Arsenicosis or Black foot is caused by exposure over a period of time to Arsenic in drinking water. It may also be due to intake of arsenic via food or air. Kindly note that Itai-itai disease is caused by Cadmium poisoning.

Vimana is a term for the tower above the Garbhagriha or Sanctum sanctorum in a Hindu temple in Dravidian style.

Dibang Valley is in Arunachal Pradesh. Hemis Monastery is a Buddhist monastery of Drupka lineage. Salt Valley is in Rupshu region of Ladakh.

The Keibul Lamjao National Park is in Bishnupur district of Manipur. The Keibul Lamjao, the only floating national park in the world, is home to the last of the brow-antlered deer (Rucervus eldii eldii), one of the most endangered deer in the world.

Nanda Devi National Park is situated in three districts of Uttarakhand (Chamoli in Garhwal, Pithoragarh in Kumaon and Bageshwar). Nanda Devi National Park together with Valley of Flowers is encompassed in the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve. This reserve is part of the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves since 2004.

• Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the ten member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam) and the six states with which ASEAN has existing free trade agreements (Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand).
• RCEP negotiations were formally launched in November 2012 at the ASEAN Summit in Cambodia.
• The agreement is scheduled to be finalized by the end of 2017.
• RCEP is viewed as an alternative to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a proposed trade agreement which includes several Asian and American nations but excludes China and India.

It was established on 21st September, 1984 at Bangalore in the form of twin institutes namely National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources and National Institute of Animal Genetics and then shifted to Karnal in 1985, the two institutes were merged to function as a single entity in the form of National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR) in 1995. Its objectives are:

• To conduct systematic surveys to characterise, evaluate and catalogue farm livestock and poultry genetic resources and to establish their National Data Base.
• To design methodologies for ex situ conservation and in situ management and optimal utilization of farm animal genetic resources.
• To undertake studies on genetic characterisation using modern biological techniques such as molecular cytogenetic, Immunology, DNA Fingerprinting, RFLP analysis etc.
• To conduct training programmes as related to evaluation, characterisation and utilisation of animal genetic resources

In case of any delay in conducting the election of new President by any reason, the outgoing President continues to hold office until his successor assumes charge.

When a vacancy occurs in the office of Vice President by resignation, removal, death or otherwise, then election to fill the vacancy should be held as soon as possible after the occurrence of the vacancy.

• Ordinances must be approved by Parliament within six weeks of reassembling or they shall cease to operate.  They will also cease to operate in case resolutions disapproving the Ordinance are passed by both the Houses.  
• An Ordinance may relate to any subject that the Parliament has the power to legislate on. Conversely, it has the same limitations as the Parliament to legislate, given the distribution of powers between the Union, State and Concurrent Lists.

Constitution 91st Amendment Act

• Parliament had on January 1, 2004 passed the Constitution 91st Amendment Bill, 2003, to modify Articles 75 and 164 of the Constitution.
• The Act provided that under Article 164(1A), the size of the council of ministers in a state should not exceed 15% of the total strength of the assembly.

• At COP 16 held in Cancun, Parties established the Green Climate Fund (GCF) as an operating entity of the Financial Mechanism of the Convention.
• The Fund is governed by the GCF Board and it is accountable to and functions under the guidance of the COP to support projects, programmes, policies and other activities in developing country Parties using thematic funding windows.

Article 17 of the Constitution and the Protection of Civil Rights Act outlaw untouchability in all its forms, but these are legal protections intended for the Scheduled Castes.

• Kachin Hills are located at the extreme northeastern area of the Kachin State of Myanmar and they make a boundary between India and Myanmar.

• Kuttanad region in Kerala covering Alappuzha and Kottayam Districts represents India’s lowest altitudes.

A critically endangered- the rare Northern river terrapin (Batagur baska), resident of the Sunderbans is set to get a new home, beginning a slow journey to recovery from a disastrous decline in the wild.  It is more threatened than the Bengal tiger, but far less known.

• INS Vagli was a Vela-class diesel-electric submarine of the Indian Navy.

• The Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP) is an attached office of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. It came into existence in January 1965. Currently, the Commission comprises a Chairman, Member Secretary, one Member (Official) and two Members (Non-Official). It is mandated to recommend minimum support prices (MSPs).

Bank rate is the rate of interest which a central bank charges on the long term loans and advances that it extends to commercial banks and other financial intermediaries.

Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA)

• The TFA is the WTO’s first-ever multilateral accord that aims to simplify customs regulations for the cross-border movement of goods. It was outcome of WTO’s 9th Bali (Indonesia) ministerial package of 2013
• The agreement includes provisions for Lowering import tariffs and agricultural subsidies: It will make it easier for developing countries to trade with the developed world in global markets
• Abolish hard import quotas: Developed countries would abolish hard import quotas on agricultural products from the developing world and instead would only be allowed to charge tariffs on amount of agricultural imports exceeding specific limits
• Reduction in red tape at international borders: It aims to reduce red-tapism to facilitate trade by reforming customs bureaucracies and formalities.

“Tat Tvam Asi” is a Sanskrit phrase is one of the Mahāvākyas (Grand Pronouncements) in Vedantic Sanatana Dharma. It originally occurs in the Chandogya Upanishad, a Sanskrit text embedded in the Chandogya Brahmana of the Sama Veda of Hinduism.

Umiam Lake is a reservoir located in the hills 15 km to the North of Shillong in the state of Meghalaya, India. The lake serves as a major tourist attraction for the state of Meghalaya. It is also a popular destination for water sport and adventure facilities. Tourists visit this spot for kayaking, water cycling, scooting and boating.

The Constitution of India does not guarantee any of the above to the states.

The buran wind blows across eastern Asia, specifically Xinjiang, Siberia, and Kazakhstan. The buran takes two forms: in summer, it is a hot, dry wind, whipping up sandstorms; in winter, it is bitterly cold and often accompanied by blizzards.

• The Bhopal Declaration that called for “liberalisation of capital for Dalits” was adopted in 2002 during the tenure of Congress leader Digvijaya Singh in Madhya Pradesh.

Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013

• The Act provided for the establishment of Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) at each and every office or branches of the organization employing 10 or more employees, in order to provide a forum for filing complaints to facilitate fast redressal of the grievances pertaining to sexual harassment.
• It also provided for the establishment of local complaints committee (LCC) at the district level by the Government to investigate and redress complaints of sexual harassment of the unorganized sector or from those establishments where the ICC has not been constituted for the reason being, it having less than 10 employees.

When a country faces serious medium-term balance of payments problems, International Monetary Fund assist the country with the adjustment process under its Extended Fund Facility.

Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea.

The six-member MPC, constituted in September 2016, has three persons appointed by the central government while the rest, including the Governor, are from the RBI.

Each member of the MPC has one vote and in case the numbers are equal, the governor has the casting vote.

• Sierra is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Basin and Range Province. It runs 400 miles (640 km) north-to-south, and is approximately 70 miles (110 km) across east-to-west.

India is the biggest producer, as well as the largest consumer and importer of pulses, but productivity is low. However, for 2016-17, there is a massive rebound in pulse production while Rabi pulses suggests harvest of 134 lakh tons (108 lakh tons), Kharif output is estimated at 87 lakhs tons (previous year 55 lakh tons) taking the annual total to a humungous 221 lakh tons (164 lakh tons).

• The Codex Alimentarius or “Food Code” is a collection of standards, guidelines and codes of practice adopted by the Codex Alimentarius Commission.
• The Commission, also known as CAC, is the central part of the joint FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations)/WHO (World Health Organisation) Food Standards Programme.
• It was established by FAO and WHO to protect consumer health and promote fair practices in food trade.

The Union Cabinet approved the “introduction of a New, More Transparent Coal Allocation Policy for Power Sector, 2017-SHAKTI (Scheme for Harnessing and Allocating Koyala (Coal) Transparently in India).

Atharvaveda text includes three primary Upanishads, influential to various schools of Hindu philosophy. These include the Mundaka Upanishad, the Mandukya Upanishad and the Prashna Upanishad.

• On the lines of the POCSO e-box for children, the Central government has now launched an online complaint management system called “Sexual Harassment electronic-Box (SHe-Box)’for registering complaints related to sexual harassment at workplace.
• Currently applicable only for women working in or visiting central government departments, the ministry of women and child development plans to extend to cover private workplaces too.

• Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the ten member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam) and the six states with which ASEAN has existing free trade agreements (Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand).
• RCEP negotiations were formally launched in November 2012 at the ASEAN Summit in Cambodia.
• The agreement is scheduled to be finalized by the end of 2017.
• RCEP is viewed as an alternative to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a proposed trade agreement which includes several Asian and American nations but excludes China and India.