Daily Current Affairs MCQ- March 18, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

The government has readied a draft district-wise export promotion plan for 451 districts in the country after identifying products and services with export potential in 725 districts, Commerce Secretary said.

• Aiming for double-digit export growth from 500 districts over 3-5 years, the Commerce Ministry has asked States to prepare an annual ‘export ranking index’ of districts on export competitiveness with the assistance of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT).
• While foreign trade constitutes 45% of India’s GDP, most export promotion efforts are driven by the Centre.
• The district-specific approach, that involves the States in identifying potential export sectors and the logistics bottlenecks to be fixed, was taken up after Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushed for each district to aim to be an export hub during his Independence Day address in 2019.
• In the initial phase, products and services with export potential in each district have been identified and an institutional mechanism of State and District Export Promotion Committees (SEPC) are being created, with an action plan to grow exports from each district.
• District Export Promotion Committees have been notified in the districts of all the States except West Bengal.

Hence both statements are correct.

The government has decided to increase the interval between the first and second doses of Covishield to up to eight weeks in its ongoing vaccination drive against Covid-19.

• Covishield is Serum Institute of India’s version of AZD1222, the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca in collaboration with the University of Oxford.
• Some data from global trials of AZD122 suggests that extending the duration between doses to 12 weeks increased its efficacy much more.
• The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare took the decision on the recommendation of two expert groups – the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) and National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19 (NEGVAC).
• The groups, after looking into available scientific evidence from clinical trials of the vaccine, concluded that the protection that it provides against Covid-19 is “enhanced” if the second dose is administered between 6-8 weeks.

Hence both statements are correct.

The Jury for the 67th National Film Awards announced the winners for the year 2019. The announcement of the awards was delayed by almost a year because of the pandemic.

• Priyadarshan’s Marakkar Arabikadalinte Simham was chosen as the best feature film and Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan won the best director award for Hindi film Bahattar Hoorain at the 67th National Film Awards.
• Headlined by Mohanlal, Marakkar Arabikadalinte Simham, or the Lion of Arabian Sea, is a period action drama about a 16th century Malayali naval chieftain who fought the Portuguese invasion.
• Manoj Bajpayee and Dhanush shared the best actor award. While Manoj was awarded for his measured performance as a retired police constable in Bhonsle, Dhanush won it for depicting a range of emotions in Vetrimaaran’s multi-layered revenge drama Asuran.
• Kangana Ranaut won the best actress award for her varied performances in Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi and Panga.
• Sikkim has bagged the award for being Most Film Friendly State.
• Established in 1954, National Film Awards has been administered by the Indian government's Directorate of Film Festivals since 1973.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) entered into a partnership with the Government of Denmark to support the Union Government’s flagship programme, Jal Jeevan Mission in Uttar Pradesh.

• The purpose of partnership between the Government of Denmark and UNOPS is to provide strategic technical support to Jal Jeevan Mission (Water program).
• UNOPS shall be focussing on instituting scalable delivery models in focused 11 water-scare districts of Uttar Pradesh in Bundelkhand and Vindhya regions.
• The Jal JeevanMission aims to provide functional household tap connection to every rural household by 2024. This coincides with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal-6.
• The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is an operational arm of the United Nations, dedicated to implementing projects for the United Nations System, international financial institutions, governments and other partners around the world.
• The organization's global headquarters is located on the UN City campus in Copenhagen, Denmark.
• UNOPS was established in 1973 as part of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). It became an independent, self-financing organization in 1995.

Hence both statements are correct.

Gandhi Peace Prize for the Year 2019 and 2020 were announced.

• The Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2019 is being conferred on (Late) His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said of Oman.
• The Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2020 is being conferred on Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
• Gandhi Peace Prize is an annual award instituted by Government of India since 1995, the 125th Birth Anniversary commemoration year of Mahatma Gandhi.
• The award is open to all persons regardless of nationality, race, language, caste, creed or sex.
• The Jury for Gandhi Peace Prize is chaired by Hon’ble Prime Minister, Sh Narendra Modi ,and comprises of two ex-officio members, namely the Chief Justice of India and Leader of the single largest Opposition Party in Lok Sabha.
• Two eminent members are also part of the Jury, namely Shri Om Birla, Speaker of the Lok Sabha, and Shri Bindeshwar Pathak, Founder of Sulabh International Social Service Organisation.
• The award carries an amount of Rs. 1 crore, a citation, a plaque and an exquisite traditional handicraft/ handloom item.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Telecom Minister Sanjay Dhotre represented India at the World Summit on Information Society Forum 2021.

• The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum 2021 represents one of the world's largest annual gathering of the ‘ICT for development’ community.
• It is co-organized by International Telecommunications Union (ITU), UNESCO, UNDP and UNCTAD.
• The telecom minister mentioned that under the flagship program BharatNet, nearly 6,00,000 villages are being connected through laying of more than 4,00,000 Km length of optical fiber cable and use of satellite communication services.
• Through submarine cable networks small and remote islands of Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep and other inaccessible areas are being connected with funding from Government.
• Establishment of ITU Area office and Innovation Centre in India with involvement of SMEs, Academia and Startups in the region will go a long way in development of technologies, standards and solutions best suited for rural and remote areas of developing nations.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The Election Commission ordered a ban on bike rallies 72 hours before polling and on the day of voting itself in the Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal Assembly elections, citing instances of “anti-social elements” on bikes intimidating voters.

• The EC wrote to the Chief Electoral Officers of the four States and the Union Territory of Puducherry.
• The EC decided that bike rallies would not be allowed at any place 72 hours before the date of poll and on the poll day in all constituencies where elections are being held.
• The complaints came up particularly during the EC’s meetings with parties in Kolkata, adding that the ban had been in place during the previous elections as well.
• Originally the commission had only a Chief Election Commissioner. It currently consists of Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners.
• For the first time two additional Commissioners were appointed on 16th October 1989 but they had a very short tenure till 1st January 1990. Later, on 1st October 1993 two additional Election Commissioners were appointed. The concept of multi-member Commission has been in operation since then, with decision making power by majority vote.

Hence both statements are correct.

Union Minister of Science & technology Dr. Harsh Vardhan inaugurated the new Advanced High Resolution Microscopy Facility at National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI).

• He also Unveiled the 4 Star GRIHA Certification of Center of Innovative and Applied Bioprocessing (CIAB) Lab and Admin Building at Mohali in Punjab.
• Both NABI & CIAB are autonomous institutes under Dept. of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science & Technology.
• National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI) is the first Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute, established in India on 18th February 2010. It is located in Mohali, Punjab

Hence both statements are correct.

The birth anniversary of world-famous shehnai maestro Ustad Bismillah Khan was observed on March 21, 2021.

• Khan's contributions in taking Shehnai to a global stage is unparalleled.
• Bismillah Khan's first big break came with the opening of the All India Radio in Lucknow in 1938.
• It was Ustad ‘Bismillah” Khan Who also played the Shehnai at the first Republic Day celebration in 1950.
• Bismillah Khan was the first Indian to be invited to perform at the prestigious Lincoln Centre Hall in the United States of America.
• He was conferred upon national awards like the Padmashri, the Padma Bhushan and the Padma Vibhushan for his immense contribution to the field of music. In 2001, Ustad Bismillah Khan was awarded India’s highest civilian award Bharat Ratna.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will introduce the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development Bill, 2021 in the Lok Sabha.

• The bill seeks to establish the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development.
• Its objective is to support the development of long-term non-recourse infrastructure financing in India including development of the bonds and derivatives markets necessary for infrastructure financing and to carry on the business of financing infrastructure.

Hence both statements are correct.