Daily Current Affairs MCQ- September 13, 2022 - UPSC MCQ

2+2 Ministerial dialogue

• The 2+2 dialogue is a format of meeting of the foreign and defence ministers of India and its allies on strategic and security issues.
• A 2+2 ministerial dialogue enables the partners to better understand and appreciate each other’s strategic concerns and sensitivities taking into account political factors on both sides.
• India has 2+2 dialogues with four key strategic partners: US, Australia, Japan, and Russia.

Hence both statements are correct.

The passing of Queen Elizabeth II is a delicate moment for the British Commonwealth, 14 countries out of which continue to recognise the monarch as their Head of State, a position that is explicitly stated in the constitutions and laws of some of these countries.

• The Commonwealth of Nations, or simply the Commonwealth, is a group of 56 member countries, the vast majority of which are former British colonies.
• They are mostly in Africa, Asia, the Americas, and the Pacific. Three European nations are part of the Commonwealth: Cyprus, Malta, and of course, the UK itself.
• Fourteen of these 56 countries — along with the UK — constitute the “Commonwealth realms”.
• They are Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, The Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu.
• The British monarch — now King Charles III, the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II — is the head of state of these countries.
• Of the remaining 41 member states of the Commonwealth, 36 are republics — this group includes India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. The other five — Brunei Darussalam, Lesotho, Malaysia, Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) and Tonga — have their own monarchs.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the World Dairy Summit on 12th September in Noida.

• India is organising the summit after almost a 48-year gap bringing together approximately 1500 participants from all over the world including CEOs and employees of dairy processing companies, dairy farmers, and other stakeholders.
• Remembering the “Father of White Revolution”, Dr Verghese Kurien, it must be pointed out that India currently is the largest milk producer in the world, contributing 21 percent of the total global milk production.
• It was under the guidance of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri that the National Dairy Development Board was formed in 1965 in Gujarat with Dr Verghese Kurien as its first chairman.
• Operation Flood programme was implemented across country in various phases with a mandate to support the creation of the ‘Anand pattern’ of dairy cooperatives.
• The daily milk consumption in the country was 107 grams per person in 1970 which rose to 427 grams per person in 2020-21.

Hence both statements are correct.

Government of India has said export policy of broken rice has been amended to ensure adequate domestic availability.

• This has been done in order to ensure adequate availability of broken rice for consumption by domestic poultry industry and for other animal feedstock and to produce ethanol for successful implementation of EBP (Ethanol Blending Programme).
• About 50-60 Lakh Metric Tonnes of broken rice is produced annually in India which is mainly used as poultry feed and feed for other animals.
• It is also used as a feedstock by the grain-based distilleries for producing ethanol which is supplied to Oil Marketing Companies for blending with petrol.

Hence both statements are correct.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Centre- State Science Conclave on the 10th September via video conferencing.

• The first of its kind Conclave will strengthen Centre-State coordination and collaboration mechanisms - in the spirit of cooperative federalism - to build a robust science, technology & innovation (STI) ecosystem across the country.
• The two day Conclave is being organised at Science City, Ahmedabad on 10-11 September 2022.
• It will include sessions on different thematic areas including STI Vision 2047; Future Growth Pathways and Vision for STI in States; Health - Digital Health Care for All; Doubling Private Sector investment in R&D by 2030; Agriculture - Technological interventions for improving farmers’ income etc.
• The first of its kind Conclave will witness the participation of Gujarat CM, Union MoS Science & Technology (S&T), S&T Ministers and Secretaries of States & Union Territories, industry leaders, entrepreneurs, NGOs, young scientists and students.

Hence both statements are correct.

The death of a 12-year-old girl in Kerala from rabies, despite having multiple inoculations of the vaccine, has raised questions on the efficacy of rabies vaccines in India and their availability.

• Rabies is a disease that is caused by a family of viruses called the lyssaviruses and found in a range of mammals. The virus targets the central nervous system and is nearly 100% fatal to the host animal if it succeeds in infecting it.
• Though many animals from cats to crocodiles can be transmitters of the virus, it is most likely to spread to people from the bite of an infected dog or a cat as they are the most common pets.
• Rabies is a disease that is caused by a family of viruses called the lyssaviruses and found in a range of mammals. The virus targets the central nervous system and is nearly 100% fatal to the host animal if it succeeds in infecting it.
• Though many animals from cats to crocodiles can be transmitters of the virus, it is most likely to spread to people from the bite of an infected dog or a cat as they are the most common pets.

Hence both statements are correct.

Army chief General Manoj Pande visited the Ladakh sector to review Exercise Parvat Prahar. The exercise saw the deployment of all new major inductions of the Army.

• The exercise, which was held in the Ladakh plateau at an altitude of 14,000 feet, used newly inducted all-terrain vehicles transported by Chinook heavy lift helicopters and K9-Vajra howitzers, among others.
• The exercise comes as India and China are undertaking disengagement from Patrolling Point-15 in eastern Ladakh, as announced on September 8. Gen. Pande is scheduled to visit Siachen on Sunday.
• Simultaneously on the western front, Exercise Gagan Strike culminated with a fire power display of attack helicopters supporting deep operations by Strike Corps. Western Army Commander Lt. Gen. Nav K. Khanduri, who witnessed the culmination, lauded the professional readiness of combat forces for contingencies on the western front, the Western Command said on Twitter.

Hence both statements are correct.

There is confusion over the implementation of new adoption rules that require transfer of adoption petitions from courts to District Magistrates, and parents, adoption agencies and activists are worried that this could lead to further delays in a long and arduous procedure.

• Parliament passed the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Bill, 2021, in July last year, which empowers DMs to give adoption orders.
• Ironically, the intent of the amendment was to prevent court-related delays during adoptions because of a large number of pending cases.
• The amendments came into effect from September 1.

Hence both statements are correct.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has signed a Memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Secretary General of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on the mechanism of consultations between India and the GCC.

• The External Affairs Minister is on a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia from 10-12 September. This is his first trip to the Kingdom as India's External Affairs Minister.
• The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is a regional, intergovernmental, political, and economic union comprising Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
• The council's main headquarters is located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
• The Charter of the GCC was signed on 25 May 1981, formally establishing the institution.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

India stayed out of the joint declaration on the trade pillar of the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework ministerial meet in Los Angeles, with Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal citing concerns over possible discrimination against developing economies.

• India was the only one of the 14 IPEF countries, which include South East Asian countries, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Japan, not to join the declaration on trade.
• Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) is an economic initiative launched by United States President Joe Biden on May 23, 2022.
• IPEF has fourteen member states: Australia, Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, United States and Vietnam.
• The four themes of the proposed IPEF are:
  • Fair and resilient trade
  • Supply chain resilience
  • Infrastructure, clean energy, and decarbonization
  • Tax and anti-corruption

Hence both statements are correct.