Current affairs April to May 2010

1. Which team win the 3rd ICC T20 World cup in west Indies ?

England beat Australia by 7 wickets
Man of the Match – Craig Krieswetter 63 (49)
Man of the Series – Kevin Peterson

2. Who is appointed as the director general of inspection and safety wing of the Indian Air Force (IAF)?Air Marshal Ajay Shriniwas Karnik.

3. First Indian who is selected for the honorary doctorate degree in humane letters by State University of New York?Amritanandamayi Devi, Hindu spiritual leader.
She is selected for this honour in recognition of her wide-ranging humanitarian contributions .In the university’s 164-year history, only two other world leaders, including Tibetan spiritual head the Dalai Lama have been bestowed this award.

4. Who is appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director of Indian Bank?T.M. Bhasin.

5. Who won the WISPA Indian Challenger squash tournament held at Calcutta Racket Club squash courts on April 17, 2010?

Dipika Pallikal.
She defeated Emma Beddoes of England 11-9, 11-8, 9-11, 11-6 in the final.
It was her first WISPA (Women’s International Squash Players Association) title.

6. Russia have reached an agreement with a Latin American country to draft plans on the construction of the first nuclear power plant in that country. Which is that country?Venezuela

7. Ten Policemen were killed by Maoist attack in a district in Orissa on 5th April, 2010.Name of that district?Koraput district.

8. Who won the Sony Ericsson Open title held in Miami beating Venus Williams 6-2, 6-1in the final?Kim Clijsters.
This is her second Sony Ericsson Open title in Miami.

9. Who defeated Mahesh Bhupathi and Max Mirnyi 6-2, 7-5 to clinch the Sony Ericsson Open doubles tennis held in Miami?Leander Paes(India) and Czech Lukas Dlouhy (Czech Republic).

10. Who won the Miami Sony Ericsson ATP Masters title?Andy Roddick
He beat Czech Tomas Berdych( 7-5, 6-4) in the final.

11. Who won Formula one’s Malaysian grand prix held in Sepang, Malaysia?Sebastian Vettel. (Germany)
He is Red Bull Formula One driver

12. Name of the six Indian entrepreneurs who have been selected to attend the two-day Presidential Summit on entrepreneurship starting April 26 in Washington, which will be hosted by U.S. President Barack Obama?Irfan Alam, Shahnaz Husain, Ramachandra Kavil, Shaffi Mather, Shaheen Mistri and Sirajuddin Qureshi.

13. Name of South African white supremacist leader who has been killed on his farm in the country’s north-west by two farm workers after a dispute over unpaid wages?Eugene Terreblanche.
Mr. Terreblanche, who campaigned for a separate white homeland, came to prominence in the early 1980s.

14. Legendary fast bowler, regarded as one of the greatest English cricketers of the 20th century, who died at the age of 91 recently?

Sir Alec Victor Bedser.
He was the chairman of selectors for the English national cricket team, and the president of Surrey County Cricket Club. In 51 Test matches for England he took 236 wickets.

15. Kerala STATE Film Awards.

Best Actor:Mammootty

Kerala State Film Awards 2010 or List of Winners of Kerala State Film Awards for the year 2009 declared. Mammooty won the best actor award for his remarkable performance in the films “Pazhassi Raja, Paleri Manikyam and Kutty Shrank. Best Actress award went to Swetha Menon for depicting the character “Cheeru” in the film “Paleri Manikyam : Oru Pathira Kolapathakathinte Katha”

Best Actress:Swetha Menon

Pazhassi Raja , multilingual biopic magnum opus film directed by T. Hariharan, and written by M.T. Vasudevan Nair won 8 awards and “Paleri Manikyam : Oru Pathira Kolapathakathinte Katha” (Director:Ranjith) based on a Malayalam novel by T. P. Rajeevan with the same name, won 4 awards. Interestingly Padmashree Mammooty acted lead roles in these two films.
Kerala State Film Awards, the most prestigious film awards for a motion picture made in Kerala were started in the year 1969 and the awards were managed directly by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala.
HERE IS THE FULL LIST OF WINNERS OF KERALA STATE FILM AWARDS 2009:
Actor: Mammootty (Pazhassi Raja, Paleri Manikyam, Kutty Shrank)
Actress: Swetha Menon (Paleri Manikyam : Oru Pathira Kolapathakathinte Katha)
Director: Hariharan (Pazhassi Raja)
Script Writer: M T Vasudevan Nair ((Pazhassi Raja)
Best Film – Paleri Manikyam oru Pathira Kolapathakathinte Katha
Second Best Movie – Raamanam
Popular Film: Ividam Swargamaanu(Directed By Roshan Andrews)
Best New Director – P Sukumar( Film: Swantham lekhakan)
Music: Mohan sithara (Soofi Paranja Katha )
Singer (male): Yesudas (Film: Madya venal Music: Kaithapram Viswanathan)
Singer (female): Sriya goshal (Film :Banaras, Music: M. Jayachandran)
Background Music: Rahul Raj( Rithu)
Choreography: Dinesh Kumar( Sagar Alias Jackey)
Supporting Actor: Manoj K Jayan ( Pazhassi raja )
Supporting Actress: Pathma priya (pazhassi raja)
Child artist: Niveditha (brahmaram)
Comedian: Suraj venjaran mood (Ivar Vivahitharayal)
Editor: Sreekar prasad (pazhassi raja)
Special Jury Award: Jagathi Sreekumar
Costume Designer – Natarajan(pazhassi raja)
Dubbing Artist – Shoby Thilakan(pazhassi raja)
Child Film: Kesu
Sound Recordist: N Harikumar ( Patham Nilayile Theevandi)
Art Director: Muthuraj (Pazhassi Raja)
Lyricist : Rafiq Ahmed ( Soofi Paranja Katha)
Cameraman: KG Jayan ( Soofi Paranja Katha)
Story: Sashi Paravoor – (Kadaksham)
Documentary: “Ezhuthatha Kathukal”

16. In a state in eastern India, Maoist Naxalite insurgents killed 76 Paramilitary soldiers of CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) on April 6, 2010. Which is that state?Chhattisgarh.

