Key Points

Civil Disobedience Movement:

• The rejection of Gandhi's eleven points by Irwin Gandhi started the movement.
• On March 12, 1930, Gandhi began the Historic Salt March from his Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi Beach. 
• There, Gandhi and his disciples disobeyed the law by producing sea salt.
• The movement's programme was as follows:
  • The salt law should be broken everywhere.
  • Students should drop out of college, and government employees should resign.
  • Foreign garments should be destroyed.
  • There should be no taxes paid to the government.
  • Women should hold Dharnas at liquor stores, etc.
• C. Rajagopalachari organised a march.  Hence, statement 4 is correct.
  • From Thiruchirapalli to Vedaranniyam on the Tanjore coast in April 1930 to defy the salt rule.
• Kelappan, famed for the Vaikom Satyagraha, organised salt marches.
• Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan's educational and social reform efforts among Peshawar's Pathans have politicised them.
  • Gaffar Khan, also known as Badshah Khan and Frontier Gandhi.  Hence, statement 2 is correct.
  • He organised a volunteer army known as the 'Red-Shirts'.
  • They were dedicated to the freedom movement and nonviolence.
• The most weakest aspect of nationalism at this time was the low level of Muslim participation.
• The significant engagement of women was a fresh and noteworthy characteristic of the Movement.  Hence, statement 3 is incorrect.
• Gandhi’s arrest came on May 4, 1930 when he had announced that he would lead a raid on Dharasana Salt Works.
• Sarojini Naidu, Imam Sahib, and Manilal raided on the Dharasana Salt Works on May 21, 1930. Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.

Additional Information

Gandhi's Eleven Points:

• Before starting the movement, Gandhi attempted yet another compromise of government.
• He proposed "eleven points" of administrative change.
• He claimed that if Lord Irwin accepted them, there would be no need for agitation.
• The following were the most critical requirements:
  • The rupee-to-sterling exchange rate should be decreased.
  • Land revenue should be cut in half and put subject to legislative oversight.
  • The salt tax, as well as the government salt monopoly, should be repealed.
  • Salaries for the highest-level services should be cut in half.
  • To begin, military spending should be cut by half.
  • Indian textiles and coastal shipping are protected.
  • All political detainees should be released.

In News

• DowntoEarth: An index for monitoring effectiveness of climate-smart agriculture practices: How it can help.

Key Points

Climate-smart agriculture (CSA): 

• Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is designed to increase productivity in an environmentally and socially sustainable way, strengthen farmers' resilience to climate change, and reduce agriculture's contribution to climate change by lowering greenhouse gas emissions. It seeks to achieve food security and sustainable development goals amid the challenges posed by climate change.
• Hence statement 1 is correct.
• One of the main goals of CSA is to mitigate the impact of climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural practices.
• This can include a variety of strategies, such as improving crop rotations, adopting no-till farming, enhancing the efficiency of water and fertilizer use, and implementing better livestock management practices.
• By doing so, CSA helps in making agriculture part of the solution to climate change, rather than part of the problem.
• Hence statement 2 is correct.
• Climate-smart agriculture is relevant and beneficial to all scales of farming, including smallholder farmers.
• In fact, smallholder farmers are often the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and CSA practices can be particularly valuable in helping them adapt to changing conditions, improve their yields and incomes, and reduce their environmental footprints.
• CSA emphasizes inclusivity and aims to ensure that agriculture contributes to climate change mitigation and adaptation while being sustainable and equitable, including for small-scale and resource-poor farmers.
• Hence statement 3 is incorrect
• Therefore, the correct answer is option 2 ( only two statements correct).

