Weekly Current Affairs (8th to 14th April 2022) Part - 2 - UPSC PDF Download

Important News – India

Q.1. Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has released how much amount to the UNESCO Fund for Elimination of Doping in Sport in 2022?

Correct Answer is 72,124 Dollars.

• In the 7th COP, the State Parties had agreed for the contribution of 1% of the regular budget of the respective nations to UNESCO towards the Fund for the Elimination of Doping in Sport.
• India has contributed USD 28172 towards the UNESCO Fund in 2021.

Q.2. The Union Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the extension of the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) by which year?

Correct Answer is March 2023.

• Aim: Develop 10,000 Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs), 101 Atal Incubation Centres (AICs), set up 50 Atal Community Innovation Centres and sponsor 200 entrepreneurs through the Atal New India Challenges
• More than Rs 2000 crore will be incurred as the total budgetary expenditure.

Q.3. Who has chaired the Zonal Conference of State Governments and Stakeholders of the North-East region on the Ministry schemes in Guwahati?

Correct Answer is Smriti Zubin Irani.

• This is the third Zonal meeting in Guwahati in the series, before this the first meeting and second meeting were held in Chandigarh and Bengaluru respectively.
• Objective: Laid down the details of Poshan 2.0 Abhiyan, Mission Shakti, Mission Vatsalya

Q.4. Who has chaired the 20th NTCA which was held was held in Pakke tiger reserve in Arunachal Pradesh?

Correct Answer is BhupenderYadav.

• This is the first-ever NTCA meeting that was held outside of the National Capital.
• The NTCA has prepared the Forest Fire Audit Protocol for Tiger Reserves, which was released by Bhupender Yadav

Q.5. President Ram Nath Kovind has inaugurated the annual Madhavpur Mela at which place?

Correct Answer is Porbandar, Gujarat.

• This fair is a symbol of Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat which is being organized as part of Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsav.
• This fair has been organized by the Cultural Ministry in collaboration with the Gujarat government since 2018.

Q.6. Name the first-ever flight of Made in India 17-seater which was flagged off from Dibrugarh in Assam to Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh?

Correct Answer is HAL Dornier Do-228.

• The Centre-run Alliance Air had signed an agreement with the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to lease two 17-seater Dornier 228 aircraft.
• This will be the nation's first commercial airline to operate an Indian-made aircraft for civil operations.

Q.7. Name the scheme which was launched by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in addition to 126 cities across 14 States and UT?

Correct Answer is 'SVANidhi se Samriddhi' program.

• SVANidhi se Samriddhi is an additional program of PM-SVANidhi which was launched in January 2021 in 125 cities in Phase one.
• Prime Minister Street Vendors AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) has been implementing since June 2020

Q.8. The High Commissioner of India Vikram Doraiswami has laid the foundation stone for the first IT/ Hi-Tech Park in which country?

Correct Answer is At Keraniganj near Dhaka, Bangladesh.

• This is the first park under the Line of Credit (LOC) extended by the Indian government to Bangladesh.
• With a committed LOC of over USD 7.86 bn Bangladesh becomes India’s largest development partner.

Q.9. The Union government has extended the grant of ₹40 cr to the Dalai Lama’s Central Tibetan Relief Committee (CTRC) by which year?

Correct Answer is up to 2025-26.

• The scheme to provide grants to CTRC was launched in 2015.
• Purpose: To meet the administrative expenses of settlement offices and social welfare
• Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal and Jammu and Kashmir are the major concentration of the Tibetan refugees

Q.10. Name the scheme which was launched by the Airport Authority of India (AAI) to encourage the talent of women, artisans, and craftsmen and provide them with the right opportunities?

Correct Answer is  “AVSAR” (Airport as Venue for Skilled Artisans Of The Region).

• Under the scheme, the space will be allocated to Self Help Groups (SHGs) at airports for selling/showcasing the self-made products of their region.
• The space is being allotted to the self-help groups for 15 days, turn on turn basis.

