QUIZ – 2020: Insights Current Affairs Quiz, 12 March 2020

Solution: a)

Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) launched Swell Surge Forecast System, which will provide forewarnings for the coastal population of India’s vast shoreline, which experiences a slew of damages caused by the swell waves that actually originate from the distant southern Indian Ocean.

Swell Surge Forecast System: Swell surge forecast system is an innovative system designed for the prediction of Kallakkadal/Swell Surge that occurs along the Indian coast, particularly the west coast. Kallakadal/Swell surge are flash-flood events that take place without any noticeable advance change in local winds or any other apparent signature in the coastal environment. Hence the local population remains totally unaware of these flooding events until they actually occur. Such events are intermittent throughout the year. Kallakkadal is a colloquial term used by Kerala fishermen to refer to the freaky flooding episodes and in 2012 UNESCO formally accepted this term for scientific use. During Kallakkadal events, the sea surges into the land and inundates vast areas. These events have attracted attention especially after the 2004 Tsunami in the Indian Ocean, since most people mistake Kallakkadal to be Tsunamis. Tsunami and Kallakkadal/Swell surge are two different types of waves with entirely separate causes or mechanisms. Kallakkadal are caused by meteorological conditions in the Southern Ocean, south of 30°S. A study by INCOIS scientists has revealed that specific meteorological conditions in the Southern Indian Ocean support the generation of long period swells. These swells once generated, travel northward and reach the Indian coasts in 3-5 days time, creating havoc in the coastal areas.  The system will now predict Kallakkadal and warnings will be given to concerned authorities at least 2-3 days in advance, which will help the local authorities for contingency plans and to reduce damage.

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Solution: b)

India’s thermal coal imports rose 12.6% to nearly 200 million tonnes in 2019.

Coal is among the top five commodities imported by India, the world’s largest consumer, importer and producer of the fuel.

Imports of thermal coal — mainly used for power generation — jumped 12.6% to 197.84 million tonnes in 2019. However, imports of coking coal — used mainly in the manufacturing of steel — fell marginally.

Indonesia accounted for nearly 60% of India’s thermal coal imports in the April-December period, government data showed, while South Africa accounted for 22% and Russia and Australia accounting for over 5% each.

Coal imports grew largely due to lower production by Coal India Ltd., whose output fell for five consecutive months ended November due to the highest annual rainfall in 25 years and frequent outages including strikes by workers and locals.

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Solution: d)

The NM-ICPS is a comprehensive Mission which would address technology development, application development, human resource development & skill enhancement, entrepreneurship and start-up development in CPS and associated technologies. 

CPS and its associated technologies, like Artificial Intelligence (Al), Internet of Things (loT), Machine Learning (ML), Deep Learning (DP), Big Data Analytics, Robotics, Quantum Computing, Quantum Communication, Quantum encryption (Quantum Key Distribution), Data Science & Predictive analytics, Cyber Security for physical infrastructure and other infrastructure, have pervaded and is playing a transformative role in almost every field of human endeavour all most in all sectors.

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Solution: d)

With an aim to resolve the problem of stressed assets with public-sector banks, the government has come out with a new plan – Sashakt – that includes the creation of one or more widely held asset management companies for loans above Rs 500 crore.

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Solution: b)

 Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is an instant real-time payment system developed by National Payments Corporation of India facilitating inter-bank transactions. The interface is regulated by the Reserve Bank of India and works by instantly transferring funds between two bank accounts on a mobile platform.

UPI – Benefits

• Single click Two Factor authentication
• Round the clock availability
• Single Application for accessing different bank accounts
• Tap customers not having credit/debit cards
• Use of Virtual ID is more secure, no credential sharing

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