GENERAL STUDIES...INSIGHT IAS ACADEMY India's Best Institute for Civil Services Prep. 60/17, Above Subway Old Rajinder Nagar, New Delhi - 110060 B-18, Main Road, Satija House, Dr

INSIGHT IAS ACADEMY India's Best Institute for Civil Services Prep.

60/17, Above SubwayOld Rajinder Nagar, New Delhi - 110060

B-18, Main Road, Satija House,Dr. Mukherjee Nagar, Delhi - 110009

011-450900510981833320109871216382

CENTRAL DELHI NORTH DELHI

E-MAIL : [email protected] • WEBSITE : www.insightiasacademy.com

GENERAL STUDIESImportant Traditional & Current Issues

World History,

Internal Security, Disaster Management, International Relations

Economic Development, Social Justice, Science & Technology

Ethics, Int. & Aptitude with more than 100 Case Studies

Geography, Environment & Ecology, Polity & Governance

Covering More than 800 Marks

MAINS SPECIAL BATCH - 2018

18NEW BATCHES COMMENCE June

Course Duration12 Weeks

S. BALIYAN, ABHAY THAKUR,

A. MANGTANI, A.N. REDDY,

A.S. SHEKAR, & S.M. THAKUR

DR. VIVEK,

WITH BEST EVER TEAM WITH BEST EVER TEAM

INSIGHT GEN.STUDIES & CSAT

Central Delhi: 60/17, Above Subway, Old Rajinder Nagar, Delhi - 60

North Delhi: B-18, Satija House, Main Road, Dr. Mukherjee Nagar, Delhi - 09

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1. B

Recapitalisation bonds are dedicated bonds to be issued at the behest of the government for recapitalizing the

trouble hit Public Sector Banks (PSBs). Bonds worth of Rs 1.35 trillion is to be issued to inject capital into PSBs

who are affected by the high level of NPAs. Recapitalization bonds are proposed as a part of the Rs 2.11 trillion

capital infusion package declared by the government.

The money obtained from the sale of bonds will be injected into the PSBs as government equity funding. The

bond will be subscribed by the public sector banks themselves. Fund from the issue of bonds will be used to

subscribe shares of PSBs and will be treated as additional government equity or capital.

The government has recently fixed the coupon rate - up to 7.68% - for the Rs 80, 000 crore recapitalisation

bonds to be given to 20 public sector banks during the current fiscal for meeting the regulatory capital

requirement and growth needs.

The recapitalisation bonds with maturity date on 29 January 2028 will have a coupon rate of 7.35%, while

those maturing on 29 January 2029 will carry rate of 7.42% and that of 29 January, 2030, it will be 7.48%. For

bonds with maturity date of 29 January 2031, coupon rate has been fixed at 7.55%; for 29 January 2032, the

interest rate 7.61% and the highest rate of 7.68% for 29 January, 2033.

The investment in the special security by the investing banks would not be considered as an eligible

investment for SLR securities. The bonds are non-transferable and cannot be converted into any other form of

security.

Thus, Option B is correct.

2. D

Block Mountains also known as fault-block mountains are the result of faulting caused by tensile and

compressive forces motored by endogenetic forces coming from within the earth. Block Mountains represent

the upstanding parts of the ground between two faults or on either side of a rift valley or a graben.

The examples of Block Mountains are:

Black Forests – Germany

Vosges Mountains – France

Sierra Nevada Mountains – North America

The Harz Mountains – Germany

Vindhyas and Satpura Range – India

Thus, Option D is correct.

COMPREHENSIVE TEST – 1

(FULL MOCK TEST)




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3. A

Statement 1 is incorrect: It is a biennial survey released by the Forest Survey of India.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The Report of 2017 highlighted that there is an increase of 8,021 sq km in the total

forest and tree cover of the country compared to the previous assessment in 2015. The increase in forest cover

in Very Dense Forest (VDF) is followed by the increase in Open Forest.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest cover of 77,414 sq km in the country in terms of

area, followed by Arunachal Pradesh with 66,964 sq km and Chhattisgarh (55,547 sq km). In terms of percentage

of forest cover with respect to the total geographical area, Lakshadweep with (90.33 per cent) has the highest

forest cover, followed by Mizoram (86.27 per cent) and Andaman & Nicobar Island (81.73 per cent).

Statement 4 is correct: As per the ISFR 2017, the total mangrove cover stands at 4,921 sq km and has shown an

increase of 181 sq km. All the 12 mangrove states have shown a positive change in the mangrove cover, as

compared to the last assessment.

Thus, Option A is correct.

4. A

Statement 1 is correct: Letter of Undertaking (LoU) is a bank guarantee and is issued for overseas import

payments. A bank, while issuing LoUs for a client agrees to repay the principal and interest on the client's loan

unconditionally. When a LoU is issued, it involves an issuing bank, a receiving bank, an importer and a

beneficiary entity overseas.

Statement 2 is incorrect: SWIFT stands for the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications. It

is a messaging network that financial institutions use to securely transmit information and instructions through a

standardized system of codes. SWIFT assigns each financial organization a unique code that has either eight

characters or 11 characters. SWIFT does not hold any funds or securities, nor does it manage client accounts.

When a LoU is issued, the message of credit transfer is conveyed to overseas banks through the Society for

Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) system. This is significant information as it gives the

bank's consent and guarantee.

Statement 3 is correct: Nostro account refers to an account that a bank holds in a foreign currency in another

bank. Nostros, a term derived from the Latin word for "ours," are frequently used to facilitate foreign exchange

and trade transactions. The opposite term Vostro Accounts, derived from the Latin word for "yours," is how a

bank refers to the accounts that other banks have on its books in its home currency.


5. C

Statement 1 is correct: Masala Bonds are rupee-denominated bonds issued by Indian entities in the overseas

market to raise funds. As of now, it is being traded only at the London Stock exchange. Masala bonds have been

named so by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), an investment arm of the World Bank which issued

these bonds to raise money for infrastructure projects in India.




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Statement 2 is correct: A clutch of non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) including HDFC Ltd, Mahindra

Finance, India Bulls Housing Finance, Shriram Transport Finance and Dewan Housing Finance (DHFL) have

received the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) approval to sell masala bonds to foreign investors abroad.

Thus, Option C is correct.

6. D

The Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) is a joint program of the International Monetary Fund and the

World Bank. Launched in 1999 in the wake of Asian financial crisis, the program brings together Bank and Fund

expertise to help countries reduce the likelihood and severity of financial sector crisis. The FSAP provides a

comprehensive framework through which assessors and authorities in participating countries can identify

financial system vulnerabilities and develop appropriate policy responses.


