UP PET ENGLISH QUIZ

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Question 1:

B>Direction: Read the passage given below and answer the question that follow by selecting the correct/most appropriate options.
The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judicial body of India and the highest court of Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, and has the power of judicial review. The Chief Justice of India is the head and chief judge of the Supreme Court, which consists of a maximum of 34 judges and has extensive powers in the form of original, appellate and advisory jurisdictions.
As the apex constitutional court in India, it takes up appeals primarily against verdicts of the high courts of various states of the Union and other courts and tribunals. It is required to safeguard the fundamental rights of citizens and settles disputes between various government authorities as well as the central government vs state governments or state governments versus another state government in the country. As an advisory court, it hears matters which may specifically be referred to it under the Constitution by the President of India. The law declared by the Supreme Court becomes binding on all courts within India and also by the union and state governments. As per the Article 142 of the Constitution, it is the duty of the President of India to enforce the decrees of the Supreme Court and the court is conferred with the inherent jurisdiction to pass any order deemed necessary in the interest of justice. The Supreme Court has replaced the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council as the highest court of appeal since 28 January 1950.
In 1861, the Indian High Courts Act 1861 was enacted to create high courts for various provinces and abolished Supreme Courts at Calcutta, Madras and Bombay and also the sadar adalats in presidency towns in their respective regions. These new high courts had the distinction of being the highest courts for all cases till the creation of the Federal Court of India under the Government of India Act 1935. The Federal Court had jurisdiction to solve disputes between provinces and federal states and hear appeals against judgement of the high courts. The first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India was H. J. Kania.
It settles disputes between various government authorities. Which of the following is nearest in meaning to the word ‘dispute’?
B>Direction: Read the passage given below and answer the question that follow by selecting the correct/most appropriate options.
The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judicial body of India and the highest court of Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, and has the power of judicial review. The Chief Justice of India is the head and chief judge of the Supreme Court, which consists of a maximum of 34 judges and has extensive powers in the form of original, appellate and advisory jurisdictions.
As the apex constitutional court in India, it takes up appeals primarily against verdicts of the high courts of various states of the Union and other courts and tribunals. It is required to safeguard the fundamental rights of citizens and settles disputes between various government authorities as well as the central government vs state governments or state governments versus another state government in the country. As an advisory court, it hears matters which may specifically be referred to it under the Constitution by the President of India. The law declared by the Supreme Court becomes binding on all courts within India and also by the union and state governments. As per the Article 142 of the Constitution, it is the duty of the President of India to enforce the decrees of the Supreme Court and the court is conferred with the inherent jurisdiction to pass any order deemed necessary in the interest of justice. The Supreme Court has replaced the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council as the highest court of appeal since 28 January 1950.
In 1861, the Indian High Courts Act 1861 was enacted to create high courts for various provinces and abolished Supreme Courts at Calcutta, Madras and Bombay and also the sadar adalats in presidency towns in their respective regions. These new high courts had the distinction of being the highest courts for all cases till the creation of the Federal Court of India under the Government of India Act 1935. The Federal Court had jurisdiction to solve disputes between provinces and federal states and hear appeals against judgement of the high courts. The first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India was H. J. Kania.

Question 2:

Read the passage carefully and answer the question according to the passage:

The Kerala Governor has stirred up a hornet’s nest by demanding the discontinuation of a uniquely Kerala welfare scheme that covers around 1,200 people who served on the personal staff of Ministers, leaders of Opposition and government Chief Whips. The number of people who are eligible for lifetime pensions from the exchequer is set to swell to around 1,500 when the additional beneficiaries, who were recruited during the previous government, are added. Governor Arif Mohammad Khan has called for an end to this practice, terming it unconstitutional and against constitutional morality. The State spends around ₹8 crore every year on these pensions, according to estimates. The beneficiaries, mostly political activists, draw a minimum pension of ₹3,550 a month, and dearness allowance. In 1959, the State allowed Ministers to have 20 members on their personal staff; over the years that number has risen to the current 30. In 1994, when the Congress led United Democratic Front was in power, pensions were sanctioned through an executive order, with retrospective effect from 1982. In the beginning, the eligibility for this cohort was three years in service as opposed to 10 years for regular government employees. As the pension scheme for its regular employees in general became tighter, the government made flagrant exceptions for this class. They are now eligible for pensions after two years. The CPI(M)led ruling Left Democratic Front has said it would not heed the Governor’s demand, and that the pension scheme would continue

