Day-634 | Daily MCQs | UPSC Prelims | CURRENT AFFAIRS

Answer: A
Context: The term Ergoshpere was seen recently in the news when an image of the black hole at the centre of the M87 galaxy was captured by the Event Horizon Telescope.
Explanation:
• The term ‘Ergosphere’ refers to a region located outside a rotating black hole’s outer event horizon.
• The label ‘ergosphere’ comes from ‘ergon’, the Greek word for ‘work’. It is so named because it is possible to extract matter and energy from the ergosphere, but not from beyond the event horizon.
Additional information:
• A black hole is formed when a really massive star runs out of fuel to fuse, blows up, leaving its core to implode under its weight to form a black hole.
• The centre of a black hole is a gravitational singularity, a point where the general theory of relativity breaks down, i.e. where its predictions don’t apply. A black hole’s great gravitational pull emerges as if from the singularity.
• The event horizon describes a sphere around the singularity: when anything enters this sphere, it can’t escape unless it travels faster than light (which is impossible).
• Just beyond this sphere, a rotating black hole will also have an ergosphere – a bigger sphere that an object can enter and then leave if it’s moving fast enough, but still less than the speed of light.
• Some scientists have suggested using this possibility to send an object into the ergosphere and allow it to accelerate there along the black hole’s direction of rotation, so that it comes out moving faster. This energy ‘gain’ will translate to the black hole losing some angular momentum.

Answer: B
Context: The Union Government has allocated ₹500 crores for Namo Drone Didi scheme, which will target to provide 15,000 drones to women self-help groups. The drones operated by women can be rented by farmers to spray fertilizers and pesticides.
Explanation:
Statement 1 is correct:
● It is a Central Sector Scheme.
Statement 2 is incorrect:
● The Government launched this Central Sector Scheme in November, 2023 for providing drones to the Women Self Help Group (SHGs) for the period from 2024-25 to 2025-26 with an outlay of Rs. 1261 Crores.

● The Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare is the nodal ministry of the scheme.
● The Government has allocated Rs. 500 crore for the fiscal year 2024-25 for the scheme.
Statement 3 is correct:
Key features of the scheme:
● Empowering Rural Women with Drone Technology:
Ø Extending drone access to 15,000 women SHGs for farmers’ rental, fostering technological integration into rural life.
Ø Elevating rural women by placing them at the forefront of the economy through cutting-edge drone technology.
● Time and Labor Savings:
Ø Application of pesticides and fertilizers through drones streamlining processes, reducing physical toil.
Ø Granting farmers more time for productive agricultural work.

Answer: D
Context- ahead of the World Wetlands Day (2nd February), 5 new Ramsar sites have been declared in India, taking the total tally of Ramsar sites in India at 80.
Explanation:
Ramsar sites in news Location
1. Magadi Kere Conservation Reserve – Karnataka, Gadag district
Rare and threatened species such as the northern shoveler (Anas clypeata), garganey (Anas querquedula) and common pochard (Aythya ferina) are found here. It is one of the largest wintering grounds for bar-headed goose (Anser indicus) in southern India. The globally endangered Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) has also been observed in the vicinity of the Site.
2. Aghanashini Estuary – Karnataka
The Site is an estuary where the Aghanashini River flows into the Arabian Sea in Karnataka State. The diverse environment provides habitats to many mangroves and mangrove-associated species, including globally threatened species such as halavi guitarfish (Glaucostegus halavi), lesser adjutant (Leptoptilos javanicus) and Indian river tern (Sterna aurantia). In the estuary, farmers practice traditional farming to grow a salt-tolerant rice called “kagga”, which is one of the specialities of the region.
3. Longwood Shola Reserve Forest – Tamil Nadu
The Site lies near the town of Kothagiri, adjacent to the eastern slopes of the Nilgiri mountain range. This Site is the only natural shola forest remaining in the vicinity of Kothagiri and has very high species endemicity. Some of the noteworthy plant species that are endemic and threatened include Actinodaphne bourneae (the Bourne’s beak-rush), Psychotria nilgiriensis and Cinnamomum wightii (the Wight’s cinnamon). The Site is one of the key conservation areas of the endangered black-chinned Nilgiri laughing thrush (Strophocincla cachinnans), the Nilgiri blue robin (Myiomela major) and the vulnerable Nilgiri wood-pigeon (Columba elphinstonii). It is mainly threatened by encroachment, invasive species and deforestation.
4. Ankasamudra Bird Conservation Reserve – Karnataka
The Site is a human-made wetland built for storing monsoon run-off water coming from the Tungabhadra River and providing irrigation to surrounding drought-risk areas. Several thousand gum Arabic trees (Vachellia nilotica) growing in the lake provide nesting, roosting and breeding habitat for large colonies of waterbirds including the Indian cormorant (Phalacrocorax fuscicollis) and the near-threatened painted stork (Mycteria leucocephala). At least 20% of the regional population of glossy ibis (Plegadis falcinellus) has been regularly recorded at the Site. There are also nine endemic fish species, three of which are globally endangered: tiger loach (Botia striata), aruli barb (Dawkinsia arulius) and nukta (Schismatorhynchos nukta).
5. Karaivetti Bird Sanctuary – Tamil Nadu
It is located along the Central Asian Flyway which provides roosting and nesting grounds for threatened species such as spotted eagle (Aquila clanga), tawny eagle (Aquila rapax) and Indian darter (Anhinga melanogaster). The Site also provides breeding habitat for the vulnerable Indian flap-shelled turtle (Lissemys punctata). During the driest period, between July and October, the water level of the Site is maintained with water from the Mettur Dam.

