Greetings, aspirants. Hope you are all doing good. I welcome you all to another video of the series Shankar summary. Now in this video I am going to discuss some important current affairs related topics in the MCQ format from the month of January 2023. Do watch the entire video and this would be very helpful for your upcoming problems. And I have exciting announcement for you as per your request. We are resuming the Hindu Daily News analysis from May 15th. And a kind request to you all those who haven't yet subscribed our YouTube channel do subscribe and hit the bell icon button so that you will get regular notifications about our future videos. Now let's get into our first question discussion. Now let's take the first question. Each of the following reports are published by the International Monetary Fund that is IMF. First one Global Financial Stability Report. Second one World Employment and Social Outlook. Third one World Economic Outlook. Fourth one Global Financial System Report. Fifth one International Finance Statistics. Here Global Financial Stability Report. Then World Economic Outlook and International Finance Statistics are published by the International Monetary Fund. I know that the World Employment and Social Outlook is published by the International Labour Organization and Global Financial System Report is published by the Bank for International Settlements that is in short called BIS. So here the current answer is option C 1, 3 and 5 only. Now let us learn some points about the International Monetary Fund. See the International Monetary Fund which is shortly called as IMF was established in 1944 at the Britain Woods Conference. However it came into operation on 27 December 1945. Know that the IMF was established along with International Bank for Reconstruction and Development which is in short called as IBRD. Know that IBRD is the Lending Arm of World Bank Group. Coming back to IMF, the IMF presently has 190 members and its headquarters is located in Washington DC, USA. Okay now talking about the objectives of IMF. The primary objective of the IMF is to ensure the stability of International Monetary System. Apart from this IMF also aims to accomplish different goals like reducing global poverty, then encouraging international trade and finally they also strive to promote financial stability and economic growth. This is all about objectives of IMF. Now we will see about the special drawing rights of International Monetary Fund. See the special drawing rights that is the SDR is a Supplementary International Reserve asset. It was created by the IMF in 1969. The main motive for the creation of SDR is that it is to supplement the official reserves of the member countries. This means that SDRs can be exchanged for the currencies of member nations in case of financial crisis in their domestic market. A note one point here the SDR is neither a currency nor a climb on the IMF. As I said earlier SDR only represents a claim to the currency held by IMF member countries and SDRs can be exchanged for the currencies of member nations in case of financial crisis. A note that the value of the SDR is based on a basket of five currencies and these five currencies include the US dollar, the euro, the Chinese renminbi, the Japanese inn and the British pound sterling. Okay that's all regarding this discussion with this information let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here this is a pair based question on one side defense product name is given and on the other side the product description is given. We have to find the correct pairs. First pair KA31 military helicopter. Second pair K9 Vajra self propelled Howitzer. Pair 3 Visharad manned portable air defense system. Pair 4 K6 submarine launched ICBM. See here all the four pairs are correctly matched so the correct answer is option D. Okay now as a part of this discussion let us see briefly about the products given here. Now first let's take KA31. See KA31 or Kamo KA31 is a military helicopter. This helicopter was originally developed by the Soviet Union and right now the helicopter is used by the Russian, Chinese and Indian military. This military helicopter made news because in May 2022 India suspended all negotiations with Russia regarding any further purchase of KA31. Now moving on to K9 Vajra. See K9 Vajra is the Indian Army's new self-propelled Howitzer. K9 Vajra is jointly developed by Larsen and Tarbo and South Korean defense manufacturer Hanha Defense. These K9 Vajras are optimized for desert operations. I know that the crew of K9 contains five members that is a commander, a driver, a gunner and two loaders. Recently K9 Vajra was in news as India was planning to deploy them along the line of actual control. Now moving on to Visharad. See Visharad expands as very short-range air defense system. See it is a manned portable air defense system designed and developed indigenously by DRDO's Research Centre Imarat which is located in Hyderabad. Here manned portable air defense system are essentially surface-to-air missiles that help in ensuring air defense. These manned portable air defense systems are lightweight and short-ranges. This makes them easy to carry and used by individuals and small groups. They are mainly used against aircrafts and helicopters. Recently the Ukrainians relied heavily on manned portable air defense systems to counter Russian air assault. Now lastly let's see about K6. See K6 is a three-stage solid-fueled intercontinental submarine launched ballistic missile. This is under development by Defense Research and Development Organization that is DRDO. The missile has a planned range of around 10,000 to 13,000 kilometers. Now that's all regarding this discussion. Now with this information let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about Vibrant villages program. Here we have to find the correct statements. Now before answering the question let us learn some points about Vibrant villages program. See the Vibrant villages program has been announced in the union budget 2020 to 2023. This program aims to strengthen infrastructure in border villages which are located along India's border with China. That is the border villages of the states like Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Kand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh and it also includes the union territory of Ladakh. See the Vibrant villages program basically aims to transform India's border villages that are located along India's border with China. The development in these villages will help prevent migration which in turn boost security along the India's border areas with China. Know that Vibrant villages program is a centrally sponsored scheme. This means that the funds are shared between the center and the states. Now talking about the activities that are being carried out as a part of Vibrant villages program. See the primary activities under the project will focus on enhancing the village infrastructure then establishing proper housing and developing tourist centers. In addition to all these the Vibrant villages program aims to boost road connectivity. Apart from this Vibrant villages program aims to generate skills for livelihood opportunities in border villages and it is being done by providing direct to Homeses to Durdarshan and other educational television channels. In addition to this the Vibrant villages program also includes provisions to ensure decentralized renewable energy in such border villages and finally the Vibrant villages program aims to merge the existing border development schemes with its own and there are also provisions for additional funding for the development schemes. See these activities are critical in order to protect the country's sovereignty and to avoid any potential conflict with its neighbors. Now with this information let's approach the question. With reference to Vibrant villages program consider the following statements. Now look at this first statement it aims to strengthen infrastructure in border villages along India's border with China. See this statement is correct it is the foremost objective of the Vibrant villages program. So statement only is correct. Now coming to the second statement it is a central sector scheme where the funds are totally provided by the central government. See this statement is incorrect this is because the Vibrant villages program is a centrally sponsored scheme and the funds are shared between the center and the states. So statement 2 is incorrect. Now coming to the third statement it aims to generate skills for livelihood opportunities in selected border villages of India by providing direct to homes for Durdarshan and educational television channels. See this statement is correct as we saw it is one of the activities that are going to be carried out as a part of Vibrant villages program. So statement 3 is correct. Here the question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer is option C 1 and 3 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here this question is about the line of actual control that is the LAC here we have to find the correct statements about LAC. Now before answering the question let us learn some points about the line of actual control. See the line of actual control is the line which is related to India China border. Know that India shares 3488 kilometer of border with China. The border runs along the states of Himachal Pradesh Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. And it also includes the union territory of Ladakh. But the problem here is that this border is not fully demarcated. When the border is not fully demarcated this will create issues right. Similarly both India and China perceived their own demarcation and stated it as the boundary. This boundary is what they call as the line of actual control. So the line of actual control is between India and China and there is no common perception of the entire LAC. And the LAC is not a commonly delineated border. Therefore we can say that the LAC separates Indian controlled territory from Chinese controlled territory. As I said India's five states and union territory shares border with China. So there are many controlled territories along such states and the union territory. Because of this the bordering areas are divided into three sectors such as eastern, middle and the western sectors. Now first let's see about eastern sector. See the eastern sector is comprised of Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim. India says that the McMohen Line is the line of actual control in eastern sector. And know that the McMohen Line was an outcome of a tripartite treaty arrangement called the Shimla Convention. The agreement was concluded in 1914 between Britain, Tibet and China. This agreement delineated the boundaries between British Indian Empire and Tibet along its entire west-east frontier. Here the issues with respect to Article 2 of the Shimla Convention. The article 2 had given a conditional recognition to China. Article 2 clearly stated that Tibet will not be annexed and converted into a Chinese province. So you can understand that obviously China will be against this condition and hence it was against the McMohen Line. OK, so because of this Chinese side claims the part or whole of Arunachal Pradesh as their territory. OK, so this is all about eastern sector. Now coming to the middle sector, see the middle sector is comprised of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. Here also there is ongoing issues between India and China. And finally the western sector. It includes the Ladakh region as we see in the news in Ladakh region. There is frequent issues happening between India and China. Since there is no clear demarcation of LAC, India and China have their own claim. India considers the LAC to be 3488 km long. But the Chinese side considered it to be only around 2000 km. OK, now with this information let's approach the question. Consider the following statements about the line of actual control. Look at this first statement. The LAC is a fully demarcated border between India and China and it was accepted by both the countries. See this statement is incorrect. LAC is not a fully demarcated border. It is just the line that separates Indian control territory from Chinese control territory and the LAC was not officially accepted by India and China. So statement one is incorrect. Now coming to the second statement. The Radcliffe line is the LAC in the eastern sector which comprised of Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim. See this statement is also incorrect. The Mekmohan line is the LAC in case of eastern sector and not Radcliffe line. And know that the Radcliffe line is the boundary demarcation line between India and Pakistan. And know that there is also another line called Durand line. This line is the boundary demarcation line between India and Afghanistan. OK, so statement two is incorrect. So the correct answer is option D neither one nor two. Now let's move on to the next question. See recently there was news about the discovery of three new exotic hadrons at the large Hadron Collider. So our next question is based on this context only. Before we approach this question, let us first understand what a Hadron is. See Hadron is a subatomic particle and it is made up of elementary particles called quarks. See the quarks in the Hadron are bound together by a glue on. Know that a normal Hadron is made up of two or three quarks. The first known Hadrons were protons and neutrons. Here a proton consists of two up quarks and a down quark. And a neutron consists of two down quarks and then up quark. OK, now coming to exotic Hadrons. See when a Hadron is made up of four or more quarks, then they are called exotic Hadrons. See recently the large Hadron Collider, which is a particle accelerator located in Switzerland, has discovered three new exotic Hadrons.  