1. The song Vande Mataram, declared India's National song in 1937 through a resolution, was composed in Sanskrit by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. The song was set to tune by Rabindranath Tagore. In which of the novels penned by Bankimchandra does the song appear?
   a. Durgeshnandini
   b. Anand Math
   c. Kapalkundala
   d. Parineeta
   
   
2. Name the religious leader whose  murder triggered the “Kandhamal riots ” in Orissa.
   a. Swami Laxmananand
   b. Swami Dayanand
   c. Swami Laxman prasad
   d. Swami Saraswati
   
   
3. Starbucks, an international cafe chain based in Seattle, Washington is the world’s largest coffee-house company. Name the chairman and CEO of the company, who is largely credited for making Starbucks the hugely successful business that it is today by convincing the ownership of the company to sell traditional espresso and beverages (in addition to the whole bean coffee and leaf teas that they traditionally used to).
   a. Clay Bennett
   b. Marvin Herb
   c. Steven Cohen
   d. Howard Schultz
   
   
4. India's first silent movie was made by  N G Chitre and R G Torney in 1912 which was half British in its make. Name the first fully indigenous silent feature film by Budhiraj Govind Phalke which hit the screens on May 3, 1913.
   a. Satyavan Savitri
   b. Raja Harishchandra
   c. Pundalik
   d. Nala-Damayanti
   
   
5. The operations of this organization was formally launched in 1936 with an objective to inform, educate and entertain the masses. It covers 24 languages and 146 dialects. The coverage is 90% in terms of area and 97.3% in terms of population. Name the organization
   a. The Times of India Group
   b. Doordarshan
   c. All India Radio
   d. Asiatic Society
   
   
6. Name the leader who has taken over the post of Rajasthan Chief Minister from Ms Vasundhara Raje in the recently concluded state assembly elections.
   a. Ashok Gehlot
   b. Shivraj Chouhan
   c. Ashok Chavan
   d. Raman Singh
   
   
7. September 1987  saw the conversion of the nuclear power board into NPCIL. NPCIL  has recently been in the news for inking a pact with French energy firm, Areva, which is also the world's largest nuclear power company.What does NPCIL stand for
   a. Nuclear Power Center of India Ltd
   b. Nuclear Power Company of India Ltd
   c. Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd
   d. Nuclear Power and Co-operation Industries Ltd.
   
   
8. Which of the following is not a neighboring state of Zimbabwe?
   a. Botswana
   b. Zaire
   c. South Africa
   d. Mozambique
   
   
9. This nation state in Europe had its security and justice operations overlooked by the UN since it declared independence. The European Union has however taken over this position recently. Name this nation.
   a. Serbia
   b. Georgia
   c. Kosovo
   d. Ukraine
   
   
10. An international agreement linked to the UN Framework conventions on Climate Change, it came into force in 2005 and sets legally binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Name the environmental treaty.
    a. The Kyoto Protocol
    b. The Clean Development Mechanism Treaty
    c. Treaty of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
    d. The EU Emissions Trading Scheme
    
    
11. Toshihide Maskawa,Makoto Kobayashi were two of the three scientists who shared  the Nobel prize in Physics for 2008. Name the third physicist.
    a. Thomas Kyle
    b. Steven Chu
    c. Albert Fert
    d. Yoichiro Nambu
    
    
12. He was the last monarch of Nepal before he was ousted from his throne in 2008 by the Maoists who are the ruling party in Nepal. Name the last king of Nepal.
    a. King Gyanendra
    b. King Dipendra
    c. King Birendra
    d. King Mahendra
    
    
13. Shortly after disturbing stories relating to child reality shows hit the headlines, fresh guidelines to protect child artistes were put forward by this statutory body on September 27, 2008. According to these guidelines, participation of every child artist is entitled to a set of conditions which should be ensured by the producers and parents. Name the body that has enacted this set of guidelines.
    a. CRY
    b. UNICEF
    c. National Commission for Protection of Child Rights
    d. Film and Television Institute of India
    
    
14. Name the cricketer who faced the first ball in the first ever one-day international cricket match.
    a. Don Bradman
    b. Geoffrey Boycott
    c. John Traicos
    d. Sunil Gavaskar
    
    
15. A “baker's dozen” would signify which of the following numbers?
    a. 14
    b. 12
    c. 13
    d. 15
    
    
16. The river Volga is the largest river in Europe in terms of the length, discharge and watershed. It flows through the western  part of Russia. Which sea does the River Volga flow out into?
    a. Red Sea
    b. Caspian Sea
    c. Mediterranean Sea
    d. Dead Sea
    
    
17. The Bharat Ratna is India's highest civilian honor which is generally conferred on the 23rd of January each year for rendering outstanding services to the world community. It was instituted on 2 January, 1954 by then President of India. Name him.
    a. Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
    b. Govind Ballabh Pant
    c. Dr Rajendra Prasad
    d. Jawaharlal Nehru
    
    
18. This is part of an immortal speech given by a famous Indian and is addressed to “Sisters and Brothers in America” – “Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism, have long possessed this beautiful earth. They have filled the earth with violence, drenched it often and often with human blood, destroyed civilization and sent whole nations to despair.” Name the personality who rocked the entire world with his rousing rhetoric in this speech delivered in 1893.
    a. Rabindranath Tagore
    b. Mahatma Gandhi
    c. Swami Vivekananda
    d. Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar
    
    
19. He is the number two FBI official of the 1970s. He was also called “Deep Throat” and is known for bringing down  US president Richard Nixon by  providing the Washington Post with information exposing the Watergate scandal. Name the person
    a. Bob Woodward
    b. Mark Nelson
    c. Rob Jones
    d. Mark Felt
    
    
20. Which amendment act of the Indian Constitution lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 years?
    a. (60th amendment) Act,1988
    b. (61st amendment) Act,1989
    c. (50th amendment) Act,1987
    d. (65th amendment) Act,1990
    
    
    Answers

b a d b c a c b c a

d a c b c b a c d b

1. 60-year old Dennis Tito made history when he became the first private tourist to outer space in April 2001, paying $20-million for his eight-day holiday aboard the International Space Station. Mr. Tito was a former employee of
   a. Microsoft
   b. NASA
   c. Russian Federal Space Agency
   d. Apple Computers
   
   
2. The feature film Provoked starring Aishwarya Rai Bacchan is based on the life of an Indian wife in Britain who set her husband on fire after years of being physically abused by him. Sentenced to life imprisonment under the British judicial system, she was however released after three years thanks to human rights activists, and her case led to British courts recognising provocation in cases of domestic homicide. Name her.
   a. Rahila Gupta
   b. Baby Halder
   c. Kamal Sandhu
   d. Kiranjit Ahluwalia
   
   
3. Which former governor of the Reserve Bank of India has written a book called India’s Politics – A View from the Backbench, in which he outlines the deficiencies of the Indian system of governance and suggests solutions?
   a. C. Rangarajan
   b. Bimal Jalan
   c. Venugopal Reddy
   d. I G Patel
4. Who is the present Chief Justice of India, also the first Dalit member of judiciary to occupy the post?
   a. Y K Sabharwal
   b. K G Balakrishnan
   c. R C Lahoti
   d. None of the above
   
   
5. An actor identified most often with the iconic character that he has played on the big screen, he has also won critical acclaim for his performance on stage as Alan Strang, a stable boy obsessed with horses, in the British play Equus. He also became the youngest non-royal ever to have an individual portrait in Britain’s National Portrait Gallery. Identify him.
   a. Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter)
   b. Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter films)
   c.  Daniel Craig (James Bond)
   d. William Shatner (Captain James Kirk in the Star Trek movies)
   
   

   Corporate

6. Skoda India, a fully owned subsidiary of Volkswagen Group’s SkodaAuto of the Czech Republic, launched its small car in India under the name
   a. Superb
   b. Octavia
   c. Fabia
   d. Scout
7. Which of the following Indian IT majors has a contract with the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to provide technical services and support for the World Cup events in 2010 and 2014?
   a. Patni Computer Services
   b. Tata Consultancy Services
   c. Satyam Computers Ltd.
   d. Wipro Technologies
   
   
8. The juice brand Minute Maid is a product of which food and beverage major?
   a. Coca Cola
   b. Pepsico
   c. Godrej Beverages and Foods
   d. Dabur Foods
   
   
9. Infosys Technologies Ltd., the global Indian leader in IT services and consulting, is listed in which of the following international stock exchanges?
   a. Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE)
   b. New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
   c. S&P
   d. NASDAQ
   
   
10. Which of the following corporate offices/campuses in India has recently been awarded the prestigious LEED platinum rating, which recognizes commitment to superior standards of quality, and efficient utilization and conservation of energy, water and natural resources?
    a. Patni Knowledge Centre, Noida
    b. Infosys Global Education Centre, Mysore
    c.  Technopolis Knowledge Park, Mumbai
    d.  RMZ Ecospace, Bangalore
    
    

    Politics

11. A plutocracy could be typically characterized by all of the following EXCEPT
    a. disproportionate influence of the wealthy on political processes
    b. ownership and control of mass media by the wealthy
    c. low social mobility
    d. ban on public religious gatherings
    
    
12. Who succeeded Jawaharlal Nehru as Prime Minister upon his death in May 1964, and is often referred to as the first acting Prime Minister of India?
    a. Lal Bahadur Shastri
    b. V V Giri
    c. Gulzari Lal Nanda
    d. Gopal Swarup Pathak
    
    
13. The United Kingdom is
    a. a Federal Republic
    b. a constitutional monarchy
    c. a totalitarian state
    d. none of the above
    
