Test: Monthly Current Affairs December- 1 - UPSC MCQ

In News: The State of the Global Climate 2020 report was released by the World Meteorological Organization.
Option A is correct: According to the report, the year 2020 is expected to go down as one of the warmest in history with global temperatures about 1.2°C above the pre-industrial (1850-1900) level. The report says that 2011-20 will be the warmest decade on record, with the warmest six years all coming since 2015. The warmest year on record is 2016, followed closely by 2020. The State of the Global Climate 2020 report released by the World Meteorological Organization.

In News: Recently, the United States decided to block imports of cotton that, it says, is harvested with “slave labour” in China’s Xinjiang region.
Option B is correct: The United States decided to block imports of cotton it says are harvested with "slave labour" in China's Xinjiang region. As, China has come under intense international criticism over its policies in the resource-rich territory, where rights groups say as many as one million Uighurs and other mostly Muslim minorities are being held in internment camps.

In News: Recently, reports have emerged that China is involved in a brutal set of practices in its Xinjiang province that many experts have termed as the attempted ethnic cleansing of Uighur Muslims.
Option A is correct: The Uighurs are a Muslim minority community concentrated in China’s northwestern Xinjiang province. They speak a language close to Turkish and are culturally and ethnically closer to Central Asia than the rest of China. They live in Xinjiang, the largest and most western of China’s administrative regions. Xinjiang has long had a rebellious and autonomous streak, with the indigenous ethnic Uighurs clashing with the authorities. There was a spike in demonstrations and demands for independence in the early 1990s as the collapse of the Soviet Union gave birth to new nations, but these were rapidly crushed.

In News: Recently, Attorney-General K.K. Venugopal has given his consent to a law student to initiate contempt of court proceedings against artist Rachita Taneja for her tweets and cartoons.
Option B is correct: The prior consent in writing of the Attorney General is required for the Supreme Court to initiate criminal contempt action in a case a/c to the Contempt of Court Act, 1971. As per the Contempt of Courts Act 1971, contempt refers to the offence of showing disrespect to the dignity or authority of a court.  It divides contempt into civil and criminal contempt.
Civil contempt: It is willful disobedience to any judgment, decree, direction, order, writ or other processes of a court or wilful breach of an undertaking given to the court.
Criminal contempt: It is any act which may result in scandalising the court by lowering its authority, interference in the due course of a judicial proceeding, an obstruction in the administration of justice. The expression ‘contempt of court’ has not been defined by the Constitution.

In News: Canada is returning the 18th-century goddess Annapurna statue to India which was stolen over a century back.
Option A is correct: An 18th-century statue of goddess Annapurna will be returned to India, where it was stolen more than a century ago and transported to Canada. Annapurna is the goddess of food. The statue is believed to be originally from Varanasi and was part of the University of Regina’s collection housed at the MacKenzie Art Gallery. 

In News: The kiwis that grow wild in Arunachal Pradesh’s Ziro Valley are the only certified organic fruit of their kind in the country.
Option C is correct: The kiwis of Arunachal Pradesh’s Ziro Valley region are the only certified organic fruit of their kind in the country. Kiwis of Ziro Valley — located in Lower Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh were certified as organic following a standard three-year-process. In October, Arunachal Pradesh became the first state in the country to obtain organic certification for its kiwis.

News: ‘Ramayan Cruise Tour’ on the Saryu river in Ayodhya will be launched soon. The cruise will be equipped with all luxury comfort and facilities along with all essential safety and security features at par with the global standard.
Option C is correct: The Sarayu is a river that originates in Uttarakhand. It flows through Uttar Pradesh in India. It is a tributary of the Sharda River. 

In News: Recently, Indian scientists have used the Zebrafish model and identified its genes that can promote heart regeneration.
Option D is correct: Zebrafish is a small (2-3 cm long) freshwater fish found in the tropical and subtropical regions. The fish is native to South Asia’s Indo-Gangetic plains, where they are mostly found in the paddy fields and even in stagnant water and streams. The ability of Zebrafish to heal their heart after injury makes them an attractive model to investigate mechanisms governing the regenerative process. Researchers worldwide are actively working to understand the mechanism behind the heart regeneration in Zebrafish for the last two decades.

In News: FATF recently held its annual joint experts’ meet. It was attended by participants from various government agencies all over the world and international bodies such as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and Interpol.
Option B is correct: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an inter-governmental body decision-making body. It was established in 1989 during the G7 Summit in Paris to develop policies against money laundering. India became an Observer at FATF in 2006. Since then, it had been working towards full-fledged membership. On June 25, 2010, India was taken in as the 34th country member of FATF. As of 2020, FATF has blacklisted North Korea and Iran over terror financing. Twelve countries are in the grey list, namely: Bahamas, Botswana, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Pakistan, Panama, Sri Lanka, Syria, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia and Yemen.

In News: Lachit Diwas is celebrated every year on 24th November to commemorate the heroism of Lachit Borphukan and the victory of the Assamese army at the Battle of Saraighat.
Option B is correct: The Battle of Saraighat was the last battle in the last major attempt by the Mughals to extend their empire into Assam. The Battle was fought in 1671 between the Mughal Empire, led by Raja Ramsingh I and the Ahom Kingdom, led by Lachit Borphukan, on the Brahmaputra River at Saraighat. The battle was a decisive one but it didn't bring the MughalAhom conflict to an end. Later in the battle of Itakhuli in 1682 the Mughal presence in Assam came to an end.

