DAY – 4 ( INSTA REVISION TEST – 4)INSTA REVISION PLAN 2.0, 2021

Solution: C

Katkari is one of the 75 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups.

Katkaris were historically forest dwellers. They are located primarily in Raigad and in parts of Palghar, Ratnagiri and Thane districts of Maharashtra as well and in some places of Gujarat.

The British administration had classified them under the Criminal Tribes Act, 1871.

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/maharashtra-katkari-tribal-youths-bring-benefits-of-giloy-to-doorsteps-in-shahpur-6425663/

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1626550

Solution: D

The Competition Act

The Competition Act, 2002, as amended by the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2007, follows the philosophy of modern competition laws. The Act prohibits anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position by enterprises and regulates combinations (acquisition, acquiring of control and M&A), which causes or likely to cause an appreciable adverse effect on competition within India.

Competition Commission of India

The objectives of the Act are sought to be achieved through the Competition Commission of India, which has been established by the Central Government with effect from 14th October 2003. CCI consists of a Chairperson and 6 Members appointed by the Central Government.

It is the duty of the Commission to eliminate practices having adverse effect on competition, promote and sustain competition, protect the interests of consumers and ensure freedom of trade in the markets of India.

The Commission is also required to give opinion on competition issues on a reference received from a statutory authority established under any law and to undertake competition advocacy, create public awareness and impart training on competition issues.

https://www.thehindu.com/business/google-faces-antitrust-case-in-india/article31689733.ece

Solution: C

Tea cultivation is an example of plantation agriculture. It is also an important beverage crop introduced in India initially by the British. Today, most of the tea plantations are owned by Indians.

The tea plant grows well in tropical and sub-tropical climates endowed with deep and fertile well-drained soil, rich in humus and organic matter.

Tea bushes require warm and moist frost-free climate all through the year. Frequent showers evenly distributed over the year ensure continuous growth of tender leaves.

Tea is a labour intensive industry. It requires abundant, cheap and skilled labour. Tea is processed within the tea garden to restore its freshness.

Major tea producing states are Assam, hills of Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Apart from these, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Andhra Pradesh and Tripura are also tea-producing states in the country.

https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/markets/commodities/may-21-is-now-international-tea-day/article30278812.ece

Solution: A

The World Bank is like a cooperative, made up of 189 member countries. These member countries, or shareholders, are represented by a Board of Governors, who are the ultimate policymakers at the World Bank.

Generally, the governors are member countries’ ministers of finance or ministers of development. They meet once a year at the Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund.

The World Bank Group (WBG) is a family of five international organizations.

Its five organizations are the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).

https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/world-bank-approves-usd-1-bn-loan-to-support-india-s-fight-against-covid-19-120051500760_1.html

Solution: B

Context: Department of Archaeology, Heritage and Museums will soon commence field research work at Keshavapura in Araga Gram Panchayat (GP) of Tirthahalli taluk to explore definitive archaeological evidences that may put an end to speculations regarding the birthplace of Purandara Dasa.

Purandara Dasa (1484–1564) was a Haridasa, great devotee of Lord Krishna and a saint.

He was a disciple of the celebrated Madhwa philosopher-saint Vyasatirtha, and a contemporary of yet another great Haridasa, Kanakadasa.

Purandaradasa was the pioneer who blended the rich musical streams, namely the Dravidian and Aryan music, into a single stream known as Carnatic music.

Prior to his initiation to Haridasa tradition, Purandara Dasa was a rich merchant and was called as Srinivasa Nayaka.

Contributions to Indian Music:

1. He formulated the basic lessons of teaching Carnatic music by structuring graded exercises known as Svaravalis and Alankaras
2. He introduced the raga Mayamalavagowla as the first scale to be learnt by beginners in the field – a practice that is still followed today.
3. He also composed Gitas (simple songs) for novice students.
4. He is noted for composing Dasa Sahithya, as a Bhakti movement vocalist, and a music scholar.

