Haryana Civil Services Mock Test - 9 - HPSC (Haryana) MCQ

The Election Commission of India (ECI) is the autonomous constitutional authority that oversees and administers elections for the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and State Legislative Assemblies. Established on January 25, 1950, it plays a crucial role in ensuring free and fair elections across the country.

The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and other Election Commissioners have a fixed tenure of six years, or until they reach the age of 65, whichever comes first. This ensures that while they have a substantial period to carry out their duties, they are also subject to a reasonable age limit.

Article 324 of the Indian Constitution vests the superintendence, direction, and control of elections in the Election Commission. This article is fundamental in establishing the ECI's authority and responsibilities in conducting elections in India.

January 25th is celebrated as National Voters’ Day in India. It commemorates the establishment of the Election Commission of India in 1950 and aims to encourage and facilitate voting among citizens, enhancing electoral participation.

Approximately 15% of the members in the 17th Lok Sabha (2019-2024) are women. This figure highlights the ongoing gender disparity in Indian politics, despite efforts to increase female representation through initiatives like the Women's Reservation Act.

The Women’s Reservation Act, 2023, reserves one-third (33%) of all seats for women in the Lok Sabha, State Legislative Assemblies, and the Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. This historic measure aims to enhance women's political representation.

One of the key roles of the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) is to prepare monthly environmental reports for their respective areas. This is part of their broader mandate to monitor and address various environmental issues, including air and water quality.

Since the formation of Haryana in 1966, only 87 women have been elected to the Assembly. This reflects a significant gender disparity in political representation within the state, emphasizing the need for continued efforts to promote women's participation in politics.

Article 325 ensures that no person is ineligible for inclusion in the electoral rolls on the grounds of religion, race, caste, or sex. This provision is crucial for promoting equality and inclusivity in the electoral process.

The President of India appoints the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners. This process underscores the independence of the Election Commission, allowing it to function free from political interference.

The Election Commissioner Amendment Act, 1989 transformed the Election Commission from a single-member body into a multimember body, allowing for a Chief Election Commissioner and additional Election Commissioners, thereby enhancing its operational capacity and independence.

The recent initiatives by the Election Commission of India in Haryana focus on real-time monitoring of campaign finances, ensuring transparency and accountability in the election process. This is essential for maintaining the integrity of elections and preventing corrupt practices.

The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) at the state level assists the Election Commission in conducting elections. The CEO plays a pivotal role in implementing election-related policies, ensuring smooth electoral processes, and managing administrative tasks at the state level.

The rotation of seats allocated for women under the Women's Reservation Act, 2023 will be governed by parliamentary legislation after each delimitation process. This ensures that women can have equitable opportunities across various constituencies over time.

The Chief Secretary of Haryana directed the State Pollution Control Board to enhance pollution reporting mainly due to concerns over air pollution, particularly during winter months in the National Capital Region (NCR). This highlights the critical need for coordinated efforts to monitor and combat air quality issues effectively.

The recent farmer unrest in Haryana is largely attributed to the evolving dynamics of the state's agrarian economy, which has faced significant economic challenges. These challenges include low agricultural income and employment issues, as highlighted by the changes in the Gross State Value Addition (GSVA) and workforce participation in agriculture.

Haryana is known for its high productivity levels in key crops, particularly rice and wheat. The state's yields often exceed national averages, making it a significant contributor to India's agricultural output. This high productivity is a result of favorable climatic conditions and advanced farming techniques.

The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) focuses on measuring the employment and unemployment situation in India. It provides vital statistics such as the Worker Population Ratio, Labour Force Participation Rate, and Unemployment Rate, which are essential for understanding labor market dynamics.

• The Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cards provide long-term visa-free travel and stay in India and gives the cardholders a host of privileges normally not given to a foreign national. Hence statement 1 is correct.

• With the new notification, an OCI cardholder will now have to take special permission to undertake research work. The Notification also permits OCI cardholders eligible for appearing in all-India entrance tests such as NEET for medical courses, JEE — both Main and Advanced — for engineering or any other tests. However, this will only be against any NRI or supernumerary seat that is over and above the sanctioned intake approved by the appropriate authority and government, from time to time. Hence statement 2 is correct

Swaminathan. It was started in India in 1966.

Statement 1 is correct. The rich peasants and the large landholders were the major beneficiaries of the process.

