Reading passage 1 A. NATO commanders are boasting of dramatic progress just weeks into the U.S.

-led push into Taliban strongholds around Kandahar province. They say the heavily pounded insurgents have fled some areas for good, setting the stage for the Kabul government to finally establish its rule in the region and to initiate reconstruction. These upbeat claims coincide with talk about behind-the-scenes negotiations with the militants, suggesting that for all the fierce hostilities, an endgame is in mind, if not in sight. B. But the military's purported gains in the southern war zone do not align with the bleak picture painted by most sources on the ground. C. When General David Petraeus assumed command of U.S. and multinational forces in June, he inherited a slow-cooked counterinsurgency strategy that put a priority on protecting Afghans over Taliban body count. There was also deepening skepticism about the war from the American public and President Obama, who declared a summer 2011 timetable to start withdrawing troops. And Petraeus had a deadline: a war review was slated for December, meaning measurable results had to be posted within months, not years. So while counterinsurgency has remained the stated strategy, military planners have gone back to what they do best: killing insurgents as aggressively as possible, with the aim of dealing a decisive blow to the Taliban in Kandahar, the movement's birthplace and strategic nerve center. D. Now, as the fighting season winds down, the coalition's spin machine is in high gear. A host of recent stories have supported the military's assertion that clearing operations in districts surrounding Kandahar are making headway, with some going so far as to say that insurgents have been "routed." These stories tend to be lopsidedly sourced to military and civilian officials. Yet many reports from journalists embedded with troops in the field are at variance with the official assertions. Most describe a stalemate at best, or even describe the Taliban as having the initiative. Aid organizations, meanwhile, note that civilian casualties in Kandahar are at an alltime high. Thousands have fled their homes en masse. Development projects are at a near standstill. E. There's a familiar precedent to all of this. Before the Kandahar offensive, a military-driven public-relations thrust came in advance of the siege of Marjah, a Taliban-held town in central Helmand province's opium-poppy belt. In the weeks ahead of the February operation to oust them, military officials framed the operation as a stepping-stone for the broader push east. With most of the Taliban already long gone, U.S. forces encountered few hiccups in Marjah. A governor was quickly installed as part of a government-in-a-box strategy that would connect neighboring population centers and take them into Kabul's orbit. But since then, the insurgents have regrouped in Marjah. Nine months on, despite some small improvements increased commerce, reopened schools the Taliban still threatens anyone who might cooperate with the Afghan government in Marjah, which has continued to struggle under a replacement governor. Hit-and-run attacks harass U.S. forces there each day. F. It is still too early to gauge the impact of operations around Kandahar. As they do every year, insurgents have begun to decamp for the borderlands for the winter which would bring a decline in violence in any event. Embedded reporting is also limited to narrow snapshots and

not the bigger picture. Sometimes, even those glimpses are not available. In October, for instance, a day before a key operation kicked off in Arghandab district, all media embeds were abruptly cancelled. (The two-week blackout was followed by bold assertions of success.) Some of the secrecy may relate to the ongoing black ops carried out by special-forces units to dismantle the Taliban's leadership structure. Senior military sources insist that on any given day, two to three low- to mid-level commanders are killed, along with as many as 20 to 30 foot soldiers. These figures are impossible to confirm. G. In the meantime, NATO commanders have intimated that contacts between Afghan officials and the Taliban are taking place with the U.S. military's consent. But with their efforts overwhelmingly focused on wiping out insurgents, there's a growing consensus this is nothing more than a psychological ploy to confuse the enemy and one that could backfire. By targeting Taliban commanders, some say that the coalition risks further atomizing an insurgency that already has many moving parts, leaving less experienced guerrillas to fill the vacuum and extend the fighting. The political deal needed to take troops home could well be pushed further out of reach. At the same time, optimistic reports from Kandahar could create unrealistic expectations among the American public. If the Taliban remains robust when fighting resumes in the spring, what remains of U.S. popular support may come crashing down. In that case, any exaggeration of the current campaign's progress would be more than misleading. It would be self-defeating. Source: Time Questions You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1 to 14 which are based on Reading Passage 1 Questions 1 to 7 Reading Passage 1 has seven paragraphs A G. From the list of headings below, choose the most suitable heading for each paragraph. Write the appropriate numbers I ix in boxes 1 7 on your answer sheet.

i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii. ix.

