INSIGHTS CURRENT AFFAIRS ( 7 May 2020) REVISION THROUGH MCQS

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

Following is a short description of the famous works of Rabindranath Tagore:

• Gora-Novel
  • It is the largest and the most complex of the 12 novels written by Rabindranath Tagore. It raises a number of issues/ concerns, which seem very contemporary and are easily applicable to current scenario of our country.
  • This book is a reflection and analysis of the multifarious social life in colonial India.
• The Postmaster
  • Subject: Loneliness and the search for meaning in the world
  • This is a touching story of a city-bred young man working as a postmaster in a remote village to earn his bread and butter.
• Chokher bali- Novel
  • A Bengali novel written by Tagore, ‘Chokher Bali’ or ‘A grain of sand’ is a story which revolves around an extra-marital affair. It is a story about passion, desires, relationships, unfulfilled dreams as well as honesty. The complexity of relationships and of human character are very well portrayed in this novel.

About The Life Divine

• It is Aurobindo’s principal philosophic work, a theory of spiritual evolution culminating in the transformation of man from a mental into a supramental being and the advent of a divine life upon earth.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/07/gurudev-rabindranath-tagore/

Ans: (b)

Explanation: Union Cabinet has approved to bring regulation of cooperative banks under Reserve Bank of India. In order to achieve this, the Cabinet approved amendments to Banking regulation act.

• The amendments will apply to all urban co-operative banks and multi-state cooperative banks.
• As per the changes:
  • Cooperative banks will be audited according to RBI’s norms.
  • RBI can supersede the board, in consultation with the state government, if any cooperative bank is under stress.
  • Appointments of chief executives will also require permission from the banking regulator, as is the case for commercial banks

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/07/co-op-banks-come-under-sarfaesi-act-supreme-court/

Ans: (d)

Explanation:

• The Bureau of Energy Efficiency is an agency of the Government of India, under the Ministry of Power created in March 2002 under the provisions of the nation’s 2001 Energy Conservation Act.
• About UJALA scheme:
  • The main objective of the scheme is to promote efficient lighting, enhance awareness on using efficient equipment which reduce electricity bills and help preserve environment.
  • The scheme is being implemented by Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a joint venture of PSUs under the Union Ministry of Power.
  • UJALA is a flagship project of the Govt. of India where it wants every home in India to use LED bulbs so that the net power or energy consumption rate comes down and the carbon emission rates can also be checked.
• About SLNP:
  • Launched in 2015, EESL’s Street Light National Programme (SNLP) has been instrumental in replacing over 50 lakh street lights in over 500 cities in India, leading to 135 crore kWh of energy savings and cost saving of INR 742 crore every year.
  • Under the programme, EESL replaces the conventional street lights with LEDs at its own costs, with no upfront investment by the municipalities, thereby making their adoption even more attractive.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/07/impact-of-energy-efficiency-measures-for-the-year-2018-19/

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

• A gas leak, reminiscent of the 1984 Bhopal tragedy, has affected thousands of residents in five villages in Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
• The source of the leak was a styrene plant owned by South Korean electronics giant LG, located at RRV Puram near Gopalapatnam, about 15 kms from the coast city.
• What is styrene?
  • It is a flammable liquid that is used in the manufacturing of polystyrene plastics, fiberglass, rubber, and latex.
  • It is also found in vehicle exhaust, cigarette smoke, and in natural foods like fruits and vegetables.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/07/vizag-gas-leak-what-is-styrene-gas/

Ans: (c)

Explanation:

• Vesak’, the Day of the Full Moon in the month of May, is being observed by United Nations on May 7, 2020.
• It is also known as Buddha Purnima and Buddha Day.
• The day commemorates birth, enlightenment and Death (or Parinirvana) of Lord Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, all of which is said to take have taken place on the same day.
• Vesak, falls on the full moon day (Purnima) of the month Vaishakha (May), hence the occasion is referred to as Buddha Purnima in India.
• Recognition by United Nations (UN): The General Assembly, by its resolution in 1999, recognized internationally the Day of Vesak. It was done to acknowledge the contribution that Buddhism made to humanity.

