[Mission 2024] QUED ( Questions from Editorials ) 11 December 2023

Solution: b)

Global investors are allowed to participate in initial public offering (IPO) of a company owned by the government.

A Red Herring Prospectus, or offer document, is filed by a company to SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) when it plans to raise money from the public by selling shares of the company to investors. The document is very useful to investors because it provides detailed information about the company’s business operations, financials, promoters and the company’s objective for raising funds by filing an IPOs.

Solution: d)

International Big Cats Alliance (IBCA) will focus on the protection and conservation of seven major big cats of the world, including tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, puma, jaguar and cheetah, with membership of the range countries harbouring these species.

Project Tiger was launched by the Central government on April 1, 1973, in a bid to promote conservation of the tiger. Launched at the Jim Corbett National Park, the programme was initially started in nine tiger reserves of different States such as Assam, Bihar, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, covering over 14,000 sq km.

Notably, Project Tiger didn’t just focus on the conservation of the big cats. It also ensured the preservation of their natural habitat as tigers are at the top of the food chain.

Solution: c)

What is the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) mission?

According to European Space Agency (ESA) website, the Juice “will make detailed observations of the giant gas planet and its three large ocean-bearing moons — Ganymede, Callisto and Europa”, by using remote sensing, geophysical and in situ instruments.

Scientists for quite some time have known that these three moons of Jupiter possess icy crusts, which they believe contain oceans of liquid water underneath, making them potentially habitable. Juice will help probe these water bodies by creating detailed maps of the moons’ surfaces and enable the scientists, for the first time, to look beneath them.

Solution: c)

National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013 anchors the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), the PM POSHAN scheme (earlier known as the Mid-Day Meals scheme), and the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). 

Solution: b)

Statement 1 is incorrect.

Presiding Officers use their discretion to refer a matter to a Parliamentary Committee, but this is usually done in consultation with leaders of parties in the House.

An invitation to appear before a Parliamentary Committee is equivalent to a summons from a court: If one cannot come, he or she has to give reasons, which the panel may or may not accept. However, the chairman should have the support of the majority of the members to summon a witness.

Reports of Departmentally Related Standing Committees are recommendatory in nature. They are not binding on the government, but they do carry significant weight. In the past, governments have accepted suggestions given by the Committees and incorporated them into the Bill after it has come back to the House for consideration and passage. These panels also examine policy issues in their respective Ministries and make suggestions to the government. The government has to report back on whether these recommendations have been accepted. Based on this, the Committees table Action Taken Reports, detailing the status of the government’s action on each recommendation.