Test: Weekly Current Affairs: January 15 to 21, 2024 - UPSC MCQ

Mixed Cropping: When two or more crops are grown on an equivalent land simultaneously, it’s referred to as mixed cropping. For example, growing wheat and gram on an equivalent land at an equivalent time is mixed cropping.

The practice of this method helps to minimize the risk of the failure of one of the crops and provides insurance against the crop failure due to abnormal weather conditions. The crops that are grown together should have a different maturation time and different water requirements.

Natural gas is an odorless, gaseous mixture of hydrocarbons—predominantly made up of methane (CH₄).

Natural gas is a fossil fuel energy source. Natural gas contains many different compounds. The largest component of natural gas is methane, a compound with one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms (CH₄). Natural gas also contains smaller amounts of natural gas liquids (NGLs, which are also hydrocarbon gas liquids), and nonhydrocarbon gases, such as carbon dioxide and water vapor. We use natural gas as a fuel and to make materials and chemicals.

Only Statement 1 is correct.

“Phytoremediation”, a remediation method that uses living organisms like plants, microalgae, and seaweeds. One particular way to remove toxic heavy metals from the soil includes the use of “hyperaccumulator” plants that absorb these substances from the soil.

Phytoremediation refers to the usage of “hyperaccumulator” plants to absorb the toxic materials present in the soil and accumulate in their living tissue. Even though most plants do sometimes accumulate toxic substances, hyperaccumulators have the unusual ability to absorb hundreds or thousands of times greater amounts of these substances than is normal for most plants.

This process can be used to remove metals like silver, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, mercury, manganese, molybdenum, nickel, lead and zinc; metalloids such as arsenic and selenium; some radionuclides; and non-metallic components such as boron. But it cannot be used to remove organic pollutants from the ground due to metabolic breakdown.

• The size of the State Legislative Council cannot be more than one third of the membership of the State Legislative Assembly. However, its size cannot be less than 40 members.
• Before the 91st Amendment Act (2003), the convention of appointing a lot of ministers on the council due to political reasons led to widespread abuse of the system.
• It led to very large size of the Council of Ministers. Besides, when no party had a clear majority, there was a temptation to win over the support of the members of the Parliament by giving them ministerial positions as there was no restriction on the number of the members of the Council of Ministers.
• This was happening in many States also. Therefore, an amendment was made that the Council of Ministers shall not exceed 15 percent of total number of members of the House of People (or Assembly, in the case of the States).

• A startling increase in the speed and intensity of global deforestation has derailed efforts to protect and restore forests by 2030, according to two new reports analyzing progress toward global forest conservation goals.
• WWF’s Forest Pathways 2023 report and the Forest Declaration Assessment detail the immense scale of forest loss just two years after more than 130 countries representing 85% of the planet’s forests pledged to halt and reverse deforestation by the end of the decade. The lack of progress on commitments leaves the world in clear danger of missing vital targets.

• Statement 3 is incorrect.
• India is a founding member of GPAI, having joined the multi-stakeholder initiative in June 2020. The initiative aims “to bridge the gap between theory and practice on AI by supporting cutting-edge research and applied activities on AI-related priorities.”
• It also brings together people involved in the fields of science, industry, and civil society, along with governments, international organisations and academia for greater international cooperation. The first three GPAI summits were held in Montreal, Paris and Tokyo, respectively.

Zero Trust Authentication (ZTA) is a security framework that requires users to be authenticated and authorized before being granted access to applications and data.

• In response to the increasing threat of cyberattacks, the Indian government has established a secure e-mail system for 10,000 users in critical ministries and departments.
• The e-mail system operates on Zero Trust Authentication (ZTA) and has been developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC).
• The security measures include two-factor authentication with options like facial recognition or biometrics, and log-in and log-out times are recorded and monitored.

Statement 1 is incorrect.

 People with blood disorders like thalassemia, haemophilia, and sickle cell disease are not eligible for job reservations in government roles under the Persons with Disabilities category.

The three diseases were included in the list of disabilities under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act of 2016, but they are excluded from job reservation benefits.

 Rules regarding Reservations for disabled people:

• 4% reservation in government jobs is available for people with disabilities
• Every government establishment must reserve 1% of the total number of vacancies for people with benchmark disabilities.

 The RPwD Act defines benchmark disabilities as:

• Autism
• Intellectual disability
• Specific learning disability
• Mental illnesses

 The RPwD Act also defines disabilities as:

• Blindness and low vision
• Deaf and hard of hearing
• Locomotor disability, including cerebral palsy, leprosy, dwarfism, acid attack victims, and muscular dystrophy

Statement 2 is incorrect.

A Camelid refers to any of the even-toed ungulates of the family Camelidae. 

• The United Nations has declared 2024 as the International Year of Camelidsto emphasize the significant importance of camelids, such as alpacas, Bactrian camels, dromedaries, guanacos, llamas, and vicuñas, in the lives of people worldwide.
• Camelids contribute to food security, nutrition, and economic growth in over 90 countries, especially for Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
• They play a crucial role in meeting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by providing sources of milk, meat, fibre, and transportation.

Statement 2 is incorrect.

The International Energy Agency (IEA), a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organisation in which India is an ‘Association’ country, recommends that all countries should hold an emergency oil stockpile sufficient to provide 90 days of import protection.

Article 2 of the Constitution grants two powers to the parliament: the power to admit into the Union new states and the power to establish new states. It does not deal with the formation of or changes in the existing states of the Union. Article 3 deals with the internal re-adjustments of the territories. Hence, the increase in area of any state and altering the boundaries of states comes under the purview of Article 3.

