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

Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah called for giving maximum publicity to various mobile apps related to weather forecasting like 'Umang', 'Rain Alarm' and 'Damini'.

• The Damini app monitors the lightning occurrence all over India and alerts the user of lightning near them by a GPS notification under 20km and 40km.
• Damini app triggers warning about lightning strikes three hours in advance which can help reduce losses to life and property.
• Developed by Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM-Pune) and Earth System Science Organization(ESSO) under ministry of earth sciences,
• Launched in 2020.
• Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Zion-a Chana, patriarch of a Christian cult who held the world record for being the head of the “world’s largest family”, passed away at Aizawl in Mizoram. He was 76.

• Ziona was the leader of Chana pâwl, a polygamy-practising Christian sect.
• Mr. Chana headed the Chana Pawl, a cult that his father, Khuangtuaha, had founded in June 1942. The cult believes in polygamy and has about 2,000 members, most of them living in the self-sustaining Baktawng Tlangnuam.
• Mr. Chana had 181 members living under one roof — his 39 wives, 94 children, 33 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
• Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.

A consignment of fibre and mineral rich GI CERTIFIED Jalgaon banana has been exported to Dubai from Tandalwadi village, Jalgaon district of Maharashtra. In 2016, Jalgaon Banana got GI certification which was registered with Nisargraja Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in Jalgaon.

• India is the world’s leading producer of bananas with a share of around 25 per cent in total output.
• Banana is widely grown in tropical, sub-tropical, and coastal region of India.
• Andhra Pradesh is the largest producer in India followed by Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh. All these states contribute more than 70 per cent of the country’s banana production.

Exports

• Country’s banana export has been rising sharply because of adoption of farm practices as per the global standards.
• The majority of banana exports from India are to West Asian and North African countries like UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Iran.

‘Jardalu’ mangoes from Bhagalpur district of Bihar received GI certification in 2018

Recently GI certified Gholvad sapota exported from Maharashtra to U.K. The sweet fruit has a unique taste derived from the calcium rich soil in the State's Palghar district.

Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

Minister for Tribal Affairs launches the tribal livelihoods initiative “Sankalp Se Siddhi – Mission Van Dhan”

• TRIFED now plans to expand its operations through convergence of various schemes of different Ministries and Departments and launch the various tribal development programs in Mission Mode under “Sankalp Se Siddhi – Mission Van Dhan” for expediting its implementation in a Mission mode.
• Through this mission, establishment of 50,000 Van Dhan Vikas Kendras, 3000 Haat Bazaars, 600 Godowns, 200 Mini TRIFOOD Units, 100 Common Facility Centres, 100 TRIFOOD parks, 100 SFURTI clusters, 200 Tribes India retail stores, ecommerce platforms for TRIFOOD and Tribes India brands is being targeted.
• Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

In a 2021 summit statement, NATO leaders have expanded the use of their all for one, one for all, mutual defence clause to include a collective response to attacks in space.

• Article 5 of NATO’s founding treaty states that an attack on any one of the 30 allies will be considered an attack on them all. Until now, it’s only applied to more traditional military attacks on land, sea, or in the air, and more recently in cyberspace.
• In December 2019, NATO leaders declared space to be the alliance’s “fifth domain” of operations, after land, sea, air and cyberspace.
• Around 2,000 satellites orbit the earth, over half are operated by NATO countries. Around 80 countries have satellites, and private companies are moving in, too.
• Hence both statements are correct.

Indemnity is a form of contract. The law on drugs in India does not have a provision for indemnity related to the grant of approval for any new drug or vaccine in the country. If at all any indemnity is to be granted to any company for a particular drug or vaccine, it can only be in the form of an indemnity bond executed on behalf of the government of India, or a clause or set of clauses in any contract that the government may sign with the supplier.

Section 124 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, defines a contract of indemnity as one by which one party promises to save the other from any loss caused to the latter. Once the government of India grants such indemnity to the vaccine manufacturer or importer, it would mean that if a particular vaccine is perceived to have caused death or any lasting damage to a recipient, any claim of compensation arising from it will have to be met by the government, and not by the company. In the event of a court ordering payment, the company will be in a position to recover the amount from the government.

Ratifying International Labour Organization Conventions Nos. 138 and 182 in 2017, the Indian government further demonstrated its commitment to the elimination of child labour including those engaged in hazardous occupations.

There has been growing environmental concern in Turkey over the accumulation of ‘sea snot’, a slimy layer of grey or green sludge in the country’s seas, which can cause considerable damage to the marine ecosystem.

‘Sea snot’ is marine mucilage that is formed when algae are overloaded with nutrients as a result of water pollution combined with the effects of climate change. The nutrient overload occurs when algae feast on warm weather caused by global warming. Water pollution adds to the problem.

Environmental experts have said that overproduction of phytoplankton caused by climate change and the uncontrolled dumping of household and industrial waste into the seas has led to the present crisis.

The growth of the mucilage, which floats up on the surface of the sea like a brown phlegm, is posing a severe threat to the marine ecosystem of the country.

The mucilage is now covering the surface of the sea and has also spread to 80-100 feet below the surface. If unchecked, this can collapse to the bottom and cover the sea floor, causing major damage to the marine ecosystem.

Over a period of time, it could end up poisoning all aquatic life, including fishes, crabs, oysters, mussels and sea stars.

According to the recently published World Giving Index 2021 report, India is the 14th most charitable country in the world. Key Points: According to the report, the COVID-19 pandemic has further increased the ‘giving’ trends worldwide. It is released by Charities Aid Foundation (CAF). India is among Top 20 most generous countries across the globe and India’s rank has improved from its earlier 10-year global rank of 82. World Giving Index (WGI): It is a global survey that has interviewed more than 1.6 million people since 2009.

By the end of 2021, the European Space Agency (ESA) will launch the world's 1st wooden satellite, the WISA Woodsat in Earth’s orbit. WISA Woodsat: It will orbit at about 500-600 km altitude in polar Sun-synchronous orbit. It is a 10x10x10 cm nanosatellite made using standardised boxes and surface panels of plywood. In New Zealand, it will be launched from the Mahia Peninsula launch complex. It will be launched to check the relevance of wooden materials such as plywood in spacecraft structures.