1.
How would the 'Voluntary Retention Route' (VRR) scheme introduced recently by the RBI helpIndian debt markets?1. It will illow Foreign Direct Investors to voluntarily request the Central Government and the RBIto permil foreign investments in Indian debt instruments hitherto closed for such investments.2. It w'ill encourage Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) to undertake longterm investments in Indiandebt markets since they will be exempt from various regulatory provisions If they fulfil certainconditions.Which of the above Is/are correct?
Background: Foreign institutional investors (Flls) have been fleeing Indian markets this year, witha sharp selloff seen in the debt segment compared to the equity markets. In the year so far, Fllshave sold $9 billion In debt and $2 billion in Indian shares. There was an urgent need to preventthis capital flight, and thus the VRR was introduced.Justification: Statement 1; The scheme is only introduced for FPIs, not FDI, which is usually alonger term investment commitment.Statement 2: The Statement on Development and Regulatory Policies in the Monetary PolicyStatement dated October 05, 2018 had announced a separate scheme called 'Voluntary RetentionRoute' |VRR) to encourage Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) to undertake longterm investmentsin Indian debt markets.According to the scheme, foreign portfolio investors will be exempt from regulatory provisions,but will have to voluntarily commit to retain In India a minimum requ ired percentage of theirinvestments for a period of their choice (minimum Is three years though). Participation throughthis route will be entirely voluntary. FPIs have also been given greater operational flexibility interms of instrument choices besides exemptions from certain regulatory requirements. Any entityregistered as a foreign portfolio investor with SEBI is eligible to participate through VRR.Learning: Investment under the VRR scheme shall be open for allotment from March 11, 2019.The details are as under: The aggregate investment limit shall be 0 40,000 crores for VRRGovt and0 35,000 crores for VRRCorp.?The minimum retention period shall be three years. During this period, FPIs shall maintain aminimum of 75% of the allocated amount in India.?Investment limits shall be available on tap for investments and shall be allotted by ClearingCorporation of India Ltd. (CCIL) on 'first come first served' basis.
2.
Consider the following statements. ' UrAssertion (A); The impact on sea level rise due to the melting of sea ice is lesser than that oficebergs.! Reason (R): Sea.ice forms and melts strictly in the ocean whereas icebergs are chunks ofglaciers formed on land that fall into the ocean. In the context of the above, which of these iscorrect?!
Justification: Sea ice forms and melts strictly in the ocean whereas glaciers are formed on land,icebergs are chunks of glacial ice that break off glaciers and fail into the ocean. When glaciersmelt, because that water is stored on land, the runoff significantly increases the amount of waterin the ocean, contributing to global sea level rise. Sea ice, on the other hand, is often compared toice cubes in a glass of water: when it melts, it does not directly change the level of water in theglass. Instead, depleting Arctic sea ice triggers a host of other devastating consequences
3.
Consider the following statements.1. Satava'hana rulers were identified through metronymics.2. Chand'ogya Upanishad contains a list of successive generations of teachers and students, manyofwhom were designated by metronymics.Which o
Justificai ion: Statement 1: Satavahana rulers were Identified through metronymics (namesderived from that of the mother). Although this may suggest that mothers were important, weneed to be cautious before we arrive at any conclusion. In the case of the Satavahanas we knowthat succession to the throne was generally patrilineal.Statement 2: It is the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, one of the earlfest Upanlshads, which contains alist of successive generations of teachers and students, many of whom were designated bymetronymics.Context of S2: In the later Vedic period, women lost their political rights of attending assemblies.Several religious texts described daughter as a source of misery. Yet certain matrilineal elementsare disce rnible in this period also. The importance assigned to the wives of the rajan in therajasuva has been reg arded as an indication of matrilineal influence, and vamsovalis orgenealogies of teachers attached to the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, in which many seers hearmetronymics, would also possibly indicate a similar development.
4.
Which of the following states in India contain Zone V (Highest) seismtcally active zones?
Justification: The Geological Survey of Indi? [G. S. I.) first published the seismic zoning map of thecountry in the year 1935. With numerous modifications made afterwards, this map was initiallybased oh the amount of damage suffered by the different regions of India because of earthquakes.Color cocied in different shades of the color red, this map shows the four distinct seismic zones ofIndia. pJllowing are the varied seismic zones of the nation, which are prominently shown in thejrtesy: mapsofindia.com):This is said to be the least active seismic zone.: It is included in the moderate seismic zone.This is considered to be the high seismic zone. .
5.
The Sixteenth (present) Lok Sabha, constituted in 2014, and the respective general electionwas notable In which of the following respects?1. Voter turnout percentage was the highest ever recorded for a Lok Sabha general election.2. Largesjt number of women candidates contested in elections and got elected ever in a Lok SabhaelectionWhich 0 n independent India,the above is/are correct?
The question is motivated by the upcoming 17th Lok Sabha generalelections. Some trends are important and should be kept in mind.Statement 1: It was over 66%, please refer to the table below.
Statement 2: In 2014 general elections, 668 women contested the election for a Lok Sabha seatand 62 of them got elected. The second highest was in eleventh Lok Sabha elections where 599women contested elections, but only 40 got elected.
6.
