Practice Reading comprehension - general english mcq Online Quiz (set-2) For All Competitive Exams
DIRECTIONS:
Read the fol lowing passages carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words are given in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
We have inherited the tradition of secrecy about the budget from Britain where also the system has been strongly attacked by eminent economists and political scientists including Peter Jay. Sir Richard Clarke, who was the originating genius of nearly every important development in the British budgeting techniques during the last two decades, has spoken out about the abuse of budget secrecy: "The problems of long-term tax policy should surely be debated openly with the facts on the table. In my opinion, all governments should have just the same duty to publish their expenditure policy. Indeed, this obligation to publish taxation policy is really essential for the control of public expenditure in order to get realistic taxation implications." Realising that democracy flourishes best on the principles of open government, more and more democracies are having an open public debate on budget proposals before introducing the appropriate Bill in the legislature. In the United States the budget is conveyed in a message by the President to the Congress, which comes well in advance of the date when the Bill is introduced in the Congress. In Finland the Parliament and the people are already discussing in June the tentative budget proposals which are to be introduced in the Finnish Parliament in September. Every budget contains a cartload of figures in black and white - but the dark figures represent the myriad lights and shades of India's life, the contrasting tones of poverty and wealth, and of bread so dear and flesh and blood so cheap, the deep tints of adventure and enterprise and man's ageless struggle for a brighter morning. The Union budget should not be an annual scourge but a part of presentation of annual accounts of a partnership between the Government and the people. That partnership would work much better when the nonsensical secrecy is replaced by openness and public consultations, resulting in fair laws and the people's acceptance of their moral duty to pay.
Q-1) Choose the word which is most nearly the SAME in meaning to the word printed in bold as used in the passage.
SCOURGE
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
The meaning of the word ‘scourge’ as mentioned in the passage is ‘ a whip used especially formerly for punishing people’. Hence the words ‘scourge’ and ‘whip’ are synonymous.
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below. Certain words/phrases are printed in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
The Prime Minister's recent trip to Nigeria, the first bilateral prime ministerial visit to Africa since Jawaharlal Nehur's 45 years ago, recalls a long neglected Indian obligation. "It is up to Asia to help Africa to the best of her ability," Nehru told the Bandung Conference in 1955, "because we are sister continents. "The Prime Minister's proposed strategic partnership with African nations might at last make good that 52-year old promise and also, perhaps, challenge China's expedient diplomacy.
In the intervening years, the West's sanctimonious boycott of many African regimes - after nearly a century of extreme colonial exploitation – left the continent in the grip of oppressive rulers looking for new political sponsors, arms-sellers and trading partners. Not only was it an abdication of the developed world's responsibility to the world's least developed region, sanctions actually compounded the sufferings of poorer Africans. The Darfur killings continue and there is no mellowing of Robert Mugabe's repression in Zimbabwe.
A bandoned by the West Africa looked elsewhere. Beijing filled the vacuum by eagerly embracing dangerous and unsavoury regimes in its search for oil and other minerals. China demonstrated its influence by playing host to 48 out of 53 African leaders a year ago in a jamboree that was historic as well as historical. Historic because China has succeeded in becoming the pre-eminent outside power in Africa and its second biggest trading partner. Historical because modern Chinese diplomacy draws on the Middle kingdom's ancient formula; the tribute system. It was how the son of Heaven brought those nations whom the Celestial Empire called "barbarians' into his imperial trading and , through it, cultural and political system.
Contemporary China's economic penetration of Africa also heralds a new era of cultural and political ties though the Chinese foreign ministry repeatedly assure the world that "our cooperation is not designed to be against or preclude any third party." This is untrue in a world of finite resources. Once the Chinese are established in a country, no one else gets a foothold. Myanmar, where India failed to obtain the desired gas concessions, is a prime example. Aware that the hunt for energy is a zero-sum game, China's leadership courts African leaders with regular visits and substantial grants.
After decades of neglect – Vajpayee's Africa visit over a decade ago was to attend a Commonwealth Summit– India will have to move cautiously but quickly if it is to break China's monopoly. Along with investing in Africa's human capital, ,China has outlined a strategic investment plan to build three to five trade economic cooperation zones in Africa by 2009 to boost trade, which is expected to tap $40 billion this year.
That could double to $30 billion by 2010 on the back of an insatiable demand for natural resources to feed China's booming economy.
Q-2) Choose the word which is most nearly the SAME in meaning as the word given in bold as used in the passage.
SANCTIMONIOUS
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
The word sanctimonious means making a hypocritical show of religion, devotion etc. which is similar to word scrupulous which means showing a strict regard for what one considers right.
Directions:
In the following questions, you have one brief passage with 5 questions following the passage. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.
