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UPSC 2022 (Prelims) Questions
A)
Cotton
B)
Rice
C)
Sugarcane
D)
Wheat

Correct Answer : Option (B) - Rice

Note : Methane and nitrous oxide are emitted from conventional and modified rice cultivation systems.

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
2 .
"System of Rice Intensification" of cultivation, in which alternate wetting and drying of rice fields is practised, results in :
 
1. Reduced seed requirement
2. Reduced methane production
3. Reduced electricity consumption
 
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
A)
1 and 2 only
B)
2 and 3 only
C)
1 and 3 only
D)
1, 2 and 3

Correct Answer : Option (D) - 1, 2 and 3

Note :

System of Rice Intensification (SRI) includes a method called Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) which is a form of controlled or intermittent irrigation of the rice crops.  The benefits from the programme include reduction in methane emissions from traditional rice cultivation, and significant reduction in water consumption. The crop yields are maintained and not affected negatively, and the programme leads to the creation of community organisation and strengthening of networks through the formation of farmer groups. Typically, farmers use diesel to pump large amounts of water to flood their fields. With intermittent flooding, water pumps are run for shorter periods of time, reducing fuel consumption.
 
Benefits and Impacts of SRI 
 
* To increase paddy yields usually by 20-50% and sometimes 100% or more; 
* To reduce required seeds for transplanting by 60-80%; 
* To reduce use of chemical fertilizers and agrichemicals; 
* To reduce irrigation water by 25-50%; 
* To reduce production costs usually by 10-20%; and
* With increased output and reduced costs, farmers’ net income is increased.

Source : sri.ciifad

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
A)
Lake Victoria
B)
Lake Faguibine
C)
Lake Oguta
D)
Lake Volta

Correct Answer : Option (B) - Lake Faguibine

Note :

One example of increasing aridity in Mali appears in Lake Faguibine. These false-color Landsat satellite images of the lake show how it changed over the decades.
 
Lying at the end of a series of basins watered by the Niger River when it floods, Lake Faguibine has experienced widely fluctuating water levels since the turn of the twentieth century but, at its fullest, has ranked among the largest lakes in West Africa. In 1974, this lake covered roughly 590 square kilometers (230 square miles). Starting in the late 1980s, a drop in precipitation steadily dried the lake. By the late 1990s, the traditional livelihoods of fishing, agriculture, and livestock herding became impractical. Even though normal rainfall resumed after the year 2000, the lake remained nearly dry.

Source : Earthobservatory  & Africanews

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
A)
Cauvery
B)
Manjira
C)
Pennar
D)
Tungabhadra

Correct Answer : Option (C) - Pennar

Note :

* Gandikota is a small village in the Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh. The village is majorly known for housing the spectacular gorge which is famously adjudged as the Grand Canyon of India. 

* The stunning gorge has been created by the waters of the famous river Pennar that streams from the Erramala hills.

* Penna (also known as Pinakini, Pennar, Penner, Penneru (Telugu), Pennai (Tamil)) is a river of southern India.

* India has always been a popular tourist destination for its historic forts, stunning palaces and dense jungles.

* Now, a lesser known gorge in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh is drawing visitors.

* The gorge is a stunning maze of jagged rocks layered in shades of red. The PennaRiver meanders through the canyon floor as it cuts through the Erramala hills.

* The area is known as the Grand Canyon of India because of its resemblance to the famous US landmark.

* It's also home to two ancient temples and a 12th Century fort that sits atop the hills surrounding the gorge.

Source : BBC

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
5 .
Consider the following pairs Peak Mountains
 
1. Namcha Barwa - Garhwal Himalaya
2. Nanda Devi – Kumaon Himalaya
3. Nokrek – Sikkim Himalaya
 
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched ?
A)
1 and 2
B)
2 only
C)
1 and 3
D)
3 only

Correct Answer : Option (B) - 2 only

Note :

Namcha Barwa is in an isolated part of southeastern Tibet rarely visited by outsiders. It stands inside the Great Bend of the Yarlung Tsangpo River as the river enters its notable gorge across the Himalaya, emerging as the Siang and becoming the Brahmaputra. On other hand the Garhwal Himalayas are mountain ranges located in the Indian state of Uttarakhand
 
Kumaun Himalayas, west-central section of the Himalayas in northern India, extending 200 miles (320 km) from the Sutlej River east to the Kali River. The range, comprising part of the Siwalik Range in the south and part of the Great Himalayas in the north, lies largely within the state of Uttarakhand, northwest of Nepal. It rises to 25,646 feet (7,817 metres) at Nanda Devi, the range’s highest peak.
 
