Daily Current Affairs MCQ- April 29, 2023 - UPSC MCQ

Recently, under the chairmanship of India, the XIX Council Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Interbank Consortium (SCO IBC) was held in Goa.

• It was established by the member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation on 26 October 2005.
• It provides funding and bank services for investment projects sponsored by the governments of the SCO member states.
• The main objectives of the consortium are to provide financial services, promote trade, and facilitate investment among the member states.
• The SCO IBC Council meets ad hoc upon the consensus of all of the parties at least once per year.
• The Presidency of the Council is carried out on a rotational basis.
• It consists of major banks from the member countries, such as the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the National Bank of Kazakhstan, and the Bank of Russia.
• The first meeting of this organization was held in Beijing on 21–22 February 2006.

Hence both statements are not correct.

According to a new study Quasars the brightest and the most powerful objects in the universe - have a violent origin story.

• The quasi-stellar radio sources (Quasars) were first discovered six decades ago.
• These are very luminous objects in faraway galaxies that emit jets at radio frequencies.
• They are located in supermassive black holes, which sit in the centre of galaxies.
• These are formed by the energy emitted by materials spiralling around a black hole right before being sucked into it.  
• Most quasars are larger than our solar system. A quasar is approximately 1-kilo parsec in width.
• When galaxies collide, it pushes the gas from the outer reaches of the galaxies to the centre.
• As the supermassive black hole gorges on the gas, it releases ferocious fountains of energy in the form of radiation, leading to the quasar.

Hence both statements are not correct.

Recently, nine European countries during the second North Sea summit signed a declaration aimed at transforming the North Sea into a green power plant.

• It is the second summit which was held in the city of Ostend, Belgium.
• Participant countries: Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands Norway, and the United Kingdom.
• Objective: To make the North Sea the largest green energy centre in Europe by accelerating the deployment of offshore wind turbines.
• The summit sets ambitious targets including the production of at least 120 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind energy in the North Sea by 2030.
• The first summit in 2022 had Esbjerg Declaration which was held in Denmark.
• The North Sea is the northeastern arm of the Atlantic Ocean located between the British Isles and the mainland of northwestern Europe.
• It is bordered by
  • The island of Great Britain to the southwest and west.
  • The Orkney and Shetland Islands are to the northwest. 
  • Norway to the northeast, Denmark to the east.
  • Germany and the Netherlands to the southeast.
  • Belgium and France to the south.
• It is connected to the Atlantic by the Strait of Dover and the English Channel.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Recently, after a six-year absence, the lesser flamingos have finally found their way back to Pulicat Lake.

• It is the smallest of all flamingos but has the largest population.
• It possesses the "hallux" or hind toe that some other flamingos do not have.
• Males are a little taller than females.
• Habitat: It inhabits coastal and inland wetlands.
• Geographical distribution: Africa, Asia continents and in that especially Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and North Africa.
• They mostly eat blue-green algae but occasionally will take crustaceans and small insects.
• It is serially monogamous, meaning they form pairs that remain together while they are raising the young.
• Conservation status
• IUCN: Near Threatened

Hence both statements are not correct.

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) recently flagged 48 commonly used medicines as they failed the latest drug safety alert issued by the drug regulator.

About Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO):

• It is the National Regulatory Authority (NRA) of India for the medical devices industry under the provisions of the Drugs & Cosmetics Rules.
• It works under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
• Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) is the head of the CDSCO.
• Headquarters: New Delhi.
• Under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, CDSCO is responsible for,
• Approval of New Drugs;
• Conduct of Clinical Trials;
• Laying down the standards for Drugs;
• Control over the quality of imported Drugs in the country;
• Coordination of the activities of State Drug Control Organizations;
• CDSCO, along with state regulators, is jointly responsible for the grant of licenses of certain specialized categories of critical Drugs such as blood and blood products, I. V. Fluids, Vaccine and Sera.

Hence both statements are correct.

Sanchi, a world heritage site located in Madhya Pradesh, is all set to become India's first solar city.