Q.11. The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has signed an MoU with which company for cooperation and collaboration to support and facilitate the FinTech ecosystem in GIFT IFSC?

Correct Answer is GVFL Limited.

• The MoU focuses on the exchange of information, undertaking diverse initiatives for the growth of FinTech in the GIFT IFSC.
• GVFL Limited is promoted by the World Bank and the Government of Gujarat in 1990.

Q.12. Jio-bp comes in an agreement with which Company to work on the creation of a strong public EV charging infrastructure for electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers in the country?

Correct Answer is TVS Motor.

• Under this agreement, the customers of TVS electric vehicles will provide access to the widespread charging network of Jio-bp.
• Jio-bp operates its EV charging and swapping stations under the brand Jio-bp pulse.

Q.13. Which state has topped the NITI Aayog's State Energy and Climate Index (SECI)-Round One, followed by Kerala and Punjab?

Correct Answer is Gujarat.

• Smaller states (Top 3): Goa, Tripura, and Manipur
• Bottom states: Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Jharkhand
• SECI-round 1 includes six parameters: discoms performance; access affordability and reliability of energy; clean energy initiatives; energy efficiency; environmental sustainability; and new initiative

Q.14. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the PradhanmantriSangrahalaya on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti at which place?

Correct Answer is  at Teen Murti Bhavan in Delhi.

• This museum has been dedicated to all Prime Ministers of the country.
• There are a total of 43 galleries in the Sangrahalaya.
• The logo of PradhanmantriSangrahalaya represents the hands of the citizens of India holding the Dharma Chakra symbolizing the nation and democracy.

Q.15. How many years have been completed of a pan-India online trading portal, National Agriculture Market (eNAM)?

Correct Answer is six years.

• This flagship programme was launched by PM Modi in 2016 with an aim to join the physical wholesale markets and mandis of States/UTs to facilitate the electronic trading of agricultural goods.
• e-NAM is totally funded by the Central Government.
• Implemented by: Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium

Q.16. To boost the textile industry, the Ministry of Finance has issued a notification regarding the exemption on the import of cotton from customs duties by how many months ?

Correct Answer is 6 months (till 30th of September 2022).

• The waive-off will benefit the textile chains: yarn, fabric, garments, and made-ups; Textile exports and consumers will also get relief.
• Earlier, the customs duty was 10%, inwhich 5% on basic customs duty on cotton import and another 5% on Agriculture Infrastructure Development Cess (AIDC).

Important News – State

Q.1. Name the tea brand which is likely to win the European Union Geographical Indication Tag (GI Tag)?

Correct Answer is Kangra Tea.

• This tag helps Kangra tea to get an opportunity to enter the European market.
• Kangra tea received the Indian GI tag in 2005.

Q.2. Name the anti-corruption mobile app which was launched by the Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami?

Correct Answer is 1064 Anti-Corruption Mobile App.

• This mobile application has been developed by the vigilance department, Uttarakhand.
• It helps the citizens to lodge corruption-related complaints directly with the authorities.

Q.3. Which state government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) to take crucial steps toward the proliferation of green energy in the state?

Correct Answer is The Odisha Government.

• Tenure of MoU: 5 years
• Odisha is the single largest manufacturer of steel in the country and contributes 33% of steel manufacturing in India.
• BPCL also planning to invest Rs 25,000 crore to build a renewable energy capacity of 10 gigawatts by 2040.

Important News – World

Q.1. Which university has been topped in the category of Arts and Humanities of the 12th QS World University Rankings 2022?

Correct Answer is University of Oxford(UK).

• IIT-Bombay at 65th and IIT-Delhi at 72nd in the engineering and technology list this year.
• The top institute's rankings:
• Engineering and Technology: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA)
• Natural Sciences: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)(USA)
• Life Sciences & Medicine: Harvard University (USA)
• Social Sciences & Management: Harvard University(USA)

Q.2. India has delivered the consignment 3 lakh 25 thousand doses of Made in India Covishield vaccines to which country?

