Current Affairs - MCQ Online Test (2) - UPSC MCQ

Answer: c

Explanation:

Launch of PSLV-C37/Cartosat-2 Series Satellite Mission took place on from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota. The Cartosat-2 series satellite is the primary satellite carried by PSLV-C37. This satellite is similar to the earlier Cartosat-2, 2A and 2B.

After its injection into polar Sun Synchronous Orbit by PSLV-C37, the satellite was brought to operational configuration following which it will begin providing regular remote sensing services using Panchromatic and Multi-spectral cameras.

The imagery of Cartosat-2 series satellite will be useful cartographic applications, urban and rural applications, coastal land use and regulation, utility management like road network monitoring, water distribution, creation of land use maps, precision study, change detection to bring out geographical and manmade features and various other Land Information System (LIS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) applications.

Answer: b

Explanation:

The Union Cabinet has approved the Establishment of Food Legumes Research Platform (FLRP) at Amlaha, Sehore, Madhya Pradesh with Satellite Hubs in West Bengal (for pulses) and Rajasthan (for Natural Resource Management) by ICARDA in the second phase; by International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA) and authorised the Ministry of Agriculture to carry out technical modifications in the Supplementary Agreement signed between ICAR and ICARDA relating to establishment of FLRP, if required.

The establishment of FLRP in India will enable India to harness the best of international science in meeting the emerging food security challenges. India would be able to rapidly and effectively absorb the research output achieved in the country by FLRP.

A major international R&D institution will make India an even bigger center for agricultural research in the world and this in turn, will attract further research & development investment in the country. This is a research set up by an international organization. ICARDA has a good track record of innovation, as in climate resilient technologies including suitable food legume varieties for dry-land production systems.

ICARDA will carry out research through a multi-disciplinary team of scientists for enhancing productivity of crops range-land and livestock. This platform will contribute significantly towards reducing poverty, improving food security, improving nutrition and health, and sustaining the natural resource base. The research output would benefit farmers of all regions, whether big, small or marginal; and as technologies developed would be eligible for use by all farmers, the project is equitable and inclusive.

Answer: c

Explanation:

Under Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Unnat Krishi Shiksha (PDUUKS) Scheme the central government has opened 100 centres to promote agriculture education in the country. The Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Ministry has this information regarding opening up of new centres in the country.

Under the scheme the central government will provide the education to the agriculture graduates. From the year 2016-17, scholarship to the students has been increased from Rs 1000 to Rs 3000. Four new colleges have been opened in Rani Laxmibai Central Agricultural University, Jhansi, Bundelkhand, out of which 2 are in Uttar Pradesh and 2 Colleges are in Madhya Pradesh. IARI-Jharkhand has been established and students of the state are studying in various courses under Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Unnat Krishi Shiksha Scheme.

Answer: c

Explanation:

India’s first floating elementary school named Loktak Elementary Floating School has been inaugurated recently at Langolsabi Leikai of Champu Khangpok floating village on Loktak Lake in Manipur. The school was established to control the sudden high dropout rate of children living in the Champu Khangpok floating villages who were rendered homeless due to the recent evacuation of phumdis.

Loktak Lake is referred as the lifeline of Manipur, the largest freshwater lake in northeast India. It is also famous for the phumdis or phumshongs, the assorted heap of vegetation, soil and organic matter at various stages of decomposition floating over it.

Answer: d

Explanation:

The Annual International Intellectual Property Index released by US Chambers of Commerce’s Global Intellectual Property Centre (GIPC), India has been ranked very poor at 43rd position out of 45 countries.

The International Intellectual Property Index 2017 titled ‘The Roots of Innovation’ revealed that though India showed slight improvement its performance, still it continued to lag behind the rest of the world in IP protections. Out of a total of 35 points, India could score only 8.75, even below the average score of 15.39.The Index has been topped by United States with a score of 32.6 followed by UK, Germany, Japan and Sweden.

Answer: a

Explanation:

Science Express Climate Action Special (SECAS II) will be flagged off from Safdarjung Railway station in Delhi.  Science Express, redesigned as SECAS, intends to contribute towards increasing understanding of the science of climate change, the observed and anticipated impacts, and different possible responses. Science Express has become the largest, the longest running and the most visited mobile science exhibition.  It has six entries in the Limca Book of Records.