PASSAGE
Two years later, in November 1895, he signed his final will. He left the bulk of his fortune, amounting to about £1,75,000 to a trust fund administered by Swedish and Norwegian trustees. The annual interest shall be awarded as prizes to those persons who during the previous year have rendered the greatest services to mankind. The interest shall be divided into five equal parts– now amounting to about £8,000 each– one of which shall be awarded to the person who has made the most important discovery or invention in the realm of physics, one to the person who has made the most important chemical discovery or improvement, one to the person who has made the most important physiological or medical discovery, one to the person who has produced the most outstanding work of literature, idealistic in character, and one to the person who has done the best work for the brotherhood of nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies, as well as for the formation or popularization of peace congress.
Q-3) The number of prizes in the field of science are
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
DIRECTIONS:
A passage is given with 5 questions following it. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.
PASSAGE
Manja, or the glass-coated string used for flying kites, not only poses threat to humans, animals and birds but also to trees. A study by the country's oldest botanical garden has revealed that it poses a great threat to trees. But how can a snapped string struck in a tree kill the tree? Apparently, it does so by allying with the creepers in the garden.
A research paper by three scientists of the Acharya Jagdish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden, located in West Bengal's Howrah district, illustrates in detail how the manja, in collusion with climbers, does the damage. "The abandoned, torn kite strings act as an excellent primary supporting platform for the tender climbers, giving easy passage to reach the top of the trees. Lateral branches from the top of the climber and other accessory branches from the ground reaches the top taking support of the first climber, completely covers the treetop, thus inhibiting the penetration of sunlight," says the research paper.
Q-4) How many scientists contributed to a study by country's oldest botanical gardens on how manja can kill a tree?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
“A research paper by three…..”.thus, three scientists contributed to a study by country’s oldest botanical gardens on how manja can kill a tree. Hence, option B is correct.
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below. Certain words/phrases are printed in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
In the second week of August 1998, just a few days after the incidents of bombing the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar-esSalaam, a high-powered, brain-storming session was held near Washington D.C., to discuss various aspects of terrorism. The meeting was attended by ten of America's leading experts in various fields such as germ and chemical warfare, public health, disease control and also by the doctors and the law-enforcing officers. Being asked to describe the horror of possible bio-attack, one of the experts narrated the following gloomy scenario.
A culprit in a crowded business centre or in a busy shopping mall of a town empties a test tube containing some fluid, which in turn creates an unseen cloud of germ of a dreaded disease like anthrax capable of inflicting a horrible death within 5 days on any one who inhales it. At first 500, or so victims feel that they have mild influenza which may recede after a day or two. Then the symptoms return again and their lungs start filling with fluid. They rush to local hospitals for treatment, but the panic-stricken people may find that the medicare services run quickly out of drugs due to excessive demand. But no one would be able to realise that a terrorist attack has occurred. One cannot deny the possibility that the germ involved would be of contagious variety capable of causing an epidermic. The meeting concluded that such attacks, apart from causing immediate human tragedy, would have dire long-term effects on the political and social fabric of a country by way of ending people's trust on the competence of the government.
The experts also said that the bombs used in Kenya and Tanzania were of the old-fashion variety and involved quantities of high explosives, but new terrorism will prove to be more deadly and probably more elusive than hijacking an aeroplane or a gelignite of previous decades. According to Bruce Hoffman, an American specialist on political violence, old terrorism generally had a specific manifesto - to overthrow a colonial power or the capitalist system and so on. These terrorists were not shy about planting a bomb or hijacking an aircraft and they set some limit to their brutality. Killing so many innocent people might turn their natural supporters off. Political terrorists want a lot of people watching but not a lot of people dead. "Old terrorism sought to change the world while the new sort is often practised by those who believe that the world has gone beyond redemption", he added.
Hoffman says, "New terrorism has no long-term agenda but is ruthless in its short-term intentions. It is often just a cacophonous cry of protest or an outburst of religious intolerance or a protest against the West in general and the US in particular. Its perpetrators may be religious fanatics or diehard opponent of a government and see no reason to show restraint. They are simply intent on inflicting the maximum amount of pain on the victim."
Q-5) Choose the word which is most OPPOSITE in meaning of the word printed in capital as used in the passage.
CACOPHONOUS
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below. Certain words/phrases are printed in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
There is no field of human endeavour that has been so misunderstood as health. While health which connotes well-being and the absence of illness has a low profile, it is illness representing the failure of health which virtually monopolises attention because of the fear of pain, disability and death. Even Snshruta has warned that this provides the medical practitioner power over the patient which could be misused.
