19,December, 2018 Current Affairs - Daily Current Affairs

19,December, 2018 Current Affairs - Daily Current Affairs

1. Who was the author of the book named "God of Sin: The Cult, The Clout and Downfall of Asaram Bapu"?

A.            Kiran Desai

B.            Jhumpa Lahiri

C.            Aravind Adiga

D.            Ushinor Majumdar

Answer: Option D

Explanation:

Book on self-styled godman Asaram Bapu released after a Chandigarh court refused to stay its publication. Authored by Ushinor Majumdar named "God of Sin: The Cult, The Clout and Downfall of Asaram Bapu". The plea was filed seeking a permanent injunction against publishing of the book. Book was published Penguin Random. "God of Sin" is about Asaram's journey to spiritual godhood, his fall from grace and the long and arduous road to bring him to justice.

2. Name the company which has partnered with Ola recently.

A.            Bird

B.            Uber

C.            Vogo

D.            Spin

Answer: Option C

Explanation:

Vogo, a scooter sharing start-up, has partnered with Ola, the ride-hailing company. Ola will boost Vogo's supply by investing in 1,00,000 scooters on the Vogo platform, worth $100 million. Vogo's offerings will also be available for Ola's customer base of over 150 million, directly from the Ola app. Every Vogo scooter comes with an Internet of Things (IoT) device that allows the customer to access the key via a one-time password (OTP). This eliminates the need for human intervention and offers consumers a seamless experience.

3. What is the name of the most-distant body ever observed in our solar system?

A.            Farout

B.            VG18

C.            A1689-zD1

D.            Quasar

Answer: Option A

Explanation:

Scientists have discovered the most-distant body ever observed in our solar system, located over 100 times farther than Earth is from the Sun. The new object has been nicknamed Farout. Earlier, 2018 VG18, the object is the first to be observed at a distance of more than 100 astronomical units from the sun. Farout is about 120 AU, or about 11 billion miles, from the sun. One AU is the distance from Earth to the sun or about 93 million miles

4. Who has been named the top Indian star of 2018, by the global film and TV website IMDb?

A.            Aamir Khan

B.            Shah Rukh Khan

C.            Deepika Padukone

D.            Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Answer: Option C

Explanation:

The '2018 Top 10 Stars of Indian Cinema' list, based on global film and TV website Internet Movie Database's (IMDb) 'StarMeter' stats and page views, was released. Actress Deepika Padukone has been named the top Indian star of 2018, by the global film and TV website IMDb. Shah Rukh Khan was second on the list, followed by Aamir Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

5. The 9th India-ROK Joint Commission Meeting held in __________.

A.            Lucknow

B.            Ahmedabad

C.            Mumbai

D.            New Delhi

Answer: Option D

Explanation:

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Foreign Affairs Minister of South Korea Kang Kyung-wha co-chaired the 9th India-ROK Joint Commission meeting. Ms. Kyung-wha arrived in New Delhi on a two-day visit to India. Mrs. Swaraj and her Korean counterpart reviewed the progress in multifaceted cooperation under the Special Strategic Partnership between the two countries. It includes follow-up action on decisions taken during the visit of South Korean President Moon Jae-in to India in July this year.

6. 18th December was observed as an International Migration Day to protect the rights of migrant workers and members of their families. The theme of 2018 IMD is;

A.            Migration with Dignity

B.            Together with Migration

C.            Stand together for Migration

D.            Safe Migration in a World on the Move

Answer: Option A

Explanation:

The UN's (United Nation) International Migration Day (IMD) is observed every year on 18th December to protect the rights of migrant workers and members of their families. The theme for this year's IMD is 'Migration with Dignity'. In Dec 2000, the UN General Assembly proclaimed 18 Dec as International Migrants Day after considering the large and increasing number of migrants in the world.

7. Shaan and Arijit Singh was awarded with the 'Sangeet Mahasamman' by which of the government?

A.            Haryana

B.            West Bengal

C.            Manipur

D.            Odisha

Answer: Option B

Explanation:

Popular singers Shaan and Arijit Singh were given the "Sangeet Mahasamman" award by the West Bengal government at the inaugural session of the Bengal music and folk culture festival held in Kolkata. Legendary singer Sandhya Mukhopadhyay gave away the awards. Leading Bengali singers like Rupankar Bagchi, Raghab Chattopadhyay, Manomoy Bhattacharya, Saikat Mitra, Pratik Chowdhury and music director Debojyoti Mishra were also given the 'Sangeet Mahasamman' awards. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee inaugurated the eight-day Bangla Sangeet Mela(Bengal Music Festival) and Biswa Bangla Lok Sanskriti Utsav( Folk Culture Festival). The government has given cards to two lakh folk artistes or 'Lok Prasar Shilpi', and each of them are given Rs 1,000 as monthly allowance.

