11th March 2023 Daily Current Affairs in English
1. ‘TROPEX 2023’ is a major Operational level exercise conducted by which country?
[A] India
[B] Australia
[C] UK
[D] USA
Answer : [A] India
Indian Navy’s major Operational level exercise TROPEX 2023 was recently conducted across the Indian Ocean Region culminated in the Arabian Sea. The exercise recently culminated this week in the Arabian Sea. The overall exercise construct included Coastal Defence exercise Sea Vigil and the Amphibious Exercise AMPHEX. These exercise also witnessed significant participation from the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force, and the Coast Guard.
2. Centre has recently directed NAFED, NCCF for immediate intervention in market for purchase of which product?
[A] Potato
[B] Red onion
[C] Cotton
[D] Jute
Answer : [B] Red onion
The Centre directs NAFED and National Consumers Cooperative Federation of India Limited (NCCF) to immediately intervene in the market for the purchase of Red Onion (Kharif). The Price Stabilization Fund has been set up for the procurement and storage of onion as a buffer to keep the supply chain smooth during the lean seasons.
3. Which country has opened military service to women for the first time in 25 years?
[A] Sri Lanka
[B] Colombia
[C] UK
[D] Japan
Answer : [B] Colombia
Colombia has opened military service to women for the first time in 25 years. A cohort of 1,296 women have been enlisted in Colombia’s Army in the month of February. Colombia has long had compulsory military service for men ages 18 to 24. The army relies heavily on the young recruits to staff bases, protect infrastructure, and carry out administrative tasks, while its professional soldiers confront drug trafficking gangs and rebel groups.
4. Which country introduced the ‘Illegal Migration Bill’?
[A] USA
[B] UK
[C] China
[D] Greece
Answer : [B] UK
The UK’s Illegal Migration Bill, introduced by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, aims to tackle the issue of illegal immigration by preventing thousands of migrants from crossing the English Channel on small boats. The bill empowers the UK government to detain and deport anyone who arrives in the country illegally, with few exceptions. It allows the British Parliament to set a quota on the number of immigrants allowed in the country.
5. Mimeusemia ceylonica, rare moth species, has been spotted for the first time in India, in which state?
[A] Kerala
[B] Tamil Nadu
[C] Karnataka
[D] Odisha
Answer : [A] Kerala
Researchers spotted a Mimeusemia ceylonica, rare moth species for the first time in India in Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu after 127 years. It was last recorded in Sri Lanka 127 years ago and the findings are based on moth surveys conducted twice a moth since 2018. This is the first time this moth species is being recorded in India.
6. As a part of cricket diplomacy, Indian Prime Minister watched the Border Gavaskar Tournament with his counterpart of which country?
[A] Australia
[B] USA
[C] Japan
[D] France
Answer : [A] Australia
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese arrived on a two-day visit to Gujarat. Mr. Antony Albanese visited Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad and paid tribute to father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Mr. Albanese watched the first day of the fourth test match of Border Gavaskar trophy between the two countries at Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad.
7. As per the United Nations statement released on Women’s Day, which is the most repressive country for women?
[A] Iran
[B] India
[C] Afghanistan
[D] China
Answer : [C] Afghanistan
Since the Taliban take over of Afghanistan, the country has become the most repressive in the world for women and girls, deprived of many of their basic rights, as per the United Nations. In a statement released on International Women’s Day, the U.N. mission said that Afghanistan’s new rulers have shown a focus on imposing rules that leave most women and girls effectively trapped in their homes.
8. Which state set a Guinness World Records for the highest number of essays written about a single person?
[A] Assam
[B] Gujarat
[C] West Bengal
[D] Jharkhand
Answer : [A] Assam
Assam created a Guinness World Record for the highest number of essays written about a single person. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma received a Guinness certificate for almost 43 lakh essays on Ahom general Lachit Borphukan on his 400th birth anniversary.
9. Which country is the chair of the BIMSTEC Bloc in 2023?
[A] India
[B] Thailand
[C] Myanmar
[D] Sri Lanka
Answer : [B] Thailand
The 19th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting was hosted by the chair Thailand. India’s Union Minister of State for External Affairs Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh participated in the 19th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting. The meeting also approved the draft Host Country Agreement between India and the BIMSTEC Secretariat for establishing BIMSTEC Centre for Weather and Climate in India. BIMSTEC Bangkok Vision 2030 was also approved and will be launched at the 6th BIMSTEC Summit.
10. Which Union Ministry announced an exclusive women’s portal for research grants and funds?
[A] Ministry of Science and Technology
[B] Ministry of Education
[C] Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship
[D] Ministry of Labour and Employment
Answer : [A] Ministry of Science and Technology
To mark the International Women’s Day, Ministry of Science and Technology announced an exclusive women’s portal for research grants and funds. The CSIR council has decided to start exclusive Research Grants for Women Scientists under CSIR-ASPIRE and an exclusive portal in this regard will be available from April 1, 2023.
