December 2009

791. Fugitive former Thailand Prime minister who was appointed as economic advisor to the Cambodian government, in a move that adds to tensions between the countries?
Thaksin Shinawatra
792. Name the U.S. Army psychiatrist who has killed 13 people and wounded 30 others in a bloody rampage at the Fort Hood military base in Texas?
Major Nidal Malik Hasan
793. Eminent public health expert of Kerala who passed away recently at the age of 71?
Dr. C.R. Soman
794. Renowned scientist and former Director of UGC who has been selected for the prestigious Kalinga Prize 2009.?
Professor Yash Pal. The award is given by UNESCO for popularisation of science.
795. Which country won gold medal in men’s kabbadi, in the third Asian Indoor Games in Vietnam?
India
796. Who is appointed as the new captain of Kolkatta Knight Rider’s Team for IPL-3?
Saurav Ganguly
Coach: David Whatmore
Wasim Akram selected as mentor for the Kolkata Knight Riders.
797. A never-seen-before Charlie Chaplin film was recently found in a nitrate film tin by a man who bought it on eBay for £3.20. Name of that previously unseen Charlie Chaplin movie which could be worth up to £40,000?
‘Charlie Chaplin in Zepped’
798. Which team claims the 2009 AFC Champions League title with a 2-1 victory over Al Ittihad at the National Stadium in Tokyo?
Pohang Steelers of South Korea. The title was Pohang’s third continental triumph (following Asian Club Championship wins in 1997 and 1998) and means they become the most successful team in Asian football history.
799. Coach of triple Olympic and World Championship gold medalist Usain Bolt and president of the Racers Track Club, who has resigned after 22 years as head of the Jamaican national track and field team?
Glen Mills
800. Who won the Man of the Match award in the second ODI between New Zealand and Pakistan held in Abudabi?
Brendan McCullum. He scored 131 runs (His second ODI century) and New Zealand beat Pakistan by 64 runs.
801. Name of the online reservation system of Kerala Road Transport Corporation inaugurated by Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan recently?
Sarathy
802. Who won the Man of the series award of recently concluded ODI series between India and Australia?
Shane Watson. Australia won the seven match series by 4-2. The last match abandoned due to rain.
Man of the Match of Sixth ODI: – Doug Bollinger. Australia won that match in Guwahati
803. Which country won the Asia Cup hockey championship-2009 for women held in Bangkok?
China.
China inflicted a 5-3 defeat on India to regain the trophy. China had won the trophy last in 1989 at Hong Kong.
804. Which country won the Fed Cup women’s tennis title with a comfortable 4-0 win over the United States in Reggio Calabria.?
Italy
805. India’s National Academy of Letters, Sahitya Akademi, recently signed a MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) with a digital technology leader to institute the ‘Tagore Literature Awards ‘ named after the legendary Shri Rabindranath Tagore. Name that electronics giant?
Samsung. The award will recognize the best of literary contributions by writers in 8 Indian languages – Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Telugu and Bodo
806. Who is re-elected unopposed as the president of Asian Athletic Association (AAA) in Guangzhou, China, to serve his third consecutive term at the office?
Suresh Kalmadi, Indian Olympic Association chief. He was elected for another four-year term (2009-13)
807. Who won the Charlottesville Challenger ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Challenger tournament?
Kevin Kim (U.S.A). He beat Somdev Devvarman in the final.
808. Who is the new Director of ISRO Inertial Systems Unit (IISU), Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala?
T.R. Chidambaram
809. Who won the Swiss Indoors Tennis title beating Roger Federer in the final?
Novak Djokovic. He beat Roger Federer in his own backyard to win the Swiss Indoors final 6-4 4-6 6-2 in Basle.
810. Which state won the South Zone inter-state badminton championship held in Andra Pradesh?
Andra Pradesh
Guru Sai Dutt (Andra Pradesh) beat Ram C. Vijay (Kerala) in the boys’ final
Sikki Reddy, Girl’s Champion
811. Who was chosen for the C.K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award 2008-2009 by BCCI (Board of Control of Cricket in India)?
Mohinder Amarnath
812. 124 people have been killed by floods and mudslides in El Salvador after the Central American nation was battered by a Hurricane. Name of that storm?
Hurricane Ida
813. Who won the Man of the Match award in the first ODI between South Africa and Zimbabwe held at the Willowmoore Park, Benoni, South Africa, 8th of November 2009?
Tatenda Taibu. He remains unbeaten on 103 runs. South Africa won the match by 45 runs
814. On the first day of the new Maharashtra assembly, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) legislators roughed up a member of Samajwadi Party for taking the oath of office in Hindi. Name of that SP member?
Abu Asim Azmi. Maharashtra Legislative Assembly suspended four Maharashtra Navnirman Sena members for four years on charges of assaulting Samajwadi Party MLA Abu Asim Azmi. The suspended MLA’s are Shishir Shinde, Ram Kadam, Ramesh Wanzale and Vasant Gite
815. First Muslim lady who will serve as minister in the Maharashtra government?
Fauzia Khan

Read More

Current Affairs

November 2009

750. Who becomes the first Indian to make a fifty while batting at No.9 against Australia?
Praveenkumar. He became the first batsman from India to post a fifty on Indian soil while batting at No.9 position
751. The Income Tax department recently conducted nationwide raids at 70 addresses linked to former Jharkhand Chief Minister who has possessing assets worth Rs 2000 crores. Name of that former Jharkhand CM who is now a MP?
Madhu Koda
752. Chief Minister V. S. Achuthanandan of Kerala laid foundation for States first Border Security Force (BSF) unit in which place?
Kainur village in Thrissur district.
753. A modern space science complex of international standards is to be set up by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in South India. Where is it?
Ponmudi hills in Thiruvananthapuram District, Kerala
754. Who has been inducted as SP of the prestigious National Investigation Agency (NIA)?
T.K. Rajmohan
755. Who won the Man of the Match award in the third One Day International Cricket between India and Australia held in Delhi?
Yuvraj Singh. India beat Aussies by 6 wickets
756. Who has claimed the top slot as the highest tax payer in the country for the current fiscal?
Lalit Modi, the Indian Premier League chief.
757. China’s keystone space scientist, widely acclaimed as the country’s “father of space technology” and “king of rocketry”, died of illness recently at the age of 98?
Tsien Hsue-shen.
He has also gone by the name of Qian Xuesen
758. The massive fire at which depot of Indian Oil Corporation destroys Rs 1000 crore, ruins several lives?
Jaipur’s Indian Oil Corporation depot
759. Which documentaries have been recently nominated for the prestigious 5th CMS VATAVARAN, environment and wildlife film festival, held at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi?
‘My Purple Sunbird’ directed by Sunil Raj
‘Kaanam – Life Story of a Midland Hill’ by Babu Kambrath
760. Indian who was elected as member of the Italian Democratic Party National assembly?
Sibi Kumaramangalam
761. Who is appointed as the chief justice of Himachal Pradesh?
Justice Kurian Joseph. He is the senior most judge of the Kerala High Court
762. Who has been appointed first Goodwill Ambassador of the ‘Smile Train,’ an international charity that provides free cleft lip and palate surgery to children in need?
Aishwarya Rai Bachan
763. The Supreme Court Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India KG Balakrishnan has dropped the name of Karnataka High Court Justice from the list of those recommended for elevation to the Supreme Court. Name of that justice?
Justice PD Dinakaran
764. Name of the typhoon, the fourth in a month, which has hit Manila in the Philippines bringing with it heavy rain, flooding and a tropical storm?
Typhoon Mirinae.
Typhoon Ketsana was the first to hit this region at the end of September. About 420 people died in that storm and tens of thousands of people are still living in shelters after their homes washed away. This was followed up by Typhoon Parma that killed over 430 people and destroyed 55,000 houses. Typhoon Lupit was the third typhoon to hit the area last week.
765. Who emerged as the winner of Airtel Delhi Half Marathon in the male category?
Deriba Merga of Ethiopia.
Marry Kitney succeeded in winning the title in women category. Around 30,000 people participated in the Airtel Delhi half Marathon 2009.
766. Name the Jammu Kashmir ‘braveheart’ who killed a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist has been appointed as the Special Police Officer (SPO) in the Jammu Kashmir police force recently ?
Rukhsana Kausar.
Rukhsana, who hails from Kalsi village in upper Shahdhara area of Rajouri district, 180 km north of Jammu, had grappled with LeT terrorists who entered her home, grabbed an AK-47 from one and shot him dead. The terrorist killed was Abu Osama, LeT commander.
767. Kerala High Court Judge who resigned from his post on 2nd November 2009 citing personal reasons?
Justice V Giri.
He was the first permanent judge of Kerala High court who resigned from his post. Justice K P Dandapani is the only judge of the Kerala High Court to have resigned before him. But he was not permanent at that time.
768. Which public sector company has won “SCOPE AWARD” for Excellence and Outstanding contribution to Public Sector Management – Special Institutional (Turnaround) Category 2007-08?
Heavy Engineering Corporation Ltd, Ranchi
769. Who won the Man of the Match award in the fourth One Day international Cricket match between India and Australia held in Mohali?
Shane Watson. He scored 49 runs and took 3 wickets.
Australia won the match by 24 runs.
770. American company which is a major lender to hundreds of thousands of small and medium-sized businesses, filed for bankruptcy recently, as the global financial crisis left it unable to fund itself and the recession clobbered its loans?
CIT Group Inc
Bankruptcy is also a blow for the U.S. government, which invested $2.33 billion in CIT in December through the Troubled Asset Relief Program and will likely lose most of it.
771. Who won the WTA championship-2009 held in Doha?
Serena Williams. She defeated her sister and defending champion Venus 6-2 7-6(4) in the WTA Championships final in Doha.
772. Who is the winner of Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2009 Race?
Sebastian Vettel
773. Who is the Chairman of the International Jury of 33rd International Film Festival held at Cairo?
Adoor Gopalakrishnan.
774. Which Indian film won the Silver Award at the just concluded 33rd Cairo International Film Festival?
“Mudhal Mudhal Mudhal Varai” (Tamil Film) directed by Krishnan Seshadri Gomatam
775. The legendary French anthropologist and philosopher who passed away recently in his Paris home at the age of 100?
Claude Levi-Strauss. One of his more influential fields of study involved the observation of tribes in Brazil and North America.
776. Who has been conferred the Fellow Membership of the Kolkata-based National Institute of Personnel Management?
Dr George Sleeba, Chairman and Managing Director of FACT, Kerala
777. Who was re-elected president of the United Arab Emirates for a second five-year term?
Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan
778. Who won the Man of the Series Award in the ODI Cricket Series between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe?
Abdur Razzak (Bangladesh). Bangladesh won the 5 match series 4-1
779. Which country’s central bank bought 200 metric tons of gold from the International Monetary Fund last month, in the first major move by a major central bank to diversify its foreign-exchange reserves?
India.
Reserve Bank of India bought 200 metric tons of gold to manage its foreign-exchange reserves.
780. Which team was banned by BCCI from this year’s Ranji Trophy cricket Season for skipping a match against Jammu and Kashmir in Srinagar citing security reasons?
Services.
The Services cricket team is a domestic cricket team in the Elite Group of the Ranji Trophy, the main domestic competition in India.
781. Which country made the fifth lowest total in one-day cricket by making only 44 runs to their account?
Zimbabwe.
Bangladesh bowlers demolished Zimbabwe for 44 runs in the fourth ODI match, the fifth lowest total in one-dayers. Nazmul Hossain, who started the slide with his 2 wickets for 10 runs and took a brilliant catch, was adjudged the man of the match
782. Who has won the World Junior girls chess championship at Puerto Madryn in Argentina on November 3, 2009?
Soumya Swaminathan. She is from Pune, India.
783. Who won the Man of the Match award in the first ODI of the Cool & Cool Cup at Abu Dhabi between New Zealand and Pakistan?
Shahid Afridi. He won this award for his 70runs and 2 wickets for 46.Pakistan won the match by a whooping margin of 138 runs.
784. The tropical Storm which slammed Vietnam’s central coast on November-2, 2009, unleashing heavy rains and winds and forcing more than 80,000 people to evacuate?
Mirinae. The death toll from Tropical Storm Mirinae in central Vietnam has risen to 109.
785. Which African country establishes satellite medical link with India recently?
Sierra Leone. Officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa has launched a satellite link-up known as telemedicine so that doctors in this country can seek advice from their colleagues in India.
786. A British-German scientist’s team recently has identified the old ancestor of the world’s most infamous predator, Tyrannosaurus rex which is a dinosaur. Name of that 165-million-year-old dinosaur lived during the middle Jurassic Period?
Proceratosaurus, the two-legged meat-eater would have measured about 3m long and weighed up to 60kg.
787. Which state won Indira Priyadarshini Vriksha Mitra Award-07 for the best contribution in tree planting activities and Indira Priyadarshini Vriksha Mitra Award-08 for increasing forest & tree cover in the State?
Kerala
789. Twelve-year-old boy who made a World record in inter-school cricket by smacking a mammoth 439 in the prestigious Harris Shield tournament at the MB Union Cricket Club grounds, Cross Maidan?
Sarfaraz Khan..
Harris Shield is the tournament in which Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli piled up a world record 664 runs for the third wicket in February 1988, helping their school, Shardashram Vidyamandir, to score 748 for 2 in 122 overs against St Xavier’s School at Azad Maidan.
790. Who won the Man of the Match award in the fifth ODI cricket match between India and Australia held on 5th November, 2009 at Uppal, Hyderabad?
Sachin Tendulkar. He scored 175 runs and that was his 45 th ODI century. Australia won the match by 3 runs.

