CURRENT AFFAIRS 

1.The Indian Space Research Organization has identified 17 technologies at lower costs from Indian startups to use in the Gaganyaan mission.

Technologies identified include food and medicine for astronauts, life support systems, inflatable habitats, thermal protection technologies and anti-radiation technologies. 

ISRO will also share its intellectual properties with the companies participating in the mission.

2.India joined 61 other countries in the World Health Organization to identify the source of COVID-19. China and the US are not a part of the resolution.

The countries together moved a proposal at the WHO to identify the zoonotic sources.Only three permanent members of the United Nations Security Council have backed the resolution namely Russia, France, and the UK. 

The other countries to support the resolution include South Korea, Japan, Australia, South Africa, India, New Zealand, etc.

3.The Bundesliga of Germany becomes the world’s first major sports event to resume after COVID-19 lockdown. Though sports events are beginning, they will not be played the same way. 

The Bundesliga games began with an empty stadium though the stadium had the capacity to hold more than 80,000 players. The players are being tested twice a week.

4.The scientists from New Zealand have discovered the “Super-Earth”. It potentially holds the conditions to sustain human life.

The super-earth is one of the handful of planets discovered that are of the same size and orbiting distance as that of the earth. The host star of the planet is 10% the mass of the sun.

5.The Cyclonic storm Amphan in the Bay of Bengal has intensified into a severe cyclonic storm.

The cyclone is to cross West Bengal-Bangladesh coasts on May 20, 2020. The National Disaster Response Force has sent 7 teams to West Bengal and 10  teams to Odisha to aid the state government in its relief measures.

QUESTIONS 

1.For which sector the central government has introduced a new scheme of providing interest subvention of 2% per annum for working capital loans (in May 2020)?

ANS:Dairy sector

2.Name the ministry which has launched an initiative named GOAL – Going Online As Leaders in partnership with Facebook.

ANS: Ministry of Tribal Affairs

3.The Union Health and Family Welfare minister Harsh Vardhan has dedicated which COVID-19 testing machine to the nation recently?

ANS:COBAS 6800

4.The central government has declared the ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ system completely to roll out in all UTs and states from _________.

ANS: March 2021

5.The police of which state/UT got India’s first ‘Thermal Corona Combat Headgear’ to ensure the safety of frontline warriors and enforce social distancing?

ANS:Delhi

STATIC QUESTIONS 

1.The Vijayawada is situated on _____

ANS:Krishna

2.Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya or National Museum of Humankind or Museum of Man is an anthropology museum located in______

ANS: Madhya Pradesh

3.Who started the newspaper “Mooknayak”?

ANS:BR Ambedkar

4.The book “The Feather of the Dawn” was written by ______?

ANS:Sarojini Naidu

5.Which of the following is known as the ‘Land of white elephants’?

ANS:Thailand

Source: The Hindu, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, Press Information Bureau website