    
14. The President of the United States of America is all of the following EXCEPT
    a. the head of state
    b. the chief justice of the Supreme Court
    c. the leader of the executive branch of the federal government
    d. the commander-in-chief of the armed forces
    
    
15. Who is the current President of Israel?
    a. Shimon Peres
    b. Ehud Olmert
    c. Ehud Barak
    d. Tzipi Livni
    

    Current Affairs

16. Which Indian industrialist has been honoured by the Italian Government for his contribution towards strengthening economic and social relations between the European country and India?
    a. R Seshasayee
    b. Pawan Munjal
    c. L. V. Subrahmanyam
    d. Sunil Mittal
    
    
17. Name the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur Of The Year 2008.
    a. Narayana Murthy
    b. Guy Laliberté
    c. Michael Dell
    d. Dr Jean-Paul Clozel
    
    
18. Who was elected President of the Board of Control for cricket in India(BCCI) on September 27, 2008?
    a. Mr. S.K. Sharma
    b. Mr. Jagmohan Dalmiya
    c. Mr.Shashank Manohar
    d. Mr. Sharad Pawar
    
    
19. Name the Indian IT Company that has been presented with two prestigious Banker Technology Awards (awarded by The Banker magazine of the FT group) in June 2008 for its outstanding work in the field of wholesale and capital markets.
    a. Accenture
    b. TCS
    c. Infosys
    d. Wipro
    
    
20. The sale of successful Indian drug major Ranbaxy to Japanese pharmaceutical firm Daiichi Sankyo created a flutter in media in June 2008. Who is the CEO of the new group post acquisition?
    a. Takashi Shoda
    b. Malvinder Singh
    c. Kensi Masuzoe
    d. Shivinder Singh
    
    
    Answers

b d b b a c c a d a

d c b b a a d c c b

1. A leap year occurs once in
   a. 3 years
   b. 6 years
   c. 5 years
   d. 4 years
   
   
2. The construction of the Qutub Minar in Delhi was completed during the reign of
   a. Firoz Shah Tughlaq
   b. Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq
   c. Qutb-ud-din Aibak
   d. Raziya Sultan
   
   
3. An American author of novels, essays and short stories, he was best known for his for his 1996 novel Infinite Jest, which Time included in its All-Time 100 Greatest Novels (1923-2006). He died on September 14th 2008. Identify him.
   a. David Foster Wallace
   b. Horatio Alger
   c. Park Benjamin
   d.John Peale Bishop
   
   
4. The world’s largest desert is
   a. the Libyan Desert
   b. the Namib Desert
   c. the Kalahari Desert
   d. the Sahara Desert
   
   
5. Who is the first and the youngest Indian to have won the Miss Universe pageant?
   a. Priyanka Chopra
   b Diana Hayden
   c. Aishwarya Rai
   d. Sushmita Sen
   
   
6. Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam was the
   a. 12th President of India
   b. 14th President of India
   c. 11th President of India
   d. none of the above
   
   
7. Who was appointed as the Indian Finance Minister by Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao in 1991?
   a.  Manmohan Singh
   b. P Chidambaram
   c. Madhav Rao Scindia
   d. Jaswant Singh
   
   
8. Who is the ex-officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha?
   a. The Vice-President
   b. The Prime Minister
   c. The President
   d. The Speaker
   
   
9. Which of the following is not among the New Seven Wonders of the World?
   a. The Taj Mahal, India
   b. The Statue of Christ the Redeemer, Brazil
   c. The Eiffel Tower, France
   d. Chichen Itza, Mexico
   
   
10. Who was the founder of the Mughal empire?
    a. Babur
    b. Akbar
    c. Humayan
    d. Ala-ud-din Khilji
    
    
11. What does UPSC stand for?
    a. Uttar Pradesh Service Commission
    b. Union Police Service Commission
    c. Union Public Service Commission
    d. Union Postal Services Company
    
    
12. A financial condition in which there is an undue decrease in the amount of money available relative to its buying power, leading to a consistent reduction in general price levels, is termed
    a. Inflation
    b. Deflation
    c. Demonetization
    d. Destabilization
    
    
13. How many fundamental rights are guaranteed under the constitution of India?
    a. 6
    b. 9
    c. 7
    d. 5
    
    
14. Which among the four canonical texts of the Vedas consists of sacrificial chants written in prose?
    a. Rigveda
    b. Yajurveda
    c. Samaveda
    d. Atharvaveda
    
    
15. Novelis, a leading company in aluminium rolling and recycling, belongs to the
    a. Tata Group
    b. Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group
    c. Aditya Birla Group
    d. Reliance Industries Ltd. (Mukesh Ambani)
    
    
16. Which state is going to host the 2011 National Games of India?
    a.Madhya Pradesh
    b. Karnataka
    c.Sikkim
    d. Goa
    
    
17. Name the Indian journalist and novelist who recently received the 'National Amity Award' in recognition of his commendable service towards national integration and unity of the people.
    a. Dr. Khushwant Singh
    b. Vikram Chandra
    c. Arvind Adiga
    d. Sagarika Ghosh
    
    
18. Who won the Italian Grand Prix 2008?
    a. Klaus Graf
    b. Michael Schumacher
    c. Anthony Davidson
    d. Sebastian Vettel
    
    
19. She is an Indian-origin jurist and has recently been appointed as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Identify her.
    a. Navanethan Pillay
    b. Tanika Gupta
    c. Renuka Chowdhury
    d. Reeta Sinha
    
    
20. Which of the following is NOT a group company of Indian automotive major TVS, named after its founder T V Sundaram Iyengar?
    a. Royal Sundaram Insurance Co Ltd.
    b. Sundaram Textiles Ltd.
    c. Sundaram Clayton Ltd.
    d. Brakes India Ltd.
    
    
21. When was the Reserve Bank of India established?
    a. January 1938
    b. April 1932
    c. Jan 1935
    d. April 1935
    
    
22. Who is the present leader of the opposition of the Rajya Sabha?
    a. Anbumani Ramadoss
    b. Jaswant Singh
    c. T.R Balu
    d. A.R Antulay
    
    
23. What famous incident, in the history of Indian Freedom Movement, took place on March 12, 1930?
    a. Civil Disobedience Movement
    b. Quit India Movement
    c. Dandi March
    d. Promulgation of the Government of India Act
    
    
24. The tag line of Louis Philips is
    a. Honestly Impressive
    b. The Upper Crest
    c. The Complete Man
    d. Bond with the Best
    
    
25. The first Indian to contest election to the British House of Commons was_________
    a. S.N.Banerjee
    b. W.C.Banerjee
    c. Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
    d. Dadabhai Naoroji
    
    
26. An AFFIDAVIT is
    a. A written statement made on oath
    b. A pardon for wrong doers
    c. A written document that outlines the legal arguments in a case.
    d. A legal promise to abide by certain norms of state
    
    
27. Who is the Managing Director of Google India?
    a. Richard Kimbar
    b. Shailesh Rao
    c. Mark Howe
    d. Phil Santora
    
    
28. The earth, the third planet from the sun, is placed between:
    a. Mars and Jupiter
    b. Venus and Mars
    c. Jupiter and Venus
    d. Mercury and Venus
    
    
29. Who discovered penicillin?
    a. Alexander Fleming
    b. Paul Ehrlich
    c. Gregory Mendel
    d. Dr. Jonas E.Salk
    
    
30. We feel breathless at very high altitudes because:
    a. of exhaustion and the cold.
    b. there is more of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere than there is oxygen
    c. the density of air is less on the hill so there is a reduction of oxygen content
    d. the density of air on the hill is very high which means reduced oxygen content       
    
    Answers

d a a d d c a a c a c b a b c

d a d a a d b c b d a b b a c

1. The largest river of Asia is:
   a. Mekong
   b. Indus
   c. Yenisei
   d. Yangtze
   
   
2. When was the treaty of Versailles signed?
   a. 1919
   b. 1918
   c. 1914
   d. 1920
   
   
3. The study of origin and history of words is called
   a. Ethology
   b. Etymology
   c. Genealogy
   d. Linguistics
   
   
4. Which country is called the “The Land of the Rising Sun?”
   a. China
   b. Germany
   c. Japan
   d. Australia
   
   
5. The capital of Belgium is:
   a. Brussels
   b. Minsk
   c. Manama
   d. Sofia
   
   
6. What is the fear of spiders called?
   a. Acrophobia
   b. Xenophobia
   c. Spyrophobia
   d. Arachnophobia
   
   
7. Who discovered America?
   a. Sir John Ross
   b.Christopher Columbus
   c. Leif Ericsson
   d. Sir James Clark
   
   
8. The study of the sign system language is:
   a. Penology
   b. Phytology
   c. Phonology
   d. Psephology
   
   
9. The total strength of the Rajya Sabha is
   a. 545
   b. 540
   c. 525
   d. 250
   
   
10. Who was the first President of India?
    a. Dr. Rajendra Prasad
    b. N. Sanjeeva Reddy
    c. Dr. S Radhakrishnan
    d. Mahatma Gandhi
    
    
11. The sea route to India was discovered by:
    a. Columbus
    b. Magellan
    c. Hopkins
    d. Vasco de Gama
    
    
12. How Many planets are there in our Solar System?
    a. 7
    b.13
    c. 9
    d. 8
    
    
13. In which year was the World Health Organization (WHO) established?
    a. 1948
    b. 1947
    c. 1945
    d. 1950
    
    
14. Who was the first Roman Catholic and the youngest American to be elected to the office of the President of USA?
    a. Harry S. Truman
    b. John Adams
    c. John. F. Kennedy
    d. Theodore Roosevelt
    
