1. Consider the following statement regarding the Dividend Distribution Taxation.
1. It is a tax levied on dividends that a company pays to its shareholders out of its profits.
2. The law provides for the Tax to be levied at the hands of the company.
Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer-c
Explanation
Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT)
The Dividend Distribution Tax is a tax levied on dividends that a company pays to its shareholders out of its profits.
The Dividend Distribution Tax, or DDT, is taxable at source, and is deducted at the time of the company distributing dividends.
The dividend is the part of profits that the company shares with its shareholders.
The law provides for the Dividend Distribution Tax to be levied at the hands of the company, and not at the hands of the receiving shareholder. However, an additional tax is imposed on the shareholder, who receives over Rs. 10 lakh in dividend income in a financial year.
The tax has to be paid to the government within 14 days of the dividend declaration, distribution or payment whichever is earliest.
If DDT is not paid within the given time period, interest at a rate of 1 per cent per month or part thereof starts getting accumulated till the amount is paid.
2. Consider the following statements regarding the Indo-Pacific Humpbacked Dolphin (Sousa chinensis).
1. It is listed as ‘Vulnerable’ in IUCN Red List.
2. It is only found naturally in the Indian Ocean.
3. It has a hydrodynamic body with a long, slender beak and a dorsal fin with a fat hump.
Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?
(a) 2 and 3 only
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer-c
Explanation
Indo-Pacific Humpbacked Dolphin
The Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin (Sousa chinensis), locally in China and Taiwan known as Chinese White Dolphin (hereafter referred to as humpback dolphin), inhabits shallow coastal waters of the eastern Indian Ocean and western Pacific.
Their inshore distribution and narrow habitat selectivity, typical for all species of the genus Sousa, frequently places them on a collision course with a wide range of anthropogenic activities.
Two types of the Indo-Pacific Humpbacked Dolphin are known (Sousa chinensis and Sousa plumbea), although the taxonomy of Sousa chinensis is not yet clear as some scientists consider it a variety but others a subspecies.
Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins lived in shallow, coastal waters from central China in the east, through south-east Asia and as far west as the east coast of India. Today however, there are thought to be many areas along this route where they are no longer found – mostly as a result of exposure to human-induced threats.
Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins will eat a variety of fish species, dependant on where they live. Individuals have been seen trying to catch a free meal off the back of trawlers and in some places hanging out near nets hoping to nab an escapee.
A lot depends on where they live! They all start off looking similar; pale grey as calves, their colouration changes as they get older as they appear to go through a ‘mottling’ stage. Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins found in China for example are white (hence the name the Chinese white dolphin), whilst in Hong Kong they are pink., Elsewhere, throughout their range they tend to look more like their cousins the Indian Ocean humpback dolphin and are uniformly grey. As with their Australian counter-parts, this species doesn’t have the distinctive ‘hump’ either.
Its main threats are related to anthropogenic activities that also endanger the lives of other dolphins. They are:
– The intentional catch for their meat and oil.
– Bycatch with gillnets.
– Habitat contamination.
– The decrease in the number of fish they feed on and fragmentation of the food chain.
– Coastal development that degrades its habitat (urbanization).
3. Sir Creek frequently seen in news lies on the border between
(a) India and Pakistan
(b) Pakistan and Afghanistan
(c) India and Afghanistan
(d) India and Nepal
Answer-a
Explanation
Sir Creek
Sir Creek is a 96-km strip of water disputed between India and Pakistan in the Rann of Kutch marshlands.
1. Originally named Ban Ganga, Sir Creek is named after a British representative.
2. The Creek opens up in the Arabian Sea and roughly divides the Kutch region of Gujarat from the Sindh Province of Pakistan.
What’s the dispute?
The dispute lies in the interpretation of the maritime boundary line between Kutch and Sindh.
Before India’s independence, the provincial region was a part of the Bombay Presidency of British India. But after India’s independence in 1947, Sindh became a part of Pakistan while Kutch remained a part of India.
1. Pakistan claims the entire creek as per paragraphs 9 and 10 of the Bombay Government Resolution of 1914 signed between then the Government of Sindh and Rao Maharaj of Kutch.
2. The resolution, which demarcated the boundaries between the two territories, included the creek as part of Sindh, thus setting the boundary as the eastern flank of the creek popularly known as Green Line.
3. But India claims that the boundary lies mid-channel as depicted in another map drawn in 1925, and implemented by the installation of mid-channel pillars back in 1924.
4. In its support, it cites the Thalweg Doctrine in International Maritime Law, which states that river boundaries between two states may be divided by the mid-channel if the water-body is navigable.
The importance of Sir Creek
Apart from strategic location, Sir Creek’s core importance is fishing resources. Sir Creek is considered to be among the largest fishing grounds in Asia.
