Explanation :

ICOR is the additional input of the Capital required to increase the output by one unit. Let us take an example to understand this. For simplification, let us assume ICOR = 4, it means I need to invest Rs 4 to increase the output by 1 unit. If ICOR =5, it means I need to invest Rs 5 to increase the output by 1 unit. So, it is very clear that high value of ICOR is the symptom of inefficiency. Hence, statements 2 and 3 are incorrect.

Source Name : Economist

Explanation :

“Majuli Island” is formed by the Brahmaputra river system. It is the nerve centre of Assamese Neo-Vaishnavite culture initiated by saint-reformer Sankardeva in 15th century. The Island had some 65 satras (monasteries) adhering to Vaishnavism.Majuli is the largest River Island in the world and it has become first Island District of India.

Purpose of the Question

This Island is continuously in news due to its shrinkage and its cultural importance. So, we urge the students to focus on this Island while going through the topics of Art and Culture too.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

Mobilise Your City (MYC) is part of an international initiative which is supported by the French and the German governments and was launched at 21st Conference of Parties (COP21) meeting in December, 2015. The MYC aims at supporting three pilot cities in India viz. Nagpur, Kochi and Ahmedabad in their efforts to reduce their Green House Gas (GHG) emissions related to urban transport by implementing urban mobility plans at local level and to help India at national level to improve their sustainable transport policy. The Ministry of Urban Development and Housing is the implementing agency, not the Environment Ministry.

Source Name : PIB

Explanation :

Nitrogen and Phosphorus are the main nutrients that favour the plant growth, and the excess of these nutrients in the ecosystem is called “Cultural Eutrophication” which leads to a situation called as “Algal Boom”, which is very harmful to the aquatic ecosystem. Water Hyacinth due to its invasive nature and characteristics is called as “Terror of Bengal”.

Source Name : Down to Earth

Explanation :

This is fully autonomous bat- like terrestrial Robot that uses echolocation to move through a novel environment while mapping it solely based on sounds. Since, Bats use the echolocation to catch the prey, similarly this will use Ultrasonic speaker and sensor which will act as its mouth and ear. This has been developed by Israel not the DRDO. Hence, only correct statement is 2.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

Article 72 of the Indian Constitution deals with the pardoning power of the President and Article 161 deals with the pardoning power of the Governor. President can pardon the death sentence but Governor can’t. President can pardon the sentences of Court Martial too, as he is the head of military forces. The power is not absolute as they have to act as per the advice of the cabinet. In “Epuru Sudhakar case”, it was made clear that Courts can review the actions of President and Governor to avoid the arbitrariness of the Executive.

Purpose of the Question

Our effort is to link the static portion of the syllabus with the current affairs. So, we urge the students to focus on this static portion of the syllabus while revision as it is in news.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

Pluto was removed from the list of the planets as it was influenced by the Neptune’s gravity- Neptune’s gravitational force was dominant as compared to Pluto. Argument given was that any celestial body can be termed as planet if it “clears the orbit” i.e. it must be the largest gravitational force in its orbit.

Purpose of the Question

Debate has restarted about considering Pluto as a planet, so we thought to apprise the student about this criterion of “Clearing the Orbit”.

Source Name : IE

Explanation :

Widening of CAD at present is blamed only to the crude oil price increase, but we need to look into the baskets of other items which have led to the widening of CAD. Coal India Limited failed to supply the coal to our Thermal Plants, so the option left was to import the coal from countries like Indonesia, Australia, etc. Growth of coal production of CIL (Coal India Limited) has shrunk from 9% in 2016 to 2.9%in 2017 and finally to 2.4% in 2018. Similarly, our exports decreased in gems and precious stone sectors. Our import of electronic items increased from $42.8 billion in 2017 to $52.9 billion in 2018. So, apart from the crude oil, these factors have added to the misery.

Purpose of the Question

We have asked this question to make the concepts more clear about the factors affecting the CAD. Due to current economic conditions, this portion of the syllabus should be covered in great detail.

Source Name : IE

Explanation :

Great Pacific Garbage is having the plastic, chemical sludge and other debris trapped by the currents of North Pacific Gyre. The debris can’t be detected by the satellites as they have very low density. It was first discovered in 1988 and is situated between Hawaiian Island and California. Hence, statement 2 is wrong.

Explanation :

“Hatti” community belongs to Trans-Giri villages in the Sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh. They are demanding the Scheduled Tribe status. They fulfill all the criterion of Lokur Committee, which was made to look into the matters dealing with Scheduled Tribe.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has been constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 to provide free legal services to the weaker sections of the society and to organize Lok Adalats for amicable settlement of disputes. Hence, it is very clear that it is a statutory body; hence, statement-I is wrong. The CJI is its Patron-in-Chief at Central level and Chief Justice of a High Court is its Patron-in-Chief at State level.

