- Consider the following statements with reference to the Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) Programme
1. It is an innovative programme sponsored and managed by the Department of Science & Technology for attraction of talent to Science.
2. It has two components i.e. Scheme for Early Attraction of Talent (SEATS) and Assured Opportunity for Research Careers (AORC).
3. It believes in and relies on the efficacy of the existing educational structure for identification of talent.
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
Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) Programme
Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) is an innovative programme sponsored and managed by the Department of Science & Technology for attraction of talent to Science.
The basic objective of INSPIRE is to communicate to the youth of the country the excitements of creative pursuit of science, attract talent to the study of science at an early age and thus build the required critical human resource pool for strengthening and expanding the Science & Technology system and R&D base.
A striking feature of the programme is that it does not believe in conducting competitive exams for identification of talent at any level. It believes in and relies on the efficacy of the existing educational structure for identification of talent.
INSPIRE
The strength of the innovation infrastructure of a nation has enormous significance in the competition among emerging knowledge economies.
The realization of Vision 2020 calls for action and a well designed innovation infrastructure.
Generation and nurturing of a human talent pool capable of utilizing and developing first principles in science is both a pre-condition and integral part of such an innovation infrastructure.
An India specific model for attracting talent with an aptitude for research and innovation, for a career in Basic & Natural sciences is required.
INSPIRE is an innovative programme developed by the Department of Science & Technology to attract talent to the excitement and study of science at an early age, and to help the country build the required critical resource pool for strengthening and expanding the S&T system and R&D base. It is a programme with long term foresight.
INSPIRE has three components:
1. Scheme for Early Attraction of Talent (SEATS)
2. Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE)
3. Assured Opportunity for Research Careers (AORC)
Scheme for Early Attraction of Talent (SEATS)
Scheme for Early Attraction of Talent (SEATS) aims at attracting talented youth to study science by providing INSPIRE Award, to experience the joy of innovations, of Rs.5, 000/- to one million young learners in the age group 10-15 years. There shall be annual Summer/Winter Camps for about 50,000 youth at more than 100 locations, for toppers in Class X board examinations for exposure with global leaders in Science, through INSPIRE Internship.
INSPIRE Award
In order to seed and experience the joy of innovation, every year two lakh school children in the age-group of 10 to 15 years i.e., 6th to 10th standards are being identified for the INSPIRE Award.
Each INSPIRE Award envisions an investment of Rs.5, 000/- per child. The scheme plans to reach at least two students per secondary school during the next five years.
INSPIRE Internship
“Motivating talented youth to take-up research as a personal undertaking” by rubbing shoulders with global icons of science including Nobel Prize Winners, is the objective of INSPIRE Internship. This component of the programme aims at working as a life-long catalysing experience for the 11th graders in science stream.
Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE)
Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE) aims at attracting talented youth into undertaking higher education in science intensive programmes, by providing scholarships and mentoring through ‘summer attachment’ to performing researchers. The scheme offers 10,000 scholarships every year @ Rs 0.80 lakh per year to talented youth in the age group 17-22 years, for undertaking Bachelor and Masters level education in Natural and Basic sciences.
However, the 18 Science subject such as (1) Physics, (2) Chemistry, (3) Mathematics, (4) Biology, (5) Statistics, (6) Geology, (7) Astrophysics, (8) Astronomy, (9) Electronics, (10) Botany, (11) Zoology, (12) Bio-chemistry, (13) Anthropology, (14) Microbiology, (15) Geophysics, (16) Geochemistry, (17) Atmospheric Sciences and (18) Oceanic Sciences, either as major/honours or their combination in BSc/Integrated MSc/Integrated MS course will be under the scope of INSPIRE Scholarship. The main feature of the scheme is mentorship support being planned for every scholar through INSPIRE scholarship.
Assured Opportunity for Research Careers
Assured Opportunity for Research Careers (AORC) aims at attracting, attaching, retaining and nourishing talented young scientific Human Resource to strengthened the R&D foundation and base by offering doctoral INSPIRE Fellowship in the age group 22-27 years, in both Basic and Applied sciences (including engineering and medicine). It also aims at assuring opportunities for post-doctoral researchers through a scheme (similar to the New Blood programme of the Royal Society of UK) through contractual and tenure track positions for five years in both Basic and Applied sciences areas through an INSPIRE Faculty Scheme.
