General Awareness Questions

Dispur will make CT scans, X-rays and blood tests free in all government hospitals in Assam except those in the medical colleges. Health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma informed the Assembly during question hour that chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal will inaugurate the new scheme on May 11. The service will be outsourced to a private organisation but the cost will be borne by the government. The free service – not for medical colleges – will be started with 35 hospitals and expanded to 500 smaller health centres.

Belgium has become the first country to open an honorary consulate office in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City).

1. In the latest Global 500 rankings of most valuable and powerful brands across the globe, Sundar Pichai’s Google has surpassed Apple to achieve the top position.
2. The Brand Finance Global 500 list published on February 2, 2017 had featured Apple as the top brand for continuous five years.
3. However, for 2017, the ranking revealed that Google’s brand value rose by 24 percent to $109.5bn in 2016. The brand value of Apple on the other hand dropped 27 percent to $107bn.
4. This is for the first time since 2011 that Google has been placed at the top spot. The third place has been occupied by Amazon.
5. The ranking is based upon factors such as marketing investment, familiarity, loyalty, staff satisfaction and corporate reputation.

Audi A3

Samsung has become the first company in India to launch its mobile payment service named Samsung pay.

India’s first multi-modal electric vehicle project has been inaugurated by the Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, along with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at the Nagpur Airport Complex to promote eco-friendly transport. With this, Nagpur became the first city in India to have electric mass mobility system with a fleet of 200 electric vehicles, including taxis, buses, e-rickshaw and autos.

Grand Central Terminal also referred to as Grand Central Station or Grand Central is the world’s largest railway station in terms of platforms in New York City with 44 platforms covering 48 acres.