Till recently, patients had implicit faith in their physician whom they loved and respected, not only for his knowledge but also in the total belief that practitioners of this noble profession, guided by ethics, always placed the patient's interest above all other considerations. This rich interpersonal relationship between the physician, patient and family has, barring a few exceptions, prevailed till the recent past, for caring was considered as important as curing. Our indigenous systems of medicine like ayurveda and yoga have heen more concerned with the promotion of the health of both the body and mind and with maintaining a harmonious relationship not just with fellow-beings but with nature itself, of which man is an integral part. Healthy practices like cleanliness, proper diet, exercise and meditation are part of our culture which sustains people even in the prevailing conditions of poverty in rural India and in the unhygienic urban slums.
These systems consider disease as an aberration resulting from disturbance of the equilibrium of health, which must be corrected by gentle restoration of this balance through proper diet, medicines and the establishment of mental peace. They also teach the graceful acceptance of old age with its infirmities resulting from the normal degenerative process as well as of death which is inevitable.
This is in marked contrast to the western concept of life as a constant struggle against disease, ageing and death which must be fought and conquered with the knowledge and technology derived from their science: a science which, with its narrow dissective and quantifying approach, has provided us the understanding of the microbial causes of communicable diseases and provided highly effective technology for their prevention, treatment and control. This can rightly be claimed as the greatest contribution of western medicine and justifiably termed as 'high' technology. And yet the contribution of this science in the field of non-communicable diseases is remarkably poor despite the far greater inputs in research and treatment for the problems of ageing like cancer, heart diseases, paralytic strokes and arthritis which are the major problems of affluent societies today.
Q-6) Choose the word which is most OPPOSITE in meaning to the word printed in bold as used in the passage.
Degenerative
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words in the passage are printed in bold to help you to locate them easily while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
Despite the global slowdown, the online shopping In India has increased. The growing pace of online buying is because of the attractive discounted prices offered and the ability of the customers to research and compare the prices across several outlets. The average frequency of online purchases in India grew up to 2.9 in the fourth quarter of 2008 from 2.6 during the same quarter in 2007, as reported by the survey of Master Card Worldwide The economic meltdown has not affected our business, Said the CEO of an ecommerce portal which specializes in personalized gifting and merchandise space in India.
He said Our business has increased up to five times this year despite the economic recession. Currently, we possess a database of 25,000 designs posted by a thousand designers so that the users can create their own merchandise by selecting the designs sitting at home. The CEO also said that with the rise in bandwidth penetration in India and the Increasing awareness of internet among people, the online shoppers sense the convenience to click on the products they want to purchase. Holding onto a similar conviction, the CEO of another Company said, With the convenience of online buying, customers can save their time and money to move across multiple outlets for a product. The online shoppers also plan their shopping in advance and conduct research on their planned purchases.
It becomes easier for the customers to decide the price at which they want the products. Sharing views on this point, the Manager of the ecommerce portal says, Through the online shopping, customers can attain the objective of value for money during these tough times. Today, India is the only country where the 18 to 29 years age group has the highest average spend on online shopping. In India, the popular online purchases include the home appliances and the electronic gadgets like cell phones, camera, laptops and so on. According to the survey, the repurchasing of electronic products has gone up by 51 percent. So to drive these online shoppers, ecommerce portals are adopting a networking culture by Incorporating social networking feature in their websites, so that people can discuss with their friends and relatives before buying the particular product. There are more startups, who are Innovating their products to combat slowdown.
Q-7) What according to the CEO of the eCommerce portal is the reason for the increase in the number of online shoppers?
- Greater bandwidth is now available in India.
- Internet is available at a cheap cost.
- More people are aware of the internet.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words in the passage are printed in bold to help you to locate them easily while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
Despite the global slowdown, the online shopping In India has increased. The growing pace of online buying is because of the attractive discounted prices offered and the ability of the customers to research and compare the prices across several outlets. The average frequency of online purchases in India grew up to 2.9 in the fourth quarter of 2008 from 2.6 during the same quarter in 2007, as reported by the survey of Master Card Worldwide The economic meltdown has not affected our business, Said the CEO of an ecommerce portal which specializes in personalized gifting and merchandise space in India.
He said Our business has increased up to five times this year despite the economic recession. Currently, we possess a database of 25,000 designs posted by a thousand designers so that the users can create their own merchandise by selecting the designs sitting at home. The CEO also said that with the rise in bandwidth penetration in India and the Increasing awareness of internet among people, the online shoppers sense the convenience to click on the products they want to purchase. Holding onto a similar conviction, the CEO of another Company said, With the convenience of online buying, customers can save their time and money to move across multiple outlets for a product. The online shoppers also plan their shopping in advance and conduct research on their planned purchases.
It becomes easier for the customers to decide the price at which they want the products. Sharing views on this point, the Manager of the ecommerce portal says, Through the online shopping, customers can attain the objective of value for money during these tough times. Today, India is the only country where the 18 to 29 years age group has the highest average spend on online shopping. In India, the popular online purchases include the home appliances and the electronic gadgets like cell phones, camera, laptops and so on. According to the survey, the repurchasing of electronic products has gone up by 51 percent. So to drive these online shoppers, ecommerce portals are adopting a networking culture by Incorporating social networking feature in their websites, so that people can discuss with their friends and relatives before buying the particular product. There are more startups, who are Innovating their products to combat slowdown.
