UPSC Prelims Past Year Paper 2013: Paper 1 (GS) - UPSC MCQ

First of all in 1974, the banks were given a target of 33.33 % as share of the priority sector in the total bank credit. This was later revised on the recommendation of the Dr. K S Krishnaswamy to 40%. This is the current target given to banks to disburse the loans to priority sector.  Broadly, priority sector includes the Agriculture Finance, Small Enterprises, Retail Trade, Micro Credit, Education Loans and housing loans. As per Reserve Bank of India, Priority sector includes the Agriculture Finance, Small Enterprises, Retail Trade, Micro Credit, Education Loans and housing loans. As per Reserve Bank of India, Priority sector includes the the sectors shown in the adjacent graphics.

At present the domestic banks have to disburse 40% of the Net Bank Credit to Total Priority sector, out of which 18% should be total agricultural advances.  The Foreign banks have been given a target of 32% of the Net Bank Credit to priority sector, however, there is no lower limit fixed for agriculture.  Target Credit to women beneficiaries is 5%.  The basic objective of setting priority sector targets has been to ensure greater flow of credit to certain sectors where credit would normally not flow to the desired extent.  Earlier, there was a demand from various stake holders of the society that banks should be given a higher than current 40% target of the Priority sector. As of now the targets have not been revised.  The reason is that out of total deposits, banks have to keep certain amount to maintain Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) and Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) and from the remaining disposable amount 40 per cent is dedicated for the priority 

Though Industrial sector only accounts for three per cent of the annual water withdrawals in India, yet its contribution to water pollution, particularly in urban areas, is considerable. In this question, you should all know that government has been planning to set up an agency on the lines of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency to encourage conservation of the water. The focus initially would be on water intensive sectors such as thermal power plants, textiles, pulp, chemicals etc. Of the total water use by the industry, thermal power plants are the biggest users of water and account for 88% of the total industrial water use. They are followed by engineering (5.05%) pulp & paper (2.26%) and textiles (2.07%) industries. 

• b option will not provide any benefit of demographic dividend. Social security schemes can be used for providing security to nonworking population like old-age pension etc.
• c option is one of the Millenium Development Goal, but it does not provide any benefit of demographic dividend
• d option can infact have negative effect as it will make education costlier thus making it out of reach of a large section of eligible population 

Tribhanga, literally meaning three parts break, consists of three bends in the body; at the neck, waist and knee, hence the body is oppositely curved at waist and neck which gives it a gentle "S" shape.

• Annie Besant has become the head of the Theosophical Society, based in Adyar, Madras.  It was a eligious movement, founded by the Russian Madame Blavatsky, and not Besant herself.
• Theosophy preached a mixture of social reform, cultivation of occult practices, and celebration of ancient Hindu wisdom that predatedWestern civilization. The first and third statements are correct, you must know that the INC Session of 1917 was headed by Annie Besant at Calcutta. 

• Ilbert Bill is named after Courtenay Peregrine Ilbert, who was appointed as legal adviser to the Council of India.
• The bill was introduced in 1883 by Viceroy Ripon, who actually desired to abolish the racial prejudice from the Indian Penal Code.
• Ripon had proposed an amendment for existing laws in the country and to allow Indian judges and magistrates the jurisdiction to try British offenders in criminal cases at the District level.
• It was never allowed before. So naturally, the Europeans living in India looked it as a Humiliation and the introduction of the bill led to intense opposition in Britain as well as India (by the British residents). So it was withdrawn but was reintroduced and enacted in 1884 in a severely compromised state.

1. This question is simply asking which of them can cause inflation.
2. The first statement is obviously correct. The second and third statements you can opt in simply by commonsense.
3. Lets see how.  A decrease in aggregate level of output
   • If there is a decrease in aggregate level of output, the money available in the economy will chase for goods / services which are now less available now. This may lead to inflation.
4. An increase in the effective demand
   • If there is an increase in the effective demand, this would mean that too much money is chasing too few goods. This also may cause inflation.  

It contains  

1. SDRs

2. Gold

3. Foreign Currency Assets

4. Reserve Tranche Position in IMF 

The correct answer is Creating new money to finance a budget deficit.

• The chances of inflation will increase more when the government plans to print new currency to finance a budget deficit. 
• When the supply of money increases in the market, the customer demand automatically increases, resulting in the rise of Aggregate Demand.

Key Points

• A budget deficit refers to a situation where total expenditure exceeds the total revenue.
• Deficit financing is a tool that is used to generate funds in order to come out with a budget deficit.
• There are three ways to finance a budget:
  1. Creating new currency
  2. Borrowing from internal sources like RBI, issuing bonds, etc.
  3. Borrowing from External sources like WB, IMF, etc.
• ​Borrowing from the public by issuing bonds at a lower interest rate will not create inflation.
• Similarly, borrowings from banks will not generate inflation.

