QUIZ – 2017: Insights Current Affairs Quiz, 24 July 2019

Solution: a)

Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), 1958 is an act of the Parliament of India that grant special powers to the Indian Armed Forces the power to maintain public order in “disturbed areas”.

Powers given to armed forces:

• They have the authority to prohibit a gathering of five or more persons in an area, can use force or even open fire after giving due warning if they feel a person is in contravention of the law.
• If reasonable suspicion exists, the army can also arrest a person without a warrant; enter or search premises without a warrant; and ban the possession of firearms.
• Any person arrested or taken into custody may be handed over to the officer in charge of the nearest police station along with a report detailing the circumstances that led to the arrest.

What is a “disturbed area” and who has the power to declare it?

A disturbed area is one which is declared by notification under Section 3 of the AFSPA. An area can be disturbed due to differences or disputes between members of different religious, racial, language or regional groups or castes or communities.

The Central Government, or the Governor of the State or administrator of the Union Territory can declare the whole or part of the State or Union Territory as a disturbed area. A suitable notification would have to be made in the Official Gazette. As per Section 3, it can be invoked in places where “the use of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary”.

At present AFSPA is in force in Assam, Nagaland, Manipur excluding Imphal municipal council area, Changlang, Longding and Tirap districts of Arunachal Pradesh. An Act passed in 1990 was applied to Jammu and Kashmir and has been in force since.

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            Solution: b)

Fly ash, the end product of combustion during the process of power generation in the coal based thermal power plants, is a proven resource material for many applications of construction industries and currently is being utilized in manufacturing of Portland Cement, bricks/blocks/tiles manufacturing, road embankment construction and low-lying area development, etc.

At present, 63% of the fly ash is being utilised and target is for 100% utilisation of the fly ash. There is need for education and awareness generation.

• Fly ash contains heavy metals from coal, a large amount of PM 2.5 and black carbon (BC).

Fly ash, in view of its alkalinity and water absorption capacity, may be used in combination with other alkaline materials to transform sewage sludge into organic fertilizer or biofuel.

Solution: a)

The ‘Gandhipedia’ is being developed as a social media portal that will contain original works related to the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi.

Gandhipedia is being developed by the National Council for Science Museums (NCSM) to sensitise the youth and the society at large about Gandhian values.

The portal will function on artificial intelligence (AI) and machine running. It will be a repository of knowledge on Mahatama Gandhi.

The Sabarmati Ashram Preservation and Memorial Trust has been maintaining the Gandhi Heritage Portal (www.gandhiheritageportal.org) which is also a repository of knowledge on Mahatma Gandhi.

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Solution: a)

The Indian Railways has come up with an initiative called “Plan Bee” to prevent speeding trains from hitting elephants crossing tracks. The plan involves setting up of devices near tracks, which emit the ‘buzzing’ sound of swarming bees, considered as a natural nemesis of elephants.

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Solution: a)

Tamil yeoman (Cirrochroa thais) butterfly species endemic to Western Ghats has been declared the state butterfly of Tamil Nadu.

For the first time Tamil Nadu has declared its state butterfly and only fifth in the country to do so. Maharashtra was the first to declare Blue Mormon as its state butterfly, followed by Uttarakhand (Common peacock), Karnataka (Southern bird wings) and Kerala (Malabar banded peacock).

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