UPSC Daily Quiz | 21 May 2024

Explanation:

• • Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU)
  •   Composition: An international economic union and free trade zone comprising Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.
  •  Establishment: Founded in 2015, building on the earlier Eurasian Economic Community.

•  Objectives:

• • Ensure the free movement of goods, services, capital, and labor within the union.
  •  Coordinate economic policies.
  • Develop common policies in key sectors.
•   Governing Body: The Eurasian Economic Commission, a supranational entity, regulates trade and economic policies.
•  Single Market: Facilitates a single market with a unified customs territory, common product regulations, and coordinated macroeconomic policies.
•  Currency: Unlike the European Union (EU), the EAEU does not share a common currency.
• Judicial Body: The Court of the EAEU, based in Minsk (Belarus), serves as the judicial authority. However, the Commission cannot bring a member state before the Court in cases of non-compliance; disputes are often resolved bilaterally.

Explanation:

•   An NPA is a loan or advance for which the principal or interest payment has remained overdue for a period of 90 days.
•   They can include various types of loans, such as personal loans, business loans, mortgages, and credit card debt.When the ratio of NPAs in a bank's loan portfolio rises, it leads to:
•   Decreased income and profitability for the bank.
•   Reduced capacity to lend.
•   Increased possibility of loan defaults and write-offs.

Explanation:

• Definition:  An Asset Reconstruction Company is a specialized financial institution that buys the NPAs or bad assets from banks and financial institutions so that the latter can clean up their balance sheets.    Or in other words, ARCs are in the business of buying bad loans from banks.  Working: Banks sell these stressed assets to ARCs at a mutually agreed price.  ARCs deploy various strategies to recover the debt, such as: Negotiation and restructuring of loans, Legal action and Asset sale.
• Regulation:   ARCs are regulated by the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 (“SARFAESI”).  ARCs fall under the regulation of Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Explanation:

• Due to the widespread use of banned calcium carbide, the FSSAI has approved the use of ethylene gas as a safer alternative for ripening fruits in India.
•  Permitted Concentration: Ethylene gas can be used at concentrations up to 100 ppm, depending on the crop, variety, and maturity.
• Function: Ethylene, a natural hormone in fruits, regulates ripening by initiating and controlling various chemical and biochemical processes.

Explanation:

• Pokhran-I: On this day in 1974, India conducted its landmark first nuclear tests in Pokhran, Rajasthan, as part of the ‘Smiling Buddha’ operation.
• Device Type: Fission bomb; Yield: Estimated 8-10 kilotons of TNT (33-42 terajoules)
• Significance of Pokhran-I: 
• India's First Nuclear Test: Made India the first nation to conduct a nuclear test outside the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (P-5).
• Factors Driving India’s Pokhran-I:
• Concerns about China's Nuclear Program: Heightened security concerns.
• Lack of Security Guarantees from Major Powers: No reliable protection from global powers.
• Deterrent Capability: Establishing a deterrent against potential adversaries.
• Objection to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT): Viewed the NPT as discriminatory towards countries other than the P-5.