1.

Which of the following is/are true w.r.t. Vermins?.

I. They are placed under Schedule VI of the Wildlife Protection Act, of 1972.

II. The Wildlife Protection Act define the list of animals to be declared as Vermin.

III. Both Centre and State governments have the power to declare wild animal as vermin.

(a) None of these

(b) Only I and II

(c) Only II and III

(d) I, II and III

2.

I. NASA launched it towards Mars.

II. It aims to look for habitability.

Which of the above statements is/are true w.r.t. Ingenuity?.

(a) Only I

(b) Only II 

(c) Both I & II

(d) Neither I nor II

3.

Which among these is the correct combination of aquatic mammals?

(a) Dolphins, Seals, Trygon

(b) Whales, Dolphins Seals

(c) Trygon, Whales, Seals

(d) Seals, Dolphins, Sharks

4.

I.  Under the Montreal Protocol, countries were to phase out HCFCs by 2030.

II. The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol is an international agreement to gradually reduce the consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons.

Which of the above statements is/are true?.

(a) Only I

(b) Only II

(c) Both I & II

(d) Neither I nor II

5.

I.  It measures changes in prices of all the goods and services produced in an economy.

II. A lower deflator means higher real GDP growth and vice versa.

Which of the above statements is/are true w.r.t. GDP deflator?.

(a) Only I

(b) Only II

(c) Both I & II

(d) Neither I nor II

6.

Where are the cities Avdiivka and Marinka?.

(a) Armenia

(b) Ukraine

(c) Syria

(d) Yemen

7.

Which of the following is/are true?

1. Gaza borders the Mediterranean Sea to its west and Israel to its east.

2. Rafah Crossing Point is the sole crossing point between Egypt and Palestine''s Gaza Strip.

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

8.

The Kovind committee that was in news refer to the context of

(a) Reforms in SEBI

(b) MSP Issue

(c) Simultaneous Elections

(d) Auctioning of spectrum

9.

Which of the following are used in “improvised explosive devices”?

1. ammonium nitrate

2. urea nitrate

3. gunpowder

4. hydrogen peroxide

(a) 1, 2 and 3

(b) 1, 2, 3 and 4 

(c) 2, 3 and 4

(d) 1, 3 and 4

10.

Which of the following is/are true w.r.t. Usha Mehta?

1. She operated an underground radio station during the Quit India Movement in 1942.

2. She took part in protest against an Englishmen committee that was led by Sir John Simon to recommend reforms in India.

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

11.

1. It tracks deprivation across three dimensions and 15 indicators.

2. It is released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Oxfam.

3. A person is multidimensionally poor if she/he is deprived in atleast 50% or more of the weighted indicators.

How many of these statements is/are true w.r.t. Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)?.

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All the three

(d) None of these

12.

‘Karpoori Thakur Formula’ is related to

(a) Tribal Integration

(b) Tax Devolution to states

(c) Special allowance to Hill States

(d) Reservation

13.

Which of the following statements is/are correct? 

1. Union of India Vs ADR, 2002 judgements ensured Electors had a fundamental right to know the antecedents of candidates contesting elections to hold public office.

2. Lily Thomas Vs Union of India, 2013 mandated that MP, State Legislatures convicted of crime with a minimum sentence of 2 years imprisonment would cease to be members of the house.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

14.

Nitrogenous waste is excreted in the form of pellet or paste by

(a) Ornithorhynchus

(b) Salamandra

(c) Hippocampus

(d) Pavo

15.

What are “Legionella” seen in news?

(a) Coral Polyps

(b) Bacteria 

(c) Viruses 

(d) Protozoans

16.

The Nuclear transmutation refers to

(a) the process of slowing down of neutrons

(b) a change in the nucleus of an atom

(c) the process of absorption of protons

(d) a change in the valence electron count of an atom

17.

I. Article 162 of the Constitution gives state governments the power to legislate on subjects where a central law does not occupy the field.

II. Article 48 of the Constitution, places a duty on the government to “endeavour to bring about prohibition of the consumption except for medicinal purposes of intoxicating drinks and of drugs which are injurious to health.”

