Daily Current Affairs Updates: 30 March 2015

1) Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya posthumously awarded Bharat Ratna Award:

--> Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya was presented with the prestigious Bharat Ratna Award on 30 March 2015.

--> The award was presented by President Pranab Mukherjee to Madan Mohan Malviya's family.

--> The ceremony was held in the historic Durbar hall where many chief delegates witnessed the ceremony along with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice President Hamid Ansari, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and other senior delegates.

--> Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya is known for his contribution in India's education system and his role in the Indian Independence movement.

2) Renowned Hockey player Balbir Singh Senior honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award:

--> The renowned Hockey player, Balbir Singh Senior has been honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural Hockey India Annual Awards that held on 28 March 28 2015, in New Delhi.

--> The 90-year-old received the trophy for Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award along with a cheque of 30 lakh rupees.

--> Balbir Senior represented team India and was among the 16 iconic Olympians during the London Olympics in 1948.

--> He played a major part in Helsinki Olympics in 1952 and Melbourne Olympics in 1956.

3) Himachal Pradesh Government launched India’s first e-Vidhan Mobile app:

--> Virbhadra Singh, the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh on 30 March 2015 launched part one of e-Vidhan Mobile app.

--> The apps could be accessed by all cabinet ministers 45minutes before the question hour on android and tablets.

--> It would provide information about the day's business and thematter provided on the apps could be corrected online.

--> With this launch, Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha became the first state assembly in the country to launch e-Vidhan Mobile app.

4) Delhi Government banned all forms of chewable tobacco:

--> Sale, purchase, storage and manufacturing of all forms of chewable tobacco including guktha and pan masala containing tobacco was banned in the national capital, Delhi from 30 March 2015.

--> Delhi Government has decided to run campaigns on a large scale to educate the masses about the ban and harmful effect of chewable tobacco.

--> The AAP government has issued a notification banning all products of chewable tobacco in all forms.

5) Coast Guard's Fast Patrol Vessel 'Anagh' & Interceptor boats commissioned:

--> Fast Patrol Vessel (FPV) named Anagh and Two Interceptor Boats named C-430 and C-417 on 29 March 2015 were commissioned into Indian Coast Guard’s Eastern Fleet.

--> They were commissioned by Lieutenant General Ajay Kumar Singh (retd), Lt Governor of Puducherry in a traditional ceremony with full military honours in Chennai. 

6) President Mukherjee presented Padma Awards:

--> President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday presented the Padma Awards.

--> President Mukherjee presented the Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri awards at a Civil Investiture Ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

--> The Padma Vibhushan awardees were: L.K. Advani, Parkash Singh Badal and Jagadguru Swami Rambhadracharya.

--> The Padma Bhushan awardees were: Dr. Swapan Dasgupta, David Frawley, Bill Gates, Melinda Gates, Needamangalam Gopalaswami, Saichiro Misumi, Sudha Raghunathan, Harish Narendra Salve, Satpal, Dr. Ashok Seth, Rajat Sharma and Prof. Khadg Singh Valdiya.

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Expected Questions for NICL AO & Assistant Exam 2015

1. What is normal body temperature? - 98.6 °F

2. Dengue is caused by which virus? - DENV

3. A historic bronze statue of Mahatma Gandhi was recently unveiled at the Parliament Square in which country? - Britain

4. Currency of Australia? - Australian dollar

5. Capital of Singapore? - Singapore

6. Who was recently selected for the prestigious Saraswati Samman for the year 2014? - Veerappa Moily

7. Which former Prime Minister was foreign minister in Moraji Desai government? - Atal Bihari Vajpayee

8. Velikonda Range is located in which state? - Andhra Pradesh

9. Government of India has recently decided to establish a National Marine Police Training Institute in which state? - Gujarat

10. Who invented Jet engine? - Hans von Ohain and Sir Frank Whittle

11. New Zealand's Martin Guptill recently hit the highest ever World Cup score of 237 not out against which country? - West Indies

12. Which is primary component of natural gas? - Methane

13. What is the Official UN theme for the 2015 International Women’s Day? - Empowering Women, Empowering Humanity: Picture it!

