REVISION QUESTIONS-2: Important Questions for UPSC Prelims – 2016

Solution: a)

Learning: Israel’s borders have changed from time to time with developments in Israel’s military and diplomatic situation.

According to Green Line interpretations, it borders Lebanon in the north, the Golan Heights and Syria in the northeast, the West Bank and Jordan in the east, the Gaza Strip and Egypt in the southwest.

The border with Egypt is the international border demarcated in 1906 between Britain and the Ottoman Empire. The borders with Lebanon, Syria and Jordan are based on those drawn up by the United Kingdom and France in anticipation of the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in the First World War and the carve up of the Ottoman Empire between them.

Q Source: Map based questions

Solution: d)

Justification: The ministers are collectively responsible to the Parliament in general and to the Lok Sabha in particular.

Statement 1: Motion of thanks outlines the government’s approach for the coming year and is an important government document. If it is not passed, the Lok Sabha clearly doesn’t feel confident about government’s agenda.

Statement 2 and 3: These cases have been discussed in previous tests and statement 2 in one of the questions in this set.

Q Source: Indian Polity: M Laxmikanth

Solution: b)

Learning: The western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) is a species of freshwater fish, also commonly known as mosquitofish or gambezi.

There is also an eastern mosquitofish (G. holbrooki).

Mosquitofish are small in comparison to many other freshwater fishThe name “mosquitofish” was given because the diet of this fish sometimes consists of large numbers of mosquito larvae, relative to body size.

Gambusia typically eat zooplankton, beetles, mayflies, caddisflies, mites, and other invertebrates; mosquito larvae make up only a small portion of their diet.

Q Source: Based on past year UPSC papers

Solution: a)

Learning: Committee on Estimates consists of 30 members who are elected by the Lok Sabha every year from amongst its members.

Each of Departmental Standing Committee consists of not more than 45 members—30 to be nominated by the Speaker from amongst the members of Lok Sabha and 15 to be nominated by the Chairman, Rajya Sabha from amongst the members of Rajya Sabha. A Minister is not eligible to be nominated to these Committees.

The term of members of these Committees is one year. With reference to the Ministries/Departments under their purview, the functions of these committees are:

• Consideration of Demands for Grants.
• Examination of Bills referred to by the Chairman, Rajya Sabha or the Speaker, Lok Sabha as the case may be.
• Consideration of Annual Reports.
• Consideration of national basic long term policy documents presented to the House and referred to the Committee by the Chairman, Rajya Sabha or the Speaker, Lok Sabha, as the case may be. These Committees do not consider matters of day-to-day administration of the concerned Ministries/Departments.

Q Source: http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/intro/p21.htm

Solution: c)

Learning: Apart from its establishment under the Water Act, CPCB was entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.

• It serves as a field formation and also provides technical services to the Ministry of Environment and Forests of the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
• Principal Functions of the CPCB, as spelt out in the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, (i) to promote cleanliness of streams and wells in different areas of the States by prevention, control and abatement of water pollution, and (ii) to improve the quality of air and to prevent, control or abate air pollution in the country.
• Air Quality Monitoring is an important part of the air quality management. The National Air Monitoring Programme (NAMP) has been established with objectives to determine the present air quality status and trends and to control and regulate pollution from industries and other source to meet the air quality standards.
• It also provides background air quality data needed for industrial siting and towns planning.

Q Source: CPCB Website

Solution: b)

Learning: Every member of either House of Parliament shall, before taking his seat, make and subscribe before the President, or some person appointed in that behalf by him, an oath or affirmation according to the form set out for the purpose in the Third Schedule.

Speaker and Deputy speaker being MPs already subscribe to this oath.

If a member is not able to make and subscribe the oath or affirmation at the commencement of a sitting of the House, he may do so at any convenient time during the sitting of the House as the Speaker may direct.

Q Source: Indian Polity: M Laxmikanth

Solution: a)

Learning: Abhaya – This gesture is also called “Gesture of Fearlessness” or “blessing” or “fearless mudra”. Generally, this position is shown with the palms(s) facing outward and the fingers extended upwards (image below).

“Gesture of Argument” – (vitarka) also called “The Gesture of Debate” or “discussion” mudra. In this gesture the tips of thumb and index finger touched forming a circle. All the other fingers are extended upwards. This is the mystic gesture of Taras and Bodhisattvas, often used when explaining the Buddhas teachings.

“Gesture of Witness” – (bhumisparsha) This gesture is also called “touching the earth” mudra or “calling the earth to witness” mudra. The right arm hangs down over the right knee. The hand with the palm turned inward and all the fingers extended downward with the finger touching the lotus throne. The left hand lies on the lap with palm upward. This gesture symbolizes Shakyamunis victory over Mara. The Dhyani Buddha Akshobhya shows the same Mudra.

“Gesture of Charity” – (varada) This gesture is also called “Gift bestowing Gesture of Compassion” or “conferring boon” or “grace” mudra. The arm is extended all way down with palm facing outwards. You can find varadamudrâ sometimes also as a left-hand gesture. This is the mudra of Dhyani Buddha Ratnasamhava, Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara and (sometimes) standing Buddha Shakyamuni.

Q Source: UPSC oftens asks questions on Buddhist Mudras

Solution: b)

Learning: It is a compendium of songs or hymns in praise of Shiva in the Tamil language from the 6th to the 11th century by various poets in South India. Nambi Andar Nambi compiled the first seven volumes by Appar, Sampandhar and Sundarar as Tevaram during the 12th century.

Tirumurai along with Vedas and Saiva agamas form the basis of Saiva Siddantha philosophy in Tamil Nadu.

Q Source: Satish Chandra: Medieval India

Solution: d)

Justification:

Causes of Defeat of the Rajputs

• It may be stated as an axiom that one country is conquered by another only when it suffers from social and political weaknesses or becomes economically and militarily backward compared to its neighbours.
• Recent research shows that the Turks did not have any superior weapons at their disposal as compared to the Indians.
• The iron-stirrup which had changed the mode of warfare in Europe, spread in India from the 8th century onwards. The Turkish bows could shoot arrows to a longer distance, but the Indian bows were supposed to be more accurate and more deadly. The arrowheads being generally (lipped in poison. In hand to hand combat the Indian swords were considered to be the best in the world. The Indians also had the advantage of elephants.
• The Turkish tribesmen brought with them the habit of ruthless plunder. Their main mode of warfare consisted of rapid advance and retreat. lightning raids and attacking any loose body of stragglers.
• They could do this both because of the excellent quality of their horses and their hardihood so that they could cover incredible distances on horseback.
• So, none of the reasons given above – statement 1 and 2 – are correct.
• The actual reasons were the social and organizations strength of Turks. They had a tribal structure, which allowed them to maintain a large army. On the other hand, the feudalism structure of Rajputs weakened the military structure of the kingdom.
• The rulers depended on chiefs who quickly fought any battle and dispersed, and to an extent were independent from the empire.
• Rajputs also lacked heavy cavalry, and were not habituated to fighting a horse-based army (as that was of Turks).
• This and many others social-political reasons led to the defeat of the Rajputs by the Turks.

Q Source: Satish Chandra: Medieval India

Solution: a)

Learning: The Marrakesh Agreement, manifested by the Marrakesh Declaration, was an agreement signed in Marrakesh, Morocco, by 124 nations in 1994, marking the culmination of the 12-year-long Uruguay Round and establishing the World Trade Organization, which officially came into being in January 1995.

• The agreement developed out of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), supplemented by a number of other agreements on issues including trade in services, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, trade-related aspects of intellectual property and technical barriers to trade.
• It also established a new, more efficient and legally binding means of dispute resolution. The various agreements which make up the Marrakesh Agreement combine as an indivisible whole; no entity can be party to any one agreement without being party to them all

Q Source: WTO Website

Solution: a)

Learning: Lingaraja temple was built in the 11^th Century, Sun temple (13^th Century).

Jagannatha Temple, Puri also belongs to 13^th Century.

For more details you can refer Page 50: Q Source.

Q Source: Satish Chandra: Medieval India

Solution: a)

Learning: The Global Hunger Index (GHI) is a multidimensional statistical tool used to describe the state of countries’ hunger situation. The GHI measures progress and failures in the global fight against hunger

The GHI combines 4 component indicators:

• the proportion of the undernourished as a percentage of the population;
• the proportion of children under the age of five suffering from wasting;
• the proportion of children under the age of five suffering from stunting;
• the mortality rate of children under the age of five.

The 2015 GHI was calculated for 117 developing countries and countries in transition, 80 of which with alarming or serious hunger levels

In addition to the yearly GHI, the Hunger Index for the States of India (ISHI) was published in 2008.

The Index ranks countries on a 100-point scale, with 0 being the best score (no hunger) and 100 being the worst.

Q Source: http://ghi.ifpri.org/trends/

Solution: d)

Learning: The map below:

Q Source: Greece often in news

Solution: b)

Learning: We have earlier covered the scheme, but not its parent ministry.

• The scheme was setup with an aim to uplift the urban poor folks by enhancing sustainable livelihood opportunities through skill development.
• Keeping in view the objective of Make in India, Skill Development is essential for socio economic betterment. Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana was launched under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA). Government of India has provisioned Rs.500 crore for the scheme.
• The scheme is integration of the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM) and National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM).
• Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana is also a part of NRLM.

Q Source: Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA) Website

Solution: b)

Learning: Singapore is located at nearly 1 degree north of equator.

Q Source: Map based questions

Solution: a)

Justification: Statement 1 and 2: The Environment and Energy Thematic Trust Fund (EE TTF) gives seed money to innovative and catalytic initiatives. This allows UNDP to quickly deploy resources into new business areas, thereby responding to new global or partner country demands.

Statement 3: The new EE TTF also complements and supports synergies with the services and policies supported under UNDP’s other environment-related trust funds, which include the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol (MLF).

Q Source: http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/ourwork/environmentandenergy/strategic_themes/environmental_finance/

Solution: b)

Justification: Delhi: 28.7041° N, 77.1025° E

Kolkata: 22.5726° N, 88.3639° E – So, it is nearest to the tropic of Cancer (23.5 degrees N)

Jodhpur: 26.2389° N, 73.0243° E

Nagpur: 21.1458° N, 79.0882° E

Q Source: Map based questions

Solution: c)

Justification: Statement 1: Their importance lies in (a) facilitating the initiation of concentrated discussion on a specific demand for grant; and (b) upholding the principle of responsible government by probing the activities of the government.

Statement 2: However, the cut motion do not have much utility in practice. They are only moved and discussed in the House but not passed as the government enjoys majority support.

Their passage by the Lok Sabha amounts to the expressions of want of parliamentary confidence in the government and may lead to its resignation.

For e.g. if the budget is not passed by the Lok Sabha, the Prime Minister submits the resignation of the entire council of Ministers. (This view was also subscribed by UPSC in its 2011 Prelims paper)

Q Source: Indian Polity: M Laxmikanth

Solution: a)

Learning: The head of the village was called `gramika`. An official called `Mahattar` was appointed to look after the village. He used to be either some salaried officer or some respectable man. Bana has referred to an officer called `Agraharika` who probably looked after the lands given in charity.

The number of land endowments had increased to such a degree that eventually an officer called agraharika had to be appointed to look after them.

Land gifts led to rural expansion and created new rights in land.

Generally, land was owned by individual families, but its sale and purchase were subject to the overall control of the local communities dominated by leading artisans, merchants, landowners, and scribes, who assisted the local agents of the king.

Q Source: RS Sharma: Ancient India

Solution: a)

Learning: Dasholi Gram Swarajya Mandal was set up at Gopeshwar, Chamoli District, U.P. in 1964.

Its aims are to encourage forest conservation and the use of forest products for self employment; to cut down soil erosion by encouraging volunteers to build embankments in the catchment areas and to plant trees.

Option (b) and (c): The Environmentalist Foundation of India (EFI) and Indian Environmental Society are NGOs operating in India.

Q Source: Indian NGOs working on environmental causes

Solution: a)

Learning: The Toda people are a small pastoral tribal community who live on the isolated Nilgiri plateau in hill country of Southern India.

• The Toda traditionally live in settlements called mund, consisting of three to seven small thatched houses
• The Toda language is a member of the Dravidian family.
• The traditional garment of Todas consists of a single piece of cloth with red and black embroidery.

Q Source: Tribes and important regions of India

Solution: b)

Learning: The ‘Rowlatt’ Act embodied some of the recommendations of the Sedition Committee of 1918 setup under Justice Rowlatt.

The bill was rushed through the Imperial Legislative Council against the unanimous opposition of all non-official Indian members.

Q Source: Sumit Sarkar: Modern India

Solution: d)

Learning: In sharp contrast to Egypt and Mesopotarnia no temples have been found at any Harappan site.

• We have no religious structures of any kind excavated except the Great Bath, which may have been used for ablutions. Therefore it would be wrong to think that priests ruled in Harappa, as they did in the cities of Lower Mesopotamia.
• There are some indications of the practice of fire cult in Lothal in Gujarat in the later phase, but no temples were used for the purpose.
• These cities did not possess the necessary raw material for the commodities they produced.
• They did not use metallic money. We have no idea about their currency.
• Most probably they carried on all exchanges through barter. In return for finished goods and possibly foodgrains they procured metals from the neighbouring areas by boats and bullock-carts.

Q Source: RS Sharma: Ancient India

Solution: a)

Justification: It works in eleven countries to help address the sustainability problems of vital commodities such as palm oil, cocoa, coffee, pineapple, fisheries, soy and beef.

It focuses on:

• Support to better sector coordination through National Commodity Platforms.
• Support to policy and legislative reforms, plus stronger enforcement.
• Support to improved national and sub-national farmer support systems. This involves piloting innovations with the private sector, so that workable solutions can gain traction at a scale that makes a difference.
• Support to improved economic incentives for sustainable production so that more farmers can access the finance needed to adopt sustainable practices.

Q Source: UNDP Website

Solution: d)

Learning: The Gaddis are a tribe living mainly in the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. They are Hindus and belong to several castes including Brahmin, Rajput, Dhangar, Khatri, Rana and Thakur.

• Bondas live in the isolated hill regions of the Malkangiri district of southwestern Odisha, India, near the junction of the three states of Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and Andhra Pradesh.
• The Aka, also known as Hrusso, are found in Arunachal Pradesh. Their language belongs to the Tibeto-Burman family.
• The Angamis are a Naga tribe native to Nagaland state in North-East India. They are listed as a Scheduled Tribe, in the 5th schedule of the Indian Constitution. They are known for the Sekrenyi celebrations every February.
• Maria (a Primitive tribal group) are one of the endogamous Gond tribes living in Chandrapur District and Gadchiroli District of Maharashtra State, and Bastar division of Chhattisgarh.
• Korba people are one of the scheduled tribes of India. They live in hills and forest of Chhotanagpur; the bordering area of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
• After Gond Kol is the second largest tribe of Madhya Pradesh. Besides Madhya Pradesh this tribe also resides in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa and Maharashtra.

Some other tribes are:

Buksa are indigenous peoples living mainly in the Indian states of Uttarakhand (Pauri Garhwal) and Uttar Pradesh. They are mostly concentrated in Dehradun and Nainital districts in the Kumaon foothills of the outer Himalayas.

Munda tribe mainly inhabit in the region of Jharkhand, Although they are well spread in the states of West Bengal, Chhatisgarh, Orissa and Bihar.

Q Source: Some tribes asked by UPSC in past year papers

Solution: b)

Learning: Sinai Peninsula is located in the Red Sea near Suez canal, between Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba.

Q Source: Map based questions

Solution: b)

Justification: Statement 1: It decreases from east to West. For e.g. West Bengal and UP receive more rainfall than the Westwards regions.

Statement 2: It decreases from North to South. For e.g. Southern UP receives lesser rainfall than northern UP. The reason is that Monsoon winds collide with Himalayas and start precipitating. Regions far away from Northern Himalayas thus receive lesser rainfall.

Q Source: Based on Past year UPSC papers

Solution: a)

Learning: The report takes following parameters into account as indicators of happiness

• GDP per capita
• Life expectancy
• Social support
• Freedom to make life choices.

India was ranked 118 out of 156 in the list. Denmark took the top spot as the ‘happiest country’ in the world

Solution: b)

Justification: Statement 1: Even though President is an integral part of the Parliament, these privileges do not extend to him.

Statement 2: PM is a member of the Parliament. So, it is a clear answer.

Statement 3: Attorney General has the right to take part in the proceedings of the house. So, he requires these privileges. 3 is correct.

Q Source: Indian Polity: M Laxmikanth

Solution: a)

Learning: Historically, this tax was collected from able—bodied male non—Muslims in return for their exemption from military service and guaranteeing the protection of Muslims.

This tax was not collected from old men, women, children, monks, and non—combatants. Muslim citizens did not pay this tax, but simply served in the army, as a religious obligation.

The jizya was viewed in lieu of obligating non—Muslims to perform the jihad, which is a religious duty for Muslims and not necessarily for members of other religions.

However, in many recorded incidents non—Muslims participated along with Muslims in the defense of their territories and the poll tax was revoked. It was also returned when Muslims failed to protect non—Muslims.

Q Source: Satish Chandra: Medieval India

Solution: d)

Justification: The Interests of the Vijayanagara rulers and the Bahmant sultans clashed in three separate and distinct areas: In the Tungabhadra doab. in the Krishna-Godavari delta, and In the marathawada country.

• The Tungabhadra doab was the region between the rivers Krishna and Tungabhadra. On account of Its wealth and economic resources. it had been the bone of conflict between the western chalukyas and the Cholas in the earlier period, and between the Yadavas and the Hoysalas later on.
• The struggle for the mastery of the Krishna-Godavari basin which was very fertile and which with its numerous ports controlled the foreign trade of the region was often linked up with the struggle for the Tungabhadra doab.
• In the Maratha country, the main contention was for the control of Konkan areas which gave greater access to ports. This port was also important for import of horses from Iran, as good quality horses were not available in India. The import of horses for warfare from Goa port (Konkan) was of thus great importance to the South Indian rulers, and hence the conflict.

Q Source: Satish Chandra: Medieval India

Solution: c)

Justification: Statement 1: They are dry winds and rarely bring rains with them.

Statement 2: Chinook winds melt the snow which protects the wheat plants during winter and hence are considered harmful to wheat cultivation.

Also, the frequent midwinter thaws in Great Plains Chinook country are more of a bane than a blessing to gardeners. Plants can be visibly brought out of dormancy by persistent Chinook winds, or have their hardiness reduced even if they appear to be remaining dormant.

Q Source: Goh Cheng Leong: Geography