Daily UPSC Prelims Current Affairs – February 4, 2023 [Mock Test]
February 18, 2023 February 18, 2023
1. Which of the following disease of basmati rice is/are caused due to deficiency of zinc?
- Bacterial leaf blight disease
- Blast disease
- Khaira disease
Choose the correct answer using the codes given below:
[A] Only 1
[B] Only 3
[C] Only 2 & 3
[D] 1, 2 & 3
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Only 3]
Notes:- Five new varieties of seeds of Basmati rice have been developed by a group of scientists led by the Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI).
- Three of the five varieties can resist two common diseases of paddy (one bacterial and one fungal). The other two varieties can save 35% of water as the method of Direct Sowing of Rice (DSR) can be used to raise them. These two seeds are resistant to herbicides too, helping the farmers control weeds more efficiently.
- Traditional varieties become susceptible to two major diseases — bacterial leaf blight (BLB) and blast (leaf and collar) diseases caused by the fungus Magnaporthe oryzae.
- Khaira Disease in basmati rice is caused due to deficiency of Zinc.
2. With respect to the beaches, kovalam, shivrajpur, padubidri, thundi, which of the following statements is correct?
[A] All the four beaches are located on the eastern coast
[B] All the four beaches are located on the western coast
[C] All the four beaches are located in the union territory Lakshadweep
[D] All the four beaches are the blue flag certified beaches
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [All the four beaches are the blue flag certified beaches]
Notes:- International eco-label “Blue Flag”, has been accorded to two new beaches – Minicoy Thundi Beach and Kadmat Beach- both in Lakshadweep. This takes the number of beaches certified under the Blue Flag certification to twelve (12).
- The other Indian beaches in the blue list are Shivrajpur-Gujarat, Ghoghla-Diu, Kasarkod and Padubidri-Karnataka, Kappad-Kerala, Rushikonda- Andhra Pradesh, Golden-Odisha, Radhanagar- Andaman and Nicobar, Kovalam in Tamil Nadu and Eden in Puducherry beaches.
3. Which of the following terms best explains, ‘a system of agricultural management that helps the land store more carbon and reduce the amount of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) that it releases into the atmosphere’?
[A] Carbon credit
[B] Carbon footprint
[C] Carbon farming
[D] Carbon hybridization
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Carbon farming]
Notes:- Carbon farming (also known as carbon sequestration) is a system of agricultural management that helps the land store more carbon and reduce the amount of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) that it releases into the atmosphere.
- It involves practices that are known to improve the rate at which CO2is removed from the atmosphere and converted to plant material and soil organic matter.
- Carbon farming is successful when carbon gains resulting from enhanced land management or conservation practices exceed carbon losses.
