Solutions to test -1

1. C
Union IT Minister released the ‘Vision Document’ for a digital North East by 2022 that aims to
enhance peoples’ lives by capacity building of government staff and doubling BPO (business
process outsourcing) strength in the region. The Vision Document aims to empower the people of
the North Eastern region and state-wise roadmaps have been developed for implementing digital
initiatives.

The document emphasises leveraging digital technologies to transform lives of people of the
North East and enhance the ease of living.
A cloud hub for NE will be created in Guwahati and capacity building for 50,000 government staff
will be taken up in using digital technologies, including Goods and Services Tax and payment
platforms. Hence statement 1 is correct.
The number of seats planned for BPOs in the NE states will be doubled to 10,000 from 5,000,
while the network of common service centres will be expanded to cover all villages
High-speed broadband connectivity in all the uncovered villages in the NE region shall be
provided. Hence statement 2 is correct.
The document identifies eight digital thrust areas -
 digital infrastructure
 digital services
 digital empowerment
 promotion of electronics manufacturing
 promotion of IT and IT-enabled services including BPOs
 digital payments
 innovation & startups, and
 cybersecurity

2. D
NITI Aayog has released ‘Strategy for New India @ 75′ document with an aim to accelerate
economic growth to 9-10% and make the country a $4-trillion economy by 2022-23. Thus
statement 1 is incorrect.

The document replaces the now-defunct five-year plans. The document defines the strategy for
2022-23 across forty-one areas. The document has been disaggregated under four sections:
Drivers, Infrastructure, Inclusion and Governance. Drivers include chapters on growth and
employment, doubling of farmers’ incomes(Thus statement 2 is incorrect), upgrading the
science, technology and innovation ecosystem and promoting sunrise sectors like fintech and
tourism.

3. D
The Talanoa Dialogue was convened as part of the UN climate talks. Talanoa is the Fijian
traditional way of holding conversations to tackle collective issues.
The objective of the dialogue is two-fold: to take stock of the progress of climate action since
Paris Agreement adoption and to inform the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions
(NDCs) with a view to raise climate ambition. The Talanoa platform was launched on January 10,
 2018, and since then it received 473 inputs, 44 from parties and 429 from non‐party
stakeholders.
Under the Talanoa process, stakeholders talked about the three agreed guiding questions on the
climate crisis:
 Where we are?
 Where do we want to go?
 How do we get there?
Throughout the year, parties and non‐party stakeholders cooperated in the organisation of
regional and national events with more than 90 events having been associated with the Talanoa
process to facilitate mutual exchanges.
The dialogue continued at climate intersessions at Bonn and Bangkok this year where
stakeholders shared their success stories and learnings in response to the three questions of the
dialogue. The outcomes of the exchanges have been compiled by the Secretariat in the
Synthesis Report also highlighting the inadequacy of current climate efforts.

4. B
The India Water Impact Summit is an annual event where stakeholders get together to discuss,
debate and develop model solutions for some of the biggest water related problems in the
country. India Water Impact Summit 2018, being jointly organised by the National Mission for
Clean Ganga (NMCG) and the Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (cGanga)
from 5-7 December 2018 in New Delhi. Hence statement 1 is incorrect.
e Summit will focus on three key aspects:
Spotlight on 5 states: Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi and Bihar. The objective is
to showcase the efforts and works going on within the respective states.
Ganga Financing Forum: The 2018 Summit also introduces the inaugural Ganga Financing Forum
that will bring a number of institutions to a common knowledge, information and partnership
platform. The Hybrid Annuity Model has redefined the economic landscape of water and waste-
water treatment in India. All tenders have been successfully bid out and financial closures being
achieved. Additionally, the Government is also now encouraging development of smaller
decentralised waste water treatment projects. The Financing Forum will bring together financial
institutions and investors interested in Namami Gange programmes. Hence statement 2 is
correct.
Technology and Innovation: Implementation of the pilot/demonstration programme known as
the Environment Technology Verification (ETV) process. This will provide an opportunity to
technology and innovation companies from around the world to showcase their solutions for
addressing the problems prevalent in the river basin.

