Tnpsc Current Affairs in English – 3rd & 4th September 2023

1. Which state launched Gruha Lakshmi scheme’?

[A] Kerala

[B] Karnataka

[C] Andhra Pradesh

[D] Odisha

Answer: [B] Karnataka

Karnataka government launches Gruha Lakshmi scheme, which aims to provide assistance of 2,000 every month to women head of families in the State. The scheme was launched by Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi. This is said to be India’s largest money transfer scheme. Around 1.08 crore beneficiaries have been identified for the scheme.

2. Which company has launched a new mobile application called ‘Share(dot)Market’?

[A] Phonepe

[B] Paytm

[C] BharatPe

[D] CRED

Answer: [A] PhonePe

PhonePe has entered into stock broking business with the launch of a new mobile application called ‘Share(dot)Market’, under its subsidiary PhonePe Wealth Broking. It provides market intelligence and quantitative research- based WealthBaskets, a scalable technology platform. It will be available as a mobile app and a dedicated web platform, enabling retail investors to buy stocks, engage in intra-day trades, buy curated WealthBaskets and mutual funds.

3. Gabon, which was seen in the news, is located in which region?

[A] Africa

[B] Europe

[C] Australia

[D] Asia

Answer: [A] Africa

Rebel soldiers in Central African nation Gabon claim to have ousted their President Ali Bongo Ondimba. Rebel officers in the oil-rich central African state of Gabon announced they had seized power following disputed elections in which President Ali Bongo Ondimba, in power since 2009, had been declared victorious.

4. Which country is set to hold a referendum to recognize the country’s Indigenous people in its constitution?

[A] Greece

[B] Australia

[C] Sri Lanka

[D] China

Answer: [B] Australia

Australia is set to hold a landmark national referendum in October to recognize the country’s Indigenous people in its constitution. More than 17 million registered voters across the country will vote on October 14, to decide whether to amend the Constitution, in order to establish a new advisory body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The historic referendum called “Voice to Parliament”, if approved, would recognize Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the country’s constitution.

5. Which country/countries are the hosts of Asia Cup 2023 tournament?

[A] Sri Lanka and Pakistan

[B] India and Bangladesh

[C] Nepal and Bangladesh

[D] Pakistan and Afghanistan

Answer: [A] Sri Lanka and Pakistan

The Asia Cup 2023 tournament kicked off across four venues in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The 16th edition of Asia Cup is all set to start on August 30 and will end on September 17. A total of six teams will be participating. The teams have been divided into two groups and are playing against each other in round-robin style.

6. Who has been chosen as the chair of groups of ministers (GoMs) on GST System Reforms?

[A] P Chidambaram

[B] Subramaniam Swamy

[C] Ajit Pawar

[D] Adhir Ranjan Chowdhary

Answer: [C] Ajit Pawar

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council has reconstituted two of its groups of ministers (GoMs) tasked with identifying necessary System Reforms to curb evasion and analysing the revenue trends from the 6-year-old indirect tax regime. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar is back at the helm of the GoM on GST System Reforms, replacing his colleague Devendra Fadnavis.

7. India signed a MoU with which country to boost cooperation in civil aviation?

[A] New Zealand

[B] France

[C] Germany

[D] Spain

Answer: [A] New Zealand

The Government of India and the Government of New Zealand have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to boost cooperation in civil aviation. This will cover the scheduling of new routes, code share services, traffic rights and capacity entitlement. An Air Services Agreement was signed between New Zealand and India in 2016. The New Zealand and India have reviewed the existing arrangements relating to air service between the two countries.

8. Who was the founder of Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSC)?

[A] P C Mahalanobis

[B] Alladi Ramakrishnan

[C] Ramanujan

[D] C V Raman

Answer: [B] Alladi Ramakrishnan

The birth centenary of the eminent physicist Alladi Ramakrishnán is being celebrated in December 2023. He founded MATSCIENCE, The Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc), in Chennai, and served as its Director until his retirement in 1983 at the age of sixty. The Institute will pay homage to its Founder-Director, by conducting The Alladi Ramakrishnan Centenary Conference at its campus in Taramani, Chennai.

9. National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) to plant at least 10,000 trees in which state?

[A] Assam

[B] Manipur

[C] Uttarakhand

[D] Arunachal Pradesh

Answer: [C] Uttarakhand

The National Green Tribunal has directed the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) to plant at least 10,000 trees within a month in Uttarakhand. This direction was s part of compensatory tree plantation to make up for hundreds of trees felled during construction of a road from Simli to Gwaldam. There were petitions about construction of a road in the fragile and sensitive mountains of Chamoli district of Uttarakhand.

10. The DFL (Deutsche Fußball Liga) has entered into a collaboration with which Indian state?

[A] Kerala

[B] Maharashtra

[C] Odisha

[D] Goa

Answer: [B] Maharashtra

The DFL (Deutsche Fußball Liga) has entered into a collaboration with the Government of the State of Maharashtra, after a MoU was signed as part of the prestigious Shree Shiv Chhatarapati Awards ceremony in Pune, India. The MoU lays out three core elements to support the advancement of football within the state of Maharashtra: improving the technical and sporting expertise at all levels within clubs, associations, colleges and schools; strengthening football structures across the Indian subcontinent; and specifically supporting the progression of football within the Maharashtra district.

