DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 20th October 2023

Syllabus

• Prelims –ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

Context: Recently, Mumbai’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) touched 191, which was worse than Delhi’s 84.

Background:-

• The SAFAR app on Monday showed AQI levels in multiple pockets of Mumbai going down to the “poor” category, with most of these pockets being in the suburban belt of the city.

About Air Quality Index (AQI):-

IMAGE SOURCE: aqi. in

• Air Quality Index (AQI) is a number used by government agencies to measure air pollution levels and communicate it to the population. (Air pollution)
• There are six AQI categories, namely Good, Satisfactory, Moderately polluted, Poor, Very Poor, and Severe.
• Each of these categories is decided based on ambient concentration values of air pollutants and their likely health impacts (known as health breakpoints).
• AQ sub-index and health breakpoints are evolved for eight pollutants (PM10, PM2.5, NO2, SO2, CO, O3, NH3, and Pb) for which short-term (up to 24-hours) National Ambient Air Quality Standards are prescribed.
• As the AQI increases, it means that a large percentage of the population will experience severe adverse health effects.
• The measurement of the AQI requires an air monitor and an air pollutant concentration over a specified averaging period.
• The results are grouped into ranges.
• Each range is assigned a descriptor, a colour code and a standardized public health advisory.
• The pollution sources in India and in most Asian countries are numerous and incompletely understood.
• In Delhi, for example, it comes mostly from light and heavy-duty vehicle traffic emissions, road dust, solid fuel combustion for heating and cooking, biomass, waste burning, thermal power plants, diesel generators, construction and small-scale local industries. ( Delhi and Air Pollution)

Government Initiatives:-

• The National Air Quality Index Standard (NAQI): It was launched by The Minister for Environment, Forests & Climate Change, Shri Prakash Javadekar, on 17 September 2014.
  • The initiative constitutes part of the Government’s mission to introduce the “culture of cleanliness”, as air pollution has been a huge concern in the country, especially in urban areas
• The National Air Monitoring Program (NAMP): it covers 240 cities in the country, has been operated by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and developed by the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT), providing data in the public domain, on a real-time basis.
• System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) Portal.
• Graded Response Action Plan.
• Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM)
• Reducing Vehicular Pollution: BS-VI Vehicles, Push for Electric Vehicles (EVs), Odd-Even Policy as an emergency measure.
• Subsidy to farmers for buying Turbo Happy Seeder (THS) Machine.

MUST READ:: Initiatives and Measures for Prevention of Air Pollution

SOURCE: THE INDIAN EXPRESS

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Q.1) Consider the following: (2023)

1. Aerosols
2. Foam agents
3. Fire retardants
4. Lubricants

In the making of how many of the above are hydrofluorocarbons used?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. Only three
4. All four

Q.2) In the context of WHO Air Quality Guidelines, consider the following statements: (2022)

1. The 24-hour mean of PM2.5 should not exceed 15 ug/m3 and annual mean of PM2.5 should not exceed 5 ug/m3.
2. In a year, the highest levels of ozone pollution occur during periods of inclement weather.
3. PM10 can penetrate the lung barrier and enter the bloodstream.
4. Excessive ozone in the air can trigger asthma.

Which of the statements given above is correct?

1. 1, 3 and 4
2. 1 and 4 only
3. 2, 3 and 4
4. 1 and 2 only

Syllabus

• Prelims –ECONOMY

Context: Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently inaugurated the country’s first Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) called Namo Bharat in Ghaziabad.

Background:-

• It is capable of running at speeds up to 180 km/hour which will eventually cut the journey time between Delhi and Meerut to less than an hour.

About Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS):-

IMAGE SOURCE: THE INDIAN EXPRESS

• Launched: October, 2023.
• Constructed by: The National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC).
  • NCRTC: It is a joint venture company of the Central government and the governments of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
• Ministry: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
• Objective: to ensure “balanced and sustainable urban development” through better connectivity and access across the NCR.
• It is a state-of-the-art regional mobility solution, comparable to the best in the world.

