Environmental Studies Mock Test - 2

The correct answer is Methane.

• Compressed natural gas, CNG, is natural gas under pressure which remains clear, odourless, and non-corrosive.
• CNG can be used as a cheaper, greener, and more efficient alternative to the traditional petrol and diesel fuels for vehicles.
• CNG is comprised mostly of methane gas which, produces engine power when mixed with air and fed into your engine's combustion chamber.

Key Points

• Composition: Apart from methane the other components present in CNG are ethane, propane, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, sulphide and traces of water.
• CNG is compressed so that enough fuel can be stored in your vehicle to extend driving range.
• Diesel and gasoline vehicles will need to be converted to use CNG fuel.
• The primary source of obtaining CNG is from oil wells, bed methane wells, coal wells, and even natural gas wells.
• Advantages:
  • Natural gas vehicles have lower maintenance costs than other hydrocarbon-fuel-powered vehicles.
  • CNG fuel systems are sealed, preventing fuel losses from spills or evaporation.
  • Being a gaseous fuel, CNG mixes easily and evenly in the air.

Concept:

Eco-tourism:

• Ecotourism refers to “responsible travel that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people”.
• It is also called “nature tourism”.
• This means protecting the local ecosystem and natural resources.
• It also involves giving local people a living wage while helping them preserve their communities and culture.

• It involves nature conservation by tourists who visit several attraction sites.
• This is aimed at securing threatened species of plants and animals that depend on nature to survive.
• This is done mainly by tourists to sustain the beauty and attraction of the sites.

Explanation:

Objectives of eco-tourism:

• Ecotourism helps preserve and foster respect for some of the most beautiful environments on Earth.
• It encourages travellers to help protect the environment.
• Helps in the conservation of biodiversity.
• Sustainable rural development is based on environmental protection.
• Creating awareness about the environment.
• Education and awareness about endangered animals and climate change.
• Improvement of life quality for locals and their empowerment.
• Understanding of sensitivity towards other cultures.

Additional Information

Eco-Tourism spot:

 

• Honey Hills, Kerala
• Bandipur National Park, Karnataka
• Sunderbans National Park, West Bengal
• Tribal excursion in Chhattisgarh 

 

Explanation:

Eco-socialism:

• The idea of ecosocialism was first begun to spread in 1980.
• Ecosocialism is concerned with ecological issues.
• It is based on the belief that capitalism is harmful to society as well as to the environment.
• Here the idea of ecology and socialism has combined.
• Eco socialists are the persons with the ideology that the expansion of the capitalist system is the major cause of war, poverty, social issues, and degradation of the environment.
• They believe that environmental protection is incompatible with capitalism.
• They believe that if we want to fight climate change we have to move towards a socialist society.

Thus, eco-socialists believe that capitalization is the real cause of social issues.

Explanation:​

Earth First:

Concept:

Survivorship Curves:

• A survivorship curve is a graph that measures the probability of survival of an individual with age.
• This means the measurement of the number of individuals of a given species that are alive at different ages.
• The number of individuals in the population is plotted on the y-axis of the graph and the age of survivorship is plotted on the x-axis of the graph.
• There are three types of survivorship curves, Type I, Type II, and Type III.

Explanation:

Three types of survivorship curves are:

• This graph shows the individuals that have a high probability of surviving their early and middle life but have a fast decline in the number of individuals which survive in the later phase of their life. 
• It means that most individuals survive till adulthood but the number of individuals surviving in their old age is highly decreased.
• The type I survivorship curve is plotted as a convex curve on a graph.

• This curve shows the constant mortality rate of a species throughout its entire life.
• It means that the chance of an individual's death is independent of their age.
• Type II survivorship curves are plotted as a diagonal line going downwards on a graph.

• This curve depicts species that experience the greatest mortality rate in their early life few individuals will live to adulthood and die 
• Here the probability of survival of an individual is decreased with age.​
• It is a concave type of curve, shown by those organisms that produce a large number of small-sized organisms.
• Example fishes, insects and other marine, invertebrates.
• The lowest age group shows the highest mortality probably due to predation or lack of parental care.
• However, those who have survived show low rates of death i.e. high probability of survival.
• All these three survivorship curves show the survival rate and mortality rate through the curves. ​ 

Thus, in a population characterized by type III survivorship, the survivorship curve is concave.

Concept:

• The growth of population is the change in the number of people living in a particular area between two points in time.
• Its rate is expressed in percentages.
• Population growth has two components namely; natural and induced.
• While the natural growth is analysed by assessing the crude birth and death rates, the induced components are explained by the volume of inward and outward movement of people in any given area.
• The decadal and annual growth rates of the population in India are both very high and steadily increasing over time.

Explanation:

Exponential growth: 

• Resource (food and space) availability is obviously essential for the unimpeded growth of a population.
• Ideally, when resources in the habitat are unlimited, each species has the ability to realise fully its innate potential to grow in number.
• Any species growing exponentially under unlimited resource conditions can reach enormous population densities in a short time
• Then the population grows in an exponential or geometric fashion.
• If in a population of size N, the birth rates are represented as b and death rates as d.
• Then the increase or decrease in N during a unit time period t (dN/dt) will be dN/dt = (b – d) × N Let (b–d) = r.
• Exponential growth takes place when a population's per capita growth rate stays the same, regardless of population size, making the population grow faster and faster as it gets larger. 
• Human population growth is exponential because the human population increasing rapidly in the world due to the abundance of food, space and natural resources. 
• Since 1000AD the growth rate of humans is exponential.
• Research proves that global human population growth is 75 million annually.
• In 1800 global population was 1 billion and in 2012 the population growth is 7 billion.
• It proves that the human population is growing exponentially.

​Thus, human population growth is the exponential growth

Additional Information 

Logistic growth:

• When we plot the increase in cell number (growth rate) against time, we get a typical S-shaped curve.
• This curve is known as the growth curve or sigmoid growth curve due to the sigmoid shape of the curve obtained.
• This curve shows a characteristic feature of living organisms growing in a natural environment.
• This curve is typical for all cells, tissues, and organs of a plant.

The sigmoid growth curve has three phases of growth:

Lag phase: 

• The lag phase is slow at first due to the limited population number, lack of adaption to the new environment, and delayed development.
• The lag phase is the log phase because here population grows in a logarithm fashion.
• In this phase, one species population try to adjust to the environment.

Log phase:

• It is the middle phase of the system and is characterized by the very fast and rapid growth of organisms.
• After initiation of growth, it increases rapidly at an exponential rate.

Stationary phase:

• It is a kind of phase when the growth of a population stops.
• In this phase, cells remain active metabolically.
• In this stage different kinds of physical and molecular changes take place.

​

Concept:

Stewardship of Land:

• Stewardship of the land is an ethic that embodies the responsible planning and management of resources.
• It calls upon everyone in society to take responsibility for protecting and conserving natural resources through conservation and sustainable practices.
• The stewardship of the land is based on concepts of responsibility and care for the resource on land.
• Management of land is essential for the benefit of future generations.

Explanation:

Wendell Berry:

• Wendell Berry is an American novelist, poet, environmental activist, and farmer.
• His ambition was to reclaim the best elements of the rural communities and the values that have declined over several generations.
• He imagines a future where the flourishing of independent farmers is there, sustainable gardens, and animal husbandry is there.
• He was associated with stewardship of the land.