7. D

Statement 1 is incorrect: Sattriya Dance is a major Indian classical dance. It is a dance-drama performance art

with origins in the Krishna-centered Vaishnavism monasteries of Assam and attributed to the 15th century Bhakti

movement scholar and saint named Srimanta Sankardeva.

Statement 2 is incorrect: Ramanuja was the main proponent of Vishishtadvaita philosophy. It is one of the most

popular schools of the Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy. Vedanta literally means the end of the Vedas. It is a

non-dualistic school of Vedanta philosophy. It is non-dualism of the qualified whole, in which Brahman alone

exists, but is characterized by multiplicity.


8. C

In the budget speech 2017-18, it was announced that premier testing organization to conduct all entrance

examinations for higher educational institutions would be set up. The Union Government has now approved the

creation of autonomous and self-sustained premier testing organization, the National Testing Agency (NTA) with

a view to have specialized body in India like that in many other countries. The NTA will be established as a

society registered under Indian Societies Registration Act, 1860.

It will be chaired by an eminent educationist appointed by the Ministry of Human Resource

Development.

It is subject to audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India.

The NTA will initially conduct entrance examinations currently being conducted by CBSE. Other

examinations will be taken up gradually after NTA is fully geared up.


9. A

A team of Indian scientists have discovered a previously unknown ‘Supercluster’ of galaxies, some four billion

light years away from Earth, and named it Saraswati. This is one of the largest known structures in the

neighbourhood of the universe roughly more than 10 billion years old.




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Superclusters, a group of clusters of galaxies, are the largest structures of stars, planets and other heavenly

bodies in the universe, and very few of them are known.


10. D

Statement 1 is incorrect: Art. 124 provides for the constitution of Supreme Court consisting of the Chief Justice

and not more than thirty judges. But the Article has also provided that Parliament can increase the number of

judges in the Supreme Court.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The opinion expressed by the Supreme Court under Art. 143 exercising Advisory

Jurisdiction is only advisory and not a judicial pronouncement. Hence, it is not binding on the President; he may

follow or may not follow the opinion.

Statement 3 is incorrect: The Supreme Court is authorised to grant in its discretion ‘Special Leave Petition’ to

appeal from any judgement in any matter passed by any court or tribunal in the country (except military tribunal

and court martial). It may be related to any matter - constitutional, civil, criminal, income-tax, labour, revenue,

etc.


11. D

Base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) refers to tax avoidance strategies that exploit gaps and mismatches in tax

rules to artificially shift profits to low or no-tax locations. Under the inclusive framework, over 100 countries and

jurisdictions are collaborating to implement the BEPS measures and tackle BEPS.

The OECD, under the authority of the Group of 20 countries, has considered ways to revise tax treaties, tighten

rules, and to share more government tax information under the BEPS project, and has issued action plans in

2015. One of the areas discussed was on addressing tax challenges in the digital economy.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released its final report on the tax

challenges of the digital economy (Action Report 1) under its Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting

(BEPS) which provided 3 different options for overcoming these challenges, and one of the options suggested is

Equalisation Levy.

Equalisation levy is by its definition a levy to equalise the tax component of a resident e-commerce company as

well as a non-resident e-commerce company. India is the first country to impose a digital equalisation levy, post

the OECD Action Plan.


12. C

Statement 1 is incorrect: The Konark Sun Temple is a 13th century CE sun temple at Konark near Puri on the

coastline of Odisha, India. The temple is attributed to the king Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga Dynasty

about 1250 CE.

Statement 2 is correct: It has been declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1984.




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Statement 3 is incorrect: The Konark Sun Temple marks the high point of the Odisha style of Nagara

architecture.

Statement 4 is incorrect: The Shree Jagannath Temple of Puri is an important Hindu temple dedicated to Lord

Jagannath. The temple is famous for its annual Ratha Jatra, or chariot festival, in which the three principal

deities are pulled on huge and elaborately decorated temple cars.


13. B

The early buildings of the Slave dynasty consisted of false domes and false arches. Introduction of true

arches and true domes started to appear with construction of Alai Darwaza by the side of Qutub Minar

(By Allaudin Khilji).

In the sphere of decoration, the Turks eschewed representation of human and animal figures in the

buildings. Instead, they used geometrical and floral designs, combining them with panels of inscriptions

containing verses from the Quran. Thus, the Arabic script itself became a work of art. The combination

of these decorative devices was called Arabesque. They also freely borrowed Hindu motifs such as the

bel motif, the bell motif, swastika, lotus, etc. Like the Indians, the Turks were intensely fond of

decoration.

CHATTRA is an umbrella or parasol was a symbol of royalty, protection or honour. The royal Umbrella

known as 'Chhatra' was used by the Hindu rulers and was continued by the Muslims.


14. C

Statement 1 is incorrect: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) declared HDFC Bank Ltd to be a domestic systemically

important bank (D-SIB). The other two such banks are State Bank of India (SBI) and ICICI Bank Ltd. D-SIB means

that the bank is too big to fail. According to the RBI, some banks become systemically important due to their

size, cross-jurisdictional activities, complexity and lack of substitute and interconnection. Banks whose assets

exceed 2% of GDP are considered part of this group.

Statement 2 is correct: As per the framework, from 2015, every August, the central bank has to disclose names

of banks designated as D-SIB. It classifies the banks under five buckets depending on order of importance. ICICI

Bank and HDFC Bank are in bucket one while SBI falls in bucket three. Based on the bucket in which a D-SIB is, an

additional common equity requirement applies. Banks in bucket one need to maintain a 0.15% incremental tier-I

capital from April 2018. Banks in bucket three have to maintain an additional 0.45%. With bucket three being

higher than bucket one, SBI has a higher additional requirement than ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank. All the banks

under D-SIB are required to maintain higher share of risk-weighted assets as tier-I equity.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Whether your bank is in the D-SIB list or not, your fixed deposits are insured up to Rs1

lakh under the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC). This means, in case of default,

DICGC will pay you up to Rs1 Lakh.





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15. A

During the period of Lord Lytton, a Strachey Commission of 1880 was created to develop a general strategy and

principles to deal with the famines. The Strachey Commission came out with the recommendation on whose

basis a Famine Code was developed. However, in due course of time, the Famine Code was forgotten and

remained defunct till the next attack of famine occurred in India.


16. C

The mapping of the ocean floor and palaeomagnetic studies of rocks from oceanic regions revealed the

following facts:

It was realised that all along the mid-oceanic ridges, volcanic eruptions are common and they bring

huge amounts of lava to the surface in this area.

