Daily Current Affairs MCQ- June 9, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

At an event to mark World Environment Day recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned India’s efforts to create ‘green jobs’.

• ‘Green jobs’ refer to a class of jobs that directly have a positive impact on the planet, and contribute to the overall environmental welfare.
• Jobs involving renewable energy, conservation of resources, ensuring energy efficient means are categorised under the same. In all, they’re aimed at reducing the negative environmental impact of economic sectors and furthering the process of creating a low-carbon economy.
• Awareness and training individuals regarding green jobs skills will ensure limiting greenhouse gas emissions, minimising waste and pollution, protect and restore ecosystems, support adaptation to the effects of climate change.

Skill Council for Green Jobs

• The Skill Council for Green Jobs was launched by the Union government on October 1, 2015.
• Aligned to the National Skill Development Missions, it was set up to be a not-for-profit, independent, industry-led initiative.
• Promoted by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the council aims to help manufacturers and other service providers in India’s ‘green business’ sector to implement industry-led, collaborative skills push the country on the path to truly realising the real potential and significance of ‘green jobs’.

ILO projections for India

• According to the ILO, India moving to a green economy by the next decade would alone create about 3 million jobs in the renewable energy sector. The renewable energy sector created about 47,000 new jobs in 2017 accounting for a 12% increase in just the span of a year, they said.

Scenario across the world

• The International Labour Organisation, the International Trade Union Confederation, the United Nations Environment Programme and the International Employers Organisation collectively launched the Green Jobs Initiative in 2008, aimed at bettering placements, training and creating opportunities for individuals to work in ‘green jobs’.

Hence both statements are correct.

Ten antiquities (sculptures) retrieved from Australia and the United States were handed over to the Government of Tamil Nadu in Delhi last week.

Some of the returned antiquities:

• Dvarapala: This stone sculpture belongs to the Vijayanagar dynasty dating to the 15th-16th century. He is holding a gada in one hand and has another leg raised up to the level of his knee.
• Nataraja: This image of Nataraja, a depiction of Shiva, in his divine cosmic dance form, is in tribhanga posture, standing on the lotus pedestal. Possibly, ananda tandava or the Dance of Bliss is portrayed here.
• Kankalamurti: Kankalamurti is depicted as a fearsome aspect of Lord Shiva and Bhairava. The sculpture is four-armed, holding ayudhas such as damaru and trishula in the upper hands and a bowl and a trefoil shaped object, as a treat for the playful fawn, in the lower right hand.
• Nandikeshvara: This bronze image of Nandikeshvara, dateable to the 13th century, is shown standing in tribhanga posture with folded arms, holding an axe and a fawn in the upper arms, with his forearms in namaskara mudra.
• Standing child Sambandar: Sambandar, the popular 7th-century child saint, is one of the Muvar, the three principal saints of South India. THE legend goes that after receiving a bowl of milk from Goddess Uma, the infant Sambandar devoted his life to composing hymns in praise of Lord Shiva.

Hence both statements are correct.

On the occasion of World Food Safety Day Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr Mansukh Mandaviya released the 4th State Food Safety Index (SFSI) for the year 2021-22.

• SFSI was started from 2018-19 with the aim of creating a competitive and positive change in the food safety ecosystem in the country.
• The SFSI measures the performance of States on the basis of five parameters of food safety set by the Health Ministry.
• The rating is done by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

Winners

• This year, among the larger states, Tamil Nadu was the top ranking state, followed by Gujarat and Maharashtra.
• Among the smaller states, Goa stood first followed by Manipur and Sikkim.
• Among UTs, Jammu & Kashmir, Delhi and Chandigarh secured first, second and third ranks.
• The Health Minister also felicitated 11 winning smart cities of the EatSmart Cities Challenge, launched by FSSAI last year in association with the Smart Cities Mission under the aegis of Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).

Hence both statements are correct.

• Recently, India and Oman signed a Programme of Cooperation (POC) in the fields of Science and Technology for the period 2022 – 2025.
  • The POC for Cooperation in the fields of Science and Technology was signed in pursuance of the Agreement for Cooperation in Science and Technology(S&T) concluded on 5th October 1996 between Oman and India. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• In September 2021, India and the UAE formally launched negotiations on the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). That would help in reducing trade barriers between the two countries. Hence statement 2 is correct.
  • Recently India signed an FTA with UAE, not with Kuwait, Hence, statement 3 is not correct.
• India and Qatar signed the agreement on the startup bridge and Saudi Arabia doesn't have any involvement in it. Hence statement 4 is not correct.

