UPSC 2022: Weekly GK and Current Affairs Quiz Apr 30 - May 06

• Network latency is the time required for a set of data to travel between two points. 5G technology is different from previous generations of cellular technology because of how short that amount of time is. Latency is low with 4G, but 5G will make it virtually zero.
• Latency plays a very important role in self-driving cars.
• Self-driving cars are just one of the many potential advantages of 5G over 4G.

• Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) wages are calculated based on the Consumer Price Index-Agriculture Labourer (CPI-AL).
• In the Financial Year 2021, as many as 11 crore individuals got work under the scheme, the highest since its inception in 2006, owing to the huge demand for work under the MGNREGA scheme in FY-21.

• The Gujral doctrine was a five-point roadmap that sought to build trust between India and neighbours, of the solution to bilateral issues through bilateral talks and to remove immediate quid pro quos in the diplomatic relationship between India and her neighbours.
• The five principles are:

1. With neighbours such as Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Maldives and Sri Lanka, India does not seek reciprocity but offers and accommodates what it can in good faith and trust.
2. No South Asian country should permit its territory to be used against the interest of another south Asian nation.
3. Countries should not interfere in the internal affairs of one another.
4. All South Asian countries should respect each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.
5. They should settle all their disputes via peaceful bilateral negotiations.

• The Gujral Doctrine is based on cooperation, accommodation and non-reciprocity.

The National Commission for Women (NCW) is a statutory body established under the National Commission for Women Act, 1990.
The Commission consists of a chairperson, a member secretary, and five other members.
NCW has the power to inspect the jail, remand home to ensure that the women staying there are not exploited as they are vulnerable.

Ancient Indian temples are classified into three broad categories. The Nagara (Northern India), the Dravida (Southern India) and the Vesara (Deccan, parts of North India and Central India, between the Vindhyas and the river Krishna).

• The Supreme Court in the Indra Sawhney v Union of India case 1992 held that economic backwardness is not a criterion for providing reservation.
• It said that reservation can be provided only at the time of recruitment, and not at the time of the promotions.
• It fixed the reservation limit at 50%.
• The Indira Sawhney judgment had categorically said “50% reservation shall be the rule, only in certain exceptional and extraordinary situations for bringing far-flung and remote areas population into mainstream, 50% rule can be relaxed.”
• That is reservation can exceed 50% in “exceptional circumstances” or “extraordinary situation”.

• The Constitution (One Hundred and Second Amendment) Act, 2018 gave constitutional status to the National Backward Classes Commission.
• The Amendment gives the President powers to notify backward classes.

• Department of Military Affairs (DMA) is the department in charge of military matters within the Indian Ministry of Defence.
• It is headed by the Chief of Defence Staff, as its ex-officio secretary.
• The DMA provides integration between the armed forces of the Union and the Ministry of Defence.
• Officers from the Army, Navy and the Air Force are posted as Joint Secretaries in the Department of Military Affairs (DMA).

• MRIs (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) use radio waves and CT (Computed Tomography) scans use X-rays.
• CT Scan uses computers and rotating X-ray machines to create cross-sectional images of the body. These images provide more detailed information than normal X-ray images. They can show the soft tissues, blood vessels, and bones in various parts of the body.
• CT scans can spot blood clots while X-rays cannot.

• The Brahmo Samaj opposed polytheism and idol-worship.
• It denied the need for a priestly class for interpreting the religious texts.
• The doctrine of the infallibility of Vedas was not popularized by Brahmo Samaj. Many of its members questioned the infallibility of Vedas.

• Uranium is weakly radioactive because all isotopes of uranium are unstable.
• Fissionable isotopes, especially U-235, are used in nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons.
• In India, only public sector companies under the Government of India are allowed to explore and mine atomic minerals like Uranium.
• Australia, Kazakhstan, Canada, Namibia and South Africa have the largest deposits of Uranium in the world.

• Anamalai Tiger Reserve – Tamil Nadu
• Satkosia Tiger Reserve – Odisha
• Pilibhit Tiger Reserve – Uttar Pradesh

• Port Darwin is a port in northern Australia.
• Landbridge Group, a Chinese firm won a bidding process in September 2015 to operate Darwin Port on a 99-year lease in a deal.
• Naval exercises between the USA and Australia have not been conducted in Port Darwin.

