18 May 2023

Q. Which of the following organizations is linked with Think 20 (T20), which was recently in the news?

• G-20
• WHO
• IMF
• World Bank

Explanation

• The T20 is a G20 Official Engagement Group that brings together the top think tanks and research institutions from around the world.
• It acts as the G20’s “ideas bank” and strives to give G20 policymakers research-based policy proposals.
• The Think20 (T20) engagement group was established in 2012 and is made up of renowned think tanks and academics from around the world. It is unrelated to national governments.
• The engagement group creates thoughtful policy recommendations that are evaluated by top experts rather than advocating for or running campaigns around certain issues.
• These ideas add an analytical layer to G20 conversations that helps G20 leaders create practical, long-lasting policy solutions based on G20 priorities.
• The T20 establishes Task Forces each year, under a fresh G20 Presidency, to organise their suggestions around the most important problems and promote policy innovation.

Q. Which of the following bodies of water does the Nord Stream pipeline cross?

• Seas of Azov
• Baltic Sea
• Black Sea
• Caspian Sea

Explanation

• A 1,224 km underwater gas pipeline connects Lubmin, in northeastern Germany, to Vyborg, in northwest Russia, via the Baltic Sea.
• It is the main network by which gas is delivered to Germany and is majority owned by the Russian energy behemoth Gazprom.
• The majority of the gas is sent straight to Germany; the remainder, however, is sent west and south via onshore links to other nations and into storage caverns.
• Gazprom and five other European companies made the decision to construct the $11 billion Nord Stream 2 pipeline in 2015.
• The 1,200-km pipeline was intended to transport 55 billion cubic metres of gas annually from Ust-Luga, Russia, to Greifswald, Germany, via the Baltic Sea. It was designed to function in conjunction with the Nord Stream 1 system.
• The majority of the gas that Germany consumes in Europe from Russia flows through the Nord Stream.

Q. What statement (or assertions) about the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) is/are false?

1. It is a legal organisation that the Indian government founded.
2. The first international financial services hub in India is now the GIFT IFSC.

Select the right option from the list of codes below:

• 1 only
• 2 only
• Both 1 and 2
• Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation

• The first statement is true. In accordance with the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act of 2019, the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) was founded on April 27, 2020. As a result, the government of India formed it as a statutory body.
• The second claim is true. The first international financial services hub in India is now the GIFT IFSC.
• The business in IFSC was governed by the local financial authorities, particularly the RBI, SEBI, PFRDA, and IRDAI, prior to the foundation of IFSCA.
• The IFSCA was founded as a unified regulator with a holistic goal to promote ease of doing business in IFSCs and provide a world-class regulatory environment since the dynamic nature of business in the IFSCs necessitates a high degree of inter-regulatory cooperation within the financial sector.
• The IFSCA’s key goals are to forge close ties across the globe, concentrate on the requirements of the Indian economy, and act as an international financial platform for both the entire region and the entire world economy.
• Its main office is in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar, often known as GIFT City.

Q. Take into account the following claims about the Quality Council of India (QCI):

1. Under the Societies Registration Act of 1860, QCI is a non-profit organisation.
2. The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion oversees its operations.
3. The creation of quality-related national standards is the responsibility of QCI.

Which of the aforementioned statements is true?

1 and 2 only

2 and 3 only

1 and 3 only

1, 2 and 3

Explanation

• The first statement is true.
• Under the Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860, QCI is a nonprofit corporation.
• After meetings with the Inter-ministerial Task Force, the Committee of Secretaries, and the Group of Ministers, the Quality Council of India (QCI) was founded as a National body for Accreditation on the suggestions of the EU Expert Mission in 1996.
• The Indian Industry, represented by the three leading industry associations Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, supported the establishment of QCI through a PPP model as an independent autonomous organisation (FICCI).
• The second claim is true.
• To organise and aid in the implementation of the Cabinet decision, the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry was chosen as the focal point for all issues relating to quality and QCI.
• The third statement is untrue.
• National standards are not established by it.
• To build a system for impartial third-party evaluation of goods, services, and procedures, QCI was founded.
• It is crucial to the propagation, adoption, and observance of quality standards at the national level in all significant areas of activity, such as education, healthcare, environmental protection, governance, social sectors, infrastructure, and other professionally organised activities that have a significant impact on raising the standard of living and wellbeing of Indian citizens.