Historical Background:-

• The idea of such a network lies in a study that the Indian Railways was commissioned to carry out in the year 1998-99.
• The study identified the possibility of an RRTS network to connect various locations in the NCR through fast commuter trains.
• The proposal was re-examined in the year 2006 with the extension of the Delhi Metro lines to some NCR towns such as Gurgaon, Noida and Ghaziabad.
• It was soon taken up by the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) while developing its “Functional Plan on Transport for NCR-2032”.

Salient Features:-

• Rapid Transit System (RRTS) is also known as Namo Bharat.
• It is an integrated, mass transit network.
• The RRTS is modelled on systems such as the RER in Paris, Regional-Express trains in Germany and Austria as well as the SEPTA Regional Rail in the United States, among others.
• In line with PM GatiShakti’s National Master Plan, the RRTS network is to have extensive multi-modal integration with Railway stations, Metro stations, Bus services etc.
• Eight corridors will be developed under the project, of which three are being constructed under phase I: the 82-km Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut, the 164-km Delhi-Gurugram-SNB-Alwar, and the 103-km Delhi-Panipat corridors.
• The corridors to be developed in future include Delhi – Faridabad – Ballabgarh – Palwal; Ghaziabad – Khurja; Delhi – Bahadurgarh – Rohtak; Ghaziabad-Hapur; and Delhi-Shahadra-Baraut.

Advantages:-

• The development of RRTS will boost economic activity. (National Rail Plan for Infrastructure Capacity Enhancement)
• It will provide improved access to employment, education & healthcare opportunities.
• It will help in the significant reduction of air pollution.
• The RRTS network is faster than the Metro.
• It will cater to commuters who want to travel relatively longer distances across the NCR in a short time.

MUST READ: Rail Kaushal Vikas Yojana

SOURCE: THE HINDU

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Q.1) With reference to Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, consider the following statements: (2018)

1. It is the flagship scheme of the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
2. It, among other things, will also impart training in soft skills, entrepreneurship, financial and digital literacy.
3. It aims to align the competencies of the unregulated workforce of the country to the National Skill Qualification Framework.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 and 3 only
2. 2 only
3. 2 and 3 only
4. 1, 2 and 3

Q.2) Recognition of Prior Learning Scheme’ is sometimes mentioned in the news with reference to (2017)

1. Certifying the skills acquired by construction workers through traditional channels.
2. Enrolling the persons in Universities for distance learning programmes.
3. Reserving some skilled jobs to rural and urban poor in some public sector undertakings.
4. Certifying the skills acquired by trainees under the National Skill Development Programme.

Syllabus

• Prelims – SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Context: Recently, scientists discovered a new phase of superionic ice.

Background:-

• Previously superionic ice had only been glimpsed in a brief instant as scientists sent a shockwave through a droplet of water, but in a new study published in Nature Physics, scientists found a way to reliably create, sustain and examine the ice.
• Using the Advanced Photon Source, scientists have recreated the structure of ice formed at the centre of planets like Neptune and Uranus.

About superionic ice:-

• Depending on the conditions, water can actually form more than a dozen different structures like ice, liquid and vapour.
• Scientists have now added a new phase to the list: superionic ice.
• This type of ice forms at extremely high temperatures and pressures, such as those deep inside planets like Neptune and Uranus.
• Superionic ice may be among the most abundant forms of water in the Universe.
• It is presumed to fill not only the interiors of Uranus, and Neptune but also similar exoplanets.
• The superionic phase of ice was predicted two decades ago.
• Five years ago, scientists recreated this exotic ice, called superionic ice, for the first time in lab experiments.
• Four years ago they confirmed its existence and crystalline structure.
• Then just last year (2022), researchers at several universities in the United States and the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center laboratory in California (SLAC) discovered a new phase of superionic ice.

Significance:-

• Superionic ice phases could explain unusual magnetic fields around Uranus and Neptune.

