Daily Current Affairs MCQ / UPSC / IAS / 28-08-19

Table of Contents

MCQ 1

Article 367 is related with

Financial Emergency
President’s rule
Constitutional Amendment
Interpretation

Article 367 in The Constitution Of India 1949 Interpretation

(1) Unless the context otherwise requires, the General Clauses Act, 1897 , shall, subject to any adaptations and modifications that may be made therein under Article 372, apply for the interpretation of this Constitution as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of the Legislature of the Dominion of India

(2) Any reference in this Constitution to Acts or laws of, or made by, Parliament, or to Acts or laws of, or made by, the Legislature of a State, shall be construed as including a reference to an Ordinance made by the President or, to an Ordinance made by a Governor, as the case may be

(3) For the purposes of this Constitution foreign State means any State other than India: Provided that, subject to the provisions of any law made by Parliament, the President may by order declare any State not to be a foreign State for such purposes as may be specified in the order PART XX AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION

MCQ 2

Peacock Parachute Spider is a critically endangered Species
It’s a mammal
Its endemic to India in Western Ghats

Choose correct

(A) 1 & 2
(B) 1 & 3
(C) 1 only
(D) All

MCQ 3

Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Himachal top India’s child well-being index. It is released by

NITI Aayog
Ministry of WCD
Ministry of Health
None

MCQ 4

CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Consensus) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals
CoP 18 is going on in India

Choose correct

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

CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals. It was drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The convention was opened for signature in 1973 and CITES entered into force on 1 July 1975.
Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species in the wild, and it accords varying degrees of protection to more than 35,000 species of animals and plants. In order to ensure that the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was not violated, the Secretariat of GATT was consulted during the drafting process.
CoP 18 of the CITES
Over 100 nations, acting within the framework of CITES, approved a proposal by India, Nepal and Bangladesh.
It is to prohibit commercial international trade in a species of ‘Otter’ native to the subcontinent and some other parts of Asia.
The Conference also accepted a separate proposal by India, moved together with the EU, the US and the Philippines.
It is for inclusion of a species of ‘Gecko lizard’ for protection as a species not necessarily threatened with extinction.
It is found widely in South Asia, the US, and Madagascar.
To control the trade in order to avoid utilisation incompatible with their survival
Members voted to move the Smooth-coated otter (Lutrogale perspicillata) from CITES Appendix II to CITES Appendix I.
It is considered to be facing a high risk of extinction
It is detrimentally affected by international trade and habitat loss.
The other proposal that was passed was to include the ‘Tokay gecko’ (Gekko gecko) in CITES Appendix II.
India had proposed Appendix I status for the small-clawed otter, mako shark, the Indian star tortoise and the Tokay gecko.

Appendix I

Appendix I, about 1200 species, are species that are threatened with extinction and are or may be affected by trade. Commercial trade in wild-caught specimens of these species is illegal (permitted only in exceptional licensed circumstances). Captive-bred animals or cultivated plants of Appendix I species are considered Appendix II specimens, with concomitant requirements (see below and Article VII). The Scientific Authority of the exporting country must make a non-detriment finding, assuring that export of the individuals will not adversely affect the wild population. Any trade in these species requires export and import permits. The Management Authority of the exporting state is expected to check that an import permit has been secured and that the importing state is able to care for the specimen adequately. Notable animal species listed in Appendix I include the red panda (Ailurus fulgens), western gorilla (Gorilla gorilla), the chimpanzee species (Pan spp.), tigers (Panthera tigris subspecies), Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica), leopards (Panthera pardus), jaguar(Panthera onca), cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), some populations of African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), the dugong and manatees (Sirenia), and all rhinoceros species (except some Southern African subspecies populations).

Appendix II

Appendix II, about 21,000 species, are species that are not necessarily threatened with extinction, but may become so unless trade in specimens of such species is subject to strict regulation in order to avoid utilization incompatible with the survival of the species in the wild. In addition, Appendix II can include species similar in appearance to species already listed in the Appendices. International trade in specimens of Appendix II species may be authorized by the granting of an export permit or re-export certificate. In practice, many hundreds of thousands of Appendix II animals are traded annually. No import permit is necessary for these species under CITES, although some Parties do require import permits as part of their stricter domestic measures. A non-detriment finding and export permit are required by the exporting Party.
In addition, Article VII of CITES states that specimens of animals listed in Appendix I that are bred in captivity for commercial purposes are treated as Appendix II. The same applies for specimens of Appendix I plants artificially propagated for commercial purposes.
Examples of species listed on Appendix II are the great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias), the American black bear (Ursus americanus), Hartmann’s mountain zebra (Equus zebra hartmannae), green iguana (Iguana iguana), queen conch (Strombus gigas), Emperor scorpion (Pandinus imperator), Mertens’ water monitor (Varanus mertensi), bigleaf mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla) and lignum vitae “ironwood” (Guaiacum officinale).

Appendix III

Appendix III, about 170 species, are species that are listed after one member country has asked other CITES Parties for assistance in controlling trade in a species. The species are not necessarily threatened with extinction globally. In all member countries, trade in these species is only permitted with an appropriate export permit and a certificate of origin from the state of the member country who has listed the species.
Examples of species listed on Appendix III and the countries that listed them are the two-toed sloth (Choloepus hoffmanni) by Costa Rica, sitatunga (Tragelaphus spekii) by Ghana, African civet (Civettictis civetta) by Botswana, and alligator snapping turtle by the USA.

MCQ 5

Bonn challenge recently was in news, what this challenge is?

