QUIZ – 2017: Insights Current Affairs Quiz, 27 March 2018

Solution: b.

The Swajal project has frequently been in the news (government press releases – HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE) and thus this question.

• The Swajal model was first tried in the Uttarakhand area of undivided-UP around 20 years back, and is now being scaled up at national level with special focus on water-scarce areas.
• The Swajal Pilot Project has been planned in six States viz. Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
• The initiative will also be launched in the 115 aspirational districts (on which we have already asked a question earlier) selected by the Prime Minister for focus on all-round development.
• The main objective of the re-launch of the initiative is to make an effort to deliver tapped water to every household in the country through decisions made by the community, for the community, of the resources of the community.

http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=177895;

—

Solution: c.

The Ministry of Human Resource Development has approved ‘Study in India’ programme with, inter-alia, the following objectives:

1. To improve the soft power of India with focus on the neighbouring countries and use it as a tool in diplomacy.
2. To boost the number of inbound International students in India; Growth of India’s global market share of International students; To reduce the export – import imbalance in the number of International students.

• To double India’s market share of global education exports from less than 1 percent to 2 percent.

1. Increase in global ranking of India as educational destination.
2. Increase in contribution of international student in the form of direct spends, indirect spends, spillover effects.
3. Improvement in overall quality of higher education.

The policy also proposes fee waivers to meritorious foreign students based on certain criteria.

http://mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/Stay%20in%20India%20release.pdf;

Solution: a.

The Union Cabinet has given its approval for closure of India Development Foundation of Overseas Indians. IDF-OI was set up by Government of India with the approval of Cabinet in 2008 as an autonomous not-for-profit Trust, to facilitate Overseas Indian philanthropy into social and development projects in India.

To read why it is being discontinued, refer: http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=177813;

—

Solution: c.

The 18 new Indian Missions in Africa will be opened in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Djibouti (where China operationalised its first overseas military base last year), Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, Rwanda, Sao Tome& Principe, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Swaziland and Togo over a four year period from 2018-2021 thereby increasing the number of Resident Indian Missions in Africa from 29 to 47 (54 countries make up Africa).

http://pib.nic.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1525690;

—

Solution: d.

The scheme falls under Swachh Bharat Mission – Gramin which is being implemented by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.

• To accelerate the efforts to achieve universal sanitation coverage and to put focus on sanitation, the Prime Minister of India launched the Swachh Bharat Mission on 2nd October, 2014.
• The Mission Coordinator for SBM is Secretary, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation (MDWS) with two Sub-Missions, the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) and the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban).
• Together, they aim to achieve Swachh Bharat by 2019, as a fitting tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th Birth Anniversary.
• In Rural India, this would mean improving the levels of cleanliness through Solid and Liquid Waste Management activities and making villages Open Defecation Free (ODF), clean and sanitised.

http://swachhbharatmission.gov.in/SBMCMS/about-us.htm;

From February: http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/gobar-dhan-swachh-bharat-open-defecation-5074575/;

—