5. B
As per the regulation, there are 5 categories of RPAS categorized by weight, namely nano, micro,
small, medium and large. Therefore, statement 1 is incorrect. The RPAS operations will be based
on NPNT (No Permission, No Take off). Thus Statement 2 is correct.

6. D
ISRO and CNES, the French space agency, will work together in the fields of space medicine,
astronaut health monitoring, life support, radiation protection, space debris protection and
personal hygiene systems, etc. Hence statement 1 is incorrect.
 MISSION : Under the Gaganyaan schedule, three flights will be sent in orbit. Of the three, there
will be two unmanned flights and one human spaceflight.The human space flight programme,
called the Orbital Module will have three Indian astronauts, including a woman.It will circle Earth
at a low-earth-orbit at an altitude of 300-400 km from earth for 5-7 days.Hence statement 2 is
incorrect.
If India does launch the Gaganyaan mission, it will be the fourth nation to do so after the United
States, Russia and China.Hence statement 3 is incorrect.

7. C
One of the important features of the revised guidelines is the introduction of the concept of
Water Conservation Fee (WCF). The WCF payable varies with the category of the area, type of
industry and the quantum of ground water extraction and is designed to progressively increase
from safe to over-exploited areas and from low to high water consuming industries as well as
with increasing quantum of ground water extraction.

8. A
As per the revised guidelines, exemption from requirement of NOC has been given to
agricultural users, users employing non-energised means to extract water, individual households
(using less than 1 inch diameter delivery pipe) and Armed Forces Establishments during
operational deployment or during mobilization in forward locations. Other exemptions (with
certain requirements) have been granted to strategic and operational infrastructure projects for
Armed Forces, Defence and Paramilitary Forces Establishments and Government water supply
agencies.

9. B
private project, HelpUsGreen recently received UN climate action award for collection of
flowers from temples and mosques and recycling them to produce natural incense, organic
fertilizers and biodegradable packaging material.

10. C
India has no cultural policy because of the disjointed manner in which the issue is addressed.
For example, the intangible cultural heritage of acrobatic performance is perceived as a circus
art is addressed by the Ministry of Sports.
While tangible heritage such as monuments come under the Ministry of Culture,
The very skills, processes and crafts that create the buildings come under the Ministry of
Textiles. Another anomaly is that while heritage (monochrome as built monuments) is on the
state list, tourism does not feature in the state, Union or concurrent list.
11. C

Skewflation is defined as a price rise of one or a small group of commodities over a sustained
period of time, along with decreasing prices in others. The term was suggested by Economic
survey 2010-11 which noted that: ""The skewedness of inflation that has been observed - some
sectors are facing huge inflation, some none and some deflation - is rather rare in the country's
history. Stagflation is a term used to define an economy that has inflation, a slow or stagnant
economic growth rate and a relatively high unemployment rate.
12. C
Both the statements are correct. A private good is a product that must be purchased to be
consumed, and its consumption by one individual prevents another individual from consuming
it. The private goods are referred to as rivalrous and excludable.
Public goods, as distinct from private goods, are collectively consumed. Two important features
of public goods are: they are non-rivalrous in that one person can increase her satisfaction from
the good without reducing that obtained by others and they are non-excludable, and there is no
feasible way of excluding anyone from enjoying the benefits of the good. These make it difficult
to collect fees for their use and private enterprise will in general not provide these goods.
Hence, they must be provided by the government.
13. B
It is the Rajya Sabha and not the Lok Sabha that can pass a resolution in the national interest
allowing the Parliament to legislate on matter listed in the state list. Rest all the options are
correct.
14. D

Statement 2 is a criteria to be a State Party, not a National Party. So, statement 2 is incorrect.
Statement 1 is also incorrect as Securing 6% of votes polled in four or more states changes Party
into National Party. Statement 3 is also incorrect as at least 11 MPs in Lok Sabha required across
3 different states to become a national Party.