14. Led pencil is having component of? - Graphite

15. Byte is the unit of? - Memory

16. Who was recently appointed as the head of an innovation council of Indian Railways called ‘Kayakalp’? - Ratan Tata

17. Mufti Mohammad Sayeed recently took oath as the Chief Minister of which state? - Jammu and Kashmir

18. Varaha Mihira wrote a book “Brihat Samhita”, it is related with? - Astronomy

19. Which animal in Logo of WWF? - Giant Panda

20. World Sleep Day is observed on? - March 13

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Employment News: 28th March - 03rd April 2015

1. UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION

Name of Post –Assistant Director (Cost), Assistant Mineral Economists (Intelligence), Etc.

No. of Vacancies –16

Last Date - 17 Apr 2015

2. STAFF SELECTION COMMISSION, NEW DELHI

Name of Post – SubInspectors in Delhi Police and Central Armed

Police Force (CAPFs) and Assistant Sub – Inspector in CISF

No. of Vacancies - 2902

Last Date     -   28 Apr 2015

3. STAFF SELECTION COMMISSION, CHENNAI

Name of Post – Photographer in Weavers Service Centre,

Junior Chemist in Regional Agmark Laboratory

No. of Vacancies - 3

Last Date     -   27 Apr 2015

4. PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK, NEW DELHI

Name of Post – Company Secretary, Manager (Security), File Officers etc.

No. of Vacancies - 53

 Last Date - 16 Apr 2015

5. SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF INDIA LTD. 

Name of Post – Manager, (R & D), Dy. Manager (Tech.) etc.

 No. of Vacancies - 10

Last Date – 30 days from the date of publication

6. INDIAN ORDNANCE FACTORIES, PUNE

Name of Post – LDC, Store Keeper, Medical Assistant etc.

No. of Vacancies – 13

Last Date – 21 days from the date of publication

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Multiple Choice Current Affairs Quiz: 30 March 2015

1) Who was selected for Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2014 recently?

(A) Shashi Kapoor

(B) Gulzar

(C) Bharathi Raja

(D) Soumitra Chatterjee

2) As per recent news reports, Andhra Pradesh government is all set to declare which heritage city as the capital of Andhra Pradesh?

(A) Visakhapatnam

(B) Kadapa

(C) Amaravati

(D) Vijayawada

3) Ministry of Railways on 23 March 2015 decided to restrict the number of tickets that an individual can book via the e-ticketing platform named?

(A) PRS

(B) IRCTC

(C) Book My Travel

(D) Travel Yaari

4) Name the renowned ecologist who has been chosen for the prestigious 2015 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement on 23 March 2015?

(A) MS Swaminathan

(B) Kasthuri Rangan

(C) Jayaram Ramesh

(D) Madhav Gadgil

5) World Meteorological Day was observed on?

(A) March 20

(B) March 25

(C) March 23

(D) March 21

6) Pakistan held its first Republic Day parade in seven years on 23 March 2015. Pakistan Day commemorates March 23, 1940, when?

(A) Pakistan was formed separating from India

(B) Muslim League demanded the establishment of separate nations to protect Muslims in the then British colony of India.

(B) Name "Pakistan" was adopted

(D) Pakistan got independence from British Rule

7) IRCTC has recently launched a new service called 'RuPay prepaid cards' which will enable passengers to book their tickets, do shopping and pay service bills - all online. This service was launched in collaboration with which bank?

(A) Union Bank of India

(B) State Bank of India

(C) ICICI Bank

(D) Bharatiya Mahila Bank

8) World's heaviest book on the Buddha's life authored by whom was recently unveiled in Agra?

(A) Mahatma Gandhi

(B) Ashoka Maurya

(C) Dr B R Ambedkar

(D) Jawaharlal Nehru

9) Who recently became the youngest Archer to enter India Book of Records?

(A) Dolly Shivani Cherukuri

(B) Raghav Joneja

(C) Bhakti Sharma

(D) Saloni Dalal

10) Indian Navy on 24 March 2015 has commissioned three Immediate Support Vessels (ISVs) supplied by which country, having pennant numbers T-38, T-39 and T-40?

(A) Russia

(B) Kuwait

(C) France

(D) UAE

Answers

1) Ans. (A) Shashi Kapoor

2) Ans. (C) Amaravati

3) Ans. (B) IRCTC

4) Ans. (D) Madhav Gadgil

5) Ans. (C) March 23

6) Ans. (B) Muslim League demanded the establishment of separate nations to protect Muslims in the then British colony of India.