With reference to Pradhan Wlantri Jari Vikas Karyakram (PIVIJVK), which is a remodelledversion
Justification: The Programme aims to address development deficits in the identified minorityconcentration areas. The identification of minority concentration areas has been done on the basisof presence of substantial population of notified Minority Communities based on Census, 2011.The restructured programme {formerly called MultiSectoral Development Plan MsDP) wouldprovide better socio economic infrastructure facilities to the minority communities particularly inthe field of education, health & skill development as compared to the present situation, whichwould further lead to lessening of the gap between the national average and the minoritycommunities with regard to backwardness parameters.Learning: Multisectoral Development Programme (MsDP) was launched in the year 200809 In 90identified Minority Concentration Districts (MCDs) having at least 25% minority population andbelow national average with respect to one or both of the backwardness parameters with theobjective of developing assets for socioeconomic and basic amenities.MsDP has been Identified as one of the Core of the Core Schemes under National DevelopmentAgenda in the Report of the SubGroup of Chief Ministers on Rationalization of CentrallySponsored Schemes, which was cbnstituted by NITI Aayog.Statement 2: In addition to gap filling projects, MsDP also provides for taking up innovativeprojects which are not covered by any of the existing CSS of various ministries and these arefunded in the ratio of 60:40 and for NE and Hilly States at 90:10 between the Centre and States.This includes Sadbhav Mandap, Market shed etc.
7.
What is/are the benefit of Surge irrigation technique compared to other conventionalirrigation techniques?1. Surge Irrigation can reduce Irrigating costs through lower water use than furrow Irrigation.2. Amongst all types of soil, it is most suitable for irrigating clayey soil, where other irrigationtechniques result in high water loss.3. Surge irrigation helps reduce the amount of sediment lost from furrowirrigated fields.Select the correct answer using the codes below.
Furrow irrigation is a type of surface irrigation In which trenches or"furrows" are dug between crop rows in a field. Farmers flow water down the furrows (often usingonly gravity) and it seeps vertically and horizontally to refill the soil reservoir.Surge irri nation uses a surge controller butterfly valve placed in the centre of the top of the fieldwith gated pipe leading out of the valve going both directions along the top of the field.In fields with some side slope, the surge valve can be placed in the corner of the field, and extrapipe used to distribute the water. The valve works by oscillating water from one side of the valveto the other at decided intervals.Statement 1: So, as clear from the above, due to the intermittent supply of water (unlike thecontinuous flow of water in furrow irrigation), surge Irrigation can reduce irrigating costs throughlower water use and reduced labor to irrigate. Surge irrigation therefore reduces the total amountof irrigation water applied, excess water infiltration, and runoff water losses.Statement 2: The effectiveness of surge irrigation is soil type dependent; for example, many claysoils experience a rapid'sealing behaviour under continuous flow and therefore surge irrigationoffers little benefit. The reduction in infiltration is a result of surface consolidation, filling of cracksand micr pores and the disintegration of soil particles during rapid wetting and consequentsurface s paling during each drying phase of the soil.Statement 3: Surge irrigation helps reduce the amount of sediment lost from furrowirrigatedfields because a) you do not need to dig furrows which are subject to erosion from the constantlyflowing irrigation water, and b) irrigation is not constantly applied to the field reducing theamount of water that can erode the soil
8.
With reference to Ancient India, which of the following thinkers belong to the camp of theNaiyaylkas or the realist school of Indian philosophy?
Justification: Nyaya school's (followers called Naiyayikas) most significant contributions to Indianphilosop jiy was systematic development of the theory of logic, methodology, and its treatises onepistemology. This was often sharply differentiated with Buddhist teachings and philosophy.Nagarjurvolumesthe Nyayexpositioa, Vasubandhu, Dharmakirti and Dignaga are famous Buddhist masters who have writtenagainst the Nyaya system of logic. Vatsyayana's Nyaya Bhasya is a classic commentary on3 Sutra. Vachaspati Mishra's NyayavarttikatatparyatTka (9th century CE) is the next majorn of this school. He also wrote one noncommentary, Tattvabindu, or Drop of Truth,which focuses on MTmarnsa theories of sentence meaning.
9.
With reference to the roles and responsibilities of Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs)in Ministries/Departments and Organisations managing ICT operations, consider the following
Background: With the rapid digitalisation of functions and processes of Government/Governmentorganizations, the need for adopting secure cyber practices is becoming extremely important. Acyber breach can cause severe financial damage, bring the functioning of Government/Government organisation to standstill.Justificalion: To ensure a structured mechanism, in accordance with best information securitysystem fJractices, the Ministry of Electronics and IT has advised all Ministries/Departments tonominal i a Chief Information Security Officer (CISC) for the Ministry/Department and also advisesimilar a :tion to Chief Executives/Heads of Government organizations includingPSUs/Autonomous Bodies/Attached Offices/ Statutory Bodies under their control.It shall b I the responsibility of Secretary of the Ministry/Department (CEO/Head in case oforganiza tions) to identify a member of senior management as a 'Chief Information Security Officer(CISO)' to establish a cyber security program, coordinate security policy compliance efforts acrossthe orga lisation and interact regularly with CERTln 'Point of Contact'. The CISO must be given themandate and resources to establish an Information Security program, coordinate security policycompliance efforts across the organisation and interact regularly with regulatory agencies such asCERTln.
10.
Post GST, the Government has announced Rebate of State Levies (ROSL) on Export of
Learning: in June 2016, the Cabinet announced a Rs. 6,000 crore package forthe apparel sector. The largest component of this package were rebates on state levies {ROSL| tooffset indirect taxes levied by the states (the VAT) that were embedded in exports. This ROSL wasover and above the duty drawbacks and other incentives (e.g., Merchandise Exports from IndiaScheme (MEIS)) that were given to offset indirect taxes embedded in exports. This was also in abid to boost employment generation in the employment intensive textiles and apparel sectorthrough the mechanism of rebate in 2017. Rebate of State Levies shall be understood to compriseVAT on fuel used in transportation (raw materials, finished goods and factory workers), VAT onfuel used in generation of captive power, Mandl tax on purchase of cotton, duty on electricityused in manufacture as accumulated from stage of Cotton/MMF fibre till garment/made up stage,stamp duties on export documents and SGST on inputs used in production of cotton andembedded SGST in purchases from unregistered dealers"
