UPSC Quiz – 2021 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz 6th JULY 2021

Solution (a)

When the President’s Rule is imposed in a state, the President dismisses the state council of ministers headed by the chief minister. The state governor, on behalf of the President, carries on the state administration with the help of the chief secretary of the state or the advisors appointed by the President. This is the reason why a proclamation under Article 356 is popularly known as the imposition of ‘President’s Rule’ in a state.

Further, the President either suspends or dissolves the state legislative assembly8. The Parliament passes the state legislative bills and the state budget. When the state legislature is thus suspended or dissolved:

• The Parliament can delegate the power to make laws for the state to the President or to any other authority specified by him in this regard,
• The Parliament or in case of delegation, the President or any other specified authority can make laws conferring powers and imposing duties on the Centre or its officers and authorities,
• The President can authorise, when the Lok Sabha is not in session, expenditure from the state consolidated fund pending its sanction by the Parliament, and
• The President can promulgate, when the Parliament is not in session, ordinances for the governance of the state. 

A law made by the Parliament or president or any other specified authority continues to be operative even after the President’s Rule. This means that the period for which such a law remains in force is not coterminous with the duration of the proclamation. But it can be repealed or altered or re-enacted by the state legislature.

Article Link: Supreme Court to hear plea seeking President’s Rule in Bengal

Solution (c)

WASH is an acronym that stands for “water, sanitation and hygiene”. This is a World Health Organisation (WHO) initiative considering the health and hygiene of people across the world.

Universal, affordable and sustainable access to WASH is a key public health issue within international development and is the focus of the first two targets of Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6). Targets 6.1 and 6.2 aim at equitable and accessible water and sanitation for all.

“Access to WASH” includes safe water, adequate sanitation and hygiene education. Improving access to WASH services can improve health, life expectancy, student learning, gender equality, and other important issues of international development.

Article Link: India responsible for largest drop in open defecation since 2015: WASH report

Solution (c)

The Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) is a series of biennial meetings between the littoral states of the Indian Ocean region. It provides a forum to increase maritime security cooperation,discuss regional maritime issues, and promote friendly relationships among the member states.

It also serves to develop an effective response mechanism and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) against natural disasters.

IONS includes 24 member nations that touch or lie within the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), and 8 observer nations.

The members have been geographically grouped into the following four sub-regions:

• South Asian Littorals: Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan, Seychelles, Sri Lanka and United Kingdom (British Indian Ocean Territory)
• West Asian Littorals: Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates
• East African Littorals: France (Reunion), Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa, and Tanzania.
• South East Asian and Australian Littorals: Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Timor-Leste.

Observer Nations: China, Germany, Italy, Japan, Madagascar, Netherlands, Russia and Spain.

Article Link: 7th INDIAN OCEAN NAVAL SYMPOSIUM (IONS)

Solution (d)

Taal Volcano, located in Philippines, is one of the most active volcanoes in the country.

Recently, Phreatomagmatic Eruption occurred in the volcano that generated a dark grayish plume, one kilometer high.

Phreatomagmatic Eruption is an eruption resulting from the interaction of new magma or lava with water and can be very explosive. The water can be from groundwater, hydrothermal systems, surface runoff, a lake or the sea.

Article Link: Philippines authorities warn Taal volcano could erupt ‘anytime soon’

Solution (b)

Sasthamkotta Lake, Vembanad Lake and Ashtamudi Lake are three Ramsar Sites of Kerala.

Sasthamkotta Lake, also categorized as a wetland, is the largest fresh water lake in Kerala.

Vembanad Lake is the largest lake in Kerala and the longest Lake in India. It is the second-largest Ramsar site in India only after the Sundarbans in West Bengal. 

Ashtamudi Lake is the most visited backwater and lake in the state. It possesses a unique wetland ecosystem and a large palm-shaped (also described as octopus-shaped) water body, second only in size to the Vembanad estuary ecosystem of the state.