UPSC 2023: Weekly GK and Current Affairs Quiz Apr 22 - Apr 28

• Statement 1 is not correct. All the 193 member states of the UN are automatically parties to the Court.
  • Those nations that are not members of the UN may become parties to the Court’s statute with the help of the Article 93 procedure.
• Statement 2 is not correct. The ICJ is composed of 15 judges and they have a tenure of nine years each.
• Statement 3 is not correct. The ICJ cannot take up a case suo moto. It can only hear cases or disputes when requested by States.

• Statement 1 is correct. The power to grant citizenship lies with the Home Ministry.
• Statement 2 is correct. The Foreigners Act confers the power to expel foreigners from India. It vests the Union Government with absolute and unfettered discretion. Hence, the power of the Government of India to expel a foreigner is absolute and unlimited.

• Statement 1 is not correct. China is the world’s largest producer and supplier of silk. India is the second-largest silk producer in the world.
• Statement 2 is correct. India has the unique distinction of being the only country producing all the five known commercial silks, namely, mulberry, tropical tasar, oak tasar, eri and muga.
• Statement 3 is not correct. Arani Silk is from Tamil Nadu.

• Statement 1 is correct. It is a central sector scheme where the Government aims to conduct the exploration of the underwater world on similar lines as ISRO does for space.
• Statement 2 is not correct. The project will be managed by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.

• Options 1 and 3 are correct.
• Hedgehog – these are small nocturnal spiny mammals and when they are frightened they roll into a ball so that a predator will feel the full brunt of its sharp spines.
• Pangolin – these are the only mammals wholly-covered in scales and they use those scales by rolling up to protect themselves from predators in the wild.
• Marmots are large ground squirrels and are not known to roll up and protect themselves.

• Statement 1 is correct, it is the second-largest intergovernmental body next to the United Nations.
• Statement 2 is not correct, Iran has not been suspended from OIC.
• Statement 3 is correct, the OIC has permanent delegations to the United Nations and the European Union.

• Statement 1 is not correct.
  • P-waves create density differences in the material leading to stretching (rarefaction) and squeezing (compression) of the material.
  • S-waves travel perpendicular to wave direction in a vertical plane, hence they create troughs and crests in the material through which they pass.
• Statement 2 is not correct.
  • P waves are the fastest seismic waves and can move through solid, liquid, or gas.
  • S waves are slower and can travel only through solids.

• All of the above have been accorded Geographical Indication (GI) Tag.
• Hence option d is correct.

• Statement 1 is correct, Sawfish belong to a group of fishes called elasmobranchs that include sharks and rays.
  • Elasmobranchs refer to members of the subclass Elasmobranchii.
  • The term elasmobranch is derived from the Greek term elasmos, meaning ‘metal plate’, and branchia, meaning  ‘gills’.
  • Elasmobranchs have cartilaginous skeletons and gill openings.
• Statement 2 is correct, Largetooth Sawfish is listed as Critically Endangered on IUCN.
• Statement 3 is correct, Sawfishes are protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 in India.

• Statement 1 is not correct, Moringa is a leguminous, small deciduous tree (family Moringaceae) native to tropical Asia but also naturalized in Africa and tropical America.
• Statement 2 is not correct, Tamarind is popular in the Indian subcontinent and in Central America and Mexico and is a common ingredient in the cuisine of those regions. It is indigenous to Africa.
• Statement 3 is correct, Tamarind is collected mainly as a minor forest produce in India.
• Statement 4 is correct, India exports tamarind and seeds of moringa.
• Statement 5 is correct, Fruits, leaves and flowers of moringa are used in the food industry, its seeds are being used to produce biofuels.

• The Badi Baoli (step well), was built more than 400 years ago by Sultan Qutb-ul-Mulk, the first ruler of the Qutb Shahi dynasty. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• The Qutb Shahi dynasty or the Golconda Sultanate was known as the ruling family of the Sultanate of Golkonda.
• Situated in South India, the Qutb Shahi dynasty was ruled by the Shia Muslims who belonged to the Turkmen tribe from the Turkmenistan-Armenia region.
• This dynasty was founded by Sultan Quli Qutub-ul-Mulk in 1518.
• The dynasty ruled for 171 years until the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s army conquered Golconda in 1687.
•  The dynasty came to an end in 1687 during the reign of its seventh Sultan Abul Hasan Qutb Shah, when the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb arrested and jailed him for the rest of his life in Daulatabad, absorbed Golconda into the Mughal empire. Hence statement 2 is correct.

• Gee’s golden langur (Trachypithecus geei) is an Old World monkey found in a small region of western Assam, India and in the neighbouring foothills of the Black Mountains of Bhutan. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• It is considered sacred by many Himalayan people. IUCN conservation status: Endangered. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
• Golden langurs are easily recognised by the colour of their fur and are distributed in forested habitats, fragmented and isolated areas. Hence statement 3 is correct.

