Daily Current Affairs MCQ- May 7, 2024 - UPSC MCQ

Scientists recently detected water molecules on the surface of two asteroids for the first time ever, using the data from NASA's now-retired SOFIA airborne observatory.

About SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy):

• SOFIA was a telescope mounted on a Boeing 747 SP aircraft that studied infrared light, essentially heat, emitted by objects in the universe. 
• SOFIA is operated jointly by NASA and the German space agency.
• It is the world's largest airborne astronomical observatory, complementing NASA’s space telescopes as well as major Earth-based telescopes.
• The observatory, fitted with a 8.9-foot-wide (2.7 meter) telescope with a nearly 20-ton mirror, used a door in the side of the aircraft to peer at the sky. 
• Flying into the stratosphere at 38,000-45,000 feet put SOFIA above 99 percent of Earth’s infrared-blocking atmosphere, allowing astronomers to study the solar system and beyond in ways that are not possible with ground-based telescopes. 
• SOFIA could observe the universe in the widest range of infrared light.
• The airplane is capable of ten-hour flights, with flight paths chosen to keep ahead of the sunrise and maximize the amount of darkness.
• The observatory’s mobility allowed researchers to observe from almost anywhere in the world, and enabled studies of transient events that often take place over oceans, where there are no telescopes. 
• For example, astronomers on SOFIA studied eclipse-like events of Pluto, Saturn’s moon Titan, and Kuiper Belt Object MU69, the next flyby target for NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, to study the objects’ atmospheres and surroundings.
• The SOFIA project was prematurely ended in 2022 after operating for 12 years. 

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

To protect Amazon, conservators try to save pollinator Stingless bees.

• A stingless bee is a bee that appears very similar to a honeybee, but is incapable of stinging. 
• These bees are eusocial, which means that they live together in hives and produce honey.
• These are native to the Amazon.
• Their honey, which is runny enough to be drunk like a liquid and is said to have a citrusy aftertaste
• It is used by many Indigenous Peruvians as a natural medicine.
• Distribution: Stingless bees can be found in most tropical and subtropical regions.
• These bees cannot sting but nature has made sure to give them other ways of defending themselves.
• These bees do possess stingers, but they are too small to be useful in defense. Instead of stinging, stingless bees use their mandibles to bite their attackers.
• Threats:
• The Amazon is home to hundreds of species of stingless bee, but as deforestation converts the tropical landscape into farms and ranches, these and other native pollinators are in danger of disappearing.
• Pesticides and climate change

Hence both statements are correct.

Despite approving a Bill to set up a National Research Foundation (NRF) to boost scientific advancement in the country just eight months earlier, the Union government was silent on allocation for the institution or progress made so far in the interim budget for 2024-25.

• It is an apex body to provide high-level strategic direction of scientific research in the country in accordance with the recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP), will be established at a cost of 50,000 crore over the period 2023-28.
• It enhances “India’s national research infrastructure, knowledge enterprise, and innovation potential, for scientific pursuit”.
• Goals: To increase private sector contributions to research in India and to ensure that a larger portion of government funds go to state universities and colleges.
• Nodal Agency: The Department of Science and Technology (DST) will be NRF's administrative department.
• Governing body:
• The Prime Minister will be the ex-officio President of the Board.
• The Union Minister of Science & Technology & Union Minister of Education will be the ex-officio Vice-Presidents.
• NRF’s functioning will be governed by an Executive Council chaired by the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.
• Functions
• Forge collaborations among the industry, academia, and government departments and research institutions, and create an interface mechanism for participation and contribution of industries and State governments in addition to the scientific and line ministries.
• It will focus on creating a policy framework and putting in place regulatory processes that can encourage collaboration and increased spending by the industry on R&D.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The flightless Aldabra rail went extinct over 130,000 years ago, but the species then reappeared via iterative evolution.

• Scientific name: Dryolimnas cuvieri aldabranus
• It lives on a coral atoll off the southeast coast of Africa.
• Appearance: It's about the size of a chicken, with a flecked gray back, a rusty red head and chest and a white throat.
• It is a subspecies of the white-throated rail (Dryolimnas cuvieri) and is the only living flightless bird in the Indian Ocean.
• In losing its ability to fly once again, the Aldabra rail has essentially evolved twice, rising from the dead through a process called iterative evolution.
• A 2019 study published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society examined the fossil record of rails in Aldabra and found evidence of a flightless rail on the atoll from before it was submerged beneath the waves 136,000 years ago. 

What is Iterative evolution?

• Iterative evolution can be defined as "the repeated evolution of a specific trait or body plan from the same ancestral lineage at different points in time."

