Questions have been framed keeping in mind the tough level of SBI PO Mains.
- Level of Difficulty – High
- Time Limit – None
- Par Score – 6
Directions for Questions 1 to 5: Five statements are given below, labeled a, b, c, d and e. Among these, four statements are in logical order and form a coherent paragraph/passage. From the given options, choose the option that does not fit into the theme of the passage.
- A.If government is unable to borrow money or raise taxes, it will have to print new currency to finance deficits, which increases money supply in the economy.
B.In a democracy, subsidy once extended becomes a politically sensitive issue and governments suffer huge political risk if they phase out such subsidies.
C.This takes a heavy toll on other expenditure of the government and they are forced to cut allocation to developmental and infrastructure avenues.
D.Overtime, new subsidies are extended which pile up on older ones and they soon consume scarce revenue resources of government.
E.Higher subsidy expenditure pushes up fiscal and revenue deficits as government starts spending more than it earns.Answer – A
Explanation :
B starts the paragraph, introducing the topic of ‘subsidies’ and the problems associated with it – they (subsidies) cannot be phased out/removed due to political risk. D builds on B, by telling more about the problems associated with subsidies – consumption of govt resources. C and E are merely the consequences of the problems discussed in B and D. All the four sentences negate the concept of subsidies due to high cost which is borne by govt. A takes the issue on a different plane and talks of solving the problem of increasing money supply in the economy – there is no mention of the problems caused due to subsidy or its solution - A.Social media and news organisations can regulate themselves at different levels, most importantly through rigorous internal editorial and advertising standards.
B.Industry-wide measures, such as adherence to a charter of standards on fake news and imposition of fines on organisations falling short of these, could be done.
C.News and social media companies have a moral responsibility to ensure that they do not, directly or otherwise, deliberately misrepresent the facts to their audiences and pass them off for news.
D.Germany is already considering imposing a €500,000 fine on Facebook if it shares fake news, and an Italian regulator has asked European countries to set up an agency to combat fake news.
E.Access to the web at all times on mobile platforms has raised expectations for real-time news and constant entertainment, and competition among websites and social media platforms.Answer – E
Explanation :
Measures to counter ‘fake news’ have been discussed in the paragraph. A talks of self regulation; B and D talk of fine that could be imposed and has been imposed; C talks of countering ‘fake news’ from an ethical point of view – moral responsibility. E starts at another tangent and talks of changes in expectations and competition in online industry. E is the odd one out. - A.Conservation of the tiger and other wildlife should not be at the cost of the fundamental rights of our citizenry.
B.Given that painful memories of the extirpation of tigers from the Sariska sanctuary remain fresh in our minds, it is too early to rest on our laurels, and a lot more effort is required before we can declare tiger populations to be hardy over the long term in India.
C.During several instances of injustice, tribal have been forced out of forests, uprooted from their social and cultural context, deprived of education, development and livelihood and plunged into poverty
D.To some intellectuals, the tiger remains an animal that is so much in one’s face that it blocks out the view of the forest.
E.Forests are home to one in eight Indians, and tiger conservation has come at a terrible human cost.Answer – B
Explanation :
All the sentences except B talk of tiger conservation being done at the cost of the livelihood of the tribal people. E and A begin the paragraph and state the point that Conservation of tiger should not affect human rights. C talks of the problems faced by tribal people, when they were uprooted from their homes citing the reason ‘conservation of tiger’ (see the use of word ‘injustice’). D also talks of over popularity of ‘tiger conservation’ due to which reality gets hidden (so much in one’s face that it blocks out the view of the forest).
In all the sentences, author cites problems due to ‘tiger conservation’, whereas B talks of more work to be done for protecting tigers – ‘too early to rest on our laurels’. - A.The Reserve Bank of India has surprised markets by opting to keep benchmark interest rates unchanged and cutting the outlook for full-year growth.
B.It listed global factors including the imminent tightening of U.S. monetary policy and the rise in oil prices, and “disconcerting” domestic inflation trends that could potentially endanger its price stability goals.
C.More worryingly, inflation has stubbornly displayed a “downward inflexibility” that could, coupled with volatile energy costs and further financial market turbulence, jeopardise the RBI’s end-March retail inflation target of 5 per cent
D.The RBI observed that the currency replacement exercise was likely to have the biggest impact on cash-intensive sectors, which could ultimately thwart the growth prospects of the nation.
