Daily Current Affairs MCQ - July 17, 2021 - UPSC MCQ

The recent attempt of Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR) to reintroduce into the wild an abandoned nine-month-old cub named Mangala after rearing it in ‘captivity’ for two years has once again brought the controversial concept of ‘re-wilding’ of abandoned or injured animals under the lens.

• As per the Standard Operating Procedures/Guidelines laid down by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) under Section 38(O) of The Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, there are three ways to deal with orphaned or abandoned tiger cubs.
• The first is to make an effort to reunite the abandoned cubs with their mother.
• Second, if a reunion of the cub with its mother is not possible, then shift the cub to a suitable zoo.
• Third, reintroduction of the cub into the wild after a certain time when it appears that the cub is capable of surviving in the wild independently. This is what is known as ‘re-wilding’.
• NTCA stresses that the tiger cub should be reared in an in situ enclosure for a minimum of two years, and during this time, each cub should have a successful record of at least 50 ‘kills’.

Periyar National Park also known as Periyar Tiger Reserve is located in the Western Ghats of Kerala.

Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

Lt Governor Manoj Sinha has dismissed 11 Jammu and Kashmir government employees for alleged terror links under provisions of Article 311(2)(c) of the Constitution. The employees include two sons of Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin.

• Article 311 of the Constitution deals with ‘Dismissal, removal or reduction in rank of persons employed in civil capacities under the Union or a State’.
• Under Article 311(2), no civil servant can be “dismissed or removed or reduced in rank except after an inquiry in which he has been informed of the charges and given a reasonable opportunity of being heard in respect of those charges’’.
• Subsection (c) of the provision, however, says this clause shall not apply “where the President or the Governor, as the case may be, is satisfied that in the interest of the security of the State it is not expedient to hold such inquiry”.
• The safeguard of an inquiry also does not apply in cases of conviction on a criminal charge [311(2)(a)], or “where the authority…is satisfied that for some reason, to be recorded by that authority in writing, it is not reasonably practicable to hold such inquiry”. [311(2)(b)]

Hence both statements are correct.

The Amazon forests in South America, which are the largest tropical forests in the world, have started emitting carbon dioxide (CO2) instead of absorbing carbon emissions.

• A significant amount of deforestation in eastern and southeastern Brazil has turned the forest into a source of CO2 that has the ability to warm the planet.
• Not only the Amazon rainforests, some forests in Southeast Asia have also turned into carbon sources in the last few years as a result of formation of plantations and fires.

The Amazon basin

• The Amazon basin is huge with an area covering over 6 million square kilometres, it is nearly twice the size of India.
• The Amazon rainforests cover about 80 per cent of the basin and as per NASA’s Earth observatory, they are home to nearly a fifth of the world’s land species and is also home to about 30 million people including hundreds of indigenous groups and several isolated tribes.
• Other than this, the basin produces about 20 per cent of the world’s flow of freshwater into the oceans. Over the last few years, the forest has been under threat due to deforestation and burning. In 2019, fires in the Amazon were visible from space.
• Hence both statements are correct.

As the Taliban push ahead with military offensives across Afghanistan, preparing to take over after the exit of US and NATO forces, India faces a situation in which it may have no role to play in that country, and in the worst case scenario, not even a diplomatic presence.

• The 42MW Salma Dam in Herat province was inaugurated in 2016 and is known as the Afghan-India Friendship Dam.
• The other high-profile project was the 218-km Zaranj-Delaram highway built by the Border Roads Organisation. Zaranj is located close to Afghanistan’s border with Iran.
• The Afghan Parliament in Kabul was built by India at $90 million. It was opened in 2015. A block in the building is named after former PM AB Vajpayee.
• In 2016, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the restored Stor Palace in Kabul, originally built in the late 19th century, and which was the setting for the 1919 Rawalpindi Agreement by which Afghanistan became an independent country.
• At the Geneva Conference in November, India announced that it had concluded with Afghanistan an agreement for the construction of the Shatoot Dam in Kabul district, which would provide safe drinking water to 2 million residents.
• Last year, India pledged $1 million for another Aga Khan heritage project, the restoration of the Bala Hissar Fort south of Kabul, whose origins go back to the 6th century. Bala Hissar went on to become a significant Mughal fort, parts of it were rebuilt by Jahangir, and it was used as a residence by Shah Jahan.
• Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.

