Government & Administration - Solved Questions (2018-2024)

Ans: (b)

• 'Home Guards' is a voluntary force, first raised in India in December 1946, to assist the police in controlling civil disturbance and communal riots.
• Subsequently, the concept of the voluntary citizen's force was adopted by several States. In the wake of Chinese aggression in 1962, the Centre advised the States and Union Territories to merge their existing voluntary organisation into one uniform voluntary force known as Home Guards.
• Home Guards are raised under the Home Guards Act and Rules of the States/Union Territories, NOT the Central Government. Hence statement 1 is NOT correct.
• The role of Home Guards is to serve as an auxiliary Force to the Police in maintenance of internal security situations, help the community in any kind of emergency such as an air-raid, fire, cyclone, earthquake, epidemic etc., help in maintenance of essential services, promote communal harmony and assist the administration in protecting weaker sections, participate in socio-economic and welfare activities and perform Civil Defence duties. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Fifteen Border Wing Home Guards (BWHG) Battalions have been raised in the border States viz. Punjab (6 Bns.), Rajasthan ( 4 Bns.), Gujarat (2 Bns.) and one each Battalion for Meghalaya, Tripura and West Bengal to serve as an auxiliary to Border Security Force for preventing infiltration on the international border/ coastal areas, guarding of VA/VPs and lines of communication in vulnerable area at the time of external aggression. Hence statement 3 is correct.

Ans: (c)
Statistics on industrial disputes, closures, retrenchments and lay-offs in India is an annual publication of the Labour Bureau which is an attached office under the Ministry of Labour and Employment. Hence, option (c) is correct.
Labour Bureau:

• Labour Bureau, an attached office under the Ministry of Labour and Employment, was set up on 1st October 1946.
• Labour Bureau collects and publishes statistics and related information on wages, earnings, productivity, absenteeism, labour turnover, industrial relations, working and living conditions and evaluation of working of various labour enactments etc. Besides important economic indicators like Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial, Agricultural and Rural Labourers; wage rate indices and data on industrial relations, socio-economic conditions in the organised and unorganised sector of industry etc are also released by the office.

Ans: (a)
Coal Controller Organisation: Office of Coal Controller (earlier Coal Commissioner), established in 1916, is one of the oldest offices in Indian Coal sector. Main aim behind setting up this office was to have Government control to adequately meet the coal requirement during First World War.
Functions of Coal Controller's Organisation are listed as below:

• Inspection of collieries so as to ensure the correctness of the class, grade or size of coal. To issue directives for the purpose of declaration and maintenance of grades of coal of a seam mined in a colliery.
• Assessment and collection of excise duty levied on all raw coal raised and dispatched. Submission of monthly coal data to different ministries of Central and State Government, national and international organization. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Under Coal Bearing Area (Acquisition and Development) Act, 1957- Coal Controller is the competent authority under this act to hear any objection to the Central Government's Notification relating to acquisition of coal bearing land and to furnish his reports to Central Govt. Hence, Statement 3 is correct.
• The Coal Controller's Organisation monitors progress of development of Captive Coal/Lignite Blocks and their associated end-use projects. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• It does not ensure that coal mining company deliver the coal to end user in prescribed time. Hence, statement 4 is not correct.

Ans: (d)
India Sanitation Coalition:

• India Sanitation Coalition was formed under the aegis of FICCI.
• The vision of the Coalition is to enable and support an ecosystem for sustainable sanitation through a partnership mode. Hence statement 1 is not correct.

National Institute of Urban Affairs:

• Established in 1976, the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) is India's leading national think tank on urban planning and development.
• As a hub for the generation and dissemination of cutting-edge research in the urban sector, NIUA seeks to provide innovative solutions to address the challenges of a fast urbanizing India, and pave the way for more inclusive and sustainable cities of the future.
• In 1976, NIUA was appointed as an apex body to support and guide the Government of India in its urban development plans. Since then, it has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, alongside other government and civil sectors, to identify key areas of research, and address the lacunae in urban policy and planning. NIUA is associated with MoHUA but not the apex body of MoHUA. Hence, Statement 2 is not correct.