Read More

General Knowledge in India

October 2009

612. In which place of Kerala, one of the worst boat tragedies in its history occurred, after Kerala Tourism Development Corporation’s new double-decker boat ‘Jalakanyaka’ carrying 74 tourists capsized that claimed 45 lives on September 30,2009?
Periyar Reservoir at Thekkady
613. Name the place where a powerful Pacific Ocean earthquake spawned towering tsunami waves which hit on September 29 that killing more than 113 people and leaving dozens of workers missing?
Samoa Islands in the central South Pacific
614. Name of the Tropical Storm that hits Philippines on September 26, 2009 killing 246 people and causing massive flooding in the region?
Ketsana
615. Name the top American official at the U.N. mission in Afghanistan who has been ordered out of the country after he disagreed with superiors over how to deal with widespread fraud charges from the presidential election in Afghanistan?
Peter Galbraith
616. Former Haryana chief minister (from March to November 1967), who was also a former cabinet minister in 1980-84 and held various portfolios including agriculture, rural development as well as food and supplies died recently ?
Rao Birender Singh
617. Former 100 meter world champion who has announced his retirement recently from international competition.
Kim Collins
618. Eminent singer who has been selected for the Dada Saheb Phalke Award for the year 2007 which carries a Cash Prize of Rs. 10 lakh, a Swaran Kamal and a Shawl?
Shri Manna Dey
619. Which company has agreed to arrange 2.2 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per year that NTPC (National Thermal Power Corporation) Ltd will use to fuel its southern India plant at Kayamkulam, Kerala which is currently running on naphtha?
Petronet LNG
620. A rare 507 carat white diamond, considered being among the top 20 largest high quality rough diamonds ever found worldwide was discovered recently from which place?
The Cullinan Mine near Pretoria in South Africa. The diamond is discovered by the Mining group Petra Diamond, London-listed Company.
621. Which country celebrated 60years of Communist rule with a spectacular military and civilian parade through the centre of its capital city?
China
622. In which place of India, geologists recently have found a cluster of dinosaur eggs, said to be about 65 million years old?
A village in Ariyalur District of Tamil Nadu.
623. Nick name of the oldest known fossil skeleton of a human ancestor—a female Ardipithecus ramidus specimen which has been found recently?
“Ardi”
Picture courtesy J. H. Matternes via Science/AAAS
624. Turkish journalist who threw a shoe at IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn in Istanbul ahead of key meetings on the economic crisis, as rallies set to bring thousands into the streets got underway?
Selcuk Ozbek
625. Legendary Film director who was arrested in Switzerland for the rape of then 13-year-old Samantha Geimer on a 31-year-old international arrest warrant as he arrived to attend the Zurich Film Festival?
Roman Polanski
626. Who became the third batsman to reach 12,000 one-day international (ODI) runs?
Ricky Ponting
Other two are Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya.
627. Who won Pan Pacific Open tennis title-2009?
Maria Sharapova
She won the Toray Pan Pacific Open title when Jelena Jankovic retired because of an arm injury in the first set.
628. Marking the International Day of Non-Violence, which organization has recently released a stamp of Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion of his 140th birth anniversary?
The United Nations
629. Which country will host the 2016 Olympics?
Brazil.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will host the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.
Brazil will also host the World Cup Football-2014
630. The last surviving leader of the ill-fated 1943 Warsaw ghetto revolt against the Nazis, died at the age of 90?