Thus, Wendell Berry is associated with stewardship of the land.

Additional Information

Shallow ecology:

• The philosophical or political position where environmental preservation is practiced to the extent that it meets human interest is referred to as shallow ecology.
• This means in shallow ecology human needs are put above the conservation of the environment.
• It is not a radical change to fight against pollution.
• It is just a fashionable fight against pollution and resource depletion.
• It is also referred to as week ecologism.
• In shallow ecologism, there is the inclusion of the use of vehicles that cause less pollution or air conditioners that do not release chlorofluorocarbons.
• Shallow ecologism serves to maintain the lifestyle of those dwelling in developed countries.

Deep ecology:

• The basic ideology of ecology is that human should radically change their relationship with nature.
• Dpcology rejects the idea of shallow ecology.
• It does not support the idea of an environmentally destructive way of life in modern societies.
• It believes that sustaining the environmentally destructive way of life will further widen the inequalities between the countries.

Social ecology:

• Social ecology deals with how individuals interact with and respond to the environment around them.
• It also deals that how these interactions of individuals with their environment affect society and the environment as a whole.

Concept:

Demographic Transition:

• Demographic Transition model was designed on the basis of the interpretation of demographic history.
• Demographic history was developed in 1929 by W. Thompson.
• Industrialized societies have shown demographic transitions during the last 200 years from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates.
• With exception of some poor countries, most developed countries are in the 3rd and 4th stages of the model.
• Whereas developing countries have also reached 2nd and 3rd stage.
• It is not clear whether industrialization and higher income lead to lower populations or lower populations lead to industrialization and higher incomes.
• There are four to five stages during transition (shift over) from high birth and death rate to low birth and death rate.  death rate.

Explanation:

There is a total of five stages during demographic transition:

Stage I:

• Population growth is very slow, birth and death rates are almost equal.
• It talks of stable human population in the 18th century.
• There was agricultural revolution and less or no industrialisation.

Stage II:

• It is for developed countries like Europe, where slow death rate was observed.
• This may have been due to better agricultural practices like crop farming and selective breeding.
• Better health care facilities have also led to increased lifespan and control over diseases.
• An imbalance created between high birth rate and decreased death rate was responsible for increasing the population size.

Stage III:

• In this stage, fall in birth rate was observed.
• This is due to use of birth control options, urbanization, education of women, people were against child labour, education of children was thought of as an investment by parents.
• Parents throught of better facilities they could give to their children.
• Decline in birth rate, may have been due to transition of values.

Stage IV:

• Decline in both birth and death rates.
• Birth rate may fall to well below replacement level as has taken place in countries like Germany, Italy and Japan.
• It leads to a shrinking working human population with lot of economic burden on them.
• Death rate may be low or increase slightly due to life style errors like obesity and ageing population in developed countries.

Stage V:

• Original model has just 4 stages but more fertile and less fertile futures are claimed as stage five.
• In current century, most developed countries have increased fertility.
• According to evolutionary biology, rich people have more children as they have a lot of resources to support their future generations.
• Many European and East Asian countries have a higher death rate than birth rate. 

Thus, stage IV is characterized by decline in both birth rate and death rate. 

Concept:

• Every population survives on available resources like food, water, and space.
• Nature can provide optimum resources for healthy living to many individuals.
• This is called carrying capacity (k).
• Beyond k, resources become deficient and populations are starved of food and shelter.
• As a result, populations are exposed to predators and pathogens, and population size decreases. 
• The factors that regulate the size of a population can be categorized as biotic and abiotic.

Explanation:

Biotic Factors:

• These are living factors.
• These include:

Food:

• Quality and quantity of food are essential for population growth.

Predators: 

• There is an interaction between predator and prey population.
• Predators help in keeping the size of prey at a constant level.

Competitors:

• Organisms compete for similar resources from the environment.
• For example, all plants compete for light.
• Competition for territory and mates can reduce the growth of individual organisms.

Parasites:

• They slow down the growth of the host by trapping them of essential requirements by living on or within them.

Thus, the biotic factors that regulate population size are food and parasites only.

Additional Information

• Abiotic Factors: These are non-living factors. It includes the following
• Temperature: Higher temperature promotes the growth of the population.
• Oxygen: The availability of oxygen also promotes population size.
• Light availability: Light controls photosynthesis in plants and breeding cycles in animals.
• Toxins and pollutants: They usually decrease population size.
• Climate Change: Change in climate and global warming bring down the population.
• Disasters: Natural disasters like floods or droughts also reduce the population.

Concept:

• Ecology is the study of the relationships between living organisms, which includes humans and their physical environment.
• Here we study the important connections between plants and animals and the world around them.
• It also tells about the benefits of ecosystems and the ways we should use earth resources so that we leave the environment healthy for future generations also.
• The concept of deep and shallow ecology emerged in the 1970s.
• Norwegian philosopher Arne Naess sought to look beyond the popular pollution and conservation movements of his milieu to address environmental degradation.

Explanation:

Deep ecology:

• Deep ecology is an environmental philosophy and social movement.
• It argues that the natural world is a subtle balance of complex interrelationships in which the existence of an organism is dependent on the existence of others within the ecosystem.
• Deep Ecology consists of two words Deep and Ecology.
• Deep as it looks deeply into the actual reality of human relationship with the whole natural world which is more conclusive than that of the prevailing view of ecology as a branch of "Biology'.
• The world does not exist as a resource to be freely exploited by humans except to meet basic human needs, humans have no authority to limit diversity.​
• It aims at conserving and saving nature for the inherent aim of maintaining and conserving the environment. 

Important Points 

Shallow ecology:

• Shallow ecology was coined by Arne Naess in 1973.
• Shallow Ecology doesn't articulate the fundamental principles of Deep Ecology.
• The ecologists who believe in 'Shallow Ecology' wish to save, conserve and protect the world and environment, only for the human needs.
• The motive behind the conservation actions is selfish.
• In shallow ecology, ecologists are mainly not concerned with saving the environment for its innate value but because the environment would be useful to man in many forms.
• For example, it believes in saving the forests as trees give us oxygen, better rainfall, the better quality of air and tourists enjoy the greenery of the forest to encourage tourism in return.
• Thus shallow ecology is ecology based on saving the world and environment so that the environment gives benefits to human life in return.

Thus, the school of deep and shallow ecology was founded by Arne Ness.

The correct answer is National park.

• The national park has the highest degree of protection by the government.

Key Points

• The national park enjoys a greater degree of protection than sanctuaries.
• Certain activities which are regulated in sanctuaries such as grazing of livestock are prohibited in the national park.
• National parks are declared in areas that are considered to be of adequate ecological, geomorphological and natural significance.
• Although within the law the difference in conservation value of national park and sanctuary is not specified within the WPA 1972.
• The fixed boundary of a National Park is described in the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. 
• The legislation states the actual area of the National Park which is notified by the state government.
• A National park is an area with enough ecological, geo-morphological, and natural significance with rich fauna and flora.
• It is designed to protect and develop wildlife or its environment.
• National parks in India are IUCN category II protected areas.
• Activities like grazing, hunting, forestry or cultivation, etc. are strictly prohibited.
• No human activity is permitted inside the national park except for the ones permitted by the Chief Wildlife Warden of the state.
• India’s first national park was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park, now known as Jim Corbett National Park, Uttarakhand.
• There are 104 existing national parks in India covering an area of 40501.13 km2, which is 1.23% of the geographical area of the country (National Wildlife Database, May 2019).