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The Supreme Court recently observed that if a plain reading of a clause fulfills the object and purpose of the statute, then the rule of 'Reading Down' the clause would not be applied just because the clause imposes harsher consequences.

About 'Reading Down' the clause:

• “Reading Down” provision is one of the many methods the court may turn to when it finds that a particular provision, if for its plain meaning, cannot be saved from invalidation.
• It refers to a legal interpretation approach where a court, while examining the validity of a statute, attempts to give a narrowed or restricted meaning to a particular provision to uphold its constitutionality.
• When a court encounters a provision that, if interpreted according to its plain and literal meaning, might lead to constitutional or legal issues, the court may opt to read down the provision.
• Reading down involves construing the language of the provision in a manner that limits its scope or application, making it consistent with constitutional or legal principles.
• So, by restricting or reading it down, the court makes it workable to salvage and save the provision from invalidation.
• This principle is rooted in the idea that courts should make every effort to preserve the validity of legislation and should only declare a law invalid as a last resort.
• The rule of “Reading Down” is only for the limited purpose of making a provision workable and its objective achievable.

Hence option c is the correct answer.

Recently scientists have discovered that North Atlantic right whales are getting smaller, which is impacting their ability to breed.

• These whales are migratory animals, spending the winter in warmer waters and migrating to the poles for cooler waters in late summer.
• These whales inhabit the temperate and subpolar waters of the north Atlantic and north Pacific oceans.
• Habitat: Depending on the time of year and which hemisphere they're found, right whales will spend much of their time near bays and peninsulas and in shallow, coastal waters.
• Distribution: These are generally restricted to the coastal waters of the East coast of the United States and Canada.
• There are three recognized species of right whales that occur in different parts of the world. These are Southern right whales (Eubalaena australis), North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) and North Pacific right whales.
• These whales often skim feed at or just below the water surface, slowly swimming through clouds of plankton with their mouths half open and then straining the plankton through their long baleen plates.
• Conservation status
• IUCN: Critically endangered
• CITES: Appendix I

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs announced the first Pey Jal Survekshan Awards.

• A distinguished array of 130 awards is set to be bestowed, reflecting the remarkable accomplishments of cities and states.
• The award consists of various categories;
• Pey Jal Gold, Silver, and Bronze City Awards, where Gold signifies top performers in their respective population categories (1 to 10 Lakh, 10 to 40 Lakh, and More than 40 Lakh),
• Silver denotes the 2nd position, and Bronze the 3rd.
• The awards extend to commendations for Best Water Body, Sustainability Champion, Reuse Champion, Water Quality, City Saturation, and AMRUT 2.0 Rotating Trophy of the Year.
• Parameters: It encompassed diverse parameters, including access, coverage, water quality at treatment plants and households, and sustainability regarding the health of water bodies, availability of SCADA/ flowmeters, and reuse of treated used water.
• Cities will be graded on a star rating scale, ranging from 5 stars to No star, encapsulating their performance across these critical criteria.
• Pey Jal Survekshan ensured clean water through independent NABL lab testing at source and citizen-end.
• Using a GIS-enabled web portal, geo-tagging, and infrastructure mapping, the survey collected accurate and transparent data.

Hence option b is the correct answer.

The Supreme Court recently held that the information disclosing the commission of the cognizable offence needs to be recorded as a First Information Report ("FIR") in the form of a book and not in the General Diary maintained by the Police under the Police Act, 1861.

About General Diary (GD):

• General Diary, also called Station Diary or Daily Diary in some States, is maintained under the provisions of Section 44 of the Police Act, 1861, in the States to which it applies, or under the respective provisions of the Police Act(s) applicable to a State or under the Police Manual of a State, as the case may be. 
• Section 44 of the Police Act, 1861 states that it shall be the duty of every officer in charge of a police station to keep a general diary in such form as shall, from time to time, be prescribed by the State Government and to record therein all complaints and charges preferred, the names of all persons arrested, the names of the complainants, the offences charged against them, the weapons or property that shall have been taken from their possession or otherwise, and the names of the witnesses who shall have been examined. 
• It is a record of all important transactions/events taking place in a police station, including the departure and arrival of police staff, the handing over or taking over of charges, arrest of a person, details of law-and-order duties, the visit of senior officers, etc.
• Additionally, the GD summarizes each First Information Report (FIR) registered at the police station, as FIR registration is a significant event there.
• Simultaneously, the GD entry reference is noted in the FIR Book, while the FIR number is mentioned in the GD entry. This parallel documentation ensures that both records are kept up to date.
• The GD is maintained in chronological order, with a new entry starting with number 1 each day. 

What is a First Information Report (FIR)?

