Question 26: “Toolkit on Enabling Gender Responsive Urban Mobility and Public Spaces in

India” is launched by:

A) IMF

B) World Economic forum

C) World Bank

D) OECD

Correct Answer: C

Explanation

• The World Bank launched a “Toolkit on Enabling Gender Responsive Urban Mobility and Public Spaces in India” with the aim of suggesting ways to make public transport in Indian cities more inclusive of women’s travelling requirements.
• The toolkit emphasizes on the importance of integrating a gender lens in transport policies and infrastructure, making various recommendations on interventions that can help make urban transport safer, especially for women.
• It brings together 50 case studies of best practices and efforts from across the world, along with a special inculcation of the Indian context.

Question 27: Consider the following statements:

1. An election security deposit is an amount that is to be deposited with the Returning Officer when a candidate files their nomination.
2. In the case of Presidential and Vice-Presidential elections, a deposit of Rs 15,000 is to be made.

Which of the following statements is/are true?

A) 1 only

B) 2 only

C) 1 and 2 only

D) Neither 1 nor 2

Correct Answer: C

Explanation

What is an election security deposit?

• An election security deposit is an amount that is to be deposited with the Returning Officer when a candidate files their nomination.
• This is to be submitted either in cash, or a receipt must be enclosed with the nomination paper, showing that the said sum has been deposited on the candidate’s behalf in the Reserve Bank of India or in a Government Treasury.
• The main purpose of this practice is to ensure that only genuinely intending candidates end up filing the nomination to be a part of the electoral process.

Is the amount same for all elections?

• No, it depends on the particular election being conducted, and the Representation of the People Act of 1951 mentions different amounts depending on the level of election:

1. In the case of an election from a Parliamentary constituency, meaning a Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha seat, the amount is Rs 25,000 and Rs 12,500 for a Scheduled Caste (SC) or Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidate.
2. In the case of an election from an Assembly or Council constituency, meaning at the level of legislative bodies in the states, it is Rs 10,000 and Rs 5,000 for an SC/ST candidate.
3. Even in the case of Presidential and Vice-Presidential elections, a deposit of Rs 15,000 is to be made.

Question 28: e-participation index is published by:

A) IMF

B) World Economic forum

C) World Bank

D) UN

Correct Answer: D

Explanation

• According to UN’s e-participation index (2022), which is a composite measure of three important dimensions of e-government, namely provision of online services, telecommunication connectivity and human capacity, India ranks 105 out of 193 nations.

Question 29: Consider the following statements:

1. The elephant is the only animal in Wildlife protection act’s Schedule-I that can still be owned legally by means of inheritance or gift.
2. No species having the highest legal protection under the wildlife protection act can be declared as vermin.
3. The Wildlife protection act 1972 has identified fruit bats, common crows and rats as vermin.

Which of the following statements is/are true?

A) 1 and 2

B) 2 and 3

C) 1 and 3

D) 1, 2 and 3

Correct Answer: C

Explanation

• The Wildlife (Protection) Act (WLPA), 1972, identified the elephant, along with the bullock, camel, donkey, horse, and mule, as a “vehicle”.
• Given the highest legal protection in 1977, the elephant is the only animal in WLPA’s Schedule-I that can still be owned legally — by means of inheritance or gift.
• In 2003, Section 3 of the WLPA prohibited trade in all captive wildlife and any (non- commercial) transfer across state boundaries without permission from the concerned chief wildlife warden.
• The WLPA (Amendment) Bill 2021 proposed an exception to Section 43: “This section shall not apply to the transfer or transport of any live elephant by a person having a certificate of ownership, where such person has obtained prior permission from the State Government on fulfillment of such conditions as may be prescribed by the Central Government.”
• Along with conservation and animal welfare groups, the Parliamentary Standing Committee headed by Congress leader Jairam Ramesh objected to the blanket exemption and recommended that it should be limited to temple elephants kept for religious purposes.
• Under pressure, the government modified the exemption but worded the amended clause vaguely to allow the “transfer or transport of a captive elephant for a religious or any other purpose by a person having a valid certificate of ownership…subject to such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the Central Government”. (Emphasis added)
• Critics point out that the prohibition on commercial transfer only drove the live elephant trade underground as traders switched to dressing up commercial deals as gift deeds to bypass the 2003 amendment. The sweeping ambit of “any other purpose” in the present amendment, they say, will empower elephant traders, put wild populations at greater risk of capture, and defeat the very purpose of WLPA.
• Since 1972, the WLPA has identified a few species — fruit bats, common crows and rats — as vermin or nuisance animals that spread diseases or destroy crops and are not protected under the Act. Killing animals outside this list was allowed under two circumstances:

1. Under Section 62 of WLPA, given sufficient reasons, any species other than those accorded the highest legal protection (such as tiger and elephant but not wild boar or nilgai) can be declared vermin at a certain place for a certain time.
2. Under Section 11 of WLPA, the chief wildlife warden can allow the killing of an animal irrespective of its status in the Schedules, if it becomes “dangerous to human life”.
3. The state governments took the decisions under Section 62 until 1991 when an amendment handed these powers to the Centre.
4. The purpose was apparently to restrict the possibility of eliminating a large number of animals at a species level as vermin.
5. Under Section 11, states could issue culling permits only locally and for a few animals.

Question 30: Consider the following statements:

1. As of now, the ECI has recognized eight parties as national parties.
2. If a political party has won at least 2% of the total seats in the Lok Sabha from not less than three states, it would be considered as a national party.

Which of the following statements is/are true?

A) 1 only

B) 2 only

C) 1 and 2 only

D) Neither 1 nor 2

Correct Answer: C

Explanation

As per the ECI’s Political Parties and Election Symbols, 2019 handbook, a political party would be considered a national party if:

• it is ‘recognized’ in four or more states; or
• if its candidates polled at least 6% of total valid votes in any four or more states in the last Lok Sabha or Assembly elections and has at least four MPs in the last Lok Sabha polls; or
• if it has won at least 2% of the total seats in the Lok Sabha from not less than three states.
• As of now, the ECI has recognized eight parties as national parties.