• Dahla Dam is Afghanistan’s second-biggest dam.
• The Taliban has captured Dahla Dam amidst clashes, shortly after the U.S. military formally began withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan.

• National Legal Services Authority (NLSA) was formed in 1995 under the authority of the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987.
• Its objective is to provide free and competent legal services to the weaker sections of the society on the basis of equal opportunity.
• It organizes Lok Adalats for speedy resolution of cases.
• It issues guidelines for the State Legal Services Authorities to implement the legal programmes and schemes throughout the country.

• Puducherry, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir are the Union Territories with legislative assembly.
• The Parliament can establish a high court for a union territory or put it under the jurisdiction of the High Court of adjacent state.
• These Union Territories can make laws on any subject in the State List as well as the Concurrent List.

• Kabasura Kudineer also termed ‘Nilavembu Kudineer’ is a type of powder form of medicine mainly used in the treatment of respiratory problems such as fever, cold, severe phlegm and flu.
• It is a Siddha medicine that was widely used as a prophylactic during times of viral epidemic like Swine flu.

• Drones flying Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) are controlled by data provided by on-board instruments.
• Deploying a drone for BVLOS costs far less than several other traditional methods such as manned helicopters and airplanes.

• The Hajong are a tribal group native to the Indian subcontinent, notably in the northeast Indian states and Bangladesh.
• Hajongs follow Hajong Hinduism also called Dyaoism which is a form of Hinduism practised by the Hajong people of Northeast India. It represents a distinct form of Hindu worship incorporating tribal animism.
• The Hajong people speak the Hajong language, which is an Indo-Aryan language.
• Hajongs are endogamous people. They marry within the specific social group or ethnic group, rejecting those from others as unsuitable for marriage or other close personal relationships.

• India has ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of WTO.
• In December 2013, WTO members concluded negotiations on a Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) at the Bali Ministerial Conference, as part of a wider “Bali Package”.
• Therefore, TFA is a part of WTO’s Bali Ministerial Package of 2013.
• The TFA entered into force on 22 February 2017 after two-thirds of the WTO membership completed their domestic ratification process.

• The central authorities are not involved in the manufacture, sale and distribution of drugs.
• Central authorities like the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) approve new drugs, lay down standards for drugs and help regulate the quality of imported drugs.

• Arnesh Kumar v. the State of Bihar is a landmark judgment, which was pronounced by the Apex Court imposing checks and balances on the powers of the police before an arrest.
• The judgment had laid guidelines related to arrests holding that arrests should be an exception in cases where the offences are punishable with less than 7 years imprisonment.

• Keibul Lamjao National Park- Manipur
• Kaziranga National Park- Assam
• Kanger Valley National Park- Chhattisgarh
• Bandipur National Park- Karnataka

• India’s first bilateral FTA with Sri Lanka (ISFTA) came into effect in March 2000.
• India has a FTA with South Korea, Japan and ASEAN as well.

• He became Congress president at its Banaras session in 1905.
• He was regarded by Mahatma Gandhi as his political guru.
• He started a weekly newspaper ‘Hitavada’ in English.

‘Dharmatma Gokhale’ is a book written by Gandhiji in Gujarati, as a tribute to Gopal Krishna Gokhale.

• Rabindranath Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 for Gitanjali.
• In 1874, Tagore’s poem Abhilaash (Desire) was published in a magazine called Tattobodhini.
• Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood in 1919 following the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre in 1919.
• 1n 1921, Rabindranath Tagore established Viswabharati University.

• Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2020 was passed in the Parliament in September 2020. As per the amendments:
• Foreign contribution must be received only in an account designated by the bank as an “FCRA account” in the Delhi branch of the State Bank of India.
  • The Home Ministry had directed all NGOs seeking foreign donations to open a designated FCRA account at the State Bank of India’s New Delhi branch by March 31, 2021.
• The government may conduct an inquiry before renewing the FCRA certificate to ensure that the person making the application is not indulging in activities aimed at religious conversion.
• A person who receives foreign contribution must not use more than 20% of the contribution for meeting administrative expenses.

• Bhitarkanika National Park is a national park in northeast Kendrapara district in Odisha. It obtained the status of a Ramsar site in 2002. It is surrounded by Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary. It is not a Tiger Reserve.
• Bandipur in Karnataka, Manas in Assam and Sunderbans in West Bengal are all Tiger Reserves.