Correct Answer is Cambodia.

• India has committed to donate 500,000 doses of Covid vaccines to the Indo-Pacific under the Quad vaccine initiative.
• The Quad Vaccine Partnership was announced by the Quad Leaders at their first Summit in 2021.
• Ambassador of India to Cambodia: Devyani Khobragade

Q.3. Which country will host the National Delphic Games in 2023?

Correct Answer is India.

• Aim: Encompassing arts and cultures from 36 States/UT to celebrate the vast diversity of India's cultures.
• It includes 6 categories of the arts: Musical Arts and Sounds, Performing Arts and acrobatics, Language Arts and Rhetoric, Visual Arts and Crafts, Social Arts and communications, Ecological Arts & Architecture.

Q.4. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with the Adaptation Innovation Marketplace (AIM) jointly announced how much amount for climate action?

Correct Answer is $2.2 million.

• For 22 local innovators across 19 countries, including India.
• The first round of funding will be done by the Adaptation Fund Climate Innovation Accelerator (AFCIA) window.
• This helps to enhance the local climate action and spur the achievement of the Paris Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals.

Honor & Awards

Q.1. Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, Jatin Goswami, Dr. Sonal Mansingh and Thiruvidaimarudur Kuppiah Kalyanasundaram were conferred with which award ?

Correct Answer is Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship.

• Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu has conferred the Sangeet NatakAkademi Fellowship to four, Sangeet Natak Awards to 40 and the National Awards of Lalit Kala Akademi to 23 personalities.
• Sangeet Natak Akademi has organized a festival of Performing Arts in New Delhi.

Q.2. Which titled photograph taken by Canadian photographer Amber Bracken won the title of World Press Photo of the Year 2022?

Correct Answer is Kamloops Residential School.

• The photograph shows the death of children due to cruelty at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia.
• Photo Story of the Year prize: Australian photographer Matthew Abbott for National Geographic/Panos Pictures

Q.3. Who has become the first transgender actress who was honoured with the Best Actor Award in the prestigious Manipur State Film Awards?

Correct Answer is Bishesh Huirem.

• She received the award for exceptional performance in the film ‘ApaibaLeichil’ (floating clouds) for portraying a transgender character. She also clinched the Special Mention Award.
• Best Feature Film: ‘Eikhoigi Yum’ directed by Romi Meitei
• Best Direction Award: Bobby Haobam for the film ‘Rongdaife’

Q.4. Who has been conferred with the country's highest literary award, 56th Jnanpith at Guwahati?

Correct Answer is Eminent Assamese poet Nilamani Phookan.

• Nilmani Phookan is the third person to win the Jnanpith Award from Assam after Mamoni Roisom Goswami and Birendra Kumar Bhattacharya.
• 57th Jnanpith Award 2022: Novelist Damodar Mauzo was chosen for his contribution to Indian literature.

Q.5. Who has been awarded the O.Henry award 2022, for a short story that he wrote 45 years back?

Correct Answer is Veteran Bengali author Amar Mitra.

• The title of the short story is 'Gaonburo', a Bengali short fiction written in 1977.
• This story was translated into English (The Old Man OfKusumpur).
• He was also awarded the Sahitya Academy award in 2006.

Q.6. Who will be honoured with the inaugural Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar Award which is instituted in the memory of the veteran singer of Lata Mangeskar?

Correct Answer is PM Modi.

• The award ceremony will be held on April 24 which marks the 80th death anniversary of Master Deenanath Mangeshkar (singing legend's father).
• Other awardees: Singer Rahul Despande, Veteran actress Asha Parekh, Actor Jackie Shroff and the Mumbai Dabbawalas, represented by Nutan Tiffin Suppliers.