17. Who is appointed as brand ambassador for the ‘Mega Tennis Event’ organized by All India Tennis Association (AITA) which is aimed at the development of sport in the country?Sania Mirza.

18. In a significant step in taking their bilateral relations to a new level, India has signed an agreement with a neighbouring country to establish a hotline between prime ministers of the two countries. Which is that country?China.
Under the agreement, dedicated phone lines will be set up in the prime minister’s office of the two countries.

19. Capital of Thailand, which was placed under a state of emergency on April 7, 2010 as Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva sought to prevent weeks of anti-government protests turning violent after demonstrators stormed parliament?Bangkok.

20. Opposition leaders in a country in Central Asia had seized power and had taken control of security headquarters, state television and various government buildings of that country recently. Which is that country?Kyrgyzstan.

21. Which countries have recently agreed a solution to a long-running disagreement over the height of Mount Everest?Nepal and China.

As per the agreement, the official overall height of Everest is now designated as 8,848m. Nepal also recognises China’s claim that the rock height of Everest is 8,844m.

22. Which country has recently ordered its TV channels not to use any English acronyms, (such as GDP for gross domestic product) in a bid to preserve the purity of its language?China.

23. Name of Europe’s spacecraft which has launched on April 8, 2010 from Baikonur in Kazakhstan on a mission to map the Earth’s ice cover.Cryosat-2.
From its polar orbit, CryoSat-2 will send back data leading to new insights into how ice is responding to climate change and the role it plays in our ‘Earth system’. It is a copy of a spacecraft that was destroyed on launch in 2005.

24. Former vice chancellor of Mahatma Gandhi University who is appointed as a member of National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities Education (NCMEI)?Dr.Cyriac Thomas.
This appointment is for a period of five years.
Justice M S A Siddiqui is the chairman of NCMEI.
Mohinder Singh, former member of National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities is the third member of the full three-member commission.

25. Name of the rocket made in India, launching of which failed on 15th April, 2010 as the two Indian cryogenic engines got failed during the launch?GSLV D-3.
(GSLV-Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle)
The GSLV-D3 was carrying a communication satellite GSAT-4 and others weighing more than two tones.

26. Which countries have signed an agreement to boost cooperation in the education sector on 8th April 2010?India and Australia.
The agreement was signed in Melbourne between Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Julia Gillard and India’s Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal.

27. Name of the non nuclear weapons programme developed by United States , which consists of new generation of high-speed weapons that are intended to strike anywhere on Earth within an hour?Prompt Global Strike (PGS).
Prompt Global Strike (PGS) is a United States military initiative to develop a system capable of a precision conventional weapon strike anywhere in the world in 1 hour just as a nuclear attack can currently be carried with intercontinental ballistic missiles.

28. Who has entered the Limca Book co Records for electronically preserving a large collection of photographs?Josekutty Panackal.
He is the senior news photographer of Malayala Manorama, leading newspaper of Kerala. The Limca Book of records states “Panackal has a collection of 31,795 news photographs as of May 31, 2009 all shot by himself over eight years.

29. Sri Lankan Cricketer who has won the parliamentary general election under the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) from his native Matara district recently?Sanath Jayasurya.

30. Polish President who died along with 130 others when their plane crashed while coming in for a landing in western Russia on April 10, 2010?
Lech Kaczynski.
There were no survivors on the Soviet-era Tupolev, which was taking the president, his wife and staff to events marking the 70th anniversary of the massacre of thousands of Polish officers by Soviet secret police.

31. Alleged mastermind of arms-drop case of Purulia who was arrested at his home in Copenhagen on April 9, 2010?Kim Peter Davy. He is expected to be extradited to India to face trial.
The Purulia arms drop case was an infamous incident in which unauthorised arms were dropped from an Antonov An-26 aircraft in Purulia district in the state of West Bengal in India on 17 December 1995. A Latvian aircraft dropped a large consignment of arms including several hundred AK-47 rifles and more than a million rounds of ammunition over a large area in Jhalda, Ghatanga, Belamu, Maramu villages of Purulia district on the night of 17 December 1995.

32. Which country is building a new airport near Mount Everest with the apparent purpose of turning the Chinese side of the tallest peak into a climber’s paradise?China. The airport has been named “the Peace Airport”.

33. Which country has revoked its decision to give the contract of printing Machine-Readable Passports (MRPs) to India?Nepal.

34. Who is appointed as the Chief Justice of the High Court of Sikkim?Justice Barin Ghosh.

35. Which country won the World Circle Style Kabaddi Championship defeating Pakistan in the final held in Ludhiana?India. India won the title with a prominent margin of 58-24 points.

36. Who became ‘Wisden Cricketer of the Year for the second time in a row, beating off competition from England captain Andrew Strauss and Sri Lankan Tillakaratne Dilshan?Virender Sehwag.
Sehwag apart, English wicketkeeper Matt Prior, spinner Graeme Swann, batsman Graham Onions, pacer Stuart Broad and Australian vice-captain Michael Clarke were the ‘Five Cricketers of the Year’ chosen by the magazine.

37. Which country is decided to conduct its first ever U.S.-styled televised election debates on April 22 and April 29 which will telecast on Britain’s Channel 4 News.?Britain.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the Labour Party, Conservative leader David Cameron and Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats will take audience questions on issues such as crime and health care. This is Britain’s first-ever national televised election debate.

