Daily Current Affairs Quiz Prelims Practice 2027
- (a) Pankaj Bansal vs Union of India (2023) — Written grounds of arrest mandatory; confined initially to PMLA and ED arrests
- (b) Prabir Purkayastha Case (2024) — Extended written-grounds requirement to all cases under any law, including ordinary crimes under BNS
- (c) Vihaan Kumar vs State of Haryana (Feb 2025) — Communication of grounds is indispensable, but oral communication held sufficient in certain situations; conflict with expanding written-grounds line
- (d) Mihir Rajesh Shah vs State of Maharashtra (Nov 2025) — Written grounds of arrest mandatory in all cases including ordinary crimes under BNS/IPC
Pairs (a), (c), and (d) are correctly matched. Pankaj Bansal (2023) was the first ruling requiring written grounds of arrest, initially limited to PMLA/ED cases. Vihaan Kumar (Feb 2025) held that communication of grounds is indispensable but oral communication can suffice in certain situations, creating the current conflict with the expanding written-grounds line. Mihir Rajesh Shah (Nov 2025) universalised the written-grounds requirement to all cases, including ordinary crimes under BNS/IPC. Pair (b) is incorrectly matched — Prabir Purkayastha (2024) extended the protection to UAPA arrests specifically, not to all cases under any law; it was Mihir Rajesh Shah that later achieved that universal extension.
- The Gangetic River Dolphin (Platanista gangetica gangetica) was declared India's National Aquatic Animal in 2009.
- The Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) is classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List and is a part of the 12-country Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Programme (GSLEP).
- Kaziranga National Park in Assam hosts approximately 70% of the global population of the Indian One-horned Rhinoceros.
- The Wild Water Buffalo (Bubalus arnee) faces a critical conservation threat from hybridisation with domestic buffaloes, which threatens the genetic purity of wild populations.
Statements 1, 3 and 4 are correct. The Gangetic River Dolphin was declared India's National Aquatic Animal on 5 October 2009. Kaziranga hosts about 70% of the world's Indian One-horned Rhinoceros population, recovered from under 200 to over 4,000 today. The Wild Water Buffalo faces a genuine and acute threat from hybridisation with domestic buffaloes, diluting the genetic purity of its wild population, which is almost entirely restricted to Assam. Statement 2 is incorrect — the Snow Leopard is listed as Vulnerable, not Endangered, on the IUCN Red List, even though it is genuinely part of the 12-country GSLEP initiative.
Option (b) is correct — Stage 5 of the Demographic Transition Model is defined by natural population decline, where the CDR exceeds the CBR. Kerala's 2024 CBR (9.64) and CDR (8.77) are extremely close, giving near-zero natural growth, and several southern districts (e.g. Alappuzha at 5.28, Kollam at 6.63) already show CBR below CDR. Option (a) is wrong — Kerala's TFR has been below replacement level for decades, not "for the first time"; the new milestone is CBR falling below 10, a distinct indicator. Option (c) is wrong — the "over 50 per 100" old-age dependency figure is not supported by the source. Option (d) is wrong — live births (344,766) still exceeded estimated deaths (roughly 307,000) statewide in 2024, so aggregate natural decline has not yet occurred, even though specific districts show it.
- The sensor-based approach developed by a team from Amrita University uses tilt meters, piezometers, and accelerometers at specific high-risk sites, and provided zero-casualty outcomes during the 2024 landslides in Munnar, Idukki district.
- The probabilistic forecasting approach developed at IIT Mandi uses a satellite-based database of past landslide events combined with localised IMD rainfall forecasts, and provides wide spatial coverage but is constrained by the short lead time of available localised rainfall forecasts.
- The sensor-based approach provides broader spatial coverage than probabilistic forecasting because its instruments continuously monitor the entire hill range surrounding any instrumented site.
- Professor Dericks Praise Shukla of IIT Mandi estimates that a comprehensive, nationally integrated early warning system can be developed in approximately two years with dedicated resources and coordination.
Statements 1, 2 and 4 are correct. The Amrita University sensor-based system (tilt meters, piezometers, accelerometers) enabled a zero-casualty evacuation during the 2024 Munnar landslides. The IIT Mandi probabilistic approach combines a satellite-based past-events database with localised IMD rainfall forecasts, offering wide spatial coverage but constrained by short forecast lead times. Professor Dericks Praise Shukla estimated a comprehensive national EWS could be operationalised in roughly two years with coordination among institutions, IMD, GSI, and NDMA. Statement 3 is incorrect — it inverts the two approaches' defining characteristic: the sensor-based method actually has narrower spatial coverage, monitoring only specific instrumented slopes, while it is the probabilistic approach that offers wide spatial coverage.
- The Forest Rights Act (Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act) was enacted, mandating recognition of tribal rights before any diversion of forest land.
- The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act (LARR Act) was enacted, establishing the statutory framework for compensation and rehabilitation in land acquisition.
- Panna Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh completed its landmark tiger reintroduction programme, restoring tigers after local extinction.
- The Ken-Betwa Link Project was formally described as India's first inter-basin river interlinking initiative to be taken up for implementation, with the Dodhan Dam proposed inside the Panna Tiger Reserve.
The correct sequence is the Forest Rights Act, 2006 (mandating tribal rights recognition before forest land diversion) → Panna Tiger Reserve's tiger reintroduction, 2009 (restoring the population after local extinction) → the LARR Act, 2013 (replacing the 1894 Land Acquisition Act, providing up to four times market-value compensation in rural areas) → the Ken-Betwa Link Project's subsequent advance to implementation as India's first inter-basin interlinking initiative, with the Dodhan Dam proposed inside Panna Tiger Reserve.