If the supply is same, and there is more demand for money, obviously the interest rates will increase. 

Respiration is the chemical process by which fruits and vegetables convert sugars and oxygen into carbon dioxide, water, and heat. Metabolic activity in fresh fruits and vegetables continues for a short period after harvest. The energy required to sustain this activity comes from the respiration process. Respiration involves the oxidation of sugars to produce carbon dioxide, water and heat. The storage life of a commodity is influenced by its respiratory activity. By storing a commodity at low temperature, respiration is reduced and senescence is delayed, thus extending storage life. 

Gharial Gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) is the most uniquely evolved crocodilian in the world, a specialized, river-dwelling, fisheater. It is critically endangered and the critical condition of the Gharial reflects the endangered status of rivers. In India, we have only viable population in the National Chambal Sanctuary, spread across three states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh in India. Small non-breeding populations exist in Son, Gandak, Hoogly and Ghagra rivers. Now extinct in Myanmar, Pakistan, Bhutan and Bangladesh.  

Leatherback Loggerhead, Hawksbill and Leatherback  are common names of the Turtles found in India. Turtles are placed in reptiles. The five species are Green turtle (Chelonia mydas), Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), Olive Ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea), Hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) and Leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea). Leatherback is Critically Endangered.

Barasingha Swamp Deer  or the Barasingha is vulnerable not endangered. It is found in isolated localities in northern and central India, and southwestern Nepal. It is extinct in Pakistan and Bangladesh. 

Ball bearings are used to reduce friction between the surfaces.

A ball bearing is a type of rolling-element bearing that uses balls to maintain the separation between the bearing races. The purpose of a ball bearing is to reduce rotational friction and support radial and axial loads.

Ball bearing are used in bicycles, axel cars etc to reduce friction between the surfaces and also because the effective area of contact between the wheel axle is reduced

Ball bearings are spherical in shape. When these move they are not dragged, they roll in any direction. With a little effort (force and energy) these can be moved. The friction force that causes these to move is ROLLING friction and is minimum as compared to static friction and dynamic friction.

Size of the sun at Dusk :This is a correct option. The Sun appears smaller during noon but larger at dawn or more clearly at dusk. The apparent difference in the size comes from Optical Illusion. At dawn, Sun is seen with other objects on horizon and looks big. At noon, Sun is all alone in vast expense of sky, so looks small. 

Color of the Sun at Dawn: A halo is a ring around the moon or sun produced by refraction of light through a thin cloud of ice crystals. The halo had red colors on the inside of the ring shifting to blue on the outside. This is also a correct statement. The color effects such as red colors of halo, the reddish colored sunpillars etc. are optical illusions. 

Twinkling of stars: Twinkling of stars is also an optical illusion caused by the refraction of light while moving through various layers of atmospheres. 

Moon being visible at Dawn: Moon is appears larger than size. The statement is ambiguous so opted out.  

Polestar being visible in the sky: Polestar is visible in the sky from northern latitudes. There is apparent motion of all stars in the night except Pole star. Of course this is an optical illusion. It is really us on Earth doing all the actual moving. But this statement does not say anything on that. This option is thus opted out

The Samkhya system is one of the most ancient systems in the history of Indian Philosophy. Samkhya regards ignorance (avidyā) as the root cause of suffering and bondage (Samsara). Samkhya states that the way out of this suffering is through knowledge (viveka). The existence of God or supreme being is not directly asserted, nor considered relevant by the Samkhya philosophers. Sāṃkhya denies the final cause of Ishvara (God).

A The third statement you can opt out because head of the state is President and he / she does not head the cabinet. The second statement is correct and the first statement is also correct. 

The first statement is correct as we all know. One major factor affecting the distribution of the temperature of Earth is distribution of Land and Oceans. Since there is more land in Northern Hemisphere and more waters in Southern hemisphere and there is a big difference between the specific heat of land and water; the loss of heat from the continents is bigger than the oceans. The continents get heated faster and get cooled faster in comparison to the Oceans. This is the reason that the temperatures of the Oceans are moderate while that of continents is extreme. The moderating effect on temperature of the land due to proximity of the seas is called Maritime influence. The increasing effect on temperature of the land at interior of the continents is called Continental Influence. In the above question, the statement 2 is framed as a wrong statement, statement 3 is also a wrong statement and statement 4 is also a wrong statement.  

Indian coals by their very nature are high in ash content but low in sulphur content. Indian coal is its high ash fusion temperature of about 1,500°C.  

