TriumphIAS Daily Quiz (TIDQ) – 1-Jun-2018

1. What is the rank of India in Save the Children’s “End of Childhood Index 2018”?
   1. 121
   2. 113
   3. 131
   4. 111
2. What is the theme of the 2018 World No Tobacco Day (WNTD)?
   1. Get Ready for Plain Packaging
   2. Tobacco – a threat to development
   3. Stop Illicit Trade of Tobacco Products
   4. Tobacco and Heart Disease
3. What is the theme of the 2018 International Day of UN Peacekeepers?
   1. UN Peacekeepers: 70 Years of Service and Sacrifice
   2. Honouring Our Heroes
   3. Investing in peace around the world
   4. UN70 and UN Peacekeeping: Past, Present, and Future
4. Which among the following app has been launched by tech giant Google India in an initiative to provide all local information regarding neighbouring area to the people?
   1. Neighbourly
   2. Neighbourhood
   3. Neighbour
   4. Neighbouring
5. Name the Indian state which in collaboration with UNICEF has launched a campaign named ‘Paree Pain Katha Tiye’ to raise awareness against child abuse.
   1. Karnataka
   2. Tamil Nadu
   3. Odisha
   4. Andhra Pradesh
6. Which of the following financial organisations has sanctioned $ 375 million loan to improve irrigation system in Madhya Pradesh?
   1. International Monetary Fund (IMF)
   2. World Bank
   3. Asian Development Bank (ADB)
   4. Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)

General Studies

1. With reference to the religious history of India, consider the following statements
   1. The concept of Bodhisattva is central to Hinayana sect of Buddhism.
   2. Bodhisattva is a compassionate one on his way to enlightenment.
   3. Bodhisattva delays achieving his own salvation to help all sentient beings on their path to it.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. Only 1
2. 2 and 3
3. Only 2
4. 1, 2 and 3

2. Which one of the following books of ancient India has the love story of the son of the founder of Sunga dynasty?

1. Swapnavasavadatta
2. Malavikagnimitra
3. Meghadoota
4. Ratnavali

3. With reference to the cultural history of India, the memorizing of chronicles, dynastic histories and epic tales was the profession of who of the following?

(a) Shramana

 (b) Parivraajaka

(c) Agrahaarik

(d) Maagadha

4. What is/are common to the two historical places known as Ajanta and Mahabalipuram?
   1. Both were built in the same period.
   2. Both belong to the same religious denomination.
   3. Both have rock-cut monuments.

Select the correct answer using the codes given below

(a) 1 and 2

(b) Only 3

(c) 1 and 3

(d) None of the above

5. Consider the following statements regarding the political parties in India:
   1. The Representation of the People Act, 1951provides for the registration of political parties
   2. Registration of political parties is carried out by the Election-Commission
   3. A national level political party is one, which is recognized in four or more states.
   4. During the 1999 general elections, there were six national and 48 state level parties recognized by the Election Commission

Which of these statements are correct?

1. a) 1,2 and 4
2. b) 1and 3
3. c) 2 and 4
4. d) 1,2,3 and 4

6.Consider the following statements about the minorities in India

1. The Government of India has notified five communities, namely, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians,Buddhists and Zoroastrians as Minorities
2. The National Commission for Minorities was given statutory status in 1993
3. The smallest religious minority in India are the Zoroastrians
4. The Constitution of India recognizes and protects religious and linguistic minorities

Which of these statements are correct?

a) 2and 3

b) l and 4

c) 2,3 and 4

d) 1,2 and 4

Answers with Explanation

Current Affairs

1. b

• India has been placed at 113th position in the list of 175 countries in “End of Childhood Index 2018” indexed by global child rights group, Save the Children. Singapore and Slovenia are placed at the top sharing the first place in the index and Niger figures at the end of the list at 175.

2. d

• The World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) is observed every year on May 31 to highlight health and other risks associated with tobacco use and advocate for effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption.
• The 2018 focus is “Tobacco and Heart Disease” to emphasize impact tobacco has on the cardiovascular health of people across the globe.
• The WNTD 2018 aims to highlight the links between the use of tobacco products and heart and other cardiovascular diseases, increase awareness within the broader public of the impact tobacco use and exposure to second-hand smoke have on cardiovascular health.
• The global tobacco epidemic kills more than 7 million people each year, of which close to 9 lakh are non-smokers dying from breathing second-hand smoke. Tobacco causes over two million deaths from cardiovascular diseases every year.

3. a

• The International Day of UN Peacekeepers is observed every year on May 29 to pay tribute to all the men and women who have served and continue to serve in United Nations peacekeeping operations for their high level of professionalism, dedication and courage.
• The day also offers a chance to honor more than 3,700 peacekeepers who have lost their lives serving under the UN flag since 1948. The 2018 theme is “UN Peacekeepers: 70 Years of Service and Sacrifice”.

4. a

• Google India has come up with the beta launch of a new app called “Neighbourly” in the country to help people find local answers in their neighbourhood.
• A beta version of the app is initially available in Mumbai, but users located in other areas can join a waitlist pending expansion to get notified when it is available.