Q.7. Which company under the Ministry of Steel has been awarded with one gold and one silver award in the 80th SKOCH Summit in New Delhi?

Correct Answer is National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC).

• The Theme 80th SKOCH Summit 2022 is ‘State of BFSI & PSUs’.
• NMDC won gold in the category of social responsibility and silver in the category digital inclusion for the ‘Project Kalpataru’ for ERP implementation.
• NMDC Headquarters: Hyderabad, Chairman & MD: Sumit Deb

Q.8. Which Indian city has been recognised as 'Tree City of the World’ for 2021 by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (UNFAO) and Arbor Day Foundation?

Correct Answer is Mumbai.

• Mumbai has received recognition for its commitment towards growing and maintaining urban trees and greenery in building healthy, resilient and happy cities.
• CEO of Arbor Day Foundation: Dan Lambe

Q.9. Name the actress who has been honoured with Madhya Pradesh Champion Of Change Award 2021 for her phenomenal work as an artist?

Correct Answer is Divyanka Tripathi.

• The event was organized by the Interactive Forum on Indian Economy (IFIE) at Kushabhau Thackeray auditorium in Bhopal.
• Other awardees:
  • Chief Minister: Shivraj Singh Chouhan
  • Former Governor of UP and Mizoram: Dr Aziz Qureshi
  • Music performer: Padma Vibhushan Teejan Bai
  • Mayor of Indore: Malini Laxmansingh Gaur

Q.10. Who has been selected for the Malcom Adiseshiah Award 2022?

Correct Answer is Prabhat Patnaik.

• The award is given by the Malcolm and Elizabeth Adiseshiah Trust to an outstanding social scientist.
• He taught at the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning in the School of Social Sciences at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi and was serve as the Vice Chairman of the Kerala State Planning Board.

Q.11. Who has won the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2021?

Correct Answer is Founder & CEO of Nykaa, Falguni Nayar.

• She will represent India at the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year Award (WEOY) on 9 June 2022 at Monaco.
• A.M. Naik from Larsen & Toubro has been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Sports News

Q.1. Which country has won the bid to host the Asian Junior U-20 Men & Women and Cadet U-17 Boys & Girls Fencing Championships in 2023?

Correct Answer is The Fencing Association of India, India.

• The championship will be held in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
• The bid was submitted by the Secretary-General, Rajiv Mehta.
• Indian Fencer, C. A. Bhavani Devi is the first Indian fencer to qualify for the Olympics.
• President of Fencing Association of India: Pankaj Singh

Q.2. Which team has won the Mixed Doubles Squash Championship 2022?

Correct Answer is Dipika Pallikal in partnership with Saurav Ghosal.

• Defeated the English pair Adrian Waller and Alison Waters
• Dipika Pallikal has paired up with JoshnaChinappa to defeat England's Sarah-Jane Perry and Alison Waters to claim the women's doubles squash title.

Q.3. A group of 15 Indian boxers has won the 10 medals, including three golds, four silvers, and three bronze at the Thailand Open International Boxing Tournament 2022 was held in which place?

Correct Answer is Phuket.

• Gold: Govind Sahani (48kg), Ananta PralhadChopde (54kg), Sumit (75kg)
• Silver: Amit Panghal (52kg), Monika (48kg), Varinder Singh (60kg), Ashish Kumar (81kg)
• Bronze: Manisha (57kg), Pooja (69kg) BhagyabatiKachari (75kg)

Q.4. Who has named the title F1 Australian Grand Prix 2022 held on 10 April 2022 at Albert Park Circuit, in Melbourne, Victoria?

Correct Answer is Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc.

• He surpassed Red Bull's driver Sergio Pérez and Mercedes's driver George Russell.
• Mercedes’s driver Lewis Hamilton placed fourth ahead of the McLarens of Norris and Ricciardo.

Q.5. The first Khelo India National Ranking Women Archery will be held in which place?