See this is not the first time the exotic Hadrons are detected. For the past 20 years, various particle accelerators have been discovering different exotic Hadrons. The discovery of the exotic Hadrons will help physicists to understand how the gluons hold the quarks together inside a Hadron. OK, now coming to the question. Recently there was news about the discovery of three exotic Hadrons at the large Hadron Collider. In this context, consider the following statements. Now look at this first statement. The exotic matter discovered where a new kind of pentak quark and the first-ever pair of tetra quarks. As we saw this statement is correct. The large Hadron Collider discovered three new exotic Hadrons, which include a pentak quark and a pair of tetra quark. So statement one is correct. Now coming to the second statement, although these exotic Hadrons were predicted by theorists long time back, this is the first time they were detected. See this statement is incorrect because this is not the first time that the exotic Hadrons are detected by particle accelerators. And for the past 20 years, different exotic Hadrons were discovered by various particle accelerators. So statement two is incorrect. Now coming to the third statement, the discovery of the exotic Hadrons will help physicists better understand how quarks bind together into composite particles. See this statement is correct. As we saw the discovery of exotic Hadrons will help us to understand how the gluons hold quarks together inside a Hadron. So statement three is correct. So the correct answer for the question is option C1 and 3 only. Now before concluding this discussion, let us learn some points about particle accelerators. See the particle accelerators accelerate elementary particles such as electrons or protons to very high energies. The particle accelerators use electromagnetic fields to accelerate and steer particles. The acceleration is close to the speed of light. Through this acceleration, the particle accelerators produce beams of charged particles. And then these charged particles are smashed either onto a target or against other particles. See the data from these collisions can be used for a variety of research purposes. And know that when the accelerators generate head-on collisions between particles, then the accelerator is named as collider. Also know that there are two basic types of particle accelerators. They are linear accelerators and circular accelerators. Linear accelerators propel particles along a linear or straight beam line. On the other hand, circular accelerators propel particles around a circular track. Okay, now coming to large head-on collider. See the large head-on collider is a circular particle accelerator. As the name suggests, it is a collider. And know that large head-on collider is the largest and most powerful collider in the world. And also the most powerful accelerator in the world. Okay, now where is this large head-on collider kept? See the large head-on collider is situated at the European Center for Nuclear Research. That is the CERN in Switzerland. Large head-on collider consists of a 27 kilometer ring of superconducting magnets and many accelerating structures to boost the energy of the particles along the way. Now what are all the particles the large head-on collider accelerates? Here the name itself says right, that is the head-ons. See the large head-on collider accelerates and collides the head-ons such as protons and also heavy lead ions. Okay, so these are some of the important points about particle accelerators and large head-on collider. Now let's move on to the next question. See our next question is about three parent babies. Here three statements are given and we have to find the correct statements. First of all, know that the three parent babies are created using mitochondrial replacement therapy, which is shortly called as MRT. So before answering the question, let us learn some points about the MRT technique. See in order to understand how MRT works, it is important to understand the characteristics of mitochondria. See over 19% of our DNA is found in the cells nucleus and this is called nuclear DNA. But a small amount of DNA is also contained in mitochondria and this is called mitochondrial DNA. This mitochondrial DNA contains a small number of genes that contains information necessary for mitochondria to function. So if there are errors or mutations in these mitochondrial DNA, then it can lead to mitochondrial disease. See the nuclear DNA to the child comes from both mother's egg and father's sperm. But the mitochondrial DNA is largely passed on to the child from the mother via her egg. So if a woman has dysfunctional mitochondria in her eggs, she will pass on this disease causing mitochondria to all of her children. Here the severity of the resulting disease in a child will vary depending on how many healthy versus deceased mitochondria are in the mother's egg. Okay, now coming back to mitochondrial replacement therapy. See mitochondrial replacement therapy is an in vitro fertilization technique that is designed to prevent a mother from passing down mutated mitochondrial DNA to a child. Here in vitro fertilization that is IVF is a type of assisted reproductive technology. In this type the sperm and an egg are fertilized outside of the human body. Okay, see there are two processes by which MRT can be performed. They are maternal spindle fiber transfer and pro nuclear transfer. See both these processes use a donor egg which has normal mitochondrial DNA. Now we will see both the processes one by one. Now first let's take maternal spindle transfer. See in this process the nucleus is removed from the donor egg. Then the mother's nuclear DNA is removed from the egg cell and then the nucleus in the donor egg is replaced with the mother's nuclear DNA. So the egg is now free of defective mitochondrial DNA and the egg carries the healthy mitochondrial DNA from the donor. After that the combined egg is fertilized and then the embryo is implanted into the mother's womb. See this technique will prevent the passage of defect mitochondrial DNA to a child and this will prevent disease in the child. A note on fact here maternal spindle transfer process is done before the fertilization. And this is all about maternal spindle transfer. Now we will see about pro nuclear transfer. See the pro nuclear transfer is the process that is essentially the same as maternal spindle transfer. But in pro nuclear transfer method the donor's egg nucleus is replaced with the nucleus of mother's fertilized egg. Here the mother's egg is fertilized by the father's sperm. The fertilized egg is also known as Psycote. This pro nuclear transfer method the Psycote of the mother is removed from mother's egg and placed in eneculated donor's egg. And then it is placed into mother's womb. Okay. See this pro nuclear transfer method will prevent the passage of mother's defective mitochondrial DNA to a child. And this also prevent the disease. And this is all about mitochondrial replacement therapy. Now let's take the question. In the context of 3 parent babies which recently made news consider the following statements. Look at this first statement. 3 parent babies carry genetic information from 3 different people. That is the nuclear DNA of the father, the nuclear DNA of the donor and the mitochondrial DNA of the mother. See this statement is incorrect because 3 parent babies carry genetic information from 3 different people. But the thing is that the babies have the nuclear DNA from both mother and father. And the mitochondrial DNA from the donor. So statement 1 is incorrect. Now coming to the second statement. Mito-gondal replacement therapy is used to create 3 parent babies. As you saw in the discussion. MRD technique is used to create 3 parent babies. So statement 2 is correct. Now coming to the third statement. UK and Australia are the only countries that have legalized 3 parent babies. See this statement is also correct. The UK become the first country to legalize 3 parent babies. And it was followed by Australia. And as of now these 2 are the only countries to legalize 3 parent babies. So statement 3 is correct. Here the question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer is option B 213 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about Jainism. We all know UPS's favorite topic is Jainism and Buddhism. Every year UPS is asking questions about Buddhism and Jainism. See in the year 2012 the question about the similar principles of Buddhism and Jainism was asked by the UPSC. So I have framed this question about the principles of Jainism. Also in last January a protest happened against the Jarkand government's decision to promote Parasnath Parvath as part of ecotourism. Know that the Parasnath Parvath is a religious place of Jains. The protest was happened because the Jains feel that Jarkand government's decision could change the demographic from a place of pilgrimage to a religious tourist destination. And this is the news. So UPSC might ask a question about Jainism this year and that's why we framed this question. Now let's try to solve the question. Consider following statements about Jainism. Now look at this first statement. Jainism believes in the concept of free birth. See this statement is correct. Jainism defines Nirvana as a state of moksha. Here moksha means that a being losses its identity and it is free from the cycle of birth and death. From this we can infer that the Jainism believes in rebirth. So statement one is correct. Now coming to second statement according to Jainism liberation can be achieved by releasing four noble truths. Jainism says that the path of liberation is to follow right perception, right knowledge and right conduct. It's are called as three jewels of Jainism. See in Buddhism only the path of liberation is achieved through eightfold path, four noble truths, five perceptions and other moral conducts. So second statement is incorrect. Now coming to the third statement, Jainism do not believe in the existence of soul. See this statement is also incorrect because in Jainism the Nirvana is an escape from the body and not from existence. This means that after Nirvana the soul continues to remain as an individual soul but in the highest state of purity and enlightenment. In Buddhism only Nirvana is used to refer the extinction of desire, hatred and ignorance and ultimately suffering and rebirth. So Buddhism believes that after Nirvana there is no soul but the individuality of an individual passes into nothingness which is beyond any description and speculation. So we can say that Buddhism only does not believe in the existence of soul whereas Jainism believes in the existence of soul. So option 3 is incorrect. The question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer is option B1 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question here is about domestic systematically important banks. See any information regarding banks is very important and it comes to UPSC problems. Now see this question here. This question was asked in 2019. This question is about the Intercreditor Agreement signed by Indian Banks and financial institutions. See in 2019 it might have been in the news. So UPSC asked about Intercreditor Agreement. Now I have framed this question for the same reason only. In January domestic systematically important banks also appeared in news. So there is a chance that UPSC might ask about domestic systematically important banks this year. Now let's solve the question. Consider the following statements about domestic systematically important banks which is shortly called as DSIBs. Now coming to the first statement international monetary fund discloses the name of banks in every country as domestic systematically important banks every year since 2009 to maintain additional liquidity. See this statement is incorrect because the Reserve Bank of India recognizes banks in the country as DSIBs through a framework and this framework is called domestic systematically important banks framework. DSIB framework was forced introduced by RBI in the year 2014. The DSIB framework requires the Reserve Bank to disclose the names of banks designated as DSIBs at the start of each year. It is being done to place these banks in appropriate buckets depending upon their systemic importance course. Based on the bucket in which a DSIB is placed an additional common equity requirement has to be applied to it. So it is not the IMF that designates DSIBs and they are designated by Reserve Bank of India. Now you should know why such practice was started. See during the 2007 global financial crisis it was observed that problems faced by certain large and highly interconnected financial institutions hampered the orderly functioning of the financial system. This in turn negatively impacted the real economy. Due to this government's intervention was considered necessary in many jurisdictions around the world to ensure financial stability and this is why the practice of identifying systematically important banks started and know that a systematically important bank is a bank whose failure might trigger a financial crisis and they are also referred as banks which are way too big to fail. According to this principle only India started identifying domestic systematically important banks. Once again the statement one is incorrect. This is because the domestic systematically important banks are designated by RBI and not International Monetary Fund. Now coming to the second statement in India as of now only three banks are designated as domestic systematically important banks. See this statement is correct. In India RBI designated the state bank of India then the ICIC and HDFC as domestic systematically important banks. So as of now only three banks are designated as DSIBs. So statement two is correct. Here the question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer is option B2 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about deal limitation. I have affirmed this question because in January deal limitation exercise was carried out in Assam. So UPSC might ask question about deal limitation this year. Now see this question here. Already a question about deal limitation commission was asked in 2012 UPSC films. So we have to be prepared right. Now let's solve the question. Consider the following statements. Now because it's first statement the word deal limitation is not mentioned in the Indian Constitution. See this statement is incorrect because the word deal limitation is mentioned many a times in Indian Constitution. It is mentioned in article 243, 327, 329, 371, 6th schedule and 7th schedule. So statement one is incorrect. Now come to the second statement. Parliament re-adjusts the territorial constituencies for Lokshab elections and the state legislative assemblies re-adjusts the territorial constituencies for assembly elections. See this statement is also incorrect. Basically deal limitation is the process of redrawing boundaries of Lokshaban state assembly constituencies based on a recent census. If we take re-adjustment of Lokshaba, the article 82 speaks about deal limitation of Lokshaba seats. It says that parliament is empowered to re-adjust the allocation of seats in the Lokshaba and the division of each state into territorial constituencies after every census. And this is done by enacting a deal limitation act after every census. Then after the commencement of deal limitation act, the central government constitutes a deal limitation commission. And this commission will demarcate the boundaries of the parliamentary constituencies as per the provisions of the deal limitation act. Okay, this is all about deal limitation for Lokshab elections. Now coming to re-adjustment of state legislative assemblies, see the article 170 speaks about the deal limitation of state legislative assembly seats. Article 170 says that the parliament is empowered to re-adjust the total number of seats in the legislative assembly of each state and the division of each state into territorial constituencies after every census. So we can say that both the deal limitation exercise are performed by the deal limitation commission constituted by parliament based on the deal limitation act. Also know that central government has set up the deal limitation commissions in 1952-1962-1972 and 2002 under the respective deal limitation commission acts for re-adjustment of Lokshaba seats. Okay, once again the second statement is incorrect. Here the question is asking for correct statements. Since both statements are incorrect, the correct answer is option D neither one nor two. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about the areas covered under the Nilgiri Biospera serve. Know that in the Nilgiri Biospera serve consists of Bandipur National Park, the Silent Valley National Park, Nagarhola National Park, Mudumalli Wildlife Sanctuary, Wirednought Wildlife Sanctuary and Mukkorti National Park. So from the given areas, Periyar National Park and Kudurimukku National Park are auto notes. So the correct answer is option B one two and five only. See, we have framed this question because the Silent Valley National Park was in use as the bird survey was conducted in Silent Valley National Park in the month of January. So in this discussion, we will learn about Silent Valley National Park. See, Silent Valley National Park is situated in Palaka District of Kerala and it was established as a national park in the year 1984. Silent Valley National Park is considered to be the core of the Nilgiri Biospera and know that the river Kundi feeds the forests of Silent Valley National Park. The Silent Valley National Park is also known as Sai Randhri Vanam. Now we will look at the climatic conditions of Silent Valley National Park. See, the climate prevalent in the Silent Valley National Park is tropical climate. In the park, the summer rains constitute a large part of precipitation that the National Park receives. The annual average rainfall is about 2007 to 4543 millimeter. Okay, now we will move on to see about the flora and fauna in Silent Valley National Park. First of all, know that the Silent Valley National Park is virtually regarded as the botanists and zoologists treasure. This is because there are a variety of flora and fauna available in the park. Now, the flora of the valley includes about a thousand species of flowering plants, 107 species of orchids, 100 ferns and fernalize, 200 liver votes, 75 lichens and about 200 algae. Know that teak, amla, seamal, rosewood and bamboo are some of the floral species found in the Silent Valley National Park. Now, coming to fauna, the Silent Valley National Park is rich in fauna diversity and it consists of 34 species of mammals, 292 species of birds, 31 species of reptiles, 22 species of amphibians, 13 species of fishes, 500 species of butterflies and moats. Some of the important endemic species of Silent Valley include line-tailed maca, nilgiri wood peegean, nilgiri laughing thrush, vyanard laughing thrush, grey-headed bull bull and blue-winged parakeet, etc. Okay, and that's all about Silent Valley National Park. Now, with this information, let's move on to the next question. Now, look at this question here. This is a two-statement question about G4 countries. Now, before solving this question, let us learn some basic information about G4 countries. First of all, note that G4 countries consists of Brazil, Germany, Japan and India. The G4 countries are aspiring to become permanent members of the UN Security Council. So, the main objective of this grouping is to bring reforms in the United Nations as a whole to make it more representative and inclusive. Okay, now with this knowledge, let's solve the question. Consider the following statements regarding the G4 countries. Now, coming to the first statement, G4 countries consists of India, Germany, Brazil and Japan. See, this statement is correct. As we saw, G4 countries consist of these four countries. So, statement is correct. Now, coming to the second statement, the objective of G4 countries is to bring reforms in the UN Security Council. See, this statement is also correct. As we saw, the main objective of G4 grouping is to bring reforms in the UN Security Council. So, statement two is also correct. And look carefully, the question asks for incorrect statements. Since both the statements are correct, the correct answer is option D neither one nor two. Okay, now as part of this discussion, let us understand what are all the ongoing issues in the Security Council. Now, the first issues regarding veto power. See, veto power is nothing but the exclusive power of permanent countries to stop or withhold the decision taken by the United Nations. The five permanent members of UN Security Council include USA, UK, France, Russia and China. And they are only comfort with veto power. This veto power allows the permanent members of UN Security Council to have total control over an important multilateral organization like the United Nations. Here the main issue with respect to veto power is that the veto power is acting as a blockade for developing countries to join the UNSC or to pass any resolution. Okay, so veto power is the first issue. Then the second issue is infighting among the member countries. See the US, China and Russia represent the three poles in the present multipolar world. In most important issues, the values of these three countries do not synchronize. So this is affecting the function of United Nations as a whole. So infighting is another issue. Then the third issue is that under representation of countries. As we all know, the United Nations Security Council was created after the second world world and its membership reflects the condition of that time. Now a lot has changed in the past eight years. And the UN Security Council permanent membership does not reflect the changes. For example, there is no representation from Africa and South America. In addition to this, India which is the largest democracy in the world is also not represented as permanent member in the UN Security Council. So under representation of countries is also another issue with respect to UN Security Council. Therefore, reforms must be taken in the UN Security Council to accommodate the changes of the present multipolar world. Okay, now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This is a two-statement question about the national green hydrogen mission. Here we have to choose the correct statements. Now before solving this question, let us learn some points about green hydrogen and national green hydrogen mission. Now first let's take green hydrogen. See green hydrogen is produced using electrolysis method. And the process of production uses electricity generated using renewable energy. Also know that hydrogen is considered to be a clean fuel because it releases only steam or water vapor as byproduct during combustion. Now with these basics, let us learn about the national green hydrogen mission. See the national green hydrogen mission was announced by our Prime Minister as part of his 2021 Independence Day speech. And the mission was launched in last January. Through this mission, the government is planning to generate rupees 8 crore investments and to create over 6 lakh jobs by 2030. Know that the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy will be responsible for overall coordination and implementation of the national green hydrogen mission. Now coming to the objectives of the national green hydrogen mission, firstly through this mission, the government aims to produce 5 million metric tons of green hydrogen per annum by 2030. Secondly, the mission aims to ensure the availability of electrolyzers to aid the production of green hydrogen. Thirdly, the mission strives to expedite the utilization of green hydrogen. And finally, the mission aims to transfer India into a global production hub for green hydrogen. Okay. See to achieve these objectives, the government has announced some steps that it is planning to take. The fourth one is the site program. Here site stands for strategic interventions for green hydrogen transition. The government has allocated rupees 17,490 crore for this site program. Know that the government plans to achieve two things in this program. The fourth one is to argument domestic manufacturing of electrolyzers. And the second one is to ensure the domestic production of hydrogen. Okay. This is about site program. Then the second important step is ship program. Here ship stands for strategic hydrogen innovation partnership. This is to facilitate research and development in green hydrogen technology through public private partnership. And know that the government has allocated rupees 400 crore for this initiative. Okay. This is all about national green hydrogen mission. Now with this information let's solve our practice question. Consider the following statements regarding the national green hydrogen mission. Note that this first statement the mission aims to produce 5 million metric tons of green hydrogen per annum by 2030. See this statement is correct as we saw it is one of the objective of national green hydrogen mission. So statement one is correct. Now coming to the second statement. The ministry of environment forest and climate change will be responsible for overall coordination and implementation of the mission. See this statement is wrong because the national green hydrogen mission is being implemented by the ministry of new and renewable energy and not by ministry of environment forest and climate change. So statement two is incorrect. Here the question is asking for correct statements. Since statement one alone is correct the correct answer is option A1 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about Eurozone or Euro area. Now before answering the question let us learn some points about Eurozone. See to have a better understanding about the Eurozone you should first know about the European Union. See the European Union is a political and economic union of 27 member states that are located primarily in Europe. The European Union came into existence by signing of the Maastricht Treaty by 12 countries in the year 1993. The 12 countries include Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom. I know that these 12 countries were the founding members of the European Union. After periodic additions of new nations into the European Union now the number of countries in the European Union has touched 27. The 27 countries are provided here pass the video and go through it. This is all about the European Union. Now coming to Eurozone see the Euro area which is commonly called as Eurozone is a currency union of 20 member states of the European Union. See these 20 countries have adopted the Euro as their primary currency and as their sole legal tender. I know that Eurozone came into existence in the year 1999 when 11 member states of the European Union came together to form a geographical zone where a common currency such as Euro is accepted to use thereafter. See after 3 years of forming the Eurozone the physical Euro banknotes and Euro coins were introduced in those 11 Eurozone states. And all their pre Euro national coins and notes were taken out of circulation and rendered invalid after a short transition period. Then between the years 2001 to 2023 9 more countries have joined the Eurozone. I know that the last country which joined Eurozone is Croatia. So as of now the Eurozone consists of 20 European Union member states out of 27 member states. I have provided the Eurozone countries here past the video and just go through it. And this is all about Eurozone. So the basic difference between Eurozone and European Union is that the European Union is a multi-state political and economic body while Eurozone is a geographical zone which has Euro as the common currency. Now with this information let's approach the question. Consider the following statements about the Eurozone or the Euro area. Now look at this first statement all the members of the European Union forms part of the Eurozone. See this statement is wrong only 20 member states of European Union forms part of Eurozone. So statement one is incorrect. Now coming to the second statement Eurozone consists of European countries that have adapted Euro as their so legal tender. See this statement is correct as we saw the Eurozone countries have adapted Euro as their so legal tender. So statement two is correct. Now coming to the third statement the Eurozone was established as per the provisions of Maastricht Treaty 1993. See this statement is wrong. See the European Union was only established as per the provisions of Maastricht Treaty whereas Eurozone came into existence in the year 1999. So statement three is incorrect. Look carefully the question asks for incorrect statements. So the correct answer is option B one and three only. Let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here this question is about millets. See this year that is the 2023 is celebrated as international era of millets and that is why we framed this question about millets. Now before answering the question let us learn some points about millets. See millets are a group of small grained cereal food crops. They have special nutritive properties like high protein dietary fiber micronutrients and antioxidants and they are also known for their special agronomic characteristics. That is they are drought resistant and suitable for semi arid regions. See in 2021 at the United Nations General Assembly the government of India had proposed to declare 2023 as the international era of millets. Then India's proposal was supported by 72 countries. So the United Nations General Assembly declared 2023 as the international era of millets on 5th March 2021. See this is of human pride for India because India is the world's largest producer of millets. Apart from this India accounts for nearly 20 percentage of global production of millets. Also India's average yield of 1239 kg per hectare is more than that of global average of 1229 kilogram per hectare. And know that the top five millet producing states in India are Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. Now coming to millets Surgam, Peel Millet, Finger Millet are some of the major millets. Then Fox Tail Millet, Proso Millet, Kodo Millet, Banyard Millet and Little Millet are some of the minor millets. See one of the important properties of millet is that it has lower glycemic index. Know that the glycemic index is a rating system for foods containing carbohydrates. The glycemic index shows how quickly each food affects blood sugar that is glucose level when the food is eaten. As I said, the millet has low glycemic index. Due to millet's low glycemic response or reduced capacity to spike blood levels, the millet does not instantly rise or decrease blood sugar levels. So millet helps diabetic patients to maintain blood sugar levels. Now with this information let's approach the question. Consider the following statements about millets. Look at this first statement India's the world's largest producer of millets. As you saw in the discussion, India's the largest producer of millets in the world. So statement one is correct. Now coming to the second statement millets have a high glycemic index and so they are not good option for people with high blood sugar. See this statement is wrong. As we saw millet has low glycemic index and it is a good option for people with high blood sugar. So statement two is incorrect. Now coming to the third statement Rajasthan, Kannataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are the top five millet producing states of India. As we saw in the discussion, these are the top five millet producing states of India. So third statement is correct. Here the question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer is option C1 and 3 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about Sarath I that is search and rescue aid tool integrated. Here three statements are given. We have to find the correct statements. Now before answering this question let us learn some points about Sarath I. See Sarath I is expanded as search and rescue aid tool integrated. It was developed by Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services that is in Coise in collaboration with airports authority of India and Indian Coast Guard. See it is developed to track objects or persons lost at sea due to aircraft crash or any other accidents. See when it comes to aircraft crash it is very hard to us to find the crash location of an aircraft flying over sea. This is because the crashed aircraft tends to drift away from the crash site. The factor responsible for this drifting includes local wind surface current and shape of the aircraft influencing its drift position and time of the aircraft's descent. Most often the position and time of the aircraft's descent is hard to find out. Here is where Sarath I becomes relevant. Now let us see what does the Sarath I do. See using the input of the aircraft's last known mid-air position Sarath I computes a probability map using a statistical approach. This map will show where the aircraft may have descended into the sea. After this Sarath I runs sequential computer simulations. This simulation gives details of the probable regions where the aircraft may be located in the sea after drifting. And the system can predict the search location up to 10 days. And it is also available as a mobile application for the users. Okay, like this one Lee Sarath I identifies regions for the search and rescue operations. Now let us see the significance of this Sarath I