 Social reforms:

1. Purandara Dasa tried to reform existing practices in the society, and preached to others in the local language, Kannada by singing devotional songs. Most of his keertanas deals with social reform and pinpoints defects found in the society.
2. It teaches complete self-surrender and unadulterated love towards Lord Krishna, the Supreme.
3. The philosophy of Bhakti in Purandara Dasa’s compositions stems from the essential teachings of the realistic-pluralistic Madhwa Philosophy of Vaishnavism.
4. Purandara Dasa fought the evils of casteism through his songs.
5. According to Purandara Dasa there were no inequalities among men and women. Both of them had same rights and obligations in their conduct of everyday life as well as observation of pity.
6. He made some forceful expressions on untouchability, which was dogging society.

https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/26/purandara-dasa/

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/purandara-dasas-birthplace-archaeology-dept-to-start-research-in-village-in-shivamogga-dist/article31673889.ece

Solution: B

Baltic states, northeastern region of Europe containing the countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea.

The Baltic states are bounded on the west and north by the Baltic Sea, which gives the region its name, on the east by Russia, on the southeast by Belarus, and on the southwest by Poland and an exclave of Russia.

https://indianexpress.com/article/coronavirus/covid-19-countries-and-regions-travel-bubble-agreements-6549127/

Solution: B

Khudol is a crowdfunded initiative of Ya_All, an Imphal-based NGO that had created India’s first transgender football team. The initiative entails ensuring food, health and hygiene of the LGBTQI+ community, people living with HIV, daily-wage earners, children and adolescents.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/un-kudos-for-lgbtqi-initiative-in-manipur/article31650715.ece

Solution: C

Context: The Computer Emergency Response of Team (CERT) of India has issued warning against a new malware called “EventBot”.

Key facts:

1. The malware steals personal financial information from Android phone users.

1. The Eventbolt is a Trojan. It cheats victims secretly attacking computer or phone operating system.
2. It targets money-transfer services, financial applications.

What’s the Difference Between Malware, Trojan, Virus, and Worm?

Malware is defined as a software designed to perform an unwanted illegal act via the computer network. It could be also defined as software with malicious intent.

Malware can be classified based on how they get executed, how they spread, and/or what they do. Some of them are discussed below.

1. Virus: A program that can infect other programs by modifying them to include a possible evolved copy of itself.
2. Worms: Disseminated through computer networks, unlike viruses, computer worms are malicious programs that copy themselves from system to system, rather than infiltrating legitimate files.
3. Trojans: Trojan or trojan horse is a program that generally impairs the security of a system. Trojans are used to create back-doors (a program that allows outside access into a secure network) on computers belonging to a secure network so that a hacker can have access to the secure network.
4. Hoax: An e-mail that warns the user of a certain system that is harming the computer. The message thereafter instructs the user to run a procedure (most often in the form of a download) to correct the harming system. When this program is run, it invades the system and deletes an important file.
5. Spyware: Invades a computer and, as its name implies, monitors a user’s activities without consent. Spywares are usually forwarded through unsuspecting e-mails with bonafide e-mail i.ds. Spyware continues to infect millions of computers globally.

https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/16/insights-daily-current-affairs-pib-summary-16-may-2020/

Solution: B

Debentures are long-term financial instruments which acknowledge a debt obligation towards the issuer. Some debentures have a feature of convertibility into shares after a certain point of time at the discretion of the owner. The debentures which can’t be converted into shares or equities are called non-convertible debentures (or NCDs).

Non-convertible debentures are used as tools to raise long-term funds by companies through a public issue. To compensate for this drawback of non-convertibility, lenders are usually given a higher rate of return compared to convertible debentures.
NCDs offer various other benefits to the owner such as high liquidity through stock market listing, tax exemptions at source and safety since they can be issued by companies which have a good credit rating as specified in the norms laid down by RBI for the issue of NCDs. In India, usually these have to be issued of a minimum maturity of 90 days.

https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/16/insights-daily-current-affairs-pib-summary-16-may-2020/

Solution: D

Context: 40 gharials released in Ghaghara river amid lockdown.

