17th April 2021 Current Affairs Quiz

Ans. D
Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)” under the National Mission for Financial Inclusion was launched initially for a period of 4 years (in two phases) on 28th August 2014.

It envisages universal access to banking facilities with at least one basic banking account for every household, financial literacy, access to credit, insurance and pension.

PMJDY has provided a platform for the three social security schemes viz. Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), Atal Pension Yojana (APY) and Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY).

The Government has decided to extend the comprehensive PMJDY program 2018 with the change in focus on opening accounts from “every household” to “every adult”.

Special Benefits under PMJDY Scheme
o Interest on deposit.
o Accidental insurance cover of Rs. 2 lakhs
o No minimum balance required.
o The scheme provide life cover of Rs. 30,000/- payable on death of the beneficiary, subject to fulfillment of the eligibility condition.
o Easy Transfer of money across India
o Beneficiaries of Government Schemes will get Direct Benefit Transfer in these accounts.
o After satisfactory operation of the account for 6 months, an overdraft facility will be permitted
o Access to Pension, insurance products.
o Overdraft facility upto Rs. 10,000/- is available in only one account per household, preferably lady of the household.

Ans. C
The period June to September is referred to as the ‘Southwest Monsoon’ period.
Southwest Monsoon period is the principal rainy season for the Indian subcontinent. This is the summer monsoon period where the southwest monsoon holds away over the country. The whole country receives nearly 75% of its rainfall during this period. Southwest monsoon sets in over the extreme southwestern tip of the peninsula by the end of May.

Ans. C
The period June to September is referred to as the ‘Southwest Monsoon’ period.

Southwest Monsoon period is the principal rainy season for the Indian subcontinent. This is the summer monsoon period where the southwest monsoon holds away over the country.

Tamil Nadu is considered as a rain shadow region as it lies on the eastern (leeward
side) side of Western Ghats.

Ans. B

Indian Ocean Dipole
Sustained changes in the difference between sea surface temperatures of the tropical western and eastern Indian Ocean are known as the Indian Ocean Dipole or IOD.The IOD is one of the drivers of Indian Monsoon. The IOD has three phases: neutral, positive and negative
Neutral IOD phase: Water from the Pacific flows over to East Indian Ocean ( between the islands of Indonesia). Air rises above this area and falls over the western half of the Indian Ocean basin, blowing westerly winds along the equator. Temperatures are close to
normal across the tropical Indian Ocean, and hence the neutral IOD does not affect the Indian Southwest Monsoon.

Positive IOD phase: Westerly winds weaken along the equator allowing warm water to shift towards Africa. Changes in the winds also allow cool water to rise up from the deep ocean in the east. This sets up a temperature difference across the tropical Indian
Ocean with cooler than normal water in the east and warmer than normal water in the west. Generally this means there is more moisture than normal in the atmosphere over West Indian Ocean & Arabian Sea. This changes the path of weather systems
coming towards India, often resulting in more rainfall during Southwest Monsoon

Negative IOD phase: Westerly winds intensify along the equator, allowing warmer waters to concentrate near Equatorial East Indian Ocean. This sets up a temperature difference across the tropical Indian Ocean, with warmer than normal water in the east
and cooler than normal water in the west. A negative IOD typically adversely affects the Indian Southwest Monsoon rainfall resulting in below-average rainfall over India.

ANS. D
About IEA
Established in 1974 as per framework of the OECD, IEA is an autonomous intergovernmental organisation

The IEA family is made up of 30 member countries, 8 association countries, and 2 accession countries

A candidate country must be a member country of the OECD. But all OECD members are not IEA members. To become member a candidate country must demonstrate that it has: Crude oil and/or product reserves equivalent to 90 days of the previous year’s net imports, to which the government has immediate access (even if it does not own them directly) and could be used to address disruptions to global oil supply.
A demand restraint programme to reduce national oil consumption by up to 10%. Legislation and organisation to operate the Co-ordinated Emergency Response Measures (CERM) on a national basis.