    
15. Who was the founder of the Brahma Samaj?
    a. Rabindranath Tagore
    b. Raja Rammohan Roy
    c. Dayanand Saraswati
    d. V.V Giri
    
    
16. In which year and where the first Asian Games held?
    a. Canada, 1951
    b.New Zealand, 1948
    c. Kenya, 1958
    d. Scotland, 1995
    
    
17. The law of gravitation was defined by
    a. Faraday
    b. Galileo
    c. Archimedes
    d. Newton
    
    
18. Shortsightedness can be corrected using
    a. Convex lens
    b. Concave lens
    c. Planar lens
    d. None of the above
    
    
19. Who has been selected for this year's KR Narayanan award for his contributions to Indian science?
    a. Madhavan Nair
    b. Dr. Ajoy K. Ghatak
    c. M Annadurai
    d. Dr. Devi Shetty
    
    
20. Who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 2008?
    a. Harold Pinter
    b. Orhan Pamuk
    c. Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio
    d. Dorris Lessing
    
    
21. Who has been ranked the third powerful woman in business by Forbes in its 2008 list of the top 100 women, based on power, economic component, job title and past career accomplishments and press coverage in August 2008?
    a. Roopa Purushottam
    b. Angela Merkel
    c. Indra Nooyi
    d. Kalpana Morparia
    
    
22. Somalian pirates hijacked a Japanese vessel carrying 18 Indian crewmembers in October 2008. Name the ship
    a. MV Faina
    b. MT Stolt Valor
    c. TM Liner
    d. Lifeline
    
    
23. An Indian conductor was recently honoured with Japan's Praemium Imperiale, one of art's richest awards, for his lifetime work with orchestras around the world. Identify him.
    a. Prateek Chaudhury
    b. L. Subramaniam
    c. Zubin Mehta
    d. Abraham Mazumder
    
    
24. Who won the Belgian Grand Prix 2008?
    a. Jack Brabham
    b. Felipe Massa
    c. Michael Schumacher
    d. Lewis Hamilton
    
    
25. He is an English musician. He has also been involved in various humanitarian efforts and has been named Ambassador of Conscience 2008 by human rights group Amnesty International. Identify him.
    a. Peter Gabriel
    b. Elton John
    c. David Bowie
    d. Ralph Vaughan Williams
    
    
26. Who among the following is the National Security Advisor of India?
    a. M.K Narayanan
    b. Brijesh Mishra
    c. J N Dixit
    d. Ashok Chaturvedi
    
    
27. What is the full form of RAW?
    a. Records and Analysis Wing
    b. Research and Anti-terrorism Wing
    c. Records Amalgamation Wing
    d. Research and Analysis Wing
    
    
28. Who is India’s Petroleum Minister?
    a. Oscar Fernandez
    b. Murli Deora
    c. Mahavir Prasad
    d. Sushilkumar Shinde
    
    
29. The rivers Beas and Sutlej bring water to the Thar Desert through a canal. What is the name of the canal?
    a. Sethu Canal
    b. Indra Gandhi Canal
    c. Kalingarayan Canal
    d. Lower Bhavani Project Canal
    
    
30. Who was elected Sri Lanka’s first Prime Minister in 1944?
    a. Wijeyananda Dahanayake
    b. Sirimavo Bandaranaike
    c. Don Stephen Senanayake
    d. John Lionel Kotalawela
    
    
31. Of which Asian country is Phnom Penh the capital?
    a. Thailand
    b. Vietnam
    c. Cambodia
    d. North Korea
    
    
32. Which is the first Indian Bank to open an office in Qatar?
    a. Standard Chartered Bank
    b. ICICI Bank
    c. State Bank of India
    d. Bank of India
    
    
33. Who was the first Chief Election Commissioner of India?
    a. K.V Sundaram
    b. S.B Sen Verma
    c. Sukumar Sen
    d. T.N Seshan
    
    
34. Who among the following is the Chief of the Trinamool Congress?
    a. Mamata Banerjee
    b. Partha Chatterjee
    c. Soumen Roy
    d. Subroto Mukherjee
    
    
35. Of which country are Pashto and Dari the official languages?
    a. Pakistan
    b. Afghanistan
    c. Bhutan
    d. Turkey
    
    
36. When a person suffers from goitre, which part of the body is enlarged?
    a. Gall Bladder
    b. Thyroid
    c. Liver
    d. Lymph Nodes
    
    
37. Which of the following states has the largest coastline in India?
    a. Gujarat
    b. Tamilnadu
    c. Kerala
    d. Karnataka
    
    
38. What is the patella commonly known as?
    a. Elbow
    b. Knee Cap
    c. Big Toe
    d. Stomach
    
    
39. Solid Carbon Dioxide is commonly called
    a. Ice Cubes
    b. Icicles
    c. Crystal
    d. Dry ice
    
    
40. The omission of words from a sentence, indicated by a set of three dots is commonly known as
    a. Guillemots
    b. Ampersand
    c. Interpunct
    d. Elipsisis
    
    
41. Which famous French fashion designer passed away on June 1st 2008?
    a. Yves Saint Laurent
    b. Coco Chanel
    c. Christian Dior
    d. Louis Vuitton
    
    
42. Which of the following districts in Orissa was in the news, following violence sparked off by the killing of VHP leader Swami Lakshmanananda?
    a. Phulbani
    b. Barakhama
    c. Kandhamal
    d. Tikabali
    
    Answers
    1. d                      21. c
    2. a                      22. b
    3. b                      23. c
    4. c                      24. d
    5. a                      25. a
    6. d                      26. a
    7. b                      27. d
    8. c                      28. b
    9. d                      29. b
    10. a                      30. c
    11. d                      31. c
    12. d                      32. b
    13. a                      33. c
    14. c                      34. a
    15. b                      35. b
    16. a                      36. b
    17. d                      37. a
    18. b                      38. b
    19. a                      39.d
    20. c                      40. d
                                41. a
                                42. c

1. What is the full form of SEZ?
   a. Special Economic Zone
   b. Special Educational Zone
   c. Social and Economic Zone
   d. Special Execution Zone
   
   
2. Which of the following words does NOT appear in the Preamble to the Indian Constitution?
   a. Justice
   b. Opportunity
   c. Peace
   d. Faith
   
   
3. Which of the following countries is NOT a member of BRIC?
   a. Brazil
   b. Russia
   c. India
   d. Cambodia
   
   
4. When was the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly held?
   a. August 1947
   b. September 1947
   c. December 1946                                                                                         
   d. August 1950
   
   
5. Who is the present Director General of the WTO?
   a. Pascal Lamy
   b. Rufus H. Yerxa
   c. Alejandro Jara
   d. Valentine Sendanyoye Rugwabiza
   
   
6. In the context of Indian trade policy, what does the EPCG scheme stand for?
   a. Export Promotion Consumer Goods Scheme
   b. Export Promotion Capital Goods Scheme
   c. Earnings Provided by Consumer Goods Scheme
   d. Exim Policy Capital Goods Scheme
   
   
7. Who is India’s Foreign Secretary?
   a. Shivshankar Menon
   b. Shashi Tharoor
   c. Oscar Fernandez
   d. Dr M.S Gill
   
   
8. The first Indian to receive the Nobel Prize was:
   a. Rabindranath Tagore
   b. Dr C.V Raman
   c. Dr. M.S Swaminathan
   d. Dr Hargobind Khorana
   
   
9. Who is India’s Power Minister?
   a. Sharad Pawar
   b. Sushilkumar Shinde
   c. S. Jaipal Reddy
   d. Mani Shankar Aiyar
   
   
10. Which famous world leader was assassinated in Memphis, USA in 1968?
    a. Abraham Lincoln
    b. J F Kennedy
    c. Harper Lee
    d. Martin Luther King Jr.
    
    
11. In the book ‘Maximum City’ by Suketu Mehta, which city does he write about?
    a. Kolkata
    b. Delhi
    c. Mumbai
    d. Chennai
    
    
12. The Kol Dam Hydro Electric project is being built in which of the following states?
    a.Jammu & Kashmir
    b.Himachal Pradesh
    c.Uttaranchal
    d.Tamil Nadu
    
    
13. Where are the passenger coaches for the Indian Railways built?
    a. Benares
    b. Vijayawada
    c. Chittaranjan
    d. Kochi
    
    
14. The pollen grains in a plant are produced in the:
    a.flowers
    b.root
    c.stalks
    d.leaves
    
    
15. The Declaration of Rights for American Independence was drafted in:
    a.1779
    b.1778
    c.1773
    d.1776
    
    
16. Who among the following has been nominated by Barack Obama as the US Secretary of State?
    a. Bill Clinton
    b. Hillary Clinton
    c. Janet Napolitano
    d. Eric Holder
    
    
17. Which of the following rivers was declared the national river of India in November 2008?
    a. The Ganges
    b. The Cauvery
    c. The Narmada
    d. The Tapti
    
    
18. Which of the following banks have been adjudged Global Bank of the Year 2008 by London-based magazine, ‘The Banker’ published by the Financial Times group?
    a. BNP Paribas
    b. HSBC
    c. Royal Bank of Scotland
    d. Bank of America
    
    
19. The number of the Rajya Sabha members elected by the President is:
    a.14
    b.10
    c.12
    d.11
    
    
20. Sunita Williams is associated with:
    a. Geophysics
    b. Space Sciences
    c. Water Conservation
    d. Nuclear Science
    
