QUIZ – 2017: Insights Current Affairs Quiz, 08 JANUARY 2018

Solution: c.

• On the recommendation of the Rules Committee of the Lok Sabha, 17 Departmentally-Related Standing Committees (DRSCs) were set up in the Parliament in 1993. In 2004, seven more such committees were setup, thus increasing their number from 17 to 24.
• The main objective of the standing committees is to secure more accountability of the Executive (i.e., the Council of Ministers) to the Parliament, particularly financial accountability.
• They also assist the Parliament in debating the budget more effectively. The 24 standing committees cover under their jurisdiction all the ministries/departments of the Central Government.
• Each standing committee consists of 31 members (21 from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha). The members of the Lok Sabha are nominated by the Speaker from amongst its own members, just as the members of the Rajya Sabha are nominated by the Chairman from amongst its members. Out of the 24 standing committees, 8 work under the Rajya Sabha and 16 under the Lok Sabha.

Parliamentary Committees, Indian Polity by M Laxmikanth;

Improvisation: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/concern-over-lack-of-teachers/article22392226.ece;

Solution: a.

The objective of the IDSP is to strengthen/maintain decentralized laboratory-based IT enabled disease surveillance system (at centre, state and district level) for epidemic prone diseases and to monitor disease trends and to detect and respond to outbreaks in early rising phase through trained Rapid Response Team (RRTs).

From 2013: http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=98405;

Improvisation: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/food-poisoning-a-common-outbreak-in-2017/article22392234.ece;

Solution: c.

• PVTGs are more vulnerable among the tribal groups. Due to this factor, more developed and assertive tribal groups take a major chunk of the tribal development funds, because of which PVTGs need more funds directed for their development.
• In 1973, the Dhebar Commission created Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs) as a separate category, who are less developed among the tribal groups. In 2006, the Government of India renamed the PTGs as Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs). PVTGs have some basic characteristics -they are mostly homogenous, with a small population, relatively physically isolated, social institutes cast in a simple mould, absence of written language, relatively simple technology and a slower rate of change etc.
• PVTGs are spread over 17 states and one Union Territory (A&N Islands).

THE Forest Rights Act (FRA) is also known as the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006. Section 3(1)(e) of the Act provides for rights including community tenures of habitat and habitation for primitive tribal groups (also known as PVTGs) and pre- agricultural communities. Orissa has the distinction of having the largest number of PTGs (13 out of 75 identified across the country).

http://vikaspedia.in/social-welfare/scheduled-tribes-welfare/primitive-vulnerable-tribal-groups;

Improvisation: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/mankidia-denied-habitat-in-simlipal/article22392195.ece;

No need to refer, we are just providing the source: http://www.fra.org.in/document/FRA%20AND%20PTG_%20Final.pdf;

Solution: a.

The Under2 MOU is a commitment by sub-national governments to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions toward net-zero by 2050.

• Central to this is the public commitment by all signatories to reduce their GHG emissions by 80-95% on 1990 levels.
• The Under2 Coalition provides a global forum for sub-national governments to work together to get on a trajectory consistent with 2050 carbon neutrality. The Under2 Coalition sets the tone for bold climate leadership and provides an effective global partnership model for parties to the UNFCCC.
• The Climate Group acts as Secretariat to the Under2 Coalition and works directly with government signatories and partners of the Under2 MOU.

About The Under2 Coalition: https://www.theclimategroup.org/project/under2-coalition;

About The Climate Group: https://www.theclimategroup.org/about;

Source/Improvisation: http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/a-sum-of-contributions/article22391950.ece;

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Solution: a.

The Opposition has raised three concerns:

• whether a civil wrong, mainly a breach of a marriage contract in an arbitrary manner, ought to be treated as a crime;
• whether it is not a contradiction of sorts for the law to jail a husband for pronouncing instant talaq and also mandate that he pay a subsistence allowance to the wife; and
• whether making it a cognizable (one for which a police officer may arrest an accused person without warrant) and non-bailable offence would lead to it being misused against Muslim men.
• Further, some see an internal contradiction in the way the law is sought to be framed. On the one hand it says instant triple talaq in any form is void, thereby declaring that the marriage continues to subsist; but it also talks of issues such as the custody of children and maintenance, which would arise only after a divorce.

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/re-examine-the-bill/article22392015.ece;

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Solution: b.

From the given list, option ‘b’ is most appropriate.

India has an ambitious plan to build a ship submersible ballistic nuclear (SSBN) fleet, comprising five Arihant-class vessels.

• INS Arihant, India’s only operational ship submersible ballistic nuclear (SSBN) asset, is its most dependable platform for a second-strike, given the country “no first use” on nuclear weapons. The other options, land-based and air-launched, are easier to detect.
• Arihant has been immobilised even as the second ballistic missile submarine, Arighat, was launched on November 19 for sea trials. The launch was kept a low-profile event.
• INS Arihant and other nuclear launch platforms — land-based missiles and designated aircraft — are operationally handled by the Strategic Forces Command, and report to the Nuclear Command Authority chaired by the Prime Minister.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/arihant-top-gun-for-second-strike/article22393318.ece;

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