RRB JE Current Affairs Quiz: 7 October 2026

The correct answer is the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). MeitY brought out the National Strategy for Additive Manufacturing in February 2022 as the guiding policy framework for 3D printing in India, keeping it aligned with Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat. The same ministry supports the specialised Development and Deployment Centres and organised the second National Additive Manufacturing Symposium in New Delhi. Option A, the Ministry of Heavy Industries, sounds plausible because additive manufacturing makes machine parts, but the strategy is not its document. Option C, the Ministry of Science and Technology, is wrong here, although the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research works under it and organises the ESTIC conclave where additive manufacturing features. Option D, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, deals with trade and investment promotion and had no role in issuing this strategy.

The correct answer is platinum. Many clean-energy technologies, and hydrogen fuel cells in particular, depend on platinum to speed up the oxygen reduction reaction, and because it is one of the rarest and most expensive metals available, its cost and limited supply stand in the way of large-scale use. The newly reported organic framework matched about ninety-six per cent of the performance of commercial platinum catalysts while using no precious metal at all, which is why the work matters for the price of zinc-air cells. Options A, C and D name palladium, iridium and ruthenium, which are also costly metals used in various catalytic applications, but none of them is the metal identified as the benchmark and the bottleneck in this study. Candidates should link the material to platinum, to the oxygen reduction reaction and to zinc-air batteries together, since questions usually test one of these three links.

The correct answer is Rs 70,125 crore. Under PMGSY-IV, with this outlay, about 62,500 km of all-weather roads are targeted so that 25,000 eligible unconnected habitations receive connectivity. Option A is wrong because 62,500 is the road length in kilometres under this phase, not the money allotted, and the two figures are easy to confuse in a hurry. Option C is wrong for the same reason: 25,000 is the number of habitations to be connected, not a rupee figure. Option D is wrong because no such round figure appears in the review of the scheme. These three numbers were put out together at the PMGSY Chintan Shivir held at Bharat Mandapam on 5 and 6 October 2026, and they should be memorised as a set, along with the roughly 8 lakh km of rural roads already built over 25 years.

The correct answer is 5 per cent. The national strategy sets a time-bound goal of capturing a twentieth of the world additive manufacturing market and of adding close to one billion US dollars to India's gross domestic product. Around that headline figure sit its other targets: 50 technologies built for Indian needs covering materials, machines, processes and software, 100 new start-ups, 500 new products, a skilled pool of one lakh workers and additive manufacturing capability in 10 existing and emerging manufacturing sectors. Option A understates the ambition, while options C and D overstate it; no such share appears in the strategy. The figure matters because progress is measured against it, and the next phase, NSAM 2.0, is being shaped to accelerate the market further.

The correct answer is 120 hours. Tests showed that even after that long a spell of continuous running, the material kept its performance and did not suffer the degradation or contamination that commonly affects catalysts built around metals. This durability matters as much as the raw activity figure, because a catalyst that performs brilliantly for an hour and then decays is of little practical use in a battery meant for transport or for storing renewable power. Options A and B understate the tested period, while option D overstates it by a wide margin. Candidates should pair this number with the other headline figure from the same study, namely that the material reached roughly ninety-six per cent of the performance of commercial platinum catalysts, and should also remember that the simulations traced the result to sites in the molecular structure where oxygen attaches and reacts readily.

The correct answer is 25,000. The current phase of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana is designed to provide connectivity to 25,000 eligible unconnected habitations, and to do so it targets roughly 62,500 km of all-weather roads with an outlay of Rs 70,125 crore. Option A is wrong because no such halved figure is mentioned anywhere in the scheme review. Option C is wrong because 62,500 is the kilometre target of road length and not a count of habitations. Option D is wrong because it is simply not the figure announced for this phase. Aspirants should also note the long-run achievement quoted at the Chintan Shivir, namely about 8 lakh km of rural roads built under the different phases of PMGSY over the past 25 years.

The correct answer is the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). ESTIC is India's Emerging Science, Technology and Innovation Conclave, and its second edition is organised by CSIR on the theme 'Creative Minds, Catalyzing Science, Empowering Technologies'. The conclave spans 12 thematic areas with plenary sessions, technical discussions and exhibitions, takes forward frontier fields such as additive manufacturing, and supports the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047. Option A, ISRO, is the space agency and is linked to additive manufacturing only through printed rocket hardware. Option B, DRDO, handles defence research and is not the organiser. Option D, ICAR, is the apex agricultural research body and has no role in this conclave. Note the venue, Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, and the dates.

The correct answer is S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Kolkata, the Institute of Nano Science and Technology, Mohali, and SRM University, Amaravati. The first two are institutions of the Department of Science and Technology, and the team was led by Dr. Pradip Pachfule, Prof. Ramendra Sundar Dey and Prof. Ranjit Thapa respectively, with the findings published in the journal Science Advances. Options A, C and D list well-known Indian research bodies, including engineering institutes, basic science institutes and national laboratories, but none of these combinations is the group credited with this particular material. Remember that questions on such announcements often ask either for the lead institution, for the parent department, or for the journal, so it is worth memorising all three: the Department of Science and Technology as parent, Kolkata and Mohali as the two institute locations, and Science Advances as the journal.

The correct answer is Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the Union Minister of Rural Development and of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. He addressed the Chintan Shivir and pressed for wider use of digital technologies, GPS-based monitoring and artificial intelligence in field verification, monitoring and timely decision-making, while also seeking faster preparation of Detailed Project Reports, better construction quality and stronger accountability. Option A is wrong because the road transport portfolio is separate and that minister is not named here; PMGSY is run by the Ministry of Rural Development. Option C is wrong because Kamlesh Paswan is the Minister of State for Rural Development, who spoke about delayed works and the five-year maintenance period. Option D is wrong because Rohit Kansal is the Secretary, Rural Development, an officer rather than a minister.

The correct answer is 56. More than four years after the strategy was issued, the government reports that 56 additive manufacturing start-ups have been supported, strengthening the country's innovation and entrepreneurship base. Alongside that figure, more than 1,54,000 people have been trained in additive manufacturing skills, and the network of national centres has enabled 65 India-specific technologies covering materials, machines, Design for Additive Manufacturing and printed products, feeding work in aerospace, medical devices, electronics, energy, food processing and photonics. Options A, B and C are lower counts that do not match the reported progress. Remember also that the strategy's own target is 100 new start-ups, so the figure of 56 represents progress towards that goal rather than its completion.