The Nokrek Biosphere Reserve is located in the northeast of India on the Tura Range, which forms part of the Meghalaya Plateau (average altitude: 600 metres)..

Source : Researchgate & Britannica & unesco

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
A)
Region along the eastern Mediterranean shores
B)
Region along North African shores stretching from Egypt to Morocco
C)
Region along Persian Gulf and Horn of Africa
D)
The entire coastal areas of Mediterranean Sean

Correct Answer : Option (A) - Region along the eastern Mediterranean shores

Note : Levant, the region along the eastern Mediterranean shores, roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and certain adjacent areas.

Source : Britannica

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
7 .
Consider the following countries :
 
1. Azerbaijan
2. Kyrgyzstan
3. Tajikistan
4. Turkmenistan
5. Uzbekistan
 
Which of the above have borders with Afghanistan ?
A)
1, 2 and 5 only
B)
1, 2, 3 and 4 only
C)
3, 4 and 5 only
D)
1, 2, 3, 4 and 5

Correct Answer : Option (C) - 3, 4 and 5 only

Note :

Afghanistan is completely landlocked—the nearest coast lies along the Arabian Sea, about 300 miles (480 km) to the south—and, because of both its isolation and its volatile political history, it remains one of the most poorly surveyed areas of the world. It is bounded to the 
 
 * east and south by Pakistan 
 * to the west by Iran
 * to the north by the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.
 * It also has a short border with Xinjiang, China, at the end of the long, narrow V?kh?n (Wakhan Corridor), in the extreme northeast. 

Source : Britannica

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
8 .
With reference to India, consider the following statements :
 
1. Monazite is a source of rare earths.
2. Monazite contains thorium.
3. Monazite occurs naturally in the entire Indian coastal sands in India.
4. In India, Government bodies only can process or export monazite.
 
Which of the statements given above are correct?
A)
1, 2 and 3 only
B)
1, 2 and 4 only
C)
3 and 4 only
D)
1, 2, 3 and 4

Correct Answer : Option (B) - 1, 2 and 4 only

Note :

Monazite is a mineral mainly containing rare earths and thorium-a prescribed substance to be handled by the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). Accordingly, Indian Rare Earths Ltd. (IREL) wholly owned by the Govt. of India, under the administrative control of the Dept. of Atomic Energy (DAE) utilises monazite mainly for production of rare earth compounds, and thorium, as needed in the Department of Atomic Energy.

In-situ monazite established by AMD so far are present in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, and Jharkhand.

Source : PIB

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
A)
First half of the month of June
B)
Second half of the month of June
C)
First half of the month of July
D)
Second half of the month of July

Correct Answer : Option (A) - First half of the month of June

Note :

Summer solstice: The two moments during the year when the path of the Sun in the sky is farthest north in the Northern Hemisphere (June 20 or 21) or farthest south in the Southern Hemisphere (December 21 or 22).
At the summer solstice, the Sun travels the longest path through the sky, and that day therefore has the most daylight. 

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies
10 .
Consider the following pairs :
Wetland / Lake Location
 
1. Hokera Wetland – Punjab
2. Renuka Wetland – Himachal Pradesh
3. Rudrasagar Lake — Tripura
4. Sasthamkotta Lake – Tamil Nadu
 
How many pairs given above are correctly matched ?
A)
Only one pair
B)
Only two pairs
C)
Only three pairs
D)
All four pairs

Correct Answer : Option (B) - Only two pairs

Note :

Hokera Wetland- Jammu and Kashmir
Renuka Wetland- Himachal Pradesh
Rudrasagar Lake- Tripura
Sasthamkotta Lake- Kerala

Year : 2022
Category : General Studies