The Competition Master

RAPID GK SERIES 35

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">1. The Employees State Insurance Act was passed in this year<br />
2.  The  Older Name of Vishwakarma Rashtriya Puraskar, which is meant for the   Performance of Workers of Factories, Mines, Plantations and Docks is<br />
3. The abbreviation of NMDFC is<br />
4. The Indira Gandhi Paryavaran Puraskar, award is given to<br />
5. SAICM Initiative is related to this industry<br />
6. The 2018 & 2022 FIFA World Cup hosts (Countries) were recently declared after a bidding process<br />
7. The Set of Accounts that Summarize a Country s Transactions with the rest of the World for a given period is called<br />
8. The Sen Index was developed by this Indian Nobel Laureate<br />
9. The Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA), 1973 was replaced by this Act<br />
10. As per the Census 2001 Statistics, the Female Literacy Rate is of<br />
<br />
<strong>ANSWERS</strong><br />
<br />
1. 1948<br />
2. Shram Vir Awards<br />
3. National Minorities Development & Finance Corporation<br />
4. Indian nationals or any Indian organization for significant contributions in the field of environment<br />
5. Chemical Industry<br />
6. Russia & Quatar<br />
7. Balance of Payment<br />
8. Amartaya Sen<br />
9. Foreign Exchange Money Laundering Act (FEMA), 1999<br />
10. 53.70%</div></div>

RAPID GK SERIES 35

1. The Employees State Insurance Act was passed in this year 2. The Older Name of Vishwakarma Rashtriya Puraskar, which is meant for the ...

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CRR reduced by 50 basis points from 6% to 5.5%

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="content" style="text-align: justify;"> <ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>Giving priority to growth factor, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)  decided to <strong>reduce the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 50 basis points from 6.0 per cent to 5.5 per cent,</strong>  effective from the fortnight beginning January 28, 2012. As a result of  the reduction in the CRR, around Rs 32,000 crore of primary liquidity  will be injected into the banking system.<br />
</li>
</ul><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><ul><li>RBI said CRR is most effective for permanent liquidity injection and that the cut is a signal to possible rate cuts in future.</li>
</ul><ul><li>Announcing the third quarter monetary policy review in Mumbai today,  RBI Governor Dr. D Subbarao said that growth is decelerating and  inflation rate is still not comfortable enough to warrant a rate cut. He  said that it was premature to reduce rates on current inflation. He  added that persistence of tight liquidity could disrupt credit flow. He  said that liquidity management has been a major challenge.</li>
</ul></span></div><span><ul><li>RBI has retained the repo rate under the liquidity adjustment  facility (LAF) at 8.5 per cent while the reverse repo rate stands at 7.5  per cent and the Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) rate stands at 9.5  per cent. The Bank Rate has been retained at 6.0 per cent. RBI said  through the multiplier effect, additional credit to the tune of Rs 1.6  lakh crore would be generated in the system over a period of time.</li>
</ul><ul><li>GDP forecast has been brought down to 7% from 7.6% earlier. Dr.  Subbarao said that risks to economic growth have increased. He said that  global scenario has considerably changed after October 2011, adding  that global growth during 2012 is expected to be lower than the  International Monetary Fund’s September 2011 projection of 4.0 per cent.</li>
</ul></span><span> <ul><li>Dr. Subbarao said slippage on fiscal deficit, crude prices and rupee  depreciation are key challenges for inflation, which after remaining  near double digit for almost two-years, came down to 7.5 per cent in  December 2011. The central bank expects the headline inflation to  moderate to 7 per cent by March 2012. However, the Governor added that  decline in food inflation has given some relief. He said inflation will  show some moderation in FY’13.</li>
</ul></span><span> <ul><li>RBI Governor said that the policy actions taken in this monetary  policy review are expected to ease liquidity conditions, mitigate  downside risks to growth. He said this will enable to continue to anchor  medium-term inflation expectations on the basis of a credible  commitment to low and stable inflation.</li>
</ul></span><span> </span></div></div>

CRR reduced by 50 basis points from 6% to 5.5%

Giving priority to growth factor, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) decided to reduce the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 50 basis points from 6...

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National Girl Child Day being observed today

National Girl Child Day being observed today

National Girl Child Day is being observed today. In a bit to raise public awareness on the deep b...

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Centre to develop 45 Mega Tourist Hubs

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div id="5758" style="display: block; text-align: justify;">                                          <ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>Government has identified 45 destinations to be developed as Mega Tourist Hubs across the country. </li>
</ul><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>The Centre will provide financial assistance for development of  infrastructure and other facilities in these areas to make them  favorable tourist destinations. </li>
</ul><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>According to an official release, assistance ranging from Rs 25 crore to Rs 50 crore will be provided by the Tourism Ministry. </li>
</ul><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>Some of the sites which have been selected include the Charminar  area of Hyderabad, Ajmer-Pushkar region in Rajasthan, Gangtok in Sikkim,  Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu, Haridwar- Rishikesh region in Uttarakhand  and the Ganga Heritage River Cruise circuit in West Bengal.</li>
</ul></div></div>

Centre to develop 45 Mega Tourist Hubs

Government has identified 45 destinations to be developed as Mega Tourist Hubs across the country....