Q-8) Which of the following statements is TRUE in the context of the passage?
- People make purchases only through e-commerce portals.
- Online buying of electronic gadgets has increased by 51 per cent.
- Ecommerce portals are finding it difficult to sell their products.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
DIRECTIONS:
A passage is given with 5 questions following it. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.
PASSAGE
The flora and fauna of Cubbon Park captures our attention more than anything else. But when you take time to look closely at the statue, you will marvel at its sheer grandeur. Sculpted by Sir Thomas Brock, the 11 feet high marble statue is larger than life. It brings out the personality of Queen Victoria, who had been the Monarch of Great Britain from 1837 till 1901, depicting a rather proud, stern person with pronounced features.
In 1906, the statue was unveiled in the city by George Frederick Ernest Albert, Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and York, making it stand in all its glory in its 111th year. Even though there is a wealth of history to the statue, and it was made to appear imposing, the busy Bengalureans would probably refer to it as just another landmark. As the workers are busy in discussion on the instructions given to them, life continues as usual in the Park.
Q-9) The Bengalureans would refer to the Queen Victoria statue as ____________.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the fol lowing passages carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words are given in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
There is no field of human endeavour that has been so misunderstood as health. While health which connotes well-being and the absence of illness has a low profile, it is illness representing the failure of health which virtually monopolizes attention because of the fear of pain, disability and death. Even Sushruta has warned that this provides the medical practitioner power over the patient which could be misused.
Till recently, patients had implicit faith in their physician whom they loved and respected, not only for his knowledge but also in the total belief that practitioners of this noble profession, guided by ethics, always placed the patient's interest above all other considerations. This rich interpersonal relationship between the physician, patient and family has, barring a few exceptions, prevailed till the recent past, for caring was considered as important as curing. Our indigenous systems of medicine like ayurveda and yoga have been more concerned with the promotion of the health of both the body and mind and with maintaining a harmonious relationship not just with fellow-beings but with nature itself, of which man is an integral part. Healthy practices like cleanliness, proper diet, exercise and meditation are part of our culture which sustains people even in the prevailing conditions of poverty in rural India and in the unhygienic urban slums.
These systems consider disease as an aberration resulting from disturbance of the equilibrium of health, which must be corrected by gentle restoration of this balance through proper diet, medicines and the establishment of mental peace. They also teach the graceful acceptance of old age with its infirmities resulting from the normal degenerative process as well as of death which is inevitable.
This is in marked contrast to the western concept of life as a constant struggle against disease, ageing and death which must be fought and conquered with the knowledge and technology derived from their science: a science which, with its narrow dissective and quantifying approach, has provided us the understanding of the microbial causes of communicable diseases and provided highly effective technology for their prevention, treatment and control. This can rightly be claimed as the greatest contribution of western medicine and justifiably termed as 'high' technology. And yet the contribution of this science in the field of non-communicable diseases is remarkably poor despite the far greater inputs in research and treatment for the problems of ageing like cancer, heart diseases, paralytic strokes and arthritis which are the major problems of affluent societies today.
Q-10) Choose the word which is most OPPOSITE in meaning of the word printed in bold as used in the passage.
CONCERNED
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
The meaning of the word ‘concerned’ as mentioned in the passage is ‘to have a connection with or responsibility for something’. Out of the given words, ‘indifferent’ means ‘having no interest in somebody/something’; ‘not caring about something’. Hence the words ‘concerned’ and ‘indifferent’ are antonymous.
DIRECTIONS:
Read the fol lowing passages carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words are given in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
It is an old saying that knowledge is power. Education is an instrument which imparts knowledge and, therefore, indirectly controls power. Therefore, ever since the dawn of civilization persons in power have always tried to supervise or control education. It has been the hand-maid of the ruling class. During the Christian era, the ecclesiastics controlled the institution of education and diffused among the people the gospel of the Bible and religious teachings. These gospels and teachings were no other than a philosophy for the maintenance of the existing society. It taught the poor man to be meek and to earn his bread with the sweat of his brow, while the priests and the landlords lived in luxury and fought duels for the slightest offence. During the Renaissance, education passed more from the clutches of the priest into the hand of the prince. In other words, it became more secular.