Correct Answer is Tata Archery Academy, Jamshedpur (Jharkhand).

• The Sports Authority of India (SAI) has approved Rs 75 Lakh to host the Khelo India National Ranking Women Archery Tournament over six phases.
• The tournament will be conducted as per the World Archery Rules, held in the senior, Junior, and Cadet Categories across the Recurve and Compound events.

Q.6. Who has been named the ICC Men’s of the Month for March 2022.?

Correct Answer is Pakistan skipper Babar Azam.

• Women’s Players: Australia Rachael Haynes
• Babar Azam has showcased stunning form during Pakistan's concluded multi-format home series against Australia; he scored 390 runs in the three-match Test series.
• She scored 429 runs in eight games with an average of 61.28.

Q.7. Which team has lifted their fourth title of FIH Junior Women's Hockey World Cup 2022 after beating Germany at Potchefstroom, South Africa?

Correct Answer is Netherlands.

• England claimed the bronze medal in the third-place match after defeating India by 3-0 in the shoot-out.
• 2023 Women's FIH Hockey Junior World Cup: Santiago, Chile

Q.8. Who has become the second Indian after Virat Kohli and the seventh batter overall to score 10,000 runs in the T20 cricket ?

Correct Answer is Rohit Sharma.

• He achieved this milestone during the IPL 2022 match of Mumbai Indians against Punjab Kings in Pune.
• Chris Gayle with 14,562 runs has topped the list of run-getters followed by Pakistan's Shoaib Malik, West Indies Kieron Pollard, Australia's Aaron Finch, Virat Kohli, and Australia's David Warner.

Q.9. Name the Young Indian Grandmaster who has won the title of the prestigious Reykjavik Open chess tournament in Iceland with 7.5 points?

Correct Answer is R Pragganandhaa.

• The 16-year-old Pragganandhaa has defeated his opponent GM D Gukesh in the final round.
• He has been awarded the prestigious title of Grand Master at just 12 years and 10 months of age in 2018.

Q.10. Which city of Australia will host the 2026 Commonwealth Games?

Correct Answer is Victoria city.

• The Games will be organised across multiple cities and regional hubs including Melbourne, Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat, and Gippsland.
• The opening ceremony place: The Melbourne Cricket Ground (100,000-capacity)
• Australia has organised Commonwealth Games five times - Sydney(1938), Perth(1962), Brisbane(1982), and Gold Coast(2018).

Books and Authors

Q.1. Who is the author of 'Not Just A Nightwatchman: My Innings with BCCI”?

Correct Answer is Vinod Rai.

• He was a chairman of the Committee of Administrators (CoA) formed by the Supreme Court for BCCI in 2017 for 33 months.
• Recently, Rai has been appointed as chairman and independent non-executive director of Kalyan Jewellers.

Q.2. Who is the author of 'Tomb of Sand’?

Correct Answer is Geetanjali Shree.

• The first Hindi novel to be shortlisted for the International Booker Prize. Daisy Rockwell has translated the book.
• The book explores the story of a woman who decided to confront her teenage trauma of India and Pakistan partition.
• Other books:
  • ‘Cursed Bunny’ by Bora Chung
  •  'A New Name: Septology VI-VII’ by Jon Fosse
  •  ‘Heaven’ by Mieko Kawakami
  • ‘Elena Knows’ by Claudia Piñeiro
  • ‘The Books of Jacob’ by Olga Tokarczuk

Science and Defence

Q.1. Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has signed a pact with National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), ISRO to develop which portal?

Correct Answer is Bhuvan-Aadhar portal.

• For providing information and locations about the Aadhaar centres across India.
• The portal will provide the facility of complete geographic information, retrieval, analysis, and reporting for Aadhaar centres with a high-resolution backdrop of natural-colour satellite images.

Q.2. DRDO and Indian Army have successfully flight-tested a new version of which rocket system at the Pokhran firing ranges.?

