May 08 2024 Prelims Practice Questions (PPQs)

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) was established in 1951 as the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration (ICEM) to assist in the resettlement of people displaced by World War II.
• This historical background underscores the organization’s roots and its initial focus on addressing the complex challenges associated with post-war migration, such as displacement, resettlement, and humanitarian assistance.
• It possesses full juridical personality and became a related organisation of the United Nations (UN) system in 2016.
• The IOM was founded at the same time and is contemporary to the UN High commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) with which it works pursuant to a 1997 memorandum of understanding.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) released the World Migration Report 2024.
• Since 2000, IOM has been producing its flagship world migration reports every two years.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• It currently has 172 member states and 8 states holding observer status.
• India is a member of IOM.
• Areas of work:
  • Migration and development
  • Facilitating migration
  • Regulating migration
  • Forced migration

Answer: (d) None; Difficulty Level: Medium

Correct

Explanation

• India’s first indigenous bomber UAV aircraft, the FWD-200B, was unveiled recently.

• About FWD-200B
• Manufactured by Flying Wedge Defence, a defence and aerospace technology firm.
• It has a payload capacity of 100 kgs and is classified as a MALE Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle.
• It features optical surveillance payloads and integrated missile-like weapons for precision air strikes.
• It reduces India’s reliance on costly bomber unmanned aircraft imports. For example, Compared to the US Predator, which costs Rs 250 crores, the indigenous FWD-200B costs only Rs 25 crores.

Answer: (c) India’s indigenous bomber UAV aircraft; Difficulty Level: Medium

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• A new CRISPR gene editing technique called EDIT-101 has successfully restored vision in some patients with Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), a form of blindness.

• This is the first instance of using gene therapy to treat children born with congenital blindness.
• Lebar Congenital Amaurosis (LCA) is a rare inherited form of blindness.
• It affects approximately one in 40,000 individuals and leads to severe vision loss from a young age.
• The cause of LCA is a gene mutation that hinders the proper function of a protein called CEP290.

Statement 2 is correct

• Sickle-cell disease is a genetic disorder characterized by abnormal hemoglobin, leading to distorted red blood cells. CRISPR, a revolutionary gene-editing technology, offers the potential to treat genetic diseases by modifying the underlying genetic mutations responsible for the condition.
• So far, only one CRISPR treatment, Casgevy, has gained clinical approval for sickle-cell disease.

Answer: (b) 2 only; Difficulty Level: Medium

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) is a NASA Earth-observing satellite mission.
• It is placed in a Sun-synchronous orbit.
• The primary instrument for PACE is OCI (Ocean Colour Instrument).
  • It is capable of measuring ultraviolet to infrared ocean colour. This measurement can estimate the wavelength of the light reflected by the ocean, revealing information on the ocean’s biology.
• It also measures clouds and tiny airborne particles like dust, smoke and aerosols in the atmosphere.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• Aerosols are minute particles (a combination of liquid or solid particles) suspended in the atmosphere.
• They are short-lived, unlike greenhouse gases.
• The bulk of aerosols (90%) by mass have natural origins. For example, ashes ejected from Volcanoes.
• Aerosols influence climate in two primary ways:
  • By changing the amount of heat that gets in or out of the atmosphere
  • By affecting the way clouds form. They serve as nuclei for cloud droplets or ice crystals in ice clouds.

Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2; Difficulty Level: Medium

Correct

Explanation

• Amid escalating tensions in the South China Sea, the USA formed a new strategic alliance dubbed the “Squad” consisting of the United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines.
• The defence chiefs of the “Squad” met for the first time in June 2023 on the sidelines of the Shangri-La security dialogue. In April 2024, the four countries conducted joint maritime patrols within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
• Objective: To improve military interoperability, conduct joint patrols and drills, and enhance intelligence and maritime security cooperation.
• Significance: The emergence of the “Squad” is seen as an escalation in the strategic landscape of the Indo-Pacific.
• Reaction from China: China views the “Squad” as an extension of American efforts to contain China’s rise, which could lead to increased military and diplomatic tensions in the region.

Answer: (a) United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines; Difficulty Level: Easy

Correct

Explanation

• Chloropicrin is primarily used as a pesticide and soil fumigant in agriculture. As a soil fumigant, it helps control pests and pathogens in the soil before planting crops.
• It’s highly effective against a wide range of soil-borne pests and diseases.
• Chloropicrin is known for its high toxicity and irritant properties. It’s a powerful respiratory and eye irritant, and exposure to even low levels can cause symptoms such as coughing, difficulty breathing, and eye irritation.
• Due to its toxicity, it’s heavily regulated in many countries, and proper safety measures must be followed when handling or applying it.
• It was first made for use as a poison gas in the First World War, by both the Allied and the Central Powers.

• The U.S. State Department accused Russia of using chemical agent chloropicrin in Ukraine which is a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention.

• Chemical Weapons Convention:
  • It is a multilateral treaty that bans chemical weapons and requires their destruction within a specified period of time.
  • It entered into force on April 29, 1997.
  • It requires states-parties to declare in writing to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) their chemical weapons stockpiles, chemical weapons production facilities (CWPFs), relevant chemical industry facilities, and other weapons-related information.
  • It is open to all nations and currently has 193 states-parties.
  • India is a signatory and party to the Chemical Weapons Convention. It has signed the treaty at Paris on 14th January 1993.

Answer: (c) A highly toxic pesticide and soil fumigant; Difficulty Level: Medium

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• West Nile Fever is most commonly spread to people by the bite of an infected mosquito.
• The mosquitoes get the virus when they bite an infected bird.

  

• West Nile virus isn’t spread between humans.
  • But there have been a few cases where it has spread through organ transplants.
• The risk of getting the virus from an organ is unknown.
• Not all organ donors are tested for West Nile virus.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• WNV is a member of the flavivirus genus and belongs to the Japanese encephalitis antigenic complex of the family Flaviviridae, which also contains the Zika virus, dengue virus, and yellow fever virus.
• WNV is a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus.
• The virus is commonly found in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and West Asia.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• Contrary to popular belief, West Nile virus was not named after the Nile River, rather, the West Nile district of Uganda where the virus was first isolated in 1937.
• The primary hosts of WNV are birds, so that the virus remains within a “bird–mosquito–bird” transmission cycle.
• Some infected birds, can develop high levels of the virus in their bloodstream and mosquitoes can become infected by biting these infected birds. After about a week, infected mosquitoes can pass the virus to more birds when they bite.

Answer: (c) All three; Difficulty Level: Medium