8th February 2023 Daily Current Affairs in English
1. Manuela Roka Botey has been appointed as the first female Prime Minister of which country?
[A] Finland
[B] Equatorial Guinea
[C] Norway
[D] Sweden
Answer : [B] Equatorial Guinea
Equatorial Guinea has appointed Manuela Roka Botey as prime minister. She became the first woman in the country to hold the position. President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who has ruled the country since 1979, made the announcement. Ms Rotey was previously the education minister and joined the government in 2020. She replaces former premier Francisco Pascual Obama Asue.
2. Which country has found the radioactive capsule that went missing in January?
[A] USA
[B] Australia
[C] Russia
[D] Ukraine
Answer : [B] Australia
Authorities in Western Australia announced that they have found a tiny radioactive capsule which went missing last month. The capsule was found when a vehicle equipped with specialist equipment detected radiation. The object was lost while being transported along a 1,400 km route across the state. It contains a small quantity of Caesium-137, which could cause skin damage, burns or radiation sickness.
3. ‘World Interfaith Harmony Week’ is being observed in which month?
[A] January
[B] February
[C] March
[D] April
Answer : [B] February
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) designated the first seven days of February as World Interfaith Harmony Week in 2010. The idea of World Interfaith Harmony Week was first proposed at the United Nations in 2010 by Jordan’s King Abdullah II. UNGA encourages all countries to voluntarily disseminate the message of interfaith tolerance and goodwill in accordance with their religious traditions.
4. Which cricketer scored 126 runs and set a new record for the highest individual score by an Indian in T20 cricket?
[A] Virat Kohli
[B] Shubman Gill
[C] Suryakumar Yadav
[D] Rohit Sharma
Answer : [B] Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill scored 126 runs from 63 balls in the third T20I against New Zealand. With this innings, Gill has set a new record for the highest individual score by an Indian in T20I cricket history. Shubman smashed 12 fours and seven sixes and remained not out till the end of the innings. Virat Kohli scored a massive innings of 122 runs against Afghanistan during the Asia Cup 2022.
5. Which Union Ministry along with the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment implements the NAMASTE scheme?
[A] Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
[B] Ministry of Rural Development
[C] Ministry of MSME
[D] Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
Answer : [A] Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
NAMASTE is a Central Sector Scheme of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) as a joint initiative of the MoSJE and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA). NAMASTE stands for National Action Plan for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem). This year’s Union Budget has allotted Rs 100 crore to the scheme. Finance Minister announced that the government is looking to enable 100% mechanical de-sludging of septic tanks and sewers in all cities and towns.
6. As per the recent guidelines of 2023, what is the minimum download speed of Broadband in India?
[A] 512 kbps
[B] 1 mbps
[C] 2 mbps
[D] 5 mbps
Answer : [C] 2 mbps
According to a recent gazette notification, the government has revised the definition of broadband connectivity, specifying a higher minimum download speed of 2 megabits per second. Earlier, the definition notified by the Telecom Department in 2013 had benchmarked it to 512 kbps (kilobits per second) as minimum download speed. As of November 30, 2022, India had about 825.4 million broadband subscribers, of which 793.5 million were wireless broadband users.
7. Which state has initiated serious action on child marriage and arrested over 2000 people?
[A] West Bengal
[B] Assam
[C] Odisha
[D] Jharkhand
Answer : [B] Assam
Assam state government has initiated action on child marriage. The state police have so far arrested nearly 2,500 people for marrying minor girls or facilitating such marriages. Assam Cabinet earlier decided to book men who marry girls aged below 14 under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. Those who marry girls in the age group of 14-18 years will be tried under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.
8. Which state inaugurated the ‘MV Ganga Vihar floating restaurant’?
[A] Bihar
[B] Uttar Pradesh
[C] West Bengal
[D] Uttarakhand
Answer : [A] Bihar
Bihar Deputy Chief minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav inaugurated the MV Ganga Vihar at NIT Ghat in Bihar. The floating restaurant operated by the Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation (BSTDC). The two-storied floating restaurant has a restaurant on the ground floor with a seating capacity of 48 people along with a VIP lounge and a private lounge on the top floor.
9. Deoghar Mart is an online marketplace for local artisans made operational in which state?
[A] Madhya Pradesh
[B] Gujarat
[C] Jharkhand
[D] Karnataka
Answer : [C] Jharkhand
Deoghar Mart is an online marketplace for local artisans, shops, micro-enterprises and businessmen, which is made operational in Jharkhand. The online e-commerce website selling local arts and crafts is an initiative of the district administration and was launched by District Magistrate of Deoghar Manjunath Bhanjantri.
10. Which state/UT is the host of the ‘Surajkund International Crafts Mela’?
[A] Jammu and Kashmir
[B] Haryana
[C] Bihar
[D] Arunachal Pradesh
Answer : [B] Haryana
The 36th Surajkund International Crafts Mela was inaugurated by Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar in Faridabad, Haryana. For this year, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is the participating international entity while eight northeast states, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Sikkim, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Tripura, are the theme states. The artists of these states will come together to showcase their art, handicrafts, and cuisines on a single platform.
