Daily Current Affairs for UPSC – 17 October 2022

Daily Current Affairs for UPSC 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements regarding the Digital Banking Units (DBU)

1. A digital banking unit is a specialised fixed point business unit or hub, housing a certain minimum digital infrastructure for delivering digital banking products and services.
2. They can be set up by commercial banks, regional rural banks, payment banks and local area banks with past digital banking experience in tier 1 to tier 6 centres.

Which of these statements are correct?

1. 2 only
2. Both 1 and 2
3. Neither 1 nor 2
4. 1 only

Daily Current Affairs for UPSC – 15 October 2022

Explanation:

Context: The Prime Minister of India dedicated 75 Digital Banking Units (DBU) across 75 districts across India.

Background

• Budget announcement: In the Union Budget for 2022-23, to mark 75 years of our independence, the government proposed to set up 75 Digital Banking Units (DBUs) in 75 districts of India by Scheduled Commercial Banks.
• RBI guidelines: In April 2022, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the guidelines for DBUs.

What are Digital Banking Units (DBUs)?

• A digital banking unit is a specialised fixed point business unit or hub, housing a certain minimum digital infrastructure for delivering digital banking products and services. (Statement 1 is correct)
• They will also service existing financial products and services digitally in self-service mode at any time.
• Who will set up these DBUs in India? Commercial banks (other than regional rural banks, payment banks and local area banks) with past digital banking experience are permitted to open DBUs in tier 1 to tier 6 centres, unless otherwise specifically restricted, without having the need to take permission from the RBI in each case. (Statement 2 is not correct)

Q2. Consider the following statements regarding the INS Arihant

1. INS Arihant is India’s nuclear-powered ballistic missile capable submarine and was commissioned in 2016.
2. The Arihant class submarines are reported to be based on the Akula-class submarine of Royal British Navy.
3. It is powered by an 83 MW pressurized hard-water reactor with un-enriched uranium fuel.

Which of these statements are not correct?

1. 2 only
2. 3 only
3. 1 and 2 only
4. 2 and 3 only

Explanation:

INS Arihant:

• INS Arihant is India’s nuclear-powered ballistic missile capable submarine and was commissioned in 2016. (Statement 1 is correct)
  • INS Arihant and its class of submarines are classified as ‘SSBN’, which represents the hull classification symbol for nuclear powered ballistic missile carrying submarines.
• Construction: It was the first of the planned five in the class of submarines designed and constructed as a part of Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project of Indian Navy.
• Operations: Even though the Indian Navy operates the vessel, the operations of the SLBMs from the SSBN come under the control of India’s Strategic Forces Command, which is part of India’s Nuclear Command Authority.
• Technology: The Arihant class submarines are reported to be based on the Akula-class submarine of Russian Navy. (Statement 2 is not correct) It is powered by an 83 MW pressurized light-water reactor with enriched uranium fuel. (Statement 3 is not correct)
• Significance: India is among a handful of countries that can design, construct and operate Strategic Strike Nuclear Submarines (SSBN).

Q3. Consider the following statements regarding K-15

1. It is Submarine Launched Cruise Missile with a range of 750 km.
2. It is also called Sagarika.

Which of these statements are correct?

1. 2 only
2. Both 1 and 2
3. 2 only
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation:

Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBMs):

• It is a family of indigenously developed Submarine Missiles. They are also referred to as K-family missiles, codenamed after Dr APJ Abdul Kalam.
• Features: Since they are to be launched from submarines, they are lighter, more compact and stealthier than their land-based counterparts (Agni series).
• Under SLBM, missiles of various ranges have been developed including K-15 also called Sagarika. It has a range of at least 750 km. (Statement 1 is not correct but statement 2 is correct)
• India has also developed and tested the K-4 missiles from the same family, having a range of 3,500 km.
• More members of the K-family, code named K-5 and K-6, with a range of 5,000 km and 6,000 km respectively — are currently under development.

Q4. Consider the following statements regarding the Coal Industry in India

1. India is the second largest producer and consumer of Coal in the world.
2. Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh accounted for almost 70% of the total known coal reserves in India.
3. It is also the largest importer of Coal

Which of these statements are correct?

1. 2 and 3 only
2. 1 only
3. 1 and 3 only
4. 1 and 2 only

Explanation:

Coal Industry in India:

• India is the second largest producer and consumer (Statement 1 is correct) of coal after China.  Jharkhand, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh accounted for almost 70% of the total known coal reserves in India. (Statement 2 is not correct)
  • It is also the second largest importer of coal. (Statement 3 is not correct)
• Types of coal in India:
  • • Gondwana deposits: Gondwana deposits of coal are present in eastern Indian states of Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal etc.
    • Tertiary deposits: Tertiary deposits are present in the north-eastern states of Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
    • Lignite: Lignite deposits are present majorly in the states of Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
• Usage of coal:
  • Electricity sector: It is the largest consumer of coal in India. It accounts for about 64.07% of the total coal consumed in the country.
  • Iron & steel industry: Iron and steel industry uses coal for coking. Since India does not have high quality coal reserves, majority of it is imported.
  • Other usage: Coal is also used in industries such as cement, fertilizers, chemicals, paper and textiles industries.

