30. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, appointed the first woman Director-General of the WTO in 2021, came from which country?
[UPPSC Combined State Examination, 24 October 2021, Paper I]
- (A) Nigeria
- (B) South Africa
- (C) Kenya
- (D) Ethiopia
Answer: (A) Nigeria
Explanation: Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is a Nigerian economist and former finance minister. She assumed leadership of the World Trade Organization in March 2021, becoming its first female Director-General and its first African chief.
29. Which country launched Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite?
[SSC MTS 2020, held 18 October 2021, Shift 3]
- (A) France
- (B) USSR
- (C) Germany
- (D) United States
Answer: (B) USSR
Explanation: The Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1 on 4 October 1957, placing the first human-made satellite into Earth orbit. Its radio signals were received worldwide, initiating the space age and intensifying scientific rivalry during the Cold War.
28. Which country became the first to receive COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX initiative?
[RRB NTPC CBT-I, 5 April 2021, Shift 1]
- (A) Bhutan
- (B) Ghana
- (C) Nigeria
- (D) Sudan
Answer: (B) Ghana
Explanation: Ghana received the first internationally delivered COVAX vaccine shipment on 24 February 2021. The initiative sought to improve equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, particularly in lower-income countries, through coordinated procurement and distribution.
27. Who was the first cricketer to hit 500 sixes in international cricket?
[RRB NTPC CBT-I, 1 April 2021, Shift 2]
- (A) Virat Kohli
- (B) Rohit Sharma
- (C) Chris Gayle
- (D) M. S. Dhoni
Answer: (C) Chris Gayle
Explanation: West Indies batter Chris Gayle became the first player to surpass 500 sixes across international cricket formats. Known for his powerful hitting, Gayle established major batting records in limited-overs and Twenty20 cricket.
26. Who was the first Indian woman to win the Miss World title?
[SSC CHSL 2020, held 12 August 2021, Shift 1]
- (A) Priyanka Chopra
- (B) Diana Hayden
- (C) Aishwarya Rai
- (D) Reita Faria
Answer: (D) Reita Faria
Explanation: Reita Faria won the Miss World pageant in 1966, becoming the first Indian and first Asian winner. She later trained as a physician and remained a pioneering figure in the history of international beauty pageants.
25. Which country won the first men’s ICC T20 World Cup in 2007?
[SSC CHSL 2020, held 15 April 2021, Shift 3]
- (A) Pakistan
- (B) Bangladesh
- (C) Sri Lanka
- (D) India
Answer: (D) India
Explanation: India won the inaugural men’s Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007, defeating Pakistan by five runs in the final. The tournament helped elevate the international popularity of the shortest established format of international cricket.
24. Which country is credited in the examination with first making and adopting a modern written national constitution?
[ACC 125 CGAT, August 2021]
- (A) Great Britain
- (B) France
- (C) United States of America
- (D) India
Answer: (C) United States of America
Explanation: The United States Constitution was drafted in 1787 and entered into force in 1789. It is a foundational example of a durable codified national constitution, though older constitutional instruments and earlier written governmental frameworks also existed.
23. Who was the first woman to climb Mount Everest successfully from the Kangshung Face?
[REET Level I, 2021]
- (A) Bachendri Pal
- (B) Santosh Yadav
- (C) Premlata Agrawal
- (D) Arunima Sinha
Answer: (B) Santosh Yadav
Explanation: Santosh Yadav became the first woman to summit Mount Everest twice, in 1992 and 1993, and is associated with a pioneering ascent by the difficult Kangshung Face. Her expeditions marked a major achievement in women’s high-altitude mountaineering.
22. What is surgeon Christiaan Barnard known for accomplishing first?
[SSC CGL, 9 March 2020, Shift 3]
- (A) Publishing logarithm tables
- (B) Delivering the first IVF baby
- (C) Performing the first human-to-human heart transplant
- (D) Cloning the first mammal
Answer: (C) Performing the first human-to-human heart transplant
Explanation: South African surgeon Christiaan Barnard led the first successful human-to-human heart transplant operation in Cape Town in December 1967. The recipient, Louis Washkansky, survived the surgery but died eighteen days later from complications.
21. Scientists in which country created a 3D-printed heart using human tissue in April 2019?
[SSC CGL, 4 March 2020, Shift 1]
- (A) Ethiopia
- (B) Israel
- (C) Kenya
- (D) Croatia
Answer: (B) Israel
Explanation: Researchers at Tel Aviv University in Israel reported producing a small experimental 3D-printed heart containing human cells and blood vessels in 2019. It was a research prototype, not a transplant-ready organ capable of functioning in a patient.
