Daily Current Affairs MCQ / UPSC / IAS / 27-09-19 | Free PDF

MCQ 1

1. KAZIND-2019 is a joint naval exercise between India and Kazakhstan
2. Exercise KAZIND-2019 is the fourth edition of an annual event which is conducted alternatively in Kazakhstan and India

Choose correct

(A) Only 1
 (B)Only 2
(C) Both
(D) None

•  Ministry of Defence Curtain Raiser: INDO-KAZAKHSTAN Joint Military Exercise KAZIND – 2019 Joint Military Exercise KAZIND-2019 between India and Kazakhstan will be conducted at Pithoragarh from 02 to 15 October 2019. The exercise will comprise of nearly 100 soldiers from both Indian and Kazakhstan Army who would be sharing their experience gained during conduct of various counter insurgency and counter terrorism operations in the past. Exercise KAZIND-2019 is the fourth edition of an annual event which is conducted alternatively in Kazakhstan and India. The aim of this exercise is to conduct company level joint training with emphasis on counter terrorism operations in mountainous terrain. During the exercise, aspects of emerging trends of global terrorism and hybrid warfare have also been included. The joint military exercise will enhance the level of defence cooperation further fostering bilateral relations between the two nations.

MCQ 2

1. Under MSF, all clients of RBI can borrow money from RBI @1% higher than the ongoing Repo rate under liquidity adjustment facility (LAF.)
2. LAF is a tool used by RBI to control long-term liquidity / money supply in the market.

Choose correct

(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Both
 (D) None

RBI mainly uses following tools to control this liquidity / money supply in the banking system.

• Cash reserve Ratio (CRR)
• Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR)
• Liquidity Adjustment Facilities (LAF) (Repo and reverse repo)
• Open market operations (OMO)

Clients of RBI?

• Central Government
• State Government
• Banks (commercial, regional rural banks, cooperative banks)
• Non-banking financial institutions etc.etc.etc.

• LAF helps banks to quickly borrow money incase of any emergency or for adjusting in their SLR/CRR requirements.
• Under LAF, RBI auctions Government securities, starting at the repo and reverse repo rate. Minimum bidding amount is Rs.5 crore.
• So LAF is a tool used by RBI to control short-term liquidity / money supply in the market.
• In LAF, money transaction is done via RTGS.

 What is Marginal Standing facility (MSF)?

• RBI started this thing in 2011.
• Under MSF, Scheduled Commercial Banks can borrow money from RBI @1% higher than the ongoing Repo rate under liquidity adjustment facility (LAF.)
• Although, the system of lending remains same just like under repo. = SBI sells Government security to RBI, and promises to buy it back after sometime, at a higher rate. Difference in selling and purchase = interest rate earned by RBI.

MCQ 3

1. GoI launched the 10 Year Rural Sanitation Strategy (2019-2029), which focus on sustaining the sanitation behavior change that has been achieved under the Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen (SBM-G)
2. NITI aayog is credited for this strategy

Choose correct

(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Both
(D) None

 Ministry of Jal Shakti

• National Launch of 10 Year Rural Sanitation Strategy (2019-2029)
•  The Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Jal Shakti, GoI launched the 10 Year Rural Sanitation Strategy (2019-2029), which focus on sustaining the sanitation behavior change that has been achieved under the Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen (SBM-G), ensuring that no one is left behind, and increasing access to solid and liquid waste management.
• Since the launch of the SBM-G in 2014, over 10 crore toilets have been built in rural areas; over 5.9 lakh villages, 699 districts, and 35 States/UTs have declared themselves Open Defecation Free (ODF). This strategy has been prepared by DDWS, in consultation with State Governments and other stakeholders, and it lays down a framework to guide local governments, policy makers, implementers and other relevant stakeholders in their planning for ODF Plus, where everyone uses a toilet, and every village has access to solid and liquid waste management. Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Hon’ble Union Minister, Jal Shakti Mantralay, launched the strategy and said, “This strategy book is a framework to sustain the efforts of the SBM-G. The country has demonstrated unprecedented progress and all States and Union Territories have declared their rural areas open defecation free (ODF) – a befitting tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th birth anniversary. I’d like to express my gratitude towards the State Governments for their efforts to achieve this goal. It is because of the SBM-G that India is now an inspiration, in terms of sanitation, for other countries.”