The rocks equidistant on either sides of the crest of mid-oceanic ridges show remarkable similarities in

terms of period of formation, chemical compositions and magnetic properties. Rocks closer to the mid-

oceanic ridges have normal polarity and are the youngest. The age of the rocks increases as one moves

away from the crest.

The ocean crust rocks are much younger than the continental rocks. The age of rocks in the oceanic

crust is nowhere more than 200 million years old. Some of the continental rock formations are as old as

3,200 million years.

The sediments on the ocean floor are unexpectedly very thin. Scientists were expecting, if the ocean

floors were as old as the continent, to have a complete sequence of sediments for a period of much

longer duration. However, nowhere was the sediment column found to be older than 200 million years.

The deep trenches have deep-seated earthquake occurrences while in the mid-oceanic ridge areas,

the quake foci have shallow depths.


17. D

Lying on the foothills of the Himalaya, Manas National Park is located in the six districts Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon,

Barpeta, Malaria, Kamrup and Darrang in the state of Assam. Manas is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tiger

Reserve, Elephant Reserve, Biosphere Reserve, National Park and also a Wildlife Sanctuary.


18. C

Under the Constitution, a person shall be disqualified for being elected as a member of Parliament:

if he holds any office of profit under the Union or state government (except that of a minister or any

other office exempted by Parliament).

if he is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a court.

if he is an undischarged insolvent.




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if he is not a citizen of India or has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a foreign state or is under any

acknowledgement of allegiance to a foreign state; and

if he is so disqualified under any law made by Parliament.

The Constitution also lays down that a person shall be disqualified from being a member of Parliament if he is

so disqualified on the ground of defection under the provisions of the Tenth Schedule. A member incurs

disqualification under the defection law:

if he voluntary gives up the membership of the political party on whose ticket he is elected to the House;

if he votes or abstains from voting in the House contrary to any direction given by his political party;

if any independently elected member joins any political party; and

if any nominated member joins any political party after the expiry of six months. .


19. A

Option A is correct.

20. D

Statement 1 is incorrect: Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) is a non-constitutional and non-

statutory, non-permanent and independent body, constituted with the prime and sole aim to analyse all critical

issues, economic or otherwise, referred to it by the prime minister and advising him thereon. Bibek Debroy, NITI

Aayog Member is the chairman of the Council.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) has been constituted vide GOI

notification dated 30th December, 2010. Thus, it is not a statutory body. The Council is chaired by the Union

Finance Minister and its members are Governor, Reserve Bank of India; Finance Secretary and/or Secretary,

Department of Economic Affairs; Secretary, Department of Financial Services; Chief Economic Adviser, Ministry

of Finance; Chairman, Securities and Exchange Board of India; Chairman, Insurance Regulatory and Development

Authority and Chairman, Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority.


21. B

Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is the world’s largest airborne astronomical

observatory built as a joint project of NASA and the German Aerospace Centre to observe celestial

magnetic fields, star forming regions, comets and Saturn’s giant moon Titan.

Dawn Mission is the only mission ever to orbit two extraterrestrial targets – giant asteroid Vesta and

the dwarf planet Ceres.

NASA’s ‘Europa Clipper’, set for launch in the 2020s, will probe the habitability of Jupiter’s icy moon

Europa.

Star-Planet Activity Research CubeSat (SPARCS) is a space telescope to study the habitability and high-

energy environment around M-dwarf stars.




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22. A

Statement 1 is correct: Cabinet is extra-constitutional body while Council of Ministers is a constitutional body.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The total number of Council of Ministers should not exceed 15% of the strength of Lok

Sabha.

Statement 3 is incorrect: The salaries and allowances of ministers are determined by Parliament from time to

time. A minister gets the salary and allowances that are payable to a member of Parliament. Additionally, he

gets a sumptuary allowance (according to his rank), free accommodation, travelling allowance, medical facilities,

etc.


23. C

The objective of the ‘Saubhagya’ is to provide energy access to all by last mile connectivity and electricity

connections to all remaining un-electrified households in Rural as well as Urban areas to achieve universal

household electrification in the country.

The beneficiaries for free electricity connections would be identified using Socio Economic and Caste Census

(SECC) 2011 data. However, un-electrified households not covered under the SECC data would also be provided

electricity connections under the scheme on payment of Rs. 500 which shall be recovered by DISCOMs in 10

instalments through electricity bill.

Rural Electrification Corporation Limited (REC), a Navaratna CPSE under the Ministry of Power has been

appointed as the nodal agency for coordinating the implementation of the scheme.


24. A

Scientists have discovered new organ in human body and have named it as ‘Interstitium’. It will be the 80th

organ in the human body. It might also be the biggest organ in human body.

It was discovered while doctors were investigating patient’s bile duct, searching for signs of cancer. They had

noticed cavities of this organ that did not match any previously known human anatomy. The discovery of

interstitium will help to explain how cancer spreads in body and pave way for new ways to detect treat cancer.


25. B

Indian Nitrogen Group has released “The Indian Nitrogen Assessment”, India‟s f irst-ever such attempt to

study nitrogen pollution.

Society for Conservation of Nature (SCN), a coalition of more than 120 scientists setup a specialised

group called the Indian Nitrogen Group (ING).

The report takes into account nitrogen (N) being used for agricultural purposes and also its increasing

emissions from the transport boom in the country.




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India has become the third country after the US and the EU to have assessed the environmental impact

of nitrogen on their respective regions comprehensively.

The Assessment shows that agriculture is the main source of nitrogen pollution in India followed by

Sewage and organic solid wastes.

Only 33 per cent of the nitrogen that is applied to rice and wheat through fertilisers is taken up by the

plants in the form of nitrates (NO3). This is called Nitrogen Use Efficiency or NUE.

The remaining 67 per cent remains in the soil and seeps into the surrounding environment causing a

cascade of environmental and health impacts.

It also found that nitrates not only affected surface water but also polluted groundwater sources.

Nitrogen pollution also has an effect on soil health because of the reduction of carbon content of the

soil over a long period of time which affects its health.

Nitrogen in the form nitrous oxide (N2O) is also a greenhouse gas (GHG) and a fast rising contributor to

global climate change.

Fertilisers are the major emitters of N2O in India while vehicular pollution (55.53 Gigagram or Gg),

industrial and domestic sewage (15.81 Gg) also contribute towards rise of N2O.

Vehicular pollution is also a major contributor of NOx, accounting for 32 per cent of the total emissions

in India, out of which 28 per cent is from road transport.

The poultry industry in India emits Nitrogen to the tune of 0.415 Mt in 2016, which will increase to 1.089

Mt by 2030.