• It is a written document prepared by a Police officer based on information given by an aggrieved person or any other person, either in writing or made orally, about the commission of a Cognizable Offence.
• The investigation is started only after the filing of the FIR.
• Who can lodge an FIR?
• Anyone who knows about the commission of a cognizable offence can file an FIR. It is not necessary that only the victim of the crime should file an FIR.
• A police officer who comes to know about a cognizable offence can file an FIR himself/herself.
• An FIR can only be lodged in cases of cognizable offences.

General Diary (GD) vs. First Information Report (FIR):

• A copy of each FIR is sent to the superior officers and to the concerned Judicial Magistrate.
• A copy of GD is not sent to the Judicial Magistrate, though its copy is sent to a superior police officer. 
• The Magistrate of the district shall be at liberty to call for any inspection of such GD.
• The signature of the complainant is obtained in the FIR Book as and when the complaint is given to the police station. On the other hand, there is no such requirement of obtaining signature of the complainant in the general diary.
• The general diary is an internal police record, while in the case of F.I.R., a copy of these will be provided to the complainant.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Recently, the Centre for Policy Research (CPR), a leading Indian public policy think tank, had its FCRA license canceled, culminating in a series of government actions since IT raids in September 2022.

About FCRA (Foreign Contribution Regulation Act):

• Purpose: FCRA stands for Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, which is a law enacted by the Parliament of India to regulate the acceptance and utilization of foreign contributions by individuals, associations, and companies.
• Prohibition: The Act prohibits the receipt of foreign contributions "for any activities detrimental to the national interest".
• Registration: Organizations require the government’s permission to receive funding from abroad.
• Implementation: The Act is implemented in convergence with various Union government Ministries and agencies, State authorities, and a network of formal and informal institutions and individuals.
• Amendments: The Act has been amended over time, with the latest amendment being the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Act, 2020. The Bill makes the following changes to the Act:
  • Public servants and foreign donations: Public servants are prohibited from accepting foreign donations.
  • Restriction on donation transfer: Foreign donations cannot be transferred to any other person, regardless of their registration status under the Act.
  • Identity proof requirement: Aadhaar number, passport copy, or Overseas Citizen of India card must be provided as identity proof by those seeking permission, registration, or renewal of registration to accept foreign donations.
  • FCRA account: Foreign donations can only be received in an “FCRA account” in a specified branch of the State Bank of India in New Delhi.
  • Unutilised foreign donations: The government can halt the use of unutilised foreign donations if the Act is violated.
  • Registration certificate renewal: Every person with a registration certificate must renew it within six months before it expires.
  • Administrative expense limit: The limit for using foreign donations for administrative purposes has been reduced from 50% to 20%.
  • Voluntary surrender of registration certificate: The central government can allow a person to surrender their registration certificate.
  • Suspension period: The government can suspend the registration of a person for up to 360 days, instead of 180 days.
• Penalties: The Act provides for penalties for making false statements, delivering false accounts, and for contravention of any provision of the Act.

Hence both statements are correct.

The Union government is promoting nature tourism at 16 Ramsar sites, including Chilika Lake and Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary, to support conservation and local economies.

About Sultanpur National Park:

• Formerly known as Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary, it spans 1.42 sq km consisting primarily of marshy lakes and floodplains.
• Location: The Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary is located in the Gurgaon district of Haryana, 46 km from Delhi.
• Ramsar Site: It was recognised as a Ramsar site, a wetland of international importance in 2021.
• Biodiversity: The vegetation is characterized by tropical and dry deciduous types such as grasses, dhok, khair, tendu, jamun, neem, berberis, and species of Acacia.
  • Over 320 bird species have been recorded at Sultanpur, making it a vital wintering ground. Some iconic species found here are the Common Hoopoe, Purple Sunbird, Black Francolin, Little Cormorant, Indian Cormorant, Siberian Crane and Greater Flamingo.
  • Other migratory birds that flock seasonally include Common Teal, Common Greenshank and Ruff.
  • While large wild mammals are absent, the park's terrestrial fauna is represented by animals like the nilgai.
  • Sultanpur National Park is an ecologically significant protected wetland that provides habitat to an array of resident and migratory birds.
• Conservation efforts: The Haryana government has carried out some development works at the sanctuary like the construction of mounds, widening of paths, and digging four tube wells. Efforts are being made to improve vegetation in the area by planting more trees.
• Alternative livelihood program: As part of the Union government’s Amrit Dharohar initiative, to promote tourism at Ramsar sites, the sanctuary has been included in a pilot project for skill development of facilitators, tourism service providers, and stakeholders.

Hence option d is the correct answer.