The green revolution delivered only a moderate agricultural growth (mainly a rise in wheat production) and raised the availability of food in the country, but increased polarization between classes and regions. Some regions like Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh became agriculturally prosperous, while others remained backward.

Statement 2 is incorrect. The green revolution had two other effects: one was that in many parts, the stark contrast between the poor peasantry and the landlords produced conditions favorable for leftwing organizations to organize the poor peasants. Secondly, the green revolution also resulted in the rise of what is called the middle peasant sections. These were farmers with medium size holdings, who benefited from the changes and soon emerged politically influential in many parts of the country.

Prime Minister is the leader of the Lower House. In this capacity, he enjoys the following powers:

• He advises President with regard to summoning and proroguing of the sessions of the Parliament

• He recommends dissolution of Lok Sabha to the President at any time

• He announces government policies on floor of the house.

• World Hindi Day or Vishwa Hindi Divas is celebrated every year on January 10th to mark the first World Hindi Conference that was held in Nagpur on January 10 in 1975.

• In 2006, former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh declared that January 10 will be observed as World Hindi Day every year.

National Hindi Divas

• India also celebrates National Hindi Divas on September 14th.

• It, however, is different from World Hindi Day as National Hindi Divas is celebrated to commemorate the adoption of Hindi as an official language of India by the

• Constituent Assembly. Hence statement 1 is incorrect.

  • The Constituent Assembly of India accepted Hindi, written in Devanagari script, as the official language of India on September 14th, 1949, under Article 343 of the Indian Constitution.

Eighth Schedule

The Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India lists the official languages of the Republic of India. The Constitutional provisions relating to the Eighth Schedule occur in articles 344(1) and 351 of the Constitution.

Article 344(1):

• It provides for the constitution of an official language Commission by the President, which shall consist of a Chairman and such other members representing the different languages specified in the Eighth Schedule to make recommendations to the President for the progressive use of Hindi for official purposes of the Union.

Article 345:

• Official language or languages of a State subject to the provisions of Article 346 and 347.

• It would thus appear that the Eighth Schedule was intended to promote the progressive use of Hindi and for the enrichment and promotion of that language. Hence statement 2 is correct.

The migratory bird that traversed the Central Asian Flyway (CAF) is only one of the two — the other has been sighted at Jamnagar in Gujarat.

It's a medium-sized bulky wader with a straight, dark-brown bill and yellowish-brown legs. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

It has a striped crown with an indistinct white eyebrow. Its upperparts are grey, with dark feather tips; its underparts are white.

Its Scientific Name is Calidris tenuirostris

Its IUCN Protection Status is Endangered.

Hence, statement 2 is correct.

The provisions which can be amended by a Simple Majority of the two Houses of Parliament outside the scope of

Article 368:

1) Admission or establishment of new states.

2) Formation of new states and alteration of areas, boundaries or names of existing states.

3) Abolition or creation of legislative councils in states.

4) Second Schedule—emoluments, allowances, privileges etc of the president, the governors, the Speakers, judges, etc.

5) Quorum in Parliament.

6) Salaries and allowances of the members of Parliament.

7) Rules of procedure in Parliament.

8) Privileges of the Parliament, its members and its committees.

9) Use of English language in Parliament.

10) Number of puisne judges in the Supreme Court.

11) Conferment of more jurisdiction on the Supreme Court.

12) Use of official language.

13) Citizenship—acquisition and termination.

14) Elections to Parliament and state legislatures. 15. Delimitation of constituencies.

15) Union territories.

16) Fifth Schedule—administration of scheduled areas and scheduled tribes.

17) Sixth Schedule—administration of tribal areas.

18) To amend the Fundamental rights and Directive principles, Special majority is required.

• The Zonal Councils are Statutory bodies established by the act of the Parliament. Each Zonal Council is headed by the Union Home Minister, Chief Ministers of all States in the zone, Administrator of each Union territory in the zone and two other ministers from each state in the zone.

• Statement 1 is correct: Under Article 263 President can establish Interstate Council for smooth coordination between centre and states. The Zonal Councils as mentioned above are statutory bodies created by the act of the parliament.

