01st February 2023 Current Affairs Quiz for UPSC Prelims
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Question 1 of 10
1. Question
2 points
Liquid Nano Urea (a fertilizer) has been approved by the government for commercial use. In this regard, consider the following statements:
1. It is developed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Pusa.
2. It is sprayed directly on the leaves and gets absorbed by the plant.
3. It has a very short shelf life of about few days.
Which of the given statements is/are correct?
Correct
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Only statement 2 is correct.
Liquid Nano Urea
• It has been developed by Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative (IFFCO)’s Nano Biotechnology Research Center (NBRC). Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• It is sprayed directly on the leaves and gets absorbed by the plant. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• It has a shelf life of a year and farmers need not be worried about “caking” when it comes in contact with moisture. Hence statement 3 is not correct.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Only statement 2 is correct.
Liquid Nano Urea
• It has been developed by Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative (IFFCO)’s Nano Biotechnology Research Center (NBRC). Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• It is sprayed directly on the leaves and gets absorbed by the plant. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• It has a shelf life of a year and farmers need not be worried about “caking” when it comes in contact with moisture. Hence statement 3 is not correct.
Question 2 of 10
2. Question
2 points
In specific context to agriculture the term ‘Kurki’ refers to
Correct
Correct Answer: D
Explanation
Kurki
• A farmer in Punjab has committed suicide outside the office of the Muktsar DC against kurki orders for his land based on a court case filed against him by the local moneylender for defaulting on loan payment.
• Kurki means attachment of a farmer’s land, already pledged to the money lending institution or individual, in case of a loan default.
• Apart from banks, private moneylenders, commission agents also get these decrees against farmers from time to time.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: D
Explanation
Kurki
• A farmer in Punjab has committed suicide outside the office of the Muktsar DC against kurki orders for his land based on a court case filed against him by the local moneylender for defaulting on loan payment.
• Kurki means attachment of a farmer’s land, already pledged to the money lending institution or individual, in case of a loan default.
• Apart from banks, private moneylenders, commission agents also get these decrees against farmers from time to time.
Question 3 of 10
3. Question
2 points
The SETU (Supporting Entrepreneurs in Transformation and Upskilling) Initiative was recently launched by the Centre. In this context, which of the given statements is/are correct?
1. It is a government initiative under the Ministry of External Affairs.
2. It aims to connect start-ups in India to US-based investors.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Correct
Correct Answer: B
Explanation
Statement 1 is not correct, 2 is correct.
• SETU or Supporting Entrepreneurs in Transformation and Upskilling is an Indian government initiative under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry.
• The initiative would connect start-ups in India to US-based investors and start-up ecosystem leaders with mentorship and assistance in various areas including funding, market access and commercialization.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: B
Explanation
Statement 1 is not correct, 2 is correct.
• SETU or Supporting Entrepreneurs in Transformation and Upskilling is an Indian government initiative under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry.
• The initiative would connect start-ups in India to US-based investors and start-up ecosystem leaders with mentorship and assistance in various areas including funding, market access and commercialization.
Question 4 of 10
4. Question
2 points
Consider the following statements regarding Mission Poshan 2.0:
1. It is an umbrella scheme covering the ICDS – Anganwadi Services and Poshan Abhiyan only.
2. It is a central sector scheme.
3. It will be implemented only by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
4. It will adopt an intensified strategy to improve nutritional outcomes across 112 aspirational districts.
Which of the given statements is/are correct?
Correct
Correct Answer: D
Explanation
Statement 4 is correct; 1, 2 and 3 are not correct.
Mission Poshan 2.0
• It was first announced in the Budget 2021. Under the Saksham Anganwadi and Mission Poshan2.0, the government has subsumed following four existing centrally sponsored schemes Integrated Child Development Service (ICDS) — Anganwadi Services, Poshan Abhiyan, Scheme for Adolescent Girls and the National Creche Scheme. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• It is a centrally sponsored scheme. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
• Its aim is to strengthen nutritional content, delivery, outreach, and outcome.
• The government will adopt an “intensified strategy” to improve nutritional outcomes across 112 aspirational districts. Hence statement 4 is correct.
