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

Consumer Price Index (CPI)

• CPI is a metric that measures retail inflation by collecting data on the prices of goods and services that are consumed by the retail population of the country.
• The National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) releases CPI.
  • CPI is released for all-India and States/UTs separately for rural, urban and combined (national).
• Currently, CPI is calculated using 2012 as a base year.
• Items for the CPI basket of goods and services classified across categories.
  • Few of the categories are; food and beverages, clothing, housing, fuel and light, recreation and etc.
    • All categories are assigned weights (as shown in the diagram).
  • Currently, CPI is calculated by taking into consideration 299 items.
• Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The Coastal Regulation Zone Notification (CRZ) 2019 classifies the coastal area into different zones to manage infrastructure activities and regulate them. These are:

​​​​​​​CRZ-I:

• CRZ-I constitutes ecologically-sensitive areas, such as mangroves, corals/coral reefs, sand dunes, national parks, marine parks, sanctuaries, reserve forests, wildlife habitats, etc.
• The coastal regulation zone areas in CRZ-I are situated between high tide lines and low tide lines.
  • High tide line - the line of intersection of the land with the water's surface at the maximum height reached by a rising tide.
  • Low tide line - the line on the land where the lowest tide of water touches during spring tide.

CRZ-II:

• It constitutes the developed areas up to the shoreline, which fall within the existing municipal limits.
• The development of unauthorised structures is not allowed in this zone.

CRZ-III:

• Localities, such as rural areas that are relatively undisturbed and do not fall under the above categories, are included in this zone.
• Only specific activities related to agriculture or certain public facilities are permitted under this coastal regulation zone.

CRZ-IV:

• The zone constitutes water areas from the low tide line up to territorial limits, including areas of the tidal-influenced water bodies.
• Activities such as fishing and other allied services are permitted in this zone.

Hence both statements are correct.

Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh are experiencing the worst monsoon season of the century.

• Between June 1 and August 12, the rainfall recorded over Jharkhand was 371.9mm against a normal of 627.6mm, a 41 per cent seasonal deficit.
• This is the lowest ever rainfall recorded over Jharkhand (June to August) since 1901, the IMD’s rainfall data stated.
• For Uttar Pradesh, too, the picture is grim, as the state has recorded only 251.7mm of the seasonal average of 449.1mm till August 12.
• UP is the most rain deficient Indian state this year and has remained so since the start of the monsoon season, like Jharkhand.
• Between 1901 and 2021 , UP’s driest monsoon months (June to August) were during 1987 (349.3mm), 2009 (365mm), 1996 (392mm), 2014 (394.3mm), and 1972 (424.3mm).

Hence both statements are correct.

Over the past week, there has been renewed discussion in media reports on the swastika, the ancient symbol that was once used across the world, but which came to be associated in the 20th century with the murderous Nazi ideology of hate and antisemitism, particularly in the Western imagination.

• On August 11, New South Wales became the second state in Australia (after Victoria in June), to criminalise the display of the swastika, while allowing its use for educational and religious purposes for Hindus, Jains, and Buddhists.
• The swastika has a civilisational presence in India. The word swastika has a Sanskrit root, which means good fortune or well-being, and it has been an auspicious symbol for Hindus over many millennia.
• Unlike the black hakenkreuz of the Nazis, the swastika used by Indians is usually red or yellow in colour, is not tilted to the right, and has dots at each corner, which are believed to represent the four Vedas.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Dr. Jitendra Singh unveiled India’s first Saline Water Lantern which uses the sea water to power the specially designed LED lamps.

• The Minister visited the SAGAR ANVESHIKA, a Coastal Research Vessel, operated and used by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai to review the progress of the implementation of the Deep Ocean Mission of India.
• The saline Water Lantern will bring “Ease of Living” to the fishing community living along the 7500 Kilometres long coastal line of India. Saline water-powered Roshini LED lamps will also boost and supplement Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s UJALA scheme.
• Dr. Jitendra Singh hoisted tricolour on board the ship and extended the campaign of ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’, to ‘Har Jahaj Tiranga’.

