UPSC CSE Prelims Paper 1 Practice Test - 12 - UPSC MCQ

• Statement 1 is correct and 2 is incorrect: Off-budget borrowings are loans that are taken not by the Centre directly, but by another public institution, like public sector undertakings, which borrow on the directions of the central government. These also include the deferred payments of bills and loans by the Centre. These items constitute off-budget borrowings because these loans and deferred payments are not part of fiscal deficit calculations. Off budget borrowings is not counted in the calculation of fiscal deficit. This helps keep the country’s fiscal deficit within acceptable limits.

• Statement 3 is correct: Off-budget Borrowings are those financial liabilities that are raised by public sector undertakings for which repayment of entire principal and interest is done from the Central Government Budget. Such borrowings are made by state-owned firms to fund government schemes but are not part of the official budget calculations. This means that though the borrowing is not a part of the consolidated fund of India, the interest payment for such borrowings is made out of the consolidated fund.

The International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) is an intergovernmental organization established in 1923. It facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime control in around 194 countries. INTERPOL Notices are international requests for cooperation or alerts allowing police in member countries to share critical crime-related information. Notices are published by the General Secretariat at the request of a National Central Bureau and are made available to all the member countries.

• Statement 1 is correct: INTERPOL's Purple Notices are used to seek or provide information on modus operandi, objects, devices and concealment methods used by criminals.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: A Red Notice is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action. A Red Notice is not an international arrest warrant. Red Notices are issued for fugitives wanted either for prosecution or to serve a sentence. This follows judicial proceedings in the country issuing the request. This is not always the home country of the individual, but the country where the crime was committed. When a person is sought for prosecution, they have not been convicted and should be considered innocent until proven guilty.

• Statement 3 is incorrect: A Yellow Notice (and not blue notice) is a global police alert for a missing person. It is published for victims of parental abductions, criminal abductions (kidnappings) or unexplained disappearances. It can also be used to help identify a person who is unable to identify himself or herself. Blue Notice is issued to collect additional information about a person’s identity, location or activities in relation to a crime.

• Statement 1 is correct: As we proceed from the equator towards the pole's rainfall goes on decreasing steadily.

• Statement 2 is correct: The coastal areas of the world receive greater amounts of rainfall than the interior of the continents. Also, the rainfall is more over the oceans than on the landmasses of the world because of being great sources of water.

• Statement 3 is incorrect: Between the latitudes 35 degree and 40-degree N and S of the equator, the rain is heavier on the eastern coasts and goes on decreasing towards the west.

• Knowledge Base: Between 45 degree and 65-degree N and S of equator, due to the westerlies, the rainfall is first received on the western margins of the continents and it goes on decreasing towards the east.

• Fraternity essentially means that all the citizens should behave like members of the same family. No one should treat a fellow citizen as inferior. The Preamble declares that fraternity has to assure two things—the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the nation. The word 'integrity' has been added to the Preamble by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment (1976).

• Option 1 is correct: Part III deals with fundamental rights and does talk about the fraternity ideal implicitly. Fundamental rights are the basic human rights enshrined in the Constitution of India which are guaranteed to all citizens. They are applied without discrimination on the basis of race, religion, gender, etc. Value of Fraternity gets manifested in the Fundamental right through provisions like Article 17 [ ban of untouchability to uphold dignity of an individual], Artucle 23 [ ban on child labor], Article 25 [secularism promotes unity and integrity], etc.

• Option 2 is correct: The idea of fraternity finds mention in Art. 51A(e) of (Part-IV A) i.e., fundamental duties, where it is the duty of every citizen “to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practice derogatory to the dignity of women”.

• Option 3 is correct: The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution provides for the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram to safeguard the rights of the tribal population in these states. It promotes fraternity by upholding the dignity of the tribal people as they can govern themselves according to their customs and values and also within the larger framework of nationalism, Sixth Schedule fulfils their needs and aspirations, thus promoting unity and integrity of the nation.

• Option 4 is correct: Part-IV of Indian Constitution deals with directive principles of state policy which are instructions to the state. It aims to establish social and economic democracy through a welfare state. It promotes fraternity by upholding dignity of an individual through provisions like Article 39(b) [the equitable distribution of material resoruces of the community for the common good], Article 39(c) [prevention of concentration of wealth and means of production], article 43 [living wage for workers], etc. Further, unity and integrity is upheld through provisions like article 44 [ uniform civil code for the citizens], etc.