It was also due to the growth of the nationstate and powerful monarchs who united the country under their rule. Thus, under the control of the monarch, education began to devise and preach the infallibility of its masters, the monarch or king. It also invented and supported fantastic theories like the Divine Right Theory and that the king can do no wrong etc. With the advent of the industrial revolution education took a different turn and had to please the new masters. It now no longer remained the privilege of the baron class but was thrown open to the new rich merchant class of society. Yet education was still confined to the few elite. The philosophy which was in vogue during this period was that of 'laissez-faire' restricting the function of the State to a mere keeping of law and order while, on the other hand, in practice the law of the jungle prevailed in the form of free competition and the survival of the fittest.
Q-11) What did the ruling class in the Christian era think of the poor man?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words in the passage are printed in bold to help you to locate them easily while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
We should recognize the indebtedness of the country to its farm families who toil to safeguard national food security. Loan waiver is the price we have to, pay for the neglect of rural India over the past several decades. There has been a gradual decline in investment in key sectors related to agriculture such as infrastructure, marketing, post-harvest technology etc. The four crore farmers whose debt is to be relieved will be eligible for institutional credit for their cultivation expenses during Kharif 2008. The into the debt trap again. For this purpose the Central and various State governments, should set up an Indebted Farmers Support Consortium, comprising scientists, panchayat raj officials and others relevant to assisting farmers to improve the profitability and productivity of their, farms in an environmentally sustainable manner.
The smaller the farm the greater is the need for marketable surplus to reduce indebtedness. The Indebted Farmers Support Consortium should aim to get all the four crore farmers all the benefits of the government schemes such as the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, Irrigation Benefit Programme and others. If this is done every farm family released from the debt trap should be able to produce at least , an additional half tonne per hectare of food grains. This should help increase food production by about 20 million tonnes by 2008 10. At a time when global and national food Stocks are dwindling and prices are rising, this will be a timely gain for our national food security. We need to ensure that the outcome of the debt waiver is enhanced farmers income and production. The prevailing gap between potential and actual yields In the crops of rain fed areas such as pulses and oilseeds is over 200 percent even with the necessary technologies on the shelf. We are now importing without duty large quantities of pulses and oilseeds. If helped, farmers can produce these at a lower cost. Opportunities for assured and remunerative marketing are essential if loan waiver is not to become a recurring event leading to the destruction of the credit system. This is why the Minimum Support Price is necessary for all not just for a few crops which is the case at present. This is the single most effective step to make loan waivers history. There is another urgent step which needs to be taken.
The loan wave does not cover those who borrow from moneylenders. It will not be possible for the government to scrutinise the veracity of such private deals but steps can be taken such as giving them Srhart Cards which will entitle them to essential inputs like seeds and fertilizers. The gram sabha can be entrusted with the task of identifying these farmers so that there is transparency in the process and elimination of the chances for falsification and corruption. Fear of occasional misuse should not come in the way of enabling millions of poor farmers who have borrowed from informal sources if we are to achieve the goal of four percent growth in agriculture.
Q-12) What is the likely impact of ensuring farmers benefit from government schemes?
- They can use the credit from these schemes to repay moneylenders.
- The government can control the price rise.
- Increased agricultural production.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words in the passage are printed in bold to help you to locate them easily while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
We should recognize the indebtedness of the country to its farm families who toil to safeguard national food security. Loan waiver is the price we have to, pay for the neglect of rural India over the past several decades. There has been a gradual decline in investment in key sectors related to agriculture such as infrastructure, marketing, post-harvest technology etc. The four crore farmers whose debt is to be relieved will be eligible for institutional credit for their cultivation expenses during Kharif 2008. The into the debt trap again. For this purpose the Central and various State governments, should set up an Indebted Farmers Support Consortium, comprising scientists, panchayat raj officials and others relevant to assisting farmers to improve the profitability and productivity of their, farms in an environmentally sustainable manner.
The smaller the farm the greater is the need for marketable surplus to reduce indebtedness. The Indebted Farmers Support Consortium should aim to get all the four crore farmers all the benefits of the government schemes such as the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, Irrigation Benefit Programme and others. If this is done every farm family released from the debt trap should be able to produce at least , an additional half tonne per hectare of food grains. This should help increase food production by about 20 million tonnes by 2008 10. At a time when global and national food Stocks are dwindling and prices are rising, this will be a timely gain for our national food security. We need to ensure that the outcome of the debt waiver is enhanced farmers income and production. The prevailing gap between potential and actual yields In the crops of rain fed areas such as pulses and oilseeds is over 200 percent even with the necessary technologies on the shelf. We are now importing without duty large quantities of pulses and oilseeds. If helped, farmers can produce these at a lower cost. Opportunities for assured and remunerative marketing are essential if loan waiver is not to become a recurring event leading to the destruction of the credit system. This is why the Minimum Support Price is necessary for all not just for a few crops which is the case at present. This is the single most effective step to make loan waivers history. There is another urgent step which needs to be taken.
