Daily Current Affairs MCQ- April 3, 2023 - UPSC MCQ

Recently, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board approved a unified tariff for natural gas pipelines, a move that will help expand access to clean burning fuel at competitive rates in far-flung areas.

• The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) was formed under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Act, of 2006.
• Objective: To protect the interests of consumers and entities engaged in specified activities relating to petroleum, petroleum products and natural gas and to promote competitive markets and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
• PNGRB authorises the CGD networks, natural gas and petroleum product pipelines, determines tariffs, lays down the technical and safety standards etc.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

 Hence both statements are not correct.

According to new research, more than 90 per cent of the salt marshes may soon succumb to sea level rise by the turn of the century.

• Salt marshes are coastal wetlands that are flooded and drained by salt water brought in by the tides.
• Salt marshes occur worldwide, particularly in middle to high latitudes.
• They are found in intertidal zones along coastlines, usually in protected areas such as estuaries or bays.
• They are dominated by grasses and other salt-tolerant plants such as sedges, cordgrass, rushes, and mangroves.
• Salt marshes protect shorelines from erosion by buffering wave action and trapping sediments.
• They reduce flooding by slowing and absorbing rainwater and protect water quality by filtering runoff and metabolizing excess nutrients.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Recently, the ‘hybrid’ gamosa which was used for felicitating guests at a function sparked protests across Assam.

• The ‘gamosa or gamocha’ is a hand-woven rectangular cotton piece of cloth with red borders and different designs and motifs.
• It is traditionally offered to elders and guests as a mark of respect and honour by Assamese people.
• It is an integral part of all socio-religious ceremonies in the state and is considered an Assamese identity and pride.
• For specific purposes, it is also made of expensive materials like traditional Assamese ‘Pat’ silk and in different colours as well.
• The ‘gamosa’ meant for exchange during the ‘Bihu’ festival is known as ‘Bihuwan’.
• It is a unique scarf found only in Assam and also received Geographic Indication (GI) tag.

Hence both statements are correct.

The recently announced Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) has added the Prime Minister Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel Parks (PM MITRA) scheme as an additional scheme eligible for benefits under the Common Service Provider Scheme of the Export Promotion Capital Goods Scheme (EPCG).

About Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) Scheme:

• It is a trade promotion scheme implemented by the Indian government.
• It allows the duty-free import of capital goods for the purpose of export production in India.
• It was first operationalized on 1 April 2015.
• Aim: To encourage the production of goods for export by providing import duty concessions on capital goods.
• The EPCG scheme is administered by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) and is governed by the Foreign Trade Policy of India.
• Features:
• EPCG Scheme allows import of capital goods for pre-production, production and post-production at zero customs duty.
• It covers manufacturer exporters with or without supporting manufacturer(s), merchant exporters tied to supporting manufacturer(s) and service providers.
• Second-hand goods of any nature will not be permitted under the EPCG scheme.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The Society of Indian Law Firms (SILF) has written to the Bar Council of India (BCI), raising concerns over its recent decision to allow foreign lawyers and law firms to practise in the country.

About Bar Council of India (BCI):

• It is a statutory body established under the Advocates Act 1961 to regulate and represent the Indian bar.
• Functions:
• It performs the regulatory function by prescribing standards of professional conduct and etiquette and by exercising disciplinary jurisdiction over the bar.
• It also sets standards for legal education and grants recognition to Universities whose degrees in law will serve as qualification for enrolment as an advocate.
• It conducts the All India Bar Examination (AIBE) to grant a 'Certificate of Practice' to advocates practising law in India.
• BCI also funds welfare schemes for economically weaker and physically handicapped advocates.

Hence both statements are correct.

The United Kingdom recently agreed to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Why in News?

• UK will become the first new member, and the first in Europe, to join the CPTPP since it came into force in 2018.

About Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP):

• It is a free trade agreement (FTA) between 11 nations: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
• It was signed in March 2018.
• It succeeded the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) after the United States withdrew from the TPP in 2017.
• All 11 countries of CPTPP are members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). 

What is the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)?

• It is a forum of 21 Asia-Pacific economies established in 1989.
• Members: Australia; Brunei Darussalam; Canada; Chile; People's Republic of China; Hong Kong, China; Indonesia; Japan; Republic of Korea; Malaysia; Mexico; New Zealand; Papua New Guinea; Peru; the Philippines; the Russian Federation; Singapore; Chinese Taipei; Thailand; the United States of America; Vietnam.

