Daily Current Affairs MCQ- January 21, 2023 - UPSC MCQ

Ministry Of Micro, Small And Medium Enterprises (MSME) has taken many steps during the year 2022 for technology advancement, skill development and job creation.

New features of the ‘Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme’ (PMEGP).

• Firstly, increase the maximum project cost to Rs 50 lakhs (from Rs 25 lakhs) for the manufacturing sector and Rs 20 lakhs (from Rs 10 lakhs) for the service sector.
• Secondly, the inclusion of applicants from Aspirational districts & Transgenders in the Special Category applicants for availing higher subsidies. 
• Thirdly, handholding support is being provided to applicants/entrepreneurs through the engagement of banking, technical & marketing experts.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Recently, the central government has ordered that digitally capturing attendance is now mandatory for all workers employed under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGREGS) and will be applicable from January 1, 2023. 

• It was launched by the Ministry of Rural Development.
• The NMMS App permits taking real-time attendance of workers at Mahatma Gandhi NREGS worksites along with geo-tagged photographs. 
• This will increase citizen oversight of the programme besides potentially enabling the processing of payments faster.
• This facilitates them to record their findings online along with time-stamped and go-coordinate tagged photographs for all the schemes of the Department of Rural Development. 
• This would also enable better record keeping of inspections by field and supervisory officials and also facilitate analysis of the findings for better programme implementation.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Recently, the NCPCR warns NGOs about the depiction of vulnerable children for fundraising.

• The practice of civil society organisations using representative visuals for fundraising activities concerning development issues such as malnutrition now faces new scrutiny NCPCR.

What is NCPCR? 

• It is a statutory body set up under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005.
• It works under the Ministry of Women & Child Development.
• Members
• A chairperson who, is a person of eminence and has done outstanding work for promoting the welfare of children.
• Six members were appointed by the Central Government out of which at least two are women, who are having experience in Education, Child Health, Juvenile justice Elimination of child labour, Child psychology or sociology Laws relating to children.
• Mandate: The Commission ensures that all Laws, Policies, Programmes, and Administrative Mechanisms align with the Child Rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution of India and also the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Child is defined as a person in the 0 to 18 years age group.

Hence both statements are correct.

Parliamentary panel on Social Justice and Empowerment recently said the process to categorise over 260 DNTs under SC/ST/OBC / list is very slow.

Who are DNTs?

• The term ‘De-notified Tribes’ stands for all those communities which were once notified under the Criminal Tribes Acts, enforced by the British Raj between l87l and I947.
• These Acts were repealed after Independence in l952, and these communities were “De-Notified”.
• The DNTs are the most neglected, marginalized, and economically and socially deprived communities.

What is the SEED scheme?

It was launched by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.

Components of the scheme:

• Free Coaching: The objective of this component is to enable them to appear in competitive examinations/ admission to professional courses like medicine, engineering, MBA, etc for obtaining an appropriate job in the Public/Private Sector.
• Health Insurance: The primary objective of the scheme is to provide financial assistance to National Health Authority (NHA) in association with State Health Agencies (SHAs). These agencies will provide a health insurance cover of Rs.5 lakhs per family per year for families as per norms of “Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana.
• Livelihood Initiatives: The primary objective of the scheme is to provide financial assistance to National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM). It would enhance productivity growth in key livelihood sectors for employment generation through investments in institutional support, and technical assistance.
• Financial support for Housing: It is for those who have not taken benefit of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana as SC, ST, OBC and are living below the poverty line. The admissible support is Rs 1.20 lakhs in plains and 1.30 lakhs in hilly areas (per unit assistance).

Hence both statements are correct.

On December 21, 2022 the Delhi High Court, in the case of Hamdard National Foundation (India) vs Sadar Laboratories Pvt. Ltd., restrained Sadar Laboratories from manufacturing and selling beverages under the impugned trademark ‘Dil Afza’. The court observed that the trademark ‘Rooh Afza’ is prima facie a strong mark requiring a high degree of protection as it has acquired immense goodwill.

• A trademark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by a business organisation to distinguish its products or services from those of other entities.
• It serves as a badge of origin exclusively identifying a particular business as a source of goods or services.
• Trademark infringement is the unauthorised usage of a sign that is identical or deceptively similar to a registered trademark.

What is a strong trademark?

• A mark is said to be strong when it is well-known and has acquired a high degree of goodwill.
• The degree of the protection of any trademark changes with the strength of the mark; the stronger the mark, the higher the requirement to protect it.

Hence both statements are correct.

The Government has recently said that the Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comic (AVGC) sector has the potential to provide employment to over 20 lakh people in the coming 10 years. It is expected that the sector will witness 16 to 17 percent growth rate in the next decade.

About:

• The AVGC sector in the country has witnessed an unprecedented growth rate in recent times, with many global players entering the Indian talent pool to avail of offshore delivery of services.
• India today contributes about 2.5 to 3 billion dollars out of the estimated 260 to 275 billion dollars worldwide in the AVGC market.
• Task Force recently submitted report on ‘Realising AVGC-XR (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics - Extended Reality) Sector Potential in India’ on the 22nd of December, 2022 by the Chairman of the Task Force, Apurva Chandra.