11. As per Youth Affairs and Sports Ministry, how many Khelo India Centres will be established within a year?

[A] 100

[B] 500

[C] 1000

[D] 2000

Answer: [C] 1000

Union Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Anurag Singh Thakur announced that 1000 Khelo India Centres will be established within a year in the country. It will not only provide employment opportunities to former athletes but also give budding sportspersons a chance to take guidance from the veterans. To commemorate the National Sports Day, over 3500 events were observed across the nation.

12. ‘CrossLinx accelerator programme’ is associated with India and which country?

[A] Sri Lanka

[B] USA

[C] Germany

[D] UAE

Answer: [B] USA

INDUS-X (India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem), an initiative to build a defence innovation bridge by Innovations for Defence Excellence (IDEX) of the Ministry of Defence, and the US Department of Defence (DoD). It began an exercise to begin the Indo-US CrossLinx accelerator programme to prepare defence start-ups to expand to the US markets.

13. NT Rama Rao was the former Chief Minister of which state?

[A] Karnataka

[B] Andhra Pradesh

[C] Kerala

[D] Telangana

Answer: [B] Andhra Pradesh

President Droupadi Murmu released the commemorative coin on Late NT Rama Rao on his centenary year at Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre. NT Rama Rao, who founded the Telegu Desam Party (TDP), also served as the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh for three terms. He initiated many public welfare programs.

14. Asian Development Bank (ADB) has sanctioned 3.32 crore grant for safe public transport travel in which city?

[A] Chennai

[B] Hyderabad

[C] Pune

[D] Mysuru

Answer: [B] Hyderabad

A team of technology experts of BITS Hyderabad, IIT Mumbai and IIT Kharagpur, has won Asian Development Bank’s grant of USD 3.99 lakh (3.32 crore) to develop TUTEM, TUTEM stands for Technologies for Urban Transit to Enhance Mobility and Safe Accessibility. It aims for safe public transport travel in Hyderabad.

15. Which team is the winner of FIDE World Rapid Team Championship?

[A] WR Chess

[B] Freedom

[C] MGD1

[D] Speed

Answer: [A] WR Chess

WR Chess has triumphed as inaugural FIDE World Rapid Team Champions. Altogether, WR Chess secured 22 matchpoints, Freedom finished on 20, and third-placed MGD1 had 18. WR Chess had one Indian- R Praggnananda, Freedom had two Indian players and MGD1 eight. When it comes to individual medals for board prizes, as many as seven Indians won either a Silver or Bronze medal.

16. When is the ‘National Small Industry Day’observed in India?

[A] August 25

[B] August 30

[C] September 1

[D] September 2

Answer: [B] August 30

The Indian Government formally declared August 30 as the National Small Industry Day, a year after the Ministry of Small-Scale Industries announced a comprehensive policy package for small businesses. The day recognises the contribution of small industries to the country’s growth and is an opportunity for the central and state governments to encourage and support small industries.

17. As per the ‘Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) Annual Update 2023’, poor air quality decreases the average Indian’s life expectancy by?

[A] 5.1 years

[B] 5.3 years

[C] 6.1 years

[D] 6.3 years

Answer: [A] 5.1 years

Air pollution is reducing the life span of people living in South Asia by 5.1 years, according to a new report. The region accounts for more than half of the total life years lost globally due to high pollution. In India, on average, poor air quality takes 5.3 years off the life of a person, while cardiovascular diseases decrease the average Indian’s life expectancy by around 4.5 years.

18. Which state has decided to create a fact- checking unit to curb fake news on social media?

[A] Karnataka

[B] Kerala

[C] Tamil Nadu

[D] West Bengal

Answer: [A] Karnataka

In a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Karnataka Cabinet approved the formation of fact-checking units to tackle ‘fake news syndicates’. The government would introduce legislation against the propagation of fake news and propose punishment for the spread of fake news.

19. NITI Aayog signed a MoU with which institution on fast tracking SDGs?

[A] UNDP

[B] UNEP

[C] World Bank

[D] WEF

Answer: [A] UNDP

NITI Aayog and UNDP India have signed, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to formalise a framework of cooperation on a range of areas, including SDG localisation, data-driven monitoring, Aspirational Districts and Blocks, among others. The MoU was signed for a period of five years. NITI Aayog is the nodal Institution for coordinating the adoption and monitoring of SDGS at the national and sub-national levels. UNDP plays the integrator role in coordinating efforts to fast-track progress on the SDGs within the UN system.

20. ‘GREAT’ Grant, which was seen un the news, is associated with which Union Ministry?

[A] Ministry of Textiles

[B] Ministry of Home Affairs

[C] Ministry of MSME

[D] Ministry of Rural Development

Answer: [A] Ministry of Textiles

The Ministry of Textiles has approved the Startup Guidelines for Technical Textiles Grant for Research and Entrepreneurship across Aspiring Innovators in Technical Textiles (GREAT) providing grant-in-aid upto INR 50 Lakhs for upto a period of 18 months. Ministry of Textiles gives nod to 26 engineering institutions for introduction of Technical Textiles under National Technical Textiles Mission.