Daily Current Affairs Quiz – 16th Dec. 2020

ANS: (2) 2 Only

Explanation:

• Collegium system is the system of appointment and transfer of judges that has evolved through judgments of the Supreme Court, and not by an Act of Parliament or by a provision of the Constitution.
• Collegium a forum comprising of the Chief Justice of India and the four senior-most judges of the Supreme Court.
• There is no mention of the Collegium either in the original Constitution of India or in successive amendments.

ANS: (1) 1 and 2 Only

A Himalayan serow has been sighted for the first time in the Himalayan cold desert region. The animal was spotted by locals and wildlife officials at a riverside rocky wall near Hurling village in Spiti, Himachal Pradesh.

This is the first recorded human sighting of the serow in Himachal Pradesh. The animal has been spotted a few times earlier in the state, but that has always been through camera traps.

Spiti lies in the cold mountain desert region of the western Himalaya, and its valley floor has an average elevation of 4,270 metres above sea level.

Serows are generally not found at this altitude, and never before has a serow been seen in the Himalayan cold desert. Wildlife officials believe this particular animal may have strayed into the Spiti valley from the Rupi Bhaba Wildlife Sanctuary in adjoining Kinnaur.

A biologist has decribed a Himalayan serow as resembling a cross between a goat, a donkey, a cow, and a pig. It’s a medium-sized mammal with a large head, thick neck, short limbs, long, mule-like ears, and a coat of dark hair.

There are several species of serows, and all of them are found in Asia. The Himalayan serow, or Capricornis sumatraensis thar, is restricted to the Himalayan region.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Himalayan serows have experienced significant declines in population size, range size and habitat in the last decade, and this is expected to continue due to intensive human impact.

Previously assessed as ‘near threatened’, the Himalayan serow is now been categorised as ‘vulnerable’ in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

It is listed under Schedule I of The Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, which provides absolute protection.

Ans: (1) 1 and 2 Only

Explanation:

• The S-400 Triumf, (NATO calls it SA-21 Growler), is a mobile, surface-to-air missile system (SAM) designed by Russia.
• It can engage aerial targets such as aircraft, ballistic and cruise missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), which are within the range of 400km.
• The missile system integrates a multifunction radar, autonomous detection and targeting systems, anti-aircraft missile systems, launchers, and command and control centre. It can provide a layered defence as it is capable of firing three types of missiles.

ANS: (3) Western Ghats

Explanation: Myristica swamp treefrog:

1. It is a rare arboreal species endemic to the Western Ghats.
2. They are active only for a few weeks during their breeding season.
3. Before the end of the breeding season, the female frogs along with their male counterparts descend on the forest floor.
4. The female digs the mud and lays eggs in shallow burrows in mud. After breeding and egg-laying, they retreat back to the high canopies of the tree and remain elusive till next breeding season.
5. Context:
6. It has been recorded for the first time north of the Shencottah gap in the Vazhachal Reserve Forest in Kerala’s Thrissur district.

ANS: (3) 3 Only

Explanation:

• Rakhine State is situated on the western coast of Myanmar.
• Sittwe port is located in Rakhine State. Sittwe Port is a deepwater port constructed by India in 2016 at Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine State in Myanmar, on the Bay of Bengal. It is situated at the mouth of the Kaladan River.
• Rakhine state is bordered by Bangladesh to the northwest. It does not border India.