QUIZ – 2020: Insights Current Affairs Quiz, 04 February 2020

Solution: d)

India’s first case of Avian influenza or Bird flu caused by a rare variety of H9N2 virus has been reported in a 17-month-old boy of Maharashtra.

H9N2 is a subtype of the influenza A virus, which causes human influenza as well as bird flu. According to the US National Centre for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), H9N2 viruses are found worldwide in wild birds and are endemic in poultry in many areas. H9N2 viruses could potentially play a major role in the emergence of the next influenza pandemic. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), with avian influenza viruses circulating in poultry, there is a risk for sporadic infection and small clusters of human cases due to exposure to infected poultry or contaminated environments.

H9N2 virus infections in humans are rare, but likely under-reported due to typically mild symptoms of the infections. Cases of human infection have been observed in Hong Kong, China, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Egypt.

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Solution: c)

The environment ministry notified new wetland rules in 2017.

The revision of the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017, is to bring the role of state wetlands authorities to the fore for wetlands conservation. As the Rules have been framed under the Environment Protection Act, the ultimate responsibility rests with the ministry of environment, forest and climate change.

The new rules stipulate setting up of a State Wetlands Authority in each State and union territories that will be headed by the State’s environment minister and include a range of government officials. They will also include one expert each in the fields of wetland ecology, hydrology, fisheries, landscape planning and socioeconomics to be nominated by the state government.

These authorities will need to develop a comprehensive list of activities to be regulated and permitted within the notified wetlands and their zone of influence, recommend additional prohibited activities for specific wetlands, define strategies for conservation and wise use of wetlands, and undertake measures for enhancing awareness within stakeholders and local communities on values and functions of wetlands.

Applicability of rules.—These rules shall apply to the following wetlands or wetlands complexes, namely:— (a) wetlands categorised as ‘wetlands of international importance’ under the Ramsar Convention; (b) wetlands as notified by the Central Government, State Government and Union Territory Administration: Provided that these rules shall not apply to the wetlands falling in areas covered under the Indian Forest Act, 1927, the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, the State Forest Acts, and the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, 2011 as amended from time to time.

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Solution: a)

The 15th Finance Commission has reduced the vertical devolution from 42% to 41%. It has used the criterion of ‘demographic effort’ to offset the population parameter.

The Fifteenth Finance Commission (FC) has considered the 2011 population along with forest cover, tax effort, area of the state, and “demographic performance” to arrive at the states’ share in the divisible pool of taxes.

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Solution: c)

Article 341 of the Constitution provides certain privileges and concessions to the members of Scheduled Castes.

Under the provision of Article 341, first list of SCs in relation to a states/UT is to be issued by a notified Order of the President after consulting concerned state Government.

But the clause (2) of Article 341 envisages that, any subsequent inclusion in or exclusion from the list of Scheduled Castes can be effected through an Act of Parliament.

Parliament alone is vested with the power to include or exclude any entry in the SC list under Article 341 of the Constitution.

Statement 3: Reservation is there only in the Lok Sabha.

Solution: b)

North Eastern Council (NEC) was constituted as a statutory advisory body under the NEC Act 1971 and came into being on the 7th November, 1972 at Shillong. The eight States of Northeast India viz. Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim, are members of the council, with their respective Chief Ministers and Governors representing them.

Sikkim was added to the council in the year 2002.

In June 2018, the chairmanship of NEC was transferred by Union Cabinet to Home Minister from Minister of Development of NER.

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