Daily Current Affairs MCQ- September 14, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

The Lok Sabha passed the Family Courts’ Amendment Bill, 2022 by voice vote.

• It validates the existence of the three family courts in Himachal Pradesh and Two in Nagaland with retrospective effect. The bill also seeks validation of the decisions taken by the two states and the family courts.
• The family courts located at Shimla, Dharmashala, and Mandi in Himachal Pradesh will come into force, with a retrospective effect of February 15th 2019.
• The Family Courts located at Dimapur and Kohima in Nagaland will come into force with retrospect effect from November 12th 2008 on enactment of the Bill.
• The enactment was necessitated as it came to light in connection with a case that the central Government notifications were not existing with respect to these five family courts.

Hence both statements are correct.

Spending on ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign declared CSR activity under Companies Act.

• Corporate Affairs Ministry has said that companies can spend their Corporate Social Responsibility CSR funds for activities related to the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign.
• The Ministry said spending of CSR funds for the activities related to this campaign such as mass scale production and supply of the national flag, outreach and amplification efforts and other related activities are eligible CSR activities under Schedule VII of the Companies Act pertaining to promotion of education relating to culture.
• Under the Companies Act, 2013, certain class of profitable companies are required to shell out at least two per cent of their three-year annual average net profit towards CSR activities.
• Har Ghar Tiranga campaign is being organised by the Government as part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav to encourage people to bring home the national flag and hoist it to mark the 75th year of India's independence.

Hence both statements are correct.

Nineteen opposition members were suspended from Rajya Sabha for a week on July 26, provoking Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien to say that the government had turned Parliament into a “deep, dark chamber”.

What is the reason for suspending an MP?

• The general principle is that it is the role and duty of the Presiding Officer — Speaker of Lok Sabha and Chairman of Rajya Sabha — to maintain order so that the House can function smoothly. In order to ensure that proceedings are conducted in the proper manner, the Speaker/ Chairman is empowered to force a Member to withdraw from the House.

What are the Rules in Rajya Sabha under which the Presiding Officer acts?

• the Chairman of Rajya Sabha is empowered under Rule Number 255 of its Rule Book to “direct any Member whose conduct is in his opinion grossly disorderly to withdraw immediately” from the House.
• Under Rule 256, the Chairman may “name a Member who disregards the authority of the Chair or abuses the rules of the Council by persistently and wilfully obstructing” business.
• In such a situation, the House may adopt a motion suspending the Member from the service of the House for a period not exceeding the remainder of the session.
• The House may, by another motion, terminate the suspension.

Hence both statements are correct.

Russia will pull out of the International Space Station after 2024 and focus on building its own orbiting outpost, the country’s new space chief Yuri Borisov said amid high tensions between Moscow and the West over the fighting in Ukraine.

• Mr. Borisov’s statement reaffirmed previous declarations by Russian space officials about Moscow’s intention to leave the space station after 2024 when the current international arrangements for its operation end.
• NASA and other international partners hope to keep the space station running until 2030, while the Russians have been reluctant to make commitments beyond 2024.
• The space station is jointly run by the space agencies of Russia, the U.S., Europe, Japan and Canada. The first piece was put in orbit in 1998, and the outpost has been continuously inhabited for nearly 22 years.
• It is used to conduct scientific research in zero gravity and test out equipment for future space journeys. It typically has a crew of seven, who spend months at a time aboard the station as it orbits about 400 km from Earth.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Energy major Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with M/s Greenko ZeroC Private Limited (Greenko), to jointly pursue opportunities in Renewables, Green Hydrogen, Green Ammonia and other derivatives of green hydrogen.

• This MoU is in line with the National Hydrogen Mission launched by Hon’ble Prime Minister in making India a global green hydrogen hub.
• The activities envisaged under this MoU will contribute towards India’s target of producing of 5 million tonnes of Green hydrogen per annum by 2030.
• This MoU will also act as a stepping stone for ONGC to achieve renewable energy targets as per its Energy Strategy 2040.

Hence both statements are correct.

Union Minister for Women and Child Development informed the Rajya Sabha that the Central government aims to reduce stunting and under-nutrition (underweight prevalence) among children under 6 years by 2% per annum.

National Family Health Survey (NFHS):

• The National Family Health Survey (NFHS) is a large-scale, multi-round survey conducted in a representative sample of households throughout India.
• The first National Family Health Survey (NFHS-1) was conducted in 1992-93. The fifth round (NFHS-5) of the survey was conducted in 2019-21.
• The main objective of the NFHS has been to provide reliable and comparable data relating to health and family welfare and other emerging areas in India.
• All the rounds of NFHS have been conducted by the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai, as the national nodal agency.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Google Street View is finally available for ten cities in India and is expected to roll out in about 50 more cities by the end of the year.

• Google Street View is an immersive 360-degree view of a location captured using special cameras mounted on vehicles or on backpacks by data collectors moving around the city streets.
• The images are then patched together to create a 360-degree view which users can swipe through to get a detailed view of the location.
• It is available to view on Android and iOS using the app, or as a web view.
• In India, unlike in other markets, Google Street View is powered by images from third parties as per the National Geospatial Policy, 2021.
• Street View in India is not allowed for restricted areas like government properties, defence establishments and military areas. This means in a place like Delhi, the cantonment area will be out of bounds for Street View.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry is planning to replace the 80-year-old Coffee Act with the new Coffee (Promotion and Development Bill), 2022, which has been listed for the Monsoon Session of Parliament.

• The Coffee Act, 1942 was first introduced during World War II, in order to protect the struggling Indian coffee industry from the economic downturn caused by the war.
• The government is now trying to scrap the law because the substantive portion of the Coffee Act, 1942, which deals with pooling and marketing of the commodity, have become redundant/inoperative.
• The new legislation is now primarily concerned with promoting the sale and consumption of Indian coffee, including through e-commerce platforms, with fewer government restrictions.
• It also aims at encouraging further economic, scientific and technical research in order to align the Indian coffee industry with “global best practices.”
• While the Coffee Board continues to have limited control over marketing, exporters will still require a certificate from the statutory body.

Hence both statements are correct.

High teenage fertility in some areas remains a cause of concern in India even as the fertility rate has stabilised across the country, the Health Ministry said in its Family Planning Vision-2030 document released.

• It added that participation of men will be encouraged in the family planning programme and that lack of access to contraceptives had been identified as a priority challenge area.
• While multiple factors have been identified that explain low contraceptive use among married adolescents and young women, two most important factors are child marriage and teenage pregnancy.
• Over 118 districts reported high percentage of teenage pregnancies and are mostly concentrated in Bihar (19), West Bengal (15), Assam (13), Maharashtra (13), Jharkhand (10), Andhra Pradesh (7), and Tripura (4).
• Additionally, over 44% of the districts in India reported high percentage of women marrying before they reach the age of 18. These districts were in Bihar (17), West Bengal (8), Jharkhand (7), Assam (4), two each in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The Eleventh Agricultural Census (2021-22) was launched in the country by the Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar.

• Agriculture Census is conducted every 5 years, which is being undertaken now after delay due to corona pandemic. The field work of agricultural census will start in August 2022.
• Agricultural Census is the main source of information on a variety of agricultural parameters at a relatively minute level, such as the number and area of ​​operational holdings, their size, class-wise distribution, land use, tenancy and cropping pattern, etc.
• This is the first time that data collection for agricultural census will be conducted on smart phones and tablets, so that data is available in time. Most of the States have digitized their land records and surveys, which will further accelerate the collection of agricultural census data.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.