Daily Current Affairs MCQ - October 28, 2021 - UPSC MCQ

In view of a much needed solution for providing effective long range Marine communication, the Radio over Internet Protocol (ROIP) System at Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata (SMP, Kolkata), was inaugurated.

• ROIP system is being introduced as a marine communication mode, for the first time in any Major Indian Port.
• It shall cover the entire Hugli river Estuary from Kolkata to Sandheads, having base stations at 4 Locations.
• With this facility, vessels at Sandheads can be directly communicated via Radio, from Kolkata, specially during storms and inclement weather.
• Radio over Internet Protocol, or RoIP, is similar to Voice over IP (VoIP), but augments two-way radio communications rather than telephone calls.
• Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.

A report from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said the increase in CO2 from 2019 to 2020 was slightly lower than that observed from 2018 to 2019 but higher than the average annual growth rate over the past decade.

• This is despite the approximately 5.6% drop in fossil fuel CO2 emissions in 2020 due to restrictions related to the pandemic. The Bulletin, as the WMO report is called, shows that the pandemic disruption in 2020 didn’t significantly dent overall greenhouse gas emissions.
• For methane, the increase from 2019 to 2020 was higher than that observed from 2018 to 2019 and also higher than the average annual growth rate over the past decade.
• For nitrous oxides also, the increase was higher and also than the average annual growth rate over the past 10 years.
• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Annual Greenhouse Gas Index (AGGI) shows that from 1990 to 2020, radiative forcing by long-lived greenhouse gases (LLGHGs) increased by 47%, with CO2 accounting for about 80% of this increase.
• Concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2), the most significant greenhouse gas, reached 413.2 parts per million in 2020 and is 149% of the pre-industrial level. Methane (CH4) is 262% and nitrous oxide (N2O) is 123% of the levels in 1,750 when human activities started disrupting earth’s natural equilibrium.

With the arrival of the migratory Amur falcons to Tamenglong district of Manipur for the annual stopover, State Environment Minister has appealed to the people not to hunt the seasonal visitors.

• The Amur falcon (Falco amurensis) is a small raptor of the falcon family. It breeds in south-eastern Siberia and Northern China before migrating in large flocks across India and over the Arabian Sea to winter in Southern and East Africa.
• These falcons visit the Tamenglong district of Manipur every year from breeding grounds in China and Russia before beginning their onward voyage to Africa for the winter — a journey of more than 30,000 km.
• Hunting of this bird is punishable under the Manipur Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and could lead to three years of imprisonment and a fine of ₹25,000.
• IUCN status is Least Concern.
• In another development, officials said the population of the brow-antlered deer (Sangai) found only in Manipur stood at fewer than 300 in its natural habitat, the 40 sq km Keibul Lamjao National park in Bishnupur district.
• Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Barbados has elected its first President, a key step in preparations to become a republic and remove Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II as head of state of the Caribbean island.

• Sandra Mason, the current governor-general, is set to be sworn in as President on November 30, the country's 55th anniversary of independence from Britain.
• In September 2020, Ms. Mason, 72, announced the break with Britain, saying “the time has come to fully leave our colonial past behind.”

Geography

• Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands.
• Its capital and largest city is Bridgetown.
• It is at roughly 13°N of the equator.
• Barbados lies on the boundary of the South American and the Caribbean Plates.

Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

Even as the southwest monsoon began to retreat from the subcontinent, Kerala and Uttarakhand received record rainfall in October. In both these States and others, over the last few years, there have been variations in the pattern and intensity of rainfall.

• There are different factors at play in Kerala and Uttarakhand.
• There have been two rain-bearing ‘low pressure systems’ that are active in the Arabian Sea as well as the Bay of Bengal since the past week.
• The low pressure system in the Arabian Sea contributed to the heavy rain in Kerala, whereas western disturbances, which are periodic influxes of moisture-laden clouds from the Mediterranean, and common during winter, are what caused the rain in northern India.
• The Bay of Bengal is still warm and strong winds from there are reaching as far as Uttarakhand and will contribute to rainfall in several parts of north-eastern India.
• Overall elevated temperatures are also contributing to warmer waters in the Arctic Ocean and drawing colder air from the poles with greater intensity. This added to the increased moisture, thereby seeding more intense western disturbance activity over north India.
• This year, the monsoon began its retreat on October 6 and though it was expected to fully retreat by October 16, it is yet to completely withdraw, with the associated clouds still lingering on.
• Kerala and Uttarakhand have large tracts of hilly terrain that are prone to landslips.
• But construction has continued unabated even on land unsuited for human habitation. Several ecologists and environmentalists have for years warned of the consequences of unplanned development.
• Hence both statements are correct.

