SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY TEST 13 - GEOGRAPHY - INDIAN GEOGRAPHY - ANSWER KEY

1. Ans (c) Explanation: In India Iron ore production is predominantly from five States namely Karnataka, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Goa and . (Source: NCERT-India: People and Economy-pg.no:74)

2. Ans (a) Explanation: • The Kharif season (June-September) largely coincides with southwest monsoon under which the cultivation of tropical crops such as rice, cotton, jute, Jowar etc. is possible. • The Rabi season begins with the onset of winter in October- November and ends in March- April. The low temperature conditions during this season facilitate the cultivation of temperate and subtropical crops such as wheat, gram and mustard. • Zaid is a short duration summer cropping season beginning after harvesting of Rabi crops in the months of April-June. The crops such as sunflower, water melon etc. are grown which require hot and humid conditions for growth. (Source: NCERT-India: People and Economy-pg.no:44)

3. Ans (d) Explanation: Lac is the scarlet resinous secretion of a number of species of lac insects. Jharkhand has the reputation of being India’s biggest producer of lac. The state accounts 58 per cent of the country’s lac produce followed by Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. Much of the demand for lac comes from the defence industry, for making ammunitions. It is also used in airplanes, furniture polish and perfumes, and in making bangles, imitation fruits and flowers. (Source: wiki)

4. Ans (b) Explanation: UJALA • The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana is a welfare program of the government of India, launched by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2016. The stated objective of the program is providing 50,000,000 LPG connections to women from families below the poverty line. • Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All (UJALA) was launched by Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi on 1 May 2015, replacing the "Bachat Lamp Yojana". Within 1 year of its launch, 9 crore LED bulbs were sold in the country, reducing their electricity bills. The scheme was announced as "Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP)" on 5 January 2015, urging the people to use LED bulbs in place of incandescent bulbs, tube lights and CFL bulbs as they are more efficient, long lasting and economical in their life cycle duration. • The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy stopped the subsidy on CFL-based solar lighting system to encourage the use of the LED version. The scheme was implemented by Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) (under the Ministry of Power)

5. Ans (a) Explanation: National Policy on Bio Fuels Bio-fuels provide a strategic advantage to promote sustainable development and to supplement conventional energy sources in meeting the rapidly increasing requirements for transportation fuels associated with high economic growth, as well as in meeting the energy needs of India’s vast rural population. Bio-fuels can increasingly satisfy these energy needs in an environmentally benign and cost-effective manner while reducing dependence on import of fossil fuels and thereby providing a higher degree of National Energy Security. The Indian approach to bio-fuels is based solely on non- food feedstocks to be raised on degraded or wastelands that are not suited to agriculture, thus avoiding a possible conflict of fuel vs. food security. The salient features of the National Policy on Bio-fuels are:- • Bio-diesel production will be taken up from non-edible oil seeds in waste /degraded / marginal lands. • An indicative target of 20% blending of bio-fuels, both for bio-diesel and bio-ethanol, by 2017 has been proposed. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY • Minimum Support Price (MSP) for non-edible oil seeds would be announced with periodic revision to provide fair price to the growers. • Minimum Purchase Price (MPP) for purchase of bio-ethanol and bio-diesel would be announced with periodic revision. • Major thrust will be given to research, development and demonstration with focus on plantations, processing and production of bio-fuels, including Second Generation Bio-fuels. • Financial incentives, including subsidies and grants, may be considered for second generation bio-fuels. If it becomes necessary, a National Bio-fuel Fund could be considered. • A National Biofuel Coordination Committee, headed by the Prime Minister, will be set up to provide policy guidance and coordination. • A Biofuel Steering Committee, chaired by Cabinet Secretary, will be set up to oversee implementation of the Policy.

6. Ans (c) Explanation: India produces the finest Pashmina (Cashmere) wool in the world, coming from the Changthang plateau of Ladakh region of J&K State.

7. Ans (a) • Explanation: Total road network length in UP is more than 8,000 Km. (Source: http://morth.nic.in/showfile.asp?lid=1624)

8. Ans (a) Explanation: NCEF • The National Clean Energy Fund (NCEF) is a fund created in 2010-11 using the carbon tax - clean energy cess - for funding research and innovative projects in clean energy technologies of public sector or private sector entities, upto the extent of 40% of the total project cost. Assistance is available as a loan or as a viability gap funding, as deemed fit by the Inter-Ministerial group, which decides on the merits of such projects. The Fund is designed as a non lapsable fund under Public Accounts • Renaming the Clean Energy Cess as Clean Environment Cess, the government in 2016-17 budget proposed to raise the cess on coal, lignite and peat from the current Rs 200 a tonne to Rs 400 per tonne.

9. Ans (d) Explanation: UMPP Status of proposed Ultra Mega Power Projects as of December 2016 Special State Plant Purpose Owner MW Type Status Vehicle Andhra Krishnapatnam Ultra Coastal Andhra

Reliance Power 3960 Coastal Shelved

Pradesh Mega Power Project Power Ltd. Andhra Pudimadaka Ultra Pre-permit

NTPC NTPC 4000 Coastal

Pradesh Mega Power Project development Andhra Vadarevu Ultra Mega Pre-permit

APGENCO APGENCO 4000 Coastal

Pradesh Power Project development Bihar State Kakwara Ultra Mega Bihar Mega Pre-permit

Bihar Power Holding 4000 Interior

Power Project Power Ltd development

Company Chhattisgarh Surguja Ultra Mega Power Finance

Chhattisgarh Sarguja Power 4000 Interior Cancelled 2013

Power Project Corporation

Ltd. Tata Mundra Ultra Coastal Gujarat

Gujarat Tata Power 4000 Coastal Operating

Mega Power Project Power Ltd. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY

Special State Plant Purpose Owner MW Type Status Vehicle Jharkhand Tilaiya Ultra Mega

Jharkhand Integrated Power Reliance Power 3960 Interior Cancelled

Power Project

Ltd. Deoghar Ultra Mega Deoghar Mega Power Finance Pre-permit

Jharkhand 4000 Interior

Power Project Power Ltd Corporation development Coastal Niddodi Ultra Mega

Karnataka Karnataka Power not yet awarded 4000 Coastal Cancelled

Power Project

Ltd. Madhya Sasan Ultra Mega

Sasan Power Ltd. Reliance Power 3960 Interior Operating

Pradesh Power Project Coastal Girye Ultra Mega

Maharashtra Maharashtra not yet awarded 4000 Coastal Cancelled

Power Project

Power Ltd. Sundargarh Orissa Integrated Pre-permit

Odisha (Bedabahal) Ultra not yet awarded 4000 Interior

Power Ltd. development

Mega Power Project Sakhigopal (Bhadrak) Sakhigopal

Odisha Ultra Mega Power Integrated Power not yet awarded 4000 Coastal Cancelled

Project Co. Ltd. Ghogarpalli Ghogarpalli

Odisha (Kalahandi) Ultra Integrated Power not yet awarded 4000 Interior Cancelled

Mega Power Project Co. Ltd. Gajamara Ultra Mega

Odisha not yet awarded not yet awarded 4000 Interior Cancelled

Power Project Cheyyur Ultra Mega Coastal Tamil Power Finance

Tamil Nadu 4000 Coastal Proposed

Power Project Nadu Power Ltd. Corporation

10. Ans (c) Explanation: In between the rabi and the kharif seasons, there is a short season during the summer months known as the Zaid season. Some of the crops produced during zaid are watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber, vegetables and fodder crops.

11. Ans (d) Explanation: Agricultural modernization basically means using scientifically determined inputs like chemical fertilizers, insecticides, weedicides, pesticides etc. These chemicals flow from farm to nearby water bodies and pollute the water.

