1. Which among the following is not considered an indicator used to calculate the Human Development Index (HDI)?
(A) Life expectancy (B) Education (C) Per capita income (D) Gender inequality
Answer:</b> Answer:
(D) Gender inequality
Explanation: The Human Development Index (HDI),
published by the UNDP, measures three basic dimensions of human
development:
Health:
Life expectancy at birth
Education:
Mean years of schooling and expected years of schooling
Standard
of living: Gross National Income (GNI) per capita, adjusted for
purchasing power parity
Why other options?
(A)
Life expectancy: Forms the health dimension of HDI.
(B)
Education: Forms the education dimension.
(C)
Per capita income: GNI per capita is used to measure the
standard-of-living dimension.
(D)
Gender inequality: Not a component of HDI itself. It is measured
separately through the Gender Inequality Index (GII).
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2. The Uday Kotak Committee is associated with:
(A) Digital payments (B) Corporate governance (C) Bank reforms (D) Data protection
Answer:</b> Answer:
(B) Corporate governance
Explanation: The Uday Kotak Committee was
constituted by SEBI in 2017 to review and recommend improvements in corporate
governance standards in listed companies.
The committee was chaired by Uday S. Kotak, founder
and managing director of Kotak Mahindra Bank.
Why other options?
(A)
Digital payments: Not the primary mandate of the committee.
(C)
Bank reforms: Although Uday Kotak is a prominent banker, this
committee specifically dealt with corporate governance.
Explanation:Libra was the name originally
proposed by Facebook (now Meta) in 2019 for a global digital currency
project. It was later renamed Diem.
The project was intended to create a digital currency backed
by a reserve of assets.
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4. Project SASHAKT refers to:
(A) RBI plan to consolidate stressed assets (B) Scholarship programme for students (C) Programme for women entrepreneurs (D) Minority welfare scheme
Answer:</b> Answer:
(A) RBI plan to consolidate stressed assets
Explanation:Project Sashakt was introduced in 2018 following the recommendations of the Sunil Mehta Committee
to address the problem of stressed assets/non-performing assets (NPAs) in
Indian banks.
It proposed a five-pronged approach for resolution of
stressed assets, including mechanisms for handling different sizes of bad
loans.
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5. Electoral Bonds could be issued by:
(A) Reserve Bank of India (B) State Bank of India (C) Securities and Exchange Board of India (D) Any public sector bank
Answer:</b> Answer:
(B) State Bank of India
Explanation: Under the Electoral Bond Scheme, State
Bank of India (SBI) was the authorised bank for issuing and encashing
electoral bonds.
However, an important current-affairs point is that the Supreme
Court struck down the Electoral Bond Scheme in February 2024, holding the
scheme unconstitutional, and directed SBI to stop issuing electoral bonds.
Why other options?
(A)
RBI: Was not the issuing bank under the scheme.
(C)
SEBI: Regulates securities markets but did not issue electoral bonds.
(D)
Any public sector bank: Incorrect; SBI was specifically authorised.
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6. Which among the following is not an indirect instrument of monetary policy used by the Reserve Bank of India?
(A) Cash Reserve Ratio (B) Repo Rate (C) Reverse Repo Rate (D) Bank Rate
Answer:</b> Answer:
(A) Cash Reserve Ratio
Explanation: This question requires caution because CRR
is generally classified as a quantitative/direct monetary policy instrument,
whereas repo rate, reverse repo rate and bank rate operate through
interest-rate/liquidity channels and are commonly grouped under indirect
instruments.
CRR: The percentage of a bank’s Net Demand and Time
Liabilities (NDTL) that must be maintained as cash with the RBI.
Why other options?
(B)
Repo Rate: Rate at which RBI lends short-term funds to banks against
eligible securities.
(C)
Reverse Repo Rate: Rate at which RBI absorbs liquidity from banks; it
is traditionally described as an instrument of liquidity management.
(D)
Bank Rate: Long-term/standard policy rate associated with RBI lending
and rediscounting facilities.
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7. Skewflation occurs when:
(A) Demand increases at a faster rate than supply (B) There is an increase in the cost of production (C) Prices remain the same but the size of the product is reduced (D) Prices rise in some commodities, remain unchanged in some, and fall in others
Answer:</b> Answer:
(D)
Explanation:Skewflation refers to a situation
where price movements are uneven across different commodities or sectors—prices
may rise sharply for some goods while remaining stable or declining for others.
For example, food prices may rise significantly while prices
of certain manufactured goods remain unchanged.
Why other options?
(A):
Demand growing faster than supply can cause demand-pull inflation.
(B):
Rising production costs can cause cost-push inflation.
(C):
Reducing product quantity/size while maintaining the price is generally
known as shrinkflation.
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8. Which one of the following constitutes the largest component of India’s foreign exchange reserves?
