UPSC Editorials Quiz : 5 June 2026

Solution: A

• Statement 1 is incorrect because Prior Informed Consent (PIC) must be obtained from the concerned national authority of the provider country before accessing biological resources, rather than directly or solely from the local communities in every instance. The apex regulatory body or designated national authority holds the legal mandate to grant or deny this consent based on national sovereign rights over biological wealth.
• Statement 2 is correct because Mutually Agreed Terms (MAT) form the second pillar of the ABS framework. This commercial and legal instrument details the specific conditions of resource utilization, intellectual property rights, transfer to third parties, and the nature of monetary or non-monetary benefit-sharing between the contracting parties.

Statement 3 is correct because the ABS Clearing-House Mechanism is a decentralized global digital portal designed to enhance transparency. It tracks certificates, permits, and country profiles, converting domestic access permits into Internationally Recognized Certificates of Compliance (IRCCs), thereby acting as an institutional check against biopiracy and undocumented material transfers across borders.

Solution: D

Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) refers to the essential assets, physical facilities, digital networks, and public services that form the socio-economic backbone of a country. A failure or compromise of these sectors would severely harm public safety, economic security, or national defense.

India’s designated CNI grid covers:

• The Power and Energy Grid Hub: Includes ultra-mega solar parks, thermal power units, nuclear reactors, and high-voltage transmission lines managed by PowerGrid (validating point 1).
• The Strategic Transportation Framework: Contains automated train control centers (ETCS), modern airport air traffic control (ATC) screens, major shipping ports, and highway toll operations (validating point 2).
• The Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) Core: Includes the Reserve Bank of India’s payment gateways, NEFT/RTGS grids, and public sector banking servers (validating point 3).
• The Telecom and Information Technology Backbone: Built around undersea fiber-optic cable landing stations, national data centers, and satellite communication links (validating point 4).

Solution: B

• Statement 1 is correct because the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) was created explicitly under Section 70A of the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000, to secure the nation’s critical information assets from cyber warfare and systematic disruptions.
• Statement 2 is incorrect because the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) does not operate under the Ministry of Home Affairs. It functions under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). While it deals with cyber threat forecasting and incident response, its administrative control lies outside the Home Ministry.
• Statement 3 is correct because the Standardization Testing and Quality Certification (STQC) directorate has deployed specialized advanced hardware verification setups. These setups are designed to examine imported IoT sensors, network nodes, and surveillance cameras for embedded malware, hardware trojans, or hidden data-sharing channels.

Solution: B

• The upper Ganga basin is formed by several Himalayan rivers originating from glaciers in the Garhwal Himalayas of Uttarakhand. Understanding the sources and confluences of these rivers is important for both geography and hydrology.
• Pair 1: Bhagirathi – Originates from the Gaumukh at the snout of the Gangotri Glacier.
  This pair is correct. The Bhagirathi River originates from Gaumukh, which is the snout of the Gangotri Glacier. Traditionally, the Bhagirathi has been regarded as the main source stream of the Ganga because of its religious and cultural significance.
• Pair 2: Alaknanda – Originates from the Satopanth Glacier.
  This pair is also correct. The Alaknanda River rises near the Satopanth Glacier and flows through several important confluences known as the Panch Prayag. Hydrologically, the Alaknanda carries a greater volume of water than the Bhagirathi before their meeting at Devprayag.
• Pair 3: Devprayag – Confluence of the Alaknanda and Mandakini rivers.
  This pair is incorrect. The Mandakini joins the Alaknanda at Rudraprayag. Devprayag is the confluence of the Bhagirathi and Alaknanda From Devprayag onward, the combined river is officially known as the Ganga.

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Solution: C

• Statement 1 is incorrect. Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) do not occur exclusively due to anthropogenic climate change. While climate change accelerates glacier retreat and promotes the formation and expansion of glacial lakes, GLOFs can be triggered by several other factors, including earthquakes, avalanches, landslides, icefalls, heavy rainfall, or the sudden collapse of natural dams. Therefore, climate change is an important contributing factor but not the sole cause.
• Statement 2 is correct. Many Himalayan glacial lakes are impounded by moraine dams, which are natural barriers composed of loose rock fragments, sediment, and buried ice left behind by retreating glaciers. These dams are inherently unstable because they are poorly consolidated and susceptible to erosion, overtopping, seismic activity, and slope failures. A breach of such a dam can release enormous volumes of water downstream, causing catastrophic flooding.
• Statement 3 is correct. Scientific studies indicate that the Eastern Himalaya is significantly more vulnerable to GLOFs than the Western Himalaya because of its relatively warmer and wetter climate, faster glacier retreat, and rapid expansion of glacial lakes. Research has found GLOF risk in parts of the Eastern Himalaya to be at least double that of neighboring Himalayan regions.

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