Key facts:

Critically Endangered— IUCN Red List.

The male gharial has a distinctive boss at the end of the snout, which resembles an earthenware pot.

Habitat— foremost flowing rivers with high sand banks that they use for basking and building nests. Gharials once inhabited all the major river systems of the Indian Subcontinent, from the Irrawaddy River in the east to the Indus River in the west. Their distribution is now limited to only 2% of their former range

India: Girwa River, Chambal River, Ken River, Son River, Mahanadi River, Ramganga River

Nepal: Rapti-Narayani River

Threats: Hunting for skins, trophies and indigenous medicine, and their eggs collected for consumption, Decrease of riverine habitat as dams, barrages, irrigation canals and artificial embankments were built; siltation and sand-mining changed river courses

Conservation:

1. Shedule 1 species under Indian wildlife act, 1972.

1. Project Crocodile began in 1975 (Government of India+ United Nations Development Fund + Food and Agriculture Organization) — intensive captive breeding and rearing program.
2. Protected areas: National Chambal Sanctuary and Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary.

https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/16/insights-daily-current-affairs-pib-summary-16-may-2020/

Solution: C

The National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAA) has been constituted under Section 171 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 to ensure that the reduction in rate of tax or the benefit of input tax credit is passed on to the recipient by way of commensurate reduction in prices. Further, the following steps have been taken by the NAA to ensure that customers get the full benefit of tax cuts:

1. Holding regular meetings with the Zonal Screening Committees and the Chief Commissioners of Central Tax to stress upon consumer awareness programmes;
2. Launching a helpline to resolve the queries of citizens regarding registration of complaints against profiteering.
3. Receiving complaints through email and NAA portal.
4. Working with consumer welfare organizations in order to facilitate outreach activities.

Solution: B

Debt Recovery Tribunals facilitates the debt recovery involving banks and other financial institutions with their customers. DRTs are established under Recovery of Debts due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act (RDBBFI), 1993.

It enforces provisions of the recovery of Debts Due to Banks and Financial Institutions (RDDBFI) Act, 1993 and also Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interests (SARFAESI) Act, 2002.

A Debts Recovery Tribunal (DRT) can hear cross suits, counter claims and allow set offs. It cannot hear claims of damages or deficiency of services or breach of contract or criminal negligence on the part of the lenders.

However, it cannot hear claims of damages or deficiency of services or breach of contract or criminal negligence on the part of the lenders.

Solution: A

About NALSA:

NALSA has been constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, to provide free legal services to weaker sections of society.

The aim is to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reasons of economic or other disabilities.

‘Nyaya Deep’ is the official newsletter of NALSA.

Composition:

As per section 3(2) of Legal Service Authorities Act, the Chief Justice of India shall be the Patron-in-Chief.

Second senior-most judge of Supreme Court of India is the Executive-Chairman.

Important functions performed by NALSA:

1. Organise Lok Adalats for amicable settlement of disputes.
2. Identify specific categories of the marginalised and excluded groups and formulates various schemes for the implementation of preventive and strategic legal service programmes.
3. Provide free legal aid in civil and criminal matters for the poor and marginalised people who cannot afford the services of a lawyer in any court or tribunal.

State and district legal services authorities:

In every State, State Legal Services Authority has been constituted to give effect to the policies and directions of the NALSA and to give free legal services to the people and conduct Lok Adalats in the State. The State Legal Services Authority is headed by Hon’ble the Chief Justice of the respective High Court who is the Patron-in-Chief of the State Legal Services Authority.

In every District, District Legal Services Authority has been constituted to implement Legal Services Programmes in the District. The District Legal Services Authority is situated in the District Courts Complex in every District and chaired by the District Judge of the respective district.

Solution: D

Context: Government of India has disbursed RS 170 crores to MGNREGA workers. The amounts were disbursed to the beneficiaries through the Department of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj.

About MGNREGA:

The scheme was introduced as a social measure that guarantees “the right to work”.