Which of the above statements is/are true?.

(a) Only I

(b) Only II

(c) Both I & II

(d) Neither I nor II

18.

I.  It has a three-stage launch vehicle.

II. It is useful to launch small-sized satellites weighing anywhere between 10 to 500kg into the High Earth Orbit.

Which of the above statements is/are true w.r.t. SSLV?.

(a) Only I

(b) Only II

(c) Both I & II

(d) Neither I nor II

19.

Landmark cases in which Fali S Nariman played significant roles include

1.  The Second Judges case

2.  The Third Judges case

3.  Golak Nath v. State of Punjab case

4.  TMA Pai Foundation v. State of Karnataka

5.  Cauvery Water Dispute case

6.  Bhopal gas tragedy case

7.  National Judicial Appointments Commission case

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1, 2, 4 and 5 only

(b) 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 only

(c) 1, 3, 4, 6 and 7 only

(d) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7

20.

Consider the following statements w.r.t. Biosimilar Medicines. 

1. While generic drugs are identical to the original in chemical composition, biosimilar drugs are “highly similar,” but close enough in duplication to accomplish the same therapeutic and clinical result.

2. Biosimilars are officially approved versions of original “innovator” products and can be manufactured when the original product’s patent expires.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?.

(a) Only 1

(b) Only 2

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

21.

Consider the following countries:

1. India

2. China

3. Myanmar

4. Vietnam

5. Thailand

6. Cambodia

How many of the above countries are member of Mekong Ganga Cooperation?

(a) Only two

(b) Only three

(c) Only four

(d) Only five

22.

The EFTA Member States include

1. Iceland

2. Liechtenstein

3. Norway

4. Switzerland

(a) 1, 2 and 3

(b) 1, 2, 3 and 4 

(c) 2, 3 and 4

(d) 1, 3 and 4

23.

In terms of total solar capacity, the top three states in order is

(a) Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra

(b) Rajasthan, Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh

(c) Maharashtra, Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh

(d) Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu

24.

Consider the following statements:

1. The weightage of food in Consumer Price Index (CPI) is higher than that in Wholesale Price Index (WPI).

2. The WPI does not capture changes in the prices of services, which CPI does.

3. Reserve Bank of India has now adopted WPI as its key measure of inflation and to decide on changing the key policy rates.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 2 only

(c) 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

25.

I. Klaus Schwab founded it.

II. Annually, it organizes a meeting at the end of January in Davos, Switzerland.

Which of the above statements is/are true w.r.t. World Economic Forum?.

(a) Only I

(b) Only II 

(c) Both I & II

(d) Neither I nor II

1.

https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/wildlife-biodiversity/-vermin-politics-human-wildlife-conflict-mitigation-needs-to-be-based-on-science-not-historical-biases-83165

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-law/kerala-centre-amend-wildlife-protection-act-9163205/

• Vermin are usually considered problem or nuisance animals that attack humans, crops, livestock or property.
• Species which are classified as Vermin are placed under Schedule V of the Wildlife Protection Act, of 1972.

Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

There are Six Schedules in this act. These Schedules give a different standard of protection.

• The Listed breeds and types of animals in Schedule I and part II of Schedule II get supreme protection. Offences under these are prescribed the highest penalties.

·         For example Himalayan Brown Bear, Indian Elephant etc. 

• The Listed breeds and types of animals in Schedule III and Schedule IV are also secured, but the penalties are comparatively much lower. 

·         For example, Barking Deer, Falcons, Kingfisher, Tortoise etc.

• Schedule V includes the animals which can be hunted. 

·         For example, Common Crow, Mice, Rats, Fruit Bats etc.

• The plants, trees and crops mentioned in Schedule VI are banned from Cultivation and Planting. For example, Kuth, Red Vanda, Pitcher Plant etc.

A  

2.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-sci-tech/nasa-loses-contact-mars-helicopter-ingenuity-9119349/ 

C      

3.

-Trygon: They are aquatic animals belonging to the class Chondrichthyes of superclass Pisces. Trygon contains poison sting. All animals under this class are poikilotherms meaning they can not regulate their own body temperature; they are viviparous and perform internal fertilization. Sharks also belong to this class.

