UPSC Essentials | Daily subject-wise quiz : Environment and Geography MCQs on International Big Cat Alliance, Nature 2030 programme and more (Week 127)

QUESTION 1

With reference to the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA), consider the following statements:

1. The Indian government established the IBCA through the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

2. Its mandate is the conservation of only the Snow Leopard, Cheetah, and Tiger.

3. All UN member countries can become members after the framework agreement is signed.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

Explanation

— The first Assembly of the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) was held in New Delhi on June 16, presided over by the Union Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav.

— He was endorsed as the President of the IBCA by the nine countries in attendance at the meeting – Bhutan, Cambodia, Eswatini, Guinea, India, Liberia, Suriname, Somalia and Kazakhstan.

— The Indian government established the IBCA through the National Tiger Conservation Authority, under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, in March 2024. Its mandate is the conservation of seven big cats – the Tiger, Lion, Leopard, Snow Leopard, Cheetah, Jaguar and Puma. Hence, statement 1 is correct and statement 2 is not correct.

— It aims “to facilitate collaboration and synergy among stakeholders, consolidating successful conservation practices and expertise and replicating them in range countries.” The Union government has allocated Rs 150 crore for the purpose from 2023-24 to 2027-28.

— There are 95 range countries (falling within the natural distribution of a species) for the big cats, including Canada, China, Congo, Ghana, Brazil, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia and the United States. Twenty-five countries have consented to be members of the IBCA, as of September 2024, including Bangladesh, Nigeria, Egypt, Suriname, Ecuador, Peru, Kenya and Rwanda.

— All UN member countries can become members after the framework agreement is signed and conveyed through a Note Verbale, a method of formal diplomatic communication. Hence, statement 3 is correct.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

QUESTION 2

With reference to the Himalayan glaciers and their region, consider the following pairs:

1. Gasherbrum – Dafla Hills

2. Zemu – Karakoram mountain range

Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly marked?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

QUESTION 3

The Nature 2030 programme is an initiative of:

(a) International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

(b) United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

(c) World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)

(d) United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Explanation

— The IUCN Programme is the result of many years of discourse throughout the Union. The Nature 2030 IUCN Programme, adopted by democratic vote at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille, lays out its goals for the first time over a decade. It is a call for action from our Members, Commissions, and Secretariat. This long-term vision is consistent with the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the post-2020 global biodiversity framework.

— The Programme identifies major areas of activity and establishes aspirational goals as well as success metrics. It will assist the Union in providing for people, land, water, oceans, and climate through five routes to transformative change: acknowledge, retain, restore, resource, and reconnect.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Source: iucn.org)

QUESTION 4

The term “typhoons” is associated with:

(a) North-Western Pacific Ocean

(b) Southern Pacific Ocean

(c) Eastern Indian Ocean

(d) South China Sea

Explanation

— Tropical cyclones occur above warm ocean waters near the equator. When warm, wet air rises from the ocean’s surface, it creates a lower air pressure area below. Air from higher-pressure locations flows into this low-pressure area, eventually rising as it warms and gets moist.

— When a tropical cyclone reaches maximum sustained winds of 74 miles per hour or above, it is categorised as a hurricane, typhoon, or tropical cyclone, depending on where the storm formed.

Hurricane: North Atlantic, central North Pacific, and eastern North Pacific

Typhoons: Northwest Pacific

Tropical Cyclone: South Pacific and Indian Ocean

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Other Source: oceanservice.noaa.gov)

QUESTION 5

With reference to the concentration of fluoride in groundwater, consider the following statements:

1. The geomorphology of the region does not affect fluorine contamination in the groundwater.

2. The nationally permissible limit for fluorine is 1.50 milligrams/litre.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation

— A pan-India analysis of fluoride contamination in groundwater found above-permissible levels of the mineral across the states of Rajasthan, Telangana, western Andhra Pradesh, and eastern Karnataka, as well as parts of Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, and Chhattisgarh.

— Excess fluoride increases the risks of disease conditions like skeletal fluorosis, accelerates the rate of dental decay and can cause other human health hazards, especially among children.

— Even though fluoride is among the many minerals found naturally in groundwater, the nationally permissible limit is 1.50 milligrams/litre. Contamination over 1.50mg/litre is deemed unfit for drinking purposes. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— Fluoride is discharged and mixed with groundwater as a result of the leaching and dissolving of fluoride-bearing minerals in the host water aquifers.

— The average fluoride concentration in groundwater was greater in dry, western Indian areas. Rajasthan topped the charts, with pre-monsoon concentrations of 1.41mg/litre and post-monsoon concentrations of 1.44mg/litre, both of which were near to India’s maximum allowable limit.

— According to the study, “Lithology, soil type, geomorphology and lineaments control played a crucial role in the fluorine contamination in the groundwater.” Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

Previous Daily Subject-Wise-Quiz

Daily Subject-wise quiz — History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 124)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Polity and Governance (Week 127)

Daily subject-wise quiz —  Science and Technology (Week 127)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 127)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Environment and Geography (Week 126)

Daily subject-wise quiz – International Relations (Week 126)

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