Saving the biodiversity
Saving the climate from becoming warmer than 2 degree celcius
Challenge of adopting sustainable energy models
To restore 150 million hectares of the world’s degraded and deforested lands by 2020

The Bonn Challenge is a global effort to restore 150 million hectares of the world’s degraded and deforested lands by 2020. It was hosted and launched by Germany and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Bonn on 2 September 2011, in collaboration with the Global Partnership on Forest/Landscape Restoration and targets delivery on the Rio Conventions and other outcomes of the 1992 Earth Summit. As at 2013 over 20 million hectares of land had been pledged for restoration from countries including Brazil, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Rwanda, and the United States. South Korea, Costa Rica, Pakistan, China, Rwanda and Brazil have embarked on successful landscape restoration programmes.
The IUCN estimates that fulfilling the goals of the Bonn challenge would create approximately $84 billion per year in net benefits that could positively affect income opportunities for rural communities. It is also estimated that a reduction of the current carbon dioxide emissions gap by 11-17% will be achieved by meeting the challenge. Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa pledge has the distinction of being the first sub-national pledge, the first pledge to be fully implemented, and the first pledge to be increased. ‘Billion Tree Tsunami’ is an initiative in that direction.
Bonn challenge will address the issue of economic security, water security, food security and climate change. Landscape restoration through Bonn Challenge augments the international commitments to Climate Change. The restoration of 150 million hectares of the world’s degraded and deforested lands by 2020 will help in sequestration of 1 billion metric ton of carbon dioxide which will reduce the current emission gap by 20%.
The African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative fits within the Bonn Challenge and has a goal of having 100 million hectares in the process of restoring by 2030. 28 African countries have made a total commitment of 113 million hectares to the initiative. Ethiopia has made the largest single commitment with 1t million hectares. Franklin’s Prime Minister announced in May 2019 the country had set a goal of planting 4 billion trees in 2019 alone 14th meeting of Conference of Parties to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP14) to be held in India for first time from September 2-13, 2019. India will take President of COP14 for two years from China.

MCQ 6

Shaliza Dhami is related to

Badminton
Tennis
Sprint race
NONE

Shaliza Dhami Is First Woman Air Force Officer To Become Flight Commander

Wing Commander Dhami, serving for 15 years now, has been flying choppers. She became the first woman flying instructor of the Air Force.
Wing Commander Shaliza Dhami became the first woman officer of the Indian Air Force to become the Flight Commander of a flying unit, news agency ANI reported. Flight Commander is the second in command of the unit.
Wing Commander Dhami, serving for 15 years now, has been flying choppers. She became the first woman flying instructor of the Air Force and is also the first woman officer to get permanent commission of the flying branch.
She took charge of a Chetak helipcopter unit at the Hindon Airbase in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh. Chetak is a single engine turbo shaft, light utility helicopter with capacity of 6 passengers and has maximum speed of 220 km/hour.

MCQ 7

Indian Institute of Petroleum (IIP), started work on a project to make petrol from plastic
It is a research institutions under the umbrella of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), in Mumbai

Choose correct

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

The journey from plastic to petrol, a pilot plant for which was inaugurated in Uttarakhand on Tuesday, started in 2006 when a small group of scientists at the Indian Institute of Petroleum (IIP), Dehradun, started work on a project to make something useful from the hazardous waste.
Their mission: To develop a technology that will not only help in disposing of the plastic but will also result in generating revenue from it. After much effort, the institute developed a technology to convert plastic into petroleum products such as diesel, petrol and other aromatic compounds. Sanat Kumar, senior scientist in-charge of the project at IIP Dehradun said many people find it difficult to understand how plastic can be changed into diesel.
IIP Dehradun, one of the constituent research institutions under the umbrella of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), conducts research on hydrocarbons, use of alternative fuels in engines and related technologies.
The first pilot plant will convert 1000 kg of plastic waste to 800 litres of diesel daily.
The diesel will be of automotive-grade, meeting the diesel specifications for use in vehicles -and could be straightaway filled in cars, trucks or generators.

MCQ 8

National Monuments Authority (NMA) is under Archaeological survey of India
It has been setup as per provisions of “The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains AMASR (Amendment and Validation) Act, 2010

Choose correct

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

The Minister of State for Culture & Tourism (Independent Charge),Shri Prahlad Singh Patel launched an integrated NOC online Application Processing System for National Monuments Authority (NMA) for 517 local bodies of six states in New Delhi today.
This will help in online processing of applications requesting NOC for construction related work in prohibited and regulated area of ASI protected monuments.
Earlier this system was available only for five urban local bodies of Delhi and one urban local body of Mumbai.
The Portal has integration with the Smart ‘Smarac’ Mobile App of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), through which the applicant traverses his plot and the geo coordinates of his plot along with the images get uploaded into the NIC portal along with the proximity and the approval status.
National Monuments Authority (NMA) under the Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India has been setup as per provisions of “The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains AMASR (Amendment and Validation) Act, 2010”. In order to automate the process of grant of NO Objection Certificate(NOC) for construction related work in the prohibited and regulated area, NMA had decided to Design, Develop and Implement a web enabled Software (S/w) application named NOC online Application Processing System (NOAPS) and launched it in the public domain over the URL: http://nmanoc.nic.in/ . With the objective of introducing transparency, “NOAPS Non Single window system” was launched on 29th September 2015. Further, “NOAPS Single window system” was officially launched on 1 st May 2016.
The applicant needs to fill up a single form which is being sent to the concerned agencies by the Urban Local Body, from whom No Objection Certificate (NOC) is required. NMA on its part will communicate its decision to the local body within 15-30 working days, bringing down the time limit from ninety days, as prescribed in Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act.
By this integration, the National Monuments Authority has made a humble effort towards the Mantra of “Reform, Perform and Transform” given by Shri Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India.

MCQ 9

Zagros Mountains are located in