GK Quiz | 6 August 2020

Q1. Consider the following statements:

1. India inherited the concept of the whip from the British parliamentary system.
2. The three-line whip is issued to direct the members to be present in the House at the time of voting.
3. The term ‘office of whip’ is clearly defined in a Parliamentary Statute.

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

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

Solution: A)

Explanation:

Statements 1, 2 and 3: Recently, Congress has issued whip to its Manipur MLAs to attend August 10 Assembly session.

About whip:

• A whip is an official of a political party who acts as the party’s ‘enforcer’ inside house of parliament or the legislative assembly.
• The concept of the whip is inherited by India from the British parliamentary system.
• The ‘office of whip’ is mentioned neither in the Constitution of India nor in a Parliamentary Statute nor in the Rules of the House.
• A chief whip is a senior member appointed by party from among its House contingents.
• Following are three types of whips issued by the party:
• One-line whip: It is issued to inform members of a party about a vote. It allows a member to abstain in case they decide not to follow the party line.
• Two-line whip: It is issued to direct the members to be present in the House at the time of voting.
• Three-line whip: It is issued to members directing them to vote as per the party line. A three-line whip is the strongest, issued on important occasions such as the second reading of a Bill or a no-confidence motion.

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

 

Q2. Kalapani region, often seen in news, is an area in-

1. Jammu and Kashmir
2. Sikkim
3. Uttarakhand
4. West Bengal

Solution: C)

Explanation:

Kalapani region is an area under Indian administration as part of Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand. It forms the Indian route to Kailash–Manasarovar. The region is claimed by Nepal since 1997 and according to Nepal, it lies in Darchula district of Sudurpashchim Pradesh.

Hence, option C is correct.

 

Q3. With reference to Public Safety Act 1978, consider the following statements:

1. It is a preventive detention law.
2. It is enforced by an order passed by either by Divisional Commissioner or the District Magistrate.
3. It allowed the government to detain any person above the age of 18 without trial for a period of two years.

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

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

Solution: A)

Explanation:

Statements 1, 2 and 3: After one year of revocation of Article 370, more than 20 mainstream leaders of the regional parties are still under house arrest in Jammu and Kashmir under the Public Safety Act.

About Public safety act or the Jammu & Kashmir Public Safety Act (PSA), 1978:

• The act was introduced as a tough law to prevent the smuggling of timber and keep the smugglers out of circulation.
• It is a preventive detention law, under which a person is taken into custody to prevent him or her from acting in any manner that is prejudicial to the security of the state or the maintenance of the public order.
• It is enforced by an order passed by either by the District Magistrate or Divisional Commissioner.
• Under the act, the government can detain any person above the age of 16 without trial for a period of two years.
• It allows for administrative detention up to one year where “any person is acting in any manner prejudicial to the maintenance of public order”, and for administrative detention for up to two years “in the case of persons acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the State”.
• Under the act, there is no right to file bail.
• Relatives of the detained person can challenge this administrative preventive detention order by filing a habeas corpus petition. The Supreme Court and High Court have the jurisdiction to hear such petitions.

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

 

Q4. Production linked incentive (PLI) is a scheme of-

1. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
2. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
3. Ministry of Commerce and Industry
4. Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises

Solution: B)

Explanation:

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s (MeitY) production linked incentive (PLI) scheme was notified on 1^st April 2020 as a part of the National Policy of Electronics. It was launched for Large Scale Electronics Manufacturing.

Under the scheme:

• A financial incentive is proposed to boost domestic manufacturing and attract large investments in the electronics value chain including semiconductor packaging and electronic components.
• Electronic manufacturing companies will get an incentive of 4 to 6% on incremental sales of goods manufactured in India and covered under target segments (mobile phones and specified electronic components), to eligible companies over a period of next 5 years.
• The scheme shall only be applicable for target segments. The Scheme is open for applications for a period of 4 months initially which may be extended.
• It will be implemented through a Nodal Agency which shall act as a Project Management Agency (PMA).
• Companies that make mobile phones which sell for Rs 15,000 or more will get an incentive of up to 6 per cent on incremental sales of all such mobile phones made in India. The incentive, for the companies which are owned by Indian nationals and make such mobile phones, has been kept at Rs 200 crore for the next four years.

