Current Affairs MCQs for UPSC & State PSC Exams (13 December 2022)

Current Affairs MCQs Quiz for UPSC, IAS, UPPSC/UPPCS, MPPSC. BPSC, RPSC & All State PSC Exams

Date: 13 December 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements:

1. India shares boundaries with 7 countries.
2. China has the longest boundary with India.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: (A)

Explanation:

  • India shares boundaries with 7 countries. From east to west countries are Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, China, Afghanistan (only official claim, not on actual grounds), and Pakistan. So, statement 1 is correct.
  • Bangladesh has the longest boundary with India. The length of the border between India and Bangladesh is 4096.7 kilometres. So, statement 2 is incorrect.

Q2. Consider the following statements regarding Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).

1. It was launched in Feb 2016 as a flagship scheme for crop insurance.
2. The maximum premium payable by farmers is 2 percent for all food and oilseeds crops grown in the kharif (summer) season, 1.5 per cent for same crops grown in rabi (winter) season and 5 per cent for commercial and horticulture crops.
3. Crop insurance is mandatory to avail a farm loan.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (A)

Explanation:

  • PMFBY was launched in Feb 2016. Thus statement 1 is correct.
  • Under this scheme, The maximum premium payable by farmers is 2 percent for all food and oilseeds crops grown in the kharif (summer) season, 1.5 per cent for same crops grown in rabi (winter) season and 5 per cent for commercial and horticulture crops. Hence statement 2 is also correct.
  • Crop insurance is made optional to avail farm loans. Thus statement 3 is not correct.

Q3. Consider the following statements:

1. The act lays down that two-thirds of the members of a metropolitan planning committee should be elected by the elected members of the municipalities and chairpersons of the panchayats in the metropolitan area from amongst themselves.
2. The act requires that three- fourth of the members of a district planning committee be elected from among themselves by the elected members of the district panchayat and municipalities.

Which of the statement/s given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: (A)

Explanation:

  • The act lays down that two-thirds of the members of a metropolitan planning committee should be elected by the elected members of the municipalities and chairpersons of the panchayats in the metropolitan area from amongst themselves. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
  • The act requires that four-fifths of the members of a district planning committee be elected from amongst themselves by the elected members of the district panchayat and municipalities. Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.

Q4. Consider the following statements about recently launched the ‘One Nation, One Fertiliser’ Scheme.

1. Under this scheme, all fertiliser companies should sell all types of fertilisers, such as Urea, Muriate of Potash (MoP), Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) or NPK, under the brand name of ‘Bharat’.
2. The companies can only advertise their brand, logo, name and other pertinent information on one-third of the fertiliser bags with the brand ‘Bharat’ and PMBJP logo on the remaining two-thirds of the space of the bags.

Which of the statement/s given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) None of the above

Answer: (C)

Explanation:

One Nation One Fertiliser Scheme Features:

  • Under this scheme, all fertiliser companies should sell all types of fertilisers, such as Urea, Muriate of Potash (MoP), Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) or NPK, under the brand name of ‘Bharat’.
  • The companies can only advertise their brand, logo, name and other pertinent information on one-third of the fertiliser bags. They will have to display the brand ‘Bharat’ and PMBJP logo on the remaining two-thirds of the space of the bags.

Hence both statements are correct.

Q5. Consider the following statements regarding the Indian foreign trade, exports promotions and related policy decisions by the GoI-

1. Asia’s first Export Processing Zone was established at Kandla, Gujarat.
2. Over 60 % of the existing Special Economic Zones in India are concentrated in a few southern and coastal states such as Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.
3. SS Tarapore committee was constituted to review the policy of Special Economic Zones in India.

Choose the CORRECT answer using the codes given below:

a) 2 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 2 and 3 only

Answer: (B)

Explanation:

  • Asia’s first Export Processing Zone was established in 1965 at Kandla, Gujarat.(Statement-1 is correct)
  • Presently there are about 380 SEZs notified in India, out of which over 260 are operational.
  • About 64% of the SEZs are located in five states – Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.
  • Statement-2 is also correct.
  • The Ministry of Commerce and Industry had constituted a SEZ review committee under the chairmanship of Baba Kalyani to study the existing SEZ policy of India.
  • SS Tarapore committee was constituted by the RBI in 1997 which was mandated to review the Capital Account Convertibility (CAC) norms in India.
  • Hence, statement-3 is incorrect.

Q6. In which one of the following groups are all the four countries members of G20? (UPSC-2020)

a) Argentina, Mexico, South Africa and Turkey
b) Australia, Canada, Malaysia and New Zealand
c) Brazil, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam
d) Indonesia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea

Answer: (A)

Explanation:

  • The G20 is an informal group of 19 countries and the European Union, with representatives of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
  • Member countries which represent and contribute more than 85% of the global GDP.
  • Grouping was agreed by leaders at the Pittsburgh Summit in Pennsylvania (USA) in September 2009.
  • The G20 members include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France,
  • Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Republic of Korea , Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union (EU).