8. India ranked __________ in the World Economic Forum (WEF) gender gap index 2018.

A.            56

B.            72

C.            108

D.            112

Answer: Option C

Explanation:

India has been ranked 108th in World Economic Forum (WEF) gender gap index 2018, same as 2017 while recording improvement in wage equality for similar work and fully closing its tertiary education gender gap for the first time. As per the WEF's Global Gender Gap Report 2018, Iceland topped the list having closed more than 85.8% of its overall gender gap. The Report was published for total 149 countries. Norway and Sweden were on 2nd and 3rd position, respectively.

9. Name the person who won the Mrs.India Worldwide 2018 title at the 27th annual global pageant in US.

A.            Jeya Priya Pandian

B.            Kavita Malhotra Pattani

C.            Mandeep Kaur Sandhu

D.            Anjali Menon

Answer: Option C

Explanation:

In the Mrs.India Worldwide 2018 Category,India's Mandeep Kaur Sandhu, who hails from Haryana, was declared as the winner and crowned at 27th annual global pageant.Jeya Priya Pandian from Malaysia and Kavita Malhotra Pattani from USA were declared the first and second runner ups of the Mrs India Worldwide 2018. Girls andWomen's of Indian Origin from 17 Countries Participated in this 27th annual global pageant.The next edition of the Miss India Worldwide will be held in Mumbai in 2019.

10. Who has been named as the 2018 ITF World Champion under Women's Singles category?

A.            Serena Williams

B.            Barbora Krejcikova

C.            Simona Halep

D.            Katerina Siniakova

Answer: Option C

Explanation:

The International Tennis Federation announced Romania's Simona Halep as the 2018 ITF World Champion. The ITF World Champions will receive their awards at the 2019 ITF World Champions Dinner on Tuesday 4 June, in Paris, during Roland Garros. In women's Singles Category: It is the first year Halep has been recognised.Halep also enjoyed Grand Slam success in 2018.The Romanian has spent 40 weeks of the year ranked as world No.1.she also won the 2018 WTA Shot of the Year. In the Women's Doubles Category: Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova won the award.

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11. A statue of former Indian captain MS Dhoni has been unveiled at which of the following museum?

A.            Jaipur Wax Museum, Jaipur

B.            Madame Tussauds Hollywood, Delhi

C.            Melody World Wax Museum, Mysore

D.            Mayapuri Wonder Wax, Kanyakumari

Answer: Option A

Explanation:

Jaipur Wax Museum, situated at Nahargarh Fort, marked its second anniversary by unveiling a wax statue of cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Weighing 56 kg, of which 19 kg is wax and the rest is fibre, the statue is five feet and nine inches tall, and is designed by sculptor Susanta Roy.

12. Who sets a national record by completing 176.8 km in the women's 24-hour event at New Delhi?

A.            Monika Athare

B.            Taru Mateti

C.            Apoorva Chaudhary

D.            Lalita Babar

Answer: Option C

Explanation:

Apoorva Chaudhary, the 28-year old ultra runner from Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh, created a national record by completing 176.8 km in the women's 24-hour event at the NEB 24 Hour Stadium Run held at New Delhi under the aegis of Athletics Federation of India. The previous record of 175.4 km was set by Meenal Kotak. Apoorva became the fourth Indian woman to run more than 100 miles (160 km) in 24 hours after Meenal, Hema Saini (172.3 km) and Aparna Choudhary (169.2 km). In the men's 24-hour run held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium at New Delhi, Pranaya Mohanty from Bengaluru completed 206.8, becoming the third Indian to have crossed the 200 km distance and the first to have achieved it in a stadium race held in India.

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13. Senior politician Tulsi Giri has passed away on 18 December. He was the Former Prime minister of;

A.            Thailand

B.            Bhutan

C.            Pakistan

D.            Nepal

Answer: Option D

Explanation:

Former Prime Minister of Nepal Tulsi Giri has passed away in Kathmandu. He was 93. Giri was suffering from liver cancer for a long time. He twice served as the prime minister of Nepal first from 1962 to 1964 and again from 1975 to 1977.

14. Road Transport & Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari will inaugurate and lay the foundation of various projects worth over 9,500 Crore Rupees in __________.

