Answer: A
Soln:
What are Biofuels?
● Biofuels are liquid or gaseous fuels produced from biomass that are generally high in
sugar (such as sugarcane, sugarbeet, sweet sorghum), starch (such as corn and cassava) or
oils (such as soybeans, rapeseed, coconut, sunflowers, and palms).
● The two most commonly used biofuels are ethanol and biodiesel.
● Categories of Biofuels:
1. First generation Biofuels: Mainly produced from food crop feedstock. Hence,
statement 2 is incorrect.
2. Second generation Biofuels: Comes from non-food plants
3. Third generation Biofuels: Micro-organisms like algae
4. Fourth generation Biofuels: Genetically modified (GM) algae to enhance biofuel
production

● India is the third-largest producer of ethanol, after the United States (US) and Brazil.
Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.
Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA):
● The Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA) was launched by India along with the leaders of USA,
Brazil, Italy, Argentina, Singapore, Bangladesh, Mauritius and UAE in 2023, on the sidelines
of the G20 Summit in New Delhi, as Chair’s initiative.
● GBA is a multi-stakeholder alliance of Governments, International Organizations and
Industries, bringing together the biggest consumers and producers of biofuels. Hence,
statement 3 is correct.
● GBA aims at promoting the development and adoption of sustainable biofuels.
● It will also facilitate development, adoption and implementation of internationally
recognized standards, codes, sustainability principles and regulations to incentivize
biofuels adoption and trade.
● The membership of GBA has expanded to 24 member countries and 12 International
Organizations.

1. India shares a land border with Myanmar along which of the following states?

2. El Nino is characterized by

Answer: B
Explanation
● Myanmar is a Southeast Asian country with Naypyidaw as its capital.
● Borders:
○ China to the north and northeast,
○ Laos to the east,
○ Thailand to the southeast,
○ Bangladesh to the west, and
○ India to the northwest.
● Border with India: 1600 km and maritime boundary in the Bay of Bengal.
● Marginal seas: The Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal to the south and southwest.
● Indian states bordering Myanmar: Four North-Eastern States
○ Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram. Hence option B is
correct.

● Important Rivers: Irrawaddy
● Myawady
○ It is a town on the border between Myanmar and Thailand. It had seen sporadic
clashes between the military and anti junta fighters since the coup in 2021.

3. Which of the following are the services provided by the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC).
1. Fund-raising services for individuals, corporations and governments
2. Wealth management
3. Merger and acquisition activities among trans-national corporations

Answer: B
Explanation
● El Nino is a climate pattern that describes the unusual warming of surface waters in the
eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. Hence Option B is correct.

● During El Niño, the surface winds across the entire tropical Pacific are weaker than usual.
Ocean temperatures in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean are warmer than
average, and rainfall is below average over Indonesia and above average over the central
or eastern Pacific.
● Rising air motion (which is linked to storms and rainfall) increases over the central or
eastern Pacific, and surface pressure there tends to be lower than average. Meanwhile, an
increase in sinking air motion over Indonesia leads to higher surface pressure and dryness.
● Since the Pacific covers almost one-third of the earth, changes in its temperature and subsequent alteration of wind patterns disrupt global weather patterns.
● El Niño causes dry, warm winters in Northern U.S. and Canada and increased flooding risk on the U.S. gulf coast and southeastern U.S. It also brings drought to Indonesia and
Australia.

Answer: D
Explanation:
● An International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) is a jurisdiction that provides world class
financial services to non-residents and residents, to the extent permissible under the current regulations, in a currency other than the domestic currency (Indian Rupee) of the location where the IFSC is located.
● Services provided by an IFSC:
○ Fund-raising services for individuals, corporations and governments
○ Asset management and global portfolio diversification undertaken by pension funds, insurance companies and mutual funds
○ Wealth management
○ Merger and acquisition activities among trans-national corporations, etc. Hence all
the three statements are correct.

4. Consider the following
1) Pulicat Lake
2) Rann of Kutch
3) Chilika Lake

Answer: C
Explanation
● Flamingos are naturally gray or white, and their pink color comes from the carotenoid
pigments in the organisms they consume, such as algae, crustaceans, and small

invertebrates. The carotenoids are broken down in the flamingo's liver and then deposited
in their feathers, skin, and beaks, giving them their distinctive pink hue.
● Pulicat Lake in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, and
Chilika Lake in Odisha are indeed notable sites where flamingos can be found in India.
These locations provide the suitable conditions, such as brackish or saline water, for
flamingos to feed and breed.
● Flamingos are filter feeders, using their unique bills with specialized structures called
lamellae to filter small organisms such as shrimp, algae, and insects from the water. They
often feed in shallow waters by stirring up mud and water with their bills and then using
their lamellae to filter out the food.
● In India, flamingos are commonly found in both freshwater lakes and coastal areas.
Pulicat Lake, for example, is a brackish water lagoon, and flamingos are frequently observed
in coastal regions, including estuaries and mudflats.
Other important points about Flamingo
● Flamingos are social birds that live in groups of varying sizes, from a few pairs to sometimes
thousands or tens of thousands.
● There are 6 species of Flamingos. Caribbean flamingos, the lesser, greater, James’s (or
Puna), Chilean and Andean flamingos.
● In order to fly, flamingos need to run a few paces to gather speed.
● Of the six species of flamingos in the world, two are found in India: the tallest of them, the
greater flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) and the smallest one, the lesser flamingo
(Phoeniconaias minor).
● Both these species of Flamingos are resident species and breeds in the Little Rann of
Kachchh in Gujarat.

5. Consider the following statements regarding the International Space Station (ISS)
1. It is a habitable artificial satellite located in the medium earth orbit
2. It serves as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory in which crew
members conduct experiments
3. The ISS programme is a joint project between P5 countries.

Answer: A
Explanation
● Statement 1 is incorrect: The International Space Station (ISS) is a space station, or a
habitable artificial satellite, in low Earth orbit (not medium earth orbit)
○ Low Earth orbit (LEO) is a geocentric orbits with altitudes below 2,000 km
○ Medium Earth orbit (MEO) is a geocentric orbits ranging in altitude from 2,000 km
to just below geosynchronous orbit at 35,786 kilometers (22,236 miles)

● Its first component launched into orbit in 1998 and the ISS is now the largest human-made
body in low Earth orbit.
● Statement 2 is correct: The ISS serves as a microgravity and space environment research
laboratory in which crew members conduct experiments in biology, human biology, physics,
astronomy, meteorology, and other fields.
● Statement 3 is incorrect: The ISS programme is a joint project between five participating
space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe) and
CSA (Canada). (not P5 countries)