ENGLISH QUIZ 02.09.2020

Consider the following statements:

1.Punjab passes resolution against farm ordinances.

2.According to the Punjab State Government, Agriculture falls under List III of Constitution and                   hence puts it as a State List.

Which of the above statement/statements are correct?

A. 1 only

B. 2 only

C. Both 1 and 2

D. Neither 1 nor 2

2.Consider the following statements:

1.China constructs missile site at Kailash-Mansarovar amid the stand-off with India.

2.According to the Jains, the mountain is the dwelling place of their first 34 spiritual masters.

3.The Bons call the mountain as the dwelling place of the sky goddess.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A. 1 and 2 are correct

B. 1 and 3 are correct

C. 2 and 3 are correct

D. All of the above

3.Consider the following statements:

1.Defence Minister launches ‘Chhavni COVID: Yodha Sanrakshan Yojana.’

2.The insurance will cover event of unfortunate fatal calamity with an insurance cover of Rs 5 lakhs             each.

Which of the above statement/statements are correct?

A. 1 only

B. 2 only

C. Both 1 and 2

D. Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWERS:-

Answer: 1)A      

Explanation

Punjab Assembly on Friday passed a resolution moved by chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh rejecting the Centre’s farm ordinances and the proposed Electricity (Amendment) Bill.

Ordinances

In June 2020, the Union Government of India had issued three ordinances as follows

1. Farmers’ Produce Ordinance, 2020
2. Farmers Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020
3. Essential Commodities Ordinance, 2020

Farmer Produce Ordinance, 2020

• It was promulgated in June 2020 to provide barrier-free trade of farmers produce outside the markets that are specified under State Agriculture Market Laws.
• It allows intra-state and inter-state trade of farmers.

Essential Commodities Ordinance

• The ordinance amended the Essential Commodities Act. Under the ordinance, the essential commodities such as pulses, oil seeds, onion, potatoes are excluded from the act.
• According to the act, the centre can include or exclude any commodity and declare it essential.
• This is mainly to make the commodities available to consumers.

Farmers Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020

• The ordinance provided a framework to empower and protect the farmers with reference to sale and purchase of farm products.
• The provisions of the ordinance override the state APMC laws.

What is the issue?

• According to the Punjab State Government, Agriculture falls under List II of Constitution and hence puts it as a State List.
• The promulgation of the ordinance is a direct encroachment on the functions of these states.

State List

• The Seventh schedule of the constitution deals with the powers of state and Union Government.
• They are notified as three lists namely State List, Union List and Concurrent List.
• The Union List has more important subjects than that included in the other 2 lists.
• The 88th amendment of the Constitution included “Taxes on services” as a new subject in the Union List.
• Article 249 of the constitution provides powers to the Parliament to legislate subjects in State List in the national interest.
• However, the Centre can legislate on state subjects only on the following three conditions.

Answer: 2)B

Explanation

China has built a surface-to-air missile near a lake which is a part of Kailash-Mansarovar amid the rising border tensions with India over the standoff in the Eastern Ladakh Sector.According to the experts, the development of the missile indicates the continued provocation by the Chinese which can also further complicate the border tensions between the two countries.

Talks between India and China:

• The talks between the countries have been going on for the last three months. It includes the five general-level talks which have failed to give any results so far.
• As a failure to any constructive result, the Indian Army further decided to took measures to strengthen its position and thwart the intentions of the Chinese government to unilaterally change the facts on the ground.

Highlights

• The Kailash-Mansarovar is revered by four religions and is linked to high spiritual scriptures in India.
• The Hindus in India call the Mountain as the abode of Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati.
• The Tibetan Buddhists call the mountain the abode of Demchong and his consort, Dorje Phagmo.
• According to the Jains, the mountain is the dwelling place of their first 24 spiritual masters.
• The Bons call the mountain as the dwelling place of the sky goddess.

Who are the Bons?

• Bons is a Tibetan religion. The followers of Bons are called the Bonpos. Shenrab Miwo is considered to be the founder of Bon religion.
• The religion heavily relies on Buddhism and is seldom referred to as pre-Buddhist religion.

Origin of transnational rivers

• The region is also the origin of four transnational rivers namely Indus, Sutlej, Brahmaputra and Karnali.
• Indus flows through India and Pakistan. Brahmaputra flows through India, Tibet and Bangladesh.
• Karnali is also called Ghaghara and is a trans boundary river of India and Nepal.

What are China’s intentions?

• China is building the missile site in the region for greater militarisation of Tibet.
• The Chinese has mounted missile DF-21 in the region.
• The missile site is also a response to India’s recently built road to Lipulekh.

About the DF-21 missile

• The missile is a medium range missile with a range of 2,200 kilometres. I
• t can cover all cities of north India including New Delhi.

Irritants

• Between 2006 and 2010, China has carried out 180 projects in the region that were not mentioned in the defence budget.
• This includes building of 14 small air strips, four large strips and 17 radar stations.

Recent Stand off

• On August 29-30, the Chinese troops violated the recent consensus that was arrived at during the stand off at Ladakh and had carried out provocative military movement.

Answer: 3)C      

Explanation

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has launched ‘Chhavni COVID: Yodha Sanrakshan Yojana’. This scheme is a group life insurance scheme through Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) that will cover more than 10,000 employees in all 62 Cantonment Boards. The insurance will cover event of unfortunate fatal calamity with an insurance cover of Rs 5 lakhs each. It will benefit permanent and contractual employees including doctors, paramedics and sanitation staff.