Daily Current Affairs MCQ - June 16, 2021 - UPSC MCQ

The Congress government in Rajasthan will set up a Vedic Education and Sanskar Board to revive the knowledge of ancient Sanskrit scriptures and connect the learnings of the Vedas with science and yoga.

• The board is likely to be set up in the coming four to five months.
• The ruling Congress had promised the establishment of the Vedic Education and Sanskar Board as well as steps to promote Sanskrit language and education in its manifesto for the 2018 State Assembly election.

Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

Various organisations initiated a Twitter campaign demanding official language status to Tulu in Karnataka and Kerala and include it in the eighth schedule to the Constitution.

Constitutional provisions relating to Eighth Schedule

• The Constitutional provisions relating to the Eighth Schedule occur in article 344(1) and 351 of the Constitution.
• Article 344(1) provides for the constitution of a Commission by the President on expiration of five years from the commencement of the Constitution and thereafter at the expiration of ten years from such commencement.
• Article 351 of the Constitution provides that it shall be the duty of the Union to promote the spread of the Hindi language to develop it so that it may serve as a medium of expression for all by assimilating without interfering with its genius, the forms, style and expressions used in Hindustani and in the other languages of India specified in the Eighth Schedule.

List of languages in the Eighth Schedule

• The Eighth Schedule to the Constitution consists of the following 22 languages:- (1) Assamese, (2) Bengali, (3) Gujarati, (4) Hindi, (5) Kannada, (6) Kashmiri, (7) Konkani, (8) Malayalam, (9) Manipuri, (10) Marathi, (11) Nepali, (12) Oriya, (13) Punjabi, (14) Sanskrit, (15) Sindhi, (16) Tamil, (17) Telugu, (18) Urdu (19) Bodo, (20) Santhali, (21) Maithili and (22) Dogri.
• Of these languages, 14 were initially included in the Constitution.
  • Sindhi language was added in 1967.
  • Thereafter three more languages viz., Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali were included in 1992.
  • Subsequently Bodo, Dogri, Maithili and Santhali were added in 2004.

Hence, option (b) is the correct answer.

The entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in early 2021 highlights the growing divide between the nuclear-armed states and other countries that are impatient to see progress on nuclear disarmament promised by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

• The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) is also known as the Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty.
• It is the first legally binding international agreement to comprehensively prohibit nuclear weapons, with the goal of leading towards their total elimination.
• It was adopted in July 2017 and came into force in January 2021.
• As of March 2021, 54 states have ratified or acceded to the treaty, most recently Comoros in February 2021.
• Strategy:
  • For those nations that are party to it, the treaty prohibits the development, testing, production, stockpiling, stationing, transfer, use and threat of use of nuclear weapons, as well as assistance and encouragement to the prohibited activities.
  • For nuclear armed states joining the treaty, it provides for a time-bound framework for negotiations leading to the verified and irreversible elimination of its nuclear weapons programme.
• Need of Treaty: The Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) of 1968 contains only partial prohibitions, and nuclear-weapon-free zone treaties prohibit nuclear weapons only within certain geographical regions.

Hence both statements are incorrect.

NHPC signs MoU with Bihar State Hydroelectric Power Corporation (BSHPC) for Implementation of 130.1 MW Dagmara HE Project.

• It would come up on Kosi River in Suapul district, Bihar.
• The project will be located near village Bhaptiahi on the left bank, about 31 km downstream of Bhimnagar barrage on Kosi River.
• The 130.1 MW Dagmara HE Project, the largest hydropower project of Bihar is to be implemented by NHPC on ownership basis.

NHPC

• NHPC Limited (erstwhile National Hydroelectric Power Corporation) is a Category-A Miniratna Company under Ministry of Power, Govt. of India in the field of Hydropower.
• Currently, NHPC has 24 operational power stations with a total installed capacity of 7071 MW.
• Founded in: 1975.
• Headquarters: Faridabad, Haryana.

Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.