• Recently, the Union Minister of Civil Aviation has released Krishi Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN) 2.0 to facilitate movement of agricultural produce by air.
  • Krishi UDAN was launched in August 2020, on international and national routes to assist farmers in transporting agricultural products so that it improves their value realisation.
• Krishi UDAN 2.0 will focus on transporting perishable food products from the hilly areas, northeastern states and tribal areas.
  • It will be implemented at 53 airports across the country mainly focusing on northeast and tribal regions and is likely to benefit farmers, freight forwarders and airlines.
  • It lays out the vision of improving value realization through better integration and optimization of agri-harvesting and air transportation and contributing to agri-value chain sustainability and resilience under different and dynamic conditions.
• Hence, option C is correct.

• Recently, the Union Minister of Power & New and Renewable Energy has launched the new market segment, Green Day Ahead Market (GDAM) at the Indian Energy Exchange.
  • India is the only large electricity market in the world to implement a Green Day Ahead Market (GDAM) exclusively for renewable energy. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• GDAM is a marketplace for trading renewable power on a day-ahead basis.
  • National Load Despatch Center (NLDC), Power System Operation Corporation Limited (POSOCO) as the nodal agency has set up the requisite technologies and infrastructure for the launch of the GDAM.
• With GDAM, any renewable energy generating company can set up and sell renewable energy on the exchange. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• It will operate in an integrated way with the conventional day-ahead market.
  • However, there will be separate price discoveries for the conventional and renewables

• Recently, A troop of Gray langurs (Semnopithecus entellus) with their pelage (fur or hair) coloured blue was spotted in an industrial neighbourhood of Ankleshwar in Gujarat.
  • Also called Hanuman, Langur, named after the Hindu god, Hanuman.
    • Its 16 subspecies’ range extends from the Himalayas in the north to peninsular India in the south.
• It is grey washed with buff or silvery shades. Their hands and feet are black and they have long tails for balancing on tree limbs.
• It is found both in forests and near human habitations.
  • They inhabit areas between 2,200-4,000 metres above mean sea level in the subtropical, tropical moist temperate, alpine, coniferous and broadleaved forests and scrublands. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.
• It is distributed in a varied habitat including dry savannah and tropical rainforests.
  • In the Indian Subcontinent, their distribution is reported in Bhutan, northern India and Nepal.
• Protection Status:
  • IUCN Red List: Least Concern
  • CITES: Appendix-I
  • Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 : Schedule-I
  • Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

In a study that examined the effect of insulin on liver cells taken from mice, researchers have uncovered how insulin amounts shape the flow of information through the signalling network.

• The study also provides insights into the degree to which major and minor components are important in keeping this signalling process intact. This knowledge can direct further studies to identify targets for therapy.
• Insulin is a hormone secreted by the b cells of the pancreas.
• It is commonly associated with an ability to regulate glucose metabolism. However, later studies (from around 1949 until recently) have shown it plays a larger role and helps in growth and maintenance of tissues.

insulin signalling

• An important mechanism in the cell is insulin signalling, which is a series of biochemical reactions that convey information about availability of insulin and the necessity to regulate the glucose in the blood.
• There are two main pathways for insulin signalling, named AKT and ERK, which together balance metabolism and growth. These specifically control storage of glucose in the liver and also stimulate glucose transport in skeletal muscle and fat.
• Abnormalities in insulin signalling thus impact health and survival itself of organisms and the study addresses an important piece of the puzzle.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Yet another study has shown that a combination of natural infection with a single dose of vaccine provides greater immunity than either natural infection without vaccination or full vaccination in infection-naïve individuals.

• The Hybrid immunity — natural immunity from an infection combined with the immunity provided by the vaccine — had a higher and more durable neutralising antibody response. It offers stronger protection than just infection or full vaccination alone.
• The study, posted in the preprint server medRxiv on October 19 (preprints are yet to be peer-reviewed), has found that in 500 health-care workers, the neutralising antibodies were twofold more in people immunised with Pfizer vaccine following natural infection compared with people immunised with Pfizer vaccine but without prior infection.

Hence both statements are correct.