DAILY

 CURRENT AFFAIRS

PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Current Affairs MCQs for Practice – 20 Jan 2022

Question-1

Which of the following statements best describes “Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA)”?

a)     It is a facility for both Centre and state to borrow from RBI, to meet temporary mismatches in cash flows.

b)    It is an important cross regional financing arrangement of BRICS to meet short-term liquidity needs.

c)     Emergency loan facility of International monetary fund (IMF) under which India borrowed during its 1991 BOP crisis.

d)    It is a portion of the required quota of currency each member country must provide to the IMF that can be utilized for its own purposes without a service fee or economic reform conditions.

Ans- b

Explanation-

·      BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) is a framework for the provision of support through liquidity and precautionary instruments in response to actual or potential short-term balance of payments pressures. 

·      Statement a is incorrect- Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gives temporary loan facilities to the central and state governments. This loan facility is called Ways and Means Advances (WMA).  

·      Statement d is incorrect-The statement is referring to reserve tranche. 

Question-2

Consider the following statements regarding National Commission for Safai Karmacharis (NCSK):

1.   It is constitutional body and quasi-judicial body, set up to protect the manual scavengers.

2.   The NCSK submits its report to the president of India, who lays it before the parliament.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

a)     1 only

b)     2 only

c)      Both 1 and 2

d)     Neither 1 nor 2

Ans- d

Explanation-

News: Cabinet approves extension of tenure of the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis for three years.

National Commission for Safai Karamcharis (NCSK)

• The NCSK was established in the year 1993 as per the provisions of the NCSK Act 1993 initially for the period upto 31.3.1997. 
• Later the validity of the Act was initially extended upto 31.3.2002 and thereafter upto 29.2.2004. 
• The NCSK Act ceased to have effect from 29.2.2004.  After that the tenure of the NCSK has been extended as a non-statutory body from time to time through resolutions. 
• The tenure of the present Commission is upto 31.3.2022.
• The major beneficiaries would be the Safai Karamcharis and identified manual scavengers in the country.

Background

• The NCSK has been giving its recommendations to the Government regarding specific programmes for welfare of Safai Karamcharis, study and evaluate the existing welfare programmes for Safai Karamcharis, investigate cases of specific grievances etc. 
• Also as per the provisions of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, the NCSK has been assigned the work to monitor the implementation of the Act, tender advice for its effective implementation to the Centre and State Governments and enquire into complaints regarding contravention/non-implementation of the provisions of the Act.

Supreme Court Judgement in Safai Karamchari Andolan and Others Vs. Union of India.

• The practice of manual scavenging has been directed to be closed.
• Entering sewer lines without safety gears should be made a crime even in an emergency situation.
• The persons included in the final list of manual scavengers have been directed to be rehabilitated as per the provisions of Part IV of the 2013 Act.
• Compensation of Rs.10 lakhs has been directed to be paid to the dependent family members of all persons, who had died in sewerage work (manholes, septic tanks) since 1993.

Question-3

Consider the following statements:
1. He was a poet saint of the Bhakti Movement who gained prominence due to his belief in one God and his unbiased religious poems.
2. About 41 of his poems were included in ‘Guru Granth Sahib’, the religious text of the Sikhs.
3. It is believed that he was born in Varanasi in a cobbler’s family and his Jayanti is celebrated on Magh Purnima.
Which of the following personality is referred in the statements above?

a)     Sant Eknath

b)    Guru Ravidas

c)     Tukaram

d)    Saint Kabir

Ans- b

Explanation-

News: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday postponed polling for the Punjab Assembly election from February 14 to 20 after the State government and political parties raised concern that many devotees would be in Varanasi to celebrate Guru Ravidas’s birth anniversary on February 16 and miss out on voting.

Guru Ravidas also founded the Ravidassia religion.

 Question-4

Consider the following pairs:

World Heritage site : States/UTs
1. Kakatiya Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple - Odisha
2. Dholavira - Gujarat
3. Great Himalayan National Park – Ladakh

Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?

a)     2 only

b)    2 and 3 only

c)     1 and 3 only

d)    1,2 and 3.

Ans- a

Explanation-

News: UNESCO World Heritage Tag :  (i) Kakatiya Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple, Telangana (2021) and (ii) Dholavira: A Harappan City (2021) under protection of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) have been inscribed on World Heritage List in the 44th Extended World Heritage Meeting virtually held in Fuzhou, China taking the number of World Heritage properties in India from 38 to 40.

·      Rudreshwara or Ramappa Temple is located in the State of Telangana. It is a Sandstone Shiva temple built during the Kakatiya period (1123–1323 CE). 

·      Dholavira is a harappan site dating around 3rd to mid-2nd millennium BCE (Before Common Era).Both Ramappa temple and Dholavira have recently been inscribed on UNESCO ‘s World Heritage List. 

·      Great Himalayan National Park is situated in Himachal Pradesh. 