(A) Gold Reserves (B) Special Drawing Rights (C) RBI’s Reserve Position with the IMF (D) Foreign Currency Assets
Foreign Currency Assets generally constitute the largest
component of India’s forex reserves.
Why other options?
(A)
Gold: Important reserve asset, but smaller than FCA.
(B)
SDRs: International reserve assets created by the IMF.
(C)
Reserve position with IMF: India’s claim/reserve position in the IMF.
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9. GST subsumed several taxes and levies, which included:
Service Tax
Central Excise Duty
Basic Customs Duty
State-level VAT
Octroi
Which of the above were subsumed under GST?
(A) 1, 2 and 3 only (B) 1, 2, 4 and 5 only (C) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 (D) 2, 3 and 4 only
Answer:</b> Answer:
(B) 1, 2, 4 and 5 only
Explanation: GST replaced/subsumed several indirect
taxes imposed by the Centre and States.
These included:
Service
Tax — subsumed
Central
Excise Duty — largely subsumed
State
VAT — subsumed
Octroi
— subsumed
However, Basic Customs Duty was not subsumed under GST.
Why option (C) is wrong: Basic Customs Duty continues
separately from GST. Import transactions may attract IGST in addition to
applicable customs duties.
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10. The “Ease of Living” Index that ranks cities globally is released by:
(A) World Trade Organization (B) World Economic Forum (C) International Monetary Fund (D) World Bank
Answer:</b> Answer:
(B) World Economic Forum
Explanation: Among the options given, the World
Economic Forum (WEF) is associated with global city/livability-related
comparative rankings and indices.
Why other options?
WTO:
Primarily deals with international trade.
IMF:
Focuses on international monetary cooperation, financial stability and
macroeconomic issues.
World
Bank: Focuses primarily on development financing and poverty
reduction.
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11. Which of the following pairs is/are correctly matched with respect to GI Tag and State?
Memong Narang — Meghalaya
Moirang Phee — Mizoram
Muga Silk — Assam
(A) 1 only (B) 1 and 3 only (C) 2 and 3 only (D) 1, 2 and 3
Answer:</b> Answer:
(B) 1 and 3 only
Explanation:
Memong
Narang → Meghalaya — Correct. It is a traditional citrus variety
associated with Meghalaya.
Moirang
Phee → Manipur, not Mizoram — Therefore statement 2 is incorrect.
Muga
Silk → Assam — Correct. Muga silk is a distinctive traditional silk of
Assam and has GI recognition.
Therefore, 1 and 3 are correctly matched.
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12. The Yellow Revolution is associated with:
(A) Jute production (B) Fertilizer production (C) Cotton production (D) Oilseed production
Answer:</b> Answer:
(D) Oilseed production
Explanation: The Yellow Revolution is
associated with increasing the production of oilseeds, such as mustard,
groundnut, soybean and sunflower.
India’s oilseed production received significant attention
under programmes aimed at increasing domestic edible-oil production.
Why other options?
Jute:
Associated with jute production, not Yellow Revolution.
Fertilizer:
Not a revolution category.
Cotton:
Often associated with the White Revolution? No—cotton is generally
linked with the Golden Fibre description, while the White
Revolution is associated with milk.
Important Revolutions for Exams:
Revolution
Associated with
Green
Food grains/agriculture
White
Milk
Blue
Fisheries
Yellow
Oilseeds
Golden
Horticulture/honey in different contexts
Silver
Eggs/poultry in some classifications
13. Podu, Bewar, Kumari, Jhum and Kaman are various names
used in different parts of India to denote which type of cultivation?
Explanation: These are regional names for shifting
cultivation, a form of agriculture in which a cultivated plot is used for a
period and then abandoned or left fallow while cultivation shifts to another
plot.
Jhum cultivation is particularly important in the Northeastern
states of India, including Meghalaya.
Other regional names:
Jhum:
Northeast India
Podu:
Parts of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh/Telangana
Bewar:
Central/northern parts of India
Kumari:
Parts of southern India
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14. Which of the following are primary economic activities?
Mining
Processing
Quarrying
Forestry
Metalworking
(A) 1, 3 and 4 only (B) 1, 2 and 3 only (C) 2, 4 and 5 only (D) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5
Answer:</b> Answer:
(A) 1, 3 and 4 only
Explanation:Primary activities involve the
direct extraction or collection of natural resources.
Mining
→ Primary
Quarrying
→ Primary
Forestry
→ Primary
Processing and metalworking are generally secondary-sector
activities, because they involve processing raw materials into goods.
Why other options?
(B):
Processing is not a primary activity.
(C):
Processing and metalworking are secondary activities.
(D):
Includes secondary activities.
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15. Identify the correct chronological sequence of the following events:
