Answer: C
Explanation
● Hoolock Gibbons are native to the forests of the Eastern Himalayas in India, specifically in
the northeastern states such as Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and parts of Meghalaya.
● These regions provide the dense, tropical rainforests that form the natural habitat
necessary for the survival of Hoolock Gibbons.
● They are arboreal animals, meaning they live in trees, and they require large stretches of
contiguous forest canopy to move around using brachiation (swinging from branch to branch).
Types of Gibbons Found in India
● Hoolock gibbons are the only apes found in India. They were divided into two species:
the Western Hoolock Gibbon and the Eastern Hoolock Gibbon.
○ Western Hoolock Gibbon: It is found in the northeastern states of India, including Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Meghalaya.Western Hoolock gibbons have a white or pale browband, distinguishing them from Eastern Hoolock gibbons.
○ Eastern Hoolock Gibbon: Also found in northeastern India, particularly in Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland. Eastern Hoolock gibbons have a distinct dark
browband.

● Until 2021 there were two known species of Gibbon, however a study conducted by the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) in Hyderabad could not find any
genetic differences between the two gibbons which were earlier differentiated based on
skin coat colour.

● This study revealed that there is only one species of Hoolock Gibbon in India Threats
● Habitat Loss and Fragmentation: One of the primary threats to gibbons is habitat loss due
to deforestation, agriculture, logging, and urban expansion.
● Illegal Wildlife Trade: Gibbons are sometimes captured and sold for their body parts,
which are used in traditional medicine or for ornamental purposes.
● Infrastructure Development: The construction of roads, dams, and other infrastructure
projects can fragment gibbon habitats, disrupt their movement patterns, and increase the
risk of accidental deaths due to collisions with vehicles.
Conservation status
● Western hoolock gibbon is classified as endangered and the eastern hoolock gibbon as
vulnerable as per the IUCN Red list
● Hoolock gibbons are protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act 2022.
Why in news?
● As railway lines are going to be laid through the Hollongapar gibbon sanctuary, Canopy bridges will be constructed on top of railway tracks for gibbons to move across regions in the sanctuary with ease.
○ Canopy bridges refer to artificial and natural crossing structures, built across roads and railway tracks to enable arboreal animals to traverse with ease. Refer to
the image provided below.

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Officers IAS Academy

1. Consider the following statements about e-SHRAM portal
1) It is a national portal launched by the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
2) It aims to create a centralized national database of unorganized workers.
3) It is mandatory for all informal workers to register on the portal.
4) Only workers above the age of 18 are eligible to register on e-SHRAM.

Answer: B
Explanation
● Statement 1 is correct: In 2021, the Ministry of Labour and Employment unveiled the
e-shram portal to register 38 crore unorganized workers, such as construction
laborers, migrant workforce, street vendors and domestic workers, among others. 
● Statement 3 is incorrect: Unorganized workers are required to volunteer on their
own to register on the e-Shram portal using their Aadhaar cards and bank account
details. Hence it is not mandatory.
● The workers will be issued an e-Shram card containing a 12 digit unique number.
This is a permanent number and valid for lifetime.
● Statement 2 is correct: The portal would lead to the creation of a national database of
unorganized workers. In future, it is envisaged that all the social security benefits to
unorganized workers will be delivered through this portal. In emergency and national
pandemic like situations, this database may be utilized to provide necessary assistance
to the eligible unorganized workers.
● Apart from being Aadhaar-linked, it will collect details of the name, occupation, address,
educational qualification, skill types and family of the registered workers.
● The portal was developed by the Ministry of Labour & Employment, in technical
collaboration with the National Informatics Centre (an attached office under the
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology).
● Statement 4 is incorrect: The portal is open to workers engaged in the unorganized
sector and aged between 16 and 59.

2. Consider the following statements with respect to Payments Banks.
1. Payments banks are expected to increase the penetration level of financial services to the
remote areas of the country.
2. Deposits mobilized by the payments bank are covered under the deposit insurance scheme
of the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation of India (DICGC).
3. They cannot offer loans.
4. They cannot issue credit cards.