Photo by Kubik- Marek Edelman
During the World War II, he co-founded the Jewish Combat Organization. He took part in the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, becoming its leader after the death of Mordechaj Anielewicz. He also took part in the city-wide 1944 Warsaw Uprising.
631 Expelled BJP leader Jaswant Singh is leading a non-BJP, non-Congress group of MPs in Parliament, which seeks to play the role of a “critical opposition”. Name that group of Independent MPs who have come together due to ‘commonality of issues’.
The Lok Morcha
632. The doyen of Indian rationalist movement, a vocal atheist, skeptic and caustic critic of Sathya Sai Baba, died on October 4th 2009 at the Abhirami Hospital in Coimbatore?
Basava Premanand
633. Who has won Formula One’s Japanese Grand Prix 2009 title?
Sebastian Vettel
634. Who has won the European Golden Shoe for the second time after scoring 32 goals for Atletico Madrid in the Spanish league this season?
Diego Forlan
635. Who won Nobel Prize for physics in 2009?
The Nobel Prize in physics will be awarded to Americans.
1. Charles K. Kao,
2. Willard S. Boyle and
3. George E. Smith.
Kao was honored for discovering how to transmit light signals long distance through hair-thin glass fibers.
Boyle and Smith received the prize for opening the door to digital cameras by inventing a sensor that turns light into electrical signals
636. Who was sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Greece after his party PASOK won recent Parliamentary Elections?
George Papandreou. His party, i.e. the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) has won 160 out of 300 seats
637. Which country won the Champions Trophy Cricket title-2009 held in South Africa?
Australia. They beat New Zealand in the final by 6 wickets
Man of the Match in the Final: Shane Watson (For his match-winning innings of unbeaten 105 of 129 balls)
Man of the Series: Ricky Ponting
638. List the name of scientists who are selected for 2009 Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award for Science and Technology which is given to scientists below 45 years of age, for their outstanding scientific contributions made primarily in India during the last 5 years proceeding the year of the Prize?
Biological Sciences:
1. Dr Amitabh Joshi, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Banglore and
2. Dr Bhaskar Saha, National Centre for Cell Science, Pune.
Chemical Sciences:
3. Dr Charusita chakravarty, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi and 4.Dr Narayanaswamy Jayaraman, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean & Planetary Sciences:
5. Dr S K Satheesh, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
Engineering Sciences:
6. Dr Giridhar Madras, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and
7.Dr Jayant Ramaswamy Haritsa, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
Mathematical Sciences:
8. Dr Venapally Suresh, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad
Medical Sciences:
9. Dr Santosh Gajanan Honavar, L V Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad
Physical Sciences:
10. Dr Rajesh Gopakumar, Harish-Chandra research Institute, Allahabad and
11. Dr Abhishek Dhar, Raman Research Institute, Bangalore
Shri Prithviraj Chavan also gave away CSIR Young Scientist Award 2009
639. One of the main orchestrators of the Rwandan 1994 genocide who has been arrested in Kampala, the Ugandan capita?
Idelphonse Nizeyimana
Known as the Butcher of Butare, Nizeyimana is accused of being one of the “top four” men who directed the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. He is believed to have ordered the execution of Rosalie Gicanda, the Queen of Rwanda and the head of the Tutsi tribe.
640. Who has been appointed as the Advisor to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Infrastructure, Innovation and Information?
Sam Pitroda. He is now the Chairman National Knowledge Commission.
641. Who won Nobel Prize for Chemistry-2009?
1. Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (USA)
2. Thomas Steitz (USA)
3. Ada Yonath (Israel)
Ada is the first woman to receive it since 1964
Award is given for creating detailed blueprints of ribosomes, the protein-making machinery within cells, research that’s being used to develop new antibiotics.
642. Who won Man Booker Prize Award-2009?
Hilary Mantel. This British novelist won the award for her gripping 16th century tale titled “Wolf Hall”
643. Name the French Tourism Company which bought Mahatma Gandhi’s house in South Africa for an amount of $377,029 outbidding other bidders including Indians?
Voyageurs du Monde. The company plans to turn the property into a Gandhi museum in line with its philosophy of investing in heritage properties worldwide and Gandhiji lived in the house from 1908 to 1910.
644. Which animal has been declared as ‘National Aquatic Animal’ by Government of India?
‘Dolphin
GANGA DOLPHIN, locally known as ‘Sauns’ has been declared as ‘National Aquatic Animal’. In India, they live more in Ganga River.
645. The former head of Interpol and South Africa’s national police chief who went on trial accused of corruption.
Photo:AFP
Jackie Selebi
Mr Selebi is accused of taking money and gifts from a notorious alleged gangster, Glenn Agliotti,
646. Who won National Snooker Championship title-2009?
Pankaj Adwani. He defeated Saurabh Kothari in final.
Pankaj Adwani also won the National Billiards Title-2009 defeating Geet Sethi in a nerve-wracking final.
647. National women’s billiards title-2009 is won by?
Meenal Thakur. She defeated her younger sister Anuja Chandra in the final.
648. Who won Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine -2009?
1. Elizabeth H. Blackburn (U.S.A)
2. Carol W. Greider (U.S.A)
3. Jack W. Szostak (U.S.A)
They got this award for discovering how chromosomes protect themselves as cells divide, work that has inspired experimental cancer therapies and may offer insights into aging.
649. Which team won the Irani Trophy Cricket title for 2009-10?
Rest of India. They won the title on the basis of their first innings lead against Renji Trophy Champions Mumbai as a wet outfield ruled out any play on the last day of the match
650. Who has been selected for the 24th Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration for the year 2008?
Balraj Puri.He is a leading political commentator and eminent journalist.
651. Which country tops the list of the countries with the highest quality of life according to the annual Human Development Index, unveiled by the U. N. Development Program?
Norway. According to this index, Norway is the best country in the world in which to live.
Niger comes in last position and India ranks 134th out of 182 countries in the world.
652. Who won Nobel Prize-in literature of this year?
The award is given to Germany’s Herta Mueller, a Romanian-born writer honored for work that “with the concentration of poetry and the frankness of prose, depicts the landscape of the dispossessed.”
653. Which state won IBN 7 Diamond state award for “India’s best big state” for their overall performance and significant contribution to the development of the state?
Kerala.
“India’s best small state award” is won by Goa.
The award is given by IBN 7 network in partnership with Outlook magazine.
654. Winner of The Wisden Cricketer magazine’s World Test Player of the Year 2009 award?
Shakib Al Hasan, Bangladesh all rounder
655. The tropical storm that hits Japan on October 8 killing two people and shuttering factories, closing schools and stranding commuters and travelers at airports and train stations?
Typhoon Melor
656. According to the QS/Times Higher Education rankings, which university retained the top position among the top 100 varsities of the world?
Harvard University (U.S.A).
None of the Indian universities figure among the top 100 varsities of the world
Second spot-Cambridge University (Britain)
657. Which team won the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy of 2009?
India Red
India Red, under the captaincy of S Badrinath defeated Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led India Blues by 7 wickets in the final.
658. One of the greatest writers of Gothic fiction who has given funeral 160 years after his mysterious death?
Edgar Allan Poe He has been honoured with a second funeral service on October 10, 2009.
659. Boyzone singer, who has been found dead at the age of 33 while on holiday with his partner Andrew in Mallorca.
Stephen Gately
660. Indian sound engineer who was recently inducted into the Motion pictures Academy, the members of which can cast their votes for the list of Oscar nominees?
Rasool Pookutty
661. Pope Benedict XVI canonized five new saints on 11th of October-2009. Name the five saints.
1. Jozef De Veuster, better known as Father Damien was a Roman Catholic priest from Belgium and he won recognition for his ministry to people with leprosy
2. Zygmunt Szczesny Felinski, a Polish bishop who kept championing Catholicism after Russia shut down Polish churches in retaliation for the Polish uprising against Russia in Warsaw in 1861.
3. Jeanne Jugan, a French nun who set up an order that runs homes for destitute around the world.
4. Francisco Coll y Guitart, a Spaniard who founded an order of Dominicans in the 19th century.
5. Rafael Arnaiz Baron, a Spaniard, who wrote extensively about spirituality before his death at age 27.
662. Countries which have signed a historic peace agreement recently ending a century of hostility – hostility that stemmed from the World War One mass killing of Armenians by Ottoman forces?
Turkey and Armenia
663. A former TV crime show host and state legislator accused of commissioning killings to boost ratings turned him in to authorities and was jailed on homicide and drug trafficking charges?
Wallace Souza
664. Who has been awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize?
Barack Obama, US President.
665. Canada’s first space tourist and also the world’s first Space Clown who returned from International Space station on October 11, 2009?
Guy Laliberte
666. Who is the new President of International Academy of Astronautics?
G Madhavan Nair. (Former ISRO Chairman)
667. Who won the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences?
Elinor Ostrom and Oliver Williamson for their work in economic governance.
Ostrom was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences since it was founded in 1968.
668. The Deputy Prime Minister of Nepal?
Sujata Koirala
669. Name of the previously unreleased song by Michael Jackson which was unveiled to the world almost four months after the star’s death?
“This Is It”
670. Sweden striker who announced his retirement from International Football recently?
Henrik Larsson. Larsson retired in 2002 but returned to international action two years later.
671. Who are the co-winners of the 2009 Right Livelihood Award, known as “Alternative Nobel”, for their work in campaigning against nuclear weapons, protecting the rain forests of Congo and raising awareness about climate change?
1. Alyn Ware of New Zealand
2. Rene Ngongo of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
3. David Suzuki of Canada
4. Catherine Hamlin of Australia who won the award for treating women in Ethiopia suffering from obstetric fistula.
672. Who has received the 2009 Golden Foot award?
Ronaldinho, Brazilian Striker
673. New Zealand all-rounder who retired from Test cricket to prolong his career in the shorter formats of the game?
Jacob Oram
674. Who is the new director of National Cricket Academy of India?
Sandeep Patel
675. Indian footballer who was a part of the 1956 Melbourne Olympics squad that finished fourth, which is India’s best finish in Olympic football, died recently?
Keshto Pal
676. India has signed a civil nuclear pact with which country that encourages and support scientific technical and commercial co-operation for mutual benefit in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy?
Argentina. Argentina has become the seventh country, following US, France, Russia, Kazakhstan, Namibia and Mongolia, with which India has signed a civil nuclear agreement.
677. Argentina qualified for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa following a 1-0 away victory over arch rival Uruguay in Montevideo. Who scored that goal for Argentina?