Ans: (d)

• Tea Board is functioning as a statutory body of the Central Government.Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• It comes under the Ministry of Commerce. Hence, statement 2 is not correct
• The Board is constituted of 31 members (including Chairman) drawn from Members of Parliament, tea producers, tea traders, tea brokers, consumers, and representatives of Governments from the principal tea producing states, and trade unions. The Board is reconstituted every three years.
• Foreign Offices: Currently Tea Board has two overseas offices located at Dubai, and Moscow. All these foreign offices of the Board are designed to undertake the various promotional measures to boost up export of Indian tea. These offices also act as a liaison office for interaction between importers of Indian tea of the respective regions as well as Indian Exporters. Hence, statement 4 is correct.
• Its headquarters is situated in Kolkata. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

Correct Answer is Option (d)

• The Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006 recognizes the rights of the forest dwelling tribal communities and other traditional forest dwellers to forest resources, on which these communities were dependent for a variety of needs, including livelihood, habitation and other socio-cultural needs. The forest management policies, including the Acts, Rules and Forest Policies of Participatory Forest Management policies in both colonial and post-colonial India, did not, till the enactment of this Act, recognize the symbiotic relationship of the STs with the forests, reflected in their dependence on the forest as well as in their traditional wisdom regarding conservation of the forests.
• The Ministry of the Central Government dealing with Tribal Affairs or any officer or authority authorised by the Central Government on this behalf shall be the nodal agency for the implementation of the provisions of this Act. Hence, option (d) is correct.

Correct Answer is Option (a)

• The court exercises control over delegation of discretionary powers to the administration by adjudicating upon the constitutionality of the law under which such powers are delegated with reference to the fundamental rights enunciated in Part III of the Indian Constitution. Therefore, if the law confers vague and wide discretionary power on any administrative authority, it may be declared ultra vires Article 14, Article 19 and other provisions of the Constitution.
• Article 14 of the Constitution guarantees equality before law but the courts have permitted reasonable classification to be made. Where the law is valid under the article, a discriminatory action would still be violative of the equality clause.
• Hence, option (a) is correct.
• Also, by elimination, Art. 28, and Art.44 are unrelated to the question and Art. 44 is to protect the FR of the citizens.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

• Statement 1 is correct: Under Article 128 of the Constitution, the Chief Justice of India may, at any time, with the previous consent of the President, request any person who has held the office of a Judge of the Supreme Court to sit and act as a Judge of the Supreme Court.
• Statement 2 is correct: Being A Court Of Record, High Court can review its own judgments under Article 226 Of the Constitution. The Kerala High Court has iterated the legal proposition that High Courts as Courts of Record could review their own orders. A Division Bench of Chief Justice S. Manikumar and Shaji P. Chaly were confronted with an appeal against a review petition.

Correct Answer is Option (d)

• The core element of constitutional government is, the existence of a "Rule-of Law" or set of "basic laws" that binds both public office-holders and all members of a society (i.e. citizens) within a given territory. Presently most states avail of a constitution, which directs the organization of the state, the relations between the public offices within the state, as well the human and civil rights of the individual.

Correct Answer is Option (d)

Bureaucrats are appointed by the President / Governor of India for implementing the policies of the government of the day. Other options are less suitable.

Correct Answer is Option (d)

• According to the Constitution of India, anyone who can vote is eligible to be appointed as a minister in a State, even if they are not a member of the State Legislature.
• This person must be elected to the Legislature within six months after their appointment.
• It is essential to know that a person must be at least 25 years old to be a member of the State Legislature, which is a different requirement.
• Therefore, Statement 1 is not correct.

• Section 8 of the Representation of People Act (RPA), 1951 lists the reasons someone can be disqualified from running for elections.
• A person who has been convicted of a serious crime and sentenced to imprisonment for five years or more cannot run for elections while serving their sentence.
• However, this disqualification is not permanent.
• After getting out of prison, the person can run for elections once they have finished their sentence, and the disqualification will end.
• Thus, Statement 2 is NOT correct.
• Both statements about the eligibility of becoming a minister and the disqualification of a convicted person from contesting elections are incorrect, leading to the answer being 4) Neither 1 nor 2.

Correct Answer is Option (a,c)

• Article 85 of the Indian Constitution empowers the President to summon each house of the Parliament at such time and place as he thinks fit. (Hence, 1st statement is correct)
• The Constitution of India does not mention the anything about the number of Parliamentary sessions in a year. (Hence, 2nd statement is incorrect)
• There is some ambiguity in the 3rd statement.
• If the UPSC interprets it in a narrow and literal sense, then exact number of days for which the Parliament is supposed to meet in a year is not mentioned in the Constitution and hence, 3rd statement is correct.
• However, if we interpret the question in a broader manner, then Article 85 of the Indian Constitution mentions that 6 months shall not intervene the 2 sessions of the Parliament. Interpreting this clause, it essentially means that Parliament has to meet at least for 2 days in a year to prevent the violation of Article 85. In such a scenario, 3rd statement is incorrect.

