[Mission 2024] Current Affairs Quiz , 21 Jun 2023

Solution: a)

Only statement 1 is correct.

There is an array of crops — brinjal, tomato, maize, chickpea — in various stages of trials that employ transgenic technology. However, cotton remains the only transgenic crop that is being commercially cultivated in India. After a long hiatus, the GEAC, the apex technical body charged with evaluating proposals for testing genetically modified (GM) seeds, approved the environmental release of Mustard hybrid DMH-11 and its parental lines, during its 147th meeting on 18 October 2022 for seed production and testing. This is one step away from full commercial cultivation.

GEAC is under the Union Environment Ministry.

Source

Solution: c)

On June 12, in a move endeavouring to manage the “overall food security and to prevent hoarding and unscrupulous speculation”, the Union Government imposed limits on stock of wheat that can be held by traders, wholesalers, retailers, big chain retailers and processors. The objective here is to stabilise the price of the essential commodity by steadying supply.

The government has also decided to offload 15 lakh tonnes of wheat from the central pool via the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) to flour mills, private traders, bulk buyers, manufacturers of wheat products through e-auction. The idea is to control retail prices of wheat. The Food Secretary also announced that the government would offload rice under OMSS to moderate its prices.

The Food Corporation of India is entrusted with the responsibility to ensure food grains are accessible at reasonable prices to the vulnerable sections of society under the Public Distribution System. 

Source

Solution: b)

Statement 3 is incorrect.

The concept of mandatory minimum sentencing refers to “a sentence which must be imposed without leaving any discretion to the court. It means a quantum of punishment which cannot be reduced below the period fixed,” the Apex court held in its 2016 ruling in ‘Mohd Hashim vs State Of UP And Others’.

Essentially, this predetermines the minimum punishment or sentence for certain offenses which are considered to be more serious than others, with a view to ensure justice and not let the perpetrator of such an offense go unpunished.

No matter what the unique, individual circumstances of the offender or the offense might be, the court must mandatorily award this minimum period of sentencing for the offenses which prescribe it.

A concept that comes primarily from the Canadian and American legal systems; in India, such sentences are prescribed for all sexual offenses under the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act except the offense of sexual harassment.

Under Section 8 of the POCSO Act, a punishment of 3-5 years has been prescribed for offenses under Section 7 which deals with offenses of sexual assault against children. However, imposing the minimum punishment in such cases is mandatory.

When the legislature has prescribed a minimum sentence without discretion, the same cannot be reduced by the courts. 

Solution: c)

Foreign direct investment and foreign portfolio investment are part of the capital account.

Solution: d)

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) established Champions of the Earth in 2005 as an annual awards programme to recognize outstanding environmental leaders from the public and private sectors, and from civil society. The Champions of the Earth award is the UN’s highest environmental honour.