Option (c) is correct

Explanation

• Recently, the Union Home Minister chaired the 31st meeting of the Northern Zonal Council at Amritsar in Punjab.
• Zonal Councils are the statutory bodies established by an Act of the Parliament i.e.  States Reorganisation Act of 1956.
  • As per act, there are five zones- Northern, Central, Eastern, Western and Southern and a zonal council for each zone.
• The main objectives of setting up of Zonal Councils are as under:
  • Bringing out national integration;
  • Arresting the growth of acute State consciousness, regionalism, linguism and particularistic tendencies;
  • Enabling the Centre and the States to co-operate and exchange ideas and experiences;
  • Establishing a climate of co-operation amongst the States for successful and speedy execution of development projects
• The Northern Zonal Council comprises Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, National Capital Territory of Delhi and Union Territory of Chandigarh.
  • Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand belong to the Central Zonal Council.

Option (a) is correct

Explanation

• The Special Session of the Lok Sabha that passed the landmark Women’s Reservation bill was adjourned sine die.
• Statement 1 is not correct: Adjournment sine die means terminating a sitting of Parliament for an indefinite period while Prorogation, not only terminates sitting of house but also a session of the House. 
• Statement 2 is correct: The power of adjournment as well as adjournment sine die lies with the presiding officer of the House. 
• He can also call a sitting of the House before the date or time to which it has been adjourned or at any time after the House has been adjourned sine die. 

Option (b) is correct.

Explanation:

• With eight Bills passed by Kerala Assembly pending with the Raj Bhavan, the state is seeking to approach the Supreme Court on whether the Governor has the power to sit on the Bills indefinitely.
• When a bill is sent to the Governor after it is passed by state legislature, s/he can:
  • Give assent to the bill,
  • Withhold assent to the bill,
  • Return the bill (if it is not a money bill) for reconsideration of the state legislature,
  • Reserve the bill for the consideration of the president.
• Statement 1 is correct: Governor has three alternatives to every money bill is presented to him/her after being passed by the state legislature (unicameral or bicameral):
  • S/He may give assent to the bill, the bill then becomes an act.
  • S/He may withhold assent to the bill, the bill then ends and does not become an act.
  • S/He may reserve the bill for the consideration of the President.
• Statement 2 is not correct: When the bill is passed by the state legislature endangers the position of the state High Court. In this case, it is obligatory, the Governor has to Reserve the bill for the consideration of the President.  
• Statement 3 is correct: The Governor can return the ordinary bill for reconsideration of the state legislature. However, if the bill is passed again by the state legislature with or without amendments, the Governor has to give assent to the bill.

Option (b) is correct

Explanation

• Amnesty International Outlined  that the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), have been abused by Indian authorities to bring in draconian laws in a coordinated campaign to stifle the non-profit sector.
• Statement 1 is not correct: FATF is an inter-governmental body  established in 1989 during the G7 Summit in Paris to develop policies against money laundering.
• Participation:  Its meetings include 206 global network countries and observer organisations like the World Bank, United Nations offices, and regional development banks.
• Secretariat: Paris, France.
• Members:
  • The FATF currently has 39 members, including two regional organisations: the European Commission, and the Gulf Cooperation Council.
  • India became an Observer at FATF in 2006. On June 25, 2010 India was taken in as the 34th country member of FATF. (Statement 2 is correct)
  • India is also a member of its regional partners, the Asia Pacific Group (APG) and the Eurasian Group (EAG).

Option (a) is correct.

Explanation:

According to the Bihar Forest, Environment and Climate Change Department, Kaimur Wildlife Sanctuary is all set to become the second tiger reserve in Bihar, after the Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR).

• Pair 1 is correctly matched: Valmiki Tiger Reserve forms the eastern most limit of the Himalayan Terai forests in India, and currently it is the only tiger reserve of Bihar. 
  • Flora:  Moist deciduous vegetation along the alluvial plains of the Gandak River is dominated by sal, rohini and sihor. 
  • Fauna: Tigers, Leopards and Indian Wild Dogs, deer, sambar, barking deer and hog deer,  Indian bison (Gaur), Nilgai and wild boar, Rhesus macaque.
• Pair 2 is not correctly matched: Kali Tiger Reserve, earlier known as Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserve, is located in Western Ghats, Karnataka. It comprises two important protected areas of the region viz., Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary and Anshi National Park.
  • Flora: Moist deciduous and semi-evergreen.
  • Fauna: Tiger, Leopard, Elephant, Bison, Wild dog,  Bonnet macaque, black panthers.
• Pair 3 is not correctly matched: Satkosia Tiger Reserve is located in Odisha. The river Mahanadi flows through the valleys in the middle of the Reserve. 
  • Fauna: Sloth bear, jackal, giant squirrel and porcupine, crocodile and the gharial. 
  • Flora: Mixed deciduous forest and bamboo.