Additional Information

Wildlife Sanctuary:-

• Any area other than area comprised with any reserve forest or the territorial waters can be notified by the State Government to constitute as a sanctuary if such area is of adequate ecological, faunal, floral, geomorphological, natural. or zoological significance, for the purpose of protecting, propagating or developing wildlife or its environment.
• The difference between a Sanctuary and a National Park mainly lies in the vesting of rights of people living inside.
• Unlike a Sanctuary, where certain rights can be allowed, in a National Park, no rights are allowed. 
• No grazing of any livestock is permitted inside a National Park while in a Sanctuary, the Chief Wildlife Warden may regulate, control or prohibit it.
• There are a total of 551 wildlife sanctuaries in India.

Biosphere reserves:-

• Biosphere reserves are the protected areas meant for the conservation of flora and fauna.
• The Biosphere Reserves are identified by the Man and Biosphere Reserve Program of UNSECO started in 1971 to promote sustainable development.
• There are 18 Biosphere Reserves in India out of which 12 are a part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves, based on the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme list.

Concept:

Carbon trading:

• Carbon trading is an effort to control pollution.
• Just like simple trading, it is a trading of carbon.
• Here a central authority sets the number of pollutants that can be emitted.
• This allowance is termed credit.
• And when the emitted pollutant is carbon dioxide then it is called carbon credit.
• If a company crosses the set limit of this credit then they have to buy extra allowance from those who have emitted pollutants lesser than the set limit.
• This transfer of carbon credit is termed carbon trading.
• It was introduced after the Kyoto Protocol.

Explanation:

Kyoto protocol:

• The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty.
• It deals with reducing overall greenhouse emissions. 
• It was the result of the Rio-1992 and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
• The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997.
• It entered into force on 16 February 2005. 
• There are currently 192 parties.

Thus, carbon trading was introduced after the Kyoto protocol.

Additional Information

• The concept of “sustainable development” came into general usage after the Brundtland Commission Report (1987).
• The concept of sustainable development was emphasised by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED).​

Key Points

Sustainable Development (SD): 

• Brundtland stated that "sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present generation, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
• SD enables the present generation to use natural resources judiciously so that their availability is ensured for future generations too.
• The United Nations 2005 World Summit outcome document refers to three "interdependent and mutually reinforcing pillars" of sustainable development.​

Important Points

Three Pillars of Sustainability:

• The three pillars of sustainability are a powerful tool for defining the Sustainable Development problem.
• This consists of three parameters: Economic, Social, and Environmental pillars.
• If anyone pillar is weak then the system as a whole is unsustainable.
• Two popular ways to visualize the three pillars are shown in the figure below:

Social Sustainability:

• Social Sustainability focuses on social systems, such as a country, family, or organization.
•  It requires them to function at a defined level of social well-being and harmony indefinitely.
• Problems like war, endemic poverty, widespread injustice, gender disparity and diversity and low education rate are symptoms of a system that is socially unsustainable.

Environmental Sustainability:

• Environmental Sustainability is the ability of the environment to support a defined level of environmental quality and natural resource extraction rates indefinitely.
• This is the world's biggest actual problem.
• This problem receives too low a priority to be solved and is consequently delayed.
• Example: Carrying capacity.

Economic Sustainability:

• Economic Sustainability is the ability of an economy to support a defined level of economic production indefinitely.
• Since the Great Recession of 2008, this is the world's biggest apparent problem that endangers the progress of environmental sustainability.
• Example: Inter and Intra-generation equity.

Thus, none of the above is not included in the parameters of sustainable development.

Explanation:

NAMP (National Air Quality Monitoring Programme):

• NAMP (National Air Quality Monitoring Programme) is a programme that is executed by Central Pollution Control Board.
• The main objective of the NAMP is to determine the quality of air.
• Under NAMP four air pollutants are to be identified and monitored at all the locations.
• These four pollutants are Sulphur dioxide, Oxides of Nitrogen, Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter, and Fine Particulate Matter.
• The network consists of 793 operating stations covering 344 cities/towns in 29 states and 6 Union Territories of the country.

Important Points

Objectives:

• To determine the status and trends of ambient air quality.
• To check if the prescribed ambient air quality standards are violated.
• To Identify Non-Attainment Cities.
• To get the idea and understanding which is necessary for developing preventive and corrective measures.

Thus, the full form of NAMP is National Air Quality Monitoring Programme.

Explanation:

Pollutant monitoring:

• Monitoring is an exercise to measure ambient pollution levels in an area.
• It involves the collection and measurement of water, air, or soil.
• Pollution monitoring does not involve the analysis of the sample taken. 
• Samples are taken using an appropriate prescribed method and are then sent for analysis in the lab.

Important Points

Reasons to collect such data include to:

• assess the extent of pollution;
• provide pollution data to the general public in a timely manner;
• support implementation of quality goals or standards;
• evaluate the effectiveness of emissions control strategies;
• provide information on quality trends;
• support research (e.g., long-term studies of the health effects of air pollution).

• The hardness of water is that characteristic that prevents the formation of sufficient leather or foam.
• It occurs due to the presence of carbonates, bicarbonates, sulphates, chlorides of calcium and magnesium(Ca and Mg).
• The hardness of water is due to the presence of dissolved minerals of Ca2+, Mg2+, Al3+, Iron and other heavy elements. Specifically due to Calcium Sulphate, Calcium Bicarbonate, Calcium chloride, Magnesium Sulphate, Magnesium Bicarbonate and Magnesium chloride.​

Key Points

Temporary hardness (Carbonate hardness):

• Temporary hardness is caused by the presence of dissolved bicarbonates of Calcium (Ca(HCO3)2 ), Magnesium (Mg(HCO3)2 ), Iron and other heavy elements.
• It can be eliminated by mere boiling.

Ca(HCO3)2 → CaCO3↓ + H2O + CO2 ↑

Mg(HCO3)2 → MgCO3 + H2O + CO2 ↑

MgCO3 → Mg(OH)2↓ + CO2 ↑

Permanent Hardness (non-carbonate hardness):

• Permanent Hardness is due to the presence of dissolved chlorides and sulphates of Calcium, Magnesium, Iron and other heavy elements.
• It cannot be eliminated by boiling.

Hence, we can conclude that magnesium carbonate is responsible for temporary hardness of water.

Additional Information 

Degree of Hardness

• Degree of hardness is extent of hardness.
• It is expressed as weight in milligrams of CaCO3 equivalent to all hardness causing substance in one million milligram of water. That is parts per million (ppm). Or it can be expressed as weight in milligrams of CaCO3 equivalent to all hardness causing substance in one litre of water.​

CaCO3 as reference for Hardness

• a. CaCO3 is stable, non-hygroscopic and is obtained in pure form. Therefore a standard hard water solution can be prepared by dissolving accurately weighed CaCO3 in dilute HCl and make up to a known volume.
• b. CaCO3 is insoluble in water. Therefore it can be easily precipitated in water treatments.
• c. Molecular weight of CaCO3 is 100, so mathematical calculations are easy

The correct answer is Both b and c.Key Points

Eutrophication:

• Eutrophication refers to the addition of artificial or non-artificial substances, such as nitrates and phosphates, through fertilizers or sewage, to a freshwater system.
• It can be anthropogenic or natural.
• It leads to an increase in the primary productivity of the water body or “bloom” of phytoplankton.
• The overgrowth causes the loss of oxygen in the water leading to severe reductions in fish and other animal populations.

