10 PM Current Affairs Quiz: September 13, 2020

Both are immunogenicity evaluation tests.

Immunogenicity is the ability of a foreign substance, such as an antigen, to provoke an immune response in the body of a human or other animal. It is the ability to induce a humoral and/or cell-mediated immune responses.

ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) is a plate-based assay technique designed for detecting and quantifying soluble substances such as peptides, proteins, antibodies, and hormones.

The plaque-reduction neutralization test (PRNT) is a serological test which measures virus-specific neutralizing antibody titers.

The Yanomami are a relatively isolated tribe in South America. They live in the rainforests and mountains of northern Brazil and southern Venezuela. They are speakers of a Xirianá language, who live in the remote forest of the Orinoco River basin in southern Venezuela and the northernmost reaches of the Amazon River basin in northern Brazil.

# They have been threatened for several decades by illegal gold miners who invade their land and bring diseases. They recently sent a request to India to stop buying Yanomami ‘Blood Gold’.

Option 1 is incorrect. Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19 Therapy (RECOVERY Trial) is supported by a grant to the University of Oxford from United Kingdom Research and Innovation/National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

RECOVERY Trial is currently testing some of these suggested treatments:

-Low-dose Dexamethasone (now only recruiting children)

-Azithromycin (a commonly used antibiotic)

-Tocilizumab (an anti-inflammatory treatment given by injection)

-Convalescent plasma (collected from donors who have recovered from COVID-19 and contains antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus).

Option 2 is correct. Solidarity is an international clinical trial to help find an effective treatment for COVID-19, launched by the World Health Organization and partners.

The treatment options are: Remdesivir and Lopinavir/Ritonavir with Interferon beta-1a. On 4 July 2020, WHO accepted the recommendation from the Solidarity Trial’s International Steering Committee to discontinue the trial’s hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir/ritonavir arm.

Option 3 is correct. COVAX is co-led by Gavi, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and WHO. Its aim is to accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines, and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world.

COVAX is the vaccines pillar of the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator.

Statement 1 is correct. The Central Government has established the Central Consumer Protection Authority as a body corporate in exercise of the powers conferred by section 10 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

Statement 2 is correct. CCPA will carry out the following functions:

-inquiring into violations of consumer rights, investigating and launching prosecution at the appropriate forum;

-passing orders to recall goods or withdraw services that are hazardous, reimbursement of the price paid, and discontinuation of the unfair trade practices, as defined in the Bill;

-issuing directions to the concerned trader/ manufacturer/ endorser/ advertiser/ publisher to either discontinue a false or misleading advertisement, or modify it;

-order discontinuation of unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements, impose penalties on manufacturers/endorsers/publishers of misleading advertisements.

Statement 1 is incorrect. The Government of Bangladesh has launched a campaign named ‘Asol Chini’ or ‘real-sugar’.

Statement 2 is correct. Asol Chini campaign aims to fight fake information and rumour spreading on social media. The campaign aims to create digital literacy to stop fake information and rumours.

None of the above countries are members of IORA.

The Indian Ocean Rim Association is an inter-governmental organisation which was established on 7 March 1997.

Member States: Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

All sovereign States of the Indian Ocean Rim are eligible for membership of the Association. To become members, States must adhere to the principles and objectives enshrined in the Charter of the Association.

IORA’s apex body is the Council of Foreign Ministers (COM) which meets annually. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) assumed the role of Chair since November 2019 – November 2021.

The Living Planet Report, WWF’s flagship publication released every two years, is a comprehensive study of trends in global biodiversity and the health of the planet.

Through multiple indicators including the Living Planet Index (LPI), provided by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), it shows an average 68% fall in almost 21,000 wildlife populations between 1970 and 2016.

The 2020 report finds that the highest biodiversity loss due to land use change globally has been found in Europe and Central Asia at 57.9 per cent, then in North America at 52.5 per cent, Latin America and Caribbean at 51.2 per cent, Africa at 45.9 per cent and then Asia at 43 per cent.

India has lost nearly one-third of its natural wetlands to urbanization, agricultural expansion and pollution over the last four decades and WWF India’s report on Water Stewardship for Industries revealed that 14 out of 20 river basins in India are already water stressed and will be moving to extreme water scarcity by 2050.

Both statements are correct.

Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, recently launched the Aatmanirbhar Bharat ARISE-Atal New India Challenges, to spur applied research and innovation in Indian MSMEs and startups.

The programme will be driven by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), four ministries—Ministry of Defence; Ministry of Food Processing Industries; Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; and Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs—and associated industriesto facilitate innovative solutions to sectoral problems.

The ARISE–ANIC programme will support deserving applied research–based innovations by providing funding support of up to Rs 50 lakh for speedy development of the proposed technology solution and/or product.

The Macartney–MacDonald Line was a proposed boundary in the disputed area of Aksai Chin. It was proposed by British Indian Government to China in 1899 via its envoy to China, Sir Claude MacDonald.

This survey was officially sent by the British to China in 1899, was not followed up, and the border remained ‘undefined’.

The Ardagh–Johnson Line was another proposed boundary between China and India in Jammu & Kashmir region. It was formally proposed to the British Indian government by Major General John Ardagh, chief of military intelligence in London, in 1897, based on the surveys conducted by William Johnson in 1865.

McMahon Line is the frontier between Tibet and British India in north east, negotiated between Tibet and Great Britain at the end of the Shimla Conference (October 1913–July 1914) and named for the chief British negotiator, Sir Henry McMahon.

# Upon independence in 1947, the government of India fixed its official boundary in the west, which included the Aksai Chin, in a manner that resembled the Ardagh–Johnson Line.

Statement 1 is correct. GSC is an unincorporated voluntary organization dedicated to enhancing global cooperation and collaboration regarding communications standards and the related standards development environment.

GSC is not a standards development organization and therefore will not develop standards. GSC events provide a strategic opportunity for dialogue among senior officials from national, regional and international standards bodies in support of the work of ITU (International Telecommunication Union).

Statement 2 is incorrect. Telecommunications Standards Development Society, India (TSDSI) is a constituent Standards Development Organisation (SDO) of Global Standards Collaboration (GSC).