The exhibition will convey a message about Climate Change and will also be a good opportunity to generate a dialogue and discussion. The state-of-the-art exhibition on board the SECAS aims to create awareness among various sections of society, as to how climate change can be combated through mitigation and adaptation.

The SECAS II is a unique collaborative initiative of Department of Science & Technology (DST), Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEFCC), Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Railways and Vikram A Sarabhai Community Science Centre (VASCSC). MoEFCC has asked Wildlife Institute of India (WII) to extend support in the endeavour.

Answer: d

Explanation:

TAMRA was created with an aim to speed up mining activity in India and facilitated all stakeholders to track the status of clearances linked to mining blocks for getting mines to reach till operationalisation for the same. Salient features of TAMRA are as follows:

• It covers block-wise, mineral-wise and state-wise information of the mines to be auctioned.

• It will also monitor various statutory clearances and highlight the additional resources generated through e-auction.

• TAMRA platform will help in enhancing transparency and accountability in mining.

In the case of delay in obtaining any clearances, TAMRA will send triggers to the concerned authority. These triggers will help the authority to take the remedial steps immediately.

• The triggers generated by TAMRA will also be sent to the ministry of mines, which will allow the ministry to expedite clearances in case the timelines set against each of the statutory clearances are not met.

Answer: a

Explanation:

Publications Division, a Media Unit under Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and Sasta Sahitya Mandal (SSM) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for joint publication of books on heroes of freedom struggle, cultural leaders and other eminent personalities who worked towards Nation development.

The agreement is a joint initiative between the two organisations to sensitise the young generation about India’s rich and diverse culture and history. It would promote the availability of good literature for the people on diverse topics.

SSM is a Trust established by Mahatma Gandhi in 1925 and mandated to promote, develop and publish high-class literature in Hindi and to make it available to the public at affordable prices.

Since its inception, SSM has brought out more than 2500 titles on Indian culture, heritage, Indian epics, & stories and has created a huge corpus of children literature to infuse in them the values of life and love for the nation and humanity.

Answer: d

Explanation:

A Constitution Bench is set to hear the question whether triple talaq and polygamy violates the fundamental rights of Muslim women for which the Supreme Court said it has to examine if these personal law practices are the "fundamental traits" of the minority religion.

In this context, the Centre’s question as to “whether personal law is ‘law’ under Article 13 of the Constitution?” is significant. Article 13, for one, is so inclusive in its ambit that the term ‘law’ in the constitutional provision includes anything from an “ordinance, order, by-law, rule, regulation, notification and even customs and usages” passed or made by the Legislature or any other “competent authority”.

The Bombay High Court in State of Bombay versus Narasu Appa Mali had held that personal law is not ‘law’ under Article 13. The court had observed that reformation of personal laws is best left to the legislature as "chosen representatives of the people" and not the judiciary. It said the phrase ‘customs and usages’ in Article 13 does not include personal laws of various religions. It held that Article 44 (Uniform Civil Code) acquiesced the existence of varied personal laws. This 1951 judgment was never challenged in the Supreme Court.

Answer: c

Explanation:

The Indian Navy’s second ocean going sailboat Tarini will be inducted at a ceremony scheduled to be held at the INS Mandovi Boat Pool on evening of 18 February 2017.  INSV Tarini is a sloop built by M/s Aquarius Shipyard Pvt Ltd at Divar, Goa. The sail boat Tarini is being inducted into the Navy and is slated to be the platform for First Indian All Women Circumnavigation of the Globe expedition of the Indian Navy.

In order to promote ocean sailing activities and to encourage women empowerment, the Indian Navy conceptualized the idea of the First Indian All Women Circumnavigation of the Globe. These officers have done basic sail training courses at INWTC Mumbai followed by Navigation, Seamanship, Communication and Meteorology courses at various naval training schools at Kochi. After completion of theoretical courses, the officers sailed INSV Mhadei to Vizag for the International Fleet Review 2016 and thereafter to Mauritius and back.