Purpose of the Question

The landmark judgement of NALSA case (2014) about recognition of Third Gender category as “Other” opened up the room for reconsideration for Section 377. So, facts related to NALSA became important from the examination point of view.

Source Name : The Hindu, IE

Explanation :

It is an Advisory Body to the Government of India on animal welfare laws, and promotes animal welfare in the country. The Animal Welfare Board of India was established in 1960 under Section 4 of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. Hence, it is very evident that it is a Statutory Body. Its present chairman is Sharad Singh Negi, not the Environment Minister. Earlier, it was headquartered at Chennai, but now has been shifted to Ballabgarh in Haryana. Rukmini Devi was instrumental in the formation of AWBI.

Purpose of the Question

This organisation is very important as its headquarters has recently been shifted. So, environmental organisations in news shall be given due attention by the students during the revision.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

Base Effect = (Final Value- Initial Value)/Initial Value.

From the above equation, it is quite visible that if the initial value is more, the outcome is ought to be less. So, if the value of GDP is more in the last year, economic growth rate in this year is ought to be less.

Purpose of the Question

Recent Quarter GDP cites the growth of India around 8.2%, but critics say that this growth is due to “Base Effect”. So, we thought that students should have clear understanding about the term.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

Bonnethead Shark is the first known omnivorous that eats shrimps, crab, etc., but it mainly relies on sea grass. It is found mainly in the “Gulf of Mexico” and the area surrounding it. Hence, statement-II stands incorrect.

Source Name : Down to Earth

Explanation :

Recently, the number of Nilgiri Tahr has increased especially in Mukurthi National Park, which was earlier called as “Nilgiri Tahr National Park”. The cause for the earlier decrease in number was traced to the invasive species that led to the shortage of food for the Nilgiri Tahr. The invasive species found in that park were Gorse, Scotch Broom, Wattle, Pine, etc.

Purpose of the Question

In UPSC 2018, a direct question on invasive species Prosopis juliflora was asked, so students should be well prepared for such type of questions.

Source Name : The Hindu​

Explanation :

It was created by the ‘Rome Statute’. It sits in The Hague, Netherlands and the ICC has the jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. The Court however has no capacity to arrest the suspects and it depends upon the member states for their cooperation. India is not a signatory of Rome Statute and hence is not its member. Even countries like USA, China are not its member. ICJ is the organ of UN and is called as World’s Court. ICJ can’t prosecute individuals.

Purpose of the Question

ICC is always in the news one way or the other, so, we expect students to have the idea about this institution and how it is different from ICJ.

Source Name : The Hindu​

Explanation :

Aravallis are one of the oldest Mountain Ranges. It extends from Palanpur in Gujarat to Delhi Ridge. It is the source of rivers like Luni, Banas and Sabarmati. Aravallis are so old that nature has dominated on its features, so rivers are not that energetic, Peaks are not so stiff like Himalayas. We must remember that Aravallis is the oldest range of Fold Mountain in India.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

The National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) is a technical intelligence agency under the National Security Advisor in the Prime Minister’s Office. It was set up in 2004. The National Critical Infrastructure Protection Centre, an agency under the control of National Technical Research Organisation, has been created to monitor, intercept and assess threats to crucial infrastructure and other vital installations from intelligence gathered using sensors and platforms which include satellites, underwater buoys, drones, VSAT-terminal locators and fiber-optics, etc. It has the same secrecy norms as that of IB and RAW. Hence, we can’t get the information about its functioning through RTI.

Source Name : The Hindu, IE

Explanation :

NPA issue has snowballed into a crisis. The ill targeted and poor analysis of the Bankers had brought the economy to standstill. Recent trends of loan waiver which is nothing but a populist measure can further deteriorate the situation as loan waiver vitiates the credit culture, also the targets assigned to specific schemes like MUDRA, etc. can have the same fate. Hence, statement II and IV are wrong and other statements are correct. Students can hit the right option by simple method of elimination if they know the above two options, as these issues are frequently in news and economists always red-flag when the loan waiver happens.

Explanation :

The Milex exercise is going to happen at the Aundh Military Station in Pune, India. It is a military exercise between the BIMSTEC countries. It is in news as Nepal and Thailand have not sent their top officials. The aim of the exercise is to create synergy, better understanding and evolve an institutionalised military forum for regional cooperation in the field of counterterrorism among member states.