38. Which country has decided to lodge a formal complaint in the United Nations against remarks by President Barack Obama of the United States that Washington could use nuclear weapons against them?Iran

39. Who has been appointed as the 14th Judge Advocate General JAG of the Indian Army?Major General C.S. Nair. He will take charge on May 1.

40. Name of the new head for Afghanistan’s Independent Election Commission (IEC) appointed by
Afghan President Hamid Karzai?Fazel Ahmad Manavi

41. Government of India’s Minister of State for External Affairs, who resigned recently over allegations of corruption in winning a cricket league franchise (IPL Kochi team)?Shashi Tharoor.

42. Who has been chosen for the Kerala State’s prestigious Raja Ravi Varma award?C. N. Karunakaran. The award carries a cash prize of Rs. 1.25 lakh.
The award, instituted by the State Government, is given annually to persons who have made outstanding contributions to the field of painting and sculpture in the State.

43. Who claim title at the Chinese Formula One Grand Prix held in Shanghai?Jenson Button, McLaren’s British driver.

44. Agricultural scientist who became the first Cuban to win the U.S.-based Goldman Environmental Prize, also known as the “green Nobel?

Humberto Rios Labrada. The award is considered as world’s biggest award for grassroots environmentalism.

45. Who won the Monte Carlo Masters Tennis Title defeating Fernando Verdasco( 6-0, 6-1)in the final?Rafael Nadal. This is his 6th straight Monte Carlo Masters title

46. The first Malayalam playback singer and the actress who acted in the first Malayalam talkie ‘Balan’ died recently at the age of 86?M. K. Kamalam.

47. Who has been named the new Chief Minister of Meghalaya?Mukul Sangma.

48. Some 2,000 villagers from a city in Maharashtra on April 19, 2010 attacked the Coca-Cola unit and ransacked its pumping station in protest against water crisis in their region. Which is that city?Thane.
Villagers from Thane’s Vada attacked the Coca-Cola unit which directly draws water from the Vaitarna Dam for production of their various drinks.

49. Former Supreme Court Justice who will represent Tamil Nadu on the five-member committee constituted by the apex court to review the safety of the Mullaperiyar Dam?A.R. Lakshmanan.

50. President of the International Olympic Committee from 1980 to 2001, who has died in Barcelona recently?Juan Antonio Samaranch.
He was heading the IOC for 21 years for the longest tenure after that of the body’s founding father, Baron Pierre de Coubertin.

51. Who is the new Prime Minister of Sri Lanka?

Dissanayake Mudiyansalage Jayaratne.
He is the senior most leader of the ruling Freedom Party.

52. Former Argentine de facto president and army chief who was sentenced to 25 years in prison after being found guilty of ordering torture and illegal detentions during his 1982-1983 rule?Reynaldo Bignone.

53. A pioneering voice of the American civil rights movement whose crusade for racial justice and gender equality spanned more than six decades, died recently at Howard University Hospital?

Dorothy Irene Height.
She was an American administrator, educator, and social activist. She was the president of the National Council of Negro Women for forty years, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2004.

54. Name of the two presidents who have been announced as winners of the 2010 Champions of the Earth Awards, which is the United Nations’ highest award for environmental leadership?Mr. Bharrat Jagdeo, President of Guyana.
Mr. Mohamed Nasheed, President of the Maldives.

55. Who was unanimously elected as the Speaker of Sri Lanka?Chamal Rajapaksa. He is Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s older brother.

56. The president of Medical Council of India (MCI)who was arrested by CBI for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs two crore to grant recognition to a medical college in Punjab.Dr. Ketan Desai.

57. India’s first marina which was inaugurated by Defense Minister A K Antony on 25th April 2010 is located at?Bolghaty Island, Kochi, Kerala.
This marina of international standards is run by Ocean Blue can accommodate 34 yachts and a 3 story marina house.

58. Which team won the third edition of Indian Premiere League (2010)?Chennai Super Kings.
They defeated Mumbai Indians by 22 runs in the final held in Mumbai.
Man of the Match: Suresh Raina( He scored 57 runs from 35 balls and took one wicket.)

59. Which state emerged overall champions in the seventh National Junior Youth Athletic Championships at the Nehru Stadium in Coimbatore?Haryana.
Haryana won six gold, six silver and one bronze medals to relegate Maharashtra (6-5-3) to the runners-up position. Hosts Tamil Nadu with six gold, four silver and six bronze medals were overall third.

60. Who has been named the new interim chairman of the Indian Premier League (IPL)?Chirayu Amin.
BCCI suspended Lalit Modi from his post as chairman and commissioner of IPL, over allegations of financial irregularities, match-fixing and rigging of bids.

61. Manchester United and England striker who won the Professional Footballers’ Association player of the year award?Wayne Rooney.

62. Indian diplomat and second secretary with the Indian High Commission in Islamabad who has been arrested after her alleged involvement was found in passing sensitive Indian government information to the Pakistan based Inter- Services Intelligence (ISI)?Madhuri Gupta.

63. Name of India’s first stem cell based product developed by Stempeutics Research Pvt. Ltd., a group company of Manipal Education & Medical Group?Stempeucel-CLI.

64. The 16th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit is held in ?Bhutan.
The summit held in the Bhutanese capital Thimphu on April 28-29, 2010
Bhutan is hosting the summit for the first time since the regional body was established in 1985.

65. Which country formally marked completion of the world’s longest seawall on April 27, 2010?South Korea.
The 33.9 kilometre Saemangeum seawall encloses 401 square kilometres of seawater built in a reclaimed tidal flat in Gunsan, North Jeolla Province, nearly 20 years after launching of the project.

