Daily MCQs 2 September

Q 1. Which of the following is/are the aim of Scheme for Economic Empowerment of Denotified/Nomadic/Seminomadic (SEED)?

1. Provide Health Insurance through PMJAY of National Health Authority.

2. Provide free competitive exam coaching 

3. Provide financial assistance for housing.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

A. 1 and 2 only

B. 2 and 3 only

C. 1 and 3 only

D. 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (D)

Recently, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has said that only 402 online applications are received to avail benefits under SEED (Scheme for Economic Empowerment of Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes).

Option (D) is correct: The Scheme for Economic Empowerment of Denotified/Nomadic/Seminomadic (SEED) communities was launched in February 2022 by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.

 It aims:

• To provide free competitive exam coaching to these students, 

• To provide health insurance to families (through PMJAY of National Health Authority), 

• To uplift clusters of these communities through livelihood initiatives, and 
• To provide financial assistance for housing (through PMAY/IAY).

Q 2. With reference to the Alaknanda River, consider the following statements:

1. It rises at the confluence and feet of the Satopanth and Bhagirath glaciers in Uttarakhand.

2. It meets the Bhagirathi River at Rudraprayag after which it is called the Ganga.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A. 1 only

B. 2 only

C. Both 1 and 2

D. Neither I nor 2

Answer: (A)

Recently, the World Bank has agreed to look into environmental damage from the under-construction Vishnugad Pipalkoti Hydro Electric Project (VPHEP) on the Alaknanda River in Uttarakhand.

Statement 1 is correct: Alaknanda River is one of the headstreams of the Ganga. It rises at the confluence and feet of the Satopanth and Bhagirath glaciers in Uttarakhand. 

Statement 2 is not correct: It meets the Bhagirathi River at Devprayag after which it is called the Ganga. Its main tributaries are the Mandakini, Nandakini, and Pindar rivers. The Alaknanda system drains parts of Chamoli, Tehri, and Pauri. The five holy places of Panch Prayag include:

• Vishnuprayag: Alaknanda meets river Dhauli Ganga
• Nandprayag: Alaknanda meets river Nandakini
• Karnaprayag: Alaknanda meets river Pinder
• Rudraprayag: Alaknanda meets river Mandakini
• Devprayag: Alaknanda meets river Bhagirathi -GANGA

Q 3. Consider the following pairs:

Hydro Power Projects : River

1. Tehri : Bhagirathi River

2. Vishnugadh Pipalkoti : Alaknanda River

3. Singoli Bhatwari : Mandakini River

4. Phata Bhuyang : Pinder River

How many pairs given above are correctly matched?

A. Only one pair

B. Only two pairs

C. Only three pairs

D. All four pairs

Answer: (C)

An independent panel of the World Bank is considering a plea by residents of Haat village, Chamoli district, Uttarakhand to investigate environmental damage from the under-construction Vishnugad Pipalkoti Hydro Electric Project (VPHEP) in the district.

Option (C) is correct: Hydro Power Projects in Uttarakhand:

• Tehri Stage 2 : 1000 MW on Bhagirathi River

• • Tapovan Vishnugadh : 520 MW on Dhauliganga River

• Vishnugadh Pipalkoti : 444 MW on Alaknanda River

• Singoli Bhatwari : 99 MW on Mandakini River
• Phata Bhuyang : 76 MW on Mandakini River (Not correctly matched)
• Madhyamaheshwar : 15 MW on Madhyamaheshwar Ganga
• Kaliganga 2 : 6 MW on Kaliganga river.

Q 4. With reference to Community Forest Resource Rights (CFRR), consider the following statements:

1. Once CFRR is recognized for a community, the ownership of the forest passes into the hands of the Gram Sabha instead of the forest department.

2. In 2016, the Odisha government was the first to recognize Community Forest Resources (CFRs) inside the Simlipal National Park.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A. 1 only

B. 2 only

C. Both 1 and 2

D. Neither I nor 2

Answer: (C)

Residents of the four villages in Chhattisgarh’s Mungeli district have received Community Forest Resource Rights (CFRR).

Statement 1 is correct:  The Community Forest Resource rights under Section 3(1)(i) of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (commonly referred to as the Forest Rights Act) provides for recognition of the right to “protect, regenerate or conserve or manage” the community forest resource. Once CFRR is recognized for a community, the ownership of the forest passes into the hands of the Gram Sabha instead of the forest department. Effectively, the Gram Sabha becomes the nodal body for management of the forests. These rights give authority to the Gram Sabha adopt local traditional practices of forest conservation and management within the community forest resource boundary.

Statement 2 is correct:  In 2016, the Odisha government was the first to recognize Community Forest Resources (CFRs) inside the Simlipal National Park. Chhattisgarh is the second state to have recognized CFR rights inside a national park i.e., Kanger Ghati National Park.

Q 5. Which of the following animal is/are produce young ones directly and does not lay eggs? 

1. Echidna

2. Kangaroo

3. Porcupine

4. Whale Shark 

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

A. 1 and 2 only

B. 3 and 4 only

C. 1, 2 and 3 only

D. 2, 3 and 4 only

Answer: (D)

Recently, Delhi-based non-profit, Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) launched ‘Save the Whale Shark Campaign’ along Karnataka, Kerala and Lakshadweep in Mangaluru.

Option (D) is correct: 

• Echidnas, sometimes known as spiny anteaters, belong to the family Tachyglossidae in the monotreme order of egg-laying mammals. The four extant species of Echidnas and the platypi are the only living mammals that lay eggs and the only surviving members of the order Monotremata. Echidnas evolved between 20 and 50 million years ago, descending from a platypus-like monotreme, which was aquatic, but echidnas adapted to life on land.
• Kangaroo and Koala are marsupials which give birth to an underdeveloped foetus. Unlike placental mammals, such as humans, dogs and whales, marsupials give birth to relatively underdeveloped young that continue to grow a ton in the mother’s pouch.
• Porcupine does not lay egg and is a viviparous mammal. Viviparity is a form of reproduction found in most mammals and in several other species. Viviparous animals give birth to living young that have been nourished in close contact with their mothers’ bodies.
• The whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is the largest fish on Earth and a keystone species in marine ecosystems. It can grow to a length of approximately 18 metres and weigh as much as 21 tonnes. They are ovoviviparous – producing eggs that develop within the maternal body (as of various fishes or reptiles) and hatch within or immediately after release from the parent and can reach sexual maturity at around 10 years old.