggest the criteria for allowing voluntary conversion by a UCB. RBI has also asked the committee to examine whether the time is opportune to give license to new UCBs. Lastly, the committee will determine the modalities of implementing the suggestion of the Malegam Committee that 50 per cent in value of deposits should be held by voting members or propose a feasible structure that puts majority voting in the hands of contributors of funds. The eight member Committee consisting of experienced bankers will submit its report within three months.

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Quiz

1. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved HDFC Bank’s proposal to raise foreign holding limit to:

(1) 74 percent (2) 52 percent (3) 73.2 percent (4) 49 percent (5) 75 percent 2. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its sixth Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy statement cut its main lending

rate (Repo Rate) by 0.25 per cent with immediate effect, now repo rate will prevail at: (1) 7.50 percent (2) 7.25 percent (3) 7.75 percent (4) 8.25 percent (5) 8 percent 3. On January 6, 2015 the Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a commemorative coin to mark the 175th

birth anniversary of (1) Swami Vivekananda (2) Vallabhbhai J. Patel (3) Rabindra Nath Tagore (4) Arbind Ghosh (5) Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata 4. Name the small deposit scheme launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently which will enable

parents to open bank accounts of girls who are under 10 years of age. (1) Sukhi Samridhi Yojana (2) Sukhmaya Samridhi Yojana (3) Sukh Samridhi Yojana (4) Sukanya Samridhi Yojana (5) Sukhmaya Jiwan Yojana 5. India’s first compressed natural gas (CNG)-powered train has been started in which state of India? (1) Haryana (2) Karnataka (3) Gujarat (4) Andhra Pradesh (5) Rajasthan 6. Shanta Kumar Committee has submitted its report to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This committee

is related with (1) reconstructing of insurance sector (2) land reforms (3) restructuring of Food Corporation of India (FCI) (4) critical analysis of major financial inclusion programs (5) banking system 7. Who among the following has been declared as the Businessperson of the Year for 2014 by Fortune

magazine? (1) Larry Page (2) Jack Ma (3) Mark Zuckerberg (4) Tim Cook (5) Denise Ramos 8. WeBank is first online bank of (1) Japan (3) China (3) Germany (4) Italy (5) South Korea 9. Which state government has decided to disburse 2000 crore ruppes aid to drought-hit farmers? (1) Madhya Pradesh (2) Gujarat (3) Andhra Pradesh (4) Maharashtra (5) Rajasthan 10. International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) has released a customised

low-cost combination of phone and tablet named (1) GreenPHABLET (2) GreenNET (3) SmilePharm (4) GreenSIM (5) GreenPAHAL

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11. US space agency NASA has announced formation of a five-year research and development partnership with which of the following automaker?

(1) Toyota (2) General Motors (3) Nissan (4) Hyundai (5) Mercedes-Benz 12. Competition Commission of India (CCI) has cleared the proposal of PepsiCo India to sell its bottling

plants in North India to (1) Jubilant Life Sciences (2) Nestle (3) Narang group (4) Parle Agro (5) Varun Beverages 13. Who among the following is the first industrialist to be felicitated by a commemorative coin? (1) G D Birla (2) Dhiru Bhai Ambani (3) Ratan Tata (4) Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata (5) Azim Premji 14. Which among the following pharmaceutical companies has received final approval of the US Food &

Drug Administration (FDA) for its generic drugs Mycophenolate Mofetil and Rizatriptan? (1) Dr Reddys Labs (2) Jubilant Biosys Ltd (3) Ranbaxy (4) Aurobindo Pharm (5) Lupin 15. Tencent Holdings Limited is an internet giant operating in which of the following countries? (1) Singapore (3) UAE (3) China (4) France (5) South Korea 16. Which of the following Indian cities will host the World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT) in

2018? (1) Mumbai (2) Bengaluru (3) Pune (4) Hyderabad (5) New Delhi 17. Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has signed an agreement to provide global platform to Indian small

and medium enterprises (SMEs) with which of the following? (1) Alibaba (2) Flipkart (3) Amazon (4) Myntra (5) Snapdeal 18. Which among the following States is the first state in the country to have banned the use of plastic bags? (1) Goa (2) Kerala (3) Sikkim (4) Maharashtra (5) Himachal Pradesh 19. Which districts of Kerala has become the first district of India to have complete rural broadband

coverage? (1) Palakkad (2) Idukki (3) Thrissur (4) Ernakulam (5) Kollam 20. The Seventh Vibrant Gujarat Summit was held from January 11 to January 13, 2015 in which district of