Correct Answer is Pinaka rocket system

• A total number of 24 Pinaka Mk-I (Enhanced) Rocket Systems (EPRS) have been fired for different ranges and weapons.
• The Pinaka rocket system has been developed by Armament Research and Development Establishment, Pune.
• It is supported by the High Energy Materials Research Laboratory, a Pune-based laboratory of DRDO.

Q.3. Name China's new Earth observation satellite which was launched from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre by a Long March-4C rocket?

Correct Answer is Gaofen-3 03.

• This will become part of its land-sea radar satellite constellation.It will also capture images to help China safeguard its maritime rights.
• These Earth Observation satellites have produced many SAR images on daily basis.

Q.4. Which IT firm collaborates with Rolls-Royce has launched “Aerospace Engineering and Digital Innovation Centre’’ in Bengaluru, Karnataka ?

Correct Answer is Infosys.

• This will provide high-end R&D services integrated with advanced digital capabilities to Rolls-Royce’s engineering and group business services from India.
• This partnership has been reinforced through strategic deals with an aim of yielding mutual benefits to both organizations over the next seven years.

Q.5. Microsoft comes into a strategic cloud partnership to speed up the digital transformation in the oil and gas industry with which firm?

Correct Answer is Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL).

• The partnership will accelerate the BPCL’s digital transformation effort named ‘Project Anubhav’.
• The services will be provided by Microsoft to BPCL including platform-as-a-service, infrastructure-as-aservice, network and security services on the cloud and many more.

Q.6. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has tested the SFDR booster at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Odisha successfully. What is the full form of SFDR?

Correct Answer is Solid Fuel Ducted Ramjet .

• The SFDR has been developed in collaboration with Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad and other DRDO laboratories such as Research Centre Imarat, Hyderabad and High Energy Materials Research Laboratory, Pune.
• High Projected range: 350 km

Q.7. Union Home and Cooperative Minister Amit Shah has inaugurated the Seema Darshan Project at Nadabet on the Indo-Pak border in which state?

Correct Answer is Banaskantha District of Gujarat.

• The project was launched with the aim to provide an opportunity to the citizen to observe the life and work of the BSF personnel on our border.
• The tourist can see missiles, tanks, aircrafts etc which are used by the Indian Army and BSF at Nadabet

Q.8. Which government agency has commissioned the latest Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH-Dhruv) MK-III squadron in Bhubaneswar in Odisha?

Correct Answer is Indian Coast Guard (ICG).

• ALH was commissioned in the presence of Indian Coast Guard chief Virender Singh Pathania.
• It will enhance maritime security capabilities of force along with West Bengal and Odisha Coast and beyond.
• It was manufactured by the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

Q.9. Name the surface to surface ballistic missile which was successfully flight-tested in Pakistan?

Correct Answer is Shaheen-III.

• Shaheen-III has a range of 2,750 KM which made this missile capable of reaching the farthest point in India's northeast and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• It is a solid-fuelled missile that is equipped with the Post-Separation Altitude Correction (PSAC) system.

Q.10. Name the anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) which was successfully flight-tested in Pokhran, Rajasthan?

Correct Answer is Helina.

• HELINA (Helicopter-based NAG) is a third-generation 'fire and forget' class which is developed by the Defence Research & Development Laboratory (DRDL), DRDO.
• The flight test was conducted by DRDO, the Army, and the Air Force.
• The missile was launched from an indigenously developed Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) at a high altitude range.

Q.11. Which government agency has signed a contract with the Nigerian Army for the second phase of flying training on Chetak Helicopter for six officers?

Correct Answer is The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

• 70 hours of flying training will be imparted for each Nigerian Army Aviation Officer under the phase-II flying training on Chetak Helicopter which will be completed by December 2022.
• This marks the continuation of the phase-I flying training to six Nigerian Army Aviation officers.