Correct Answer is Option (b)

• Article 312: With regards to the creation of All India Services, Rajya Sabha has special powers such that if Rajya Sabha is passing a resolution by a majority of 2/3rd of the members present and voting, Parliament may, by law, create one or more All India Services in national interest. So A is wrong.
• Article 75(3) hold the government collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha. Hence, in this regards, Lok Sabha has greater power as compared to Rajya Sabha. So C is wrong.
• Cut Motions, which are meant to reduce the amount allocated to the ministries in the demand for grants, can be made only in Lok Sabha. Rajya Sabha can only make recommendations with regards to the cut motion. So d is wrong. Article 368 of the Indian Constitution, a bill to amend the Constitution can be introduced in either house of the Parliament and both the houses have equal powers in respect to the Constitutional Amendment Bill. So b is right.

Correct Answer is Option (d)

In India, the constitutional government is a limited government. The powers of the government are limited by means of the Fundamental Rights enshrined in the Part-III of the Indian Constitution, that are essentially given to us against the state actions.

Correct Answer is Option (b)

• During the Expansionary Money / Cheap Money /Dovish Monetary Policy, RBI will try to increase the supply of money and/or reduce the loan interest rates.
• So reducing the SLR, bank rate and repo rate will help in that regard. So, RBI may do 1 and 3. So, here question is asking, "WHAT RBI WILL NOT DO?" So, Option a, c and d are eliminated. we are left with answer b: Only 2.
• Increasing the MSF will raise the loan interest rates, so, if RBI pursues Expansionary policy, it'll not do it.
• Some candidates engage in hair splittery (बाल की खाल निकलना), that under the external benchmark system, loans are linked with repo rate so #2 unlikely to have any impact. But such hair splittery is not required for the scope of exam.

Correct Answer is Option (a)

• "Article 31B along with the Ninth Schedule was added by the 1st Constitutional Amendment Act of 1951 to reduce the scope of Judicial review in the matters of land reforms and Zamindari-Abolition. Originally (in 1951), the Ninth Schedule contained only 13 acts and regulations but at present (in 2016) their number is 282."
• So, if it was made the 50s, then it must be the Prime Minister Nehru.

Correct Answer is Option (a)

If 'Office of Profit' was well defined in Constitution, then there wouldn't have been controversies related to AAP-MLAs' disqualification (2018-Jan), and Kejriwal & Co. wouldn't have been running from pillar to post between EC and SC to prevent their disqualification. So, #3 is wrong, and by elimination we are left with Answer A:1 and 2 only.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

• Governor can address the state legislature at the commencement of the first session after each general election and the first session of each year. So #1 is right.
• Article 208 of the Constitution: A House of the Legislature of a State may make rules for regulating subject to the provisions of this Constitution, its procedure and the conduct of its business. Thus, it's not mandated in the Constitution for the State legislature to (ALWAYS) follow/ copy the rules of Lok Sabha. So, #2 is wrong. Thus, answer A: only 1.
• Counterview: As per IndianExpress Article in 2016-September, second statement is correct so answer should be C: Both 1 and 2.
• Final verdict: UPSC official Answer key says "C: both statements are correct".

Correct Answer is Option (c)

Centre-State relations:

• While selecting Governors, the Central Government should adopt the following strict guidelines as recommended in the Sarkaria Commission report: He should be a detached figure and not too intimately connected with the local politics of the states.

Correct Answer is Option (a)

• Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission was setup for a limited time period under Justice B.N. Srikrishna's chairmanship. And its mandate did not include reviewing the electricity regulator. #4 is wrong. Similar reason eliminates Finance Commission (#3) which is setup periodically for the tax distribution between Union and States. Thus B and C are eliminated. 
• NITI Ayog is a think tank and policy advisor for the Government. Yes, it reviews development work in the Aspirational districts and SDG implementation across India but reviewing independent regulators is not under its purview. So, #5 is wrong. This eliminates D. Thus by elimination, we are left with Answer A: only 1 and 2.