• Natural rubber is a polymer of isoprene, an organic compound. Hence, Statement 1 is correct.
• Rubber trees have an economic life period of around 32 years in plantations.
• Rubber is a coherent elastic solid obtained from the latex of a number of tropical trees of which Hevea brasiliensis is the most important. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• The vines in the genus Landolphia yield the Congo rubber. These vines cannot be grown in cultivation, and this led to large-scale exploitation of the wild plants in Congo.

• The Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) was created under the Department of Telecommunications in 2002. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• USOF ensures that there is universal non-discriminatory access to quality ICT services at economically efficient prices to people in rural and remote areas. Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• Currently, it is charged at the rate of 5%, while the TSPs demand it to be reduced to 3%.
• It is a non-lapsable fund, i.e., the unspent amount under a targeted financial year does not lapse and is accrued for next years’ spending. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.
• All credits to this fund require parliamentary approval and it has statutory support under the Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Act, 2003.

• GeM is a one-stop National Public Procurement Portal to facilitate online procurement of common use Goods & Services required by various Central and State Government Departments/Organisations/Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). Hence, statement 1 is not correct.
• The procurement of goods and services by Ministries and the Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) is mandatory for goods and services available on GeM. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• It also provides the tools of e-bidding and reverse e-auction to facilitate the government users achieve the best value for their money.
• It was launched in 2016 to bring transparency and efficiency in the government buying process.
• The Ministry of Commerce and Industry is the nodal ministry of the GeM Portal. Hence, statement 3 is correct.

• Heavy Metals are naturally present in the earth's crust. Rocks are the natural source of heavy metals. Heavy Metals are present in the rocks in the form of minerals. Examples: arsenic, copper, lead etc. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Heavy metals have the property of long persistence in plants, animals and environment. Hence, statement 4 is not correct.
• According to the Centre for Science and Environment, three out of every four river monitoring stations in India have observed alarming levels of heavy toxic metals such as lead, iron, nickel, cadmium, arsenic, chromium and copper. Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• Mining, industrial, and agricultural operations are all anthropogenic sources of heavy metals in the environment. These heavy metals are produced during the mining and extraction of various elements from their respective ores. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has published Draft Standards for Road-Trains.

• To revolutionize the transport of goods and reduce the overall logistic costs, the Automotive Industry Standards Committee has amended its AIS-113 Standard to include the safety requirements of Road-Trains and has hosted the draft on Ministry of Road Transport & Highway’s website.
• The amended standard AIS-113 (Code of Practice for Type Approval of Trailers / Semi-trailers of categories T2, T3 and T4 being towed by Motor Vehicles of categories N2 and N3) has been published for invitation of public comments, after which it shall be notified in due course.
• The standards have been prepared after examining European benchmarks, keeping in mind Indian operating conditions.
• Road-Train is a motor vehicle wherein the traction is provided by the puller, which is connected to a serial combination of trailers or semi- trailers. These shall ply on select stretches to reduce congestion, save fuel and reduce noise & air-pollution.
• The Automotive Industry Standards Committee has representatives from the relevant Ministries, Testing Agencies, Industry stakeholders, BIS etc.

Hence both statements are correct.

Government of India has decided to allocate free-of-cost food grains @ 5 Kg per person per month to nearly 80 Crore beneficiaries covered under National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA) over and above NFSA food grains for next two months i.e., May and June 2021 on the same pattern as the earlier “Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PM-GKAY)”.

• Under this special scheme (PMGKAY), around 80 Crore NFSA beneficiaries covered under both categories of NFSA, namely Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and Priority Householders (PHH), will be provided with an additional quota of free-of-cost food grains (Rice/Wheat) at a scale of 5 Kg per person per month, over and above their regular monthly entitlements under NFSA.
• Government of India will bear full expenditure of over Rs 26,000 Crore on account of cost of food grains, intrastate transportation etc. as part of Central assistance to States/UTs.

Hence both statements are correct.