• The Charter Act of 1813 passed by the British Parliament renewed the East India Company’s charter for another 20 years. This is also called the East India Company Act, 1813. This act is important in that it defined for the first time the constitutional position of British Indian territories.
• Hence option A is correct.
• Know more about the Charter Act of 1813.

• Zoji La is a high mountain pass in the Great Himalayas in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. Located in the Dras, the pass connects the Kashmir Valley to its west with the Dras and Suru valleys to its northeast and the Indus valley further east.
• Banihal pass is a popular pass in Jammu and Kashmir. It is situated in the Pir- Panjal Range.
• Photu La is a mountain pass on the Srinagar-Leh highway in the Zanskar Range of the Himalayas in India.
• Khardung La is the gateway to the Nubra and Shyok Valleys in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the highest motorable pass in the world.

• Sodium lamps emit light in all directions, however, this is not the case with LED bulbs. LED lamps offer a 180-degree bulb angle to save energy and provide targeted lighting across large areas. Statement 1 is correct. 
• Sodium lights have a shorter lifespan than LED lamps when used as street lighting. The average lifespan of high-pressure sodium lights is 24,000 hours. Statement 2 is incorrect. 
• LED bulbs provide considerable colour enhancements in street lighting. LEDs provide a wider range of colour options than their High-Pressure Sodium counterparts, resulting in better lighting solutions. Statement 3 is correct. 

• The  National Green Tribunal (NGT) is not bound by procedure under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 or the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and is guided by principles of natural justice. However, the Tribunal is vested with the powers of a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure for discharging its functions. Hence Statement 1 is not correct.
• It was formed by replacing the National Environment Appellate Authority. It also draws inspiration from Article 21 of the India Constitution which assures to provide a healthy environment to the citizens of India. Hence Statement 2 is correct.
• The Tribunal is mandated to make an endeavor for disposal of applications or appeals finally within 6 months of filing the same. Hence Statement 3 is not correct.

• Vijayanagara, the ‘city of victory’, was established in southern Karnataka by two brothers named Harihara and Bukka.
• The Vijayanagara empire’s single most important import was horses. They imported a significant number of Arabian horses. It is to improve the cavalry horse breed in their respective districts. Hence Statement 1 is correct.
• Abdur Razzaq was a scholar and explorer from Persia. As an ambassador of Shah Rukh, the Timurid dynasty king of Persia, he visited the Vijaynagar Kingdom during the reign of Deva Raya II. Hence Statement 2 is not correct.

• Svalbard is a Norwegian archipelago between mainland Norway and the North Pole. It is one of the world’s northernmost inhabited areas.
• Jan Mayen is a Norwegian volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean, with no permanent population.
• The Faroe Islands is a self-governing archipelago, part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It comprises 18 rocky, volcanic islands between Iceland and Norway in the North Atlantic Ocean, connected by road tunnels, ferries, causeways and bridges.
• Hence Option A is correct.

Image source: http://www.intrepidtravel.com

• The Boma capturing technique involves luring animals into an enclosure by chasing them through a funnel-like fencing. It is popular in Africa.
• The funnel tapers into an animal selection-cum-loading chute, supported with grass mats and green net to make it opaque for animals, which are tehn herded into a large vehicle for transport to another location.
• This old technique was earlier utilized to capture wild elephants for training and service.
• Hence Option C is correct.

• Rabindranath Tagore authored the national anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’ in 1911.
• It was translated into English as ‘Morning Song of India’ and given a tune on February 28, 1919 during Tagore’s brief stay at Madanapalle.
• In 1919, Rabindranath Tagore during his brief stay at Theosophical College, Madanapalle translated his Bengali poem/National Anthem ‘Jana GanaMana’ into English as ‘Morning Song of India’.
• Before ‘Jana Gana Mana’ was declared the national anthem on January 24, 1950, two days before India became a republic, then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had asked musician Herbert Murrill to give his opinion on the tune.
• Hence Option C is correct.

• All Members of Parliament (MP) of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have provisions to recommend 10 students for admission in Kendriya Vidyalaya every academic year. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• The Central government scrapped the Union Education Minister’s ‘discretionary quota’ for Kendriya Vidyalaya (KV) admissions starting from the 2021-2022 academic session. Recommendations made by the Union ministers for admissions into KVs have also been done away with. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• Objective:
  • To cater to the educational needs of the children of transferable Central Government employees including Defence and Para-Military personnel by providing a common programme of education;
  • To pursue excellence and set pace in the field of school education.
• Hence statement 3 is correct.

