Daily Current Affairs MCQ- April 14, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

In its bimonthly monetary policy statement in February, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has kept the key policy rates unchanged.

Inflation targeting monetary policy framework:

• In May 2016, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Act, 1934 was amended to provide a statutory basis for the implementation of the flexible inflation targeting framework.
• The amended RBI Act also provides for the inflation target to be set by the Government of India, in consultation with the Reserve Bank, once in every five years.
• Accordingly, the Central Government has notified 4 per cent Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation as the target for the period from August 5, 2016 to March 31, 2021 with the upper tolerance limit of 6 per cent and the lower tolerance limit of 2 per cent.
• The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) constituted by the Central Government determines the policy interest rate required to achieve the inflation target.

Hence both statements are correct.

The Border Security Force (BSF)carried out its first operation under the increased powers to catch cattle being smuggled illegally out of Assam.

In October 2021, The Ministry of Home Affairs extended the jurisdiction of BSF from 15 km to 50 km inside the international border along Punjab, West Bengal and Assam.

Increase in jurisdiction of BSF

• The area under jurisdiction of the BSF had been extended to a 50 km-belt in West Bengal, Punjab and Assam, running along country’s border.
• Earlier it was 15 km inside the international border.
• In this stretch, the officers of BSF have powers of arrest, search and seizure, on par with their counterparts in the police.
• The border stretch under BSF in Gujarat stands reduced to 50 km from 80 km earlier.
• The area remains the same in Rajasthan at 50 km.
• As was the case earlier, no such limit has been prescribed for following states:
  • Meghalaya
  • Nagaland
  • Mizoram
  • Tripura
  • Manipur
  • The UTs of J&K and Ladakh

Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

The tenure of the current President of India Ram Nath Kovind is set to end in July this year, which is also when the 16th Indian Presidential election will be held to elect his successor.

• The Indian President is elected through an electoral college system, wherein the votes are cast by national and State-level lawmakers. The elections are conducted and overseen by the Election Commission (EC) of India.
• The electoral college is made up of all the elected members of the Upper and Lower Houses of Parliament (Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha MPs), and the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of States and Union Territories (MLAs). Legislative Councils have no role in this.
• This means, in the upcoming polls, the number of electors will be 4,896 — 543 Lok Sabha MPs, 233 MPs of the Rajya Sabha, and 4,120 MLAs of all States, including the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi and Union Territory of Puducherry.

Hence, option (b) is the correct answer.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya on 14th April, 2022.

• The Sangrahalaya, being inaugurated during the celebration of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, tells the story of India after Independence through the lives and contributions of its Prime Ministers.
• The Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya is a tribute to every Prime Minister of India since Independence, irrespective of their ideology or tenure in office.
• The Sangrahalaya integrates the erstwhile Teen Murti Bhawan designated as Block I, with the newly constructed building designated as Block II.
• The logo of the Sangrahalaya represents the hands of the people of India holding the Dharma Chakra symbolizing the nation and democracy.

Hence both statements are correct.

Broadcast Seva Portal

• It is a 360 degree digital solution that will facilitate stakeholders in seeking permissions, applying for registration, tracking applications, calculating fees and executing payments.
• This portal will provide its services under the wider umbrella efforts of Digital India to all stakeholders to private satellite TV channels, teleport operators, Multi-Service Operators (MSOs), community and private radio channels, etc. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• The portal is likely to help 900 satellite TV channels, 70 teleport operators, 1,700 MSOs, 350 Community Radio Stations (CRS) and 380 private FM channels, among others.
• To provide a single point facility to the stakeholders and applicants to apply for various registrations, permissions and licences issued by I&B Ministry for broadcast related activities.
• It will reduce the turnaround time of applications and, at the same time, will help applicants track the progress. Hence statement 2 is correct.

Near Field Communication (NFC) 

• NFC is a short-range wireless connectivity technology that allows NFC-enabled devices to communicate with each other and transfer information quickly and easily with a single touch - whether to pay bills, exchange business cards, download coupons, or share a document.
• NFC transmits data through electromagnetic radio fields, to enable communication between two devices. Both devices must contain NFC chips, as transactions take place within a very short distance. Hence statement 1 is correct.
  • NFC-enabled devices must be either physically touching or within a few centimetres from each other for data transfer to occur. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
• In 2004, consumer electronics companies, Nokia, Philips and Sony together formed the NFC Forum, which outlined the architecture for NFC technology to create powerful new consumer-driven products.

• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is the international body for assessing the science related to climate change. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• It was set up in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to provide policymakers with regular assessments of the scientific basis of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.
• IPCC assessments provide a scientific basis for governments at all levels to develop climate related policies, and they underlie negotiations at the UN Climate Conference – the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

India - Nepal Ties

• Historical: Nepal is an important neighbour of India and occupies special significance in its foreign policy because of the geographic, historical, cultural and economic linkages/ties that span centuries.
  • The India-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1950 forms the bedrock of the special relations that exist between India and Nepal. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
  • India and Nepal share similar ties in terms of Hinduism and Buddhism with Buddha’s birthplace Lumbini located in present day Nepal.
• Trade and Economy: India is Nepal’s largest trade partner and the largest source of foreign investments, besides providing transit for almost the entire third country trade of Nepal.
  • Recently, the Prime Minister of Nepal visited India and held a summit meeting with the Indian Prime Minister. At the summit, India’s RuPay card was launched in Nepal.
    • Nepal is the fourth country, after Bhutan, Singapore and the UAE, where RuPay is live. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Cultural: India has signed three sister-city agreements for twinning Kathmandu-Varanasi, Lumbini-Bodhgaya and Janakpur-Ayodhya. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.
  • A sister city or twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities.

The Central Government has completed transactions worth an estimated Rs 96,000 crore in 2021-22 under the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP), surpassing the target of Rs 88,000 crore for the financial year.

National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP)

In India, the idea of asset monetisation was first suggested by the Vijay Kelkar committee(2012) on the roadmap for fiscal consolidation.

The Central Government announced the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) in August, 2021.

The project has been developed by NITI Aayog.
Objective:

• To serve as a roadmap for the asset monetisation of several brownfield infrastructure assets across sectors.
• The NMP targets to raise Rs 6 lakh crore through asset monetisation of the Central Government, over a four-year period, from FY22 to FY25.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee scrutinizing the 'Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill 2021' which proposes to raise the age of marriage for women to 21 from 18 years, held its second meeting.
A Task Force headed by Jaya Jaitly was appointed by the government in June 2020 to examine matters pertaining to age of motherhood, imperatives of lowering MMR, improvement of nutritional levels and related issues.

The Task Force recommended raising the age of marriage for women.

The Task Force’s recommendations formed the basis for the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill 2021 that was introduced in Parliament in December 2021 by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

The Bill amends the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 to increase the minimum age of marriage of females to 21 years.

The current law - Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 - provides that the minimum age of marriage is 21 years in case of males, and 18 years in case of females.

Hence both statements are correct.