INSPIRE Fellowship
INSPIRE fellowship aims at enhancing research fellowships for doctoral studies and opening up partnerships with private sector for topping the Government’s efforts in nurturing talents for scientific research. This scheme is applicable to Basic and Applied sciences as well as Medicine, Agriculture etc. with provision of multiple entries. The fellowship will be offered to (1) University 1st Ranker in a particular subject at PG level examination in Basic and Applied Science courses as well as (2) INSPIRE scholar, who have secured aggregate marks of 65 % are above at the 2 year MSc or 5 year Integrated MSc/MS.
INSPIRE Faculty Scheme
INSPIRE Faculty Scheme opens up an ‘Assured Opportunity for Research Career (AORC)’ for young researchers in the age group of 27-32 years. It is expected to augment high quality scientific manpower in scientific and educational institutions. It provides attractive opportunities to young achievers for developing independent scientific profiles and intends helping them emerge as S&T leaders in the long term. The Scheme offers contractual research positions. It provides career opportunities, but it is not a guarantee for tenure positions after 5 years.
https://vikaspedia.in/education/policies-and-schemes/scholarships/post-matric-scholarship/inspire-programme
2. Consider the following statements with respect to the Tablighi Jamaat.
1. This movement is based on six principles and its roots lie in the Deobandi version of the Hanafi School of jurisprudence.
2. It was launched by cleric and prominent Islamic scholar Maulana Muhammad Ilyas Khandhalaw in 1927 in Mewat.
3. Tablighi Jamaat, which literally means a society for spreading the faith, is a Shia Islamic missionary movement.
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-b
Explanation
Tablighi Jamaat
Tablighi Jamaat, which literally means a society for spreading the faith, is a Sunni Islamic missionary movement.
The proselytising movement aims to reach out to ordinary Muslims and revive their faith, particularly in matters of ritual, dress, and personal behaviour.
Its roots lie in the Deobandi version of the Hanafi School of jurisprudence.
It was launched by Deoband cleric and prominet Islamic scholar Maulana Muhammad Ilyas Khandhalaw in 1927 in Mewat.
Its emergence also coincided with Hindu proselytising movements.
While Maulana Ilyaz taught at the Mazaharul Uloom in Saharanpur in the mid-1920s, a few hundred kilometers away were the economically and educationally backward Meo peasants, mostly Muslims who were largely practicing Hindu traditions.
Maulana Ilyaz began bringing Meo Muslims back into the fold of traditional Islam; he trained several young men from Deoband and Saharanpur and sent them to Mewat, where the Tablighi Jamaat established a network of madrasas and Mosque.
In two decades after its launch, the Tablighi Jamaat had spread beyond the Mewat region.
In the first Tablighi conference held in 1941, approximately 25,000 people from across North India attended.
After Partition in 1947, a Pakistan chapter was started in the town of Raiwind, Lahore.
Currently, Bangladesh has one of the largest chapters.
The Tablighi Jamaat also has a significant base in the United States and Britian, which has a large Indian subcontinent diaspora.
It also has a presence in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.
The Tablighi Jamaat is based on six principles:
The first is the kalimah, an article of faith in which the Tabligh accepts that there is no God but Allah and that Prophet Muhammad is his messenger.
The second is salaat or prayer five times daily.
The third is ilm and dhikr, the knowledge and remembrance of Allah conducted in sessions in which the congregation listens to preaching by the imam, performs prayers, recites the Quran and reads the Hadith; the congregation also uses these sessions to dine together, thus fostering a sense of community and identity.
The fourth principle is ikram-i-Muslim, the treatment of fellow Muslims with honour.
The fifth is ikhlas-i-niyat, or sincerity of intention.
The sixth is dawat-o-tabligh, or proselytisaton.
3. Consider the following statements with reference to the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA).
1. It is run and administered as a subordinate office to the Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
2. It is the premier art gallery which aims to acquire and preserve works of modern art from 1850s onward.
3. The foremost responsibility of the National Gallery of Modern Art is to ensure quality and to set and maintain standards of excellence.
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
National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA)
The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) is the premier art gallery which aims to acquire and preserve works of modern art from 1850s onward. It is run and administered as a subordinate office to the Ministry of Culture, Government of India. Its collection includes works by artists such as Thomas Daniell, Raja Ravi Verma, Abanindranath Tagore, Rabindranath Tagore, Gaganendranath Tagore, Nandalal Bose, Jamini Roy, Amrita Sher-Gil as well as foreign artists.