The deceptive idea. The siege of Marjah. A host of recent stories. The dramatic progress. The skepticism about the war. The military's purported gains. The political necessity. The impact of operations around Kandahar. The political deal.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Paragraph A Paragraph B Paragraph C Paragraph D Paragraph E Paragraph F Paragraph G

Questions 8 10 Choose the correct letters, A, B, C or D Write your answers in boxes 8 10 on your answer sheet. 8 U.S. forces encountered few hiccups in A. B. C. D. 9 A. B. C. D. 10 A. B. C. D. Kandahar. Kabul. Marjah. Afghanistan. A war review was slated for December. January. November. September. Clearing operations in districts surrounding Kandahar Are making no way. Are making headway. Are making a good progress. Are in a slow process.

Questions 11 14 Complete each of the following statements (questions 11 14) with the best endings A G from the box below Write the appropriate letters A G in boxes 11 14 on your answer sheet. 11 Contacts between Afghan officials and the Taliban are 12 Before the Kandahar offensive, a military-driven public-relations thrust 13 Military planners have gone back to what they do best:

14

Insurgents have begun to decamp for

A B C D E F G

The borderlands for the winter. Killing insurgents as aggressively as possible. Taking place with the U.S. military's consent. Came in advance of the siege of Marjah. Is not going to win the game for them. The lower altitudes for the winter. Killing civilians.

Reading passage 2 A. Singaporeans moan that besides shopping, dining and the movies, there's not a lot you can do here. Ignore them. The must-see list for the one-day visitor to Singapore, especially the firsttimer, is absorbingly long. There is very little chance you'll get bored. Most tourists tend to gravitate first towards the famed retail stretch of Orchard Road. Fine, get your fix of bold-faced names like Louis Vuitton, Chanel and every other couture label under the sun. When you've gotten that out of your system, dump your purchases back at the hotel and head out into the 'burbs where the real charm of Singapore lies. We're here to guide you to the top 10 places where tourists don't normally go; in short, the places where Singaporeans in the know live and play. B. So, you've arrived. It's early and nothing really opens for business until around 11 a.m., so how are you going to kill time? Slip on the trainers and head out to the Botanic Gardens (open 5 a.m. to midnight). At this time of the day, downtown Singapore's last remaining green lung is a cool, bucolic retreat filled with joggers, dogs and tai-chi practitioners. Wander through the swaths of virgin rainforest (the main boardwalk through it is entered from Upper Palm Valley Road) and then take in the National Orchid Garden's many-colored collection of 1,000 orchid species and 2,000 hybrids. When you're done, drop into the food court near Tanglin Gate for a traditional local breakfast of soft-boiled eggs, coffee and toast slathered with coconut jam. C. It may seem a little strange to head to a hotel to look at artwork, but the Ritz-Carlton is no ordinary hotel. The massive three-ton Frank Stella installation at the entrance and the pair of Dale Chihuly crystal glass sculptures that anchor both wings of the building kick off one of Southeast Asia's finest (and under the radar) collections of modern and contemporary art. The majority of the pieces were specially commissioned for the public spaces and guest suites. The treasures on view include Andy Warhol and David Hockney's exuberant colours, Rainer Gross's geometric compositions, Henry Moore's restrained monochromatic and the lush botanicals of Robert Zakanitch. It's all free to view, and you even get an iPod-guided tour. D. Let the other tourist hordes charge over to the newly minted Peranakan Museum or the gloomy Asian Civilisations Museum. If you do only one cultural thing during your 24-hour Singapore