With the PLI scheme, the government domestic value addition for mobile phones is expected to rise to 35-40% by 2025 from the current level of 20-25% and generate additional 8 lakh jobs, both direct and indirect.

Hence, option B is correct.

 

Q5. Consider the following pairs:

(Navigation System)	(Country)
1. BeiDou	China
2. GPS	USA
3. Galileo	Russia
4. GLONASS	European Union

 

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

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

Solution: C)

Explanation:

BeiDou is a Chinese Satellite Navigation System, initiated by China in 1994. It uses a network of satellites and can provide positional accuracies of under 10 metres. It consists of 27 satellites in medium Earth orbit, three in inclined geosynchronous orbits and five more in geostationary orbit.

Global Positioning System (GPS) is a US satellite navigation system and provides users with positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) services.

Galileo is a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) of European Union. It is headquartered in Prague, Czech Republic, with two ground operations centers in Oberpfaffenhofen (Germany) and Fucino (Italy). Germany and Italy are two countries that contribute most to the Galileo Project.

GLONASS is a global navigation satellite system of Russia. It is the second navigational system in operation with global coverage and of comparable precision.

Hence, option C is correct.

 

Q6. Consider the following statements regarding Habeas corpus:

1. Under this, the court orders the public official who has failed to perform his duty or refused to do his duty, to resume his work.
2. It cannot be issued against public authorities.
3. It is not issued where the detention is lawful.

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

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

Solution: B)

Explanation:

Statements 1, 2 and 3: Habeas Corpus is literally means ‘to have the body of’. It is an order issued by the court to a person who has detained another person, to produce the body of the latter before it. The writ of habeas corpus can be issued against both private individuals as well as public authorities.

The writ is not issued where the

• detention is lawful,
• proceeding is for contempt of a legislature or a court,
• detention is by a competent court, and
• detention is outside the jurisdiction of the court.

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

 

Q7. Consider the following statements about time capsule:

1. It is a spacecraft built by the Space X.
2. It is intended as a method of communication with future people.

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 Time capsule:

• It is a container which stores photos, documents and artefacts typical of the current era and is buried underground, for future generations to unearth.
• They are built using special engineering techniques to ensure that the capsules do not decay
• They are intended as a method of communication with future people and to help future, anthropologists, archaeologists or historians.

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

 

Q8. Consider the following statements with reference to Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN):

1. It is used to monitor the supply chain of Covid response material.
2. Its aim is to augment the Universal Immunization Programme.
3. It is being implemented under the National Health Mission.

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

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

Solution: D)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3: eVIN is ensuring necessary immunization services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN):

• It is an indigenously developed technology system that monitors the temperature of the cold chain through a smartphone application and digitizes vaccine stocks.
• Its aim is to strengthen immunization supply chain systems across India and to augment the Universal Immunization Programme.
• It is implemented under the National Health Mission by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in partnership with the Union Nations development programme (UNDP).

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

 

Q9. Crew Dragon spacecraft, recently seen in news, is built by-

1. DRDO
2. Tesla
3. Antrix
4. SpaceX

Solution: D)

Explanation:

Recently, Crew Dragon spacecraft with astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley onboard splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico. It was the first splashdown by the USA astronauts in 45 years.

Crew Dragon spacecraft is a reusable spacecraft developed and manufactured by American aerospace manufacturer SpaceX. It was the first time that astronauts used a spaceship built and launched by a private company (SpaceX). After the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo and Space Shuttle programs, it is the fifth class of the USA spacecraft to take human beings into orbit. The complete mission was carried out under the Demo-2 mission of NASA and SpaceX.

Hence, option D is correct.

 

Q10. Arrange the following Islands of the Lakshadweep group from South to North?

