Solution (c)

The Northern European Enclosure Dam (NEED) is a proposed solution to the problem of rising ocean levels in Northern Europe. It would be a megaproject, involving the construction of two massive dams in the North Sea; one between France and England, and another between Scotland and Norway. The concept was conceived by the oceanographers Sjoerd Groeskamp and Joakim Kjellsson. As of 2020, the scheme is largely a thought experiment intended to demonstrate the extreme cost of engineered solutions to the effects of climate change.

UPSC Quiz – 2020: IAS Daily Current Affairs Quiz Day 182

Solution (b)

ISRO categorises Aditya L1 as a 400 kg-class satellite, that will be launched using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) in XL configuration. The space-based observatory will have seven payloads (instruments) on board to study the Sun’s corona, solar emissions, solar winds and flares, and Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs), and will carry out round-the-clock imaging of the Sun.

The mission will be undertaken in collaboration between various labs of ISRO, along with institutions like the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru, Inter University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune, and Indian Institute of Science, Education and Research (IISER), Kolkata. Aditya L1 will be ISRO’s second space-based astronomy mission after AstroSat, which was launched in September 2015.

Solution (b)

The RIN Revolt started as a strike by ratings of the Royal Indian Navy on 18 February in protest against general conditions. The immediate issues of the revolt were living conditions and food.

It encompasses a total strike and subsequent revolt by Indian sailors of the Royal Indian Navy on board ship and shore establishments at Bombay harbour on 18 February 1946. From the initial flashpoint in Bombay, the revolt spread and found support throughout British India, from Karachi to Calcutta, and ultimately came to involve over 20,000 sailors in 78 ships and shore establishments.

Solution (d)

Blue Pottery of Jaipur – Handicraft – Rajasthan

Agates of Cambay – Handicraft – Gujarat

Sandur Lambani Embroidery – Handicraft – Karnataka

With an objective to promote Geographical Indication (GI) crafts and heritage of India, the Ministry of Textiles announced today that it is organising ‘Kala Kumbh – Handicrafts Thematic Exhibition’ in various parts of the country through the Office of Development Commissioner (Handicrafts). The exhibitions are planned in various major cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai.

In the Bengaluru exhibition, GI crafts like Mysore rosewood inlay, Channapatna lacquerware, Dharwad kasuti embroidery, Kolhapur chappal, Bidriware, Molakalmur handblock printing, Ananthapur leather puppet, Thrissur screwpine, Vishakapatna lacquerware, Sandur lambani embroidery, Jodhpur terracota, Jaipur handprinted textile, bronze casting, Medinipur mat weaving, Birbhum artistic leather, and Khurdah palm leaf engraving are being displayed.

In the Mumbai exhibition, GI crafts like Chittoor kalamkari painting, Thrissur screwpine crafts, Pokharan terracotta crafts, Kutch embroidery & crochet crafts, Pingla patachitra, Birbhum kantha embroidery, Jajpur photachitra painting, Madhubani Mithila painting, Kolhapur chappal, Palghar Worli painting, Kondagaon wrought iron craft, Agate stone crafts and Krishna handblock printing are being displayed.

Solution (a)

Researchers at the Atomic Minerals Directorate, a unit of India’s Atomic Energy Commission, have estimated lithium reserves of 14,100 tonnes in a patch of land surveyed in Mandya, 100 km from Bengaluru. The present data provides a total estimation of available Li2O as about 30,300 tonnes over an area of 0.5 km x 5 km, which works out to about 14,100 tonnes of lithium metal.

UPSC Quiz – 2020: IAS Daily Current Affairs Quiz Day 182