12. Ans (c) Explanation: (Source: NCERT-India People and Economy-pg.no:76)

13. Ans (d) Explanation: (Source: Wiki)

14. Ans (c) Explanation: National Biomass Cook Stove Programme (NBCP) • The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) is promoting and formulating biomass cook stove for domestic use at an effective cost. MNRE has implemented National Biomass Cook Stove Programme (NBCP) in the 12th Plan Period. The ministry’s aim in implementing the programme is SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY improvement in biomass cook stove, this cook stove will be utilized for domestic and community cooking applications on cost sharing basis. • The programme is projected for undertaking project demonstration, improving the quality of cook stove, different grades of process biomass fuel, all this will result in upgradation of technology development, biomass processing and delivery models. • Further, in the programming ministry has organized three test centers to regulate quality and performance testing of improved biomass cook stoves in order to maintain the quality of products. The products which are approved in the testing process and by MNRE will only be considered in the demonstration programme.

15. Ans (d) Explanation: Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana Keeping in view the above problems, Ministry of Power, Government of India has launched Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana for rural areas having following objectives: • To provide electrification to all villages • Feeder separation to ensure sufficient power to farmers and regular supply to other consumers • Improvement of Sub-transmission and distribution network to improve the quality and reliability of the supply. • Metering to reduce the losses

16. Ans (a) Explanation: It requires moist and humid climate with rainfall of more than 200 cm. and temperature above 25°C. (Source: NCERT-Contemporary India-II -pg.no:42)

17. Ans (b) Explanation: Tea requires a moist fros-free climate with even rainfall throughout the year. Millet is a semi-arid area crop and thus can be grown in dry conditions. (Source: Indian Geography-Khullar)

18. Ans (b) Explanation: • Tidal power or tidal energy is a form of hydropower that converts the energy obtained from tides into useful forms of power, mainly electricity. Tides are more predictable than wind energy and solar power. • The tidal cycle occurs every 12 hours due to the gravitational force of the moon. The difference in water height from low tide and high tide is potential energy. Similar to traditional hydropower generated from dams, tidal water can be captured in a barrage across an estuary during high tide and forced through a hydro-turbine during low tide. To capture sufficient power from the tidal energy potential, the height of high tide must be at least five meters (16 feet) greater than low tide. There are only approximately 20 locations on earth with tides this high and India is one of them. The Gulf of Cambay and the Gulf of Kutch in Gujarat on the west coast have the maximum tidal range of 11m and 8m with average tidal range of 6.77m and 5.23m respectively. Source - http://mnre.gov.in/schemes/new-technologies/tidal-energy/

19. Ans (c) Explanation: • Jhum (Shifting) cultivation is a primitive practice of cultivation in States of North Eastern Hill Region of India and people involved in such cultivation are called Jhumia. The practice involves clearing vegetative/forest cover on land/slopes of hills, drying and burning it before onset of monsoon and cropping on it thereafter. After harvest, this land is left fallow and vegetative regeneration is allowed on it till the plot becomes reusable for same purpose in a cycle. Meanwhile, the process is repeated in a new plot designated for Jhum cultivation during next year. Initially, when Jhum cycle was long and ranged from 20 to 30 years, the process worked well. However, with increase in human population and increasing pressure on land, Jhum cycle reduced progressively (5-6 years) causing problem of land degradation and threat to ecology of the region at large. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY • Shifting cultivation in India is known as jhum in Assam, punam krishi is Kerala, podu in and Orissa, bewar, mashan, penda and beera in different parts of Madhya Pradesh. Shifting cultivation is practiced by tribal people.

20. Ans (a) Explanation: Explanation: Domestic Content requirement • The Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (also known as the National Solar Mission) is an initiative of the Government of India and State Governments to promote renewable energy, especially solar power. • The program was inaugurated by the former Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh on 11 January 2010 with a target of 20GW by 2022 which was later increased to 100 GW in 2015 Union budget of India. United States filed a case with WTO against India for restricting the critical materials used to domestic content. • US Trade Representative has filed a complaint at World Trade Organization challenging India’s domestic content requirements in Phase II of this Mission, citing discrimination against US exports and that industry in US which has invested hugely will be at loss. US insists that such restrictions are prohibited by WTO. India however claims that it is only an attempt to grow local potential and to ensure self sustenance and reduce dependence.

21. Ans (d) Explanation:

22. Ans (a) Explanation: In the state of Jammu and Kashmir the vegetation, especially grasses belonging to the higher regions of the mountain system is known as Margs or alpine pastures. The alpine pastures lie between 3600 m to 4000 m above sea level.

SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY 23. Ans (c) Explanation: National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) • Government of India launched the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) 2020 in 2013. It aims to achieve national fuel security by promoting hybrid and electric vehicles in the country. There is an ambitious target to achieve 6-7 million sales of hybrid and electric vehicles year on year from 2020 onwards. Government aims to provide fiscal and monetary incentives to kick start this nascent technology. it is being implemented by the Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises • It is a composite scheme using different policy-levers such as: 1. Demand side incentives to facilitate acquisition of hybrid/electric vehicles 2. Promoting R&D in technology including battery technology, power electronics, motors, systems integration, battery management system, testing infrastructure, and ensuring industry participation in the same 3. Promoting charging infrastructure 4. Supply side incentives 5. Encouraging retro-fitment of on-road vehicles with hybrid kit.

24. Ans (d) Explanation: IPAB • IPAB exercises jurisdiction over Trademarks, Patents and geographical indications as on date. • The Trademarks Act 1999(47of 1999) in its Statement of Objects and Reasons declared that to achieve the purposes for which the trademark law was re-enacted it was proposed, inter alia , to provide for an Appellate Board for speedy disposal of appeals and rectification applications which then lay before the High Courts. • The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act 1999 was enacted to provide for the registration and better protection of geographical indications relating to goods. The Patents (Amendment) Act 2002 was enacted to bring our patent regime in line with the TRIPS agreement. The IPAB was conferred by this Act with the jurisdiction to hear all cases against any order or decision of the controller • The IPAB has its headquarters at . The Registry is situated at Chennai, where sittings are also held. Circuit sittings are held at present at Ahmedabad, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.

25. Ans (d) Explanation: Dryland Farming is largely confined to the regions having annual rainfall less than 75 cms. These regions grow hardy and drought resistant crops such as ragi, bajra, moong, gram and guar (fodder crops) and practice various measures of soil moisture conservation and rain water harvesting. (Source: NCERT-India: People and Economy-pg.no:45)

26. Ans (b) Explanation: • The birth rate is the total number of live births per 1,000 of a population in a year. • The infant mortality rate (IMR) is the number of deaths of infants under one year old per 1,000 live births. This rate is often used as an indicator of the level of health in a country. A neonatal death is defined as a death during the first 30 days of life. It is a crucial indicator of nutrition given to an infant. Indian has a high neonatal mortality rate. 70% of all the infants die in the first month.

27. Ans (c) Explanation: Boards in India • Cotton and Jute boards are under Ministry of Textiles • Spices, Coffee, Tea, Rubber and Tobacco boards are under Ministry of Commerce and Industry

28. Ans (c) Explanation: Maharatnas The CPSEs fulfilling the following criteria are eligible to be considered for grant of Maharatna status. i. Having Navratna status. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY ii. Listed on Indian stock exchange with minimum prescribed public shareholding under SEBI regulations. iii. Average annual turnover of more than Rs. 25,000 crore, during the last 3 years. iv. Average annual net worth of more than Rs. 15,000 crore, during the last 3 years. v. Average annual net profit after tax of more than Rs. 5,000 crore, during the last 3 years. vi. Should have significant global presence/international operations. List of Maharatna 1. National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) 2. Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) 3. Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) 4. Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL) 5. Indian Oil Corporation Limited(IOCL) 6. Coal India Limited(CIL) 7. Gas Authority of India Limited(GAIL)

29. Ans (a) Explanation: India has huge shale potential in Cambay basin, Assam-Arakon basin, KG basin, Cauvery basin and Damodar valley sub-basins.