MCQ 4

1. Project 75I is for nuclear submarines manufacturing
2. It will be accomplished under S&P model where only state owned entities are allowed to collaborate with foreign manufacturer

Choose correct

(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Both
 (D) None

• The Project 75I-class submarine is a follow-on of the Project 75 Kalvari-class submarines for the Indian Navy. Under this project, the Indian Navy intends to acquire six diesel-electric submarines, which will also feature advanced air-independent propulsion systems to enable them to stay submerged for longer duration and substantially increase their operational range.
• All six submarines are expected to be constructed in Indian shipyards
• The Swedish defence major SAAB has pulled out of the contest to supply the Navy with six advanced conventional submarines under Project-75I. South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering has made a last-minute entry, official sources said.
• The Navy on September 24 opened the responses from the original equipment manufacturers to its expression of interest. SAAB informed the Defence Ministry that it could not take part in the tender, and Daewoo Shipbuilding was given the last-minute invite to submit its bid, a defence source said.
• When contacted by The Hindu, Ola Rignell, chairman and managing director, SAAB India, said in an email: “It is a decision we have made due to the customers’ requirements regarding the time schedule and the requirements related to the Strategic Partnership policy with its unbalance between our possibilities to have control and our obligations and liabilities.”
• “We believe we have a very competitive product that would suit the customer well,” he said. But, after having examined the expression of interest, the company decided “not to enter the competition due to the above reasons.” ₹45,000-crore deal
• Daewoo Shipbuilding has joined four other companies in the fray: Naval Group (France), Navantia (Spain), Rosoboronexport (Russia) and TKMS (Germany).
•  The ₹45,000-crore deal to build six submarines in India under technology transfer is being processed through the Strategic Partnership, under which foreign manufacturers will have to tie up with Indian private companies to make the product locally. The request for information was issued in mid-2017, but there was no progress for want of clarity on some aspects of the Strategic Partnership. The expression of interest was issued in June this year.

MCQ 5

 Boiga thackerayi is a newly found species of

1. Spider
2. Frog
3. Fish
4. Snake

MCQ 6

 Country/ies not a member of Quad Group

1. India
2. China
3. Japan
4. Thailand

(A) 3 only
(B) 2 only
 (C) 2 & 4
(D) 2,3,4

• Foreign ministers of the Quad countries – India, US, Australia and Japan – met recently on the sidelines of the UNGA meeting. Significance, focus and outcomes of latest meet:
• The Ministers met to discuss cooperation on counter-terrorism, mentoring, assistance in disaster relief, airtime security, cooperation, development, finance and cybersecurity efforts etc.
• The Quad countries were “resolute” in their view of the centrality of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in South East Asia.

 What is Quad grouping?

• The quadrilateral formation includes Japan, India, United States and Australia.
• All four nations find a common ground of being the democratic nations and common interests of unhindered maritime trade and security.
• The idea was first mooted by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2007. However, the idea couldn’t move ahead with Australia pulling out of it.

MCQ 7

1. High-Temperature Proton Exchange Membrane (HTPEM) technology is an indigenous technology by CSIR
2. It is developed under New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI)’ by NITI Aayog

Choose correct

(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Both
(D) None

India’s first indigenously developed high-temperature based Fuel Cell System was recently introduced. It is a 5.0 kW fuel cell system that generates power in a green manner.

 The developed fuel cells are based on High-Temperature Proton Exchange Membrane (HTPEM) technology.

Key fact

• Developed under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in partnership with Indian industries. Built under India’s flagship programme named ‘New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI)’.

 How it works?

• It takes methanol or bio-methane as the input and produces heat and water as its bi-products, which can be further used. This helps to attain an efficiency that is greater than 70%, which is difficult to achieve by other energy sources.

 Applications:

• Suitable for distributed stationary power applications like; for small offices, commercial units, data centers etc.; where highly reliable power is essential with simultaneous requirement for air-conditioning.
• It will also meet the requirement of efficient, clean and reliable backup power generator for telecom towers, remote locations and strategic applications as well.
• Replace Diesel Generating (DG) sets and help reduce India’s dependence on crude oil.

What is HTPEM technology?

• High Temperature Proton-Exchange-Membrane (HTPEM) is the core of the fuel cells running above 150 °C. As in classical PEM fuel cells technology, Hydrogen is electrochemically split to proton and electron on anode. Proton is transported through membrane to cathode while electricity is yielded in external circuit. At cathode protons recombine with electron and reacts further with Oxygen to water and heat.
• The technology can achieve efficiency approaching 90% calculated as combined yield of electricity and heat.

Significance of HTPEM technology:

• HT-PEM Technology enables simple and cost effective fuel cell systems that can operate on fuel sources available today, such as natural gas, propane, and methanol.
• When compared to low temperature PEM fuel cells, subsystems for membrane humidification and carbon monoxide clean up from reformate can be eliminated.
• The operation of polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells at temperatures above 150°C offers very significant advantages compared to the conventional PEM fuel cells which are listed below:

1. High CO tolerance
2. No need for humidified gases
3. High power-to-volume ratio
4. Reduced complexity
5. Low cost

 What is New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI)?

• It is the largest Public-Private-Partnership effort within the R&D domain in the country.
• It seeks to catalyze innovation centred scientific and technological developments as a vehicle to attain for Indian industry a global leadership position, in selected niche areas.
• It synergizes the best competencies of publicly funded R&D institutions, academia, and private industry.
• It has so far evolved 60 largely networked projects in diversified areas viz. Agriculture & Plant Biotechnology, General Biotechnology, Bioinformatics, Drugs & Pharmaceuticals, Chemicals, Materials, Information and Communication Technology, and Energy.

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