Daily Current Affairs Quiz : March 17, 2022

ANSWER: B

• Ruling has come in the backdrop of petition seeking the right to wear hijabs or head scarves along with uniforms inside classrooms.
• According to the Court, wearing of hijab (head scarf) by Muslim women does not form a part of essential religious practices in Islamic faith and is not protected under right to freedom of religion under Article 25 of Constitution.
• Also, prescription of school uniform does not violate either right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1) (a) or right to privacy under Article 21.
• Further, restriction against wearing of hijab in educational institutions is only a reasonable restriction constitutionally permissible.
• What is the essential religious practice test?
• It was evolved by Supreme Court (SC) in ‘Shirur Mutt’ case (1954) to protect only such religious practices which were essential and integral to the religion.
• Court held that term “religion” will cover all rituals and practices integral” to a religion, and took upon itself the responsibility of determining essential and non-essential practices of a religion.
• This attempt to differentiate essential and non-essential practices was taken up in various judgments.

ANSWER: C

• Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying is focusing on progressive growth of the seaweed sector.
• Sea-weed culture is also being promoted under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana for empowerment of fishermen.
• Seaweed is different from seagrass, as seaweed is a non-vascular, plant-like macroalga which lacks true stem, roots and leaves.
• Seaweeds are considered as superfoods because of their high concentration of vitamins and minerals.
• Seagrass is a vascular plant which has true stem, roots and leaves.

ANSWER: B

• Western countries are sending MANPADS to Ukraine for assistance in war.

About MANPADS

• Short-range, lightweight and portable surface-to-air missiles that can be fired by individuals or small groups to destroy aircraft or helicopters.
• Can be shoulder-fired, launched from atop a ground-vehicle, fired from a tripod or stand, and from a helicopter or boat.
• Have ‘fire and forget’ guidance systems.

ANSWER: D

• The Hungarian Parliament has elected the ruling Fidesz Party lawmaker, Katelin Novak, as Republic of Hungary’s first-ever female President.
• By winning the election, she has become Hungary’s youngest ever head of state, at the age of 44.
• She received 137 votes (a 2/3rd majority) against her opposition rival, Peter Rona, an economist, who received 52 votes.
• She will replace her predecessor, Janos Ader, who has been holding the presidency since 2012 and was also a co-founder of the Fidesz Party.
• Novak will hold the Presidency for a tenure of five years, during which she has the power to temporarily block laws and call referendums.
• Earlier, she served as the Vice President of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s Fidesz party and also as a Minister for Family Affairs.

ANSWER: B

• India is set to host the 44^th World Chess Olympiad(44th Chess Olympiad) 2022 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The event will be organised by the International Chess Federation (FIDE -Federation Intemationale des Echecs) at the convention centre at the Four Points by Sheraton, Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu.
• FIDE has approved the bid to host the 44th Chess Olympiad and FIDE Congress 2022 in India.
• The 44th World Chess Olympiad 2022 which was previously scheduled to be held in Moscow, Russia from July 26 to August 8, 2022.
• The FIDE’s Chess Olympiad is a biennial team event, in which teams from around 190 countries compete. The 43rd edition was held in 2018 in Batumi, Georgia.
• 45^th Chess Olympiad is set to be held in Budapest, Hungary in 2024.
• This is the 2nd major global Chess event to be held in India after the World Championship match in 2013.

ANSWER: D

• The N. General Assembly approved a resolution to proclaim March 15 as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia every year, starting from 2022.
• The resolution, adopted by the 193-member UN General Assembly, was introduced by Pakistan’s ambassador Munir Akram on behalf of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC),on March 15, 2022.
• It marks the day when a gunman entered two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, killing 51 worshippers and wounding 40 others in the terror attack.
• The resolution, introduced by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), was co-sponsored by Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Yemen.
• The objective of the day: The main objective of International Day to Combat Islamophobia will be curtailing systematic hate speech and discrimination against Muslims; respect for religious symbols and practices; along with the elimination of all forms of intolerance and discrimination based on religion or belief.

ANSWER: C

• Recently information was given by Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences on achievements under National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical system.
• About National Mission On Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical system
• The NM-ICPS is a comprehensive Mission which would address technology development, application development, human resource development & skill enhancement, entrepreneurship and start-up development in Cyber Physical System (CPS) and associated technologies.
• The Mission aims at establishment of 15 Technology Innovation Hubs (TIH), six Application Innovation Hubs (AIH)and four Technology Translation Research Parks (TTRP).
• These Hubs & TTRPs will connect to Academics, Industry, Central Ministries and State Government in developing solutions at reputed academic, R&D and other organizations across the country in a hub and spoke model.
• The Hubs & TTRPs have four focused areas along which the Mission implementation would proceed, namely:
• Technology Development,
• HRD & Skill Development,
• Innovation, Entrepreneurship & Start-ups Ecosystem Development, and
• International Collaborations.

Cyber-Physical Systems

• Cyber-physical systems integrate sensing, computation, control and networking into physical objects and infrastructure, connecting them to the Internet and to each other.
• Few Potential applications: Driverless cars that communicate securely with each other on smart roads, Sensors in the home to detect changing health conditions, improving agricultural practices and enabling scientists to address issues arising out of climate change etc.
• Advances in cyber-physical systems will enable capability, adaptability, scalability, resiliency, safety, security and usability that will far exceed the simple embedded systems of today.

ANSWER: D

• The Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL), a subsidiary of Coal India, has announced that it has become the country’s largest coal producer. In the financial year 2021-22, the company reported it produced 157 million tonnes of coal.
• The business also generated 62 lakh tonnes of dry fuel on March 12. In a statement, the corporation stated that it was the largest production in a single day during the current fiscal year.
• MCL has delivered over 166 MT dry fuel to consumers, a 22 percent increase over the previous financial year, and has removed 195 MCuM (million cubic metres) of overburden, a 19 percent increase over the previous financial year, according to a statement.