IAS Prelims GS Questions and Answers - Sep 23, 2016

ANSWER: Testing adulteration of milk

Explanation:

• The ‘Ksheer Tester’, a newly developed handheld GPS-enabled version of the recently launched Ksheer Scanner technology to check adulteration in milk.
• The device, developed by the CSIR-CEERI, would enable any person to track the location of the tested sample and receive the test results through SMS on the device.

ANSWER: Diamonds

Explanation:

• The government has set up a special notified zone (SNZ) to facilitate imports and trading of rough diamonds which will boost the gems and jewellery sector.
• The special notified zone is a trading centre where global miners can import and trade in rough diamonds without inviting income tax assessments.
• The move will help develop the country as a trading hub for rough diamonds.
• At present, diamond manufacturers of Gujarat and elsewhere travel to Dubai, Belgium or Israel to purchase raw materials, thereby ramping up cost. Though as much as 85 per cent of rough diamonds are polished in the country, only 15 per cent of them are imported directly, the rest being bought by middlemen.
• The zone in Mumbai will give the diamond industry a strong competitive advantage against other trading centres like Antwerp, Dubai, etc, by saving time as well as foreign exchange spent on travel to these trading centres or establish offices there. It will also ensure steady supply of rough diamonds in the country.

ANSWER: Germany

Explanation:

• With its objective of providing safe, environment friendly and economical mode of transportation through National Waterway-1 (NW-1), The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), Ministry of Shipping signed a contract with M/s DST, Germany to design vessels, especially suited to navigate the 1620 km stretch of NW-1.
• The objective of IWAI is to go along with nature and disturb the river minimally.
• One of the most important navigational challenges for NW-1 is the kind of vessels that will play on the Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly stretch.
• Keeping in view the difficult hydro-morphological characteristics of the river in the upper reaches between Patna and Varanasi, it is important to have vessels which can navigate on low draft, with high carrying capacity, and are economically viable and environment friendly.

ANSWER: 1974

Explanation:

• Agreement Concerning the Demarcation of the Land Boundary between India and Bangladesh and Related Matters of 1974 (referred to as 1974 LBA) sought to find a solution to the complex nature of the border demarcation involved.
• However, three outstanding issues pertaining to an un-demarcated land boundary of approximately 6.1 km, exchange of enclaves and adverse possessions remained unsettled.
• The Protocol (referred to as the 2011 Protocol) to the 1974 LBA, signed on 6th September 2011 during the visit of the Prime Minister to Bangladesh, paves the way for a settlement of the outstanding land boundary issues between the two countries.
• As such, the 2011 Protocol does not envisage the displacement of populations and ensures that all areas of economic activity relevant to the homestead have been preserved. The 2011 Protocol has been prepared with the full support and concurrence of the State Governments concerned (Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and West Bengal).

ANSWER: Enclaves in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh)

Explanation:

• After partition of country, in view of the problems arising out of boundary demarcation and enclaves, both the countries felt it necessary to reach an agreement.
• The then Prime Minister of India Mr. Jawaharlal Nehru and Mr. Feroze Khan Noon, Prime Minister of Pakistan arrived at an agreement in 1958 which is known as NEHRU-NOON Agreement.
• This agreement provided among other things for "Exchange of enclaves on the basis of enclaves for enclaves without any consideration of territorial loss or gain" (9th Amendment of Constitution act, 1960 , Article I and Part I of First Schedule).
• As a result of this agreement Dahagram and Angorpota came to Indian territory. This agreement inter-alia provided for transfer of 11.29 sq. K.Ms of southern half of Berubari to Pakistan as per interpretation of Radcliffe award.

ANSWER: Un-demarcated areas

Explanation:

• The Land Boundary Agreement of 1974 between India and Bangladesh has been implemented in its entirety, except for three outstanding issues pertaining to (i) undemarcated land boundary of approximately 6.1 km in three sectors viz. Daikhata-56 (West Bengal), Muhuri River-Belonia (Tripura) and Lathitila-Dumabari (Assam).
• Though the issue of the un-demarcated land boundary was addressed in the 1974 LBA, it could not be implemented due to differences of perception in the interpretation of the LBA and in view of the ground realities.
• It has been addressed and implemented in 2015, under the 2011 Protocol to the LBA 1974.

ANSWER: Only 2

Explanation:

• People living in the Adverse Possessions are technically in occupation and possession of land beyond the boundary pillars, but are administered by the laws of the country of which they are citizens and they enjoy all legal rights, including right to vote.
• They have deep-rooted ties to their land which goes back decades and are categorically unwilling to be uprooted. Many local communities had sentimental or religious attachments to the land in which they lived.
• It thus became extremely difficult to implement the terms of Land Boundary Agreement of 1974 as it meant having to uproot people from the land in which they had lived and developed sentimental and religious attachments to.
• With the adjustment of adverse possessions in the implementation of the 2011 Protocol, India will receive 2777.038 acres of land and transfer 2267.682 acres of land to Bangladesh.

ANSWER: Enclaves

Explanation:

• The India–Bangladesh enclaves, also known as the chitmahals and sometimes called pasha enclaves, were the enclaves along the Bangladesh–India border, in Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Assam and Meghalaya.
• There were a total of 111 Indian enclaves and 51 Bangladeshi Enclaves.
• In implementing the 2011 Protocol to the Land Boundary Agreement of 1974, 111 Indian enclaves with a total area of 17,160.63 acres in Bangladesh are to be transferred to Bangladesh, while 51 Bangladesh enclaves with an area of 7,110.02 acres in India are to be transferred to India.

ANSWER: 9th

Explanation:

• The Ninth Constitutional Amendment Act of 1960 facilitated the cession of Indian Territory of Berubari Union (located in West Bengal) to Pakistan (East Pakistan) as provided in the Indo-Pakistan Agreement (1958).
• This Agreement was also known as Nehru-Noon Agreement of 1958.
• The Supreme Court held that the parliament of India is not competent to make a law under article 3 for the implementation of the Nehru-Noon Agreement.
• This was followed by an amendment of the Constitution by parliament using power of Article 368. The result was the Constitution (9th Amendment) Act 1960.

ANSWER: It is world’s only third order enclave

Explanation:

• Dahala Khagrabari (#51) was an Indian enclave belonging to the District of Cooch Behar in the State of West Bengal. This was a piece of India within Bangladesh, within India, within Bangladesh.
• It is also known as Indian counter-counter enclave.
• It was the only third-order enclave in the world until 1 August 2015, when it was ceded to Bangladesh.
• In practice, it was a parcel of land used for farming and was not actually inhabited.
• It was one of the smallest - 7,000 square metres (1.7 acres) - of the Indo-Bangladesh enclaves, albeit not the smallest; the smallest being Panisala No. 79, an Indian enclave of 1,090 square metres (0.27 acres) in the Rangpur Division of Bangladesh.