Current Affairs Quiz 26 February 2026

Q1.  With reference to the two-child norm for contesting local body elections, consider the following statements:

1. Articles 243F and 243V empower State Legislatures to prescribe disqualification criteria for Panchayat and Municipal elections respectively.
2. The Supreme Court in Javed vs State of Haryana (2003) held that the two-child norm violates Article 21 of the Constitution.
3. The two-child norm was originally introduced in Rajasthan in 1995 as a population control measure.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A) 1 and 3 only
B) 2 and 3 only
C) 1 only
D) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (A) 1 and 3 only

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: Articles 243F and 243V allow States to prescribe disqualifications for local bodies.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: In Javed (2003), the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the two-child norm and held that the right to contest elections is statutory, not fundamental.
• Statement 3 is correct: Rajasthan introduced the norm in 1995 as a population control measure.

Q2.  

With reference to the 7th Waterbird Census (2026) in Kaziranga, consider the following statements:

1. The total count recorded was 105,540 waterbirds.
2. The census recorded 18 species under IUCN threatened categories.
3. The number of species recorded increased compared to 2025.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A) 1 and 2 only
B) 1 only
C) 2 and 3 only
D) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (A) 1 and 2 only

Explanation:

• Statements 1 and 2 are correct: 105,540 birds across 107 species were recorded, with 18 under threatened categories.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: Species count declined by 17 compared to 2025, indicating interannual variation.

Q3.  

With reference to Large Language Models (LLMs), consider the following statements:

1. LLMs are trained using large clusters of GPUs.
2. Training frontier LLMs requires substantial electricity and cooling infrastructure.
3. The number of parameters alone guarantees superior contextual performance.
4. Most frontier LLMs use transformer-based neural architectures.

How many of the above statements are correct?

A) Only One
B) Only Two
C) Only Three
D) All Four

Answer: (C) Only Three

Explanation:

• Statements 1, 2 and 4 are correct: GPU clusters, high energy use, and transformer architecture are foundational to modern LLMs.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: Model quality depends on data quality, architecture and fine-tuning, not parameter size alone.

Q4.  

With reference to Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU), consider the following statements:

1. CCU involves permanent underground storage of captured carbon dioxide.
2. CCU can convert CO₂ into fuels, chemicals and building materials.
3. CCU is particularly relevant for hard-to-abate industrial sectors.
4. CCU eliminates the need for renewable energy transition.

How many of the above statements are correct?

A) Only One
B) Only Two
C) Only Three
D) All Four

Answer: (B) Only Two

Explanation:

• Statements 2 and 3 are correct: CCU reuses CO₂ in products and is relevant for sectors like cement and steel.
• Statement 1 describes CCS (storage), not CCU.
• Statement 4 is incorrect: CCU complements but does not replace renewable energy transition.

Q5.  

Assertion (A): Earth’s energy imbalance is a critical indicator of long-term climate change.
Reason (R): A persistent positive imbalance indicates more incoming solar radiation than outgoing terrestrial radiation.

A) Both A and R are correct and R is the correct explanation of A.
B) Both A and R are correct but R is not the correct explanation of A.
C) A is correct but R is incorrect.
D) A is incorrect but R is correct.

Answer: (A)

Explanation:
Earth’s energy imbalance reflects excess trapped heat in the climate system. A persistent positive imbalance directly indicates ongoing warming, making it a key diagnostic metric for long-term climate change.

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