Daily Current Affairs MCQ- September 20, 2023 - UPSC MCQ

Recently, the Indian Council for Agricultural Research-National Research Centre on Yak has established a first-of-its-kind parlour for Yalk milk in Nyukmadung village of Arunachal Pradesh.

• The yak (Poephagus grunniens) is the lifeline of highland ethnic communities living in the Himalayan and trans-Himalayan regions.
• Distribution: It is found on the heights of Arunachal, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh.
• The animal sustains the livelihood of the highlanders by yielding milk, meat, fibre, hide, and dung apart from being used for transportation. 
• Yak milk and milk products are the integral components of the diet of these highland communities thriving in an extremely hypoxic and harsh environment without vitamin and mineral supplements.
• Yak milk is creamy white, thick, sweetish, fragrant, and richer in protein, fat, lactose, minerals, and total solids than cow milk.
• In general, yak milk is considered naturally concentrated milk enriched with a higher nutrient density and loaded with omega-3 fatty acids, amino acids, and antioxidants.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Recently, the union Minister of Civil Aviation launched an e-wallet payment option on Bharatkosh portal.

• It is the initiative of Controller General of Accounts, Ministry of Finance, and Government of India.
• It provides one-stop services to deposit any fees/fine/other money into the Government account.
• It converges all the Civil Ministries/Departments of Government of India.
• It aims to provide 24X7 year-round electronic services to deposit the money into Government account using internet based payment technologies to the users at the door step through the web based portal.
• It thus leverages the e-Governance commitment of the Government to provide e-efficient, e-effective, e-excellent government anywhere anytime.

How the e-wallet facility will work?

• The e-wallet will be particularly useful for processing of fees for various regulatory approvals in the Bharatkosh portal.
• It acts as a prepaid wallet that would enable registered users to add funds in advance.
• Initially, only NEFT/RTGS mode will be allowed for adding funds. The users would also be able to generate receipt and challan instantly.
• The process will enable the generation of receipts and challans instantly, eliminating the problem of failed bank transactions. 
• The facility will only be available to registered Bharatkosh users, wherein a unique wallet ID will be generated for each user to manage the wallet transactions.

Hence both statements are correct.

Finance Minister recently launched Weather Information Network Data Systems (WINDS) manual.

Why in News?

• The manual provides stakeholders with an in-depth understanding of the WINDS portal's functionalities, data interpretation, and effective utilisation, empowering farmers, policymakers and various agricultural entities to make well-informed choices.

About Weather Information Network Data Systems (WINDS) portal:

• It was launched in July, 2023 by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare to leverage advanced weather data analytics to give stakeholders actionable insight to make informed weather decisions on agriculture.
• Crucial weather-related information and data will be available to the farmers through WINDS.
• The portal also shares the ministry's parametric crop insurance scheme, along with non-scheme parametric insurance programmes for crop risk mitigation and disaster risk reduction and mitigation being run by the insurance industry.
• The WINDS initiative is laying emphasis on setting up a strong network of weather stations.
• Through this initiative, the target is to establish a wide network of weather stations at the block and gram panchayat level.
• This extensive network of weather stations will enable accurate monitoring of weather patterns, effective planning, risk assessment and timely response to meteorological challenges.
• The goal is to bridge the gap in weather information availability and empower decision makers, farmers and stakeholders at the grassroots level.

Hence option b is the correct answer.

India's Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) recently gave the green light to several capital acquisition proposals, including the indigenous Dhruvastra short-range air-to-surface missile. 

About Dhruvastra Missile:

• It is a helicopter-launched anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) system.
• It is a short-range air-to-surface missile.
• It was indigenously developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
• Dhruvastra is the Air Force’s version of Helina (Helicopter-launched Nag missile) ATGM.
• Features:
• It is equipped with Imaging Infra Red (IIR) seeker and operates in “lock on before launch” mode.
• The fire and forget missile has a minimum range of 500 metres and a maximum range of 7 kilometres.
• It can be launched from an altitude of up to 4 kilometres and can hit targets moving at speeds of up to 70 kilometres per hour.
• The missile can engage targets both in direct hit mode as well as top attack mode.
• It works in all kinds of weather, during the day or night, and in various types of terrain, such as deserts, plains, hills and forests.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Vanadium, a critical raw material for many industrial applications, has been found recently in sediment samples collected from the Gulf of Khambhat in Gujarat.

