UPSC Current Affairs Quiz : 10 February 2024

Solution: d)

Today, GWR has over 75 adjudicators across the world, who determine whether a record has been broken or not. There is even an application process – one can apply to invite an adjudicator to witness a record being broken. However, there are some strict criteria that make a Guinness World Record.

A record must satisfy all of the following criteria to count.

• It should be objectively measurable.
• It should be breakable– it cannot be something so unique that only one person can do it.
• Similarly, it should also be standardisablewith a possibility to create a set of parameters and conditions that all challengers can follow.
• It should be verifiable.
• It should be based ononly one variable.
• It should be the best in the world. For any new record, GWR sets a minimum standard that has to be met for the record to be broken.

Solution: b)

The Gaza Strip is a self-governing Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the east and north.

Solution: d)

The dual control structure:

Its uniqueness lies in the fact that Assam Rifles is the only paramilitary force with a dual control structure. While the administrative control of the force is with the MHA, its operational control is with the Indian Army, which is under the Ministry of Defence (MoD). This means that salaries and infrastructure for the force is provided by the MHA, but the deployment, posting, transfer and deputation of the personnel is decided by the Army.

In some ways, the force is the only central paramilitary force (CPMF), as its operational duties and regimentation are on the lines of the Indian Army. However, being a Central Armed Police force under MHA, its recruitment, perks, promotion of its personnel and retirement policies are governed according to the rules framed by the MHA for CAPFs.

Solution: d)

In all, the conventional transplanting route requires some 28 irrigations. It can go up if high temperatures force more frequent watering, and go down if there is enough rain.

Direct seeding versus transplanting

That’s where direct seeding of rice (DSR) comes in. Paddy here is sown directly in the field without any nursery preparation, puddling or flooding. In transplanting, the flooded fields basically deny oxygen to the weed seeds in the soil, preventing their germination. Water, thus, acts as a natural herbicide. In DSR, water is replaced with chemical herbicides.

DSR is effective against weeds and saves water compared to transplanting.

Solution: c)

Kapilvastu is in southern Nepal, near the Indian border. Lumbinī is a Buddhist pilgrimage site in Nepal. It is the place where, according to Buddhist tradition, queen Maya gave birth to Siddhartha Gautama at around 566 BCE.