Current Affairs Quiz — 03 March 2025
Daily news by your exam, state and topic — each with a short summary, key facts and MCQs.
Where did PM Narendra Modi lay the foundation stone of the National Referral Centre for Wildlife on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: B — Junagadh
The National Referral Centre for Wildlife, a hub for wildlife health and disease management, will come up at Junagadh, Gujarat.
The Asiatic lion population estimation announced by the PM at Gir on 3 March 2025 is which cycle of the exercise?
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Correct answer: A — 16th
The PM announced the 16th cycle of Asiatic lion population estimation in 2025; the exercise is held every five years and was last done in 2020.
A Centre of Excellence to deal with human-wildlife conflict, announced at the 7th NBWL meeting, will be set up at which location?
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Correct answer: C — WII campus at SACON, Coimbatore
The centre will be at the Wildlife Institute of India campus at SACON (Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History), Coimbatore, and will help states equip Rapid Response Teams.
At the NBWL meeting in Gir, prey augmentation and habitat improvement were announced for lions that have naturally dispersed to which sanctuary?
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Correct answer: D — Barda Wildlife Sanctuary
Asiatic lions have made Barda Wildlife Sanctuary their home through natural dispersal, and the PM announced support for them there through prey augmentation and habitat improvement.
Consider the following statements about the National Board for Wildlife, whose 7th meeting was held at Gir on 3 March 2025: 1. It is chaired by the Prime Minister, with the Minister in charge of Forests and Wild Life as Vice-Chairperson. 2. Section 5A, providing for its constitution, was inserted in the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 by the Amendment Act of 2002. 3. The Director of the Wildlife Institute of India is its Member-Secretary. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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Correct answer: A — 1 and 2 only
Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Section 5A of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, inserted by the Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2002, makes the PM the Chairperson and the Forests and Wild Life Minister the Vice-Chairperson. Statement 3 is wrong: the Director of Wild Life Preservation is the Member-Secretary; the WII Director is only a member.
How many hydrogen refuelling stations are included in the five pilot projects for hydrogen buses and trucks sanctioned by MNRE (announced 3 March 2025)?
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Correct answer: A — 9
The five pilot projects include 37 vehicles and 9 hydrogen refuelling stations.
Consider the following statements about the hydrogen transport pilot projects announced by MNRE on 3 March 2025: 1. Of the 37 vehicles, 15 are hydrogen fuel cell-based and 22 use hydrogen internal combustion engines. 2. The vehicles will run on 10 routes, including Bhubaneswar–Konark–Puri. 3. The projects are funded under the PM e-DRIVE scheme. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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Correct answer: A — 1 and 2 only
Statements 1 and 2 are correct: 15 fuel cell and 22 hydrogen ICE vehicles will run on 10 routes including Bhubaneswar–Konark–Puri. Statement 3 is wrong: the pilots come under the National Green Hydrogen Mission, with about ₹208 crore of central support.
Who chaired the Empowered Committee for Capability Enhancement of the Indian Air Force, whose report was presented to the Raksha Mantri on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: C — The Defence Secretary
The committee was chaired by the Defence Secretary, Rajesh Kumar Singh, who presented its report to Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh.
Who served as Member Secretary of the Empowered Committee for Capability Enhancement of the IAF (report presented on 3 March 2025)?
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Correct answer: D — Deputy Chief of the Air Staff
The Deputy Chief of the Air Staff was Member Secretary; the Vice Chief of Air Staff, Secretary (Defence Production), Secretary DDR&D and DG Acquisition were members.
The demonstration hydrogen plant whose groundbreaking was held at Chembur, Mumbai, on 3 March 2025 will use which process?
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Correct answer: B — Iodine-Sulphur thermochemical water splitting
The Heavy Water Board and BARC plant will produce hydrogen by thermochemical splitting of water based on the Iodine-Sulphur (I-S) process.