26. C

Option C is correct.

27. A

The most remote point in the ocean lies in the South Pacific Ocean and is known as ‘Point Nemo’, or the ‘Pole

of Inaccessibility’.

China’s out-of-control Tiangong-1 space lab has re-entered Earth’s atmosphere, landing in middle of the South

Pacific Ocean near world’s ‘spacecraft cemetery or graveyard’. Most of its parts were burned up during gravity-

propelled re-entry process. The spacecraft cemetery also known as Point Nemo — considered the most remote

place on Earth (at about 2400 km from any spot of land). It was often used to crash land defunct satellites.

As Point Nemo lies in the South Pacific Gyre and the region is so isolated from land masses that wind does not

carry much organic matter, there is little to feed for survival. Thus, no material falls from above as "marine

snow", turning the seafloor lifeless and making the region, one of the least biologically active regions of the

world ocean.


28. A




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Statement 1 is correct: The Olive Ridley Sea Turtle also known as the Pacific Ridley sea turtle, is a medium-sized

species of sea turtle found in warm and tropical waters, primarily in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, Atlantic

Ocean.

Statement 2 is correct: Olive Ridley Turtles are best known for their behavior of synchronized nesting in mass

numbers called ‘Arribada’.

Statement 3 is incorrect: They are categorized as Vulnerable according to the IUCN Red Data Book and is listed

in Appendix I of CITES.

Statement 4 is incorrect: Gahirmatha beach off Bay of Bengal in Odisha coast is known as world’s largest-known

nesting ground of these animals. Apart from Gahirmatha, these threatened aquatic animals turn up at

Rushikulya river mouth and Devi river mouth in the state for mass nesting.


29. D

Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is a system that powers multiple bank accounts into a single mobile

application (of any participating bank), merging several banking features, seamless fund routing &

merchant payments into one hood.

A QR code consists of black squares arranged in a square grid on a white background, which can be read

by an imaging device such as a camera. It contains information about the item to which it is attached.

NPCI jointly worked with International card Schemes to develop a common standard QR code

specifications. BQR is Person to Merchant (P2M) Mobile payment solution.

AePS is a bank led model which allows online interoperable financial inclusion transaction at PoS (Micro

ATM) through the Business correspondent of any bank using the Aadhaar authentication.

National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has implemented “National Automated Clearing House

(NACH)” for Banks, Financial Institutions, Corporates and Government a web based solution to facilitate

interbank, high volume, electronic transactions which are repetitive and periodic in nature. National

Automated Clearing House (NACH) is a centralised system, launched with an aim to consolidate multiple

ECS systems running across the country and provides a framework for the harmonization of standard &

practices and removes local barriers/inhibitors. NACH system will provide a national footprint and is

expected to cover the entire core banking enabled bank branches spread across the geography of the

country irrespective of the location of the bank branch.


30. B

GRIHA is an acronym for Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment. GRIHA is a Sanskrit word meaning –

‘Abode’. Human Habitats (buildings) interact with the environment in various ways.

GRIHA is a rating tool that helps people assesses the performance of their building against certain nationally

acceptable benchmarks. It evaluates the environmental performance of a building holistically over its entire life

cycle, thereby providing a definitive standard for what constitutes a ‘green building’.




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31. A

Kadaknath Chicken – Madhya Pradesh

Mamallapuram Stone Sculptures – Tamil Nadu


32. D

Galvanising Organic Bio-Agro Resources-Dhan (GOBAR-Dhan) has been announced during Budget 2018-

19.

Under this scheme cattle dung, kitchen waste and agricultural waste can be tapped to create biogas-

based energy

The objectives of this initiative is to make villages clean and to generate wealth and energy from cattle

and other waste.

The Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin will pilot this initiative.

The GOBAR-Dhan initiative is expected to create opportunities to convert cattle dung and other organic

waste to compost, biogas and even larger scale bio-CNG units.

This programme, , aims to collect and aggregate cattle dung and solid waste across clusters of villages

for sale to entrepreneurs to produce organic manure, biogas/bio-CNG.


33. B

ESSO-Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) under Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES)

has developed Sagar Vani app for fisherman.

It is an integrated Information dissemination system serving fishermen community with the advisories and

alerts towards their livelihood as well as their safety at Sea.


34. A

The Kaira (Kheda) campaign was chiefly directed against the Government. In the spring of 1918 crop failures

and drought brought misery to the peasants of Kaira in Gujarat. The Bombay Government, however, insisted

on its pound of flesh in the form of land revenue. The land revenue rules provided for remission of land revenue

if the crop yield was less than 25% of then normal. The cultivators claimed that to be the case which the

Government officials denied.

Vallabhbhai Patel, a young lawyer and a native of Kheda district, and other young men, including Indulal

Yagnik, joined Gandhiji in touring the villages and urging the peasants to stand firm in the face of increasing

Government repression which included the seizing of cattle and household goods and the attachment of

standing crops. The cultivators were asked to take a solemn pledge that they would not pay; those who could

afford to pay were to take a vow that they would not pay in the interests of the poorer ryots who would




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otherwise panic and sell off their belongings or incur debts in order to pay the revenue. However, if the

Government agreed to suspend collection of land revenue, the ones who could

The Satyagraha lasted till June 1918. The government had to concede the just demands of the peasants.

Gandhiji came to know that the Government had issued secret instructions directing that revenue should be

recovered only from those peasants who could pay. A public declaration of this decision would have meant a

blow to Government prestige, since this was exactly what Gandhiji had been demanding. In these

circumstances, the movement was withdrawn.


35. C

Brihadishvara Temple at Thanjavur: Built by Raja Raja Chola I between 1003 and 1010 AD, the temple is

a part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the "Great Living Chola Temples”.

Sculpture of Garuda on Heliodorus pillar: The Heliodorus pillar is a stone column that was erected

around 113 BCE in central India in Vidisha near modern Besnagar, by Heliodorus, a Greek ambassador of

the Indo-Greek king Antialcidas to the court of the Shunga king Bhagabhadra.

Rock-cut Monuments at Barabar: The Barabar Hill Caves are the oldest surviving rock-cut caves in India,

mostly dating from the Maurya Empire (322–185 BCE), some with Ashokan inscriptions, located in the

state Bihar.

Konark Sun Temple is a 13th century CE sun temple at Konark about 35 kilometres northeast from Puri

on the coastline of Odisha, India. The temple is attributed to king Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga

Dynasty about 1250 CE.


36. D

The government of India currently follows the following criteria to determine the eligibility of language to be

considered for classification as “classical language”:

High antiquity of its early texts/ recorded history over a period of 1500-2000 years.

