Option (b) is correct

Explanation:

• The 10-day Onam celebrations in Kerala started with the Atham celebrations on August 20. 
• It is a festival that honors King Mahabali and Vamana. Onam is celebrated in the Chingam month, which marks the beginning of the Malayalam calendar and is a harvest celebration.

Option (a) is correct

Explanation:

• Article 35A, which granted special rights to permanent residents of the erstwhile state of Jammu & Kashmir, took away a bundle of fundamental rights of the people of India,the Supreme Court observed.
• Article 35A,  was added to the Constitution by a Presidential Order in 1954, denied people at least three fundamental rights — equality of opportunity for all citizens in public jobs under Article 16(1); acquisition of properties under Articles 19(1)(f) and 31; and right to settle in any part of the country under Article 19(1)(e).
• Article 35A, was nullified along with the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

Option (c) is correct

Explanation:

• Recently, Chokuwa rice earned a GI (Geographical Indication) tag for its exquisiteness.
• Chokuwa rice is basically a semi-glutinous winter rice, known as Sali rice.
• Statement 1 is Correct: GI tag is valid for a period of  10 years following which it can be renewed.
• In India, Geographical Indications registration is administered by the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 which came into force with effect from 15th September 2003. 
• The first product in India to be accorded with GI tag was Darjeeling tea in the year 2004-05.
• Statement 2 is Correct: Geographical Indications are covered as a component of intellectual property rights (IPRs) under the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.

Image Credits: Times of India

Option (a) is correct.

Explanation:

• Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation recently chaired the 26th Meeting of the Western Zonal Council at Gandhinagar, Gujarat. On this occasion, an e-Resource web portal was inaugurated to facilitate functioning of Zonal Councils.
• Statement 1 is not correct: The Zonal Councils are the statutory (and not the constitutional) bodies. They are established under the States Reorganisation Act(SRA)of 1956. 
• Statement 2 is not correct: The SRA act divided the country into five zones (Northern, Central, Eastern, Western and Southern) and provided a zonal council for each zone.
• Each zonal council consists of the following members: (a) Home Minister of the Central government. (b) Chief Ministers of all the States in the zone. (c) Two other ministers from each state in the zone. (d) Administrator of each union territory in the zone.
• Statement 3 is not correct: The home minister of the Central government is the common chairman of the five zonal councils. 
• Statement 4 is correct: Each chief minister acts as a vice-chairman of the council by rotation, holding office for a period of one year at a time.

Option (c) is correct.

Explanation: According to a new study, in late 2022, four out of five emperor penguin colonies located in Antarctica’s Bellingshausen Sea region experienced total breeding failure which may be linked to sea ice loss.

Effects of Melting of Glaciers:

• The biggest impact of these glaciers melting is in the rise of sea level. As a result of these rising sea levels, coastal erosion has also increased.
• As a result of sea-level rise, there is a rise in the frequency of extreme weather occurrences throughout the globe. For example, storm surges become more prevalent, with warm air and ocean temperatures combining to increase the frequency of coastal storms. 
• With the slowing of ocean currents and jet streams, the ocean at a large is being changed, with consequences like the collapse of fishing industries, leading to a decline in ocean-based industries.
• Loss of Species: Many land and sea animals rely on glaciers as their natural habitats and as glaciers disappear, so does the rich ecological life.
• The less ice there is, the less freshwater there is for human use.