Daily Current Affairs Quiz Prelims Practice 2027
- In the fuel notation E85, the number denotes the percentage of ethanol by volume in the petrol–ethanol blend.
- The Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 are framed under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
- Ethanol contains more energy per litre than petrol, which improves the mileage of flex-fuel vehicles.
Statement 1 is correct — “E” denotes ethanol and the number its share by volume, so E85 has up to 85% ethanol and E100 is predominantly ethanol. Statement 2 is correct — the CMVR, 1989 are framed under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and MoRTH has now amended them to expressly include E100 alongside E85 for certified flex-fuel vehicles. Statement 3 is incorrect — ethanol has about one-third less energy per litre than petrol, so high blends reduce mileage; its real advantage is a higher octane number.
- Statement-I: India advanced its target of 20% ethanol blending in petrol from 2030 to Ethanol Supply Year 2025–26.
- Statement-II: The Ethanol Supply Year runs from November to October.
Statement-I is correct — the National Policy on Biofuels, 2018 set E20 by 2030, but NITI Aayog’s 2021 roadmap and the 2022 amendment advanced it to ESY 2025–26; E10 was achieved in 2022 and E20 in 2025. Statement-II is also correct — the Ethanol Supply Year runs from November to October, and procurement prices and blending targets are set per ESY. However, Statement-II is only an accounting convention and does not explain why the target was advanced.
- ‘Establishment of standards of weight and measure’ is an entry in the Union List of the Seventh Schedule.
- The International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML) is a specialised agency of the United Nations headquartered in Geneva.
Statement 1 is correct — it is Entry 50 of the Union List, and the Legal Metrology Act, 2009 is enforced through State Legal Metrology departments under the Department of Consumer Affairs. Statement 2 is incorrect — the OIML (1955) is an intergovernmental treaty organisation, not a UN agency, and its secretariat, the BIML, is in Paris. India is hosting the 61st CIML meeting, the first time in India.
- Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain was launched on World Water Day, 22 March 2021.
- ‘Water’ is an entry in the State List, subject to the provisions of a Union List entry on regulation of inter-State rivers.
- The Atal Bhujal Yojana is a community-led groundwater management scheme implemented with World Bank support.
- Under the Indian Easements Act, 1882, groundwater belongs to the State and not to the owner of the overlying land.
Statement 1 is correct — JSA: CTR was launched on 22 March 2021 with the theme “Catch the Rain — Where It Falls, When It Falls”. Statement 2 is correct — water is Entry 17 of the State List, subject to Entry 56 of the Union List (inter-State rivers and river valleys), and Statement 3 is correct — the Atal Bhujal Yojana (2019) promotes participatory groundwater management in seven States with World Bank support. Statement 4 is incorrect — under the Easements Act, 1882, groundwater rights traditionally attach to the landowner, a key reason for unchecked pumping; it is the Model Groundwater Bill that proposes treating it as a common resource.
- CERT-In — Section 70B, IT Act, 2000 — National nodal agency for cyber-incident response
- NCIIPC — Section 70A, IT Act, 2000 — Protection of critical information infrastructure
- Data Protection Board of India — DPDP Act, 2023 — Protection of non-personal engineering and technical data
Pair 1 is correct — CERT-In functions under Section 70B, and its 2022 Directions mandate reporting of incidents within 6 hours. Pair 2 is correct — the NCIIPC, notified under Section 70A in 2014 under the NTRO, protects critical information infrastructure. Pair 3 is incorrect — the DPDP Act covers only digital personal data, so engineering drawings and technical documents without personal data fall outside it, as the Kudankulam op-ed notes.
- The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project uses VVER pressurised water reactors built in cooperation with Russia.
- The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited functions under the Ministry of Power.
- The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board was constituted in 1983 to carry out regulatory and safety functions.
Statement 1 is correct — Kudankulam (Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu) uses VVER-1000 reactors under the 1988 India–USSR agreement, and six units of 1,000 MW will give 6,000 MW. Statement 2 is incorrect — NPCIL is a PSU under the Department of Atomic Energy, which reports directly to the Prime Minister, not the Ministry of Power. Statement 3 is correct — the AERB was constituted in 1983 under the Atomic Energy Act, 1962.
- Statement-I: Salt is considered a suitable vehicle for population-wide iron fortification in India.
- Statement-II: Salt is consumed daily by almost all households in fairly predictable quantities, irrespective of income or region.
Statement-I is correct — Double Fortified Salt (iodine plus iron) is recommended as a preventive tool against iron-deficiency anaemia, has an FSSAI standard, and is mandated in PM POSHAN and ICDS. Statement-II is correct and explains Statement-I — universal, predictable daily consumption is the very reason salt works as a vehicle, since it needs no change in behaviour, unlike iron tablets. Universal Salt Iodisation already reaches about 95% of households.