Key Points

Features of Mixed Economy

• Coexistence of All Sectors: In a mixed economy, all three sectors, namely the Private, Public, and Joint sectors, coexist in peace.
  • The Government and Private enterprises administer the joint sector together, with the government owning at least 51% of the company.
  • Market forces determine pricing, demand, supply, and other factors, the government maintains some control to avoid monopolization and discrimination. Hence Statement 1 & 2 are Correct.
• Cooperative Sector: Another sector exists in a mixed economy i.e., the Cooperative sector.
  • The primary goal of forming this sector is for the government to offer financial aid to cooperative societies in the warehouse, agricultural, and dairy industries, among other industries.
  • Individuals have the freedom to generate goods and services, own property, pick their careers, and choose or demand the products/services they desire.
  • However, the state retains some supervision over monopolistic behaviours and discrimination against the poorer classes.

Features of the Capitalist Economy

• ​​Private property: This is one of the most important characteristics of capitalism where private properties like factories, machines, and equipment can be owned by private individuals or companies. Hence Statement 3 is incorrect.
• Freedom of ownership
• Working on the price mechanism
• Desire to earn profit
• Free competition and cooperation go together
• Sovereignty of consumer
• Gives birth to class-conflicts
• The role of an entrepreneur- Entrepreneurs are the pillars of the market capitalist economy.

Key Points

• International Women's Day is celebrated on 8th March every year.
• It was officially announced by the United Nations in 1977.
• It is one of the important days of the year:
  • Celebrate women's achievements
  • Raise awareness about women's equality
  • Celebrate tech women and innovation 
  • Applaud equality for women in sports 
  • Educate women on health choice decisions
  • Forge women's empowerment worldwide

Additional Information

• There are three colors that symbolize International Women's Day.
  • Purple signifies justice and dignity.
  • Green symbolizes hope.
  • White represents purity.
• The colors originated from the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) in the UK in 1908.
• The campaign theme for International Women's Day 2021 is ' #ChooseToChallenge'.
  •  A challenging world is an alert world. 
  • Raise your hand high is the social media theme to participate in the campaign of International Women's Day 2021.

Important Points

• The First National Women's Day was celebrated in the United States on 28th February.
• About United Nations:
  • ​founded:24 October 1945
  • Headquarters: New York, United States
  • Secretary-general: António Guterres

Key Points

Reserve Bank of India (RBI):

• The Reserve Bank of India was established on April 1, 1935, in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, of 1934.
• The Central Office of the Reserve Bank was initially established in Calcutta but was permanently moved to Mumbai in 1937. The Central Office is where the Governor sits and where policies are formulated.
• Though originally privately owned, since nationalization in 1949, the Reserve Bank is fully owned by the Government of India.
• The Preamble of the Reserve Bank of India describes the basic functions of the Reserve Bank as:
  • To regulate the issue of Bank notes and keeping of reserves with a view to securing monetary stability in India and generally to operate the currency and credit system of the country to its advantage.
  • To have a modern monetary policy framework to meet the challenge of an increasingly complex economy.
  • To maintain price stability while keeping in mind the objective of growth.

Main Functions of the RBI:

• It implements and monitors the monetary policy and ensures price stability while keeping in mind the objective of growth.
• An amendment to RBI Act, 1934, was made in May 2016, providing the statutory basis for the implementation of the flexible inflation targeting framework. 
• Prescribes broad parameters of banking operations within which the country's banking and financial system functions such as issuing licenses, branch expansion, liquidity of assets, an amalgamation of banks etc.
• Manages the Foreign Exchange reserves of India.
• It facilitates external trade and payment and promotes orderly development and maintenance of the foreign exchange market in India.
• Issues and exchanges or destroys currency and coins not fit for circulation. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Performs a wide range of promotional functions to support national objectives such as making institutional arrangements for rural or agricultural finance.
• The Reserve Bank has selected a bank-led model for financial inclusion in India. RBI has undertaken a series of policy measures. Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• RBI acts as a banker to the Government of India and the state governments. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• It creates incentives or disincentives for commercial banks to give loans or credits to investors. Hence, statement 4 is correct.