66. The former drug-running dictator of Panama ousted by a US invasion in 1989, who has been flown from America to Paris where he will face trial on fresh money laundering charges?Manuel Noriega.
He is a Panamanian politician and soldier. He was military dictator of Panama from 1983 to 1989.
The 1989 invasion of Panama by the United States removed him from power; he was captured, detained as a prisoner of war, and flown to the United States. He has been extradited to France from the United States.

67. Who has been declared the winner of Sudan’s first democratic presidential election in 24 years?Omar Hassan al-Bashir.
Omar al-Bashir’s victory was widely expected after his most credible challengers pulled out of the race to protest alleged fraud. The International Criminal Court, which has issued an arrest warrant against him for war crimes in Darfur.

68. Country which has won its bid for the world’s largest telescope to be constructed on its shores?Chile.
The 42-metre European Extremely Large Telescope will be built in Chile’s north — 3,060 meters (10, 040 feet) above sea level on a mountain known as Armazonas. Armazonas is located in the central part of the Atacama Desert.

69. Who has become the first woman to climb the world’s peaks over 8,000 metres when she scaled Mount Annapurna in Nepal?Oh Eun-sun. She is a South Korean female mountaineer.
Italy’s Reinhold Messner was the first man to achieve the feat.

70. Name of the Indian-origin man who has received one of South Africa’s highest honours “the Order of the Baobab in Silver”?Imtiaz Sooliman
He started the Gift of the Givers Foundation more than a decade ago, received the Order of the Baobab in Silver from South African President Jacob Zuma .

71. Which country lifted it’s a decades-old travel ban on HIV-positive foreigners from visiting the country?China.

72. Who has been given additional charge of Governor of Rajasthan following the demise of former governor Prabha Rau?Shiva Raj Patel.
He is the current Governor of Punjab.

73. The Supreme Court of India recently dismissed all cases registered against South Indian film actress and activist of her alleged remarks on pre-marital sex. Name of that actress?Khusboo

74. Name of India’s first indigenously-built stealth warship which was commissioned by defence minister A.K. Antony at the naval dockyard in Mumbai on April 29, 2010?INS Shivalik.
INS Shivalik is the one and only Ship to use high-strength steel developed and produced in India. This ship is made to bypass the detection from normal radar and surveillance equipments. The ship is named on the high hills of ‘Shivalik’ Mountains in Himalayas.

75. Who is also the current chairman of SAARC?Lyonchhen Jigmi Y.Thinley, Prime Minister of Bhutan.

76. Who topped the list of Britain’s richest people according to the annual Sunday Times Rich List survey?Lakshmi Mittal, British-based steel magnate.

77. The second edition of Champions League Twenty20 (CLT20) will be held in?South Africa. The tournament will be held from September 10 to 26, 2010.

78. Former  vice president of India who died recently ?

Bhairon Singh Shekhawat
(23 October 1923 – 15 May 2010) was the 11th Vice-President of India.

79. Governor of Rajasthan who died recently ?
Mrs Prabha Rau died on 26 April 2010

80. Who becomes the 3rd South African after Andrew Hudson and Jacques Rudoph to score a century on Test debut?
Alviro Petersen

81. Who is appointed as the Secretary of Petroleum and Natural Gas?
Sthanunathan Sundareshan

82. Which city of India will host the 12th edition of South Asian Games (SAF Games) in 2012?
Delhi

83. Which Indian film won as many as six awards including the best director award in the ‘Narrative Feature’ section of the Los Angeles Reel Film Festival (LARFF)?
`Phir Kabhie’.
Director V K Prakash and script writer M Sindhuraj have won the best director and writer awards respectively in the `Narrative Feature’ section of the Los Angeles Reel Film Festival (LARFF) 2009 for the bollywood film `Phir Kabhie’. The film also won awards for the best narrative feature film, best narrative feature film director( V K Prakash), best narrative screenplay (M.Sindhuraj), best original score (Rajat Dholakia and Shantanu Moitra), best production design (Nitin Desai) and the best costume design (Bhanu Athaiyah & Simple Kapadia).

84. Which country’s Supreme Court disallowed kite flying during the occasion of the spring festival of Basant?
Pakistan.

Kite flying is an integral part of the Basant celebration.

85. Which bank became the first Indian bank to break into the world’s Top 50 list, according to the Brand Finance Global Banking 500, an annual international ranking by UK-based Brand Finance Plc, this year?
The State Bank of India (SBI).

HSBC retain its top slot for the third year and there are 20 Indian banks in the Brand Finance® Global Banking 500.

86. Which country won the African Cup of Nations soccer tournament for the third consecutive time with a 1-0 victory over Ghana in the final in Luanda, Angola?
Egypt. Egypt won African nations cup for the seventh time.

87. Who won 72nd Corus Chess Tournament held in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands?
Magnus Carlsen.
This 19 year old Norwegian chess player is coached by former world champion Gary Kasparov. He is currently ranked number one in the world. On 26 April 2004 Carlsen became a Grandmaster at the age of 13 years, 148 days, making him the third youngest Grandmaster in history. At the age of 19 years, 32 days he became the youngest chess player in history to be ranked world number one, breaking the record previously held by Vladimir Kramnik.

88. Which country recently admitted that white phosphorous was used in attacks on Gaza?
Israel

White phosphorus (WP) as an incendiary weapon burns fiercely and can set cloth, fuel, ammunition and other combustibles on fire. Since World War II, it has been extensively used as an anti-personnel weapon capable of causing serious burns or death.

89. Name of the Pop star who was the big winner at the prestigious Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles, winning six prizes?
Beyonce Knowles.She has set a new record for the most awards won in a single year by a solo female, and takes her career tally to 16. Beyonce husband Jay z also won 3 awards.