Q5. Recently in news, the Kamikaze Drones used in the Ukraine War are sourced from which of the following countries?

1. Russia
2. USA
3. Germany
4. Iran

Explanation:
Context: Ukraine’s capital region was attacked by Iranian-made kamikaze drones.

More on the news:

Russia has used Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones to target infrastructure facilities such as Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Kamikaze drones

• They are small, unmanned aircraft packed with explosives that can directly destroy a tank or a group of troops by flying into them.
• The name is derived from the World War II era’s Japanese kamikaze pilots, who carried out such suicide attacks by intentionally crashing their explosive filled aircraft into enemy targets.
• The US possesses most advanced drones this class but Russia, China, Israel, Iran and Turkey have some versions of it.

Q6. Recently in news, Diethylene glycol and Ethylene glycol are mentioned in relation to?

1. Artificial Sweeteners
2. Ripening Chemicals
3. Chemical Preservatives
4. None of the above

Explanation:

Diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol:

• They are chemical contaminants that may be present in the solvent that is used in the syrups. They are considered toxic to humans.
• They can cause abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, inability to pass urine, headache, and altered mental state. It can lead to acute kidney injury that may turn fatal in children.

Q7. Which of the following is the largest active volcano in the world?

1. Mauna Loa
2. Mauna Kea
3. Fujiyama
4. Kilimanjaro

Explanation:

• Hawaii national park authorities have closed the summit area of Mauna Loa as 65 earthquakes have hit the huge volcano in a single day.

About the Mauna Loa volcano

• About: Mauna Loa is the largest active volcano in the world in terms of its area and volume.
  • • It is the third youngest volcano in the Hawaiian – Emperor Seamount chain, a chain of shield volcanoes and seamounts extending from Hawaii to the Kuril–Kamchatka Trench in Russia.
• Location: It is one of five volcanoes that form the Island of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean.
• Type: It is an active shield volcano with relatively gentle slopes, a consequence of its extremely fluid lava.
• Formation: Mauna Loa was created as the Pacific tectonic plate moved over the Hawaii hotspot in the Earth’s underlying mantle.

Q8. Recently in news, the Paliyan tribal populations belongs to which of the following states?

1. Kerala
2. Tamil Nadu
3. Karnataka
4. Andhra Pradesh

Explanation:

About Neelakurinji

• The types of Neelakurunji identified were Strobilanthes kunthiana, Strobilanthes anamallaica, Strobilanthes heyneanus, Strobilanthes pulnyensis, and Strobilanthes neoasper.
• It is a shrub that is found in the shola forests of the Western Ghats in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
• Locally known as Kurinji, the flowers grow at an altitude of 1,300 to 2,400 metres.
• Besides the Western Ghats, Neelakurinji is also seen in the Shevroy in the Eastern Ghats, Sanduru hills of Bellary district in Karnataka.
• Nilgiri Hills, which literally means the blue mountains, got their name from the purplish blue flowers of Neelakurinji that bloom only once in 12 years.
• The Paliyan tribal people living in Tamil Nadu used it as a reference to calculate their age.

Q9. Consider the following statements regarding the Shola forests

1. The Shola Forests are known for accelerating transpiration through their broad leaves and are therefore highly dependent on annual rains.
2. The trees in the forest are stunted with 25-30 feet height and are rich in biodiversity.

Which of these statements are correct?

1. Both 1 and 2
2. 2 only
3. 1 only
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation:

• The shola forests have high water retention capacity than any other soil. (Statement 1 is not correct)
• They retain water from Monsoon and retained water is then slowly released in the year’s course and they form small streams.
• They are the source of water in rivers live Cauvery, Thamirabarani, Vaiga. They are the reason for moderate climates for several cities along their foothills.
• The trees in the forest are stunted with 25-30 feet height and are rich in biodiversity. (Statement 2 is correct)

Q10. Recently in news, Global Hunger Index is released by –

1. UN Development Programme
2. UN ESCAP
3. World Food Programme
4. None of the above

Explanation:

About the Global Hunger Index

• Publisher:
  • It is an annual report jointly published by two European NGOs of Concern Worldwide and Welthungerhilfe.
  • It was first published in 2006. It is published every October. The 2022 edition marks the 17th edition of the GHI.
• Objective: To comprehensively measure and track hunger at global, regional, and national levels.
• How the GHI Is Calculated?
  • Each country’s GHI score is calculated based on a formula that combines four indicators.
  • Undernourishment: the share of the population with insufficient caloric intake.
  • Child stunting: the share of children under age five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition.
  • Child wasting: the share of children under age five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition.
  • Child mortality: the share of children who die before their fifth birthday, partly reflecting the fatal mix of inadequate nutrition and unhealthy environments.

Daily Current Affairs for UPSC – 18 October 2022

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