Important Points

• Eutrophication escalates rapidly when high nutrients from fertilizers, domestic and industrial wastes, urban drainage, detergents and animal, sediments enter water streams.
• When the process of Eutrophication is increased by human activities, it is called cultural Eutrophication.

​Thus, nitrates and phosphates are responsible for accelerated eutrophication.

The correct answer is Block Pramukh.

Important Points

Panchayat Samiti, also known as the Block Samiti, is a council formed to represent multiple villages in a district.

• In the Raj Panchayat system, it's the middle tier, positioned between the Gram Panchayat of the villages and the Zila Parishad of the districts.
• While the village adults elect the Gram Panchayat council, blocks don't hold elections for the Panchayat Samiti council seats.
• Instead, this council consists of the leaders from each village council, known as the Pradhan, or chairman, and the Up-pradhan, or vice-chairman.
• These individuals represent the village's interests in the block council's affairs.
• Much as the Gram Panchayat members nominate their Pradhan and Up-pradhan from their ranks, the Panchayat Samiti members elect their chairman and vice-chairman from their ranks.
• These leaders will, in turn, join the Zila Parishad, the district council, to represent the block's interests in the district's affairs.
• The chairman of the Panchayat Samiti is called Block Pramukh.

Additional Information

• Ashok Mehta Committee appointed in December 1977 by Janata Party Government in 1978 submitted its report stating replacement of 3-tier system by a 2-tier system consisting of Mandal Panchayats at the base and Zila Parishad at the top.
•  Panchayati Raj system is the system that ensures the participation of individuals at the grass-root level.
• 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 is related to the Panchayati Raj system.
• Rajasthan is the first state to implement the Panchayati Raj system on 2nd October 1959 in its Nagaur district.

Concept:

​Soil properties:

• Soil is a mixture of microorganisms, organic matter and minerals.
• Each layer differs in feel (texture), colour, depth and chemical composition.
• These layers are referred to as horizons.
• The uppermost layer of soil is generally dark in colour as it is rich in humus and minerals.
• The mixture of rock particles and humus is called the soil.
• The properties of soil are helpful in understanding the nature and kind of soil.
• Soil Quality can be monitored by physical, chemical, and biological indicators.

Explanation:

Soil permeability:

• It is the feature that determines the movement of water in the soil.
• It is more in loose soil with macropore spaces and less in compact soil.
• The higher the permeability higher will be the rate of transmission of water and air.
• If water and air transmit deeply in the soil it will be beneficial for the plants and the soil as well.
• Clay is the most porous sediment but it is the least permeable as it is not loose soil.

Thus, soil permeability is more in loose soil.

Concept:

Migration:

• Apart from birth and death, there is another way by which the population size changes.
• When people move from one place to another, the place they move from is called the Place of Origin and the place they move to is called the Place of Destination.
• The place of origin shows a decrease in population while the population increases in the place of destination.
• Migration may be permanent, temporary or seasonal.
• It may take place from rural to rural areas, rural to urban areas, urban to urban areas and urban to rural areas.
• Migrants who move into a new place are called immigrants.
• Migrants who move out of a place are called emigrants
• People migrate for a better economic and social life. 

Explanation:

Rural to urban migration has the following effects in villages:

• Reduces population in rural areas.
• Less farming activities and more burden on children and women in villages.
• Overcrowding in cities.
• Strain on Social amenities.
• Increase in manpower to work in industries.
• Brings prosperity to villages, as people working in the city send money to their homes

Rural to urban migration brings about a negative impact on urban areas:

• By increasing the risk of illness and diseases.
• Increase in crime rate in urban areas.
• Unemployment leads to a decreased standard of living in urban areas.
• Increase in stress, due to heavy traffic, high living cost, and taxes.

Thus, rural to urban migration leads to the following effects on villages which are burdens on children and women, fewer farming activities, and prosperity.

Additional Information

Pull Factors: 

• Pulling the people means pulling the people to the area of destination.
• The area which is attracting them is an area that has a lot of jobs or a large amount of freedom.
• Sometimes, migrations may be accidental, maybe due to attraction for a lot of natural resources, like engineers looking for work.

Push Factors:

• For better job opportunities people migrate.
• People need more wealth so they move to urban areas.
• Good climate conditions also cause urban migration.
• In urban areas, people can get better security and face less crime.
• More fertile land means more food which also causes urban migration.
• The urban area most of the time politically stable so, people move there.

The correct answer is option 1.

Key Points

Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) -

• Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) was launched on 24th April 2018 as an umbrella scheme of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Govt. of India.
• It is a unique scheme proposed to develop and strengthen the Panchayati Raj System across India in rural areas.

Important Points

Objectives -

• Strengthen Gram Sabhas to function effectively as the basic forum of people's participation, transparency and accountability within the Panchayat system. Hence the correct answer is option 1.
• Promote devolution of powers and responsibilities to Panchayats according to the spirit of the Constitution and PESA Act 1996.
• Develop governance capabilities of PRIs to deliver on the SDGs.
• Enhance capabilities of Panchayats for inclusive local governance with a focus on optimum utilization of available resources and convergence with other schemes to address issues of national importance.
• Enhance capabilities of Panchayats to raise their own sources of revenue.
• Enhanced capabilities of Panchayats for good governance and attainment of SDGs through participatory local planning, democratic decisionmaking, transparency and accountability.
• Increased use of e-governance and technology-driven solutions at the Panchayat level to attain administrative efficiency, improved service delivery & greater accountability.
• Building Institutional structure for capacity building at the National, State & District levels with adequate infrastructure, facilities and human resources.

Explanation:

GDP (Gross Domestic Product):

• Gross Domestic Product or GDP is the measurement of the total value of the final goods and services of all the sectors.
• It represents the economy of a country produced during a year.
• For any country, GDP is one of the most important indicators of economic status.
• GPD is used to determine the economic performance of a country's economy as a whole.
• If a country is having a rising GDP then this means that country's economy is expanding.
• People are spending their money, this shows an economy that is growing stronger.
• The concept of GDP was developed by an American economist named Simon Kuznets in 1934.
• Now it is recognized as the gold standard for determining the measure of a country’s economic growth since the Bretton Wood Conference was held in 1944.
• The formula for calculating GDP is
• GDP = Gross value of income + Product taxes - Subsidies OR
• GDP= C + I + G + (X − M)

Where,

• C = Consumption,
• I = Investment,
• G = Government spending,
• X = Exports,
• M = import

Thus, the correct representation for GDP is GDP = Gross value of income + Product taxes - Subsidies.

Additional InformationThe following is the list of the top 5 countries based on GDP:

• USA
• China
• Japan
• Germany
• India

Concept:

Industries:

• It is an organization that produces:
  • goods and supplies
  • income
  • services
• It contributes to country growth.

