IAS Prelims GS Questions and Answers - June 07, 2016

ANSWER: Guwahati

Explanation:

• The Assam state capital Guwahati becomes the first city in the country to have its own City Animal with the Kamrup Metropolitan district administration declaring the Gangetic River Dolphin as the mascot.
• The animal, locally known as ‘Sihu’, would be the ‘City Animal’ of Guwahati.
• The district administration had organised online and off-line voting among three protected creatures, which are on the verge of extinction, to decide the mascot.
• Along with Gangetic River Dolphin, the other two animals were Black Softshell Turtle (Bor Kaso) and Greater Adjutant Stork (Hargila).
• While less than 2,000 Gangetic River Dolphins remain in the Brahmaputra along Guwahati, a recent survey said only a small population of Black Softshell Turtle were found in the river and its tributaries.
• The number of Greater Adjutant Stork is less than 1,200 in and around the state capital.

ANSWER: 1, 2, 4

Explanation:
Seven MoUs were signed. They were -

• Establishing framework for facilitating participation of Qatari institutional investors in Infrastructure projects in India under NIIF.
• Cooperation and mutual assistance between the two countries on matters pertaining to customs administration through exchange of information and intelligence.
• Exchange of intelligence related to money laundering, terrorism-financing and related crimes and persons connected thereto.
• Enhance cooperation between the two countries on skill development and mutual recognition of qualifications to facilitate mobility of skilled workers from India to Qatar.
• Bilateral cooperation in the field of planning and developing of tourism, through marketing and promotion as also to support cooperation between private sector stakeholders.
• Cooperation in areas of health, including interalia in occupational and environmental health, pharmaceuticals, medical education, exchange of the best practices in the field of primary healthcare, research in the field of health care, technology, health care system and exchange of medical experts and scientists.
• As a follow up to the existing MoU in the field of Youth and Sports, the first Executive Programme provides for exchanges and cooperation in sports activities, training camps for sports teams and exchange visits of leaders and officials etc. between the two countries.

ANSWER: Odisha

Explanation:

• Odisha is first in the country to give transgender people social welfare benefits - such as a pension, housing and food grains - usually allocated for only the most impoverished.
• The move to give the transgender community the same benefits as those living below the poverty line was aimed at improving their overall social and economic status.
• Members of the transgender community will be given Below Poverty Line (BPL) cards that will allow them to access benefits under various government welfare programmes.
• This includes schemes that provide free housing, 100 days of paid work annually, pensions and loans to start up their own businesses. They would also be entitled 5 kg of food grains every month under India's National Food Security Act.

ANSWER: Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation:

• The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, in partnership with Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, and Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, is intensifying support to the five States of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal, to make all villages along the banks of the Ganga Open Defecation Free (ODF).
• The campaign, being a collaborative effort between the Swachh Bharat Mission, local youth leaders (Yuva) and the Namami Gange project (Ganga) - is being called ‘Swachh Yug’, which translates into ‘the age of Swachh’.
• The Ministry of Youth Affairs, under the coordination of the Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan, is enlisting the support of youth agencies such as the Bharat Scouts and Guides, Nehru Yuva Kendras and National Service Scheme. These organizations will be called upon to provide a large number of local youth volunteers to support a behaviour change campaign in the 52 districts under the Swachh Bharat Mission.
• To take this initiative forward, a nodal officer has been identified for each district to work on making their district Open Defecation Free (ODF) in mission mode, as well as to focus on ‘Swachhta’ at the village through proper Solid and Liquid Waste Management and maintaining general cleanliness. In addition to the monetary incentive offered by the government under the Swachh Bharat Mission, extensive interpersonal behaviour change communication training will be given to local trainers through a network of virtual classrooms across the 5 Ganga States.

ANSWER: 2

Explanation:

• India has not signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)and hence has not been included in the NSG.
• Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a multinational body concerned with reducing nuclear proliferation by controlling the export and re-transfer of materials that may be applicable to nuclear weapon development and by improving safeguards and protection on existing materials.
• The NSG was founded in response to the Indian nuclear test in May 1974 and first met in November 1975. The test demonstrated that certain non-weapons specific nuclear technology could be readily turned to weapons development. Nations already signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) saw the need to further limit the export of nuclear equipment, materials or technology.
• NSG membership would give India greater access to the international nuclear market, as well other perks and benefits. India has been trying to get membership but is opposed by China citing that non-NPT countries should not be allowed.
• Recently Switzerland has supported India’s entry into the NSG.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:

• Fields have been discovered by India’s National oil companies and are now being offered under exclusive policy which is designed to be investor friendly and is based on easy to administer Revenue Sharing contract model, in tune with the Government’s policy of ‘Ease of doing business’ in India.
• It will involve International Competitive Bidding with no mandatory domestic participation.
• There is no mandatory prior technical experience required for the bidder nor is there any mandatory work program.
• There will be no cess, and minimal royalty is in line with earlier New Exploration Licensing Policy. Goods and services imported for petroleum operations will be exempted from custom duty.
• The investors will not only get an opportunity to enter in Indian upstream market but will also experience freedom for pricing and marketing of Crude and Gas on arm’s length basis.
• The Contract extension clause is generous and there will be no restriction on exploration during the contract period.

ANSWER: 2nd

Explanation:

• India has jumped 13 positions from last year to rank second among 30 developing countries this year on ease of doing business. This was revealed in 2016 Global Retail Development Index (GRDI) which ranks top 30 developing countries for retail investment worldwide.
• Pick up in GDP growth and better clarity in FDI regulations have helped India to achieve a second ranking. The country has relaxed several key FDI regulations in single-brand retail which has paved the way for multinational firms to enter the market.
• It is the world's second largest internet market and the increasing internet and smartphone penetration is contributing to the expansion of e-commerce.
• The GRDI report says as Indian consumers become more comfortable with shopping online, the venture capital and private equity firms have boosted investment in the sector providing further momentum.
• The study is unique as it not only identifies the markets that are most attractive today, but also those that offer future potential.

ANSWER: Bending of light by gravitational body

Explanation:

• In observational astronomy an Einstein ring, also known as an Einstein-Chwolson ring or Chwolson ring, is the deformation of the light from a source (such as a galaxy or star) into a ring through gravitational lensing of the source's light by an object with an extremely large mass (such as another galaxy or a black hole).
• This occurs when the source, lens, and observer are all aligned. The first complete Einstein ring was discovered by collaboration between astronomers at the University of Manchester and NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in 1998.
• Gravitational lensing is predicted by Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity. Instead of light from a source traveling in a straight line (in three dimensions), it is bent by the presence of a massive body, which distorts space-time. An Einstein Ring is a special case of gravitational lensing, caused by the exact alignment of the source, lens, and observer. This results in symmetry around the lens, causing a ring-like structure.