UPSC Quiz – 2024 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz 26th March 2024

·       It intends to shift financial incentives towards farmers to adopt low- and non-chemical alternatives, promoting sustainable practices.

·       By phasing out hazardous pesticides and Agri-plastics and encouraging better management standards, the program aims to prevent the release of over 51,000 tons of hazardous pesticides and 20,000 tons of plastic waste, while also reducing carbon dioxide emissions and protecting over 3 million hectares of land.

·       Bima Sugam functions as an e-commerce platform where insurance companies can offer their products, providing customers with an end-to-end digital journey.

·       It eliminates paperwork by offering policies in electronic format and allows customers to access all their policies – life, health, and non-life insurance – in one application or window.

·       Additionally, it offers a unified platform for policy issuance, claim settlement, and service requests, contributing to transparency and collaboration in the insurance sector.

·       IRDAI (HQ: Hyderabad; est 1999), safeguards insurance customers’ interests as a statutory body under the IRDA Act 1999. It operates under the Ministry of Finance, overseeing and developing the insurance industry. Its powers and functions are defined by the IRDAI Act, 1999 and the Insurance Act, 1938

·       Article 361- President and Governor enjoy constitutional immunity from civil and criminal proceedings until the completion of their term.

·       This immunity does not extend to Prime Ministers or Chief Ministers, as they are regarded as equals under the Constitution’s principle of the Right to Equality before the law.

·       According to Section 8(1) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, a legislator convicted of an offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA), 1988, should be disqualified for six years, from the date of conviction, if the punishment is limited to a fine.

·       However, if a legislator is sentenced to any term of imprisonment under the PCA, 1988, then he or she should be disqualified from the date of conviction till the entire period of imprisonment and also for a further period of six years from the date of release, the Act says.

·       But, the detention of a person under a preventive detention law is not a disqualification.

·       The disqualification can be avoided only if the conviction, and not just the sentence, gets stayed or set aside.

·       Criteria for disqualification

·       The person must not have been found guilty of certain election offences or corrupt practices in the elections.

·       The person must not have been convicted for promoting enmity between different groups or for the offence of bribery.

·       The person must not have failed to lodge an account of his election expenses within the time.

·       The person must not have any interest in government contracts, works or services.

·       The person must not be a director or managing agent nor hold an office of profit in a corporation in which the government has at least 25% share.

·       The person must not have been punished for preaching and practising social crimes such as untouchability, dowry and sati.

·       The Governor’s decision on a member’s disqualification is final, but they must seek the Election Commission’s opinion before taking action.

·       The disqualification can be reversed if a higher court grants a stay on the conviction or decides the appeal in favour of the convicted lawmaker.

·       Gram-negative bacteria have a thin peptidoglycan layer in their cell wall, which is located between the outer and inner membranes.

·       They stain pink or red when subjected to the Gram staining technique.

·       These bacteria have built-in abilities to find new ways to be resistant and can pass along genetic materials that allow other bacteria to become drug-resistant as well.

·       Gram-negative bacteria are generally more resistant to antibiotics due to the presence of an outer membrane that acts as a barrier against certain antibiotics.

·       Examples of gram-negative bacteria include Escherichia coli (E. coli), Salmonella spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

·       They are known to cause infections like pneumonia, bloodstream infections, wound infections, and meningitis in healthcare settings

·       It is a collaborative initiative involving M/s Peptris Technologies Pvt. Ltd. and the Foundation for Neglected Disease Research (FNDR) in India, along with ABAC THERAPEUTICS SL from Spain.

·       The primary objective of the project is-

·       To develop a novel antibiotic capable of inhibiting the FabI enzyme and

·       Combating critical gram-negative pathogens.

·       It is released in partnership by Gallup, the Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), and the World Happiness Report’s Editorial Board

·       It measures three main well-being indicators: life evaluations, positive emotions, and negative emotions (described in the report as positive and negative affect).

·       The report considers six key factors: social support, income, health, freedom, generosity, and the absence of corruption.

·       It was adopted by the UN General Assembly based on a resolution tabled by Bhutan.

Key Highlights of the 2024 Report

·       Top: For the seventh successive year, Finland topped the list of the happiest countries in the world.

·       Runner-ups: The other countries in the top ten were Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Israel, the Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Australia.

·       Bottom: Afghanistan was at the bottom of the list.

Indian Scenario

·       Ranking: India maintains its position at 126th in the happiness index. Surprisingly, it is behind Pakistan, Libya, Iraq, Palestine and Niger.