10 PM Current Affairs Quiz: 1st October 2020

Statement 1is incorrect. Multilateral Debt is the largest contributor to the external debt of India.

Statement 2 is incorrect. The US dollar is the leading currency of denomination in External Debt of India accounting (about 54 per cent of the total as at-end March 2020).
Indian rupee is the second leading currency with a share of 32 per cent followed by Japanese Yen (5.6 per cent), SDRs (4.5 per cent) and Euro (3.5 per cent).

Data Source: India’s External Debt: A Status Report 2019-20 by Ministry of Finance.

Given the increasing salience of the Indo-Pacific concept in global discourse, the Ministry of External Affairs established a new Division for the Indo-Pacific in April 2019.

Indo-Pacific Division deals with matters relating to the Indo-Pacific, India-ASEAN relations, East Asia Summit, Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) and Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS).

# Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) is the biggest inter-governmental process between Asia and Europe. It currently has 53 Partners – 51 countries and 2 regional organisations (ASEAN and European Union).

Statement 1 is correct. Tulu is a southern Dravidian language that’s spoken by 1.85 million people in the districts of Dakshina Kannada (by 48.6% of the population as per the 2011 Census) and Udupi (31.4%), and is also widely spoken in the Manjeshwaram and Kasargod taluks (16.2% combined) of Kerala’s Kasargod district.

Tulu has a rich oral tradition, reviving folk song forms like paḍdana, stories, and popular theater (naṭaka), including yakṣagana.

Statement 2 is incorrect. Tulu language i not included in Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.

The Eight Schedule consists of the 22 languages namely Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu Bodo, Santhali, Maithili and Dogri.

Of these languages,14 were initially included in the Constitution. Sindhi language was added by the 21st Constitution Amendment Act of 1967.

Konkani, Manipuri, and Nepali were included by the 71st Constitution Amendment Act of 1992.

Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, and Santhali were added by the 92nd Constitution Amendment Act of 2003.

India’s vision for the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) commonly known by its acronym – SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region).

The goal is to seek a climate of trust and transparency; respect for international maritime rules and norms by all countries; sensitivity to each other’s interests; peaceful resolution of maritime issues; and increase in maritime cooperation.

India would do everything to safeguard its mainland and islands and defend its interests. Further, India will also work to ensure a safe, secure and stable IOR.

Statement 1 is correct. The monthly Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) is a production volume index, measuring monthly changes in the output of industry. ICI measures collective and individual performance of production in selected eight core industries viz. Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement and Electricity.

Statement 2 is correct. It is compiled and released by Office of the Economic Adviser (OEA), Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP), and Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

# The Eight Core Industries comprise 40.27 per cent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

# India’s eight core industrial sectors contracted by 8.5% in August compared to Au­gust 2019, marking the sixth month in a row of shrinking output.

Statement 1 is correct. “Unnat Bharat Abhiyan” is a flagship programme of Ministry of Education conceptualized and launched in IIT Delhi, with a vision of transformational change in rural development processes by leveraging knowledge institutions to help build the architecture of an Inclusive India.

Statement 2 is correct. The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT, Delhi) has been designated as the National Coordinating Institute (NCI) for the UBA scheme.

The UBA aims to enable higher educational institutions to work with the people of rural India in identifying development challenges and evolving appropriate solutions for accelerating sustainable growth.

# In a joint initiative of Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA), Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD) and Vijnana Bharti (VIBHA), a set of CSIR Technologies has been launched for rural development.

The balance of payments (BOP) is a statement of all transactions made between entities in one country and the rest of the world over a defined period of time, such as a quarter or a year.

Option 1 is correct. Under current account of the BoP, transactions are classified into merchandise (exports and imports) and invisibles. Lower import bill can lead to a Surplus Current Account.

Option 2 is incorrect. FDI is not part of the Current Account. The main components of capital and financial account include foreign investment, loans and banking capital.

Foreign investment comprising foreign direct investment (FDI) and portfolio investment represents non-debt liabilities, while loans (external assistance, external commercial borrowings and trade credit) and banking capital including non-resident Indian (NRI) deposits are debt liabilities.

# A new convention splits the Capital Account into financial account and capital account. The financial account measures change in international ownership of assets, whether they be individuals, businesses, governments, or central banks. These assets include foreign direct investments, securities like stocks and bonds, and gold and foreign exchange reserves. The capital account measures financial transactions that do not affect income, production, or savings, such as international transfers of drilling rights, trademarks, and copyrights.

Sawantwadi toys handmade works of art made of wood in Sawantwadi a town in Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra. The toys are made by assembling flat shaped solid wood. Seasoned mango wood is chiseled or carved into desired toy shape. The cutout pieces are finished on a sander, painted and assembled. The craft is traditionally done by the Chitari or Chitrakar community

# India Post is releasing a set of Post Cards on Traditional Toys of India including one featuring Sawantwadi Toys.

Statement 1 is incorrect. BrahMos is a supersonic cruise missile being developed by BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture between Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) of India and NPO Mashinostroeyenia (NPOM) of Russia.

BrahMos has a flight range of up to 290km and can reach a maximum speed of Mach 3.

Statement 2 is correct. BrahMos is powered by a two-stage propulsion system. Initial acceleration is provided by a solid-propellant booster and supersonic cruise speed is provided by a liquid-fuelled ramjet system.

# BrahMos surface-to-surface supersonic cruise missile featuring indigenous Booster and Airframe Section was successfully flight tested recently.

The Liberhan Ayodhya Commission of Inquiry was a long-running inquiry commissioned by the Government of India to investigate the destruction of the Ram Janma Bhoomi-Babri Masjid structure on 6 December 1992.

Headed by Justice M. S. Liberhan, set up on December 16, 1992, the Commission was initially asked to give a report in three months. Extensions were given 48 times, and after a delay of about 17 years, the one-man commission submitted the report in 2009.