The first statement is correct. The second statement is partially correct (it should have been rich in Iron Oxide and Potash to be correct), The third statement is incorrect and the fourth statement is correct. I am hereby inserting a snippet from SGS 30:  

• The Laterite soils develop in areas with high temperature and high rainfall and are common in the high altitude areas of Peninsular plateau.  
• Laterite soil and is mainly found on the summits of the Western Ghats, Eastern Ghats, Rajmahal Hills, Vindhyas, Satpuras and Malwa plateau, thus abundant in Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and the hilly areas of Odisha and Assam.
• Laterite soil represents intense leaching due to heavy rains, due to which the lime and silica are leached away, and soils rich in iron oxide and aluminium compound are left behind. Then, the Humus content of the soil is removed fast by bacteria that thrives well in high temperature.
• This implies that the Laterite soil is poor in organic matter, nitrogen, phosphate and calcium, while iron oxide and potash are in excess.  Due to excess of Iron, laterites are not suitable for cultivation ; however, application of manures and fertilisers are required for making the so ils fertile for cultivation .
• Red Laterite soils in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala are more suitable for tree crops like cashewnut.
• Laterite soils are widely cut as bricks for use in house construction.   

Natural gas is obtained alongwith oil in all the oil fields but exclusive reserves have been located along the eastern coast as well as (Tamil Nadu, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh), Tripura, Rajasthan and off-shore wells in Gujarat and Maharashtra. 

Crude petroleum occurs in sedimentary rocks of the tertiary period.

• Kharif crops or monsoon crops are cultivated and harvested during the rainy (monsoon) season in the South Asia, which lasts between April and October depending on the area. Cotton, groundnut and rice (paddy) are Kharif crops.
• Rabi crops refer to agricultural crops sown in winter and harvested in the spring. Wheat is major Rabi crop

Steppe's climate is continantal with extremes of temp. Nomadic tribes like Kirghiz are found. Rainfall is expected to be light. African Savannah gets moderate raifall. 

For debtors, "real" interest rate goes down with inflation. Thus it benefits them

On the other hand, with inflation the yield of bonds goes down, thus a negative effect for bond-holders

Disguised unemployment is one of the major features of Indian Agriculture. It seems that all members of a family are employed but if one member is withdrawn, there is no change in total output. The third statement Marginal Productivity is low is a correct statement. 

NDC is listed as an advisory body to Planning commission. Moreover the plans made by Planning commission are placed before NDC for its acceptance. So statement 1 is wrong. 

 The first statement is not correct because its talks about chairman as well as the deputy chairman. The Vice-President of India is ex-officio Chairman of Rajya Sabha.  Rajya Sabha also chooses from amongst its members, a Deputy Chairman. The second statement is correct

• President: Elected members of parliament (MPs from Lok Sabha as well as Rajya Sabha). Elected members of State legislative members, including that if NCT of Delhi and Pondicherry  
• Vice President:  Vice President is elected indirectly, by an electoral college consisting of members of both houses of the Parliament

The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has been constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 to provide free Legal Services to the weaker sections of the society and to organize Lok Adalats for amicable settlement of disputes. In every State, State Legal Services Authority has been constituted to give effect to the policies and directions of the NALSA and to give free legal services to the people and conduct Lok Adalats in the State. 

• Thunderstorms result from the rapid upward movement of warm, moist air. They can occur inside warm, moist air masses and at fronts. As the warm, moist air moves upward, it cools, condenses, and forms cumulonimbus clouds that can reach heights of over 20 km (12.45 miles). The thunderstorms are associated with the cumulonimbus clouds. These clouds normally form on warm sunny days but they can also be found on cold front.  
• But this question is asking about the Thunder i.e. the sound produced. The lightning generates between 100 million and 1 billion volts of electricity and can heat the air to around 50K°F. The rapid expansion causes the shock waves. Thunder happens because the lightning would heat the air at huge temperatures and the air expands so fast that it makes a loud clap of thunder. 

• The Limboo people also known as Subba, Yakthungba, Limboo and Tshong of Sikkim are the ethnic minority tribal community who have their distinct identity as one of the indigenous inhabitants of Sikkim having own script, culture, food habits, attire, customs, traditions, religion and
• Karbi Tribes are mainly dominated in the Karbi Anglong districtof Assam. Some are also found in North Cochar Hills, Nagaon, Golaghat, Kamrup, Jorhat, Sonitpur and Lakhimpur districts of Assam and in the bordering states of Nagaland and Meghalaya.
• Bondas live in the remote Bonda hills. The landscape is quite inspiring with steep roads to climb up the green hill slopes and amazing jungles that seem to go for ever. The Bondas are national tribe of people approximately 5000 in number, living in the confined hill regions to the Malkangiri district of southwestern most Orissa, near to the confluence to the three states of Orissa, Chhattisgarh, and Andhra Pradesh. The Bonda are scheduled tribe of India and are also known as Remo.
• Dongaria are indigeneous tribal group in Orissa.