-Whales: Whales are aquatic mammals. Belonging to the class Mammalia. Like other mammals, they breathe through the air through blowholes, warm-blooded, and their limbs are modified into flippers.

-Sharks: They are also aquatic animals belonging to class Chondrichthyes of superclass Pisces. Chondrichthyes skeleton is made up of cartilage. Their teeth are made up of placoid scales. Most sharks are heavy and they need to keep swimming to prevent themselves from drowning.

-Dolphins: Dolphins are aquatic mammals just like other mammals they breathe through lungs and come to the surface from time to time. limbs are modified into flippers.

-Seals: They are also aquatic mammals.

B

4.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-global/smuggling-greenhouse-gases-case-us-9203459/ 

C  

5.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-economics/why-have-gdp-and-gva-growth-rates-diverged-in-q3-9191086/

C  

6.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-global/russia-captures-avdiivka-what-this-means-for-ukraine-the-war-and-europe-9171658/

Kreminna

·  Russia is pushing from Kreminna to reclaim towns in the northeast it lost to Ukraine in late 2022.

·  Kreminna is situated in the Luhansk Oblast, approximately 60 kilometers southeast of the regional capital, Luhansk. It lies close to the border with Russia and has been affected by the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine.

·  Kreminna is known for its agricultural significance, with many residents engaged in farming and related activities. The town''s economy also includes light industry and services.

Bakhmut

·  Bakhmut is situated in the Donetsk Oblast, approximately 75 kilometers north of the regional capital, Donetsk. It lies close to the front lines of the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine.

·  Bakhmut is known for its industrial significance, particularly its coal mining and processing industries. The city''s economy also includes metallurgical plants, machinery manufacturing, and food processing.

B   

7.

C 

8.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-law/kovind-committee-report-simultaneous-elections-details-9215013/

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/iccc-integrated-farm-data-dashboard-for-customised-solutions-9235150/

C    

9.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/bengaluru-bomb-blast-ied-9190684/

B  

10.

https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/gk-current-affairs/story/usha-mehta-the-22-year-old-who-ran-an-underground-radio-station-to-aid-indias-fight-for-independence-2344036-2023-03-08

Ae Watan Mere Watan movie was released recently which is based on the biography of Indian freedom fighter Usha Mehta.

Usha Mehta

·  Usha Mehta was born in a village named Saras, near Surat in Gujarat in 1920.

·  She was a true Gandhian at heart and was popularly known as Ushaben.

·  At the age of eight in 1928, she participated in a protest march against the Simon Commission.

·  On 14 August 1942, she and her associates established the Secret Congress Radio during the Quit India Movement, a covert radio station that went on air on 27 August.

·  It played a crucial role in keeping the freedom movement leaders connected with the public.

Setting up an underground station

·  Background: At the advent of the War in 1939, the British had suspended all amateur radio licences across the Empire. Operators were supposed to turn in all equipment to the authorities, with severe punishment for those who failed to do so.

·  Alongside Mehta, Babubhai Khakar, Vithalbhai Jhaveri, and Chandrakant Jhaveri were key figures in organising Congress Radio.

·  Congress Radio case

·  The trial of the five accused in the— Mehta, Babubhai Khakar, Vithalbhai Jhaveri, Chandrakant Jhaveri, and Nanak Gainchand Motwane (who sold key pieces of equipment to the team) — generated a lot of excitement in Bombay.

·  Vithalbhai and Motwane were acquitted, Mehta, Babubhai, and Chandrakant received stern sentences.

·  Usha Mehta was released from Pune’s Yerawada Jail in March 1946, and hailed in the nationalist media as “Radio-ben”.

A   

11.

It tracks deprivation across three dimensions and 10 indicators.

A person is multidimensionally poor if she/he is deprived in one third or more (means 33% or more) of the weighted indicators.

It is released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI).