11. India hosted a ‘Commercial Dialogue and CEO Forum’ with which country?
[A] USA
[B] UK
[C] Australia
[D] Germany
Answer : [A] USA
India – US Commercial Dialogue and CEO Forum was held in New Delhi. During the meeting, the Minister and the Secretary acknowledged that the bilateral goods and services trade has almost doubled since 2014. India and US also agree to launch Strategic Trade Dialogue, which will be led by Foreign Secretary of India and Under Secretary, Bureau of Industry and Security in US Department of Commerce.
12. ‘Ram Chandra Paudel’ has been elected as the new President of which country?
[A] Myanmar
[B] Nepal
[C] Singapore
[D] Thailand
Answer : [B] Nepal
Nepali Congress’ Senior leader Ram Chandra Paudel has been elected the new President of Nepal. In the voting which took place recently, Poudel was elected to the post with 33,802 votes. The President is elected by an Electoral College consisting of the members of the Federal Parliament (House of Representatives and the National Assembly) and the Provincial Assembly.
13. Which city is the host of the ‘Khelo India Dus Ka Dum Tournament’?
[A] New Delhi
[B] Mumbai
[C] Pune
[D] Varanasi
Answer : [A] New Delhi
Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Anurag Singh Thakur inaugurated the Khelo India Dus Ka Dum Tournament in New Delhi. Nearly 15 thousand women athletes will participate in the contest in more than 50 cities of the country. The game features 10 sports. The objective of this tournament is to provide a platform to the women athletes who were unable to participate in national or state-level competitions.
14. Which city is the host of the ‘World Para Athletics Grand Prix’ in 2023?
[A] New Delhi
[B] Colombo
[C] Dubai
[D] Dhaka
Answer : [C] Dubai
Ekta Bhyan qualified for the World Para athletics after claiming bronze in discus throw in Dubai World para-athletics Grand Prix. The Indian team returned home with seven medals from the Dubai World Para Athletics Grand Prix. The Indian contingent, which had several youngsters making their international debut in Dubai, won four silver and three bronze medals.
15. Sousa chinensis, which was seen in the news recently, belongs to which species?
[A] Snake
[B] Dolphin
[C] Spider
[D] Turtle
Answer : [B] Dolphin
The Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin (Sousa chinensis) is a species of humpback dolphin that lives in the coastal waters of the eastern Indian and western Pacific Oceans. It is some-times known as the Chinese white dolphin in some regions. A group of Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins was spotted recently off the coast of Injambakkam. Over 30 to 40 of these dolphins were found 500 meters away from the coast. Each dolphin had a unique coloration of pink and grey.
16. Which institution along with the UN Women launched a new programme called ‘FinEMPOWER’?
[A] RBI
[B] BSE
[C] SEBI
[D] SBI
Answer : [B] BSE
BSE and UN Women India launched a new programme, ‘FinEMPOWER’, at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). It is a year-long joint capacity-building programme between BSE and UN Women to empower women towards financial security.
17. NISAR Mission is a collaborative project between ISRO and which space agency?
[A] JAXA
[B] NASA
[C] ESA
[D] CNA
Answer : [B] NASA
NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) Mission is a collaborative project between NASA and ISRO. It is aimed at building and launching an Earth observation satellite equipped with a dual-frequency synthetic aperture radar. The satellite will be used to remotely sense natural phenomena on Earth, such as the Antarctic cryosphere. The US Air Force recently handed over the NISAR satellite to the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
18. As per NEP, higher educational institutes to obtain the highest level of NAAC accreditation within how many years?
[A] 10
[B] 15
[C] 20
[D] 25
Answer : [B] 15
The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), set up in 1994, is responsible for evaluating the quality of higher education institutions in India. While undergoing NAAC’s assessment is not mandatory, the National Education Policy aims to get all higher educational institutes to obtain the highest level of accreditation within the next 15 years. As of January 31, 2023, only a small fraction of universities and colleges have been NAAC-accredited.
19. Which space agency has recently proposed the need for a lunar time zone?
[A] NASA
[B] ESA
[C] ISRO
[D] JAXA
Answer : [B] ESA
The European Space Agency (ESA) has recently proposed the need for a lunar time zone. It has called for an international coordination and consensus to establish it. Moon Time Zone has been proposed for establishing a universal timekeeping system that will simplify communication and coordination among different lunar missions.
20. Chabahar Port is a seaport located in which country?
[A] Iran
[B] UAE
[C] Saudi Arabia
[D] Israel
Answer : [A] Iran
Chabahar Port is a seaport located in southeastern Iran on the Gulf of Oman. It is the only oceanic port in Iran. India has announced that it would deliver 20,000 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan via the Chabahar Port in Iran. The shipment will be sent in partnership with the UN World Food Programme.