Explanation:

Industries are of different types.

Cottage industries:

• These are small manufacturing industries. 
• It is often run by a family.
• It focuses on the production of labour-intensive goods.
• In rural areas, they play a key role in employment.
• Some examples are:
  • pottery
  • bakest weaver
  • handcraft
• They play a major role in the economy of a developing country.

Thus, all of the above are characteristics of cottage industries.

Additional InformationOther types of industries.

Medium-scale industries:

• An industry with an investment between 5 to 10 crores.
• They play a key role in employment.
• Important manufacturing sources in a country.
• Examples are:
  • ​leather production
  • paper bags production

​​Large scale industries:

• These are industries with a huge capital influx.
• They play a major role in counties economy.
• A major source of employment.
• They are completely machine-based.
• Examples are:
  • sugar industries
  • jute industries

Concept:

• Bogota city is the capital of Columbia.
• During 1990 Bogota faced critical transportation problems.
• Big transformation in Bogota's transportation system, there started:
  • A bus rapid transit system.
  • A pedestrian path was formed.
  • Increasing use of bicycles.
  • Disincentives for the use of private automobiles.

Explanation:

Bogota's achievement

• There is a long path for pedestrians and cyclists.
• Dedicated bus lanes.
• The construction of bicycle paths is an important step to control and manage the city traffic.
• They observe car-free days when the whole urban area was restricted to cyclists pedestrians and users of public transport.
• There is a metro in the city.

Thus, the public transport system of Bogota has the following characteristics except for eco-friendly fuel.

The correct answer is a - II, b - I, c - IV, d- III.

Key Points

• The table below is correctly matched

• Waste Disposal Method	Meaning
  Sanitary Landfills	Deposit the refuse and compost it with bulldozers
  Incineration	Burning of waste
  Pulverizing	Spreading the waste on fields
  Pyrolysis	Combustion in absence of oxygen

Important Points 

• Sanitary Landfills

​​

• Incineration

​​

• Pulverizing

• Pyrolysis

​

The correct answer is directly elected by the members of the village Panchayat.

Confusion Points

All the members of panchayats at the village, intermediate and district levels shall be elected directly by the people.

Further, the chairperson of panchayats at the intermediate and district levels shall be elected indirectly by and from amongst the elected members thereof.

However, the chairperson of a panchayat at the village level shall be elected in such a manner as the state legislature determines.

The chairperson of a panchayat and other members of a panchayat elected directly or indirectly shall have the right to vote in the meetings of the panchayats.

Key Points

• Panchayat Samiti:
  • Panchayat Samiti is a rural local government (panchayat) body at the intermediate tehsil (taluka/Mandal) level in India.
  • It works for the villages of the tehsil that together are called a development block.
  • The panchayat Samiti is directly elected by the members of the village Panchayat.
  • Panchayat Samiti is related to Article 243(c) of the Indian Constitution.
  • According to  Article 243(c) - “intermediate level” means a level between the village and district levels specified by the Governor of a State by public notification to be the intermediate level for the purposes of this Part
  • It has been said to be the "panchayat of panchayats".
  • The 73rd Amendment defines the levels of Panchayati raj institution as:
    • District (or apex) level
    • Intermediate level
    • Base level
  • The Panchayat Samiti is the link between the gram panchayat (village council) and the Zila Parishad (district board).
  • The name varies across states: Mandal Parishad in Andhra Pradesh, taluka panchayat in Gujarat, and Mandal panchayat in Karnataka.

Additional Information

• The village panchayat should be constituted by directly elected representatives, whereas the Panchayat Samiti and Zila Parishad should be constituted with indirectly elected members.
• The most common departments found in a panchayat Samiti are:
  • Administration
  • Finance
  • Public works (especially water and roads)
  • Agriculture
  • Health
• Each department in a panchayat Samiti has its own officer.
• Most often these are state government employees acting as extension officers, but occasionally in more revenue-rich panchayat Samiti, they may be local employees.
• A government-appointed block development officer (BDO) is the supervisor of the extension officers and executive officer to the panchayat Samiti and becomes, in effect, its administrative chief.
• The panchayat Samiti collects all the prospective plans prepared at the Gram Panchayat level and processes them for funding and implementation by evaluating them from the angles of financial constraints, social welfare, and area development.
• It also identifies and prioritizes the issues that should be addressed at the block level.

Concept:-

• Temporary hard water contains slightly soluble calcium bicarbonate, and this can be easily removed by boiling. 
• On the other hand, permanent hardness is caused by dissolved calcium sulphate (which is not removed by boiling).
• The permanent hardness is removed by chemical treatment.

Additional Information

The hardness of water:

• Hardness in water is that characteristic that prevents the formation of sufficient leather or foam when such hard waters are mixed with soap. It is usually caused by the presence of calcium and magnesium salts present in water, which form scum by reaction with soap.
• Hard waters are undesirable because they may lead to greater soap consumption, scaling of boilers, causing corrosion and incrustation of pipes, making foods tasteless, etc.
• If bicarbonates and carbonates of calcium and magnesium are present in water, the water is rendered hard temporarily, as this hardness can be removed to some extent by simple boiling or to the full extent by adding lime to the water. Such hardness is known as temporary hardness or carbonate hardness.
• When such waters are boiled carbon dioxide gas escapes out and the insoluble calcium carbonate gets precipitated. Magnesium carbonate is fairly soluble in water won’t get removed by boiling. The temporary hard waters, therefore do cause deposition of calcium scales in boilers.

The correct answer is Mixed cropping.

Explanation:

• Growing two or more crops on the same piece of land is referred to as mixed cropping.
• For example, wheat + gram, or wheat + mustard, or groundnut + sunflower grown on the same land at the same time.
• This cropping reduces the risk of one of the crops failing and protects against crop failure due to extreme weather.
• The crops that will be grown together should mature at different times and require different amounts of water.
• One crop's nutrient requirements should be lower than those of the other.

Thus, mixed cropping helps the farmer get two crops simultaneously at one time or within a short interval of time from the same field.

Additional Information

Multi croping- The practise of growing two or more crops in the same space at the same time during a single growing season is known as multiple cropping.

Crop rotation - It is the process of growing a variety of crops on a piece of land in a pre-planned succession.

Organic farming - It is defined as a farming system that uses minimal or no chemicals such as fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and instead relies heavily on organic manures, recycled farm wastes and bio-agents, as well as healthy cropping systems.
 

The correct answer is the Culture of micro-organism.

Key Points

• Biofertilizer
  • A biofertilizer is a substance that contains living micro-organisms which, when applied to seeds, plant surfaces, or soil, colonize the rhizosphere or the interior of the plant and promotes growth by increasing the supply or availability of primary nutrients to the host plant
• Hence option 1 is correct.

Additional Information

• Bio-Fertilizers and Their Use in Agriculture
  • For a sustainable agriculture system, it is essential to use renewable inputs (fertilizer, pesticides, water etc.) which can benefit the plant and cause no or minimal damage to the environment.
  • One of the energy-efficient and pollution-free method is to exploit the ability of certain microorganisms like bacteria, algae and fungi to fix atmospheric nitrogen, solubilize phosphorus, decompose organic material or oxidize sulphur in the soil.
  • When they are applied to the soil, they enhance the growth and yield of crops, improve soil fertility and reduce pollution.
    • They are known as “biofertilizers”.
  • Thus bio-fertilizers are living or biologically active products or microbial inoculants of bacteria, algae and fungi (separately or in combination) which are able to enrich the soil with nitrogen, phosphorus, organic matter etc.