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-economics/multidimensional-poverty-meaning-numbers-9141495/

D  

12.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-politics/bharat-ratna-to-karpoori-thakur-his-politics-policies-9124428/

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/obcs-and-subcategories-why-this-has-been-a-hot-button-issue-for-long-8989702/

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-law/legal-debate-sub-categorisation-among-scheduled-castes-9117612/#:~:text=The%20appeal&text=In%202010%2C%20the%20High%20Court,quota%20cannot%20be%20sub%2Dclassified.

D  

13.

https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/a-strong-case-to-restore-section-84-of-the-rp-act/article67224103.ece

C   

14.

Ornithorhynchus (Platypus) is a mammal and is ureotelic (excretes  urea). Salamandra (Salamander) is an amphibian and is ammonotelic (excretes ammonia).  Hippocampus is a bony fish and is ammonotelic.

Depending upon the form in which nitrogenous waste is excreted from the body, the organisms are grouped as under into three categories: ammonotelic, uricotelic and ureotelic.

Reptiles (e.g. lizards), birds, land snails and insects excrete nitrogenous wastes as uric acid in the form of pellet or paste with minimum loss of water and are called uricotelic animals.

D

15.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/uk/what-are-legionella-bacteria-know-how-they-forced-uk-govt-remove-migrants-from-bibby-stockholm-barge/articleshow/102660155.cms?from=mdr

B

16.

Nuclear transmutation is the conversion of one chemical element or isotope into another. In other words, atoms of one element can be changed into atoms of another element by transmutation. This occurs either through nuclear reactions in which an outside particle reacts with a nucleus, which can be supplied by a particle accelerator, or through radioactive decay, where no outside particle is needed.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/india-first-indigenous-fast-breeder-reactor-kalpakkam-nuclear-9212492/

B  

17.

Article 47 of the Constitution, which places a duty on the government to “endeavour to bring about prohibition of the consumption except for medicinal purposes of intoxicating drinks and of drugs which are injurious to health.”

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-law/karnataka-government-hookah-ban-9218153/

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-law/kerala-assembly-resolution-against-uniform-civil-code-8885558/

A  

18.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-sci-tech/isro-building-second-rocket-launchport-9199038/

a  

19.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-law/fali-s-nariman-passes-away-notable-cases-9172865/

D   

20.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/health-activists-and-patient-groups-seek-revision-of-existing-biosimilar-guideline-for-increased-access-to-critical-drugs/article67054064.ece

Pharma major Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd has launched ‘Versavo (bevacizumab)’, a biosimilar of Roche’s Avastin in India.

Biosimilar are equivalent of drugs where the active ingredient is made by an engineered organism e.g. E.coli has been engineered to express a modified version of human insulin gene.

Difference between biosimilar and generics-

Biosimilar involve developing equivalent of biological entity while generics involve developing equivalent of a chemical entity-the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API)

Biosimilar are extracted from natural sources while generics through chemical synthesis.

In case of biosimilar, biological entities being different (and not replica), every organism has to be engineered to produce the same therapeutic effect while in generics, the copies of API can be generated

Differences in efficiency in biosimilar may arise because of first input i.e. the organism, while in case of generics because the input (API) is same, the differences in efficiency arise because of the process involved.

Regulatory procedure to get approval for biosimilar is complex as compared to that of a generics

https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/dr-reddys-launches-biosimilar-cancer-drug-versavo-in-domestic-market/article29140360.ece

C

21.

·  The Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) is an initiative by six countries – India and five ASEAN countries, namely, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam for cooperation in tourism, culture, education, as well as transport and communications. It was launched in 2000 at Vientiane, Lao PDR. Both the Ganga and the Mekong are civilizational rivers, and the MGC initiative aims to facilitate closer contacts among the people inhabiting these two major river basins. The MGC is also indicative of the cultural and commercial linkages among the member countries of the MGC down the centuries.

D    

22.

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2013169

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-economics/india-to-sign-trade-agreement-with-efta-today-what-is-the-significance-of-the-deal-9205526/

ü B 

23.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/modi-launches-new-rooftop-solar-scheme-pradhan-mantri-suryodaya-yojana-9122514/

 A     

24.

A      

25.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/everyday-explainers/davos-meeting-2024-5-key-takeaways-9120670/

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/everyday-explainers/world-economic-forum-meeting-davos-wef-9110276/

C