The pension scheme for the personnel staff has become a safety net for the fortunate among the cavalry of political parties, but it is a cruel insult to the swelling ranks of the State’s unemployed and underemployed youth. As the Governor has pointed out, there is also a pattern of replacing one set of staff with another after two years, in order to cover more people under the pension scheme. Some recent controversies in Kerala also brought to the fore other innovative modes of nepotism, such as arbitrary recruitment of consultants. Towards the end of the previous government, seven people were appointed to the CM’s personal staff with retrospective effect, making them eligible for pensions. All parties in Kerala had agreed to this arrangement, a source of political patronage in the resource starved State. The Governor has now disrupted that comfort zone by not merely challenging it but also launching a public campaign against it. The fact that Kerala is in a financial crisis only makes this pension scheme more unacceptable to the general public. All political parties must take note of the resentment that this preferential treatment to their protégés can create against the political class in general. They must work together for a wealth creating consensus in the State rather than designing and defending such indefensible schemes.

What is the meaning of the Idiom ‘hornet’s nest’ in the given passage?

Read the passage carefully and answer the question according to the passage:

The Kerala Governor has stirred up a hornet’s nest by demanding the discontinuation of a uniquely Kerala welfare scheme that covers around 1,200 people who served on the personal staff of Ministers, leaders of Opposition and government Chief Whips. The number of people who are eligible for lifetime pensions from the exchequer is set to swell to around 1,500 when the additional beneficiaries, who were recruited during the previous government, are added. Governor Arif Mohammad Khan has called for an end to this practice, terming it unconstitutional and against constitutional morality. The State spends around ₹8 crore every year on these pensions, according to estimates. The beneficiaries, mostly political activists, draw a minimum pension of ₹3,550 a month, and dearness allowance. In 1959, the State allowed Ministers to have 20 members on their personal staff; over the years that number has risen to the current 30. In 1994, when the Congress led United Democratic Front was in power, pensions were sanctioned through an executive order, with retrospective effect from 1982. In the beginning, the eligibility for this cohort was three years in service as opposed to 10 years for regular government employees. As the pension scheme for its regular employees in general became tighter, the government made flagrant exceptions for this class. They are now eligible for pensions after two years. The CPI(M)led ruling Left Democratic Front has said it would not heed the Governor’s demand, and that the pension scheme would continue

The pension scheme for the personnel staff has become a safety net for the fortunate among the cavalry of political parties, but it is a cruel insult to the swelling ranks of the State’s unemployed and underemployed youth. As the Governor has pointed out, there is also a pattern of replacing one set of staff with another after two years, in order to cover more people under the pension scheme. Some recent controversies in Kerala also brought to the fore other innovative modes of nepotism, such as arbitrary recruitment of consultants. Towards the end of the previous government, seven people were appointed to the CM’s personal staff with retrospective effect, making them eligible for pensions. All parties in Kerala had agreed to this arrangement, a source of political patronage in the resource starved State. The Governor has now disrupted that comfort zone by not merely challenging it but also launching a public campaign against it. The fact that Kerala is in a financial crisis only makes this pension scheme more unacceptable to the general public. All political parties must take note of the resentment that this preferential treatment to their protégés can create against the political class in general. They must work together for a wealth creating consensus in the State rather than designing and defending such indefensible schemes.

Question 3:

Direction: A passage is given question following it. Read the passage carefully and select the best answer to the question out of the given four alternatives.

Tegea was a settlement in ancient Arcadia, and it is also a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it is part of the Tripoli municipality, of which it is a municipal unit with an area of 118.350 km. It is near the modern villages of Alea and Episkopi. The legendary founder of Tegea was Tegeates, a son of Lycaon. Tegea was one of the most ancient and powerful towns of ancient Arcadia, situated in the southeast of the country. Its territory, called Tegeatis, was bounded by Cynuria and Argolis on the east, from which it was separated by Mount Parthenium, by Laconia on the south, by the Arcadian district of Maenalia on the west, and by the territory of Mantineia on the north. The Tegeatae are said to have derived their name from Tegeates, a son of Lycaon, and to have dwelt originally in eight, afterwards nine, demoi or townships.

In the Archaic period the nine demoi that underlie Tegea banded together in a synoecism to form one city; the inhabitants of the demoi were incorporated, by Aleus in the city of Tegea, of which this hero was the reputed founder. The names of these nine townships, which are preserved by Pausanias, are: Gareatae, Phylaceis, Caryatae, Corytheis, Potachidae, Oeatae, Manthyreis, Echeuetheis, to which Apheidantes was added as the ninth in the reign of king Apheidas. The Tegeatae were early divided into four tribes, called respectively Clareotis, Hippothoitis, Apolloneatis, and Athoneatis, to each of which belonged a certain number of metoeci or resident aliens. Tegea, however, still retained its independence, though its military force was at the disposal of Sparta; and in the Greco-Persian Wars it appears as the second military power in the Peloponnesus, having the place of honour on the left wing of the allied army.
What ‘Maenalia’ actually is in the given passage?
Direction: A passage is given question following it. Read the passage carefully and select the best answer to the question out of the given four alternatives.

