Daily Current Affairs MCQ- March 4, 2024 - UPSC MCQ

Global Resource Outlook 2024 was launched on the final day of the Sixth United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA-6) at the UNEP headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

• It is the flagship report of the International Resource Panel of United Nations Environment Programme.
• This year’s report sheds light on how resources are essential to the effective implementation of the Agenda 2030 and multilateral environmental agreements to tackle the triple planetary crisis.
• It brings together the best available data, modelling and assessments from 180 countries, seven world regions and four income groups, to analyse trends, impacts and distributional effects of resource use. 

Highlights of the report

• It presents a stark picture of global inequality, where low-income countries consume six times less materials compared to wealthy countries, despite generating 10 times less climate impacts.
• Global production and consumption of material resources has grown more than three times over the last 50 years, growing at an average of more than 2.3 per cent a year, despite the increase being the main driver of the triple planetary crisis.
• The consumption and use of resources is largely driven by demand in upper income countries.
• The extraction and processing of material resources — including fossil fuels, minerals, non-metallic minerals and biomass — accounts for over 55 per cent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 40 per cent of particulate matter poisoning the environment.
• The extraction and processing of agricultural crops and forestry products accounts for 90 per cent of land-related biodiversity loss and water stress and a third of GHG emissions.
• The extraction and processing of fossil fuels, metals and non-metallic minerals including sand, gravel and clay account for 35 per cent of global emissions. 
• Despite this, resource exploitation could increase by almost 60 per cent from 2020 levels by 2060 — from 100 to 160 billion tonnes.

Hence option (d) is the correct answer.

The Innovations for Defence Excellence-Defence Innovation Organisation (iDEX-DIO), under the aegis of Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence, is organising DefConnect 2024 at Manekshaw Centre, New Delhi on March 04, 2024.

• It is the flagship scheme of the Ministry of Defence, Government of India launched in 2018.
• Objective: The objective of the scheme is to cultivate an innovation ecosystem in the Defence and Aerospace sector by collaborating with startups, innovators, MSMEs, incubators, and academia.
• Funding: It will be funded and managed by a ‘Defence Innovation Organization (DIO)’ which has been formed as a ‘not for profit’ company as per the Companies Act 2013 for this purpose, by the two founder memberse. Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) - HAL & BEL.
• It functions as the executive arm of DIO, carrying out all the required activities while DIO will provide high level policy guidance to iDEX.
• It offers grants and support for R&D with significant potential for future adoption in Indian defence and aerospace.
• It is currently engaged with around 400+ Startups and MSMEs.

Hence both statements are correct.

Pakistan has decided to hold its National Day celebrations in New Delhi again this year, which is observed on March 23, the day the Lahore Resolution was adopted in 1940 by the Muslim League.

• It was adopted by the All-India Muslim League during its general session in Lahore from March 22 to March 24, 1940, formally called for an independent state for India’s Muslims.
• The resolution does not include the word ‘Pakistan’ anywhere.
• The Lahore Resolution was criticised by many Indian Muslims, like Abul Kalam Azad and the Deoband ulema led by Husain Ahmad Madani, who advocated for a united India.
• What did the Resolution say?
• Geographically contiguous units are demarcated into regions which should be so constituted, with such territorial readjustments as may be necessary, that the areas in which the Muslims are numerically in a majority as in the North-Western and Eastern Zones of India, should be grouped to constitute “Independent States” in which the constituent units shall be autonomous and sovereign.”
• In other parts of India where the Mussalmans are in a minority, adequate, effective and mandatory safeguards shall be specially provided in the constitution for them and other minorities for the protection of their religious, cultural, economic, political, administrative and other rights and interests in consultation with them.”

What was the lead-up to the Lahore Resolution?

• Till the early 1930s, many Muslims had been agitating for better representation and safeguarding of their rights within the Indian Union, and the separate electorate granted to them in the Government of India Act, 1935, was a step towards that.
• The Muslim League session was held days after the Khaksar tragedy, when members of a Muslim group called the Khaksars, fighting for India’s independence, were shot at by the British on March 19 in Lahore, killing many.

