10 PM Current Affairs Quiz : February 8, 2018

The Maldivian rufiyaa is the currency of the Maldives. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Maldives Monetary Authority. The most commonly used symbols for the rufiyaa are MRF and Rf. The ISO 4217 code for Maldivian rufiyaa is MVR.

Both the statements are correct.

Under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, five crore LPG connections are to be provided to BPL households. The identification of eligible BPL families will be made in consultation with the State Governments and the Union Territories.

BPL is a person/ household who suffers from at least one deprivation under the Socio-Economic Caste census (SECC) – 2011 (Rural) Database. For identifying urban poor, separate instructions are to be issued.

Release of LPG connection under this Scheme shall be in the name of the women belonging to the BPL family.

Both the statements are incorrect. “Evergreening,” is referred to the practice whereby pharmaceutical firms extend the patent life of a drug by obtaining additional 20-year patents for minor reformulations or other iterations of the drug, without necessarily increasing the therapeutic efficacy.

It has become a practice in the pharmaceutical industry where on one hand innumerable patients struggling to afford the high priced patented drugs, while on the other hand innovators struggling to give immortal value to their creation.

A patent as described in the Indian Patent Act, 1970 as “a grant or a right to exclude others from making, using or selling ones invention and includes right to license others to make, use or sell it”.

This monopoly right is given only for a certain number of years. After the expiration of this duration, this right is taken away from them and the technology or the product becomes easily accessible to any other person and he may not earn any more profit from his own creation.

Chapter II of the Indian Patent Act, 1970 Section 3 deals with what is not patentable. Sub-section (d) which reads “the mere discovery of a new form of a known substance or mere discovery of any new property or new use for a known substance or of the mere use of a known process, machine or apparatus unless such known process results in a new product or employs at least one new reactant.”Thus, this provision aims to prevent ever greening and protect the genuine innovators.

Statement is correct. UNDEF was created by UN Secretary-General Kofi A. Annan in 2005 as a United Nations General Trust Fund to support democratization efforts around the world.

Statement 2 is incorrect. UNDEF subsists entirely on voluntary contributions from Governments; in 2017, it reached almost 182 million dollars in contributions and counts more than 40 countries as donors, including many middle- and low-income States in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Statement (c) is incorrect. RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee is needed to meet at least four times a year and make public its decisions following each meeting.

The core mandate of MPC is to fix the benchmark policy interest rate {Repo Rate} to contain inflation within the target level. In that context, RBI is mandated to furnish necessary information to the MPC to facilitate its decision. Government also, if wishes to convey its views, can do so in writing to MPC.

Statement 1 is incorrect.

Statement 2 is correct. 

Surface to Surface Ballistic Missile Prithvi-II was recently successfully launched from ITR, Chandipur, Balasore off Orissa coast. Prithvi-II has a range of 350 Kms.

Prithvi-Il is inducted into Army and launch was carried out as part of Army Exercise under the command of SFC. Taken from routine production lot, the Missile is launched with an improved Aided Inertial Navigation and achieved high degree accuracy, i.e., CEP. The missile has the features to deceive any Anti Ballistic Missiles. Army officials and DRDO Scientists witnessed the launch. This launch in effect confirms the capabilities and dependability of the Prithvi Weapon System in strategic role.

1. Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, Basel, 1989.
2. Barcelona Convention for Protection against Pollution in the Mediterranean Sea, 1976.
3. Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade, Rotterdam, 1998
4. Minamata Convention on Mercury, 2013. The Convention is global treaty that aims to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds. It derives its name after Japanese city which had went through devastating incident of mercury poisoning. It aims to control anthropogenic releases of mercury throughout its lifecycle.