Daily Prelims Practise Questions (PPQs) – October 29-30 2023

Questions

• The questions below are based on PMF IAS Daily Current Affairs – October 2023.

Q1. {IR – India-Qatar} Consider the following statements:

1. Qatar is the largest supplier of Liquefied natural gas (LNG) to India.
2. Qatar shares its land borders with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
3. Qatar was temporarily removed from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in 2017 due to Geopolitical tensions.
4. Among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, Qatar has the second largest Indian Diaspora, after UAE.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are incorrect?

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

Q2. {Polity – IC – Parliament} Regarding the office of the Lok Sabha Speaker, consider the following statements:

1. He/she holds the office during the pleasure of the President of India.
2. If he/she intends to resign, the letter of his resignation must be addressed to the President of India.
3. A resolution to remove the Speaker must be passed by an effective majority in the Lok Sabha.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

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

Q3. {MoWCD – Schemes} Consider the following statements regarding Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY):

1. It is a central sector scheme that provides financial assistance to pregnant and lactating women in the country.
2. It is implemented under the provisions of the National Health Mission (NHM).
3. All women who are in regular employment with the Central or State Govt or Public Sector Undertakings are excluded from the scheme.

How many of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. Only three
4. None

Q4. {Governance – Welfare} Implementing ‘Universal Basic Income (UBI)’ can lead to:

1. Increase in labour supply
2. A safety net against health, income, and other shock
3. Encouragement of entrepreneurship and innovation
4. Increased fiscal burden on the government
5. Inflationary pressures

How many of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

1. Only two
2. Only three
3. Only four
4. All five

Q5. {S&T – Tech} Consider the following statements regarding the ‘Cloud Seeding’ technique:

1. It is a weather modification technology that artificially stimulates rainfall by spraying chemical substances into the air that serve as cloud condensation nuclei.
2. It can produce rainfall from all types of clouds.
3. It works only when there are enough pre-existing clouds in the atmosphere.
4. The chemicals used in cloud seeding are completely pollution-free and can mitigate global warming.

How many of the above statements is/are correct?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. Only three
4. All four

Q6. {IR – Defense Exercises} Regarding the Exercise ‘KAZIND’, consider the following statements:

1. It is a joint military exercise between India and Kazakhstan.
2. It focuses on counter-terrorism and urban warfare tactics.
3. Exercise Kazind is a bi-annual event.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

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

Q7. {IR – UN} With reference to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), consider the following statements:

1. The UNGA can issue binding resolutions on member states.
2. Each member state in the UNGA has one vote, regardless of its size or population.
3. The UNGA meets annually in a regular session, and emergency special sessions can only be called by the Secretary-General.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. 3 only
4. None

Questions With Solution and Explanation

Q1. {IR – India-Qatar} Consider the following statements:

1. Qatar is the largest supplier of Liquefied natural gas (LNG) to India.
2. Qatar shares its land borders with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
3. Qatar was temporarily removed from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in 2017 due to Geopolitical tensions.
4. Among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, Qatar has the second largest Indian Diaspora, after UAE.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are incorrect?

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

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct

• Qatar is the largest supplier of Liquefied natural gas (LNG) to India, accounting for over 48% of India’s global LNG imports.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• It shares its sole land border with Saudi Arabia to the south.
• It does not have any land border with UAE and Oman

Statement 3 is incorrect

• During the Qatar blockade, Qatar was isolated from the GCC but was not removed from it.
• The Qatar blockade, also known as the Qatar diplomatic crisis, was a major political and diplomatic dispute that began on June 5, 2017, when several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt, severed diplomatic ties with and imposed a blockade on the State of Qatar.

Statement 4 is incorrect

• The United Arab Emirates (UAE) had the largest Indian diaspora population (3.5 million) among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
• Saudi Arabia has the second largest Indian diaspora among Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, which is 2.5 million.
• Qatar has around 7 lakh Indian Diaspora living in the country.

Answer: (b) 2, 3 and 4 only (incorrect statements)

Q2. {Polity – IC – Parliament} Regarding the office of the Lok Sabha Speaker, consider the following statements:

1. He/she holds the office during the pleasure of the President of India.
2. If he/she intends to resign, the letter of his resignation must be addressed to the President of India.
3. A resolution to remove the Speaker must be passed by an effective majority in the Lok Sabha.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

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

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• The Doctrine of Pleasure of the President is not applicable to the Speaker of Lok Sabha.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• If the Lok Sabha Speaker wants to resign, the letter of his / her resignation has to be addressed to the Deputy Speaker.

Statement 3 is correct

• The removal of a Speaker of a legislative body, such as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha in India, typically requires an effective majority of the members present and voting.
• The effective majority refers to a majority of more than 50% of the effective strength of the House.
• Effective strength refers to the number of members present in the House at that time.