90. Who is the new Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh?
Justice Kurian Joseph

91. Popular actor, director, and screenwriter who has acted in more than 300 films in Malayalam, died on 2 February 2010 due to liver problem?
Cochin Haneefa
He, aged 58, also acted in Tamil and Hindi Films. He is the director of super hit Malayalam film “Vatsalyam”

92. The Hyderabad Cricket Association has decided not to allow spectators inside the Rajiv International Cricket Stadium due to the ongoing protests over Telangana issue for the final of a domestic first-class cricket competition between South Zone and West Zone. Which is that tournament?
The Duleep Trophy

93. The Central Government has formed a five-member expert committee on Telangana issue on Feb 3, 2010. The committee is headed by?

B N Srikrishna, former Supreme Court Judge.

Other members are:

Prof (Dr) Ranbir Singh, Vice Chancellor, National Law University, Delhi

Dr Abusaleh Shariff, Senior Research Fellow, International Food Policy Research Institute, Delhi

Dr (Ms) Ravinder Kaur, Professor, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT, Delhi
Vinod K Duggal, former Home Secretary.

94. Indian who has received two Australia Day Achievement Medals for his contribution to the society there?
V.P.Unnikrishnan.
He is the secretary of the Federation of Indian communities, Queensland (FICQ) and a native of Kerala. He has been settled in Brisbane for more than 10 years and won the Lord Mayor’s 2010 Australia Day Achievement Award recently.

95. In a country in East Asia., a nine-year-old school girl gave birth by Caesarean section to a healthy baby boy. Which is that country?
China

96. Name of the 10-foot-long research rocket carrying a mouse, two turtles and worms into space
launched by Iran on 02-02-2010?
Kavoshgar-3
Kavoshgar-3, which means Explorer-3 in Farsi.

97. Which country has refused to grant citizenship to a man who forced his wife to wear the full Islamic veil or niqab?
France

98. Name of the Pakistani neuroscientist trained at an elite American university has been found guilty of two charges of attempted murder after she tried to kill US agents in Afghanistan in 2008?
Aafia Siddiqui

99. Which sculptor’s bronze sculpture has been sold for record 65million pounds at an auction in London?
Alberto Giacometti

100. Which Indian publishing house has used the multimedia print reader (MPR) technology to launch two new products called ‘The Talking Book’ and ‘The Talking Pen’?
Aadarsh Private Limited
According to the company, when the MPR enabled pen is positioned over a book with MPR codes, it activates the pre-loaded audio files and readers are also able to hear the text they are reading.

101. The book written by Taslima Nasrin which is a compilation of power-packed articles on feminism and suppression of women across the world?
“No Country for Women”.

102. One of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which has discovered a new oilfield off its coast, and expects to pump the first crude from it by early next year. Which is that emirate?
Dubai.
The oil field is the first hydrocarbon discovery in the emirate’s territory in 30 years.

103. The Central Government of India has extended the ban on an Islamic Student organization for two years recently. Name of that Organization?
Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI)

104. An American Christian activist, who entered North Korea illegally on Christmas day to draw attention to human rights abuses in the country, has been released by Korean government after showing “sincere repentance” for the transgression. Name of that missionary?
Robert Park

105. Which country has agreed to accept ground-based interceptors from the United States as part of its missile defense system in Eastern Europe?
Romania

106. Which state became the first State in India to announce a ban on Bt Brinjal even before the Centre takes a final decision on the introduction of the controversial genetically modified crop?
Uttarakhand

107. Who has taken over as Director-General of Income Tax (Investigation), Kochi (Kerala)?
E.T. Lukose.

108. Indian American author who is currently a member of Arts and Humanities Committee of US government appointed by President Barack Obama.?
Jhumpa Lahiri

109. Who has been appointed as England captain after Fabio Capello sacked John Terry of the role following allegations over his private life?
Rio Ferdinand

110. South African player who scored his 34th Test hundred in the recent test match against India?
Jacques Kallis
Kallis, moves level with Sunil Gavaskar and Brian Lara on 34 Test hundreds – only Ricky Ponting (39) and Sachin Tendulkar (45) have more.

111. Who smashed an unbeaten belligerent 210 as West Zone created a world record by successfully chasing down 536 against South Zone to win the Duleep Trophy?
Yusuf Pathan
It was the biggest run chase in the history of first class cricket.

112. Name of the four-year medical course proposed by the Indian Health Ministry and Medical Council of India (MCI) which is aimed at meeting the public health challenges in rural areas?

Bachelor of Rural Health Care (BHRC). Earlier it is named as Bachelor of Rural Medicine and Surgery (BRMS).
The BRMS training will be given in three phases – the first two phases will have the duration of one year each and the final one will have 18 months. The internship will have six month duration.

113. Who have been chosen for the G.D. Birla International Award in art and culture category?
V.P. Dhananjayan and his wife Shantha Dhananjayan .
They will receive the award along with two social workers, Zokhumi Vankung of Mizoram for service to humanity and Percy Barnevik, a Swiss National, for his work in the rural areas of Tamil Nadu.

114. Chairman of news and current affairs channel -Channel Nepal – and largest cable operator Space Time Network, who was shot dead by unknown assailants in the capital Katmandu?
Jamim Shah

He was a Nepalese media entrepreneur had two newspapers (now closed) and a television channel “Channel Nepal”, which is the first satellite channel in Nepal.

115. Which country now joins Chile as the second country in Latin America to have a cabinet with gender parity?
Bolivia.
Bolivia’s cabinet comprised of 10 men and 10 women.