30. Ans (b) Explanation: They predominantly live in the State of Mizoram. (Source: wiki, Indianetzone website)

31. Ans (a) Explanation: NPPP 2012 • The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy-2012 has been notified on 07.12.2012. The salient features of National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy, 2012 (NPPP-2012) are as under: ∗ The regulation of prices of drugs is on the basis of essentiality of drugs as specified under National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM)-2011. ∗ The regulation of prices of drugs is on the basis of regulating the prices of formulations only. ∗ The regulation of prices of drugs is on the basis of fixing the ceiling price of formulations through Market Based Pricing (MBP). • The objective of National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy-2012 is to put in place a regulatory framework for pricing of drugs so as to ensure availability of required medicines – “essential medicines” – at reasonable prices even while providing sufficient opportunity for innovation and competition to support the growth of industry, thereby meeting the goals of employment and shared economic well-being for all. • Besides this, in order to provide relief to the common man in the area of healthcare, a countrywide campaign in the name of ‘Jan Aushadhi Campaign’ was initiated by the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of India, in collaboration with the State Governments, by way of opening up of Jan Aushadhi Generic Drug Stores to make available quality generic medicines at affordable prices to all.

32. Ans (d) Explanation: TUFS - The Government of India (GoI), Ministry of Textiles (MoT), introduced Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) for Textile and Jute Industries on April 1, 1999, for a period of 5 years, subsequently extended by 3 years to cover sanctions up to March 31, 2007.

33. Ans (d) Explanation: (Source: geography of india –Khullar, Wiki)

34. Ans (c) Explanation: Wheat needs 12 to 15 inches (31 to 38 centimeters) of water to produce a good crop. It grows best when temperatures are warm, from 70° to 75° F (21° to 24° C), but not too hot and hence Wheat is grown as a Rabi crop and grown in the Kharif season. Wheat also needs a lot of sunshine, especially when the grains are filling. Areas with low humidity are better since many wheat diseases thrive in damp weather. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY (Source: Geography of India –Khullar)

35. Ans (d) Explanation: • Globally, India is the largest receiver of remittances according to the World Bank which stands at $69 Billion. • Migration results in change in social composition. Men predominantly migrate to cities in search of work and employment which results in skewed sex-ratio in urban areas. It seriously affects the demographic structure of the rural areas. As migration results in overcrowding in cities slums and squatter settlements proliferate as a result. (Source: NCERT- India People and Economy- pg.no: 20)

36. Ans (d) Explanation: Industrial Corridors The government has conceptualized five industrial and economic corridors and all are at different stages of implementation. The corridors are - 1. Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC); 2. Bengaluru- Mumbai Economic Corridor (BMEC); 3. Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC); 4. Visakhapatnam-Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC) and 5. Amritsar-Kolkata Industrial Corridor (AKIC).

37. Ans (b) Explanation: Infrastructure of India • Diamond Quadrilateral -The Diamond Quadrilateral is a project of the to establish high speed rail network in India. This quadrilateral will connect the four metro cities in India, i.e. Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. This project is similar to which is a roadway project which connects the four metros by Express Ways. • The Golden Quadrilateral is a highway network connecting many of the major industrial, agricultural and cultural centres of India. A quadrilateral of sorts is formed by connecting Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai, and hence its name. Other metropolises also connected by the network are Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Jaipur, Kanpur, Pune, Surat, Nellore, Vijayawada and Guntur • is a name given to ambitious road and highways project. The project will start from Gujarat and Rajasthan, move to Punjab and then cover the entire string of Himalayan states - Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand - and then portions of borders of and Bihar alongside Terai, and move to Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and right up to the Indo-Myanmar border in Manipur and Mizoram. • Sagar Mala project is a strategic and customer-oriented initiative of the Government of India to modernize India's Ports so that port-led development can be augmented and coastlines can be developed to contribute in India's growth. It looks towards "transforming the existing Ports into modern world class Ports and integrate the development of the Ports, the Industrial clusters and hinterland and efficient evacuation systems through road, rail, inland and coastal waterways resulting in Ports becoming the drivers of economic activity in coastal areas.

38. Ans (d) Explanation: As the contribution and the population composition of the three sectors of the economy change the competition with the agricultural land from other two sectors increase. Increasing population results in both agricultural and non-agricultural land to be diverted for residential purposes. Urbanization competes with the surrounding rural areas for land resources and modifies land use substantially. (Source: NCERT- India People and Economy- pg.no: 41)

SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY 39. Ans (a) Explanation: • Truck farming is a horticultural practice of growing one or more vegetable crops on a large scale for shipment to distant markets. It is usually less intensive and diversified than market gardening. • At first this type of farming depended entirely on local or regional markets. As the use of railroads and large-capacity trucks expanded and refrigerated carriers were introduce.

40. Ans (c) Explanation: ‘Zabo’ means impounding of water. (Source: Agritech portal)

41. Ans (b) Explanation: Greenfield Projects • In many disciplines a greenfield project is one that lacks constraints imposed by prior work. The analogy is to that of construction on greenfield land where there is no need to work within the constraints of existing buildings or infrastructure. • Literal examples of greenfield projects are new factories, power plants, airports which are built from scratch on greenfield land. Those facilities which are modified/upgraded are called brownfield land projects (often the pre-existing site/facilities are contaminated/polluted.) • India's first greenfield airport was started in Hyderabad. The airport is being developed by infrastructure developer GMR Infrastructure

42. Ans (c) Explanation: GAGAN • GAGAN (GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation) is the name of Indian version of US's WAAS (Wide-Area Augmentation system). Once GAGAN is available, users who have WASS-compatible receivers will be able to get GPS position with accuracy of roughly 1 meter or better. GAGAN is not a replacement for the GPS system but an extension that will make US's GPS more accurate over India and thus can be used for many high-precision applications • The GPS Aided GEO Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) is an implementation of a regional satellite- based augmentation system (SBAS) by the Indian government. It is a system to improve the accuracy of a GNSS receiver by providing reference signals. The AAI’s efforts towards implementation of operational SBAS can be viewed as the first step towards introduction of modern communication, navigation, surveillance/Air Traffic Management system over Indian airspace.

43. Ans (d) Explanation: • Cotton is a tropical crop grown in kharif season in semi-arid areas of the country. Its yield is very low in Maharashtra where it is grown under rainfed conditions. • Sugarcane is a crop of tropical areas. Under rainfed conditions, it is cultivated in sub-humid and humid climates. But it is largely an irrigated crop in India.

44. Ans (b) Explanation: Sedimentary rocks on the western and eastern flanks of the peninsula have most of the Petroleum deposits. (Source: NCERT-Contemporary India-II pg.no:52 and 56)

45. Ans (b) Explanation: There are three gold fields in the country, namely Kolar and Hutti Gold Field in Karnataka and Ramgiri Gold Field in Andhra Pradesh. (Source: Wiki) SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY 46. Ans (c) Explanation: • This is a joint venture of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh initiated in 1954 on the Chambal River (the main tributary of the Yamuna). The project aims at harnessing the Chambal River for irrigation, power generation and for prevention and control of soil erosion in the valley. The project has been executed in three successive stages. • The areas benefited by this project include Kota, Bundi, Bharatpur, Jaipur, SawaiMadhopur, Tonk, Ajmer, Pali, Bhilwara, Sirohi and Udaipur districts of Rajasthan and Mandsaur, Indore, Ujjain, Gwalior and Ratlam districts of M.P.