    
21. What is the radio code signal of extreme distress called?
    a. Morse
    b. SOS
    c. Dots and Dashes
    d. 009
    
    
22. What is the full form of INTERPOL?
    a. International Crime Police Commission
    b. International Political Conference
    c. International Committee of Police Officers
    d. International Police
    
    
23. Who is India’s Defence Secretary?
    a. Vijay Singh
    b. Suresh Mehta
    c. M. L. Naidu
    d. M K Narayanan
    
    
24. All of the following are fibre crops except:
    a. Flax
    b. Jute
    c. Cotton
    d. Rubber
    
    
25. What is the acronym used to refer to the elite special operations commando unit of the Indian Navy?
    a. NAVCOS
    b. MARCON
    c. MARCOS
    d. NAVCOF
    
    
26. The Boston Tea Party was a major protest incident leading to the:
    a. French Revolution
    b. American Revolution
    c. Russian Revolution
    d. Irish Revolution
    
    
27. What are the temperate grasslands of Asia and Europe called?
    a. Pampas
    b. Veldt
    c. Savannah
    d. Steppes
    
    
28. The country topping global production of wool is:
    a. Australia
    b. Argentina
    c. USA
    d. China
    
    
29. Who is the current Foreign Minister of Pakistan?
    a. Abdul Sattar
    b. Asif ali Zardari
    c. Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri
    d. Shah Mehmood Qureshi
    
    
30. Who is the Director General of the National Security Guards (NSG)?
    a. A.N. Roy
    b. JK Dutta
    c. Hassan Gaffor
    d. Ranjit Shekhar Mooshahary
    
    
31. Who is the present ISI chief of Pakistan?
    a. Lt Gen Ehsan ul Haq
    b. Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha
    c.Lt Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani
    d.Lt Gen Nadeem Taj
    
    
32. Who is the current Chief of Naval staff in India?
    a. Admiral Madhavendra Singh
    b. Admiral Sushil Kumar
    c. Admiral Arun Prakash
    d. Admiral Sureesh Mehta
    
    Answers
    

a c d c a b a b b d c b c a d b

a a c b b a a d c b d a d b b d

1. How many (number) fundamental duties have been enumerated in the Constitution of India?
   a.11
   b.12
   c.13
   d.14
   
   
2. The 55th Constitutional Amendment Act was passed by Lok Sabha on December 8,1986, to grant statehood to:
   a. Arunachal Pradesh
   b. Mizoram
   c. Meghalaya
   d. Manipur
   
   
3. Who among the following was the first Minister of Law in India?
   a. Hansraj Bhardwaj
   b. Arun Jaitley
   c. Sir Dinshaw Mulla
   d. Dr. B.R Ambedkar
   
   
4. Dmitri Medvedev is the President of :
   a. Ireland
   b. Poland
   c. Romania
   d. Soviet Russia
   
   
5. During any sitting of the Lok Sabha, the first hour of sitting is called the:
   a. Question hour
   b. Review hour
   c. Zero hour
   d. Eleventh hour
   
   
6. What is the full form of MODVAT?
   a. Modified Value Additional Tax
   b. Modified Value Added Tax
   c. Multiplied Value Added Tax
   d. Modified Value Added Tariff
   
   
7. The Mid Day Meal scheme was launched by the
   a. Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare
   b. Union Ministry of Rural Development
   c. Union Ministry of Human Resource Development
   d. Union Ministry of Labour and Employment
   
   
8. Two countries were suspended from the Commonwealth of Nations on  6/6/2008. Which were they?
   a. Pakistan and Fiji
   b. Uganda and Fiji
   c. Indonesia and Pakistan
   d. Sudan and Uganda
   
   
9. When was the first Constitution Amendment Act passed?
   a. 1950
   b. 1956
   c. 1951
   d. 1952
   
   
10. The Managing Director of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation is________________.
    a. Mr E. Sreedharan
    b. Nirmal Shekar
    c. Mr. J Harinarayan
    d. Sunil Mittal
    
    
11. Who is the present Secretary General of Amnesty International?
    a. Pierre Sané
    b. Irene Zubaida Khan
    c. Mary Robinson
    d. Hans Blix
    
    
12. Where would you find the world’s longest sea-bridge?
    a. Tokyo
    b. China
    c. Bosnia
    d. Germany
    
    
13. When was Bal Gangadhar Tilak given the epithet of ‘Lokmanya’?
    a. During the Home Rule Movement
    b. During the Swadeshi Movement
    c. During the Quit India Movement
    d. When he was imprisoned in 1908
    
    
14. This divides India into two parts. Which is it?
    a. The Tropic of Cancer
    b. The Line of Control
    c. The Tropic of Capricorn
    d. The MacMohan Line
    
    
15. Which of the following is not a primary fuel?
    a. Coal
    b. Wood
    c. Kerosene
    d. Natural gas
    
    
16. Who is the present Chief Minister of Kerala?
    a. A. K. Antony
    b. Oommen Chandy
    c. V.S. Achuthanandan
    d. E. K. Nayanar
    
    
17. Who became Australia’s first ever-female Governor General in September 2008?
    a. Ursula Stephens
    b. Kate Ellis
    c. Justine Elliot
    d. Quentin Bryce
    
    
18. Who among the following won the 2008 Nobel Prize for Chemistry?
    a,. Mr Roger Tsien
    b. Mr Yochiro Nambu
    c. Mr Harald zur Hausan
    d. Mr Luc Montagnier
    
    
19. On which of the following days in 2008 did the Sensex crash below 8,000?
    a. October 27 2008
    b. September 2 2008
    c. September 15 2008
    d. October 02 2008
    
    
20. In October 2008, an Indian cricketer was banned for a test match by match referee Chris Broad of England. Who was he?
    a. Sourav Ganguly
    b. Sachin Tendulkar
    c. Gautam Gambir
    d. M S Dhoni
    
    
21. Who was the founder of  theRamakrishna Mission?
    a. Dayananda Saraswati
    b. Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa
    c. Swami Vivekananda
    d. Acharya S
    
    
22. Long-sightedness is medically known as 
    a. Hypermetropia
    b. Myopia
    c. Presbyopia
    d. Byopia
    
    
23. What does CLASP stand for?
    a. Comprehensive, Lightweight Application Security Process
    b. Child Labour Action and Support Project
    c. Collaborative Labeling and Appliance Standards Program
    d. Concealed Lightweight Application Security Process
    
    
24. What does ad valorem mean?
    a. It refers to the duty or tax imposed on the commodity depending upon the value of the commodity
    b. It is a tax based on the value of a real-estate property
    c. It is a customs duty or tax imposed on the value of an imported commodity,
    d. Import duty and export rebate/tax rates
    
    
25. Where did the Olympic games originate?
    a. France
    b. Switzerland
    c. Ancient Greece
    d. Great Britain
    
    
26. Which of the following is not a fundamental right of an Indian citizen as per the Constitution?
    a. Right to property
    b. Right to equality
    c. Right against exploitation
    d. Right to constitutional remedies
    
    
27. Who built the Red Fort?
    a. Bahadur Shah II
    b. Bahadur Shah I
    c. Jahandar Shah
    d. Emperor Shah Jahan
    
    
28. The capital of Bhutan is ___________
    a. Thimphu
    b. Bogota
    c. Tbilisi
    d. Tallinn
    
    
29. Which is the largest and heaviest planet in our solar system?
    a. Neptune
    b. Jupiter
    c. Uranus
    d. Saturn
    
    
30. How many time zones are there in the USA?
    a. Four
    b. Two
    c. Three
    d. Five
    
    
31. When and where did the worst volcanic disaster in history occur?
    a. China, 1782
    b. Togo, 1784
    c. Japan, 1792
    d. Peru, 1791
    
    
32. What is the national sport of India?
    a Hockey
    b.Cricket 
    c. Kabaddi
    d. Volleyball
    
    
33. Where is the Golden Temple located?
    a. Chandigarh
    b. Jalandhar
    c. Amritsar
    d. Ludhiana
    
    
34. The first recipient of the Indian Science Award in 2004 was (the award was instituted in 2003): 
    a. Prof. C.N.R Rao
    b. G S Sirohi
    c. Dr. Giri Raj Singh
    d. G S R Murti
    
    
35. By how many hours is Indian Standard Time (IST ) ahead of  Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), when calculated according to longitudinal location?
    a. 3 ½ hrs
    b. 9 ½ hrs
    c. 4 ½ hrs
    d. 5 ½ hrs
    
    
36. Who is the new Governor of Maharashtra?
    a. Mr. S.C. Jameer
    b. Shivinder Singh Sidhu
    c. Mr. R. L. Bhatia
    d. Rameshwar Thakur
    
    
37. Who was named the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year 2008?
    a. Mr. Kelly Tien
    b. Mr Wong Ngit Liong
    c. Dr. Jean-Paul Clozel
    d. Joseph Wilson
    
    
38. Name the director of Bollywood movies who has been conferred the title of ’ Officier de la Legion d’Honneur’, the highest French distinction for his contribution to Indian cinema.
    a. Madhur Bhandarkar
    b. Prakash Mehra
    c. Govind Nihalani
    d. Yash Chopra
    
    
39. India's largest IT company has emerged the lowest bidder for the country’s largest e-governance contract to computerise Employee State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) and provide smart cards to around 1.5 crore industrial workers across the country. Name the company.
    a. Wipro
    b.Infosys
    c. TCS
    d. Accenture
    