Refer: Facts for Prelims: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/07/insights-daily-current-affairs-pib-summary-7-may-2020/

Ans: (a)

Explanation:

• When sugarcane is harvested, a portion of stalk is left underground to give rise to a succeeding growth of cane, the ratoon or stubble crop.
• Ratooning utilizes this stubble, saves cost on preparatory tillage and planting material. So, it gets benefit of residual manure and moisture.
• Ratoon crop also matures earlier and gives more or less same yield as of normal sugarcane.
• However, only one ratoon should be taken because incidence of pests and diseases increases and deterioration of soil takes place.

Refer: https://agriinfo.in/ratooning-in-sugarcane-1073/

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

• Carbon monoxide poisoning occurs after breathing in too much carbon monoxide (CO). The above are symptoms of mild acute poisoning.
• Carbon monoxide causes adverse effects by combining with haemoglobin to form carboxyhaemoglobin (HbCO) in the blood. This prevents haemoglobin from carrying oxygen to the tissues.
• Carboxyhaemoglobin can revert to haemoglobin, but the recovery takes times

Refer: https://ephtracking.cdc.gov/showCoRisk.action

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

• Stat1: Tight gas is natural gas produced from reservoir rocks with such low permeability that massive hydraulic fracturing is necessary to produce the well at economic rates.
  • A tight gas reservoir is one that cannot be produced at economic flow rates or recover economic volumes of gas unless the well is stimulated by a large hydraulic fracture treatment and/or produced using horizontal wellbores.
  • This definition also applies to coalbed methane, shale gas, and tight carbonate reservoirs.
• State 2: There is a difference between coalbed methane (CBM) and coal mine methane (CMM).
  • CBM refers to methane that is found in coal seams. It is formed during the process of coalification, the transformation of plant material into coal.
  • CMM refers to methane released from the coal and surrounding rock strata due to mining activities.
  • Like CBM, CMM is a subset of the methane found in coal seams, but it refers specifically to the methane found within mining areas (e.g., within a mining plan), while CBM refers to methane in coal seams that will never be mined.
• In underground mines CMM can create an explosive hazard to coal miners, so it is removed through ventilation systems. In abandoned mines and surface mines, methane might also escape to the atmosphere through natural fissures or other diffuse sources.

Refer: https://cdn.intechopen.com/pdfs/35289/InTech-The_expansion_of_unconventional_production_of_natural_gas_tight_gas_gas_shale_and_coal_bed_methane_.pdf

Ans: (c)

Explanation:

• Fertigation is a method of fertilizer application in which fertilizer is incorporated within the irrigation water by the drip system. In this system fertilizer solution is distributed evenly in irrigation.
• Statement 1 and 2: By this method, fertilizer use efficiency is increased from 80 to 90 per cent as they are delivered directly to roots via drip. As water and fertilizer are supplied evenly to all the crops through fertigation there is possibility for getting 25-50 per cent higher yield.
• Statement 3: Urea, potash and highly water soluble fertilizers are available for applying through fertigation. In fact, Urea is well suited for injection in micro irrigation system. It is highly soluble and dissolves in non-ionic form, so that it does not react with other substances in the water.
• Statement 4: Drip irrigation also avoids water spillage on the field which could have promoted weed growth. So, fertigation also helps control weed growth.
• Image: Fertigation

Refer: http://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_nutrientmgt_fertigation.html

Ans: (b)

Explanation:

• Statement 1: There is very much more cellulose available as the biomass of plats, and is as a potential source of glucose, than starch, yet it is not a significant source of pure glucose.
• Statement 2: Currently, there are two major ways of converting cellulose to glucose: chemical versus enzymatic. These are tricky.
• However, starch is directly produced in relatively pure forms by plants for use as an easily biodegradable energy and carbon store. This makes it a preferable choice for glucose production.
• Statement 3: On the other hand, Cellulose is structural and is purposefully combined and associated with lignin and pentosans, so as to resist biodegradation.
• You can understand this by the fact that dead trees take several years to decay even in tropical rainforests.
• Owing to these reasons, research on both methods has for decades occupied the attention of many investigators world wide.

Refer: 6.9 Glucose from cellulose: Google Books