Daily Current Affairs MCQ- May 16, 2024 - UPSC MCQ

The Army is all set to begin receiving another set of Russian Igla-S very short range air defence systems (VSHORAD) by the end of May or early next month.

• It is a man-portable air defence system (MANPADS) developed by Russia.
• Capabilities:
• It is a hand-held defence system that can be operated by an individual or crew.
• It is designed to bring down low-flying aircraft and can also identify and neutralise air targets such as cruise missiles and drones.
• It comprises the 9M342 missile, the 9P522 launching mechanism, the 9V866-2 mobile test station, and the 9F719-2 test set. These components work together to provide a comprehensive air defence solution.
• A VSHORAD is the soldier’s last line of defence against enemy combat aircraft, helicopters and UAVs in the multilayered air defence network.
• Range: It has a range of 500 metres to 6 kilometres and attack targets up to an altitude of 3.5 kilometres. The speed of the missile is 400 metres per second and the deployment time is 13 seconds.
• Significance: The acquisition of the Igla-S MANPADS marks a significant step in enhancing India's air defence capabilities, particularly in mountainous regions.

Hence both statements are correct.

Nearly one in five TB patients has Extra-pulmonary TB and most of them go undiagnosed, and the few who are diagnosed cannot benefit from care unless they visit a few specialist health facilities.

• It refers to Tuberculosis infections affecting organs other than the lung (namely lymph nodes, brain, gut, eyes, or other organs).
• It is often stain negative, which means it is not detectable on regular TB stain tests.
• The infection may surface in any part of the body and present itself like other non-TB conditions. Many cases of EPTB may not have a corresponding lung infection.
• It can affect any organ and is more prevalent in people living with HIV.
• Issues with EPTB
• A troubling aspect of EPTB infection is the prolonged presence of disease markers even after the infection is resolved with treatment.
• Diagnosis and treatment protocols for all organs affected by EPTB do not exist.
• The twin challenges in tackling EPTB are lack of awareness, even among physicians, and lack of accurate diagnostic and treatment criteria.
• Some EPTB patients who complete anti-TB therapy may still find themselves affected by the disease.
• INDEX-TB guidelines were formulated over a decade ago and need to be updated with the latest data and experience.

Hence both statements are correct.

The International Cryosphere Climate Initiative (ICCI) said that Venezuela’s only remaining glacier — the Humboldt, or La Corona, in the Andes — had become "too small to be classed as a glacier.

• It was formed in 2009 following COP-15 in Copenhagen meeting.
• It is a network of senior policy experts and researchers working with governments and organizations to create, shape and implement initiatives designed to preserve as much of the Earth’s cryosphere as possible.
• Its programs target the unique climate dynamics at work in the cryosphere, while at the same time lending increased urgency to global climate efforts aimed at CO2 and other greenhouse gases by communicating the unexpected rapidity and global implications of cryosphere warming.
• Its work focuses on three major areas of the cryosphere: the Arctic, the Antarctic and high mountain regions.

Key facts about Humboldt glacier of Venezuela

• It is also known as La Corona glacier and it is 4,900 metres above sea level. 
• It was the only one left near the country's second-highest peak, Pico Humboldt.
• The Humboldt glacier was projected to last at least another decade but latest assessments have found the glacier melted much faster than expected.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Recently, archeologists have found evidence of a lost landscape known as Sahul in the ancient days that helped humans travel across continents.

• It can be termed as a supercontinent which was stood exposed on the Earth's surface when humans were in the middle of what can be termed as the last ice age.
• Since the ice age led to glaciation of water levels on the planet, it ended up exposing parts of land like Sahul which connected to currently known Australia to Papua New Guinea in the north and Tasmania in the south.
• It helped humans in ancient times to cross continents from Asia to Australia almost 7,000 decades ago.

What is Ice age period?

• It is any geologic period during which thick ice sheets cover vast areas of land. Such periods of large-scale glaciation may last several million years and drastically reshape surface features of entire continents.
• The earliest known took place during Precambrian time dating back more than 570 million years.
• The most recent periods of widespread glaciation occurred during the Pleistocene Epoch (2.6 million to 11,700 years ago).
• Ice ages are not uniformly cold. There can be colder and warmer periods during the overall ice-age period.
• Colder periods lead to more extensive areas of continental ice sheets, valley glaciers and sea ice, while warmer periods lead to reduced areas of ice.

Hence option (d) is the correct answer.

In 2023, the number of internally displaced people increased to 75.9 million, from 71.1 million in the preceding year, according to the Global Report on Internal Displacement 2024 (GRID-2024) released recently.

About Global Report on Internal Displacement 2024:

• It is an annual report published by the Geneva-based Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC).
• It records internal displacements due to conflict and violence and disasters.
• Highlights of GRID-2024:
• In 2023, the number of internally displaced people (IDP) increased to75.9 million, from 71.1 million in the preceding year.
• Report says 7.7 million displaced by disasters (one-fourth of it was caused by earthquakes) and 68.3 million by conflict and violence.
• Sudan, Syria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Colombia, and Yemen host nearly half of the world’s IDPs.
• At 9.1 million, Sudan has the highest number of IDPs recorded for a single country.
• Most of the new displacement this year happened in Sudan, the Palestinian territories, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, accounting for almost two-thirds of all new displacement.
• South Asia:
• The IDMC said around 5.3 million people were living in internal displacement as a result of conflict and violence across South Asia at the end of 2023, 80 percent of whom were in Afghanistan.
• Conflict and violencetriggered69,000 displacements in South Asia in 2023, with Manipur violence alone accounting for 67,000.
• It is the highest number of displacements triggered by conflict and violence in India since 2018.
• There is a sharp decline in IDP in 2023 from 2.5 million internal displacements due to natural disasters in India in 2022. Internal displacements by natural disasters in 2023 was 528,000.