Answer: c

Explanation:

Recognising the potential and possibilities in the fisheries sector, Government of India has envisaged a program named ‘’Blue Revolution’’ to unlock the country’s latent potential through an integrated approach. The Blue Revolution, in its scope and reach, focuses on creating an enabling environment for an integrated and holistic development and management of fisheries for the socio-economic development of the fishers and fish farmers. Thrust areas have been identified for enhancing fisheries production from 10.79 mmt (2014-15) to 15 mmt in 2020-21.

Greater emphasis will be on infrastructure with an equally strong focus on management and conservation of the resources through technology transfer to increase the income of the fishers and fish farmers. Productivity enhancement shall also be achieved through employing the best global innovations and integration of various production oriented activities such as production of quality fish seeds, Cost effective feed and adoption of technology etc.

Answer: d

Explanation:

The Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of Maritime Claims) Bill, 2016 was passed by the Lok Sabha recently. The Bill aims to establish a legal framework to consolidate the existing laws relating to admiralty jurisdiction of courts, admiralty proceedings on maritime claims, the arrest of vessels and related issues. It also aims to replace the archaic laws which are hindering efficient governance. The Bill confers admiralty jurisdiction on High Courts located in coastal states of India and this jurisdiction extends up to territorial waters.

The Bill was introduced during the winter session of Parliament which came up for discussion in the Lok Sabha recently. The Bill provides for prioritisation of maritime claims and maritime liens while providing protection to owners, charterers, operators, crew members and seafarers at the same time. During the course of the discussion, thirteen members presented their views and raised various questions also. The Bill was then passed by the House.

Answer: a

Explanation:

Union Agriculture and Farmer's Welfare Ministry has laid the foundation stone of the Banana Research Centre at Gorole, Vaishali, Bihar Centre. The Government has established this Banana Research Centre to fulfil the aspirations of the banana growers of Vaishali. Banana Research Centre, Vaishali falls under Garole area and because of the ecological conditions of Garole, it has been selected for the establishment of this centre.

India holds number one position in the world in the area of banana production and stands at number three in acreages which is 13 per cent of the entire acreage and 33 per cent of the total production. Among the states, Maharashtra is the largest producer followed by Tamil Nadu. The productivity of Maharashtra is 65.7 ton/ha, which is more than the average national production of 34.1 ton/ha. Banana is grown in Bihar in around 27.2 thousand hectares, production is around 550 thousand tons and average productivity is 20.0 ton/ha, which is very less than the national average.

Answer: c

Explanation:

With the objective of fostering a culture of good governance, the National Foundation for Corporate Governance (NFCG) has accredited forty-seven premier Indian Institutions/Organizations as National Centres for Corporate Governance. These centres conduct seminars, workshops conferences, directors’ orientation programmes etc. for promoting good corporate governance practices and also carry out research work in this field. More than 250 events have been organized and 30 research works completed under the aegis of NFCG, besides publication of compendium on the corporate sector and inclusive growth. The research report of the foundation, which include subject such as the role of independent directors, CSR, corporate governance in the energy sector, reforms in banking sector etc. have also been hosted on its website for the benefit of the Stakeholders.

Answer: d

Explanation:

Recently, the Ministry of AYUSH has set-up five autonomous Research Councils, namely, Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS), Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH), Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM), Central Council for Research in Siddha (CCRS) and Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy (CCRYN) as apex bodies for formulation, coordination, development and promotion of research activities in traditional medicine systems for various diseases. A total of 82 institutes are functioning under these councils.

A memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between CCRS and Dr. MGR Medical University, Tamil Nadu has been signed on 13th February 2017 to develop new collaborative research programme of mutual interest and benefit.

National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB), Ministry of AYUSH is implementing the cultivation programme towards promotion of medicinal plants cultivation throughout the country since 2008-09 under Centrally Sponsored Scheme of “National Mission on Medicinal Plants” and “National AYUSH Mission (NAM)” since 2015-16. The scheme is primarily aimed at supporting the market-driven cultivation of medicinal plants on private land with backward linkages through an establishment of nurseries for the supply of quality planting material, and forward linkages for post-harvest management viz. collection, storage, primary processing, marketing infrastructure etc. The cultivation of medicinal plants is supported by providing the subsidy to farmers through the identified implementing agency of concerned states.

