Current Affairs MCQ for UPSC Exams - 29 August 2020

Q1 The Lakshadweep Administration had embarked on the ‘Pilot project on Biological Control of Rodents (Rats) by Using Barn Owls (Tyto alba) in Kavaratti Island’ after studies revealed the shocking extent of damage caused by rats to the island's coconut yield and economy. Which of the following statements regarding the barn owl species stands true ?

1) Barn owls specialise in hunting animals on the ground and nearly all of their food consists of small mammals which they locate by sound, their hearing being very acute.
2) The barn owl is found almost everywhere in the world except for the polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalayas, most of Indonesia, and some Pacific islands.
3) Barn owls are categorised as ‘endangered’ as under IUCN red data book list.

Options :

a) 1 & 2 only
b)2& 3 only
c) 1 & 3 only
d) all the above

Q2 Consider the following pairs of passes in India and their corresponding location states/UT’s :

1) Nitipass : Sikkim
2) Aghil pass : Jammu & Kashmir
3) Debsa pass : Himachal pradesh
4) Bom di la pass : Arunachal pradesh
5) Dipher pass : Uttaranchal

Which of the above pairs are matched incorrectly?

Options :

a) 1,2 & 3 only
b) 2,3 & 5 only
c) 1 & 5 only
d) 2 & 4 only 

Q3 The Centre for Science and Environment recently released a report on construction waste, according to which, India recycles only 1% of its demolition and construction waste. Which of the following statements regarding the same stands true ?

1) The Sustainable Urbanisation Programme of Government of India says that bricks, concrete, metal wastes from construction bodies are choking water bodies, public places and green areas.
2) The Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules, 2016provides standards for construction and demolition waste. It also provides facility for processing and recycling facilities.
3) Around 53 cities were to set up recycling facilities in order to recover material from Construction and Demolition waste by 2017. However, only 13 cities have established till 2020.

Options :

a) 1 & 2 only
b)2& 3 only
c) 1 & 3 only
d) all the above

Q4 Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay  have recently developed a technology for production of environment friendly Lithium-Sulfur (Li-S) batteries which will be cost effective than Lithium-ion batteries commonly used at present. Which of the following statements regarding the same stands true ?

1) According to the team, the Li-S battery technology leverages principles of green chemistry, incorporating usage of by-products from the petroleum industry (Sulfur), agro-waste elements and copolymers such as cardanol (a by-product of cashew nut processing) and eugenol (clove oil) as cathodic materials.
2) The use of cardanol for Sulfur-based structures as an unconventional application to create cathode materials in this next generation Li-S battery technology has exhibited enhanced capacity retention (among the highest charge capacities reported) and longer battery life in a significantly smaller battery unit.
3) Due to this long process, the energy efficiency of the battery is comparatively lesser than normal Li-S battery.

Options :

a) 1 & 2 only
b) 2 & 3 only
c) 1 & 3 only
d) all the above

Q5 India has been ranked a lowly 72nd among 106 countries in terms of the average wage per month, while Switzerland topped the chart, according to a global ranking of average wages prepared by Picodi.com recently. Which of the following countries topped the rankings ?

a) Hongkong
b) Belgium 
c) Switzerland
d) Denmark

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