• A ‘two plus two dialogue’ is a term used for the installation of a dialogue mechanism between two countries’ defence and external affairs ministries.
• India has a 2+2 format dialogue mechanism on strategic and security issues with four of its key strategic partners, Russia, Australia, the US and Japan. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• The ‘two plus two dialogue’ is an expression used to indicate that two appointed ministers from each country, the ministers of defence and external affairs, in this case, will meet up to discuss the two countries’ strategic and security interests. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• India held its first 2+2 dialogue with the US in September 2018. The USA was the first country with which India began 2+2 dialogue. Hence statement 3 is correct.

• The Padma Awards are conferred on the recommendations made by the Padma Awards Committee, which is constituted by the Prime Minister every year. The nomination process is open to the public. Even self-nomination can be made.
• All persons without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex are eligible for these awards. However, Government servants including those working with PSUs, except doctors and scientists, are not eligible for these awards.
• The total number of awards to be given in a year (excluding posthumous awards and to NRI/foreigners/OCIs) should not be more than 120. 
• Hence all the statements are correct.

• Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya went around the country, especially to places where Government repression was stronger, such as Assam and Punjab with Rajendra Prasad.
• He went to Assam and there launched a movement against opium, with appreciable success.
• Elsewhere he exhorted people to take to the constructive programme of the Congress adopted at Bardoli, such as the boycott of foreign cloth, removal of untouchability, etc.
• He launched the “Gandhi Khaddar Fund” to promote the use of Khaddar.
• Hence statement B is correct.

Sea surface temperature (SST) is routinely used for predicting whether the total amount of rainfall that India receives during the monsoon season will be less or more than the long-term mean of 887.5 mm. Now, scientists from Pune’s Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) find that Ocean Mean Temperature (OMT) has a better ability to predict this than the Sea Surface Temperature. Compared with SST which has a 60% success rate of predicting the Indian summer monsoon, OMT has an 80% success rate. OMT is analysed by measuring the ocean thermal energy during the period from January to March. Using OMT data, scientists are able to predict with 80% probability the monsoon of any year. Hence, statement 2 is correct. SST is restricted to a few millimetres of the top ocean layer, whereas OMT which is measured up to a depth of 26 degrees C isotherm, is more stable and consistent, and the spatial spread is also less. The 26 degrees C isotherm is seen at depths varying from 50–100 metres. During January–March, the mean 26 degrees C isotherm depth in the Southwestern Indian Ocean is 59 metres. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

• The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal headquartered in The Hague. It is governed by an international statute known as the Rome Statute. The Statute entered into force in July 2002. Hence Statement 1 is correct.
• It is the first permanent international criminal court in the world. India is not a member of the ICC. Hence Statement 2 is not correct.
• The ICC’s jurisdiction is limited only to natural persons as provided in Article 25 of the Statute. The minimum age of the alleged perpetrator should be 18 years at the time of the commission of the crime. Hence Statement 3 is correct.

• BOD – Biochemical Oxygen Demand is applied to determine the aerobic destructibility of organic substances. BOD measures the amount of oxygen consumed by microorganisms for the process of decomposition of the organic matters in the water bodies.  Hence Statement 1 is correct.
• It indicates the amount of organic pollution present in an aquatic ecosystem. BOD also measures the chemical oxidation (COD) of inorganic matter. Hence Statement 2 is not correct.
• The amount of oxygen in a litre of water is measured in milligrammes of oxygen per litre of water. The higher the BOD value, the lower the DO content of the water. BOD is not a reliable method of measuring water pollution because it is limited to biodegradable materials. Hence Statement 3 is correct.

MSP is a form of government intervention to insure the farmers against a steep decline in the prices of their goods and to help them prevent losses. The government of India sets the MSP twice a year for 24 commodities. They are as follows:

• Hence option D is correct.

• During the American Revolution, the slogan “No Taxation without Representation” was first raised in the Massachusetts Assembly.
• No taxation without representation was a colonial American slogan in the years running up to the American Revolution.
• It emphasized the colonists’ position that they were unfairly taxed and lacked proper representation in the British Parliament as Englishmen.
• Hence option D is correct.

• Sundarban has a Critical Tiger Habitat area of 1699.62 sq.
• Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Core/Critical Tiger Habitat: 3721 Sq. Km
• Critical ‘tiger’ habitats (CTHs), also known as core areas of tiger reserve, are identified under the Wild Life Protection Act (WLPA), 1972.
• Based on scientific evidence, such areas are required to be kept as safe for the purpose of tiger conservation, without affecting the rights of the Scheduled Tribes or such other forest dwellers.
• The notification of CTH is done by the state government in consultation with the expert committee constituted for the purpose.
• Hence option C is correct.