Daily Current Affairs MCQ - February 15, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

The National Medical Commission (NMC), the regulator for medical education and practices that replaced the Medical Council of India in 2020, has suggested to medical colleges that the traditional Hippocratic Oath should be replaced by a “Charak Shapath”.

• The Hippocratic Oath is attributed to Hippocrates of the island of Kos, a Greek physician of the classical period (4th-5th centuries BC, until the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC).
• Basically, the Hippocratic Oath is a charter of ethical principles that physicians over the ages have sworn to uphold in the practice of their profession.
• Modern codes of medical ethics such as those formulated by the American Medical Association (AMA) and the British Medical Association (BMA) are broadly rooted in the Hippocratic Oath.
• The Corpus Hippocraticum is a collection of 70 books on medicine; however, most scholars agree that the Hippocratic Oath was probably not the work of the individual identified as the historical Hippocrates, the “father of modern medicine”.

Charaka and Charak Samhita

• Like several other sages mentioned in the literature of ancient India, the historicity of Charaka is uncertain, and the compendium of medicine that carries his name is unlikely to have been the work of a single individual.
• The Charak Samhita is a medical pharmacopoeia and collection of commentaries and discussions on medical practices that is dated to the 1st-2nd centuries AD.
• Along with the compendium of Susruta (c. 4th century AD), which is about surgery, the Charak Samhita is considered the foundational text of ancient Indian medicine.
• Hence both statements are correct.

American cybersecurity firm SentinelOne has released a report on ModifiedElephant—a hacking group that allegedly planted incriminating evidence on the personal devices of Indian journalists, human rights activists, human rights defenders, academics and lawyers.

• According to the report, ModifiedElephant maliciously targeted specific groups and individuals, including the activists arrested in the Bhima Koregaon case of 2018. It called the incident ‘one of the most serious cases of evidence tampering’ that the firm had ever encountered.
• According to the report, ModifiedElephant operators have been infecting their targets using spearphishing emails with malicious file attachments over the last decade, with their techniques getting more sophisticated over time.
• Spearphishing refers to the practice of sending emails to targets that look like they are coming from a trusted source to either reveal important information or install different kinds of malware on their computer systems.
• Hence both statements are correct.

The Union government has filed a draft red herring prospectus with the stock market regulator for selling 5% of its shares in the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India.

• A Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) is a document that is prepared to introduce a new business or product to a potential investor.
• This is not a final document for an investor, but rather a way of demonstrating value and providing investors with enough information for them to decide whether they want to invest in the company or not.
• The filing of the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI), with all the critical information about LIC’s business operations, is the first regulatory step towards the IPO.
• SEBI is required to vet the facts stated in the DRHP and recommend changes if required, before giving the share sale a green signal.
• The IPO is an 100% OFS [offer for sale] by the Government of India and entails no fresh issue of shares by LIC.
• The conclusion of the LIC’s share sale through an initial public offer (IPO) by March 31 is critical for the government to achieve its disinvestment target for this year, even after it was pared down from ₹1.75 lakh crore to ₹78,000 crore.
• Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The Indian Space Research Organisation, ISRO has successfully launched the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C52 from the first launch pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.

• The PSLV-C52 mission has also injected three satellites into the orbits.
• PSLV C52 placed an EOS-04 radar imaging satellite weighing 1710 kgs into orbit.
• EOS-04 is designed to provide high-quality images under all weather conditions for applications such as agriculture, forestry and plantations, soil moisture and hydrology and flood mapping.
• This satellite will be positioned into a Sun synchronous polar orbit gradually.
• As a co-passenger INS-2TD technology demonstrator satellite and INSPIRE sat 1 student satellite were also placed into orbit. INS-2TD is a precursor to India-Bhutan Joint Satellite INS-2B.
• INS-2TD carries a thermal imaging camera to assess land and water surface temperature and thermal inertia at day and at night.
• INSPIRE sat-1 is a small satellite from the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology in association with the Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics at University of Colorado. This was PSLV-C52 launch vehicle’s 54th launch in the series.
• Hence both statements are correct.

Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh said that the historic River Devika project, built at the cost of over Rs 190 crore, will be complete by June this year.

• North India's first river rejuvenation project will offer a unique destination both for pilgrim tourists as well as recreation tourists, in addition to being a state-of-the-art cremation centre.
• This will bring Udhampur in Jammu prominently on India's map. The Devika project was formally launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Jammu in early 2019.
• The project includes the construction of three sewage treatment plants of 8 MLD, 4 MLD and 1.6 MLD capacity, sewerage network of 129.27 km, development of two cremation ghats, protection fencing and landscaping, small hydropower plants and three solar power plants.
• On completion of the project, the rivers will see reduction in pollution and improvement in water quality.
• The country's first Highway Village being constructed by NHAI is coming up on fast track on Udhampur National Highway and the Centrally funded Medical College will start its classes next year through NEET selection.
• Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Maharaja Surajmal

• He ruled in the 18^th century and was the son of the Jat chieftain Badan Singh.
• He was a great leader, a great fighter, a great diplomat and a great statesman of his time.
• He was described as "the Plato of the Jat people" and by a modern writer as the "Jat Odysseus", because of his political sense, steady intellect and clear vision. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• He united various factions of Hindus and Muslims and kept them together.
• He took care of the historical monuments built by the kings of other religions and employed people according to their abilities in higher posts, irrespective of their races.
• He believed that humanity is the only religion of man.
• He visualised “India as one nation” and devoted his life in forging national integration.
• Maharaja Surajmal considered farmers as the most important section of the society and had a lot of respect for them.
  • He personally identified the problems of the farmers and introduced reforms to rectify them.
• Some institutions that have been named after him include the Maharaja Surajmal Institute of Technology and Maharaja Surajmal Brij University, Bharatpur.
• It is believed that the Maharaja died in battle in December of 1763 beside the Hindon river, after being ambushed by the army of Mughal chief Najib-ad-Dawlah.
• The Third Battle of Panipat was fought between the Marathas and the invading armies of Afghan general Ahmed Shah Abdali in 1761.
  • Maharaja Surajmal was among those who played key roles in the battle. Hence statement 2 is correct.