application. Firstly, Sarath I eliminates the human error in computation of the probabilities. Secondly, as you all know, time is a crucial factor in search and rescue operations. So Sarath I helps us to save time for rescue operations. And finally, Sarath I also reduces the expenditure required. Okay, now with this information let's approach the question. Look at this first statement. It is developed by the Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services that is INCOIS. See this statement is correct. As we saw, Sarath I is developed by INCOIS in collaboration with Airports Authority of India and Indian Coast Guard. So statement one is correct. Now coming to the second statement it is developed to track objects or persons lost at sea. See it is the foremost objective of developing Sarath I. So statement two is correct. Now coming to the third statement the Sarath I system can be able to predict the search location up to 100 days. See this statement is wrong because the Sarath I can be able to predict the search location only up to 10 days and not 100 days. So third statement is incorrect. Here the question is asking for correct statements. Here first and second statement alone are correct. So the correct answer is option A1 and 2 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about reserve forest. Four statements are given and we have to find the correct statements. Now before answering the question let us see a few points about reserve forest and protected forest. Now first let's take reserve forest. See reserve forest means the forest declared to be reserved by the state government under section 20 of the Indian Forest Act 1927. Or it may be declared as reserve forest under any other state act. Now if you take the Indian Forest Act section 20 deals with notifying a reserve forest. According to section 20 the state government has to specify definitely the limits of the forest which is to be reserved. But what kind of land or forest can be reserved. See this is provided under section 3 of the Indian Forest Act 1927. According to section 3 any forest land or waste land which is the property of the government or over which the government has proprietary rights can be declared as reserve forest. Even the forest land or waste land from which the government is entitled to forest produce can be declared as reserve forest. But note that after deciding to declare a reserve forest the state government has to appoint the forest settlement officer under section 4 class 1 subclass C. This officer will inquire into and determine the existence, nature and extent of any rights alleged to exist in favor of any person in the land to be declared reserved. Then another important forest category under this forest act 1927 is that the protected forest. This one includes the forest land or waste land having the same conditions as reserve forests. But which is not included in a reserve forest. Now talking about the difference between reserve forest and protected forest. See there are many differences especially in the acts permitted in a reserve forest and a protected forest. The state government can make rules for the clearing and breaking up of land for cultivation or other purposes in protected forests. This means these activities that is clearing or breaking up any land for cultivation or any other purpose are allowed in protected forests. But the same is generally prohibited in reserve forest. Similarly the state government can make rules for the cutting of grass and posturing of cattle in protected forests. But trespassing or posturing the cattle or permits cattle to trespass all are generally prohibited in reserve forest and punishable under the forest act. Okay and note that an exemption is provided if these activities are approved by a forest settlement officer in a reserve forest under that then the activities can be carried out. Okay In this regard you can understand that reserve forests in India enjoy considerably a higher degree of security as compared to the protected forests. Now with this information let's approach the question. Consider the following statements about reserve forests. Look at the first statement reserve forests are declared by the respective state governments under section 20 of the Indian Forest Act 1927. As we saw the respective state government under the Indian Forest Act 1927 can declare a reserve forest. So statement one is correct. Now coming to the second statement only forest lands can be declared as reserve forest. See this statement is incorrect. Both forest lands and wasteland with the government can be declared as reserve forest. So statement two is incorrect. Now coming to the third statement the state governments can make rules for the clearing of land for cultivation or other purposes in reserve forest. See this statement is also incorrect because clearing of forest for agriculture is not allowed in reserve forest. But it is allowed in protected forest. Okay. So statement three is incorrect. Now coming to the fourth statement grazing catalyst prohibited in reserve forest. See this statement is correct. As we saw cattle grazing is prohibited in reserve forest. So statement four is correct. Here the question is asking for correct statements. Since statements one and four are correct. So the correct answer is option C one and four only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about a protected area. Description of a protected area is given and we have to find out the correct answer. See we have framed this question because UPSC asks many questions about the geographical location and uniqueness of many protected areas. I have given here two such examples. One is in 2019 and the other one is in 2015. Now let's solve the question. The question says that this protected area is situated in the western guards. It was established in the year 1973. It is a part of Neelgrie biosphere. It is made up of two discontinuous pockets namely Mustangha and Tulpeti which protected area is described here. Option A Mudumalai wildlife sanctuary Option B Vyanad wildlife sanctuary Option C Bandipur National Park Option D Naharhol National Park Here the correct answer is option B Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. Okay now let us see some points about Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. Vyanad wildlife sanctuary was established in the year 1973. Note that Vyanad wildlife sanctuary can't take us to the protected area network of Naharhol and Bandipur of Karnataka and the northeast and Mudumalai of Tamil Nadu and the southeast. Vyanad wildlife sanctuary is rich in biodiversity and it is an integral part of the Neelgrie biosphere. And note that Vyanad wildlife sanctuary is made up of two pockets. They include Muthanga in the south and Tulpeti in the north. Now let us see some other facts about Vyanad. Now first let's take false type. See typical moist and dry deciduous false types cover most of the area of the Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. Apart from this, few patches of semi-yellow green forests are also seen in Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. Bamboo groups interweaved with moist deciduous forests is another characteristic of the Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. Note that one third of the sanctuary is covered by plantations of teak, rosewood, eucalyptus and silver oak. Pillu, rosewood, kadukka, wellachadachi, axelwood and padriyar some of the dominant tree species in the Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. Now coming to flora and fauna, note that the Vyanad wildlife sanctuary is home for a variety of animals. The Vyanad wildlife sanctuary has the presence of big cats such as tiger, panther etc. Apart from this, langurs, boned macaques, bison, monkeys, sambar, malabar squirrel, bear and even slender lorries can be seen in the Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. The other fauna of the region includes crocodiles, a type of gecko called termite hill gecko, chameleon, flying lizard, monitor lizard, skings and flap shell turtles. Note that about 2-1-6 species of birds like peacock, owl, babbler, woodpeckers, cuckoo and jungle fowl are also found in Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. A note on point here, a rare blue-bearded bee eater has also seen in Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. Okay. And that's all about Vyanad wildlife sanctuary. Try to remember all the points. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. I'll read it out of the question. Wild legend unit, grafted, organic framework, recently seen in news is related to which of the following. Option A, solar energy conversion. Option B, developing high-capacity batteries. Option C, treatment of polluted water bodies. Option D, agricultural biotechnology to improve soil fertility. Here the correct answer for the question is, option C, treatment of polluted water bodies. Okay. Now we'll quickly go through some points about this IVO FM. See water pollution is a major problem around the world and many conventional methods of order treatment can be slow, inefficient and not very specific. To address these issues, scientists of IISER Pune have created a new material called wild legend unit, grafted, organic framework or IVO FM for short. See this IVO FM is a unique material that combines ion exchange, nanopores, and special binding sites to capture a wide range of hazardous pollutants in water. The material is made from a charged porous, organic polymer, and silicon nanoparticles. These are used as a template to create a spongelike infinite framework. The silicon nanoparticles are then removed to establish macro or micro porosity with ordered hierarchical connections throughout the material. One of the greatest advantages of IVO FM is its speed. The material allows for rapid diffusion of contaminants, which making it a very efficient material for water treatment. In fact, IVO FM has been shown to remove over 93% of targeted pollutants in just 30 seconds. And it is not just limited to organic or inorganic pollutants. It can even remove antibiotics like sulfadi metoxin, which is an antibiotic. Here note that this sulfadi metoxin is an antimicrobial medication used in veterinary medicine. Then another advantage of IVO FM is its ability to use repeatedly. Once the pollutants have been captured, the material can be easily cleaned and used again to purify more water. This makes IVO FM a sustainable and cost effective solution for water treatment. Overall, IVO FM is a very promising material for cleaning up contaminated water. With its ability to capture a wide range of pollutants quickly and efficiently, it has the potential to become a powerful tool in the fight against water pollution. Okay. One second remember, VioLegend unit grafted organic framework, which is shortly known as IVO FM is used to capture a wide range of hazardous pollutants in water. Okay. Now let's move on to the next question. I'll read out the question. Polyisoprene, sometimes seen in news, is the primary chemical constituent of option A, hemicellulosis, option B, rubber, option C, starch, option D, polyethylene theriphthalate, that is PET. Here the correct answer is option B, rubber. Now let us see some points about rubber. See natural rubber is actually a polymer of isoprene. It contains two methyl one and three butadiene. So basically natural rubber is very large molecule formed by the repeating units of isoprene. This organic compound comes from the latex of a variety of trees. Of these trees, Hevia, Breslensis is the most important kind. Hevia, Breslensis is a native of the Amazon basin and introduced in the tropical belts of Asia and Africa during the late 19th century. See even though rubber is a equatorial crop under special circumstances, it is also grown in tropical and sub-tropical areas. Now coming to the growing conditions, see rubber requires moist and humid climate with rainfall of more than 200 cm. Rubber trees grow well when the distribution of rainfall is uniformly high all over the year. Since it is basically an equatorial tree, a temperature of 25 degrees Celsius is optimal. The tree is pretty sturdy and can withstand temperatures ranging between 20 to 35 degrees Celsius. But when the temperature falls below 20 degrees Celsius, it is detrimental to the rubber tree. Now coming to the soil requirements, the rubber trees grow well in deep and well-drained soils. They also grow well on acidic soil. And note that rubber is an important industrial raw material. So it is commercially valuable. Due to this, rubber trees are grown as a plantation crop. And note that plantation are a type of commercial farming where a single crop like tea, coffee or rubber are grown with the help of huge labour or capital. Now let's look at the rubber production in India. According to NCRT, in India rubber is grown mainly in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Manikkubar islands and Gauravilsa of Meghalaya. These are the traditional areas. But currently rubber plantations have been established in other areas also. They are called non-traditional areas. These areas include Goa, Maharashtras, Konkan region, coastal Andhra Pradesh, Assam and Tirupura. See the commercial cultivation of natural rubber was introduced in India by the British. In 1873 itself, the British were experimenting with commercial cultivation at the Motanigal Gardens, Calcutta. But the first commercial natural rubber plantations in India were established at Tattaikadu, Kerala in 1902. Even now Kerala accounts for the majority of rubber production in India. Kerala accounts for 75% of rubber production in India. And it is followed by Tirupura, Karnataka, Assam and Tamil Nadu. Now let's see some points about rubber board. See the rubber board plays an important role in the development of the rubber industry in India. The rubber board evolved from the Estuwal India Rubber Board which was established under Rubber Production and Marketing Act 1947. In 1954, the Rubber Production and Marketing Amendment Act was passed which renamed the Indian Rubber Board to Rubber Board. Now talking about the advantages of rubber, see the rubber has high stretch ratio, high resilience and it is extremely waterproof. And the main disadvantage associated with natural rubbers is that they do not perform well when exposed to chemicals and petroleum derivatives. Since the natural rubber is unable to meet the growing demand for different industries, now it is replaced by synthetic rubbers. Know that synthetic rubbers are also polymers made from petroleum byproducts. They have a little bit high tensile strength, non biodegradable and easily available. These are the points you have to note about rubber. Now with these points, let us move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about the curative petition. Here three statements are given and we have to choose the correct statements. Now before solving the question, let us discuss a few important points about curative petition. See curative petition is the last option available to approach the judiciary after exhausting all the pills and dismissal of revue petition. This rare remedy was introduced by a constitutional bench of Supreme Court in 2002 in the Ashok Hurra v. Rupa Hurra case. The main objective of introducing curative petition is that it is to avoid the miscarriage of justice and to prevent abuse of justice process. See a curative petition is supported by article 137 of the Constitution of India. As per the article 137, in matters of law and regulations made under article 145, the Supreme Court has the power to review any judgments or orders made by it. Now with this basic understanding, let us look at the procedure of curative petition. See a curative petition needs to be made within 30 days from the date of judgment passed. Remember a petitioner can file