• The law of demand states that, if all other factors remain equal, the higher the price of a good, the less people will demand that good. In other words, the higher the price, the lower the quantity demanded.
• The amount of a good that buyers purchase at a higher price is less because as the price of a good goes up, so does the opportunity cost of buying that good.
• The law of supply says that at higher prices, sellers will supply more of an economic good. From the seller’s perspective, the opportunity cost of each additional unit that they sell tends to be higher and higher. Producers supply more at a higher price because the higher selling price justifies the higher opportunity cost of each additional unit sold.

Statement 1 is incorrect.

• Agriculture Census in India is conducted every five years. In India, the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has been organizing Agricultural Census, since 1970-71 in collaboration with the States and Union Territories as part of programme of World Census of Agriculture.
• Through Agriculture Census, basic data on important aspects of agricultural economy of operational holdings in the country is collected.
• The basic unit of data collection in Agriculture Census is the operational holding.

• Maharatna ONGC is the largest crude oil and natural gas Company in India, contributing around 71 per cent to Indian domestic production. Crude oil is the raw material used by downstream companies like IOC, BPCL, HPCL and MRPL (Last two are subsidiaries of ONGC) to produce petroleum products like Petrol, Diesel, Kerosene, Naphtha, and Cooking Gas LPG.
• ONGC has a unique distinction of being a company with in-house service capabilities in all areas of Exploration and Production of oil & gas and related oil-field services.

Only Statement 3 is correct.

Yemen is a country in West Asia located at the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It shares borders with Saudi Arabia and Oman and maritime borders with Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia. Yemen is a member of the Arab League, the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

Statement 2 is incorrect.

• Parliament can also constitute a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) with a special purpose, with members from both Houses, for detailed scrutiny of a subject or Bill. Also, either of the two Houses can set up a Select Committee with members from that House. JPCs and Select Committees are usually chaired by ruling party MPs, and are disbanded after they have submitted their report.
• The time to speak on a Bill is allocated according to the size of the party in the House. MPs often do not get adequate time to put forward their views in Parliament, even if they are experts on the subject. Committees are small groups with relatively less demands on their time; in these meetings, every MP gets a chance and the time to contribute to the discussion. Parliament has only around 100 sittings a year; Committee meetings are independent of Parliament’s calendar.
•  There are 16 Departmentally Related Standing Committees for Lok Sabha and eight for Rajya Sabha; however, every Committee has members from both Houses. Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha panels are headed by members of these respective Houses.

Statement 2 is incorrect.

Rules regarding borrowing by States:

• States in India have a normal net borrowing ceiling set at 3% of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP)for the fiscal year 2024, as per the Fifteenth Finance Commission’s recommendation. Additionally, states receive an extra 0.5% of GSDP in borrowing capacity as a performance-based incentive for power sector reforms, enabling them to borrow ₹1.43 lakh crore for FY24 based on the Ministry of Power’s recommendation.
• Constitutionally, Article 293(3)stipulates that a state cannot raise a loan without the consent of the Government of India if any part of a previous loan from the central government remains outstanding.

Statement 1 is incorrect.

• India and the United States unveiled a roadmap for enhanced collaboration in high-technology areas, with a focus on addressing regulatory barriers and aligning export controls for smoother trade and “deeper cooperation” in critical areas. This was part of the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) announced by President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year.
• The Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies is a framework agreed upon by India and the U.S. for cooperation on critical and emerging technologies in areas including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, semiconductors and wireless telecommunication.

• Indonesia’s Mount Marapi erupted again recently.
• Marapi is known for sudden eruptions that are difficult to predict because they are not caused by a deep movement of magma, which sets off tremors that register on seismic monitors.

Only Statement 1 is correct.

• NASA’s TEMPO satellite, the Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution sensor, is a ground breaking Earth-observation satellite in geostationary orbit designed to provide hourly measurements of pollutants over North America.
• TEMPO covers a vast area from Canada’s oil sands to the Yucatán Peninsula and spans across the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, enhancing its ability to monitor air pollution comprehensively.

Statement 2 is incorrect.

Bhutan is a landlocked country in the Eastern Himalayas, bordered by China and India. Known as “Druk Yul” or “Land of the Thunder Dragon,” it has a constitutional monarchy with a king as the head of state and a prime minister as the head of government. Vajrayana Buddhism is the state religion, and Gangkhar Puensum is its highest peak, also the highest unclimbed mountain globally.

Only Statement 3 is correct.

There are two main types of touchscreens, capacitive and resistive.

• Capacitive touchscreens, used in smartphones, operate by detecting changes in electric fields when a finger touches the screen.
• Resistive touchscreens, with two conductive sheets separated by a small gap, function based on the change in resistance when touched.

The rising dominance of capacitive touchscreens in consumer electronics since 2007 due to their superior image clarity, sensitivity, and durability compared to resistive touchscreens.

• The rise in tiger numbers at Bihar’s Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) is attributed to a reduction in human activities, particularly restrictions on illegal mining in the eco-sensitive zone.
• The ban on sand and stone mining inside VTR, along with strict limits in its eco-sensitive zone, led to increased grassland cover.
• Tiger numbers in VTR increased from 28 in 2014 to 54 in the current year, with 31 recorded in 2018.
• Bihar is also pursuing the establishment of a second tiger reserve in Kaimur district.

Statement 3 is incorrect.

• Article 24 of the Indian constitution prohibits the employment of children below the age of 14 years in any factory or mine or employed in any hazardous employment. India ratified both fundamental ILO Conventions on Child Labour (138 and 182) in 2017.
• National Child Labour Project (NCLP) Scheme: Implemented by the Union Ministry of Labour & Employment. Rehabilitation of child labourers through District Project Societies under the District Magistrate.