MUST READ: Zombie ice

SOURCE: SCIENCE ALERT

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Q.1) Which one of the following countries has its own Satellite Navigation System? (2023)

1. Australia
2. Canada
3. Israel
4. Japan

Q.2) With reference to India’s satellite launch vehicles, consider the following statements: (2018)

1. PSLVs launch satellites useful for Earth resources monitoring whereas GSLVs are designed mainly to launch communication satellites.
2. Satellites launched by PSLV appear to remain permanently fixed in the same position in the sky, as viewed from a particular location on Earth.
3. GSLV Mk III is a four-stage launch vehicle with the first and third stages using solid rocket motors, and the second and fourth stages using liquid rocket engines.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 and 3
3. 1 and 2
4. 3 only

Syllabus

• Prelims –INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Context: Recent reports indicated that Israeli forces are using white phosphorous on the civilian population of Gaza.

About White Phosphorous Bombs:-

• White phosphorus exists in different allotropes and is the most reactive and least stable among all the elemental forms of phosphorus.
• It is pyrophoric (it is ignited by contact with air).
• It burns fiercely and can ignite cloth, fuel, ammunition, and other combustibles.
• It is a highly efficient smoke-producing agent, reacting with air to produce an immediate blanket of phosphorus pentoxide vapour.
• White phosphorus munitions are not banned under international law, but because of their incendiary effects, their use is supposed to be tightly regulated.

History of phosphorus use:-

• Phosphorus ammunitions have been used throughout history and in modern wars such as the Iraq war and, the Arab-Israeli conflict.
• There have been White phosphorus is believed to have been first used by Fenian (Irish nationalist) arsonists in the 19th century.
• The British Army introduced the first factory-built white phosphorus grenades in late 1916 during the First World War. Health risk:-
• Exposure to white phosphorus can lead to severe health hazards, including burns, necrosis, and other serious skin injuries.
• It can also cause systemic toxicity when ingested or inhaled.
• The combustion of white phosphorus produces phosphorus pentoxide, which can cause damage to the respiratory system upon inhalation. White phosphorus shells/munitions

Applications:-

• Industrial applications: manufacture of phosphoric acid, phosphorus trichloride, and other organic phosphorus compounds.
• In the military: it has been used in incendiary weapons, smoke screens, and tracer ammunition due to its pyrophoric properties.

MUST READ: (India, Israel and Palestine)

SOURCE: THE INDIAN EXPRESS

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Q1) With reference to the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea, consider the following statements: (2022)

1. A coastal state has the right to establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles, measured from a baseline determined in accordance with the convention.
2. Ships of all states, whether coastal or land-locked, enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea.
3. The Exclusive Economic Zone shall not extend beyond 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 1 and 3 only
4. 1, 2 and 3

Q2) Consider the following statements: (2019)

1. The United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) has a ‘Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air’.
2. The UNCAC is the ever-first legally binding global anti-corruption instrument.
3. A highlight of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) is the inclusion of a specific chapter aimed at returning assets to their rightful owners from whom they had been taken illicitly.
4. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is mandated by its member states to assist in the implementation of both UNCAC and UNTOC.

Which of the statements given above is correct?

1. 1 and 3 only
2. 2, 3 and 4 only
3. 2 and 4 only
4. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Syllabus

• Prelims –SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Context: Pairs of rogue planets have been found wandering in the Orion Nebula recently.

