Solution (d)

Article 360 empowers the president to proclaim a Financial Emergency if he is satisfied that a situation has arisen due to which the financial stability or credit of India or any part of its territory is threatened.

A proclamation declaring financial emergency must be approved by both the Houses of Parliament within two months from the date of its issue.

Once approved by both the Houses of Parliament, the Financial Emergency continues indefinitely till it is revoked.

A resolution approving the proclamation of financial emergency can be passed by either House of Parliament only by a simple majority, that is, a majority of the members of that house present and voting.

The consequences of the proclamation of a Financial Emergency are as follows:

1. The executive authority of the Centre extends to the giving of (a) directions to any state to observe such canons of financial propriety as may be specified in the directions; and (b) such other directions to any state as the President may deem necessary and adequate for the purpose.
2. Any such direction may include a provision requiring (a) the reduction of salaries and allowances of all or any class of persons serving in the state; and (b) the reservation of all money bills or other financial bills for the consideration of the President after they are passed by the legislature of the state.
3. The President may issue directions for the reduction of salaries and allowances of (a) all or any class of persons serving the Union; and (b) the judges of the Supreme Court and the high court.

Article Link: Food Emergency in Srilanka

Solution (b)

Common Services Centre (CSC) programme is an initiative of the Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY), Government of India. CSCs are the access points for delivery of various electronic services to villages in India, thereby contributing to a digitally and financially inclusive society.

CSCs are more than service delivery points in rural India. They are positioned as change agents, promoting rural entrepreneurship and building rural capacities and livelihoods. They are enablers of community participation and collective action for engendering social change through a bottom-up approach with key focus on the rural citizen.

CSCs enable the three vision areas of the Digital India programme:

• Digital infrastructure as Utility to Every Citizen
• Governance and services on demand
• Digital empowerment of citizens

Article Link: CSCs to soon start passport services collection centres

Solution (a)

The dugong (Dugong dugon), also called the sea cow, is a herbivorous mammal. They can grow upto three meters long, weigh about 300 kilograms, and live for about 65 to 70 years, grazing on seagrass and coming to the surface to breathe.

They are found in over 30 countries and in India are seen in the Gulf of Mannar, Gulf of Kutch, Palk Bay, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Dugongs are listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 

The loss of seagrass habitats, water pollution and degradation of the coastal ecosystem due to developmental activities have made life tough for these slow-moving animals. Dugongs are also victims of accidental entanglement in fishing nets and collision with boats, trawlers.

Internationally, dugongs are listed in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which prohibits the trade of the species and its parts.

Article Link: What are dugongs, where is India’s first dugong conservation reserve?

Solution (c)

The Manda buffaloes are resistant to parasitic infections, less prone to diseases and can live, produce and reproduce at low or nil input systems.

These are found in the Eastern Ghats and plateau of Koraput region of Odisha.

The small, sturdy buffaloes are used for ploughing in their native habitat of the Koraput, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts.

There are around 1,00,000 buffaloes of this breed in the native tract mostly contributing to the family nutrition of households and assisting in all the agricultural operations in the undulated hilly terrain for generations.

The average milk yield of these buffaloes is 2 to 2.5 litres in single milking with more than 8% fat. However, a few of those yield up to 4 litres.

Article Link: Odisha: Koraput’s Manda buffalo gets unique, indigenous tag

Solution (b)

The Bhogdoi River is a tributary of the Brahmaputra in India. From its origin in the Naga hills and flows through Jorhat before joining Dhansiri River.

River Bhogdoi is the most polluted river of Assam.

Article Link: Coal mining, waste discharge, encroachment: River Bhogdoi has been dying a slow death