Q1. Which country has recently passed its Free trade Agreement (FTA) with India?
[A] Sri Lanka[B] Australia
[C] France
[D] Germany
B – Explanation:
- Australian Parliament has passed the country’s Free trade Agreement (FTA) with India, announced Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Once implemented, the trade agreement will provide duty-free access to the Australian market for over 6,000 sectors of India, including textiles, leather, furniture, jewellery and machinery. Australia offers zero-duty access to India for about 96.4% of exports from day one.
Q2.Arittapatti has been notified as the first Biodiversity Heritage Site of which state?
[A] Kerala[B] Tamil Nadu
[C] Telangana
[D] Odisha
B – Explanation:
- Arittapatti village in Madurai district has been notified as the first Biodiversity Heritage Site in Tamil Nadu.
It has a rich biological and historical significance with the presence of around 250 bird species including 3 Raptor species – Laggar Falcon, Shaheen Falcon, Bonelli’s Eagle. It also has wild-life like Pangolin, Python, and Slender Loris. The notification comes under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002.
Q3.Article 324 of the Constitution, which was seen in the news, is related to the appointment of which position?
[A] President[B] Governor
[C] Election commissioner
[D] Supreme Court Judge
C – Explanation:
- The Supreme Court noted the absence of a law governing the appointments of election commissioners and chief election commissioners a disturbing trend.
The court flagged Article 324 of the Constitution, which talks about the appointment of election commissioners, and said it does not provide the procedure for such appointments. Since 2004, no chief election commissioner has completed the six-year tenure.
Q4.As per the recent OECD report, what is the GDP forecast for India for FY23?
[A] 6.1 %[B] 6.6 %
[C] 7.2 %
[D] 7.5 %
B – Explanation:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) cut its gross domestic growth forecast for India for FY23 to 6.6 per cent from 6.9 per cent.
The reasons are higher medium-term global uncertainty and slowing domestic economic activity. India is set to be the second-fastest growing economy in the G-20 in FY23, despite decelerating global demand and the tightening of monetary policy.
Q5.Which institution issued a working paper on decline of India’s rankings on global indices?
[A] NITI Aayog[B] Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister
[C] Department of Economic Affairs
[D] Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances
B – Explanation:
- The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, EAC-PM has issued a working paper titled ‘Why India does poorly on global perception indices: Case study of three opinion-based indices’.
It says that the decline in India’s rankings on a number of global indices is due to the problems with the methodology used in these opinion-based indices. The Paper has analysed – Freedom in the World Index, V-DEM indices, and EIU Democracy Index.
Q6. Karmayogi Prarambh’ is a course prepared for which segment of people?
[A] Non-Resident Indians[B] Government Employees
[C] MSMEs
[D] Unorganised Sector Employees
B – Explanation:
- The Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Karmayogi Prarambh Module, an online orientation course prepared for government employees.
He also launched the programme of providing appointment letters to more than 71,000 youth, under the Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Mela.
Q7.‘Sangai Festival’ is a cultural festival celebrated in which state?
[A] West Bengal[B] Odisha
[C] Manipur
[D] Assam
B – Explanation:
- Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy inaugurated the ‘Manipur Sangai Festival 2022’ at the Sangai Ethnic Park.
The 10-day-long festival will be held in 13 venues across the north-eastern state till November 30. The festival is celebrated as the Festival of Oneness to achieve unity through the participation of all indigenous communities of the state.
Q8.Which city is the host of the Indo-Pacific Regional Dialogue in 2022?
[A] Colombo[B] New Delhi
[C] Dhaka
[D] Islamabad
B – Explanation:
- The 4th edition of Indo-Pacific Regional Dialogue (IPRD) has been inaugurated in New Delhi on the theme of “Operationalising the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative”.
IPRD is an apex level international annual conference of the Indian Navy. The National Maritime Foundation is the knowledge partner and chief organizer of the event.
Q9. Which Indian was conferred the UNEP ‘Champions of the Earth’ award in 2022?
[A] Purnima Devi Barman[B] Narendra Modi
[C] K K Shailaja
[D] Piyush Goyal
A – Explanation:
- Purnima Devi Barman, an Assam-based wildlife biologist, was awarded the ‘Champions of the Earth’ award this year.
It is presented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Barman won the award in the ‘Entrepreneurial Vision’ category, for her work in protecting the ‘Greater adjutant stork’, called ‘hargila’ in Assamese.
Q10.Which Asian country has recently released a ‘Suicide prevention policy’?
[A] Afghanistan[B] Sri Lanka
[C] India
[D] Nepal
C – Explanation:
- India’s Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare announced a National Suicide Prevention Strategy.
The country’s first of its kind policy has time-bound action plans and multi-sectoral collaborations to achieve reduction in suicide mortality by 10% by 2030. It seeks to establish effective surveillance mechanisms for suicide within the next three years, establish psychiatric outpatient departments in all districts within the next five years, and to integrate a mental well-being curriculum in all educational institutions within the next eight years.