Tegea was a settlement in ancient Arcadia, and it is also a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it is part of the Tripoli municipality, of which it is a municipal unit with an area of 118.350 km. It is near the modern villages of Alea and Episkopi. The legendary founder of Tegea was Tegeates, a son of Lycaon. Tegea was one of the most ancient and powerful towns of ancient Arcadia, situated in the southeast of the country. Its territory, called Tegeatis, was bounded by Cynuria and Argolis on the east, from which it was separated by Mount Parthenium, by Laconia on the south, by the Arcadian district of Maenalia on the west, and by the territory of Mantineia on the north. The Tegeatae are said to have derived their name from Tegeates, a son of Lycaon, and to have dwelt originally in eight, afterwards nine, demoi or townships.

In the Archaic period the nine demoi that underlie Tegea banded together in a synoecism to form one city; the inhabitants of the demoi were incorporated, by Aleus in the city of Tegea, of which this hero was the reputed founder. The names of these nine townships, which are preserved by Pausanias, are: Gareatae, Phylaceis, Caryatae, Corytheis, Potachidae, Oeatae, Manthyreis, Echeuetheis, to which Apheidantes was added as the ninth in the reign of king Apheidas. The Tegeatae were early divided into four tribes, called respectively Clareotis, Hippothoitis, Apolloneatis, and Athoneatis, to each of which belonged a certain number of metoeci or resident aliens. Tegea, however, still retained its independence, though its military force was at the disposal of Sparta; and in the Greco-Persian Wars it appears as the second military power in the Peloponnesus, having the place of honour on the left wing of the allied army.

Question 4:

Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question accordingly.
Air pollution is the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different types of air pollutants, such as gases (including ammonia, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides, methane, carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons), particulates (both organic and inorganic), and biological molecules. Air pollution can cause diseases, allergies, and even death to humans; it can also cause harm to other living organisms such as animals and food crops, and may damage the natural environment (for example, climate change, ozone depletion or habitat degradation) or built environment (for example, acid rain). Both human activity and natural processes can generate air pollution.
Air pollution is a significant risk factor for a number of pollution-related diseases, including respiratory infections, heart disease, COPD, stroke and lung cancer. Growing evidence suggests that air pollution exposure may be associated with reduced IQ scores, impaired cognition, increased risk for psychiatric disorders such as depression and detrimental perinatal health. The human health effects of poor air quality are far reaching, but principally affect the body's respiratory system and the cardiovascular system. Outdoor air pollution alone causes 2.1 to 4.21 million deaths annually, making it one of the top contributors to human death. Overall, air pollution causes the deaths of around seven million people worldwide each year, and is the world's largest single environmental health risk.
Air pollution can cause diseases and harm several things. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the given passage?
Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question accordingly.
Air pollution is the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different types of air pollutants, such as gases (including ammonia, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides, methane, carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons), particulates (both organic and inorganic), and biological molecules. Air pollution can cause diseases, allergies, and even death to humans; it can also cause harm to other living organisms such as animals and food crops, and may damage the natural environment (for example, climate change, ozone depletion or habitat degradation) or built environment (for example, acid rain). Both human activity and natural processes can generate air pollution.
Air pollution is a significant risk factor for a number of pollution-related diseases, including respiratory infections, heart disease, COPD, stroke and lung cancer. Growing evidence suggests that air pollution exposure may be associated with reduced IQ scores, impaired cognition, increased risk for psychiatric disorders such as depression and detrimental perinatal health. The human health effects of poor air quality are far reaching, but principally affect the body's respiratory system and the cardiovascular system. Outdoor air pollution alone causes 2.1 to 4.21 million deaths annually, making it one of the top contributors to human death. Overall, air pollution causes the deaths of around seven million people worldwide each year, and is the world's largest single environmental health risk.

Question 5:

Direction: Read the passage carefully then answer the question given below.


The death of five elephants, four of them cows, caused by trains colliding with them, and all within a week, has again highlighted the gaps in efforts to reduce man-animal conflicts in the country. On November 26, the first accident occurred near Madukkarai in Coimbatore district, Tamil Nadu that has seen many an elephant death on a rail track stretch that extends up to Kanjikode, Kerala. The second accident was near Jagiroad in Assam’s Morigaon district, four days later. Both accidents were at night. Elephant deaths in railway accidents are not new in India. A reply by the Project Elephant division of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in May to a set of RTI questions highlighted reasons other than natural causes as having led to the killing of 1,160 elephants over 11 years ending December 2020; 741 deaths were due to electrocution; railway accidents accounted for 186 cases; poaching 169 and poisoning 64. The pattern of train accidents involving elephants has been studied by different stakeholders, including the Railways, Forest and Wildlife Departments and activists, especially with regard to the Madukkarai stretch. That a greater number of casualties getting reported are in elephant passages has been confirmed by the C&AG in its latest compliance audit report on the Ministry of Railways.