The main museum in New Delhi was established in 1954 by the Government of India, with subsequent branches at Mumbai and Bangalore.
Aims and objectives
To acquire and preserve works of modern art from 1850s onward
To organize, maintain and develop galleries for permanent display
To organize special exhibitions not only in its own premises but in other parts of the country and abroad.
To develop an education and documentation centre in order to acquire, maintain and preserve documents relating to works of modern art
To develop a specialized library of books, periodicals, photographs and other audio visual materials
To organize lectures, seminars and conferences, and to encourage higher studies and research in the field of art history, art criticism, art appreciation, museology and the inter-relations on visual and performing arts.
The foremost responsibility of the National Gallery of Modern Art is to ensure quality and to set and maintain standards of excellence.
The aesthetic and educational purposes are not only defined in the aims and objectives of the National Gallery of Modern Art, but efforts are also being made so that they become implicit in its organization and pervade all its activities.
Above all, the National Gallery of Modern Art helps people to look at the works of modern art with greater joy, understanding and knowledge by extending their relationship with our daily life and experiencing them as vital expressions of the human spirit. http://ngmaindia.gov.in/about-us.asp
4. Consider the following statements with reference to the Bag Valve Masks.
1. They are currently hand-powered and therefore not suitable for continuous use as a ventilator.
2. They are small devices used to deliver breathing support in emergency situations.
3. It is attached to a nonrebreathing valve and then to a face mask that conforms to the soft tissues of the face.
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-
Bag Valve Masks
The Indian Institute of Technology – Hyderabad (IIT-Hyderabad), has urged the government to consider the use of ‘bag valve masks’ as an alternative to meet any surge in demand for ventilators, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bag valve masks are small devices used to deliver breathing support in emergency situations.
They are also known as “ambu bags”. ‘Bag valve masks’ are currently hand-powered and therefore not suitable for continuous use as a ventilator.
But this could easily be remedied by designing similar devices powered by an electrical source, which could be a car battery or conventional power supply.
The devices would be made portable and therefore easy to use in villages and other areas without power supply and could be manufactured in bulk quite inexpensively.
IIT-Hyderabad scientists say the low-cost devices need to be manufactured on a war footing under the monitoring of a government task force. Conventional ventilators are generally expensive, hard to produce and not portable.
https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/health/bag-valve-masks-pitched-as-alternatives-to-ventilators/article31211951.ece
5. Consider the following statements with reference to the Ways and Means Advance Scheme.
1. This scheme was introduced to meet mismatches in the receipts and payments of the government.
2. Recently, the Government has hiked Ways and Means Advance (WMA) limit with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) by 60%.
3. The government can avail of immediate cash from the RBI, if required. But it has to return the amount within 150 days.
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-
Ways and Means Advance Scheme
Recently, the Government has hiked Ways and Means Advance (WMA) limit with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) by 60%. WMA limit is proposed to be revised to Rs 1.20 lakh crore and would be reviewed on a need basis (from Rs 75,000 crore last years). This is to compensate for the cash flow mismatch in Financial Year (FY) 21 expected from higher spending to combat the spread of COVID-19.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gives temporary loan facilities to the central and state governments.
This loan facility is called Ways and Means Advances (WMA).
When was Ways and Means Advances introduced?
The Ways and Means Advances scheme was introduced in 1997.
Purpose of the WMA scheme
The Ways and Means Advances scheme was introduced to meet mismatches in the receipts and payments of the government.
How does it work?
The government can avail of immediate cash from the RBI, if required. But it has to return the amount within 90 days. Interest is charged at the existing repo rate.
If the WMA exceeds 90 days, it would be treated as an overdraft (interest rate on overdrafts is 2 percentage points more than the repo rate).
What is WMA limit?
The limits for Ways and Means Advances are decided by the government and RBI mutually and revised periodically.
Types of WMA
There are two types of Ways and Means Advances — normal and special.
Special WMA or Special Drawing Facility is provided against the collateral of the government securities held by the state. After the state has exhausted the limit of SDF, it gets normal WMA. The interest rate for SDF is one percentage point less than the repo rate.
The number of loans under normal WMA is based on a three-year average of actual revenue and capital expenditure of the state.
https://www.business-standard.com/about/what-is-ways-and-means-advances