• It will be done in collaboration with the ministry of health and family welfare and the education ministry as part of the ECCE (early childhood care and education) under the NEP (National Education Policy).
• It also aims to: Influence behavioral changes and growth monitoring through the use of technology.
• It will be implemented by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in collaboration with the Ministries for other converging schemes. Hence statement 3 is not correct.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: D
Explanation
Statement 4 is correct; 1, 2 and 3 are not correct.
Mission Poshan 2.0
• It was first announced in the Budget 2021. Under the Saksham Anganwadi and Mission Poshan2.0, the government has subsumed following four existing centrally sponsored schemes Integrated Child Development Service (ICDS) — Anganwadi Services, Poshan Abhiyan, Scheme for Adolescent Girls and the National Creche Scheme. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• It is a centrally sponsored scheme. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
• Its aim is to strengthen nutritional content, delivery, outreach, and outcome.
• The government will adopt an “intensified strategy” to improve nutritional outcomes across 112 aspirational districts. Hence statement 4 is correct.
• It will be done in collaboration with the ministry of health and family welfare and the education ministry as part of the ECCE (early childhood care and education) under the NEP (National Education Policy).
• It also aims to: Influence behavioral changes and growth monitoring through the use of technology.
• It will be implemented by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in collaboration with the Ministries for other converging schemes. Hence statement 3 is not correct.
Question 5 of 10
5. Question
2 points
Consider the following statements with reference to the Health Star Rating System of FSSAI for Packaged Food:
1. The amount of fats, sugar, Cholestrol and salt in the food item will be used to determine the rating.
2. The packaged foods will have number of stars displayed on them which will indicate whether the item is healthy or unhealthy.
3. The price of the food items will also be used to determine the rating.
Which of the given statements is/are correct?
Correct
Correct Answer: A
Explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are incorrect, 2 is correct.
Health Star Rating System
• This system will be similar to the one that is being used by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency for assessing the energy efficiency in electrical devices.
• The packaged foods will have number of stars displayed on them which will indicate whether the item is healthy or unhealthy. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• The amount of fats, sugar, and salt in the food item will be used to determine the rating. Hence statement 1& 3 are not correct.
• A study was conducted by IIM Ahmedabad regarding the methodology to be used to display the health ratings of the food items
• The display of star ratings was recommended in this study as it would be easier for the customer to understand.
• It has been decided that the ratings will be placed in front of the packets as studies show that this method is much more effective towards affecting the choice of the consumer.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: A
Explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are incorrect, 2 is correct.
Health Star Rating System
• This system will be similar to the one that is being used by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency for assessing the energy efficiency in electrical devices.
• The packaged foods will have number of stars displayed on them which will indicate whether the item is healthy or unhealthy. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• The amount of fats, sugar, and salt in the food item will be used to determine the rating. Hence statement 1& 3 are not correct.
• A study was conducted by IIM Ahmedabad regarding the methodology to be used to display the health ratings of the food items
• The display of star ratings was recommended in this study as it would be easier for the customer to understand.
• It has been decided that the ratings will be placed in front of the packets as studies show that this method is much more effective towards affecting the choice of the consumer.
Question 6 of 10
6. Question
2 points
Few states recently announced the implementation of the revised pay scales under the Seventh Pay Commission (SPC) for its employees. Consider the following statements regarding the SPC.
1. It fixed minimum pay at Rs 18,000 per month for govt employees.
2. It called for One Rank One Pension recommended for civilian government employees.
Which of the given statements is/are correct?
Correct
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Both statements are correct.
7th Central Pay Commission
• The 7th Central Pay Commission, headed by Justice A K Mathur, which submitted its report to Finance Minister in November, 2015.
• The government constitutes the Pay Commission almost every 10 years to revise the pay scale of its employees and often these are adopted by states after some modifications.
Key recommendations
• 23.55 per cent increase in pay and allowances recommended.
• Minimum pay fixed at Rs 18,000 per month; maximum pay at Rs 2.25 lakh.
• The rate of annual increment retained at 3per cent. Also, a 24 per cent hike in pensions recommended.
• One Rank One Pension recommended for civilian government employees on line of OROP for armed forces.
• The commission recommended that the financial edge accorded to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) be extended to the Indian Police Service (IPS)and Indian Forest Service (IFoS).