47. Ans (c) Explanation: BRO • Currently, the organisation maintains operations in twenty-one states, one UT (Andaman and Nicobar Islands), and neighbouring countries such as Afghanistan, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. The BRO operates and maintains over 32,885 kilometres of roads and about 12,200 meters of permanent bridges in the country. Presently, BRO is also involved in the construction of a tunnel at the Rohtang pass which is estimated to be ready by 2019. It is currently headed by Lt General Suresh Sharma who is the 24th Director General Border Roads (DGBR). • The BRO has been functioning under the administrative control of Ministry of Defence (MoD). However, the budget for the BRO was being reflected in the Demands for Grants under from Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) until year 2014-15. • Vide Gazette Notification dated 9th January, 2015, all matters relating to Border Roads Development Board and Border Roads Organisation have been placed under Ministry of Defence in Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961. Accordingly, from the financial year 2015-16, the budget of BRO has also been shifted from MoRTH to MoD.

48. Ans (b) Explanation: National Highways Development Project • The North-South–East-West Corridor (NS-EW) is the largest ongoing highway project in India. It is the second phase of the National Highways Development Project (NHDP), and consists of building 7300 kilometers of four/six lane expressways connecting Srinagar, Kanyakumari, Porbandar and Silchar. • In combination with the Golden Quadrilateral network, and port connectivity highways, the NS- EW Corridor forms a key part of the Indian highway network, connecting many of its important manufacturing, commerce and cultural centres. • The NS–EW project is managed by the National Highways Authority of India under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. Jhansi is the junction of North–South and East–West Corridors. • State highways in India are numbered highways that are laid and maintained by the state governments. These are not related to National Highways and are not maintained by the National Highways Authority of India or the central government in any way.

49. Ans (b) Explanation: National Water Mission The National Water Mission (NWM), under the aegis of the Ministry of Water Resources, is one of the eight missions being constituted under the National Action Plan for Climate Change (NAPCC). The ‘Technical Document’ annexed with the NAPCC has identified key areas related to (a) studies on management of surface water resources, (b) management and regulation of ground water resources, (c) upgrading storage structures for fresh and drainage system for wastewater, (d) conservation of wetland, and SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY (e) Development of desalination technologies etc. required to be considered while preparing the comprehensive document for the National Water Mission.

50. Ans (a) Explanation: • The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), Government of India has promulgated Green Highways (Plantations, Transplantations, Beautification and Maintenance) Policy – 2015 on 29th September 2015 to develop green corridors along National Highways for sustainable environment and inclusive growth. The policy envisions development of eco-friendly National Highways with participation of the communities, farmers, NGOs, private sector, institutions, government agencies and the Forest Departments for economic growth and development in a sustainable manner." • The mission aims to provide a green canopy along 100,000km of highways and create jobs for 1 million youth. Objectives: 1. Develop a systematic framework for Integrated Green Corridor Development along National Highways 2. Build resilient ecosystem in the form of "Green Corridors" along National Highways for ∗ Combating global warming and climate change effects ∗ Optimum GHG sequestration ∗ Ex situ conservation of native RET species of the region 3. Make Green Highways Mission self-sustained. 4. Develop unique green corridors with aesthetic appeal 5. Reduce the impacts of air, noise pollution and dust 6. Provide shade on glaring hot roads during summers 7. Reduce soil erosion at embankment slopes 8. Reduce the effects of wind and incoming UV radiation • According to the policy, contracts for greening will be given to NGOS, agencies, private companies and government organizations with proven track record in the past in the field. Those selected will be responsible for the survival and health of trees and will be strictly monitored by a body appointed by the ministry. • The Policy envisages a strict system of auditing whereby money will be released by the government to the implementing agencies only if they have achieved a survival rate of 90% the previous year. The implementation and progress of plantation will be monitored via images by ISRO and audit will involve modern information technology tools.

51. Ans (d) Explanation: India has been a melting pot of various races and tribes from times immemorial. Almost all the major races of the world are visible in India as a result of which the country is said to have a varied and diverse ethnic composition. The present day population of the country has been derived mainly from the following racial groups: 1. Negrito: According to Hutton, the earliest occupants of India were the people of Negrito race. S.K. Chatterjee and S.M. Katre have expressed the view that Negroid people migrated to India from Africa and established their language on the soil of India. Negrito features are met with particularly amongst the Andaman islanders and most probably the Uralis of Nilgiri hills, Kadors of Kochi, Pullayans of Palni hills, etc. 2. Mongoloid: Some of the basic physical characteristics of the Mongoloid race include a round and broad head, face with very high cheek bones and a long flat nose, with little or no hair on the face and the body. The tribes of Garo, Khasi, Jaintia, Lipchas, Chakmas, Murmis, Naga and Daffla belong to the Mongoloid race. The Mongoloid racial stock of India can be divided into two sub-groups as follows: ∗ Palaeo-Mongoloids (ii) Tibeto-Mongoloids. ∗ Palaeo-Mongoloids are further divided into broad headed and long headed sub-types. They settled mainly along the fringes of the Himalayas in Assam and the Myanmar border. ∗ Tibeto-Mongoloids have come from Tibet as their name suggests. They are mostly living in Bhutan and Sikkim, as well as in the north-western Himalayas and Trans Himalayan regions. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY 3. Nordic: They are a predominant type in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. They are mostly represented among the upper castes of North India particularly in Punjab. The main characteristics of this race are long head, fair complexion, well developed nose and a well built, strong body. 4. Proto-Australoids: Proto-Australoids came to India from the East Mediterranean area (Palestine). They came soon after the Negritos. Today they constitute the bulk of population in many isolated and semi-isolated parts of central and southern India.The Veddahs, Malavedahs, Irulas and Sholagas are the true representatives of Proto-Australoids. The Bhils, Kols, Badagas, Korwas, Kharwars, Mundas, Bhumjis and Malpaharis of the highlands of Central India and the Chenchus, Kurumbas, Malayans and Yeruvas of South India may all be treated as Proto-Australoids. 5. Brachycephals: Brachycephal groups of races of India are characterised by broad heads. Coorgis and Parsis are representatives of the Brachycephals in India. These races are sub-divided into three major groups. They followed three different routes to enter India. (j) Alpinoids, (ii) Dinarics and (iii) Armenoids. (i) Alpinoids: Alpinoids came to India along the route passing through Baluchistan, Sind, Kathiawar, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. (ii) Dinarics: Dinarics followed the Ganga valley and its delta as their route to enter India. (iii) Armenoids: Chitral, Gilgit, Kashmir and Nepal formed the third route for the Armenoids of the Brachycephal group of races to enter India. 6. Mediterranean: Their physical characteristics include medium stature, dark skin and long head. In all probability, they first settled in north-west India and started practising agriculture there. However, they were pushed into central and southern India by subsequent immigrants. The Dravidian race, the most primitive of the Indian types, occupies the oldest geological formation in India, the medley of forest clad ranges, terraced plateaus, and undulating plains which stretches, roughly speaking, from the Vindhyas to Cape Comorin (Kanniyakumari).

52. Ans (b) Explanation: • Uttar Pradesh had the largest SC population followed by West Bengal. Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya and Goa have low concentration of scheduled caste population. No Scheduled castes have been reported in the states of Nagaland and Union Territories of Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar islands. • One third of the Scheduled Tribes population of India lives in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha. Mizoram and Lakshadweep has STs as 94 % of the total population. In Haryana, Punjab and Union Territories of Chandigarh and Delhi and Puducherry, no tribe has been scheduled.