a curative petition only if the revue petition has been dismissed. The petitioner must also state or assert specifically the grounds for the revue petition and that it was dismissed by circulation which must be certified by a senior advocate. Now let us see who he has a curative petition. See the curative petition is heard by a bench of three senior most judges including the Chief Justice of India plus the same combination of judges who delivered the original order or judgment if available. See the curative petition is also entertained on very narrow grounds like a revue petition. Also the dismissal rate of curative petition is very high. If the petition is filed without any merit the court may impose fines on the petitioner. Okay and this is all about curative petition. Now with this knowledge let us approach the question. Let us consider the following statements regarding the curative petition. Now look at this first statement it is originally mentioned in the Indian Constitution under Article 137. See this statement is incorrect because curative petition is not originally mentioned in the Constitution and it is derived from Ashok Hurra vs Rupa Hurra case in 2002. It is not mentioned in Article 137 but it is supported by Article 137. So statement one is incorrect. Now coming to the second statement curative petition should be filed within 30 days of judgment passed. See this statement is correct as we saw curative petition must be filed within 30 days of judgment passed. So second statement is correct. Now coming to the third statement the petitioner can file a curative petition only if the revue petition has been dismissed. See this statement is also correct as we saw if the revue petition has been dismissed then only the petitioner can file curative petition. So statement three is correct. Here the question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer is option C213 only. Now let us move on to the next question. Now look at this question here this question is about Central Electricity Regulatory Commission. Now before answering the question let us see a few points about the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission. See in 1998 the government enacted the Electricity Regulatory Commission Act and this act mandated two things. One is to constitute the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission and this is to regulate the tariff of power generating companies owned or controlled by the central government. Then the second mandate is to establish the State Electricity Regulatory Commission to regulate the tariff of power generating companies owned or controlled by state governments. See in the year 2003 the Electricity Act replaced the Electricity Regulatory Commission Act. So the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission and the State Electricity Regulatory Commission are now governed as per the Electricity Act of 2003. As Central Electricity Regulatory Commission is governed by Electricity Act 2003 we can say that Central Electricity Regulatory Commission is a statutory body. And note that the commission is now guided by section 76 of Electricity Act 2003. The main functions of the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission include rationalization of electricity tariffs, then the Commission formulates transparent policies regarding subsidies, then it promotes environmentally efficient policies, and it also formulates the national electricity policy and national electricity tariff policy, and finally in regards to matters connected to electricity tariff regulation. Note an important point here, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission functions with quashy judicial status under the Electricity Act 2003. See some of the other functions of Central Electricity Regulatory Commission are given here for your reference, pause the video and just go through it. Now finally let us look at its organizational structure. As per Section 76, Class 5 of the Electricity Act 2003, the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission will comprise of a chairperson and three other members. All of them will be appointed by the Central Government on the recommendations of the Selection Committee. The members and the chairperson will have a tenure of five or till the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier. Now with this basic information, let us approach the cushion. In the context of Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, consider the following statements. Now look at these four statements, the CERC is a quashy judicial statutory body governed by the Electricity Act 2003. See this statement is correct as we saw CERC is a quashy judicial and statutory body which is governed by Electricity Act 2003. So statement one is correct. Now coming to the second statement, the main function of the CERC is to regulate the tariff of power generating companies owned or controlled by the Central Government. As we saw, this is one of the main function of CERC. So statement two is correct. Now coming to the third statement, the CERC formulates the National Electricity Policy and Tariff Policy. See this is also one of the functions of CERC. So statement three is also correct. Here the question is asking for correct statements. Here all statements are correct. So the correct answer is option D1213. Now let us move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about Pravasiv Bhatya Divas. We have framed this question because this year in the month of January, Pravasiv Bhatya Divas was held. In UPSC, there is no question about Pravasiv Bhatya Divas in the recent years. So UPSC might ask about Pravasiv Bhatya Divas this year. So we will now learn about Pravasiv Bhatya Divas by solving this question. Here note that the question asks us to find out the incorrect option about Pravasiv Bhatya Divas. Now look at this fourth statement. Pravasiv Bhatya Divas is celebrated on January 9. See this statement is correct. Pravasiv Bhatya Divas Convention is the flagship event of the Government of India. It provides an important platform to engage and connect with the overseas Indians and to enable the diaspora to interact with each other. It is celebrated on January 9. I know that January 9 commemorates the return of Mahatma Gandhi from South Africa to India in 1915. So first option is correct. Now come to the second option. The theme of the 17th Pravasiv Bhatya Divas is diaspora, reliable partners for India's progress in Amritkal. See this option is also correct. Recently 17th Pravasiv Bhatya Divas Convention was happened. The 17th Pravasiv Bhatya Divas Convention was organized in partnership with the Mathya Pradesh Government from 8th to 10th January 2023 in Indore. And the theme of the 17th Pravasiv Bhatya Divas Convention is diaspora, reliable partners for India's progress in Amritkal. So second option is correct. Coming to the third option, 17th Pravasiv Bhatya Divas was held at Indore Mathya Pradesh. As you saw just now, it was connected in Indore Mathya Pradesh. So third option is also correct. Now coming to the fourth option, Pravasiv Bhatya Divas Conventions are being held every year since 2010. See this option is only incorrect. See the tradition of celebrating Pravasiv Bhatya Divas started in 2003 and not since 2010. Also know that since 2015 under a revised format, Pravasiv Bhatya Divas Convention has been organized once every two years. The last Pravasiv Bhatya Divas Convention that is the 16th one was conducted in 2021 during the pandemic near virtual setting with the theme contributing to Atman Irbar Bharat. So option D only is incorrect. So the correct answer is option D. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about National Commission of Minorities. Now before answering the question, let us learn some points about National Commission of Minorities. See the National Commission for Minorities was established in 1992 under the provisions of National Commission for Minorities Act 1992. See before the establishment of National Commission for Minorities, we had Minorities Commission. This commission only got renamed as National Commission for Minorities and given statutory status under NCM Act of 1992. See in 1993, five religious communities namely Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians that is the parties were notified as minority communities. Then in 2014, Jains were also designated as a minority community. So presently there are six notified minority communities in India. See at the central level, we have National Commission for Minorities. Similarly at state level, the state governments constituted state minorities commission in their respective states. Therefore, the aggrieved persons belonging to the minority communities may approach a concerned state minorities commission for redressal of their grievances. Moreover, they may also send their representations to the National Commission for Minorities after exhausting all other official mechanisms of remedies available to them. Now talking about the composition of National Commission for Minorities, see as per section 3 class 2 of the National Commission of Minorities Act 1992, the National Commission for Minorities shall consist of a chairperson, a vice chairperson and five members. Note that all of them shall be from amongst the minority communities and all seven members should be amongst persons of eminence, ability and integrity. Note one point here, all the members of National Commission for Minorities are nominated by the central government from time to time. Now talking about the tenure, see each member holds office for a period of three years from the date of assumption of office. The chairman or member can resign from the office by writing a resignation letter under his hand addressed to the central government at any time. See some of the functions of National Commission for Minorities is listed here, pause the video and just go through it. See the commission shall perform any of the functions mentioned here and the commission is having the powers of civil court. It can summon and enforce the attendance of any person from any part of India and examination of witnesses and documents. It can receive evidence of an affidavit, any public record or copy from any court or office. See even though the body is loaded with huge powers, it has equal amount of limitations. Now let us see the limitations of National Commission for Minorities one by one. Firstly, the National Commission for Minorities does not have the status of constitutional body. So it has only a few powers or autonomy when compared with National Commission for Scheduled Cost and Scheduled Tribes. Apart from this, the National Commission of Minorities does not have the power to participate and advise on the planning process of the socioeconomic and educational development of minorities. Apart from this, the National Commission for Minorities also has no power to conduct independent inquiries. Okay, now come into the second limitation. See the National Commission for Minorities Act 1992 does not provide any time limit within which the annual report of the commission should be laid before the parliament. Also, the recommendations of the commission are not binding on the central government and states. Further, the reason for the non-acceptance of such recommendations is not needed to communicate with the commission. Okay, this is one limitations. Now come into the third limitation. See the decisions of the commission can be over tuned by the district and high court. So there is no real-time information of plans and engagements for hearings which results in wastage of resources. And as of now, the state minorities' commissions have been set up only in around 17 states and in U.N. territory of Delhi. And it has been not set up in 11 other states and 7 U.N. territories. So this is one of the drawbacks. Finally, overlapping jurisdiction is also an issue. See the growing number of commissions have overlapping mandate thereby reducing the scope of National Commission for Minorities. For example, the formation of new commission on linguistic minorities reduces the power of National Commission for Minorities. So now the National Commission for Minorities is restricted only to religious minorities. Okay, now with this information, let's approach the question. Consider the following statements with reference to National Commission of Minorities. Look at the first statement. It is a statutory body functioning under the Ministry of Minority Affairs. See this statement is correct as we saw the National Commission for Minorities was established as per the provisions of National Commission for Minorities Act 1992. So it is a statutory body. And know that it is functioning under the Ministry of Minority Affairs. So statement one is correct. Now come into the second statement. It can investigate matters of communal conflict and riots. See this statement is also correct. It is one of the power vested with National Commission for Minorities. So statement two is also correct. Now come into the third statement. Its decision can be over tuned by the district and high courts. As we saw, it is one of the limitations of National Commission for Minorities. So third statement is also correct. If the question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer is option A one two one three. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about land subsidence. See last year there was an instance of land subsidence in Joshimath. So many articles appeared related to land subsidence. That's why we have taken this question. Now first we will discuss about land subsidence and then we will get back into the question. Now what is land subsidence? See land subsidence happens basically when the ground sinks or settles down gradually over time or suddenly. And there are quite a few reasons why this happens. One of the biggest causes of land subsidence is when we extract things like water, oil, gas or minerals from the ground through mining, pumping or fracking it may cause land subsidence. See when we do these activities it creates void underground and the surface sinks down to fill those empty spaces. But it is not just human factor always. Natural events like earthquakes, soil compaction, glacial isostatic adjustment, erosion, sinkhole formation and even adding water to fine lowest deposits can also cause land subsidence. And know that lowest is a deposit of windblown silt and they are easily collapsible soil. And note that land subsidence is different from landslide. A landslide is defined as the movement of a mass of rock, debris or earth down a slope. That is any downward movement of soil and rock under the direct influence of gravity. Here there is no sinking of land. Now coming back, land subsidence can have a range of effects on both human infrastructure and the natural environment. When the ground sinks or settles it can cause buildings, roads and other structures to become damaged or even collapse. In coastal areas, subsidence can also cause land to sink and become more vulnerable to flooding during high tides or storms. Apart from this land subsidence can also lead to changes in the natural environment. For example, in areas where the ground is sinking due to removal of water or other resources, the land may become drier and will not be able to support vegetation. So this can impact the habitats of animals and birds which are relying on these plans for food and shelter. And another impact of land subsidence is the damage it can cause to underground infrastructure, which includes pipes and cables. As the ground sinks, these structures can become distorted or even break, which lead to disruptions in essential services such as water and electricity. Okay, so this is about land subsidence. Now let's approach the question. Which of the following is or are the possible causes