IAS Prelims GS Questions and Answers - June 29, 2016

ANSWER: Anti-Maoist unit

Explanation:

• Jharkhand's special anti-Maoist force is known as 'Jharkhand Jaguar'.
• At present large parts of Jharkhand are seriously afflicted by extremism.
• Taking pro-active initiative, the Government of Jharkhand through Home Dept. sanctioned the creation of 20 Assault Groups of Special Task Force (STF) for eradication of extremist activities in Jharkhand.
• This force was later given the distinctive name of “Jharkhand Jaguar” (JJ), and also a distinctive uniform.

ANSWER: Legal System

Explanation:

• LIMBS is one of the progressive steps taken by the Ministry of Law and Justice in the direction of Digital India.
• LIMBS helps in monitoring court cases in a transparent manner which has never been done before. It can be implemented in all Ministries.41 Ministries are currently using it.
• LIMBS provides a low cost web technology access to all the stakeholders involved in a court case in a coordinated way whereby it provides inputs which are available seamlessly on 24x7 basis as per the defined access rules. This way, it is possible to know the various stages of a case and monitor its progress on a continued basis through an elaborate set of user friendly reports.
• It is in line with Prime Minister's vision of Digital India to digitalise the details of court cases and brings various stakeholders on a single platform.
• This will not only help to introduce transparency but also a sense of ownership among various stakeholders during the life cycle of a court case.
• Among others, it will help authorities to take 'data driven decision making' and to evaluate performance of various stake holders and to conduct legal audit. This is a simple, user friendly and innovative web based application with robust architect which digitalises all the processes of a court case.

ANSWER: Gujarat

Explanation:

• Banni Grasslands Reserve or Banni grasslands form a belt of arid grassland ecosystem on the outer southern edge of the desert of the marshy salt flats of Rann of Kutch in Kutch District, Gujarat State, India.
• They are known for rich wildlife and biodiversity.
• They are currently legally protected under the status as a protected or reserve forest in India. Though declared a protected forest more than half a century ago Gujarat state's forest department has recently proposed a special plan to restore and manage this ecosystem in the most efficient way.
• Wildlife Institute of India (WII) has identified this grassland reserve as one of the last remaining habitats of the cheetah in India and a possible reintroduction site for the species.
• It is also famous for its birds.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:

• Until the 20th century, the Asiatic cheetah was quite common and roamed all the way from Israel, the Arabian Peninsula to Iran, Afghanistan and India. In India, they ranged as far south as the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu.
• The Asiatic cheetah, also known as the "hunting leopard" in India was kept by kings and princes to hunt.
• Most of the Asiatic Cheetahs perished due to their hunting or their capture by humans. Destruction of habitat was the secondary reason which came later.
• With the death of the last remaining population of the Asiatic cheetah in India, the species was declared extinct in India; it is the only animal in recorded history to become extinct from India due to unnatural causes.

ANSWER: Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation:

• In order to expedite project approvals, the government has revised financial limits of departments and ministries while empowering ministers to clear projects of up to Rs 500 crore as against the earlier ceiling of Rs 150 crore.
• Besides, projects or schemes worth Rs 500 crore and above and up to Rs 1,000 crore can be cleared by the Finance Minister and projects over Rs 1,000 crore would require the Cabinet approval.
• Non-plan Schemes or projects of less than Rs 300 crore can now be appraised by Ministry or Standing Finance Committee of the Ministry concerned.
• The financial powers of the Minister-in-charge of the administrative ministry in case of the Non-Plan schemes or projects have also been enhanced and the schemes or project costing less than Rs 500 crore can now be approved that level.
• Earlier, the Minister-in-charge could approve projects costing less than Rs 150 crore.

ANSWER: Thiruvalluvar

Explanation:

• Thiruvalluvar is a celebrated Tamil poet and philosopher whose contribution to Tamil literature is the Thirukkural, a work on ethics.
• Thiruvalluvar is thought to have lived sometime between the 3rd century BC and the 1st century BC. The Tamil poet Mamulanar of the Sangam period mentioned that Thiruvalluvar was the greatest Tamil scholar.
• Thirukkural is one of the most revered ancient works in the Tamil language. It is considered a 'common creed', providing a guide for human morals and betterment in life.
• Thirukkural has been translated into several languages, including a translation into Latin by Constanzo Beschi in 1730, which helped make the work known to European intellectuals.
• Recently a statue of Thiruvalluvar was inaugurated in Haridwar.

ANSWER: Only 2

Explanation:

• NMEP will pave way for auction of 100 prospective mineral blocks. It boosts India’s mining potential.
• It allows private mining companies to carry out regional and detailed exploration of mining blocks.
• Earlier, private explorers used to apply for mining leases which would then be given out on a first-cum-first-serve basis. The new policy does away with that and all participants will now have to bid for mining blocks through an auction.
• About 2 percent of royalty will be set aside for National Mineral Exploration Trust.
• The policy allows host states a share in revenue from mineral exploration. Revenue sharing model for exploration to be lump sum or an annuity basis payment.

ANSWER: Both 1 and 2

Explanation:

• One of the important features of NMEP is attractive provisions for private investment in the exploration sector.
• NMEP has proposed that private entities engaged in carrying out regional and detailed exploration would get a certain share in revenue (by way of royalty or premium accruing to the State government) in mining operation from the successful bidder after the e-auction of the mineral block.
• Selection of private explorer is proposed to be done through a transparent process of competitive bidding through e-auction. For this, reasonable areas or blocks for regional exploration will be earmarked or identified by the government for auctioning.
• Of India’s entire Obvious Geological Potential (OGP) area, identified by GSI, only 10 per cent has been explored and mining is undertaken in 1.5-2 per cent of this area.