A.            Uttarkhand

B.            Arunachal Pradesh

C.            Rajasthan

D.            Madhya Pradesh

Answer: Option B

Explanation:

Road Transport & Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari will inaugurate and lay the foundation of various projects worth over 9,500 Crore Rupees in separate events in Arunachal Pradesh. Mr. Gadkari will inaugurate bridges across Dibang and Lohit River System, including approach road between Chowkham-Digaru. He will also inaugurate the recently two-laned sections of NH 52 B between Mahadevapura to BuriDihing and Bordumsa to Namchik.

15. Name the Indian Actress who was named PETA India's 2018 Person of the Year?

A.            Sonam Kapoor

B.            Anushka Sharma

C.            Aishwarya Rai

D.            Sonakshi Sinha

Answer: Option A

Explanation:

Actress Sonam Kapoor, a vegan, has been named People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India's Person of the Year for 2018. Sonam has been feted as she sings in praise of vegan eating and because she keeps animal skins out of her handbag line for her fashion brand Rheson, apart from taking other action for the welfare of animals.

16. ISRO plans to Launch GSAT- 7A Communication Satellite from this space station.

A.            Bangalore

B.            Sriharikota

C.            Dehradun

D.            Thiruvananthapuram

Answer: Option B

Explanation:

GSLV F 11 will carry the 2250 kilogram GSAT 7A from Sriharikota at 4.10 pm on 19th December. The countdown is progressing smoothly for the launch of GSLV F 11 carrying GSAT 7A at the Space research Centre Sriharikota. The process of propellant filling of liquid strap-ons had begun. The rocket will spew out the satellite within 20 minutes after lift off from the second launch pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre. The rocket, GSLV F 11 is the fourth generation launch vehicle with three stages.

17. Union Cabinet recently approved the establishment of two new AIIMS at these two states.

A.            Haryana and Odisha

B.            Karnataka and Rajasthan

C.            Andra Pradesh and Kerala

D.            Tamil Nadu and Telangana

Answer: Option D

Explanation:

The Union Cabinet approved the establishment of two new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Tamil Nadu and Telangana. Tamil Nadu's AIIMS will be set at Madurai and Telangana's will be set at Bibinagar at the cost of ₹1,264 crore and ₹1,028 crore respectively. Each will add 100 Undergraduate (MBBS) seats and 60 B.Sc (Nursing) seats. The two new institutes will be set up under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY). Construction of new AIIMS is fully funded by the central government.

18. With whom Nasscom join hands for reskilling students and employees in the Information Technology sector?

A.            IIT Mumbai

B.            IIT Madras

C.            IIT Bengaluru

D.            IIT Kolkata

Answer: Option B

Explanation:

Nasscom, IT industry body, announced its partnership with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras for reskilling students and employees in the Information Technology sector and IT-enabled Services (ITeS). The partnership is aimed at building an able workforce to support the industry and other stakeholders. Nasscom aims to get India accelerated on the path to becoming the global hub for talent for the new emerging technologies like AI (Artificial Intelligence), IoT (Internet of Things), cyber security, big data, cloud and blockchain.

19. Name the tennis player who has been named as the 2018 ITF (International Tennis Federation) World Champion under Men's Singles category.

A.            Novak Djokovic

B.            Roger Federer

C.            Rafael Nadal

D.            Dominic Thiem

Answer: Option A

Explanation:

The International Tennis Federation announced Serbia's Novak Djokovic as the 2018 ITF World Champion. The ITF World Champions will receive their awards at the 2019 ITF World Champions Dinner on Tuesday 4 June, in Paris, during Roland Garros. In Men's Singles Category: Djokovic receives the honour for the sixth time. He won four titles including Wimbledon and the US Open, and climb from No. 22 in the rankings to secure the year-end world No. 1 position. In the Men's Doubles Category:USA's Mike Bryan and Jack Sock will receive the award. It will be the 12th time Bryan has received the award but the first time Sock has been honoured.

20. Who among the following was appointed as the Additional Director of CBI?

A.            Ashwani Kumar

B.            Alok Verma

C.            M.Nageswara Rao

D.            Anil Sinha

Answer: Option C

Explanation:

CBI's Joint Director M Nageswara Rao, who is currently the interim CBI Director, was promoted to the rank of Additional Director by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet. The 1986-batch IPS officer from the Odisha cadre had joined the CBI in 2016. Before being appointed interim chief, Rao was No. 3 in the pecking order and was handling the Chandigarh branch along with certain branches in South India.