Explanation :

North Korea has border with South Korea, China and Russia. At the end of Korean War in 1953, Armistice Line which is also called as Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) or 38th Parallel was established by the provisions of the Korean Armistice Agreement to serve as a buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea. North Korea is separated from China by Yalu River, which is also called as Amnok River. The Tumen River flows in northeast Asia, on the border between China and North Korea in its upper reaches, and between North Korea and Russia in its last 17 kilometers before entering the Sea of Japan. Hence statements II and III are wrong. We must remember that Korean peninsula is between Sea of Japan and Yellow Sea.

Purpose of the Question

We advise the students to be prepared with the issues related to South China Sea and North Korea, as they are continuously in the news and this part of the syllabus needs the attention vis-à-vis Map work.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

This scheme is an Umbrella Scheme that includes the mechanism of ensuring remunerative prices to the farmers and is comprised of

•Price Support Scheme (PSS),

•Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS)

•Pilot of Private Procurement & Stockist Scheme (PPPS).

In PSS, physical procurement of pulses, oilseeds and Copra will be done by Central Nodal Agencies with proactive role of State Governments. NAFED and FCI will act as nodal agency. Under PDPS, it is proposed to cover all oilseeds for which MSP is notified. In this, direct payment of the difference between the MSP and the selling/modal price will be made to pre-registered farmers selling his produce in the notified market yard through a transparent auction process. All payment will be done directly into registered bank account of the farmer. This scheme does not involve any physical procurement of crops as farmers are paid the difference between the MSP price and Sale/modal price on disposal in notified market.

It will not subsume the Soil Health Card scheme and PMFBY. Hence, only statement-I is correct.

Source Name : PIB

Explanation :

The FRP is the minimum price that sugar mills have to pay to sugarcane farmers. It is determined on basis of recommendations of Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) and after consultation with State Governments and other stakeholders. But, it is decided by Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), not the CACP, which only recommends.

FRP is generally lower than SAP, as this sugarcane sector is a big vote bank, so states usually keep their SAP higher than FRP (as states have to keep that vote bank intact) and from here the problem starts. Rangrajan Committee recommended doing away with this SAP mechanism as it was leading to more populist measures by the successive state governments.

Source Name : The Hindu, Economic Times​

Explanation :

Amur Falcon is the small Raptor of the Falcon family. It breeds in Siberia and North China and migrates to Africa via India’s North East. Central Government has decided to develop the Doyang Lake of Nagaland for the Eco-Tourism. Kolleru Lake of Andhra Pradesh is one of the largest fresh water lakes and Sasthamcotta Lake is a fresh water lake in Kerala and is a Ramsar Site.

Purpose of the Question

Due to floods in Nagaland and Kerala, these two lakes are in news hence we need to look into the details on them.

Source Name : Down to Earth

Explanation :

Yudh Abhyas is a military exercise between India and the US. 2018 edition is being conducted in Uttarakhand, India. The joint exercise Yudh Abhyas 2018 will simulate a scenario where both nations will work together in counter insurgency and counter terrorism environment in mountainous terrain under United Nations charter.

Source Name : PIB

Explanation :

Aravallis is a range of mountains running in North-West direction between Delhi and Palanpur in Gujarat. It constitutes a vital corridor between Asola Bhatti Sanctuary in Delhi and Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan. Guru Shikhar is the highest peak and is situated in Mt. Abu. Anamudi is the highest peak of Western Ghats; hence, statement-II stands incorrect. Aravalli is one of the oldest fold mountains of the world and oldest in India; hence, it is an excellent example of Fold Mountains; hence, statement-I is wrong.Aravallis are so old that Exogenetic process like Wind, Rivers, etc. have dominated the features of the Aravallis and hence the rivers are not that energetic and peaks are flat; hence statement-III is also wrong. Aravallis play a very important role in India’s climate as it blocks the wind carrying moisture to reach the Thar Desert.

Purpose of the Question

We have covered the Aravallis in 12th September ‘Daily Quiz’ also. With this question, we have covered all aspects of Aravallis which are relevant for our Prelims. Students are advised to go through Aravallis and Western Ghats in detail, as they are frequently coming in news.

Source Name : The Hindu, IE

Explanation :

When the high capital infusion starts taking place in form of other currencies e.g.Dollar (as it happened in 2004-06 boom period), Rbi will buy the Dollar by releasing the Rupee (as the outside firms need the Indian Rupee to trade or set up a plant in India).This, however will led to huge liquidity with Banks and to contain the inflation, RBI needs to suck that liquidity and if it decides not to reduce the Repo Rate/Policy Rate, the only option left is to sell the Government Bonds and suck the liquidity and this process is called ‘Sterilisation’.

Purpose of the Question

Indian Economy is going through so many structural reforms, so students are advised to go through the new terms or related terms with the Indian Economy, as these terms and concepts will be very important for Prelims.