Mario Bolatti.He scored the goal in the 84th minute.
678. Who is appointed as the new member of the Supreme Court Collegium after retirement of the second senior most apex court judge Justice B N Agarwal?
Justice R V Raveendran.
Supreme Court Collegium, headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan, has Justices H S Kapadia, Tarun Chatterjee and Altamas Kabir as the members.
679. India recently signed the Military Technical Cooperation Agreement with which country?
Russia.
India and Russia signed two defence deals at the conclusion of the Sixth Meeting of the India – Russia Inter Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC). The first agreement would be on extending the military technical cooperation for ten years from 2011 to 2020 and the second relates to after-sales product support for defence equipment of Russian origin.
680. Countries which are qualified for World Cup-Football 2010 as the 20th and 21st nations for the 32-team World Cup, scheduled for next June in South Africa?
Switzerland and Slovakia.
This is Slovakia’s first World Cup. They achieved the landmark by beating Poland 1-0
681. Who has been appointed as the captain of the Australia Twenty20 team?
Michael Clark
Vice Captain: Cameron White
682. Indian-American billionaire who has been featured in Forbes annual list of America’s 200 Best Small Companies among “eight self-made stars who have built tidy empires in an array of industries”?
Bharat Desai
683. The Country which decided to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s telescope and the U.N.-designated International Year of Astronomy recently?
Vatican
684. The first African country to win the under-20 World Cup Football after beating four-time champions Brazil 4-3 in a penalty shoot out in the final held in Cairo ?
Ghana
685. Veteran Journalist, publisher social activist and a pioneer in bringing out evening dailies in Malayalam died at a private hospital in Kozhikode in Kerala?
Theruvath Raman
686. Who has been named as the AIFF (All India Football Federation) Player of the Year-2009?
Subrata Paul. Paul has thus become the first goalkeeper to win this award which started in 1992.
687. Who is elected as the new president of the All India Football Federation?
Prafool Patel
General Secretary of AIFF: Alberto Colaco
688. Who is the new world champion in Formula One?
Jenson Button
689. Russian gymnast, who won a bronze medal at world championships in London, died y in a car crash recently?
Yury Ryazanov
690. Who becomes the youngest ever recipient of the Order of Jamaica, one of the country’s highest honours, at a ceremony in the capital Kingston?
Usain Bolt
691. Who was re-elected as President of Indonesia securing nearly 61 per cent of the vote, ahead of his nearest rival and ex-president Megawati Sukarnoputri?
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
692. Who is the Vice President of Indonesia?
Boediono
693. A man who worked for years as a nurse’s aide in Maryland and Pennsylvania who has been crowned as a king in Uganda recently?
Charles Wesley Mumbere
694. Which trains collided in Uttar Pradesh’s Mathura city killing 23 people on October 23, 2009?
Goa Express and Mewar Express,
695. Who was confirmed as the next Lucasian Professor of Mathematics on 19 October 2009, to succeed Stephen Hawking on 1 November 2009?
Michael Boris Green. He is a British physicist and one of the pioneers of string theory.
696. Which country has begun operating an earthquake monitoring station at the foot of Mount Everest in a bid to learn more about the world’s highest peak?
China
697. Recipients of UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)-Madanjeet Singh Prize-2009 for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence?
Franois Houtart of Belgium and Abdul Sattar Edhi of Pakistan
Franois Houtart won this award for his life-long commitment to world peace, human rights and the promotion of tolerance. Abdul Sattar won this award for his life-long efforts to ameliorate the conditions of the most disadvantaged groups in Pakistan and South Asia. The prize money comprises of $100,000 which is to be shared equally between them.
698. The broadcaster which has bagged the broadcast rights for cricket to be played in India over the next four years starting April 2010?
Nimbus Communications Ltd. They own the Neo Sports and Neo Cricket channels. Nimbus will pay the BCCI well over Rs 2,000 core for airing all the matches organized by the board in India from 2010 to 2014.
699. American scientist who had worked for the White House and NASA was arrested by the United States authorities recently, charged with attempted spying for Israel?
Stewart David Nozette.
700. Who is the Prime Minister of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir?
Raja Farooq Haider Khan
701. Indian American philanthropist brothers who won the Northern Virginia Community Foundation’s community leader award for 2009?
Sudhakar V. Shenoy and Suresh V. Shenoy
702. Who bagged the PSPB Sports Person of the Year award for 2008-09?
Saina Nehwal
World billiards champion Pankaj Advani and cricketer Virender Sehwag shared the Sports Person of the Year award for 2007-08.
703. The Director of National Institute for Ocean Technology (NIOT)?
Dr. M.A.Atmanand
704. Who was named New Zealand cricketer of the year-2009?
Daniel Vettori. He was also honoured with all-rounder and most successful first class bowler award.
705. Which party emerged victorious in all assembly elections held in the three states of Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh?
Indian National Congress
706. Who has denied having written a foreword attributed to him in the autobiography by Congo Republic President Denis Sassou-Nguesso?
Nelson Mandela
707. Which team clinches Champions League T20 Cricket title-2009?
New South Wales Blues. They beat Trinidad and Tobago in the final by 41 runs
708. Which state won the National Interstate Athletic championship-2009?
Kerala
709. Coach of New Zealand Cricket Team who has resigned from his position following a review of the performance of the side after their return from the Champions Trophy?
Andy Moles
710. The only Indian film which is included in the competition section of the 54th Valladolid International Film Festival which began on October 23?
Rithu (Malayalam Film) which is directed by National Award winner Syamaprasad,
Valladolid, one of Europe’s oldest film festivals.
711. The only Indian Film Director who is included in the judges’ panel of 11th International Film Festival at Mumbai which starts from October-29?
Shaji N Karun.
712. New name of Orissa?
Orissa will soon be known as Odisha and the name Oriya language too will be changed from Oriya to Odia.
713. Who won the Kremlin Cup Women’s tennis title-2009?
Francesca Schiavone of Italy. She beat Olga Govortsova of Belarus in the final.
714. Who won the Kremlin Cup Men’s tennis title-2009?
Mikhail Youzhny(Russia). He beat Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia in the final.
715. Who won the Moto Grant Pix World Championship-2009?
Valentino Rossi (Italy)
716. Which country won the seven-match hockey Test series against Canada in Canada?
India. India won the series 6-0.
717. Fifteenth ASEAN summit which ends With Pledge to Build Flexible Community held in?
15th Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during October 23-25 in two well-known adjoining beach resorts of Cha-am and Hua Hin in Thailand.
Association of Southeast Nations has 10 members – Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam – which met with dialogue partners Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea for an East Asia Summit.
718. Former Cuban President Fidel Castro’s younger sister who has just revealed that she was for years a spy for the CIA.?
Juanita Castro.
The revelations come in a new memoir, “Fidel and Raúl, My Brothers: The Secret History”
719. Who won Stockholm Open Tennis title -2009?
Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis. He captured his first title of 2009 with a straight set victory over Belgium’s Olivier Rochus.
720. Mongolian Prime Minister who tenders resignation citing health reasons?
Bayar Sanjaa
723. Which country has stopped issuing visas to Canadian citizens amid rising tensions between the two governments?
Libya
724. Who has been appointed the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra for the third time?
Chhagan Bhujbal
725. 21-year-old women’s 100-meter sprint champion who has been banned from competition for life after testing positive for banned drugs at the China National Games?
Wang Jing
726. Who has been appointed as chairman and managing director (MD) of Punjab National Bank?
K R Kamath
727. Which footballer has won the award for the best player of Spanish league 2008-2009?
Lionel Messi
728. A Taliban car bomb killed 89 Pakistanis and wounded hundreds more at a bazaar in Pakistan took place hours after the US Secretary of State touched down for a diplomatic visit in Islamabad. Venue of that car bomb attack?
Meena Bazaar, in Peshawar
729. The former England umpire, who has died at the age of 68 after a long battle with cancer?
David Shepherd
730. Name of the controversial book written by Andre Agassi in which he admits that he used the drug crystal meth or ice in the middle of his highly lucrative tennis career?
“Open”
731. Man of the Match of first ODI between India and Australia held in Baroda?
Michael Hussey
732. Man of the Match of second ODI between India and Australia held in Nagpur?
Mahendra Singh Dhoni
734. Who will be the new deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India?
Subir Gokarn
735. Name of the last work of Michael Jackson ,a documentary which released recently ?
“This is it”
736. Who has been elected as the first Asian American woman president of the 75-year-old American College of Chest Physicians?
Dr Kalpalatha K Guntupalli
737. Which country takes the lead in this year’s ranking of the world’s most prosperous countries announced by the UK-based economic think-tank the Legatum Institute on 27 October?
Finland.
The top three includes two other small liberal democracies, Switzerland and Sweden.
Zimbabwe is in the last spot.
738. Toronto-based folk singer who died after coyotes pounced on her during a solo hike in Cape Breton national park in Canada?
Taylor Mitchell
Coyote is a member of the dog family found in low deserts and valleys.
739. Name of NASA’s first rocket since 1981, which has launched successfully on 28th of October 2009?
Ares 1-X
740. United Nations torture investigator who was barred from Zimbabwe and sent back to South Africa after a night in Harare airport?
Manfred Nowak
741. India’s second-largest public sector lender which plans to buy a majority stake in Dana Bank, bank in Kazakhstan, for an estimated $24 million, which would be its first overseas acquisition?
Punjab National Bank
742. Name of the world’s largest and most expensive cruise ship which has set sail recently for Miami from the Finnish shipyard where it was built?
“Oasis of the Seas”
743. The Malayalam Superstar who is elected as the goodwill ambassador of Kerala athletics?
Mohan Lal
Superstar Mammootty had been hailed as the brand ambassador of volleyball in Kerala.
744. Eminent scientist who took over as the chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)?
K Radhakrishnan
745. Who is the new Director of Vikram Sarabahi Space Centre (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram?
P.S. Veeraraghavan, a rocket technologist.
746. Due to security reasons, India has recently issued an order to ban all pre-paid mobile phones in a state. Which is that state?
Jammu and Kashmir.
747. A collection of letters from British poet sold at auction for $459,110.67, exceeding the highest pre-sale estimates by more than $160,000 and selling for more than any other letters or manuscript by a British Romantic poet. Name of that Poet?
Lord George Byron
748. Haiti — Prime Minister who was removed from office by the Haitian Senate?
Michele Pierre-Louis
749. An Indian-American who has been appointed as Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of the United States and Foreign Commercial Service in the US Department of Commerce?
Suresh Kumar