116. Name of the long-range missile successfully test-fired and launched by India on 07-02-2010 from Wheeler Island in the Bay of Bengal off the coast of Orissa.?
Agni-3.
The missile, which has a range capability of 3500-kilometers was flight tested by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). This was the fourth flight test in the Agni-3 series. The missile is 17 meters long and two metres in diameter. It was powered by a two-stage solid propellant system with a pay load capability of 1.5 tons.

117. Who won the Asian Tour International golf title held in Bangkok?
Gaganjeet Bhullar(India)
Asian Tour International is a golf tournament on the Asian Tour, played in Thailand. It has been held annually since 2008.

118. Which High Court recently struck down a state law providing 4% reservation in government jobs and educational institutions and jobs to 15 groups belonging to the Muslim community.?
Andhra Pradesh

119. Which pairs clinched their first ATP World Tour doubles Tennis title after a hard-fought 2-6, 6-3, 10-5 victory over Karol Beck and Harold Levy in the final of $4,42,500 South African Open in Johannesburg?
Rohan Bopanna and Aisam Qureshi

120. Which country recently tightened its immigration rules to favour higher-skilled workers over “hairdressers” and “cooks”, a revision that will lead to the rejection of an estimated 20,000 migration applications from foreign students, including Indians?
Australia

121. Who was sworn in as Ukraine’s new President?

Viktor Yanukovych

122. Which country cut ties with the British Museum on Sunday in protest at repeated delays in the loan to Tehran of an ancient Persian treasure, the Cyrus Cylinder?
Iran
The Cyrus cylinder, also known as the Cyrus the Great cylinder, is a document issued by the Persian ruler Cyrus the Great in the form of a clay cylinder inscribed in Akkadian cuneiform The cylinder was created following the Persian conquest of Babylon in 539 BC, when Cyrus overthrew the Babylonian king Nabonidus and replaced him as ruler, ending the Neo-Babylonian Empire. The text of the cylinder describes Nabonidus as impious and portrays the victorious Cyrus as pleasing to the chief Babylonian god Marduk. It goes on to describe how Cyrus had improved the lives of the citizens of Babylonia, repatriated displaced peoples and restored temples and cult sanctuaries.

123. Which country emerged triumphant at the 11th South Asian Games Women’s football tournament, beating Nepal 3-1 to win the gold medal at the event?
India

124. Name of the First 100% spy satellite of India which will be operational by 2014 to keep an eye on neighbouring regions?
Communication-Centric Intelligence Satellite (CCI-Sat) .
India in October 2001 has already entered the League of Nations having spy satellites – USA, Russia, Japan and Russia – with the launch of the Technology Experiment Satellite (TES). Besides TES, ISRO’s Cartosat series of satellites and the Radar Imaging Satellite (RISAT)-2 can also be used for surveillance and espionage.

125. Kerala’s first digital apartments which offer a slew of facilities opened recently at?
Kakkanad(Kochi)
Asset Homes, the new generation builder says its ‘digital’ apartment project at Kakkanad is the first such in the country. The two towers, ‘Silicon Heights’ and ‘Cyber Heights,’ have 90 apartments in a lakh and a half square feet of area. Some of the features of these apartments are automatic gates, boom barriers which open only for the owners, touch-button lobby doors, a security set-up with more than 40 cameras, wi-fi and voice-over Internet protocol phone.

126. ‘The Hunted- In search of Home and Hope’ was adjudged the best debut film of a Director in the recently concluded Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Short and Animation Films held at the Tata Theatre, N.C.P.A, Mumbai. Who is the director of the film?
Shaji Pattanam

Other Awards of Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Short and Animation Films :

Russian director Alexander Gutman’s ’17 August’ won the Golden Conch for the Best Documentary, while ‘The Spell’ directed by Umesh Kulkarni was adjudged the best fiction film.

Ritu Sarin and Sonam Tenzing’s documentary ‘The Sun behind the Clouds’ won the Silver Conch in the ‘Documentary above 30 minutes category. “Vagabond – A nomad in spirit and in reality” and ‘I Found a Thread’ jointly shared the Silver Conch award in the ‘Documentary under 30 minutes category.

In the fiction category, Vinoo Choliparambil’s ‘Vitthal’ won the Silver Conch. ‘Burma VJ- Reporting from a Closed Country ‘won the ‘Best Film of the Festival Award for the Producer’ .

Deepa Bhatia’s ‘Nero’s Guests’ received the Critics Award and Bejinxed’ won the Best Student Film award, instituted by the Indian Documentary Producers’ Association.

The V. Shantaram Award for Lifetime Achievement went to M.V. Krishnaswamy. Sanjay Jangir’s ‘Wait and Path’ won the Golden Conch in the Best Animation Film Category.

127. Which country won the men’s football gold medal in the South Asian Games held in Dhaka?
Bangladesh. They thrashed Afghanistan 4-0 to clinch their second men’s title.

128. Which country finished at top in the 11th South Asian Games held in Bangladesh with a total of 175 medals?
India.
India proved its supremacy clinching 90 gold, 55 silver and 30 bronze medals. Pakistan followed in the second place with 19 gold, 25 silver and 36 bronze medals while hosts Bangladesh finished at the third with 18 gold, 23 silver and 56 bronze medals.

129. Eminent economist, who was part of the team that chalked out the first five-year plan of India, died at the age of 85?
Dr.K.N.Raj

130. Malayalam cinema’s popular lyricist who has won the prestigious Kerala State Award for the best lyricist seven times and had written lyrics for about 400 films died recently at the age of 49?
Gireesh Puthenchery.