The Reserve Bank of India has so far barred three foreign card payment network companies — Mastercard, American Express and Diners Club — from taking new customers on board over the issue of storing data in India.

• By the RBI circular on Storage of Payment System Data dated April 6, 2018, all system providers were directed to ensure that within six months the entire data (full end-to-end transaction details, information collected or carried or processed as part of the message or payment instruction) relating to payment systems operated by them is stored in a system only in India.
• They were also required to report compliance to the RBI and submit a board-approved system audit report conducted by a CERT-In empanelled auditor within the timelines specified.
• However, credit and card firms with global operations have been resisting the move, citing costs, security risk, lack of clarity, timeline, and the possibility of data localisation demand from other countries.
• Firms such as Mastercard, Visa and National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) are Payment System Operators authorised to operate a card network in India under the Payment and Settlement Systems (PSS) Act, 2007.
• Under the Act, the RBI is the authority for the regulation and supervision of payment systems in India. The RBI’s payment system enables payments to be effected between a payer and a beneficiary and involves the process of clearing, payment or settlement, or all of them.

Hence both statements are incorrect.

State governments get funds from the Central government according to the Finance Commission’s recommendations.

State governments also raise their own funds largely through taxes on liquor, property, road and vehicles. 

Maharashtra, Delhi and Karnataka contribute the lion’s share of taxes to the government. These three regions along with Tamil Nadu and Gujarat contribute 72% of the tax revenue. Uttar Pradesh, which has the largest population in India, contributes only 3.12% but gets over 17% of the revenue distributed by the Central government. 

For every ₹100 contributed, southern States get about 51% from the Central government, whereas Bihar gets about 200%. The population growth rates in the south have come down to near zero, whereas the population in central and north India continues to grow. The cross subsidy from the south to the north will therefore grow.

In its present form, the Act, after the amendments in 2004 and 2013, covers the declaration of associations as unlawful, punishment for terrorist acts and activities, acts threatening the country’s security, including its economic security (a term that covers fiscal and monetary security, food, livelihood, energy ecological and environmental security), and provisions to prevent the use of funds for terrorist purposes, including money laundering.

Under Section 43D (5) of the Act, bail cannot be granted to a suspect if the court is of the opinion that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the charges are prima facie true.

In order to ensure a degree of continuity, one third of the Court is elected every three years.

Once elected, a Member of the Court is a delegate neither of the government of his own country nor of that of any other State. Unlike most other organs of international organizations, the Court is not composed of representatives of governments.

In order to guarantee his or her independence, no Member of the Court can be dismissed unless, in the unanimous opinion of the other Members, he/she no longer fulfils the required conditions. 

• Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) is an agricultural extension center in India. Usually associated with a local agricultural university, these centers serve as the ultimate link between the ICAR and farmers, and aim to apply agricultural research in a practical, localized setting.
  • It is an integral part of the National Agricultural Research System (NARS). Hence, statement 1 is correct.
  • The first KVK was established in 1974 at Puducherry.
• The mandate of KVK is technology assessment and demonstration for its application and capacity development.
  • KVKs also produce quality technological products (seed, planting material, bio-agents, livestock) and make it available to farmers.
• The KVK scheme is 100% financed by the Government of India and the KVKs are sanctioned to Agricultural Universities, ICAR institutes, related Government Departments and Non Government Organizations (NGOs) working in Agriculture. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

• Recently, the Chief Justice of India (CJI) launched an Artificial Intelligence (AI) based portal ‘SUPACE’ in the judicial system aimed at assisting judges with legal research. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
  • SUPACE is short for Supreme Court Portal for Assistance in Court’s Efficiency.
• It is a tool that collects relevant facts and laws and makes them available to a judge.
  • It is not designed to make decisions, but only to process facts and to make them available to judges looking for an input for a decision. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.
  • Initially, it will be used on an experimental basis by the judges of Bombay and Delhi High Courts who deal with criminal matters.