1. Minicoy
2. Kavaratti
3. Agatti
4. Kadmat

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

1. 1-2-3-4
2. 2-3-4-1
3. 3-2-4-1
4. 1-3-2-4

Solution: A)

Explanation:

Lakshadweep is a tropical archipelago of 36 atolls and coral reefs in the Laccadive Sea, off the coast of Kerala (India). Its capital is Kavaratti.

Minicoy Island is the southern-most island of Lakshadweep and Chetlat Island is the northern-most island of Lakshadweep.

Agatti Island is located to the west of Kavaratti Island which is at a distance of 404 km (218 nautical miles) from Kochi.

Islands of the Lakshadweep group from South to North- Minicoy-Kavaratti- Agatti-Kadmat.

Hence, option A is correct.

 

Q11.Marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) is based on which of the following component?

1. The marginal cost of funds
2. Operating costs
3. Negative carry on account of cash reserve ratio
4. Tenor premium

Select the correct answer using the codes give below:

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

Solution: D)

Explanation:

About Marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR):

• It is the minimum interest rate at which commercial banks can lend.
• It was introduced by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in 2016 for fixing interest rates.
• It is closely linked to the actual deposit rates.
• It is calculated based on four components:
• the marginal cost of funds,
• negative carry on account of cash reserve ratio,
• operating costs, and
• tenor premium

Hence, option D is correct.

 

Q12. Consider the following statements regarding H-1B Visa:

1. It is for students on work-study summer programmes.
2. It is an immigrant visa.
3. It allows H-1B visa holders to bring their spouse and children under 21 years of age to the US under the H4 Visa category as dependents.

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

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

Solution: A)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3: About H-1B visa:

• It is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ graduate level foreign workers in specialty occupations (requires a higher education degree of its equivalent). Nonimmigrant visas are for foreign nationals wishing to enter the United States on a temporary basis while immigrant visas are issued to foreign nationals who intend to live permanently in the United States.
• H-1B visa holders can bring their spouse and children under 21 years of age to the US under the H4 Visa category as dependents.
• H-1B has an option of green card application. Green card or Permanent Resident Card allows a person to live and work permanently in the US.

J-1 Visas is for students on work-study summer programmes.

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

 

Q13. Consider the following statements about an H4 Visa holders:

1. An H4 Visa holder is eligible to work in the US
2. They may open a bank account while in the US.
3. They are allowed to remain in the US as long as the H-1B visa holder remains in legal status.

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

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

Solution: C)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3: H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ graduate level foreign workers in specialty occupations (requires a higher education degree of its equivalent). They can bring their spouse and children under 21 years of age to the US under the H4 Visa category as dependents.

H4 visa holder:

• Dependents of H-1B visa holders get H-4 visas.
• An H4 visa holder is not eligible to work in the US.
• They are allowed to remain in the US as long as the H-1B visa holder remains in legal status.
• They may obtain a driver's license, attend school and open a bank account while in the US.

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

 

Q14. Consider the following statements regarding Financial Action Task Force (FATF):

1. It is an inter-governmental body founded in 1989.
2. Countries which support terror funding and money laundering activities are put in FATF blacklist.
3. It sets international anti-money laundering standards and counter-terrorist financing measures.

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

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

Solution: C)

Explanation:

Statements 1,2 and 3: About the Financial Action Task Force (FATF):

• It is an inter-governmental body founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7.
• The FATF Secretariat is housed at the OECD headquarters in Paris.
• Its purpose is to combat money laundering and terrorism financing.
• Its president is a senior official appointed by the FATF Plenary from among its members for a term of one year.
• FATF has maintained two lists namely the FATF greylist (formally called the "Other monitored jurisdictions") and the FATF blacklist (formally called the "Call for action").
• The countries that support terror funding and money laundering activities are put in the FATF blacklist. These countries are known as Non-Cooperative Countries or Territories (NCCTs).
• Countries that are considered safe haven for supporting terror funding and money laundering are put in the FATF grey list.

So, all statements are correct. Hence, option C is correct.