for land subsidence? First one, sinkhole formation. Second one, mining activities. Third one, groundwater extraction. Fourth one, tectonic forces. Fifth one, soil compaction. As we discussed, these all are the causes of land subsidence. So the current answer is option D, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Now let's move on to the next question. Look at this question here. This question is about governor's address. See, we have framed this question because many a times questions about governor was asked in UPC prelims. I have given here one such example. It is about the discretionary powers of governor that was asked in 2014 UPC prelims. Now let us try to solve the question. Now look at the first statement. Governor addresses the House of State Legislature during the commencement of the first session after each general election to the Legislative Assembly only. See, this statement is incorrect. According to article 176, Governor will address the Legislative Assembly at the commencement of first session after each general election to the Legislative Assembly and at the commencement of first session of each year. This article 176 is concerned with the special address of the Governor. Apart from this, the Governor has the right to address the houses of the State Legislature separately or together as per article 175 also. For this Governor's address, attendance of members is required. Additionally, article 175 says that Governor has the right to send messages to the House of State Legislature regarding a pending bill in that House. And the House should take into consideration the matter mentioned in that message. So once again statement, one is incorrect. Here they have given only. Because of this, this statement is incorrect. Now coming to the second statement, the Houses of State Legislature do not discuss the matters mentioned in the Governor's address. See, this statement is also incorrect. As per article 176, in the special address, the Governor will inform the causes of summons to the Legislature. And time should be allotted for discussing the matters referred in the address made by the Governor. So second statement is incorrect. So the current answer is option D neither or not to. Now before getting into the next question, you should know about other powers of Governor as well. See, the Governor has the power to summon the Assembly and the Council whenever he thinks fit. But the time interval between one session and the other should not be more than six months. Apart from this, the Governor also has the power to prorog both Assembly and Council. And he has the power to dissolve the Legislative Assembly of the state. And that's all regarding Governor's power. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme 2021 of the Reserve Bank of India. Here three statements are given and we have to find the correct statements. Now before answering the question, let us see a few points about Integrated Ombudsman Scheme 2021. Now first let's understand the term Ombudsman. In simple words, an Ombudsman is a person appointed by an organization or government. His sole purpose is to investigate the complaints against the organization. By doing this, he is addressing the grievances of the consumers. Okay, now with this understanding, let us see the Ombudsman Scheme of RBI. See the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme 2021 of RBI integrates the existing three Ombudsman Schemes of RBI. The existing schemes are the Banking Ombudsman Scheme 2006, the Ombudsman Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies 2018 and the Ombudsman Scheme for Digital Transactions 2019. See the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme adopts the One Nation One Ombudsman approach by making the RBI Ombudsman Mechanism Touristiction Neutral. Now let us see some of the features of Integrated Ombudsman Scheme. Firstly, there is no need for a complainant to identify under which scheme he or she should file a complaint with the Ombudsman. And this is because of the integration of different schemes. Secondly, the scheme defines deficiency in service as the ground for filing a complaint with a specified list of exclusions. Therefore, the complaints will not be rejected on account of not covered under the grounds listed in the scheme. Thirdly, the scheme provides for the establishment of a centralized Reciped and Processing Center. This center is for the initial processing of physical and email complaints. Then fourthly, the scheme will have one portal, one email and one address for the customers to lodge their complaints. Finally, the Appellate Authority for the Awards of Ombudsman is the Executive Director in charge of Consumer Education and Protection Department of RBI. Okay, these are the some of important points about Integrated Ombudsman Scheme 2021. Now let's approach the question. Consider the following statements about the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme 2021 of RBI. Look at the first statement, the scheme integrates the existing three Ombudsman Scheme of RBI. See this statement is correct as we saw the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme integrates existing three schemes. So statement one is correct. Now coming to the second statement, the scheme will have one portal, one email and one address for the customers to lodge their complaints. See this is one of the features of Integrated Ombudsman Scheme. So statement two is also correct. Now coming to the third statement, under this scheme appeals against the decision of Ombudsman can be made to the Executive Director in charge of Consumer Education and Protection Department of RBI. This is also one of the features of Integrated Ombudsman Scheme. So the appeals against the decision of Ombudsman can be made to the Director in charge of Consumer Education and Protection Department of RBI. So third statement is also correct. Here the question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer for the question is option D1213. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. In this question description of a particular animal is given and we have to choose which of the animal best matches the description. I'll read out the question. It is a herbivorous animal whose male species has spiraling horns. Their distribution is restricted to Rajasthan, Gujarat, Mathipratesh, Tamil Nadu and other areas of Peninsular India. It is the state animal of Haryana and Punjab. Which of the following animal best matches the description given option A Indian Blackbuck, option B Hangul, option C Sangai, option D Sambardir. Here the correct answer for the question is option A Indian Blackbuck. See we have filmed this question because a study was conducted on a Blackbuck in India by a team from Indian Institute of Science in January 2023. Okay and this is why Blackbuck was appeared in news. Now let us learn some points about Indian Blackbuck. See the Blackbuck is an antelope found mainly in India and Nepal. The Blackbuck's by nature are herbivorous, pericastious and shy animals. Note that the male Blackbuck's have prominent spiraling horns. The females also have horns but they are not ringed or spiraled. In addition to this the females are much smaller than their male counterparts. Now coming to the habitat of Blackbuck nearly times the distribution of this animal extended all over India except for the west coast. But presently its distribution is restricted to Rajasthan, Gujarat, Mathya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and other areas of Peninsular India. See the Blackbuck's live in open grasslands, dry scrub areas, thinly forested areas. They prefer to live in thinly forested areas because only in the thinly forested areas they can run away from their predators. Now let's look at its social structure and lifestyle. See Blackbuck's are social animals meaning they live in groups. The Blackbuck's live in herds that include 5 to 50 individuals. The herd of Blackbuck's consists of an adult male and numerous females with their enguines. Okay now let us see the conservation status. See earlier the Blackbuck was listed as vulnerable. Due to the conservation efforts of the government the population of the Blackbuck in the wild has increased. So in 2011 the Blackbuck was reclassified as least concern and in sites they are placed in Appendix 3. And note on additional information here the Blackbuck is the state animal of Andhra Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab. Okay this is all about Blackbuck. Try to remember all the points that we saw now. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about village defence guards. Here three statements are given and we have to choose the correct ones. Now before solving this question let us learn some points about village defence guards. See the central government is on the process of re-establishing village defence committees and they renamed it as village defence guards. This is to act as a deterrent. See the village defence committees were first set up in the year 1995. Its aim was to provide civilians with weapons and training to tackle the militants and to defend themselves. The newly formed village defence guards will function under the direction of SP or SSP of the district concerned. Under this arrangement the civilians are trained with self-defense and they are also trained to handle arms like guns, ammunition etc. And know that the civilians are given with guns, ammunition and other arms to defend themselves. Now why has the government decided to arm up its civilians? And how this idea came up? See during the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistan wars the government armed the ex-servicemen and youth along the border villages to curb the infiltration of Pakistani spies. The scheme saw success with locals guarding their areas even at night. So the success prompted the government to set up village defence committees in 1995. Since the village defence committees had members from the local community they were well versed in the local topography. Due to this they played a significant role in combating militancy particularly in areas where there was poor road connectivity. Over a period of time the number of village defence committee members has dropped significantly and after some time they ceased to exist due to lack of government support. Now we will see what is the need for reviving village defence committees and its relevance. Right now due to an increase in cases of targeted killing in Jammu and Kashmir the government has felt the need to arm the civilians. So they have renamed the village defence committees as village defence guards and the government deputed the CRPF to provide training. As of now the CRPF has been asked to train civilians only in Rajavari and Pooj districts of Jammu and Kashmir. Okay now with this knowledge let's solve our practice question. Consisting the following statements regarding the village defence guards. Look at the first statement it refers to a group of civilians who are trained with self-defense capabilities to face terrorist threats. See this statement is correct it is the main objective of establishing village defence guards. Look at the second statement the members of village defence guards are provided with guns and ammunition. As we saw the members of village defence guards are trained with self-defense capabilities and they are also provided with arms like guns and ammunition. So statement two is also correct. Now coming to the third statement Indian army will provide training to members of village defence guards. See this statement is incorrect because the government has deputed the CRPF that is the central resort police force to train civilians and not Indian army. So the third statement is incorrect. Okay the question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer for the question is option A1 and 2 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about tribal appraisings. Here four rebellion are given and we have to arrange it in a chronological order. Know that the Santal Rebellion happened in 1855-56. The Munda Rebellion happened in 1899-1900 where the Rampa Rebellion happened between 1922 to 24 and the Ramsoy appraising happened between 1822 to 1829. If we arrange it in a chronological order the Ramsoy appraising comes first and then it is followed by Santal Rebellion, Munda Rebellion and Rampa Rebellion. So the correct answer is option A4123. See the reason for framing this question is that last year the members of Santal tribe have claimed the Parshnath Hills in Jharkhand as their hill deity. In this context the Santal was in use. Now we will use this opportunity to learn about Santal Rebellion which took place in present day Jharkhand in 1855. See back in the day the British East India Company was ruling India. They introduced permanent settlement system where landlords had given rights over the land.  This messed up the Santal people. At that time they were a tribe living in the forest of Rajmughal Hills. Then in 1832 the English East India Company gave the Santals a promise of non-interference in their land and allowed them to settle there. But over time the rent went up to an exorbitant rate and the Santals couldn't keep up. They had to borrow money from money lenders at high interest rates and got stuck in a vicious cycle. So they decided to rebel against the Britishers and the Samindars. Therefore the Santal uprising began on 30th June 1855. It was led by prominent leaders like Sidhu, Kanhu, Chand and Bairav and even two sisters Pulo and Jano. The Santals encouraged in Gorilla warfare against the Britishers. They formed their own troops and even militarized over 10,000 people. The Santals captured a large part of the land including Rajmughal Hills, Bagalpur District and Birbhumi. They disrupted all forms of communication lines and they put storehouses and warehouses to fire and they had full support from the locals. The Britishers tried to suppress the movement but the Santals were organized and they had good leadership qualities and they used Gorilla tactics. See these facts gave them upper hand despite using bows and arrows against the British weapons. The leaders Sidhu and Kanhu were arrested and the movement came to an end in 1856. But the Santal rebellion was different from other revolts of that time. It was well organized. It had trained leadership. Then it used tactics that shook the know of the Britishers and it fostered a sense of unity among the Santal tribes. It even resulted in the growth of revolutionary mechanism and gave both to the modern Santal identity. After the end of the war, the Santal Paragana Tenancy Act was enacted. This act provided the tribes some production against the oppressive British rule. So despite being defeated, the Santals were successful in inculcating nationalist feelings among the people. And that's all about Santal rebellion. Now we will move on to the next question. Look at this question here. This is a pair based question. On one side crops are given and on the other side the soil types required for the crop to grow are given. We have to find how many pairs are correctly matched. Now before answering this question, let us learn some points about these four crops. First of all know that all these crops given here are cash crops and they are cultivated in India. Now let's start with cash crops. See cash crops are agricultural crops grown for the purpose of selling on the market or exporting for profit. These crops were exactly opposite to the tough subsistence crops which are grown for the farmers, self supply like livestock feeding or food for the family. Some of the examples of cash crops include cotton, sugar can, tobacco, oil seeds, jute etc. Now let us see about the four crops mentioned in the question. Now let's take sugar can. See sugar can is a tropical as well as sub-tropical