Hence both statements are correct.

Organization of Lok Adalat:

• The State authority or district authority or the High Court legal services committee or Tehsil legal services committee may organize Lok Adalat at such intervals and places as it thinks fit.
• National Lok Adalats are held at regular intervals, with Lok Adalats held throughout the country on a single day, in all courts from the Supreme Court to the Taluk Levels, where cases are disposed of in large numbers.

Hence both statements are correct.

In a first, an indigenously developed howitzer gun, ATAG, became part of the 21-gun salute during the Independence Day ceremony at the Red Fort.

• Developed by the DRDO, the Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) was used alongside the traditional British-origin ’25 Pounders’ artillery guns.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi also referred to the gun while speaking about the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative of the Centre during his Independence Day speech.
• The ATAGS is an indigenous 155 mm x 52 calibre howitzer gun developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) with its Pune-based facility Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) being the nodal agency.
• The ATAGS project was started in 2013 by DRDO to replace older guns in service in the Indian Army with a modern 155 mm artillery gun.
• Howitzers is an umbrella term for a category of long-range artillery guns.

Hence both statements are correct.

Pharmaceutical giant Johnson and Johnson (J&J) announced that it would discontinue the sale of its talc-based baby powder globally in 2023.

• The announcement came amidst the tens of thousands of lawsuits from women who claim that the product caused them to have ovarian cancer, due to the alleged contamination of asbestos, a known carcinogen.
• Talc is the softest known mineral and is mined from underground deposits. Chemically, it is hydrous magnesium silicate, according to the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA), and is used in a variety of cosmetic and personal care products, like baby powder, lipstick, eyeshadow and foundation.
• When reduced to a fine powder, it is able to absorb moisture and reduce friction which keeps the skin dry, helps prevent rashes, stops makeup from caking and generally helps improve the feel and texture of a product.
• Asbestos, the name for another group of naturally occurring silicate minerals, can also be found near talc deposits.
• There is the potential for contamination of talc with asbestos. Asbestos has been used in construction and manufacturing, and is known to cause lung cancer, ovarian cancer, mesothelioma and other health conditions.

Hence both statements are correct.

The National Flag, which is flying high across India as the nation celebrates 75 years of freedom, was adopted by the Constituent Assembly of India on July 22, 1947.

• According to the official record of the proceedings of the Constituent Assembly, Dr Rajendra Prasad, who was in the Chair, announced that the first item on the agenda was “a Motion by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru about the Flag”.
• Thereafter, Nehru rose to move the following Resolution: Resolved that the National Flag of India shall be horizontal tricolour of deep Saffron (Kesari), white and dark green in equal proportion.
• In the centre of the white band, there shall be a Wheel in navy blue to represent the Charkha. The design of the Wheel shall be that of the Wheel (Chakra) which appears on the abacus of the Sarnath Lion Capital of Asoka.
• The ratio of the width to the length of the Flag shall ordinarily be 2:3.

Hence both statements are correct.

In his ninth Independence Day address to the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to women freedom fighters for showing the world the true meaning of India’s “nari shakti”.

• Rani Laxmibai: The queen of the princely state of Jhansi, Rani Laxmibai is known for her role in the First War of India’s Independence in 1857.
• Jhalkari Bai: A soldier in Rani Laxmibai’s women’s army, Durga Dal, she rose to become one of the queen’s most trusted advisers.
• Durga Bhabhi: A member of the Naujawan Bharat Sabha, she helped Bhagat Singh escape in disguise from Lahore after the 1928 killing of British police officer John P Saunders.
• Rani Gaidinliu: Born in 1915 in present-day Manipur, Rani Gaidinliu was a Naga spiritual and political leader who fought the British. She joined the Heraka religious movement which later became a movement to drive out the British.

Hence both statements are correct.