• Recently, the Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Bill, 2021 was introduced in Lok Sabha. It seeks to increase the species protected under the law, and implement the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Currently, the Act has six schedules for specially protected plants (one), specially protected animals (four), and vermin species (one). The Bill reduces the total number of schedules to four.

• Statement 1 is incorrect: Schedule I of the Act gives absolute protection to certain species and these cannot be infringed on any account. The animals can only be hunted if they are dangerous to human or diseased or disabled. Schedule V of act includes the list of vermin animals-mice, common crow, monkey, pigs, bats, etc. For this purpose, the hunter has to apply for a license to the District Forest Officer who will allow a hunter to shoot during a specific season and restricted area.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: Schedule III of the Act includes animals that are not in danger of becoming extinct or endangered. The penalties under this section are also less than Schedule I and II. However, there is no schedule exclusively for specimens listed in the Appendices under CITES. The Bill reduces the total number of schedules to four by: (i) reducing the number of schedules for specially protected animals to two (one for greater protection level), (ii) removes the schedule for vermin species, and (iii) inserts a new schedule for specimens listed in the Appendices under CITES (scheduled specimens).

• Statement 3 is correct: Schedule VI of the act concerns with the cultivation and plant life and gives teeth to setting up more protected animal parks. It provides for regulation in cultivation of a specified plant and restricts its possession, sale and transportation. Both cultivation and trade of specified plants can only be carried out with prior permission of competent authority.

• Statement 1 is correct: Atmospheric brown clouds (ABCs) are layers of air pollution consisting of aerosols such as black carbon (BC), organic carbon, and dust that alter the absorption and reflection of solar radiation at earth surface. ABCs also contain other anthropogenic aerosols such as sulphates, nitrates, and fly ash. During experiments such as INDOEX, they have been found to exist from the ground level upto a height of 3 km from the earth’s surface.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: It was first found over this region comprising of South Asia and North Indian Ocean (NIO) during the INDOEX experiment of late 1990s, which is why they were informally named “Asian Brown Clouds'', however it has since been discovered to be a global phenomenon resulting from human polluting activities. It has been found to exist over other regions too such as Africa, South America, North America and even Europe.

• Statement 3 is correct: The effect of these aerosols is dual in nature. It causes both warming due to increased absorption of solar radiation, especially by aerosols such as black and brown carbon. However other light coloured aerosols such as nitrates and sulphates caused enhanced reflection of solar radiation, leading to cooling effect.

• Knowledge Base:

  • Atmospheric brown clouds are particularly prevalent in tropical regions; they occur as a result of elevated pollutant emissions and a lengthy dry season that prevents aerosols from being removed from the atmosphere through precipitation.

  • It causes thermal inversions and pollution related deaths in urban areas.

• Chagas disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis, is a parasitic infection caused

• by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. Hence, statement 1 is not correct. The symptoms of Chagas disease can range from mild to severe, and may include fever,

• fatigue, body aches, and a swelling of one eyelid.

• It is primarily spread through the bite of triatomine bugs, also known as "kissing bugs".

• Hence, statement 2 is correct. The disease can also be transmitted through blood transfusions, organ transplants, and from mother to child during pregnancy.

• Statement 1 is correct: Deserts are regions of scanty rainfall which may be hot like the hot deserts of the Saharan type; or temperate as are the mid-latitude deserts like the Gobi. The Aridity of hot deserts is mainly due to effects of off-shore trade winds. offshore wind is the type of wind that blows from the land towards the sea.

• Statement 2 is correct: Plants that exist in deserts have highly specialized means of adapting themselves to arid environment. Most desert shrubs have long roots and are well spaced out and search for groundwater. Plants have few or no leaves and their foliage is either waxy leathery, hairy and needle shaped to reduce the loss of water through transpiration. Some of them are entirely leafless with pricks and thorns. Others like Cacti have thick and succulent stems to store water for long droughts.

• Statement 3 is correct: The Deserts have rich mineral resources. The lure of mineral wealth has attracted many immigrants into the desert.