• Statement 2 is not correct: The State Reorganisation Act, 1956 divides the Country into five zones-Northern, Western, Central, Eastern and Southern zones. North Eastern Council Act,1971 created a separate North-Eastern Zonal Council. As per the act, there is no provision of a separate zone for the Union Territories. For example UTs like Chandigarh, Delhi belongs to Northern Zone along with states like Harayana, Punjab.

Statement 2 is correct. The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 also provides for National Council for Transgender persons (NCT). The NCT will consist of: (i) Union Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment (Chairperson); (ii) Minister of State for Social Justice (Vice- Chairperson); (iii) Secretary of the Ministry of Social Justice; (iv) one representative from ministries including Health, Home Affairs, and Human Resources Development. Other members include representatives of the NITI Aayog, and the National

Human Rights Commission. State governments will also be represented. The Council will also consist of five members from the transgender community and five experts from non-governmental organisations.

The Council will advise the central government as well as monitor the impact of policies, legislation and projects with respect to transgender persons. It will also redress the grievances of transgender persons.

• A judge of a high court can be removed from his office by an order of the President. The President can issue the removal order only after an address by the Parliament has been presented to him in the same session for such removal. The address must be supported by a special majority of each House of Parliament (i.e., a majority of the total membership of that House and a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members of that House present and voting).

• The grounds for removal are two–proved misbehavior or incapacity. Thus, a judge of a high court can be removed in the same manner and on the same grounds as a judge of the Supreme Court. So, Option (a) is not correct.

• On the question of whether a member is subject to any of the general disqualifications, the president’s decision is final. However, it is not under his discretionary power because he should obtain the opinion of the election commission and act to that accordingly.

• Whereas the disqualification regarding anti-defection, under the Tenth Schedule is decided by the Chairman in the case of Rajya Sabha and Speaker in the case of Lok Sabha (and not by the president of India). In 1992, the Supreme Court ruled that the decision of the Chairman/ Speaker in this regard is subject to judicial review. So, Option (b) is correct.

• Although the chairman and members of a State Public Service Commission are appointed by the governor, they can be removed only by the president (and not by the governor). The president can remove them on the same grounds and in the same manner as he can remove a chairman or a member of the UPSC. So, Option (c) is not correct.

• Article 72 of the Constitution empowers the President to grant pardons to persons who have been tried and convicted of any offense in all cases where the punishment or sentence is for an offense against a Union Law, Punishment or sentence is by a court-martial (military court) and Sentence is a sentence of death. So, Option (d) is not correct

The 42nd Amendment Act, 1976 added a Chapter IV-A which consist of only one Article 51-A which dealt with a Code of Ten Fundamental Duties for citizens. Fundamental duties are intended to serve as a constant reminder to every citizen that while the constitution specifically conferred on them certain Fundamental Rights, it also requires citizens to observe certain basic norms of democratic conduct and democratic behaviour because rights and duties are correlative.

Fundamental Duties

Article 51-A Says that it shall be the duty of every citizen of India-

1) to abide by the constitution and respect its ideals and institutions;

2) to cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom;

3) to uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India;

4) to defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so;

5) to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional diversities, to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women;

6) to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;

7) to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers, and wild-life and to have compassion for living creatures;

8) to develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform;

9) to safeguard public property and to abjure violence;

10) to strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity, so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavor and achievement. Further, one more Fundamental duty has been added to the Indian Constitution by 86th Amendment of the constitution in 2002.

11) who is a parent or guardian, to provide opportunities for education to his child, or as the case may be, ward between the age of six and fourteen years.

• In the Berubari Union case (1960), Supreme Court recognized the significance of the Preamble. Supreme Court mentioned that assistance from Preamble could be taken in the interpretation of articles that are ambiguous or capable of more than one meaning. Hence statement 1 is correct.

• It also mentioned that Preamble shows general purposes behind several provision in the constitution and is thus a key to the minds of the makers of the constitution. However, Supreme Court specifically mentioned that the Preamble is not a part of the constitution.

• In Kesavananda Bharati Case (1973), Supreme Court rejected the earlier opinion and held that Preamble is a part of the Constitution. It observed that Constitution should be read and interpreted in the light of the grand and noble vision expressed in the Preamble. The Supreme Court also held that the Preamble could be amended as long as basic features of the Constitution enshrined in the Preamble are not amended.

• In the LIC of India Case (1995) also, Supreme Court again held that the Preamble is an integral part of the constitution. Hence statement 2 is correct.