Daily Quiz 30 September 2023

Explanation:

• Option (1) is incorrect: Combined Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) measures combined and individual performance of production of eight core industries Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement and Electricity. The eight core sector industries in decreasing order of their weightage in the IIP: Refinery Products> Electricity> Steel> Coal> Crude Oil> Natural Gas> Cement> Fertilizers.
• Option (2) is correct: It is compiled and published monthly by the Office of the Economic Adviser (OEA), Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
• Option (3) is correct: The combined Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) increased by 12.1per cent in August 2023 as compared to the Index of August 2022.
• Option (4) is correct: The Eight Core Industries comprise 27 percent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP). IIP is an indicator that measures the changes in the volume of production of industrial products during a given period. It is compiled and published monthly by the Central Statistical Organization (CSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. Base Year for IIP is 2011-2012.

Explanation:

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture has submitted a report on ‘Development and Expansion of Existing and New National Inland Waterways’.

• Statement 1 is correct: Inland waterways are navigable bodies of water, such as rivers, canals, and lakes that are used for transportation, trade, and recreation. India has about 14,500 km of navigable waterways which comprise of rivers, canals, backwaters, creeks, etc. According to the World Bank, IWT is 28% more fuel-efficient than road transportation and 64% more fuel-efficient than rail transportation.
• Statement 2 is correct: India’s freight movement through waterways stands at 2%, compared to 4% in the USA, 14% in China, and much higher percentages in countries like Vietnam and the Netherlands. The Committee urged the Ministry to create an action plan to increase the modal share to 5% by 2030.
• Statement 3 is correct: There are 111 officially notified Inland National Waterways (NWs) in India identified for the purposes of inland water transport, as per The National Waterways Act, 2016. Based on the feasibility reports, 25 NWs have been found viable by Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) for cargo/ passenger movement. Development activities have been initiated in the first 13 NWs (see the image below) out of the 25 viable NWs.

Explanation:

The Punjab and Haryana High Court recently granted anticipatory bail to Punjab’s former Deputy Chief Minister.

• Statement 1 is incorrect: Bail is the conditional release of a person accused of a crime and awaiting trial, for an amount, pledged for the appearance of the accused when the same is due in court. The person paying the money acts as the surety. The Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) does not define the word bail but only categorizes offences under the Indian Penal Code as ‘bailable’ and ‘non-bailable’. 
• Statement 2 is correct: Section 438 of the CrPC clearly states that anticipatory bail is only granted in case of non-bailable offences. Bailable offences are those for which the accused person has a right to be released on bail. Non-bailable offenses are those for which the accused person is not entitled to be released on bail as a matter of right.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: Anticipatory Bail is a type of bail which is given to someone who is in anticipation of getting arrested for a non-bailable offence by the police. Anticipatory bail is granted under section 438 of CrPC either by session court or High Court. Statutory/Default Bail is granted to the accused if the investigating agency fails to file a chargesheet within 60 days from the date of remand. For certain categories of offences, the stipulated period can be extended to 90 days.

Explanation:

The government approved the issuance of the 28th tranche of electoral bonds.

• Statement 1 is correct: Electoral bonds are like Promissory Notes that allows individuals and companies to donate money to political parties anonymously. The donor of an electoral bond is the person or company that purchases it, while the receiver is the political party that redeems it.
• Statement 2 is correct: Only the Political Parties registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and which secured not less than one per cent of the votes polled in the last General Election to the House of the People or the Legislative Assembly of the State shall be eligible to receive the Electoral Bonds. Electoral Bonds may be purchased by a person, who is a citizen of India or incorporated or established in India. A person being an individual can buy Electoral Bonds, either singly or jointly with other individuals. Every Donor has to provide his/her KYC details to the respective to purchase the Electoral Bonds while the Donor’s name would be kept confidential.

The anonymity of electoral bonds (Statement I) is not explained by the eligibility criteria for receiving electoral bonds (Statement II).

• Hence statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I.

Explanation:

The Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) have issued a tender for the construction of India’s first set of offshore wind projects off the coast of Tamil Nadu.

• Statement 1 is correct: Offshore wind energy is the energy generated from wind farms that are located over shallow open water, usually in the ocean, where there are higher wind speeds. Offshore wind farms must be at least 200 nautical miles from the shore and 50 feet deep in the ocean. According to the MNRE, India can generate 127 GW of offshore wind energy with its 7,600 km of coastline.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) is the Nodal Ministry, and the National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) is the Nodal Agency for the development of Offshore Wind Energy in India. Government had also announced installing of 5GW of offshore wind installations by 2022 and 30 GW by 2030.
• Statement 3 is correct: Offshore wind turbines are more efficient than onshore ones because they benefit from high and consistent wind speeds over water. It is a reliable source of baseload power, that is, it can generate electricity 24/7. It is due to the stronger and more consistent sea winds. Offshore wind farms address the issue of limited land availability in densely populated areas like India by utilizing water bodies for energy production.