GK & Current Affairs Quiz: September 17-18, 2017

IAF Marshal Arjan Singh has passed away recently. He led the Indian Air Force (IAF) in which India-Pakistan War?

[A] 1965
[B] 1971
[C] 1999
[D] 1947

Correct Answer: A [1965]

Answer Explanation: Arjan Singh (98), who led the Indian Air Force in the 1965 India-Pakistan War, has passed in New Delhi on September 16, 2017. Throughout the 1965 war, Singh showed exemplary leadership, and was awarded the Padma Vibhushan for his leadership during the war and subsequently the rank of the CAS was upgraded to that of Air Chief Marshal. Thus, Singh became the first Air Chief Marshal of the Indian Air Force. Till date, he is the only Air Force officer to have been promoted to the five-star rank. After his retirement in July 1969, he was appointed Indian ambassador to Switzerland.

Which state is hosting the 5th edition of “Kaju India 2017- The Global Cashew Summit”?

[A] Maharashtra
[B] Goa
[C] Andhra Pradesh
[D] Karnataka

Correct Answer: B [Goa]

Answer Explanation: The 5th edition of “Kaju India 2017- The Global Cashew Summit has started at Grand Hyatt Hotel in Goa from September 17, which is organised by Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI). In the 3-day summit, more than 450 delegates including 30 from foreign countries are participating in the event. The summit will bring together the entire spectrum of the Global Cashew Industry and the Expo associated with it providing excellent brand visibility and demonstrates the recent developments of the industry.

Who has won the 2017 women’s singles Korea Open Super Series badminton tournament?

[A] P V Sindhu
[B] Sania Nehwal
[C] Nozomi Okuhara
[D] P V Sindhu

Correct Answer: D [P V Sindhu]

Answer Explanation: Rio Olympics Silver medallist P V Sindhu from India has won the 2017 women’s singles title at the Korea Open Super Series badminton tournament by defeating Nozomi Okuhara of Japan in three sets 22-20, 11-21, 20-18 at Seoul in South Korea. With this, Sindhu has become the first Indian to win the Korea Super Series crown. It is also her third super series title of her career.

Mahant Chand Nath, who passed away recently, was the Member of Parliament (MP) from which Lok Sabha constituency of Rajasthan?

[A] Bharatpur
[B] Alwar
[C] Jaipur
[D] Churu

Correct Answer: B [Alwar]

Answer Explanation: Mahant Chand Nath (61), the noted BJP politician and religious leader, has passed away at a Delhi hospital on September 17, 2017. He represented the Alwar Lok Sabha constituency of Rajasthan. Nath had won the Alwar seat in the 2014 parliamentary elections after defeating Congress candidate and former Union minister Jitendra Singh.

Who has won the 2017 Formula One Singapore Grand Prix tournament?

[A] Daniel Ricciardo
[B] Valtteri Bottas
[C] Sergio Perez
[D] Lewis Hamilton

Correct Answer: D [Lewis Hamilton]

Answer Explanation: Lewis Hamilton, a British racing driver who races in Formula One for the Mercedes AMG Petronas team, has won the 2017 Formula One Singapore Grand Prix tournament at Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore.

Which union minister has launched Google’s UPI-based digital payment service ‘Tez’?

[A] Prakash Javadekar
[B] Piyush Goyal
[C] Arun Jaitley
[D] Smriti Irani

Correct Answer: C [Arun Jaitley]

Answer Explanation: Arun Jaitley, the Union Finance Minister, has launched Google’s UPI-based digital payment service ‘Tez’ in New Delhi. The app that will let users link their phones to their bank accounts to pay for goods in physical stores and online. It is available for both Android and iOS users that allows person-to-person money transfers. Google Tez will support several local languages including Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Marathi, Tamil and Telugu.

The 13th edition of Indo-USA joint military training exercise “Yudh Abhyas-2017” has started in which of the following cities?

[A] Kochi
[B] Washington
[C] New York
[D] Chennai

Correct Answer: B [Washington]

Answer Explanation: The 13th edition of joint military training exercise “Yudh Abhyas-2017” has started between Indian and US armies at Joint Base Lewis McChord in Washington, USA on September 16, 2017. During the two week long exercise soldiers from both countries will hone their tactical skills in counter insurgency and counter terrorist operations under a joint brigade headquarter. Both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of well-developed tactical drills for neutralization of likely threats that may be encountered in UN peace keeping operations. Experts from both sides will hold detailed discussions to share their experience and expertise on varied operational topics.

Who has been appointed as the new Prime Minister of Peru?

[A] Mercedes Araoz
[B] Fernando Zavala Lombardi
[C] Pedro Cateriano
[D] Ana Jara

Correct Answer: A [Mercedes Araoz]

Answer Explanation: Mercedes Araoz, who is also a lawmaker and one of Peru’s two Vice Presidents, has been appointed as the new Prime Minister of Peru by the Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski on September 17, 2017. Araoz succeeded Fernando Zavala, who lost vote of confidence by lawmakers. All 19 ministers in the previous Cabinet were forced to resign under Peru’s constitution because of the no-confidence vote. Kuczynski reappointed six of the 19 ministers in the previous Cabinet.

Who has won the best actor in drama series at the 69th Prime time Emmy Awards-2017?

[A] Anthony Hopkins
[B] Sterling K Brown
[C] Liev Schreiber
[D] Bob Odenkirk

Correct Answer: B [Sterling K Brown]

Answer Explanation: Sterling K Brown has created history by becoming the first African-American to win the best actor drama Emmy awards in the past 19 years, for his performance as Randall on NBC’s “This Is Us”. The last to win the award was Andre Braugher in 1998 for his role in “Homicide: Life on the Street”. Moreover British Pakistan actor Riz Ahmed has become the first Muslim actor as well as the man of Asian descent to win an Outstanding lead actor in a limited series at Emmy award for the “systematic issue of inclusion.

The Gorumara National Park (GNP) is located in which state?

[A] Tamil Nadu
[B] Uttar Pradesh
[C] West Bengal
[D] Maharashtra

Correct Answer: C [West Bengal]

Answer Explanation: The Gorumara National Park (GNP) is located in Jalpaiguri district, West Bengal. The park is located in the Dooars region of the Himalayan foothills, it is a medium-sized park with grasslands and forests. It is primarily known for its population of Indian rhinoceros. The park has been declared as the best among the protected areas in India by the Ministry of Environment and Forests for the year 2009. It has recorded 50 species of mammals, 194 species of birds, 22 species of reptiles, 7 species of turtles, 27 species of fish, and other macro and micro fauna. The park is rich in large herbivores including Indian rhinoceros, gaur, Asian elephant, sloth bear, chital and sambar deer.