Correct Answer is Option (d)

• Historically speaking, the term liberty was initially defined as absence of all restraints on an individual. This is known as the negative concept of liberty. Early liberalism championed negative liberty. John Stuart Mill, the nineteenth century English political philosopher, described, "Restraint as an evil". So, (d) is appropriate. 
• However, after the examination, many of the coaching classes felt that answer should be "b" based on another interpretation by D. D. Basu. But as per the official UPSC Answer key, correct answer is "d".

Correct Answer is Option (b)

2 only

• The results of the first general election did not surprise anyone...Congress party won 364 of the 489 seats in the first Lok Sabha and finished way ahead of any other challenger. The Communist Party of India that came next in terms of seats won only 16 seats. [NCERT Class12: Politics in India since Independence, p30]. So, statement#1 is wrong
• In the remaining options b and c, both contain statement#2, so as such we've to accept it as true, and no need to waste time finding proofs, Nonetheless, to satiate the curiosity: It was Ram Subhag Singh- who became the first leader of opposition in Lok Sabha in 1969. Ref: Indian Express
• In each House of Parliament, there is the 'Leader of the Opposition'. The leader of the largest Opposition party having not less than one-tenth seats of the total strength of the House is recognized as the leader of the Opposition in that House. maximum strength of the Lok Sabha is fixed at 552 so minimum 10% doesn't translate to 75 in any case. Hence statement#3 is wrong, by elimination, we get Answer (b)

Correct Answer is Option (b)

• Committee on government assurances- checks the assurances, promises and undertakings given by ministers from time to time on the floor of the House and reports on the extent to which they have been carried through. In the Lok Sabha, it consists of 15 members and in the Rajya Sabha, it consists of 10 members. It was constituted in 1953.
• Committee on Subordinate legislation examines and reports to the House whether the powers to make regulations, rules, sub-rules and bye-laws delegated by the Parliament or conferred by the Constitution to the Executive are being properly exercised by it. In both the Houses, the committee consists of 15 members. It was constituted in 1953.
• Rules committee considers the matters of procedure and conduct of business in the House and recommends necessary amendments or additions to the rules of the House. The Lok Sabha committee consists of 15 members including the Speaker as its ex-officio chairman. In the Rajya Sabha, it consists of 16 members including the Chairman as its ex-officio chairman
• Business advisory committee regulates the programme and time table of the House. It allocates time for the transaction of legislative and other business brought before the House by the government. The Lok Sabha committee consists of 15 members including the Speaker as its chairman. In the Rajya Sabha, it has 11 members including the Chairman as its ex-officio chairman.
  

Correct Answer is Option (c)

• Article 110(1)(A): a Bill shall be deemed to be a Money Bill if it contains provision related to relating to imposition, abolition, remission, alteration or regulation of any tax.
• Article 110(1)(c): the custody of the Consolidated Fund or the Contingency Fund of India, the payment of moneys into or the withdrawal of moneys from any such Fund.
• Article 110(1)(g) any matter incidental to any of the matters specified in sub-clauses (a) to (f) depending on how you interpret these provisions, it is difficult to outline any of the given statement as a wrong statement. But, UPSC has kept 'C' as the official answer.

Correct Answer is Option (a)

Statement 1- Correct: Value of 1 MLA's vote is based on total population of state to be divided by the total MLAs. Hence it ought to vary from state to state. Statement 2- vaguely worded, and open to multiple interpretation: Interpretation 2(i): While the value of an MLA's vote depends on the population of the state he or she belongs to, the value of an MP's vote remains the same at 708 so statement#2 is wrong. However if you interpret it as 'collective' value then LS has more seats than RS, the (collective) value of vote of MPs of LS > RS then #2 should be right. Accordingly, experts were divided over answer A or C. UPSC has also kept 'A' as the official answer.

Correct Answer is Option (a)

• The Speaker is elected by the assembly itself from amongst its members. Usually, the Speaker remains in office during the life of the assembly. However, he vacates his office earlier in any of the following three cases: 1. if he ceases to be a member of the assembly..... So statement#1 is right.
• Constitution of India, Art 179: "...Provided further that, whenever the Assembly is dissolved, the Speaker shall not vacate his office until immediately before the first meeting of the Assembly after the dissolution." So, statement#2 is wrong.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

• Governor 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 imprisone(d)
• His emoluments and allowances cannot be diminished during his term of office. Thus both statements are right.

Correct Answer is Option (b)

The President's Rule can be proclaimed under Article 356... He can declare that the powers of the state legislature are to be exercised by the Parliament. So "B" is the right answer.