8 JAN CURRENT AFFAIRS (MCQ)

Current Affairs Practice Session

Q1. Consider the following statements with respect to the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) project

1. The project involves the construction of five freight corridors traversing the entire country to reduce congestion at various terminals and junctions.
2. The majority of the Eastern DFC is funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, while the Western DFC is being funded by the World Bank. Which of the above statement/s is/are incorrect? a) 1 Only
   b) 2 Only
   c) Both 1 and 2
   d) Neither 1 nor 2

Solution : c)
Explanation :-
Dedicated freight corridor (DFC) project:
• Background:
o The DFC project was first proposed in April 2005 to address the needs of the rapidly developing Indian economy.
o The existing quadrilateral railway network, also known as the golden quadrilateral, which links the major metropolitan cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, is unable to support the growing demand due to capacity constraints.
o A dedicated freight corridor was required to address these concerns.
• The Ministry of Railways, under the direction of the Indian Government, had taken up the dedicated freight corridor (DFC) project.
• The project involves the construction of six freight corridors traversing the entire country.
o The Indian Railways (Amendment) Act gives the project power to acquire land as it is of national importance.
• The purpose of the project:
o The DFC project is expected to reduce congestion at various terminals and junctions.
o It will allow for efficient, safe and fast movement of freight along the corridor.
• Initially, the construction of two freight corridors, the Western DFC connecting the states of Haryana and Maharashtra and the Eastern DFC connecting the states Punjab and West Bengal, is being undertaken.
o The combined length of the Western and Eastern DFCs is approximately 2,843 km. o International funding: Built at a cost of Rs 5,750 crore through a loan from the World Bank, which is funding a majority of the EDFC. The WDFC is being funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
• The other four corridors include North-South (Delhi-Tamil Nadu), East-West (West Bengal-Maharashtra), East-South (West Bengal-Andhra Pradesh) and South-South (Tamil Nadu-Goa).
o These four corridors are still in the planning stage.
• In 2006, the Government of India established a dedicated body to implement the project, called the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL). o The DFCCIL began building the eastern and western corridors simultaneously, in three phases.
• Hence, option (c) is the correct answer.

Q2. Consider the following statements with respect to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)

1. Established in 1981, the GCC promotes economic, security, cultural and social cooperation between the six states.
2. It is composed of infantry, armour, artillery and combat support elements from each of the states.
   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

Solution : c)
Explanation :-
About Gulf Cooperation Council
• The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is a political and economic alliance of six countries in the Arabian Peninsula: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
• Established in 1981, the GCC promotes economic, security, cultural and social cooperation between the six states and holds a summit every year to discuss cooperation and regional affairs.
• HQ – Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
• In 1984, the GCC established a standing coalition land force, the Peninsular Shield Force, tasked to defend the six nation states.
• It is composed of infantry, armour, artillery and combat support elements from each of the states, numbering 40,000 in total.
• Hence, option (c) is the correct answer.

Q3. The term ‘New nexus rule’ is related to a) Digital taxation
b) Banking reforms
c) Iran sanctions
d) None of the above

Solution : a)
Explanation :-
• The Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has released a consultation paper proposing changes in the rules for taxing Internet giants such as Facebook, Apple, Google, Netflix, etc.
• The proposal is called “Unified Approach” and it will shift the standard of taxation from physical presence to sales in a particular market.
• The new nexus rule proposes to define a sales revenue threshold in a market as the primary indicator of a sustained and significant economic involvement of an enterprise in that jurisdiction.
• “Nexus” in international tax – Refers to the operating presence in a country that makes a company taxable.
• Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.

Q4. Which of the following schemes/Act will have an impact on malnutrition in India?

1. Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS)
2. The Mid-Day meals (MDM)
3. The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS)
4. The National Food Security (NFS) Act, 2013
5. POSHAN Abhiyaan, Select the correct code: a) 1,2 and 3
   b) 2,3 and 4
   c) 4 and 5 only
   d) All of the above

Solution : d)
Explanation :-
The Government of India already has robust and effective schemes and programmes in place to address food insecurity and malnutrition such as the
• Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS),
• The Mid-Day meals (MDM) and
• the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), all covered under the National Food Security (NFS) Act, 2013.
• Furthermore, in March 2018, the Prime Minister launched POSHAN Abhiyaan, an ambitious, multi-sectoral programme with the vision to attain a malnutrition-free India by 2022.
• Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

Q5. With reference to the India report on Longitudinal Ageing Study of India (LASI) Wave-1, consider the following statements:

1. LASI is a full-scale national survey of scientific investigation of the health, economic, and social determinants and consequences of population ageing in India.
2. About 40 per cent of the elderly people have one or the other disability and 20 per cent have issues related to mental health.
   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

Solution : c)
Explanation :-
Union Health Minister released India report on Longitudinal Ageing Study of India (LASI) Wave-1.
• LASI is a full-scale national survey of scientific investigation of the health, economic, and social determinants and consequences of population ageing in India.
• In the 2011 census, the 60 plus population accounted for 8.6 per cent of India’s population, accounting for 103 million elderly people.
• Growing at around three per cent annually, the number of elderly people will rise to 319 million in 2050.
• About 75 per cent of the elderly people suffer from some chronic diseases.
• About 40 per cent of the elderly people have one or the other disability and 20 per cent have issues related to mental health.
• The National Programme for Health Care of Elderly, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has undertaken the LASI, through International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai in collaboration with Harvard School of Public Health, University of Southern California, USA, United Nations Population Fund and National Institute on Ageing.
• The LASI, Wave – 1 covered a baseline sample of over 72,000 individuals aged 45 and above and their spouses including over 31,000 elderly persons aged 60 and above and over 6,700 oldest-old persons aged 75 and above from all States and Union Territories of the country excluding Sikkim.
• Hence both statements are correct.

Q6. With reference to the First Advance Estimates (FAE), consider the following statements: 1. The real GDP at 2011-12 prices in 2020-21 has been estimated to contract by 7.7 per cent and nominal GDP at current prices by 4.2 per cent.

2. As per quarterly estimates of NSO, real GDP contracted by 45.7 percent in first half of 2020-
3. 
   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

Solution : a)
Explanation :-
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the First Advance Estimates (FAE) for the current financial year.
• The real GDP at 2011-12 prices in 2020-21 has been estimated to contract by 7.7 per cent and nominal GDP at current prices by 4.2 per cent.
• As per quarterly estimates of NSO, real GDP contracted by 15.7 percent in first half of 202021.
• On the demand side, real GDP in 2020-21 has been supported by an estimated increase in Government Consumption Expenditure by 5.8 percent.
• On the supply side, agriculture is estimated to register a positive growth of 3.4 percent against 4.0 percent as per the PE of 2019-20.
• In the manufacturing sector, electricity sector is estimated to register a positive growth of 2.7 percent.
• The pandemic and associated public health measures have adversely affected the contactsensitive services sector where trade, hotels, transport & communication are estimated to contract by 21.4 percent in FY:2020-21.
• For any financial year, the MoSPI provides regular estimates of GDP. The first such instance is through the FAE. The FAE for any particular financial year is typically presented on January 7th.
• Their significance lies in the fact that they are the GDP estimates that the Union Finance Ministry uses to decide the next financial year’s Budget allocations.
• The FAE will be quickly updated as more information becomes available. On February 26th, MoSPI will come out with the Second Advance Estimates of GDP for the current year. Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Q7. With reference to the auctions for 4G spectrum, consider the following statements:

1. The Union government owns all the publicly available assets within the geographical boundaries of the country, which also include airwaves.
2. Spectrum is subdivided into bands which have single frequency.
   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