layover, it must be a tour of the unheralded Chinatown Heritage Centre, where entire sets of bedrooms, kitchens and street scenes from the late-19th century and early-20th century have been faithfully recreated. It's an authentic slice of Singapore's history that's made all the more fascinating by the gleaming skyscrapers just a few blocks away. And if you must, pick up a kitschy souvenir from the gift shop on your way out. E. In case you missed the memo, the place for plastic surgery is Asia. While many people head to Bangkok and Seoul for assorted nips and tucks, the locals make a beeline for the ultra-swish, Richard Meierdesigned Camden Medical Centre. You may not have time for a full makeover, but squeeze in a spot of Botox or a non-surgical facelift with local celebrity surgeon Woffles Wu. And then adjourn downstairs for snapper pie and Pavlova at Whitebait & Kale. F. Tokyo may have the latest in electronic gadgets, but Singapore has the widest range, and luckily for the time-pressed shopper, they're all clustered in two massive multistory emporia. Handicams, portable DVD players, mobile phones, hi-tech cameras, MP3 players and laptops in just about every imaginable configuration are up for grabs at Funan Digitalife Mall and Sim Lim Square. The prices are usually about 10% to 20% cheaper than at other commercial outlets. At Sim Lim Square especially, good deals can be had with some serious haggling, and many retailers will knock off a few extra dollars if you pay in cash. G. This tiny lane, hidden away in the heart of the Muslim quarter, is a fashionista's paradise. With very little fanfare, the collection of narrow shop-houses have, in less than a year, been transformed into an aggressively hip retail stretch recalling Le Marais in Paris or New York's Meatpacking District. Know It Nothing is a stylish industrial space that stocks beautifully tailored dress shirts stitched with silver skull buttons by Japanese label Garni. Next, pop into Pluck for its shabby chic collection of Austin Powersinspired cushion covers and a cute ice-cream parlor. A few doors down, Salad boasts a range of home accessories like laser-cut table mats and Hong Kongbased Carrie Chau's quirky postcards. If you're feeling peckish, have an authentic Middle Eastern lunch around the corner at Cafe le Caire. Source: Time Travel Questions You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 15 27 which are based on Reading Passage 2 Questions 15 19 Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 2? In boxes 15 -19 in your answer sheet write TRUE FALSE NOT GIVEN if the statement agrees with the information if the statement contradicts the information if there is no information on this

15. Singaporeans doesnt have much to offer for a first time visitor. 16. There are many couture brands that are available in Singapore. 17. The best place for taking a plastic surgery is Asia.

18. People generally do not go to a hotel for looking at artworks. 19. Singapore is a very dry and uncomfortable place.

Question 20 23 Look at the following topics (questions 20 23) and the list of statements below. Match each topic to the correct statement. Write the correct letter A G in boxes 1 4 on your answer sheet. 20. Funan Digitalife Mall 21. Robert Zakanitch 22. Asian Civilisations Museum 23. Orchard Road A B C D E F G Filled with the lush botanicals. Is filled with artefacts. It is a gloomy place in Singapore. Is a hub of shopping. A hub of everything you think of buying. Is famous for hi-fis. There is a series of chemist shops.

Questions 24 27 Complete the following statements with the correct alternative from the box. Write the correct letter A F in boxes 24 27 on your answer sheet. 24. 25. 26. 27. Chinatown Heritage Centre is The main boardwalk through the swaths of virgin rainforest is The tourist hordes charge over to Handicams, portable DVD players, mobile phones are

A The newly minted Peranakan Museum. B Critical to the analysts. C Easily available throughout the streets. D A very famous place for its monuments and historic remainings. E An authentic slice of Singapore's history. F Entered from Upper Palm Valley Road.