Answer: D

Explanation
● Payments banks are the new age banks with limited facilities. These banks mostly operate
through the small vendors and shopkeepers. It exists in between the mobile wallet and
regular banks.
● Payments banks are permitted to set up their own outlets such as branches, Automated
Teller Machines (ATMs), Business Correspondents (BCs), etc. to undertake only certain
restricted activities permitted to banks under the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
● A payments bank provides following services to its customers:
○ Accept demand deposits
○ Remittance services
○ Mobile payments
○ Fund transfers
○ Statement 4 is correct: Debit card and associated services (Payments Banks cannot
issue credit cards)
○ Net Banking services
○ Sell third-party financial products like insurance and mutual funds
● However, payments banks cannot undertake the following activities:
○ Statement 3 is correct: They cannot undertake lending activities
○ They cannot set up subsidiaries to undertake non-banking financial services
activities
○ They are not eligible to accept NRI deposits.

Objectives
● The main objective of payments banks is to widen the spread of payment and financial
services to small business, low-income households, and the migrant labour workforce in a
secured technology-driven environment.
● Statement 1 is correct: With payments banks, RBI seeks to increase the penetration level
of financial services to the remote areas of the country.
● The Reserve Bank expects payments banks to target India’s migrant labourers, low-income
households and small businesses, offering savings accounts and remittance services with a
low transaction cost.
Eligible promoters
● Existing non-bank Pre-paid Payment Instrument (PPI) issuers authorised under the
Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007
● Other entities such as individuals / professionals; Non-Banking Finance Companies
(NBFCs), corporate Business Correspondents (BCs), mobile telephone companies,
supermarket chains, companies, real sector cooperatives; that are owned and controlled by
residents; and public sector entities may apply to set up payments banks.
Regulations
● Payments banks are registered as a public limited company under the Companies Act,
2013, and licensed under Section 22 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
● Statement 2 is correct: Deposits mobilised by the payments bank are covered under the
deposit insurance scheme of the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation
of India (DICGC).
● Apart from amounts maintained as Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) with RBI on its outside
demand and time liabilities, Payments banks are required to invest minimum 75 per cent
of its "demand deposit balances" in Government securities/Treasury Bills with maturity
up to one year that are recognized by RBI as eligible securities for maintenance of Statutory
Liquidity Ratio (SLR) and hold maximum 25 per cent in current and time / fixed

deposits with other scheduled commercial banks for operational purposes and liquidity
management.
● The minimum paid-up equity capital for payments banks shall be Rs. 100 crore, of
which the promoter’s contribution would be minimum 40 percent of paid-up equity capital
for the first 5 years of commencement of the business.
● The foreign shareholding in the payments bank would be as per the Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI) policy for private sector banks as amended from time to time. As per
the current FDI policy, the aggregate foreign investment in a private sector bank from all
sources will be allowed upto a maximum of 74 per cent of the paid-up capital of the bank.

3. Consider the following statements about Defence Acquisition Council (DAC)
1) The Prime Minister is the Chairman of DAC.
2) It is the highest decision-making body in the defense ministry for deciding on new policies
and capital acquisitions

Answer: B
Explanation
● Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) is constituted under the Ministry of Defence (MoD)
for overall guidance of the defence procurement planning process.
● Statement 1 is incorrect: The Defence Minister is the Chairman of DAC. Its members
include the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and Chiefs of triservices.
● Statement 2 is correct: The DAC is the highest decision-making body in the defence ministry for deciding on new policies and capital acquisitions for the three services and the Indian Coast Guard.
● The objective of the DAC is to ensure expeditious procurement of the approved requirements of the Armed Forces in terms of capabilities sought, and time frame prescribed, by optimally utilizing the allocated budgetary resources.

4. Consider the following statements about the Open Network for Digital Commerce
1) It is a government-backed initiative aimed at democratizing e-commerce in India.
2) It is intended to reduce the dominance of large e-commerce companies in the Indian
market.
3) It is mandatory for all the existing digital commerce applications and platforms to be a part
of the ONDC network.

Answer: B
Explanation
● In 2022, the government of India launched the pilot phase of open network for digital
commerce (ONDC) with an aim to democratise the country’s fast growing digital e-
commerce space that is currently dominated by the two U.S.-headquartered firms —
Amazon and Walmart. Hence statement 1 is correct.
What is ONDC?