In a summit statement in Brussels, NATO leaders have declared China a constant security challenge and said the Chinese are working to undermine global order.

• NATO is also called the North Atlantic Alliance.
• Objective: It is an intergovernmental military alliance between North American and European countries. It constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its independent member states agree to mutual defence in response to an attack by any external party.
• HQ: Brussels, Belgium.
• Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) is the headquarters of the NATO's Allied Command Operations (ACO). Since 1967 it has been located in Casteau, north of the Belgian city of Mons.
• Origin: The alliance is based on the North Atlantic Treaty that was signed in 1949. It was formed as an alliance of European and North American countries after World War II as a bulwark against Russian aggression
• Member Countries:
  • It consists of 30 members. Montenegro joined it in 2017 and North Macedonia in 2020.
  • Of the 30 member countries, two are located in North America (Canada and the United States), 28 are in Europe, one of which (Turkey) is in both Europe and Asia.
  • Three former Soviet states (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) are members of NATO.
• Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.

Ammonia, which is highly soluble in water, is found in soil, air, and water; it is naturally present in the body and secreted by the kidneys to neutralise excess acid. However, it is highly diluted when in the environment and does not affect the human body to a noticeable level.

Ammonia is critical in the manufacturing of fertilizers, and is one of the largest-volume synthetic chemicals produced in the world. More than 80 per cent of ammonia made is consumed in the manufacturing of fertilizer, and most of the remainder goes into the production of formaldehyde.

A voluntary license is an authorization given by the patent holder to a generic company, allowing it to produce the patented article, such as a medicine, as if it were a generic. The license usually sets quality requirements and defines the markets in which the licensee can sell the product. The decision to grant a voluntary license, and the terms therein, can be tailored to account for many factors, including the nature of the epidemic/disease, social factors, economic considerations and the capacity of the licensee to meet and maintain quality standards for the product.

In the 1990s, the WTO began implementing a global intellectual property regime known as the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights agreement, or TRIPS. While TRIPS alarmed public health experts because of its potential to raise the price of essential medicines, voluntary licensing agreements between pharmaceutical producers were able to bring down the price of AIDS medications despite the TRIPS regulations.

It is also possible for governments to issue what are called “compulsory licenses” which override patent rights to allow local production or import of drugs by generic manufacturers in the event of a public health crisis. Since 2003, this right has been enshrined in the Doha Declaration addendum to the WTO’s TRIPS agreement.

• Jal Jeevan Mission, a central government initiative under the Ministry of Jal Shakti, aims to ensure access of piped water for every household in India. ... The mission's goal is to provide to all households in rural India safe and adequate water through individual household tap connections by 2024.

• The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger.
• World Food Day is celebrated every year on 16^th October to mark the anniversary of the founding of the FAO in 1945.
  • It is one of the UN food aid organisations based in Rome (Italy).
  • Its sister bodies are the World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
• Initiatives Taken:
  • Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS). Hence, statement 1 is correct.
  • Monitors the Desert Locust situation throughout the world.
  • The Codex Alimentarius Commission or CAC is the body responsible for all matters regarding the implementation of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme.
  • The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.
• The U.N. General Assembly recently adopted a resolution, sponsored by India and supported by more than 70 countries, declaring 2023 as the International Year of Millets.
  • FAO has supported the Indian proposal for an International Year of Pulses which was celebrated in 2016 and for declaring 2023 as the International Year of Millets. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
  • India released a commemorative coin of Rs. 75 denomination to mark the 75^th Anniversary of the FAO (16^th October 2020).

The Wide Area Linear Optical Polarimeter (WALOP), a vital instrument for the Polar-Areas Stellar-Imaging in Polarisation High-Accuracy Experiment (PASIPHAE) Project, is being developed at Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), India. PASIPHAE Survey: It is an Opto polarimetric survey aiming to measure the linear polarization from millions of stars. The survey will use two high-tech optical polarimeters to observe the northern and southern skies, simultaneously.