Environment and Ecology Mixed Practice — MCQs with Answers (Set 18)

Section 9B says the State Government must set up the DMF by notification as a trust. It is a non-profit body. The State frames its composition and functions.

Lease holders pay into the DMF a share of the royalty they already pay. For leases from 12 January 2015, Section 9B caps this at one-third of the royalty. The Centre sets the actual rate. For coal, lignite and stowing sand it is 10% for leases from 12 January 2015 and 30% for older ones.

Section 9B of the MMDR Act, inserted by the 2015 Amendment Act, tells States to set up a District Mineral Foundation in every mining-affected district. It is a non-profit trust. It works for people and areas hit by mining.

Only statement 2 is correct. Section 9B says a District Mineral Foundation works for the interest and benefit of persons and areas affected by mining. It does not promote exploration. It does not issue licences.

The Central Empowered Committee said funds were underused and survival monitoring is weak. A High Level Committee on Environment Laws linked poor plantation quality to falling forest-cover quality.

Parliament passed the Act in 2016, and the President assented on 3 August 2016. The Rules came in 2018. Both took effect on 30 September 2018.

The Act sends ninety per cent of the old ad hoc money to the State Funds. Ten per cent goes to the National Fund. States also send ten per cent of fresh receipts to the National Fund each year.

CAMPA manages the money that project users pay when forest land is diverted. The money funds compensatory planting and related forest work. It is held in funds created by the CAF Act, 2016.

CAMPA genuinely exists at both levels by law. But the CAF Act, 2016 doesn’t legally mandate people’s participation, so only statement 1 is correct.

The correct answer is Three. The 2016 Rules asked generators to sort waste into three streams: bio-degradable, non-bio-degradable and domestic hazardous. The new Rules of 2026 changed this from 1 April 2026. They ask for four streams: wet, dry, sanitary and special care waste.

The Indian Forest Act treated bamboo as a controlled tree under Forest Department oversight, while the FRA 2006 treated it as freely usable minor forest produce, creating a real legal conflict.

The correct answer is It removed bamboo from the legal definition of ‘tree’ on non-forest land. Bamboo was a tree under section 2(7) of the Indian Forest Act, 1927. That meant a permit even for bamboo on private land. The change came first as an Ordinance in November 2017 and removed bamboos from that definition outside forests. Memory hook: grass in law, too, outside the forest.

The 2017 amendment applies to bamboo on non-forest land, not forest areas generally, so statement 1 is false. Statements 2 and 3 about FRA 2006 are correct.

The best answer is that dead organic matter would pile up and break down far more slowly. ScienceABC says detritus feeding is a major route for recycling the energy and nutrients locked up in dead things. Wildlife Trust writers add that rotting leaf litter returns nutrients to the soil. The ‘plants would grow faster’ option is wrong because less recycling means less nutrient supply. The ‘nothing would change’ option is wrong because the cycle depends on this step. The ‘soil would become more fertile immediately’ option is wrong for the same reason. Memory hook: no recyclers, no fresh nutrients.

The correct answer is by improving soil aeration and structure through their activity. UNH Extension says earthworms improve soil drainage and aeration, raise nutrient supply and build soil structure. That is why vermicomposting puts worms to work. The ‘preventing all plant growth’ option is wrong because worms support plants. The ‘producing pesticides’ option is wrong because no source says so. The ‘poisoning harmful bacteria’ option is wrong because no source describes this role. Memory hook: worms open up the soil. One exception is the jumping worm, which strips leaf litter.

The best answer is jellyfish are carnivorous, feeding on small planktonic animals. A moon jelly eats zooplankton, and a box jellyfish stuns or kills prey such as fish and shrimp. Both feed on live animals. The ‘only dead plant matter’ option is wrong because no source shows jellyfish feeding that way. The ‘photosynthesize their own food’ option is wrong because the sources show jellyfish catching prey. The ‘don’t eat at all’ option is wrong because they feed on live prey. Memory hook: jellyfish hunt, they do not sweep up debris.

The correct answer is dead organic matter. A detritivore feeds on detritus, which is dead plant and animal matter plus the waste of living things. ScienceABC says it swallows particles of detritus and digests them inside. A fiddler crab, for example, eats detritus along with algae. The ‘only other detritivores’ option is wrong because detritus comes from many dead things. The ‘sunlight through photosynthesis’ option is wrong because that is how plants feed. The ‘living prey it hunts’ option is wrong because that describes a predator. Memory hook: detritus means dead debris.

The correct answer is earthworms, millipedes and woodlice only. A detritivore swallows particles of dead matter and digests them inside its body. Earthworms, millipedes and woodlice do this, as ScienceABC lists. The ‘all five’ option is wrong because jellyfish and seahorses catch live food. The ‘jellyfish, millipedes, seahorses and woodlice’ option is wrong for the same reason. The ‘earthworms, jellyfish and seahorses’ option is wrong because it leaves out millipedes and woodlice. Memory hook: if it swallows dead matter, it is a detritivore.

The correct answer is they improve water quality by filtering excess algae. Oysters filter water, which improves clarity and controls excess algae from nutrient enrichment, says UGA Marine Extension. NOAA adds that oysters remove excess nutrients like nitrogen. The ‘generate electricity’ option is wrong because oysters do nothing of the kind. The ‘prevent all coastal erosion permanently’ option is wrong because reefs only reduce shoreline erosion. The ‘produce oxygen through photosynthesis’ option is wrong because oysters are animals. Memory hook: reefs help clean water, but they do not replace pollution control.

The correct answer is they filter large volumes of water and concentrate pollutants. Oysters are considered indicators of water quality because they filter so much water. Harmful bacteria, viruses and toxic substances in that water are concentrated in the oyster. Microplastics showed up in every sample in a Humboldt Bay study. The ‘glow under UV light’ option is wrong because no source says so. The ‘change color’ option is wrong for the same reason. The ‘stop reproducing’ option is wrong because the sources describe concentration, not reproduction. Memory hook: more water filtered means more pollutants held.

The correct answer is baleen whales and flamingos. A baleen whale pushes water out through baleen plates and keeps the food. A flamingo strains food with horny plates in its bill, like those of baleen whales. The ‘snakes and lizards’ option is wrong because neither strains water. The ‘lions and tigers’ option is wrong because they are hunters. The ‘eagles and hawks’ option is wrong for the same reason. Memory hook: baleen and bill plates both act as sieves.

The correct answer is by pumping water through its gills to trap particles. Cilia on the gills beat and set up a current. Plankton are trapped in gill mucus and moved to the mouth, as Maryland Sea Grant says. The ‘scavenging on land’ option is wrong because oysters live in water. The ‘photosynthesis’ option is wrong because oysters are animals and eat plankton. The ‘hunting with tentacles’ option is wrong because oysters have no tentacles to hunt with. Memory hook: the oyster waits and the food drifts in.

The correct answer is Oyster. A filter feeder strains small food out of water. An oyster uses gill cilia to set up a current, and gill mucus traps the plankton. UGA Marine Extension describes this. A pelican is wrong because it catches fish. An octopus is wrong because it hunts prey. A catfish is wrong because it takes food from the bed, not by straining water. Memory hook: if it strains water, it is a filter feeder.

The La Plata three-banded armadillo can curl into a complete ball. The Brazilian three-banded armadillo is also widely known for rolling into a tight ball. Some other armadillos have too many plates to curl.

A marmot is a burrowing ground squirrel. The Himalayan marmot gives alarm calls when a predator is detected. It does not roll up.