Incorrect
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Both statements are correct.
7th Central Pay Commission
• The 7th Central Pay Commission, headed by Justice A K Mathur, which submitted its report to Finance Minister in November, 2015.
• The government constitutes the Pay Commission almost every 10 years to revise the pay scale of its employees and often these are adopted by states after some modifications.
Key recommendations
• 23.55 per cent increase in pay and allowances recommended.
• Minimum pay fixed at Rs 18,000 per month; maximum pay at Rs 2.25 lakh.
• The rate of annual increment retained at 3per cent. Also, a 24 per cent hike in pensions recommended.
• One Rank One Pension recommended for civilian government employees on line of OROP for armed forces.
• The commission recommended that the financial edge accorded to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) be extended to the Indian Police Service (IPS)and Indian Forest Service (IFoS).
Question 7 of 10
7. Question
2 points
HDFC Bank and Precision Biometric India have been selected by the Reserve Bank for testing their ‘on tap’ retail payments applications under the regulatory sandbox scheme. In this regard, consider the following statements:
1. Sandbox allows to conduct field tests to collect evidence on the benefits and risks of new products and systems.
2. The money transfer services, digital KYC, financial inclusion and crypto currency are included in the sandbox.
3. The main focus of the scheme is to reduce the lag between the occurrence and detection of frauds.
Which of the given statements is/are correct?
Correct
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are correct, 2 is not correct.
RBI’s Regulatory Sandbox
• Regulatory sandbox (RS) refers to live testing of new products or services in a controlled/test
regulatory environment for which regulators may permit certain relaxations for the limited purpose of the testing.
• RBI has come up with a Regulatory Sandbox with the objective to foster responsible innovation in financial services, promote efficiency and bring benefit to consumers.
• It allows the regulator, innovators, financial service providers and customers to conduct field tests to collect evidence on the benefits and risks of new products and systems. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• The main focus of the scheme would be on using technology to reduce the lag between the occurrence and detection of frauds. Hence statement 3 is correct.
• While money transfer services, digital know-your customer, financial inclusion and cybersecurity products are included, crypto currency, credit registry and credit information have been left out. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are correct, 2 is not correct.
RBI’s Regulatory Sandbox
• Regulatory sandbox (RS) refers to live testing of new products or services in a controlled/test
regulatory environment for which regulators may permit certain relaxations for the limited purpose of the testing.
• RBI has come up with a Regulatory Sandbox with the objective to foster responsible innovation in financial services, promote efficiency and bring benefit to consumers.
• It allows the regulator, innovators, financial service providers and customers to conduct field tests to collect evidence on the benefits and risks of new products and systems. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• The main focus of the scheme would be on using technology to reduce the lag between the occurrence and detection of frauds. Hence statement 3 is correct.
• While money transfer services, digital know-your customer, financial inclusion and cybersecurity products are included, crypto currency, credit registry and credit information have been left out. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
Question 8 of 10
8. Question
2 points
India’s rank on the Human Development Index (HDI) has slipped from 130 in 2020 to 132 in 2021. Consider the following statements regarding the HDI:
1. The gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, Education and Health are the parameters of the HDI.
2. Access to resources is measured in terms of purchasing power in the local currencies.
3. The HDI is released by the UNDP.
Which of the given statements is/are correct?
Correct
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Only statement 3 is correct, 1 and 2 are not correct.
Human Development Index (HDI)
• Pakistani economist Mahbub ul Haq created HDI in 1990 which was further used to measure the country’s development by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Hence statement 3 is correct.
• The human development index (HDI) ranks the countries based on their performance in the key areas of health, education, and the gross national income (GNI) per capita. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• These rankings are based on a score between 0 to 1 that a country earns from its record in the key areas of human development.
• The human development index (HDI) ranks the countries based on their performance in the key areas of health, education, and the gross national income (GNI) per capita. The indicator chosen to assess health is life expectancy at birth.
• A higher life expectancy means that people have a greater chance of living longer and healthier lives.
• The adult literacy rate and the gross enrolment ratio represent access to knowledge.
• The number of adults who are able to read and write and the number of children enrolled in schools show how easy or difficult it is to access knowledge in a particular country.
