DAY – 20 ( INSTA REVISION TEST – 20)INSTA REVISION PLAN 2.0, 2021 – INSIGHTSIAS

Solution: B

The Ashgabat agreement is a multimodal transport agreement between the governments of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran, Pakistan, India and Oman for creating an international transport and transit corridor facilitating transportation of goods between Central Asia and the Persian Gulf.

The agreement was originally signed by Iran, Oman, Qatar, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan on April 25, 2011. Qatar subsequently withdrew from the agreement in 2013, the same year Kazakhstan applied for membership, which was eventually approved in 2015. Pakistan has also joined the Agreement from November 2016. India formally joined in February 2018

The agreement came into force in April 2016. Ashgabat in Turkmenistan is the depository state for the agreement

Afghanistan has not acceded the Ashagabat agreement.

Solution: A

Solution: C

The Irrawaddy dolphin (Orcaella brevirostris) is a euryhaline species of oceanic dolphin found in discontinuous subpopulations near sea coasts and in estuaries and rivers in parts of the Bay of Bengal and Southeast Asia.

It is inhabiting in the Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary and Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary. Its habitat range extends from the Bay of Bengal to New Guinea and the Philippines

It is an endangered species

The protection of the Irrawaddy dolphin is crucial for the overall health of the Mekong River—home to an estimated 1,100 species of fish. The Irrawaddy dolphin is also regarded as a sacred animal by both Khmer and Lao people, and is an important source of income and jobs for communities involved in dolphin-watching ecotourism.

https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/irrawaddy-dolphin

Solution: D

The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve possesses different habitat types, unspoilt areas of natural vegetation types with several dry scrubs, dry and moist deciduous, semi-evergreen and wet evergreen forests, evergreen sholas, grasslands and swamps. It includes the largest known population of two endangered animal species, namely the Nilgiri Tahr and the Lion-tailed macaque.

The largest south Indian population of elephant, tiger, gaur, sambar and chital as well as a good number of endemic and endangered plants are also found in this reserve. The habitat of a number of tribal groups remarkable for their traditional modes of harmonious use of the environment are also found here.

Solution: D

Tropical Deciduous forests are the most widespread forests in India.
They are also called the monsoon forests. They spread over regions which receive rainfall between 70-200 cm. On the basis of the availability of water, these forests are further divided into moist and dry deciduous.

The Moist deciduous forests are more pronounced in the regions which record rainfall between 100-200 cm.

These forests are found in the northeastern states along the foothills of Himalayas, eastern slopes of the Western Ghats and Odisha. Teak, sal, shisham, hurra, mahua, amla, semul, kusum, and sandalwood etc. are the main species of these forests.

Solution: A

Katchatheevu is an uninhabited islet in the Palk Strait. The island was earlier part of the Ramnad Kingdom which existed in Madurai district of India. Later on with the British rule on the Indian subcontinent was the island part of the Madras Presidency.

In 1974, Katchatheevu was ceded to Sri Lanka through the Indo-Sri Lankan Maritime agreement to settle the maritime boundary in the Palk Strait.

In 1976 through another accord, India further gave up its fishing rights in the region.

St. Antony’s shrine is the only structure on the island. It is a church named after St. Antony, considered a patron-saint of seafarers by the Christians. It was built by a prosperous Indian an Indian Catholic (Tamilian) fisherman Srinivasa Padaiyachi in the early 20th century. The annual church festival runs for three days. The priests from both India and Sri Lanka conduct the mass and car procession. Pilgrims from India are ferried mostly Rameswaram. According to the agreement between the Indian and Sri Lankan government, the citizens of India are not required to possess an Indian passport or Sri Lankan visa for visiting Kachchatheevu.

Solution: C

The Constitution of India (Article 148) provides for an independent office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG). He is the head of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department. He is the guardian of the public purse and controls the entire financial system of the country at both the levels–the Centre and the state.

The CAG is appointed by the president of India by a warrant under his hand and seal.

He holds office for a period of six years or up to the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier. He can resign any time from his office by addressing the resignation letter to the president. He can also be removed by the president on same grounds and in the same manner as a judge of the Supreme Court. In other words, he can be removed by the president on the basis of a resolution passed to that effect by both the Houses of Parliament with special majority, either on the ground of proved misbehavior or incapacity.

Further, no minister can represent the CAG in Parliament (both Houses) and no minister can be called upon to take any responsibility for any actions done by him.

Solution: C

Mega Diversity – India is one of the 17 mega diverse countries in the world as per the Shannon-Weiner Index used in India State of the Forest Report 2019. The index is used for measuring species richness and abundance among various habitats. The Index shows that:

 Tropical Evergreen forest is high in Karnataka followed by Kerala.

 Semi-evergreen forest are high in Karnataka.

 Tropical moist deciduous forests cover is high in Arunachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra.

 Tropical dry deciduous forest is high in Arunachal Pradesh

 Tropical Littoral and swamp forests are high in UP and

 Tropical thorn forests are high in Andhra Pradesh.

