Daily Important News- with Analysis & Practice MCQs from The Hindu (09 May 2023)

1.    Buddhism, India’s soft power projection tool (Pg.6)

2.    The lack of a drug recall law in India (Pg.8)

3.    What are the regulations to curtail misleading food ads? (Pg.8)

4.    In new ‘Quad’ meet with U.S., Saudi Arabia, UAE, Doval discusses infrastructure plans in Gulf (Pg.10)

5.    Five more cheetahs to be released into wild at Kuno (Pg.12)

6.    Xi Jinping to host first meet with all Central Asia leaders (Pg.13)

7.    Chinese boats cross Indian and ASEAN ships during military exercise (Pg.13)

8.    Coal imports rose 30% in FY23 to 162 mt on demand (Pg.14)

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1)Buddhism, India’s soft power projection tool (Pg.6)

Topic: India's Buddhist diplomacy and its significance for soft power

Analysis:

·      India hosted a two-day global Buddhist summit in New Delhi in April 2022, organized by the Ministry of Culture in collaboration with the International Buddhist Confederation, which was attended by key figures from the global Buddhist community, including the Dalai Lama.

·      The summit provided an opportunity for India to project and connect with the Buddhist population around the world, thereby strengthening the country's soft power.

·      The Indian government has been actively investing in its Buddhist diplomacy efforts, with a focus on promoting tourism through the development of the "Buddhist tourist circuit" and Mr. Modi has made it a point to visit Buddhist sites during his Southeast and East Asian visits.

·      Buddhist diplomacy has the potential to promote regional cohesion, given that nearly 97% of the global Buddhist population is based in Asia. China has effectively used Buddhist diplomacy to engage with its neighbouring countries, and it continues to employ this approach to gain legitimacy for its Belt and Road Initiative.

·      India holds an advantage over China due to the faith's origins in the country, but despite being home to a number of key Buddhist sites, India has struggled to attract Buddhist tourists, who tend to favour sites in Thailand and Cambodia.

·      India needs to utilise the reach of Bollywood in promoting its Buddhist heritage, as China has dominated the narrative around Buddhism through cinema.

·      To further strengthen its Buddhist diplomacy, India should continue promoting Buddhism at the highest levels of government, while also organising cultural events to showcase the country's rich Buddhist history.

MCQ:

What was the theme of the two-day global Buddhist summit hosted by India in April 2022?

A) Strengthening Regional Stability through Buddhist Diplomacy

B) Responses to Contemporary Challenges: Philosophy to Praxis

C) Preserving and Promoting Buddhist Culture and Heritage

D) Global Unity through the Teachings of Buddha

Answer: B) Responses to Contemporary Challenges: Philosophy to Praxis

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2)The lack of a drug recall law in India (Pg.8)

Topic: Lack of a mandatory drug recall law in India and its implications for public health

Analysis:

·      The absence of a mandatory drug recall law in India means that pharmaceutical companies are not legally required to remove substandard or mislabelled drugs from the market, which can lead to adverse health consequences for consumers.

·      The Drugs Consultative Committee has discussed the issue of drug recalls since 1976, but no legally binding structure has been created to enforce such recalls.

·      One possible reason for the lack of a mandatory recall law is the apathy, lack of expertise, and industry-friendly approach of the Drug Regulation Section of the Union Health Ministry.

·      Another possible reason is India's highly fragmented regulatory structure, with each state having its own drug regulator, which makes it difficult to centralize responsibility for drug recalls.

·      A third possible reason is that India's drug regulators are aware that a mandatory drug recall system would bring to public attention the state of affairs in India's pharmaceutical industry.

·      The absence of a mandatory drug recall law means that substandard drugs can circulate in the market, putting the health of consumers, including children, at risk.

MCQ:

Which of the following is a possible reason for the lack of a mandatory drug recall law in India?

a) The presence of a highly centralized regulatory structure

b) The lack of industry support for such a law

c) The presence of an expert and proactive Drug Regulation Section

d) The absence of substandard drugs in the market

Answer: b) The lack of industry support for such a law.

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3)What are the regulations to curtail misleading food ads? (Pg.8)

Topic: Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) regulations on misleading claims and advertisements

Analysis:

·      FSSAI has flagged 170 cases of food business operators making misleading claims and advertisements in the last six months

·      Regulations to combat misleading advertisements and claims vary and can be product-specific or broad

·      FSSAI's regulations specifically deal with food and related products, and require claims to be truthful, unambiguous, meaningful, not misleading, and scientifically substantiated

·      Products cannot be referred to as "natural" or "fresh" unless they meet specific criteria, such as being a single food derived from a natural source with no additives or processing beyond washing, peeling, trimming, etc.

·      "Pure" can be used for single-ingredient foods with no added substances and minimal contamination, while "original" can be used for foods made to a specific formulation or unique process that has remained unchanged over time

·      Nutritional claims must be based on adequate evidence and technical data to substantiate the claimed contents and benefits of a product

MCQ:

Which of the following is a requirement for a food product to be referred to as "natural" according to FSSAI regulations?

A) It must contain no additives

B) It must be made from natural ingredients

C) It must not have undergone any processing beyond washing, peeling, chilling, trimming, cutting, or ionising irradiation

D) It must be packaged without the use of chemicals or preservatives

Answer: C) It must not have undergone any processing beyond washing, peeling, chilling, trimming, cutting, or ionising irradiation

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4)In new ‘Quad’ meet with U.S., Saudi Arabia, UAE, Doval discusses infrastructure plans in Gulf (Pg.10)

Topic: India's foreign relations and their implications on the region and the world

Analysis:

·      India, the US, UAE, and Saudi Arabia held a special meeting of their National Security Advisers (NSAs) in Saudi Arabia to discuss regional initiatives on infrastructure. This meeting is being billed as another important "Quad" in West Asia.

