SIPVS Knowledge is Power
1) What is the name of the massive airplane being constructed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, which was wheeled out of its hanger for the first time on 31 May 2017? – ‘Stratolaunch’
Explanation: ‘Stratolaunch’ is the name of the massive airplane that Paul Allen has been quietly building in the California desert for many years. It would be the world’s largest airplane with a wingspan wider than Howard Hughes’ Spruce Goose. It was unveiled for the first time on 31 May 2017.
– It’s so big that it has 28 wheels and six 747 jet engines. It has a wingspan of 385 feet, or longer than a football field, a height of 50 feet. Unfueled, it weighs 500,000 pounds. But it can carry 250,000 pounds of fuel, and its total weight can reach as high as 1.3 million pounds.
– This airplane will be used to carry large rockets. The rockets would be tethered to the belly of the giant plane, which would fly them aloft, and once at an altitude of 35,000 feet or so, the rockets would drop and “air launch” to space.
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2) Which member resigned from Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) Committee of Administration on 1 June 2017 citing personal reasons? – Ramachandra Guha
Explanation: Eminent historian Ramachandra Guha on 1 June 2017 resigned from Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) Committee of Administration. He cited personal reasons as he handed over his resignation to Vinod Rai, Chairman of BCCI’s Committee of Administrators.
– It is worth mentioning that BCCI’s Committee of Administrators was appointed by the Supreme Court of India on 30 January 2017 in order to ensure transparency in sport administration of the board.
– Former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Vinod Rai was appointed its Chairman while Diana Edulji, the legendary women test cricket player, was the other member. Ramachandra Guha was the third member of the Committee. The committee also includes IDFC Ltd MD and CEO Vikram Limaye, who was expected to provide the committee with expertise in financial matters.
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3) Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das retired on 31 May 2017 after 37 years of distinguished service in Finance Department. Who took the charge of Economic Affairs Secretary as additional charge? – Tapan Ray
Explanation: Shaktikanta Das, the Economic Affairs Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, retired from the service on 31 May 2017. He was associated with several key reforms and policy decisions as the Revenue Secretary and later as the Economic Affairs Secretary.
– On 30 May 2017 the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had announced the introduction of currency notes in one rupee denomination, printed by the Government of India with the signature of Shaktikanta Das.
– Corporate Affairs Secretary Tapan Ray took over the additional charge as Economic Affairs Secretary after Shaktikanta Das retirement.
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4) During May 2017 ISRO entered into an agreement with which entity for fodder acreage assessment using satellite technology? – Amul
Explanation: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) signed an MoU with Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), the owners of the Amul brand of dairy products, that envisages fodder acreage assessment using satellite technology.
– Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), ISRO will help in identification between food crops and fodder crops at village level and also locate suitable areas of current fallows and cultivable wastelands at village level for green fodder cultivation.
– Amul and Space Applications Centre (SAC) of ISRO, had earlier carried out a joint pilot, which found that to assess green fodder availability for dairy livestock at district and village level through remote sensing is feasible.
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5) Punjab Mail, which is one of the oldest long distance trains on Indian Railways, completed how many years on 1 June 2017? – 105 years
Explanation: The Punjab Mail made her maiden run out of Ballard Pier Mole station, a former station of the Mumbai Port Trust Railway, on 1 June 1912. It originally ran between Bombay to Peshawar (in present Pakistan). This train is over 16 years older than the more glamorous Frontier Mail.
– The first train Punjab Mail comprised of six cars: 3 for passengers, and 3 for postal goods and mail. The three passenger carrying cars had a capacity of 96 passengers only.
– The train now operates as train number 12137 from Mumbai CST to Ferozpur (Punjab) and as train number 12138 in the reverse direction.
– The oldest running train of Indian Railways is the Kalka Mail that connects Howrah to Kalka in Haryana, the railhead for Kalka-Shimla Railway. It started its first journey in 1866.
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Source:- Nirdeshak.com
