Test: Monthly Current Affairs March- 2 - UPSC MCQ

In News: Banks wrote off ₹1.2 lakh cr. in the past 9 months of FY21 to improve liquidity as per RBI.
Statement 1 is not correct. When the loans are written-down, the recovery procedure is not stopped but the mortgaged assets are reevaluated for their worth and loan recovery is attempted accordingly. Writedown is the opposite of a write-up, and it will become a write-off if the entire value of the asset becomes worthless and is eliminated from the account altogether.
Statement 2 is correct. Writing off loans frees up capital for better liquidity in banks. The banks reserve some capital based on CRAR requirements mandated by RBI on basis of BASEL norms. When loans are written off, banks’ accounts are cleared of non performing assets and the capital frees increasing liquidity (money to give loan). It never means the Bank will stop efforts for recovery. Bank will try to recover the loan and the recovered amount will go to a separate head.

The summoning of Parliament is specified in Article 85 of the Constitution and the power rests with the government. The decision is taken by the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, which is formalised by the President, in whose name MPs are summoned.

The Khangchendzonga National Park, a lesser-known destination in Sikkim, has been declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. This is for the first time that any Indian destination has been put under the Mixed criteria, thus recognising the outstanding universal values for its both natural and cultural significance.

Statement 1 is not correct. The Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) technology is based on the Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell. Thus, the AIP fitted submarine does not require to go to the surface for charging its batteries and this way it can remain underwater for long periods.
Statement 2 is not correct. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed and successfully completed the trial of the land-based prototype.

Hareli is an agrarian festival of Chhattisgarh. It is observed in Shravan month. Farmers celebrate this festival by worshipping farm equipment and livestock. Walking on bamboo known as Gedi is held during the period and children also participate in the gedi race.

Exercise Dustlik-II is the joint military exercise between India and Uzbekistan. The first-ever edition was held in 2019 and the second edition is being held in March 2021. It focuses on people-centric intelligence-based surgical operations, incorporating technological advancements to minimize collateral damage.

Recently, the Prime Minister of India has inaugurated the ‘Maitri Setu’ Bridge between India and Bangladesh. The bridge has been built over the Feni river which is a trans-boundary river in Tripura, India. It will give a boost to trade and people to people movement between India and Bangladesh.

In News: NTPC is ready to commission India’s largest floating solar power plant at Ramagundam in Telangana by May 2021.
Option B is correct. Bhadla Solar Park in Jodhpur district of Rajasthan is the world's biggest solar park in terms of power generation and second largest in terms of area but it is not floating. The largest floating solar park in India is Ramgundam.

The Economic Freedom Index is published by the US think-tank, The Heritage Foundation. The Index is an annual guide published to measure the progress made in advancing economic freedom which it claims brings greater prosperity. The 2021 Index ranks India 121st out of the total 184 countries covered.

In News: India and Japan are working on a joint lunar polar exploration (LUPEX) mission that aims to send a lander and rover to the Moon’s south pole around 2024.
Option A is correct. The Lupex mission is being planned to demonstrate new surface exploration technologies related to vehicular transport and lunar night survival for sustainable lunar exploration in the polar regions — the south pole of the Moon in this case. The mission will use a lunar features -matching algorithm along with navigational equipment from JAXA’s Smart Lander for Investigating the Moon mission, and the rover will carry instruments from both the space agencies.

In News: VDem, a Sweden Based firm has released a report grading the quality of liberal democracies across the world. According to this data, India is an Elected Autocracy.
Option C is correct. When a group of Elites rule, it is Oligarchy or Aristocracy (Although both have minor differences). Hereditary Rulers are monarchs. Oppressive Ruler is the Dictator and rule is called Dictatorship. The autocracy is defined by unrestricted powers in the hands of one person.

Statement 1 is not correct. The Amendment Act 2019 seeks to insert a new Part 1A to the Act of 1996 for the establishment and incorporation of an independent body namely, the Arbitration Council of India (ACI) for the purpose of grading of arbitral institutions and accreditation of arbitrators, etc. The ACI will consist of a Chairperson who is either: (i) a Judge of the Supreme Court; or (ii) a Judge of a High Court; or (iii) Chief Justice of a High Court; or (iv) an eminent person with expert knowledge in the conduct of the arbitration. Statement 2 is correct.
Functions

• Framing policies for grading arbitral institutions and accrediting arbitrators
• Making policies for the establishment, operation and maintenance of uniform professional standards for all alternate dispute redressal matters
• Maintaining a depository of arbitral awards (judgments) made in India and abroad.

