INSIGHTS CURRENT AFFAIRS ( 6 April 2021) REVISION THROUGH MCQS

Ans: (b)

Explanation: Administrative Tribunal And Court: Distinction:

• S1: A court of law is a part of traditional judicial system and it derives its power from the state. On the other hand and administrative tribunal is an agency created by a statute and invested with judicial Powers.
• S2: Ordinary civil courts have judicial powers to try all suits of a civil nature, except those whose cognizance are either expressed or implied Barred. Administrative tribunals only have the power to try cases which are specially conferred upon them through some statute.
• S3: A court of law can decide the vires of a legislation while and tribunal cannot do so.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/tribunals-reforms-rationalisation-and-conditions-of-service-ordinance-2021/

Ans: (c)

Explanation: What are tribunals?

• Tribunal is a quasi-judicial institution that is set up to deal with problems such as resolving administrative or tax-related disputes. It performs a number of functions like adjudicating disputes, determining rights between contesting parties, making an administrative decision, reviewing an existing administrative decision and so forth.
• Constitutional provisions:
  • They were not originally a part of the Constitution.
  • The 42nd Amendment Act introduced these provisions in accordance with the recommendations of the Swaran Singh Committee.
  • The Amendment introduced Part XIV-A to the Constitution, which deals with ‘Tribunals’ and contains two articles:
• Article 323A deals with Administrative Tribunals. These are quasi-judicial institutions that resolve disputes related to the recruitment and service conditions of persons engaged in public service.
• Article 323B deals with tribunals for other subjects such as Taxation, Industrial and labour, Foreign exchange, import and export, Land reforms, Food, Ceiling on urban property, Elections to Parliament and state legislatures, Rent and tenancy rights.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/tribunals-reforms-rationalisation-and-conditions-of-service-ordinance-2021/

Ans: (a)

Explanation: What is E9 initiative?

• The E9 is a forum of nine countries, which was formed to achieve the goals of UNESCO’s Education For All (EFA) initiative. E-9 Initiative was launched in 1993 at the EFA Summit in New Delhi, India.
• The initiative aims to accelerate recovery and advance the Sustainable Development Goal 4 agenda by driving rapid change in education systems in three of the 2020 Global Education Meeting priorities: (i) support to teachers; (ii) investment in skills; and (iii) narrowing of the digital divide.
• Participants: Spearheaded by the UN, the E9 countries include Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/e9-initiative/

Ans: (d)

Explanation:

• Xinjiang is technically an autonomous region within China — its largest region, rich in minerals, and sharing borders with many countries, including India, Russia and Afghanistan.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/who-are-uighurs-2/

Ans: (a)

Explanation:

• Xinjiang lies in the north-west of China and is the country’s biggest region.
• Like Tibet, it is autonomous, meaning – in theory – it has some powers of self-governance. But in practice, both face major restrictions by the central government.
• It is a mostly desert region, producing about a fifth of the world’s cotton.
• It is also rich in oil and natural gas and because of its proximity to Central Asia and Europe is seen by Beijing as an important trade link.
• In the early 20th Century, the Uighurs briefly declared independence, but the region was brought under the complete control of China’s new Communist government in 1949.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/who-are-uighurs-2/

Ans: (d)

Explanation: Types of wildland fires: There are three basic types of forest fires:

• Crown fires burn trees up their entire length to the top. These are the most intense and dangerous wildland fires.
• Surface fires burn only surface litter and duff. These are the easiest fires to put out and cause the least damage to the forest.
• Ground fires (sometimes called underground or subsurface fires) occur in deep accumulations of humus, peat and similar dead vegetation that become dry enough to burn. These fires move very slowly, but can become difficult to fully put out, or suppress. Occasionally, especially during prolonged drought, such fires can smoulder all winter underground and then emerge at the surface again in spring.
• A zombie fire is a fire that continues to burn underground and then reignites on the surface after a period of time.
• Why in News?
  • ‘Zombie fires’ becoming more frequent in Arctic in addition to fires occurring in the once-frozen tundra.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/forest-fires-in-the-spring-and-their-frequency-throughout-this-year/

Ans: (c)

Explanation:

• S1: In its report in 1976, the National Commission on Agriculture (NCA) recommended the creation of a National Forest Survey Organization for a regular, periodic and comprehensive forest resources survey of the country, leading to the creation of Forest Survey of India (FSI) in the same year.
• S2: FSI assesses forest cover of the country every 2 years by digital interpretation of remote sensing satellite data and publishes the results in a biennial report called ‘State of Forest Report'(SFR).

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/forest-fires-in-the-spring-and-their-frequency-throughout-this-year/

Ans: (d)

Explanation:

• S1: Since digital currencies require no intermediary, they are often the cheapest method to trade currencies.
• S2: Digital currencies are stable and are traded with the markets, whereas cryptocurrencies are traded via consumer sentiment and psychological triggers in price movement.
• S3: Digital currencies are currencies that are only accessible with computers or mobile phones, as they only exist in electronic form.
• S4: Digital currencies have all intrinsic properties like physical currency, and they allow for instantaneous transactions that can be seamlessly executed for making payments across borders when connected to supported devices and networks.
• Key features of the digital currency:
  • This is a legal tender guaranteed by the central bank, not a payment guaranteed by a third-party operator.
  • There is no third-party transaction, and hence, no transaction fee.
  • Unlike e-wallets, the digital currency does not require Internet The payment is made through Near-field Communication (NFC) technology.
  • Unlike non-bank payment platforms that require users to link bank accounts, this can be opened with a personal identification number.

Refer: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/chinas-digital-currency/

Ans: (a)

Explanation: Chenab Bridge: World’s highest Railway Bridge:

• Indian Railways has completed the construction of the arch of Chenab Bridge, the world’s highest railway bridge located in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
• The Chenab bridge is part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link project (USBRL).
• The length of the Chenab bridge will be 1,315 metres.
• It is 359m above the river bed level. The bridge is 35-metre higher than the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

Refer: fact for prelims: https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/04/06/insights-daily-current-affairs-pib-summary-6-april-2021/

Ans: (c)

Explanation:

• As per the India state of forest report-2019, in terms of forest cover as percentage of total geographical area, the top five States are Mizoram (85.41%), Arunachal Pradesh (79.63%), Meghalaya (76.33%), Manipur (75.46%) and Nagaland (75.31%).

Refer: http://164.100.117.97/WriteReadData/userfiles/ISFR2019%20Vol-I.pdf