53. Ans (a) Explanation: • India has vast and varied inland fisheries resources. Rivers, streams lakes, reservoirs, tanks, ponds, irrigation canals, multipurpose dams, and paddy fields provides an immense scope, perhaps richest in the world, for the propagation and production of fishes. • From these large numbers of resources, fishes can be obtained by two ways, they may be captured directly from the river systems and large lakes, or they may be cultured by employing artificial and scientific techniques in smaller inland areas like ponds, tanks, paddy fields etc.

54. Ans (d) Explanation: National Water Policy The major provisions under the policy are: 1. Envisages to establish a standardized national information system with a network of data banks and data bases 2. Resource planning and recycling for providing maximum availability 3. To give importance to the impact of projects on human settlements and environment. 4. Guidelines for the safety of storage dams and other water-related structures 5. Regulate exploitation of groundwater SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY 6. Setting water allocation priorities in the following order: Drinking water, Irrigation, Hydropower, Navigation, Industrial and other uses. 7. The water rates for surface water and ground water should be rationalized with due regard to the interests of small and marginal farmers. The policy also deals with participation of farmers and voluntary agencies, water quality, water zoning, conservation of water, flood and drought management, erosion etc. The other major features are:- • To ensure access to a minimum quantity of potable water for essential health and hygiene to all citizens, available within easy reach of the household. • To curtail subsidy to agricultural electricity users. • Setting up of Water Regulatory Authority. • To keep aside a portion of the river flow to meet the ecological needs and to ensure that the low and high flow releases correspond in time closely to the natural flow regime. • To give statutory powers to Water Users Associations to maintain the distribution system. • Project benefited families to bear part of the cost of resettlement & rehabilitation of project affected families. • To remove the large disparity between stipulations for water supply in urban areas and in rural areas. • To support a National Water Framework Law.

55. Ans (b) Explanation: Ethanol Blended Programme • Ethanol blending is the practice of blending petrol with ethanol. Many countries, including India, have adopted ethanol blending in petrol in order to reduce vehicle exhaust emissions and also to reduce the import burden on account of crude petroleum from which petrol is produced. • The renewable ethanol content, which is a by product of the sugar industry, is expected to result in a net reduction in the emission of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrocarbons (HC). Ethanol itself burns cleaner and burns more completely than petrol it is blended into. In India, ethanol is mainly derived by sugarcane molasses, which is a by-product in the conversion of sugar cane juice to sugar. • the Government, through Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), is implementing the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme under which, OMCs sell ethanol blended petrol with percentage of ethanol upto 10%. Also, the Government has allowed procurement of ethanol produced from other non-food feedstocks, like cellulosic and ligno cellulosic materials including petrochemical route. • The government had decided two years ago to implement the ethanol blending programme (EBP) up to a limit of 10%. But only 5% of ethanol is being blended in the EBP currently under implementation in 13 states and three Union territories out of the notified 20 states and four UTs. • In 2015, the Government has asked OMCs to target 10 % blending of ethanol in as many States as possible. A Steering Committee and a Working Group on biofuels have been constituted in Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. • the government is planning to take the blending limit of ethanol in petrol to 22.5 per cent and diesel to 15 per cent, as also second generation ethanol production from bamboo, rice straw, wheat straw, cotton straw etc to power vehicles. • In December 2014, the Cabinet had approved usage of non-food feedstocks besides molasses as source of ethanol to be used for blending in fuel.

56. Ans (d) Explanation: National biogas and Manure management programme Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) is implementing the National Biogas and Manure Management Programme (NBMMP) for setting up of family type biogas plants in rural and semi-urban areas of the country. Objectives • To provide fuel for cooking purposes and organic manure to rural households through family type biogas plants • To mitigate drudgery of rural women, reduce pressure on forests and accentuate social benefits • To improve sanitation in villages by linking sanitary toilets with biogas plants. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY

57. Ans (a) Explanation: Nuclear energy has emerged as a viable source in recent times. Important minerals used for the generation of nuclear energy are uranium and thorium. Uranium deposits occur in the Dharwar rocks. Geographically, uranium ores are known to occur in several locations along the Singbhum Copper belt. It is also found in Udaipur, Alwar and Jhunjhunu districts of Rajasthan, Durg district of Chhattisgarh, Bhandara district of Maharashtra and Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh. Thorium is mainly obtained from monazite and ilmenite in the beach sands along the coast of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. World’s richest monazite deposits occur in Palakkad and Kollam districts of Kerala, near Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Mahanadi river delta in Odisha.

58. Ans (b) Explanation: • Sugarcane is a crop of tropical areas. Under rainfed conditions, it is cultivated in sub-humid and humid climates. But it is largely an irrigated crop in India. In Indo-Gangetic plain, its cultivation is largely concentrated in Uttar Pradesh. Sugarcane growing area in western India is spread over Maharashtra and Gujarat. • India was the second largest producer of sugarcane after Brazil in 2008-09. It accounts for about 23 per cent of the world production of sugarcane. But it occupies only 2.4 per cent of total cropped area in the country. Uttar Pradesh produces about two-fifth of sugarcane of the country. Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are other leading producers of this crop where yield level of sugarcane is high. Its yield is low in northern India. The sucrose content of sugarcane is more in cane cultivated in Tamil Nadu compared to that of Uttar Pradesh. • The sugar industry is the second most important agro-based industry in the country. India is the largest producer of both sugarcane and cane sugar and contributes about 8 per cent of the total sugar production in the world. Besides, khandasari and gur or jaggery are also prepared from sugarcane. This industry provides employment for more than 4 lakh persons directly and a large number of farmers indirectly. Sugar industry is a seasonal industry because of the seasonality of raw materials. • Sugarcane is a weight-losing crop. The ratio of sugar to sugarcane varies between 9 to 12 per cent depending on its variety. Its sucrose content begins to dry during haulage after it has been harvested from the field. Better recovery of sugar is dependent upon its being crushed within 24 hours of its harvesting. Sugar factories hence, are located within the cane producing regions.

59. Ans (b) Explanation: • Bharatmala was announced last year and involves a highway network from Gujarat to Mizoram covering 10 other states and entailing an investment of Rs 90,000 crore. The average cost of constructing 1 km of road is Rs 13 crore. The government will seek assistance of the Border Roads Organization in tough terrain. The government’s ambitious Bharatmala project connecting eastern and western India through 7,000 km of national highways is expected to commence by March 2017. • The project on the lines of Sagarmala in which a string of ports will be built in the Indian Ocean to protect maritime interests. The government plans to improve road connectivity not just to coastal and border areas but also backward areas. Under the larger scheme, improving connectivity for the Char Dham circuit in Uttarakhand will also be undertaken. An investment of Rs 11,700 crore will be made on all-weather roads connecting Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri and Yamunotri. • The ‘SetuBharatam’ project aims to make all national highways free from railway level crossing by 2019 to ensure road safety. Under the project, 208 rail-over bridges and rail-under bridges will be built at the cost of Rs. 20,800 crore. Also, 1,500 decade-old bridges will be reconstructed and revamped for Rs. 30,000 crore. • Sagar Mala project is a strategic and customer-oriented initiative of the Government of India to modernize India's Ports so that port-led development can be augmented and coastlines can be developed to contribute in India's growth. It looks towards "transforming the existing Ports into modern world class Ports and integrate the development of the Ports, the Industrial clusters and SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY hinterland and efficient evacuation systems through road, rail, inland and coastal waterways resulting in Ports becoming the drivers of economic activity in coastal areas.