The loan wave does not cover those who borrow from moneylenders. It will not be possible for the government to scrutinise the veracity of such private deals but steps can be taken such as giving them Srhart Cards which will entitle them to essential inputs like seeds and fertilizers. The gram sabha can be entrusted with the task of identifying these farmers so that there is transparency in the process and elimination of the chances for falsification and corruption. Fear of occasional misuse should not come in the way of enabling millions of poor farmers who have borrowed from informal sources if we are to achieve the goal of four percent growth in agriculture.
Q-13) Why does the loan waiver not cover credit taken from money lenders?
- It is difficult to verify these contracts between farmers and moneylenders.
- It will increase the deficit in the budget.
- There is a risk that the funds may be misappropriated.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
DIRECTIONS:
A passage is given with 5 questions following it. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.
PASSAGE
My coat's pretty warm, even though it cost £9.99 and came from the flea market. It had a label on it, CHRISTIN BIOR, but I cut it out as soon as I got home. You can't work where I work and have CHRISTIN BIOR in your coat. You could have a genuine vintage Christian Dior label. Or something Japanese. Or maybe no label because you make your clothes yourself out of retro fabrics that you source at Alfies Antiques. But not CHRISTIN BIOR.
As I get near Catford Bridge, I start to feel a knot of tension. I really don\'t want to be late today. My boss has started throwing all sorts of hissy fits about people "swanning in at all times," so I left an extra twenty minutes early, in case it was a bad day. I can already see: It\'s a god-awful day. They've been having a lot of problems on our line recently and keep cancelling trains with no warning. Trouble is, in London rush hour, you can't just cancel trains. What are all the people who were planning to get on that train supposed to do? Evaporate?
Q-14) Why is her boss angry?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below. Certain words/phrases are printed in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
It is sad that in country after country, progress should become synonymous with an assault on nature. We who are a part of nature and dependent on her for every need, speak constantly about 'exploiting' nature. When the highest mountain in the world was climbed in 1953, Jawaharlal Nehru objected to the phrase conquest of Everest' which he thought was arrogant. Is it surprising that this lack of consideration and the constant need to prove one's superiority should be projected on to our treatment of our fellowmen? I remember Edward Thompson, a British writer and a good friend of India, once telling Mr. Gandhi that wildlife was fast disappearing. Remarked Mr. Gandhi: 'It is decreasing in the jungles but it is increasing in the towns'
On the one hand the rich look askance at our continuing poverty; on the other they warn us against their own methods. We do not wish to impoverish the environment any further and yet we cannot forget the grim poverty of large numbers of people. Are not poverty and need the great polluters? For instance, unless we are in a position to provide employment and purchasing power for the daily necessities of the tribal people and those who live in and around our jungles, we cannot prevent them from combing the forest for food and livelihood, from poaching and from despoiling the vegetation.
Q-15) At the beginning of the passage, the writer expresses her opinion that in many countries progress is synonymous with
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the fol lowing passages carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words are given in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
A few weeks ago I ran into an old friend who is currently one of the mandarins deciding India's economic and financial policies. He asked, "And so, how is IIT doing?" As one can only indulge in friendly banter at such gatherings, I responded with, "Not so well actually. Your market-friendly policies have forced us to raise the fee, so we have 50% fewer PhD applicants this year. Not batting an eyelid, he shot back: "Obviously. Your PhD students don't have any market value." Taken aback, I shifted to a more serious tone and tried to start a discussion on the need for research in these globalised times. But he had already walked away. The last word on the imperatives of the 'market' had been spoken. Actually, this view of higher education should not have surprised me. Worthies who look at everything as consumer products classify higher education as a 'non-merit' good. Non-merit goods are those where only the individual benefits from acquiring them and not the society as a whole. Multilateral agencies like The World Bank have too been pushing countries like India to stop subsidies to higher education.
When Ron Brown, former US commerce secretary visited India, a public meeting was organized at IIT Delhi. At that meeting I asked him : "I understand that since the 19th century all the way up to the 1970s, most land grant and state universities in the US virtually provided free education to state citizens. Was that good for the economy, or should they have charged high fees in the early 20th century?" He replied, "It was great for the economy. It was one of the best things that the US government did at that particular time in American history - building institutions of higher education which were accessible to the masses of the people. I think it is one of the reasons why our economy grew and prospered, one of the ways in which the US was able to close some of its social gaps. So people who lived in rural areas would have the same kind of access to higher education as people living in other parts of the country. It was one of the reasons for making America strong."
Our policy-makers seem unaware that their mentors in the US did not follow policies at home which they now prescribe for other countries. Ron Brown's remarks summarise the importance of policymakers in the US place on higher education as a vehicle for upward mobility, for the poorer sectors of their population. Even today, a majority of Americans study in state-run institutions. Some of these institutions, like Berkeley and the Universities of Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin and Texas, are among the best in world. The annual tuition charged from state residents (about $ 5000 a year) is about a month's salary paid to a lecturer. Even this fee is waived for most students. In addition, students receive stipends for books, food and hostel charges. The basic principle is that no student who gets admission to a university should have to depend on parental support if it is not available.