  • Gold brought immigrants to the Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie towns of the Great Australian Desert.

  • The Kalahari Desert is rich in diamond and copper.

  • The most arid Atacama Desert (in Northern Chile) is famous for mining of caliches (cemented gravels) from which sodium nitrate is prepared. Beside nitrates, copper is also mined.

  • Desert of North America - Silver is mined in Mexico, Uranium in Utah and Copper in Nevada.

  • Saharan and Arabian deserts are today supplying Oil all over the globe.

• Desai: Liaquat Pact was an informal agreement between Bhulabhai Desai of Congress and Liaquat Ali Khan of the Muslim League. It was an effort to construct an alliance between the 2 parties in order to bring independence faster.

• Statement 1 is correct: The Desai-Liaqat Pact was announced in January 1945. It came in the period between 1942 (post failure of Cripps Mission and the beginning of Quit India Movement) and 1945 (announcement of Wavell Plan). It was a plan to end the deadlock between the Congress and the Muslim League, which was being used as an excuse by the British to delay independence.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: Among many things that the Congress and the Muslim were deadlocked over, one was the formula for representation of minorities in the Interim Government to be formed while talks for transfer of power from British to Indian hands was being negotiated. In keeping with its ‘Two Nation Theory’, the League asserted that it be recognized as the only legitimate party representing the interests of all Muslims in pre-independence India. The Congress refused to do so. In this backdrop the leaders of Congress and League, Bhulabai Desai and Liaqat Khan respectively decided to hold talks and find a compromise on the representation formula for the Interim Government at the Centre, not the partition of India. The Congress had still not agreed to the partitioning of the nation at this point. Hence this statement is incorrect.

• Statement 3 is correct: No settlement could be reached between the Congress and the League on the proposals of the plan. Thus, the plan could not achieve anything substantial.

• Knowledge Base:

  • The Proposals of the Pact:

    • An equal number of persons nominated by the Congress and the League in the central legislature.

    • 20% reserved seats for minorities.

  • Significance:

    • The fact that a sort of parity between the Congress and the League was decided upon had far-reaching consequences. As the League’s confidence of being able to force a partition by being stubborn increased.

• Both the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) and Index of Industrial Production (IIP) are in an upward growth trajectory since July 2021. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

• It is projected that headline inflation will be 6.8 per cent in FY23, which is outside the target range set by the RBI. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.

• Aerosols are extremely small solid particles, or very small liquid droplets, suspended in the atmosphere and are typically of sizes in the range 0.001 μm–10 μm.

• Statement 1 is correct: Although most of us associate the word aerosol with cleaning chemicals or sprays, a majority of aerosols are natural in origin. These include ash from volcanoes and forest fires, certain vegetation that reacts with surroundings to release smoke containing these aerosols, in the ocean, some types of microalgae produce a sulphurous gas called dimethyl sulphide that can be converted into sulphates in the atmosphere. Sea salt and mineral dust are also examples of natural origin aerosols. Anthropogenic aerosols include smoke from burning of agricultural and municipal waste. Automobiles, incinerators, smelters, and power plants are other anthropogenic sources of aerosols such as sulphates, nitrates, black carbon, and other particles.

• Statement 2 is correct: Aerosols provide the hygroscopic condensation nuclei, i.e. the surface to which little droplets of water vapour suspended in the atmosphere cling and accumulate to form clouds. When this droplets cools enough and the particular drop is heavy enough, it falls down resulting in rainfall. Thus aerosols play a huge role in the global water cycle. Some types of aerosols also suppress precipitation thus affecting the water cycle, but in an opposite way.

• Statement 3 is incorrect: A carbon dioxide molecule has a lifetime of about 100 years in the atmosphere, while an aerosol particle has an average life expectancy of only about 10 days. Thus this statement is incorrect as an aerosol lasts a much shorter time in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. They are classified as a Short Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCP).

• Knowledge Base:

  • Light colored aerosols such as sulphates increase earth’s albedo and reflect back sunlight into space creating a cooling effect.

  • Dark coloured aerosols such as brown or black aerosols (from biomass burning or soot) absorb solar radiation and act as greenhouse gas, contributing to climate change. However scientists believe that overall the cooling effect of aerosols dominate their warming effect.