Hence both statements are correct.

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights has sought action against an app for allegedly disseminating explicit and objectionable material, including content targeted at children.

• It has been constituted by the Government of India, under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005.
• Mandate: The Commission is mandated under section 13 of the CPCR Act, 2005 "to ensure that all Laws, Policies, Programmes, and Administrative Mechanisms are in consonance with the Child Rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution of India and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child."
• It is also mandated to monitor the proper and effective implementation of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012; Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 and Right to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009.
• Composition
• A chairperson who, is a person of eminence and has done outstanding work for promoting the welfare of children
• Six members, out of which at least two are women, from the following fields, is appointed by the Central Government from amongst person of eminence, ability, integrity, standing and experience in Education, Child health, care, welfare or child development; Juvenile justice or care of neglected or marginalized children or children with disabilities, Elimination of child labour or children in distress, Child psychology or sociology; and Laws relating to children.
• These members are appointed by the Central Government for a term of 3 years.
• Nodal Ministry: It works under the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Observations by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) show that a protoplanetary disk around a young star in the Orion Nebula is losing massive amounts of hydrogen each year. 

About Protoplanetary Disk:

• A protoplanetary disk is a disk of gas (99% by mass) and dust (1%), orbiting a newly formed star, from which planets may eventually form or be in the process of forming.
• Disks are common by-products of star formation, and range in mass from 0.001 to 0.3 Solar masses (1027–1029 kg) and in size from several tens to almost 1,000 Astronomical Units (1012–1014 m).
• How are they formed?
• Stars form from cold interstellar molecular clouds. A molecular cloud is an interstellar cloud of gas and dust in which molecules can form, the most common of which is hydrogen (H2). 
• As they collapse into protostars under the force of gravity, the remaining matter forms a spinning disk.
• Eventually, the star stops accreting matter, leaving the disk in orbit around it.
• The leftover gas and dust inside that protoplanetary disk become the ingredients for planet formation.
• Organic molecules present in the original molecular cloud become part of the protoplanetary disk and the planets that form from it.
• The chemical composition of the protoplanetary disk determines the composition of the eventual planets that form from it. 
• Protoplanetary disks typically disperse after 2–3 million years through the coalescence of their matter into planets and photoevaporation by the stellar radiation.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Around 170 people were "executed" in attacks on three villages in northern Burkina Faso recently.

About Burkina Faso:

• It is a landlocked country in western Africa.
• As it straddles the Prime Meridian, it has territories in both the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.
• Borders:  It shares its borders with six other nations - Mali to the north and west, Niger to the east and Benin to the southeast, while to the south it touches Togo, Ghana, and Ivory Coast.
• Capital: Ouagadougou
• Geography:
• It is predominantly characterized by savannahs, plateaus and low mountains in the southwest.
• The northern region, known as the Sahel, is arid and desert-like.
• History: Burkina Faso, previously known as Upper Volta, was once part of French West Africa since 1896. It gained independence from France in 1960 and changed its name to Burkina Faso in 1984. 
• Languages:
• The official language of Burkina Faso is French, which is used in government and education.
• There are many indigenous languages spoken throughout the country, with Moore (Mossi) being one of the most widely spoken.
• Economy: It is largely based on agriculture, which employs over 80% of the workforce. It is one of the world’s poorest countries.
• Government: It is a republic with a presidential system of government. It has experienced political transitions and changes in leadership over the years.
• Terrorist groups, including groups affiliated with Al-Qa’ida and the Islamic State - began attacks in the country in 2016 and conducted attacks in the capital in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
• By early 2023, insecurity in Burkina Faso had displaced more than 2 million people and led to significant jumps in humanitarian needs and food insecurity.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

In commentaries on China and Taiwan, 'grey zone warfare' crops up in descriptions of Chinese actions around the island that it claims as its own.

