Daily Current Affairs MCQ- February 15, 2023 - UPSC MCQ

Recently, the Prime Minister of India has shared aerial coverage of Ground and Air displays captured from an indigenously developed Medium Altitude Long Endurance TAPAS UAV during rehearsal from a height of 12000 feet.

• It is known as Tapas-BH (Tactical Airborne Platform for Aerial Surveillance-Beyond Horizon 201), formerly referred to as Rustom-II.
• The UAV is named after Rustom Damania, a former professor at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
• It is designed and developed by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), Bengaluru with production partners being Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and Bharat Electronics Limited.
• It is being developed to carry out surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) roles and is capable of carrying different combinations of advanced payloads and capable of auto-landing among others.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The government has recently launched the Aspirational Blocks Programme, covering 500 blocks for the saturation of essential government services.

Aspirational Blocks Programme:

• It aims to improve the performance of blocks lagging on various development parameters.
• This will enable holistic development in those areas that require added assistance.
• The programme will cover 500 districts across 31 states and Union Territories initially.
  • Over half of these blocks are in 6 states—Uttar Pradesh (68 blocks), Bihar (61), Madhya Pradesh (42), Jharkhand (34), Odisha (29), and West Bengal (29). 

It is on the lines of the Aspirational District Programme that was launched in 2018 and covers 112 districts across the country.
Hence both statements are correct.

29 blocks likely to be covered under ABP in Odisha

Recently, scientists at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) in Delhi conducted a first-of-its-kind experiment to quantify the impact of the hot weather on crop yield in Punjab and Haryana by using InfoCrop version 2.1.

• In 2004, InfoCrop version 1 was launched by the IARI which is being updated regularly.
• It is a dynamic simulation model for the assessment of crop yields, losses due to pests, and the environmental impact of agroecosystems in tropical environments.
• It has the life cycle data for almost all the local varieties of 11 crops: paddy, wheat, maize, sorghum, pearl millet, pigeon pea, chickpea, soybean, groundnut, potato and cotton.

Hence, option (b) is the correct answer.

The Budget 2023 announced the setting up an Agriculture Accelerator Fund to encourage agri-startups. 

Agriculture Accelerator Fund:

• It will be set up to encourage agri-startups by young entrepreneurs in rural areas.
• The Fund will aim at bringing innovative and affordable solutions for challenges faced by farmers.
• It will also bring in modern technologies to transform agricultural practices and increase productivity and profitability.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Union Education Minister recently informed Lok Sabha that ICHR has not launched any project to rewrite Indian history and is only “filling gaps.”

About the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR):

• ICHR is an autonomous organization under the Ministry of Education, Government of India.
• It was established in 1972 by an Administrative Order.
• ICHR was registered under the Societies Registration Act (Act XXI of 1860) as a literary and charitable society.
• The ICHR is based in Delhi, with regional centers in Pune (Maharashtra), Bengaluru (Karnataka), and Guwahati (Assam).
• The ICHR receives grants-in-aid from the Department of Higher Education, grants-in-aid from various Indian states, private donations, and the proceeds of revenues from the sale of publications of the ICHR. 
• ICHR disburses funds for carrying out research to Indian as well as foreign scholars on their applications for fellowships, grants, and symposia, made to the ICHR or through the Ministry of Human Resource Development.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Recently, the Prime Minister of India inaugurated the 14th edition of Aero India 2023 in Bengaluru.

• The Aero India show is held every 2 years.
• This year it is being organised by the Bengaluru-based defence PSU Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
• The theme of 2023: ‘‘The runway to a billion opportunities”.
• Besides the major entrepreneurs and investors in the defence and aerospace industries, the event will witness the participation of prominent defence think tanks and defence-related bodies from across the world.

Hence both statements are correct.

Union Home Minister will present the President's Colour Award to the state police at a ceremony at the Haryana Police Academy.

About the President’s Colour Award:

• The President’s Colour is one of the highest honour that can be awarded to any military unit, military training establishments, and state/UT Police Forces of India. 
• It is bestowed upon in recognition of exceptional service rendered to the Nation, both in peace and in war.
• It is also known as “Rashtrapati ka Nishaan” in Hindi.
• Indian Navy was the first Indian Armed Force to be awarded the President’s Colour by Dr. Rajendra Prasad on 27 May 1951. 
• Award:  
• A special flag, also known as ‘Nishaan,’ is given to a unit as part of the award.
• The flag consists of a golden border in the middle; it has insignia of a respective military unit, training establishments, and police forces in the center.
• The flag may also contain the motto, important achievements, and battle participation of those military units to which the award is bestowed.
• During any ceremonial parade, the President’s Colour is kept at a special position, and soldiers often march with the President’s Colour on important dates like on their establishment anniversary.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The Minister of State for Labour and Employment recently informed Lok Sabha that the Labour Bureau has undertaken an All India Domestic Workers Survey. 

• Labour Bureau is an attached office under the Ministry of Labour and Employment, which was set up on 1st October 1946.
• It is entrusted with the work of compilation, collection, analysis and dissemination of statistics on different aspects of labour.
• It releases Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial Workers, Agricultural/Rural Labourers, Retail Price Index of Selected Essential Commodities in Urban Areas etc.
• Quick Employment Survey and Employment-Unemployment survey are also being conducted by Labour Bureau.

Hence both statements are correct.

The World Health Organization recently said that Equatorial Guinea had confirmed its first-ever outbreak of Marburg disease.

About Marburg virus disease (MVD):

• What is it? MVD, earlier known as Marburg hemorrhagic fever, is a rare but severe hemorrhagic fever that affects both people and non-human primates.
• Causative agent: MVD is caused by the Marburg virus, a genetically unique zoonotic (animal-borne) RNA virus. Marburg and Ebola viruses are both members of the Filoviridae family (filovirus).
• Marburg virus was first recognized in 1967, when outbreaks of hemorrhagic fever occurred simultaneously in laboratories in Marburg and Frankfurt, Germany and in Belgrade, Yugoslavia (now Serbia).
• The reservoir host of the Marburg virus is the African fruit bat, Rousettus aegyptiacus.
• Transmission: The Marburg virus is transmitted to people from fruit bats and spreads among humans through human-to-human transmission.
• Fatality: The average MVD case fatality rate is around 50%.
• Treatment:
• There is no specific treatment for Marburg virus disease. 
• Supportive therapy, such as intravenous fluids, electrolyte replacement, supplemental oxygen, as well as blood and blood products replacement, improves survival.

Hence both statements are correct.

Prime Minister of India will inaugurate the Aadi Mahotsav festival of the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Ltd. (TRIFED) on February 16 in New Delhi’s Major Dhyan Chand Stadium.

• TRIFED came into existence in 1987 under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, of 1984.
• It is a national-level apex organization functioning under the administrative control of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
• Objectives of the Organisation: Socio-economic development of tribal people in the country by way of marketing development of tribal products.
• The organisation assists tribal people in exploring and creating opportunities to market the developed products in national and international markets on a sustainable basis.
• Under the TRIBES India brand, the sourced handcrafted products from the tribal people are sold. 

Hence only statement 1 is correct.