Answer: d

Explanation:

Recently, the Lok Sabha has passed the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2016 which inter-alia includes increasing maternity benefit to woman covered under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 from 12 weeks to 26 weeks up to two surviving children in order to allow the mother to take care of the child during his/her most formative stage, providing maternity benefit of 12 weeks to Commissioning mother and Adopting mother, facilitate “work from home” to a mother with mutual consent of the employee and the employer, making mandatory in respect of establishment having fifty or more employees , to have the facility of crèche either individually or as a shared common facility within such distance as may be prescribed by rules & also to allow four visits to the crèche by the woman daily, including the interval for rest allowed to her and every establishment to intimate in writing and electronically to every woman at the time of her initial appointment about the benefits available under the Act.

The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2016 has already been passed by the Rajya Sabha on 11th August, 2016. These changes will have major impact on the health, well-being and growth of the future generation in the Country. It will have positive impact on women’s participation in labour force and will improve the work- life balance of the women workers. The Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Act, 2016 will come into the force only after the President’s assent.

Answer: c

Explanation:

Recently, India and Belgium have signed a Protocol amending the existing Agreement and Protocol between the two countries for Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income today in New Delhi. The Protocol was signed by Sushil Chandra, Chairman Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on behalf of India and Mr. Jan Luykx, Ambassador of Belgium to India, on behalf of Belgium.

The Protocol will broaden the scope of the existing framework of exchange of tax related information. This in turn will help curb tax evasion and tax avoidance between the two countries and will also enable mutual assistance in collection of taxes. Fighting the menace of Black Money stashed in offshore accounts has been a key priority area for the Government. To further this goal, India has either signed or amended international agreements, declarations or conventions for the Avoidance of Double Taxation & Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income and for the Exchange of Information with Switzerland, Mauritius, Cyprus, Japan, Republic of Korea, Kazakhstan, Singapore and Austria during the financial year 2016-17.

Answer: c

Explanation:

Section 16 of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 stipulates that ‘No child admitted in a school shall be held back in any class or expelled from school till the completion of elementary education’. Thus, the policy covers elementary stage of schooling covering classes 1 to 8.

In pursuance of the decision taken in the CABE Committee meeting held on 19.8.2016, another Sub-Committee under the Chairpersonship of Prof. Vasudev Devnani, Minister of Education, Government of Rajasthan was constituted on 26.10.2015 inter-alia, to review the feedback received from States/UTs on the ‘No-Detention’ policy. The recommendations of the Committee are as under:

(i) There should be an examination at Class 5. It should be left to the States and UTs to decide whether this exam will be at the school, block, District or State Level.

(ii) If a child fails then allow the child an opportunity to improve. There should be additional instruction provided to children and the child should be given an opportunity to sit for another exam. If the child is unable to pass the exam in the second chance, then detain the child.

(iii) At Classes 6 and 7, there should be a school based exam for students.

(iv) At Class 8, there should be an external exam. In case the child fails, the child should be given additional instruction and then appear for an improvement exam. If the child is unable to pass the exam in the second chance, then detain the child. The matter regarding amendment to Section 16 of the RTE Act, 2009 is under the active consideration of this Ministry.

Answer: d

Explanation:

One of the terms of reference of the group of Secretaries was formed to look into ‘Education and Social Development’, is to develop full proof mechanisms for eliminating parking of funds under various schemes. The Group of Secretaries made the following recommendation under the theme of ‘Promote English and Science in school education’ of School Education Sector:

(i) English to be a compulsory subject in schools from standard 6 onwards;

(ii) At least one English medium school in every block;

(iii) Science education facility to be ensured in a radius of 5 kilometres.

Answer: d

Explanation:

As per the data from Ministry of Power that as of now, 57 projects have been sanctioned under the Power System Development Fund (PSDF) scheme, at the cost of Rs.7268 Crores. PSDF can be utilized, inter alia, for creating necessary transmission systems of strategic importance based on operational feedback by Load Dispatch Centres for relieving congestion in Inter-State Transmission Systems (ISTS) and intra-state system which are incidental to the ISTS. This fund can also be utilized for Renovation & Modernization of transmission and distribution systems for relieving congestion.