There are effective solutions in the case of two causes: electrocution and train hits. Installing hanging solar-powered fences, as has been planned in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and planting citronella and lemon grass, as done in Golaghat district, Assam, to deter elephants are some of the large-scale options. The authorities should ensure that there are no illegal electric fences or barbed wire fences, which, instead, can be replaced with the solar powered ones. Needless to say, the participation of local communities is crucial. The critical role elephants play in biodiversity conservation must be highlighted, especially to those living in areas close to elephant corridors. (A) The Environment Ministry and Ministry of Railways should also expedite proposals for elevated wildlife crossings or eco-bridges and underpasses for the safe passage of animals. A finding of the C&AG was that after the construction of underpasses and overpasses in the areas under the jurisdiction of East Central and Northeast Frontier Railways, there was no death reported. The authorities should also expedite other recommendations made by the C&AG such as a periodic review of identification of elephant passages, more sensitisation programmes for railway staff, standardisation of track signage, installation of an animal detection system (transmitter collars) and ‘honey bee’ sound-emitting devices near all identified elephant passages. Of the 29,964 elephants in India, nearly 14,580 are in the southern region, and the State governments concerned and the Centre need to find lasting solutions to the problem of man-animal conflicts.

Which of the following isn’t a cause of elephant deaths as per the information given in the passage?

I.Natural cause

II.Electrocution

III.Railway accidents

IV.Poaching

V.Poisoning

Direction: Read the passage carefully then answer the question given below.
The death of five elephants, four of them cows, caused by trains colliding with them, and all within a week, has again highlighted the gaps in efforts to reduce man-animal conflicts in the country. On November 26, the first accident occurred near Madukkarai in Coimbatore district, Tamil Nadu that has seen many an elephant death on a rail track stretch that extends up to Kanjikode, Kerala. The second accident was near Jagiroad in Assam’s Morigaon district, four days later. Both accidents were at night. Elephant deaths in railway accidents are not new in India. A reply by the Project Elephant division of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in May to a set of RTI questions highlighted reasons other than natural causes as having led to the killing of 1,160 elephants over 11 years ending December 2020; 741 deaths were due to electrocution; railway accidents accounted for 186 cases; poaching 169 and poisoning 64. The pattern of train accidents involving elephants has been studied by different stakeholders, including the Railways, Forest and Wildlife Departments and activists, especially with regard to the Madukkarai stretch. That a greater number of casualties getting reported are in elephant passages has been confirmed by the C&AG in its latest compliance audit report on the Ministry of Railways.
There are effective solutions in the case of two causes: electrocution and train hits. Installing hanging solar-powered fences, as has been planned in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and planting citronella and lemon grass, as done in Golaghat district, Assam, to deter elephants are some of the large-scale options. The authorities should ensure that there are no illegal electric fences or barbed wire fences, which, instead, can be replaced with the solar powered ones. Needless to say, the participation of local communities is crucial. The critical role elephants play in biodiversity conservation must be highlighted, especially to those living in areas close to elephant corridors. (A) The Environment Ministry and Ministry of Railways should also expedite proposals for elevated wildlife crossings or eco-bridges and underpasses for the safe passage of animals. A finding of the C&AG was that after the construction of underpasses and overpasses in the areas under the jurisdiction of East Central and Northeast Frontier Railways, there was no death reported. The authorities should also expedite other recommendations made by the C&AG such as a periodic review of identification of elephant passages, more sensitisation programmes for railway staff, standardisation of track signage, installation of an animal detection system (transmitter collars) and ‘honey bee’ sound-emitting devices near all identified elephant passages. Of the 29,964 elephants in India, nearly 14,580 are in the southern region, and the State governments concerned and the Centre need to find lasting solutions to the problem of man-animal conflicts.

Question 6:

Direction: Read the passage carefully then answer the questions given below.


Full-page Bollywood celebrity endorsements in Indian newspapers are a common sight. However, you know something is off when they are not about the latest cars or washing machines, but about non-fungible tokens (NFTs), an esoteric concept that hardly anyone outside of the technology world fully comprehends.

