Daily Current Affairs MCQ- May 27, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has called on buyers to bid for natural gas from the Deepwater fields of the KGDWN-98/2 block off of the east coast of India.

• ONGC is set to supply about 2 Million Metric Standard Cubic Metres per Day (MMSCMD) of natural gas from the fields starting at the end of June.
• The ramping up of production from the KG-DWN 98/2 block by ONGC is a key component of the government’s plan to boost domestic production with the block expected to reach peak production of 15 MMSCMD by 2024.
• This would account for about a 20 per cent increase above the company’s current production level of about 70 MMSCMD.
• Natural gas production from the Krishna Godavari basin is a key part of India’s plans to reduce import dependence by boosting domestic production.
• India currently imports about half of its natural gas requirements of 175 MMSCMD.

Hence, option (b) is the correct answer.

The Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India launched the “MANAS” App to promote wellbeing across age groups.

• MANAS which stands for Mental Health and Normalcy Augmentation System was endorsed as a national program by the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC).
• MANAS is a comprehensive, scalable, and national digital wellbeing platform and an app developed to augment mental well-being of Indian citizens.
• MANAS App integrates the health and wellness efforts of various government ministries, scientifically validated indigenous tools with gamified interfaces developed/researched by various national bodies and research institutions.
• MANAS was initiated by the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India. It was jointly executed by NIMHANS Bengaluru, AFMC Pune and C-DAC Bengaluru.

Hence both statements are correct.

Government of India launched the “Online Grievance Management Portal of National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC)”.

• This NCSC Grievance Management portal would make it easier for Scheduled Castes population to register their complaint from any part of the country.
• The portal is designed in collaboration with the Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applications and Geoinformatics (BISAG-N), a Centre of Excellence under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
• The National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) was set up under the Article 338 of the Constitution of India with the objective to investigate and monitor all issues pertaining to the safeguards provided for the Scheduled Castes under any law for the time being in force or under any order of the Government of India.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Scientists have developed an electronic nose with biodegradable polymer and monomer that can detect hydrogen sulphide (H₂S), a poisonous, corrosive, and flammable gas produced from swamps and sewers.

• H₂S is the primary gas produced from the microbial breakdown of organic matter in the absence of oxygen, and this necessitates easy detection of its emission from sewers and swamps.
• Responding to this challenge, scientists from the Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences (CeNS), Bangalore, an autonomous institute of the DST have developed an exceptionally sensitive and selective H₂S Gas sensor developed by impersonating the neuron responsible for identification of airborne molecules or olfactory receptor neuron (ORN).
• The fabricated sensor consists of a heterostructure consisting of two layers –
  • the top layer a monomer and is realized with a novel chemical tris (keto-hydrazone), which is both porous and contains H2S specific functional groups, and
  • the bottom layer is the active channel layer which plays a key role in altering the current and mobility of charge carriers.

Hence both statements are correct.

The Energy Forum (TEF) and the Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry (FIPI), under the aegis of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India, are organising a Hydrogen Roundtable titled “Hydrogen Economy- the Indian Dialogue-2021” in a virtual mode on 15th April, 2021.

• The Hydrogen Roundtable, the first of its kind, will comprise a High-level Ministerial Session, followed by five Panel Discussions by eminent policy makers, experts and industry leaders from different geographical regions of the world, with focus on policy roadmaps and mapping demand and supply of Hydrogen.
• This high-level roundtable conference will be led by Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas & Steel, Government of India.
• A separate session is devoted to India's Hydrogen Mission.
• The Hydrogen Roundtable will be having 25 panellists from15 countries, discussing the potential of Hydrogen from multiple sources and its relevance in national energy transitions.
• The objective of the Roundtable is to understand the progress of Hydrogen ecosystem across continents and contribute to creating synchrony among the thinktanks, Governments and the industry to join forces for developing innovative and sustainable technologies at attractive costs.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Various regions of the country are celebrating traditional new year today in the form of Ugadi, Gudi Padava, Chaitra Sukladi, Cheti Chand, Vishu, Puthandu and Bohag Bihu.

• According to the Luni-Solar calendar, the first day of the full moon of Chaitra is the beginning of the Hindu new year.
• People of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana call it 'Ugadi', and in Karnataka, it is ‘Yugadi’.
• In Maharashtra, it is celebrated as ‘Gudi Padwa’, and in Tamil Nadu, it is observed as ‘Puthandu’.
• In Kerala, the day is celebrated as ‘Vishu’, In Punjab it is ‘Vaisakhi’ and in Odisha, it is called ‘Pana Sankranthi’.
• In West Bengal, it is called ‘Poila Boishakh’ and in Assam, 'Bohag Bihu'.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi also extended his greetings on the beginning of the new Samvat Year 2078 and wished for happiness and joy in everyone's life.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

• The International Labour Organisation (ILO) brings together governments, employers and workers of 187 member States (India is a member), to set labour standards, develop policies and devise programmes promoting decent work for all women and men.
  • It became the first affiliated specialised agency of the UN in 1946. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
  • It is the only tripartite United Nation (UN) agency.
• ILO was created in 1919 by the Treaty of Versailles as an affiliated agency of the League of Nations. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was established on April 1, 1935, in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
  • The Central Office of the Reserve Bank was initially established in Calcutta but was permanently moved to Mumbai in 1937. The Central Office is where the Governor sits and where policies are formulated.
  • Though originally privately owned, since nationalization in 1949, the Reserve Bank is fully owned by the Government of India.
• RBI’s Important Publications (half-yearly):
  • Financial Stability Report
  • Monetary Policy Report
  • Report on Financial Review
• Hence, option D is correct.

• The inter-state council is a constitutional body established under the provisions of Article 263 of the constitution. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.
• Its establishment was recommended by the Sarkaria commission (and not Punchhi commission. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.
• It meets at least thrice a year under the chairmanship of Prime-Minister. Hence, statement 3 and statement 4 are not correct.

• Remittances are usually understood as financial or in-kind transfers made by migrants to friends and relatives back in their communities of origin. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• These are basically sum of two main components - Personal Transfers in cash or in kind between resident and non-resident households and Compensation of Employees, which refers to the income of workers who work in another country for a limited period of time. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Remittances help in stimulating economic development in recipient countries, but this can also make such countries over-reliant on them.