Read More

Current Affairs

September 2009

504. Which country won Nehru Cup International Football Tournament 2009?
India
India defeated Syria by 5-4 (penalty shootout) in the finals on August 31, 2009.
Goal-keeper Subroto Paul, who saved three penalties to become India’s saviour, was awarded the man of the match of the final.
India won this cup two times, 2007 & 2009.
505. Who won the Man of the Tournament award of Nehru Cup Football title-2009?
Bhaichung Bhutia, Indian Captain
506. Which scientist is elected as the new President of International Academy of Astronautics (IAA)?
Dr. Madhavan Nair, Chief of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
507. Who is the new Air Officer Commanding –in-Chief of Southern Air Command of India?
Air Marshal Sumit Mukerjee. He is the only pilot in the history of IAF to have commanded units with the Mig-21,Mig-23U, Mig-25, Mig-27 and Mig-29 aircraft.
508. Who is appointed as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Southern Naval Command?
Vice-Admiral K.N. Sushil
509. Who will act as a bowling consultant for the Kolkata Knight Riders during the third edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) next year?
Vasim Akram
510. India achieved a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of how much percentage during April-June 2009?
6.1%
511. The Indian-American fashion designer who charged with sexually assaulting seven girls was sentenced to 59 years of imprisonment on Aug 31?
Anand Jon Alexander
512. Who is appointed as the new Air Officer-in-Charge Personnel (AOP)of the Indian Air Force (IAF)?
Air Marshal KJ Mathews
513. Country which has been expelled from the Commonwealth after failing to announce plans to hold elections in 2010?
Fiji
514. Distinguished scientist and the man in charge of the development of missile and strategic systems in the country, who is appointed as the chief of the Defence Research and Development Organisation(DRDO)?
Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat
515. Who is appointed as the vice chief of Indian Army?
Lt General P C Bhardwaj
516. Bollywood Actor who has been appointed by Life insurance Company Max New York Life as the brand ambassador for Max Vijay, a brand specifically targeted at providing financial inclusion to the underprivileged masses?
Amitabh Bachchan
517. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister who feared dead after his Bell 430 chopper crash-landed about 40 nautical miles east of the Kurnool mountainous area of Andra Pradesh?
Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy
518. The first Iranian female cabinet minister who is appointed since the foundation of the Islamic Republic 30 years?
Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi
Iranian parliament approves Marzieh as new health minister despite opposition from hardline MPs and clerics.
519. Who won the Man of the Series Award in the recent 20-20 cricket series between Sri Lanka and New Zealand which is held in Sri Lanka?
Jesse Ryder(New Zealand).
New Zealand won the series by 2-0.
520. Lok Sabha Secretary General who was recently given a year’s extension by Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar?
P.D.T. Acharya
521. Who took over charge as Additional General Manager, Southern Railway?
Shri A.K. Gupta
522. Athletes who won $1 million Golden League jackpot which is given by IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) to anyone who wins all six of the premier European meets?
(All gold Yelena Isinbayeva, Kenenisa Bekele and Sanya Richards Getty Images)
Answer:Yelena Isinbayeva, Kenenisa Bekele and Sanya Richards
523. Who is the new Brand Ambassador of popular Levis Jeans?
Priyanka Chopra.
524. U.S.President Barack Obama’s adviser and an administration official specializing in environmentally friendly “green jobs” with the White House Council on Environmental Quality who resigned amid controversy over past inflammatory statements?
(Photo:Carlos) Van Jones
525. Who has topped the list of world’s 10 top earning cricketers compiled by Forbes magazine ?
Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Indian skipper
Raking in USD 10 million, Dhoni is at the top of the chart followed by Tendulkar at the second spot with earnings worth USD 8 million in the list of ‘The World’s Top-Earning Cricketers’ . While Yuvraj Singh and Dravid are at the third and fourth spot, respectively, Ganguly and Australian cricketer Ricky Ponting share the sixth place.
526. Former Chief Minister of Punjab and former governor of Haryana and Orissa , who died recently after a prolonged illness?
Harcharan Singh Brar
527. Recently India and US have signed a pact on ?
Atomic energy
528. Who has become the second Indian after Geet Sethi to win the World’s Billiards Championship?
Pankaj Advani
He beat defending champion Mark Russel 2030-1253 to win the World Professional Billiards Championship-2009. Geet Sethi won the title in 1992.
529. Australian Cricket player who retired from international Twenty20 cricket recently?
Ricky Ponting
530. The first African country to qualify for the 2010 World Cup Football which is to be held in South Africa?
Ghana
531. Which country leads world in foreign weapons sales in the year 2008?
United States of America. America accounted for more than two-thirds of foreign weapons sales in 2008.
532. Who participated as the chief guest at the 19th Independence Day celebrations of Tajikistan which was held at Dushanbe?
Pratibha Patil, President of India
533. Reserve Bank recently decided to introduce polymer banknotes of which denomination whose life span would be 4 times the normal currency notes and would be difficult to imitate.?
Rs 10
Polymer notes were first introduced in Australia to safeguard against counterfeiting of currency
534. The Sri Lankan government has ordered a senior United Nations diplomat to leave the country after accusing him of partiality towards the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Name of that spoke person of UNICEF?
James Elder, an Australian national.
535. Woman journalist of Sudan convicted of public indecency for wearing trousers outdoors was freed recently despite her own desire to serve a month in prison as protest against Sudan’s draconian morality laws?
Lubna Hussein
536. Name of the Buddha statue gifted by Mahatma Gandhi to one of his Irish friend, which was sold in London in the auction for Rs 5.47 lakh (6,840 pounds)?
Bodhisattva.
The statue was possibly of the Bodhisattva of compassion Avalokitesvara, a seated 13-inch-high bronze Buddha statue.
Gandhiji gave this statue to his Irish friend Emma Harker when she volunteered for relief work among the poor in flooded areas of Bihar and Orissa.
537. Who was the captain of Indian team for the 23rd FIBA Asia Women Basketball Championship held in Chennai?
Geethu Anna Jose
538. Venezuela recognized the independence of two countries on September 10, 2009. Name that countries.
South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Earlier, Russia and Nicaragua also recognized independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
539. New York Governor David Paterson recently signed into law a bill that bans use of a word in documents used by state agencies, public authorities and municipalities when referring to persons of Asian or Pacific islander heritage.
Which word?
“Oriental”
540. Indian Musician who has been invited to perform live along with the famous Pussycat Dolls — a pop girl group and dance ensemble- on the occasion of the India’s historic participation in the America’s world famous Polo Cup?
A.R.Rahman
541. Former Taiwan President who has been found guilty of corruption and sentenced to life in prison?
Chen Shui-bian
542. Indian film which is included in the “Festival of festival” section in the Cairo International film festival that will commence on the tenth of November?
Raman. The film is directed by Dr.Biju.
543. Which footballer won the annual VP Sathyan Memorial Award?
Mohanraj
Chennai-based, Kerala Sports Persons Association (KESPA) has picked Tamil Nadu footballer Mohanraj for this award.
544. Former president of BCCI who served as the chairman of the national selection committee (including when Sachin Tendulkar was first picked in the Indian team in 1989) died at the age of 73 following a prolonged illness recently?
Raj Singh Dungarpur
545. High Court Lawyer, who has been appointed Assistant Solicitor General of India for conducting Central government cases other than the cases of income tax and the Railway Department before the High Court?
T.P.M. Ibrahim Khan
546. An island of Mexico which was clearly visible on national and international maps until the middle of the 20th century has gone missing now?
Bermeja Island. This island is strategically important as it could give Mexico a claim to millions of dollars worth of oil deposits.
547. Cuban revolutionary leader, who has died in Havana at the age of 82, had been among only three surviving rebel leaders who still bore the honorary title “Commander of the Revolution.”
Juan Almeida Bosque
548. World’s oldest person, a woman who was born in 1894 died in California at the age of 115 gained a measure of fame when she voted for Barack Obama for U.S. president?
Gertrude Baines
549. Which country will host the 6th SAF football matches scheduled for December 1-15 of this year?
Bangladesh. Eight teams of South Asian countries will take part in these matches.
550. First Indian to reach semi-finals of World Boxing Championships and fist Indian to win a medal in the same event?
Vijender Kumar
He won Bronze medal in the World Boxing Championships and becomes the first Indian to do so.
551. Which club won their maiden IFA Shield football tournament title?
Churchill Brothers, Goa
They beating local giant Mohun Bagan 2-0
552. Nat West One day cricket series between England and Australia won by ?
Australia. They won the series 6-1.
553. Who has been selected for this year’s Mathrubhumi Literary Award of Rs.2 Lakhs instituted by the Malayalam daily “Mathrubhumi”?
Kovilan
554. Name of the 14-year-old astrophysicist from Kozhikode, Kerala who recently participated in the NASA space camp where a model rocket designed by her was launched?
Hannan Binth Hashim.
She has prepared a research paper titled ‘Absolute Theory of Zero’ which questions the accuracy of many existing theories like Albert Einstein’s ‘Theory of relativity’ and the ‘Big Bang Theory’.
555. An American agronomist, humanitarian, and Nobel laureate who has been deemed the father of the Green Revolution died at the age of 95, on September 12, 2009?
Norman Borlaug.
He was one of only six people to have won the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal. He was also a recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second-highest civilian honor.
556. Which film won the Golden Lion for best picture at the Venice film festival?
“Lebanon”
Hard-hitting Israeli war movie “Lebanon” is directed by Samuel Maoz
Best Actor Award: Colin Firth
Best Actress Award: Ksenia Rappoport
557. Who won the Silver Lion prize for best director at the Venice film festival?
Shirin Neshat
She won this award for the film “Women without Men,” based on a banned book about Iran in the 1950s.
558. ‘Basava Sri’ award instituted by Murugha mutt won by ?
P.T.Usha.
559. Noted football commentator who was found dead in his hotel a day after the final of the IFA Shield?
Noel De Lima Leitao
560. French photographer who was one of France’s giants of photography, particularly famous for his images of post-war Paris in the 1940s and 1950s died recently at the age of 99?
Willy Ronis
561. Who has been named as one of the two Anglo Indian nominees to the Lok Sabha — taking Kerala’s strength in the Lower House of the Indian Parliament to 21?
Charles Dias.
562. Which country won the tri-nation Compaq Cup (One Day Cricket Series) held in Sri Lanka?
India.
India beat Sri Lanka in the final by 46 runs. New Zealand was the third team.
Sachin Tendulkar won Man of the Match Award for his 138 runs in final.
Man of the Series: Sachin Tendulkar
563. Who is appointed as the Managing Director of Agri co-operative National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited (NAFED)?
C V Ananda Bose
564. The India Today Group has recently adjudged which state of India as the best State with regard to the law and order situation.
Kerala
565. Who won US Open Men’s Double Title?
Leander Paes and Lukas Dlouhy
They won the Grand Slam title after defeating Mahesh Bhupathi and Mark Knowles in the US Open men’s doubles final. This is 10th Grant slam title for Leander Paes.
567. Who won the US Open Women’s title 2009?
Kim Clijsters
She beat 19-year-old Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, 7-5, 6-3, in the final.
She become the first unseeded woman to win the US Open and the first mother to win a major title since 1980.
568. Who Clinch US Open Women’s Doubles Title?
Serena Williams and Venus Williams
They took over top seeds Cara Black of Zimbabwe and Liezel Huber of the United States in straight sets of 6-2, 6-2 to clinch the women’s doubles title at US Open.
569. Who won US Open men’s title?
Juan Martin del Potro
Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina battled back to beat five-times champion Roger Federer 3-6, 7-6, 4-6, 7-6, 6-2 in the final
570. A juror in the fashion designer Anand Jon rape trial who was fined $1,000 and sentenced to 120 hours of community service for trying to strike up a romance with Sanjana, the sister of Anand Jon who was sentenced to 59 years?
Alvin Dymally
571. Who has been selected by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) to head the operations of the organisation as the Chairman for the period of 2009-10?
Mr Subroto Chattopadhyay
572. Name of the Olympic medal-winning boxer who has been found dead by his manager?
Darren Sutherland
Sutherland has won a bronze medal for Ireland at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
573. Who will be the chairman of the Fourth Finance Commission constituted by the Government of Kerala?
Dr.M.A.Umman
574. Name of the sacred food offered to devotees at the Lord Venkateswara Temple in Andhra Pradesh which has been awarded geographical copyright that bars others from naming or marketing the sweetmeat preparation under the same name?
Tirupati laddoo
575. Name of the most expensive bike so far launched in India by the Japanese bike giant Yamaha?
Yamaha VMAX
This 1,680cc super bike VMAX, priced at Rs. 20 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).
576. Person from Kerala who has been honored with the highest award of Bharat Scouts and Guides ‘Silver Elephant Award 2007-08’.?
Shri M. C. Ramadas
577. Who is named as Japan’s new Prime Minister ?
Yukio Hatoyama. He will be named the 93rd Prime Minister of Japan.
578. Indonesia’s most wanted Islamist militant, who was killed in a police shoot-out in Central Java of Indonesia ?
Noordin Mohammad Top.
579. Who is now officially the tallest man walking the planet by the Guinness World Records?
(REUTERS Andrew Winning)
Sultan Kosen 27, from Turkey was recognized as the tallest person(8 foot 1 inch (2.47 meter)) in the world on September 17,2009.
580. Who is the new Accountant General of Kerala State?
Maha Lekshmi Menon
581. Indian American technocrat who has been appointed by U.S.President Barack Obama to a key administration post dealing with energy research?
Arun Majumdar
582. Footballer of Argentina who signed a two-year contract extension with Barcelona until the summer of 2016?
Lionel Messi
583. The Indians who have figured in a list of 60 “most influential foreigners” who have played a profound role in shaping the way over 1.2-billion people of modern China think and live?
Jawaharlal Nehru and Rabindranath Tagore
584. Which TV series won the 2009 Emmy award for best comedy?
30 Rock.
585. Which TV series won the 2009 Emmy award for best drama?
Mad Men
586. Who is the new captain of Delhi Dare Devils Team ?
Gautham Gambhir
587. The Indian tennis star who has confirmed Indian team berth in the Davis Cup World Group after he ousted South Africa’s Rik Voest in the reverse singles match of the Davis Cup tie ?
Somdev Dewarman
Indian team has made into World Group playoff after a long period of 11 years.
588. Name of 13-year-old girl from Lucknow who addressed the United Nations Climate Change Summit in New York?
Yugratna Srivastav
589. Who are the winners of Durand Cup-2009?
Churchill Brothers. They beat Mohun Bagan in the final. Churchill Brothers had earlier won the trophy in 2007
590. Name of Indian-origin woman who was sentenced to 33 years in jail – one of the longest jail terms handed out to a woman in Britain – for murdering her two teenaged daughters in a frenzied knife attack at her home in Cambridgeshire?
Rekha Kumari-Baker
591. The 63-year-old magazine, which has covered business and politics since World War II, will shut down in December 2009, struggling with losses as readers and advertisers move to the Internet?
“Far Eastern Economic Review”
592. Name of India’s 16th remote sensing satellite successfully launched by ISRO through its space carrier Plar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) in just twenty minutes?
Oceansat-2.
ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C14 successfully launched the 960 kg Indian remote sensing satellite Oceansat-2 and six nano satellites for international customers into a polar Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO). This was the fifteenth successful flight of PSLV.
593. Who has been selected for this year’s Vallathol Award which carries a purse of Rs.1,11,111 and citation?
Kavalam Narayana Panicker
594. The much anticipated small car for India which was unveiled in Delhi by Ford Motor Company?
Ford Figo
595. Who is the new director of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, (UNESCO)?

