[Mission 2023] QUED ( Questions from Editorials ) 28 February 2023

Solution: d)

Modern international laws and conventions — the UN Convention on Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage and Registration of Marriages (1962), the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979) and the Beijing Declaration (1995) — do mandate countries to stipulate a minimum legal age for marriage. 

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Solution: c)

Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources (GOBAR)-Dhan was launched by the Government of India in April 2018 as a part of the biodegradable waste management component under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin.

The scheme intends to positively impact village cleanliness and generate wealth and energy from cattle and organic waste. The main focus areas of GOBAR-Dhan are to keep villages clean, increase the income of rural households and generate energy and organic manure from cattle waste. 

There are a total of 583 biogas plants, of which 507 have been installed under the Ministry of Jal Shakti’s GOBARDhan scheme, 40 plants have been set up under the SATAT scheme of the MoPNG and the remaining 36 under the National Bioenergy plan of the MNRE.

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Solution: b)

Biogas is a co-product of the anaerobic digestion (under the absence of oxygen) of biodegradable waste such as agricultural waste, animal waste like dung and segregated organic fraction of municipal solid waste.

Anaerobic digestion yields a variety of products in three different formats. The slurry obtained from the process is usually passed through a solid-liquid separation unit to extract the liquid by-product, known as liquid fertiliser and the solid fraction, known as fermented organic manure (FOM).

The co-product obtained in the liquid fraction is usually re-circulated and used in the digestion process, while the solid fraction can be used as a soil conditioner or fertiliser.

The gaseous fraction obtained in the process is known as biogas. Biogas contains about 55-65 per cent methane, 35-44 per cent of carbon dioxide and traces of other gases such as hydrogen sulphide, ammonia and nitrogen.

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Solution: b)

The Siachen Glacier is a glacier located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalayas. it is the longest glacier in the Karakoram and second-longest in the world’s non-polar areas.

Siachen glacier is a source to the Nubra River which later joins the Shyok River.

The region is home to rare species including snow leopard, brown bear and ibex.

Solution: c)

Ramsar secretariat designating a wetland as wetland of global importance may not lead to any extra funding by the global body.

But from the management point of view, it is like an accreditation. It is like an ISO certification. They can take you off the list as well if you don’t meet their standards continuously. 

Not every Ramsar Site is a notified protected area under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.