Daily Current Affairs MCQ- October 8, 2023 - UPSC MCQ

Recently, REC Limited, the Maharatna Central Public Sector Enterprise launched a SUGAM RECmobile application.

• It is exclusively for current and future investors in REC’s 54EC Capital Gain Tax Exemption Bonds.
• Investors will be able to download their e-bond certificates, apply for fresh investment, download important forms related to updating of KYC, and also connect with REC’s Investor Cell via call / email / WhatsApp.

What are 54EC bonds?

• These are also known as Capital gain bonds are fixed income instruments which provide capital gains tax exemption under section 54EC to the investors. 
• These bonds allow an assessee/investor to save income tax on long-term capital gain by investing the gains.
• The investment into these bonds has to be made within 6 months from the date of long-term capital gain.
• They have a fixed lock-in period of 5 years and can be either held in Physical or Demat form.
• They are issued by various institutions managed by the Government of India to finance specific capital projects.
• They are called 54EC bonds because the taxability benefits of these bonds are mentioned under section 54EC of the Income Tax Act, 1961. 

Hence both statements are correct.

A recent publication by scientists and researchers has revealed that 19 Gangetic river dolphins had been rescued from the irrigation canals of the Ganga-Ghagra basin in Uttar Pradesh between 2013 and 2020.

• It is a freshwater species and one of the few river dolphins found in the world.
• Distribution: It inhabits the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna and Karnaphuli-Sangu river systems of Nepal, India, and Bangladesh.
• Common Names: Blind dolphin, Ganges dolphin, Ganges susu, hihu, side-swimming dolphin, South Asian River Dolphin
• It has been recognized as India's National Aquatic Animal.
• Features:
• It has a long thin snout, rounded belly, stocky body and large flippers.
• It feeds majorly on fishes and is usually found in counter-current systems of the main river channel.
• Its eyes lack lens, and as a result, this species is also referred to as the "blind dolphin".
• They have a highly developed bio-sonar system that facilitates them to hunt for fish even in murky waters.
• Being a mammal, the Ganges River dolphin cannot breathe in the water and must surface every 30-120 seconds. Because of the sound it produces when breathing, the animal is popularly referred to as the 'Susu'.
• Conservation status:
• IUCN: Endangered
• Wildlife (Protection) Act: Schedule-I 
• CITES: Appendix I

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Recently, the Southern Bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has asked the Fisheries Department and the Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority to file a detailed report on the removal of invasive mussel species Mytella strigata from Ennore-Pulicat wetland.

• It is a moderately large and symmetrical shelled mussel. 
• It is generally observed in the middle intertidal and subtidal waters of estuaries and near coastal environments.
• These mussels attach themselves to surfaces using byssus threads.
• Appearance: 
  • Individual mussels have a diversity of external colour schemes from black, dark bluish, brown, grey, orange and (rarely) green
  • The species can also have a range of external shell patterns from zig zags, spots or concentric bands.
• It can form dense clusters that colonise hard substrates or occupy epibenthic habitats, including other mussel species. 
• It is usually present on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of tropical South and Central America.
• It has spread to Taiwan, the Philippines, Singapore, the Gulf of Thailand, west coast of India and the south-eastern United States.
• Threats: These mussels spread like a carpet over the river bottoms and thus preventing prawns from grazing or burying themselves in the sediment.

Hence option (a) is the correct answer.

The Supreme Court recently held that Section 106 of the Evidence Act does not inherently impose a burden on the accused but comes into play when the accused fails to provide any explanation regarding facts that should be within their knowledge.

About Section 106 of the Indian Evidence Act:

• Section 106 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, deals with the burden of proof in cases where a fact is within the special knowledge of a person.
• This section applies to civil and criminal cases alike and lays down an important principle of evidence.
• The section states that when any fact is especially within the knowledge of any person, the burden of proving that fact is upon that person. 
• This means that if a fact is known to a particular person and not to others, it is the responsibility of that person to prove it in court.
• For example, in a case where the ownership of a property is disputed, and the disputed property was in the possession of the defendant, the burden of proving that he acquired the property lawfully and has the right to possess it will be on the defendant.
• Similarly, in a criminal case where the accused is alleged to have killed someone with a knife, the burden of proving that the accused used the knife to commit the crime will be on the prosecution.
• The burden of proof under Section 106 is not absolute, and the person who has the special knowledge of the fact is only required to prove it to the extent that is reasonable in the circumstances. 
• The person is not required to prove the fact beyond all doubt, but only to the extent that a reasonable person would believe it to be true.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Iron Dome, Israel's anti-missile system recently intercepted over 5,000 rockets launched from Gaza, a narrow strip that is home to 2.3 million Palestinians.

About Iron Dome:

• It is Israel’s air missile defense system that can defend against short-range rockets, intercepting them in the air above the state.
• It is capable of successfully handling multiple rockets at a time.
• Developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries, the system became operational in March 2011.
• Features:
• The Iron Dome functions by detecting, analyzing, and intercepting varieties of targets such as mortars, rockets, and artillery. 
• It is powered by missile-defense batteries.
• It has all-weather capabilities and is able to function night or day and in all conditions, including fog, rain, dust storms, and low clouds. 
• It is able to launch a variety of interceptor missiles. 
• It is designed to shoot down missiles with a range of about 40 miles or less.
• It also has the ability to be moved, either onto ships or across land, to better suit defense needs.
• It must be reloaded to continuously intercept incoming missiles.
• The Iron Dome operates through three main components:
• a radar that detects incoming rockets,
• a command-and-control system that determines the threat level,
• an interceptor that seeks to destroy the incoming rocket before it strikes.