• Access to resources is measured in terms of purchasing power (in U.S. dollars). Hence statement 2 is not correct.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Only statement 3 is correct, 1 and 2 are not correct.
Human Development Index (HDI)
• Pakistani economist Mahbub ul Haq created HDI in 1990 which was further used to measure the country’s development by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Hence statement 3 is correct.
• The human development index (HDI) ranks the countries based on their performance in the key areas of health, education, and the gross national income (GNI) per capita. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• These rankings are based on a score between 0 to 1 that a country earns from its record in the key areas of human development.
• The human development index (HDI) ranks the countries based on their performance in the key areas of health, education, and the gross national income (GNI) per capita. The indicator chosen to assess health is life expectancy at birth.
• A higher life expectancy means that people have a greater chance of living longer and healthier lives.
• The adult literacy rate and the gross enrolment ratio represent access to knowledge.
• The number of adults who are able to read and write and the number of children enrolled in schools show how easy or difficult it is to access knowledge in a particular country.
• Access to resources is measured in terms of purchasing power (in U.S. dollars). Hence statement 2 is not correct.
Question 9 of 10
9. Question
2 points
Consider the following factors:
1. Fear of currency war
2. Easy Money policy of USA’s federal reserves
3. Stiff competition by stock markets around the world
4. Fall in crude oil prices
Which of the above factors can be responsible for the fall in India’s forex reserves?
Correct
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are correct, 2 and 4 are not correct.
Foreign Exchange Reserves
• Foreign exchange reserves are assets held on reserve by a central bank in foreign currencies, which can include bonds, treasury bills and other government securities.
• India’s Forex Reserve include: Foreign Currency Assets, Gold reserves, Special Drawing Rights, Reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
• The forex reserves of India is maintained by the Reserve Bank of India.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are correct, 2 and 4 are not correct.
Foreign Exchange Reserves
• Foreign exchange reserves are assets held on reserve by a central bank in foreign currencies, which can include bonds, treasury bills and other government securities.
• India’s Forex Reserve include: Foreign Currency Assets, Gold reserves, Special Drawing Rights, Reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
• The forex reserves of India is maintained by the Reserve Bank of India.
Question 10 of 10
10. Question
2 points
Finance Minister defended the windfall tax imposed by the Centre on domestic crude oil producers. Consider the following statements with reference to the Windfall Tax:
1. Windfall taxes are imposed by a government against certain industries when they experience above average profits due to economic conditions.
2. It aimed at increasing local supplies and boosting the revenues.
3. Governments timely levy tax over and above the normal rates of tax on additional profits.
Which of the given statements is/are correct?
Correct
Correct Answer: A
Explanation
Statements 1 and 2 are correct, 3 is not correct.
Windfall Tax
• Windfall taxes are designed to tax the profits a company derives from an external, sometimes unprecedented event— for instance, the energy price-rise as a result of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
• These are profits that cannot be attributed to something the firm actively did, like an investment strategy or an expansion of business.
• A windfall is defined as an “unearned, unanticipated gain in income through no additional effort or expense”.
• Governments, typically, levy a one-time tax over and above the normal rates of tax on additional profits and that is fall under windfall tax. Hence statetment 3 is NOT correct.
• One area where such taxes have routinely been discussed is oil markets, where price fluctuation leads to volatile or erratic profits for the industry.
• Italy and the UK are the only two key economies that have levied windfall tax.
Incorrect
Correct Answer: A
Explanation
Statements 1 and 2 are correct, 3 is not correct.
Windfall Tax
• Windfall taxes are designed to tax the profits a company derives from an external, sometimes unprecedented event— for instance, the energy price-rise as a result of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
• These are profits that cannot be attributed to something the firm actively did, like an investment strategy or an expansion of business.
• A windfall is defined as an “unearned, unanticipated gain in income through no additional effort or expense”.
• Governments, typically, levy a one-time tax over and above the normal rates of tax on additional profits and that is fall under windfall tax. Hence statetment 3 is NOT correct.
• One area where such taxes have routinely been discussed is oil markets, where price fluctuation leads to volatile or erratic profits for the industry.
• Italy and the UK are the only two key economies that have levied windfall tax.