For NFT believers, though, the promotional blitz in Indian media is just one more sign of the coming revolution. A big part of the pitch is that artists will own the rights to their works and be able to restrict the number of people who can own these. Underlying it all is blockchain technology that registers ownership of digital information in a way that is (at least theoretically) tamper-proof. The rationale is that once ‘digital goods’—say, a photo, an e-book, an audio or video clip or any digital file for that matter—are locked with software-defined usage rules, then an entirely new creative economy could stand on this foundation. After all, the main reason we have come to expect everything to be free online is that unlike physical works, it costs nothing to copy digital files. That changes with NFT technology. While NFTs have been around for years, it was a Christie’s auction earlier this year that made them headline news around the world. Mike Winkelmann, the digital artist known as Beeple, sold an NFT for $69 million, which made him one of the three most valuable artists alive. Since then, $2.5 billion worth of NFTs—mostly photos and animated gifs—have been bought and sold. Sceptics spot a bubble in the rapid increase in the value of NFTs. The fact that they are joined at the hip to another even more hyped technology, cryptocurrencies, makes matters worse. It does not take a degree in economics or history to suspect that when virtual goods are sold in exchange for virtual currency, the dangers of a speculative bubble are real. There is also a new uncertainty in the mix, because right now, private cryptocurrencies face a regulatory sword of Damocles in India. Add to it aggressive advertisements, and there hangs more than a whiff of get-rich-quick schemes.

However, it would be wrong to dismiss all of this merely as a new mania. That judgement doesn’t do justice to the motivations of a lot of serious folks building blockchain, NFT and related technologies to solve a very real crisis of the internet economy—the relentless centralization and growth in power of Big Tech at the cost of everyone else. The worst hit are media companies, as advertising revenue, which largely supported traditional creative professionals—writers, journalists, radio stars, filmmakers—continues a decade-long decline. Things are not much better for emerging independent stars on platforms like Instagram, TikTok or Spotify. While many of them have attracted gigantic audiences, platforms control everything, including their reach via blackbox algorithms and the amount of advertising money they share. In the shadow of Big Tech, everyone in the creative economy is reduced to a sideshow, trapped on a treadmill chasing eyeballs.

Select the word which is a synonym of the word ‘whiff’ which is in bold in the passage?

Direction: Read the passage carefully then answer the questions given below.
Full-page Bollywood celebrity endorsements in Indian newspapers are a common sight. However, you know something is off when they are not about the latest cars or washing machines, but about non-fungible tokens (NFTs), an esoteric concept that hardly anyone outside of the technology world fully comprehends.
For NFT believers, though, the promotional blitz in Indian media is just one more sign of the coming revolution. A big part of the pitch is that artists will own the rights to their works and be able to restrict the number of people who can own these. Underlying it all is blockchain technology that registers ownership of digital information in a way that is (at least theoretically) tamper-proof. The rationale is that once ‘digital goods’—say, a photo, an e-book, an audio or video clip or any digital file for that matter—are locked with software-defined usage rules, then an entirely new creative economy could stand on this foundation. After all, the main reason we have come to expect everything to be free online is that unlike physical works, it costs nothing to copy digital files. That changes with NFT technology. While NFTs have been around for years, it was a Christie’s auction earlier this year that made them headline news around the world. Mike Winkelmann, the digital artist known as Beeple, sold an NFT for $69 million, which made him one of the three most valuable artists alive. Since then, $2.5 billion worth of NFTs—mostly photos and animated gifs—have been bought and sold. Sceptics spot a bubble in the rapid increase in the value of NFTs. The fact that they are joined at the hip to another even more hyped technology, cryptocurrencies, makes matters worse. It does not take a degree in economics or history to suspect that when virtual goods are sold in exchange for virtual currency, the dangers of a speculative bubble are real. There is also a new uncertainty in the mix, because right now, private cryptocurrencies face a regulatory sword of Damocles in India. Add to it aggressive advertisements, and there hangs more than a whiff of get-rich-quick schemes.
However, it would be wrong to dismiss all of this merely as a new mania. That judgement doesn’t do justice to the motivations of a lot of serious folks building blockchain, NFT and related technologies to solve a very real crisis of the internet economy—the relentless centralization and growth in power of Big Tech at the cost of everyone else. The worst hit are media companies, as advertising revenue, which largely supported traditional creative professionals—writers, journalists, radio stars, filmmakers—continues a decade-long decline. Things are not much better for emerging independent stars on platforms like Instagram, TikTok or Spotify. While many of them have attracted gigantic audiences, platforms control everything, including their reach via blackbox algorithms and the amount of advertising money they share. In the shadow of Big Tech, everyone in the creative economy is reduced to a sideshow, trapped on a treadmill chasing eyeballs.

Question 7:

Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.