    
40. Name the former US President who, along with Nepalese leader Prachanda has won the country’s top peace prize awarded by the Dr. Dilli Raman Regmi Foundation for his dedication in choosing the path of peace.
    a. Jimmy Carter
    b. Gerald Ford
    c. Ronald Reagan
    d. Lyndon B. Johnson
    
    Answers
    

a a d d a b c a c a b b d a c c d a a c

c a b a c a d a b a c a c a d a c d c a

1. Which is the longest canal in the world?
   a. Grand China canal
   b. Suez canal
   c. Beloye- More Baltic
   d. Volga Baltic
   
   
2. The capital of Rwanda is:
   a. Basseterre
   b. Kigali
   c. Mbabane
   d. Lusaka
   
   
3. Who is the author of ‘A Tale of Two Cities’?
   a. L. C. Douglas
   b. Chester Bowles
   c. Charles Lamb
   d. Charles Dickens
   
   
4. What does GATT stand for?
   a. General Agreement on Trading Technologies
   b. General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
   c. General Agreement on Transportation Technologies
   d. General Agreement on Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago
   
   
5. The law of gravitation was defined by:
   a. Newton
   b. Archimedes
   c. Galilio
   d. Faraday
   
   
6. Who invented the radio?
   a. Laennec
   b. Darwin
   c. Marconi
   d. Baird
   
   
7. Potamology means:
   a. The study of potted plants
   b. The study of rivers
   c. The study of fossils and ancient life forms
   d. The study of organisms as affected by climate
   
   
8. How many articles are there in the constitution of India?
   a. 359
   b. 395
   c. 400
   d. 399
   
   
9. The constitution of India is regarded as
   a. Federal in form and unitary in spirit
   b. Federal
   c. Parliamentary
   d. Unitary
   
   
10. The National bird of India is the
    a. Nightingale
    b. Parrot
    c. Peacock
    d. Sparrows
    
    
11. The currency of Bhutan is
    a. Pa’anga
    b. Lira
    c. Peso
    d. Ngultrum
    
    
12. Which American President was involved in the Watergate scandal?
    a. President Richard Nixon
    b. President Gerald Ford
    c. President Ronald Reagan
    d. President Lyndon B. Johnson
    
    
13. The Grand Canyon is situated in which American state?
    a. Nevada
    b. Utah
    c. Colorado
    d. Arizona
    
    
14. The largest living reptiles are:
    a. Komodo dragon
    b. Crocodiles
    c. Giant anaconda
    d. Iguana
    
    
15. How many states are there in America?
    a. 44
    b. 32
    c. 40
    d. 50
    
    
16. Which singer has won country music's top prize - entertainer of the year for a fourth time at the Country Music Association Awards (CMA) on November 13, 2008?
    a. Jack Greene
    b. Kenny Chesney
    c. Carrie Underwood
    d. George Strait
    
    
17. Who was re-elected Prime Minister of Canada on October 15, 2008?
    a. Mr. Stephen Harper
    b. Paul Martin
    c. John Turner
    d. Joe Clark
    
    
18. Who won the Japanese Grand Prix Championship in Fuji (Japan) on October 12, 2008?
    a. Rubens Barrichello
    b. Kimi Räikkönen
    c. Lewis Hamilton
    d. Renault Fernando Alonso
    
    
19. Who is the new chairman of the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR)?
    a. Dr. Anup K. Ghosh
    b. Prof. Andre Beteille
    c. Mr. Javed Alam
    d. Prof. Rajat Baisya
    
    
20. What does the third schedule in the Constitution of India list?
    a. Emoluments for High-Level Officials
    b. The oaths of offices for elected officials and judges
    c. States and Union Territories
    d. The Official Languages
    
    
21. Who founded the Indian Express group of newspapers in India?
    a. Mr. Vivek Goenka
    b. Mr. G. Subramanya Aiyer
    c. Mr. Ramnath Goenka
    d. Mr. N. Ram
    
    
22. Who is the present Secretary General of Amnesty International?
    a. Pierre Sané
    b. Mary Robinson
    c. Irene Zubaida Khan
    d. Hans Blix
    Ans: Irene Zubaida Khan
    
    
23. These words have been added to the Preamble of the Indian Constitution after the 42nd Amendment. What are they?
    a. socialist, secular
    b. sovereign, independent
    c. justice, liberty
    d. democratic, fraternity
    
    
24. The concept of Directive Principles of State Policy was adopted into the Indian Constitution from the constitution of_____________.
    a. Japan
    b. Germany
    c. Ireland
    d. Spain
    
    
25. The book ‘Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl’ was set in_____________.
    a. Amsterdam
    b. Berlin
    c. Prague
    d. Budapest
    
    
26. The Oxford University stands on the banks of the river ____________.
    a. Thames
    b. Seine
    c. Rhine
    d. Severn
    
    
27. Who won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 2008?
    a. Martti Ahtisaari
    b.Françoise Barré-Sinoussi
    c. Paul Krugman
    d. Professor Per Carlson
    
    
28. Who among the following Presidents of India was the only one to be elected unopposed to the office?
    a. Giani Zail Singh
    b. Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma
    c. R.Venkataraman
    d. Neelam Sanjiva Reddy
    
    
29. Who among the following claimed the gold medal in the Girl’s Singles event of the World Junior Badminton Championships at the third Commonwealth Youth games held in Pune?
    a. Sayaka Sato
    b. Shixian Wang
    c. Prajakta Sawant
    d. Saina Nehwal
    
    
30. What is Absorbic acid better known as?
    a. Yeast
    b. Baking Soda
    c. Vitamin C
    d. Bleaching powder
    
    Answers
    

c b d b a c b b a c d a d b d

b a d c b c c a c a a c d d c

1. The constitutional head of the executive of the Indian Union is________.
   a. The Prime minister
   b. The Vice President
   c. The President
   d. The members of the Lok Sabha
   
   
2. The first chairman of the Rajya Sabha was ______________.
   a. Shri S.V.Krishnamoorthy Rao.
   b. Mr Jawaharlal Nehru
   c. Dr S. Radhakrishnan
   d. Shri Sardar Vallabhai Patel
   
   
3. The members and the Chairman of the states’ Public Service Commission are appointed by the _____________.
   a. The Vice President
   b. The Prime Minister
   c. The Chief Ministers of the States
   d. The Governors of the States
   
   
4. The State Bank of India opened its _______ in March 2008 in Sivaganga district in Tamil Nadu?
   a. 1,000 th
   b. 10,000 th   
   c.  5,000 th
   d. 12,000 th
   
   
5. The European Union (EU) was earlier known as the ________________.
   a.  The Economic Union
   b. The Economic Market
   c.  European Market
   d. The Common Market
   
   
6. The first Muslim President of the Indian National Congress was _________.
   a. Khan Mohammad Abbas Khan,
   b. Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
   c. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
   d. Baddrudin Tyabji
   
   
7. He was the first Indian to become the Chief of army staff and Commander in chief of the Indian army. Who was he?
   a. Field Marshall KM Cariappa
   b. Field Marshall Sam Maneckshaw
   c. Shri Rajendrasinhji
   d. General K S Thimayya
   
   
8. The present Director General of the WTO is ____________________.
   a. Mr. Supachai Panitchpakdi
   b.Mr. Pascal Lamy
   c. Mr. Mike Moore
   d. Mr. Renato Ruggiero
   
   
9. This part of the human body is called the pollex. What is it commonly known as?
   a. Ear
   b. Big Toe
   c. Thumb
   d. Liver
   
   
10. Pakistan is linked to _______________ by the Karakoram Highway.
    a. India
    b. China
    c. Afghanistan
    d.   Myanmar
    
    
11. This gas is known by the name ‘Marsh Gas’ and it is usually used in chemical labs and industries. What is its scientific name?
    a.Methane
    b.Helium
    c.Neon
    d. Argon
    
    
12. All the members of the cat family are able to retract their claws, except for the _________.
    a. Lion
    b. Hyena
    c. Cheetah
    d. Jaguar
    
    
13. The Anemometre is used to measure _____________
    a. surface speed winds
    b. electric current in a circuit.
    c. detecting and measuring electric current
    d. electrical resistance
    
    
14. There are lime stone formations that hang down from the ceilings of roofs. What are they called?
    a. Lavacicle
    b. Stalactites
    c. Rusticle
    d. Stalagmite
    
    
15. This animal is the symbol for the World Wide Fund for Nature. Name the animal.
    a. The Okapi
    b. The Giant Panda
    c. The Tiger
    d. The One Horned Rhinoceros
    
    
16. The river Indus originates from _________________ in the upper Himalayas.
    a. Mount Kailash
    b. Gangotri
    c. Mansarovar
    d. Bundar Poonch Glacier
    
    
17. Who won the US open 2008 mixed doubles title?
    a. Jamie Murray and Liezel Huber
    b. Cara Black and Jelena Jankovic,
    c. Leander Paes and Cara Black   
    d. Nenad Zimonjic and Katarina Srebotnik
    
    
18. Who was sworn in as President of South Africa on September 25th 2008?
    a. Thabo Mbeki
    b. Jacob Zuma
    c. Joe Seremane
    d. Kgalema Motlanthe
    
    
19. Who has recently been elected as the Chairman of the World Steel Association?
    a. Ku-Taek Lee
    b. Lakshmi Mittal
    c. Hajime Bada
    d. Daniel DiMicco,
    
    
20. Who won the third World Chess Championship on October 29th 2008?
    a. Vishwanathan Anand
    b. Vladimir Kramnik
    c. Levon Aronian
    d. Veselin Topalov
    
    
21. The work of General Purpose Committee is to advise:
    a. the members of the Rajya Sabha.
    b. the members of the Lok Sabha.
    c. the Speaker
    d. the Vice President
    
    
22. Who among the following has been given the power to declare National Emergency?
    a. The President
    b. The Prime Minister
    c. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
    d. The Vice President
    
    
23. Till 1973 the state of Karnataka was called________________.
    a. Bangalore
    b. Mysore
    c. Belur
    d. Vijayanagar
    
    
24. Who is/are the presiding officer/s of the Lok Sabha?
    a. Speaker
    b. Deputy Speaker
    c. Speaker and Deputy Speaker
    d. The President and Vice President
    
    
25. The supply of sugar from the blood to the muscles is controlled by this hormone. Name the hormone?
    a. Melatonin
    b. Seratonin
    c. Leptin
    d. Insulin
    
    
26. The President of India is elected by ______________.
    a. the elected members of the Vidhan Sabhas, Lok Sabha, and Rajya Sabha.
    b. the elected members of the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha
    c.  the elected members of the Rajya Sabha.
    d.   the elected members of the Vidhan Sabhas.
    