The Food Safety and Standards (Fortification of Foods) Regulations, 2018 cover rice, wheat flour and maida, edible oil, milk and salt (iodised and double fortified), and fortified products carry the “+F” logo. Sugar is not among the staples covered. Fortified rice is now distributed through the PDS, PM POSHAN and ICDS, with the programme extended to 2028.
- The Chief Election Commissioner can be removed from office only in the like manner and on the like grounds as a judge of the Supreme Court.
- An Election Commissioner can be removed from office only on the recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner.
- Under the 2023 Act, the Chief Justice of India is a member of the Selection Committee that recommends appointments to the Commission.
Statement 1 is correct — under Article 324(5), the CEC can be removed only like an SC judge, on proved misbehaviour or incapacity, by a special-majority motion in each House. Statement 2 is correct — Article 324(5) also provides that an EC can be removed only on the CEC’s recommendation. Statement 3 is incorrect — the CEC and Other ECs Act, 2023 provides a Selection Committee of the PM, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the PM; the CJI was part only of the interim arrangement ordered in Anoop Baranwal (2023).
- Special Executive Magistrates are appointed by the High Court for a specified area or period.
- Article 50 directs the State to take steps to separate the judiciary from the executive in the public services of the State.
Statement 1 is incorrect — Special Executive Magistrates are appointed by the State Government under Section 15 of the BNSS (old CrPC Section 21); it is Judicial Magistrates whose presiding officers are appointed by the High Court. Statement 2 is correct — Article 50 (DPSP) calls for separation of the judiciary from the executive, and the CrPC, 1973 gave effect to it through separate judicial and executive magistracies.
- It was first set up in 1966 on the recommendation of the First Press Commission.
- It was re-established under the Press Council Act, 1978 after being abolished during the Emergency.
- By convention, it is chaired by a retired judge of the Supreme Court.
All three statements are correct. The First Press Commission (1954) recommended a press council and the PCI was set up in 1966; it was abolished in 1976 during the Emergency and re-established under the Press Council Act, 1978. Its Chairperson has, by convention, been a retired Supreme Court judge. Note that the PCI covers print media only — TV news has self-regulation (NBDSA) and digital news falls under the IT Rules, 2021.
- Phulkari — Punjab — Embroidery
- Dokra — West Bengal — Lost-wax metal casting
- Telia Rumal — Telangana — Tie-and-dye (ikat) weaving
- Meenakari — Rajasthan — Mirror-work embroidery
Pair 1 is correct — Phulkari (“flower work”) is the embroidery tradition of Punjab. Pair 2 is correct — Dokra is non-ferrous lost-wax (cire perdue) casting practised in West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, and Pair 3 is correct — Telia Rumal is an oil-treated double-ikat textile associated with Telangana (Puttapaka, Pochampally). Pair 4 is incorrect — Meenakari, strongly associated with Rajasthan, is the art of enamelling metal surfaces, not mirror-work embroidery.
- The principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities is enshrined in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, 1992.
- Under its updated Nationally Determined Contribution, India committed to reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP by 45% by 2030 from the 2005 level.
Statement 1 is correct — CBDR-RC appears in the UNFCCC (1992) and underpins the argument that developed countries should lead. Statement 2 is correct — India’s 2022 updated NDC commits to a 45% cut in emissions intensity by 2030 (2005 base) and 50% non-fossil installed capacity, the latter reached in 2025, with net zero as the long-term goal by 2070. Note that the target concerns emissions per unit of GDP, not total emissions.
RONI subtracts the average tropical sea surface temperature from the Niño 3.4 anomaly, so that general ocean warming from climate change does not inflate El Niño readings; a three-month value above +0.5°C signals El Niño and below –0.5°C, La Niña. Option (c) describes the Southern Oscillation Index, while (a) and (d) refer to other regions and measures. The WMO has warned that the current El Niño, peaking near 3.8°C, will affect weather into 2027.
- The Defence Acquisition Council is chaired by the Raksha Mantri.
- Grant of Acceptance of Necessity is the first formal step in the capital acquisition process.
- ‘Buy (Indian-IDDM)’ is accorded the highest priority among capital acquisition categories under DAP 2020.
All three statements are correct. The DAC (set up in 2001) is chaired by the Defence Minister, and AoN is the first step that approves the need — followed by tendering, trials, cost negotiation and final approval — so it is not a contract; the latest AoNs total about ₹2.12 lakh crore, with 82% for domestic industry. Under DAP 2020, Buy (Indian-IDDM) — Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured — has the highest priority.
