UPSC Current Affairs Quiz : 5 February 2024

Solution: c)

As the Government of India presses ahead with its plan to internationalise the Indian Rupee (INR), an Inter-Departmental Group (IDG) of officials of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have in a report cautioned that internationalisation may result in increased volatility in the rupee’s exchange rate in the initial stages.

“This would further have monetary implications as the obligation of a country to supply its currency to meet the global demand may come in conflict with its domestic monetary policies, popularly known as the Triffin dilemma,” the IDG wrote.

The Triffin dilemma or Triffin paradox is the conflict of economic interests that arises between short-term domestic and long-term international objectives for countries whose currencies serve as global reserve currencies. 

Solution: b)

Statement 3 is incorrect.

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora is an international agreement between governments to ensure that international trade in wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species. The convention entered into force in 1975 and India became the 25th party — a state that voluntarily agrees to be bound by the Convention — in 1976.

All import, export and re-export of species covered under CITES must be authorised through a permit system.

Every two years, the Conference of the Parties (CoP), the supreme decision-making body of CITES, applies a set of biological and trade criteria to evaluate proposals from parties to decide if a species should be in Appendix I or II.

Solution: b)

Statement 3 is incorrect.

The Beas River is a river in north India. The river rises in the Himalayas in central Himachal Pradesh and flows for some 470 kilometres (290 mi) to the Sutlej River in the state of Punjab.

The water of the Beas river is allocated to India under the terms of the Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan.

Solution: c)

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has launched a call for startup applications for registration on the MAARG portal, the National Mentorship Platform by Startup India.

MAARG portal – Mentorship, Advisory, Assistance, Resilience and Growth, is a one stop platform to facilitate mentorship for startups across diverse sectors, functions, stages, geographies, and backgrounds. The objectives of the MAARG portal are –

• To provide sector focused guidance, handholding, and support to startups throughout their lifecycle
• To establish a formalized and structured platform that facilitates intelligent matchmaking between the mentors and their respective mentees

•To facilitate efficient and expert mentorship for startups and build an outcome-oriented mechanism that allows timely tracking of the mentor-mentee engagements

Solution: b)

Statement 1 is incorrect.

What are semiconductors?

Also known as microchips or integrated circuits, semiconductors are usually made from silicon, and consist of millions or billions of transistors that act like miniature electrical switches that flip on and off to process data such as images, radio waves, and sounds. They are practically inside every essential product of the modern world — from household appliances to sophisticated defence systems, mobile phones to cars, toys to high-end luxury products.