Solution : a)
Explanation :-
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) said on January 6 that auctions for 4G spectrum in the 700, 800, 900, 1,800, 2,100, 2,300, and 2,500 MHz bands will begin from March 1.
• Devices such as cell-phones and wireline telephones require signals to connect from one end to another. These signals are carried on airwaves, which must be sent at designated frequencies to avoid any kind of interference.
• The Union government owns all the publicly available assets within the geographical boundaries of the country, which also include airwaves.
• With the expansion in the number of cell-phone, wireline telephone and internet users, the need to provide more space for the signals arises from time to time.
• To sell these assets to companies willing to set up the required infrastructure to transport these waves from one end to another, the central government through the DoT auctions these airwaves from time to time.
• These airwaves are called spectrum, which is subdivided into bands which have varying frequencies. All these airwaves are sold for a certain period of time, after which their validity lapses, which is generally set at 20 years.
• The last spectrum auctions were held in 2016, when the government offered 2,354.55 MHz at a reserve price of Rs 5.60 lakh crore.
Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Q8. G Kishan Reddy committee, recently in news, is related to:
a) protect the language, culture and land of Ladakh and ensuring citizen’s participation in the Union Territory’s development
b) On Small Scale Industries
c) decide the appropriate level of reserves that the RBI should hold
d) None of the above

Solution : a)
Explanation :-
Centre has decided to form a committee to protect the language, culture and land of Ladakh and ensuring citizen’s participation in the Union Territory’s development.
• The Committee will be headed by the Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy and will include elected representatives from Ladakh, Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, central government, and the Ladakh administration.
• The decision to form the Committee came after Union Home Minister Amit Shah met a 10member delegation from Ladakh who expressed their views about the need to protect Ladakh’s unique cultural identity.
• Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.

Q9. With reference to the Coriander, consider the following statements:

1. The Hadoti region of South-East Rajasthan and Guna district of Madhya Pradesh are known for coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) production and contributes major share in coriander export from the country.
2. All parts of the plant are edible, but the fresh leaves and the dried seeds (as a spice) are the parts most traditionally used in cooking.
   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

Solution : c)
Explanation :-
The Spices Board of India and DBT-SABC Biotech Kisan Hub in collaboration with ICAR-NRCSS,
RSAMB and Kota Agriculture University organized the World of Coriander webinar ‘Accelerating Quality Production, Post-Harvesting, Value Addition & Export of Coriander from India’.
• The Hadoti region of South-East Rajasthan and Guna district of Madhya Pradesh are known for coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) production and contributes major share in coriander export from the country.
• Ramganj APMC Mandi located at Kota district is the largest coriander mandi in Asia, and thus Ramganj is also known as the ‘Coriander city’.
• Recently, GOI’s Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MOFPI) has assigned ‘Coriander’ to the district of Kota in the list of One District One Product (ODOP).
• Coriander is a spice produced from the round, tan-colored seeds of the coriander plant (Coriandrum sativum).
• All parts of the plant are edible, but the fresh leaves and the dried seeds (as a spice) are the parts most traditionally used in cooking.
• It is also known as Chinese parsley, dhania or cilantro.
• Hence both statements are correct.

Q10. The Standing Committee of National Board of Wildlife (SC-NBWL) in its 60th meeting has approved the inclusion of Caracal into the list of critically endangered species for taking up conservation efforts with financial support under Centrally sponsored SchemeDevelopment of Wildlife Habitat. It is a variety of which of the following species? a) Tiger
b) Swamp Deer
c) Asian Wild Buffalo
d) Cat

Solution : d)
Explanation :-
The Standing Committee of National Board of Wildlife (SC-NBWL) in its 60th meeting has approved the inclusion of Caracal into the list of critically endangered species for taking up conservation efforts with financial support under Centrally sponsored Scheme-Development of Wildlife Habitat.
Caracal is a medium size wild cat found in some parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat. Now, there are 22 wildlife species under recovery programme for critically endangered species. The National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) is constituted by the Central Government under Section 5 A of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 (WLPA). The Standing Committee of NBWL considers proposals after a series of levels of scrutiny and have recommendations of the State Chief Wildlife Warden, State Government and the State Board for Wildlife. Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

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