UPSC Quiz – 2021 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz 17th September 2021

Solution (b)

The Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport is a project connecting the eastern Indian seaport of Kolkata with Sittwe seaport in Rakhine State, Myanmar by sea.

This project will reduce distance from Kolkata to Sittwe by approximately 1,328 km and will reduce the need to transport goods through the narrow Siliguri corridor, also known as Chicken’s Neck.

India has for years sought transit access through Bangladesh to ship goods to the landlocked north-eastern States. At present, the only route to this region from the rest of India is a rather circuitous one through a narrow strip of Indian territory nicknamed the Chicken’s Neck in West Bengal, sandwiched between Bhutan and Bangladesh. The new route through Sittwe would significantly lower the cost and distance of movement from Kolkata to Mizoram and beyond.

Article Link: ASEAN summit on Future of India-ASEAN Connectivity Partnerships

Solution (d)

Shoonya Campaign is lauched by Niti Aayog in collaboration with Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI).

It aims to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the urban deliveries segment and create consumer awareness about the benefits of zero-pollution delivery.

Urban freight vehicles account for 10 per cent of freight transportation-related CO2 emissions in India, and these emissions are expected to grow by 114 per cent by 2030.

EVs emit no tailpipe emissions, which can contribute immensely to an improved air quality. Even when accounting for their manufacture, they emit 15-40 percent less CO2 compared to their internal combustion engine counterparts and have lower operational cost.

Article Link: NITI Aayog, RMI, and RMI India Launch ‘Shoonya’ Campaign

Solution (a)

Arsenic is a naturally occurring trace element found in rocks, soils and the water in contact with them. Arsenic has been recognized as a toxic element and is considered a human health hazard.

Arsenic contamination in groundwater:

The occurrence of Arsenic in ground water was first reported in 1980 in West Bengal in India. In West Bengal, 79 blocks in 8 districts have Arsenic beyond the permissible limit of 0.05 mg/l. The most affected areas are on the eastern side of Bhagirathi River in the districts of Malda, Murshidabad, Nadia, North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas and western side of the districts of Howrah, Hugli and Bardhman. The occurrence of Arsenic in ground water is mainly in the aquifers up to 100 m depth. The deeper aquifers are free from Arsenic contamination.

Apart from West Bengal, Arsenic contamination in ground water has been found in the states of Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. The occurrence of Arsenic in the states of Bihar, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh is in alluvial formations but in the state of Chhattisgarh, it is in the volcanic rocks exclusively confined to N-S trending Dongargarh- Kotri ancient rift zone. It has also been reported in Golaghat, Jorhat, Lakhimpur, Nagaon, Nalbari, Sibsagar, Sonitpur districts of Assam.

Long-term intake of arsenic contaminated water leads to arsenic poisoning or arsenicosis, with cancer of skin, bladder, kidney or lung or diseases of skin (colour changes, and hard patches on palms and soles), or blood vessels of legs and feet. Fresh evidence indicates possible association between intake of contaminated water to onset of diabetes, hypertension and reproductive disorders.

Article Link: Arsenic now in wheat, potato — and more than that in drinking water — in rural Bihar

Solution (c)

The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (the Montreal Protocol) is an international agreement made in 1987. It was designed to stop the production and import of ozone depleting substances and reduce their concentration in the atmosphere to help protect the earth’s ozone layer.

The Montreal Protocol phases down the consumption and production of the different Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) in a step-wise manner, with different timetables for developed and developing countries (referred to as “Article 5 countries”). 

Under this treaty, all parties have specific responsibilities related to the phase out of the different groups of ODS, control of ODS trade, annual reporting of data, national licensing systems to control ODS imports and exports, and other matters. Developing and developed countries have equal but differentiated responsibilities, but most importantly, both groups of countries have binding, time-targeted and measurable commitments.

Article Link: World Ozone Day

Solution (d)

A black tiger is a rare colour variant of the tiger, and is not a distinct species or geographic subspecies. So-called black tigers are due to pseudo-melanism. Pseudo-melanistic tigers have thick stripes so close together that the tawny background is barely visible between stripes. It is believed that inbreeding results in their thick black stripes.

Simlipal Tiger Reserve is the only tiger habitat in the world with melanistic tigers, which have broad black stripes running across their bodies and thicker than those seen on normal tigers, so much so that their tawny skin colour is barely visible.

Article Link: Scientists unravel mystery behind Odisha’s ‘black tigers’