Daily Current Affairs MCQ- June 25, 2023 - UPSC MCQ

A recent blackbuck census by the Wildlife Institute of India stated that the blackbucks ‘are on the verge of extinction in Punjab.

• It is the sole extant member of the genus Antilope found in India. 
• It lives mainly in open grasslands or dry deciduous forests.
• The antelope is native to and found mainly in India (with a small population in Nepal and Pakistan).
• It is widespread in the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and other areas throughout peninsular India.
• It has been declared as the state animal by the governments of Punjab, Haryana and Andhra Pradesh. 
• Conservation status:
• IUCN Red List: Least concerned.
• Wildlife Protection Act of 1972: Schedule I
• CITES: Appendix III

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Recently, the American multinational corporation General Electric (GE) announced it has signed an agreement with India’s state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) to make GE’s F414 engines for Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mk2.

• It is a turbofan engine which has been in use by the US Navy for more than 30 years.
• It is featured with advanced technology such as Full Authority Digital Electronic Control (FADEC) — the latest aircraft ignition and engine control system that controls engine performance digitally.
• Only eight nations have F414-powered aircraft in operation in the world.

Key facts about LCA Mk2

• It is an advanced version of Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk1A, which is being used by the Indian Air Force (IAF).
• It is capable of integrating all indigenous weapon systems and a number of foreign armaments along with eight Beyond Visual Range Missiles (BVRMs).
• No other fighter aircraft of this class is capable of carrying eight BVR missiles simultaneously.
• It will have a mission endurance of 120 minutes and is capable of carrying 6.5 tonnes of weapons payload.
• It will be equipped with standoff weapon systems. The weaponry will also include an air-to-ground, long-range deep strike missile, SCALP.

Hence both statements are correct.

India was recently inducted into the Mineral Security Partnership (MSP).

About Mineral Security Partnership:

• It is an ambitious new initiative to bolster critical mineral supply chains, announced by the United States (US) and key partner countries in June 2022.
• The goal of the alliance is to ensure that critical minerals are produced, processed, and recycled in a manner that supports the ability of countries to realise the full economic development benefit of their geological endowments.
• The focus of the grouping would be on the supply chains of minerals such as Cobalt, Nickel, Lithium and also the 17 “rare earth” minerals.

What is a critical mineral?

• There is no global definition of critical minerals, but essentially, they are mineral deposits with high economic vulnerability and high global supply chain risk.

What are major critical minerals?

• The major critical minerals are Graphite, Lithium and Cobalt.
• They are used for making EV batteries and are also critical for making semiconductors and high-end electronics manufacturing.
• These minerals are also used in manufacturing fighter jets, drones, radio sets and other critical equipment.

Who are the top producers of critical minerals?

• The major producers of critical minerals globally are Chile, Indonesia, Congo, China, Australia and South Africa.

What are rare earth elements?

• The 17 rare earth elements (REE) include the 15 Lanthanides (atomic numbers 57 — which is Lanthanum — to 71 in the periodic table) plus Scandium (atomic number 21) and Yttrium (39).

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The Karnataka government recently submitted a revised proposal to the National Wildlife Board (NWD) and Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFC) for the Kalasa-Banduri project.

About Kalasa-Banduri Project:

• The project involves the construction of dams and a canal system to divert water from the Mahadayi River, located in Goa, to the Malaprabha River (a tributary of Krishna river) basin in Karnataka.
• The main goal of the project is to meet the drinking water needs of the districts of Belagavi, Dharwad, Bagalkot, and Gadag in Karnataka.
• Though the project was first proposed in the early 1980s, it has remained on paper owing to a dispute between Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra.
• As per plans, barrages are to be built against Kalasa and Banduri streams — tributaries of Mahadayi — and water diverted towards Karnataka’s parched districts.

Key facts about Mahadayi river:

• Origin: Mahadayi river rises in the Western Ghats, from the Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary in Khanapur taluk of Karnataka’s Belagavi district.
• The river travels 35 km in Karnataka; 82 km in Goa before joining the Arabian Sea at Panji (North-Goa).
• Also called Mandovi in Goa, Mahadayi is a rain-fed river that is shared between Karnataka and Goa for their water needs.
• The Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary is located on the island of Chorao in the Mandovi river.
• Major Tributaries: Kalasa Nala, Banduri Nala, Surla Nala, Haltar Nala, Poti Nala, Mahadayi Nala, Pansheer Nala, Bail Nala, Andher Nala.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Prime Minister recently gifted an eco-friendly lab-grown 7.5 carat diamond, , to the US First Lady Jill Biden.

About Lab-Grown Diamonds:

• Lab-grown diamonds are diamonds that are produced using specific technology which mimics the geological processes that grow natural diamonds.
• The diamond simulants such as Moissanite, Cubic Zirconia (CZ), White Sapphire, YAG, and others are used to make them look like natural diamonds.
• How are LGDs produced? There are multiple ways in which LGDs can be produced.
• High pressure, high temperature” (HPHT) method:
• It is the most common and cheapest method.
• In this method, extremely heavy presses that can produce up to 730,000 psi of pressure under extremely high temperatures of at least 1500 celsius are applied.
• Usually, graphite is used as the “diamond seed” and when subjected to these extreme conditions, the relatively inexpensive form of carbon turns into one of the most expensive carbon forms.
• Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) and explosive formation create what is known as detonation nanodiamonds.
• Application of Lab-grown diamonds:
• Used for industrial purposes, in machines and tools and their hardness and extra strength make them ideal for use as cutters.
• Pure synthetic diamonds are used in electronics as a heat spreader for high-power laser diodes, laser arrays and high-power transistors.