Source Name : IE

Explanation :

be thought of as one lost year of "healthy" life. The sum of these DALYs across the population, or the burden of disease, can be thought of as a measurement of the gap between current health status and an ideal health situation where the entire population lives to an advanced age, free of disease and disability. DALY for a disease or health condition is calculated as the sum of the Years of Life Lost (YLL) due to premature mortality in the population and the Years Lost due to Disability (YLD).

DALY=YLL+ YLD

Source Name : IE

Explanation :

“VC11184” is India’s first missile tracking ship that has been built by Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), under the supervision of PMO. Hence, statement-I is wrong. After the induction into India’s Navy, it will be given its name; VC 11184 is its yard number. It is the first of its kind ocean surveillance ship being built as part of efforts of Government to strengthen country’s strategic weapons programme. This ship has capacity to carry 300-strong crew with hi-tech gadgets and communication equipment and large deck capable of helicopter landing. The ship will be primarily tasked with missile tracking using sensors. India will be the fifth country to have this missile-tracking ship after USA, China, Russia, and France. Hence, statement-II is also wrong.

Is it Important for Prelims?

Answer to this is yes. In upsc 2016, a question on “INS Astradharini” was asked directly as it was in news and was unique because of its Torpedo launch and recovery vessel. So, it is always advisable to cover such news as these sections are quite easy.

Source Name : The Hindu​

Explanation :

8 Degree channel separates India with Maldives and is locally called as “Addigiri Kandu”. The Palk Strait is a strait between Tamil Nadu and Mannar district of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It connects the Bay of Bengal in the north-east with the Palk Bay in the south-west. This strait is named after Robert Palk who was the Governor of Madras presidency during 1755-63.

Explanation :

Masala Bonds are bonds issued outside India but denominated in Indian Rupee. The term was used by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) the Investment arm of World Bank to evoke the culture and cuisine of India. Hence, statement -I stands incorrect. The first Masala Bond was issued in 2014. Say, a Company took loan of $100 from investor abroad (at that time $1=Rs 60), but at the time of repaying the loan, the exchange rate was $1=Rs 70, so he will have to pay Rs 7000(Rs70*$100=Rs 7000) instead of Rs 6000 due to depreciation. But, if the loan would have been in the Indian Rupee then this depreciation of the currency would have no impact on the borrower. So, Masala Bond is one of the most sought bonds vis-à-vis Indian Economic scenario. Hence, statement II and III are correct.

Intent of the Question

Direct question on Masala Bond has already been asked in UPSC 2016, but the students are advised to go through the analytical aspect of Masala Bond, as it is one of the tools which are being used to stabilize the Rupee; hence it is very important for our Prelims Examination.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

India ranks 130 out of 189 countries in the latest Human Development Index (HDI) released by the United Nations Development Programme. But, compared to last year, it has improved by the ranking of 1, hence statement -I is wrong and Statement-III is correct.The UNDP report stated that with an HDI value of 0.64 compared to last year’s 0.636, India is categorised as a medium human development and is ahead of Bangladesh and Pakistan in South Asia. But, the better indicator for estimating the standard of life is IHDI, as HDI can be viewed as an index of “potential” human development (or the maximum level of HDI) that could be achieved if there was no inequality while IHDI is the actual level of human development (accounting for this inequality) and the “loss” in potential human development due to inequality is given by the difference between the HDI and the IHDI. IHDI value of India is 0.468 hence is less than HDI, therefore statement- II is wrong.

Source Name : The Hindu

Explanation :

A quarry is a type of open pit mine in which stone, rock, gravel, sand, etc. are excavated from the ground. The word ‘Quarry’ can also include the underground quarrying for stone, such as Bath stone. Many quarry stones such as Marble, Limestone and Granite are cut into larger slabs and removed from the quarry and this is used further.

Why the question?

One of the causes cited for Kerala flood was Illegal Quarrying, so students should know about this term, hence the question.

Source Name : Down to Earth

Explanation :

Ramsar is a city in Iran. In 1971, an international treaty for conservation and sustainable use of wetlands was signed at Ramsar. The Convention’s mission is “the conservation and wise use of all wetlands through local and national actions and international cooperation, as a contribution towards achieving sustainable development throughout the world”. Wetlands will include lakes, flood plains, coral reefs, Mangrove areas, etc. Hence, option “c” is correct. Ramsar sites are listed in “Montreaux Record”.

Source Name : Down to Earth

Explanation :

'Exercise IBSAMAR' is the naval exercise between India, Brazil, South Africa and is the most visible manifestation of the convergence of democratic values, economic interests and maritime cooperation. The scope of 'Exercise IBSAMAR’ includes wide-ranging professional interactions during the harbour phase and a diverse range of operational activities at sea during the sea phase.