Answer: c

Explanation:

Recently, a one day Conference on India - Poland Bilateral Cooperation in Agriculture & Allied Sectors was held on 8th March 2017, at NASC Complex, Pusa, New Delhi. The conference was attended by Government Officers, Scientists and Industry representatives of both the countries. The conference apprised both sides on the latest developments of their activities in the field of Seed, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry, Plant Protection, Mechanization, food processing and allied agriculture sector. Finally, both the sides reaffirmed their commitment to maintain close contacts through the established channels. Both sides will continue to foster cooperation in priority fields of mutual interest.

Answer: d

Explanation:

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 is considered as the biggest economic reform next only to GST. It offers a market determined, time bound mechanism for orderly resolution of insolvency, wherever possible, and orderly exit, wherever required. The Code envisages an ecosystem comprising National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunal (DRAT), Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT), Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Board), Information Utilities (IUs), Insolvency Professionals (IPs), Insolvency Professional Agencies (IPAs) and Insolvency Professional Entities (IPEs) for implementation of the Code.

With concerted efforts of all concerned, there has been considerable progress in terms of putting in place some of the key elements of the ecosystem and also operationalisation of provisions relating to corporate insolvency resolution and liquidation. The debtors and creditors alike have commenced transactions under the Code.

Answer: b

Explanation:

The Union Cabinet has given its ex-post facto approval for settlement of Legacy Food Cash Credit Accounts (upto crop season 2014-15) of Punjab Government for food procurement operations. This proposal of Department of Expenditure was approved by Prime Minister under Rule 12 of (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961.

The early settlement of legacy issues will help the banks in disbursement of food credit in the larger interest of numerous farmers of the State and uninterrupted continuity in food procurement operations to ensure food security for the nation. Settlement of outstanding Cash Credit Limits (CCL) account by availing term loan by the Punjab Government would entail savings in terms of interest payment. This will create additional resource enabling Punjab Government to undertake capital expenditure.

Answer: c

Explanation:

Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana has said that it has developed country's first genetically-modified (Bt) varieties of cotton — the seeds of which could be reused by farmers, resulting in saving the repeated cost they have to bear every season. Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has identified three Bt cotton varieties — namely PAU Bt 1, F1861 and RS 2013 — for cultivation in states of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan.

PAU Bt 1 and F 1861 were developed by PAU, whereas, RS 2013 was developed at Rajasthan Agricultural University (RAU), Bikaner. While the PAU Bt 1 was completely developed at Punjab Agricultural University, the F 1861 and RS 2013 varieties were converted to Bt version by Central Institute for Cotton Research (CICR), Nagpur. The entire three varieties carry ''cry1Ac'' gene imparting resistance against bollworm complex.

Notably, cotton is the only genetically-modified seed that’s legally allowed in India. Punjab alone needs around 20-25 lakh packets of Bt cotton seed for sowing of crop which roughly amounts to around Rs. 225 crores.

With the new variety, the farmers can keep their own harvest for next sowing season. Bt cotton hybrids became popular due to ‘Bt technology’ which imparts resistance to bollworms, which are a major cause of yield loss in cotton. The price of seed of these Bt cotton varieties shall much lower as compared to current market price of Bt cotton hybrids seed, and thus, there is a scope to reduce the cost of cultivation and increase the savings of the farmers.

Answer: a

Explanation:

The second edition of the Joint Army Exercise,” Al Nagah-Ii” was held between India and Oman recently. The training contingents comprised of platoon strength from both the Armies, which will be validated over 2-3 days by senior military observers of both the countries. The previous edition of the Exercise was held at Muscat, Oman in 2015.

The aim of this exercise is to acquaint both forces with each other’s operating procedures, improve the interoperability in conducting joint operations in the backdrop of counter insurgency/ counter terrorism environment as also to enhance the existing military relationship between the Indian Army and the Royal Army of Oman.