    
27. In which schedule of the Constitution is the allocation of seats in the Rajya Sabha contained?
    a. Fourth Schedule
    b. Fifth schedule
    c.  Sixth schedule
    d. Second schedule
    
    
28. The reddish variety of the mineral Conondrum is generally known by the name ______
    a. Rose Quartz
    b. Garnet
    c. Ruby
    d. Topaz
    
    
29. Name the capital of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
    a. Siliguri
    b. Silvassa
    c. Kavaratti
    d. Shillong
    
    
30. In which of the following sports is the Ryder Cup awarded?
    a. Hockey
    b. Basketball
    c. Polo
    d.Golf
    
    
31. Name the Indian Chief Minister of State who has found a place in the list (2008) compiled by the Forbes magazine of the World’s 100 most powerful women.
    a. Dr J. Jayalalitha
    b. Mayawathi
    c.Vasundara Raje Scindia
    d. Sheila Dikshit
    
    
32. Who was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Jharkand on August 27 2008?
    a. Naveen Patnaik
    b. Shibu Soren
    c. B. C. Khanduri
    d. Digambar Kamat
    
    
33. The Dada Saheb Phalke Award for 2008 was given to:
    a. Madhur Bhandarkar
    b. Raj Kumar Hirani
    c. Tapan Sinha
    d. Dilip Prabhavalkar
    
    
34. This Swiss adventurer made a historic flight across the English Channel from France on September 26th 2008 on a jet-powered wing? Who was he?
    a. Yves Rossy
    b. Jean-Pierre Blanchard
    c. Louis Bleriot
    d. John Jeffries
    
    
35. Who was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Thailand on September 17, 2008?
    a. Somchai Wongsawat
    b. Thaksin Shinawatra
    c. Chavalit Yongchaiyudh
    d. Banharn Silpa-archa
    
    Answers
    

c c d b d d a b c b a c a b b c c d

b a c a b c d a a c b d b b c a a

1. The Indian constitution borrowed the concept of a five-year plan from the constitution of ________________.
   a. Russia
   b. Japan
   c. China
   d. Germany
   
   
2. A judge of the Supreme Court retires at the age of___________.
   a. 62
   b. 65
   c. 64
   d. 58
   
   
3. Where in India is its largest parliamentary constituency?
   a. Haryana
   b. Madhya Pradesh
   c. Ladakh – Jammu and Kashmir
   d. Rajasthan
   
   
4. The Governor of a state in India is appointed by the____________.
   a. Vice President
   b. Mayor
   c. Chief Minister
   d. President
   
   
5. Who is the new President of Cuba who was elected on February 24th 2008?
   a. Raúl Castro
   b. José R. Machado Ventura
   c. Juan Almeida Bosque
   d. Abelardo Colomé Ibarra
   
   
6. Pokhran the test site for India's first underground nuclear weapon detonation is in the state of________________.
   a. Gujarat
   b. Orissa
   c. Rajasthan
   d. Punjab
   
   
7. India’s first national park, earlier known as the Hailey National park is  the ______________.
   a. Anshi National Park
   b. Dachigam National Park
   c. Dudhwa National Park
   d. Corbett National Park
   
   
8. What is another name for the tympanic membrane, which stretches across the end portion of the auditory canal in the human body?
   a. voice box
   b. nose
   c. Eardrum
   d. eyeball
   
   
9. What is the term used for the corrective surgery of the cornea (eye)?
   a. Keratoplasty
   b. Angioplasty
   c. Laser eye surgery
   d. Oculo-plasty
   
   
10. The largest school lunch programme in the world, which covered 11.4 crore children is the __________________.
    a. Right to Food Campaign
    b. Midday meal scheme
    c. World Food Programme
    d. Feeding Minds, Fighting Hunger programme
    
    
11. This scheme was set up to address the issue of equity in the education of girls belonging to minority communities. So far, 1,754 schools have been started under it and in the Union Budget of 2008, the Finance Minister proposed to provide a sum of Rs.80 crore to set up new or upgrade existing hostels attached to the schools. Name the scheme.
    a. Dhan Lakshmi
    b. Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya Scheme
    c. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan
    d. Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya
    
    
12. What is the name for the kind of energy that is produced from coal?
    a. Chemical Energy
    b. Potential Energy
    c. Kinetic Energy
    d. Thermal Energy
    
    
13. The Surgeons at London's Moorfields Eye Hospital used this implant in two blind patients. It was the first operation of its kind. What did they use for the implant?
    a. bionic eyes
    b. silicon retina microchips
    c. occular implant
    d. cochlear implant
    
    
14. The dance form that Sonal Mansingh is famous for is_________________.
    a. Kathak
    b. Odissi
    c. Bharatnatyam
    d. Kuchipudi
    
    
15. The term Arboreals is used for animals that live in/on______________.
    a. deserts
    b. mountains
    c. trees
    d. river and creeks
    
    
16. The NSG (The Nuclear Suppliers Group) finally waived off the 16-year-old embargo on nuclear relations with India on the:
    a. 7th of August 2008
    b.6th of September 2008
    c. 8th of October 2008
    d. 9th of September 2008
    
    
17. Who is the Finance Secretary of India as on September 23rd 2008?
    a. D Subbarao
    b. Mr Arun Swaminathan
    c. S. Narayan
    d. Dr Arvind Virmani
    
    
18. Pope Benedict XVI announced the canonization of a person Indian origin of to be canonized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church in Bharananganam, Kerala. Who is this person?
    a. Alphonsa Muttathupadathu
    b. Kuriakose Elias
    c. Gonsalo Garcia
    d. None of the above
    
    
19. Who was awarded the Humanitarian Award for 2008?
    a. Former South African President Nelson Mandela
    b. Former Cuban President Fidel Castro
    c. Former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda
    d. Actor Richard Gere
    
    
20. The new tagline of the Department of Posts released on September 24 –2008 is ______________________.
    a. Dare to Dream
    b. Giving Wings to your Dreams
    c. The Power on your side
    d. "At the edge of the world, his journey begins"
    
    
21. The Government levies this tax on goods and services. It is the _________
     a. VAT
     b. Service Tax
     c. Octroi
     d. Securities Transaction Tax
    
    
22. The rules for the working of the WTO are provided by the ________________.
    a. World Trade Agreement
    b. General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
    c. General Agreement on Trade in Services
    d. Security Council
    
    
23. How many member countries does the EU have?
    a. 14
    b. 15
    c. 18
    d. 17
    
    
24. What is the full form of GDP?
    a. Gross Domestic Product
    b. General Domestic Product
    c. Gross Domestic Process
    d. General Domestic Process
    
    
25. Who appoints the judges of the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice of India?
    a. The Prime Minister
    b. The Vice President
    c. The President
    d. The members of the Rajya Sabha
    
    
26. What system of government does the Constitution of India provide?
    a. Bicameral System of Government
    b. Parliamentary System
    c. Cabinet System of Government
    d. Presidential form of Government
    
    
27. Which country is a member of the WTO despite the fact that it became a part of China?
    a. Taiwan
    b. Tibet
    c. Hongkong
    d. Thailand
    
    
28. Who defeated the Muslim invader Mohammed Ghori at the battle of Tarain in 1191AD?
    a. Maharan Prathap
    b. Prithviraj Raso
    c. Prithvi Raj Chauhan
    d. None of the above
    
    
29. The capital of Israel is ______________.
    a. Tel Aviv
    b. Bethlehem
    c. Jerusalem
    d. Nazareth
    
    
30. Which is the least populated country in the world?
    a. Luxemburg
    b. Zaire
    c. The Vatican
    d. Mongolia
    
    
31. The rate of a heartbeat per minute in a normal human being is:
    a. 73-80 beats per minute
    b. 72-80 beats per minute
    c. 70-85 beats per minute
    d. 75-85 beats per minute
    
    
32. This constituent in the blood defends the body against infectious disease and foreign bodies. Which is it?
    a. platelets
    b. thrombocytes
    c. red blood cells
    d. white blood cells
    
    
33. What is another name for white blood cells?
    a. Erythrocytes
    b. Leukocytes
    c. Thrombocytes
    d. Lymphocytes
    
    
34. On which river is the Tehri dam located?
    a. The Narmada
    b. The Godavari
    c. The Brahmaputra
    d. The Bhaghirathi River
    
    
35. Which is the tallest mammal in the world?
    a. elephant
    b. monitor lizard
    c. blue whale
    d. giraffe
    
    
36. Which company won the award for ‘Company of the Year’ at the Economic Times awards for Corporate Excellence in September 2008?
    a. Tata Steel
    b. Tata Communications
    c. Crompton Greaves
    d. Dabur
    