Answer: A
Context: The Prime Minister recently addressed a programme on the 200th birth anniversary of Swami Dayananda Saraswati organized at the birthplace of Swami Dayananda, Tankara in Morbi, Gujarat, via a video message.
Explanation:
Statement 1 is incorrect: He was an Indian philosopher, social leader and founder of the Arya Samaj. Arya Samaj is a reform movement of Vedic dharma and he was the first to give the call for Swaraj as “India for Indian” in 1876. It aims to reestablish the Vedas, the earliest Hindu scriptures, as revealed truth. He rejected all later accretions to the Vedas as degenerate but, in his own interpretation, included much post-Vedic thought.
Statement 2 is correct: He published his views in the work Satyarth Prakash (The True Exposition).
Statement 3 is incorrect: Swami Vivekananda was Ramakrishna Paramahamsa disciple, a 19th-century saint, who was the founder of the Ramakrishna Order of monks and is regarded as the spiritual founder of the Ramakrishna Movement.
Additional information:
• Swami Dayanand Saraswati was born on 12th February 1824 in Tankara, Gujarat in a Brahmin family. His parents, Lalji Tiwari and Yashodhabai were orthodox Brahmin.
• He was earlier named Mool Shankar Tiwari as he was born during Mool Nakshatra.
• He wandered as an ascetic for fifteen years (1845-60) in search of truth.
• The first Arya Samaj unit was formally set up by him at Mumbai (then Bombay) in 1875 and later the headquarters of the Samaj were established at Lahore.
• His vision of India included a classless and casteless society, a united India (religiously, socially and nationally), and an India free from foreign rule, with Aryan religion being the common religion of all.
• He took inspiration from the Vedas and considered them to be ‘India’s Rock of Ages’, the infallible and the true original seed of Hinduism. He gave the slogan “Back to the Vedas”.
• He subscribed to the Vedic notion of chaturvarna system in which a person was not born in any caste but was identified as a brahmin, kshatriya, vaishya or shudra according to the occupation the person followed.
• He introduced a complete overhaul of the education system and is often considered as one of the visionaries of modern India. The DAV (Dayanand Anglo Vedic) schools came into existence in 1886 to realize the vision of Swami Dayanand Saraswati. The first DAV School was established at Lahore with Mahatma Hansarj as the headmaster.

Answer: B
Context: The Foreign Ministers of the three countries— Poland, France and Germany— held discussions recently to revive the so-called Weimar Triangle.
Explanation:
It was established in 1991 in the Weimar city of Germany.
● It was intended as a forum for trilateral consultations between the foreign ministers of France, the Federal Republic of Germany, and Poland on the future of Europe after the end of the Cold War.
● It had three objectives: to involve France in German-Polish reconciliation by building on the Franco-German experience; to strengthen dialogue and political cooperation between the three countries; and to support Poland in its process of integration into NATO and the European Union.
● It has no institutional structure and remains a framework of reference at the political level. In recent years, it has remained a dormant unit.
● France, Germany and Poland are planning to unveil a new cooperation agreement to combat foreign disinformation operations, particularly those originating in Russia.