IAS Prelims GS Questions and Answers - Jan 11 & 12, 2016

ANSWER: None

Explanation:
- Foreign direct investment norms in the defense sector were changed by allowing FDI up to 49 percent under automatic route and beyond that through the FIPB’s approval.
- The government has also done away with the earlier requirement of mandatory permission from the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) beyond 49 percent.
- As per the earlier FDI policy in the sector, foreign investment up to 49 percent was permitted under government approval route.
Portfolio investment and investment by FVCIs were restricted to 24 percent only.

ANSWER: To facilitate private partnership

Explanation:
- Two space industry enclaves or parks have been conceived for launchers at Sriharikota and a smaller one at an existing Bengaluru spacecraft campus.
- It is for encouraging increased privatization of the nation’s space programme over the next five years.
- For now, the facilities will be “captive” to drive the future missions of the Indian Space Research Organisation.
- ISRO wants to groom and engage domestic industry in the launch vehicles area from integrating sub-systems up to assembling, and even launching the PSLV.

ANSWER: Nepalese

Explanation:
- Tamu is another name of Gurung community of Nepal and Losar means New Year. Tamu Losar is celebration of Gurung’s New Year.
- The Tamu Losar marks the beginning of the Tamu Sambat or Gurung Calendar Year.
- Gurung (also known as Tamu Dheen) ethnic group, who traditionally belong form Nepal celebrated 'Tamu Lhosar' Mela.
- Gurungs are a sub community of Gorkhas who follow Buddhism as their religion, and so their culture is also influenced by Tibetans.
- Both the Tibetans and Gurungs celebrate 'Lhosar' (meaning New Year), which falls on December 30 and marks the start of a new year.

ANSWER: Both

Explanation:
- Kepler is designed to survey a portion of our region of the Milky Way to discover dozens of Earth-size exoplanets in or near the habitable zone and estimate how many of the billions of stars in the Milky Way have such planets.
- Kepler's sole instrument is a photometer that continually monitors the brightness of over 145,000 main sequence stars in a fixed field of view.
- This data is transmitted to Earth, then analyzed to detect periodic dimming caused by exoplanets that cross in front of their host star.
- NASA announced the 1000th confirmed exoplanet discovered by the Kepler Space Telescope till January 6, 2015.
- Four of the newly confirmed exoplanets were found to orbit within habitable zones of their related stars: three of the four, Kepler-438b, Kepler-442b and Kepler-452b, are near-Earth-size and likely rocky; the fourth, Kepler-440b, is a super-Earth.

ANSWER: Tamil Nadu

Explanation:
- Jallikattu also known Eruthazhuvuthal or Manju vira??u is a bull-baiting or bull cuddling sport played in Tamil Nadu as a part of Pongal celebrations.
- Jallikattu is more than 2,000 years old and considered to be one of the oldest sports still practised in the modern era.
- The Indian government has lifted a ban on Jallikattu through notification.
- The notification overturns a 2011 notification that prohibited the exhibition or training of bulls, and some other animals, as performing animals.

ANSWER: Both

Explanation:
- Thai Pongal is a Tamil harvest festival. Thai Pongal is a four day festival which according to the Gregorian calendar is normally celebrated from January 13 to January 16, but sometimes it is celebrated from January 14 to January 17.
- This corresponds to the last day of the Tamil month Maargazhi to the third day of the Tamil month Thai.
- The day marks the start of the sun’s six-month-long journey northwards (the Uttarayanam).
- This also corresponds to the Indic solstice when the sun purportedly enters the 10th house of the Indian zodiac Makara or Capricorn.
- Thai Pongal is mainly celebrated to convey appreciation to the Sun God for providing the energy for agriculture. Part of the celebration is the boiling of the first rice of the season consecrated to the Sun - the Surya Maangalyam.

ANSWER: Both

Explanation:
- NEOCam would survey from the Earth–Sun L1 Lagrange point, allowing it to look close to the Sun and see objects inside Earth's orbit.
- On 30 September 2015, NASA's Discovery Program selected NEOCam along with other four mission concepts for refinement during the next year.
- Each mission received $3 million for a one-year study.
- The winner will be chosen in September 2016, and must be ready to launch by the end of 2021.
- NEOCam would be the successor of NEOWISE mission.

ANSWER: Ministry of Home

Explanation:
- The responsibility of conducting the decennial Census rests with the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India under Ministry of Home Affairs.
- The Census Organisation was set up on an ad-hoc basis for each Census till the 1951 Census.
- The Census Act was enacted in 1948 to provide for the scheme of conducting population census with duties and responsibilities of census officers.
- The Government of India decided in May 1949 to initiate steps for developing systematic collection of statistics on the size of population, its growth, etc. and established an organisation in the Ministry of Home Affairs under Registrar General and ex-Officio Census Commissioner, India.
- This organisation was made responsible for generating data on population statistics including Vital Statistics and Census.
- This office was also entrusted with the responsibility of implementation of Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 in the country.
- Senior IAS officer Sailesh was appointed as the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India, replacing C Chandramouli.

ANSWER: Both

Explanation:
- The Three Crowned Kings or the Three Glorified by Heaven refers to the triumvirate of Chola, Chera and Pandya who dominated the politics of the ancient Tamil country.
- Raja Raja Chola also launched several naval campaigns that resulted in the capture of the Malabar Coast as well as the Maldives and Sri Lanka.
- Raja Raja Chola was succeeded by his son Rajendra Chola.

ANSWER: Only 2

Explanation:
- The ordinance is aimed at amending the provisions of the Act declaring that all enemy property vested in the 'custodian' of enemy property would continue to vest in the custodian irrespective of the death or extinction of the enemy.
- The main aim of the ordinance was to negate the effect of a Court judgment in this regard.
- The custodian of Enemy Property for India is an Indian government department that is empowered to appropriate property in India owned by Pakistani nationals.

ANSWER: Only 2

Explanation:
- In case of J&K, as per Section 92 of state Constitution, the Governor’s Rule can be imposed for a period of six months in the state.
- It is same as the President’s Rule imposed under Article 356 of the Constitution.
- Governor’s rule has been imposed in the state of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) for sixth time as the process of formation new government following the death of Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed is taking some time.
- It was imposed after President Pranab Mukherjee accepted the recommendations forwarded by Union Home Ministry on the basis of a recommendation from J&K Governor NN Vohra.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:
- RBI has four Deputy Governors. Two are from outside, a commercial banker and an economist and two others are promoted from within its ranks.
- Deputy Governor of RBI can be appointed for a period of five years or till the age of 62, whichever is earlier. Current other three Deputy Governors of RBI are:R. Khan, S.S. Mundra and R. Gandhi.
- The Union Government has reappointed Dr Urjit Patel as Deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
- Dr Urjit Patel headed committee to review the monetary policy framework.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:
- The Constitution of India does not define the word ‘Minority’ and only refers to ‘Minorities’ and speaks of those ‘based on religion or language’, the rights of the minorities have been spelt out in the Constitution in detail.
- The Commission shall consist of a Chairperson, a Vice Chairperson and five Members to be nominated by the Central Government from amongst persons of eminence, ability and integrity
- The five Members including the Chairperson shall be from amongst the minority communities.
- Naseem Ahmad is current chairman of commission.