13 March 2023

Q1. In the context of which of the following do you sometimes find the term‘Swiss Formula, Market Access, Deminimis’ in the news?

(a) India-EU negotiations on FTA

(b) RCEP

(c) WTO

(d) UNFCCC

 ANS-C

 Explanation:

• WTO’s Agreement on Agriculture (AoA)calls for freeing agriculture trade.
• Market Access provision calls for provision of access to imported agricultural goods inmember countries.
• There are two provisions I Market Access. One is tarriffication andtariff reduction and the another is minimum market access.
• Domestic subsidies (Amber box) calls for reduction of domestic subsidies that result inlower price of exported products and distort free trade. Under this provision, Aggregate
• Measurement of support(AMS) is to be reduced over the base period of 1986-1988.
• Inthe calculation of AMS, subsidies are not included when the support is within the de-minimis level.
• Deminimis level refers to the minimum level prescribed by AoA.
• Swiss Formula gives the rate of tariff reduction.
• It calls for higher rate of reduction forcountries which have higher initial tariff and lower rate for countries which have lowerinitial tariff.

Q2. Consider the following pairs: Famous Place-Region

1. Palani-Western Ghats
2. Kohima-Karbi Anglong
3. Junagadh-Kachchh Peninsula
4. Srikakulam-Rayalaseema
5. 5.Ajmer-Malwa Plateau

Which of the given pairs are correctly matched?

(a) 2, 3, 4 and 5

(b)1 and 4 only

(c) 1, 3, 4 and 5

(d) 2 and 4 only

ANS-B

 Explanation:

• Palani-Western Ghats
• Kohima-Patkai bum hill range
• Junagadh-Kathiawar Peninsula
• Srikakulam-Rayalaseema
• Ajmer-Aravalli Range
• Hence 1 and 4 are correctly matched.

Q3. Consider the following statements about Perseverance rover which has beenlaunched by NASA:

1. It is the first ever space-craft to be soft-landed on the Martian surface
2. It has a technology demonstration experiment to test whether a helicopter can fly in the sparse atmosphere on Mars.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANS-B

 Explanation:

• Perseverence is not the first landing on Mars — starting in 1971 when the SovietMars 3 lander became the first spacecraft to safely land on the planet to NASA’s InSight lander in2018, there have been several landings over the last five decades.
• In addition to the landings,which are technically very challenging, there have been many missions which have exploredMars from orbiting spacecraft.
• Our own, Mangalyaan, has been in an orbit around Mars for oversix years now.
• The Mars Helicopter is really a small drone.
• It is a technology demonstration experiment: to testwhether the helicopter can fly in the sparse atmosphere on Mars.

Q4. With reference to the economic history of medieval India, the term ‘Vetti’ refers to

(a) Forced Labour

(b) Land grants made to military officers

(c) Wasteland converted to cultivated land

(d) Land grants made to schools

ANS-A

 Explanation:

• In the taxation system of Chola administration, Vetti is a tax which is takennot in cash but in the form of forced labour. Hence option A is the correct answer.

Q5. Which one of the following is the correct example of Brood Parasitism?

(a) Barnacles growing on the back of a whale

(b) Ticks living on dogs

(c) Mosquito feeding on humans

(d) Cuckko lays eggs in crow’s nest

 ANS-D

Explanation:

• Brood parasitism in birds is a fascinating example of parasitism in whichthe parasite bird lays eggs in the nest of its host and let the host incubate them. Duringthe course of evolution, the eggs of the parasitic bird have evolved to resemble thehost’s egg in size and colour to reduce the chances of the host bird detecting the foreigneggs and ejecting them from the nest.

Q6. In which of the following biome, the ecological niche is the maximum?

(a) Deserts

(b) Tundra

(c) Tropical Rain Forest

(d) Savannah

ANS-A

 Explanation:

• In ecology, a niche is the match of a species to a specific environmentalcondition.
• It describes how an organism or population responds to the distribution ofresources and competitors and how it in turn alters those same factors.

 Q7. Taiga are the high altitudinal forest biome which contains mostly all evergreen trees,however one of the following deciduous tree isalso found in Taiga. Which one is it ?

(a) Larch

(b) Liana

(c) Red wood

(d) Olives

ANS-A

 Explanation:

• The larch is one of the only deciduous trees able to survive in the freezingnorthern taiga.
• Larches are among the dominant plants in the boreal forests of Siberia and Canada.
• Although they are conifers, larches are deciduous trees that losetheir needles in the autumn
• Hence option A is the correct answer.

Q8. Which of the following is/are correct with respect to the ‘Ethanol blending with Petrol’ and its usage in India?

1. Ethanol has a high octane number than gasoline, hence improves the petrol octane number.

2. Ethanol blending with petrol has significant effect on the vehicle’s pick up.
3. Since Ethanol contains oxygen, it can help in complete combustion of fuel, resulting in lower emissions.

4. The consumer pays less for ethanol blended petrol in India.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1, 2 and 3 only

(b) 2, 3 and 4 only

(c) 1 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

 ANS-C

 Explanation:

• It is the organic compound Ethyl Alcohol which is produced from biomass.
• It is also an ingredient in alcoholic beverages. It has a higher octane number thangasoline, hence improves the petrol octane number.
• Blending ethanol with petrol will not have any effect. Since ethanol contains oxygen, it issupposed to help in complete combustion of fuel, resulting in lower emissions.
• A litre of ethanol currently costs ₹61. But its price depends on internal fuel prices. Thereis however no change in the price of petrol or motor spirit, as it is called, due to ethanolblending.
• The consumer pays for a litre of petrol only.

Q9.  ‘Ecosystem Services’ and‘Hyderabad Pledge’ are specific features of which one ofthe following conventions?

(a) UN Convention on Biological Diversity

(b) UN Convention to combat desertification

(c) UN Framework Convention on Climate Change

(d) Vienna Convention

 ANS-A

 Explanation:

• UN convention on biological diversity includes the following:

5. Ecosystem services-These are provisioning, regulating, Cultural, supporting services.
6. Threats to biodiversity/causes of depletion
7. Protected area network and program of works
8. Conference of parties which led to Nagoya Protocol, Hyderabad Pledge, and Aichi targets
9. Cartagena protocol on biosafety

Q10. With reference to the ‘Better Than Cash Alliance’, consider the following statements:

2. It is a partnership of governments, companies and international organizations that accelerates the transition from cash to responsible digital payments.
3. It isrecently launched by the WEF.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

 ANS-A

 Explanation:

• The Government of India, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerceand Industry (FICCI), and UN-based Better Than Cash Alliance hosted MerchantDigitization Summit 2021: Towards AatmaNirbhar (Self Reliance) Bharat with specialfocus on Himalayan Regions, North East Regions and Aspirational Districts of India.
• Based at the United Nations, the Better Than Cash Alliance is a partnership ofgovernments, companies and international organizations that accelerates the transitionfrom cash to responsible digital payments.
• The Alliance has 75 members which arecommitted to digitizing payments.
• It was created in 2012.
• It was launched by the United Nations Capital DevelopmentFund, the United States Agency for International Development, the Bill & Melinda GatesFoundation, Citigroup, the Ford Foundation, the Omidyar Network, and Visa Inc.
• Hence only statement 1 is correct.