11. Which country’s Prime Minister has been named as the most popular leader in Global Leader Approval survey?
[A] China
[B] Japan
[C] India
[D] Australia
Answer : [C] India
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi named as the world’s most popular leader with an approval rating of 78 per cent. The global Leader Approval Survey, carried out by the US based Morning Consult, featured 22 global leaders. PM Modi stood on top of the list with 78% approval rating. The second most popular leader as per the survey is Andres Manual Lopez Obrador (Mexico), while Alain Berset (Switzerland) stood third. US President Joe Biden came seventh while UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was placed 12th.
12. Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) recently found 1,200-year-old idols in Nalanda, in which state?
[A] Bihar
[B] Gujarat
[C] Punjab
[D] Rajasthan
Answer : [A] Bihar
Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) recently found 1,200-year-old idols in Nalanda in Bihar. They were found from a waterbody close to the ancient Nalanda University during desilting of a pond. Nalanda Mahavihara is a world heritage site about 88 km from this place. The idols were found during desilting under Bihar government’s ‘Jal-Jeevan-Hariyali’ project launched to protect and conserve water and the environment.
13. The government has agreed to convert Interest on dues of which company into Equity?
[A] Air India
[B] Vi
[C] Oppo
[D] Thomas Reuters
Answer : [B] Vi
The government has agreed to convert Vodafone Idea’s accrued interest worth over Rs 16,000 crore on deferred adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues into equity at Rs 10 a share. Earlier In October 2022, market regulator SEBI approved the conversion of Vodafone Idea dues into equity.
14. Under the FAME scheme, which state topped the list of states buying Electric vehicles?
[A] Gujarat
[B] Maharashtra
[C] Tamil Nadu
[D] Rajasthan
Answer : [B] Maharashtra
Maharashtra tops the list in sales of electric vehicles across al segments which have availed of the FAME II subsidy. It is followed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan. The top five states collectively account for over 56 per cent of the 0.85 million electric vehicles bought through the scheme, according to government data. Under the FAME II scheme, the government earmarked Rs 10,000 crore as a subsidy to electric vehicles. The scheme has been extended till March-end 2024.
15. As per the Union Budget 2023, what is the income limit for availing tax rebate?
[A] Rs 6 lakh
[B] Rs 7 lakh
[C] Rs 8 lakh
[D] Rs 10 lakh
Answer : [B] Rs 7 lakh
In the Union Budget 2023, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has proposed to increase the tax rebate to Rs 7 lakh under New Tax Regime. This means no tax will be levied on income up to Rs 7 lakh under New Regime. Standard Deduction under New Tax Regime for individuals with income up to Rs 15 lakh will be Rs 52,400. The Finance Minister has proposed to reduce the highest surcharge rate from 37 per cent to 25 per cent in the new tax regime, for individuals in the highest tax bracket.
16. World Cancer Day is marked on which month every year?
[A] March
[B] June
[C] September
[D] February
Answer : [D] February
World Cancer Day is observed every year on February 4, to unite the world in the fight against cancer. The first Cancer Day was celebrated in Geneva, Switzerland in the year 1933. It was led by the World Health Organisation. The theme for World Cancer day for the three years – 2022, 2023 and 2024 is “Close The Care Gap”.
17. As per the World Health Organisation (WHO), 300 children lost lives due to cough syrups made in which country?
[A] China
[B] India
[C] USA
[D] Australia
Answer : [B] India
As per the World Health Organisation (WHO), 300 children in three countries lost lives due to cough syrups made in India. WHO is investigating whether there is any connection between manufacturers of the contaminated cough syrups. The deaths of children from acute kidney injury began in July 2022 in Gambia, followed by cases in Indonesia and Uzbekistan.
18. Which institution releases ‘Food Price Index’ which tracks the most globally traded food commodities?
[A] World Bank
[B] FAO
[C] World Economic Forum
[D] NITI Aayog
Answer : [B] FAO
The United Nations food agency, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) price index tracks the most globally traded food commodities. As per the recent FAO Food Price Index (FFPI), World food prices decline for 10th month as recorded in January – FAO Food Price Index (FFPI). The index averaged 131.2 points in January against 132.4 for December.
19. Which tech major has invested nearly USD 400 million in artificial intelligence start-up Anthropic Al?
[A] Samsung
[B] Microsoft
[C] Meta
[D] Google
Answer : [D] Google
Google has invested nearly USD 400 million in artificial intelligence start-up Anthropic AI. The two companies announced a partnership that will see the AI start-up use Google’s cloud computing services. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei announced that they would use Google Cloud to build reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems and to create a robust AI platform.
20. India recently jumped to its highest spot of which rank in International Boxing Association’s (IBA) world ranking?
[A] First
[B] Second
[C] Third
[D] Fifth
Answer : [C] Third
India jumped to the third spot in the International Boxing Association’s (IBA) latest world ranking. Indian boxing teams consistently finished amongst the top 5 countries at global multi-nation tournaments such as World Championships. Asian Games and the Common wealth games.