Current Affairs MCQs for UPSC & State PSC Exams (17 January 2022)

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

Date: 17 January 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements with respect to World Bank’s Migration and Development Brief:

1. India has become the world’s largest recipient of Remittances.
2. The United States being the biggest source, accounting for over 20% of all Remittances.
3. The Brief is produced twice a year.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

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

Answer: (D)

Q2. Consider the following statements about chemical fertilizers:

1. India is the largest user of fertilizer in the world.
2. Urea is the most consumed fertilizer with around 300 Lakh Metric Tonnes (LMT) being consumed each year
3. Bihar (245.25 kg) topped the list in 2019-20 with respect to the per hectare consumption of fertilizers.

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

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

Answer: (B)

Explanation:

  • India is the second-largest user of fertilizer in the world, after China,
  • Urea is the most consumed fertilizer with around 300 Lakh Metric Tonnes (LMT) being consumed each year
  • Bihar (245.25 kg) topped the list in 2019-20 with respect to the per hectare consumption of fertilizers

Q3. Consider the following statement about taxing crypto currency transactions:

1. Crypto currency transactions are taxable under Income Tax Act, 1961.
2. In India, Trading in cryptocurrency is classified as transfer of a capital asset only and taxable under the head ‘capital gains’.

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

a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both1 and 2
d) None of these

Answer: (A)

Explanation:

  • Crypto currency transactions are taxable under income tax act, 1960. Although the Income Tax Act, 1961 (“IT Act”) does not specifically mention cryptocurrencies, it does cast a wide enough net to bring crypto transactions under its ambit.
  • Trading in cryptocurrency may be classified as transfer of a ‘capital asset’, taxable under the head ‘capital gains’. However, if such cryptocurrencies are held as stock-in trade and the taxpayer is trading in them frequently, the same will attract tax under the head ‘business income’.

Q4. Consider the following statements about Rare Earth Element:

1. It was the scarcity of these minerals that led to them being called rare earths.
2. Department for Rare Earths is the regulating body of Rare Earth Materials.
3. Currently, the United States of America is the largest producer of rare earth material.

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

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

Answer: (D)

Explanation:

  • It was the scarcity of these minerals that led to them being called rare earths.
  • Dep. of Atomic energy is the regulating body of Rare Earth Materials.
  • Currently, the China is the largest producer of rare earth material.

Q5. With which of the following countries did India sign its first Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT)?

a) USA
b) UK
c) Mauritius
d) China

Answer: (B)

Explanation: When India signed its first BIT with the United Kingdom in 1994, FDI inflows to India was at a meagre US$ 393 million compared to US$ 42 billion in 2017–18.

Q6. Consider the following statements

1. In Lily Thomas vs. Union of India case, 2013, Supreme court declared the Section 8(4) of the Representation of People Act, 1951 as unconstitutional that allowed the convicted MLAs and MPs to continue in office till the appeal against those convictions is disposed of.
2. As per ADR report , there is a 44% increase in number of candidates with declared criminal cases against them in present Lok Sabha .

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

a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both
d) Neither

Answer: (C)

Explanation:

  • Lily Thomas vs. Union of India case, 2013: Supreme court declared the Section 8(4) of the Representation of People Act, 1951 as unconstitutional that allowed the convicted MLAs and MPs to continue in office till the appeal against those convictions is disposed of.
  • As per ADR website, in 2019 out of 539 candidates analysed , 43% have declared criminal cases against them . Out of the 542 MPs analyzed during Lok Sabha elections in 2014, 185 (34 percent) winners had declared criminal cases against themselves while during Lok Sabha elections in 2009, 30 percent had declared criminal cases against themselves. Hence there is a clear 44% increase in candidates with declared criminal cases against them.