UPSC CAPF Archives

31. Who among the following is serving as the Chief Minister of his State

Who among the following is serving as the Chief Minister of his State for the fourth consecutive term ?

Manik Sarkar of Tripura

Tarun Gogoi of Assam

Neiphiu Rio of Nagaland

Okram Ibobi Singh of Manipur

This question was previously asked in

UPSC CAPF – 2014

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As of 2014, Manik Sarkar was serving as the Chief Minister of Tripura for his fourth consecutive term. He first became CM in March 1998, and was successively re-elected in 2003, 2008, and 2013.

Manik Sarkar of Tripura was the only Chief Minister among the given options serving his fourth consecutive term in 2014.

In 2014, Tarun Gogoi of Assam was in his third consecutive term (started 2001, re-elected 2006, 2011). Neiphiu Rio of Nagaland was also in his third consecutive term (started 2003, re-elected 2008, 2013); he resigned in May 2014 to contest the Lok Sabha elections. Okram Ibobi Singh of Manipur was in his third consecutive term (started 2002, re-elected 2007, 2012).

32. The Permanent Settlement was rarely extended to other regions because

The Permanent Settlement was rarely extended to other regions because :

increase in agricultural prices after 1810 increased the value of the harvest, while the Permanent Settlement disallowed an increase in the State’s share

the economic theories of Ricardo influenced the policy makers

the State found it expedient to settle directly with the ryot

all of the above

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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All the provided statements are valid reasons why the Permanent Settlement was not widely extended to other regions of British India after its implementation in Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa. The fixed revenue demand (Statement A) became disadvantageous for the state when agricultural prices and land value increased. The evolving economic theories, particularly those influenced by Ricardo (Statement B), suggested that the state should capture the increase in land value. Consequently, the British administration found it more financially beneficial and expedient to adopt alternative land revenue systems like the Ryotwari and Mahalwari systems in other territories, which allowed for periodic revisions of revenue settlement directly with the cultivators or village communities (Statement C).

The failure to extend the Permanent Settlement was primarily due to the financial loss incurred by the state from fixing revenue permanently in the face of rising agricultural prices and the influence of new economic theories advocating for the state to share in increased land value.

The Permanent Settlement created a class of loyal zamindars but deprived the state of a share in the increasing wealth generated from agriculture. The Ryotwari and Mahalwari systems, implemented in large parts of South and North India respectively, allowed the state to periodically reassess land revenue, ensuring that it could benefit from increases in agricultural productivity and prices.

33. Which of the following statements about Presidential system is/are cor

Which of the following statements about Presidential system is/are correct ?

1. The Head of Government is also Head of State.
2. The Executive can veto Legislative acts.

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

1 only

2 only

Both 1 and 2

Neither 1 nor 2

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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Both statement 1 and statement 2 are correct characteristics of a typical presidential system of government. In a presidential system (like the United States), the same person is both the Head of State and the Head of Government (e.g., the President). Also, the Executive branch (President) has the power to veto legislation passed by the Legislative branch (Congress), although this veto power can often be overridden by a supermajority in the legislature.

Key features of a presidential system include the fusion of the roles of Head of State and Head of Government in one office (the President) and a system of checks and balances where the executive can veto legislative acts.

In contrast, a parliamentary system separates the Head of State (e.g., President or Monarch) from the Head of Government (Prime Minister), and the executive is typically drawn from and accountable to the legislature. While checks and balances exist in parliamentary systems, the specific power of the executive to veto legislative acts is more characteristic of the presidential system.

34. Data presented in Interim Budget for 2014 – 2015 reveal that for the f

Data presented in Interim Budget for 2014 – 2015 reveal that for the financial year 2013 – 2014, the revised estimates do not show a decline in :

Revenue deficit

Effective revenue deficit

Fiscal deficit

Primary deficit

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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According to the Interim Budget presented in February 2014, the revised estimates for the financial year 2013-14 showed a decline in Revenue Deficit (from 3.3% to 3.2% of GDP), Effective Revenue Deficit (from 2.2% to 2.1% of GDP), and Fiscal Deficit (from 4.8% to 4.6% of GDP) compared to the Budget Estimates. However, the Primary Deficit showed an increase, from 1.3% of GDP (Budget Estimate) to 1.4% of GDP (Revised Estimate). Therefore, the Revised Estimates for 2013-14 did not show a decline in Primary Deficit.