7) Ans. (A) Union Bank of India

8) Ans. (C) Dr B R Ambedkar [Note: The book in English on the Buddha's life by Dr B R Ambedkar was translated into Hindi and etched into a stainless steel tome weighing a whopping 2,000 kg]

9) Ans. (A) Dolly Shivani Cherukuri

10) Ans. (D) UAE

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29th March 2015 Daily Current Affairs Updates

1) Aditi Arya crowned Miss India World 2015:

--> Aditi Arya was declared fbb Femina Miss India World 2015 at a star-studded event at the Yash Raj Studios, Mumbai on 28th March 2015.

--> Afreen Racheal Vaz was adjudged first runner-up while Vartika Singh second runner up at the grand finale of 52nd year of fbb Femina Miss India.

--> Aditi will represent the country at Miss World pageant 2015.

--> The event was judged by eminent personalities from the industry like John Abraham, Manisha Koirala, Sonu Nigam, Anil Kapoor, Firoz Nadiadwala, Abu Jani & Sandeep Khosla, Shilpa Shetty, Sonali Bendre, Shiamak Davar and Chitrangada Singh.

2) Adoor Gopalakrishnan honoured with Bhupen Hazarika award:

--> Internationally acclaimed filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan was on 29 March 2015 presented with the Bishwaratna Dr Bhupen Hazarika International Solidarity Award by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi in Guwahati.

--> Gopalakrishnan became the second recipient of this biennial award, the first one being Lubna Marium of Bangladesh in 2013.

--> The award carries a citation, a shawl, a memento and Rs 5 lakh.

--> The award was instituted by the Asam Sahitya Sabha and sponsored by the Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL).

3) Saina Nehwal and K Srikant won Indian Open Super Series:

--> Saina Nehwal has lifted the women's singles crown of the India Open Super Series Badminton tournament while Kidambi Srikanth won the men's singles title at the India Open Super Series on 29 March 2015.

--> Saina defeated Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand in straight games 21-16, 21-14.

--> K Srikant beat Denmark's Viktor Axelsen 18-21, 21-13, 21-12 to win his maiden India Open Super Series.

--> The event was held at Siri Fort Indoor Complex in New Delhi. 

4) Australia won ICC Cricket World Cup 2015:

--> Australia won the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 for the record fifth time on 29 March 2015 by defeating New Zealand by 7 wickets.

--> The final was played at iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Australia.

--> New Zealand had won the toss and had chosen to bat first and had set the target of 183 runs to Australia after losing all wickets in the 45th over.

--> Australia rarely looked troubled, sealing a seven-wicket win in 33.1 overs, with captain Michael Clarke scoring 74 and Steve Smith 56 not out.

* Man of the Match: James Faulkner (Australia)

* Man of the Tournament: Mitchell Starc (Australia) - 22 wickets in the tournament.

5) BJP becomes largest political party in the world:

--> Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) has emerged as the largest party in the world with a membership of 8.8 crore on 29 March 2015.

--> The BJP has surpassed the Communist Party of China that has a strength of 8.6 crore members.

--> Online Membership drive which was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November last year has marked 8.80 crore membership of BJP and expects to cross 10 crore by the end of March 2015.

6) Michael Clarke retired from ODI cricket:

--> Michael Clarke, the Australian cricketer, on 29 March 2015 retired from One Day Internationals (ODI) after final match of 2015 Cricket World Cup.

--> He will continue to represent Australian cricket team in the Test matches.

--> He has 7981 runs to his credit in ODIs from 245 matches, of which 130 was his highest score.

7) Sebastian Vettel won Malaysian Grand Prix:

--> Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel won the Malaysian Grand Prix on 29 March 2015 to end Mercedes’ long Formula One winning streak.

--> Lewis Hamilton finished second while Nico Rosberg finished third.

--> It was Ferrari’s first victory since the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix.

8) World leaders bid farewell to Lee Kuan Yew:

--> Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 29 March 2015 lauded Singapore’s founder and first premier Lee Kuan Yew as a “global thinker”, and said India deeply valued his friendship and his support for its economic progress.

--> Modi, who arrived in the morning to attend the State Funeral Services of Lee, described the former Singapore PM as “among the tallest leaders of our times”.

--> 91-year-old Lee died of severe pneumonia on March 23.

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Daily Current Affairs: 28 March 2015

1) Saina Nehwal becomes first Indian woman shuttler to be world no. 1:

--> Saina Nehwal created history on 28 March 2015 as she became the first Indian woman shuttler to attain the world number one ranking after her closest challenger for the spot, Spain's Carolina Marin, lost in the India Open Super Series semifinal in Delhi.