131. Name of the Iraqi freelance photographer who worked for Reuters has been released by the US military after 17 months in detention in Iraq?
Ibrahim Jassam

132. Which country declared a new food-safety campaign on 10-02-2010 after contaminated milk products from an earlier scandal showed up repackaged in several places around the country, exposing weaknesses in the country’s promise to stop such problems from happening again?
China

133. Which car company has decided to recall 437,763 vehicles globally over a problem with the driver’s airbag inflator?
Honda Motor Co

134. Who is appointed as the second chief of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), succeeding R V Raju who retired on January 31?
Sharad Chandra Sinha

135. Which country celebrated 31st anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution on February 11?
Iran

136. Thirty-two elderly people died in a country in South America because of a heat wave that has pushed temperatures to unseasonably high levels. Which is that country?
Brazil.
Brazil is the largest country in South America and the only Portuguese-speaking country in the Americas.

137. Name of Indian-origin woman who faced life sentence after being found guilty of poisoning her former lover to death, using an ancient Indian herb in the first such case in Britain in 128 years?
Lakhvir Kaur Singh.

138. Lawyer, who was defending one of the key accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks trial, was shot dead recently in his office?

Shahid Azmi
Shahid Azmi was representing Fahim Ansari, an Indian national accused of helping facilitate the attack on India’s financial capital in November 2008.

139. Defender of Brazil who played for Brazil when they won the World Cup for the first time in Sweden in 1958 has died from a heart attack at the age of 74?
Orlando Pecanha
Pecanha was capped 34 times for Brazil and was regarded as one of Brazil’s best ever defenders.

140. Which country has recently announced a permanent suspension of Google’s e-mail service claiming that it will be replaced by a new national service?
Iran

141. Former dictator of Uruguay who was sentenced to 30 years in prison for violating the constitution when he led a 1973 coup that began 12 years of dictatorship in Uruguay?
Juan Maria Bordaberry

142. INDIA has recently signed a civilian nuclear agreement with a country in New Delhi, similar to one it had signed earlier with seven other countries such as the US, France and Russia. Which is that country?
Britain

143. Deputy leader of Burma’s National League for Democracy Party who has been freed from seven years in detention by the Burma Government?

Tin Oo
He is a retired general, former commander in chief of the armed forces of Union of Myanmar, highly decorated soldier, pro-democracy activist and deputy leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD) in Myanmar.

144. Which country has dissolved the government and electoral commission, after a row over voter registration that threatened to derail his nation’s fragile peace process?
Ivory Cost
President Laurent Gbagbo dissolved the government.

145. Name the Indian-American professor hailing from Andhra Pradesh who was among three people killed when a woman lecturer allegedly opened fire during a faculty meeting at a university in Alabama after learning that she had been denied tenure?
Gopi K. Podila, chairman of the department of biological sciences at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. The other two killed, Maria Davis and Adriel Johnson, were associate professors of biology.

They were killed by another biology professor, a 42 year-old woman, Amy Bishop, also a professor and one of the star researchers of the university. She had opened fire at a biology faculty meeting held to decide her tenure.

146. A Georgian luger, who died in a horrific crash while in training just hours prior to the start of Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics in Canada?
Nodar Kumaritashvili.
He was thrown off the sled as it bounced over the rim of the fast track at the Whistler Sliding Centre at around 90mph and came to a halt after slamming into a pillar.

147. Somalia’s sports minister who has died in hospital in Saudi Arabia weeks after he was critically wounded in a suicide bombing at a medical graduation ceremony in Mogadishu?
Saleban Olad Roble

148. Who was elected chairman of the board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)?
Mohamed Shahrul Ikran Yaakob

149. Flagstones from a 1,500-year-old street were discovered during an excavation in the Old City of Israel. Where is that city located?
Jerusalem.
Archaeologists have found a 1,500-year-old Jerusalem road that was once a bustling through fare used by throngs of Christian pilgrims and which is depicted on a famed mosaic map of the Holy Land.

150. A controversial bronze statue of an American President as a 10-year-old boy has been removed recently by Indonesian authorities from a park in the capital Jakarta due to a public backlash when it was erected. Who is that president?
Barack Obama
The statue moved to a nearby elementary school that Obama once attended.

151. Indian businessman who bought the formerly British-owned East India Company recently?
Sanjiv Mehta.

152. Bangladesh’s Zia International Airport is to be renamed after 13th century Sufi saint after deleting the name of former president Ziaur Rahman. What is the name of that Sufi Saint?
Hazarat Shah Jalal.

153. Who became the 35th batsmen in the history of Test Matches to accumulate 7000 career runs in Test Matches?
V.V.S.Laxman

154. The Afghan Taliban leader, who was captured by U.S. and Pakistani forces in Pakistan on February 8, 2010, in the southern port city of Karachi?
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar
He is a co-founder of the Taliban movement in Afghanistan.

155. Which country has recently stopped issuing visas to citizens of 25 European nations?
Lybia.
Britain was exempted from the ban.

156. Who is appointed as the special envoy to the Organization of the Islamic Conference by US President Obama?
Rashad Hussain.
Obama has appointed a deputy White House counsel Rashad Hussain to be his representative to the Muslim world. Organization of the Islamic Conference is an intergovernmental group with 57 member countries from the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia, Caucasus, Balkans, Southeast Asia and South Asia .

157. According to a recent Commonwealth report, presidential polls in an Asian country did not ‘fully meet’ key benchmarks for democratic elections. Which is that country?
Sri Lanka.

158. Which district in Kerala is all set to be declared the first fully electrified district in India?
Palakkad

159. The Operation launched by Afghan and NATO forces in southern Afghanistan’s Helmand province on February 13, 2010, aiming at eradicating Taliban militants in Marjah district of this region?
Operation Moshtarak (“Operation Together”)

160. The celebrated Egyptian pharaoh, who ruled from around 1351-1334 BC, died of malaria and had a club foot, according to a new study that used the latest genetic testing to try and find out more about his life, and death?
Tutankhamun
He is often referred to as King Tut , died just nine years into his reign, which lasted from 1333-1324 BC.

