UPSC 2023: Weekly GK and Current Affairs Quiz Apr 01 - Apr 07

• Statement 1 is correct, Cheetah is the fastest land animal, which has the fastest running speed record of 93 to 98 km/h.
• Statement 2 is correct, Cheetahs in India went extinct in 1952 due to reckless hunting activities.
• Statement 3 is correct, Asiatic Cheetahs have a very small population base and are listed as critically endangered species in the (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

Jute is a natural fibre with a golden, soft, long, and silky shine. It is the cheapest fibre procured from the skin of the plant’s stem. Because of its colours and high cash value, Jute is known as a golden fibre. Hence, the Golden Fibre Revolution in India is related to jute production.

Okinawa is a Japanese island in the East China Sea. Hence option b is correct.

• Vijayanagara Kingdom had women wrestlers, astrologers, sooth-sayers, clerks and accountants.
• Hence, option d is correct.

• The IAEA is the international center for cooperation in the nuclear/atomic field. It is a UN agency headquartered in Vienna, Austria. Hence Statement 1 is correct.
• The address was known as ‘Atoms for Peace’ and this was the organization’s first name when it was formally established in 1957. India became a member in 1957 itself. Hence Statement 2 is correct.
• The Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) is a permanent organ of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). It’s objective is to help members states fight combat, extremism, terrorism and separatism.Hence Statement 3 is not correct.

• The UN Charter stipulates that each primary organ of the United Nations can establish various specialized agencies to fulfil its duties.
• There are 17 specialized agencies of the UN. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is not a specialized agency of the UN. Hence Option C is correct.

• The doctrine of Eminent domain means the supreme power of the government under which property of any individual can be taken over in the concern of the general public.
• Thus eminent domain is clarified as the power of the government to take over the property of a secluded person when it is wanted for a public purpose.
• Hence Option D is correct.

• Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) refers to the strategies used by multinational companies to avoid paying tax, by exploiting the mismatches and gaps in the tax rules.
• Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) is mostly prevalent in Intellectual Property (IP) intensive Technology domain (companies like Google, Apple etc) and the companies in Life Sciences domain like Pfizer, Merck etc.
• Hence Option B is correct.

• According to Supreme Court standards, the definition of employee includes casual labor, casual workers (should) have all of the same rights as regular workers.
• Casual workers are entitled to social security payments under the Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, according to the Supreme Court. Hence Statement 1 is correct.
• According to the Minimum Wages Rules, 1950, employees in India are entitled to regular working hours and overtime compensation. Hence Statement 2 is correct.
• According to the Payment of Wages (Amendment) Act 2017, “the Government may specify that the employer of any industrial or other firm shall pay wages to each employee solely by cheque or by crediting the wages to his bank account.” Hence Statement 3 is correct.

• NISHTHA is a capacity building programme for “Improving Quality of School Education through Integrated Teacher Training”.
• It aims to build competencies among all the teachers and school principals at the elementary stage.
• The basic objective of this massive training programme is to motivate and equip teachers to encourage and foster critical thinking in students.
• Hence B is the correct option.

• ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations (UN).
• Established in June 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations and began work in April 1946.
•  All members of the UN are automatically parties to the ICJ statute. However, the ICJ does not have jurisdiction over disputes involving them. The ICJ gets jurisdiction only if both parties consent to it. Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• The ICJ has 15 judges who are elected to nine-year terms by the UN General Assembly and Security Council, which vote simultaneously but separately. To be elected, a candidate must receive a majority of the votes in both bodies. Hence Statement 3 is correct.
• Elections are held at the UNHQ in New York during the annual UNGA meeting.
• A third of the court is elected every three years. In November 2017, India’s Dalveer Bhandari was re-elected to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).  Hence Statement 4 is not correct.
• Hence C is the correct option.

• Donetsk and Luhansk are two states located in eastern Ukraine, which share a border with Russia. Hence Statement 1 is correct.
• This entire region, which includes Donetsk, Luhansk and their respective separatist territories, is generally referred to as the ‘Donbas’ region.
• It is an industrial area and is famous for its coal reserves. Hence Statement 2 is correct.
• Donbas, located on the Russian border adjoining Russia, has a majority Russian-speaking population. It doesn’t share borders with Belarus. Hence Statement 3 is incorrect.

SWIFT is a secure financial message carrier that can avoid fraudulent transactions. In other words, it transports messages from one bank to another bank.
SWIFT is a global messaging software company headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. Hence Statement 1 is correct.
It is a global member-owned cooperative. SWIFT is the world’s international payment network used by banks and other financial systems to quickly, accurately, and securely send and receive information. Hence Statement 2 is incorrect.
SWIFT is solely a carrier of messages. It does not hold funds nor does it manage accounts on behalf of customers, nor does it store financial information on an ongoing basis. As a data carrier, SWIFT transports messages between two financial institutions. Hence statements 3 and 4 are correct.

• Malavikagnimitra is a Sanskrit play by Kalidasa which tells the story of the love of Agnimitra.
• Agnimitra was the Shunga emperor at Vidisha who falls in love with the picture of an exiled servant girl named Malavika.
• When the queen discovers her husband’s passion for this girl, she becomes infuriated and has Malavika imprisoned but as fate would have it, in the end, she is discovered to be of royal birth and is accepted as one of his queens.
• Hence option B is correct.