Reading Passage 3 A. One in three households across Britain is now dependent on the state for at least half its income, it emerged today. Official government figures indicate that more than seven million households are getting most of their income from government welfare payments. The figures also reveal the huge gulf in welfare dependency between single parent and two-parent households. The figures were quoted in a report by Civitas, a right-wing think-tank, and it is scathing about how New Labour welfare policy has been designed to "create grateful voters rather than independent people". In many single-parent homes with two children, the proportion of families that would be financially crippled without state support is now as high as 61 per cent. That compares with just 9% in a two-parent home. B. The figures, prepared by the Department for Work and Pensions but cited today in the new report from Civitas, paint a stark picture of how Britain's dependency culture has grown over the last few decades. Gordon Brown has been repeatedly attacked for building up a society heavily reliant on tax credits and other state aid. The Chancellor's tax credits scheme was "only the most prominent example of welfare policies intended to create a grateful electorate rather than free-thinking citizens", the report says. C. However, the report also suggests that David Cameron's Conservatives are worried about seeming uncaring, and therefore not ready to take drastic action and copy American-style policies that have produced huge drops in benefit claims in the United States . The claim was denied by a spokesman for the shadow chancellor, George Osborne, who said the Tories were developing policies to reduce the size of Mr. Brown's state. D. According to David Green from Civitas, the author of the report, data on the real scale of state dependency have only been collected for the last five years or so. But he estimated that the proportion of households dependent on state handouts for at least 50 per cent of income had been probably as low as five per cent in the 1960s. It rose during the 1970s and 1980s, especially because of soaring unemployment under the Thatcher government. E. His report in the current issue of Civitas Review makes the wider point that politics is no longer providing the answers to Britain's problems. The Blair years had "tested to destruction" the notion that big spending on health, education and welfare was the answer. There was a widespread perception that high crime, failing schools, unsustainable immigration and the low quality of the NHS were "not being properly confronted by our political leaders". F. Mr. Green went on: "Even Conservatives who are concerned about the failure of public sector monopolies in health and education are slow to criticise the Blair Government's approach". That was because "they know that calling for a reduced role for the state in health and education is to invite being caricatured as uncaring". Mr Green urged the Tories not to accept the modern view that individual action and liberty were the same as "selfish individualism". G. A government spokesman last night defended the scale of state help, saying: "It is thanks to our system of tax credits and the New Deal that we have two million more people in work than in 1997. We have also raised hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty." The analysis of

benefit dependency, based on the latest DWP statistics, will strike a chord with a report from the Reform, another right-wing think-tank. Last year it warned that the Government had created a benefits regime that "actively dissuades millions from bettering their position". Frank Field, the Labour former welfare minister, has also called for the system to be reformed. Welfare should be "a floor on which people built and not a ceiling which made it impossible for them to pass through", Mr Field said. Last night David Laws, the Liberal Democrat's welfare spokesman, also accused the Chancellor of helping to bolster the dependency culture. Source: Time Questions You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 28 40 which are based on Reading Passage 3. Questions 28 32 The passage has seven paragraphs labelled AG. Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the correct letter A-G in boxes 28-32 on your answer sheet. NB: You may use any letter more than once. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. Several households are getting most of their income from government welfare payments. Gordon Brown has been attacked for building up a society heavily reliant on tax credits. Conservatives are concerned about the failure of public sector monopolies in health and education. The data on the real scale of state dependency have only been collected for the last five years or so. The figures are prepared by the Department for Work and Pensions.

Questions 33 36 Complete the sentences below with words taken from Reading Passage 3. Use NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 33-36 on your answer sheet.

33. 34. 35. 36.

David Cameron's Conservatives are worried about . The Chancellor's tax credits scheme was "only the most prominent example . The proportion of families that would be financially crippled without state support is now . The figures were quoted in a report by Civitas .

Questions 37 40 Complete the summary of the paragraphs E G below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 37-40 on your answer sheet. Politics is no longer providing the answers 37 .. There was a widespread perception that high crime, failing schools, unsustainable immigration and the low quality of the NHS were 38 Even Conservatives who are concerned about the failure of public sector monopolies in health and education are slow to criticise the 39 . Welfare should be "a floor on which people built and not a ceiling which made it impossible 40