Hence both statements are not correct.

The Central Government recently informed that the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in) may soon be exempt from responding to queries under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

About Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in):

• CERT-In is a functional organisation of the Ministry of Information & Electronics Technology.
• It is the national nodal agency for responding to computer security incidents as and when they occur.
• Objective: Securing Indian cyberspace.
• CERT-In has been operational since January 2004.
• Functions:
• Collection, analysis and dissemination of information on cyber incidents;
• Forecast and alerts of cyber security incidents;
• Emergency measures for handling cyber security incidents;
• Coordination of cyber incident response activities;
• Issue guidelines, advisories, vulnerability notes and whitepapers relating to information security practices, procedures, prevention, response and reporting of cyber incidents;

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

A gamma-ray burst that recently hit our solar system was so bright, it temporarily blinded gamma-ray instruments in space, according to a NASA release.

About Gamma Ray Burst (GRB):

• GRBs are short-lived bursts of gamma-ray light, the most energetic form of light.
• GRB emits more energy in a few seconds than our Sun will emit in its lifetime and has two distinct emission phases:
• the short-lived prompt emission (the initial burst phase that emits gamma-rays), followed by a long-lived multi-wavelength afterglow phase.
• The shortest GRBs likely mark the collision of two compact stellar remnants called neutron stars, and the longest bursts are thought to arise when a massive, rapidly spinning star collapses to form a black hole.
• When a GRB erupts, it is briefly the brightest source of cosmic gamma-ray photons in the observable Universe.

What are Gamma Rays?

• Gamma rays have the smallest wavelengths and the most energy of any wave in the electromagnetic spectrum.
• They are produced by the hottest and most energetic objects in the universe, such as neutron stars and pulsars, supernova explosions, and regions around black holes.
• On Earth, gamma waves are generated by nuclear explosions, lightning, and the less dramatic activity of radioactive decay.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The Odisha state government recently extended another round of funds to Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA) for undertaking kharif operation.

About KALIA Scheme:

• It was launched by the Odisha Government in December 2018, to reduce poverty and accelerate agricultural prosperity.
• The KALIA scheme supports cultivators, small farmers and landless agricultural labourers.
• It provides payments to farmers to encourage cultivation and associated activities.
• Benefits:

Assistance for cultivation:

It gives financial assistance of Rs.25,000 for a farm family (small and marginal farmers) over five seasons to purchase inputs like fertilisers, seeds and pesticides.

• The farm family can also use the financial assistance towards labour and other investments.

Assistance for livelihood:

• The assistance for livelihood provides financial assistance of Rs.12,500 to all landless agricultural households for allied agricultural activities like mini-layer units, small goat rearing units, duckery units, mushroom cultivation, fishery kits for fisherman and bee-keeping, etc.

Assistance for vulnerable agricultural household:

• The vulnerable cultivators or landless agricultural labourers will get financial assistance of Rs.10,000 per family every year to enable them to take care of their sustenance.

Life insurance for cultivators and landless agricultural labourers:

• It provides a life insurance cover of Rs.2 lakh to cultivators and landless agricultural labourers between 18-50 years.
• It also provides a personal accident cover of Rs.2 lakh.

Interest-free crop loan:

• The KALIA scheme will provide crop loans up to Rs.50,000 at 0% interest for the vulnerable landless labourers, sharecroppers, cultivators, and agricultural families identified by Gram Panchayats.

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have designed a novel, ultra-micro supercapacitor capable of storing an enormous amount of electric charge.

• The researchers from IISc's Department of Instrumentation and Applied Physics (IAP), fabricated their supercapacitor using 'Field Effect Transistors' or FETs as the charge collectors, instead of the metallic electrodes that are used in existing capacitors.
• Current capacitors typically use metal oxide-based electrodes, but they are limited by poor electron mobility.
• The team built hybrid FETs consisting of alternating few-atoms-thick layers of molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) and graphene – to increase electron mobility – which are then connected to gold contacts.
• A supercapacitor is a next-generation energy storage device which is also known as an ultracapacitor. ​
• It has advantages such as high-power density, long durability, and ultrafast charging characteristics as compared to conventional capacitors and Lithium-Ion batteries (LIB).
• The main components of supercapacitors include an electrode, electrolyte, separator, and current collector.
• It is used in several sectors like consumer and portable electronics, transportation and vehicles, power backup, biomedical, military, aerospace, electric cars, etc. 

 Hence both statements are not correct.