Current Affairs MCQs [ 12 and 13 December 2017 ] PIB TheHindu IndianExpress & Other leading newspapers

Sumant Kumar, B.Tech NIT Allahabad sumant.magadh@gmail.com https://www.facebook.com/SumantKM/

UPSC Prelims 2014 Which one of the following Schedules of the Constitution of India contains provisions regarding anti-defection? (a) Second Schedule (b) Fifth Schedule (c) Eighth Schedule (d) Tenth Schedule Ans D

Which of the following best describes Public Stock holding programme? (a) It refers to the purchase of government securities by the central bank of the country. (b) It is a type of public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors. (c) It is a means to ensure food security by purchasing food grains from farmers at administered rates. (d) It is owning of one or more shares of stock in a joint stock company. Ans C

• Public stockholding is a widely used means to ensure food security in many developing countries where agriculture is largely rain fed.

• The Public stockholding programmes involve purchases from farmers at prices fixed by the governments, known as “supported” or “administered” prices.

• This is done to ensure basic incomes of the farmers and the overall food security of the country.

Which of the following statements is/are correct

• WTO's Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) is a protection measure allowed for developing countries to

regarding Special Safeguard mechanism in WTO? • It is a tool that will allow

developing countries to raise tariffs temporarily to deal with import surges or price falls.

• It has been included under the Nairobi Package negotiated under the WTO.

Select the correct answer using the code given below. (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2 Ans C

take contingency restrictions against agricultural imports that are causing injuries to domestic farmers.

• It is a tool that will allow developing countries to raise tariffs temporarily to deal with import surges or price falls.

• The "Nairobi Package" was adopted at the WTO's Tenth Ministerial Conference, held in Nairobi, Kenya in 2015.

• It contains a series of six Ministerial Decisions on agriculture, cotton and issues related to least-developed countries (LDCs).

• These cover

o public stockholding for food security purposes,

o a Special Safeguard Mechanism for developing countries and

o a commitment to abolish export subsidies for farm exports.

WTO Structure Ministerial Conference

• Supreme Decision Making body

• Meets once every 2 years,(9th Ministerial Conference in 2013- Bali; 10th in 2015 - Nairobi)

• deliberates on trade agreements

• Appoints Director general

General Council • day to day Decision Making body

• Meets regularly at Geneva.

• implements decision of ministerial conferences

• Has Representative from each member state.

has two bodies, with separate chairmen • Dispute settlement body • Trade policy review body

• Below general council, there are Committees on individual agreements and annexes- Anti dumping, Subsidies & countervailing measures (SCM) etc.

Director General • Appointed by ministerial conference

• Has four years term.

• heads the Secretariat at Geneva

Which of the following constitute "Nairobi Package"? • Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) for

developing countries • Public Stockholding for food security

purposes • Abolition of export subsidies for farm

exports • Preferential treatment to LDCs in

services sector Select the correct answer using the code given below. (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 1, 3 and 4 only (c) 2 and 4 only (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4Ans D

• Tenth Ministerial Conference of the WTO was held in Nairobi, Kenya during 15-19 December 2015.

• The outcomes of the Conference, referred to as the 'Nairobi Package' include Ministerial Decisions on agriculture, cotton and issues related to Least Developed Countries (LDCs).

• These cover a Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) for developing countries, public stockholding for food security purposes, a commitment to abolish export subsidies for farm exports and measures related to cotton.

• Decisions were also made regarding preferential treatment to LDCs in the area of services and the criteria for determining whether exports from LDCs may benefit from trade preferences

How does the "Special Safeguard Mechanism" help a developing country? (a) It enables a country to have duty free access to developed market. (b) It enables a country to raise tariff temporarily to deal with import surge. (c) It enables a country to set non tariff barriers on imports by developed countries. (d) It enables a country to get funds from WTO to safeguard their domestic markets.Ans B

Which of the following is/are not agreements under WTO? o Trade Facilitation Agreement o Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights o Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing

Measures Select the correct answer using the code given below? (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 3 only (c) 1, 2 and 3

Special Safeguard Mechanism was introduced in Doha round. o It is a tool that allows developing countries to

raise tariffs temporarily to deal with import surge or price falls.

o The SSM provides to impose trade barriers if there is a surge in agricultural imports into India.

(d) None of the above Ans D All the given agreements are under the WTO framework: • Trade Facilitation Agreement, • Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights, • Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing

Measures.

Food Security Information Network (FSIN), a global initiative to strengthen food and nutrition security information systems, is a joint initiative of: • International Fund for Agricultural Development

(IFAD) • World Food Programme (WFP) • International Food Policy Research Institute

(IFPRI) • Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

Select the correct answer using the code given below. (a) 1, 2 and 3 only (b) 2, 3 and 4 only (c) 3 and 4 only (d) 1 and 4 only Ans B

• The Food Security Information Network (FSIN) is a global initiative co-sponsored by FAO, WFP and IFPRI to strengthen food and nutrition security information systems for producing reliable and accurate data to guide analysis and decision-making.

• FSIN, recently released a report, said 108 million people were reported to be facing crisis level food insecurity or worse in 2016, a drastic increase from the previous year's total of almost 80 million.

UPSC Prelims 2014 Turkey is located between (a) Black Sea and Caspian Sea (b) Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea (c) Gulf of Suez and Mediterranean Sea (d) Gulf of Aqaba and Dead Sea Ans B

Which one of the following languages is NOT mentioned under the Eighth Schedule to the Indian Constitution? a) Nepali b) Kashmiri c) Kok Barak d) Santhali Solution: c These are Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri (Dongri), Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Mathili (Maithili), Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu.