• In 17th century India, a number of European countries had entered as traders and were competing for goods such as spices, silks, Indigo, etc that were rare in the West and were in great demand. In order to earn the largest profits, each of these European powers wanted to monopolise the trade between India and the West which led to rivalries both trade and military amongst them. The British emerged victorious over all the other European powers in India at the end. There were several reasons for that.

• Statement 1 is incorrect: The zeal of British Christian missionaries gave them deeper roots in Indian society is incorrect, as it was quite the opposite. Britain put a restraint on the activities of its Christian missionaries so that the locals do not get too disturbed by their presence in the initial days and it does not become difficult to govern them. In fact some other European powers like the Portuguese had much more missionary zeal and converted much of their settlements like Goa into Christianity. However the British were not focused on religious work and mainly focussed on monopolising trade and resources.

• Statement 2 is correct: In the beginning, the Portuguese were the European nation with the most advanced navy. This paid off huge dividends, as they controlled the traffic on the seas and ensured that the Portuguese traders were protected from pirates, as well as a greater share of access to Indian markets. So the British focussed on improving their navy. And in time, with the help of brilliant scientists, they made many advances and made their navy the best among all European powers, even that of the Portuguese. This not only helped them protect their investments on high seas from pirates, it also helped them win wars against rivals like the French and the Portuguese and increase their share in trade in India.

• Statement 3 is correct: Unlike other European powers like France, whose wars in India were funded by the royal treasury and hence often under great strain, the British managed to publicly fund their wars. They were pioneers of financial instruments like the Debt Market and Stock Exchange, which allowed both English East India Company, as well as the British Crown to take debt from the market. This helped them get more and better quality recruits for the military and fight and win wars for supremacy in India against European powers much better like the Anglo-French war, the Anglo-Dutch war, etc, thus emerging the most successful European power in the Indian subcontinent.

• Statement 4 is correct: A stable home government of British was another reason of supremacy of British over other European powers.

• Knowledge Base: Some other reasons:

  • Structure of Trading Company (public shareholding so more professionally run than royally owned ones like the French).

  • Industrial Revolution (better cheaper products + better technologies in other areas) Military skills & Discipline.

• The term negative interest rate refers to interest paid to borrowers rather than to lenders. Negative interest rates are a form of monetary policy that sees interest rates fall below 0%. Central banks and regulators use this unusual policy tool when there are strong signs of deflation.

• Statement 1 is correct: Negative interest rates imply that instead of earning interest, deposits and savings will be charged by banks. The idea is to make saving unattractive and encourage consumers and companies to spend more instead of stockpiling cash.

• Statement 2 and 3 are incorrect: Negative (or low) interest rates mean that foreign investors earn lower returns on their investments, which leads to lower demand for the domestic currency – devaluing the currency and reducing the exchange rate. Currency devaluations may lead to competition among countries that export similar goods, along with unwanted exchange rate fluctuations.

  • Example: To protect the domestic export industry from an increase in the exchange rate, the Japanese central bank reduced the interest rate in 2016 and announced a 0.1% charge on any reserves that commercial banks deposited in the central bank. This is an example of using negative interest rates as a monetary policy tool.

• Statement 4 is correct: Negative interest rates reduce the profit margins of lending institutions and commercial banks. Prolonged periods of low or negative interest rates may encourage banks to cease or decrease lending as profitability decreases. Many financial institutions worldwide are hesitant to charge for deposits and thus strategized for lowering of borrowing costs i.e., squeeze the margins or spread between what they pay for deposits and what they earn by lending money to borrowers.

• Statement 5 is correct: Negative Interest rates push down short-term rates on other types of lending, which in turn influence business and consumer rates. Negative rates spur banks and other investors seeking yield to buy short-term government debt, pushing up prices and lowering yields on these securities. And rates on corporate bonds are in turn linked to yields on government debt. Ultimately, because negative central bank rates affect bond market yields, they affect bond benchmarks.

• COVID-19 is a rapidly spreading global threat that has been declared as a pandemic by the WHO.

• Mortality in some COVID-19 patients has been linked to the presence of the so-called “cytokine storm”.