The key tenet of this social measure and labour law is that the local government will have to legally provide at least 100 days of wage employment in rural India to enhance their quality of life.

Key objectives:

1. Generation of paid rural employment of not less than 100 days for each worker who volunteers for unskilled labour.
2. Proactively ensuring social inclusion by strengthening livelihood base of rural poor.
3. Creation of durable assets in rural areas such as wells, ponds, roads and canals.
4. Reduce urban migration from rural areas.
5. Create rural infrastructure by using untapped rural labour.

The following are the eligibility criteria for receiving the benefits under MGNREGA scheme:

1. Must be Citizen of India to seek MGNREGA benefits.
2. Job seeker has completed 18 years of age at the time of application.
3. The applicant must be part of a local household (i.e. application must be made with local Gram Panchayat).
4. Applicant must volunteer for unskilled labour.

Key facts related to the scheme:

1. The Ministry of Rural Development (MRD), Govt of India is monitoring the entire implementation of this scheme in association with state governments.
2. Individual beneficiary-oriented works can be taken up on the cards of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, small or marginal farmers or beneficiaries of land reforms or beneficiaries under the Indira Awaas Yojana of the Government of India.
3. Within 15 days of submitting the application or from the day work is demanded, wage employment will be provided to the applicant.
4. Right to get unemployment allowance in case employment is not provided within fifteen days of submitting the application or from the date when work is sought.
5. Social Audit of MGNREGA works is mandatory, which lends to accountability and transparency.
6. The Gram Sabha is the principal forum for wage seekers to raise their voices and make demands.
7. It is the Gram Sabha and the Gram Panchayat which approves the shelf of works under MGNREGA and fix their priority.

Role of Gram Sabha:

1. It determines the order of priority of works in the meetings of the Gram Sabha keeping in view potential of the local area, its needs and local resources.
2. Monitor the execution of works within the GP.

Roles of Gram Panchayat:

1. Receiving applications for registration
2. Verifying registration applications
3. Registering households
4. Issuing Job Cards (JCs)
5. Receiving applications for work
6. Issuing dated receipts for these applications for work
7. Allotting work within fifteen days of submitting the application or from the date when work is sought in the case of an advance application.
8. Identification and planning of works, developing shelf of projects including determination of the order of their priority.

https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/05/22/insights-daily-current-affairs-pib-summary-22-may-2020/

Solution: C

What is Coir geotextile?

Coir is a 100% natural fiber, obtained from a renewable source – the coconut husk.

Coir Geo Textile is naturally resistant to rot, molds and moisture, and free from any microbial attack hence it needs no chemical treatment. It has a permeable, natural and strong fabric with high durability.

Benefits:

1. It has a permeable, natural and strong fabric with high durability.

1. It protects the land surface and promotes quick vegetation.
2. It is totally biodegradable, and helps in soil stabilisation.
3. It can dissipate the energy of flowing water and absorb the excess solar radiation.

What are Geotextiles?

They are permeable fabrics which, when used in association with soil, have the ability to separate, filter, reinforce, protect, or drain. These are typically made from polypropylene or polyester.

Applications:

1. They support many civil engineering applications including roads, airfields, railroads, embankments, retaining structures, reservoirs, canals, dams, bank protection, coastal engineering and construction site silt fences or geotube.

1. They are also used for sand dune armoring to protect upland coastal property from storm surge, wave action and flooding.
2. They are used as matting to stabilize flow in stream channels and swales.
3. They can improve soil strength at a lower cost than conventional soil nailing.

Features of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana-lll (PMGSY-III):

Under the PMGSY-III Scheme, it is proposed to consolidate 1,25,000 Km road length in the States.

It involves consolidation of Through Routes and Major Rural Links connecting habitations to Gramin Agricultural Markets (GrAMs), Higher Secondary Schools and Hospitals.

The funds would be shared in the ratio of 60:40 between the Centre and State for all States except for 8 North Eastern states and Himachal Pradesh & Uttarakhand for which it is 90:10.