    
37. According to the World Investment Report 2008 released in September by the UNCTAD the most preferred investment location in the world is ______________.
    a. India
    b. China
    c. Taiwan
    d. Indonesia
    
    
38. Who is the present chairman of the ISRO responsible for launching Chandrayaan-1 to the moon’s orbit?
    a. Dr Kasturirangan
    b. Dr B N Suresh,
    c. Dr. R R Navalgund
    d. G. Madhavan Nair
    
    
39. Who has recently been elected as the new Vice President of the USA?
    a. Richard Bruce Cheney
    b. Joe Biden
    c. Sarah Palin
    d. Hilary Clinton
    
    
40. The eldest son of the 4th king of this country became the world ‘s youngest reigning monarch and the head of the newest democracy on November 6th. Who is he and which country is he from?
    a. Albert 11 Prince of Monaco
    b. Crown Prince Haakon of Norway
    c. Jigme Kesar Namgyei Wangchuck of Bhutan
    d. Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan
    
    Answers
    

1	a	21	a
2	b	22	b
3	c	23	b
4	d	24	a
5	a	25	c
6	c	26	c
7	d	27	c
8	c	28	c
9	a	29	c
10	b	30	c
11	b	31	b
12	d	32	d
13	a	33	b
14	b	34	d
15	c	35	d
16	b	36	a
17	b	37	b
18	a	38	d
19	b	39	b
20	b	40	c

What is India’s rank in the UNDP 2007-08 report ranking countries on the basis of their Human Development Index or HDI?

What is the proportion of seats reserved for women by the mandate of the Indian Government in any local self-governing body?

Which of the following is not specifically articulated among the eight Millenium Goals set by the United Nations through the Millenium Declaration in 2000 as targets to be achieved by 2015?
a. Improvement of Maternal Health b. Eradication of Poverty and Hunger c. Building of Global Partnership for Development d. Ensuring universal access to housing and shelter

Which state of India saw the recent launch of an exclusive community radio station (90.4 FM) started “by Dalit women, for Dalit women” at the initiative of a local NGO?

Name the Bangalore-based agency that was ranked second in Forbes magazine’s first- ever list of the top 50 microfinance institutions in the world (2007).

Which period is covered in India’s Eleventh Five Year Plan?

What is the proportion of total central budgetary support allocated to education as per the 11th Five –year Plan, labeled by the Prime Minister as ‘India’s educational plan’?

What is the minimum number of employees that a (power-using) factory should have in order to come under the application of the Employee State Insurance Act?

According to data published in the 11th Five-year plan, which state in India has the highest rate of malnutrition among children below 3 years?

Name the Indonesian conglomerate that was allotted land for a chemical hub in the Nandigram area of West Bengal, leading to conflict and brutal violence in the region that drew national and international condemnation and led to eventual shifting of the project.

Name the primary anti-SEZ committee involved in protesting against the state’s alleged forcible acquisition of farmlands for setting up the proposed chemical hub in Nandigram.

According to the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act of 2005, what is the minimum number of days for which employment is legally guaranteed to every rural household?

Which Indian state has the highest proportion (to total state population) of people belonging to scheduled caste communities?

To which state of India does the Gujjar community, recently in news for their agitation demanding induction into ST status, belong?

According to the latest round of the National Sample Survey Organization, what proportion of the population of India resides below poverty line?

According to data published in the Economic Survey 2007-08, which Indian state has the highest infant mortality rate?

On September 29, 2006 four members of Dalit farmer Bhaiyyalal Bhotmange’s family was brutally tortured, assaulted and murdered by fellow villagers. Recently a local court awarded death sentence to six of the accused and life imprisonment to two others. Name the village in Maharashtra where this gruesome incident had taken place.

Name the revolutionary initiative from ITC Corporation which has given rural Indian farmers access to technology and Internet, therefore allowing them to directly negotiate and sell their produce to ITC.

According to 2007 reports from the National AIDS Control Organization, what is the prevalence rate of HIV infections among the general adult population in India?

The TERI Corporate Awards in India recognize leadership in corporate environmental management, social responsibility and HIV/AIDS initiatives. Name the joint winners of the most recent TERI Award for business response to HIV/AIDS.

Answers

1. 128 One-third d – Ensuring universal access to housing and shelter Andhra Pradesh Bandhan 2007-12 19% 10 Madhya Pradesh The Salim Group

   The Bhumi Ucched Pratirodh Committee 100 Punjab Rajasthan 27.5% Madhya Pradesh Khairlanji eChoupal 0.36% (roughly 2 to 3.1 million people) Ballarpur Industries and Tata Steel

1. What is the process of shifting cultivation through slash and burn methods practiced in hilly rural areas of North east India better known as?
2. Which was the first transgenic crop approved for commercial cultivation in India?
3. In which state of India is the Silent Valley National Park located?
4. In terms of global output, which place does India occupy in the production of sugarcane?
5. The Sardar Sarovar Project proposes the construction of a dam on which Indian river?
6. Which state in India ranks first in wheat production in terms of absolute output?
7. In terms of global output, which place does India occupy in the production of cotton?
8. The Indian population census is held once in every __ years.
9. When was the last Census count held?
10. According to findings from the last Census exercise, India accounts for approximately __ per cent of the world’s population.
11. According to findings from the last Census, which Union Territory of India has the highest literacy rate?
12. Which state in India has the lowest female sex ratio?
13. According to findings from the last Census, which state has the highest proportion of rural population?
14. The Lepchas, also known as Rongpas, are aboriginal inhabitants of which state in India?
15. In which state, and on which river, is the Tehri Dam, the primary dam in the Tehri Development Project located?
16. Where is India’s largest oil refinery located?
17. In which present day Indian state did the “Chipko movement” of the 70s and 80s – a movement initiated by a group of female peasants against the cutting of trees and restoration of their forest rights – originate?
18. The water of the Cauvery river has been a bone of contention in a serious conflict between two prominent South Indian states. Which are they?
19. Name the village in Maharashtra which agreed to be relocated in entirety through a gram sabha resolution in order to facilitate inviolate space for the endangered tiger through development of the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve.
20. In which state is the Sariska Tiger Reserve, infamous for poaching of tigers, located?
    
    Answers  
    

    1. Jhum cultivation	11. Lakshadweep
    2. Cotton	12. Haryana
    3. Kerala	13. Himachal Pradesh
    4. Second	14. Sikkim
    5. Narmada	15. Uttarakhand, River Bhagirathi
    6. Uttar Pradesh	16. Jamnagar, Gujarat
    7. Third	17. Uttarakhand
    8. Ten	18. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu
    9. 2001	19. Jamni
    10. 16.8	20. Rajasthan

    
    

1. It is a 2007 crime thriller film adapted for the screen and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, starring Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, and Josh Brolin. Adapted from the Cormac McCarthy novel of the same name, it tells the story of a botched drug deal and the ensuing cat-and-mouse drama, as three men crisscross each other's paths in the desert landscape of 1980 West Texas. Name this film, which won four Oscars in 2008.
2. Who beat former presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton to the Grammy Awards-2008 for the Best Spoken Word for the audio version of the book The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream?
3. An English singer-songwriter, known for her eclectic mix of various musical genres including soul, jazz, rock & roll, she won the ‘Record of the Year’, ‘New Artist of the Year’, ‘Female Pop Vocal Performance of the Year’, ‘Pop Vocal Album of the Year’ in the Grammy Awards 2008. Identify her.
4. A Dominican-American writer, he is one of the top 20 writers of the 21st century and is best known for his two major works: the short story collection Drown (1996) and the novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (2007). Both were published to critical acclaim and he won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for the latter. Identify him.
5. It is the largest and the most circulated newspaper in America and has six Pulitzer Prizes for reporting in 2008. Name the publication.
6. An English actor, he has won two Academy Awards for Best Actor for portraying Christy Brown in My Left Foot (1989). Earlier this year he also won the Best Actor Oscar for his meaty, intense performance as larger-than-life oilman Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood.
7. Name the people who jointly won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2007 for their discovery of giant magnetoresistance, which brought about a breakthrough in gigabyte hard disks drives.
8. A German physicist, he was awarded the 2007 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his studies of chemical processes on solid surfaces. Identify him.
9. A distinguished scientist of Indian-origin has been awarded the prestigious International Meteorological Organization (IMO) prize for his research on climate change and predictability. Identify him.
10. He was an Academy Award-winning American actor of film, theatre and television. In the 1950s and 60s, he was one of a handful of Hollywood actors to speak openly against racism and was an active supporter of the Civil Rights Movement. This on screen and off screen icon passed away on April 6, 2008. Name him.
11. An American singer-songwriter, author, musician, poet, and, of late, disc jockey, this person has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. Recently he won a special Pulitzer Prize for his "profound impact" and "poetic power”. Identify him.
12. She is a social activist and has been awarded the Annemarie-Maddison Prize for her exemplary contribution to prison reforms and human rights in the country. Identify her.
13. He is an Indian businessman and has been awarded the JRD Tata corporate leadership award for his outstanding contribution to Indian industry. Identify him
14. Name the English-Language Indian TV news channel that won PC World India’s best news website award for the year 2008.
15. Who won the Cannes’ Best Actor award for his role as “Che” Guevara in the film titled Che?
16. Who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2007
17. He is an Indian industrialist, software engineer and one of the seven founders of a global consulting and IT services company based in India. He was recently given the Legion of honour, the highest civilian distinction of the government of France for the most admired business leader of India. Identify him.
    