• An immune reaction triggered by the body to fight an infection is known as a cytokine storm when it turns severe. Cytokines are signaling proteins that are released by cells. During a cytokine storm, the body releases too many cytokines into the blood too quickly. While normally they regulate immune responses, in this case they cause harm and can even cause death. A cytokine storm is characterised by the overproduction of immune cells which can be harmful since an excess of immune cells can attack healthy tissues as well.

Stri Purush Tulana (A comparison between men and women) is a pamphlet/book written by feminist activist Tarabai Shinde. Shinde was a writer born in the Berar province of Buldhana (present day Maharashtra) who protested against upper caste patriarchy and the caste system in India. She was a member of the Satyashodhak Samaj and was also an associate of Savitribai Phule and Jyotirao Phule. The pamphlet was originally published in Marathi in 1882. The literary work is a critique of upper caste patriarchy and the gender and caste system in 19th century India. The material is also considered the first modern feminist text of India. Shinde questions the position of women in the society and their rights.

• A rocket engine uses stored rocket propellants as the reaction mass for forming a high-speed propulsive jet of fluid, usually high-temperature gas. Rocket engines are reaction engines, producing thrust by ejecting mass rearward (towards the back), in accordance with Newton's third law. Most rocket engines use the combustion of reactive chemicals to supply the necessary energy.

• Statement 1 is correct: Cryogenic engine uses liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen which takes rocket into the orbit. It is more efficient than solid stage and liquid stage since it generates more thrust and higher specific impulse. It makes use of Liquid Oxygen (LOX) and Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) as propellants which liquefy at -183 deg C and -253 deg C respectively.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: A ramjet is a form of air-breathing jet engine that uses the vehicle’s forward motion to compress incoming air for combustion without a rotating compressor. Ramjets work most efficiently at supersonic speeds around Mach 3 (three times the speed of sound) and can operate up to speeds of Mach 6. However, the ramjet efficiency starts to drop when the vehicle reaches hypersonic speeds. A scramjet engine is an improvement over the ramjet engine as it efficiently operates at hypersonic speeds (speed beyond Mach 5) and allows supersonic combustion. Thus, it is known as Supersonic Combustion Ramjet, or Scramjet.

• Statement 3 is correct: Scramjet engines obtain oxygen from the atmosphere by compressing the incoming air before combustion at hypersonic speed. It uses hydrogen as fuel and the oxygen from the atmospheric air as the oxidizer.

• About Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme:

  • The Indian government's introduction of the PLI scheme in 14 key manufacturing sectors is a significant step towards achieving its strategic vision for the manufacturing industry. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

  • With a budget of ₹1.97 lakh crore, the scheme is well-designed to encourage growth and sustainability in the targeted industry through various incentives and support measures.

• Launched in March 2020, the scheme initially targeted three industries:

  • Mobile and allied Component Manufacturing

  • Electrical Component Manufacturing and

  • Medical Devices

• Targeted Sectors:

  • The 14 sectors are mobile manufacturing, manufacturing of medical devices, automobiles and auto components, pharmaceuticals, drugs, specialty steel, telecom & networking products, electronic products, white goods (ACs and LEDs), food products, textile products, solar PV modules, advanced chemistry cell (ACC) battery, and drones and drone components.

• Incentives Under the Scheme:

  • The incentives given, are calculated on the basis of incremental sales.

  • In some sectors such as advanced chemistry cell batteries, textile products and the drone industry, the incentive to be given will be calculated on the basis of sales, performance and local value addition done over the period of five years. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

  • The emphasis on R&D investment will also help the industry keep up with global trends and remain competitive in the international market.

• A content delivery network (CDN) refers to a geographically distributed group of servers which work together to provide fast delivery of Internet content. A CDN allows for the quick transfer of assets needed for loading Internet content including HTML pages, javascript files, stylesheets, images, and videos.

• Statement 1 is incorrect: CDNs aren't a replacement for web hosting. A CDN does not host content and can’t replace the need for proper web hosting, it does help cache content at the network edge, which improves website performance. Many websites struggle to have their performance needs met by traditional hosting services, which is why they opt for CDNs.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: A content delivery network (CDN) reduces the cost of transferring data over internet. It is because it sits between users and the website's hosting servers, or origin servers, thus cutting down on traffic between the hosting servers and the rest of the Internet.

