GA Quiz For RBI Assistant Mains 2026: Check the Important General Awareness Questions and Practice Quiz

Q: As of February 2026, who is the Union Minister of Rural Development of India?

1. Nirmala Sitharaman
2. Piyush Goyal
3. Dharmendra Pradhan
4. Shivraj Singh Chouhan
5. Ashwini Vaishnaw

Answer: D. Shivraj Singh Chouhan

Explanation:

The Union Budget 2026-27 announced the establishment of Self-Help Entrepreneur (SHE) Marts as community-owned retail outlets to strengthen women-led enterprises and deepen the self-help group (SHG) ecosystem across states.

● The SHE Marts initiative aims to provide a structured market platform for products made by women entrepreneurs, with Jharkhand emerging as a key beneficiary due to its strong SHG base .

● Theprogrammebuilds on the Lakhpati Didi Programme and aims to help women transition from credit-based livelihoods to ownership of enterprises.

● SHE Marts will be set up within cluster-level federations of SHGs and supported through enhanced and innovative financing instruments to enable women to accessorganisedretail and stable demand. Shivraj Singh Chouhan is the Union Minister of Rural Development.

● The community-owned retail model allows women-led SHGs to collectively market and sell their products, reducing dependence on intermediaries and improving income realisation.

● Jharkhand hasmobilisedaround 39 lakh rural SHG members through the Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society, and SHE Marts complement ongoing efforts to transform women from borrowers into business owners.

● The initiative aligns with the Budget’s broader emphasis on inclusive growth and women- led development, focusing on ownership, market access, and scale to create sustainable income opportunities.

● SHE Marts aim to help women reach larger markets, build brands, and strengthen local institutions such as self-help groups.

● The Lakhpati Didi Programme, run by the Ministry of Rural Development, supports rural women in starting small businesses and earning a steady income of at least Rs 1 lakh per year.

● Under theprogramme, women are trained in skills like plumbing, making LED bulbs, and using and repairing drones to become financially independent.

● As per the Economic Survey 2026, raising women’s workforce participation to around 55% by 2050 could be key to sustaining strong annual GDP growth in India

Answer: E. 98

Explanation:

India has added two new wetlands to the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance, strengthening its global commitment to wetland and biodiversity conservation.

• The newly designated sites are Patna Bird Sanctuary in Etah district, Uttar Pradesh, andChhari-Dhandin Kutch district, Gujarat.

• With this addition, India’s total Ramsar sites have increased to 98.

• The recognition has been granted under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, an international treaty adopted in 1971 at Ramsar, Iran, for the conservation and wise use of wetlands.

India became a signatory to the Ramsar Convention in 1982.

Patna Bird Sanctuary is a freshwater wetland located in the Gangetic plains.

• It supports a large number of resident and migratory bird species.

• During winter, it serves as an important habitat for migratory birds from Central Asia and Siberia, highlighting its ecological significance.

• Chhari-Dhand is a seasonal saline wetland located in the arid landscape of Kutch.

• Despite harsh climatic conditions, it supports migratory birds, desert wildlife, and rich biodiversity.

• The wetland is home to species such as chinkara, wolf, caracal, desert cat, desert fox, and several endangered bird species.

• The expansion of India’s Ramsar network reflects a rise from 26 sites in 2014 to 98 sites in 2026, showing a growth of over 276 per cent.

• The development underscores India’s commitment to ecosystem protection, biodiversity conservation, climate regulation, flood control, and groundwater recharge under global environmental frameworks.

Explanation:

Mumbai will host the 6th National Crop Nutrition Summit on 5–6 February 2026 at the National Stock Exchange Complex, Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai.

• The two-day summit is beingorganisedby the Indian Micro-Fertilisers Manufacturers Association.

• The theme of the summit is “Converge, Collaborate and Co-create”.

• The summit will focus on micronutrients, speciality fertilisers, and biological inputs, reflecting the changing priorities in Indian agriculture due to soil nutrient depletion and sustainability concerns.

• Key discussions will cover precision crop nutrition, sustainable input usage, regulatory and policy reforms, and expansion of domestic manufacturing capacity.

• Emphasis will be placed on positioning India as a global agri-input manufacturing and export hub, while ensuring farmer productivity and soil health.

• The summit will be inaugurated by Jayakumar Jitendrasinh Rawal, Minister of Marketing and Protocol, Government of Maharashtra.

• P. K. Singh, Agriculture Commissioner of India, will attend as the guest of Honour and outline the Government of India’s vision on agri-input reforms, speciality fertilisers, biologicals, ease of doing business, and export competitiveness.

● In August 2024, Paysharp received the Payment Aggregator–Online (PA-O) licence.

About PA-P Licence :

● Enables unified online–offline payments, allowing Paysharp to offer end-to-end payment acceptance services across online and offline channels from a single regulated platform.

● Supports an omnichannel approach, serving merchants in stores, on-the-go, and online without relying on third-party aggregators.

About Paysharp:

● Established in 2019 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu (TN), by Krishna Kumar Mani and Sathish S.

● Uses a flat-fee pricing model, allowing merchants to pay a fixed charge per transaction instead of a percentage-based Merchant Discount Rate (MDR).

Customers include Government and B2B enterprises, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), Small & Medium Businesses (SMBs), and E-Commerce merchants.