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February 2016 Current Affairs:


NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS AND EVENTS

Name the Oscar-winning sound designer who became the first Asian to win the award for best sound for documentary "India's Daughter" at the coveted Motion Picture Sound Editors' 63rd annual Golden Reel Awards? Resul Pookutty
Name the filmmaker and actor who were selected for Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkar award recently? Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Ranveer Singh
Name the former Scientific Adviser to Defence Minister and ex-DRDO chief who received the prestigious Astronautical Society of India's Aryabhata Award? Dr Avinash Chander
Name the Telugu writer who has been awarded the 29th Moortidevi Award by Bharatiya Jnanpith for his novel Ananta Jeevanam? Kolakaluri Enoch
Name the former Comptroller and Auditor General of India (C&AG) who has been appointed as the chairman of Bank Board Bureau?
(This body will advise the government in top-level appointments at the Public Sector Banks (PSB).) 		Vinod Rai
Name the Odisha Chief Minister who has been elected as the President of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) for the 7th consecutive term? Naveen Patnaik
Which Indian State was declared as the country's first fully digital state by President Pranab Mukherjee? Kerala
Which company won India's first-ever auction of a gold mine located at Baghmara mine in Chhattisgarh? Vedanta Limited
Which state won the Ranji Trophy title for the 41st time defeating Saurashtra in the final by an innings and 21 runs? Mumbai
Who was appointed as the chairman of United Spirits, a day after former chairman Vijay Mallya resigned from this post as chairman? M K Sharma
Name the long distance runner who has been named as the Sports Person of the Year during the India Sports Awards 2015? Lalita Babar
To discourage cash transactions, the Union Cabinet recently approved withdrawal of surcharge, service charge and convenience fee on card and digital payments. This move will help in weeding out ___________? Black Money
Name the popular Bollywood actor who was released from Pune's Yerwada Jail after completing his prison term?
(He was convicted for illegal possession of AK-56 rifle and his alleged connection in the 1993 Mumbai serial blast case.) 		Sanjay Dutt
Name the public sector undertaking in which the Union Government has decided to disinvest 5% of its holding through Offer for Sale (OFS) route at a base price of Rs 122 a share? NTPC Limited
Who was appointed as the new director-general for the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) replacing Vice Admiral H C S Bisht who has been appointed as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Naval Command? Rajendra Singh
Name the company which has launched India's cheapest Android smartphone, Freedom251 at Rs 251? Ringing Bells Pvt Ltd
In which train the Indian Railways has decided to introduce train hostesses?
(The train which is the first Indian train to run at a speed of 160 kmph will have GPS based passenger information system including other features.) 		Gatiman Express
What is the name of first ever India-made robot which has been designed by by TAL Manufacturing Solutions, a Tata Group company? Tata Brabo
Which cricketer has become the most expensive Indian player to be bought at the IPL Auction 2016 at Rs 8.5 crore?
(The cricketer was signed by Delhi Daredevils.) 		Pawan Negi
Name the Senior IPS officer who became the first woman to head a paramilitary force after being appointed as the Director General of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB)? Archana Ramasundaram
Who sworn-in as the new chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh after President Pranab Mukherjee gave his approval to the Union Cabinet's recommendation for revocation of President's rule?
Kalikho Pul
Name the former Chief Justice of India who was selected as the next chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) taking over the position from Justice C Joseph? H L Dattu
Name the operation launched by Geological Survey of India (GSI) targeting deep seated and concealed mineral deposits? Operation Khanij Khoj
Name the renowned Indian scientist who was appointed as the Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), the country's premier multi-disciplinary nuclear research centre succeeding Shekar Basu? K N Vyas
Name the mobile application launched by the Union Government which will enable travellers to send pictures of dirty spots at tourist places to the authorities for "immediate action" as part of Clean India Mission? Swachh Paryatan Mobile App
12th South Asian Games 2016 was held at? Guwahati and Shillong
Mascot of 12th South Asian Games 2016 was? Thikor (baby Rhinoceros)
India finished at top in the recently concluded South Asian Games 2016. How many medals India won in this event? 308 medals
How many gold India won in the 12th South Asian Games 2016? 188
Name the Indo-British filmmaker who won Grammy Award for the Best Music Film for his documentary Amy? Asif Kapadia
Which team won The National Chess team Championship for the first time?
(The 36th Championship was held at Bhubaneswar from 8th to 14th February, 2016.) 		Indian Railways
Name the fashion designer who was conferred with the Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour), France's highest civilian honour? Manish Arora
According to the result of 73-city survey, Swachh Sarvekshan, which city topped the list as the cleanest city of India? Mysuru
According to the result of 73-city survey, Swachh Sarvekshan, which city topped the list as the dirtiest city of India?
(The study was conducted by Quality Council of India.) 		Dhanbad
Name the indigenously developed surface to surface missile with a strike range of 350 km which India successfully test-fired on 17th February 2016? Prithvi II
India defeated which country 2-1 to win the three-match T-20 series? Sri Lanka
Name the former Union Finance Secretary and former Chairman of the Competition Commission who was appointed as the chairman of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)? Ashok Chawla
Name the noted Malayalam poet and lyricist who passed away recently at the age of 84?
(He was awarded Padma Shri and the Padma Vibhushan besides country's highest literary honour, the Jnanpith Award, in 2007.) 		ONV Kurup
Name the Karnataka's flagship governance project which won gold at the m-governance awards at the fourth World Government Summit held in Dubai on 10 February 2016? Mobile-One app
According to the recent ruling of Supreme Court under which Section of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) the State can use its curfew powers to block Internet access on personal mobile phones if there is apprehension that a public agitation can turn aggressive and disturb public tranquillity? Section 144
Name the United Arab Emirates' national oil company which has in the first deal of its kind agreed to store crude oil in India's maiden strategic storage and give two-third of the commodity to it for free? Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC)
Elephanta island, famous for its cave sculptures and located around 10 km off Mumbai coast will get electricity for the first time from which date? 15th August 2016
Which wild animal is declared "vermin" for a year in Uttarakhand which will allow state authorities to carry out an extermination of this animal on a large scale without attracting penal provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972? Pig (Boar)
In which Indian State South Asian Games 2016 is currently being held? Guwahati, Assam
In which Indian State National Organic Farming Research Institute will be set up?
(This state has become India's first fully organic state by implementing organic practices on around 75,000 hectares of agricultural land.) 		Sikkim
Which body launched India's first Ayurvedic anti-diabetic drug, BGR-34? CSIR
Name the recently set up chemical plant which is the first ever petro-chemical project in the entire North-East and was constructed at the cost of Rs 10,000 crore? Brahmaputra Cracker and Polymer Limited (BCPL)
Name the Principal Adviser (Cost) who took over the charge of Indian Cost Accounts Service (ICoAS) as head on 1st February, 2016?
(She is the first lady ICoAS officer who has achieved this laurel.) 		Mrs. Aruna Sethi (ICoAS 1985)
Name the Sarangi maestro who has been chosen for the prestigious Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi classical music award for 2015-2016?
(The annual award, instituted by the Maharashtra government, is given to individuals who have excelled in classical vocal or instrumental music.) 		Pandit Ram Narayan
Name the former Lok Sabha Speaker who passed away recently?
(He served as the Union Agriculture Minister in 1991 in P. V. Narasimha Rao Ministry.) 		Balram Jakhar
Which state won the 61st National School Athletics championship? Kerala

INTERNATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS AND EVENTS

Which film won the Best Film award at the 88th Academy Awards (Oscars) 2016 held in Log Angeles? Spotlight
Name the actor who won the Best Actor award for the film 'The Revenant' at the 88th Academy Awards (Oscars) 2016?
(This was the first Oscar win for the actor, who has been nominated for the award six times earlier.) 		Leonardo DiCaprio
Name the current Managing Director of International Monetary Fund (IMF) who was been re-elected for a second five-year term? Christine Lagarde
Which country inaugurated the world's longest cable car (3-rope) system with a total length of 6,292.50 meters? Vietnam
Name the General Secretary of Union of European Football Associations who has been elected as the new President of FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association)? Gianni Infantino
Name the author of popular novel "To Kill a Mockingbird", who passed away on 19 February 2016?
(The novel also won her Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1961.) 		Harper Lee
Against which Asian country USA has imposed unilateral sanctions to curb the country's controversial nuclear weapons program? North Korea
Parliament of which country became the first in the world to completely run on solar power, a venture supported by close ally China with a whopping $55 million funding? Pakistan
Name the New Zealand cricketer who scored fastest test century in 54 balls breaking the previous records (56 balls) of West Indian Viv Richards and Pakistan's Misbah-ul-Haq? Brendon McCullum
On which day International Mother Language Day was observed with the theme for 2016 - "Quality education, language(s) of instruction and learning outcomes"? 21st February
The first Silk Road train arrived in Tehran carrying 32 containers of commercial products from eastern Zhejiang province. Zhejiang is situated in which country?
(The train took 14 days to make the 9,500-kilometre journey through Kazakstan and Turkmenistan.) 		China
Name the former United Nations Secretary-General who died recently?
(He served as UN Secretary-General from January 1992 to December 1996.) 		Boutros Boutros-Ghali
Which country lifted their maiden ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup title by defeating three time champions India by five wickets in the final played at Mirpur? West Indies
Name the South African cricketer who became the fastest cricketer to make 10 ODI centuries in 55 innings breaking the record of Virat Kohli (80 innings) of India? Quinton de Kock
Name the former Prime Minister of Nepal who died recently at the age of 76? Sushil Koirala
Which country became first in the world to ban supermarket food waste? France
World Cancer Day was observed on which day with the theme: We Can, I Can? 4th February 2016
Name the parent company of Google Inc. which topped the list of the world's most valuable companies surpassing Apple recently?
(The shift occurred in 1st February 2016 extended trading after Google's new parent company, released a fourth-quarter earnings report that highlighted the robust growth of the digital ad market.) 		Alphabet
On which day World Wetlands Day was observed with the theme: Wetlands for our Future – Sustainable Livelihoods? 2nd February 2016
For the outbreak of which virus WHO has declared Public Health Emergency of International Concern? Zika virus


Highlights of Academy Awards (Oscars) 2016

Best PictureSpotlight (Director - Tom McCarthy
Best Actor In A Leading RoleLeonardo Dicaprio (Movie - The Revenant)
Best Actress In A Leading RoleBrie Larson (Movie - Room)
Best Animated Feature FilmInside Out
Best DirectorAlejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (Movie - The Revenant)
Best DocumentaryAmy (Director - Asif Kapadia)
Best Foreign Language FilmSon of Saul (A Hungarian film)