E.Observing that economic growth could rebound strongly if the impact is “transient” as widely expected, the central bank has for now chosen to hedge its bets by reiterating an “accommodative policy stance”.Answer – D
Explanation :
Paragraph as whole talks of the decision taken by RBI to keep the interest rates unchanged.Paragraph starts with A- interest rates unchanged. E reiterates the same point as A – accommodative policy stance (= interest rates unchanged). B and C give information as to ‘why the RBI kept interest rates unchanged’ – global factors, stubborn inflation etc. D however talks of the impact of currency replacement (or demonetization exercise) on cash intensive sectors and resultant consequences on growth. - A.President Barack Obama’s decision to slap more sanctions on Russia and sack 35 diplomats from the U.S. is the latest flashpoint in the bilateral relations of the former Cold War foes.
B.The immediate trigger for Mr. Obama’s action are the cyberattacks on Democratic Party systems, which U.S. intelligence agencies believe were carried out by Russians to influence the results of the presidential election.
C.At home Mr. Obama faces criticism for not acting decisively against Russian interventions that go against American interests.
D.After it annexed Crimea, the U.S. and its European allies imposed trade restrictions on Russia.
E.Ironically, Russia-U.S. relations have hit the lowest point since the collapse of the Soviet Union under a president who had promised a “reset” of ties.Answer – C
Explanation :
As a whole paragraph talks of deteriorating relations between the US and Russia and the steps taken by the US to deal with Russia. A starts the paragraph, it talks of the latest US move of slapping (imposing) more sanctions; B states the reason of such a move – cyberattacks by Russia. D tells about previous restrictions imposed by the US and other nations to deal with Russia. E is written in a sarcastic tone when it uses the word ‘Ironically’. It states the theme of the paragraph.
All the sentences talk of present and previous steps taken by the US to deal with Russia and the reasons for such steps, whereas C has central theme ‘Obama’, it talks of Obama being in a bad position (use of word ‘criticism’) for not acting against Russia.
Directions for Questions 6 to 10: In each of these questions, a paragraph is given that has a blank in it. Five options for the blank have been suggested. Out of these, only one fits the blank in the context of the paragraph. Pick that as the answer
- In a democracy, subsidy once extended becomes a politically sensitive issue and governments suffer huge political risk if they phase out such subsidies. Overtime, new subsidies are extended which pile up on older ones and they soon consume scarce revenue resources of government. This takes a heavy toll on other expenditure of the government. ___________________ . Further, higher subsidy expenditure pushes up fiscal and revenue deficits as government starts spending more than it earns. This fiscal deficit can be closed preferably by raising more revenue through new taxes (proactively) or by borrowing money.
A.Different political parties make alliances and try to convince people for not taking subsidies
B.Subsidies are that part of government expenditure that is ‘consumed’ by beneficiaries
C.They are forced to cut allocation to developmental and infrastructure avenues
D.Govt may resort to printing new currency to finance deficits, which increases money supply in the economy.
E.The move to demonetize currency in such a case can be very risky; it might turn in favour of or go against the govt.Answer – C
Explanation :
First two lines tell us why the subsidies can’t be phased out (taken away) and the repercussions of providing finance for the ever-increasing number of subsidies. Sentence before the blank and after the blank, both discuss the financial problems of the govt. posed by subsidies. Moreover, use of ‘further’ (in the line after the blank) indicates that the blank also must talk about the same problem – govt bearing the financial burden of subsidies. Only sentence C talks about the problems caused due to excessive spending on subsidies – govt has to cut its other developmental and infra budget. - Agriculture sector is perhaps having most justifiable claim on subsidized inputs given the dismal situation of the farmers in the country. On these lines, water and electricity for agricultural use are heavily subsidized by state governments. Again, politics seeped into this economic cause and most governments have failed to ensure rational and sustainable use of subsidized water and electricity. Owing to this, in large parts of India, groundwater is being extracted indiscriminately as electric pump consume electricity that is almost free of cost. This has led to dramatic fall in groundwater levels. Wells have gone dry at numerous places. _________________. This, together with erratic monsoon due to climate change, has pushed rural India in deep distress
A.More wells need to be dug to provide water for agriculture
B.Very often, the extracted water is contaminated with arsenic mineral
C.Also, money allocated for providing equipment to farmers has been embezzled by the administrators
D.State govts must pour in more money to help the farmers
E.Ever increasing use of pesticides has made the crop less nutritiousAnswer – B
Explanation :
Passage introduces subsidized inputs provided to farmers (line 1 & 2) and then continues with the rampant and irresponsible usage (line 3 & 4). It particularly explains the harmful effect on ground water levels and further issues of water shortage due to such reckless usage. Line before the blank continues on same note and discusses the problem of water shortage – dry wells.