Irina Bokova, Bulgarian diplomat
596. The adventurers who set a new world record after successfully landing on Mount Everest 16,800 ft above sea level?
Ramesh Chandra Tripathi, Leo Dickinson and Ralph Mitchell.
They jumped from an altitude of 20,000 ft to land at the world’s highest drop zone, near Mount Everest.
597. A prominent Indian American agricultural scientist, who has been nominated for the post of the Chief Agricultural Negotiator in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative by the US President Barack Obama?
Islam A. Siddiqui
598. India’s maiden spacecraft, which has discovered water on the lunar surface?
Chandrayaan-1
599. First mixed-gender university of Saudi Arabia which opened recently?
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST)
600. Who is the chairman of Subordinate Legislation Committee of Indian Loksabha?
P.Karunakaran , M.P from Kerala
601. Which country won the 23rd Asian Women’s Basketball Championships held in Chennai, India?
China. They beat South Korea in the final
602. Indian who won bronze medal in the freestyle 74 kg category in the prestigious World Wrestling Championship held in Denmark?
Ramesh Kumar
India made history in wrestling after a gap of 32 years, when Ramesh Kumar won bronze medal in World Wrestling Championship.
603. Who was elected president of the Indian Newspaper Society for 2009-10, at the 70th annual general meeting of the INS?
T. Venkattram Reddy. He is the chairman of the Hyderabad-based Deccan Chronicle.
604. Who will head the Committee of Privileges which has been reconstituted by Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar?
P.C.Chacko, M.P.from Kerala
605. Britain’s Indian-origin Business Minister, who is set to step down, appointed as the UK’s representative to G-20?
Shriti Vadera
606. Who was elected as regional chairman (Kerala)of the Indian Newspaper Society for 2009-10?
P.V.chandran
607. Which political party retained power in Portuguese elections recently ?
Center-left Socialist Party.
Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates is the main leader of this party.
608. German Chancellor who recorded a resounding triumph in her country’s recent general elections?
Angela Merkel
609. Indian-American Human rights activist who has won the American Courage Award for her human rights work in India and the United States?
Mallika Dutt
610. Name of the limited-series pen by Pen-makers Mont Blanc inspired by Gandhiji’s iconic Dandi March in 1930 to protest against the British salt tax ?
Mahatma Gandhi Limited Edition-241 series (MGLE-241)
This pen costs Rs 11.39 lakh.
611. Who won the women’s singles title in the Yonex Czech international badminton championship?
Trupti Murgunde

Read More

General Knowledge

August 2009

416. Name the first private firm to be protected by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which usually guard government installations?
Infosys, Software giant
417. Which country will be the first international customer of the Boeing P-8I Poseidon, a variant of the P-8A Poseidon, US Navy’s newest maritime Patrol and reconnaissance aircraft showcased by the Boeing Company?
India
418. Who won the gold medal in the final of the Men’s 100m Freestyle at the FINA Swimming World Championships in Rome?
Cesar Cielo Filho(Brazil)
419. Who became Australia’s highest test run-scorer on the second day of the third Ashes test against England?
Ricky Ponting
Ponting passed Allan Border’s mark of 11,174 runs (156 Tests).
Ponting -11,188 runs (134 Tests)
420. Country which enforced assisted suicide law that will apply to people who help their loved ones die as well as to those who help them die abroad?
Britain
421. Name the first Sikh soldiers who are included the security wing of British Queen Elizabeth II?
Simranjit Singh and Lance Cpl. Sarvjit Singh
They are the first Sikhs to take part in patrols outside the queen’s residence and to stand watch over the Crown jewels at the Tower of London across town.
422. Which team won the Audi Cup after beating Manchester United 7-6 in the penalty shootout, after the 90 minutes ended in a 0-0 draw?
Bayern Munich
423. Former England Football manager and coach, died at the age of 76 after a long battle with cancer?
Bobby Robson
He led England to the World Cup semis during his reign from 1982 to 1990.
424. Who breaks world record in 200-meter medley (1:54.10), toppling Michael Phelps’ previous world record by 0.13 seconds?
Ryan Lochte
425. Who has been appointed as the next Director General (DG) of the Border Security Force (BSF)?
> Raman Srivastava
426. Constitutional expert, who was recently appointed Governor of Gujarat, died recently due to liver problems even before he could take up his assignment?
Devendra Nath Dwivedi
427. Which country won the Emerging Players Cricket Tournament title, defeating South Africa by 17 runs in the final ?
India.
Virat Kohli cracked a rollicking century (104)in the final that helped India to win the title.
428. Indian men’s doubles pair who won the New Zealand Open Grand Prix title in Auckland, New Zealand?
Rupesh Kumar and Sanave Thomas
429. Who won the 100-meter butterfly at the world swimming championships in Rome, setting a World record to become the first swimmer to eclipse the event’s 50- second barrier?
Michael Phelps
430. Asia’s first Female President and former President of the Republic of the Philippines who was hailed as a modern-day Joan of Arc died recently due to colon cancer?
Corazon Cojuangco Aquino
431. 16th World Junior Women’s Team Squash Championship held in Chennai won by ?
Egypt.
Heba el-Turk and Nour el-Sherbini of Egypt beat Hong Kong 2-0 in the final match.
432. Who won the World Junior Men’s Squash Championship title ?
Mohamed El Shorbagy (Egypt)
433. Who has set the 38th world record of the world swimming championships in the men’s 50-meter backstroke.?
Liam Tancock(Britain)
434. Who set the world record in the 50-meter breaststroke at the U.S. Open National Championships?
Jessica Hardy
She split a time of 29.95 seconds to beat the previous mark of 30.09 set by Yuliya Efimova of Russia at the world championships.
435. Name of the nano satellite which is recently developed by a group of students at IIT Kanpur that provides real-time data on drought, flood, vegetation and forestation?
Jugnu.
The nanosatellite costed Rs 2.5 crore to develop and will be handed over to ISRO. Santanu Agrawal, an M Phil student headed the successful team of whiz kids of IIT Kanpur.
436. Bollywood actress who selected Elesh Parujanwala, a Canadian businessman from Toronto, as her future bridegroom from among the three finalists in the reality show broadcast on NDTV Imagine.?
Rakhi Sawant
437. Prominent Indian social activist, who has done pioneering work for “development of rural communities”, was named along with five others for the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for 2009, considered as Asia’s equivalent of the Nobel Prize.
Deep Joshi
Other five 2009 Magsaysay awardees:
Krisana Kraisintu (Thailand)
Yu Xiaogang (China)
Antonio Oposa, Jr, (Philippines),
Ma Jun (China)
Ka Hsaw Wa (Burma)
438. Who is the new Chairman and Managing Director of GAIL (India) Ltd, the country’s largest gas transportation company?
B C Tripathi
439. The five-match one-day Cricket series between Sri Lanka and Pakistan held in Sri Lanka won by?
Srilanka (3-2)
Thilan Thushara was named Man of the Series.
440. A prominent Gandhian who made a mark in the history of the national movement by gifting her gold ornaments to Mahatma Gandhi as a 17-year-old, died recently ?
Kaumudi teacher
Hailed by the Mahatma himself as a symbol of renunciation, Kaumudi voluntarily donated her ornaments to Gandhi during his visit to Vatakara , in Kerala in 1934
441. Who has bagged the prestigious UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize 2009?
Khabar Lahariya, a fortnightly newspaper in Hindi run by rural women in Uttar Pradesh won the prestigious award. Nirantar, a non-governmental organisation, which runs “Khabar Lahariya” a fortnightly newspaper in Hindi
442. Noted South Indian actor and national award winner who had been closely associated with pro-Left cultural and intellectual movements in the state of Kerala, died recently ?
Murali. He won the state award for the best actor thrice and the national award in 2001 for his performance in Malayalam movie “Naithukaran”.
443. India Government has approved the acquisition of five Russian early warning choppers in a bid to strengthen the Navy’s capabilities to detect airborne and surface-based maritime threats. Name of that chopper?
Kamov-31
444. The last known surviving British soldier to have fought in the First World War trenches, died at the age of 111?
Harry Patch
445. The Pakistani Taliban leader who was killed recently in a CIA missile strike?
Baitullah Mehsud
446. Who is the first Spanish woman to become the judge of the Supreme Court of United States?
Sonia Sotomayor
447. Hockey Test series between India and Belgium is won by?
India
India clinch the three-match hockey series 2-1
448. Who is appointed as the Managing Director and Chief Executive of ING Vysya Bank for a period of three years?
Shailendra Bhandari
449. Writer-director, Hollywood’s youth impresario of the 1980s and ’90s who captured the teen and preteen market with such favorites as “The Breakfast Club,” Sixteen Candles”,”Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and “Home Alone, died recently ?
John Hughes
450. Which country dominated the Asian Youth Chess Championship, topping seven of the 12 categories as the event concluded at the Tivoli Garden Resort, New Delhi?
India.
India won a total of eight gold, seven silver and eight bronze. Vietnam won two gold, while Kazakhstan, UAE and Iran won one each
451. Who is appointed as the army chief of Nepal?
Lt. Gen. Chhatraman Singh Gurung
452. Indian-American, expert in Intellectual Property, who is appointed for a key post in the US Commerce Department by the president Barack Obama?
RO Khanna.
He is an expert in Intellectual Property will work to open foreign markets to American technology.
453. Which team won the Italian Super Cup beating Inter Milan in the final by 2-1?
Lazio
454. Which country won the World junior volleyball championship (Under 21) in 2009?
Brazil. They beat Cuba in the final. Brazil had won the title in 2001 & 2007
and runners up in 2003 & 2005. Cuba had first time became runners-up in this tournament. India lost in the Semifinals and had to satisfy with the fourth position.
455. The Captain of the Spanish football team Espanyol, who has died from a heart attack at the age of 26?
Dani Jarque
456. Who won the Man of the Match award in the fourth Ashes Test ?
Marcus North
He won Man of the Match for his brilliant hundred in the first innings.
457. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president who sworn-in as Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab for the second time this year?
Sukhbir Singh Badal
458. Which team won the Community Shield football title beating Manchester United 4-1 on penalties at Wembley after the teams drew 2-2 ?
Chelsea
459. Sister of former U.S.President John F. Kennedy, who carried on the family’s public service tradition by founding the Special Olympics and championing the rights of the mentally disabled, died recently at the age of 88?
Eunice Kennedy Shriver
460. Name the bowler played for Holland in the recent Twenty20 World Cup , who is recently included in the Australian team for the 20-20 match against England?
Dirk Nannes
461. Name the TV crime show host who faces jail after allegedly ordering murders in a bid to boost television ratings?
Wallace Souza
He is accused of arranging crimes and then broadcasting exclusive footage of the scenes.
462. One of the most revered guitarists in history and the father of the electric guitar, who passed away at the age of 94.
Photo Michael Ochs Archive Getty
Les Paul
463. Ashok Chakra, the nation’s highest peacetime award for gallantry on the eve of Independence Day is given to ?
Major Mohit Sharma(Posthumous)
Major D. Sreeram Kumar
467. Keerthi Chakra Awardees:
1.Major Amit Oscar Fernandes of 7 Maratha Light Infantry.
2.Major Deepak Tewari of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers Corps serving with 14 Rashtriya Rifles in Kashmir.
3.Paratrooper Shabir Ahmed Malik.
4.Naik Rishikesh Gurjar of 10 Rashtriya Rifles (Rajput).
468. Coach of West Indies who was sacked by the West Indies Cricket board ahead of the Champions Trophy?
John Dyson
469. American who was sentenced to seven years in prison but then deported after swimming to the lakeside home of detained Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi?
John William Yettaw
470. Zimbabwe’s player who equaled Saeed Anwar’s record highest individual one-day international score of 194 in the match against Bangladesh?
Charles Coventry
471. Chinese ace who is poised to become the first player in World Badminton Championship history to win three successive men’s singles titles?
Lin Dan
472. Who won the Rogers Cup doubles title beating Max Mirnyi and Andy Ram in Montreal.
Mahesh Bhupathi and Mark Knowles.
473. Who won Britain’s first ever World Championship heptathlon gold medal at the 12th IAAF World Athletics Championships?
Jessica Ennis
474. Who broke the world record at the 12th IAAF World Athletics Championships in Berlin after running the 100 meter sprint in just 9.58 seconds?
Usain Bolt
475. Who broke the world record at the 12th IAAF World Athletics Championships in Berlin after running the 200 meter sprint in just 19.19seconds?
Usain Bolt
476. Who won women’s shot put gold at the 12th World Athletic Championships in Berlin?
Valerie Vili from New Zealand
477. Who becomes the first farmer of India to receive pension implemented by a state?
N. Krishna Kurup. He is the first farmer to receive pension which is implemented by Government of Kerala
478. Who won the Cincinnati Open Tennis title after beating top-ranked Russian Dinara Safina in the final ?
Jelena Jankovic
479. Scottish tennis player has won the Montreal Masters event in Canada beating Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro in the final?
Andy Murray
480. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former president of South Korea who was crucial in promoting the country’s “Sunshine Policy” aiming at a detente with North Korea died recently?
Kim Dae Jung
481. Who is the Man of the series of One Day cricket series between Zimbabwe and Bangladsesh ?
Tamim Iqbal(Bangladesh).Bangladesh won the series by 4-1.
482. Who captured the World Athletics Championships gold medal in the women’s 100 meters to claim the title of “World’s Fastest Woman”
Shelly-Ann Fraser
483. Who remains the world’s most powerful woman for 2009, according to a ranking published by Forbes magazine?
Angela Merkel, German Chancellor
The list of the hundred women includes–
Sonia Gandhi (13),
Chanda Kochhar, CEO of ICICI Bank, India.
484. Ninety-six-year-old, a Florida resident of Indian origin who becomes the world’s oldest blogger.?
Randall Butisingh
485. Who is appointed as new Pak Taliban chief?
Hakimullah Mehsud
486. Who won the Man of the Match in the final test of Ashes held at The Ovalin 2009?
Jonathan Trott became man of the match for his maiden century (119) in the debut Ashes Test match.
England won the Ashes (2-1) .
Man of the Series: Andrew Strauss (England)
Michael Clark (Australia)
487. Ethiopian Olympic Champion who won the gold medal in the 5000m and 10000m race in Berlin, marking the first time an athlete has ever won distance double at the IAAF World Athletics Championships?
Kenenisa Bekele
488. The controversial book written by former union minister and B.J.P leader Jaswant singh that eulogising Mohd Ali Jinnah ?
“Jinnah – India, Partition, Independence”
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) expelled Jaswant Singh from the primary membership of the party days after the release of his book praising Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan.
489. Who won the Rogers Cup Women singles title beating Maria Sharapova in the final?
Elena Dementieva
490. Who won the Cincinnati Open Men’s Tennis title after beating Novak Djokovic in the final?
Roger Federer
491. Which team lifts the Spanish Supercup football title?
Barcelona
They beat Athletic Bilbao 3-0 in the final
492. Who won the Miss Universe 2009 title?
Stefania Fernandez, Miss Venezuela
493. Who has been appointed director of the Regional Cancer Centre, Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala?
Paul Sebastian
494. Which team won the 2009 Santiago Bernabeu Trophy by defeating Norwegian side Rosenborg (4-0) in the final ?
Real Madrid
495. One of the most influential and longest-serving senators in the history of America who dies at the age of 77?
Edward Kennedy. He is the brother of former US president John F Kennedy.
496. Who becomes the first left-arm spinner to claim 300 Test wickets?
Daniel Vettori(New Zealand)
497. Which country has become Japan’s largest trading partner recently ?
China
498. Who will be appointed as the Guwahati chief justice.?
Justice Kurian Joseph
499. Which player was named the European Club Player of the Year 2009?
Lionel Messi of Barcelona
500. Which team won the UEFA Supercup defeating Shakhtar Donetsk (1-0)?
Barcelona
501. Who crowned the first ever Miss Bollywood UK at a gala event in Birmingham ?
Reena Patel
502. Indians who won the mixed doubles title at the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix Gold badminton?
Jwala Gutta and Valiyaveetil Diju
503. Who won the Man of the Series in the test series between Sri Lanka and New Zealand.
Thilan Samaraveera(Sri Lanka)
Sri Lanka Won the series(2-0)