• Statement 3 is correct: The globally distributed nature of a CDN means reduce distance between users and website resources/server. Instead of having to connect to wherever a website’s origin server may live, a CDN lets users connect to a geographically closer data centre. Less travel time means faster service.

• A special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) is a corporation formed for the sole purpose of raising investment capital through an initial public offering (IPO). Such a business structure allows investors to contribute money towards a fund, which is then used to acquire one or more unspecified businesses to be identified after the IPO. Therefore, this sort of shell firm structure is often called a “blank-check company” in popular media.

• Statement a is incorrect: The SPACs are mandated to return money to their investors in the event no merger is made within two years. There is no mandate with respect to return of money to the investors in case of split within a company.

• Statement b is incorrect: Investors in SPACs can range from well-known private equity funds and celebrities to the general public.

• Statement c is incorrect: A special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) is a company that has no commercial operations and is formed strictly to raise capital through an initial public offering (IPO) or the purpose of acquiring or merging with an existing company.

• Statement d is correct: A company can go public through the SPAC route in a matter of months, while the conventional IPO process is an arduous process that take anywhere from six months to more than a year. SPACs gained popularity in 2020 may partly be due to their shorter time frame for going public, as many companies chose to forego conventional IPOs because of the market volatility and uncertainty triggered by the global pandemic.

• Statement 1 is incorrect: The President enjoys personal immunity from legal liability for his official acts. During his term of office, he is immune from any criminal proceedings, even in respect of his personal acts. He cannot be arrested or imprisoned. However, after giving two months’ notice, civil proceedings can be instituted against him during his term of office in respect of his personal acts.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: There is no such provision of getting prior permission of the President of India to arrest a cabinet minister. If Parliament is not in session, a cabinet minister can be arrested by a law enforcement agency in case of a criminal case registered against him. As per Section 22 A of the Rules of Procedures and Conduct of Business of the Rajya Sabha, the Police, Judge or Magistrate would, however, have to intimate the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha about the reason for the arrest, the place of detention or imprisonment in an appropriate form.

• Statement 3 is correct: According to the collective privileges (privileges belonging to each House of Parliament collectively), no person (either a member or outsider) can be arrested, and no legal process (civil or criminal) can be served within the precincts of the House without the permission of the presiding officer.

The Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang visited India during the period of emperor Harsha. The primary aim of the visit of Hiuen Tsang to India was to gain knowledge of Buddhism and collect its religious texts. As he did not get the permission of the Chinese emperor to visit India, he slipped away from there in 629 A.D. He crossed the desert of Gobi, visited several places in Central Asia like Kashagar, Samarkand and Balkha and reached Afghanistan.

Statement 1 is correct: Hiuen tsang wrote a detailed description of India during the reign of Harsha in his book ‘Si-yu-ki’ or ‘Record of the Western Countries’. His description has been accepted as the best available source of knowing the administrative, social and cultural condition of India at that time.

Statement 2 is correct: Hiuen Tsang described that the burden of taxation was not heavy on the subjects; they were free from the oppression of the government servants and were, thus, happy. According to him, the state used to record its every activity.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Hiuen Tsang described the social condition of India in detail. He wrote that caste-system was rigid. There was no purdah-system and women were provided education. However, the practice of sati prevailed. In general, the common people were simple and honest.

Statement 4 is incorrect: Hiuen Tsang informs that the criminals and rebels were very few in number. Hiuen Tsang described that the kingdom was well-governed; it was- free from revolts. But, the crime was there nevertheless. For example, Hiuen Tsang himself suffered in hands of the robbers at some distance from the capital itself. He faced the same misfortune more than once. While in the days of the Guptas, the Chinese traveller Fa-Hien moved freely and suffered no attack, in the days of Harsha, Hiuen Tsang did not find travelling safe.

