Day-694 | Daily MCQs | UPSC Prelims | GEOGRAPHY AND POLITY

Answer: B
Explanation: Exploration licenses will be granted through competitive bidding by state governments.
About Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2023:
The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2023, amends the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, with the aim of strengthening the exploration and extraction of critical minerals essential for India’s economic development and national security.
The key amendments brought about by the bill include:
INCLUSION OF SUB-SURFACE ACTIVITIES IN RECONNAISSANCE
● The MMDR Act, 1955 defined reconnaissance as preliminary prospecting, encompassing aerial surveys, geophysical, and geochemical surveys, and geological mapping.
● The Mines and Minerals Amendment Act of 2023, expands reconnaissance to include activities like pitting, trenching, drilling, and sub-surface excavation that were previously prohibited.
INTRODUCTION OF EXPLORATION LICENSE (EL)
● The Amendment Act, 2023 has introduced the concept of an exploration license (EL), allowing reconnaissance or prospecting, or both, for specified minerals.
⮚ Hence, Option A is correct.
⮚ Earlier, the MMDR Act, 1955 provided for permits for reconnaissance, prospecting, mining leases, and composite licenses.
● This license covers 29 minerals listed in the Seventh Schedule, which includes precious metals like gold, silver, base metals like copper and nickel, and even atomic minerals.
DECLASSIFICATION OF ATOMIC MINERALS
● Six atomic minerals, previously restricted to government entities, are declassified as atomic minerals under the Amendment Act, 2023.
⮚ These minerals are beryl, beryllium, lithium, niobium, titanium, tantalum, and zirconium can now be explored and prospected by private players as well.
EXPLORATION LICENSE VALIDITY AND AREA
● The exploration license is issued for five years, extendable by two years upon application.
⮚ Hence, Option C is correct.
● Activities under a single exploration license can be conducted within an area of up to 1,000 square kilometers.
● After the initial three years, up to 25 percent of the originally authorized area can be retained by the licensee.
AUCTION MECHANISM FOR EXPLORATION LICENSES
● Exploration licenses will be granted through competitive bidding by state governments.
⮚ Hence, Option B is incorrect.
● The federal government will define the auction framework, rules, terms, and bidding parameters.
GEOLOGICAL REPORTS AND INCENTIVES
● The licensee must submit a geological report within three months of exploration completion or license expiration.
● If proven resources are found, the state government must conduct an auction for a mining lease within six months of the report.
⮚ Hence, Option D is correct.
● The licensee is entitled to a share in the auction value of the mining lease for the prospected mineral, with the share defined by the central government.
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT-LED AUCTIONS FOR CRITICAL AND STRATEGIC MINERALS
● The federal government will conduct auctions for composite licenses and mining leases of specified critical and strategic minerals, including lithium, cobalt, nickel, phosphate, potash, and tin.
● However, the state government will continue to grant concessions.

Answer: B
Explanation:
About Global Dimming:
● Global dimming is the reduction in the amount of sunshine reaching Earth’s surface.
● Dimming is caused by an increased blockage in the atmosphere of light from the sun.
● Causes:
⮚ Clouds and aerosols—small particles emitted by burning fuels—can both contribute to dimming.
⮚ Other causes may include – water droplets, vapours, volcanic ash, particular matter etc.
● Because dimming reduces the amount of solar energy reaching Earth, it tends to cool the planet, masking or offsetting global warming.
● Noticeable example – Decreases in the earth’s temperature was observed after large volcanic eruptions of Mount Agung in Bali that erupted in 1963.
GLOBAL BRIGHTENING: Any increase in the amount of sunlight reaching Earth’s surface; in particular, any decrease in or reversal of global dimming, the blockage of sunlight by aerosols (fine particles) in Earth’s atmosphere.

Answer: A
Explanation:
About Gram production in India:
● Gram is cultivated in subtropical areas.
● It is mostly a rainfed crop cultivated prominently during rabi season in central, western and northwestern parts of the country i.e. sown in the months of September to November and is harvested between February and April.
● Just one or two light showers or irrigations are required to grow this crop successfully.
● It has been displaced from the cropping pattern by wheat in Haryana, Punjab and northern Rajasthan following the green revolution.
● At present, gram covers only about 2.8 per cent of the total cropped area in the country.
● Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Rajasthan are the main producers of this pulse crop.
● The yield of this crop continues to be low and fluctuates from year to year even in irrigated areas.

Answer: D
Explanation: All the four statements are correct; hence, option D is the right choice. The explanation is as follows:
1. Statement 1: It is very obvious statement directly mentioned under Article 19 (1)(c)
2. Statement 2: It is about membership of a citizen to any voluntary association or a cooperative society which are created under the society registration act and cooperative society act or laws by the respective states. Membership will be governed by what the law says, not what the citizen says. Hence, one cannot become a member of such organisation unless one fulfils the criteria of the laws. For instance, ADR is a voluntary organisation, but its membership is not open for all, rather as per ADR guidelines which should be in conformity with the society registration act.
3. Statement 3: Since the associations are created by statutes, membership also becomes statutory.
4. Statement 4: The same applies to this statement also. In fact, the second and third statements make it obvious that right will be governed by statute.
The key takeaway is that the question brings the difference between forming an association, which is a fundamental right and becoming a member of an association, which is a legal right/statutory right.

Answer: C
Explanation: In case of Option A, B & D, the Prime Minister works as their chairperson. For Option C, generally, it is the Home Minister who becomes its chairperson. However, at present, Rajnath Singh is the chairperson of the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs.
Since cabinet committees are extra-constitutional bodies created under the GoI Business Allocation/transaction Rules 1961, it depends on the PM/or Cabinet to restructure them and decide their composition, role and function.
They were restructured in 2019 as Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, Cabinet Committee on Accommodation, Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs, Cabinet Committee on Security, Cabinet Committee on Investment and Growth and Cabinet Committee on Employment and Skill Development.