Like other central banks in emerging economies, RBI has been steadily adding gold to its reserves. RBI’s gold-holding has gone up by 125.6 tonnes in the last two years, making India the world’s ninth-largest holder of gold reserves. As of September, the central bank held 743.84 tonnes of gold, 11% more than the 668.25 tonnes in September 2020, according to The Indian Express. The share of gold in the total forex reserves has accordingly increased to 5.88% in end-September. The question naturally is, when gold no longer plays a direct role in the international monetary system, why are central banks like RBI holding extensive gold reserves, amounting to 17% of worldwide stocks.

As is the case with individuals, central banks hold gold as a hedge against uncertain times to protect against economic instability. When India faced a serious balance of payments crisis in 1991, for instance, the country had to pledge 67 tonnes of gold to the Union Bank of Switzerland and Bank of England to bolster its dwindling forex kitty. Today, with $642 billion of forex reserves, the external vulnerability of 30 years ago may have receded substantially, but there are always fresh risks on the horizon. Around 67% of RBI’s foreign currency assets are invested in securities, including US treasuries. So, buying more gold helps the central bank to diversify its portfolio of reserves.

During the last couple of years, however, the allure of gold was compelling for RBI due to the challenges of forex reserve management when yields on securities are low. The weakening of the dollar, thanks to the stimulus rolled by the US Federal Reserve and near zero interest rates prompted RBI to diversify its forex reserves away from dollar-denominated assets. Interest rates in advanced countries have been on a declining trend over the last four decades and reached their historic low in many of them in 2020, according to RBI’s report titled The Low Yield Environment and Forex Reserves Management. Gold has an inverse relationship with the US dollar: when the latter dips in value, gold rises, enabling central banks to shore up their reserves.

But, there are limits to accumulating gold, especially if it is fast losing value. For instance, the value of RBI’s gold holdings rose by just $960 million, to $37.4 billion, in September from $36.4 billion a year ago. The valuation declined as gold prices first soared to Rs 56,000 per 10 grams last year and later fell below the Rs 48,000-mark. Will the central bank then sell some of its gold holdings? The problem is the emotions among most people of this country over gold sales.

The 1991 move to pledge gold thus occasioned tremendous national angst. In sharp contrast, the move to buy 200 tonnes of gold from the IMF in 2009 was cheered. The RBI report has flagged options for active management of gold including making deposits and gold swaps with bullion banks, and exchange traded funds. If the central bank’s gold holding is a depreciating asset, will it consider investing part of its rising forex reserves in equity funds, especially index funds, to secure better returns in a structural low-yield environment?

Which of the following words is most opposite in meaning to the word “declined” as given in the passage?

Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.
Like other central banks in emerging economies, RBI has been steadily adding gold to its reserves. RBI’s gold-holding has gone up by 125.6 tonnes in the last two years, making India the world’s ninth-largest holder of gold reserves. As of September, the central bank held 743.84 tonnes of gold, 11% more than the 668.25 tonnes in September 2020, according to The Indian Express. The share of gold in the total forex reserves has accordingly increased to 5.88% in end-September. The question naturally is, when gold no longer plays a direct role in the international monetary system, why are central banks like RBI holding extensive gold reserves, amounting to 17% of worldwide stocks.
As is the case with individuals, central banks hold gold as a hedge against uncertain times to protect against economic instability. When India faced a serious balance of payments crisis in 1991, for instance, the country had to pledge 67 tonnes of gold to the Union Bank of Switzerland and Bank of England to bolster its dwindling forex kitty. Today, with $642 billion of forex reserves, the external vulnerability of 30 years ago may have receded substantially, but there are always fresh risks on the horizon. Around 67% of RBI’s foreign currency assets are invested in securities, including US treasuries. So, buying more gold helps the central bank to diversify its portfolio of reserves.
During the last couple of years, however, the allure of gold was compelling for RBI due to the challenges of forex reserve management when yields on securities are low. The weakening of the dollar, thanks to the stimulus rolled by the US Federal Reserve and near zero interest rates prompted RBI to diversify its forex reserves away from dollar-denominated assets. Interest rates in advanced countries have been on a declining trend over the last four decades and reached their historic low in many of them in 2020, according to RBI’s report titled The Low Yield Environment and Forex Reserves Management. Gold has an inverse relationship with the US dollar: when the latter dips in value, gold rises, enabling central banks to shore up their reserves.
But, there are limits to accumulating gold, especially if it is fast losing value. For instance, the value of RBI’s gold holdings rose by just $960 million, to $37.4 billion, in September from $36.4 billion a year ago. The valuation declined as gold prices first soared to Rs 56,000 per 10 grams last year and later fell below the Rs 48,000-mark. Will the central bank then sell some of its gold holdings? The problem is the emotions among most people of this country over gold sales.
The 1991 move to pledge gold thus occasioned tremendous national angst. In sharp contrast, the move to buy 200 tonnes of gold from the IMF in 2009 was cheered. The RBI report has flagged options for active management of gold including making deposits and gold swaps with bullion banks, and exchange traded funds. If the central bank’s gold holding is a depreciating asset, will it consider investing part of its rising forex reserves in equity funds, especially index funds, to secure better returns in a structural low-yield environment?