18. He is an Indian-Bengali author. His book The Shadow Lines won the Sahitya Akademi Award, India's most prestigious literary award and his latest work of fiction, Sea of Poppies has been shortlisted for the 2008 Booker prize award. Identify him.

.

Answers

TEST YOUR TECH KNOWLEDGE

1. What does the term GPS stand for?

1. Global Positioning System
2. Government Positioning Satellites
3. Global Positioning Satellites
4. Going Places Sometimes

2. When was the first GPS satellite launched?

1. 1978
2. 1985
3. 1992
4. 1998

3. What does Mp3 stand for?

1. Media Player 3
2. Nothing in particular, just Mp3
3. Microsoft Player 3
4. MPEG Audio layer 3

4. An Mp3 player runs on rechargeable batteries. Which of the following is not a rechargeable battery?

1. Nickel Metal Hydride
2. Nickel Cadmium
3. Alkaline
4. Lithium ion

5. What does DOS stand for?

1. Data Operating System
2. Disk Operating system
3. Digital Operating system
4. Data on synergy

6. There are two Stevens credited with the making of Apple Computers. One is Steven Jobs, what is the other Stevens’ last name?

1. Macintosh
2. Mac
3. Apple
4. Wozniac

7. A TI-83 is a

1. Old Antique Computer
2. Scientific calculator
3. Intel processor
4. Slide Rule Model

8. After a gigabyte comes a

1. Terabyte
2. Zedabyte
3. Kilobyte
4. Mezobyte

9. An electrode is the same as

1. circuit
2. terminal
3. battery
4. neutron

10. What does a laser do?

1. it generates a beam of light
2. it focuses heat rays
3. it converts electrons into light energy
4. it blocks the visible spectrum

11. Which of these are satellites?

1. Sputnik
2. The moon
3. Ganymede
4. All of the above

12. What is a watt?

1. a degree of brightness
2. a closed circuit
3. a charge of electricity
4. a unit of power

13. For what is Guglielmo Marconi best known?

1. the invention of the steam engine
2. the development of the incandescent lamp
3. development of wireless telegraphy
4. invention of the polygraph test

14. On 16th September, 2008, Intel rolled out its Xeon 7400 series of CPUs, code named Dunnigton, that was designed out of the company's Bangalore development centre. What is the maximum number of cores the chip can have?

1. 3
2. 4
3. 6
4. 8

15. What did Anton Van Leeuwenhoek invent?

1. the thermometer
2. the microscope
3. the bifocal lens
4. the telescope

16. In what year did the Wright brothers successfully design and fly a  motorized aircraft?

1. 1900
2. 1896
3. 1910
4. 1903

17. What does a television transmitter transmit?

1. sound waves
2. radio waves
3. light waves
4. video waves

18. The level of light on a surface is called illuminance. What is the unit of illuminance called?

1. Flux
2. Lux
3. Candelas
4. Lumens

19. What is the gas present in fluorescent lamps?

1. Mercury vapour
2. Tungsten vapour
3. Neon
4. Sodium Vapour

20. On October 4th,1957 what satellite was launched , becoming the first satellite to officially orbit the earth?

1. Oscar 10
2. Vanguard 1
3. Sputnik 1
4. Explorer 1

ANSWERS

1. He is the chairman of India’s largest conglomerate. He serves in senior capacities in various organisations in India and is a member of the Prime Minister's Council on Trade and Industry. He also serves as a board member on the Republic of South Africa’s  International Investment Council and is an Asia-Pacific advisory committee member for the New York Stock Exchange. In May this year he made it to Time magazine's 2008 list of the World's 100 most Influential people.
2. An Indian businessman and a pioneer of the Information Technology industry in India, he is the chairman of one of the largest companies in India, and has been recognised by Business Week as one of the “Greatest Entrepreneurs of all time” for his vision and leadership. His story and how he built one of the largest Indian tech companies inspired Steve Hamm’s book “Bangalore Tiger.”
3. He is called the father of the White Revolution in India. He is also known as the Milkman of India and is recognised as the man behind the success of the Amul brand.
4. An inventor, entrepreneur and a policymaker, he is the chairman and CEO of World-Tel Limited, an International Telecommunication Union (ITU) initiative and is widely considered to have been responsible for India's communications revolution. He is also currently the chairman of India’s National Knowledge Commission, a high level advisory body to the Prime Minister of India.
5. An Indian entrepreneur, she was termed India's Biotech Queen by The Economist and Fortune, and India's mother of invention by New York Times. She was also conferred the Indian Chamber of Commerce Lifetime Achievement Award for her outstanding contributions in the field of biotechnology, business and industry.
6. An Indian billionaire industrialist, he was reported to be the 4th wealthiest person in the world by Forbes Magazine in 2004 and recently has been conferred with the third Forbes Lifetime Achievement Award, its highest award for global business success. The award honours heroes of entrepreneurial capitalism and those who embody and exemplify the ideals of free enterprise.
7. An engineer by education and one of the founders of an Indian multinational in the area of IT services and consulting, he began his career with IIM Ahmedabad as a systems programmer. He also worked with Patni Computers before joining six others to start their own firm which is today a behemoth renowned globally. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 2008, the second highest civilian award by India and Légion d'honneur, the highest civilian award by France.
8. The chairwoman of one of the world's fourth-largest food and beverage company, she has been named the Most Powerful Business Woman in the world in 2006 and 2007 by Fortune magazine and was elected to the fellowship of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2008.
   
    
   Answers
   1. Ratan Tata
   2. Azim Premji
   3. Verghese Kurien
   4. Sam Pitroda
   5. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw
   6. Lakshmi Mittal
   7. Narayan Murthy
   8. Indra Nooyi

1. The Olympic Games of 1980 has gone down in history for having witnessed the largest boycott in Olympic history in which USA and 61 other countries withdrew their participation. What were the boycotting nations protesting against?
2. Which of the following sports debuted at the Summer Olympic Games only post 1990? – Badminton, Cycling, Table Tennis or Judo?
3. Which of the following games, though contested in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, have been dropped from the schedule of the 2012 Games – Taekwondo, Flatwater Canoeing, Baseball or Beach Volleyball?
4. A Palestinian terrorist group invaded the Olympic village and broke into the apartment of the Israeli delegation. They killed two Israelis and held 9 others as hostages. The terrorists demanded that Israel release numerous prisoners. When the Israeli government refused their demand, a tense stand-off ensued while negotiations continued. Eventually the captors, still holding their hostages, were offered safe passage and taken to an airport, where they were ambushed by German security forces. In the firefight that followed, 15 people, including the nine Israeli athletes and five of the terrorists, were killed. After much debate, it was decided that the Games would continue, but proceedings were obviously dominated by these events. Which Games are we talking of?
5. What do the five rings on the Olympics emblem stand for?
   
   Answers  
   1. The Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan in 1979
   2. Badminton
   3. Baseball
   4. Games of the XX Olympiad, Munich, 1972
   5. The Five Continents

.

1. Born in August 1930 in the state of Nebraska, USA, he is often called the “Oracle of Omaha.” One of the world’s largest investors in the equity market, this Columbia Business School graduate and Chairman and CEO of US firm Berkshire Hathaway is also a noted philanthropist. In 2006, he announced a plan whereby he pledged 83% of his fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In February 2008, he was named by Forbes magazine as the richest person of the world. Name him.
   
   
2. Most notably known for his revival of the Chrysler Corporation in the 1980s, this Pennsylvania born industrialist, who started his career as an engineer with the Ford Motor Company, is also the author of several bestsellers, which include his autobiography and the book Where Have All the Leaders Gone? He is also the founder of Olivio Premium Products, a line of food products made from olive oil. He donates all profits from the company to diabetes research, a cause he has committed himself to ever since he lost his wife to the disease.  Identify him.
   
   
3. There is an anecdote that in 1970, she visited the San Francisco Bay Area, and encountered a store in Berkeley selling shampoos, lotions and body creams. The store, founded by two local entrepreneurs, publicized environmental concerns and incentivised recycling. This inspired her to found her own chain, The Body Shop, a British cosmetics company producing and retailing beauty products, and famous for promoting ethical consumerism and associating itself with a variety of causes such as campaigns against animal testing and in support of community trade, environmental protection, and human rights. She also founded Children on the Edge, a charitable organization which helps disadvantaged children in Eastern Europe and Asia. In 2003, Queen Elizabeth II appointed her a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. In 2007, this legendary entrepreneur lost her battle to Hepatitis C but is remembered and respected all over the world for her commitment to ethics in business. Who is she?
   
   
4. A graduate from the Harvard School of Business, he is the current Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer at General electric. He has been with GE since 1982 and was chosen as the successor to Jack Welch, when the latter retired in 2000. Previously, he served as President and CEO of GE’s Medical Systems Division, now known as GE Healthcare. He is also on the Board of Robin Hood Foundation, a non profit organization working to alleviate problems of poverty in New York City. Name him.
   
   
5. Chairman of the Toyota Motor Corporation since 1999, he has been with the organization for 50 years. In 1998, he was selected as a member of the Prime Minister's Economic Strategy Council of Japan and became chairman of the Japan Federation of Employers' Associations in 1999. He has also held the position of chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association since 2000 and is one of the pioneers of the engine technology that heralded the era of fuel efficiency and zero-emission vehicles. Who are we talking of?

     Answers

1. Warren Buffett
2. Lee Iacocca
3. Dame Anita Roddick
4. Jeffrey Immelt
5. Hiroshi Okuda