Ron Brown's remarks went unnoticed in India. Every other day some luminary or the other opines that universities and technical education institutions should increase their charges and that such education should not be subsidized. Most editorials echo these sentiments. Eminent industrialists pontificate that we should run educational institutions like business houses. Visiting experts from the Bank and the IMF, in their newly emerging concern for the poor, advise us to divert funds from higher education to primary education.
Q-16) According to the author, the US policy-makers consider education as a
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
This is what the author deduces from what “Ron Brown’s remarks summarise”.
DIRECTIONS:
Read the fol lowing passages carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words are given in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
Agriculture dominates change in India through its causal links with factor and product markets. It employs 60 per cent of the labour force and contributes 26 per cent of the gross domestic product. In the poorer states, its contribution to the domestic product is close to 40 per cent. Low productivity in agriculture has led to the concentration of the poor in this sector. Due to the sheer size of the agricultural economy and the importance of its major products (cereals) in the diets of the poor, gains in agricultural productivity have significant potential impact on poverty. Theoretically, it is possible to reduce poverty as well as expand the domestic market for industry by raising labour productivity in agriculture and spreading its gains among the low-income groups. Modelling of the linkages between agricultural and industrial growth has shown that a 10 per cent increase in agricultural output would increase industrial output by 5 per cent and urban workers would benefit by both increased industrial employment and price deflation. However, there is an asymmetry of adjustments in the demand and supply of agricultural goods. An increase in nonagricultural production would lead to an immediate increase in demand for intermediate and final agricultural goods, whereas supply-side adjustments involving reallocation of resources and net additional investment for capacity expansion take a much longer period. There is a widely held view that in a large country like India, the demand stimulus for industrialisation would come mainly from agriculture with less social and economic costs.
Interdependencies in food and labour market are important for the development process. An upward shift in the food supply curve would simultaneously result in an upward shift in the labour demand curve.
The magnitude of the interdependence depends on the technique of production causing the shifts in the food supply curve. Similarly, an upward shift in the labour supply curve shifts up the food demand curve. The extent of interdependence between the forces of labour supply and food demand depends on the employment-output elasticity and the income elasticity of demand for food. The recent estimate of the employment output elasticity in agriculture is around 0.5, income elasticity of food is in the range of 0.55-0.50 and that for cereals is 0.25-0.30. The other important interdependency which plays a crucial role in inducing indirect employment, is that between food and other sectors through demand linkages. Since food accounts for a major share in the budget of the poor and any reduction in the food price leaves a significant proportion of income for other items, a lower food price stimulates employment in industrial and service sectors. On the other hand, an increase in the food price would increase the wage costs of industrial products and hence the prices of industrial products. In the absence of adjustments through exports, it would result in demand deficiency. Clearly, the most favourable situation in India is one in which labour demand outpaces its supply and food supply outpaces its demand.
Wage rates cannot fall below a certain minimum determined by the costs of subsistence living and the labour supply curve turns elastic at the subsistence wage rate. Demographic pressure cannot push the wage rate below the subsistence level. People would be willing to starve rather than work unless the energy expended in physical work is compensated by the energy provided by food. Foodgrain price usually determines the subsistence wage rate in agricultural as well as in the urban informal sector since foodgrains account for about four-fifths of the calorie intake of the poor.
Q-17) Which of the following is meant by “the labour supply curve turns elastic at the subsistence wage rate” as used in the passage?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
The supply of labour can be affected at the subsistence wage rate.
DIRECTIONS:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words in the passage are printed in bold to help you to locate them easily while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
Giving loans to Impoverished women to make ceramics or to farmers to buy milk cows were not seen as great business. Microfinance was an industry championed by antipoverty activists. Today it is on the Verge of a revolution, with billions of dollars from big banks, private equity shops and pension funds pouring In, driving growth of 30% to 40% this year alone. In 1998, a nonprofit microfinance organisation in Peru, converted into bank (called Mibanco). This demonstrated that the poor Eire good risks who repay lotions on time and getting them together, not only chips away at poverty but also turns a profit. The success of Mibanco has piqued the interest of commercial banks, which had previously shunned the countries poor. Now big banks are going after Milbank's clients with low rate loans and realising it likes special know how to work with the unbanked Eire hiring away Milbank's staff. But with the emergence of players who are only out for profit, microfinance schemes could end up milking the poor.