The correct answer is option 4, i.e, all of the above.

The expansion of farming areas, double cropping existing farmland, and use of HYV seeds are the three basic elements in the method of the Green Revolution.

• The area of land under cultivation was being increased right from 1947.
• But the expansion of farming areas was not enough in meeting with rising demand.
• Double cropping was a primary feature of the green revolution.
• Instead of one crop season per year, the decision was made to have two crop seasons per year.
• The one season per year practice was based on the fact that there is only natural monsoon per year.
• The ICAR was re-organized in 1965 and then again in 1973.
• It developed new strains of HYV seeds mainly wheat and rice but also millet and corn.
• Some of the important components of the green revolution in India are as follows:
  • High Yielding Varieties of Seeds.
  • Irrigation surface and ground.
  • Use of fertilisers.
  • Use of pesticides and Insecticides.
  • Command Area Development.
  • Consolidation of holdings.
  • Land reforms.
  • Supply of agricultural credit.
  • Rural electrification.
  • Rural roads and marketing.
  • Farm mechanism.
  • Agricultural Universities.

The correct answer is All of the above

There are three important principles of sustainable agriculture:

• Healthy environment.
• Economic profitability
• Socio-economic equity

Sustainable agriculture: It is a farming system in a sustainable way where present societal requirements are met without compromising future needs.

Additional Information

Methods of Sustainable agriculture:

1. Crop Rotation.
2. Permaculture
3. Cover Crops
4. Soil Enrichment
5. Natural Pest Predators
6. Bio intensive Integrated Pest Management
7. Polyculture Farming
8. Agroforestry.

Benefits of Sustainable agriculture:

• It improves the environment's health.
• Save energy for future generations.
• It increases biodiversity.
• Reduces the cost of cultivation.

The correct answer is All of the Above.

Key Points

• Land reforms are the reforms that involve change of laws, regulations or customs with respect to the ownership of the land.
• According to the great economist Prof. According to Gunnar Myrdal, “the land reforms are the planning and institutional restructuring of the relations between the man and the land".
• At the time of independence, in most of the agricultural sector of the country, the role of mediators existed between the tenant and the owner of the land.
•  There was no guarantee of this landholding and certainty in rent. Therefore, after independence, the cultivator was given the real rights of the land.
• To do this, the process of land reform was adopted, which was considered a progressive process.

Additional InformationFollowing were the objectives of the Land Reforms:

• To remove the existing institutional anomalies in the agriculture sector and to rationalize and modernize the sector by steps such as land ownership, land rights, paying attention to tenant safety ,etc.
• To eliminate economic inequality and to achieve social equality.
• To obtain and establish a public welfare state.
• Eradicating poverty and imparting common beliefs among the people.
• To end the old land relations and establish a new system in which the cultivators of the land are its actual owner.
• Ending social injustice, strengthening the position of tenants and, granting equal rights for all sections of the rural population.

FPI stands for Food Processing industries.

Food Processing industries:

1. The key sub-segments of the Food Processing industry in India are Fruits & Vegetables, Poultry & Meat processing, Fisheries, Food retail, dairy industry, etc.

2. The Food Processing sector in India has a quintessential role in linking Indian farmers to consumers in the domestic and international markets. The Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) is making all efforts to encourage investments across the value chain. 

An article of food is deemed to be non-adulterated if two or more articles of food (primary) are mixed together.

Key PointsPrimary Food: Primary food is defined as an article of food, being a produce of agriculture or horticulture or animal husbandry and dairying or aquaculture in its natural form, resulting from the growing, raising, cultivation, picking, harvesting, collection or catching in the hands of a person other than a farmer or fisherman.

Hence, in this context, mixing together two or more kinds of primary food does not make it adulterated and injurious to health.

Additional InformationAdulterant: Adulterant is defined as any material which is or could be employed for making the food unsafe or sub-standard or misbranded or containing extraneous matter. 

Food is declared adulterated if: 

• A substance is added which depreciates or injuriously affects it.
• Cheaper or inferior substances are substituted wholly or in part.
• Any valuable or necessary constituent has been wholly or in part abstracted.
• It is an imitation.
• It is colored or otherwise treated to improve its appearance or if it contains any added substance injurious to health.
• For whatever reasons its quality is below the Standard.

The voluntary scheme of AGMARK certification is for agricultural commodities for domestic trade and export.

Important Points

Two types of AGMARK certification are there:

1. Mandatory

Food products for which Agmark certification is mandatory as per Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restriction on Sales) Regulation, 2011 are as under:

• Blended Edible Vegetable Oils (BEVO) 
• Fat Spread
• Ghee has less RM (Reichert-Meissl) value and a different standard for BR (Butyro Refractometer) than that specified for the area in which it is imported for sale or storage.

2. Voluntary

These standards are for:

• Agricultural commodities for domestic trade and export
• Total 227 Commodities notified

Additional Information

AGMARK:

• It is a certification mark employed on agricultural products in India.
• It is the quality mark provided under The Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act, 1937.
• The Act stipulates the conditions which govern the use of standards and lays down the procedure for grading, marking, and packing of agricultural produce.
• An AGMARK symbol is usually found on the packets of rice, flour, pulses, biscuits, oil, etc.

​

The correct answer is Acceptability.

Key Points

• Food security, as defined by the United Nations’ Committee on World Food Security, means that all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their food preferences and dietary needs for an active and healthy life.
• Food security is the combination of the following three elements:
  • Food availability i.e. food must be available in sufficient quantities and on a consistent basis. It considers stock and production in a given area and the capacity to bring in food from elsewhere, through trade or aid.
  • Food access i.e. people must be able to regularly acquire adequate quantities of food, through purchase, home production, barter, gifts, borrowing, or food aid.
  • Food utilization: Consumed food must have a positive nutritional impact on people. It entails cooking, storage and hygiene practices, individuals health, water and sanitation, feeding and sharing practices within the household.

Additional Information

• The National Development Council (NDC) in its 53rd meeting held on 29th May 2007 adopted a resolution to launch a Food Security Mission comprising rice, wheat, and pulses to increase the annual production of rice by 10 million tonnes, wheat by 8 million tonnes, and pulses by 2 million tonnes by the end of the Eleventh Plan (2011-12).
  • Accordingly, a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, 'National Food Security Mission (NFSM)', was launched in October 2007.
  • The approximate percentage of funds allocated for pulses under the National Food Security Mission for 2017-18 is 60%.

The correct option is Water, solar energy, wind, geothermal energy resource.

Key Points

• Water – Renewable
• Solar energy – Renewable
• Wind – Renewable
• Geothermal energy – Renewable
• Nuclear - Non-Renewable
• Natural gas - Non-Renewable
• Petroleum - Non-Renewable

Explanation:

There are basically two sources of energy:-

The correct answer is Scarcity.