Question 8:

Direction: Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow by selecting the correct/most appropriate options.

The Crisis of the Third Century, also known as Military Anarchy or the Imperial Crisis (235–284 AD), was a period in which the Roman Empire nearly collapsed. It ended due to the military victories of Aurelian and with the ascension of Diocletian and his implementation of reforms in 284, including the Tetrarchy. The crisis began in 235 with the assassination of Emperor Severus Alexander by his own troops. During the following 50-year period, the Empire saw the combined pressures of barbarian invasions and migrations into the Roman territory, civil wars, peasant rebellions and political instability, with multiple usurpers competing for power. This led to the Plague of Cyprian, debasement of currency and economic collapse. Roman troops became more reliant over time on the growing influence of the barbarian mercenaries known as foederati. Roman commanders in the field, although nominally working for Rome, became increasingly independent.
According to the given passage, what was the main reason for ‘The Crisis of the Third Century’?
Direction: Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow by selecting the correct/most appropriate options.

The Crisis of the Third Century, also known as Military Anarchy or the Imperial Crisis (235–284 AD), was a period in which the Roman Empire nearly collapsed. It ended due to the military victories of Aurelian and with the ascension of Diocletian and his implementation of reforms in 284, including the Tetrarchy. The crisis began in 235 with the assassination of Emperor Severus Alexander by his own troops. During the following 50-year period, the Empire saw the combined pressures of barbarian invasions and migrations into the Roman territory, civil wars, peasant rebellions and political instability, with multiple usurpers competing for power. This led to the Plague of Cyprian, debasement of currency and economic collapse. Roman troops became more reliant over time on the growing influence of the barbarian mercenaries known as foederati. Roman commanders in the field, although nominally working for Rome, became increasingly independent.

Question 9:

Direction: Read the passage carefully then answer the question given below.


The National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-5 shows negligible gains in nutritional outcomes among under-five children. There has been tardy progress in reducing undernutrition, wasting and stunting. It is a national shame that even now, 35.5% of under-five children are stunted and 19.3% are wasted. Childhood anaemia has worsened from NFHS-4. Anaemia among adolescent girls and women aged 15-49 has also worsened. Though institutional delivery has gone up, early initiation of breastfeeding is static. If we are serious about a healthy new generation, we must ensure proper nutrition and growth. While we need to monitor data for programmatic evaluation and correction, the question is, what type of data do we need to help starving children? Is it data on how much food is supplied, served and consumed or data on what went wrong and the prevalence of weight loss and growth stagnation? Do we need output or impact data or input and process data with their quality parameters? We need to monitor the input and process indicators. That is how we can rectify past mistakes. Data generated quickly can lead to mid-course corrections. Data-driven planning and strategies lead to good governance with accountability.

So, what can we do? After monitoring the successful initiation of breastfeeding in the hospital, anganwadi workers, ASHA workers and Auxiliary Nurse Midwives must continue to monitor exclusive breastfeeding till the infant is six months old. Then they must record the timely initiation of complementary feeding with soft gruel. If this step is missed, growth faltering starts. And this is the critical period of growth that we cannot afford to compromise on. We must also ensure that there is take-home ration for under-three children through the regular supply of supplementary nutrition from the Integrated Child Development Services. We also need to know whether anganwadis are intermittently closed without any valid reason; whether the supervisors are erratic in field monitoring; how we can capture the regularity and quantity of dry rations supplied to anganwadi centres and schools for mid-day meals; whether there is live web-based centrally monitorable data on the movement of dry rations to anganwadis and schools; whether parents and teachers can monitor the serving of hot, cooked meals; whether self-help groups of women are involved in preparing the menu and procuring locally available vegetables, grains and millets to ensure dietary diversification and whether eggs are being denied or stopped for sociopolitical reasons. What goes into the family pot is also important. This depends on what parents can earn, and their purchasing capacity. So, it is important to monitor the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme workdays as well as the wages earned in areas where droughts frequently recur; where there is mass migration; and where there is prevalence of high malnutrition. The National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau was shut down some years ago. So, we don’t know what families can afford to cook and what they are cooking.

Select the word which is a synonym of the word ‘rectify’ which is in bold in the passage?

