GK Quiz | 10 August 2020

Q1. Loya Jirga, recently seen in news, is -

1. A largest ethnic minority of South China.
2. A national gathering that brings together representatives from the various ethnic, religious, and tribal communities in Afghanistan.
3. A program to bring humans to the Moon again.
4. A Munda ethnic group of India.

Solution: B)

Explanation:

About Loya Jirga:

• It is a mass national gathering that brings together representatives from the various ethnic, religious, and tribal communities in Afghanistan.
• Its decisions are not legally binding as it is not an official decision-making body
• In Afghanistan, it has been reportedly organized since at least the early 18^th century.

Hence, option B is correct.

 

Q2. Consider the following statements about Eravikulam National Park (ENP):

1. It is located along the Western Ghats in the Vijayapura district of Karnataka.
2. It is the first national park in Kerala.
3. South India's highest peak is located in the southern region of this park.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 1,2 and 3
4. None

Solution: B)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3: About Eravikulam National Park:

• It is a national park located along the Western Ghats in the Idukki district of Kerala in India.
• It is the first national park in Kerala.
• Anamudi, the highest peak in the Western Ghats and South India, is located in the southern region of this park.
• The park is in continuity with nearby Anamudi Shola National Park, Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Kurinjimala Sanctuary and the Pambadum Shola National Park.

So, statement 1 is incorrect and statement 2 and 3 are correct. Hence, option B is correct.

 

Q3. Which of the following services is/are provided by Anganwadi centres?

1. Supplementary nutrition
2. Health check-up
3. Nutrition and health education
4. Pre-school non-formal education
5. Referral services
6. Immunisation

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

1. 1,3,4 and 5 only
2. 2,4 and 6 only
3. 1,2,3,4,5 and 6
4. 2,3,4 and 5 only

Solution: C)

Explanation:

In India, Anganwadi is a type of rural child care centre. Indian Government started it in 1975 as part of the Integrated Child Development Services program to combat child hunger and malnutrition.

Anganwadi is a centrally sponsored scheme implemented by the States / UTs.

These centres provide following services:

• Supplementary nutrition
• Non-formal pre-school education
• Nutrition and health education
• Immunization
• Health check-up
• Referral service

Hence, option C is correct.

 

Q4. Consider the following statements with reference to National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013:

1. The act provided for coverage of upto 50% of the rural population for receiving subsidized foodgrains under Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS).
2. No food security allowance in case of non-supply of entitled foodgrains or meals.
3. Under the act, pregnant women and lactating mothers will be entitled to receive maternity benefit of not less than Rs. 5,000.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

1. 1 and 3 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 1, 2 and 3 only
4. None

Solution: D)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3: National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 was signed into law on 12 September 2013.

Features of NFSA, 2013:

• Under the act, upto 75% of the rural population and upto 50% of the urban population will be covered under Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS).
• Pregnant women and lactating mothers will also be entitled to receive maternity benefit of not less than Rs. 6,000.
• For women empowerment, eldest woman of the household of age 18 years or above to be the head of the household for the purpose of issuing of ration cards
• The eligible persons will be entitled to receive 5 Kgs of foodgrains per person per month at subsidised prices of Rs. 3/2/1 per kg for rice, wheat and coarse grains.
• For malnourished children up to 6 years of age, higher nutritional norms have been prescribed.
• It also provided for a grievance redressal mechanism at the District and State levels.
• The beneficiaries will receive food security allowance in case of non-supply of entitled foodgrains or meals.

So, all statements are incorrect and hence, option D is correct.

 

Q5. Consider the following statements about the Press Council of India (PCI):

1. It is a statutory organization founded in 1966.
2. Its decisions cannot be appealed before a court of law.
3. It has the power to review the functioning of internet media.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

1. 1 and 3 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 1,2 and 3
4. 1 and 2 only

Solution: D)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3: About Press Council of India (PCI):

• It is a statutory, adjudicating organization in India, established in 1966.
• Objective: To maintain and improve the standards of newspapers and news agencies in India and preserve the freedom of the press.
• Composition: it consists of a chairman and 28 other members.
• Decisions of the PCI are final and cannot be appealed before a court of law.
• It builds a code of conduct for journalists and news agencies.
• It does not have the power to review the functioning of the electronic media (television, radio and internet media).
• It only overviews the functioning of print media and cannot penalize newspapers, news agencies, journalists and editors for violation of the guidelines.

So, statement 1 and 2 are correct and statement 3 is incorrect. Hence, option D is correct.

 

Q6. Consider the following statements about Competition Commission of India:

1. It is a non-statutory body.
2. It aims to prevent practices having adverse effect on competition.
3. The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 was replaced by the Competition Act, 2002.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are incorrect?

1. 2 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 1 only
4. 1 and 3 only

Solution: C)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3:

About Competition Commission of India:

• It is a statutory body, established on 14^th October 2003.
• It is headquartered in New Delhi.
• It is responsible for enforcing the Competition Act, 2002 throughout India.
• It aims to prevent practices having adverse effect on competition.
• The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 was replaced by the Competition Act, 2002.
• CCI consists of a Chairperson and 6 Members appointed by the Central Government.
• As per the Competition Act, 2002, The Chairperson and every other Member shall be a person of ability, integrity and standing and who, has been, or is qualified to be a judge of a High Court, or, has special knowledge of, and professional experience of not less than fifteen years in international trade, economics, business, commerce, law, finance, accountancy, management, industry, public affairs, administration or in any other matter which, in the opinion of the Central Government, may be useful to the Commission.

So, statement 1 is incorrect and statement 2 and 3 are correct. Hence, option C is correct.