60. Ans (a) Explanation: The following product groups represent the highest dollar value in India’s import purchases during 2015. Also shown is the percentage share each product category represents in terms of overall imports into India. 1. Mineral fuels including oil: US$104.6 billion (26.8% of total imports) 2. Gems, precious metals: $59.6 billion (15.3%) 3. Electrical machinery, equipment: $35.9 billion (9.2%) 4. Machinery including computers: $32 billion (8.2%) 5. Organic chemicals: $15.9 billion (4.1%)

61. Ans (b) Explanation: • The Commission of Railway Safety, working under the administrative control of the Ministry of Civil Aviation of the Government of India, deals with matters pertaining to safety of rail travel and train operation and is charged with certain statutory functions as laid down in the Railways Act (1989), which are of an inspectorial, investigatory & advisory nature. • The Commission functions according to certain rules viz. statutory investigation into accidents rules framed under the Railways Act and executive instructions issued from time to time. • Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) coaches are the passenger compartments of Indian Railways that have been developed by Linke-Hofmann-Busch of Germany and produced by Rail Coach Factory in Kapurthala, India. They have been used since 2000 on the Indian Broad Gauge (1676 mm) network of Indian railways. They are considered to be "anti-telescopic", which means they do not get turned over or flip in case of a collision (chiefly head-on). These coaches are made of stainless steel and the interiors are made of aluminium which make them lighter as compared to conventional rakes.

62. Ans (d) Explanation: BEE • The Bureau of Energy Efficiency is an agency of the Government of India, under the Ministry of Power created in March 2002 under the provisions of the nation's 2001 Energy Conservation Act. The agency's function is to develop programs which will increase the conservation and efficient use of energy in India. The government has proposed to make it mandatory for all appliances in India to have ratings by the BEE starting in January 2010. The mission of Bureau of Energy Efficiency is to "institutionalise" energy efficiency services, enable delivery mechanisms in the country and provide leadership to energy efficiency in all sectors of the country. The primary objective would be to reduce energy intensity in the economy. • The scheme was launched by the Minister of Power in May,2006 and is currently invoked for equipments/appliances Room Air Conditioner, Ceiling Fan, Colour Television, Computer, Direct Cool Refrigerator, Distribution Transformer, Domestic Gas Stove, Frost Free Refrigerator, General Purpose Industrial Motor, Monoset Pump, Open well Submersible Pump Set, Stationary Type Water Heater, Submersible Pump Set, Ballast, Solid State Inverter, Office Automation Products, Diesel Engine Driven Monoset pumps For Agricultural Purposes, Diesel Generator Set, Led Lamps, Inverter Ac.

63. Ans (b) Explanation: Mission 41K - Ministry of Railways has come up with Mission 41k to save Rs. 41000 crore in the next decade in Railways’ energy costs.

64. Ans (a) Explanation: AIIB • The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is an international financial institution that aims to support the building of infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific region. • The bank has 50 member states (all "Founding Members") and was proposed as an initiative by the government of China. The initiative gained support from 37 regional and 20 non-regional SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY Prospective Founding Members (PFM), all of which have signed the Articles of Agreement that form the legal basis for the bank. Major economies that did not become PFM include the G7/G8 members' Japan and the United States, although Canada applied for membership on 23 September 2016 • The Authorized Capital Stock of the bank is 100 billion US Dollars, divided into 1 million shares of 100 000 dollars each. • The allocated shares are based on the size of each member country's economy (calculated using GDP Nominal (60%) and GDP PPP (40%)), whether they are an Asian or Non-Asian Member, and the number of shares determines the fraction of authorized capital in the bank

65. Ans (c) Explanation: • The total replenish able groundwater resources in the country are about 432 cubic km. Ganga and the Brahmaputra basins, have about 46 percent of the total replenish able groundwater resources. The level of groundwater utilization is relatively high in the river basins lying in north-western region and parts of south India. The groundwater utilization is very high in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Tamil Nadu. • India has a vast coastline and the coast is very indented in some states. Due to this, a number of lagoons and lakes have formed. The States like Kerala, Odisha and West Bengal have vast surface water resources in these lagoons and lakes. Although, water is generally brackish in these water- bodies, it is used for fishing and irrigating certain varieties of paddy crops, coconut, etc. • There are four major sources of surface water. These are rivers, lakes, ponds, and tanks. In the country, there are about 10,360 rivers and their tributaries longer than 1.6 km each. The mean annual flow in all the river basins in India is estimated to be 1,869 cubic km. However, due to topographical, hydrological and other constraints, only about 690 cubic km (32 per cent) of the available surface water can be utilized. Water flow in a river depends on size of its catchment area or river basin and rainfall within its catchment area.

66. Ans (b) Explanation: • The growth rate of population in India over the last one century has been caused by annual birth rate and death rate and rate of migration and thereby shows different trends. There are four distinct phases of growth identified within this period: • Phase I : The period from 1901-1921 is referred to as a period of stagnant or stationary phase of growth of India’s population, since in this period growth rate was very low, even recording a negative growth rate during 1911-1921. Both the birth rate and death rate were high keeping the rate of increase low (Appendix–iii). Poor health and medical services, illiteracy of people at large and inefficient distribution system of food and other basic necessities were largely responsible for a high birth and death rates in this period. • Phase II : The decades 1921-1951 are referred to as the period of steady population growth. An overall improvement in health and sanitation throughout the country brought down the mortality rate. At the same time better transport and communication system improved distribution system. The crude birth rate remained high in this period leading to higher growth rate than the previous phase. This is impressive at the backdrop of Great Economic Depression, 1920s and World War II. • Phase III: The decades 1951-1981 are referred to as the period of population explosion in India, which was caused by a rapid fall in the mortality rate but a high fertility rate of population in the country. The average annual growth rate was as high as 2.2 percent. It is in this period, after the Independence, that developmental activities were introduced through a centralised planning process and economy started showing up ensuring the improvement of living condition of people at large. Consequently, there was a high natural increase and higher growth rate. Besides, increased international migration bringing in Tibetans, Bangladeshis, Nepalese and even people from Pakistan contributed to the high growth rate. • Phase IV: In the post 1981 till present, the growth rate of country’s population though remained high, has started slowing down gradually).A downward trend of crude birth rate is held responsible for such a population growth. This was, in turn, affected by an increase in the mean age at marriage, improved quality of life particularly education of females in the country. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY 67. Ans (c) Explanation: West Bengal and Assam the major producers of Rice and Tea respectively

68. Ans (d) Explanation: Self Explanatory

69. Ans (c) Explanation: G77 • There were 77 founding members of the organization, but by November 2013 the organization had since expanded to 134 member countries. Ecuador holds the Chairmanship for 2017. • The group was founded on 15 June 1964, by the "Joint Declaration of the Seventy-Seven Countries" issued at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).[3] The first major meeting was in Algiers in 1967, where the Charter of Algiers was adopted and the basis for permanent institutional structures was begun. There are Chapters of the Group of 77 in Geneva (UN), Rome (FAO), Vienna (UNIDO), Paris (UNESCO), Nairobi (UNEP) and the Group of 24 in Washington, D.C. (International Monetary Fund and World Bank). • China has never officially joined the G77 but provides consistent political support (usually in the name of "the Group of 77 and/plus China") and financial donation (since 1994) to the G77. • The group has been credited with common stance against apartheid and for supporting global disarmament. It has been supportive of the New International Economic Order.

70. Ans (d) Explanation: NDRF • The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is a specialised force constituted "for the purpose of specialist response to a threatening disaster situation or disaster" under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. • National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is a force of 12 battalions, organised on para-military lines, and manned by persons on deputation from the para-military forces of India: three BSF, three CRPF, two CISF, two ITBP and two Sashastra Seema Bal. • NDRF in addition to being able to respond to natural disasters, has four battalions capable of responding to radiological, nuclear, biological and chemical disasters.