Key Points

• Scarcity is the condition that results from society not having enough resources to produce all the things people would like to have.
  • Therefore, this variation between supply and demand leads to the formation of central problems of an economy.
  • The three basic central economic problems are regarding the allocation of resources.
    • what to produce, how to produce, and for whom to produce.
  • Solutions to scarcity :
    • economic growth. reduce our wants, use our existing resources wisely 
  • Causes of scarcity
    • Demand-induced – High demand for resources.
    • Supply-induced – supply of resource running out.
    • Structural scarcity – mismanagement and inequality.
    • No effective substitutes.

Additional Information

• Poverty entails more than the lack of income and productive resources to ensure sustainable livelihoods. 
  • Poverty creates many economic costs in terms of the opportunity cost of lost output, the cost of welfare provision, and the private and external costs associated with exclusion from normal economic activity.
  • Its manifestations include hunger and malnutrition, limited access to education and other basic services, social discrimination and exclusion as well as the lack of participation in decision-making.
• Economic inequality most often refers to disparities in wealth and income.
  • Gross annual income refers to all earnings before any deductions are that may exist in certain societies.
  • Economic inequality is a metric that many jurisdictions and governments monitor to assess the impact of policy changes.
• Unemployment occurs when a person who is actively searching for employment is unable to find work.
  • four types of unemployment:
    • Demand deficient,  frictional, structural, and voluntary unemployment
  • The unemployment rate is a percentage and calculated by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by the number of all currently employed individuals in the labor force.

Resource refers to all the materials available in our environment which help us to satisfy our needs. 

Potential resources:

• These resources whose quantity is not known and are not used in present, e.g. uranium in Ladakh.
• It is available in the region but is not fully used. But these resources could be used in the future.
• They are remaining unused even in the deposits which are found in the region of Ladakh.
• This resource is known as the potential resource.

Hence, option 4 is the correct answer.

The stock of Resource:

• Stock resources are resources that can be enduringly expended and are therefore non-renewable.
• Their quantity is usually expressed in absolute amounts rather than in rates.
• Examples are coal and petroleum deposits.

Actual resource:

• Actual resources are the resources where quantity is known which are being used in the present. 
• Actual resources are those that have been surveyed, their quantity and quality determined. 
• Actual resources are coal, Water, petrol.

Deposit resource: 

• An accumulation of natural resources, such as oil, natural gas, coal, uranium, metal ore, or another commodity, found at various depths below ground.
• It is known as depositional resources.

The correct answer is option i.e. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Explanation:

• The Meaning of the three R's: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. Individuals' collective actions can make a tremendous impact on waste issues and give us the sense to be eco-friendly.
• These are the three essential components of environmentally-responsible consumer behaviour.
• The goal of the 3 R's is to educate people on how to prevent excessive and unnecessary waste and to limit the consumption of non-renewable resources.

The Correct Answer is Option 2.

Key Points

• Gross national product (GNP) is an estimate of the total value of all the final products and services turned out in a given period by the means of production owned by a country's residents.
• GNP is commonly calculated by taking the sum of personal consumption expenditures, private domestic investment, government expenditure, net exports and any income earned by residents from overseas investments, minus income earned within the domestic economy by foreign residents.
• Net exports represent the difference between what a country exports minus any imports of goods and services.
• GNP is related to another important economic measure called gross domestic product (GDP), which takes into account all output produced within a country's borders regardless of who owns the means of production. GNP starts with GDP, adds residents' investment income from overseas investments, and subtracts foreign residents' investment income earned within a country.

Important Points

• Applying the concepts of GDP and GNP to the scenario given in the question wherein a Country X, GDP is less than its GNP. The most appropriate deduction would be option 2 i.e. Income earned by domestic corporations outside of X exceeds income earned within X by foreign corporations. Hence, option 2 is the correct answer.
• In the case of option 1 i.e. Income earned within X by foreign corporations exceeds income by domestic corporations outside of X, its GDP would be more than its GNP.
• As for options 3 and 4, the mere presence of more domestic corporations or more foreign corporations cannot decide whether GNP would be more or GDP because GDP or GNP can be decided the quantity of production by domestic and foreign corporations.

The correct answer is a-2, b-1, c-3.

Key Points

• Stockholm Convention :
  • The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants is a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from chemicals that remain intact in the environment for long periods, become widely distributed geographically, accumulate in the fatty tissue of humans and wildlife, and have harmful impacts on human health or on the environment. 
  • Exposure to Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) can lead to serious health effects including certain cancers, birth defects, dysfunctional immune and reproductive systems, greater susceptibility to disease, and damages to the central and peripheral nervous systems.
  • The Stockholm Convention, which was adopted in 2001 and entered into force in 2004, requires its parties to take measures to eliminate or reduce the release of POPs into the environment.
• Basel Convention :
  • The reduction of hazardous waste generation and the promotion of environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes, wherever the place of disposal;
  • The restriction of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes except where it is perceived to be in accordance with the principles of environmentally sound management; and
  • A regulatory system applying to cases where transboundary movements are permissible.
• Rotterdam Convention :
  • To promote shared responsibility and cooperative efforts among Parties in the international trade of certain hazardous chemicals in order to protect human health and the environment from potential harm;
  • To contribute to the environmentally sound use of those hazardous chemicals, by facilitating information exchange about their characteristics, by providing for a national decision-making process on their import and export, and by disseminating these decisions to Parties.

The correct answer is Both (a) and (b) are correct.

Key Points

• Natural resources, both renewable and non-renewable, and ecosystem services are a part of the real wealth of nations.
• They are the natural capital out of which other forms of capital are made.
  • They contribute towards fiscal revenue, income, and poverty reduction.
• Natural resources have limited direct economic use in satisfying human needs but transforming them into goods and services enhances their economic value to the society.
• Natural resources are used to make food, fuel, and raw materials for the production of goods.
  • All of the food that people eat comes from plants or animals.
  • Natural resources such as coal, natural gas, and oil provide heat, light, and power.
• Human Resource Development is the part of human resource management that specifically deals with the training and development of the employees in the organization.
  • It is the framework for helping employees develop their personal and organizational skills, knowledge, and abilities.
• The goals of the HRD systems are to develop:
  • The capabilities of each employee as an individual.
  • The capabilities of each individual about his or her present role.
  • The capabilities of each employee about his or her expected future role(s).
  • The dyadic relationship between each employee and his or her supervisor.
  • The team spirit and functioning in every organizational unit (department, group, etc.).
  • Collaboration among different units of the organization.
  • The organization’s overall health and self-renewing capabilities, in turn, increase the enabling capabilities of individuals, dyads, teams, and the entire organization.

Explanation:

(i) After estimating the amount of material and other direct and indirect cost the total cost can be calculated.

(ii) After the completion of the project the profit obtained from it can also be determined.

(iii) By analyzing the cost and benefit it is possible to decide the viability of a project and the worthwhileness of taking up the project.

(iv) Cost to benefit ratio should be less than 1, which means there must be some profit in taking up the project.

Key Points

Montreal Protocol:

• The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (the Montreal Protocol) is an international agreement made in 1987.
• The Montreal Protocol is signed by 197 countries.
• It is the first treaty in the history of the United Nations to achieve universal ratification.
• It is considered by many the most successful environmental global action.
• It sits under the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer (the Vienna Convention).
• It was designed to stop the production and import of ozone-depleting substances and reduce their concentration.
• It targets 96 ozone-depleting chemicals in thousands of applications across more than 240 industrial sectors.