Question-5

Which of the following will help India in tackling the problem of rising inequality?
1. Provisions for Progressive Taxation
2. Rising economic growth
3. Removing wage gap,
4. introduction of schemes like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao
Select the correct answer using the code given below.

a)     1 ,3 & 4 only

b)    3 only

c)     1, 2  and 3 only

d)    All of the above

Ans- d

Explanation-

·      All of these measures will help in reducing inequality. 

·      According to Economic Survey 2020-21, for a developing country such as India where the growth potential is high and the scope for poverty reduction is also significant, the focus must continue on growing the size of the economic pie to reduce inequality. 

Read: TOI, Grow the pie: Rising inequality per se isn’t a big problem if economic growth raises incomes overall

Question-6

Which of the following can be regarded as environmental stressors that affect the Food production of the world
1. Choosing locally grown food
2. Deviations in temperature trends and rainfall patterns
3. Ozone level in the troposphere
Which of the statements given above are correct?

a)     1 , 2 and 3

b)    2 and 3 only

c)     1 and 2 only

d)    1 only

Ans- b

Explanation-

News: Addressing the joint India-UK meet on “Sustaining Food Production under Environmental Stress”, through virtual mode today, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh called for collaboration between the two nations on issues of mutual concern like achieving the goals of food security and zero hunger.

·      Statement 1 is incorrect- Eating locally grown food reduces food miles and thus GHG emissions generated by transportation. 

·      Statement 2 and 3 are correct- Environmental stressors like rising tropospheric carbon dioxide and ozone levels, deviations in temperature trends and rainfall patterns — affect agricultural yield and nutritional quality of food. 

Question-7

With reference to Haryana government’s Parivar Pehchan Patra scheme which aims to provide unique IDs, consider the following statements:

1. With Unique IDs, beneficiaries do not have to register for a new scheme each time and can be automatically included or excluded from the beneficiary list.
2. Only the central government can provide unique ID to people.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a)     1 only

b)    2 only

c)     Both 1 and 2

d)    Neither 1 nor 2

Ans- a

Explanation-

Statement 1 is correct: Unique IDs help to link data to the scheme so that beneficiaries do not have to register for a new scheme each time and can be automatically included or excluded from the beneficiay list.  Statement 2 is incorrect: There is no restriction on state government to provide Unique IDs. For instance,   Haryana government’s Parivar Pehchan Patra scheme will accord a unique eight-digit ID to each family and link all state government schemes on subsidy, pension and insurance.   Rajasthan government’s Bhamashah scheme and Madhya Pradesh’s Samagra ID system also provide unique IDs to people. 

Question-8

With reference to genocide, consider the following:

1. India is one of the co-sponsors in General Assembly resolution 96(I), which affirmed genocide as a ‘crime under international law’.
2. India did not ratify the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide of 1948.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a)     1 only

b)    2 only

c)     Both 1 and 2

d)    Neither 1 nor 2

Ans- a

Explanation-

·      Statement 1 is correct: In 1946, Cuba, India and Panama co-sponsored General Assembly Resolution 96(I), which affirmed genocide as a ‘crime under international law’.  

·      As a result of this resolution, a convention on the prohibition of genocide was drafted, which was passed by the General Assembly in 1948 and came into effect in 1951, with more than 150 states party to the convention presently.  

·      Statement 2 is incorrect: India has signed and ratified the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide of 1948. Since signing the Genocide Convention and ratifying it, to date India has not enacted any legislation in accordance with Article VI of the Genocide Convention. 

Question-9

Identify the countries bordering Saudi Arabia:

1.    Kuwait

2.    Qatar

3.    Jordan

4.    Iran

5.    Yemen

Choose the correct option.

a)     1, 2, 3 and 5 only

b)    2, 3, 4 and 5 only

c)     1, 4 and 5 only

d)    2, 3 and 5 only

Ans- a

Explanation-

News: A suspected drone attack in Abu Dhabi left three persons, including two Indians, dead on Monday. The Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for the attack.

Saudi Arabia

• Saudi Arabia is bounded by seven countries and three bodies of water.
• To the west, the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea form a coastal border of almost 1,800 kilometers that extends south to Yemen and follows a mountain ridge for approximately 320 kilometers to the vicinity of Najran.
• The countries that border Saudi Arabia are Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Oman, and Yemen.

Question-10

With reference to Ultraviolet (UV) light, consider the following statements:

1. UV radiation is the portion of the Electromagnetic spectrum between X-rays and visible light.
2. Exposure to UV radiation is greater in the areas covered with snow and sand.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a)     1 only

b)    1 and 2 only

c)     2 and 3 only

d)    None

Ans- c

Explanation-

·      Both statements are correct. 

·      Statement 1 is correct: UV radiation is only one form of radiation and it is measured on a scientific scale called the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum. It is the portion of the EM spectrum between X-rays and visible light. 

·      Statement 2 is correct: UV exposure is greater in areas of snow, sand, pavement, and water due to the reflective properties of these surfaces. 

Source: The Hindu / The Indian Express/ TOI/ HT/PIB/The Business Standard