71. Ans (a) Explanation: Provision for large ‘extensive’ irrigation facilities exacerbates the severity of droughts. Irrigation has to be tailored to be water efficient supplemented with the use of information technology. Extensive irrigation leads to water-logging, exploitation of ground water and incur high costs per beneficiary.

72. Ans (b) Explanation: Koyali – Gujarat, Mathura – Uttar Pradesh, Haldia – West Bengal, Bongaigaon – Assam.

73. Ans (d) Explanation: Sustainable Tourism Characteristics of Sustainable Tourism • Sustainable Tourism tries its utmost to maintain the importance of local culture and tradition. • Sustainable Tourism is informatory, as it doesn't only let tourist know about the destinations but also it helps locals knowing about the culture and civilisation of tourists. • This kind of tourism is aimed to conserve the resources of destinations where one is visiting to • Sustainable Tourism seeks deeper involvement of locals, which provide local people an opportunity and make their living. Above all, Sustainable Tourism stresses pointedly upon integrity of the tourist places.

74. Ans (b) Explanation: Desert triangle - One of the most preferred tour options by native and foreign tourist alike is desert triangle tour. In North-western India there is admired and significant tourist circuit that gives the tourists a chance to witness the rich royal heritage and majestic culture and tradition of the SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY state of Rajasthan. The desert triangle tour covers the noteworthy places in Rajasthan that is the city of Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Bikaner.

75. Ans (d) Explanation: Adoption Regulations • Adoption Regulations, 2017 framed by ‘Central Adoption Resource Authority’ (CARA) as mandated under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 has been notified on 4th January 2017 by the Ministry of Women and Child Development and the Regulations shall be effective from 16 January 2017. The Adoption Regulations, 2017 replace the Adoption Guidelines, 2015. • The Adoption Regulations have been framed keeping in mind the issues and challenges faced by CARA and other stake holders including the Adoption Agencies & Prospective Adoptive Parents (PAPs). This will further strengthen adoption programme in the country by streamlining the adoption process. Transparency, early deinstitutionalisation of children, informed choice for the parents, ethical practices and strictly defined timelines in the adoption process are the salient aspects of the Adoption Regulations. SALIENT FEATURES OF REGULATIONS ARE 1. A fundamental principle relating to all adoptions to be registered on Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System (CARINGS) has been included to ensure that all adoptions, including in-family and relative adoptions are registered with CARA. 2. The scope of children available for adoption has been expanded to include a child of a relative and step-children. 3. The age criterion for prospective adoptive parents has been relaxed for relative/in-family adoptions and adoption by step-parents. The limit on eligibility for adoption has been reduced from 4 children to 3. 4. Therefore, couples with three or more children shall not be considered for adoption except in case of those with special needs or those hard to place as mentioned in regulations and for relative adoption and adoption by step-parents. 5. Home Study Report emphasizes the preparedness of the parents and their ability to support a child in adoption - beyond their immediate need. 6. The District Child Protection Unit (DCPU) has 3 working days to place advertisement/notification for tracing the parents/guardians in case the child is received in adoption. 7. Earlier, the same was 72 hours. Parents can indicate their preference for the state from which they wish to adopt at the time of registration itself, which will determine their waitlist in that state, for their chosen preference for the gender and age-combination of the child they wish to adopt. Parents can also indicate "All India" if they do not have any specific preference. 8. They will be automatically registered for all the specialized adoption agencies of the state or states they have opted for.

76. Ans (c) Explanation: An economy for the 99 percent • In signs of rising income inequality, India’s richest 1 per cent now hold a huge 58 per cent of the country’s total wealth — higher than the global figure of about 50 per cent. • The study, released by rights group Oxfam ahead of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting here attended by rich and powerful from across the world, showed that just 57 billionaires in India now have same wealth (USD 216 billion) as that of the bottom 70 per cent population of the country. • Globally, just 8 billionaires have the same amount of wealth as the poorest 50 per cent of the world population. • In the report titled ‘An economy for the 99 per cent’, Oxfam said it is time to build a human economy that benefits everyone, not just the privileged few. • It said that since 2015, the richest 1 per cent has owned more wealth than the rest of the planet. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY 77. Ans (a) Explanation: ASER • The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) is the largest non-governmental household survey undertaken in rural India and is facilitated by the Pratham Education Foundation. The government schools fares well in performance than that of private schools, according to the Annual Status of Education Report, ASER 2016 • According to the survey, there was no increase in private school enrollment between 2014 and 2016, however, two states show significant increases in government school enrollment relative to 2014 levels.

78. Ans (d) Explanation: Railways in Northern India The North Indian plain with its level land, high density of population and rich agriculture presents the most favourable conditions for the development of railways. However, the presence of large number of rivers makes it necessary to construct bridge which involves heavy expenditure. These are practically no railways in the flood plains of many rivers in Bihar and Assam. The plateau region of south India is not as much suitable for railways as the North Plain area.

79. Ans (b) Explanation: Major Ports of India • West and East have equal number of Major ports. • West coast have more number of Natural ports due to wider continental shelf. • West coast is coast of submergence (except Malabar Coast) while east coast is an emergent coast. These imply that sea is deeper in west coast than sea on east coast. So, west coast has favourable conditions for natural harbours. West Rivers form estuaries and eastern rivers form delta. Therefore it becomes difficult for ships to reach the east coast covered with sediments.

80. Ans (d) Explanation: Settlements in India • Linear Pattern: This is also known as ribbon or string pattern. The main street of the village runs parallel to a road, railway line or water front and most of the village shops are located on this road. Some village of fisherman along the coast have their houses where water level at high tide determines their location. Such pattern is found largely in middle and lower Ganga plain, parts of the Himalayan region, along the coasts, especially in Malabar and Konkan and north-east Indian states. • Star-like Pattern. It is a refined form of radial pattern. It develops when the space between the transport routes like roads, streets and foot-paths is occupied by houses and other buildings. The building process of the houses starts from the nodal place and spreads in all directions. However the maximum building process takes place along the transport routes and the entire village takes the shape of a star.

81. Ans (b) Explanation: The Brahmaputra—Ganga Link Canal - The Brahmaputra-Ganga Link Canal Project involves the construction of a diversion barrage at Dhubri (Lower Assam), and a 320 km long feeder canal linking the Dhubri Barrage to the Farakka Barrage. A portion of this feeder canal will lie in Bangladesh for which an international agreement between India and Bangladesh has to be signed. This canal will provide irrigation water to Bangladesh also. The canal may augment the flow of level in the Padma River (Ganga in Bangladesh) during the lean months of the year. Besides, the link canal would provide cheap inland navigation facility to both the countries. SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY 82. Ans (b) Explanation:

83. Ans (c) Explanation: Raisina Dialogue • The Raisina Dialogue is an annual conference held in , envisioned to be India's flagship conference of geopolitics and geo-economics. The conference, organized like the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, is held jointly by Ministry of External Affairs, India and the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), an independent think tank based in India. Its inaugural session was held from March 1 through 3rd in 2016. The conference name comes from Raisina Hill, the elevation in New Delhi, which is the location of both the Government of India as well as the presidential palace of India, Rashtrapati Bhavan, which inspired the design of the conference symbol. • Second edition of Raisina Dialoge was held from January 19-21, 2017, with the theme of "The New Normal: Multilateralism with Multi-Polarity".

84. Ans (d) Explanation: World economic situation and prospects This report is published at the beginning of each year by the combined efforts of • UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs. • UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). • 5 UN regional commissions. • World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).

