INSIGHTS CURRENT AFFAIRS ( 28 April 2020) REVISION THROUGH MCQS

Ans: (c)

Explanation:

• Stat2: September 16th every year is marked as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer. The ozone layer is a part of the atmosphere that has high concentrations of ozone, compared to oxygen molecules that exist in nature as a pair of oxygen atoms.
• World Ozone Day is a reminder to people on the important role ozone plays in our atmosphere and why we need to reduce use of substances that are thinning the ozone layer.
• Stat1: Ozone can be good or bad, depending on where it is found. It occurs both in the earth’s upper atmosphere (stratosphere) and at ground level (troposphere).

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/ozone-hole-2/

Ans: (c)

Explanation:

• It is described as a whirling cone of low pressure over the poles that is strongest in the winter months due to the increased temperature contrast between the polar regions and the mid-latitudes, such as the US and Europe.
• During winter, the polar vortex at the North Pole expands, sending cold air southward
• Features:
  • The polar vortex spins in the stratosphere.
  • Usually, when the vortex is strongest, cold air is less-likely to plunge deep into North America or Europe. In other words, it forms a wall that protects the mid-latitudes from cold Arctic air.
  • But occasionally, the polar vortex is disrupted and weakens, due to wave energy propagating upward from the lower atmosphere. When this happens, the stratosphere warms sharply in an event known as sudden stratospheric warming, in just a few days, miles above the Earth’s surface.
  • The warming weakens the polar vortex, shifting its location somewhat south of the pole or, in some instances, ‘splitting’ the vortex up into ‘sister vortices’.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/ozone-hole-2/

Ans: (d)

Explanation:

• The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer is the landmark multilateral environmental agreement that regulates the production and consumption of nearly 100 man-made chemicals referred to as ozone depleting substances (ODS).
• Adopted on 15 September 1987, the Protocol is to date the only UN treaty ever that has been ratified every country on Earth – all 197 UN Member States.
• The Montreal Protocol phases down the consumption and production of the different ODS in a step-wise manner, with different timetables for developed and developing countries (referred to as “Article 5 countries”).
• Under this treaty, all parties have specific responsibilities related to the phase out of the different groups of ODS, control of ODS trade, annual reporting of data, national licensing systems to control ODS imports and exports, and other matters. Developing and developed countries have equal but differentiated responsibilities, but most importantly, both groups of countries have binding, time-targeted and measurable commitments.
• The treaty evolves over time in light of new scientific, technical and economic developments, and it continues to be amended and adjusted. The Meeting of the Parties is the governance body for the treaty, with technical support provided by an Open-ended Working Group, both of which meet on an annual basis. The Parties are assisted by the Ozone Secretariat, which is based at UN Environment Programme headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/ozone-hole-2/

Ans: (c)

Explanation:

• A historic global climate deal was reached in Kigali, Rwanda at the Twenty-Eighth Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (MOP28).
• The so called Kigali Amendment which amends the 1987 Montreal Protocol aims to phase out Hydro fluorocarbons (HFCs), a family of potent greenhouse gases by the late 2040s.
• Growth of HFCs has mainly been driven by a growing demand for cooling, particularly in developing countries with a fast-expanding middle class and hot climates
• Harmful HFCs
  • Hydro fluorocarbons are widely used in fridges, air-conditioning and aerosols sprays.
  • These are a family of Greenhouse gases.
  • They are at present the fastest growing greenhouse gases with emissions increasing by around 10% every year.
  • They trap thousands of times more heat in the earth’s atmosphere than carbon dioxide.
  • These factory-made gases had replaced CFCs under the 1987 Montreal Protocol to protect Earth’s fragile protective Ozone layer and heal the ozone hole over the Antarctica.
  • HFC-23, a potent greenhouse gas with global warming potential of 14,800 times more than that of CO2, is a by-product of HCFC-22, which is used in industrial refrigeration.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/ozone-hole-2/

Ans: (b)

Explanation: About CVC:

• It is the apex vigilance institution created via executive resolution (based on the recommendations of Santhanam committee) in 1964but was conferred with statutory status in 2003.
• It submits its report to the President of India.
• The Commission was set up on the recommendation of the K.Santhanam Committee on Prevention of Corruption.
• Composition:
  • Consists of central vigilance commissioner along with 2 vigilance commissioners.
• Appointment:
  • They are appointed by the President of India on the recommendations of a committee consisting of Prime Minister, Union Home Minister and Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha (if there is no LoP then the leader of the single largest Opposition party in the Lok Sabha).
• Term:
  • Their term is 4 years or 65 years, whichever is earlier.
• Removal:
  • The Central Vigilance Commissioner or any Vigilance Commissioner can be removed from his office only by order of the President on the ground of proved misbehavior or incapacity after the Supreme Court, on a reference made to it by the President, has, on inquiry, reported that the Central Vigilance Commissioner or any Vigilance Commissioner, as the case may be, ought to be removed.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/chief-vigilance-commissioner-cvc-2/

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

• Chakmas and Hajongs were originally residents of Chittagong Hill Tracts in the erstwhile East Pakistan. They left their homeland when it was submerged by the Kaptai dam project in the 1960s.
• The Chakmas, who are Buddhists, and the Hajongs, who are Hindus, also allegedly faced religious persecution and entered India through the then Lushai Hills district of Assam (now Mizoram). The Centre moved the majority of them to the North East Frontier Agency (NEFA), which is now Arunachal Pradesh.
• In Assam Chakma people have scheduled tribe status.
• Hajong are the fourth largest ethnicity in Meghalaya.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/who-are-chakmas-and-hajongs/

Ans: (d)

Explanation:

• The report on Trends in World Military Expenditure was recently released by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri)
• Key findings- India specific:
  • Top three biggest military spenders in the world last year: The United States, China and India.
  • This is the first time that India and China have featured among the top three military spenders.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/the-report-on-trends-in-world-military-expenditure/

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

• The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) is the Treaty banning all nuclear explosions – everywhere, by everyone. The Treaty was negotiated at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. It opened for signature on 24 September 1996.
  • The Treaty will enter into force after all 44 States listed in Annex 2 to the Treaty will ratify it. These States had nuclear facilities at the time the Treaty was negotiated and adopted.
  • India, North Korea and Pakistan have not yet signed the Treaty.
• What is the difference between signature and ratification?
  • The signature to a treaty indicates that the country accepts the treaty. It commits not to take any actions that would undermine the treaty’s purposes. A treaty is signed by a senior representative of a country such as the president or the foreign minister.
  • The ratification symbolizes the official sanction of a treaty to make it legally binding for the government of a country. This process involves the treaty’s adoption by the legislature of a country such as the parliament.  It also includes the submission of the so-called instrument of ratification to the treaty’s depository, which for the CTBT is the UN Secretary-General.  Only then is the process of ratification officially concluded. The ratification of a treaty may require the adjustment of a country’s legislation, reflecting its commitments under the treaty.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/comprehensive-nuclear-test-ban-treaty-ctbt/

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

• Two black holes recently collided to create a larger one – the biggest black hole merger yet detected. It has a mass more than 80 times that of the sun.
• The resulting energy injected into the fabric of spacetime was also record breaking, with five sun’s worth of mass released in the form gravitational waves as the two holes spiralled in towards each other.
• Such titanic amounts of energy meant that the signal was still detectable by the time it reached gravitational wave detectors on Earth. It produced a record-breaking result – the most distant collision detected so far, nine billion light years away

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/first-merger-of-two-black-holes-with-unequal-masses-detected/

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

• It is a low-cost mechanical ventilator to fight against COVID19.
• Developed by IIT Bombay team.
• The cost of production of one ventilator is Rs 10,000.

Refer: Facts for Prelims: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/04/28/insights-daily-current-affairs-pib-summary-28-april-2020/