In the Interim Budget 2014-15, the Revised Estimates for FY 2013-14 indicated an increase in the Primary Deficit compared to the Budget Estimates, while other deficit measures showed a slight decline.

Primary Deficit is the fiscal deficit minus interest payments. It indicates the government’s borrowing requirement excluding the interest burden from past debts. The increase in the primary deficit suggested that even excluding interest payments, the government’s non-interest expenditure exceeded its non-debt receipts to a greater extent than initially estimated.

35. William James, Henry Colebrooke and Nathaniel Halhed had which of the

William James, Henry Colebrooke and Nathaniel Halhed had which of the following common among them ?

They were critics of Indian culture and civilization

They were judges at the courts of the East India Company

They were professors teaching history and society of South Asia

They were linguists who tried to interpret the culture of South Asia to the East India Company

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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Assuming William James is a typo for Sir William Jones, William Jones, Henry Colebrooke, and Nathaniel Halhed were prominent Orientalists during the British rule in India. They were deeply involved in the study of Indian languages (Sanskrit, Bengali, Persian), ancient texts, laws, and literature. Their work aimed at understanding and interpreting Indian culture, legal systems, and history for the East India Company’s administration. They were essentially linguists and scholars who facilitated cultural interpretation.

William Jones, Henry Colebrooke, and Nathaniel Halhed were key figures in the Orientalist tradition in British India, focusing on the study of Indian languages, laws, and texts to interpret the culture for colonial administration.

Sir William Jones (assuming the intended person) was a polyglot and scholar who founded the Asiatic Society of Bengal and famously identified the relationship between Sanskrit, Greek, and Latin. Henry Colebrooke was a Sanskrit scholar and linguist who studied Hindu law, astronomy, and philosophy. Nathaniel Halhed was an administrator and Orientalist known for translating a digest of Hindu law (A Code of Gentoo Laws) and writing a Bengali grammar. While Jones and Colebrooke served as judges (Option B), Halhed’s primary role was administrative and linguistic translation. Their most significant commonality was their work as linguists and interpreters of Indian culture through its texts and languages (Option D). They were not primarily critics (A) like James Mill, nor were they university professors in the modern sense (C).

36. Which of the following is not a characteristic of globalization ?

Which of the following is not a characteristic of globalization ?

Fragility of national barriers for the flow of capital and goods

Rapid flow of information, capital and goods

Networking of cultural, economic and political relations

Global infrastructure of formal and informal institutional arrangements

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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Globalization is characterized by the increased interconnectedness and interdependence of the world. Options A, B, and C describe key aspects of this phenomenon: reduced barriers allowing freer flow of capital and goods (A), the resulting rapid movement of information, capital, and goods across borders (B), and the increased interaction and interdependence across cultures, economies, and political systems (C). While a global infrastructure of formal and informal institutional arrangements (like WTO, IMF, international laws, norms) exists and facilitates globalization, its existence is often considered more of a consequence or facilitator of globalization rather than a fundamental characteristic defining the process of increased interaction and flow itself. Therefore, D is the least direct characteristic compared to the others which describe the core nature of global interactions.

Globalization is defined by reduced barriers, rapid flows, and increased interconnectedness. Global institutions are primarily facilitators and results of globalization rather than core defining characteristics of the process itself.

Characteristics of globalization commonly include the liberalization of trade and capital flows, technological advancements reducing communication and transportation costs, increased migration, rise of multinational corporations, and greater cultural exchange. While international institutions play a crucial role in governing and shaping globalization, the fundamental characteristics lie in the processes of interaction and integration across national borders.

37. Which of the following statements about Vijay Seshadri is/are correct

Which of the following statements about Vijay Seshadri is/are correct ?

He is an India-born US poet
He won the prestigious Pulitzer Prize in the year 2014 for his book ‘3 Sections’
He is the first Indian origin person to bag the Pulitzer Prize

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

1 only

1 and 2 only

2 and 3

1, 2 and 3

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Vijay Seshadri is indeed an India-born poet who later emigrated to the US. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 2014 for his collection titled ‘3 Sections’.

Vijay Seshadri is an Indian-American poet who received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 2014 for his work ‘3 Sections’.

