Option (a) is correct

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is not correct: Gandhi Peace Prize is an annual award instituted by Government of India in 1995, on the occasion of 125th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi as a tribute to the ideals espoused by Mahatma Gandhi. 
  • The Norwegian Nobel Committee gives the Nobel Peace Prize.
• The award is open to all persons regardless of nationality, race, language, caste, creed or gender.
• A Jury comprising Prime Minister of India, Chief Justice of India, Leader of Single Largest Opposition Party in Lok Sabha, and two eminent members decide the awardee. 
• The Prime Minister is the head of the jury. In his absence, remaining members of the jury decide the presiding officer. 
• Statement 2 is not correct: The first recipient of the Gandhi Peace Prize was Julius Nyerere in the year 1995 from Tanzania.
• Statement 3 is correct: Recently, the Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2021 is being conferred on Gita Press, Gorakhpur.
• Gandhi Peace Prize 2021, recognizes the important and unparalleled contribution of Gita Press, in contributing to collective upliftment of humanity, which personifies Gandhian living in true sense.

Option (c) is correct

Explanation:

• Recently, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs announced that it will hold consultations with stakeholders on issues related to the MCA21 portal.
• The move comes amid stakeholders facing various issues with respect to the portal, which is the key platform for submitting statutory filings under the companies law.
• Statement 1 is correct: MCA21 is the online portal of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) that has made all company related information accessible to various stakeholders and the general public. 
• It was launched in 2006.
• Statement 2 is correct: The advantages of MCA21 are:
  • It helps in enabling the business community to register a company and file statutory documents quickly and easily. 
  • It also helps for faster and effective resolution of public grievances.
  • It enables the MCA employees to deliver the best of their services.

Option (d) is correct

Explanation:

• Russia was considering withdrawing from the Black Sea grain deal as it  accused the West of cheating Moscow because it still faced obstacles getting its own agricultural goods to world markets.
• The United Nations and Turkey brokered the Black Sea Grain Initiative last July to help tackle a global food crisis worsened by Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and blockade of its Black Sea ports.
• It allows food and fertiliser to be exported from three Ukrainian ports – Chornomorsk, Odesa and Pivdennyi (Yuzhny). 
• The deal was to provide a safe corridor for Ukrainian exports, especially food grains on humanitarian concerns. The main objective of the deal was to calm markets and to reduce increasing food inflation affecting several countries.

Option (b) is correct 

Explanation:

• Recently, a top NASA official has said that India is a global power and one of the few countries with independent access to space and needs to be a part of the Artemis team, which brings like-minded countries together on civil space exploration.
• Statement 1 is correct: Artemis Accords ensures that space exploration is conducted in a safe, sustainable and transparent manner and in full compliance with international law.
• Statement 2 is not correct: Its founding members are Australia, Canada, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and the US.

Option (c) is correct 

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: The Y chromosome, often referred to as the “master of maleness”. 
• In humans, in addition to the 22 pairs of chromosomes in each, we have a pair of sex chromosomes called X and Y. Sex as a specification is determined by these sex chromosomes. 
  • All biological males have X and Y chromosomes and all biological females have two X chromosomes. The ‘sex-determining region Y’ on the Y chromosome determines the biological male sex.
• Statement 2 is correct: It is also well known that men lose the Y chromosome (LoY) with age and that this is associated with a higher frequency of cancers, Alzheimer’s disease, and a shorter lifespan. 
  • This has been corroborated by studies on mice models that showed that LoY resulted in shorter lifespans and that older mice with LoY displayed significant memory deficiencies compared to younger mice.

Option (d) is correct

Explanation:

• Recently, Prime Minister during his latest ‘Mann ki baat’ episode spoke about Miyawaki plantation, the Japanese method of creating dense urban forests in a small area. 
• Named after Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, Miyawaki plantation method involves planting two to four different types of indigenous trees within every square metre. 
• The methodology was developed in the 1970s, with the basic objective to densify green cover within a small parcel of land.
• Statement 1 is not correct: The plants used in the Miyawaki method are mostly self-sustaining and don’t require regular maintenance like manuring and watering.
• The dense green cover of indigenous trees plays a key role in absorbing the dust particles of the area where the garden has been set up. The plants also help in regulating surface temperature. 
• Statement 2 is correct: Some of the common indigenous plants that are used for these forests include Anjan, Amala, Bel, Arjun and Gunj.