85. Ans (b) Explanation: International Vaccine Institute (IVI) • The Union Cabinet has given its approval to the proposal for India’s taking full membership of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) Governing Council, Seoul, South Korea. • As per the new governance structure of IVI, a member State has to contribute to the IVI by paying a portion of its core budget. Since India is classified in Group-I, it has to pay an annual contribution of US $ 5,00,000. IVI is involved in all aspects of bringing a vaccine to reality: SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY • Discover new technologies to make new vaccines or improve existing ones. • Develop promising vaccine candidates for licensure and WHO prequalification by transferring the technology to manufacturers and partnering with them on clinical development. • Deliver licensed vaccines in low-income countries by generating scientific data on the need for vaccines and the impact of vaccination for decision makers. • Building capacity in vaccinology in developing countries through technical assistance and training to promote self-sufficiency and sustainability in vaccines and vaccination. • Building partnerships in Asia and globally for vaccines and global health.

86. Ans (d) Explanation: The tank irrigation is practised mainly in peninsular India due to the following reasons. 1. The undulating relief and hard rocks make it difficult to dig canals and wells. 2. There is little percolation of rain water due to hard rock structure and ground water is not available in large quantity. 3. Most of the rivers of this region are seasonal and dry up in summer season. Therefore, they cannot supply water to canals throughout the year. 4. There are several streams which become torrential during rainy season. The only way to make best use of this water is to impound it by constructing bunds and building tanks. Otherwise this water would go waste to the sea. 5. The scattered nature of population and agricultural fields also favours tank irrigation.

87. Ans (b) Explanation: ShaGun Portal • The Union HRD Minister Shri Prakash Javadekar launched a dedicated web portal ‘ShaGun’ for the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan at New Delhi. • ‘ShaGun’ aims to capture and showcase innovations and progress in Elementary Education sector of India by continuous monitoring of the flagship scheme - Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA).

88. Ans (c) Explanation: Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana • The Government launched Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PKVY), a skill development program targeted at Indian youth seeking overseas employment to make India the Skill Capital of the World. • It was launched after inauguration of 14th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas convention at India’s IT hub Bengaluru, Karnataka. • PKVY will provide training and certify Indians who are seeking overseas employment in selected sectors that have high demand in the global labour market in line with international standards. It will be implemented by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) through its training partners and in consultation with the Union Ministry of External Affairs and the Union Skill Development Ministry.

89. Ans (c) Explanation: Maternity Benefit Programme • Under the scheme, all Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers (PW&LM), excluding the PW&LM, who are in regular employment with the Government or PSUs or those who are in receipt of similar benefits under any law for the time being are eligible. • The cash incentive of Rs.6,000/- is payable in three instalments for the first two live births in three stages. • The cash transfer would be Aadhaar linked through the individual bank/post office account etc. in DBT mode.

90. Ans (d) Explanation: Breeds of Cattle Found in India • Milch Breeds. Gir, Sindhi, Red Sindhi, Sahiwal, Tharparkar and Deoni are some of the outstanding breeds of milch cattle. The Gir is a native of Saurashtra and is now found in several parts of Gujarat and adjoining Rajasthan. The Sindhi breed is maingly raised in Gujarat, Rajasthan and SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY Maharasthra although it can be raised in several other parts of the country due to its disease resistant quality. The Red Sindhi breed has a distinct red colour and hails from Sind in Pakistan. The Sahiwal breed has its origin in the Montgomery district of Pakistan and is widely raised in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. The Deoni breed is widely raised in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. • Draught Breeds. Among the important draught breeds are included the Nagori, Bauchaur, Kenkatha, Malvi, Kherigarh, Hallikar, Khillari, Amritmahal, Kangayam, Ponwar, Bargur, and Siri. The Nagari of Rajasthan, Haryana, U.P. and M.P. The Bauchaur breed is mainly found in Bihar. The Malvi is largely concentrated in the dry western parts of Madhya Pradesh. The Kenkatha or Kenwariya breed hails from Banda district of Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring areas of Madhya Pradesh. Kheri district of Uttar Pradesh is the habitat of the Kherigarh breed. The Harikar and Amritmahal breeds are indigenous to Tumkur. Hassan and Mysore distcits of Karnataka but are spread all over the Peninsular India. Solapur and Satara districts comprise the home of the Khillari breed. The Bargur and the Kangayam breeds are the natives of Coimbatore district of Tamilnadu. The Siri breed flourishes well in the hilly areas of Darjeeling and Sikkim.

91. Ans (d) Explanation: Middle East Peace summit More than 70 world diplomats are gathering in Paris to urge renewed Middle East peace talks that would lead to a Palestinian state.

92. Ans (a) Explanation: Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana • Cabinet today approved a pension scheme for senior citizens under which insurance behemoth LIC will provide a guaranteed return of 8 per cent for 10 years, as part of government's social security and financial inclusion programme. • The scheme will be implemented through Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) in the current financial year to provide social security during old age and protect elderly persons aged 60 years and above against a future fall in their interest income due to uncertain market conditions.

93. Ans (d) Explanation:

94. Ans (b) Explanation: From the census 2011, the percentage of population between the age group 0-14 stands at 29.5%.

95. Ans (a) Explanation: • A cloudburst is a sudden aggressive downpour within the radius of a couple of kilometres. Though, cloudbursts usually do not last for more than few minutes, they are capable of flooding the entire area. Rainfall from a cloudburst is usually equal to or greater than 100 mm per hour. Cloudbursts are generally associated with thunderstorms. • However, the above definition has been given by a particular school of thought. In reality, there is no specific amount of rain associated with a cloudburst, either in time or duration.

96. Ans (c) Explanation: • Social forestry means the management and protection of forests and afforestation of barren lands with the purpose of helping in the environmental, social and rural development. • The term, social forestry, was first used in India in 1976 by The National Commission on Agriculture, Government of India. It was then that India embarked upon a social forestry project with the aim of taking the pressure off currently existing forests by planting trees on all unused and fallow land.

SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY • Social forestry scheme can be categorized into groups; farm forestry, community forestry, extension forestry and agroforestry. • [Also called as Rural Forestry] Another scheme taken up under the social forestry programme, is the raising of trees on community land and not on private land as in farm forestry. All these programmes aim to provide for the entire community and not for any individual. The government has the responsibility of providing seedlings, fertilizer but the community has to take responsibility of protecting the trees. Some communities manage the plantations sensibly and in a sustainable manner so that the village continues to benefit. Some others took advantage and sold the timber for a short-term individual profit. Common land being everyone’s land is very easy to exploit. Over the last 19 years, large-scale planting of Eucalyptus, as a fast-growing exotic, has occurred in India, making it a part of the drive to reforest the subcontinent, and create an adequate supply of timber for rural communities upon the augur of ‘social forestry’.

97. Ans (b) Explanation: Low per capita income and the use of traditional techniques of ploughing (as capital intensive techniques prove profitable over a large area) are the results of decrease of per capita holding and not the causative factors.

98. Ans (a) Explanation: Shifting cultivation or slash-and-burn cultivation is a type of farming activity which involves clearing a plot of land by felling trees, burning the felled trees, mixing the ashes with soil, and then growing crops. After the soil loses its fertility, the land is abandoned and the cultivator moves on to a new plot. This type of farming is aimed at subsistence and not for profitable or efficient production.

99. Ans (d) Explanation: The four stages of demographic transition are: • High Birth rate, High death rate, Low growth rate • High Birth rate, Rapid decline in death rate (due to development of healthcare), High growth rate • Rapid decline in birth rate, continued decline in death rate, Decline in growth rate • Low Death rate, low birth rate, low growth rate

100. Ans (a) Explanation: Shifting cultivation worsens soil erosion as it indiscriminate burning of trees. Following cultivation for few years, the land is deserted exposing them to agents of erosion.