This could happen in countries where lenders don't have to disclose interest rates. When a Mexican micro financer went public, revealing its loans had rates of about 86% annually, the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) criticised it for putting shareholders ahead of clients. The pressure of turn a profit also forces micro financiers to change their business models In ways that depart from the industries core mission to help poor people lead better lives. Such shifts have caused the average loan size to triple. Moreover smaller loans being costlier to service, a lower percentage of loans go to women because they tend to take out similar sums. According to CGAP, with the flood of new large entities there is the risk that a large percentage of cross border funds go to Latin America and eastern Europe, the world's most developed microfinance markets. The poorest of the world's poor, who are predominantly in Asia and Africa get left out, says the CEO of the nonprofit Grameen Foundation, which helps develop microfinance Institutions. Segmenting the Industry, might be worthwhile if It allows more of the poor to get access to credit. Multinational corporations could take the top microfinance institutions to the next level, and the remainder could be the responsibility of development groups and regional banks. Yet making loans to poor people is hardly a poverty cure.
Property rights and the rule flaw matter too, One cannot over idealize what microfinance alone can do. Most nonprofits started with lending simply because local laws prohibited nonbanks from offering deposit accounts. With an increase in competition and marketing efforts, poverty alleviation experts are concerned that people will be talked into loans they would not otherwise want, For example, organizations like Mibanco are providing consumer loans. There is nothing wrong with buying TVs and micro waves on credit, but certain markets, like Mexico, have been flooded with loans that have nothing to do with providing capital to aspiring entrepreneurs —just increasing household debt.
Q-18) Why did most microfinance institutions initially provide only credit services?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
DIRECTIONS:
Read the fol lowing passages carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words are given in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
We have inherited the tradition of secrecy about the budget from Britain where also the system has been strongly attacked by eminent economists and political scientists including Peter Jay. Sir Richard Clarke, who was the originating genius of nearly every important development in the British budgeting techniques during the last two decades, has spoken out about the abuse of budget secrecy: "The problems of long-term tax policy should surely be debated openly with the facts on the table. In my opinion, all governments should have just the same duty to publish their expenditure policy. Indeed, this obligation to publish taxation policy is really essential for the control of public expenditure in order to get realistic taxation implications." Realising that democracy flourishes best on the principles of open government, more and more democracies are having an open public debate on budget proposals before introducing the appropriate Bill in the legislature. In the United States the budget is conveyed in a message by the President to the Congress, which comes well in advance of the date when the Bill is introduced in the Congress. In Finland the Parliament and the people are already discussing in June the tentative budget proposals which are to be introduced in the Finnish Parliament in September. Every budget contains a cartload of figures in black and white - but the dark figures represent the myriad lights and shades of India's life, the contrasting tones of poverty and wealth, and of bread so dear and flesh and blood so cheap, the deep tints of adventure and enterprise and man's ageless struggle for a brighter morning. The Union budget should not be an annual scourge but a part of presentation of annual accounts of a partnership between the Government and the people. That partnership would work much better when the nonsensical secrecy is replaced by openness and public consultations, resulting in fair laws and the people's acceptance of their moral duty to pay.
Q-19) How do the British economists and political scientists react to budget secrecy? They are
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
Eminent British economists and political scientists have strongly attacked the tradition of budget secrecy.
DIRECTIONS:
Read the fol lowing passages carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words are given in bold to help you to locate them while answering some of the questions.
PASSAGE
We have inherited the tradition of secrecy about the budget from Britain where also the system has been strongly attacked by eminent economists and political scientists including Peter Jay. Sir Richard Clarke, who was the originating genius of nearly every important development in the British budgeting techniques during the last two decades, has spoken out about the abuse of budget secrecy: "The problems of long-term tax policy should surely be debated openly with the facts on the table. In my opinion, all governments should have just the same duty to publish their expenditure policy. Indeed, this obligation to publish taxation policy is really essential for the control of public expenditure in order to get realistic taxation implications." Realising that democracy flourishes best on the principles of open government, more and more democracies are having an open public debate on budget proposals before introducing the appropriate Bill in the legislature. In the United States the budget is conveyed in a message by the President to the Congress, which comes well in advance of the date when the Bill is introduced in the Congress. In Finland the Parliament and the people are already discussing in June the tentative budget proposals which are to be introduced in the Finnish Parliament in September. Every budget contains a cartload of figures in black and white - but the dark figures represent the myriad lights and shades of India's life, the contrasting tones of poverty and wealth, and of bread so dear and flesh and blood so cheap, the deep tints of adventure and enterprise and man's ageless struggle for a brighter morning. The Union budget should not be an annual scourge but a part of presentation of annual accounts of a partnership between the Government and the people. That partnership would work much better when the nonsensical secrecy is replaced by openness and public consultations, resulting in fair laws and the people's acceptance of their moral duty to pay.
Q-20) For making the budget realistic, the Government should
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
An open public debate on budget proposals should be held before introducing the appropriate bill.