About Grey Zone Warfare:

• Grey zone warfare generally means a middle, unclear space that exists between direct conflict and peace in international relations.
• It can be broadly defined as the exploitation of operational space between peace and war to change the status quo through the use of coercive actions which remain below a threshold that, in most cases, would prompt a conventional military response.
• Activities characterised as grey zone warfare methods range from the use of proxies for kinetic action or change of territorial status quo through coercion to non-kinetic subversive actions such as cyberattacks, economic coercion, disinformation campaign, election meddling, and more recently, weaponisation of migrants.
• There are typical aspects that tend to be present in most grey zone warfare activities.
• The first is that grey zone elements remain below the threshold that would justify a military response, often through the use of non-military tools. 
• The second common characteristic of grey zone activities is that they unfold gradually over time rather than involving bold, all-encompassing actions to achieve objectives in one step. 
• The third characteristic, which applies to some but not all the activities in this sphere, is a lack of attributability. Most grey zone campaigns involve actions, whereby the aggressor aims for plausible deniability of its action. 
• In cases where grey zone actions are open and attributable, they are justified using extensive legal and political arguments. In addition, aggressors also recruit other countries to their point of view.
• Grey zone campaigns target specific vulnerabilities in the targeted countries.

Hence both statements are correct.

Russia's defence ministry recently announced a successful test fire of Yars intercontinental ballistic nuclear missile.

About Yars Missile:

• The Yars (also known as RS-24 or SS-29) is a Russian-made intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) with multiple independently targetable warheads, each capable of targeting different objectives.
• Features:
• It is a three-stage, solid propellant, MIRV-capable (Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicles) ICBM.
• The Yars is a modified version of the Topol-M missile system.
• The missile is 23 meters long and can be launched from a silo or mobile launcher. 
• It has a range of 10,500 km.
• Launch Weight: 49600 kg
• The missile can be armed with up to 10 MIRVs, each containing a thermonuclear warhead weighing 300 kilotons.
• It has the capability to manoeuvre during flight and deploy both active and passive decoys, which gives Yars an advantage against modern missile defence systems.

Hence option d is the correct answer.

Prime Minister of India launched PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana to provide free electricity to its beneficiaries.

• In this scheme, the central government will provide 300 units of free electricity per month to its beneficiaries by investing worth ₹75,000 crores.
• The free electricity scheme was earlier announced by Finance Minister in interim budget speech.
• Target: It aims to light up 1 crore households.
• Under the scheme Urban Local Bodies and Panchayats shall be incentivised to promote rooftop solar systems in their jurisdictions. 
• The Central Government will guarantee no financial burden on the people by providing significant subsidies directly to their bank accounts and offering highly concessional bank loans.
• Expected benefits:
• Savings up to fifteen to eighteen thousand rupees annually for households from free solar electricity and selling the surplus to the distribution companies;
• Charging of electric vehicles;
• Entrepreneurship opportunities for a large number of vendors for supply and installation;
• Employment opportunities for the youth with technical skills in manufacturing, installation and maintenance.

Hence both statements are correct.

Swachhata Green Leaf Rating system for the hospitality sector yet to take off as there has been no response from States despite the Union Tourism Ministry sending three communiques so far.

• A government-initiated rating system for the hospitality sector which aims to ensure world-class hygiene and sanitation in hotels, resorts and homestays has become a non-starter with no State opting for it as of now.
• Objective: The objective is to prevent pollution in water bodies and keep the environment clean.
• Target group: The target groups are hotels, lodges, homestays, ‘Dharamshalas’ and camps which have portable toilets. The rating will be based on compliance with the safe sanitation practices outlined in the guidelines.
• The ranking scheme was launched in November 2023 by the Union Tourism Ministry in collaboration with the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
• As part of the initiative, the State teams of Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin (rural) and the tourism department will organise workshops on the concept, process and desired outcomes for the stakeholders.
• Implementation: A three-tiered committee system has been proposed for implementation, beginning with a Verification Sub-Committee formed by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) for the on-ground verification, followed by a District Committee, which the District Collector will chair and then a State-level committee, headed by the Chief Secretary of the State.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.