Q. Which of the following phenomenon explains how two subatomic particles can have a close bond despite being billions of light-years apart:

• Using quantum links
• The Quantum Leap
• Entanglement of Quanta
• Interlinking of Quanta

Explanation

• A strange, illogical phenomenon known as quantum entanglement explains how two subatomic particles can be closely connected to one another despite being billions of light-years apart.
• Despite the great distance between them, a change brought about in one will impact the other.
• John Bell, a physicist, proposed in 1964 that even if the particles are very far away, such changes can be caused and happen instantly.
• Bell’s Theorem is regarded as a key concept in contemporary physics, but it clashes with other accepted tenets of the discipline. For instance, Albert Einstein (opens in new tab) demonstrated that information cannot travel faster than the speed of light years before Alexander Graham Bell stated his theorem (opens in new tab). Einstein famously called this entanglement phenomenon “spooky activity at a distance” due to his confusion.
• The Nobel Prize in Physics 2022 will be given to Alain Aspect, John F. Clauser, and Anton Zeilinger “for work with entangled photons, showing the violation of Bell inequalities, and pioneering quantum information science,” according to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Q. Take into account the following claims about “Click Chemistry”:

1. It is a type of chemistry where undesirable byproducts are avoided and reactions happen swiftly.
2. These reactions can occur inside of living cells without interfering with biological operations.

Which of the aforementioned statements is true?

• 1 only
• 2 only
• Both 1 and 2
• Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation

• The term “click chemistry” was first used by Barry Sharpless to describe a type of speedy and dependable chemistry in which undesirable byproducts are avoided and reactions take place swiftly. Therefore, statement 1 is true.
• It involves fast, irreversible reactions that combine two synthetic compounds.
• Some of these reactions are “biorthogonal” because they can take place inside of living cells without interfering with biological procedures. As a result, assertion two is true.
• A method for creating antibody-drug conjugates with highly focused therapeutic action in the body is click chemistry. In fact, click chemistry is currently being used directly inside patients as part of ongoing clinical studies for a potent cancer treatment.
• The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2022 will be given to Carolyn R. Bertozzi, Morten Meldal, and K. Barry Sharpless “for the creation of click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry,” according to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Q. Which of the following statements is true about parliamentary committees:

1. The Speaker is their boss, and he directs their work.
2. In the area of legislative practises, the Indians invented the parliamentary committee.
3. They are given power by Articles 105 and 118 of the Constitution.

Which of the aforementioned statements is true?

• 1 and 2 only
• 2 and 3 only
• 1 and 3 only
• 1, 2 and 3

Explanation

• The first statement is true. A Parliamentary Committee is a group of MPs who are nominated by the Speaker, elected by the House, or appointed by them. They serve at the Speaker’s direction.
• It delivers its report to the Speaker or to the House.
• The second claim is untrue. The British Parliament is where the concept of a parliamentary committee first emerged.
• The third statement is true. Both Article 105, which deals with the privileges of MPs, and Article 118, which grants Parliament the power to create rules to govern its process and conduct of business, serve as their sources of authority.
• Parliamentary committees fall into two categories by definition: standing committees and ad hoc committees.
• The Lok Sabha’s Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business may from time to time require the creation of Standing Committees, which are permanent and regular committees. These Committees’ work is ongoing in nature. Standing Committees include the Financial Committees, DRSCs, and a few additional Committees.
• Ad hoc Committees are formed for a specific duty, and they are disbanded once they have completed it and submitted a report. The Select and Joint Committees on Bills are the main ad hoc committees. Ad hoc Committees include the Railway Convention Committee, the Joint Committee on Food Management in the Parliament House Complex, and others.