With reference to Sangai deer, consider the following statements: • It is found only in Keibul Lamjao

National Park

The deer is endemic to Keibul Lamjao National Park (KLNP). • It is listed as an critically endangered (Mentioned in

Red pages and not the yellow pages) species by

• It is listed as an critically endangered species by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 and 2 Ans C

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Conservation efforts have helped in reviving the population of the deer to 204 in 2013 from less than 100 in 2008.

• Manipur State Forest Department has decided to translocate a section of Sangai deer with an aim to save it from extinction.

o The deer is endemic to Keibul Lamjao National Park (KLNP) will be translocated to Pumlen Pat which is close existing habitat to Loktak.

The ‘Global Entry Program’ refers to a) A United Nations’ ‘World Citizen Passport’ initiative b) An international expedited traveler initiative of the U.S.A. c) An agreement under the aegis of the International Civil Aviation Organisation to minimize and expedite clearance procedures at airports d) None of the above Solution: b

The nodal ministry for drug demand reduction (drug abuse prevention) is the a) Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment b) Ministry of Health and Family Welfare c) Ministry of Home Affairs d) Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports Solution: a. • Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment

o recently organized a function on the occasion of ‘International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking’.

o coordinates and monitors all aspects of drug abuse prevention which include assessment of the extent of the problem, preventive action, treatment and rehabilitation of addicts, dissemination of information and public awareness.

• It provides community based services for the identification, treatment and rehabilitation of addicts through Voluntary Organizations.

• The Ministry provides financial assistance to approximately 400 NGOs across the country for running de-addiction centres.

• The Ministry has also set up a 24 x 7 National Toll Free drug de-addiction helpline number 1XXX-XX-0031 to help the victims of drug abuse, their family and society at large.

The only UN body with universal representation is the • General Assembly • UNICEF • UNESCO • None of the above

The General Assembly is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the UN. All 193 Member States of the UN are represented in the General Assembly, making it the only UN body with universal representation. Which of the following are part of the South Asian Free Trade Area: • China. • India. • Pakistan.

Choose the correct option. • 1 only • 3 only • Both 2 and 3 • Both 1 and 3

The South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) is an agreement reached on 6 January 2004 at the 12th SAARC summit in Islamabad, Pakistan. It created a free trade area of 1.6 billion people in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The “Mother’s Absolute Affection” programme will a) Ensure that the national child sex-ratio will improve drastically before the next round of the National Family Health Survey b) Promote awareness among the masses on the benefits of breastfeeding c) In collaboration with UNICEF, reduce instances of children being bought or sold d) Be the largest programme in the world that seeks to reunite trafficked children with their mothers Solution: B Launched last year, MAA is the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s flagship programme to ensure adequate awareness is generated among masses, especially mothers, on the benefits of breastfeeding.

An “exclusive Hill Area Development Programme” was recently announced for which one of the following regions? a) Nilgiris b) Nallamala Hills c) Northeast India d) Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and Odisha Solution: C The hilly areas of Manipur, Tripura and Assam have a distinct geo-physical entity and are lagging in socio-economic development. • As a result of peculiar topography, there is a wide

gap between the hill and valley districts in terms of infrastructure, quality of roads, health and education etc.

• The Hill Development Programme is inspired with a serious research and deliberation of all these factors.

The Trusteeship Council suspended its operations after the independence of which of the following • Palau • Serbia • Bosnia • None of the above

The Trusteeship Council suspended its operations on 1 November 1994, a month after the independence of Palau, the last remaining United Nations trust territory.

Consider the following, with respect to Encryption: • Data is secured by translating information using an algorithm and a

binary key. • Encryption strength is based on the length of the cipher key. • Code is decrypted using either the same key or a different key

depending on the type of encryption used. Choose the correct option: • 1 only • 2 only • Both 1 and 3 • Both 1 and 3

Encryption is a means of securing data using a password (key). • The encryption process is simple – data is secured by translating

information using an algorithm and a binary key. • When the data needs to be read back, the code is decrypted using

either the same key or a different key depending on the type of encryption used.

• Encryption strength is based on the length of the security key.

Consider the following statements, with respect to UN Refugee Agency: • It emerged in the wake of World War I. • The agency leads and co-ordinates international action to protect refugees and resolve

refugee problems worldwide. Choose the correct option. • 1 only • 2 only • Both 1 and 2 • Neither 1 nor 2 o The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) emerged in the wake of World War II to help

Europeans displaced by that conflict.

o The agency leads and co-ordinates international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide.

China is NOT a participating state of which of the following multilateral export control regimes? • Missile Technology Control Regime • Australia Group • Wassenaar Arrangement • Nuclear Suppliers Group

Select the correct answer using the code given below: a) 1, 2 and 3 only b) 2 and 3 only c) 1 and 2 only d) 4 only Solution: a China is a participant only of the NSG and not the other three multilateral export control regimes.

The ‘123 Agreement’, sometimes in the news, was signed by India with a) The Nuclear Suppliers Group b) P5 (UNSC) c) USA d) IAEA Solution: c. Why is the India-US Agreement for Cooperation concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy called the ‘123 Agreement’? The bilateral “Agreement for Co-operation between the Government of India and the Government of the United States of America concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy” has been done in view of the requirement for the US side under Section 123 of its Atomic Energy Act 1954. Hence it is also popularly known as the 123 Agreement.