Daily Current Affairs MCQ- March 10, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

On the occasion of the International Women’s Day, Government eMarketplace [GeM] has launched a new service vertical “Stitching and Tailoring Services” on the GeM portal in partnership with USHA International Ltd., through its Silai School Programme.

• The service will open new opportunities for Usha Silai Women and self-help groups in urban and rural areas to enhance their livelihood incomes through sewing orders placed by various Government departments and agencies and fulfil the 3 percent procurement target set aside for women MSE entrepreneurs.
• Government e Marketplace is a 100 percent Government owned Section 8 company setup under the administrative control of the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, for procurement of goods and services by State Government and Central Government organizations.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Telecommunication Engineering Center (TEC) in collaboration with industry has organised a skill development training program for girl students from rural background.

• Government of India has notified Mandatory Testing & Certification of communication Equipment (MTCTE) in 2017.
• Under the scheme, all telecom equipment, whether imported or indigenously manufactured, are to be tested and certified before their induction/ sale in India for Safety, EMI/ EMC and technical requirements.
• MTCTE for Phase -III and Phase-IV has been notified vide letter dated 22.09.2021.

Telecommunication Engineering Centre (TEC)

• Telecommunication Engineering Centre (TEC) is the designated authority for implementation of this scheme.
• TEC is a body under telecom commission and a nodal agency of the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Government of India with headquarters in New Delhi.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Union Minister of Labour and Employment presented Vishwakarma Rashtriya Puraskar (VRP), National Safety Awards (NSA) for the performance year 2018 and National Safety Awards (Mines) [NSA (Mines)] for the contest years 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.

• The Ministry of Labour & Employment, has been operating the "Vishwakarma Rashtriya Puraskar (VRP)" and "National Safety Awards (NSA)" since 1965 and National Safety Awards (Mines) [NSA (Mines)] since 1983.
• VRP and NSA are operated by the Directorate General Factory Advice Service & Labour Institutes (DGFASLI), Mumbai and NSA (Mines) is operated by Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS), Dhanbad. DGFASLI is an attached office whereas as DGMS is a sub-ordinate office of the Ministry.
• To promote a competitive spirit amongst mine operators for the betterment of safety standards in mines, the Ministry of Labour & Employment, Government of India, instituted the National Safety Awards (Mines) in 1983.
• VRP is awarded in recognition of outstanding suggestions given by a worker or group of workers and implemented by the management during the performance calendar year resulting in improvement in quality, productivity and working conditions in the industrial undertakings where "Suggestion Schemes" are in operation.
• The NSA is given in recognition of outstanding safety performance of industrial establishments, construction sites, ports and installations under Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) to stimulate and maintain the interests of both the management and the workers in accident prevention programs.

Hence both statements are correct.

The Philippines raised its age of sexual consent from 12 years to 16 years.

• For years activists had called upon the government to raise the age of consent in the Philippines.
• Until now, it had one of the lowest ages of consent in the world, with roughly one in five children experiencing sexual violence.

Age of consent in other countries

• In India, The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, defines a “child” as anyone below 18 years of age, and hence, engaging in sexual activity with a ‘child’ is considered sexual assault.
• With the Philippines’ new law, the age of consent remains lowest in Angola at 12 years.
• According to data provided by the World Population Review, Japan has the age of consent at 13, and countries like China, Germany, Italy and Brazil have it as 14.
• In the United States, the age of consent is decided by states individually and varies between 16 to 18. The United Kingdom, too, has 16 as its age of consent.

Hence both statements are correct.

• Radio waves have the longest wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum.Hence, statement 1 is not correct.
  • They range from the length of a football to larger than our planet.
• Heinrich Hertz proved the existence of radio waves in the late 1880s. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Radio telescopes collect weak radio light waves, bring it to a focus, amplify it and make it available for analysis.
  • They help study naturally occurring radio light from stars, galaxies, black holes, and other astronomical objects.

• UN Peacekeeping began in 1948 when the UN Security Council authorised the deployment of UN military observers to the Middle East. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.
• UN Peacekeeping helps countries navigate the difficult path from conflict to peace. It is made only to establish peace and not to fight or take up arms against NATO forces. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.
• It deploys troops and police from around the world, integrating them with civilian peacekeepers to address a range of mandates set by the UN Security Council (UNSC) and the General Assembly.

• BBIN Connectivity Project was conceived after the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) failed to agree on a regional motor vehicles agreement at a summit in Nepal in 2014, mainly because of opposition from Pakistan.
• The BBIN Motor Vehicle Agreement for the Regulation of Passenger, Personal and Cargo Vehicular Traffic between the 4 countries was signed during a transport ministers’ meeting in Thimpu on 15^th June 2015.
• Operationalising the MVA by concluding the Passenger and the Cargo Protocol will help realise the full potential of trade and people to people connectivity between the BBIN countries by fostering greater sub-regional cooperation. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• Foreign Funding: The Asian Development Bank has supported the project as part of its South Asian Subregional Economic Cooperation programme, and has been requested to prioritise about 30 road projects worth billions of dollars. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
  • The World Bank, which has estimated that the implementation of the MVA will potentially see an increase in traffic-regional trade within South Asia by nearly 60%, has also announced its interest in supporting infrastructure.

• National Land Monetization Corporation (NLMC) will undertake surplus land asset monetisation as an agency function, and assist and provide technical advice to the Centre in this regard.
  • NLMC will undertake monetization of surplus land and building assets of Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) and other Government agencies. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
  • NLMC will also advise and support other Government entities (including CPSEs) in identifying their surplus non-core assets and monetizing them in a professional and efficient manner to generate maximum value realisation.
  • NLMC has been announced with an initial authorised share capital of Rs 5000 crore and paid-up share capital of Rs 150 crore.
• The Board of Directors of NLMC will comprise senior Central Government officers and eminent experts to enable professional operations and management of the company.
  • The Chairman, non-Government Directors of the NLMC will be appointed through a merit-based selection process.
• The new company, which will be set up under the administrative jurisdiction of the finance ministry. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

Union Environment Ministry launched the National Transit Pass System (NTPS), an online system for issuing transit permits for timber, bamboo and other forest produce. NTPS will bring ease of business and expedite issuance of transit permits for timber, bamboo and other minor forest produce without physically going to forest offices. Through mobile application e-pass will be issued for transit of forest produce. The pilot project will be functional in Madhya Pradesh and Telangana for now. The system will be will be operational in all states by Diwali. This will enhance seamless movement of forest produce. Transit of timber, bamboo and other forest produce is governed by various state specific acts and rules. 

Hence both statements are correct.

Union IT Minister said that since 10th June, 2020 the Common Services Centre (CSC) Wi-Fi Choupal has provided 1 Lakh FTTH broadband connections in rural areas across 21 states, using the Bharat Net infrastructure. Government has set the target of 5 Lakh FTTH connections by September. Wi-Fi Choupal is a government initiative to provide Wi-Fi hotspots in rural areas where people can access the internet by subscribing to low-cost data plans. This will be achieved by leveraging BharatNet infrastructure for providing broadband services in Gram Panchayats (GPs) and villages.

It is an Initiative of ‘CSC e-Governance Services India Limited’, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) set up in 2016 by the Ministry of Electronics & IT under the Companies Act, 1956 to oversee implementation of the Common Service Centres (CSC) scheme. Fiber to the home (FTTH), also called "fiber to the premises" (FTTP), is the installation and use of optical fiber from a central point directly to individual buildings such as residences, apartment buildings and businesses to provide high-speed Internet access. 

Hence both statements are correct.