As per Election Commission, Criteria is as follow:

A political party shall be eligible to be recognised as a National Party if :-

(i) it secures at least six percent(6%) of the valid votes polled in any four or more states, at a
general election to the House of the People or, to the State Legislative Assembly; and

(ii) in addition, it wins at least four seats in the House of the People from any State or States.

or

It wins at least two percent (2%) seats in the House of the People (i.e., 11 seats in the existing
House having 543 members), and these members are elected from at least three different States.
A political party shall be entitled to be recognised as a State Party , if:-

(i) it secures at least six percent (6%) of the valid votes polled in the State at a general election,
either to the House of the People or to the Legislative Assembly of the State concerned; and

(ii) In addition, it wins at least two seats in the Legislative Assembly of the State concerned.

or

It wins at least three percent (3%) of the total number of seats in the Legislative Assembly of the
State, or at least three seats in the Assembly, whichever is more.

15. C
The Central Vigilance Commission was set up by the Government in February ,1964 on the
recommendations of the Committee on Prevention of Corruption, headed by Shri K. Santhanam
, to advise and guide Central Government agencies in the field of vigilance. CVC is conceived to
be the apex vigilance institution, free of control from any executive authority, monitoring all
vigilance activity under the Central Government and advising various authorities in Central
Government organizations in planning, executing, reviewing and reforming their vigilance work.
 Consequent upon promulgation of an Ordinance by the President, the Central Vigilance
Commission has been made a multi member Commission with ""statutory status"" with effect
from 25th August ,1998 . The CVC Bill was passed by both the houses of Parliament in 2003
and the President gave its assent on September0 11, 2003. Thus the Central Vigilance
Commission Act 2003 (No45 0f 2003) came into effect from that date.
The Commission shall consist of:
1. A Central Vigilance Commissioner - Chairperson;
2. Not more than two Vigilance Commissioners - Members;

16. C
Welby commission was appointed to inquire income and expenditure of British Government in
India. This was done when moderates exposed the drain of wealth through their books and
findings. Their accusation as it reached the masses forced Britishers to set up the commission.
Moderated had always demanded to give Indians place in higher civil services. Aitchison
commission was set up to review situation of civil services in India. The outcome of the
commission was establishment of two tier civil services in India i.e. Union & Provincial.
17. C
The clause 2 of Art 368 specifies certain situations in which apart from above mentioned special
majority ratification by more than half of the number of States is required, they are:
1) Election of the President.
2) Extent of executive power of the Union & State.
3) Provisions dealing with the Supreme Court.
4) Provisions dealing with High Courts in the States & Union territories.
5) Distribution of legislative power between Centre and States.
6) Representation of States in Parliament.
7) Seventh schedule
8) Art. 368 itself.
Note that you can make an intelligent guess in such questions. Those provisions which impact
the state government or the federal division of powers between the State and Centre could
require ratification by the states.
18. D
Nuclear technologies are playing a big role in the development of agricultural technologies,
helping farming communities increase crop production, control pests and diseases, and improve
water quality. As mutations may occur spontaneously, it can induce artificially. Artificially
induced mutations can be created by physical mutagens, such as X-rays, gamma rays, and
neutrons, and chemical mutagens, such as ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS), in plant mutation
breeding. Gamma rays are ionizing radiation and used in inducing mutations in seeds and other
planting materials such as cuttings, pollen, or tissue-cultured calli .Mutation breeding has many
comparative advantages. It is cost effective, quick, proven and robust.
19. A
It refers to fossil fuel energy resources that cannot be burnt if the world is to adhere to a given
carbon budget. Therefore some of proven reserves of fossil fuels will never be burnt and will
remain stranded.
Within the 2°C target; we only have about 1,100 Giga Tonnes (gt) of carbon dioxide (CO2) that
can still be emitted.
Current proven reserves of fossil fuels are about 812 billion tonnes of oil equivalent (oil, gas and
coal).
 Just burning all these proven reserves would generate about 2,512 gt of CO2 equivalent
emissions.
Thus no more than 40 per cent of the existing proven reserves of fossil fuels can ever be burnt.
20. A
The IMPRESS scheme seeks to identify and fund research proposals in social sciences with
maximum impact on the governance and society. Under the Scheme, 1500 research projects will
be awarded for 2 years. The Indian Council of Social Science and Research (ICSSR) will be the
project implementing agency.