Question : Which one of the following pairs of countries are in news recently due to the ‘Hermit’ spyware targets?
Iran and UAE
Germany and Sweden
Japan and South Korea
Italy and Kazakhstan

Hermit, a sophisticated spyware, is believed to have targeted iPhone and Android devices in Italy and Kazakhstan. Hermit’s deployment – the spyware has been developed by an Italian vendor called RCS Lab – was first reported by cyber security researchers at the Lookout, a San-Francisco-based cybersecurity firm.
Hermit is a spyware on the lines of Pegasus by NSO Group. Once installed on a device, it can record audio on the device, carry out unauthorised calls, and carry out many unauthorised activities. Once Hermit has been deployed to a phone, it can control and track data from all key applications.

Source: Indian Express

Question : With reference to the intellectual property right, which of the following items has/have geographical indication tag in India?

1. Gulabi Meenakari
2. Chunar Glaze Pottery
3. Kashmiri Hand Knotted Carpet

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
1 only
2 and 3 only
1 and 3 only
1, 2 and 3

During the G7 meet in Germany, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted a gulabi meenakari brooch and cufflink set to US President Joe Biden.  Gulabi Meenakari is a GI tagged art form of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. A piece of pure silver is moulded into a base form, and the chosen design is embossed in the metal.
Gulabi Minakari is one of the rarest crafts in India that is practiced in the by lanes of Varanasi, near Gai Ghat. Minakari is an art form from Persia and involves colouring the surface of metals by fusing different colours. This art was brought to the city of Varanasi by Persian enamellists during the Mughal era around the early 17th century. It has a GI tag.
Chunar Glaze Pottery has a GI tag. It is associated with Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh.
Kashmiri Hand Knotted Carpet: The origin of hand knotted carpets locally known as "Kal baffi" dates back to 15th century after which it progressively attained the high degree of perfection. It is said that Sultan Zain-ul-Abidin brought carpet weavers from Persia and central Asia into Kashmir to train the local inhabitants. It has a GI tag. At, recent G7 meeting, a handmade knotted silk carpet from Kashmir was gifted to Canadian PM Justin Trudeau by the Prime Minister of India.

Source:
Indian Express
GI Tag 

Question : An increase in interest rates paid on small savings schemes indicates which of the following?

1. reduction in the government’s reliance on market borrowings
2. greater inflows into the National Small Savings Fund (NSSF)

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

• Economists expect the Centre to raise the interest rates paid on small savings schemes for the July to September 2022 quarter, with the yields on 10-year government securities hitting a four-year high of 7.6% earlier this month.
• Raising rates on small savings could also help the government reduce its reliance on market borrowings this year. This will also encourage greater inflows into the National Small Savings Fund (NSSF), which can then be tapped more aggressively for partially funding the fiscal deficit while proportionately reducing the Centre’s record market borrowing plan for FY23.
• The interest rates on small savings schemes are reviewed every quarter by the government. The formula to arrive at the interest rates for small savings scheme was given by the Shyamala Gopinath Committee. The committee had suggested that the interest rates of different schemes should be 25-100 bps higher than the yields of the government bonds of similar maturity.

Source: The Hindu

Question : 'CHAMPIONS Portal’ has been launched for:

helping and promoting the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
eradicating child labour to achieve the target of child labour free society.
promoting financial inclusion in the country.
providing necessary information that is related to India’s foreign trade.

• The World MSME Day, observed annually on June 27 since 2017, serves as a reminder to governments to create a business climate in which small companies also have an opportunity to thrive.
• The Union Ministry of MSME has launched CHAMPIONS portal in 2020. It is a Technology driven Control Room-Cum-Management Information System.  The system utilising modern ICT tools is aimed at assisting Indian MSMEs march into the big league as National and Global CHAMPIONS. The CHAMPIONS stands here for Creation and Harmonious Application of Modern Processes for Increasing the Output and National Strength. Accordingly, the name of the system is CHAMPIONS.
• Three basic objectives of the CHAMPIONS:
  •  To help the MSMEs in this difficult situation in terms of finance, raw materials, labour, permissions, etc.
  •  To help the MSMEs capture new opportunities in manufacturing and services sectors.
  •  To identify the sparks, i.e., the bright MSMEs who can withstand at present and become national and international champions.

Question :



1, 2, 3 and 4

Nohkalikai Falls 

• East Khasi Hills district, Meghalaya 
• 340 meters (1115 feet)

Kunchikal Falls 

• Shimoga district, Karnataka 
• 455 meters (1,493 ft)

Barehipani Falls 

• Mayurbhanj district, Odisha 
• 399 meters (1,309 ft)

Dudhsagar Falls

• Karnataka and Goa
• 310 meters (1017 feet)

Only first and third pair is correctly matched. So, option B is correct.