Statement 3 is incorrect. Vijay Seshadri was not the first person of Indian origin to win a Pulitzer Prize. Several individuals of Indian origin had won Pulitzer Prizes before him in various categories, including Jhumpa Lahiri (Fiction, 2000), Geeta Anand (Explanatory Reporting, 2003, as part of a team), and Siddhartha Mukherjee (General Nonfiction, 2011), among others.

38. The Deccan Riots Commission was concerned with :

The Deccan Riots Commission was concerned with :

indebtedness of the peasant

lack of law and order in the Deccan

problems with the Ryotwari system

communal riots in the Deccan

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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The Deccan Riots Commission was appointed in 1875 to inquire into the causes of the Deccan riots that occurred primarily in the districts of Poona and Ahmednagar in Maharashtra. The riots involved peasants attacking the houses and property of moneylenders. The commission was specifically concerned with the indebtedness of the peasant class (ryots) and the exploitative practices of the moneylenders, which were exacerbated by the land revenue system (Ryotwari) and falling cotton prices after the American Civil War boom.

The Deccan Riots Commission investigated the causes of the 1875 peasant uprising, focusing on peasant indebtedness and the relationship between peasants and moneylenders.

While problems with the Ryotwari system (Option C) contributed to peasant distress and indebtedness, the immediate trigger and focus of the riots, and thus a primary concern of the commission, was the crippling debt owed to moneylenders. The commission’s report highlighted the need for measures to protect peasants from usury and improve the land revenue administration. The riots were not communal (Option D) and while they involved a temporary breakdown of law and order, the commission’s purpose was to identify the underlying causes, not just the state of law and order itself (Option B).

39. Which of the following statements regarding the residuary powers under

Which of the following statements regarding the residuary powers under the Constitution of India is/are correct ?

Residuary powers have been given to the Union Parliament
In the matter of residuary power, the Constitution of India follows the Constitution of Australia
Schedule 7 of the Constitution of India provides a list of residuary powers
The Government of India Act 1935 placed residuary powers in the hands of the Governor General

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

1 and 3

2 and 3

1 and 4

4 only

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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Statement 1 and statement 4 are correct. Statement 1 is correct because Article 248 of the Constitution of India vests residuary powers of legislation in the Union Parliament. Statement 4 is correct because Section 104 of the Government of India Act, 1935, placed residuary powers in the hands of the Governor General, who could decide whether a matter fell under federal or provincial legislative lists, or neither, and allocate power accordingly.

Residuary powers in India belong to the Union Parliament. India follows the Canadian model regarding residuary powers. The Government of India Act, 1935, placed these powers with the Governor General.

Statement 2 is incorrect because the Constitution of India follows the Canadian model regarding the distribution of residuary powers, not the Australian model. In Australia, residuary powers lie with the states. Statement 3 is incorrect; Schedule 7 of the Constitution lists the Union List, State List, and Concurrent List, but does not list residuary powers. Residuary powers pertain to subjects not enumerated in any of these lists.

40. As per the latest trade agreement in Bali of WTO, India and other deve

As per the latest trade agreement in Bali of WTO, India and other developing and under developed countries can launch food security programmes :

forever without any penalty under WTO rules

till an alternative mechanism is developed

for four calendar years

only if subsidy component under such programmes is less than 10 per cent

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UPSC CAPF – 2014

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At the WTO Ministerial Conference in Bali in December 2013, an agreement was reached on public stockholding programs for food security. Developing countries like India faced challenges with exceeding the permitted levels of trade-distorting subsidies under existing WTO rules when procuring food grains at minimum support prices (MSPs) for public distribution. The Bali agreement included a “peace clause” which allowed developing countries to continue these programs without being challenged legally under WTO rules, even if they exceeded the agreed subsidy limits, *until a permanent solution is found and adopted*. This “until” clause is captured by option B.

– WTO Agreement: Bali Ministerial Conference, 2013.
– Issue: Public stockholding programs for food security in developing countries.
– Outcome: ‘Peace Clause’ allowing continuation of programs despite potential breaches of subsidy limits.
– Duration: Temporary initially, until a permanent solution is agreed upon (later made indefinite).

The peace clause required countries to notify the WTO about their stockholding programs and provide data on procurement, subsidies, and distribution. The search for a permanent solution to this issue continued after Bali. At the Nairobi Ministerial Conference in 2015, the peace clause was extended indefinitely, meaning countries can continue using the peace clause protection until a permanent solution is found. Option B accurately reflects the condition under which the programs were allowed to continue based on the Bali agreement and the subsequent understanding.