About Vanadium:

• It is a chemical element with the symbol "V" and atomic number 23.
• It is a silver-grey, ductile, and malleable metallic element.
• It is harder than most metals and exhibits good corrosion resistance against alkalis and acids.
• History:
• It was discovered (1801) by the Spanish mineralogist Andrés Manuel del Río, who named it erythronium but eventually came to believe it was merely impure chromium.
• The element was rediscovered (1830) by the Swedish chemist Nils Gabriel Sefström, who named it after Vanadis, the Scandinavian goddess of beauty and youth.
• The English chemist Henry Enfield Roscoe first isolated the metal in 1867 by hydrogen reduction of vanadium dichloride.
• Occurrence:
• Found combined in various minerals, coal, and petroleum, vanadium is the 22nd most abundant element in Earth’s crust. 
• It is found in over 60 different minerals, including vanadinite, carnotite, roscoelite and patronite.
• The largest resources of vanadium minerals are found in South Africa and Russia.
• Leading Producers:  China, South Africa and Russia.
• Applications:
• Alloys:
• One of the primary uses of vanadium is as an alloying element in steel and other metals.
• Vanadium steel, for example, is known for its strength, toughness, and ability to maintain hardness at high temperatures. It is commonly used in tools, cutlery and structural materials.
• In Vanadium Flow Batteries (VFBs), vanadium is used to create a reliable, safe and stable solution for the storage of renewable energy. 
• Chemical Catalysts: Vanadium compounds are used as catalysts in various chemical reactions, such as the production of sulfuric acid.
• Nuclear Applications: Vanadium is used in some nuclear reactors as a structural material and neutron moderator.
• In the medical sphere, vanadium is used to treat a number of ailments, including diabetes, heart disease and high cholesterol.

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, researchers at the Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) have identified a new species of marine tardigrade which they have named after the late former President and scientist A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.

• Batillipes kalamiis a newly discovered species from Mandapam in south-east Tamil Nadu belongs to the genus Batillipes.
• It is the second marine tardigrade to be discovered in Indian waters and the first one from the east coast.
• It is also the first taxonomically described species belonging to the genus Batillipes from India.
• It is the 37th species of the genus Batillipes.
• Features
• Size-wise it averages 170 micrometres (0.17 mm) in length and around 50 micrometres (0.05 mm) in width.
• It has a trapezoid-shaped head with sharp-tipped filament-like appendages (cirri) extending from it.
• All four pairs of legs possess sensory spines of varying length.
• The females are slightly bigger compared to the males.

Hence option (c) is the correct answer.

Recently, the military leaders of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger signed a mutual defence pact, Liptako-Gourma Charter in Mali's capital Bamako.

• The Liptako-Gourma Charter establishes the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).
• Its aim is to "establish an architecture of collective defence and mutual assistance for the benefit of population.
• This alliance will be a combination of military and economic efforts between the three countries.
• The charter binds the signatories to assist one another including militarily — in the event of an attack on any one of them.
• It also binds the three countries to work to prevent or settle armed rebellions.

Liptako-Gourma region

• It is the region where the Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger borders meet.
• It has been ravaged by jihadist insurgency in recent years.

Hence option (a) is the correct answer.

Under the umbrella scheme SHREYAS, from 2014-15 till 2022-23 a total of 1628.89 crore rupees have been released to benefit 21326 beneficiaries.

• The scheme Scholarships for Higher Education for Young Achievers Scheme- SHREYAS comprises 4 central sector sub-schemes.
• All these sub-schemes are central sector schemes.
• National Overseas Scheme for SCs:
• Under this scheme financial assistance is provided to the selected students from SCs, De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes, landless agricultural labourers and traditional artisan categories for pursuing masters and Ph.D. level courses abroad.
• Such students can benefit under the scheme whose total family income including the candidate is less than Rs. 8 lakhs per annum, who have more than 60% marks in the qualifying examination, below 35 years of age and secured admission in top 500 QS ranking foreign Institutes/ Universities.
• Under the scheme, total tuition fee, maintenance and contingency allowance, visa fee, to and fro air passage etc. are provided to the awardees.

Hence both statements are correct.

Gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) attracted Rs 1,028 crore in August, making it the highest inflow in 16 months.

• These are commodity-based exchange-traded funds with an underlying asset as gold.
• These are passive investment instruments that are based on gold prices and invest in gold bullion.
• Gold ETFs are units representing physical gold which may be in paper or dematerialised form.
• One unit of this fund is equal to 1 gram of gold and is backed by physical gold of very high purity.
• They are listed and traded on the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange Ltd. (BSE).
• There is a complete transparency on the holdings of a Gold ETF due to its direct gold pricing.

Hence both statements are correct.

The Pazhathottam area in Anamudi Shola National Park, near Munnar, in Idukki has transformed into a green heaven teeming with life.

• It is located in the state of Kerala.
• It is surrounded by Eravikulam National park, Pampadum Shola National park, Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary and Mathikettan Shola Park.
• Vegetation:
• It consists of southern subtropical hill forests, southern montane wet temperate forests and moist deciduous forests.
• The unique thing in the dense shola woods that houses a dense patch of stunted trees will be the luxurious presence of lichen, mosses, and climbers.
• Flora: The place is home to around 174 species of herbs and shrubs, 62 species of trees and around 40 species of climbers of which quite a few of them are endemic.
• Fauna: Leopards, civet cats, wolves, Indian bison, wild boars, elephants, tigers, Panther, and sloth bears etc.

Hence option (b) is the correct answer.