Current Affairs Quiz: March 20, 2024

Option A
Explanation:
Union Asset Management Company has appointed Madhu Nair as the Chief Executive Officer. He will replace G Pradeepkumar who tendered his resignation after 14 years of service.

Option A
Explanation:
Fino Payments Bank has appointed financial industry veterans Anita Sudhir Pai and Neeta Mukerji as Additional Directors in the capacity of Independent Directors on its board.

Option C
Explanation:
Future Generali India Insurance Company (FGII), a private general insurer, announced the launch of its most comprehensive women’s health insurance plan. The plan is designed to meet women’s unique needs.FGII “HEALTH POWHER” aims to address the various needs of women across the different stages of their lives.

Option A
Explanation:
Renowned carnatic musician, T M Krishna, has been chosen as the Sangita Kalanidhi awardee for 2024. The award, considered the Oscar equivalent for carnatic music, is given away by the Music Academy in Chennai.

Option C
Explanation:
Scientists have discovered a giant volcano on Mars that has been “hidden in plain sight” for more than 50 years. It is located in the eastern part of Mars’ Tharsis volcanic province near the planet’s equator, scientists revealed at the 55th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, held in Texas.

Option B
Explanation:
The Election Commission (EC) of India has launched a special campaign in Himachal Pradesh to maximise voter turnout in 414 polling stations which registered less than 60% voting in the last Lok Sabha polls. The main focus of the campaign — “Mission 414” — is increasing the vote percentage in 414 identified polling stations which registered less than 60 percent voting in the last Lok Sabha polls.

Option C
Explanation:
Alcaraz captured his first title since Wimbledon last July and became the first repeat winner at Indian Wells since Novak Djokovic won three straight titles from 2014-16.

Option C
Explanation:
In a major capability boost, the Indian Army raised its first Apache attack helicopter squadron in the desert sector in Jodhpur near the Pakistan front.Also known as the ‘tanks in the air’, these advanced attack helicopters will land at the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Hindon Air Force Station and then will be deployed in Jodhpur in May, near the India-Pakistan border.

Option A
Explanation:
Bihar’s Begusarai topped the list as the “most polluted metropolitan area in 2023”, while Delhi has been identified as the capital city with the “poorest air quality” among global nations, as per the findings of the World Air Quality Report 2023 by the Swiss organization IQAir.India ranked third worst out of 134 countries in terms of average annual PM2.5 concentration, trailing behind Bangladesh and Pakistan, as highlighted in this 6th Annual World Air Quality Report, which unveils concerning insights into the world’s most polluted countries, territories, and regions.

Option C
Explanation:
Command Hospital at Pune falling under the Army’s Southern Command has won the top award in the ‘Raksha Mantri Trophy for Armed Forces Medical Services’ 2022.

Option A
Explanation:
Vinay Kumar, an Indian Foreign Service officer of the 1992 batch, has been named as the next Ambassador of India to Russia.Kumar currently holds the position of Ambassador of India to Myanmar. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement that he is expected to take up the new assignment shortly.

Option A
Explanation:
Jharkhand governor CP Radhakrishnan has been given the additional charge of Telangana, marking the third instance of a Tamil Nadu native holding the gubernatorial post in the state.Radhakrishnan was given the additional charge as Telangana Governor following the resignation of Tamilisai Soundararajan from the position.

Option B
Explanation:
The K K Birla Foundation has selected noted poet and litterateur Prabha Varma for the 33rd Saraswati Samman for 2023 for his novel Roudra Sathwikam. The Saraswati Samman awardee was chosen by a selection committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri.

Option C
Explanation:
Meta, the owner of popular social media companies like Instagram, Threads and Facebook, has unveiled a ‘comprehensive approach’ to limit misinformation, eliminate voter interference and increase transparency and accountability on its platform during the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Option C
Explanation:
The year 2023 smashed multiple climate records with greenhouse gas levels, surface temperatures, ocean heat and acidification, sea level rise, Antarctic sea ice cover and glacier retreat reaching new highs, according to the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) State of the Global Climate 2023 report.This rapid rise in temperature from 2022 to 2023 can be partly explained by the shift from La Nina to El Nino conditions in the middle of 2023.

Option B
Explanation:
India’s outward foreign direct investment (FDI) commitments rose substantially to $3.47 billion in February 2024, compared to over $2.82 billion in February 2023. Sequentially, FDI commitments were also up from $2.18 billion in January 2024, according to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data.

Option B
Explanation:
India’s direct tax collections for the Financial Year (FY) 2023-24 have witnessed a significant upswing, with net collection reaching Rs 18.90 lakh crore till March 17, marking a 19.88 percent increase compared to the previous fiscal year.

Option A
Explanation:
Billed by the government as India’s premier technology event, India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2024 is to be held on 15 October, alongside two key global telecom meetings in Delhi, Telecom Minister Ashwani Vaishnaw said. India will be hosting the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA 2024) from 15-24 October 2024, preceded by the Global Standards Symposium (GSS 2024) on 14 October 2024, Vaishnaw said.Vaishnaw also released new guidelines for Spectrum Regulatory Sandbox and Wireless Test Zones.

Option B
Explanation:
In a significant move for Nepal’s tourism sector, the government officially declared Pokhara the country’s tourism capital during a ceremony held at the Barahi Ghat.

Option C
Explanation:
Maharishi Ayurveda Hospital in Shalimar Bagh, Delhi treats its patients with the utmost care by providing them with panchakarma therapy, a meditation room, yoga training, deluxe room facilities and in-house doctors.
At Soma-The Ayurvedic Kitchen, the food is customized according to the visitor’s health. The menu features dishes like Dumplings and Pav Bhaji, all prepared without onion and garlic. The hospital patients frequently visit this café during their treatment, alongside outside visitors. This restaurant is being hailed as the first Ayurvedic Kitchen in India.

Option C
Explanation:
Reliance Consumer Products Limited (RCPL), the FMCG arm and wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL), has partnered with Sri Lanka-headquartered Elephant House to manufacture, market, distribute and sell beverages under the Elephant House brand across India.

Option B
Explanation:
In January, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) made its most significant gold purchase since July 2022, acquiring 8.7 tonnes of the precious metal.According to data from the World Gold Council, the RBI’s gold reserves rose to 812.3 tonnes in January from 803.58 tonnes in December 2023.

Option A
Explanation:
The Nordic countries have secured the top spots in the World Happiness Report published by Canadian economist John F. Helliwell, Richard Layard, Jeffrey Sachs, Jan Emmanuel De Neve, Lara B. Aknin, & Shun Wang. In the report, published, India ranked 126, the same as last year.
In the annual UN-sponsored report, Nordic countries kept their places among the 10 most cheerful, with Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Sweden and Israel securing the top 5 spots. Afghanistan, plagued by a humanitarian catastrophe since the Taliban gained control over it in 2020, stayed at the bottom of the 143 countries surveyed.

Option E
Explanation:
Procter & Gamble India has announced the appointment of Kumar Venkatasubramanian as the Chief Executive Officer, effective from May 1, 2024. Kumar will assume responsibilities from LV Vaidyanathan, who is stepping down from the position after 28 years of service to the company.

Option C
Explanation:
The Uttars Pradesh police have adopted the Trinetra app 2.0, a state-of-the-art digital platform, to revolutionize crime prevention and investigation.