APSC CCE Prelims Mock Test - 2 - APSC CCE (Assam) MCQ

Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi took over as the Vice Chief of the Indian Army on February 6, 2024. His promotion is significant as it positions him as a frontrunner for the Army Chief role following General Manoj Pande's retirement in May 2024.

The underwater canyon uncovered by Israeli scientists is named Eratosthenes. This geological feature provides insights into ancient geological events that occurred approximately 5.5 million years ago, highlighting the dynamic history of the Mediterranean region.

Ishwari Prasad Namboodiri was honored with the Shankar Smriti Award, recognizing his contributions as the chief priest of Badrinath Dham. The award celebrates individuals who have made significant contributions to their communities and cultures.

On February 6, 1819, Singapore was discovered by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles. This event marked the beginning of Singapore's development as an important trading port and eventually as a sovereign nation.

February 6 is designated as the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation. This day aims to raise awareness and advocate for the eradication of this practice, which poses health risks and violates the rights of women and girls.

U.U. Lalit joined K.R. Mangalam University as an Eminent Jurist and Distinguished Professor. His appointment is significant as he brings extensive legal expertise and experience, particularly from his tenure as Chief Justice of India.

The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment Bill, 2024, aims to strengthen regulations for pollution prevention and control in water resources. This amendment is part of India's broader efforts to address environmental challenges and ensure sustainable water management.

REC Limited was awarded the Best Green Bond - Corporate Award at The Asset Triple A Awards for Sustainable Finance 2024. This recognition highlights the company's commitment to promoting sustainable financing and green initiatives.

PM Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation for projects worth Rs 11,000 crores in Assam. These projects focus on enhancing sports and medical infrastructure, as well as improving connectivity in the region, which is crucial for economic development.

February 2 is celebrated as World Wetlands Day, which aims to raise awareness about the importance of wetlands for biodiversity and sustainable management of natural resources. The day commemorates the signing of the Ramsar Convention in 1971.

Anna Chandy was appointed as the first woman judge of the Kerala High Court in 1959. Her appointment marked a significant milestone in the history of the Indian judiciary, paving the way for future generations of female judges.

Ranveer Singh joined boAt as a stakeholder and brand ambassador for the brand's audio products. This collaboration aims to leverage his popularity to enhance the brand's visibility and market presence in the lifestyle electronics segment.

The theme for World Cancer Day 2024 was "Close the Care Gap," emphasizing the need for equitable access to cancer care for all individuals, regardless of their background or circumstances. This theme aims to address disparities in cancer treatment and support.

Features of national water grid:

• Statement 1 is correct. The Inter-Linking of Rivers programme aims to connect various surplus rivers with deficient rivers.

• The idea is to divert excess water from surplus regions to deficient regions to help improve irrigation,

• Increase water for drinking and industrial use, and mitigate drought and floods to an extent.

• It is a large-scale engineering proposal for the management of water resources in India by the interlinking of the Indian rivers through networks of reservoir and canals.

• Redistribution of water

• Statement 2 is correct. Hydropower generation Irrigation Facilities

Statement 3 is incorrect. Groundwater recharge is not one of the explicitly stated objectives of the National water grid project.

• In economics, we often distinguish between quantities that are stocks and those that are flows. These differ in their units of measurement. A stock is measured at one specific time and represents a quantity existing at that point in time, which may have accumulated in the past. A flow variable is measured over an interval of time. Therefore, a flow would be measured per unit of time (say a year). Flow is roughly analogous to rate or speed in this sense.

• For example, Indian nominal gross domestic product refers to the total number of dollars spent over a time period, such as a year. Therefore, it is a flow variable and has units of dollars/year. In contrast, India's nominal capital stock is the total value, in dollars, of equipment, buildings, and other real productive assets in the U.S. economy, and has units of dollars. Hence flows are defined over a period of time and stocks are defined at a particular point of time. Hence statement 1 is correct.

• An item that is meant for final use and will not pass through any more stages of production or transformations is called a final good. Of the final goods, we can distinguish between consumption goods and capital goods. Goods like food and clothing and services like recreation that are consumed when purchased by their ultimate consumers are called consumption goods.

• There are other goods that are of a durable character that is used in the production process. These are tools, implements, and machines. While they make the production of other commodities feasible, they themselves don’t get transformed in the production process. These goods form a part of capital, which continue to enable the production process to go on for continuous cycles of production. These are called Capital goods. That part of our final output that comprises of capital goods constitutes gross investment of an economy. These may be machines, tools and implements; buildings, office spaces, storehouses or infrastructure like roads, bridges, airports or jetties. Hence statements 2 and 3 are correct.