Answer: B (Indian Bank)

Indian Bank is a bank located in India. It was merged with 3 different banks in order to focus on its core business, which is providing loans and deposits to customers. Indian Bank has been merged with three different banks to focus on its core services of providing loans and deposits. These three banks are the State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, and Syndicate Bank

• Statement 1 is correct: Environmental DNA originates from cellular materials shed by organisms (via skin, excrement, etc.) into aquatic or terrestrial environments that can be sampled and monitored using new molecular methods. Environmental DNA is collected from a variety of environmental samples such as soil, seawater, snow or air rather than directly sampled from an individual organism. Sources of eDNA include faeces, mucus, gametes, shed skin, carcasses and hair.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: Biologists have frequently observed aquatic organisms by sequencing e-DNA from water samples. In aquatic environments, eDNA is diluted and distributed by currents and other hydrological processes, but it only lasts about 7–21 days, depending on environmental conditions. Exposure to UVB radiation, acidity, heat, and endo- and exonucleases can degrade eDNA.

• Statement 3 is correct: eDNA allow for rapid, cost-effective, and standardized collection of data about species distribution and relative abundance. For small, rare, secretive, and other species that are difficult to detect, eDNA provides an attractive alternative for aquatic inventory and monitoring programs. Thus, detection of species using eDNA may improve biodiversity assessments and provide information about status, distribution, and habitat requirements for lesser-known species.

• The Supreme Court will take up for final hearing the petitions challenging the constitutional validity of Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code dealing with the offence of sedition. It is expected that the ambiguity over the validity of Sedition Law (Section 124A) will get settled after the Supreme Court’s Judgment. The law was originally drafted in 1837 by Thomas Macaulay, the British historian-politician, but was inexplicably omitted when the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was enacted in 1860.

• Statement 2 and 5 are correct: The definition of Sedition includes an offence committed when "any person by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the government established by law in India".

• Statement 1, 3 and 4 are incorrect:

  • In P. Alavi vs State of Kerala, 1982, Supreme Court held that sloganeering, criticising Parliament or Judicial setup does not amount to sedition.

  • Sedition law causes inhibition on free speech and is an unreasonable restriction on free expression, a fundamental right. However, violation of dignity of an individual does not attract sedition charges. Sedition offence can be brought if any person try to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the government.

  • In Balwant Singh v State of Punjab,1995, Supreme Court acquitted persons from charges of sedition for shouting slogans such as ‘Khalistan Zindabad’. The Court held that mere raising of slogans by two individuals alone cannot be said as sedition. Further, it is also not considered as an attempt aimed to excite hatred or disaffection against the government.

• The Third Round Table Conference, held between November 17, 1932 and December 24, 1932, was not attended by the Indian National Congress and Gandhi. It was ignored by most other Indian leaders. Only forty-six delegates attended since most of the main political figures of India were not present. The Labour Party from Britain and the Indian National Congress refused to attend.

• Option 1 is correct: British-Indian Representatives: Aga Khan III, B. R. Ambedkar (Depressed Classes separate Electorate), Ramakrishna Ranga Rao of Bobbili, Sir Hubert Carr (Europeans), Nanak Chand Pandit, A. H. Ghuznavi, Henry Gidney (Anglo-Indians), Hafiz Hidayat Hussain, Muhammad Iqbal, M. R. Jayakar, Cowasji Jehangir, N. M. Joshi (Labour), Narasimha Chintaman Kelkar, Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar, Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz (Women).

• Option 2, 3 and 4 are incorrect:

  • Sarojini Naidu participated in Second Round Table Conference and not in Third Round Table Conference. The Gandhi–Irwin Pact opened the way for Congress participation in this conference. Gandhi was invited from India and attended as the sole official Congress representative accompanied by Sarojini Naidu and also Madan Mohan Malaviya, Ghanshyam Das Birla.

  • Annie Besant did not attend any of the Round Table Conference. Besant died on 20 September 1933, at age 85, in Adyar, Madras Presidency, British India.

  • Vijay Laxmi Pandit was the first Indian woman to hold a cabinet post in pre-independent India. In 1937, she was elected to the provincial legislature of the United Provinces and was designated minister of local self-government and public health. She also did not participate in any of the Round Table Conference.

• The middle class played a very important role in the freedom movement. The precondition for the freedom movement is the growth of national consciousness. It was the middle class that played the most vital role in the awakening of national consciousness. The leadership to the Indian National Congress in all its stages of growth was provided by this class.