Another vital reason is the possible presence of great oil and gas concentration under the sea, which are currently unexploited thanks to the impending deadlock on the issue.
4. Consider the following statements regarding the Foreigners Act, 1946.
1. Under the act, the concept of ‘burden of proof’ lies with the person, and not with the authorities.
2. The act empowered the government to establish tribunals which would have powers similar to those of a civil court.
3. The act empowered the government to take such steps as are necessary to prevent illegal migrants including the use of force.
Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?
(a) 2 and 3 only
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer-d
Explanation-
Legal Framework for Illegal Migrants in India
The clause for the expulsion of foreigners:
Foreigners Act, 1864
It was the first enactment made for dealing with foreigners that provided for the expulsion of foreigners.
It also allowed arrest, detention, and for a ban on foreigners entry into India after detention.
Introduction of Passport:
The Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920
The act empowered the government to make rules requiring persons entering India to be in possession of passports.
It also granted the government the power to remove from India any person who entered without a passport.
Concept of ‘burden of proof’ lies with the person, and not with the authorities:
Foreigners Act, 1940
It was enacted during the Second World War, under which the concept of “burden of proof” was introduced.
This meant that whenever a question arose with regard to the nationality of a person, the onus of proving that he was not a foreigner lay upon the person.
Foreigners Act, 1946
It replaced the Foreigners Act, 1940 conferring wide powers to deal with all foreigners.
The act empowered the government to take such steps as are necessary to prevent illegal migrants including the use of force.
The concept of ‘burden of proof’ lies with the person, and not with the authorities given by this act is still applicable in all States and Union Territories. This concept has been upheld by a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court.
The act empowered the government to establish tribunals which would have powers similar to those of a civil court.
Recent amendments (2019) to the Foreigners (Tribunals) Order, 1964 empowered even district magistrates in all States and Union Territories to set up tribunals to decide whether a person staying illegally in India is a foreigner or not.
Increased burden of migrants because of absence of the “burden of a proof” clause:
Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act, 1983
The absence of any provision related to the ‘burden of proof’ in the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act, 1983 put a very heavy burden upon the authorities to establish whether a person is an illegal migrant.
Moreover, a number of non-Indians who may have entered Assam after March 25, 1971, without possession of valid documents, continued to reside in Assam.
The act was struck down by the Supreme Court in Sarbananda Sonowal v. Union of India (2005).The Supreme Court also closed all tribunals in Assam functioning under the Act.
The Supreme Court, then, transferred all pending cases at the IMDT tribunals to the Foreigners Tribunals constituted under the Foreigners (Tribunals) Order, 1964.
Existing Procedure for Appeal:
Assam: Currently, any person excluded from the National Register of Citizens (NRC) can approach the Foreigners Tribunals, established only in Assam, within 120 days of receiving a certified copy of rejection.
Other states and Union Territories: In other States, a person suspected to be a foreigner is produced before a local court under the Passport Act, 1920, or the Foreigners Act, 1946.
https://indiankanoon.org/doc/27376/
5. Consider the following statements with respect to the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY).
1. Only three States and five Union Territories have become kerosene free, though the government met the target of eight crore LPG connections.
2. This scheme was launched to provide clean cooking fuel LPG to poor households in the country by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
3. Under the scheme, an adult woman member of a below poverty line family identified through the Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) is given a deposit-free LPG connection with financial assistance of Rs 2,600 per connection by the Centre.
Which of the following statements is/are correct?
(a) 2 and 3 only
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer-b
Explanation-
Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana
A parliamentary committee has said only three States and five Union Territories have become kerosene free, though the government last September met the target of eight crore LPG connections under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana.
Aim: To provide LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) connections to poor households.
Key features: A deposit-free LPG connection is given to eligible with financial assistance of Rs 1,600 per connection by the Centre.
The scheme gained traction with its ambit being expanded to include 80 million poor families from the earlier target of 50 million families with an additional allocation of Rs4, 800 crore.
Eligibility criteria:
Applicant must a woman above the age of 18 and a citizen of India.
Applicant should belong to a BPL (Below Poverty Line) household.
No one in the applicant’s household should own an LPG connection.
The household income of the family, per month, must not exceed a certain limit as defined by the government of the Union Territories and State Government.
The name of the applicant must be in the list of SECC-2011 data and should match with the information available in the BPL database that Oil Marketing Companies have.
Applicant must not be a recipient of other similar schemes provided by the government.
Key objectives of the scheme are:
1. Empowering women and protecting their health.
2. Reducing the serious health hazards associated with cooking based on fossil fuel.
3. Reducing the number of deaths in India due to unclean cooking fuel.
4. Preventing young children from significant number of acute respiratory illnesses caused due to indoor air pollution by burning the fossil fuel.