• Recently, the US administration has announced its long-awaited Indo-Pacific strategy. The document focuses on building collective capacity to deal with challenges in the region.
  • These include a focus on challenges from China, advancing the US relationship, a ‘Major Defence Partnership’ with India and supporting its role as a net security provider in the region. Hence statement 2 is correct.
  • There is an emphasis on working with other countries not just from the region, but also from beyond.
• Vision of Indo-Pacific: The US will seek an Indo-Pacific that is free and open, connected, prosperous, secure and resilient.
  • Free: One of the strategic actions outlined is investing in civil society, a free press and democratic institutions. Hence statement 1 is correct.
  • Connections: Within and beyond the region.
    • The US says it will work “in flexible groupings” to tackle major issues, “particularly through the QUAD.”
    • It will also deepen its (five) regional treaty alliances and work with groups such as ASEAN, the European Union (EU) and NATO.
    • AUKUS, a security alliance between Australia, the UK and the US has also been recently launched.
  • Prosperity: To advance its prosperity goal for the region, the US’ strategy includes seeking higher labour and environmental standards, helping to establish secure supply chains and investing in clean energy.
  • Security: The US has announced that “Integrated deterrence” will form the “cornerstone” of the US’ security plan for the region.
    • It will drive initiatives that reinforce deterrence and counter coercion, such as opposing efforts to alter territorial boundaries or undermine the rights of sovereign nations at sea.
  • Resilience: The Indo-Pacific faces major transnational challenges.
    • Climate change is growing ever-more severe as South Asia’s glaciers melt and the Pacific Islands battle existential rises in sea levels.
    • Further,the Indo-Pacific governments grapple with natural disasters, resource scarcity, internal conflict, and governance challenges.
    • In this context, US envisages to build regional resilience to 21^st century transnational threats, including by:
      • Working with allies and partners to develop 2030 and 2050 targets, strategies, plans, and policies consistent with limiting global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
      • Reducing regional vulnerability to the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation.

Index of Industrial Production (IIP)

• IIP is an indicator that measures the changes in the volume of production of industrial products during a given period.
• It is compiled and published monthly by the National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• It is a composite indicator that measures the growth rate of industry groups classified under:
  • Broad sectors, namely, Mining, Manufacturing, and Electricity.
  • Use-based sectors, namely Basic Goods, Capital Goods, and Intermediate Goods. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.
• Base Year for IIP is 2011-2012.
• IIP is used by government agencies including the Ministry of Finance, the Reserve Bank of India, etc, for policy-making purposes. Hence, statement 3 is correct.
  • IIP remains extremely relevant for the calculation of the quarterly and advance GDP (Gross Domestic Product) estimates.

• Fortification is the addition of key vitamins and minerals such as iron, iodine, zinc, Vitamin A & D to staple foods such as rice, milk and salt to improve their nutritional content. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
  • These nutrients may or may not have been originally present in the food before processing.
• The Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution has approved the Centrally Sponsored Pilot Scheme on "Fortification of Rice & its Distribution under Public Distribution System" for a period of 3 years beginning in 2019-20 with total outlay of Rs. 174.64 Cr. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.
• Objectives the Scheme:
  • Distribution of Fortified Rice through Public Distribution System, to cater 15 Districts in the country - preferably one district per State in the initial phase of Implementation. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.
  • Coverage of NFSA (National Food Security Act) beneficiaries under PDS with Fortified Rice in the selected Districts.
  • Facilitate cross learning and sharing of best practices among States/UTs and DoF&PD (Department of Food and Public Distribution).
  • To evaluate the provision, coverage and Utilization of Fortified Rice by the target population as well as the efficiency/effectiveness of the consumption of fortified rice in reducing the targeted micronutrient deficiencies in different age and gender groups.

Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance released an amount of 1154.90 crore rupees to four states for providing grants to Urban Local Bodies.

• The States to which grants were released are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, and Sikkim.
• The grants released are meant for Non-Million Plus cities including Cantonment Boards.

15th Finance Commission

• The 15th Finance Commission in its report for the period from 2021-22 to 2025-26 has divided the Urban Local Bodies into two categories.
• These are Million-Plus urban agglomerations and cities excluding Delhi and Srinagar, and all other cities and towns with less than one million population. The 15th Finance Commission has recommended separate grants for them.
• Out of the total grants recommended by the Commission for Non-Million Plus cities, 40 percent is a basic grant and the remaining 60 percent is a tied grant. Basic grants are utilized for location-specific felt needs, except for payment of salary and incurring other establishment expenditures.
• On the other hand, tied grants for the Non-Million Plus cities are released for supporting and strengthening the delivery of basic services.
• Out of the total tied grant, 50 percent is earmarked for ‘Sanitation Solid Waste Management and attainment of star ratings as developed by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. The remaining 50 percent is tied to ‘Drinking water, rainwater harvesting and water recycling'.
• Hence both statements are correct.