Ans: A

Exp:

Statement 1 is correct: The Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare inaugurated the country’s 1st Healthy and Hygienic Food Street, ‘PRASADAM,’ in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh which aligns tourists and common people to safe and healthy eating habits. 

Spread over an area of 939 square metres with a total number of 17 shops, “Prasadam” offers convenient and culturally rich dining options for the 1-1.5 lakh devotees who visit the Mahakaleshwar Temple daily. The newly launched food street is designed to provide various facilities, including a kids’ play area, drinking water facility, CCTV surveillance, parking, public conveniences and seating spaces. 

Statement 2 is incorrect: The Government of India launched the PRASAD scheme in the year 2014-2015 under the Ministry of Tourism. The full form of the PRASAD scheme is ‘Pilgrimage Rejuvenation And Spiritual Augmentation Drive’.

This scheme focuses on developing and identifying pilgrimage sites across India to enrich the religious tourism experience. It aims to integrate pilgrimage destinations in a prioritised, planned and sustainable manner to provide a complete religious tourism experience. The growth of domestic tourism hugely depends on pilgrimage tourism. 

Ans: D

Exp:

A zoonotic disease is an infectious disease that has transitioned from a vertebrate animal to humans. Zoonotic pathogens can be bacterial, viral or parasitic and can spread to humans by direct contact with domestic, agricultural or wild animals or through food and water. They can cause many different types of illness in people ranging from mild to serious, and even death. It’s estimated that 60% of known infectious diseases and up to 75% of new or emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic in origin. Some of the most dangerous zoonotic diseases worldwide include COVID-19 and avian flu, salmonellosis and the Ebola virus disease (Ebola). Zoonotic diseases common in India include Nipah virus infection, rabies, anthrax, brucellosis, plague, bovine tuberculosis, leptospirosis and salmonellosis.

Factors that have led to an increase in the emergence of Zoonotic Diseases include:

• Deforestation and other land use changes.
• Intensified agriculture and livestock production.
• Illegal or poorly regulated wildlife trade.
• Climate change.
• Antimicrobial Resistance.

Ans: C

Exp:

Seven products from Odisha which include: 

have bagged the coveted Geographical Indication (GI) tag in recognition of their exclusivity to the state. Geographical Indications of goods refer to the place of origin of a product and are accorded to convey an assurance of quality and distinctiveness. In India, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, awards GI Tags. Here is a quick look at some of the products and their distinctiveness:

• Kapdaganda Shawl: Woven and embroidered by the women of the Dongria Kondh tribe, a particularly vulnerable tribal group (PVTG) in the Niyamgiri hills in Odisha Rayagada and Kalahandi districts, the shawl reflects the rich tribal heritage of the Dongria Kondhs.

The motifs in the shawls are mostly lines and triangles, believed to be a reflection of the importance of mountains for the community. 

• Lanjia Saura Painting: The painting, one of the oldest tribal art forms, is also known as Idital. The art form belongs to the Lanjia Saura community, a PVTG largely residing in the Rayagada district. These paintings are in the form of exterior murals painted on the mud walls of homes. White paintings figure over a crimson-maroon background. Reflecting the love and affection of the primitive tribes for nature, they feature subjects like tribal humans, trees, animals, birds, the Sun and the Moon.

• Odisha Khajuri Guda: A natural sweetener extracted from date palm trees which has its origin in the Gajapati district. Traditionally, the jaggery is prepared in a trapezoidal form called ‘Patali Gur’ and is organic by nature. It is dark brown and has a unique taste.

Bobbili Veena, also known as ‘Saraswati veena’ or ‘Ekandi veena’, is a GI-tagged product from Andhra Pradesh (not Odisha).

Ans: D

Exp:

Statement 1 is correct: Janaushadhi Kendras sell generic drugs that are priced 50 to 60 per cent lower than the popular brands. The rapid expans­i­on of the kendras is not only providing live­li­hoods but also playing a critical role in saving out-of-pocket expenditure for patients.

Statement 2 is correct:  The Pha­r­maceuticals and Medical Devices Bur­eau of India (PMBI) is the implementing agency for the Pradhan Man­tri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP). During FY23, the Pha­r­maceuticals and Medical Devices Bur­eau of India (PMBI) sold Janaushadhi medicines worth Rs 1,236 crore, which led to savi­n­gs of Rs 7,416 crore for citizens. 

Ans: C

Exp:

Statement 1 is correct: Voice cloning involves the creation of synthetic voices that mimic a target voice through speech synthesis. By cloning a voice, it becomes possible to replicate it accurately, enabling its use in voice assistants or real-time voice changer applications. The process typically requires a substantial amount of recorded speech to generate a collection of datasets that can then be utilised to create a new voice model.

Statement 2 is correct: Everybody’s voice is unique, which essentially means that it is the spoken equivalent of a biometric fingerprint. Hence, speaking is an accepted way of establishing trust.

But with many adults sharing their voice data online or in recorded notes (via social media, voice notes etc.), voice cloning has become a powerful tool for cybercriminals.