Current Affairs Quiz 26 September 2024

Correct Answer: A) 1 and 2 only
Explanation:
• Statement 1 is correct as NVY was indeed launched in 2020 with the purpose of enhancing urban greenery, thereby improving the quality of life and promoting social cohesion in urban areas.
• Statement 2 is correct as the scheme does offer Rs. 4 lakh per hectare for the development and maintenance of urban forests.
• Statement 3 is incorrect because the goal is to establish 1,000 Nagar Vans by 2027, and the funding comes from the National Fund for National Compensatory Afforestation Management and Planning Authority (National CAMPA), not solely from state government resources.

Ans: (d)

Correct Answer: A) 1 and 2 only
Explanation:
• Statement 1 is correct as Shukrayaan-I is indeed scheduled for launch in December 2024 and it will be India’s first orbiter mission specifically to Venus.
• Statement 2 is correct, aligning with the mission’s objectives to investigate the surface processes and shallow sub-surface stratigraphy, including active volcanic hotspots and lava flows on Venus.
• Statement 3 is incorrect because Shukrayaan-I is not India’s first space mission beyond the Earth-Moon system; India has previously undertaken missions to Mars. Additionally, the mission’s primary focus is not to explore the possibility of life but to study the planet’s atmosphere, surface, and interaction with solar winds.

Answer: c

About Lokpal
• The Lokpal and Lokayukta Act, 2013 establishes Lokpal for the Union and Lokayukta for States (Statutory Bodies) to inquire into allegations of corruption against certain public functionaries.
• Composition: Lokpal will consist of a chairperson and a maximum of eight members, of which 50% shall be judicial members and 50% shall be from SC/ST/OBCs, minorities and women.
• Appointment process: It is a two-stage process.
○ A search committee which recommends a panel of names to the high-power selection committee.
○ The selection committee comprises the Prime Minister, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Leader of the Opposition, the Chief Justice of India (or his nominee) and an eminent jurist (nominated by President based on the recommendation of other members of the panel).
• President will appoint the recommended names.
• The jurisdiction of Lokpal extends to:
○ Anyone who is or has been Prime Minister, or a Minister in the Union government, or a Member of Parliament, as well as officials of the Union government under Groups A, B, C and D.
○ The chairpersons, members, officers and directors of any board, corporation, society, trust or autonomous body either established by an Act of Parliament or wholly or partly funded by the Centre.
○ Any society or trust or body that receives foreign contribution above Rs. 10 lakhs.

Solution: D
Unique set of conditions was responsible for the ozone hole. In summer season, nitrogen dioxide and methane react with chlorine monoxide and chlorine atoms forming chlorine sinks, preventing much ozone depletion, whereas in winter, special type of clouds called polar stratospheric clouds are formed over Antarctica. These polar stratospheric clouds provide surface on which chlorine nitrate formed gets hydrolysed to form hypochlorous acid. It also reacts with hydrogen chloride produced as per reaction to give molecular chlorine. The chlorine radicals formed after some other reactions, initiate the chain reaction for ozone depletion.