Current Affairs Quiz: 19 July 2024

Current Affairs for UPSC

1. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar recently inaugurated India’s first overseas Jan Aushadhi Kendra in which country?

[A] Vietnam

[B] Indonesia

[C] Mauritius

[D] Malaysia

Correct Answer: C [Mauritius]

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar inaugurated India’s first overseas Jan Aushadhi Kendra in Mauritius, attended by Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth. The project aims to make affordable medicines manufactured in India available in Mauritius to improve healthcare. Jaishankar inaugurated an Indian aid-funded mediclinic at Grand Boys village that provides secondary healthcare to 16,000 residents. These initiatives highlight India’s commitment to health and people-centric policies under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi.

2. Which state government has recently launched the ‘Ladka Bhau’ scheme to provide job training and stipend to youth?

[A] Kerala

[B] Maharashtra

[C] Telangana

[D] Karnataka

Correct Answer: B [Maharashtra]

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced the ‘Ladka Bhau’ scheme in Pandharpur on July 17, 2024. The scheme provides job training and stipend to unemployed male youth, Rs 6,000 to those who pass class XII, Rs 8,000 to diploma holders and Rs 10,000 to graduates. The programme aims to increase employability by providing apprenticeships in various sectors. The announcement comes with the November 2024 assembly elections.

3. Who was recently re-elected as the President of the European Parliament?

[A] Angelika Niebler

[B] Manfred Weber

[C] Roberta Metsola

[D] Markus Farber

Correct Answer: C [Roberta Metsola]

Roberta Metsola was re-elected as President of the European Parliament with 562 votes in the first round. Metsola, a centre-right politician from Malta, will serve for the next two and a half years. She ran virtually unopposed, with Irene Monteiro receiving only 61 votes. Metsola has served as an MEP since 2013 and is completing her first term as president in January 2022.

4) Which Indian player won a bronze medal at the 2024 World Junior Squash Championships?

[A] Shaurya Bawa

[B] Mohammed Zakaria

[C] Kush Kumar

[D] Anahat Singh

Correct Answer: A [Shaurya Bawa]

Shaurya Bawa won the bronze medal after losing to Egypt’s Mohammed Zakaria in the semi-finals of the WSF World Junior Squash Championship 2024 in Houston, USA on July 17, 2024. This is the second medal for an Indian male athlete in the history of the tournament after Kush Kumar won the bronze medal. India’s Anahat Singh lost his medal to Egypt’s Nadian Elhamy in the quarter-finals.

5) Which organisation is associated with ‘Operation Nanhe Forist’, which was in news recently?

[A] DRDO

[B] Railway Protection Force

[C] ISRO

[D] Ministry of Women and Child Development

Correct Answer: B [Railway Protection Force]

Under Operation Nanhe Forest, which started in 2018, Railway Protection Forces have rescued 84,119 children from criminal syndicates at Indian Railway stations and trains in the last seven years. The rescued children were handed over to the District Child Welfare Committee. In 2022, RPF rescued the highest number of children at 17,756.

Source

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