161. Who is appointed as the Chairman of the high level Empowered Committee to go into all aspects (except legal and constitutional issues) of the Maullaiperiyar dam dispute between the States of Tamil Nadu and Kerala?
A. S. Anand.
He is the former Chief Justice of India.

162. The government of Kerala recently decided to constitute a Pay Commission to recommend revision of scales for government employees and teachers in the state. The pay commission is headed by?
Justice Rajendra Babu.

163. The second tiger reserve in Kerala after the Periyar Tiger Reserve which will be integrated ecologically with the 960 sq km Anamalai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu situated at?
Parambikulam.
The proposed 460.30 sq km Parambikulam tiger reserve inaugurated on February 17, 2010.

164. Name of the military junta that seized power in a military coup in the African country Niger?
Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy (SCRD).
They captured President Mamadou Tandja and his ministers in a four-hour gun battle
Salou Djibo is the leader of CSRD.
Junta means the ruling council of a military dictatorship.

165. India’s premier international airline, which recently announced that it will commence daily non-stop flights from Mumbai to Johannesburg from April 14,2010?
Jet Airways.

166. The United Nations’ (UN) top climate official, unexpectedly announced that he will resign in July – after December’s failed summit in Copenhagen dealt a blow to his climate change ambitions?
Bonn – Yvo de Boer.

167. Who won the first British female Winter Olympic gold in 30 years with victory in women’s skeleton?
Amy Williams

168. Name of the Buddhist monk who was sentenced to seven years imprisonment in Myanmar for violating immigration laws in relation to a trip he took to Taiwan, unlawful association, and for failing to declare foreign currency?
Gaw Thita.
He was arrested at Yangon International Airport in August along with seven other monks who were later released without charge.

169. Who was elected unopposed as the working chairman of NDA(National Democratic Alliance) till incumbent Atal Bihari Vajpayee recovers from ill-health?
L K Advani
Sharad Yadav has been elected as the convenor.

170. Which film won the 2010 Writers Guilds Award for original screen play?
The Hurt Locker

Awards List:
Original Screen Play: Mark Boal (Film:The Hurt Locker)
Adapted Screen Play: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner Based upon the novel by Walter Kirn(Film:Up in the Air)
Documentary film: The cove (Written by Mark Monroe)

Actor, comedian and singer Jason Alexander, who is best known for his role as George Costanza on the television series “Seinfeld”, presented the 2010 Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for Television to writer/actor/producer Larry David.

171. Who won Silver Bear for best director for the film ‘Ghost Writer’ at 60th Berlin film festival?
Roman Polanski.

172. Which film won the Golden Bear for best picture at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival?
“Bal” (Honey)
The film is a Turkish-German production directed by Semih Kaplanoglus

173. Who won the Morgan Keegan Tennis Championships in Memphis beating Sharapova former Memphis champion Sofia Arvidsson 6-2, 6-1 in final?
Maria Sharapova

174. Who won the WTA Dubai Tennis title defeating Belarusian Victoria Azarenka 6-3 7-5 in the final?
Venus Williams.

175. Which film won six BAFTA Awards in London including the award of best film?
Hurt Locker.
BAFTA AWARDS:
Best Film – The Hurt Locker
Leading Actor – Colin Firth (A Single Man)
Leading Actress – Carey Mulligan (An Education)
Supporting Actor – Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)
Supporting Actress – Mo’Nique (Precious)
Outstanding British Film – Fish Tank
Outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer – Duncan Jones (director – Moon)
Director – Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)
Original Screenplay – The Hurt Locker (Mark Boal)
Adapted Screenplay – Up In The Air (Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner)
Film not in the English language – A Prophet
Animated Film – Up
Music – Up (Michael Giacchino)
Cinematography – The Hurt Locker
Editing – The Hurt Locker
Production design – Avatar
Costume Design – The Young Victoria
Sound – The Hurt Locker
Special visual effects – Avatar
Make-up & hair – The Young Victoria
Short animation – Mother Of Many
Short film – I Do Air
The Orange Rising Star Award (voted for by the public) – Kristen Stewart

176. Who becomes the first woman to win ‘Best Director’ award in BAFTA awards?

Kathryn Bigelow
She is the director of the film “Hurt Locker “.

177. Name of the New Unmanned Aircraft that can remain in the air for over 24 hours which has been added to Israeli Air Force family?
‘Eitan’
The drone named ‘Eitan’ meaning ‘Strong’ in Hebrew is said to be 24 meters long and 26 meters wide wingspan. The drone which weighs about 4.5 tones and it can fly to and from Persian Gulf.
Drone means a pilotless aircraft operated by remote control.

178. The leader of the Sunni Muslim militant group “Jundullah” arrested recently by Iran authorities?Abdolmalek Rigi.

179. Leaders of 32 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean, meeting in Mexico, decided to exclude two countries from membership of a new organization for countries on the American continents. Name of that countries?United States of America (U.S.A) and Canada.

180. Indian-origin woman who has became the first woman Leader of the Opposition in the Trinidad and Tobago parliament, ousting former premier Basdeo Panday from the post?Kamla Persad-Bissessar

181. Which country has swept the Commonwealth Shooting Championship with a whopping 49 medals?India.
India won 23 gold, 17 silver and 9 bronze medals. England finished a distant second with 31 medals and badges, while Wales ended third on the table after winning 13 medals and badges.

182. A prominent Indian hotelier who has been presented the Community Award in recognition of his outstanding philanthropic work in the UK?Joginder Sangar