About Sanchi:

• Location:
• It is located in the Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh.
• It lies in an upland plateau region just west of the Betwa River.
• Importance:
• Sanchi is a religious place with historical and Archaeological significance.
• It has India’s best-preserved group of Buddhist monuments, collectively designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1989.
• Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi?
• The site of Sanchi comprises a group of Buddhist monuments (monolithic pillars, palaces, temples and monasteries), all in different states of conservation, most of which date back to the 2nd and 1st centuries B.C. 
• It is the oldest Buddhist sanctuary in existence and was a major Buddhist centre in India until the 12th century A.D.
• The most prominent stupa found here is the Sanchi Stupa, also known as the Great Stupa.
• Other remains at the site include several smaller stupas, an assembly hall (chaitya), an Ashokan pillar with inscriptions, and several monasteries (4th–11th century CE).

Key Facts about Sanchi Stupa:

• It was built by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in the third century BC. 
• It enshrines religious relics or remains of the Buddha and his most revered disciples.
• Structure:
• It is enclosed by a massive stone railing pierced by four gateways, which are adorned with elaborate carvings (known as Sanchi sculpture).
• The stupa itself consists of a base bearing a hemispherical dome (anda), symbolizing the dome of heaven enclosing the earth.
• It is surmounted by a squared rail unit (harmika) representing the world mountain, from which rises a mast (yashti), symbolizing the cosmic axis. 
• The mast bears umbrellas (chatras) that represent the various heavens (devaloka).

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Recently, the 22nd session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues was held in New York.

• It is a high-level advisory body to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.
• It was established on 28 July 2000. 
• Mandate: To deal with indigenous issues related to economic and social development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights.
• The first meeting of the Permanent Forum was held in May 2002, with yearly sessions thereafter.
• It is one of three UN bodies that is mandated to deal specifically with indigenous peoples’ issues.
• The others are the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of indigenous peoples.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The recent judgment of the Supreme Court modifying its June 2022 order related to the eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) will help the Haryana and Punjab Forest departments, which are firm to declare only 100 metres as ESZ of the Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary.

• It is located in the Chandigarh Union Territory.
• It forms the part of Sukhna Lake catchment area falling in Shivalik hills.
• Fauna: Sambar deer, Barking deer, and wild boar, as well as several species of birds, reptiles, and amphibians.
• Flora: The sanctuary is characterized by a mix of forests, grasslands, and wetlands, with the Sukhna Lake forming an important part of the ecosystem.
• Shivalik Hills is also called Siwalik Range or Outer Himalayas.
• It extends for more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km).
• It has an average elevation of 3,000 to 4,000 feet (900 to 1,200 metres).
• It rises abruptly from the plain of the Indus and Ganges (Ganga) rivers (south) and parallels the main range of the Himalayas (north), from which it is separated by valleys.
• Sukhna Lake is not a Ramsar site.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Recently, in an astonishing discovery, scientists have reported finding 19,325 new seamounts after poring through new high-resolution data. 

• Seamount is an underwater mountain formed through volcanic activity.
• These are recognised as hotspots for marine life. Like volcanoes on land, seamounts can be active, extinct or dormant volcanoes.
• These are formed near mid-ocean ridges, where the earth’s tectonic plates are moving apart, allowing molten rock to rise to the seafloor.
• The planet’s two most-studied mid-ocean ridges are the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the East Pacific Rise.
• Some seamounts have also been found near intraplate hotspots – regions of heavy volcanic activity within a plate – and oceanic island chains with a volcanic and seismic activity called island arcs.
• Significance of seamounts
  • They provide information about the mantle’s composition and how tectonic plates evolve.
  • Oceanographers also study seamounts to understand their influence on how water circulates and absorbs heat and carbon dioxide.
  • Seamounts are home to diverse biological communities. They are good places for life because they can cause localised ocean upwelling – the process by which nutrient-rich water from deep within the ocean moves up to the surface.

Hence both statements are correct.

All 96 cables on the first cable-stayed bridge in India, the Anji Khad bridge, have been fully installed in a record time of 11 months.

About Anji Khad Bridge:

• It is an under-construction rail bridge in Jammu & Kashmir on the Indian Railways Jammu – Baramulla rail line.
• It will connect the Union Territory of Kashmir with the rest of the country by train.
• It is constructed over the Anji River, a tributary of the Chenab River between Katra and Reasi.
• Anji Khad Bridge will be the first cable-stayed railway bridge in the country.
• It is an asymmetrical cable-stayed bridge balanced on the axis of a central pylon. 
• The total length of the structure is 473.25 metres.
• It stands at a height of 331 meters above the river bed.
• The bridge has a single-line railway track and a 3.75-metre-wide service road. 
• The project is being executed by Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRCL) and Hindustan Construction Company.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.