Daily Quiz: UPSC Prelims Marathon – November 30, 2018

The Gulf of Aden forms the natural separation between the countries of Somalia and Yemen. It is an extension of the Indian Ocean. It is located between the continents of Africa and Asia.

The Gulf of Aden water flows into the Red Sea through the Bab el Mandeb (strait). Because it provides an outlet to the west for Oil from Persian Gulf, it’s one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.

All the statements are correct.

Red sander wood is a rare kind of sandalwood.

Red Sanders (Pterocarpus santalinus) is endemic to the forests of Seshachalam, Veligonda, Lankamala and Palakonda hill ranges of Andhra Pradesh, India. Red Sanders wood is one of the highly priced woods in the world. It is comparatively heavy with specific gravity of 1.28 and is sold by weight.

It has pleasing colour, beautiful grains and high luster, due to which it is used for ornamental carvings. Its timber is used in preparation of musical instruments in Japan viz., “Shamosin”.

Red sander wood is an endangered species of flora protected under the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna.

Statement 1 and 2 are Correct.

• The Bonnethead Shark (Sphyrna tiburo) is a very abundant, small hammerhead shark that is found in shallow estuaries and bays on the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean coasts of the Americas as well as in the Gulf of Mexico.
• Bonnethead sharks can consume copious amount of seagrass but they are actually capable of digesting and assimilating seagrass nutrients, making them clear omnivores. The bonnethead shark, a small member of the hammerhead family, was long thought to be a strict carnivore. However, scientists have now found that the bonnethead follows an omnivorous diet in which seagrass plays a key nutritional role.

Statement 3 is Incorrect. The species is currently assessed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List.

Majuli is a river island in the Brahmaputra River, Assam. In 2016, it became the first island to be made a district in India.

A NITI Aayog-constituted group of experts has urged the government to set up a dedicated mission to salvage and revive spring water systems in the country’s Himalayan States given their vital importance as a source of water for both drinking and irrigation for the region’s inhabitants.

Statement 1 is correct. The Pondicherry shark is given legal protection under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

Statement 2 is correct. The Pondicherry shark is locally known as Pala Sora.

Statement 3 is Incorrect. Recently, Pondicherry shark was spotted in the East Godavari River Estuarine Ecosystem. Prior to this, Pondicherry sharks were spotted twice in 2007 and 2016, in this region.

A meeting of the International Executive Council, the highest decision making body of International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID), at Saskatoon in Canada last month has accepted Telangana government’s nomination of Sadarmatt anicut across river Godavari in Nirmal district and Pedda Cheruvu in Kamareddy district in the ICID Register of Heritage Irrigation Structures.

Knowledge Base)

The International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) was established in 1950.

It is a leading scientific, technical, international not-for-profit, non-governmental organization. ICID is a professional network of experts from across the world in the field of irrigation, drainage, and flood management. The main mission is to promote ‘Sustainable agriculture water management’ to achieve ‘Water secure world free of poverty and hunger through sustainable rural development’.

ICID works as knowledge sharing platform dedicated to issues that covers the entire spectrum of agricultural water management practices ranging from rainfed agriculture to supplemental irrigation, land drainage, deficit irrigation to full irrigation, etc.