10 PM Current Affairs Quiz: November 5, 2020

Statement 1 is correct. Article 77(1) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 states that every candidate at an election shall, either by himself or by his election agent, keep a separate and correct account of all expenditure in connection with the election incurred or authorized by him or by his election agent between the date on which he has been nominated] and the date of declaration of the result.
Statement 2 is correct. Article 69 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 states that if a person who is already a member of the House of the People and has taken his seat in such House is chosen a member of the Council of States, his seat in the House of the People shall, on the date on which he is so chosen, become vacant.
Further, if a person who is already a member of the Council of States and has taken his seat in such Council is chosen a member of the House of the People, his seat in the Council of States shall, on the date on which he is so chosen, become vacant.

Statement 1 is incorrect. Model Code of Conduct (MCC) is not a statutorily backed provision.
The MCC is a set of guidelines issued by the Election Commission to regulate political parties and candidates prior to elections, to ensure free and fair elections. This is in keeping with Article 324 of the Constitution, which gives the Election Commission the power to supervise elections to the Parliament and state legislatures.
The MCC is operational from the date that the election schedule is announced till the date that results are announced.
Statement 2 is correct. A form of the MCC was first introduced in the state assembly elections in Kerala in 1960. It was a set of instructions to political parties regarding election meetings, speeches, slogans, etc.
In 1979, the Election Commission added a section to regulate the ‘party in power’ and prevent it from gaining an unfair advantage at the time of elections.
From the time elections are announced by Commission, Ministers and other authorities shall not –
–announce any financial grants in any form or promises thereof; or
–(except civil servants) lay foundation stones etc. of projects or schemes of any kind; or
–make any promise of construction of roads, provision of drinking water facilities etc.; or
–make any ad-hoc appointments in Government, Public Undertakings etc. which may have the effect of influencing the voters in favor of the party in power.

The Criteria adopted by the Government to determine the eligibility of a language for granting classical language status, are as under:
–High antiquity of its early texts/ recorded history over a period of 1500-2000 years;
–A body of ancient literature/ texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers;
–The literary tradition be original and not borrowed from another speech community;
–The classical language and literature being distinct from modern, there may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.
Six languages i.e. Tamil, Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Odia have been given status of Classical languages of India.

The Finance Commission is constituted by the President under article 280 of the Constitution. Two distinctive features of the Commission’s work involve redressing the vertical imbalances between the taxation powers and expenditure responsibilities of the centre and the States respectively and equalization of all public services across the States.
It is the duty of the Commission to make recommendations to the President as to—
–the distribution between the Union and the States of the net proceeds of taxes which are to be, or may be, divided between them and the allocation between the States of the respective shares of such proceeds;
–the principles which should govern the grants-in-aid of the revenues of the States out of the Consolidated Fund of India;
–the measures needed to augment the Consolidated Fund of a State to supplement the resources of the Panchayats in the State on the basis of the recommendations made by the Finance Commission of the State;
–the measures needed to augment the Consolidated Fund of a State to supplement the resources of the Municipalities in the State on the basis of the recommendations made by the Finance Commission of the State;
–any other matter referred to the Commission by the President in the interests of sound finance.
The Commission determines its procedure and have such powers in the performance of their functions as Parliament may by law confer on them.

Statement 1 is correct. The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) under Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare is the National Regulatory Authority (NRA) of India.
The CDSCO is the Central Drug Authority for discharging functions assigned to the Central Government under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
Statement 2 is incorrect. Under the Drug and Cosmetics Act, the regulation of manufacture, sale and distribution of Drugs is primarily the concern of the State authorities while the Central Authorities are responsible for approval of New Drugs, Clinical Trials in the country, laying down the standards for Drugs, control over the quality of imported Drugs, coordination of the activities of State Drug Control Organisations and providing expert advice with a view of bring about the uniformity in the enforcement of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
Further CDSCO along with state regulators, is jointly responsible for grant of licenses of certain specialized categories of critical Drugs such as blood and blood products, I. V. Fluids, Vaccine and Sera.
# Union Cabinet has given its approval for signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), India and the United Kingdom Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (UK MHRA) on cooperation in the field of medical Product Regulation.

The Luhri Stage Hydro Electric Project is located on river Satluj in Shimla & Kullu districts of Himachal Pradesh.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister has approved the investment of Rs.1810.56 crore for 210 MW Luhri Stage-I Hydro Electric Project. This project will generate 758.20 million units of electricity annually.
This project is being implemented by Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVNL) on Build-Own-Operate-Maintain (BOOM) basis with active support from Government of India and State Government.

Explanation: Statement 1 is incorrect. The National Election Commission of the Republic of Korea first proposed the creation of a global election management body institution to the Association of Asian Election Authorities (AAEA) in 2010.
After a series of Working Group meetings, a Charter was drawn up and the name A-WEB was chosen upon the suggestion of the Election Commission of India.
Statement 2 is correct. India is a member of AWEB and the current chairman of AWEB is Sunil Arora (India-CEC). The chairperson serves a two-year term and presides over General Assembly and Executive Board meetings.
# The Election Commission of India is organizing an International Virtual Election Visitors Programme 2020 (IEVP) for foreign Election Management Bodies (EMBs)/Organisations from 05-07 Nov 2020, in the context of the ongoing Bihar Legislative Assembly Elections.

Both statements are incorrect.
PINAKA is a multiple rocket launcher produced in India and developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation for the Indian Army. The system has a maximum range of 40 km for Mark-I and 75 km for Mark-II.
Enhanced PINAKA rocket, developed by DRDO has been successfully flight tested from Integrated Test Range, Chandipur off the coast of Odisha recently.
Enhanced version of the Pinaka rocket would replace the existing Pinaka Mk-I rockets which are currently under production.

Statement 1 is incorrect. Article 28 of the Paris agreement enables parties to withdraw from the agreement after sending a withdrawal notification to the depositary, but notice can be given no earlier than three years after the agreement goes into force for the country. Withdrawal is effective one year after the depositary is notified.
# After a three-year delay, the US has become the first nation in the world to formally withdraw from the Paris climate agreement.
Statement 2 is correct. India has pledged three quantitative climate change goals:
–reduction in the emissions intensity of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 33 to 35 percent by 2030 from 2005 level
–achieving about 40 percent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030.
–creating an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.

The Nurturing Neighborhoods Challenge, a 3-year initiative launched by Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs recently, will support cities to develop, pilot, and scale solutions that enhance the quality of life of young children, their caregivers and families in the public realm.
The challenge is conducted with the support of the Bernard van Leer Foundation, Netherlands with technical support from WRI India. Through the challenge, selected cities will receive technical assistance and capacity-building to reimagine parks and open spaces; improve access to early childhood facilities; adapt public spaces with early childhood-oriented amenities; and create accessible, safe, walkable streets for young children and families.
The challenge will be open to all Smart Cities, other cities with more than five lakh population, and capitals of States and UTs.
# MoHUA launched three initiatives recently, namely, the Nurturing Neighborhoods Challenge focusing on shaping cities for young children and their families; the Data Maturity Assessment Framework to evaluate data ecosystems of cities; and an on-line training programme for City Data Officers (CDOs) of 100 Smart Cities.