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, Larsen & Toubro and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) signed a contract for the realisation of two Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) System Modules for Kalvari Class of submarines of the Indian Navy.

• With the emergence of submarines, there was a problem finding satisfactory forms of propulsion underwater.
• AIP is mostly implemented as an auxiliary source, with the traditional diesel engine handling surface propulsion.
• Most of these systems generate electricity, which in turn drives an electric motor for propulsion or recharges the boat’s batteries.
• AIP allows longer submergence than a conventionally propelled submarine.
• A typical conventional power plant provides 3 megawatts maximum, and an AIP source around 10 per cent of that. A nuclear submarine’s propulsion plant is much greater than 20 megawatts.

Key features of the AIP system:

• It allows the submarines to stay for longer hours in water. The submarines need to come to the surface of the water to charge their batteries. This is reduced by AIP System.
• It decreases the noise levels made by the submarines. This makes it hard to detect the submarines.
• Types of AIP: Open-cycle systems, Closed-cycle diesel engines, Closed-cycle steam turbines Stirling cycle engines and Fuel cells.

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, an international team of researchers revealed global observations of auroras associated with carbon dioxide using satellites.

• How is it formed? The sun is ejecting charged particles from its corona, creating solar wind. When that wind slams into Earth's ionosphere, the aurora is born.
• In the Northern Hemisphere, the phenomenon is called the northern lights (aurora borealis), while in the Southern Hemisphere, it's called the southern lights (aurora australis).
• The hemispheric asymmetry of the aurora is due in part to the sun's magnetic field interfering with Earth's magnetic field.
• The usually observed green and red auroras happen between 100 kilometres and 250 kilometres above the surface of the planet due to an excited state of atomic oxygen.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

To revive the vulture population in the state of Madhya Pradesh, 20 white-rumped vultures were recently brought to Vulture Conservation Centre in Kerwa from Pinjore in Haryana.

About White-Rumped Vulture :

• It is a medium-sized Old World vulture.
• Scientific name: Gyps bengalensis
• It is also known as Indian White-backed Vulture or Oriental White-backed Vulture.
• Distribution: Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and southern Vietnam.
• Habitat: Found mostly in plains and less frequently in hilly regions. It can also be seen in villages and cities near to cultivation.
• Population:
• In the 1980s, the global population was estimated at several million individuals, and it was thought to be "the most abundant large bird of prey in the world".
• As of 2021, the global population was estimated at less than 6,000 mature individuals.
• Features:
• It is a typical, medium-sized vulture, with an unfeathered head and neck, very broad wings, and short tail feathers.
• Adults are 75 to 85 cm tall, their wing span is 180 to 210 cm, and their weight ranges from 3.5 to 7.5 kg.
• The sexes are approximately equal in size.
• Adults are darker than juveniles, with blackish plumage, a white neck-ruff, and a white patch of feathers on the lower back and upper tail, from which their common name is derived.
• There is a pale grey patch on the upper surface of the wings, visible when the wings are folded. The undersides of the wings are a dark slate to brownish color.
• Conservation Status:
• IUCN: Critically Endangered
• Wildlife Protection Act 1972: Schedule-1 

Hence both statements are not correct.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), Government of India envisages celebrating World Environment Day 2023 with a thrust on the Mission LiFE.

• It is one of the Central Sector sub-scheme being implemented in alignment with Mission LiFE.
• The Environmental Information System (ENVIS) is renamed EIACP (Environmental Information, Awareness, Capacity Building and Livelihood Programme).
• ENVIS came into existence as a planned programme in 1983.
• It has been subsumed within the revamped scheme of Environment Education, Awareness, Research and Skill Development.
• ENVIS EIACP serves as a one-stop platform for the dissemination of environmental information, informed policy formulation on various facets of the environment and facilitation of alternate livelihoods through green skilling.

Hence both statements are correct.

Naturalists opinioned that Climate change and human intervention threaten the Myristica swamps of Kerala.

• These are freshwater swamps predominated by members of the Myristicaceae family.
• These forests are characterized by trees with large protruding roots jutting out of waterlogged soil which remains inundated throughout the year.
• They have evolved over millions of years and are comprised of old-growth trees.
• Geographical distribution: In India, these unique habitats occur in the Western Ghats and a smaller distribution exists in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• Climatic conditions: The formation of these swamps is dependent on abiotic conditions like the shape of the valley between the forested hills, the amount of rainfall a place receives (with an average of 3000 mm), and water availability throughout the year.
• Typically, Myristica swamps are seen next to rivers and help in retaining water and act as a sponge, ensuring perennial water availability.
• These swamps are home to many vertebrate and invertebrate faunal species. This is due to stable macroecological conditions like high humidity, moderate temperature, and macrohabitat availability. 

Hence both statements are correct.