Daily Quiz 28 December 2024

Answer: A

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: The construction of India’s railway network began as a branch of the Public Works Department before Independence. When the network expanded, Indian Railways Act, 1890, was enacted to enable proper functioning of different railway entities. Later, the railway organisation was separated from the Public Works Department.
• Statement 2 is not correct: The Railways Act, 1989 regulates various aspects of the functioning and administration of the Indian Railways. It provides for the organisation of Railways into zones for administrative ease. The Indian Railway Board Act, 1905 constituted the Railway Board as the central authority to administer the Indian Railways.
• Statement 3 is not correct: The Indian Railway Board Act, 1905 provides that the central government may invest its powers and functions with respect to railways in the Railway Board. This may be done through a notification.  The Railways (Amendment) Bill, 2024 repeals the 1905 Act and incorporates these provisions into the Railways Act, 1989.  The Bill adds that the central government will prescribe: the number of members of the Board, and the qualifications, experience, terms and conditions of service, and manner of appointment for the Chairman and members of the Board. So, the Railways (Amendment) Bill, 2024 does not dissolve the Railway Board delegating its power to the Commission of Railway Safety.

Answer: C

Explanation:

• A breach of privilege is a violation of any of the privileges of Members of Parliament (MPs) / Parliament. Among other things, any action ‘casting reflections’ on MPs, parliament or its committees; could be considered a breach of privilege. This may include publishing of news items, editorials or statements made in newspaper/magazine/TV interviews or in public speeches.
• Statement 1 is correct: Currently India lacks a law that defines what is a parliamentary privilege. There is no single law that codifies parliamentary privileges in India.
  • The Constitution of India specifies some of the privileges. These are freedom of speech in Parliament; immunity to a member from any proceedings in any court in respect of anything said or any vote given by him in Parliament or any committee thereof; immunity to a person from proceedings in any court in respect of the publication by or under the authority of either House of Parliament of any report, paper, votes or proceedings.
  • Apart from the privileges as specified in the Constitution, the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, provides for freedom from arrest and detention of members under civil process during the continuance of the meeting of the House or of a committee thereof and forty days before its commencement and forty days after its conclusion.

• Statement 2 is correct: The right to raise a question of privilege shall be governed by the following conditions, namely:-
  • the question shall be restricted to a specific matter of recent occurrence;
  • the matter requires the intervention of the Council.

Answer: C

Explanation:

• Option C is the correct answer: Somalia is a federation of five semi-autonomous member states, Puntland, Jubaland, Galmudug, Hirshabelle and South West and a central government in the capital.
• Recently, Somali troops have retreated from positions in the semi-autonomous southern Jubaland region following clashes with regional forces, Mogadishu.

Answer: D

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is not correct: The ‘European Union’ (EU) was officially created by the Maastricht Treaty of 1992 which entered into force in 1993. Schengen Agreement, was an international convention initially approved by Belgium, France, West Germany (later Germany), Luxembourg, and the Netherlands in Schengen, Luxembourg in 1985.
• Statement 2 is not correct: The Schengen Area encompasses most EU countries, except for Cyprus and Ireland.
• Bulgaria and Romania became the newest Member States to join the Schengen area as of 31 March 2024.

Answer: D

Explanation:

• Disease X is not a specific illness but a placeholder for an unpredictable and as-yet-undiscovered pathogen capable of sparking a global health crisis. The WHO included it in the Blueprint for Priority Diseases in 2018 to focus on the risks of emerging diseases that science has yet to encounter.
• Points 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 are correct: The potential culprits behind Disease X are varied. It originates from Pathogen X, which could be a virus, a bacterium, a parasite, fungi, helminths, or even a prion, a misfolded protein capable of causing severe neurological diseases.

Historical data supports this uncertainty. Since 1940 researchers have identified more than 300 emerging infectious diseases, about 70% of which have zoonotic origins, meaning they are transmitted from animals to humans. This process, known as zoonotic spillover, is often linked to human encroachment on wildlife habitats, deforestation, and the intensification of agriculture.