Background:-

• More than 500 free-floating planetary-mass objects have been discovered wandering through the Orion Nebula thanks to new observations by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

About Orion Nebula:-

• The Orion Nebula, also known as Messier 42 (or M42 for short).
• It was discovered in 1610 by the French scholar Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc and independently in 1618 by the Swiss astronomer Johann Cysat. (International Space Station (ISS))
• It was the first nebula to be photographed (1880), by Henry Draper in the United States.
• It is the nearest star-forming region to Earth.
• It is located approximately 1,350 light-years away.
• It is about 2 million years old according to NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
• It contains hundreds of very hot (O-type) young stars clustered about a nexus of four massive stars known as the Trapezium.
• Radiation from these stars excites the nebula to glow.
• The billowing clouds of gas and dust are located in the Orion Constellation, just below Orion’s Belt.
• The majestic nebula can even be seen with the naked eye as it has an apparent magnitude of +4.
• The Orion Nebula is part of a larger stellar network called the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex (also known as the Orion Complex), one of the most active star-forming regions visible in the sky.
• The ancient Maya of Mesoamerica interpreted the nebula as the cosmic fire of creation, according to NASA.

MUST READ: India – USA space cooperation

SOURCE: PHYSICSWORLD

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Q.1) Consider the following statements: (2023)

1. Ballistic missiles are jet-propelled at subsonic speeds throughout their flights, while cruise missiles are rocket-powered only in the initial phase of flight.
2. Agni-V is a medium-range supersonic cruise missile, while BrahMos is a solid-fuelled intercontinental ballistic missile.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Q.2) Which one of the following statements best reflects the idea behind the “Fractional Orbital Bombardment System” often talked about in media? (2022)

1. A hypersonic missile is launched into space to counter the asteroid approaching the Earth and explode it in space.
2. A spacecraft lands on another planet after making several orbital motions
3. A missile is put into a stable orbit around the Earth and deorbits over a target on the Earth.
4. A spacecraft moves along a comet with the same surface. speed and places a probe on its

Syllabus

• Prelims –ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

Context: A rare bird from the arctic tundra Buff-breasted Sandpiper was sighted in Kannur, Kerala recently.

About Buff-breasted Sandpiper:-

• Scientific Name: Calidris subruficollis.
• Distribution: It breeds in the open arctic tundra of North America and winters usually in South America.
• Habitat: Shortgrass prairies; in summer, tundra ridges.
• It is a small shorebird. (Kerala Bird Atlas (KBA))
• This species is brown above and has a buff face and underparts in all plumages.
• It has a short bill and yellow legs.
• Males are larger than females.
• Juveniles resemble the adults but may be paler on the rear underparts.
• This species is a champion long-distance migrant, travelling thousands of miles from their high-Arctic nesting grounds to winter on the grasslands of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay.

Conservation status:-

• IUCN: Near Threatened

MUST READ: H5N1 virus/Bird Flue

SOURCE: THE HINDU

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Q.1) Consider the following statements: (2023)

1. In India, the Biodiversity Management Committees are key to the realization of the objectives
2. of the Nagoya Protocol.
3. The Biodiversity Management Committees have important functions in determining access and benefit sharing, including the power to levy collection fees on the access of biological resources within its jurisdiction.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Q.2) Consider the following trees: (2023)

1. Jackfruit (Artoca7pus heterophyllus)
2. Mahua (Madhuca indica)
3. Teak (Tectona grandis)

How many of the above are deciduous trees?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. All three
4. None

Q1) Consider the following pairs:

How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. All three
4. None

Q2) Consider the following statements

Statement-I:

It was discovered by the French scholar Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc and independently by the Swiss astronomer Johann Cysat.

Statement-II:

It was the first nebula to be photographed (1880), by Henry Draper in the United States.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

1. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I
2. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I
3. Statement-I is correct but Statement II is incorrect
4. Statement-I is incorrect but Statement II is correct

Q3) With reference to the Buff-breasted Sandpiper, consider the following statements:

1. This species is brown above and has a buff face and underparts in all plumages.
2. Males are smaller than females.
3. This species is a champion long-distance migrant.

How many of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. only
2. 1, 2 and 3 only
3. 1 and 3 only
4. 2 only

Comment the answers to the above questions in the comment section below!!

ANSWERS FOR ’  20th October 2023 – Daily Practice MCQs’ will be updated along with tomorrow’s Daily Current Affairs.st

Q.1) – a

Q.2) – d

Q.3) – b