Which body, in collaboration with BARC, began construction of the Iodine-Sulphur process hydrogen demonstration plant in Mumbai on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: C — Heavy Water Board
The Heavy Water Board (HWB) started construction with BARC at its facilities in RCF, Chembur.
India signed an MoU on cooperation in the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector with which country on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: C — Nepal
India and Nepal signed the WASH MoU at Sushma Swaraj Bhawan, New Delhi, in the presence of C R Patil and Nepal's Water Supply Minister Pradeep Yadav.
Which of the following is listed as an area of cooperation in the India–Nepal WASH MoU signed on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: D — Groundwater management, including artificial recharge
The MoU covers capacity building, technology and knowledge transfer, and groundwater management including monitoring, quality improvement, artificial recharge and rainwater harvesting.
Who was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Government e Marketplace (GeM) with effect from 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: D — Ajay Bhadoo
Ajay Bhadoo, Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce, was appointed GeM CEO with effect from 3 March 2025.
Before joining the Department of Commerce, the new GeM CEO Ajay Bhadoo (appointed March 2025) served in which post?
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Correct answer: B — Deputy Election Commissioner
Ajay Bhadoo, a 1999-batch Gujarat-cadre IAS officer, earlier served as Deputy Election Commissioner at the Election Commission of India.
Which state recorded the highest number of dolphins in India's first riverine dolphin estimation report released on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: B — Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest numbers, followed by Bihar, West Bengal and Assam.
The first riverine dolphin estimation, whose report was released at Gir on 3 March 2025, surveyed how many rivers across how many states?
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Correct answer: A — 28 rivers in 8 states
The survey covered 28 rivers across eight states, with 3,150 mandays spent covering over 8,500 km.
What total number of dolphins was estimated in the first-ever riverine dolphin estimation report released by the PM on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: A — 6,327
The report estimated a total of 6,327 dolphins; 3,150 was the number of mandays and 8,500 km the distance surveyed.
According to NITI Aayog's report 'From Borrowers to Builders' launched on 3 March 2025, how many women were monitoring their credit as of December 2024?
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Correct answer: A — 27 million
As of December 2024, 27 million women were monitoring their credit, a 42% increase over the previous year.
Under NITI Aayog's Women Entrepreneurship Platform, which collaborative was mentioned at the launch of the 'From Borrowers to Builders' report on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: C — Financing Women Collaborative
NITI Aayog CEO B.V.R. Subrahmanyam said the Financing Women Collaborative (FWC) has been constituted under WEP and invited financial sector stakeholders to join it.
What was the theme of World Wildlife Day observed on 3 March 2025?
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Correct answer: C — Wildlife Conservation Finance: Investing in People and Planet
The 2025 theme was 'Wildlife Conservation Finance: Investing in People and Planet'. The other options were themes of earlier years.
According to the Environment Ministry's World Wildlife Day 2025 backgrounder, how much of its 2025-26 budget is earmarked for the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats?
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Correct answer: D — ₹450 crore
₹450 crore is set aside for Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats out of the Ministry's total 2025-26 budget of ₹3,412.82 crore.
Fifteenth Finance Commission untied grants of about ₹699 crore, announced on 3 March 2025, were released for rural local bodies of which state?
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Correct answer: B — West Bengal
The grants went to 21 District Panchayats, 326 Block Panchayats and 3,220 Gram Panchayats in West Bengal.
The Indian Navy's East Coast Motor Car Rally Expedition was flagged off on 3 March 2025 from which naval establishment?
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Correct answer: B — INS Netaji, Kolkata
The rally was flagged off from INS Netaji, Kolkata, and will cover about 3,800 km before ending in Chennai on 21 March.
At the dairy sustainability workshop on 3 March 2025, Amit Shah said White Revolution 2.0 should aim for milk unions in what share of India's districts?
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Correct answer: A — 80%
He said the target should be a state-level union in every state and UT and milk unions in 80% of the country's districts.