A body of ancient literature/ texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers.

The literary tradition is original and not borrowed from another speech community.

The classical language and literature being distinct from modern, there may also be a discontinuity

between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.

Tamil (since 2004), Sanskrit (since 2005), Telugu (since 2008), Kannada (Since 2008), Malayalam (since 2013)

and Odiya (since 2014) are the classical languages in India.


37. D




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Disinvestment or divestiture refers to the government selling or liquidating its assets or stakes in PSE

(public sector enterprise).

Strategic Disinvestment is the sale of substantial portion of the Government shareholding of a central

public sector enterprise (CPSE) of up to 50%, or such higher percentage along with transfer of

management control.

The Department for Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) under Ministry of Finance is the

nodal agency for disinvestment

Disinvestment proceeds can help the government fund its fiscal deficit.

Government had constituted the National Investment Fund (NIF) in November, 2005 into which the

proceeds from disinvestment of Central Public Sector Enterprises were to be channelized.


38. C

NASA will send first-ever mission named as InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy

and Heat Transport) dedicated to exploring the deep interior of Mars.

InSight will be stationary lander that will be launched in May 2018. It will be first NASA mission since the Apollo

moon landings to place seismometer, a device that measures quakes on the soil of another planet and enabling

in understanding geological evolution.


39. C

The World Bank Group is used to refer to the below institutions collectively.

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)

International Development Association(IDA)

International Finance Corporation (lFC)

Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)

International Centre for Settlement of lnvestment Disputes (ICSID)


40. A

Anti-Dumping and Anti Subsidies & Countervailing Measures in India are administered by the Directorate

General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) functioning in the Dept. of Commerce in the Ministry of

Commerce and Industry and the same is headed by the "Designated Authority". The Designated Authority's

function, however, is only to conduct the anti-dumping/anti subsidy & countervailing duty investigation and

make recommendation to the Government for imposition of anti-dumping or anti subsidy measures.

Such duty is finally imposed/levied by a notification of the Ministry of Finance. Thus, while the Department of

Commerce recommends the anti-dumping duty, it is the Ministry of Finance, which levies such duty.




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41. B

Rihla : Ibn Battuta

Padmavat : Malik Muhammad Jayasi

Kitab al Hind : Alberuni


42. A

Statement 1 is correct: The Olive Ridley Sea Turtle also known as the Pacific Ridley sea turtle, is a medium-sized

species of sea turtle found in warm and tropical waters, primarily in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, Atlantic

Ocean.

Statement 2 is correct: Olive Ridley Turtles are best known for their behavior of synchronized nesting in mass

numbers called ‘Arribada’.

Statement 3 is incorrect: They are categorized as Vulnerable according to the IUCN Red Data Book and is listed

in Appendix I of CITES.

Statement 4 is incorrect: Gahirmatha beach off Bay of Bengal in Odisha coast is known as world’s largest-known

nesting ground of these animals. Apart from Gahirmatha, these threatened aquatic animals turn up at

Rushikulya river mouth and Devi river mouth in the state for mass nesting.


43. B

Methanol is a clean burning drop in fuel which can replace both petrol & diesel in transportation & LPG, Wood,

Kerosene in cooking fuel. It can also replace diesel in Railways, Marine Sector, Gensets, Power Generation and

Methanol based reformers could be the ideal compliment to Hybrid and Electric Mobility. Methanol Economy is

the “Bridge” to the dream of a complete “Hydrogen based fuel systems”.

Methanol can be produced from Natural Gas, Indian High Ash Coal, Bio-mass, MSW, stranded and flared

gases.

China alone produces 65% of world Methanol and it uses its coal to produce Methanol. India has an installed

Methanol Production capacity of 2 MT per annum. As per the plan prepared by NITI Aayog, using Indian High

Ash coal, Stranded gas, and Biomass can produce 20MT of methanol annually by 2025.

Methanol burns efficiently in all internal combustion engines, produces no particulate matter, no soot, almost

nil SOx and NOx emissions (NEAR ZERO POLLUTION). The gaseous version of Methanol – DME can blended with

LPG and can be excellent substitute for diesel in large buses and trucks.


44. A

Statement 1 is correct: The superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls and the

conduct of all elections to the Panchayats and Municpalities shall be vested in the State Election Commission. It

consists of a State Election Commissioner to be appointed by the Governor.




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Statement 2 is incorrect: Election Commission (and not State Election Commission) is responsible for enforcing

moral code of conduct during the assembly elections

Statement 3 is incorrect: State Election Commissioner shall not be removed from the office except in the

manner and on the grounds prescribed for the removal of a judge of the state High Court. A judge of a High

Court can be removed from his office by the President on the recommendation of the Parliament. This means

that a state election commissioner cannot be removed by the governor though appointed by him.


45. B

Eknath (1533-1599) was a prominent Marathi saint, scholar, and religious poet of the Varkari

sampradaya. In the development of Marathi literature, Eknath is seen as a bridge between his

predecessors - Dnyaneshwar and Namdev - and the later Tukaram and Ramdas.

Namdev, also transliterated as Namdeo and Namadeva, (traditionally, c. 1270 – c. 1350) was a poet-

saint from Maharashtra, India who is significant to the Varkari sect of Hinduism. He is also venerated in

Sikhism, as well as Hindu warrior-ascetic traditions such as the Dadupanthis.

Shree Samarth Ramdas was a noted 17th century saint and spiritual poet of Maharashtra. He is most

remembered for his Advaita Vedantist text, the Dasbodh. Ramdas was a devotee of Hanuman and

Rama.

Shivaji Bhonsle (died in 1680) was an Indian warrior king and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan.

Shivaji carved out an enclave from the declining Adilshahi sultanate of Bijapur that formed the genesis

of the Maratha Empire. In 1674, he was formally crowned as the Chhatrapati (monarch) of his realm at

Raigad.


46. A

The project - called SECURE Himalaya - was launched by the Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan in

association with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on the inaugural day of the Global

Wildlife Programme (GWP) conference.

The SECURE - securing livelihoods, conservation, sustainable use and restoration of high range Himalayan

ecosystems - is meant for specific landscapes. It include Changthang (Jammu and Kasmir), Lahaul - Pangi and

Kinnaur (Himachal Pradesh), Gangotri - Govind and Darma - Byans Valley in Pithoragarh (Uttarakhand) and

Kanchenjunga - Upper Teesta Valley (Sikkim).


47. D

The Kharif crops include rice, maize, sorghum, pearl millet/bajra, finger millet/ragi (cereals), arhar (pulses),

soyabean, groundnut (oilseeds), cotton etc.