--> Though the official rankings will be out only on 2 April 2015, the 25-year-old Indian has been assured of her ascent to the top owing to Marin's loss in the last-four stage.

--> Prakash Padukone had the distinction of being the No. 1 men's badminton player but Saina became the first Indian woman to achieve this feat.

2) Earth Hour 2015 observed across the World:

--> Ninth edition of Earth Hour was observed on 28 March 2015 across the World organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

--> The event is held worldwide annually encouraging individuals, communities, households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights for one hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. on the last Saturday in March, as a symbol for their commitment to the planet.

--> It was famously started as a lights-off event in Sydney, Australia in 2007.

--> Since then it has grown to engage more than 7000 cities and towns worldwide.

3) Isro launched India's 4th navigation satellite IRNSS 1D:

--> The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) on 28 March 2015 successfully launched India’s fourth navigation satellite.

--> The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), in its twenty-ninth flight (PSLV-C27), carried IRNSS-1D.

--> This is the first launch after A S Kiran Kumar took over as chairman of Isro.

--> The launch was earlier scheduled for March 9, 2015, but was postponed to March 28, due to technical reasons.

--> The first satellite IRNSS-1A was launched in July 2013, the second IRNSS-1B in April 2014 and the third on October 16, 2014.

4) Poonam Mahajan becomes first woman president of BFI:

--> For the first time since it came into existence in 1950, the Basketball Federation of India got a woman as its president when Poonam Mahajan was unanimously elected as the head of this 65 year old federation — the governing and controlling body of basketball in India on 28 March 2015.

--> At the Annual General Meeting of the BFI, president of Maharashtra State Basketball Association (MSBA), who is also the BJP national secretary and MP from the Mumbai North-Central Lok Sabha constituency, Poonam was unanimously elected as the new president of BFI for a four-year (2015-2019) term.

--> The 34-year-old Poonam is the youngest president of any national federation in India.

--> In yet another first, another woman, Roopam Harish Sharma — secretary of Delhi Basketball Association — was unanimously elected as the Secretary General of the BFI.

5) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) sacked founder members Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan:

--> Aam Aadmi Party removed the party’s founder members Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan from its national executive on 28 March 2015.

--> AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal accused the two leaders of working against the party and said, "Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan tried to defeat AAP in Delhi polls."

6) Mizoram Governor Aziz Qureshi sacked:

--> Union Government on 28 March 2015 sacked Aziz Qureshi as the Governor of Mizoram, within three months of transferring him to the north-eastern state from Uttarakhand.

--> He had a term till 2017.

--> Governor of Mizoram and Keshari Nath Tripathi, Governor of West Bengal, would discharge the functions of the Governor of Mizoram, in addition to his own duties,  a communiqué from President Pranab Mukherjee’s office said.

7) Scientist Murty Kambhampati chosen for US presidential award:

--> An Indian-American biology professor is among 15 scientists, who have been selected for a prestigious U.S. presidential award for excellence in the field of science, mathematics and engineering mentoring.

--> Murty S Kambhampati, a professor of biology at Southern University at New Orleans will receive the award at a White House ceremony later this year.

8) Defence ministry cleared airborne warning control system:

--> Defence ministry on 28 March 2015 cleared a proposal for Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) to be developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation.

--> Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) at a meeting cleared the proposal for two AWACS, which includes buying two Airbus A330s, worth Rs.5,113 crore.

--> Decision in this regard was taken by Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.

9) Rajasthan enacted law to ban camel slaughter:

--> Rajasthan Assembly has passed a law that bans the slaughter, trading and unauthorised transportation of camels.

--> Camel had been declared as the State animal last year though there was some opposition from the communities whose livelihoods depend on camel.

10) Social activist Medha Patkar quits Aam Aadmi Party:

--> Social activist Medha Patkar announced on 28 March 2015 that she has decided to resign as primary member of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) following the turbulent events in Delhi in which the party ousted a group of senior leaders.

11) Australia captain Michael Clarke announced retirement from ODIs:

--> Australia captain Michael Clarke made a shock announcement on 28 March 2015 by saying Sunday's World Cup final against New Zealand at the Melbourne Cricket Ground would be his last one-day international.

--> Clarke, who turns 34 next month, said it was the right time to retire from one-dayers in order to prolong his Test career and give his successor as ODI captain the opportunity to prepare fully for the next World Cup in England in 2019.