Option B is correct: The “2001 FO32” is the largest asteroid predicted to pass by Earth in 2021 and it will be at its closest on 21st March 2021. Apart from the stars, planets and satellites, there are numerous tiny bodies which also move around the sun. These bodies are called asteroids. They are found between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

Statement 1 is correct. Benzene is a colourless or light-yellow chemical that is liquid at room temperature. It has a sweet odour and is highly flammable.
Statement 2 is correct. Benzene is formed from both natural processes and human activities. It can occur naturally in the environment. It is emitted into the atmosphere by erupting volcanoes, from the smoke of forest fires and some plants and animals. Anthropogenic factors include being released into the atmosphere by buses, cars, motorbikes, trains and aeroplanes. It can be emitted in exhaust fumes, and by evaporation of fuels from machinery, motors and petrol tanks.
Statement 3 is correct. Benzene can quickly evaporate into the air and be carried over long distances. If it is released into soil it can break down quickly and may contaminate groundwater.

In News: Recently, the Supreme Court (SC) has asked the Centre to respond to a plea challenging the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991.
Statement 1 is correct. Sections 3 and 4 of the Act declared that the religious character of a place of worship shall continue to be the same as it was on 15th August 1947 and that no person shall convert any place of worship of any religious denomination into one of a different denomination or section.
Statement 2 is correct. Any place of worship that is an ancient and historical monument or an archaeological site, or is covered by the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 stand exempted from the provision of the Act. Apart from these, Ram Janma Bhumi Babri Masjid, already settled/disposed of suits, and places which had been converted before the Act have been exempted too.

In News: The gregarious flowering of bamboo inside the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (WWS) poses a potential threat to wildlife in the Nilgiri biosphere, a major tiger and elephant habitat.
Option A is correct. The Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Kerala. It was set up in 1973 and is ranked 8th in the list of the World's Biodiversity Hotspots. The sanctuary is a component of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve (5,520 km2) and of the Elephant Reserve No. 7 of South India.

Statement 1 is correct. The Index Monitoring Cell (IMC) was set up by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry in 2020.
Statement 2 is not correct. Its task is to improve India’s ranking in the World Press Freedom Index and to evolve an objective yardstick to gauge media freedom. It will also put in place a mechanism for States to come up with their own rankings of press freedom.

In News: Analogue of Martian Blueberries has been found in Haematite Congregations in Jhuran Formations of Kutch.
Option D is correct. In 2004, ‘Opportunity’ rover found several small spheres on the planet, informally named Martian blueberries. Mineral spectrometry revealed it as iron oxide compounds called haematites. Now, Jhuran Formations, Hydrous Sulphate of Kutch are also found to be similar to Martian Landforms (Martian Analogue). Black Mold, a microfungi was recently found to be capable of surviving in the Martian Atmosphere.

In News: Khadi and Village Industries Commission(KVIC) has launched a unique project called Project REHAB (Reducing Elephant – Human Attacks using Bees).
Option B is correct: Under this Project, bee boxes will be used as a fence to prevent the attack of elephants.
The bee boxes are set up in the passageways of human-elephant conflict zones to block the entrance of elephants to human habitations. The boxes are connected with a string so that when elephants attempt to pass through, a tug causes the bees to swarm the elephant herds and dissuade them from progressing further. The total cost of the project is ₹15 lakh and Project RE-HAB is a sub-mission of KVIC’s National Honey Mission. 

In News: Recently, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has introduced the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2021 in Lok Sabha, which gives more discretionary powers to the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) of Delhi.
Statement 1 is correct. The Constitution (Sixty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1991 inserted the Article 239AA in the Constitution of India. Article 239AA: The Council of Ministers will aid and advise the L-G in matters where the Legislative Assembly has the power to make laws except where the L-G can exercise discretion.
Statement 2 is not correct. As per the Act, the Legislative Assembly of Delhi has the power to make laws in all matters except public order, police and land.