Direction: Read the passage carefully then answer the question given below.
The National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-5 shows negligible gains in nutritional outcomes among under-five children. There has been tardy progress in reducing undernutrition, wasting and stunting. It is a national shame that even now, 35.5% of under-five children are stunted and 19.3% are wasted. Childhood anaemia has worsened from NFHS-4. Anaemia among adolescent girls and women aged 15-49 has also worsened. Though institutional delivery has gone up, early initiation of breastfeeding is static. If we are serious about a healthy new generation, we must ensure proper nutrition and growth. While we need to monitor data for programmatic evaluation and correction, the question is, what type of data do we need to help starving children? Is it data on how much food is supplied, served and consumed or data on what went wrong and the prevalence of weight loss and growth stagnation? Do we need output or impact data or input and process data with their quality parameters? We need to monitor the input and process indicators. That is how we can rectify past mistakes. Data generated quickly can lead to mid-course corrections. Data-driven planning and strategies lead to good governance with accountability.
So, what can we do? After monitoring the successful initiation of breastfeeding in the hospital, anganwadi workers, ASHA workers and Auxiliary Nurse Midwives must continue to monitor exclusive breastfeeding till the infant is six months old. Then they must record the timely initiation of complementary feeding with soft gruel. If this step is missed, growth faltering starts. And this is the critical period of growth that we cannot afford to compromise on. We must also ensure that there is take-home ration for under-three children through the regular supply of supplementary nutrition from the Integrated Child Development Services. We also need to know whether anganwadis are intermittently closed without any valid reason; whether the supervisors are erratic in field monitoring; how we can capture the regularity and quantity of dry rations supplied to anganwadi centres and schools for mid-day meals; whether there is live web-based centrally monitorable data on the movement of dry rations to anganwadis and schools; whether parents and teachers can monitor the serving of hot, cooked meals; whether self-help groups of women are involved in preparing the menu and procuring locally available vegetables, grains and millets to ensure dietary diversification and whether eggs are being denied or stopped for sociopolitical reasons. What goes into the family pot is also important. This depends on what parents can earn, and their purchasing capacity. So, it is important to monitor the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme workdays as well as the wages earned in areas where droughts frequently recur; where there is mass migration; and where there is prevalence of high malnutrition. The National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau was shut down some years ago. So, we don’t know what families can afford to cook and what they are cooking.

Question 10:

Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question accordingly.
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd president of the US, serving from 1945 to 1953. A lifetime member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin Roosevelt, and as a United States Senator from Missouri from 1935 to January 1945. Having assumed the presidency after Roosevelt's death, Truman implemented the Marshall Plan to rebuild the economy of Western Europe and established both the Truman Doctrine and NATO to contain the expansion of communism. He proposed numerous liberal domestic reforms, but few were enacted by the Conservative Coalition that dominated the Congress.
Truman grew up in Independence, Missouri, and during World War I fought in France as a captain in the Field Artillery. Returning home, he opened a haberdashery in Kansas City, Missouri, and was later elected as a Jackson County official in 1922. Truman was elected to the US Senate from Missouri in 1934 and gained national prominence as chairman of the Truman Committee, which was aimed at reducing waste and inefficiency in wartime contracts.
After the onset of the Cold War, Truman oversaw the Berlin Airlift and Marshall Plan in 1948. When North Korea invaded South Korea in 1950, he gained United Nations approval to intervene in the Korean War. He did not ask for congressional approval, and as the war stalemated his popularity fell. His administration successfully guided the U.S. economy through the postwar economic challenges; the expected postwar depression never happened.
Find out the correct option which is nearest in meaning to the given word.
Invade
Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question accordingly.
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd president of the US, serving from 1945 to 1953. A lifetime member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin Roosevelt, and as a United States Senator from Missouri from 1935 to January 1945. Having assumed the presidency after Roosevelt's death, Truman implemented the Marshall Plan to rebuild the economy of Western Europe and established both the Truman Doctrine and NATO to contain the expansion of communism. He proposed numerous liberal domestic reforms, but few were enacted by the Conservative Coalition that dominated the Congress.
Truman grew up in Independence, Missouri, and during World War I fought in France as a captain in the Field Artillery. Returning home, he opened a haberdashery in Kansas City, Missouri, and was later elected as a Jackson County official in 1922. Truman was elected to the US Senate from Missouri in 1934 and gained national prominence as chairman of the Truman Committee, which was aimed at reducing waste and inefficiency in wartime contracts.
After the onset of the Cold War, Truman oversaw the Berlin Airlift and Marshall Plan in 1948. When North Korea invaded South Korea in 1950, he gained United Nations approval to intervene in the Korean War. He did not ask for congressional approval, and as the war stalemated his popularity fell. His administration successfully guided the U.S. economy through the postwar economic challenges; the expected postwar depression never happened.
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