crop. It grows well in hot and humid climate with a temperature of 21 degrees Celsius to 27 degrees Celsius. And it needs an annual rainfall of 75 to 100 cm. See well-drained non-saline low-mi soils are suitable for sugar can cultivation. Note that sugar can is a long maturing crop which requires 10 to 15 months to mature. So they are usually planted between February and April and the harvesting begins in October and November. See sugar can is a soil-exhausting crop and thus needs regular application of manure or fertilizers. Apart from this sugar can is also a labor-intensive and least water-efficient crop. Remember India is the second largest producer of sugar can only after Brazil. The major sugar can producing states are Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab and Haryana. This is all about sugar can. Now moving on to cotton. See cotton is grown in tropical and sub-tropical conditions. A minimum temperature of 15 degrees Celsius is required for better germination of seeds at field conditions. Then the optimum temperature for vegetative growth is 21 to 27 degrees Celsius. Note that cotton can tolerate temperature to the extent of 43 degrees Celsius. But temperature below 21 degrees Celsius is detrimental to the crop. During the period of fruiting, warm days and cool nights with large diurnal variations are conducive to good fiber development. Note that cotton is grown on a variety of soils. In Northern India it grows in well-drained deep alveol soils. Then in the Central region of India it grows in black clay soils of varying depth and in Southern India cotton grows in black mixed black and red soils. See in India there are 10 major cotton growing states. They are Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Mathya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. And this is all about cotton. Now moving on to see about Tobacco. See the Tobacco was brought to India by the Portuguese. The lews of the Tobacco plant are used in making cigarettes, Cigar, BD etc. Whereas the stem is used as potash fertilizer and its powder is used as an insecticide. Now talking about the temperature and soil requirement see the Tobacco requires temperature of 15 degrees Celsius to 40 degrees Celsius and the rainfall of about 50 centimeter are irrigation facilities. More than 100 centimeter of annual rainfall and frost is harmful for the crop. Fertile soils with good drainage are ideal as it is an exhaustive crop. The major Tobacco producing states include Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Bihar. More than one third of Tobacco of the country is produced by Andhra Pradesh alone. And this is all about Tobacco. Now finally let us see about Jute. See jute is also known as the golden fiber and it is used in making guinea bags, mats, ropes, carpets and other artifacts. The major jute producing states in India are West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. However the Indian jute industry mainly depends on the state of West Bengal. This is due to the fact that the highest number of jute mills are present in West Bengal. Now talking about temperature and soil conditions see jute requires a hot and humid climate. The temperature between 15 degrees Celsius and 35 degrees Celsius is conducive for jute growth. Know that constant rain or water logged conditions are harmful to jute cultivation, particularly during the seedling stage. See alternative sunshine and rainy days are most helpful to jute growth. Now coming to soil, jute can be raised on many kinds of soil that is from clayey soil to sandy loam. But loamy alluvial soil is best suited for jute cultivation. Know that laterate and gravel soils are not suitable for this crop. The new gray alluvial soils which are receiving silt from the annual floods are best for jute cultivation. This is all about jute. Now with this information let's approach the question. First pair sugar can well-drained non-saline loamy soils. Second pair cotton, sandy loam, loam and clay loam soil. Third pair tobacco well-drained friable sandy loams rich in mineral salts. Pair for jute loamy alluvial. See here all four pairs are correctly matched. So the correct answer is option D all four pairs. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about PM Swannidhi scheme. See we have framed this question because similar type questions were asked in UPSC films 2016 and 2017. One is about Uday scheme and the other one is about scheme for sustainable structuring of stressful assets. So this year UPSC might ask about PM Swannidhi scheme. Now we will learn about the scheme by solving this practice question. I will read out the question which of the following best describes the scheme PM Swannidhi. Option A a loan scheme for the manufacture of solar photovoltaic cells. Option B a loan scheme for promoting the livelihood of scheduled and vulnerable communities. Option C a loan scheme for the street vendors. Option D a loan scheme for self-help groups functioning in rural areas. All options may seem correct right but here the right answer is option C a loan scheme for the street vendors. So PM Swannidhi is nothing but a loan scheme for the street vendors. Now let us see about the scheme in detail. First of all know that PM Swannidhi stands for Prime Minister street vendors Atman Arbarnidhi. The scheme is aimed at street vendors. See street vendors represent an important part of the urban informal economy. In addition to this they play a significant role in ensuring availability of the goods and services at affordable rates to city dwellers. But COVID-19 pandemic and the associated lockdowns adversely impacted the livelihoods of street vendors. They were cash trapped due to lockdown. So to revive their business the street vendors needed credit. Therefore to address their need for credit the PM Swannidhi scheme was introduced during the lockdown period in June 2020. Know that PM Swannidhi scheme was launched by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. The PM Swannidhi scheme is a central sector scheme that is the scheme is fully funded by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. And note that Small Industries Development Bank of India that is SIDB will be the implementation partner of the Ministry for Scheme Administration. Now talking about the objectives of PM Swannidhi scheme. Firstly the scheme aims to provide working capital loan of up to Rs 10,000. Secondly the scheme aims to incentivize regular repayment. See the working capital loan has a tenure of one year and it is to be repaired in monthly installments. For this loan no collateral will be taken by the lending institutions. And on timely or yearly repayment of loans the vendors will be eligible for the next cycle of working capital loan with an enhanced limit. Okay this is all about objectives. Now talking about the eligibility see the scheme is available to all street vendors engaged in vending in urban areas as on or before March 24 2020. The street vendors surrounding peri urban or rural areas are also eligible and that's all about PM Swannidhi scheme. If you want to know more about the scheme then watch our 23rd Jan 2023 analysis. Now let's move on to the next question. This question is about UPI or United Payment Interface. Four statements are given and we have to find the advantages of UPI. Statement one enhanced credit assets. See this statement is correct this is because unlike cash payments when payments are made via United Payments Interface it automatically establishes a user's financial footprint. So this thereby increases assets to formal financial services including credit. So enhanced credit assets is one of the advantages of UPI. So statement one is correct. Now coming to the second statement open architecture faster innovation. See this statement is also correct UPI is an open architecture initially there was only the BIM app. Now there are so many apps like GPay, PhonePay and AmazonPay which enables us to make payments via UPI and this is a sign of innovation. So statement two is also correct. Now coming to the third statement no need of storing customers bank or financial details. See this statement is also correct using UPI money can be transferred by just using the beneficiaries mobile number or virtual payment address. So there is no need to store bank details and other financial information that are very sensitive. So statement three is also correct. Now coming to the fourth statement low cost infrastructure. See this statement is also correct unlike card payments that requires a POS machine the merchants can receive payments via UPI by using just take QR code. So UPI is a low cost infrastructure. So statement four is also correct. The question is asking for correct statements. So the correct answer is option D 1 2 3 and 4. Now as part of this discussion let us see some points about UPI. See UPI was developed by National Payments Corporation of India and it is regulated by the Reserve Bank of India. UPI is a type of digital payment system that allows users to link more than one bank account in a single smartphone app. UPI facilitates money transfer between any two parties using a smartphone through a payment identifier. Here payment identifier is nothing but it is a type of ID that has a combination of bank account number and IFSC code. Note that this payment identifier is otherwise called as virtual payment address. So to carry out transactions through UPI users need not have to remember the receiver's account number IFSC code and bank name. Instead users can do the money transfer only by knowing the receiver's other number or mobile number registered with the bank account or virtual payment address. Okay these are some of the points about UPI or United Payments Interface. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about Monument Mitra Scheme. See UPSC many a times has asked about schemes introduced by the government. Particularly we have framed a question about Monument Mitra Scheme because in January government announced that Monument Mitra Scheme is going to be revamped. Since it was in the news there is a chance that UPSC might ask about Monument Mitra Scheme in Prillams 2023. So now let us learn the scheme by solving this practice question. Consider the following statements about Monument Mitra Scheme. Now look at the first statement. This scheme is a part of Adopt a Heritage Initiative. See the statement is correct. Adopt a Heritage Initiative was launched by the Honourable President of India on 27th September 2017 on the occasion of World Tourism Day. Under this project private and public sector companies, trusts, NGOs and individuals are eligible for adopting Heritage Sites or Monuments. However the finalization will depend on evolution of proposal and other criteria. Under this Adopt a Heritage Initiative successful bidders selected for adopting Heritage natural or tourist sites or Monuments are called as Monument Mitras. So this Monument Mitra Scheme is a part of Adopt a Heritage Initiative. Now talking about the objective of Monument Mitra Scheme. See the main objective of the Monument Mitra Scheme is to ensure good infrastructural facilities across Heritage natural and tourist sites through proper maintenance and active participation of private and public sector organizations and individuals. In simple words the Monument Mitra Scheme is concerned with the preservation of cultural heritage of India. Okay once again statement one is correct. Monument Mitra Scheme is part of Adopt a Heritage Initiative. Now coming to the second statement Monument Mitras denote the entities that take part in the preservation of historic Monuments in India. See this statement is also correct just now we saw this. See entities which are selected for adopting Heritage natural tourist sites or Monuments are called as Monument Mitras. They will contribute to the preservation of cultural heritage and the monument itself. So second statement is correct. So the correct answer to the question is option C both 1 and 2. Additionally know that in India Heritage natural and tourist sites are classified into various categories based on visibility and food fall. They include blue orange and green. So Monument Mitras can select from these categories. The condition and the category for the selection of these sites are given here. Pass the video and just go through it. And that's all about Monument Mitra Scheme. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is about Vaikom Satyagraha. See we have filmed this question because the plans for celebrations of 100 years completions of Vaikom Satyagraha is happening this year itself. See 2024 only marks 100 years of completion. But the celebration plan is discussed now itself. So UPSC might ask a question about Vaikom this year itself. See UPSC is always keen on asking about Satyagrahas. In the past we had questions about Ketha Satyagraha and Rowlett Satyagraha. And the most recent one is Champaran Satyagraha which was asked in 2018 UPSC blims. Here is the question you can go through it. Now let us learn about Vaikom Satyagraha by solving this question. Which of the following is incorrect about Vaikom Satyagraha. See the question asks us to find incorrect option about Vaikom Satyagraha. Option A, Periyar participated in the Vaikom Satyagraha. Option B, TK Madhavan one of the pioneers of the Satyagraha belonged to the upper caste and fought for the lower caste Hindus. Option C, Vaikom Satyagraha was started on March 30, 1924 in Kerala. Option D, the protest happened because the roads leading to Vaikom Mahadeva temple was forbidden to low caste Hindus in Vaikom. See here the incorrect option is option B, TK Madhavan one of the pioneers of the Satyagraha belonged to the upper caste and fought for the lower caste Hindus. Apart from this option, all other options are correct. See TK Madhavan belonged to the Yalava community which is one of the depressed communities in Vaikom. And this is why the option B is incorrect. See TK Madhavan fought for his own community and for the other depressed classes. See according to the prevalent class structure, low caste Hindus were not allowed to enter the temples. In Kerala they were not even allowed to steer on the roads that lead to the temples. And this is the reason why Vaikom Satyagraha happened. Now coming to Vaikom Satyagraha, the Vaikom movement started on March 30, 1924. The movement's foremost objective was to open four public highways leading to Mahadeva temple at Vaikom which were closed to marginalized castes. The Satyagrahas made the batches of three people together and they entered the temple. They were resisted and arrested by the local police. On Gandhiji's advice, temporarily the movement was taken back in April 1924. Then after the failure of discussions among Hindus, the leaders again started the movement. Leaders such as K. P. K. Swaminen and T. K. Madhavan were arrested. Then on 1st October 1924, a petition was submitted to the legend Maharani Siddhu Lakshmi Bhai of Travankur. The petition had about 25,000 signatures for allowing entry to the temple for everyone. Subsequently on 23rd November 1925, except for the eastern gate, all the gates of the temple were opened to the Hindus. Then in 1928, backward castes got the right to move on public roads in the vicinity of all temples in Travankur. Okay, that's all about Vaikom Satyagraha. Kindly remember all the points that we saw now. Now let's move on to the next question. See this question here. This question is an assertion and recent type question about Neelakurunji. Now look at the assertion statement. It takes 12 years for the Neelakurunji flower to bloom. See this statement is correct. Neelakurunji takes 12 years to bloom. A note one additional point here. Plans with such unusual blooming cycles with long intervals are called Pleisticeals. Okay, now moving on to the recent statement. Neelakurunji flowers take a long time to pollinate. See this statement is also correct. Neelakurunji flower takes a long time to pollinate. And that's why it takes 12 years for the Neelakurunji flower to bloom. In Bhartani, this is known as Surveil mechanism of plants. The long time needed for pollination avoids complete destruction by predators. Once in 12 years, the Neelakurunji blooms and produces lots of seeds. As so many seeds are produced at the same time, the predators cannot eat all at once. This aids in the survival of Neelakurunji plant species. So both assertion statement and the recent statement are individually true and the recent statement is correct explanation of assertion. So the correct answer here is Option A. Both A and R are individually true and R is the correct explanation of A. Now as part of this discussion, let us see important points about Neelakurunji. See Kurunji is a shrub that is also called Neelakurunji. This shrub grows in the shawl of our south western gods in southern India. Its botanical name is Strobilanthus Kuntiana. The plant is named after the famous Kunti river which flows through Kerala's Silent Valley National Park. See Kurunji belongs to the genus Strobilanthus and it belongs to the family Asanteca and it was identified in the 19th century. This genus has about 250 species. Out of that around 46 species are found in India. Now coming to the characteristics of Neelakurunji plant, first of all let us see the physical characteristics. See Kurunji grows to a height of 3260 cm and it is found at an altitude of 1300 to 2400 meters. The Kurunji flower is a bright blue colored bell shaped flower. The second important characteristics is Neelakurunji plant is a perennial monocarpic plant. Don't worry if you don't know the term, I will explain it to you. See among the plants there are annuals and perennials. Annual plants complete their life cycle in one year.  