10 PM Current Affairs Quiz: January 8, 2021

Statement 1 is correct. Surveillance of national trade policies is a fundamentally important activity running throughout the work of the WTO. The objective of the WTO Trade Policy Review is:
–to increase the transparency and understanding of countries’ trade policies and practices, through regular monitoring
–to enable a multilateral assessment of the effects of policies on the world trading system.
Statement 2 is incorrect. Participants agreed to set up the reviews at the December 1988 ministerial meeting that was intended to be the midway assessment of the Uruguay Round. The first review took place the following year.
Initially they operated under GATT and, like GATT, they focused on goods trade. With the creation of the WTO in 1995, their scope was extended, like the WTO, to include services and intellectual property.
Statement 3 is correct. All WTO members are reviewed, the frequency of each country’s review varying according to its share of world trade.
# India’s seventh Trade Policy Review (TPR) began on Wednesday, 6th January 2021. India’s last TPR took place in 2015.

Equalisation Levy was introduced in India through Budget 2016. It taxes the income accruing to foreign e-commerce companies from India. It is aimed at taxing business to business transactions.
Services covered under Eualisation Levy are Online advertisement and Any provision for digital advertising space or facilities/ service for the purpose of online advertisement.
# The U.S. Trade Representative’s findings of its “Section 301” investigations into the digital taxes, recently said that the digital taxes imposed by France, India, Italy and Turkey discriminate against big U.S. tech firms, such as Google, Facebook, Apple and Amazon.

The Omkareshwar Dam is a gravity dam on the Narmada River upstream of Mandhata in Khandwa district, Madhya Pradesh.
The Government of India has announced the construction of the World’s largest floating solar energy project of 600 MW at Omkareshwar dam. The International Finance Corporation, World Bank and Power Grid have granted in-principle consent for providing aid for the project development.
The project is likely to begin power generation by year 2022-23.

Bauxite is basically an aluminous rock that contains hydrated aluminum oxide as main constituent and iron oxide, silica & titania as minor constituents present in varying proportions.
Among States, Odisha alone accounts for 51% of country’s resources of bauxite followed by Andhra Pradesh (16%), Gujarat (9%), Jharkhand (6%), Maharashtra (5%) and Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh (4% each). Major bauxite resources are concentrated in the East Coast bauxite deposits in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
# National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO), a Schedule-A Navratna CPSE under Ministry of Mines is one of the largest integrated Bauxite-Alumina-Aluminium- Power Complex in Asia. The company contributes to production of 32% Bauxite, 33% Alumina 12% Aluminium in India.

Statement 1 is incorrect. Influenza A viruses are divided into subtypes on the basis of two proteins on the surface of the virus: hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA).
H5N1 is a type of influenza virus that causes a highly infectious, severe respiratory disease in birds called avian influenza (or “bird flu”). Human cases of H5N1 avian influenza occur occasionally, but it is difficult to transmit the infection from person to person.
Almost all cases of H5N1 infection in people have been associated with close contact with infected live or dead birds, or H5N1-contaminated environments.
Statement 2 is correct. There is no vaccine for humans against avian flu. The vaccine against human influenza virus does not protect against avian flu.
# It is safe to eat properly prepared and cooked poultry and game birds. The virus is sensitive to heat.

Statement 1 correct. Analytical Quality Control (AQC) is one of the main components of a Quality Assurance System, wherein the quality of analytical data being generated in any laboratory is controlled through minimizing or controlling errors to achieve a target accuracy.
Example: A particular water quality study involves the collection, comparison and interpretation of analytical data, which leads to a decision for the management and use of water resource. The correctness of decision or actions depends largely upon the accuracy of the analytical results. If the errors in the analytical results are high, the manpower, material and money spent on any monitoring programme or study would be futile and further lead to wrong decision and improper action plans.
Statement 2 is correct. The AQC exercise of CPCB is to evaluate the performance of participating laboratories in terms of analytical activities, the robustness of instruments used for sample analysis and the expertise of manpower engaged in the laboratory.
It also helps to ensure the reliability of the analyzed data, for an informed and conclusive decision for the prevention and control of pollution.
# The Instrumentation Laboratory of Central Pollution Control Board, Delhi has organized the 33rd Analytical Quality Control (AQC) exercise for trace metal parameters for Environmental Laboratories of Central and State Pollution Control Boards, Pollution Control Committee’s, and EPA Recognized Private Labs.

Statement 1 is correct. Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Convention is the flagship event of the Ministry of External Affairs and provides an important platform to engage and connect with the overseas Indians.
# The 16th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention, is being organized on 9th January 2021.
Statement 2 is incorrect. PBD conventions were being held every year in January since 2003. Since 2015, its format has been revised to celebrate the PBD once every two years and to hold theme-based PBD Conferences during the intervening period with participation from overseas diaspora experts, policy makers and stakeholders.
# January 9 was chosen as the day to celebrate this occasion since it was on this day in 1915 that Mahatma Gandhi, the greatest Pravasi, returned to India from South Africa.

Statement 1 is correct. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs recently approved the proposal of Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade for Central Sector Scheme for Industrial Development of Jammu & Kashmir.
Statement 2 is incorrect. The scheme is approved with a total outlay of Rs. 28,400 crores up to the year 2037. It supports both smaller and larger units. Smaller units with an investment in plant & machinery up to Rs. 50 crores will get a capital incentive up to Rs. 7.5 crore and get capital interest subvention at the rate of 6% for maximum 7 years.
The scheme provides Capital Investment Incentive, Capital Interest subvention, GST Linked Incentive and Working Capital Interest Incentive.

National Statistics Office (NSO) is mandated with the following responsibilities:
— prepares national accounts as well as publishes annual estimates of national product, government and private consumption expenditure, capital formation, savings, estimates of capital stock and consumption of fixed capital
— compiles and releases the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) every month in the form of ‘quick estimates’; conducts the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI); and provides statistical information to assess and evaluate the changes in the growth, composition and structure of the organized manufacturing sector;
— organizes and conducts periodic all-India Economic Censuses and follow-up enterprise surveys, provides an in-house facility to process the data collected through various socio-economic surveys and follow-up enterprise surveys of Economic Censuses.
# The National Statistics Office (NSO) released today the first Advance Estimates (AE) of GDP for the year 2020-21. The real GDP at 2011-12 prices in 2020-21 has been estimated to contract by 7.7 per cent and nominal GDP at current prices by 4.2 per cent.

Both statements are correct.
Recognising their critical contribution in supporting the economy especially during the present difficult times of COVID-19 pandemic, Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) has taken a new initiative to introduce its flagship “Liberalised MSME AEO Package” for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
It is a voluntary compliance programme which enables swifter Customs clearance for accredited stakeholders in the global supply chain viz. importers, exporters, logistic service providers, custodians etc.
Another important benefit available to specified AEOs is that their payment of Customs duty is deferred and need not to be paid before the clearance of the imported goods by Customs.