Daily Current Affairs MCQ- August 3, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

According to recently released official data, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) - based inflation rate reached a record high of 15.1% in April, owing to increases in the cost of vegetables, fruits, milk and fuel. 

• WPI represents the price of goods at a wholesale stage e., goods that are sold in bulk and traded between organizations instead of consumers. WPI is used as a measure of inflation in some economies.
• WPIs are reported monthly in order to show the average price changes of goods.
• The total costs of the goods being considered in one year are then compared with the total costs of goods in the base year.
• The total prices for the base year are equal to 100 on the scale. Prices from another year are compared to that total and expressed as a percentage of change.
• It is used as an important measure of inflation in India. It takes into account the change in price of goods only.
• WPI data is published by the Office of Economic Adviser, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India.
• The current series of WPI - with base year of 2011-12 - was the seventh revision of WPI and implemented from 2017 onwards.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The Union Home Ministry has sanctioned ₹138.48 crore to the Intelligence Bureau (IB) for a “technical upgrade”.

• The funds are meant to upgrade the multi-agency centre (MAC), a common counter-terrorism grid under the IB conceptualised in 2001 after the Kargil war.
• The idea behind the MAC was to create an institutional memory on terrorism and act as a platform to analyse the information on terror-related activities.
• The MAC had the main server in Delhi which is linked to the subsidiary multi-agency centre (SMAC) under the Subsidiary Intelligence Bureau (SIBs) in all States, which further disseminates information to the intelligence branch or wing of the respective State police forces.
• Plans are now afoot to link it to the district office of the Superintendent of Police which has been pending for more than a decade now. If MAC is linked to the district SP’s office, relevant information on terror can be fed in the system leading to the expansion of terror database.
• As many as 28 organisations including the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), armed forces and State police are part of the platform and various security agencies share real time intelligence inputs on MAC.

Hence both statements are correct.

After a high-level security review for the forthcoming Amarnath Yatra, the government has decided to track all pilgrims using Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags.

• Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a wireless tracking system that consists of tags and readers.
• Radio waves are used to communicate information/identity of objects or people to nearby readers – devices that can be hand-held or built into fixed positions like poles or buildings.
• The tags can carry encrypted information, serial numbers and short descriptions. There are also high-memory tags like the ones designed for use in the aviation industry.

Types of RFID tags

• Active RFIDs use their own power source, mostly batteries.
• Passive RFIDs, on the other hand, are activated through the reader using the electromagnetic energy it transmits.
• Active tags have a longer read range, around 300 ft, compared to passive tags.

Hence both statements are correct.

The past seven years were the warmest on record, and 2021 did not see record-breaking temperatures because of a La Niña event at the start and end of the year, according to a report by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

• La Nina is a cooling of surface temperatures in the Central Pacific. While this had a temporary cooling effect, it did not reverse the overall trend of rising temperatures. The average global temperature in 2021 was about 1.11 (± 0.13) degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial level.
• Four key climate change indicators — greenhouse gas concentrations, sea-level rise, ocean heat and ocean acidification — set new records in 2021, according to the report.
• Extreme weather led to economic damage estimated at hundreds of billions of dollars and triggered shocks for food, water security and displacement that worsened in 2022.
• The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology and geophysics.
• It was established in 1950 and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

In a bid to speed up the disinvestment process of public sector enterprises (PSEs), the Cabinet empowered PSE boards to take a call on selling stakes in joint ventures and subsidiaries, as well as deciding on closure of units.

• The process for undertaking the strategic disinvestment transactions, closures to be followed by the PSEs should be open, based on the principles of competitive bidding and consistent with the guiding principles.
• The principles for strategic disinvestment would be laid down by the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management while norms for closures would be laid down by the Department of Public Enterprises.
• In line with the spirit of the new PSE policy, 2021, to minimise presence of Government PSEs and for functional requirement, further delegation had been provided. This would enable firms to close loss-making and inefficient ventures at the right time.