Hence option b is the correct answer.

Scientists are conducting groundbreaking research into the potential of watermeal, the world's smallest flowering plant, as a source of nutrition and oxygen for astronauts.

About Watermeal:

• Watermeal is an aquatic plant in the Araceae family.
• It is the smallest flowering plant in the world and appears as small green seeds. 
• It is often referred to as "duckweed" because it is a favorite food of ducks.
• Distribution:
• It flourishes in temperate, sub-tropical, and tropical locations.  
• They grow on the surface of lakes, ponds, and marshes.
• Features:
• It is a very tiny (less than 1 millimeter) light green, free-floating, rootless plant. 
• It is branchless and also has no leaves.
• It consists of a single, oval, or spherical frond that floats on the surface of still or slow-moving water bodies.
• It also produces the world’s smallest fruit, called a utricle.
• It is a nutritional powerhouse. It is a complete protein, meaning that it contains all nine essential amino acids.
• In some cases, watermeal can become invasive and form dense mats that cover the entire surface of a water body.

Hence both statements are correct.

An ancient Babylonian tablet displaying a concept predating Pythagoras by over a millennium suggests the Pythagorean theorem could be the world's oldest known case of plagiarism.

About Pythagoras:

• Pythagoras was a Greek philosopher and mathematician.
• Pythagoras lived during the 6th century B.C. on the island of Samos, Greece.
• He is commonly said to be the first pure mathematician who proposed that everything is a number.
• He is best known in the modern day for the Pythagorean Theorem.
• Pythagoras’ Theorem:
• It states that in a right-angled triangle, the square of the length of the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sides.
• This formula has been applied to measuring distance and space as, for example, in planning and executing the construction of a building.
• Pythagorean Brotherhood:
• Pythagoras founded a secretive religious and philosophical community known as the Pythagorean Brotherhood.
• The members, known as Pythagoreans, followed a strict set of rules and beliefs, including the idea that mathematics and numbers held mystical and spiritual significance.
• It was here he taught that "the whole cosmos is a scale and a number.

Hence option c is the correct answer.

Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposed to introduce Card-on-File Tokenisation (CoFT).

• Tokenisation refers to replacement of actual credit and debit card details with an alternate code called the “token”, which will be unique for a combination of card, token requestor and device.
• This shall be unique for a combination of card, token requestor (i.e. the entity which accepts request from the customer for tokenisation of a card and passes it on to the card network to issue a corresponding token) and the merchant (token requestor and merchant may or may not be the same entity).
• Advantage: A tokenised card transaction is considered safer as the actual card details are not shared with the merchant during transaction processing.
• Customers who do not have the tokenisation facility will have to key in their name, 16-digit card number, expiry date and CVV each time they order something online.

What is Card-on-File transaction?

• It is transaction where in cardholders authorizes merchants to store their payment information securely and bill cardholders’ stored accounts for future purchases.

Hence option (a) is the correct answer.

Recently, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) imposed a penalty on Platinum Trust for Gun Jumping.

• It is essentially means acting before the appropriate time and refers to situations where a party or parties to a combination (M&A deal) consummate a transaction before CCI approves the transaction, thereby, violating standstill obligations.
• It is all about competition and merger control.
• Gun Jumping in competition jurisprudence occurs when parties to Mergers and acquisitions deal consummate the transaction without keeping the competition authorities informed.
• Most competition regimes, including India, requires pre-merger notification (in India it is the CCI)
• The concept of gun-jumping has not been expressly defined in the Competition Act, 2002.
• The law requires parties to a deal satisfying certain monetary thresholds, to first notify the CCI about the impending transaction.
• Parties are then obligated to conform to the standstill provisions — wait for 210 days from the date of notifying or till CCI approval happens, whichever is earlier.
• During the standstill period, the parties are required to continue to operate their businesses as independent entities.
• If the parties fail to notify CCI before the consummation of the deal or violate standstill obligations, this is typically referred to as gun jumping.
• Penalties:
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has the power to penalise parties for Gun Jumping under Section 43A of the Competition Act 2002.
• The penalty can be as high as 1 per cent of the total turnover or 1 per cent of the assets, whichever is higher, of the combination. 

Hence both statements are correct.

Recently, during the BRICS meeting Prime Minister of India gifted Gond painting to the Brazilian president Lula da Silva.

• It is a famous folk art of the Gond tribal community of central India.
• It is done to preserve and communicate the culture of the Gond tribal community.
• Themes: Gond tribes are highly interlinked with nature and this appears in their paintings too they include animals, mahua tree, mythological stories, Hindu gods, Local deities and folktales etc.
• The artist uses his distinctive pattern and style to fill the images these style signatures are used in collage to make a complete picture such as Dots, fine Lines, Curved Lines, Dashes Fish Scales etc.

Key facts about Gond Tribe

• The Gonds are the largest Adivasi Community in India and can be traced to the pre-Aryan era.
• The word Gond comes from Kond, which means green mountains.
• They are a heterogeneous group spreading over large areas from the Godavari gorges in the south to the Vindhya Mountains in the north.
• They live in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, and Odisha.
• The majority speak various mutually unintelligible dialects of Gondi.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.