The Rabi crops include wheat, barley, oats (cereals), chickpea/gram (pulses), linseed, mustard (oilseeds) etc.




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48. B

Parliamentary privileges are special rights, immunities and exemptions enjoyed by the two Houses of

Parliament, their committees and their members. The Constitution has also extended the parliamentary

privileges to those persons who are entitled to speak and take part in the proceedings of a House of Parliament

or any of its committees.

A privilege motion is a notice by any member of either House of a state legislature or Parliament, against anyone

who is accused of breach of privilege.

Privilege Motion is concerned with the breach of parliamentary privileges by a minister. It is moved by a

member when he feels that a minister has committed a breach of privilege of the House or one or more of its

members by withholding facts of a case or by giving wrong or distorted facts. Its purpose is to censure the

concerned minister.


49. B

(* Option B was changed to 1, 2 and 3)

For the purpose of discussing different aspects of the proposed new scheme of education, an All India Education

Conference was held in Wardha on 22nd and 23rd October, 1937. The eminent educationists, congress leaders

and workers alongwith the Education Ministers of the seven states had attended the conference. Gandhiji

himself presided over it. After serious discussions the following four resolutions were passed.

That in the opinion of this Conference, free and compulsory education be provided for seven years on a

nation-wide scale;

That the medium of instruction be the mother-tongue;

That the conference endorses the proposal, made by Mahatma Gandhi, that the process of education

throughout this period should centre around some productive form of manual work, and that all other

abilities to be developed or training should be given, as far as possible, be integrally related to the

central handicraft chosen with due regard to the environment of the child.

That the conference expects that the system of education will be gradually able to cover the

remuneration of the teachers.


50. B

Option B is correct.

51. A

India‘s State Action Plan on Climate Change is implemented by Ministry of Environment, Forest and

Climate change. It supports the integration of national climate change goals into sub national policies.




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India has committed to meet its current target of 33% reduction in emission intensity of the 2005 level

by 2030, by generating 40% of its energy from renewables. States are important for the realization of

this goal and they are considered as sub-national modules.

The Under2Coalition, a MoU by sub national governments to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG)

emissions towards net-zero by 2050.

It is generating a unique precedent for bold climate leadership, with its member states and regions

surpassing 200 in number. Currently, Telangana and Chhattisgarh are signatories to this pact from India.


52. B


53. D

The Red-headed vulture is mainly found in the Indian Subcontinent with small number of population in some

parts of the South-East Asia. The Namdapha Flying Squirrel is endemic. The golden langur is an old world

monkey found in a small region of western Assam, India.


54. D

Statement 1 is incorrect: The President can summon both the Houses to meet in a joint sitting for the purpose

of deliberating and voting on the bill. The Speaker of Lok Sabha presides over a joint sitting of the two Houses

and the Deputy Speaker in his absence.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The provision of Joint sitting is applicable to ordinary bills or financial bills only and not

to money bills or Constitutional Amendment bills.


55. C


56. C


57. A

Savanna is only tropical grassland while the remaining are temperate grasslands. Plains and Prairies of North

America, Steppes of Russian and China, Pampas of Argentina and Uruguay, Pustaz of Hungary and Velds of South

Africa all are temperate grasslands.


58. D




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The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) released the census recently. Some

important facts of the Report are:

Karnataka reported the highest population of elephants at 6,049, which was followed by Assam at 5,719

and Kerala at 3,054.

According to regions, the highest Jumbo population was recorded in Southern region (11,960), which

was followed by the northeast region (10,139), East-Central region (3,128) and Northern Region (2,085).

The report revealed an expansion in the elephant areas. For the first time elephants have been

reported from areas like Manipur, Mizoram, Bihar, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and

Andaman and Nicobar islands, which indicates towards disturbance in their original areas of habitat or

climate change effects like temperature etc.

Compared to last census in 2012, the population of the elephant has decreased by around 3000.


59. A

The months of Oct-Nov form a period of transition from hot rainy season to dry winter conditions. The retreat of

the monsoon is marked by clear skies and rise in temperature. While day temperatures are high, nights are cool

and pleasant.


60. A

National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) is an apex organization of

marketing cooperatives for agricultural produce in India under the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India.

Nafed is registered under the Multi State Co-operative Societies Act.

Nafed was setup with the object to promote co-operative marketing of Agricultural Produce to benefit the

farmers. Agricultural farmers are the main members of Nafed, who have the authority to say in the form of

members of the General Body in the working of Nafed.

Nafed is one of the central nodal agencies for the procurement of 16 notified agricultural commodities of

Oilseeds, Pulses and Cotton under Price Support Scheme (PSS).

The chairman of NAFED is not the Union Minister of Agriculture.


61. C

In April 1908, Prafulla Chaki and Khudiram Bose threw a bomb at a carriage which they believed was

occupied by Kingsford, the unpopular judge at Muzzafarpur.




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A large number of revolutionaries were convicted in the Lahore Conspiracy Case and other similar cases

and sentenced to long terms of imprisonment. Many of them were sent to the Andamans. Bhagat Singh,

Sukhdev and Rajguru were sentenced to be hanged. The sentence was carried out on 23 March 1931.

The most important 'action' of the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA) was the Kakori Robbery. On

9 August 1925, ten men held up the 8-Down train at Kakori, an obscure village near Lucknow, and looted

its official railway cash. Ashfaqulla Khan, Ramprasad Bismil, Roshan Singh and Rajendra Lahiri were

hanged, four others were sent to the Andamans for life and seventeen others were sentenced to long

terms of imprisonment.

Surya Sen gathered around himself a large band of revolutionary youth including Anant Singh, Ganesh

Ghosh and Lokenath Baul for Chittagong Armoury Raid.


62. D

Option D is correct.

63. C


64. A

Statement 1 is correct: It is implemented by Controller General of Accounts and administered by the

Department of Expenditure both in Ministry of Finance. The Scheme aims at promoting transparency and

bringing about tangible improvements in the overall Central Government Financial Management as well as

implementation of various Central Government Schemes across the country.

Statement 2 is correct: The ambit of PFMS coverage includes Central Sector and Centrally Sponsored Schemes

as well as other expenditures including the Finance Commission Grants.

Statement 3 is correct: PFMS is designed to serve the pertinent need of establishing a common electronic

platform for complete tracking of fund flows from the Central Government to large number of programme

implementing agencies, both under Central Government and the State Governments till it reaches the final

intended beneficiaries.


65. D

In a bid to conserve the dwindling rhododendron species of Tawang, a rhododendron park is being established

in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh.