Read More

General Knowledge

July 2009

306. India’s first “sea bridge” which was officially opened in Mumbai, which is 5.6-kilometre (3.5-mile) long covers from?
Bandra to Worli Sea
It is hoped that the 16.5-billion-rupee (340-million-dollar) eight-lane freeway will help cut the 40-minute journey between the suburbs of Bandra and Worli to just eight minutes and will ease chronic congestion on the city’s notoriously choked roads. Sea Link was inaugurated by the ruling Congress party Chief Sonia Gandhi and named after her late husband and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
307. The only known survivor of the crash of the Yemeni airliner clung to wreckage in the Indian Ocean carrying 153 people (142 passengers, 11 crew members)?
Baya Bakari, 13.year old girl
308. The Commission probing the 1992 demolition of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya which submitted its report to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recently?
Liberhan Commission
309. India’s ambassador to China, who is appointed as the next foreign secretary of India ?
Nirupama Rao
310. Former England cricket captain who retired from all forms of professional cricket recently?
Michael Vaughan
311. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has recently invited a musician from India to join its roster of voting members. (i.e. Oscar Academy Membership). Name that musician?
A.R. Rahman
312. Confederations Cup champions who ousted Spain from the first place at FIFA world Football ranking, after one year of leadership?
Brazil
313. Veteran Japanese diplomat who was elected as new director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)?
Yukiya Amano
314. The state of USA which was declared a fiscal emergency recently as the Legislature continued struggling with a budget for the cash-strapped state?
California
315. Air Marshal of Southern Air Command chief, who has been appointed as Honorary Air aide de camp (ADC) to President Pratibha Patel?
S. Radhakrishnan
316. Famous Indian painter whose one painting was auctioned for a record $2 million at Christie’s in June 2008 passed away recently due to a cardiac ailment?
Tyeb Mehta
317. Prime minister of Croatia and leader of the centre-right Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) who resigned recently?

