16 July 2022: Daily Current Affairs & GK Update (In Hindi & English)

16 July 2022: Daily Current Affairs & GK Update (In Hindi & English)

1.  Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities), (Second Amendment) Rules 2022 are issued and amended by which of the following government department?

a) Department of Meteorology

b) Department for promotion of Industry and internal trade

c) Department of Consumer affairs

d) Ministry of Micro, small and medium enterprises

 

Answer: c

Explanation: Metrology is the science of measurement and its application.

·         Objective of the Legal Metrology act, 2009: to establish and enforce standards of weights and measures, regulate trade and commerce in weights, measures, and other goods which are sold or distributed by weight, measure, or number, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

·         Why in News: The Department of Consumer Affairs vide the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities), (Second Amendment) Rules 2022 has allowed electronic products to declare certain mandatory declarations through the QR Code for a period of one year, if not declared in the package itself.

·         This amendment will allow the industry to declare the elaborated information in digital form through the QR Code. It will allow important declarations to be declared effective on the label in the package while the other descriptive information can be conveyed to the Consumer through the QR Code.

·         The Department to enable greater use of technology in this digital era to declare the mandatory declaration through the QR Code which can be scanned to view the declarations like address of the manufacturer or packer or importer, the common or generic name of the commodity, the size and dimension of the commodity& customer care details except the telephone number & e-mail address.

·         Earlier, all the prepackaged commodities, including the electronic products, are required to declare all the mandatory declarations as per the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities), Rules 2011 on the package.

 

2. Consider the followings statements about the Eco-sensitive zones(ESZ)

1.       These are regulated under the provisions of the Environmental protection act, 1986.

2.       Area adjacent to national Parks and Wildlife sanctuaries of at least 10km is deemed ESZ regardless of the National board of wildlife approval.

3.       There is a list of prohibited activities within the ESZ

Which of the above statements are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 1, 2 and 3

c) 1 and 3 only

d) 2 and 3 only

 

Answer: c

Explanation:  Eco Sensitive Zones (ESZ)/Eco-Sensitive Area (ESA):

·         These are ecologically important areas notified by govt.

·         Environment Protection Act, 1986, section 3(2)(v) gives authority to the central government to restrict areas in which any industries, operations or processes or class of industries, operations or processes shall not be carried out or shall be carried out subject to certain safeguards.

·         The government can prohibit industrial operations such as mining, sand quarrying and building thermal power plants in sensitive areas.

·         To categorise an area as ecologically sensitive, the government looks at topography, climate and rainfall, land use and land cover, roads and settlements, human population, biodiversity corridors and data of plants and animal species.

·         As per orders of the Supreme Court, no project can be allowed within 10 km of the boundary of national parks and sanctuaries without the approval of the National Board of Wildlife (NBWL), unless a site-specific ESZ is notified around that park or sanctuary.

·         No such notified ESZ can be less than 1km from the boundary of such protected area. Thus statement 2 is false.

·         Purpose: They would also act as transition zone (shock absorber) from areas of high protection to areas involving lesser protection.

·         Nature of Activities in ESZ: While some of the activities could be allowed in all the ESAs, others will need to be regulated/ prohibited:

·         Prohibited- commercial mining, polluting industries, major hydroelectric projects etc.

·         Restricted with safeguards (Regulated) - Felling of trees, Establishment of hotels and resorts, Drastic change of agriculture system, widening of roads, introduction of exotic species etc.

·         Permissible- Rain Water Harvesting, Organic farming, Ongoing Agricultural Practices etc.

·         Why in News: Kerala State Assembly unanimously passed a resolution urging the Central government to exclude the State’s human habitations, farmlands and public institutions from the purview of the Ecologically Sensitive Zones (ESZ), recently notified by the Supreme Court, to be set-up around all protected forests in the country.

·         A Three-judge Supreme Court Bench consisting of Justices L. Nageswara Rao, B. R. Gavai and Anirudha Bose have directed that a minimum one kilometre measured from the demarcated boundary of every protected forest, including the national parks and wildlife sanctuaries shall be marked as an ecologically sensitive zone(ESZ)

 

3. Consider the following statements

1.       Parliament can be summoned any number of time in an year, but the gap between two sessions cannot be more the six months.

2.       As a convention, Parliament has never been summoned more than thrice in a year.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) both 1 and 2

d) All of the above

 

Answer: c

Explanation:

·         The constitution empowers the president to summon each house at such intervals that there should not be more than a six-month gap between the two sessions. Hence the Parliament must meet at least twice a year. In India, the Parliament conducts three sessions each year: member committee to investigation into the charges.

§  Budget session: January/February to May

§  Monsoon session: July to August/September

§  Winter session: November to December

·         Statement 2 is false. For example, to mark roll out of Goods and Services Tax (GST), the Modi government has convened a special midnight session of Parliament on June 30, 2017. The new tax regime under the GST was rolled out on July 1, 2017.

4. Which of the following statements is true?

a) All councillors in the urban local bodies are elected by a direct election.

b) All mayors in the urban local bodies are elected by an indirect election.

c) All mayors in India have a tenure of five years.

d) All urban local bodies in India have a mayor.

 

Answer: a

Explanation:

·         There are several types of Urban Local bodies in India such as Municipal Corporation, Municipality, Notified Area council(NAC)/Nagar Panchayat, Town Area Committee, Special Purpose Agency, Township, Port Trust, Cantonment Board etc.

·         Each urban area is classified into local constituencies, for which a councillor is elected by a direct election.

·         All municipal corporations and Municipalities have mayors. But others may not have a mayor. For example, Nagar Panchayat is headed by a chairman.

·         Mayors can be generally elected for 1 year or 5 years as per the state laws and can be elected either by a direct election or by an indirect election by councillors. For example in MP there is a direct election for the Mayor, whereas in Delhi there is an indirect election and the councillors chose their Mayor.

 

 

5. Consider the following statements about the Vice-President

1.       His role as the chairman of the Rajya Sabha is similar to the role of Vice President in the United States of America.

2.       Whenever the vice president acts as a President upon the vacancy of the office of the President, such assumption of powers can be done at most for six months.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) All of the above

 

Answer: c

Explanation: Functions of Vice-President:

·         He acts as ex-officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha and has same powers as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. It is similar to the role of Vice President in the United States of America where she is the chairman of the Senate(Upper house).

·         Under Art 65(1), Vice-President acts as the President whenever the office falls vacant due to resignation, dead, removal or otherwise, for a maximum of 6 months. Within this period an election for the President is necessary.

·         The Resignation of the President is addressed to the Vice-President, which he communicates to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha.

·         Under Art 65(2),Further, when the sitting President is unable to discharge his function due to his absence(illness or a long foreign tour); The Vice-president can be

·         Under Art 64,During any period when the Vice-President acts as President or discharges the functions of the President under article 65, he shall not perform the duties of the office of Chairman of the Council of States.