Notice, use of ‘this’ after the blank. ‘This’ must be negative in nature because when ‘This’ is coupled with erratic monsoon, it creates more problem for rural India. Hence, for the blank, we need a sentence which describes effectively the problem associated with water shortage in rural areas.
A & D give some kind of solution to the problem. C & E talk of some problem but not related to water shortage. Only sentence B fulfils our requirement. - And yet, predictably, the Israeli government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu has been up in defiance of the resolution, resolving to move ahead with the construction of thousands of new homes in East Jerusalem and on the West Bank. What however unnerved the Israeli government was the Obama administration’s instruction to its UN ambassador to abstain rather than veto the Security Council resolution, for successive United States (US) presidential administrations since the late 1970s had consistently backed the Israeli state by blocking such resolutions with a veto. Indeed the resolution’s passage was smooth; it was by a 14–0 vote, with the US abstaining. ________________________________ severely castigating them for “ganging up” against Tel Aviv.
A.The Israeli government was thankful to the Obama administration for showing the right direction alongwith the support of 14 countries,
B.The Israeli government was furious not only at the Obama administration, but also at the 14 yes-voter countries,
C.Since then, the Israeli government has been demanding explanation form the US for abstaining from voting in Security Council and
D.In a surprising victory with 14 countries voting in its favour, Israeli Govt. thanked Obama administration by
E.This will definitely resolve the issue which has been pending for so long and will help other Arab countries too byAnswer – B
Explanation :
Castigate – reprimand severely, scold. Tel Aviv refers to the Israel; ‘ganging up’ refers to the voting by 14 countries in favour of the resolution (and against the Israel), whereas Israel wanted to defy the resolution (line 1).
Israeli govt was defeated which makes A & D options wrong, hence they are eliminated. E goes out of the scope of the paragraph. Both B and C are close options but Castigating ‘them’ (plural) refers to the US and 14 countries, hence B. - One such intellectual activist, Angela Davis, sought to link the collective predicament of black people in the United States (US) and Dalits in India at the Eighth Anuradha Ghandy Memorial Lecture in Mumbai on 16 December on the topic “Black Lives, Dalit Lives: Histories and Solidarities.” ________________but two different modes of subjugation, she emphasised the importance of “learning from the long histories of Dalit peoples in India.” Davis’ lecture was a great opportunity to learn about the struggles for black liberation in the US, past and present, and to realise that such liberation is essential to the liberation of all people, and impossible without it.
A.Inspite of arguing in favour of both Blacks and Dalits as not one
B.She went on speaking about both the situation and plight as not one
C.While acknowledging that race and caste are not fundamentally the same
D.To win the hearts of Black and Dalits, religion and politics are not the only the means
E.Blacks and Dalits can attain complete freedom if they are given not only the right to vote and right to freedom of speech butAnswer – C
Explanation :
A good vocabulary always helps in deciphering the precise meaning of the sentence. Subjugate – to quell, dominate, overpower. Hence, as per the blank, we need to find a sentence explaining and describing two different modes or ways of suppressing people. Option C- ‘Race and Caste’ are two different ways with which people – Blacks and Dalits – are suppressed. Hence C
None of the other options, when put in blank, bring out any meaningful sentence. - The expressways built in 6 months have been showcased by UP’s current government as emblematic of the state’s development. Yet, its record on growth and development has been unimpressive. The gap between UP’s per capita income and the national per capita income has steadily increased, and ______________. The quality of employment generated in UP is also much poorer than the country as a whole. Handicraft and small-scale industries which make up a large share of UP’s industry have languished. Except in the run-up to the 2017 elections, the state’s budgetary priorities have remained unchanged.
A.the state’s performance in increasing the income of its middle class has been notable
B.the education level of children in the age group 10-18 years has increased manifold
C.it occupies the top rank considering the number of small scale industries that have sprung up in the last year
D.the state’s comparative performance in human development indicators continues to remain near the bottom among Indian states.
E.The UP govt is right on track to fulfilling its mandate promisesAnswer – D
Explanation :
First line talks of the development in UP. Second line shifts the stance from ‘praising UP’ to ‘unimpressive development’. Paragraph supports this by bringing up some facts and statistics, all of which show UP in a bad light.
See the use of word ‘and’. Line before ‘and’ talks of increasing gap between UP per capita and national per capita – which is a negative indicator. Use of ‘and’ suggests that the sentence in blank must be negative too. Hence, the correct option must also contain some data showing bad performance of UP. Option D is the only answer which suits our conditions. All the other options are good points about UP.
Note:
- Quiz has been framed keeping in mind the level of questions asked in SBI PO Mains. If you could score good in this quiz, you will definitely crack the question in Mains exam.
- Put in your Scores in the ‘Comments’ section.
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