Answer: (d) 3 only

Q3. {MoWCD – Schemes} Consider the following statements regarding Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY):

1. It is a central sector scheme that provides financial assistance to pregnant and lactating women in the country.
2. It is implemented under the provisions of the National Health Mission (NHM).
3. All women who are in regular employment with the Central or State Govt or Public Sector Undertakings are excluded from the scheme.

How many of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. Only three
4. None

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• PMMVY is a centrally sponsored direct benefit scheme that provides financial assistance to pregnant and lactating women in the country.
• It was launched in 2017 under the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• The PMMVY Scheme is implemented as per provisions of the National Food Security Act (NFSA).
• It was revised and incorporated as a component of Mission Shakti in 2022.

Statement 3 is correct

• Exclusion from PMMVY: All pregnant women and lactating mothers who are:
  1. Regularly employed with the Central or State Govt or Public Sector Undertakings.
  2. In receipt of similar benefits under any law for the time being in force.

Answer: (a) Only one

Q4. {Governance – Welfare} Implementing ‘Universal Basic Income (UBI)’ can lead to:

1. Increase in labour supply
2. A safety net against health, income, and other shock
3. Encouragement of entrepreneurship and innovation
4. Increased fiscal burden on the government
5. Inflationary pressures

How many of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

1. Only two
2. Only three
3. Only four
4. All five

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• This guaranteed income might make people lazy and opt out of the labour market (this has happened with MGNREGA).

Statement 2 is correct

• UBI will provide a safety net against health, income, and other shocks. It will act as an insurance against shock.

Statement 3 is correct

• UBI may encourage entrepreneurship and innovation, as people are granted the financial freedom to take risks and pursue new ideas, contributing to a more dynamic and resilient economy.

Statement 4 is correct

• The major concern with UBI is its fiscal implications. The government is likely to face a huge fiscal burden as a result of UBI.
• A large amount of revenue will have to be generated to finance the UBI scheme, which will put a lot of burden on taxpayers.

Statement 5 is correct

• Injecting large amounts of money into the economy through UBI can lead to inflation.

Answer: (c) Only four

Q5. {S&T – Tech} Consider the following statements regarding the ‘Cloud Seeding’ technique:

1. It is a weather modification technology that artificially stimulates rainfall by spraying chemical substances into the air that serve as cloud condensation nuclei.
2. It can produce rainfall from all types of clouds.
3. It works only when there are enough pre-existing clouds in the atmosphere.
4. The chemicals used in cloud seeding are completely pollution-free and can mitigate global warming.

How many of the above statements is/are correct?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. Only three
4. All four

Explanations

Statement 1 is correct

• Cloud seeding is a weather modification technology that artificially stimulates rainfall by spraying chemical substances into the air that serve as cloud condensation nuclei.
• Cloud condensation nuclei are small particles upon which water vapour condenses to form clouds.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• As the microphysics of clouds vary highly, cloud seeding cannot produce rainfall from all types of clouds.

Statement 3 is correct

• It works only when there are enough pre-existing clouds in the atmosphere.

Statement 4 is incorrect

• Most chemicals used in cloud seeding are a source of GHGs, thus contributing to Global warming.
• The chemical substances used are silver iodides, potassium iodides, dry ice (solid carbon dioxide), or liquid propane.

Answer: (b) Only two

Q6. {IR – Defense Exercises} Regarding the Exercise ‘KAZIND’, consider the following statements:

1. It is a joint military exercise between India and Kazakhstan.
2. It focuses on counter-terrorism and urban warfare tactics.
3. Exercise Kazind is a bi-annual event.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

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

Explanations

Statement 1 is correct

• It is a joint military exercise between India and Kazakhstan.

Statement 2 is correct

• Exercise Kazind primarily focuses on counter–terrorism and counter–insurgency operations, along with sharing urban warfare tactics and strategies between the Indian and Kazakhstani military forces.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• Exercise KAZIND is an annual joint exercise, originally named ‘Exercise PRABAL DOSTYK’ when established in 2016.

Answer: (a) 1 and 2 only

Q7. {IR – UN} With reference to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), consider the following statements:

1. The UNGA can issue binding resolutions on member states.
2. Each member state in the UNGA has one vote, regardless of its size or population.
3. The UNGA meets annually in a regular session, and emergency special sessions can only be called by the Secretary-General.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. 3 only
4. None

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• The UNGA can issue non-binding resolutions, but it does not have the power to issue binding resolutions on member states.
• The only legally binding resolutions are those adopted by the Security Council.

Statement 2 is correct

• It comprises all Member States, and each of the 193 Member States has an equal vote, regardless of its size or population.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• The UNGA meets annually in a regular session. If not in session at the time, the General Assembly may meet in an emergency special session within twenty-four hours of the request.
• Such emergency special session shall be called if requested by the Security Council on the vote of any seven members of the UNSC or by a majority of the Members of the United Nations.

Answer: (b) 2 only