Question : Consider the following statements regarding one of the most solemn occasions in the Parliamentary calendar - the President’s Address 

1. In India, the practice of the President addressing Parliament can be traced back to the Government of India Act of 1919.
2. When the Constitution came into force, the President was required to address each session of Parliament. 
3. Article 87 of the constitution provides two instances when the President specially addresses both Houses of Parliament.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
1 and 2 only
3 only
1 and 3 only
1, 2 and 3

• In India, the practice of the President addressing Parliament can be traced back to the Government of India Act of 1919.
• This law gave the Governor-General the right of addressing the Legislative Assembly and the Council of State. The law did not have a provision for a joint address, but the Governor-General did address the Assembly and the Council together on multiple occasions. There was no address by him to the Constituent Assembly (Legislative) from 1947 to 1950. 
• Hence, 1st Statement is correct.
• When the Constitution came into force, the President was required to address each session of Parliament. So, during the provisional Parliament in 1950, President Prasad gave an address before every session. 
• The First Amendment to the Constitution in 1951 changed this position and made the President’s address once a year.
• Hence, 2nd Statement is correct.
• Article 87 provides two special occasions on which the President addresses a joint sitting. 
• The first is to address the opening session of a new legislature after a general election. The second is to address the first sitting of Parliament each year. 
• A session of a new or continuing legislature cannot begin without fulfilling this requirement. 
• Hence, 3rd Statement is correct.

Question :

1. It flows through Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi districts of the Tamil Nadu state of southern India into the Gulf of Mannar.
2. It is the shortest river in the state; From the source to sea, the river is about 128 kilometres long and is the only perennial river in Tamil Nadu.
3. This river flows towards north direction initially. However, it changes to east direction later.

Suruli River
Noyil River
Thamirabarani River
Vaigai River

• Suruli River: This originates from the Suruli Waterfall, which is among the major tourist attractions in the Theni district.
• Noyil River: This tributary of Kaveri flows through Dharapuram taluk and Palladam taluk in Erode district and Coimbatore district respectively.
• Thamirabarani River: The shortest river in the state of Tamil Nadu, the Thamirabarani starts in Pothigai hills of the Western Ghats in the Ambasamudram taluk, flows through Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi districts and empties at Korkai (Tirunelveli district) into the Gulf of Mannar (Bay of Bengal).
• Vaigai River: While flowing towards the Palk Strait, it changes its course towards the south east near Sholavandan and passes through the town of Madurai.

Correct Answer - C  

Question :

1. To secure opportunities for healthy development of children.
2. To protect and improve the environment and to safeguard forests and wild life 
3. Equal pay for equal work for men and women.
4. To promote equal justice and to provide free legal aid to poor.

1, 2 and 3 only
1, 2 and 4 only
1, 2, 3 and 4

​Statement 1 is correct: 

• As it was added to the Article 39 of DPSP's through the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976.

Statement 2 is correct: 

• As it was added to th6e Article 48 A of DPSP's through the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976.

Statement 3 is not correct: 

• As it was a part of Article 39 of the original Constitution.

Statement 4 is correct: 

• As it was added to the Constitution through the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976, thus putting a new Article 39A.

Question :
Recognized Transgender people as a third gender 

Entry of Women in Temple and Mosques

Reservation in Local Self Government

• The five-judge Constitution Bench decision in K. Krishnamurthy (Dr.) v. Union of India (2010) wherein the Supreme Court had interpreted Article 243D (6) and Article 243T (6), which permit reservation by enactment of law for backward classes in panchayat and municipal bodies respectively, to hold that barriers to political participation are not the same as that of the barriers that limit access to education and employment.
• However, for creating a level playing field, reservation may be desirable as mandated by the aforementioned Articles which provide a separate constitutional basis for reservation, as distinct from what are conceived under Article 15 (4) and Article 16 (4) which form the basis for reservation in education and employment.
• Though reservation to local bodies is permissible, the top court declared that the same is subject to empirical finding of backwardness in relation to local bodies as fulfilled through the three tests.
• This is famously referred as ‘Triplet Test’.

Question :

1. Rights are necessary for the sustenance of a democracy.
2. Rights protect minorities from the oppression of the majority.
3. Rights are reasonable claims of persons recognised by society.

1 and 2 only
2 and 3 only
1, 2 and 3
1 and 3 only

• Rights are necessary for the very sustenance of a democracy. In a democracy every citizen has to have the right to vote and the right to be elected to government. For democratic elections to take place, it is necessary that citizens should have the right to express their opinion, form political parties and take part in political activities. 
• Statement 1 is correct:
• Rights protect minorities from the oppression of majority. They ensure that the majority cannot do whatever it likes. Rights are guarantees which can be used when things go wrong. Things may go wrong when some citizens may wish to take away the rights of others. This usually happens when those in majority want to dominate those in the minority. The government should protect the citizens‘ rights in such a situation. But sometimes elected governments may not protect or may even attack the rights of their own citizens. That is why some rights need to be placed higher than the government, so that the government cannot violate them. In most democracies the basic rights of the citizen are written down in the constitution. 
• Statement 2 is correct:
• Right has to be recognised by the society we live in. Rights acquire meaning only in society. Every society makes certain rules to regulate our conduct. They tell us what is right and what is wrong. What is recognised by the society as rightful becomes the basis of rights. That is why the notion of rights changes from time to time and society to society. Two hundred years ago anyone who said that women should have the right to vote would have sounded strange. Today not granting them vote in Saudi Arabia appears strange.
• Statement 3 is correct:
• Thus, Option C is correct.