 

5. c

• UNICEF and Odisha State police have joined hands for the state wide campaign on creating awareness about importance and role of every member of society in preventing child sexual abuse, need for reporting and need for trauma care.
• The campaign titled, ‘Paree Pain Katha Tiye’ (A word for the little angel) was launched by Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

6.c

• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $375 million (Rs 2,529 crore approximately) loan for a project to improve irrigation in Madhya Pradesh to help double farmers’ income.

General Studies

1. b

• Bodhisattva- (in Mahayana Buddhism) a person who is able to reach nirvana but delays doing so through compassion for suffering beings. Compassion, an empathetic sharing of the sufferings of others, is the Bodhisattva’s greatest characteristic. Bodhisattva delays achieving his own salvation to help all sentient beings on their path to it.

2. b

• The Mālavikāgnimitram is a Sanskrit play by Kālidāsa. It is his first play.The play tells the story of the love of Agnimitra, the Shunga Emperor at Vidisha for the beautiful hand-maiden of his chief queen. He falls in love with the picture of an exiled servant girl named Mālavikā.
• The play contains an account of the Rajasuya sacrifice performed by Pushyamitra Shunga and an elaborate exposition of a theory on music and acting. Svapnavasavadattam is a Sanskrit play in six acts written by the ancient Indian poet Bhasa.
• The plot of the drama is drawn from the romantic narratives about the Vatsa king Udayana and Vasavadatta, the daughter of Pradyota, the ruler of Avanti.The main theme of the drama is the sorrow of Udayana for his queen Vasavadatta, believed by him to have perished in a fire, which was actually a rumour spread by Yaugandharayana, a minister of Udayana to compel his king to marry Padmavati, the daughter of the king of Magadha.
• It forms, in context, a continuation of his another drama, Pratijnayaugandharayana. Meghadūta is a lyric poem written by Kālidāsa, considered to be one of the greatest Sanskritpoets.
• It recounts how a yakṣa, a subject of King Kubera (the god of wealth), after being exiled for a year to Central India for neglecting his duties, convinces a passing cloud to take a message to his wife at Alaka on Mount Kailāsa in the Himālaya mountains. The yakṣa accomplishes this by describing the many beautiful sights the cloud will see on its northward course to the city of Alakā, where his wife awaits his return

3. d

• Shramana- seeker, one who performs acts of austerity, ascetic”. The term refers to several Indian religious movements parallel to but separate from the historical Vedic religion. The śramaṇa tradition includes Jainism, Buddhism, and others such as the Ājīvikas, Ajñanas and Cārvākas,Agraharika` who probably looked after the lands given in charity.Parivrājaka literally means ‘one who roams about all round the place.’
• Maagadha is supposed to be a courtier with these roles to perform. The memorizing of chronicles, dynastic histories or epic tales was the work of a different group of people, the Sutas and Magadhas.
• During the first stage (from 4th century BC to the 4th century AD), the task of collecting information and presenting it in literary form was the special task assigned to the Sutas and Maagadhas (bards and cronical), who were the descendants of priestly families of the Vedic period.

4. b

• The Ajanta Caves in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra State of India are about 30 rock-cut Buddhist cave monuments which date from the 2nd century BCE to about 480 or 650 CE.it is a masterpieces of Buddhist religious art,with figures of the Buddha and depictions of the Jataka tales.
• Mahabalipuram has a group of sanctuaries, which was carvedout of rock along the Coromandel coast in the 7th and 8^th Centuries it is also called shore Temple and it is oldest rock structure in south India: rathas (temples in the form of chariots), rnandapas (cave sanctuaries), giant open-air rock reliefs such as the famous Descent of the Ganges, and the Shore Temple, with thousands of sculptures to the glory of Shiva. At the time of its creation, the village was a busy port during the reign of Narasimhavarman II of the Pallava dynasty.
• The Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

5.d

• India has a multiparty system with predominance of small regional parties. National parties are those that are recognized in four or more states. They are accorded this status by the Election Commission of India, which periodically reviews the election results in various states.
• This recognition helps the political parties to claim unique ownership of certain identities, such as the party symbol, until the next review of their status.
• The political parties in India are classified as national and state (regional) parties based on their realms of influence.

6.c

• The Government of India has identified five religious communities viz. Muslims. Sikshs. Christian. Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) and latest Jain as minorities as per provision under the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Act 1992 apart from linguistic minorities.
• These five communities constitute about 18.47 percent of country’s population. The National Commission for Minorities was set up as a statutory body in 1993 through the enactment of National Commission of Minorities Act. 1992. In November 2004. it was decided to amend the constitution to grant constitutional status to the NCM. The National Commission for Minorities is responsible to safeguard the interests of minorities. which broadly relates to atrocities by policeservice matters. minority educational institutions and disputes relating to religious place.
• On receipt of reports of atrocities from concerned authorities. the commission makes appropriate recommendations to the concerned authorities. To determine the criteria for identification of socially and economically backward classes among reliqious and linguistic minorities and to suggest measures for their welfare. the Government has constituted a National Commission for Religiousand linguistic Minorities. The commission has started functioning since 21 st March 2005.