• The continent of Asia produces more than half of the world’s tin. Hence statement 1 is correct.

• China, Malaysia, and Indonesia are among the world’s leading tin producers. China also leads in the production of lead, antimony, and tungsten. Asia also has deposits of manganese, bauxite, nickel, zinc, and copper.

• Australia is the largest producer of bauxite in the world. It is a leading producer of gold, diamond, iron ore, tin, and nickel. It is also rich in copper, lead, zinc, and manganese. Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie areas of western Australia have the largest deposits of gold. Hence statement 2 is not correct.

Mesopotamian texts use –

• Magan for Oman

• Meluhha for Harappan Region

• Dilmun for island of Bahrain

Statement 2 is correct. Copper was procured by the Harappan Civilization from Oman, on the south- eastern tip of Arabian Peninsula.

Shortughai was a harappan site near Afghanistan, near the best source of Lapis Lazuli, a blue stone that was apparently very highly valued.

Statement 3 is correct. Harappans communicated with Oman, Bahrain or Mesopotamia by sea. Mesopotamian texts refer to Meluhha as a land of seafarers. Besides, depictions of ships and boats are found on seals.

The Barbarua position was created during the rule of Pratap Singha, making option A the correct answer. Pratap Singha was an Ahom king who reigned from 1603 to 1641, and he established the position of the Barbarua, which became a significant administrative and influential role in the Ahom Kingdom.

Statement 1 is incorrect. Originally, the Constitution of India did not make any provision with respect to the Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities Later, the States Reorganisation Commission (1953-55) made a recommendation in this regard.

The Seventh Constitutional Amendment Act of 1956 inserted a new Article 350-B in Part XVII of the Constitution.

This article contains the following provisions:

1) There should be a Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities. He is to be appointed by the President of India.

2) It would be the duty of the Special Officer to investigate all matters relating to the safeguards provided for linguistic minorities under theConstitution. He would report to the President upon those matters at such intervals as the President may direct. The President should place all such reports before each House of Parliament and send them to the governments of the states concerned.

Statement 2 is incorrect. The Constitution does not specify the qualifications, tenure, salaries and allowances, service conditions and procedure for removal of the Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities.

The independence of judiciary means that;

• The organs of the government like the executive and legislature must not restrain the functioning of the judiciary in such a way that it is unable to do justice.

• The Judges must be able to perform their functions without fear or favour. Hence, Statement 1 is correct.

• The other organs of the government should not interfere with the decision of the judiciary. Hence, Statement 2 is correct.

• Independence of the judiciary does not imply arbitrariness or absence of accountability. Hence, Statement 3 is incorrect.

Judiciary is a part of the democratic political structure of the country. It is therefore accountable to the Constitution, to the democratic traditions and to the people of the country.

The Indian National Satellite System (INSAT) series consists of a group of multipurpose geostationary satellites launched by ISRO to provide telecommunication, broadcasting, meteorology, and search-and-rescue services in India.

However, the venture is its own entity, separate from the participants' other business interests.

Example: Boeing and Tata Advanced Systems have a joint venture company, Tata Boeing Aerospace (TBAL), Kalyani Rafael Advanced Systems (KRAS), a joint venture between Kalyani Strategic Systems Ltd. and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. of Israel.

Mergers are a way for companies to expand their reach, expand into new segments, or gain market share. · The five major types of mergers are conglomerate, congeneric, market extension, horizontal, and vertical. · Example: Vodafone – Idea merger

Barpeta Satra, being a Vaishnavite monastery, primarily observes festivals associated with the Vaishnavite tradition, such as Rassleela, Doul Utsav (also known as Holi), and Krishna Janmashtami, which commemorate the life, teachings, and divine plays of Lord Krishna. Shivratri, which is primarily dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiva, is not typically celebrated in Vaishnavite Satras like Barpeta Satra.

To every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This is the newton’s third law of motion.

Saptakanda Ramayana is a version of the Ramayana written in Assamese, not in the Pali language. It is known for portraying Rama, Sita, and other characters as non-heroic figures, deviating from the traditional portrayal of these characters as ideal heroes. However, the purpose of the book being written for religious reasons is not specifically a defining characteristic of the Saptakanda Ramayana. Therefore, only statement II is correct among the options provided.