Hence both statements are not correct.

Russian President has bolstered the country's military capabilities by ordering the addition of a new nuclear-capable missile known as the Bulava into the Russian military arsenal.

About Bulava Missile:

• RSM-56 Bulava (NATO reporting name: SS-N-32) is a Russian submarine-launched intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
• Designed by the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology, development of the missile was launched in the late 1990s, and is designed to be deployed on Russia’s Borei-class submarines.
• Bulava represents a core component of Russia’s future strategic nuclear force.
• Features:
• It is a three-stage solid-propellant missile.
• The missile has a launch mass of about 36.8 tonnes and a throw weight of 1,150 kg.
• It measures 12.1 meters in length in a launch container and 2 meters in diameter. 
• Bulava has a maximum range of 8,300 km (5,160 miles) and a payload of up to 10 multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles, or MIRVs, capable of delivering nuclear warheads to different targets.
• The missile’s RVs are capable of in-flight maneuverability and re-targeting to out maneuver any enemy defense.
• The RVs have an expected accuracy of around 250 to 300 m.

Hence option c is the correct answer.

The recent death of a Kadar tribesman in Tamil Nadu’s Anamalai Tiger Reserve in an elephant attack has left the indigenous community and conservationists in shock as Kadars are known to co-exist with wild elephants for ages.

About Kadars:

• The Kadars are a small indigenous tribal community in South India. 
• They reside along the hilly border between Cochinin Kerala and Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.
• They are traditional forest dwellers who depend on forest produce for sustenance.
• They do not practice agriculture, building shelters thatched with leaves and shifting locations as their employment requires.
• They prefer to eat rice obtained in trade or as wages rather than to subsist on food of their own gathering. 
• They have long served as specialized collectors of honey, wax, sago, cardamom, ginger, and umbrella sticks for trade with merchants from the plains. 
• Kadar have a symbiotic relationship with nature, and they believe in the coexistence of Kadar and Kaadu (forest). 
• The Kadar have traditional protocols to ensure the sustainable use of forest resources.
• Every practice of resource collection—be it honey, firewood, resin, or herbs—is designed to allow time for regeneration.
• Their population was estimated at approximately 2,000 individuals in the early 21st century. 
• They speak the Dravidian languages of Tamil and Kannaḍa. 
• They worship jungle spirits and their own kindly creator couple, as well as local forms of the Hindu deities.
• They are listed as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) in Kerala, but not in Tamil Nadu.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

A team of naturalists recently documented a new spider species named ‘Ligdus Garvale’ from Garvale, a village nestled in the Somwarpet taluk of the Kodagu district, Karnataka.

About Ligdus Garvale:

• It is a new species of jumping spider.
• It was found in Garvale village of the Kodagu district, Karnataka, which is surrounded by agroforestry, with coffee plantations being prominent along with pepper and paddy fields.
• It marks only the second recorded instance of the Ligdus genus in 129 years.
• The first, Ligdus Chelifer, was reported from Myanmar by Thorell in 1895.
• Ligdus Garvale was discovered under the leaf of a torch ginger plant and bears a resemblance to Pseudoscorpions.
• Due to its nature as a high canopy jumper, it often goes unnoticed and constructs a double-layered web for retreat.

Hence option d is the correct answer.

CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) scientists have found out that the armoured sailfin catfish has spread to 60% in the water bodies of Eastern Ghats, damaging the fishing nets and the ecosystem.

• It is commonly referred to as the Rakashior devil fish.
• Scientifically known as Pterygoplichthys and is an invasive species.
• It possesses an uncanny ability to subsist on a diverse diet and can endure oxygen-deprived conditions. It can even navigate on land using its powerful fins.
• It was once introduced for its unique appearance and its ability to clean algal growth in tanks and aquaria.
• Out of the 14 species listed as invasive by the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) of India, six were introduced solely for the ornamental fish trade.
• Among those six listed species, four belong to Pterygoplichthys, remarking it to be one of the most invasive genera of fish.
• It has garnered notoriety due to its lack of commercial value, formidable sharp spines, and robust body, which pose a threat to fishing nets and have even caused injuries to fishermen in some instances. 
• Impact on biodiversity: It is known to voraciously consume native fish species, jeopardizing the delicate aquatic ecosystem.
• Its population has grown exponentially and this was realised through a unique ‘eDNA-based quantitative PCR assay’ developed by the institute scientists to map the presence and spread of such invasive species,

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, an unknown number of orcas have sunk a sailing yacht after ramming it in Moroccan waters in the Strait of Gibraltar.

• It is a narrow waterway separating Europe from Africa and connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.
• Location: Its narrowest point between Morocco’s Point Cires and Spain’s Point Marroquí.
• Its depth ranges from 300 to 900 m and it forms a significant gap between the high plateau of Spain and the Atlas Mountains of Northern Africa.
• Formation: Geological studies have revealed that the Strait was formed due to the northward movement of the African Plate towards the European Plate.
• Water flow: The Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea have different salinity levels and therefore the highly saline waters from the Mediterranean Sea flow outward and underneath the currents from the Atlantic Ocean, whereas the less saline Atlantic waters flow inward and on top of the Mediterranean Sea current.
• It acts as a chokepoint for the ships that move into or out of the Mediterranean Sea. However, it also functions as a vital shipping route for the countries of northern Africa, southern Europe, and western Asia.
• An important port located on the Strait of Gibraltar is the Moroccan port of Tanger-Med, near Tangier.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.