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Current Affairs Quiz: 29 March 2015

1) World Water Day was globally observed on March 22. What was the theme for the day in 2015?

(A) Water and Sustainable Development

(B) Water and Energy

(C) Water Cooperation

(D) Water and Food Security

2) Who recently became the first Sri Lankan to receive the highest military rank of field marshal?

(A) Krishantha de Silva

(B) Daya Ratnayake

(C) Jagath Jayasuriya

(D) Sarath Fonseka

3) Sania Mirza and _____ began their partnership on winning note as they won BNP Paribas Open tennis women's doubles title on 22 March 2015?

(A) Cara Black

(B) Martina Hingis

(C) Martina Navratilova

(D) Kim Clijsters

4) International Day of Forests is observed on?

(A) March 24

(B) March 22

(C) March 21

(D) March 23

5) Lee Kuan Yew who passed away on 22 March 2015 was the founding father and first Prime Minister of which country?

(A) South Korea

(B) Singapore

(C) Malaysia

(D) Bhutan

6) Novak Djokovic defeated which player to win the BNP Paribas Open Tennis title 2015 recently?

(A) Roger Federer

(B) Andy Murray

(C) Rafael Nadal

(D) Stanislas Wawrinka

7) President Pranab Mukherjee on 22 March 2015 confered Chakra awards to ____ defence personnel?

(A) 11

(B) 10

(C) 9

(D) 12

8) Who among the following was recently inducted as life president of the Asian Athletics Association?

(A) Narayana Ramachandran

(B) Rajinder Singh

(C) Suresh Kalmadi

(D) Lalith Soori 

9) Government has recently set up a task force to define poverty and prepare a road map to alleviate it. This task force is headed by?

(A) Arun Jaitley

(B) K M Mani

(C) Y V Reddy

(D) Arvind Panagariya

10) Railways has recently hiked the cost of platform tickets from Rs.5 to Rs.____?

(A) Rs.10

(B) Rs.8

(C) Rs.9

(D) Rs.15

Answers

1) Ans. (A) Water and Sustainable Development

2) Ans. (D) Sarath Fonseka

3) Ans. (B) Martina Hingis

4) Ans. (C) March 21

5) Ans. (B) Singapore

6) Ans. (A) Roger Federer

7) Ans. (D) 12

8) Ans. (C) Suresh Kalmadi

9) Ans. (D) Arvind Panagariya

10) Ans. (A) Rs.10

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India's fourth Navigational Satellite IRNSS-1D successfully launched

--> India successfully launched the IRNSS-1D, the fourth in the series of seven navigational satellites, onboard PSLV-C27 on 28 March 2015.

--> Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C27) lifted off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota at 5.19pm and placed IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System)-1D weighing 1,425kg in a sub-geostationary orbit after a 20minutes flight.

--> PSLV-C27 that lifted off from the second launch pad was an `XL' version of the PSLV rocket as was the case with the previous three launches.

--> With the launch of IRNSS 1 D, four active satellites will be transmitting navigation signals. This meets the minimum number of satellites required for the system to be fully functional enabling a navigation receiver to compute position.

--> The first three satellites in the series were launched from Sriharikota in July 2013, April 2014 and October 2014.

Know more about IRNSS-1D

* IRNSS-1D will be the fourth in the series of seven Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS) after IRNSS-1A, IRNSS-1B and IRNSS-1C.

* IRNSS-1D was launched onboard PSLV-C27.

* It is designed to provide accurate position information services to users in the country as well as the area extending up to 1,500 km from its boundary, which is its principal service area.

* The satellite will help in enhancing the satellite based navigation system of India which is currently under development. The navigational system that will develop will be a regional one targeted towards South Asia. The satellite will provide navigation, tracking and mapping services.

* The satellite is also one among the seven of the IRNSS constellation of satellites meant to be launched to provide navigational services to the region; while it should also be noted that four satellites would be sufficient to start operations of the system, the remaining three would make it more accurate and efficient.

* IRNSS-1D satellite will have two payloads: a navigation payload and CDMA ranging payload in addition with a laser retro-reflector. The payload generates navigation signals at L5 and S-band. The design of the payload makes the IRNSS system inter-operable and compatible with Global Positioning System (GPS) and Galileo.

* The satellite is powered by two solar arrays, which generate power up to 1,660 watts, and has a life-time of ten year.

* The satellite will be placed in geosynchronous orbit.

* The total cost of the launching of satellite and the mission is estimated approximately 1,400 crore Rupees.

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