Q. Which of the following best characterises the “Biomass cofiring” procedure?

1. At coal-fired power plants, it refers to the technique of replacing a portion of the fuel with biomass.
2. It is the practise of replacing all the fuel in coal-fired power plants with biomass.
3. At coal-fired power plants, this approach entails replacing a portion of the fuel with biomass and hydrogen.
4. At coal-fired power plants, it is a practise to replace fuel with biomass and renewable energy.

Explanation

• In coal thermal plants, the practise of using biomass to replace a portion of the fuel is known as biomass co-firing. As a result, choice A is accurate.
• The term “biomass co-firing” refers to the addition of biomass as a partial fuel replacement in highly efficient coal boilers.
• In boilers made to burn coal, both biomass and coal are burned simultaneously.

Take into account the following claims about “Project Mausam”:

1. It intends to reestablish connections and communications between nations in the Indian Ocean region.
2. Ministry of External Affairs is in charge of carrying out the project.

Which of the aforementioned statements is true?

• 1 only
• 2 only
• Both 1 and 2
• Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation

• A Ministry of Culture initiative called “Mausam” will be carried out by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi, as the primary coordinating body, with assistance from the National Museum and the Archeological Survey of India as partner bodies.
• At the 38th meeting of the World Heritage Committee of the United Nations, held in Doha, Qatar, in 2014, “Project Mausam” was introduced by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of India.
• Project “Mausam” is investigating important processes and phenomena that link different areas of the Indian Ocean littoral as well as those that connect the coastal centres to their hinterlands with a focus on monsoon patterns, cultural channels, and maritime landscapes.
• Project “Mausam” broadly aims to comprehend how contacts throughout the Indian Ocean have been shaped by knowledge of and manipulation of the monsoon winds and have resulted in the transmission of shared knowledge systems, cultures, technologies, and ideas via maritime channels.
• At the macro level, it seeks to reconnect and re-establish interactions between nations of the Indian Ocean region, which would result in a better understanding of cultural values and concerns; at the micro level, the focus is on comprehending national cultures in their local marine environment.
• The scope of the project falls under a number of UNESCO cultural conventions, to which the Indian government has signed on and is represented by the Ministry of Culture and ASI as the coordinating agency.

Q. Which of the following nations first produced the 2000-year-old stone inscription known as the Rosetta Stone, which is currently in the British Museum?

• Spain
• Japan
• Egypt
• Italy

Explanation

• The Stone is a fragment of a larger stone slab that has shattered. It has a statement cut into it in three different writing styles.
• It was a crucial hint that assisted specialists in learning how to read Egyptian hieroglyphs (a writing system that used pictures as signs).
• The writing on the Stone is a decree—an official message—about the ruler (Ptolemy V, r. 204–181 BC). Every temple in Egypt received copies of the decree, which were inscribed on enormous stone slabs called stelae. It claims that the monarch was backed by the priests of a temple in Memphis, Egypt.
• The decree is written three times: once in hieroglyphs (appropriate for a priestly decree), once in Demotic, the cursive Egyptian script used on a daily basis and meaning “language of the people,” and once in Ancient Greek, the language of government at the time because Egypt’s rulers at the time were Greco-Macedonians following Alexander the Great’s conquest.
• From 1798 to 1801, Napoleon Bonaparte waged a campaign in Egypt with the aim of controlling the East Mediterranean and undermining the British control of India. Even though accounts of the Stone’s discovery in July 1799 are now rather hazy, the theory that soldiers in Napoleon’s army accidentally discovered it is the one that is most widely believed. On July 15, 1799, while laying the groundwork for an expansion to a fort close to the Nile Delta town of Rashid (Rosetta), they stumbled upon the Rosetta Stone. According to the stipulations of the Treaty of Alexandria (1801), the stone and other artefacts discovered by the French passed to the British after Napoleon’s defeat.