Daily Current Affair Quiz: 13th July 2020

1. Which of the following statements are true?

1. Representatives of states in the Rajya Sabha are elected by the elected members of state legislative assemblies.

2. Rajya Sabha polls have a system of open ballot.

 (a) 1 only

 (b) 2 only

 (c) Both 1 and 2

 (d) Neither 1 nor 2

Ans: c

Justification:

• Under, Section 153 in The Representation of the People Act, 1951, ECI can extend the time for the completion of any election by making necessary amendments in the notification issued.

• Elections to the Rajya Sabha are indirect. The election is held in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote.

• The Rajya Sabha is not subject to dissolution. One-third of its members retire every second year. Each member has a 6-year term.

• Rajya Sabha polls have a system of open ballot, but it is a limited form of openness. o Each party MLA has to show his or her marked ballots to the party’s authorised agent, before they are put into the ballot box.

2. World Press Freedom Index was launched by

(a) Reporters without Border

(b) World Journalist Union

(c) Lancet

(d) UNDP

Ans: a

Justification:

• It is launched by Paris-based Reporters Without Borders, a non-profit organisation that works to document and combat attacks on journalists around the world.

• Norway is ranked first out of 180 countries. India is ranked 142nd, dropping by two places from last rankings

3. Which of the following statement/s is/are true?

1. Sarin is a clear, colorless, and tasteless liquid that has no odor in its pure form.

2. It is a naturally occurring chemical which is used in chemical war fare.

(a) 1 only

(b)  2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Ans: c

Justification:

• Sarin is a clear, colorless, and tasteless liquid that has no odor in its pure form. However, sarin can evaporate into a vapor (gas) and spread into the environment.

• It is a human-made chemical warfare agent classified as a nerve agent. Nerve agents cause their toxic effects by preventing the proper operation of an enzyme that acts as the body’s “off switch” for glands and muscles.

4. Which of the following statement/s is/are true?

1. The Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) is an intergovernmental organization .

2. India ia an observer state in the IOC.

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Ans: c

Justification:

• The Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) is an intergovernmental organization created by the Port-Louis Declaration in 1982. The IOC was institutionalized in Seychelles in 1984 by the General Agreement for Cooperation, better known as the Victoria Agreement.

• Composition- IOC is the only regional organization in Africa composed exclusively of islands, which brings together five-member stateso The Union of the Comoros o Réunion (French overseas territory) o Madagascar o Mauritius o Seychelles

• Observer members- China, European Union, Malta, International organization of Francophonie (is an international organization representing countries and regions where French is a lingua franca or customary language), Japan, United Nations and India.

5. Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura are located at

(a) Uttarakhand

(b) Ladakh

(c) Sikkim

(d) Assam

Ans: a

Justification:

• The disagreements between India and Nepal over the border dispute is over the regions which includes Kalapani, Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura (all three in Uttarakhand) and Susta (Bihar).

• Kalapani area is the largest territorial dispute between Nepal and India consisting of at least 37,000 hectares of land in the High Himalayas.