In News: Japan's Hayabusa-2 capsule returns to Earth with pristine asteroid samples.
Option B is correct: Recently, Japan’s Hayabusa-2 has returned to Earth with samples taken from Ryugu asteroid that revolves around the Sun. The Hayabasu2 mission was launched in December 2014. The spacecraft was sent on a six-year-long voyage to study the asteroid Ryugu and collect samples. NASA’s OSIRIS-REX mission also brought back samples from asteroid Bennu late in October 2020. According to the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), this is the first time that a probe has visited a celestial body that is less than 100 metres in diameter.

In News: Recently, Pakistan has issued special permits to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and two other members of the royal family to hunt the internationally protected Houbara bustards during the hunting season 2020-21.
Option D is correct: The Houbara bustard lives in arid climates, they come in two distinct species as recognised by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, one residing in North Africa (Chlamydotis undulata) and the other in Asia (Chlamydotis macqueenii). The population of the Asian houbara bustards extends from northeast Asia, across central Asia, the Middle East, and the Arabian Peninsula to reach the Sinai desert. Some Asian houbara bustards live and breed in the southern part of their ranges including parts of Iran, Pakistan and Turkmenistan. The birds migrate in the thousands from Central Asia to Pakistan every winter - giving the Pakistani elite a chance to engage in "soft diplomacy". IUCN Red List Status: Vulnerable. Hence, both statements are not correct.

In News: Recently, China has powered up its nuclear fusion reactor for the first time.
Option D is correct: The HL-2M Tokamak reactor is China’s largest and most advanced nuclear fusion experimental research device that can potentially unlock a powerful clean energy source. HL-2M Tokamak device is used in it to replicate the nuclear fusion process that occurs naturally in the sun.

Statement 1 is correct: Kolleru lake is a freshwater lake in Andhra Pradesh.
Statement 2 is not correct: Pulicat lake is a saline and lagoon lake located at the border of Andhrapradesh and Tamilnadu.
Statement 3 is correct: Loktak lake is freshwater lake having inland drainage in Manipur.
Statement 4 is not correct: Tsomoriri is a salty lake of Jammu and Kashmir.
Statement 5 is correct: Wular Lake is a freshwater lake and it was created due to tectonic activities. It is located in Jammu and Kashmir.

In News: The Uttar Pradesh government has recently launched a Homestay scheme to take the unique culture of the Tharu tribes all over the world.
Option A is correct: The community belongs to the Terai lowlands, amid the Shivaliks or lower Himalayas. Most of them are forest dwellers and some practised agriculture. The word tharu is believed to be derived from sthavir, meaning followers of Theravada Buddhism. The Tharus live in both India and Nepal. In the Indian Terai, they live mostly in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar. Tharu women have stronger property rights than is allowed to women in mainstream North Indian Hindu custom. The Tharu tribals speak Tharu language. It is a language of the Indo Aryan subgroup and the variant of Urdu, Hindi and Awadhi. The Tharu of Nepal speaks a variant of Bhojpuri. Peace tribals worship Lord Shiva as Mahadev.

Option B is correct: After Sikkim, Lakshadweep is the first Union Territory to become 100 per cent organic as all farming is carried out without the use of synthetic fertilisers and pesticides, providing access to safer food choices and making agriculture a more environment-friendly activity.

In News: Recently, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has launched 100 Octane petrol in India and branded as XP100.
Option D is correct: Recently, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) launched Octane 99 and now IOC has come to the market with XP100. XP100 premium petrol will initially be available at select outlets of IOC in 10 cities Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Agra, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Mumbai, Pune, and Ahmedabad. The fuel costs Rs 160 per litre in Delhi.XP100 premium-grade fuel will improve engine performance, engine longevity, and fuel-efficiency. Furthermore, it also meets BS6 emission norms. It is usually used in luxury vehicles which demand high-performance. Octane ratings are measures of fuel refinement that help with improved combustion and avoid engine knocking, which occurs when fuel is prematurely ignited in the cylinder, which degrades efficiency and can cause damage to the engine in the long run.

Option C is correct: ‘Operation Blackface’ is part of the larger action taken against Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) across the country. Acting on the tip-off provided by NCRB, Maharashtra Cyber cops forward complaints to the districts where FIR’s were registered against accused persons.

The Himalayas are of tectonic origin. Geosyncline between the Indian plate and the Eurasian plate was folded and uplifted as these plates moved towards each other.

In News: An attack by the extremist group Boko Haram has left 110 farmers dead in Nigeria.
Option B is correct: The name ―Boko Haram” is translated as ―Western education is forbidden” and it is the militant group in northern Nigeria that has killed tens of thousands of people.

• It was founded upon the principles of the Salafism advocating Sharia law and developed into a Jihadist group in 2009.
• Boko Haram militants mainly inhabit areas in the northern states of Nigeria, specifically Yobe, Kano, Bauchi, Borno and Kaduna.
• It opposes the Westernization of Nigerian society and the concentration of wealth among a small political elite, mainly in the Christian south of the country.