·      The meeting sought to advance their shared vision of a more secure and prosperous Middle East region interconnected with India and the world.

·      The bilateral meeting between the US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval is one of a number of meetings set over the next few weeks to prepare for upcoming meetings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with US President Joseph Biden this month, and the PM's state visit to the US in June.

·      The quadrilateral meeting aimed to provide a counter to China's Belt and Road Initiative and other inroads in the region, and come months after Beijing brokered a breakthrough in the Saudi-Iran ties.

·      Among the projects discussed in the meeting is a plan to connect Gulf countries via a railway network and connect to India via shipping lanes from "two ports" in the region. However, it did not explain how this would differ from the already existing connections between India and the Gulf region.

·      The visit to Saudi Arabia is one of several high-profile engagements abroad by Mr. Doval, who was in Tehran and met with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, NSA Shamkhani and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian last Monday.

MCQ:

Which of the following countries were involved in the quadrilateral meeting held in Saudi Arabia?

a) India, China, UAE, and Saudi Arabia

b) India, the US, UAE, and Saudi Arabia

c) India, Iran, UAE, and Saudi Arabia

d) India, Russia, UAE, and Saudi Arabia

Answer: b) India, the US, UAE, and Saudi Arabia

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5)Five more cheetahs to be released into wild at Kuno (Pg.12)

Topic: Biodiversity conservation in India

Analysis:

·      Project Cheetah aims to reintroduce cheetahs into the Indian habitat and establish a self-sustaining population in a decade or so.

·      Twenty cheetahs have been brought from Namibia and South Africa since September 2022 as part of a translocation programme.

·      Four cheetahs have already been released into the wild, with one ranging outside the Kuno National Park and venturing into farms in Uttar Pradesh.

·      Concerns have been raised about the limited space and access to prey at the Kuno National Park, which could pose challenges to the cheetahs' eventual flourishing in India.

·      The long-term plan is to keep adding more animals from Africa until a sizeable self-sustaining population is established in a decade or so, while accounting for natural mortality and acclimatisation-related challenges.

MCQ:

Which project aims to reintroduce cheetahs into the Indian habitat?

A) Project Tiger

B) Project Elephant

C) Project Cheetah

D) Project Lion

Answer: C) Project Cheetah

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6)Xi Jinping to host first meet with all Central Asia leaders (Pg.13)

Topic: International Relations - China's increasing influence in Central Asia

Analysis:

·      China is set to host a two-day summit with the leaders of five Central Asian nations from May 18 to 19 in the historic city of Xi'an.

·      This is the first of its kind since the establishment of formal relations 31 years ago and will focus on strengthening economic and diplomatic ties with Beijing.

·      Central Asia, which was part of the Soviet Union, has been dominated by Moscow since the mid-19th century, but China has invested billions of dollars in the region to tap natural gas reserves.

·      The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China's trillion-dollar global infrastructure project, has also been key to the success of rail links connecting China to Europe, which criss-cross the region.

·      The summit is expected to result in the signing of "important political documents" and further cement China's influence in the region.

·      China's increasing influence in Central Asia has been seen as a challenge to Russia's traditional dominance in the region.

·      Beijing has been courting Moscow's allies in the region, especially after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

MCQ:

Q. Which five Central Asian nations' leaders are expected to attend the China-Central Asia Summit hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping?

a) Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Iran

b) Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Tajikistan

c) Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan

d) Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan

Answer: c) Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan

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7)Chinese boats cross Indian and ASEAN ships during military exercise (Pg.13)

Topic: International Relations

Analysis:

·      Chinese maritime militia boats approached an area where navies of India and ASEAN countries were taking part in drills in the South China Sea.

·      The incident happened during the two-day sea phase of the ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME 2023).

·      Beijing has not responded to queries about the incident and its possible motives.

·      Indian authorities were tracking the movements of at least five militia boats, which belong to the Qiong Sansha Yu militia fleet in the area.

·      An expert in Vietnam said Beijing appeared to be using the militia to intimidate and disrupt the naval exercise.

·      The militia boats and naval vessels crossed each other without any face-off.

MCQ:

Which of the following countries were taking part in the ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME 2023) in the South China Sea?

a) India, China, Japan, South Korea, Russia

b) India, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei

c) China, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, Cambodia

d) Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa

Answer: b) India, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei

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8)Coal imports rose 30% in FY23 to 162 mt on demand (Pg.14)

Topic: Energy

Analysis:

·      India's coal imports increased by 30% to 162.46 million tonnes (mt) in the 2022-23 financial year compared to 124.99 mt in the previous year.

·      The import of coking coal, a key raw material used in steelmaking, rose 5.44% to 54.46 mt over 51.65 mt in FY22.

·      India is among the top five coal-producing countries globally, but some parts of its coal requirements are met through imports as the country is also a major consumer of the dry fuel.

·      The persistently high demand for steam coal in India, coupled with the weakening of seaborne prices, led to increased volumes during March. This trend is likely to continue in the coming months due to above-normal average temperatures expected during the summer.

·      Along with other varieties of coal like anthracite, pulverised coal injection (PCI coal), met coke, and pet coke, total imports in FY23 were at 249.06 mt, up from 200.71 mt in FY22, a rise of more than 24%.

MCQ:

India is among the top ____ coal-producing countries globally.

a) Two

b) Three

c) Four

d) Five

Answer: d) Five