66. C

Central Silk Board (CSB) is a statutory body established in 1948 by an Act of Parliament, Central Silk Board Act

1948. It is working under the administrative control of Ministry of Textiles.





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67. A

Cartaz (plural cartazes, in Portuguese) was a naval trade license or pass issued by the Portuguese in the Indian

ocean during the sixteenth century (circa 1502-1750), under the rule of the Portuguese empire.

The "cartazes" licensing system was created in 1502 to control and enforce the Portuguese trade monopoly over

a wide area in the Indian Ocean, taking advantage of local commerce: the cartaz was issued by the Portuguese

at a low cost, granting merchant ships protection against pirates and rival states, which then abounded in these

seas. However its main purpose was to ensure that merchants paid the tax in Portuguese trading posts, directing

them to the feitorias in Goa, Malacca and Ormuz, guaranteeing its monopoly on the spice trade and other

products.

Officially, no vessel was permitted to sail in the Indian coast without this document, risking losing their cargo,

being attacked and even sunk by the Portuguese - mainly Muslim, Hindu and Malay merchant ships.


68. D


69. C


70. B


71. D

The Rudra Mahalaya Temple, also known as Rudramal, is a destroyed/desecrated temple complex at

Siddhpur in the Patan district of Gujarat, India. Its construction was started in 943 AD by Mularaja and

completed in 1140 AD by Jayasimha Siddharaja, the rulers of the Chaulukya dynasty. The temple was

destroyed by Alauddin Khilji and later Ahmed Shah I (1410–44) desecrated and substantially demolished

this temple.

The Kandariya Mahadeva Temple, meaning "the Great God of the Cave", is the largest and most ornate

Hindu temple in the medieval temple group found at Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh, India.

Brihadishvara Temple, also referred to as Rajarajesvaram or Peruvudaiyar Kovil, is a Hindu temple

dedicated to Shiva located in Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the largest South Indian temple and

an exemplary example of a fully realized Tamil architecture. Built by Raja Raja Chola I between 1003 and

1010 AD, the temple is a part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the "Great Living Chola

Temples.

Lingaraja Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva and is one of the oldest temples in Bhubaneswar,

the capital of the East Indian state of Odisha. The temple is the most prominent landmark of

Bhubaneswar city and one of the major tourist attractions of the state.





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72. D

The Aravali is oldest mountain range in India and it faced long duration of erosional activity.

The Deccan lava plateau is product of basaltic lava flow caused by fissure eruption during the cretaceous

and subsequent period.

The connecting rock formation of Rajmahal–Garo Gap is now lying buried under the Ganga alluvium.


73. B

India has been ranked 23rd out of 165 nations in the second Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) that measures the

commitment of nations across the world to cyber security. The Index has been released by the UN

telecommunications agency International Telecommunication Union (ITU).


74. A

Public Account Committee was setup first in 1921 under the provisions of the Government of India Act of 1919

and has since been in existence. At present, it consists of 22 members (15 from the Lok Sabha and 7 from the

Rajya Sabha). The members are elected by the Parliament every year from amongst its members according to

the principle of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote. Thus, all parties get due

representation in it. The term of office of the members is one year. A minister cannot be elected as a member of

the committee. The chairman of the committee is appointed by the Speaker from amongst its members.

Until 1966-67, the chairman of the committee belonged to the ruling party. However, since 1967 a convention

has developed whereby the chairman of the committee is selected invariably from the Opposition.


75. C

Madhyamika, (Sanskrit: “Intermediate”), important school in the Mahayana (“Great Vehicle”) Buddhist

tradition. Its name derives from its having sought a middle position between the realism of the

Sarvastivada (“Doctrine That All Is Real”) school and the idealism of the Yogacara (“Mind Only”) school.

The most renowned Madhyamika thinker was Nagarjuna (2nd century AD).

Syadvada, in Jaina metaphysics, the doctrine that all judgments are conditional, holding good only in

certain conditions, circumstances, or senses, expressed by the word syat (Sanskrit: “may be”). The ways

of looking at a thing (called naya) are infinite in number.


76. D

An ordinance like any other legislation, can be retrospective, that is, it may come into force from a back date. It

may modify or repeal any act of Parliament or another ordinance. It can alter or amend a tax law also. However,

it cannot be issued to amend the Constitution.




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77. B

On July 11, 1945, Mr. Jinnah had a short interview with the Viceroy, Lord Wavel during which he seems to have

made it clear to the latter that the League, wishing to be regarded as the sole representative of Indian Muslims,

was firmly opposed to the inclusion of any non-Leaguer Muslims in the Viceroy's list. But the Viceroy could not

agree to this point of view. Three days later Lord Wavell wound up the Conference by declaring a failure of the

talks. The responsibility for the failure lies partly on Lord Wavell himself and partly on Mr. Jinnah.


78. C

An ambitious and visionary species conservation goal was set by the governments of the 13 tiger range

countries: to double the number of wild tigers by 2022 – the next Chinese year of the tiger. This is the goal of

Tx2, WWF’s global tiger programme.

CA|TS is a set of criteria which allows tiger sites to check if their management will lead to successful tiger

conservation. CA|TS is organised under seven pillars and 17 elements of critical management activity.

CA|TS was developed by tiger and protected area experts. Officially launched in 2013, CA|TS is an important

part of Tx2, the global goal to double wild tiger numbers by the year 2022.


79. A

The Proposed Naitwar Mori Hydro Electric Project (NMHEP) is located on the river Tons – a tributary of the

Yamuna, in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand.


80. A

• Ashrama system: The life of an individual was divided into four stages (ashramas). First he was to be a

brahmacharin, leading a celibate and austere life as a student at his teacher's house. Having learnt the

Vedas or part of them he was married, and became a householder (grihastha). When well advanced in

age, he withdrew from worldly life to become an ascetic (vanaprastha). Finally in the ultimate phase of

life, having freed his soul from material ties by meditation and self-torture, he became a wandering

ascetic (sanyasin). It was developed in later vedic period.

• The institution of Gotra appeared during early Vedic age

• There are many passages in Rig Veda that throw light on the extent of freedom enjoyed by women. Rig

Vedic women enjoyed economic independence. The women belonging to lower strata took up spinning,

weaving and needle work. Weaving was practised on a wide scale and perhaps remained confined

mostly to women. But one cannot say that the occupations like spinning and weaving were confined

only to women during the Vedic Age





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81. C


82. B

The eyes are the central part of cyclones and are the region of least disturbances and having no rainfall. There is

a gradual increase in diameter of cyclones as Coriolis force increases.


83. B

Burkina Faso is Land Locked Country.