But if we take perennials they live for more than two years and they usually flower every year and set seeds. Here there are certain cases where some perennials flower only once in their lifetime set seeds and die. The next generation of the plants are established from these seeds and the cycle is repeated and such plants are called monocarpic plants. See this is opposed to polycarbic plants which flowers and set seeds many times during its lifetime. Monocarpic plants flower only after attaining maturity. The time taken by different species may differ in this respect. For example let's take bamboos. See bamboos are monocarpic plants which take more than 40 years to mature and flower. And Neelakurunji takes 12 years to flower. This doesn't mean all plants in the genus Stobilanthus take 12 years to flower. Stobilanthus cusipidatus take 7 years to flower. So it depends upon the species. Finally from this we can say that Kurunji is a perennial plant because it lives more than two years and it is monocarpic because it flowers only once in its lifetime set seeds and dies and it takes 12 years to flower. Okay now moving on to its habitat Neelakurunji is mostly found in western gods. Apart from that Neelakurunji is also seen in the savorais in the eastern gods in the Anemila Hills of Iduki district and Agali Hills of Palakar in Kerala and Sandur Hills of Belarid district in Karnataka. This all about habitat. Now finally let us conclude by seeing about the threats faced by the plant. The plant's habitat has shrunk so much. Now it is mostly confined to air reclums protected reserve. The shrub and its rare flowerings have disappeared much of the region. A plantations of eucalyptus and acacia then agriculture and most recently tourism has striped the grasslands which Kurunji grows. Right now the government is taking steps to protect natural habitat of Kurunji. See the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has added Neelakurunji to the Protected Plants list that is to the Schedule 3 of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972. This means that if someone approves or destroys the plant he or she will invite a fine of rupees 25,000 and three years imprisonment. Also the cultivation of Neelakurunji and its possession is not allowed according to the ministry's order. This is all about Neelakurunji. Now let us move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question describes the planet. It is the hardest planet of the solar system.  It was the first planet to be explored by a spacecraft. Which of the following planet is described here? Option A, Mercury, Option B, Mars, Option C, Venus, Option D, Jupiter. Here the correct answer is Option C, Venus. C Venus is the hardest planet of the solar system and it has thick toxic atmosphere filled with carbon dioxide and sulphuric acid. And now that it was the first planet to be explored by a spacecraft. Another information you should note about Venus is that phosphine, a possible indicator of microbial life, has been observed in the clouds of Venus. And note that phosphine could be a sign of microbial life. Now why we have taken up this question? See in January there was news about the launching time of Sukrayan-1 mission. So we will now see about ISRO's Venus mission that is Sukrayan-1 mission. Now that Sukrayan-1 is an orbiter mission. So what is an orbiter? See orbiter is like a spaceship that circles around a planet without actually landing on its surface. Now coming to Sukrayan-1 mission, see here the orbiter is loaded with a synthetic aperture radar and a ground penetrating radar. These radars can see through Venus thick sulphuric acid clouds. These clouds make it impossible for us to see what's going on down there on the surface of the Venus. Therefore the synthetic aperture radar and a ground penetrating radar will penetrate those clouds and reveal information about the planet. This orbiter also has a Venusian-Nutral's analysis. Basically it is a gadget that helps us to understand how charged particles from the Sun interact with Venus atmosphere. Okay now let's talk about the launch time. Originally the Sukrayan-1 mission was supposed to be launched in 2023, but then it got delayed to December 2024. Why is there such delay? Because in 2024, Earth and Venus align in such a way that it takes the least amount of propellant to put orbiter into Venus orbit. It's like catching a cosmic Uber at the perfect moment. So we will be saving fuel and this will also make the journey smoother. We call this sweet pot as the optimal launch window and it happens once every 19 months. See there are even more special optimal windows but they are rare. These super special windows happen only around every eight years and they reduce the amount of fuel needed for lift off even further. See recently the Sukrayan-1 mission was in use that the mission might get postponed all the way to 2031. Okay see the united states and european space agencies are also planning their own Venus mission for their 2031. They have got Veritas and N-Vision respectively. So these are some of the points that you should know about Sukrayan-1 mission. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here this is a two statement question about the chemical weapons convention. Now before solving this question let us discuss some basic information about the chemical weapons convention. See the chemical weapons convention which is shortly known as CWC is a multilateral treaty that bans chemical weapons and requires their destruction within a specified period of time. I know that CWC negotiations were started in 1980 in the UN conference on Disarmament. After negotiations the convention was opened for signature on January 13, 1993. However the convention entered into force on April 29, 1997. The chemical weapons convention is open to all nations and it currently has 193 state parties and note one point here Israel has signed the convention but yet to ratify it and three states have neither signed nor ratified the convention and they are Egypt, North Korea and South Sudan. Okay now who is responsible for implementing chemical weapons convention? See the chemical weapons convention is implemented by the organization for the prohibition of chemical weapons which is shortly known as OPCW. Know that OPCW is headquartered in the Hague Netherlands. The OPCW receives declarations from the state parties detailing chemical weapons related activities or materials and relevant industrial activities. After receiving declarations the OPCW inspects and monitors state parties facilities and activities that are relevant to the convention. See this is being done to ensure compliance with the convention. Now coming to India specific information, India signed the treaty at Paris on 14 January 1993. And know that India was the first state party to secure the distinction of chemical weapon free state party. That is India was the first country to destroy all its stockpile of chemical weapons amongst all state parties of the chemical weapons convention. Apart from this India also established the National Authority Chemical Weapons Convention. And this is under the Chemical Weapons Convention Act 2000. This was done for implementing the provisions of Chemical Weapons Convention. Okay now with this information let's solve the question. Consider the following statements regarding the convention on chemical weapons. Look at the first statement CWC only prohibits the use of chemical weapons and it does not require the destruction of chemical weapons. See this statement is incorrect because the chemical weapons convention requires the destruction of chemical weapons within a specified period of time. And it also prohibits the use of chemical weapons. So statement one is incorrect. Now coming to the second statement, India was the first country to destroy all its stockpile of chemical weapons amongst all state parties of the chemical weapons convention. As we saw in the discussion this statement is correct. India was the first country to destroy all its stockpile of chemical weapons. So statement two is correct. Here the question is asking for incorrect statements. So the correct answer is option A1 only. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. This question is a pair based question. On one side hydroelectric power projects are given and on the other side the rivers which the hydroelectric power projects are located are given. And we have to find how many pairs are correctly matched. Pair one Kishanganga Geelam. Pair two Rattal Chenab. Pair three Dehar Sattilaj. Pair four Nathpajakri Bias. Here the first two pairs are correctly matched. Kishanganga hydroelectric project is located on Geelam river. And the Rattal project is located on Chenab river. Whereas third and fourth pairs incorrectly matched. And it is interchangeably matched. Dehar hydroelectric project is on Bias river. And Nathpajakri hydroelectric project is located on River Sattilaj. Only first and second pairs are correctly matched. So the correct answer is option B only two pairs. See we have framed this question because Pakistan has repeatedly raised objections to India's Kishanganga and Rattal hydroelectric projects located in Jammun Kashmir. Pakistan is consistently saying that these hydroelectric projects are violating the Indus Water Treaty. Now before looking into Indus Water Treaty, now first let's understand about Kishanganga and Rattal hydroelectric projects. Now first let's take Kishanganga. See the river Kishanganga is a tributary of the Geelam river. It flows through Jammun Kashmir and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir. Now talking about the Kishanganga hydroelectric project, the Kishanganga hydroelectric project is located in Bandipura district of Jammun Kashmir. It is a type of run-of-the-river hydroelectric scheme. See run-of-the-river hydroelectric power station easily generates electricity using the natural downward flow of rivers. Here water is not stored or there may be very less storage of water. This is all about Kishanganga hydroelectric project. Now let's see in brief about Rattal hydroelectric project. See Rattal project is also run-of-the-river hydroelectric power station. It is currently under construction on the Chena river in the Kisthwa district of Jammun Kashmir. Okay now we will look about the Indus Water Treaty and the ongoing issue. See Indus Water Treaty is a water sharing agreement between India and Pakistan. The agreement was signed in 1960 and it was brokered by the World Bank. As per the Indus Water Treaty, all the waters of three eastern rivers namely Ravi, Satellites and BS were allocated to India for exclusive use. While the waters of western rivers namely Indus, Geelam and Chenab were allocated to Pakistan. But as specified by the treaty, India can use the waters of western rivers such as Indus, Geelam and Chenab for specified domestic non-consumptive and agricultural use. Under the Indus Water Treaty, India has been given the right to generate hydroelectricity through run-of-the-river projects on the western rivers. As we saw earlier, both the Kishanganga and Rattal hydroelectric projects are run-of-the-river hydroelectric scheme. So India is saying that the Kishanganga and Rattal hydroelectric projects do not violate the Indus Water Treaty. But Pakistan argues that hydroelectric projects violate the Indus Water Treaty. So this is what the issue is going on between Pakistan and India. And we have to see what is going to happen in the future. And that's all about this question. Now let's move on to the next question. Now look at this question here. I'll read out the question. Which of the following are the diseases for which vasins are administered under universal immunization program? Here five diseases are given. We have to find for which of these diseases the vasins are administered under universal immunization program. See under universal immunization program, vasin is being provided free of cost against 12 vasin-preventable diseases. It includes nationwide coverage of love and diseases and one subnational coverage. The love and diseases that are covered nationally include diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, measles, rubella, severe form of childhood tuberculosis, rotovirus, diarrhea, hepatitis B, meningitis and pneumonia caused by humophilus, influenza type B and pneumococcal pneumonia. Then the one disease that are covered under universal immunization program sub-nationally include Japanese encephalities. This means Japanese encephalities vasin is provided only in endemic districts. Now coming back to the question, only measles, rubella and polio are covered under universal immunization program. Chickenpox and HIV are not covered under universal immunization program. So the correct answer for the question is option B, 1, 2 and 3 only. See we have framed this question because India had a set a target to eliminate measles and rubella by 2023. So an article appeared with respect to this in the Hindu. Therefore these two diseases become important. Now we will learn about measles and rubella. Now first let's take measles. See measles is an airborne disease caused by a virus called paramyxovirus. It is highly contagious. The term highly contagious means that the infection can spread from one person to another person easily. Therefore we can say that human to human transmission of measles infection is possible. Now how measles is transmitted? See measles can be transmitted through the droplets from the nose, mouth or throat of the infected persons to a healthy individual. These droplets can spread the disease even when they are released in the air. Apart from this it can spread by the injection of virus into the environment by sneezing or coughing. So measles can also be termed as communicable disease. Now what are the symptoms of measles? Some of the symptoms of measles include fever, cough and common cold. Measles can also lead to serious health complications