The correct answer is New Delhi.

Key Points

• Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has launched state-of-the-art India Urban Observatory in New Delhi.
• It is a platform that uses data from different sources to enable analysis and visualization over a geospatial platform. 
• The concept of Urban Observatories was formally initiated at the UN Habitat-II Conference in 1997 in Istanbul.
• It is an important component of the recently launched Data Smart Cities strategy that envisions to create a ‘Culture of Data’ in cities.
• It also presents a Data Maturity Assessment Framework (DMAF) that measures the readiness and evolution of cities in their efforts to implementing the Data strategy.

The correct answer is Dehydration.

Key Points

• Food items such as cereals & pulses are generally preserved by drying under the Sun and this method is known as dehydration.
  • In drying or dehydration, water is removed from the food by hot air or heated surface driers.
  • Meat and fruits like apples, apricots, and grapes are some examples of drying with this method.
  • Food preservation ensures that food remains in a state where it is :
    • not contaminated by pathogenic organisms or chemicals.
    • does not lose optimum qualities of color, texture, flavor, and nutritive value.

Additional Information

The correct answer is Mathura.

Key Points

• Mathura was a prosperous centre for Jains during the Kushan period.
• Jainism is an ancient religion and emerged in the 6th century BC.
• Mahavira who was born in the 6th Century BC was the last Tirthankara.
• The spiritual gurus of the Jains were called Tirthankara.
• Pieces of evidence of Jainism have been found in Mathura.
• Mathura and Ujjain were two major pilgrimages of Jains in Northern India.

The first police museum in the country has been established in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh. The purpose of which is to cherish the memory of various weapons and functionalities related to the police.

The correct answer is 2 only.

Key Points

• The Rural Population in Uttar Pradesh is 77.7%.
  • It is higher than the National Average that is 68.84%. Hence statement 1st is correct.
• It is more than the Urban Population in the state.
  • Around 22.7% of the population in the state is living in urban areas. 
• The highest rural population is found in the Shravasti district.
  • It is 96.5%. 
• The lowest rural population is found in the Ghaziabad district.
  • It is 32.4%. Hence statement 2nd is incorrect.

Important Points

•  Highest Rural Population in Uttar Pradesh

The correct answer is 3rd November.

In News

International Day for Biosphere Reserve was observed on 3rd of November. 

Key Points

• During the 41st Session of UNESCO's general Conference in 2022, it was decided to recognize November 3 as the International Day for Biosphere Reserves, celebrated worldwide.
• Biosphere Reserves (BRs) are protected areas with a crucial role in the conservation of plant and animal species. Human communities also rely on these zones for their livelihood activities.
• The aim of a Biosphere Reserve is to strike a balance between economic and social development, the maintenance of cultural values, and the preservation of the natural environment.
• The primary objective of International Day for Biosphere Reserves is to highlight and advocate for the activities within these reserves to align them more harmoniously with sustainable development objectives.
• The recognition of this day is increasingly pertinent, considering the mounting urgency to address environmental issues effectively.

The correct answer is Zambia.

Key Points

Zambia does not share a boundary with South Africa.

It is bounded 

• To the south by 2,798 kilometres of coastline of Southern Africa stretching along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans
• To the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and
• To the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini (former Swaziland); and it surrounds the enclaved country of Lesotho.

Additional Information

South Africa has three capital cities

• Executive Capital - Pretoria 
• Judicial capital - Bloemfontein 
• Legislative Capital - Cape Town.
• The largest city is Johannesburg.
• According to the 2011 census, the two most spoken first languages are Zulu (22.7%) and Xhosa (16.0%).

The correct answer is the Gift tax.

Key Points

• The gift tax was first introduced in 1958.
• The gift tax was levied on all donations except the one given by the charitable institution’s government companies and private companies. 
• Gifts up to Rs 50,000 per annum were exempt from tax in India.
• In addition, gifts from specific relatives like parents, spouses, and siblings are also exempt from tax. 
• Gifts in other cases are taxable. 
• Tax on gifts in India falls under the purview of the Income Tax Act as there is no specific gift tax after the Gift Tax Act, 1958 was repealed in 1998.

Additional Information

Sin Tax- A sin tax is a tax levied on goods or services that are considered to be harmful or costly to society. The goods and services commonly include tobacco, alcohol, sugar-added drinks, and gambling. The main purposes of imposing sin taxes are to reduce the consumption of harmful goods and to increase government revenue.

The Correct Answer is Option 2 i.e Waqia-Navis.

• Ashtapradhan: It was the council of eight ministers set up by Shivaji Maharaj for the administration of the Maratha empire. They were as follows:
  • Peshwa (Prime Minister)
  • Amatya or Mazumdar (Finance Minister)
  • Waqia-Navis (home minister)
  • Samant (Foreign Minister)
  • Sachiv (official correspondence)
  • Pandit Rao (official religious officer)
  • Sar-i-nabuat (army affairs)
  • Nyayadhish (judiciary)

The correct answer is, statements 2 and 3 are correct.

Key Points

Organic Farming-

• ​Organic farming is a method of crop production that involves no use of pesticides, fertilizers, genetically modified organisms, antibiotics and growth hormones.
• It involves the use of fertilizers such as compost manure, green manure, and bone meal and techniques such as crop rotation and companion planting. Hence, statement 1 is NOT correct.
• Frequent decomposing and following is done. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Fostering of insect predators are encouraged.
• The use of herbs to control pests is done instead of chemical pesticides. Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• Organic Farming has comparatively lower yields which might increase with a hybrid of conventional and organic farming. Hence, statement 4 is NOT correct.