84. A

Green plants and certain bacteria are able to convert inorganic matter into biomass using energy from solar

radiation or chemical energy. They are the first link in the food chain and are therefore called the primary

producers (autotrophs). All other life depends on the energy fixed by these primary producers. The process of

assimilation and fixation of inorganic carbon and other inorganic nutrients into organic matter by autotrophs is

called primary production. In calculations of the primary production of an ecosystem the chemical energy source

is usually left away. The total amount of energy fixed in living organisms is called the Gross Primary Production

(GPP).


85. D


86. D

The states annexed by the application of the Doctrine of Lapse under Lord Dalhousie were Satara (1848),

Jaitpur and Samhbalpur (1849), Baghat (1850), Udaipur (1852), Jhansi (1853) and Nagpur (l854).

The main excuse for annexation of Awadh was the continuation of misrule there. The fundamental fact

that British intervention had been greatly instrumental for misrule was ignored.


87. B

In India, it is found in Sikkim, western Arunachal Pradesh, Darjeeling district of West Bengal and parts of

Meghalaya. It is also the state animal of Sikkim. Listed as Endagered in the IUCN red list of Threatened Species

and under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, the red panda has the highest legal protection

at par with other threatened species.


88. C

Statement 1 is correct: The Fourth Schedule to the Constitution provides for allocation of seats to the States and

Union Territories in Rajya Sabha. The allocation of seats is made on the basis of the population of each State.




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Statement 2 is incorrect: As per the provisions of the law existing now, an outsider can be elected from a Rajya

Sabha seat in a state. Prior to 2003, the legal provisions then existing did not allow an outsider to be elected to a

Rajya Sabha seat from a state. However, in 2003, the relevant provisions existing in the Representation of the

People Act, 1951, were amended to allow an outsider to get elected to a Rajya Sabha seat from a state. This

amendment was upheld by the Supreme Court in the case of Kuldip Nayar v. Union of India, (2006).

Statement 3 is correct: The representatives of the States and of the Union Territories in the Rajya Sabha are

elected by the method of indirect election. The representatives of each State and two Union territories are

elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assembly of that State and by the members of the Electoral

College for that Union Territory, as the case may be, in accordance with the system of proportional

representation by means of the single transferable vote. The Electoral College for the National Capital Territory

of Delhi consists of the elected members of the Legislative Assembly of Delhi, and that for Puducherry consists

of the elected members of the Puducherry Legislative Assembly.


89. A

To address the challenge of NPAs, Economic Survey had recommended four R's: Recognition, Recapitalization,

Resolution, and Reform.


90. C

Scholarly writings of nationalist leaders like Ranade's Essays in Indian Economics (1898), Dadabhai

Naoroji's Indian Poverty and un-British Rule in India (1901), R.C. Dutt's Economic History of India (1901)

were the arsenals from which the new leaders shot their arrows at the British rule in India.

The Indian National Social Conference founded in 1887 by M.G. Ranade had limited objectives and

achieved limited success. He was one of the prominent leaders of the Prarthana Samaj.


91. D

The DRDO Nishant is an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) developed by India's ADE (Aeronautical

Development Establishment), a branch of DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) for

the Indian Armed Forces. The Nishant UAV is primarily tasked with intelligence gathering over enemy

territory and also for reconnaissance, training, surveillance, target designation, artillery fire correction,

etc.


92. B

The government has recently launched the “Deen Dayal Upadhayay Vigyan Gram Sankul Pariyojana”. It will

experiment and endeavour to formulate and implement appropriate Science & Technology Interventions for

Sustainable Development through cluster approach in Uttarakhand.




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Under the scheme, the department of science and technology has designed a framework to adopt a few clusters

of villages and transform them to become self-sustainable in a time bound manner through the tools of Science

and Technology in Uttarakhand. Under this approach, the key deliverable is to make use of the local resources

and locally available skill sets and convert them in such a manner, that substantial value addition takes place in

their local produce and services which can sustain the rural population locally using science and technology.


93. C

The various features of administration contained in the Sixth Schedule are as follows:

The tribal areas in the four states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram have been constituted as

autonomous districts. But, they do not fall outside the executive authority of the state concerned.

The Governor is empowered to organise and reorganize the autonomous districts. Thus, he can increase

or decrease their areas or change their names or defme their boundaries and so on.

The district and regional councils are empowered to assess and collect land revenue and to impose

certain specified taxes.


94. D


95. D

On the June solstice, the circle of illumination is tangent to the Arctic Circle (66.5° N) and the region

above this latitude receives 24 hours of daylight. The Arctic Circle is in 24 hours of darkness during the

December solstice.

On June 21 or 22 the Earth is positioned in its orbit so that the North Pole is leaning 23.5° toward the

Sun. During the June solstice (also called the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere), all locations

north of the equator have day lengths greater than twelve hours, while all locations south of the

equator have day lengths less than twelve hours.

On December 21 or 22 the Earth is positioned so that the South Pole is leaning 23.5 degrees toward the

Sun. During the December solstice (also called the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere), all

locations north of the equator have day lengths less than twelve hours, while all locations south of the

equator have day lengths exceeding twelve hours.

On September 22 or 23, also called the autumnal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere, neither pole is

tilted toward or away from the Sun. In the Northern Hemisphere, March 20 or 21 marks the arrival of

the vernal equinox or spring when once again the poles are not tilted toward or away from the Sun. Day

lengths on both of these days, regardless of latitude, are exactly 12 hours.


96. C

The other two initiatives were during the tenure of Lord Ripon.




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97. A

In a bid to make India a mobile manufacturing hub of the world over a period of next few years, the Centre has

introduced Phased Manufacturing Programme (PMP). The scheme would promote domestic production of

mobile phones by providing tax relief and other incentives on components and accessories used for the devices.


98. A

The scheduled commercial banks including Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) and Local Area Banks (LABs) may engage

Business Correspondents (BCs).

The scope of activities may include (i) identification of borrowers; (ii) collection and preliminary processing of

loan applications including verification of primary information/data; (iii) creating awareness about savings and

other products and education and advice on managing money and debt counselling; (iv) processing and

submission of applications to banks; (v) promoting, nurturing and monitoring of Self Help Groups/ Joint Liability

Groups/Credit Groups/others; (vi) post-sanction monitoring; (vii) follow-up for recovery, (viii) disbursal of small

value credit, (ix) recovery of principal / collection of interest (x) collection of small value deposits (xi) sale of

micro insurance/ mutual fund products/ pension products/ other third party products and (xii) receipt and

delivery of small value remittances/ other payment instruments.


99. D


100. C

Alps is an example of Continent – Continent Convergence.


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