● ONDC is a network based on open protocol and will enable local commerce across
segments, such as mobility, grocery, food order and delivery, hotel booking and travel,
among others, to be discovered and engaged through a single platform.
● It is an initiative of the Department for
Promotion of Industry and Internal
Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of
Commerce and Industry.
● It is neither an aggregator application
nor a hosting platform, and all existing
digital commerce applications and
platforms can voluntarily choose to adopt and be a part of the ONDC network. Hence
statement 3 is incorrect.
Role in Democratising Digital Commerce
● The ONDC platform aims to create new opportunities, curb digital monopolies and
support micro, small and medium enterprises and small traders and help them get
on online platforms. Hence statement 2 is correct.
● The ONDC aims to enable buying of products from all participating e-commerce
platforms by consumers through a single platform.
● Currently, a buyer needs to go to Amazon website/app, for example, to buy a product
from a seller on Amazon. Under ONDC, it is envisaged that a buyer registered on one
participating e-commerce site (for example, Amazon) may purchase goods from a seller
on another participating e-commerce site (for example, Flipkart).
● The ONDC model is trying to replicate the success of the Unified Payments Interface
(UPI) in the field of digital payments.
▪️ UPI allows people to send or receive money irrespective of the payment platforms
they are registered on.

● The open network concept also extends beyond the retail sector, to any digital
commerce domains including wholesale, mobility, food delivery, logistics, travel,
urban services, etc.
Significance
● The government believes that ONDC will put an end to the domination of the e-
commerce market by a few large platforms. Amazon and Flipkart, for instance, have
been accused of discriminating among sellers on their platforms and promoting certain
seller entities in which they hold indirect stakes.
● With an open network like ONDC that connects buyers and sellers across platforms, the
government hopes to level the playing field and make platforms redundant.
● It is said that buyers will also be able to access sellers across platforms without having to
switch between multiple platforms.
● Over the next five years, the ONDC expects to bring on board 90 crore users and 12 lakh
sellers on the network.
● The ONDC will standardise operations like cataloguing, inventory management, order
management and order fulfilment, hence making it simpler and easier for small
businesses to be discoverable over network and conduct business.
Challenges
● ONDC faces its own share of challenges and risks, which must be addressed. One of the
pivotal challenges lies in ensuring the adoption and acceptance of ONDC by the
various stakeholders within the e-commerce ecosystem.

● Another challenge is to ensure the quality and reliability of the services and products
offered on the network. ONDC will have to establish clear standards and guidelines
for quality assurance, consumer protection, data privacy, cybersecurity, etc.
● ONDC will also have to ensure effective dispute resolution mechanisms for handling complaints and grievances.
● ONDC will have to ensure the sustainability and scalability of the network to make sure that the network can handle the increasing volume and variety of transactions
and data.

5. Which of the following is/are functions of APEDA?
1) Promotion of export oriented production and development of the Scheduled products
2) Fixing of standards and specifications for the scheduled products for the purpose of exports
3) Carrying out inspection of meat and meat products in slaughterhouses for the purpose of ensuring the quality of such products

Answer: D
Explanation
● All the statements are correct.
● The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) was
established by the Government of India under the Agricultural and Processed Food Products
Export Development Authority Act,1985. 
● The Authority replaced the Processed Food Export Promotion Council (PFEPC).
● It functions under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
● The Authority has its headquarters in New Delhi.
Functions of APEDA
● Development of industries relating to the scheduled products for export by way of
providing financial assistance or otherwise for undertaking surveys and feasibility studies,
participation in enquiry capital through joint ventures and other reliefs and subsidy
schemes;
● Registration of persons as exporters of the scheduled products on payment of such fees
as may be prescribed;
● Fixing of standards and specifications for the scheduled products for the purpose of
exports;
● Carrying out inspection of meat and meat products in slaughterhouses, processing plants,
storage premises, conveyances or other places where such products are kept or handled for
the purpose of ensuring the quality of such products;
● Improving of packaging of the Scheduled products;
● Improving of marketing of the Scheduled products outside India;
● Promotion of export oriented production and development of the Scheduled products;
Products monitored 
● APEDA is mandated with the responsibility of export promotion and development of the
following scheduled products:
○ Fruits, Vegetables and their Products.
○ Meat and Meat Products.
○ Poultry and Poultry Products.
○ Dairy Products.

○ Confectionery, Biscuits and Bakery Products.
○ Honey, Jaggery and Sugar Products.
○ Cocoa and its products, chocolates of all kinds.
○ Alcoholic and Non-Alcoholic Beverages.
○ Cereal and Cereal Products.
○ Groundnuts, Peanuts and Walnuts.
○ Pickles, Papads and Chutneys.
○ Guar Gum.
○ Floriculture and Floriculture Products.
○ Herbal and Medicinal Plants.
● In addition to this, APEDA has been entrusted with the responsibility to monitor import of
sugar.

1. Which of the following statements about Additional Tier 1 (AT1) bonds is correct?
1) AT1 bonds are perpetual bonds with no maturity date.
2) They offer higher interest rates due to their higher risk.