Key Points

Economic Life and Trade during Harappan Civilisation:-

• The economic life of the people was very prosperous.
• The main occupations of the people were agriculture and the domestication of animals. Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• Trade was well developed.
• Both internal and external trade was carried out with the contemporary civilization such as China, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Sumer. 
• Trade evidence was discovered from the Hittani and Mittani inscriptions of Iran.
• Shortughai(Afghanistan) was the trading outpost of Harrapans with other civilizations. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.
• Harappan seals and materials were found in Sumerian, Mesopotamian Oman, Bahrain, and Iran.
• Pictures of ships, boats have also been found on seals that throw light on Harappan contacts in far-off places. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• The mode of exchange was the barter system.
• The importance of trade in the life of the Indus people is witnessed by the presence of numerous seals, uniform script, and regulated weights and measures in a wide area.
• The Harappans carried on a considerable trade in stone, metal, shell, etc.

Key Points 

• Amarkantak Hills:
  • Situated in Anuppur district of the state of Madhya Pradesh.
  • ​​At an altitude of 1065m at the meeting place of the Vindhya and Satpura mountain ranges amidst sylvan surroundings. 
  • Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.
• Biligirirangan Hills: 
  • situated in South Eastern Karnataka. 
  • It is home to ecosystems that are unique to both the mountain ranges.
  • Since it is located at the north-west of the Western Ghats and the westernmost edge of the Eastern Ghats, it supports a diverse flora and fauna in view of the various habitats present. 
  • Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• Seshachalam Hills: 
  • Hill ranges of the Eastern Ghats, southern Andhra Pradesh state, southeastern India. 
  • Hence, statement 3 is incorrect.

Key Points

Coriolis Effect:

• The Coriolis effect describes the pattern of deflection taken by objects not firmly connected to the ground as they travel long distances around  Earth.
• The Coriolis effect is responsible for many large-scale weather patterns.
• The key to the Coriolis effect lies in Earth’s rotation. Hence, Statement 1 is correct.
• Specifically, Earth rotates faster at the Equator than it does at the poles.
• Earth is wider at the Equator, so to make a rotation in one 24-hour period, equatorial regions race nearly 1,600 kilometres (1,000 miles) per hour.
• Near the poles, Earth rotates at a sluggish 0.00008 kilometres (0.00005 miles) per hour.
• There are only two forces acting:
  • the pressure gradient force and the Coriolis force.
• The pressure gradient force acts towards low-pressure perpendicular to the lines of constant height while the Coriolis force acts to the right and perpendicular to the wind direction. Hence, Statement 2 is correct.
• The rotation of the earth about its axis affects the direction of the wind and this force is called the Coriolis force. 
• It is directly proportional to the angle of latitude. Hence, Statement 3 is correct.
• It deflects the wind to the left direction in the southern hemisphere and the right direction in the northern hemisphere.

Key Points

• Inflation increases the prices of food and services.
  • Inflation erodes the value of money, hence poor people have to spend more money to purchase the same amount of goods. Which ultimately increases poverty among the people.
  • Hence statement  A is incorrect.
• When the government goes for an increase in expenditure then the money in the market gets redistributed to the people.
  • The government implements this measure to increase the money supply in the market. 
  • This increases economic activities in the economy and ultimately leads to a reduction of poverty among people.
  • Hence statement  B is correct.
• Deficit financing is another way of increasing the money supply in the market so it also helps in the reduction of poverty.
  • Hence statement C is correct.
• Higher savings leads to higher capital formation.
  • This increases economic activities in the economy and ultimately leads to a reduction of poverty among people.
  • Hence statement D is correct.

Key Points

• Breaststroke is related to Swimming.
• Breaststroke is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on their chest and the torso does not rotate.
• Shikha Tandon, Shivani, Aryan Makhija are some famous Swimmers of India.
• Some other sports terms of swimming -  Back Stroke, Freestyle, Butterfly,  Lane, Pool.

Additional Information

• Sport terms of Wrestling - Hal nelson, Heaven, FreeStyle, etc.
• Sports terms of Tennis - Deuce, Advantage, Game Point, Breakpoint, Smash, Shot, Break, Grass Court, Drop shot etc.