• The Bardoli Satyagraha, 1928 was a movement in the independence struggle led by Sardar Vallabhai Patel for the farmers of Bardoli against the unjust raising of taxes. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• The Bardoli Taluk in modern-day Gujarat was hit by floods and famines in 1925, which adversely affected crop yield. This affected the farmers financially.
• Despite petitions and appeals from civic groups and farmers to review this unjust hike in tax rates in lieu of the grave situation, the government decided to go ahead with tax collection. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• In 1927, the local Congress Party published a report to show that the farmers could not carry the burden of the enhanced assessment. But the authorities did not budge.
• In January 1928, farmers in Bardoli invited Vallabhai Patel to launch the protest movement wherein all of them resolved not to pay taxes.
• Gandhiji also supported the movement through his writings in ‘Young India’ magazine. Hence statement 3 is correct.

• The BBMB is a statutory body constituted under Section 79 and Section 80 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966.Hence statement 1 is correct.
• Functions of BBMB:
  • Regulating the supply of water from rivers Satluj, Ravi and Beas to the States of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. Hence statement 2 is correct.
  • Regulating the supply of power generated from Bhakra-Nangal and Beas Projects. Hence statement 3 is correct.
• Additional Functions:
  • Construction of new Hydro Projects within and outside the BBMB System.

• FIFA is also the international governing body for futsal (a kind of mini football played indoors on a hard court between two teams of five players each) and beach soccer (five-a-side, played on a beach). Hence statement 1 is correct.
• FIFA is the highest global governing body of football, the world’s most popular game. But it does not set the rules of games. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
• The FIFA Congress is the supreme legislative body of FIFA, in which each of the 211 members of the organization has a vote. Hence statement 3 is correct.
• FIFA is a member of the International Football Association Board, which sets the rules of football, and it applies and enforces those rules across all FIFA competitions. Hence Statement 4 is correct.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is an international organization working to save lives, safeguard the rights and provide a better future for refugees. Hence statement 1 is correct.
The UNHCR was established in 1950 in the wake of the mass displacements caused due to the Second World War in Europe. Hence statement 2 is correct.
UNHCR has received the Nobel Peace Prize twice, in 1954 and 1981, while the work of Comité international de la Croix Rouge (International Committee of the Red Cross) (ICRC) has been honoured three times, in 1917, 1944 and 1963. Hence statement 3 is not correct.
The organisation works in 135 countries and in India, has offices in New Delhi and Chennai. It first established its presence in India in 1981.
India is not a party to the UN Refugee Conventions. Hence statement 4 is correct.

• GHG Protocol establishes comprehensive global standardized frameworks to measure and manage greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from private and public sector operations, value chains and mitigation actions.
• GHG Protocol supplies the world’s most widely used greenhouse gas accounting standards.
• Hence option ‘a’ is correct.

All the above statements are correct.
Hence option d is correct.

• Statement 1 is correct. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) is a statutory body established in 2007 under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005.
• Statement 2 is not correct. It functions under the Ministry of Women & Child Development of the central government.
• Statement 3 is correct. A person who has held the office of the chairperson shall be eligible for re-nomination.

• Statement 1 is not correct. The IPCC does not conduct its own research but instead, it provides regular assessments of the scientific basis of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation.
• Statement 2 is correct. The IPCC provides objective and comprehensive scientific information on anthropogenic climate change, including the natural, political, and economic impacts and risks, and possible response options.

• The Convention on Cluster Munitions is a United Nations-adopted legal instrument that prohibits all use, production, transfer and stockpiling of cluster munitions.
• The convention was adopted in Dublin, Ireland in 2008, and was opened for signature in Oslo, Norway. Currently, the convention has 110 State Parties and 13 Signatory States.
• India has not signed the convention and is not a party to it. Other countries that are not parties are the US, Russia, China, Pakistan and Israel.
• Read more about Cluster Bombs.

• Statement 1 is not correct. During the copper smelting process, initially, the Carbon combusts with Oxygen in the air to produce carbon monoxide (CO). Later, the carbon monoxide reacts with ore and releases carbon dioxide. Hence, it does not release a lethal quantity of CO into the atmosphere.
• Statement 2 is correct. When copper slag remains on the soil, it may lead to leaching with the required conditions present.
• Statement 3 is correct. The copper smelting process may release sulphur dioxide.

• Savitribai Phule together with her husband opened a care centre called Balhatya Pratibandhak Griha (Child-killing Prohibition Home) for pregnant rape victims and helped deliver and save their children.
• Hence option d is correct.
• Read more about Savitribai Phule.

• Statement 1 is correct. The idea of Quad was first mooted by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2007.
• Statement 2 is not correct. While India and Australia are members of Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), the U.S.A. and Japan are dialogue partners.
• Statement 3 is not correct. During the 2004 Tsunami, India conducted relief and rescue operations for itself and neighbouring countries and was joined by Japan, the US and Australia. The move was paralleled by the joint military exercise ‘Malabar’ which was held at an unprecedented scale involving India, Japan, Australia, Singapore and the US.

• Statement 1 is correct. The UNEP’s governing body is called the United Nations Environment Assembly.
• Statement 2 is correct. UNEA is said to be the world’s highest decision making body on the environment.
• Statement 3 is correct. UNEA was formed in 2012 during the Rio+20 negotiations and is headed by a Bureau and its President.

• Statement 1 is not correct. The Nodal Ministry for the SVAMITVA scheme is the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
• Statement 2 is correct. Drone Surveying technology and Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS) will be used for demarcation of rural abadi areas.
• Statement 3 is correct. Under the scheme, SVAMITVA property cards for every property in the village will be prepared by states.

Read more about the SVAMITVA Scheme.

• Statement 1 is not correct. Patanajali, one of the greatest geniuses in Indian history, was a student of Panini.
  • Patanjali is a contemporary of Pushyamitra Shunga.
• Statement 2 is not correct. Amarasimha is associated with the Gupta age and Harshavardhana is a post-Gupta emperor.
• Statement 3 is correct. Kalidasa belonged to the court of Chandra Gupta-II (Vikramaditya).