• Statement 1 is correct: Urbanisation was an important factor responsible for the growth of the middle class. New urban areas and the emergence of cities were seats of government. Persons engaged in government jobs belonged to the new social order known as the middle class.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: In Nineteenth Century India, there was no growth of indigenous industries. On the contrary, India became dependent on exports from foreign nations. Section of people that emerged as the middle class were the products of the administrative and economic policies of the British. By way of elaboration, it may be said that the new landlord (zamindars), money lenders, businessman etc. were the product of the British rule. They may also be described as the agents of the foreign rulers who constituted the middle class.

• Statement 3 is correct: By the middle of the nineteenth century, the colonial rulers had been able to bring a large proportion of Indian territory under their rule. A large number of educated individuals were required to staff these administrative institutions. It was not possible to get all of them from Britain. So, in order to fulfil this need, the British opened schools and colleges in different parts of India, particularly in big cities like Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. This created a native middle class in India.

• An air mass is a large body of air with generally uniform temperature and humidity. The area over which an air mass originates is what provides its characteristics.

• Statement 1 is correct: The motion of air mass is usually based upon the airflow in the upper atmosphere. As the jet stream changes intensity and position, it affects the motion and strength of air masses. Where air masses converge, they form boundaries called "fronts".

• Statement 2 is incorrect: Arctic air masses, designated by the letter 'A', are very cold as they originate over the Arctic or Antarctic regions. Polar air masses, designated by the letter 'P', are not as cold as Arctic air masses as they originate over the higher latitudes of both land and sea and Tropical air masses, designated by the letter 'T', are warm/hot as they originate over the lower latitudes of both land and sea.

• Statement 3 is incorrect: There are two broad overarching divisions of air masses based upon the moisture content. Continental air masses, designated by the lowercase letter 'c', originate over continents are therefore dry air masses. Maritime air masses, designated by the letter 'm', originate over the oceans and are therefore moist air masses.

• The donation of land was a part of Indian tradition, which became popular in c. 700-1200 CE due to changed economic situation. Inscriptions and religious literature mention grants of cultivable land to Brahmins as the best of all types of gifts.

• Statement 1 is incorrect: Agrahara/Mangalam were tax-free villages donated to Brahmins for their resettlement respectively in north and south India. Devadana was land given to temples, monasteries and other religious establishments, both Brahmana and non-Brahmana. The institutions such as Brahmadeyas and temples played an essential role in the development and expansion of the agrarian base, consolidation of state power, peasantisation of Shudras, and social differentiation.

• Statement 2 is correct: The land-grants brought fundamental changes in the rights to land. In ancient India, king and farmer had rights over the land, but in the early medieval period, the intermediary rights were created through land-grants. Land-grants destroyed community rights to land. They transformed the community and communal property into feudal property, which affected the means and process of production, leading to the subjection of the peasantry. The individual rights to land developed at the cost of communal agrarian rights.

Statement 1 and 2 are correct & Statement 3 is incorrect:

• Article 6 of the UN Charter allows the UN General Assembly to expel a country, on the recommendation of the UN Security Council, if the country has persistently violated the principles reflected in the UN Charter. Likewise, Article 5 of the UN Charter allows for the suspension of a country from UN membership.

• Article XXVI (2) of the Articles of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) envisages suspension and expulsion of a member country if it fails to meet its obligations under the IMF Articles. In the IMF terminology, this is called ‘compulsory withdrawal’.

• SAARC do not contain any provision on expulsion or suspension of its member countries.

• The State Finance Commission was created by the 73rd and 74th Constitutional (Amendment) Acts. SFCs were created to review the financial position of the panchayats and municipal corporations, and to make recommendations to the Governor.

• Statement 1 is incorrect: 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act (1992) makes it mandatory for constitution of a State Finance Commission after every five years to review the financial position of the panchayats.

• Statement 2 is incorrect: Constitution of India does not provide for the appointment and tenure of chairperson of the State Finance Commission. It is regulated by respective state legislation.

• Statement 3 is correct: A State Finance Commission reviews the financial position of the panchayats in a state and makes recommendations to the Governor about the principles that should govern the distribution of tax proceeds. Under Article 243-I of the Indian Constitution, the governor of a state ensures the laying of a State Finance Commission’s recommendations to the table of the state legislature. It also includes a memorandum of action taken by the government on the Commission’s report.