Recommendations:

• To make India a global content hub and create job opportunities in the AVGC sector, the Task Force has laid emphasis on establishing a National Centre of Excellence for the sector.
• The Regional Centre of Excellence will be instituted in collaboration with the State Governments to provide access to local industries and to promote local talent and content.
• It has been recommended by the Task Force to leverage National Education Policy to develop creative thinking with dedicated AVGC course content at school levels to build foundational skills and to create awareness about AVGC as a career choice.
• It has also been recommended to establish AVGC accelerators and innovation hubs in academic institutions, on the lines of Atal Tinkering Labs.
• The Task Force has recommended establishing a dedicated production fund for domestic content creation from the country to promote Indian culture and heritage globally.

Hence both statements are correct.

India Meteorological Department (IMD) has recently said, the Cold wave conditions will continue in Northern India till December 29, 2022.

• The IMD records a cold wave when the minimum temperature is equal to or less than 10 degree Celsius at a weather station in the plains, and is 4.5 degrees to 6.4 degrees below the normal temperature for that period.
• A cold wave may also be recorded at a station in the plains when the minimum temperature is less than or equal to 4 degree Celsius.
• For hilly regions, a cold wave is declared when the minimum temperature is less than or equal to 0 degree Celsius and the minimum temperature is 4.5 degrees to 6.4 degrees below the normal.
• The ‘normal’ temperature is calculated for every five days by taking the average temperature for these days over the past 30 years.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), a British consultancy, has said India will become third largest economy by 2035 from the current fifth spot.

• In its annual World Economic League Table, the Centre for Economics and Business Research said that over the next five years, India's annual rate of GDP growth is expected to average 6.4 percent after which growth is expected to average 6.5 percent in the subsequent nine years.
• CEBR also adds that by 2037, world gross domestic product will be doubled as developing economies will catch up with the richer ones.
• The shifting balance of power will see the East Asia and Pacific region account for over a third of global output by 2037, while Europe's share shrinks to less than a fifth.
• The global economy will face recession in 2023 mainly due to rises in interest rates by the central banks to arrest higher inflation.
• The global economy surpassed 100 trillion Dollar for the first time in 2022, but will stall in 2023 as policy makers continue their fight against soaring prices.

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, new research clarifies that Sepsis is one of the most expensive medical conditions in the world, and can lead to cell death.

• Despite dramatic improvements in understanding the immunological mechanisms behind sepsis, it remains a major medical concern, affecting nearly 50 million people globally each year.
• Sepsis is a life-threatening condition arising from the body’s over-reactive response against infection, leading it to injure its tissues and organs.
• Researchers have studied how certain types of bacteria interact with cells during infections to discover the cells and molecules that potentially trigger death from sepsis.

Autoimmunity and sepsis

• The body’s response to infection starts when immune cells recognise components of the invading pathogen. These cells then release molecules like cytokines that help eliminate the infection.
• Among the hundreds of cytokines that exist, tumour necrosis factor, or TNF stands tall as the most potent and the most studied for nearly the past 50 years.

What is Tumour Necrosis Factor?

• It is a cytokine which is produced when the immune system is stimulated by a bacterial extract called Coley’s toxin.
• Blood cells made in the bone marrow (myeloid cells) are the major producers of TNF.
• In normal conditions, TNF promotes beneficial processes such as cell survival and tissue regeneration.
• Uncontrolled TNF production can lead to a dangerous cytokine storm and the development of rheumatoid arthritis and similar inflammatory conditions.
• Blocking and neutralising TNF activity can effectively treat numerous autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis.

What are Cytokines?

• These are a broad group of small proteins released by the immune cells in response to a pathogen.
• Cytokines play an essential role in the immune response, excessive and uncontrolled cytokine production can lead to a dangerous cytokine storm.

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, South Korea reported its first case of the rare yet fatal infection from Naegleria fowleri or “brain-eating amoeba”.

What is Naegleria fowleri?

• It is a single-celled organism which can infect humans. It was first discovered in Australia in 1965 and is commonly found in warm freshwater bodies, such as hot springs, rivers and lakes.
• According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with the rising global temperatures. The organism best grows in high temperatures up to 46°C and sometimes can survive at even higher temperatures.

How does it infect humans?

• The amoeba enters the human body through the nose and then travels up to the brain. In some cases, it was found that people got infected when they cleaned their nostrils with contaminated water.
• Scientists haven’t found any evidence of the spreading of Naegleria fowleri through water vapour or aerosol droplets.
• Once Naegleria fowleri goes to the brain, it destroys brain tissues and causes a dangerous infection known as primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM).

Symptoms of PAM:

• The first signs of PAM start showing within one to 12 days after the infection. In the initial stages, they might be similar to symptoms of meningitis, which are headache, nausea and fever.
• In the later stages, one can suffer from a stiff neck, seizures, hallucinations, and even coma.

Treatment for the infection:

• As the Naegleria fowleri infection is rare and progresses quickly, scientists haven’t been able to identify any effective treatments yet.
• At present, doctors treat it with a combination of drugs, including amphotericin B, azithromycin, fluconazole, rifampin, miltefosine, and dexamethasone.

Hence only statements 1 is correct.