 

Q7. Which of the following practices is/are included in the Regenerative Agriculture?

1. Permaculture
2. Agroforestry
3. Organic farming practices
4. Natural Sequence Farming

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

1. 1 and 3 only
2. 2 and 4 only
3. 1,2,3 and 4
4. 1,2 and 4 only

Solution: C)

Explanation:

About Regenerative Agriculture:

• It is a rehabilitation and conservation approach to food and farming systems.
• It focuses on improving the water cycle, enhancing ecosystem services, topsoil regeneration, increasing biodiversity, strengthening the health and vitality of farm soil, increasing resilience to climate change, and supporting biosequestration.
• It includes practices such as permaculture, restoration ecology, keyline design, agroecology, agroforestry, holistic management Organic farming practices, Natural Sequence Farming (NSF), etc.

Hence, option C is correct.

 

Q8. Consider the following statements regarding TRIFED:

1. It functions under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
2. Minor Forest Produce (MFP) development and Retail Marketing and Development are its two main functions.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Solution: B)

Explanation:

Statements 1 and 2: About Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED):

• It was established in August 1987 by the Government of India as a National level Cooperative body. It comes under the aegis of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
• Its head office is in New Delhi.
• It was registered under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 1984.
• Minor Forest Produce (MFP) development and Retail Marketing and Development are its two main functions.

So, statement 1 is incorrect and statement 2 is correct. Hence, option B is correct.

 

Q9. Which of the following countries border Belarus?

1. Latvia
2. Lithuania
3. Ukraine
4. Poland
5. Russia

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

1. 1,2 and 4 only
2. 2,3 and 5 only
3. 1,2,3,4 and 5
4. 3,4 and 5 only

Solution: C)

Explanation:

Belarus is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the northeast, Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest, Ukraine to the south and Poland to the west.

Hence, option C is correct.

 

Q10. Which of the following countries have a coastline on the Mediterranean Sea?

1. France
2. Switzerland
3. Albania
4. Niger
5. Algeria
6. Lebanon

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

1. 1,3,5 and 6 only
2. 2,4 and 5 only
3. 1,2,3,4,5 and 6
4. 1,2,3 and 5 only

Solution: A)

Explanation:

Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean by Strait of Gibraltar, almost completely enclosed by land - on the south by North Africa, on the east by the Levant, and on the north by Southern Europe and Anatolia.

The countries having a coastline on the Mediterranean Sea are-

• Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt on the southern shore.
• Island nations: Malta, Cyprus.
• Spain, France, Monaco, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Greece, Turkey on the northern shore.
• Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Egypt on the eastern shore.

Hence, option A is correct.

 

Q11. Consider the following statements with reference to Indus Water Treaty:

1. The treaty was signed between India and Pakistan in 1960.
2. Under the treaty, Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab were allocated to India for exclusive use.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Solution: A)

Explanation:

Statements 1 and 2:

About Indus Water Treaty:

• It was signed between India and Pakistan in 1960.
• Under the treaty, all the waters of eastern rivers namely Ravi, Sutlej and Beas were allocated to India for exclusive use.
• While the waters of Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab (Western rivers) were allocated to Pakistan except for specified domestic, non-consumptive and agricultural use permitted to India as provided in the Treaty.

So, statement 1 is correct and statement 2 is incorrect. Hence, option A is correct.

 

Q12. Consider the following statements about Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN):

1. It is a centrally sponsored scheme.
2. The scheme is targeted only small and medium farmers.
3. Under the Scheme an income support of Rs.5000/- per year is provided to all farmer families across the country.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

1. 1 and 3 only
2. 1 and 2 only
3. 1,2 and 3
4. None

Solution: D)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3: Recently, Prime Minster released the sixth instalment of funds under the PM¬-KISAN scheme, which amounted to 17,000 crore to about 8.5 crore farmers.

About Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN):

• It is a Central Sector scheme with 100% funding from Government of India.
• Initially, the scheme was targeted small and medium farmers but in May 2019, it was extended to all farmers.
• Under the Scheme an income support of Rs.6000/- per year is provided to all farmer families across the country in three equal installments of Rs.2000/-.
• The fund is directly transferred to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries.
• The entire responsibility of identification of beneficiary farmer families rests with the State / UT Governments.

So, all statements are incorrect. Hence, option D is correct.

 

Q13. Consider the following pairs:

Temple	State
1. Sri Neelakanteshwara temple	Tamil Nadu
2. Sri Ranganthaswami temple	Andhra Pradesh
3. Thousand Pillar Temple	Karnataka

 

Which of the pair(s) given above is/are correctly matched?

1. 2 and 3 only
2. 2 only
3. 1 and 2 only
4. 1,2 and 3

Solution: B)

Explanation:

About Sri Neelakanteshwara temple:

• It is an ancient temple located in Nizamabad town of Telangana. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva.
• It is famous for its stunning architecture.
• The deity Lord Shiva named as Neelakanteshwara due to the presence of blue throat.
• Kanteshwar Temple was believed to be constructed by Satavahana king Satakarni II for the Jains.  Later, the temple was converted as a Shiva temple during Kakatiya period. The structure resembles the Nagara architecture.

Sri Ranganthaswami temple is located in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh. Lord Ranganthaswami is a resting form of Lord Vishnu. It was built in 12^th century.

The Thousand Pillar Temple or Rudreshwara Swamy Temple is a historic Hindu temple situated in the town of Hanamakonda, Telangana. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva, Vishnu and Surya. It was believed to be constructed during the period between 1175–1324 CE by order of the king, Rudra Deva.

Hence, option B is correct.