(b) Only two
India ranks 129 in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index.
The Global Gender Gap Index is an annual report produced by the World Economic Forum (WEF) that measures gender-based gaps in access to resources and opportunities in countries around the world.
It is the longest-standing index, tracking progress towards closing these gaps over time since its inception in 2006.
It tracks the gender gap across four key parameters:
• Economic participation and opportunity,
• Educational attainment,
• Health and survival, and
• Political empowerment.
It ranks countries on a scale from 0 to 1, with a score of 1 indicating that a country has achieved complete gender equality, while a score of 0 indicates a complete lack of equality. (Statement 2 is incorrect)
As of 2024, the global gender gap stands at 68.5% across all 146 countries indexed this year.
It will take 134 years, i.e., by 2158, to achieve full parity if the current rate of progress is maintained.
No country has achieved full gender parity, 97% of the economies included in this edition have closed more than 60% of their gap, compared to 85% in 2006.

(b) French Territory
New Caledonia is a French territory comprising dozens of islands in the South Pacific. It’s known for its palm-lined beaches and marine-life-rich lagoon, which, at 24,000-sq.-km, is among the world’s largest. A massive barrier reef surrounds the main island, Grand Terre, a major scuba-diving destination.

(a) Central Asia
Takhi or Przewalski’s horses, also known as takhi or Mongolian wild horses, are mainly found in Central Asia. In June 2024, seven Przewalski’s horses were airlifted from Europe to Kazakhstan’s Golden Steppe, also known as the Altyn Dala, for the first time in at least 200 years.

(c) Egypt, Iran, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Ethiopia
In 2023 when Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE joined Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa as full-fledged BRICS members.
BRICS is an acronym for the grouping of the world’s leading emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.
In 2001, the British Economist Jim O’Neill coined the term BRIC to describe the four emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, and China.
The grouping was formalized during the first meeting of BRIC Foreign Ministers in 2006.
South Africa was invited to join BRIC in December 2010, after which the group adopted the acronym BRICS.
The Johannesburg declaration, 2023 issued after the summit, said Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) had been invited to become full members from January 1, 2024.
The BRICS (prior to expansion) represented 41% of the global population, 24% of the global GDP, and 16 % of the global trade. Since 2009, its summits are held annually.

(c) Only three
Monsoon rainfall over India is known to be strongly influenced by El Nino and La Nina events, the alternating warming and cooling of the eastern Pacific Ocean that impacts weather across the world.
This is the first time that air quality in Indian cities has been linked to a La Nina event — and indirectly to climate change.
During October to January, northern Indian cities, particularly Delhi, experience very high concentrations of PM2.5.
A variety of meteorological factors — temperature, moisture, heaviness in air (NOT Light Air Density), wind speed and direction — play a role in trapping pollutants in the lower levels of the atmosphere.
These variables are also responsible for carrying pollutants from other places, particularly those produced by agricultural waste burning in Punjab and Haryana, to Delhi and its surrounding areas.
The western and southern parts of the country have always had relatively lower levels of pollution, because of their proximity to oceans.