Thus, Montreal protocol refers to substances that deplete the ozone layer.

Additional Information 

Paris Agreement: 

• The Paris Agreement (French: L'accord de Paris) is a legally binding international treaty on climate change United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to combat climate change.
• It was adopted by 196 Parties at COP 21 in Paris, on 12 December 2015 and entered into force on 4 November 2016.

​Kyoto Protocol:

• The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty.
• It deals with reducing overall greenhouse emissions. 
• It was the result of the Rio-1992 and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
• The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997.
• It entered into force on 16 February 2005. 
• There are currently 192 parties.
• Canada withdrew from the protocol in 2012.
• The USA never ratified it.

Stockholm Convention (2004):

• ​Aims to eliminate or restrict the production and use of persistent organic pollutants (POPs).
• POPs are defined as “chemical substances that persist in the environment, bioaccumulate through the food web, and pose a risk of causing adverse effects to human health and the environment”.

Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD):

• It is a legally binding agreement and an outcome of the Rio Earth Summit in the year 1992. 
• It has three main goals-
  • Conservation of biodiversity
  • Sustainable use of components of biodiversity

  • It has three major aims, one of which focuses on sharing the benefit of genetic resources in a fair and equitable way.

The correct answer is Pulses.

Key Points

• Pulses are an important group of crops in India, which is also responsible for yielding large financial gains by amounting to a large part of the exports.
• Pulses are the major sources of protein in the diet.  
• India is the largest producer of pulses in the world. 
• Pulses are 20 to 25% protein by weight which is double the protein content of wheat and three times that of rice.
• Major pulses are grown Chickpeas (Gram), Pigeon pea (Tur or Arhar), Moong beans, Urad (Black Matpe), Masur (lentil),  Peas, and various kinds of beans.

Additional Information

• According to the Economic Survey, India's agricultural products exports of marine, rice, sugar, and spices have witnessed an increasing trend in 2019-20.
• As per the Economic Survey Agri-exports touched Rs 2.52 lakh crores and imports at Rs 1.47 lakh crores in the financial year 2019-20,”
• India occupies a leading position in the global trade of agricultural products. However, its total agricultural export basket accounts for a little over 2.5 percent of world agricultural trade.
• The major export destinations were the USA, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Nepal, and Bangladesh.
• Among the key agriculture commodities exported from India were marine products, basmati rice, buffalo meat, spices, non-basmati rice, cotton raw, oil meals, sugar, castor oil, and tea.
• Exports of commodity group 1101 "Wheat or Meslin flour" amounted to 0.05% of total exports from India (cumulative merchandise exports from India totaled $ 275 billion in 2020.
• India is the leading exporter of Basmati Rice to the global markets.
• During 2015-16 the country has exported globally about 40.45 Lakh MT of Basmati Rice and 63.66 Lakh MT Non-Basmati rice for the worth of Rs. 2,2718.44 crores and Rs. 15,129.09 crores respectively.
• India's sugar exports are on a "good course" this year as traders have contracted over 50 lakh tonnes of sweetener.  
• The government has fixed a mandatory export target of 60 lakh tonnes of surplus sugar for the ongoing 2020-21 season (October-September).
• India usually exports pulses but today it is a major exporter of various food and agricultural products.
• India has seen exponential growth in pulses export in the past few years.
• The export of Pulses from India was around 2.70 lakh tonnes which are worth Rs. 1679.98 crores in the year 2018-2019.

Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) protect the use of information and ideas that are of Commercial Value.

The four types of intellectual property rights include:

1. Trade Secrets
2. Trademarks
3. Copyrights, and 
4. Patents

The Economic and Commercial Value of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs): IPRs as a Means of Protecting Business Interests, Encouraging Innovation and Technology Transfer and Promoting Trade and Investment. 

•  The valuation of IP is therefore essential in the framework of commercial transactions. Unfortunately, this aspect is often overlooked by businesses not experienced with these types of deals resulting in transactions that are either overvalued or undervalued and therefore unprofitable or sometimes disastrous situations leading to bankruptcy
• It is therefore essential to analyze and assess the value of the intellectual property during the negotiation process, before the conclusion of the commercial transaction
• A brand is generally subject to trademark protection. 
• Technology can be subject to patent, industrial design, and/or copyright protection
• Other types of intellectual property may also exist 

Key Points

• Globalization is this process of rapid integration or interconnection between countries.
• MNCs are playing a major role in the globalization process.
• A large part of the foreign trade is also controlled by MNCs. 
• More and more goods and services, investments, and technology are moving between countries.
• Most regions of the world are in closer contact with each other than a few decades back.

Hence, all of the above is correct about the direct impact of globalization.

Key Points

1. WTO is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
2. The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations.
3. The WTO facilitates trade in goods, services, and intellectual property among participating countries by providing a framework for negotiating trade agreements.
4. It aims to reduce or eliminate tariffs, quotas, and other restrictions; these agreements are signed by representatives of member governments
5. The WTO also administers independent dispute resolution for enforcing participants' adherence to trade agreements and resolving trade-related disputes.
6. The organization prohibits discrimination between trading partners but provides exceptions for environmental protection, national security, and other important goals.

Important Points

1. It officially commenced operations on 1 January 1995, pursuant to the 1994 Marrakesh Agreement.
2. It replaced the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that had been established in 1948. 
3. The WTO is the world's largest international economic organization, with 164 member states representing over 98% of global trade and global GDP
4. The goal is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably, and freely as possible.
5. WTO was established in 1995.

The correct answer is Loss of biodiversity

Key Points

Concept - 

• Deforestation is the process of removing a forest and converting it to a non-forest use.
• Forest land can be converted to fields, ranches, or urban use by undergoing deforestation.
• Deforestation causes the loss of forest land for other purposes.
• Since 1960, deforestation has been greatly intensified by human activities, adversely impacting natural habitats, biodiversity, and the environment.

​Additional Information

• Harmful effects on the environment -

1. LOSS of BIODIVERSITY:

• Many animals are devoid of their natural habitats, that are the forests they live in.
• It causes them to relocate for their survival or at certain times leads to their extinction.
• This happens with the endemic plant species too which can not regenerate themselves in other locations.
• The process of deforestation has lead to the cause of many species extinction. 
• It disrupts the natural habitats of a variety of plants and animals.

2. GLOBAL WARMING:

• Deforestation causes an increase in greenhouse gases as it leaves a reduced tree cover to make a balance in the air composition. Global warming will result because of this. 

3. DISRUPTION IN WATER CYCLE:

• A rise in global temperature will disrupt the water cycle, potentially reducing rainfall. Droughts are possible.
• The amount of groundwater will also drop.

4. SOIL EROSION:

• It will result in flooding and soil erosion as the binding factors of soil, The roots of the trees, are uprooted.
• Hence, the soil layers are prone to erosion and runoff.
• The fertile land would eventually be turned into deserts. This is referred to as desertification.

Explanation - 

• Human actions are endangering entire habitats, causing ecological imbalances, and placing Life in jeopardy by destroying forests.
• Deforestation causes a major threat to the habitat of giving flora and fauna.
• Hence the result of deforestation is Loss of biodiversity.