IAS Prelims GS Questions and Answers - Aug 29 & 30, 2016

ANSWER: Both 1 and 2

Explanation:

• India is the world's largest producer and consumer of pulses.
• Pakistan, Canada, Myanmar, Australia and the United States, in that order, are significant exporters and are India's most significant suppliers.
• Archaeologists have discovered traces of pulse production around Ravi River (Punjab), the seat of the Indus Valley Civilisation, dating circa 3300 BC.
• Meanwhile, evidence of lentil cultivation has also been found in Egyptian pyramids and dry pea seeds have been discovered in a Swiss village that are believed to date back to the Stone Age.
• Archaeological evidence suggests that these peas must have been grown in the eastern Mediterranean and Mesopotamia regions at least 5,000 years ago and in Britain as early as the 11th century.

ANSWER: New Delhi

Explanation:

• Initiatives like ‘Make in India’, ‘Digital India’ and ‘Design in India ‘along with ‘Startup India’ taken by Government of India have injected new hopes in India’s electronics system design and product development space.
• Taking the vision forward, Electropreneur Park has been set-up at University of Delhi, South Campus to incubate 50 early stage start-ups and create atleast 5 global companies over a period of 5 years.
• The initiative was taken by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), managed by Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) and implemented by India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA).

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:

• The park will focus on IP creation and Product Development to result in increased domestic value addition and will witness a unique integration of academia, industry, government and other incubation eco-system elements.
• The platform will also encourage R&D, innovation, Entrepreneurship in the ESDM sector in India and provide assistance during prototyping, development and commercialization for the products, conceptualized at Electropreneur Park, produced through the scheme for India and other growth markets.
• Funded by Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY), Government of India, the Electropreneur Park is an Incubation Centre under PPP mode in the Electronic Systems Design & Manufacturing (ESDM) sector. The Electropreneur Park will develop, promote, recruit, incubate, mentor, and create breakthrough innovations in the ESDM sector.

ANSWER: All of the above

Explanation:

• Researches carried out in some parts of Africa using a powder made of capsicum and used engine oil have been found to be effective and the Food and Agricultural Organisation has recommended its use to control elephant herds.
• Conservationists in Tanzania are using an unorthodox way of keeping elephants from wandering into human settlements — by throwing condoms filled with chilli powder at them.
• Shining a torch at the trespassing elephant and sounding a horn are some methods.
• If it is not deterred, a so-called “chilli cloud” is thrown. Chilli powder mixed with soil is packed with a firecracker into a condom, its end is twisted shut with just the fuse exposed. When lit, the condom bursts with a bang, spraying chilli powder into the air. One whiff is usually enough to send the elephant away.

ANSWER: Both 1 and 2

Explanation:

• Chilli paste-coated ropes are being tried in Kerala to rein in prowling wild elephants.
• Moving away from the traditional methods of scaring away elephants by bursting firecrackers and making loud noises, wildlife researchers are trying coir ropes coated with a paste of chilli powder and used engine oil to control the crop-raiding animals.
• Elephants, one of the most intelligent animal species, get easily accustomed to the traditional techniques used to deter them from farmlands and human habitations, such as noise-making devices, trip-wire activated alarms, and non-lethal electric fencing.
• They invent ways to overcome such hurdles like destroying the electric fence by pulling trees over them and snapping the safe portions of electric lines.
• For deterring elephants from human settlements, continuous practice of any single method is not advisable, but a combination of methods may be practised.

ANSWER: Weather monitoring

Explanation:

• ISRO will launch ScatSat, a weather monitoring and forecasting satellite, with polar satellite launch vehicle.
• SCATSat-1 is an OceanSat-2 follow-up mission, actually a gap-filler mission between OceanSat-2 and -3, under development at ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) with the objective to continue the global ocean wind vector data acquisition started by the OSCAT (OceanSat-2 Scanning Scatterometer).
• The information of global ocean surface winds is an important ingredient for weather forecasts.
• The designated primary payload of satellite is a scatterometer which is similar to the payload launched with Oceansat-2.

ANSWER: Use atmospheric oxygen as oxidiser

Explanation:

• Launch vehicles use combustion of propellants consisting of oxidiser and fuel for deriving the energy.
• Air breathing propulsion systems use atmospheric oxygen, which is available up to about 50 km of earth’s surface to burn the fuel stored on-board thereby making the system much lighter, more efficient and cost effective.
• Air breathing propulsion is a solution for a powered long return cruise flight necessary for reusable launch vehicles.
• The collection and use of air involves challenges as the launch vehicle speeds through atmosphere at supersonic speeds.
• This calls for the development of ramjet or scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) technologies.

ANSWER: Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation:

• The scramjet engine is used only during the atmospheric phase of the rocket’s flight.
• Scramjet engines will help bringing down launch cost by reducing the amount of oxidiser to be carried along with the fuel.
• Scramjet engines designed by ISRO uses hydrogen as fuel and the oxygen from the atmospheric air as the oxidiser.

ANSWER: Food Safety

Explanation:

• Commemorating a decade of integrated food law in the country, and marking ten years of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), FSSAI announced 10@10 – 10th anniversary with 10 initiatives.
• The primary focus of the 10@10 initiative is to engage with stakeholders and consumers to create food safety culture in the country.
• This bouquet of 10 initiatives focused on safe and nutritious food at home, school, workplace, religious places, in trains and railway stations, in restaurants and other places.
• The event also saw launch of Food Safety Display Boards that would help to connect the consumers directly to food safety officers.
• Under the Corporates4FoodSafety initiative, the corporates committed themselves to collaborate, educate and inspire other stakeholders towards food safety as responsible food businesses.

ANSWER: Both 1 and 2

Explanation:

• FSSAI will provide a green book to every household and create a dedicated website for safe and nutritious food at home.
• Similarly for schools, it will prepare a negative list of high fat, sugar and salt foods (commonly referred as junk food), seeking to ensure food safety and nutrition in and around schools, including lunch box and canteens.
• It plans to make licence from FSSAI compulsory for food businesses involved in mid-day meal scheme.
• For offices, FSSAI said the canteens and cafeterias should be registered/licenced with the food regulator. The establishment should also ensure monthly testing of kitchens, water and equipment.
• As far as religious places are concerned, FSSAI said it is engaging with the management of places of worships to help them implement the Food Safety Management System (FSMS).
• Siddhivinayak temple in Mumbai has already adopted FSMS, while Saibaba temple in Shirdi is in the process.