[Mission 2023] QUIZ : Insights Current Affairs Quiz , 5 July 2022

Solution: b)

The government’s move to keep interest rates on small savings instruments unchanged comes as a setback for small investors. At a time inflation is ruling over 7% and bond yields have risen over 7.4%, not only will the decision result in negative real rate of return – after adjusting for inflation — for savers and pensioners, but the status quo is also likely to prompt banks to go slow in hiking deposit rates.

Schemes like Public Provident Fund (PPF) and the National Savings Certificate (NSC) will continue to carry an annual interest rate of 7.1% and 6.8%, respectively, in the first quarter of the next fiscal.

Barring PPF and Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana, all other small saving instruments are currently fetching negative real returns amid high inflation. 

Small savings rates are linked to yields on benchmark government bonds, but despite the upward movement in G-Sec (government securities) yields, the government has not increased interest rates.

Source

Solution: c)

On August 12, 2021 the Ministry had issued a notification prohibiting the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of identified SUP commodities, including polystyrene and expanded polystyrene from July 1, 2022.

The violation of the ban will invite punitive action, including a fine or a jail term or both, detailed under Section 15 of the Environment Protection Act (EPA) and under the bylaws of the respective municipal corporations.

Plastic used for packaging in the FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) sector is not banned but will be covered under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) guidelines. The EPR is a producer’s responsibility to ensure environmentally-sound management of the product until the end of its life.

Source

Solution: d)

How do animals get Anthrax?

Domestic and wild animals can get infected when they breathe in or ingest spores in contaminated soil, plants or water.

Host animals shed the bacteria into the ground, which sporulates when exposed to the air. These spores, which can persist in the soil for decades, wait to be taken up by another host, subsequently germinating and multiplying, leading to its spread. Flies also appear to play a significant role in explosive outbreaks of the disease, as per the WHO.

How do humans get infected?

Humans almost always contract the disease directly or indirectly from animals or animal products.

People get infected with anthrax when spores enter the body, through breathing, eating contaminated food or drinking contaminated water, or through cuts or scrapes in the skin. The spores then get “activated” and multiply, spreading across the body, producing toxins and causing severe illness.

How can it be treated?

Antibiotic therapy that is administered early in the course of the infection has been proven to be responsive, according to the WHO. Penicillin has long been the antibiotic of choice and in recent years, ciprofloxacin and doxycycline have also been used as alternatives.

One way to prevent the disease is by vaccination of livestock so that the disease cannot spread. There are also vaccines for humans, but their availability is usually restricted to at-risk individuals, such as lab workers and people who handle animals.

Source

Solution: c)

What is on tap licensing?

It means the RBI window for granting banking licences will be open throughout the year.

Solution: b)

The Mediterranean is positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south, and Asia to the east.

The Mediterranean Sea connects:

• to the Atlantic Ocean through the Strait of Gibraltar in the west
• to the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, by the Straits of the Dardanelles and the Bosporus respectively, in the east

The 163 km (101 mi) long artificial Suez Canal in the southeast connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea.