UPSC Editorials Quiz : 2 October 2025

Solution: C

• HPV vaccination prevents cervical cancer and is being scaled up in India, though rollout is uneven across states.
• Hepatitis B vaccination was added to the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP), which is crucial for preventing liver cancer.
• Under NPCDCS, the government has prioritized population-based screening for three major cancers—oral, breast, and cervical—due to their high prevalence and preventability.
• These measures demonstrate India’s shift toward preventive oncology.

Solution: A

• Statement 1 is incorrect. The provision for a Public Service Commission was first made under the Government of India Act, 1919, not the 1935 Act. The 1935 Act elevated it to the Federal Public Service Commission. It assumed its present status as the Union Public Service Commission with the adoption of the Constitution in 1950.
• Statement 2 is correct. The Lee Commission (1924) observed the need for an efficient and impartial civil service, protected from political influence. Its recommendations were instrumental in the establishment of the Public Service Commission on October 1, 1926.
• Statement 3 is incorrect. Sir Ross Barker was the chairman of the Public Service Commission when it was first set up in 1926, not the UPSC constituted after 1950.

Solution: B

• Statement 1 is a negative impact of rupee depreciation. A weaker rupee means that one needs more rupees to buy the same amount of foreign currency, making foreign services like education and tourism more expensive for Indians.
• Statement 2 is a positive impact. Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) who send money home in foreign currencies (like the US dollar) will get more rupees for their remittances. This can lead to an increase in remittance inflows, which is beneficial for the Indian economy.
• Statement 3 is a positive impact. Depreciation makes Indian goods cheaper for foreign buyers. This improved price competitiveness can lead to an increase in demand for Indian exports, which can help to boost the export sector and improve the trade balance.
• Statement 4 is a negative impact. Indian companies that have borrowed in foreign currencies (like US dollars) without hedging their exposure will find that their repayment costs in rupee terms increase as the rupee depreciates. This can lead to corporate stress and financial difficulties for such firms.

Solution: B

• Statement 1 is correct. Opencast (or surface) mining, which is the predominant method of coal extraction in India, involves the removal of large amounts of overburden (soil and rock) to access the coal seams. This process inherently leads to large-scale land degradation. It creates huge pits and dumps of overburden, drastically altering the original topography. This can also disrupt and alter the natural drainage patterns of the area, affecting stream flows and groundwater recharge. The Jharia coalfield in Jharkhand is a classic case study where extensive opencast mining has caused severe land subsidence, mine fires, and widespread environmental damage.
• Statement 2 is incorrect. Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) is a major environmental problem associated with coal and metal mining. It occurs when sulfide minerals (especially pyrite, FeS2), which are common in coal seams and surrounding rocks, are exposed to air and water. This triggers a chemical reaction that produces sulfuric acid. The resulting drainage is therefore highly acidic (with a very low pH), not alkaline. This acidic water can leach heavy metals from the rocks, leading to severe contamination of both surface and groundwater, making it toxic to aquatic life and unfit for human use.
• Statement 3 is correct. Coal mining activities—including drilling, blasting, excavation, transportation, and crushing—generate enormous quantities of dust. This dust contains fine particles that can remain suspended in the atmosphere. Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM or PM10) and even finer particles (PM2.5) are major air pollutants in mining areas. Numerous studies and reports by bodies like the CPCB and CAG have shown that the concentration of these particulates in the ambient air of major coalfields like Talcher and Singrauli frequently and significantly exceeds the prescribed National Ambient Air Quality Standards, posing serious health risks to miners and local communities.

Solution: D

Option (a) is incorrect. The 2019 amendment did the opposite; it strengthened the CSR mandate rather than making it voluntary. The core requirement to spend 2% of average net profits remained firmly in place.

Option (b) is incorrect. While the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2020, did decriminalise several minor, procedural offences, the 2019 amendment specifically tightened the penalties for CSR non-compliance. It introduced stricter measures, moving beyond a simple ‘comply or explain’ approach.

Option (c) is incorrect. The amendment did require the transfer of unspent funds, but it provided a mechanism for companies to use the funds for their own multi-year CSR projects. The unspent amount related to an “ongoing project” could be transferred to a special ‘Unspent Corporate Social Responsibility Account’ to be spent within three financial years. Only if the funds remain unspent after this period, or if they were not allocated to an ongoing project, must they be transferred to a fund specified in Schedule VII, like the PMNRF.

Option (d) is correct. The Companies (Amendment) Act, 2019, significantly strengthened the CSR provisions under Section 135. It moved from a ‘comply or explain’ regime to a ‘comply or pay penalty’ regime. It stipulated that if a company fails to spend its CSR amount, it must transfer the unspent amount to a special account called the ‘Unspent CSR Account’ within 30 days of the end of the financial year, to be used within three years for its ongoing CSR projects. Failure to do so would require transferring the amount to a government-specified fund. Most importantly, the amendment introduced stringent penalties for non-compliance, including a fine on the company and making every officer in default punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years or with a fine, or with both.