Gujarat? (1) Gandhinagar (2) Ahmedabad (3) Vadodara (4) Rajkot (5) Jamnagar 21. Who has been appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited by

Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) recently? (1) A. P Singh (2) A N Rai (3) R K Upadhyay (4) Anupam Shrivastava (5) Sunil Banerjee 22. Union Government has launched integrated women safety mobile app called (1) Himmat (2) Hausla (3) Sahas (4) Nirbheek (5) Shakiman 23. Who is the present Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Indian Overseas Bank (IOB)? (1) M Narendra (2) R. Koteeswaran (3) S S Mundra (4) R.K. Dubey (5) R. K Mishra

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24. Which among the following economists has been appointed as the Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog? (1) Bibek Debroy (2) Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee (3) Arvind Panagariya (4) Amit Mitra (5) Sumit Chaterjee 25. Which state has been selected for the National Award for e-Governance for the best district-level initiative

in Citizen-Centric Service Delivery through ICT? (1) Kerala (2) Karnataka (3) Gujarat (4) Haryana (5) Jammu and Kashmir 26. U.S.-based DuPont pharmaceutical propellant business under the ‘Dymel’ brand has been acquired for

$20 million by: (1) SRF Limited (2) Amco India Ltd (3) Avon Organics Ltd (4) Aviva Industries Ltd (5) Jubilant Biosys Ltd 27. Which insurance company has planned to introduce a unique co-branded credit card with Abu Dhabi-

based First Gulf Bank in the UAE to address concerns of insurance policyholders? (1) Aviva India (2) Reliance (3) Bajaj Allianz (4) LIC International (5) SBI Insurance 28. Which bank has launched the country’s first contactless debit and credit cards that use the near-field

communication technology, enabling one to make payments by just waving the card near merchant terminals instead of swiping the same?

(1) Axis Bank (2) Kotak Mahindra Bank (3) ICICI Bank (4) HDFC Bank (5) Yes Bank 29. Which among the following Banks is not one of the four sponsors of UTI Mutual Fund? (1) State Bank of India (2) Bank of Baroda (3) Punjab National Bank (4) Union Bank of India (5) None of these 30. Which IT firm has acquired SOFGEN Holdings Ltd., a global consulting and services firm specializing in

private, commercial and retail banking solutions? (1) TCS (2) Tech Mahindra (3) Wipro (4) HCL Technology (5) Wipro 31. Name the Asia’s oldest stock exchange which will establish an international exchange in GIFT SEZ-IFC,

a multi-services special economic zone (SEZ)? (1) China Financial Futures Exchange (CFFEX) (2) Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) (3) Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) (4) Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) (5) Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) 32. Who among the following former chairman/chairperson of HDFC bank has been appointed as a non-

Executive Director and chairman of Global defence and aerospace company BAE Systems India? (1) Deepak Parekh (2) Shyamala Gopinath (3) C M Vasudev (4) Jagdish Capoor (5) R. Koteeswaran 33. Which among the following technology giants has launched the first phone powered by Tizen operating

system in India? (1) Sony (2) Apple (3) Blackberry (4) Samsung (5) Micromax

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34. Which among the following microfinance company is set to get Rs.1,600 crore equity infusion from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund?

(1) Bhartiya Samruddhi Finance Limited (BSFL) (2) Bandhan Financial Services (3) Cashpor Micro Credit (CMC) (4) Asmitha Microfin Ltd (AML) (5) Sparsh Microfinance Ltd(SML) 35. Denmark based which among the following pharmaceutical firms has launched its combination diabetic

drug ‘Ryzodeg’? (1) Novo Nordisk (2) Rose Pharma (3) Leo Pharma (4) Pharmacosmos (5) Jubilant Biosys Ltd 36. Who won the women’s singles of Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold Badminton Tournament 2015? (1) Wang Ziaoli (2) Carolina Marin (3) PV Sindhu (4) Yu Yang (5) Saina Nehwal 37. A team of researchers led by Gregory Lanzaro of University of California-Davis have discovered a super

mosquito hybrid that is resistant to insecticide-treated bed nets in the West African country of: (1) Gambia (2) Guinea (3) Mali (4) Senegal (5) Ghana 38. Name the world's smallest goanna lizard species which has been named Dampier Peninsula Goanna

while its scientific name is Varanus sparnus, was discovered recently in: (1) Ethiopia (2) Australia (3) Brazil (4) Indonesia (5) New Zealand 39. 20th Law Commission of India has submitted its 253rd report entitled ‘Commercial Division and

Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts and Commercial Courts Bill, 2015’ to Union government. Commission headed by:

(1) Justice M. J. Rao (2) Justice P. V. Reddi (3) Justice J.S. Verma (4) Justice B. P. Jeevan Reddy (5) Justice A P Shah 40. Who has been named as the winner of the Sahitya Akademi Award 2014 for Sanskrit language for his

work ‘Kanakalochanaha’? (1) Prabhu Nath Dwivedi (2) Radhakant Thakur (3) Mithila Prasad Tripathi (4) Om Prakash Pande (5) A. P. Singh 41. Who won Khushwant Singh Memorial Prize for Poetry? (1) Sridala Swami (2) Arundhathi Subramaniam (3) Ranjit Hoskote (4) Sampurna Chattarji (5) Joy Goswami 42. Accoridng to the latest report released by National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), which of the

following states has the highest no. of tigers? (1) Tamilnadu (2) Uttarakhand (3) Kerala (4) Karnataka (5) Madhya Pradesh 43. To focus attention on the disease which is also known as the Hansen’s disease, World Anti-Leprosy Day

is observed on: (1) January 29 (2) January 30 (3) January 27 (4) January 25 (5) January 21 44. Which among the following swimmers has set a world record by swimming 1.4 miles in 52 minutes in one

degree temperature in the Antarctic Ocean? (1) Bhakti Sharma (2) Lewis Pugh (3) Lynne Cox (4) Éva Risztov (5) Shikha Tandon

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45. Who among the following cueists won National Billiards Championship 2015? (1) Dhruv Sitwala (2) Pankaj Advani (3) Siddharth Parikh (4) B. Bhaskar (5) Sourav Kothari 46. Who is the present Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)? (1) G. Madhavan Nair (2) S. Ramachandran (3) R. Rangaswami (4) Alur Seelin Kiran Kumar (5) Shailesh Nayak 47. Army Day, the day when Lieutenant General (later Field Marshal) K M Cariappa became the first Indian

Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army post Independence in January 1949, is observed on: (1) January 15 (2) January 14 (3) January 13 (4) January 12 (5) January 10 48. Pompadour Green Pigeon (Treron pompador(1), a native of the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka was

spotted recently in: (1) Gujarat (2) Rajasthan (3) Himachal Pradesh (4) Madhya Pradesh (5) Odisha 49. Who among the following has been appointed as the new Chairman of Central Board of Film Certification

(CBFC)? (1) Govind Nihlani (2) Muzaffar Ali (3) Pahlaj Nihalani (4) C P Dwivedi (5) Leela Samson 50. A book under the name of ‘The Red Sari’ is an unauthorized biography of which Indian female politician? (1) Indira Gandhi (2) Sonia Gandhi (3) Jayalalitha (4) Mamata Banerjee (5) Renuka Chaudhary 51. Which among the following States Tableau won first position in Tableaux Category of 2015 Republic Day

Parade Awards announced by Union Ministry of Defense? (1) Maharashtra (2) Jharkhand (3) Karnataka (4) Goa (5) Gujarat 52. Who has been appointed as 21st chief justice of Bangladesh? (1) Justice Latifur Rahman (2) Justice Md. Muzammel Hossain (3) Justice A.B.M. Khairul Haque (4) Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha (5) Justice P. V. Reddi 53. Which of the following states/UTs has appointed Baba Ramdev as state brand ambassador of its

Government? (1) Uttarakhand (2) Delhi (3) Haryana (4) Rajasthan (5) Chandigarh 54. Which among the following Towers of Dubai has been listed in the Guinness World Record for being the

world’s largest vertical maze? (1) Cayan Tower (2) Maze Tower (3) Sulafa Tower (4) Almas Tower (5) Ocean Heights 55. As per the Global Investment Trend Monitor Report, recently released by United Nations Conference on

Trade and Development (UNCTAD), which of the following country was the largest recipient of FDI in 2014? (1) Hong Kong (2) India (3) China (4) USA (5) South Africa 56. Which country has signed MoU with India for skill and infrastructural development in sports? (1) UK (2) Russia (3) South Africa (4) Australia (5) USA 57. Who among the following is the present Director General of ITBP? (1) Prakash Mishra (2) Subhash Joshi (3) Subhas Goswami (4) Ajay Chadha (5) Krishna Chaudhary

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58. Tamil Novel titled ‘Madhorubhagan’ was recently in news as some organisations have demanded to ban the book and jail the author. Who is the author of Madhorubhagan?

(1) Perumal Murugan (2) S. Ramakrishnan (3) Poomani (4) Nandagopal (5) Nanjil Nadan 59. Which among the following Australian cricket player has been named as the Bradman Young Cricketer of

the Year 2015? (1) John Hastings (2) David Warne (3) Sean Abbott (4) Trent Copeland (5) Jordan Silk 60. Who is the present Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of Election Commission? (1) V.S. Sampath (2) Navin Chawla (3) S. Y. Quraishi (4) Hari Shankar Brahma (5) N. Gopalaswami 61. Who is the present chairman of Sangeet Natak Akademi(SNA)? (1) Shekhar Sen (2) Leela Samson (3) Raja Reddy (4) Kiran Seth (5) R Satyanarayana 62. Who was the chief guest of the 13th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) 2015? (1) Datuk Seri. G. Palanivel (2) Donald Ramotar (3) Rajkeswur Purryag (4) Kamla Persad Bissessar (5) Navinchandra Ramgoolam 63. The Bhagabatpur Crocodile Project was in news because it got a fresh start with the help of renowned

experts in herpetology. Bhagabatpur Crocodile Project is situated in: (1) Uttar Pradesh (2) Odisha (3) Sikkim (4) Andhra Pradesh (5) West Bengal 64. Who has been presented with Social Media Person of the Year award 2015 by the Internet and Mobile

Association of India (IAMAI)? (1) Aamir Khan (2) Narendra Modi (3) Sonia Gandhi (4) Amitabh Bachchan (5) Arvind Kejariwal 65. The resignation of Kolo Roger and his government has been accepted by President Hery

Rajaonarimampianina on January 12, 2015. Kolo Roger was the Prime Minister of which country? (1) Zambia (2) Mozambique (3) Madagascar (4) Tanzania (5) Zimbabwe 66. India’s Mars Orbiter programme team has won the 2015 Space Pioneer Award in the science and

engineering category from the US based National Space Society (NSS). The team headed by: (1) A S Kiran Kumar (2) Mylswamy Annadurai (3) Shailesh Nayak (4) K Radhakrishnan (5) Subhas Goswami 67. National Girl Child Day is observed on: (1) January 24 (2) January 25 (3) January 22 (4) January 26 (5) January 21 68. Who among the following golf players has been voted Asian Tour’s 2014 Players’ Player of the Year? (1) Jeev Milkha Singh (2) Cameron Smith (3) Anirban Lahiri (4) Kiradech Aphibarnrat (5) Paul Peterson 69. Who has been crowned as 63rd Miss Universe 2014? (1) Paulina Vega (2) Gabriela Isler (3) Elvira Devinamira (4) Gabriela Berrios (5) Leila Lopes 70. Who won the 2014 FIFA Ballon d'Or Award? (1) Lionel Messi (2) Cristiano Ronaldo (3) Manuel Neuer (4) Arjen Robben (5) Fabio Cannavaro

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Answer Key

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

11 3 12 5 13 4 14 2 15 3 16 4 17 1 18 5 19 2 20 1

21 4 22 1 23 2 24 3 25 5 26 1 27 4 28 3 29 4 30 2

31 3 32 1 33 4 34 2 35 1 36 5 37 3 38 2 39 5 40 1

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

51 1 52 4 53 3 54 2 55 3 56 4 57 5 58 1 59 3 60 4

61 1 62 2 63 5 64 4 65 3 66 2 67 1 68 3 69 1 70 2