Solution: C

International Court of Justice:

• The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial body of the UN. Established in 1946 to replace the Permanent Court of International Justice, the ICJ mainly operates under the statute of its predecessor, which is included in the UN Charter.
• It has two primary functions: to settle legal disputes submitted by States in accordance with established international laws, and to act as an advisory board on issues submitted to it by authorized international organizations.
• Only countries are eligible to appear before the ICJ, not individuals, non-governmental organisations, corporations or any other private entities.
• ICJ only has jurisdiction over any dispute, if the both concerned parties (states) submit to the jurisdiction of ICJ

Members of the Court:

• The International Court of Justice is composed of 15 judges elected to nine-year terms of office by the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council. These organs vote simultaneously but separately. In order to be elected, a candidate must receive an absolute majority of the votes in both bodies. In order to ensure a measure of continuity, one third of the Court is elected every three years. Judges are eligible for re-election.
• All members of the UN are parties to the statute of the ICJ, and non-members may also become parties.

Who nominates the candidates?

• Every state government, party to the Charter, designates a group who propose candidates for the office of ICJ judges. This group includes four members/jurists of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (machinery which enables arbitral tribunals to be set up as desired and facilitates their work) also picked by the State. Countries not part of the statute follow the same procedure where a group nominates the candidates.
• Each group is limited to nominate four candidates, two of whom could be of their nationality. Within a fixed duration set by the Secretary-General, the names of the candidates have to be sent to him/her.

What are the qualifications of ICJ judges?

• A judge should have a high moral character.
• A judge should fit to the qualifications of appointment of highest judicial officers as prescribed by their respective states or.
• A judge should be a juriconsult of recognized competence in international law.

The 15 judges of the Court are distributed as per the regions:

• Three from Africa.
• Two from Latin America and Caribbean.
• Three from Asia.
• Five from Western Europe and other states.
• Two from Eastern Europe.

Independence of the Judges:

• Once elected, a Member of the Court is a delegate neither of the government of his own country nor of that of any other State. Unlike most other organs of international organizations, the Court is not composed of representatives of governments. Members of the Court are independent judges whose first task, before taking up their duties, is to make a solemn declaration in open court that they will exercise their powers impartially and conscientiously.
• In order to guarantee his or her independence, no Member of the Court can be dismissed unless, in the unanimous opinion of the other Members, he/she no longer fulfils the required conditions. This has in fact never happened.

Solution: D

“Satyameva Jayate” is a part of a mantra from the Hindu scripture Mundaka Upanishad. Following the independence of India, it was adopted as the national motto of India on 26 January 1950, the day India became a republic.

Solution: D

Budapest convention:

1. The Convention on Cybercrime, also known as the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime or the Budapest Convention, is the first international treaty seeking to address Internet and computer crime by harmonizing national laws, improving investigative techniques, and increasing cooperation among nations.
2. It was drawn up by the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France, with the active participation of the Council of Europe’s observer states Canada, Japan, South Africa and the United States.
3. It is open for ratification even to states that are not members of the Council of Europe.
4. As of September 2019, 64 states have ratified the convention.
5. India is not a signatory to Budapest Convention.

Solution: D

Chumbi Valley, valley in the eastern Great Himalaya Range of the southern Tibet Autonomous Region, China. It is situated on a small south-pointing protuberance of territory between Bhutan (east) and Sikkim state, India (west). Formed by the passage of the Amo (Torsa) River, which rises below Tang Pass and flows south into Bhutan, the valley has an average elevation of 9,500 feet (2,900 metres), forested slopes, and a pleasant climate most of the year.

It is connected to Sikkim to the southwest through the mountain passes of Nathu La and Jelep La. It is a disputed territory between China and Bhutan.

Important for prelims because of Doklam standoff.

Solution: C

Chitwan National Park is a preserved area in the Terai Lowlands of south-central Nepal, known for its biodiversity. Its dense forests and grassy plains are home to rare mammals like one-horned rhinos and Bengal tigers. The park shelters numerous bird species, including the giant hornbill. Dugout canoes traverse the northern Rapti River, home to crocodiles. Inside the park is Balmiki Ashram, a Hindu pilgrimage site.

Solution: D

The Oort Cloud is the most distant region of our solar system. Even the nearest objects in the Oort Cloud are thought to be many times farther from the Sun than the outer reaches of the Kuiper Belt.

Unlike the orbits of the planets and the Kuiper Belt, which lie mostly in the same flat disk around the Sun, the Oort Cloud is believed to be a giant spherical shell surrounding the rest of the solar system. It is like a big, thick-walled bubble made of icy pieces of space debris the sizes of mountains and sometimes larger. The Oort Cloud might contain billions, or even trillions, of objects.

Home of Comets

Because the orbits of long-period comets are so extremely long, scientists suspect that the Oort Cloud is the source of most of those comets. For example, comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring, which made a very close pass by Mars in 2014, will not return to the inner solar system for about 740,000 years.

Solution: C

Aquaponics

1. The method combines aquaculture — cultivating fish and other aquatic animals in tanks with organic inputs — with hydroponics, where plants are cultivated in water.
2. The water from the fish tank is pumped onto the beds where plants grow.
3. While the fish excretions provide nutrients for the plants (hence no chemical fertilizers are needed), the clean water is recirculated back to the fish tank.
4. While the initial cost to set up the facility would be high, the recurring cost is low in aquaponics.
5. The difference between aquaponics and hydroponics is that synthetic fertilisers are used in hydroponics for providing nutrients to plants and hence cultivation of fish is not possible in hydroponics.