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India takes up fight against mental disorders at WHO summit

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><ul><li style="text-align: justify;">India has pushed the world into joining  hands to fight against mental disorders like depression, anxiety,  schizophrenia and bipolar disorders.  </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>With depression expected to be the leading cause of disease burden  globally by 2030, the World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a  resolution on "Global Burden of Mental Disorders and the need for a  comprehensive, coordinated response at the country level" at the end of  its annual board meeting on Jan 23. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>The resolution was moved on January 20 by India in Geneva by Union health secretary P K Pradhan.  </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>WHO urged member states to develop comprehensive policies and  strategies that address the promotion of mental health, prevention of  mental disorders and early identification, care, support, treatment and  recovery. It also asked governments the need to promote human rights,  tackle stigma, address poverty and homelessness, tackle major modifiable  risks, create opportunities for generating income, provide housing and  education and healthcare service.  </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>According to WHO, mental disorders account for 13% of the global  burden of diseases. Unipolar depressive disorder is the third leading  cause of disease burden, accounting for 4.3% of the global burden of  disease.  </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad says an estimated one million  Indians are in need of mental health services. He adds that one in four  families is likely to have at least one member with a behavioural or  mental disorder.  </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>WHO said mental disorders account for 25.3% and 33.5% of all years  lived with a disability in low and middle-income countries,  respectively. Surveys among people affected by conflicts have found  prevalence rates of 17% and 15% for depression and post-traumatic stress  disorder, respectively.  </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>The gap between the need for treatment for mental disorders is wide  all over the world. For example, between 76% and 85% of people with  severe mental disorders receive no treatment for their mental health  problem in low and middle-income countries; the corresponding range for  high-income countries is also high: between 35% and 50%.  </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>People with mental disorders have high mortality rates. For example,  people with schizophrenia and major depression have an overall  increased risk of mortality 1.6 and 1.4 times, respectively, greater  than that of the general population because of physical health problems  (such as cancer, diabetes, and HIV infection as well as the serious  consequences such as suicide) associated with mental disorders. </li>
</ul></div>

India takes up fight against mental disorders at WHO summit

India has pushed the world into joining hands to fight against mental disorders like depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and bipolar disord...

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Budget session likely from March second week

Budget session likely from March second week

The budget session of Parliament is likely to begin from second week of March. The elections will...

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UN body disappointed with US over Guantanamo Bay prison

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><ul><li style="text-align: justify;">The UN human rights watchdog has  expressed deep disappointment that the Obama administration has not  lived up to its promise to close the Guantanamo Bay prison, where  individuals continue to be detained indefinitely in clear breach of  international law. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said with  its failure to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, the US  government has entrenched a system of arbitrary detention. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>The UN rights chief said she was also disturbed at the failure to  ensure accountability for serious human rights violations, including  torture, that took place there. She said it is ten years since the US  Government opened the prison at Guantanamo, and now three years since 22  January 2009, when the President ordered its closure within twelve  months. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks, prisoners  suspected of being al Qaeda members or supporters were transported to  Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>In 2002, President George Bush made it the central prison for  suspects considered unlawful enemy combatants in the war on terror.</li>
</ul></div>

UN body disappointed with US over Guantanamo Bay prison

The UN human rights watchdog has expressed deep disappointment that the Obama administration has not lived up to its promise to close the ...

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CEC Quraishi sees elections as “biggest source of corruption”

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div id="5762" style="display: block;">                                          <ul><li style="text-align: justify;">Elections are the biggest source of  corruption in the country. When a candidate spends Rs. 5 crore to Rs.10  crore for getting elected, the first thing he does is call officials and  ask them how they're going to help him recover his expenditure.This was  stated by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) S.Y. Quraishi. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>Mr. Quraishi was speaking at a special meeting called to ask for the media's help to boost voter awareness. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>The Election Commission had made significant progress in making the  electoral process more transparent, but only a vigilant electorate could  stamp out corruption, he noted. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>Mr. Quraishi said low voter turnout had emerged as a fundamental  threat to the country's democracy. “If 30 per cent of people vote and  one of them wins with 12 per cent of that, both the quality of the  representation and the legitimacy of governance will suffer.” </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>To boost voter participation, the Commission had taken slew of  measures such as appointment of community-based booth liaison officers,  hand-delivery of voter slips prior to the election day and running of  awareness campaigns in the media, he said. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>These measures had helped bring about a record voter turnout of 84  per cent in Tamil Nadu and ensured a steady improvement in electoral  participation across the last seven elections. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>However, Mr. Quraishi pointed out that voters in most cities other  than Kolkata and Chennai remained apathetic. “People in urban areas  incessantly complain about how corrupt their politicians are, but won't  queue up to vote and choose better ones,” he added. </li>
</ul></div></div>

CEC Quraishi sees elections as “biggest source of corruption”

Elections are the biggest source of corruption in the country. When a candidate spends Rs. 5 cror...

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Angad Cheema wins All India Amateur Golf title

Angad Cheema wins All India Amateur Golf title

Angad Cheema from Chandigarh got one of his best birthday presents as he picked up the biggest title of his career, winning the All India ...

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1695 militants lay down arms in Assam

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div id="5764" style="display: block;">                                          <ul><li style="text-align: justify;">In Assam, altogether 1695 militant  cadres belonging to nine ethnic tribal ultra groups today surrendered  before the Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and the state Chief  Minister Tarun Gogoi at an arms laying down ceremony held at Guwahati  this morning. </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>The militants deposited about 200 arms at the function.  </li>
</ul><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li>Addressing the function, Mr. Chidambaram said that today was a  historic day for peace and reconciliation in Assam. He said that all  differences can be settled through peaceful negotiations. The Home  minister stressed that there is no hurdles that can not be solved  through peaceful talks.  </li>
</ul><ul><li style="text-align: justify;">Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said that  only through democratic process, the militancy problems can be solved.  He said the centre and the state government are keen to settle the  problem of the militants. He also appealed to the Paresh Barua led ULFA  group to come forward for negotiations.</li>
</ul></div></div>

1695 militants lay down arms in Assam

In Assam, altogether 1695 militant cadres belonging to nine ethnic tribal ultra groups today surr...

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