• Statement 1 is incorrect: In December 1999, the Parliament had passed the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act,1999. This Act seeks to provide for the registration and better protection of geographical indications relating to goods in India. It confers legal protection to Geographical Indications in India and prevents unauthorised use of a Registered Geographical Indication by others.The Act would be administered by the ‘Controller General of Patents, Designs and TradeMarks’ - who is the Registrar of Geographical Indications.

• Statement 2 is correct: GIs have been defined under Article 22(1) of the WTO Agreement of TRIPS (Trade Related aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) Agreement as: "Indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a member, or a region or a locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographic origin." Thus, GI tag is internationally recognised. Some recent GI tags are - Kandhamal Haldi (Odisha), Rasagola (Odisha), Sirsi Supari (Karnataka), Erode Turmeric (Tamil Nadu), Marayoor Jaggery (Tamil Nadu), Shahi Litchi (Bihar) etc.

Bimbisara founded the city of Rajgriha, north of Girivarj, during his reign as the king of the Magadhan Empire.

• Nadir Shah had risen from a shepherd boy to Shah (King) by saving Persia from sure decline and disintegration. In 1729 he won back Herat after defeating the Abdalis and expelling the Ghalzais from Isfahan and central and southern Persia. After long and bitter warfare he compelled Turkey to give back all conquered territory. In 1735, he signed a treaty with Russia receiving back all seized territory. Next year, he deposed the last of the Safavi rulers and made himself the Shah. In the following years, he reconquered the province of Qandahar.

• Nadir Shah was attracted to India by the fabulous wealth for which it was always famous. He entered Indian territory towards the end of 1738, without meeting with any opposition. He attacked Delhi in March 1739. His army easily defeated the Mughals at the Battle of Karnal. The greedy invader took possession of the royal treasury and other royal property, levied tribute on the leading nobles, and plundered the rich of Delhi. His total plunder has been estimated at 70 crores of rupees. He also carried away the famous Koh-i-nur diamond and the jewel-studded Peacock Throne of Shahjahan. He compelled Muhammad Shah to cede to him all the provinces of the Empire west of the river Indus.

• After Muhammad Shah’s death in 1748, bitter struggles and even civil war took out among unscrupulous and power-hungry nobles. Furthermore, as a result of the weakening of the north-western defenses, the Empire was devastated by the repeated invasions of Ahmed Shah Abdali, one of Nadir Shah's ablest generals, who had succeeded in establishing his authority over Afghanistan after his master's death. Abdali repeatedly invaded and plundered northern India right down to Delhi and Mathura between 1748 and 1767. In 1761, he defeated the Marathas in the Third Battle of Panipat and thus gave a big blow to their ambition of controlling the Mughal Emperor and thereby dominating the country,

• As a result of the invasions of Nadir Shah and Abdali and the suicidal internal feuds of the Mughal nobility, the Mughal Empire had by 1761 ceased to exist in practice as an all-India Empire. It remained merely as the Kingdom of Delhi. Shah Alam II, who ascended the throne in 1759, spent the initial years as an Emperor wandering from place to place far away from his capital, for he lived in mortal fear of his own wazir. He was a man of some ability and ample courage. But the Empire was by now beyond redemption. In 1764, he joined Mir Qasim of Bengal and Shuja-ud-Daula of Avadh in declaring war upon the English East India Company. Defeated by the British at the Battle of Buxar, he lived for several years at Allahabad as a pensioner of the East India Company.

• NOTE: Tipu Sultan was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India and a pioneer of rocket artillery. He introduced a number of administrative innovations during his rule, including a new coinage system and calendar, and a new land revenue system which initiated the growth of the Mysore silk industry. In the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War, a combined force of British East India Company troops supported by the Marathas & the Nizam of Hyderabad defeated Tipu. He was killed on 4 May 1799 while defending his stronghold of Seringapatam.

Hence, option (c) is the correct answer.

• In addition to original and appellate jurisdiction, the Supreme Court of India possesses advisory jurisdiction also. This means that the President of India can refer any matter that is of public importance or that involves interpretation of the Constitution to Supreme Court for advice. So, statement 1 is correct.

• However, the Supreme Court is not bound to advise on such matters, and the President is not bound to accept such advice. So, statement 2 is not correct.

• The utility of advisory jurisdiction is two-fold. In the first place, it allows the government to seek legal opinion on a matter of importance before taking action on it. This may prevent unnecessary litigations later. Secondly, in the light of the advice of the Supreme Court, the government can make suitable changes in its action or legislation.

  Therefore option (b) is the answer.

Ligament, tendon, and blood are examples of connective tissues. Ligaments connect bone to bone, tendons connect muscle to bone, and blood is a type of connective tissue.