Ivo Sanader
318. Who won the Wimbledon Women’s Singles title 2009 after defeating Venus Williams in the final?
Serena Williams
319. Who has taken charge as the new Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) from July 6, 2009.
Raghu Menon
320. Who won the Wimbledon Men’s Singles title 2009 after defeating Andy Roddick in the final?
Roger Federer. He becomes the first man to win 15 grand slams, and to regain the world No 1 ranking.
321. Who won Wimbledon Women’s doubles title 2009?
Venus Williams and Serena Williams. They beat Samantha Stosur and Rennae Stubbs of Australia
322. Who won Wimbledon men’s doubles title 2009?
Daniel Nestor of Canada and Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia won Wimbledon men’s doubles title 2009. They beat top-seeded American twins Bob and Mike Bryan in the final.
323. The Organisation of American States (OAS) recently expelled a country in reaction to last week’s military coup that ousted its President Manuel Zelaya. Which is that country?
Honduras
324. American court has recently banned publication of a Swedish book promoted as a sequel to JD Salinger’s “The Catcher in the Rye”. ? Name that book and its author?
“60 Years Later: Coming through the Rye” written by Fredrik Colting
325. Who became the first woman Prime Minister of Croatia?
Jadranka Kosor
326. The person who served as US defence secretary during the Vietnam War and the Cuban Missile Crisis, has died recently at the age of 93?
Robert McNamara
327. Who won the mixed doubles titles at Wimbledon 2009?
Mark Knowles of the Bahamas and Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany.
They beat top-seeded Leander Paes of India and Cara Black of Zimbabwe 7-5, 6-3, in the final.
328. Pakistan Cricket player and one of its cricketing pioneers, who bowled the first delivery and took the first wicket in the country’s inaugural Test match died recently after battling prostate cancer?
Khan Mohammad
329. Who is appointed as Director (Projects) of GAIL India?
Mr R D Goyal
330. French Tennis Player, who was banned by ATP Tour for betting on matches, found dead in stairwell of his Paris apartment ?
Mathieu Montcourt
331. City of Australia which has decided to ban the sale and use of bottled water to act for the preservation of the environment?
Bundanoon
332. Player of Manchester United’s who has joined Real Madrid for $70 million?
Cristiano Ronaldo
333. Versatile Actor who was inducted into the Territorial Army as Honorary Lieutenant Colonel.
Mohanlal
This Malayalam Superstar has won four national awards and the second recent high-profile personality after Kapil Dev to don the Territorial Army uniform.
Lt Col Mohan Lal will be working with the Kerala based 122 Infantry Battalion of the Territorial Army (TA).
334. Name the first pilot from Kerala of the Royal Air Force (Later Indian Air Force) and the First Head Of Training Team of The Indian National Defence Academy who died recently?
Moorkoth Ramunni
335. Fifteen-year-old girl of Toronto who broke the world record in the women’s 50-metre breaststroke at the world championships swimming trials?
Amanda Reason
336. Who sets new world record in 100 meter backstroke and first ever to go under 52 sec (51.94 seconds) at the U.S. national championships.
Aaron Peirsol
337. Global fast food Company which has apologized to Hindus for running an advertisement in Spain that showed an Indian goddess Lakshmi about to eat a beef burger?
Burger King
338. Who is elected as president of Indonesia for the second term?
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
339. Former Australian coach John Buchanan has criticized some of the present and former Indian cricket stars like Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh, Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar and Harbhajan Singh in his recently-published book. Name of that book.
“The Future of Cricket: The Rise of Twenty20.”
340. The Cricket Team which have boycotted the series against Bangladesh because of an outstanding contractual dispute with its Cricket board?
West Indies Cricket Team
350. Who will remain captain of the German national team for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa?
Michael Ballack
351. Who sets new world record in 100 meter butterfly at the U.S. national championships in 50.22 seconds, lowering Ian Crocker’s mark of 50.40 set at the 2005 world championships in Montreal?
Michael Phelps
352. Which country finished at the first position at the 5th South Asian Shooting Championship bagging 21 gold medals out of 24 gold medals?
India
353. Player turned coach who has been named the India under-16 football coach for the Asian qualifiers to be held in Abu Dhabi in October 2009.
C.M. Ranjith
354. The world’s most famous bell ringing out the hours on the world’s most famous clock, celebrated its 150th anniversary on July 11, 2009 in London?
Big Ben
355. The former boxing champion and one of the most amazing boxer of his generation, who has been found dead in a Brazilian hotel room recently?
Arturo Gatti
356. Who sets new world record in 200 meter backstroke at the U.S. national championships?
Aaron Peirsol
357. Indian Squash player who won the third WISPA title of her career when she defeated home favourite Low Wee Wern in the final of the $ 16,000 NSC series event on Saturday in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia
Joshna Chinappa
358. Who wins Newport Hall of Fame Tennis championships ATP Title?
Rajeev Ram
359. Renowned Marathi actor to win Maharashtra government’s best actor award consecutively for three years, died recently in Pune after prolonged illness?
Neelu Phule
360. A distinguished conductor and his wife have recently died at the Dignitas suicide clinic in Switzerland. He was conductor emeritus of the BBC Philharmonic among many other great achievements, and Lady Downes, 74, was a former ballet dancer and choreographer. Who are they?
Sir Edward Downes and Joan
361. Second cricket test between Srilanka and Pakistan at Colombo won by?
Srilanka
Man of the match: Fawad Alam
Sri Lanka won the first test match on the last day of the match.
362. Former prime minister of Poland and European Parliament member since 2004, who has been elected president of the European Parliament?
Jerzy Buzek
363. Who is appointed as the new defence secretary of India?
Pradeep Kumar
364. First test between West Indies and Bangladesh held in July is won by?
Bangladesh
365. Indian Scientist and National Research Professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research who has been nominated for the prestigious Royal Medal by the Royal Society, London.
Prof. C.N.R. Rao,
366. England all-rounder who decided to retire from test cricket after the ashes series against Australia?
Andrew Flintoff
367. Who has become the first Indian batsman in over four years to head the batting rankings in test matches by ICC?
Gautam Gambhir
368. Canadian comedian of Indian parents, came from Kolkatta, who has been ranked among the Top 10 Earning Comedians in the world by Forbes?
Russell Peters
369. Carnatic music exponent and film playback singer in many Indian languages, popularly referred as one of the “female trinity of Carnatic music” who passed away at the age of 90?
Damal Krishnaswamy Pattammal (D.K.Pattammal)
370. Chairman of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization who resigned from his post?
Gholam Reza Aghazadeh
371. The space shuttle of NASA descended safely to Earth, ending a successful 16-day assembly mission to the international space station ?
Endeavour
372. Summit of the Non-Allied Movement in 2012 will take place in?
Iran.
373. Former India cricket captain who has been awarded an Honorary Fellowship by the University of Lancashire.
Sourav Ganguly
374. Name the club of Argentina which won the Libertadores Cup beating Brazil’s Cruzeiro by two goals to one?
Estudiantes
375. The Middlesex University in Hendon, London, has conferred an Indian music director with an honorary doctorate. Who is he?
A.R.Rahman
376. Name the 112th element which has been officially added to the Periodic Table, earlier named as Ununbium?
Copernicium.
The element with symbol “Cp” is named in honor of astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. This name is expected to be officially endorsed by IUPAC in January 2010, after six months for discussion.
377. Lt Governor of the Union Territory of Puducherry?
Iqbal Singh
378. New Governors of States of India
Uttar Pradesh-B.L. Joshi
Gujarat-Devendra Nath Dwivedi
Assam-Syed Sibtey Razi
Jharkhand-K Sankaranarayanan
Uttrakhand- Margaret Alva
Hariyana-Jagannath Pahadia
379. “The most trusted man in America,” who was the pioneering television news anchor died recently at the age of 92?
Walter Cronkite
380. First World War veteran who became the world’s oldest man last month died at the age of 113.
Henry Allingham
381. Srilankan bowler who retired from test cricket after the test match against Pakistan?
Chaminda Vas
382. Womens hockey champions trophy won by?
Argentina. They beat Australia (4-3) in the final
383. India agreed to enter into an understanding on end-use monitoring agreement recently with a country that will pave the way for greater defence cooperation. Which country?
United States of America
384. Second test of Ashes held at Lord’s won by?
England. This is for the first time in 75 years that England has won the Ashes at Lord’s. They beat Australia by 115 runs in the second Test
Man of the Match: Andrew Flintoff (five wickets for 92 runs)
385. The solar eclipse witnessed on the month of July 2009 was the longest total solar eclipse during the 21st century, not to be surpassed until June 2132. It lasted a maximum of 6 minutes and 39 seconds off the coast of Southeast Asia, causing tourist interest in eastern China, Japan, India and Nepal. Which day it witnessed?
July 22, 2009
386. The second Indian archer to win a Youth World Championship title after bagging gold in the girls’ Cadet Recurve category in the 11th edition of the tournament at Ogden (Utah), USA?
Deepika Kumari
387. The Airlines apologized for frisking former Indian President Abdul Kalam at the Indira Gandhi International Airport when he was going on a visit to the US this April?
Continental Airlines of U.S.A
388. Hindustani music legend who mesmerized audiences with her melodious voice for over six decades, died recently?
Gangubai Hangal
389. Test Cricket Series between West Indies and Bangladesh won by ?
Bangladesh.(2-0)
Man of the Match: Shakib Al Hasan
390. Who was awarded the Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Reconciliation and Peace?
Aung San Suu Kyi, the Myanmarese pro-democracy activist and leader,
391. Who becomes the first ever black Miss England?
Rachel Christie
392. Former Peruvian president who was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison on corruption charges.?
Alberto Fujimori
393. Who is named as new LTTE chief ?
Selvarasa Pathmanathan
394. Who became the youngest player (12 years old) ever to play in professional football when he came on as a substitute for Aurora in a Bolivian Clausura championship match?
Mauricio Baldivieso
395. Who becomes the highest ever Australian run scorer in first class cricket surpassing the record of the legendary Sir Donald Bradman?
Justin Langer
396. Two piano works recently have been identified as the creation of a legendary musician which has long been in the possession of the International Mozarteum Foundation in the Austrian city of Salzburg. Name that musician?
Mozart (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.)
397. Newly elected President of Kyrgyzstan?
Kurmanbek Bakiyevi
398. Which country has won the team tech gold medal in synchronized swimming at the world championships?
Russia.
Russia has won both gold medals in synchro at the last three Olympics.
399. Test Cricket series between Srilanka and Pakistan held is won by?
Sri Lanka won the series by 2-0.
Man of the series:Nuvan Kulasekhara
Man of the match of third test: Kumar Sangakkara. Third Test ended in a draw.
400. Who received the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2007?
Bill Gates, on behalf of “Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation” for their exemplary philanthropic work across the world and in India especially in the area of health.
401. One of the world’s largest optical telescopes, installed on a mountain in the Canary Islands, which is extremely powerful and will be able to spot some of the faintest, most distant objects in the Universe?
Great Canary Telescope
With a main mirror 10.4 metre across, it will effectively be the largest telescope for visible and infrared light in the world.
402. India’s first nuclear powered ballistic missile submarine at the naval dockyard, Visakhapatnam which is launched by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur on July 26,2009?
INS Arihant
403. Eminent music director and sitarist composed the musical scores for about 40 films in Hindi, Marathi, and Malayalam who blended Indian classical and Western music in his work, was a disciple of Pandit Ravi Shankar died at the age of 73?
Bhaskar Chandavarkar
404. Who won ITF Lexington Challenger Tennis title?
Sania Mirza
405. Which country won CONCACAF Gold Cup Football title beating U.S.A (5-0) in the final?
Mexico
406. Who has been awarded the 2009 Amnesty International Ambassador of Conscience award?
Aung San Suu Kyi
407. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister who resigned after a senior PDP leader alleged in the state assembly that he was involved in the 2006 sex scandal, a charge dismissed by him as false?
Omar Abdullah
408. Who win gold in the women’s 200 metres individual medley at the World Championships?
Ariana Kukors(U.S.A)
409. Who won women’s 100 metres butterfly final at the world swimming championships?
Sarah Sjostrom(Sweden)
410. Veteran Malayalam actor, who won critical acclaim for the ease with which he portrayed villainous roles in Malayalam and Tamil cinema died at the age of 55?
Rajan P.Dev
411. Charismatic Jaipur royal, a three-time MP and who was once named as ”World’’s Ten Most Beautiful Women” by ”Vogue” magazine, died here today following a prolonged illness.?
Rajmata Gayatri Devi
412. Sports Awards 2009:
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna:
M.C. Marykom (boxer),
Vijender Kumar (boxer)
Sushil Kumar (wrestling)
Arjuna Award:
Mangal Singh Champia (archery), Sinimol Paulose (athletics), Saina Nehwal (badminton), L. Saritha Devi (boxing), Tania Sachdeva (chess), Gautam Gambhir (cricket), Ignatius Tirkey (hockey), Surinder Kaur (hockey), Pankaj Shirsat (kabaddi), B. Prabhu (physically challenged), Satish Joshi (rowing), Ranjan Sodhi (shooting), Poulami Ghatak (table tennis), Yogeshwar Dutt (wrestling), G.L. Yadav (yatching)
Dronacharya Award:
Baldev Singh (hockey), Jaidev Bisht (boxing), Satpal (wrestling), Pullela Gopichand (badminton) and Udaikumar (kabaddi).
413. One day cricket series between West Indies and Bangladesh won by ?
Bangladesh (2-0)
414. Who won gold in the 200- meter freestyle final at the world swimming championships in Rome?
Paul Biedermann
He won in a world record time of 1 minute, 42 seconds, ahead of previous record-holder Michael Phelps
415. Who is appointed as the captain of 20-20 Team of Pakistan?
Shahid Afridi

Read More