Hence both statements are correct.

Finland and Sweden submitted a joint application to join NATO as Russia's invasion of Ukraine forces a dramatic reappraisal of security in Europe.

• The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European states, the United States, and Canada.
• The organization, headquartered in Brussels, implements the North Atlantic Treaty, which was signed on 4 April 1949.
• The reversal of the Nordic countries' long-standing policy of non-alignment came amidst the Ukraine-Russia conflict. The membership push could represent the most significant expansion of NATO in decades, doubling its border with Russia.
• But the applications face resistance from NATO member Turkey, which accuses the Nordic neighbours of harbouring anti-Turkish extremists.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The Union Cabinet approved amendments to the National Policy on Biofuels, 2018, to advance the date by which fuel companies have to increase the percentage of ethanol in petrol to 20%, from 2030 to 2025.

• The policy to introduce 20% ethanol in petrol will take effect from April 1, 2023.
• India achieved 9.45% ethanol blending as on March 13, 2022. The Centre projects that this will reach 10% by the end of financial year 2022.

Benefits

• Immense Benefits could accrue to the country by 20% ethanol blending by 2025, such as saving ₹30,000 crore of foreign exchange per year, increased energy security, lowered carbon emissions, better air quality, self-reliance, better use of damaged foodgrains, increased farmers’ incomes and investment opportunities.
• The new policy would allow more feed stock for producing biofuel and foster the development of indigenous technologies.

Challenges

• A 20% blend could require some changes and may even drive up the prices of vehicles.
• A greater percentage of blending could also mean more land being diverted for water-intensive crops such as sugar cane, which the government currently subsidises.

Hence both statements are correct.

A team of scientists at the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (Kufos) has standardised the techniques for artificial breeding of Olive barbs (Kuruva Paral) and Filament barb (Kalakkodiyan), and have developed brood stocks for Highfin barb (Kooral) and Carnatic carp (Pachilavetti).

• These freshwater species of barbs and carp used to be found widely in the Idamalayar Dam, Bhoothathankettu, and the Kol fields of Thrissur district.
• However, indiscriminate fishing and changes in habitat conditions have brought these species, especially Kuruva Paral, to the brink of extinction.
• The conservation measures being taken up by Kufos are supported under the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)-India High Range Landscape project that also aims to help trained aquaculturists among Adivasis to take up farming of these freshwater species.
• The project, even though launched in January 2020, was delayed by a year due to the pandemic.
• The brood stocks for Kooral and Pachilavetti have been stored at the freshwater aquaculture facility at Kufos.

Hence both statements are not correct.

Global findings centred on drought were collated in the Drought in Numbers, 2022 report presented by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) at the 15th Conference of Parties (COP15), currently underway in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

• The Drought in Numbers report is a collection of data on the effects of droughts on our ecosystem and how they can be mitigated through efficient planning for the future.
• According to the report, the number and duration of droughts around the world has increased by an alarming 29% since 2000. Globally, droughts between 1998 and 2017 caused economic losses of approximately $124 billion.
• If global warming reaches 3°C by 2100, drought losses could be five times higher than today’s levels. The largest increase in drought losses is projected in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic regions of Europe.
• Indian scenario: Many parts of India fall under the list of regions that are vulnerable to drought globally. India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reduced by 2 to 5% between 1998 and 2017 due to severe droughts in the country.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Parliament did not excessively delegate power to the Centre by authorising it to establish the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the Supreme Court held in a judgment.

• NGT was not an excessive case of delegation of powers to the central government.
• The NGT came into existence as a sui generis institution established for enforcement of environmental rights protected under the Right to Life (Article 21 of the Constitution).
• The National Green Tribunal has been established on 18.10.2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010 for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection.
• The Tribunal shall not be bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, but shall be guided by principles of natural justice.
• New Delhi is the Principal Place of Sitting of the Tribunal and Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai shall be the other four place of sitting of the Tribunal.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.