Prelims Answers GS I 2018 Topic Wise

UPSC PRELIMS 2018
GENERAL STUDIES-I
TOPIC-WISE
ANSWER KEY
51 Questions from A. A. Shah’s IAS Institute’s Current Affairs Coverage and Class Notes
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Daily-News-220.aspx
Easy questions = 41
Can be intelligently guessed = 34
Difficult questions = 25
Current Affairs (Polity) (3 Qs)
1. (c)
Privacy is a fundamental right, declares SC
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-25August-2017-2855.aspx
2. (c)
SC questions passage of Aadhaar Act as Money Bill
http://www.aashah.com/Article/03-May-2018-3598.aspx
3. (a)
System of Proportional Representation for Presidential Election
http://www.aashah.com/admin/18-July-2017-Keywords-2687.aspx
Current Affairs (Geography) (1 Q)
4. (d)
No easing of mining norms
http://www.aashah.com/Article/13-April-2018-3539.aspx
Current Affairs (Economy) (8 Qs)
5. (a)
FinMin clarifies definition of ‘branded' items for GST
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-06-JULY-2017-2643.aspx
6. (c)
Merchant Discount Rate (MDR)
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Keywords-7-December-2017-3180.aspx
7. (d)
Foreign ownership norms a barrier'
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-3-April-2017-2305.aspx
8. (a)
The Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) is a measure of a bank's available capital expressed as a
percentage of a bank's risk-weighted credit exposures.
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www.aashah.com 9004078746 aashahs.ias@gmail.com
The Capital Adequacy Ratio, also known as capital-to-risk weighted assets ratio (CRAR), is used
to protect depositors and promote the stability and efficiency of financial systems around the
world.
Two types of capital are measured: tier one capital, which can absorb losses without a bank
being required to cease trading, and tier two capital, which can absorb losses in the event of a
winding-up and so provides a lesser degree of protection to depositors.
The reason minimum capital adequacy ratios (CARs) are critical is to make sure that banks
have enough cushion to absorb a reasonable amount of losses before they become insolvent
and consequently lose depositors’ funds.
Is the endgame for NPAs in sight?
http://www.aashah.com/Article/26-February-2018-3407.aspx
9. (c)
Fiscal glide path pushed back to 2021
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-2-Febraury-2018-3342.aspx
The Union government has larger domestic liabilities of 49.23% of GDP as compared to
that of the States (21% of GDP).
http://www.aashah.com/Article/28-April-2017-Question-bank-2387.aspx
10. (c)
Market Stabilisation Scheme
http://www.aashah.com/admin/Article/05-June-2017-Keywords-2529.aspx
11. (c)
Centre for more PSB mergers
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-01-May-2017-2390.aspx
12. (c)
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-31-October-2017-3042.aspx
http://www.aashah.com/Article/16-May-2017-Keywords-2443.aspx
13. (b)
Sand mining
http://www.aashah.com/Article/11-August-2017-Keywords-2788.aspx
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-11-August-2017-2783.aspx
14. (b)
National Green Tribunal
Central Pollution Control Board
15. (d)
World’s northernmost coral reef in Japan
Corals
http://www.aashah.com/admin/22-June-2017-Keywords-2594.aspx
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16. (b)
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/a-saviourturnedvillain-whose-
tentacles-spread-far-and-wide/article17379253.ece
17. (d)
3-D Printing
18. (c)
India hit by 34 ransomware attacks, Minister tells Lok Sabha
19. (b)
Booster for Digital India scheme
20. (b)
Internet of Things (IoT)
21. (a)
New avatar BHIM app misses October date
22. (d)
Earth facing sixth mass extinction
http://aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-12-JULY-2017-2664.aspx
23. (a)
Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)
http://www.aashah.com/Article/1%20September-2017-Keywords-2837.aspx
ISRO abuzz over heavy-lift rocket launch on June 5
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-03-June-2017-2518.aspx
GSLV-Mark III
http://www.aashah.com/admin/03-June-2017-Keywords-2524.aspx
24. (a)
IRNSS (NavIC)
http://aashah.com/Article/IRNSS-3608.aspx
25. (d)
The man who traced the history of time dies
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-15-March-2018-3457.aspx
26. (b)
GM mustard -> Dhara Mustard Hybrid (DMH -11)
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27. (b)
Indians use origami to get a closer look at beauty
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-16-April-2017-2346.aspx
Blockchain technology
CRISPR-Cas9
28. (b)
Right to Education Act, 2009
Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Bill, 2017
29. (a)
Tax processed foods: FSSAI pane
30. (b)
Aadhaar number mandatory for subsidies: Centre
http://aashah.com/Article/Current-Events-10-February-2017-2145.aspx
31. (c)
Skill development to get leg-up
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-31-January-2018-3333.aspx
32. (c)
In computer programming, an application programming interface (API) is a set of
subroutine definitions, protocols, and tools for building application software.
In general terms, it is a set of clearly defined methods of communication between various
software components.
A good API makes it easier to develop a computer program by providing all the building
blocks, which are then put together by the programmer.
POSIX, Windows API and ASPI are examples of different forms of APIs.
Aadhaar’s open application programming interface (API) layers — known as “India Stack” —
set Aadhaar apart from other biometric ID programmes. India Stack APIs, which include the
Unified Payment Interface (UPI) and Aadhaar e-KYC, allow applications to be built atop them
(for example, the Bharat Interface for Money or BHIM app) and enable identity-driven
transactions.
http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/towards-a-unique-digital-south-asian-
identity/article18410579.ece
33. (d)
Aadhaar not linked to NRC: Assam government
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-20-February-2018-3391.aspx
Now, Aadhaar required for death certificates
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-5%20August-2017-2762.aspx
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34. (b)
Budget focuses on the rural sector
35. (d)
Low tariffs slowing new bids for wind, solar energy projects: ICRA
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-22-November-2017-3126.aspx
Rooftop solar is still out in the cold
Solar goal for 2022 too hot to handle
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-5-March-2018-3427.aspx
36. (c)
Catalonia
http://www.aashah.com/admin/2-October-2017-Keywords-2959.aspx
Catalans defy Madrid to vote in referendum
37. (b)
Russia comes forward to rebuild Aleppo
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-14-September-2017-2884.aspx
38. (c)
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system
‘U.S. has committed to payment for THAAD’
39. (d)
Zimbabwe Army seizes power, President Robert Mugabe 'confined to his home'
http://www.aashah.com/Article/Current-Affairs-16-November-2017-3102.aspx
Hyperinflation in Zimbabwe
http://www.aashah.com/admin/1-November-2017-Keywords-3105.aspx
40. (b)
India, Israel to set up $40 mn research fund
41. (a)
India ratifies core conventions to clamp down on child labour
42. (b)
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43. (a)
Swiss support India's NSG bid
Nuclear Suppliers Group
http://www.aashah.com/Article/1%20September-2017-Keywords-2837.aspx
44. (d)
Against human rights
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-opinion/against-human-
rights/article22885113.ece
45. (a)
Indian n-facilities under IAEA safety umbrella

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/indian-nfacilities-under-iaea-safety-
umbrella/article6733105.ece
46. (c)
Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)
47. (d)
WTO
http://www.aashah.com/admin/1-November-2017-Keywords-3107.aspx
48. (b)
Kakarla Tyagabrahmam or Saint Tyagaraja (4 May 1767 – 6 January 1847)
• He was one of the greatest composers of Carnatic music.
• Tyagaraja and his contemporaries Syama Sastri and Muthuswami Dikshitar were
regarded as the Trinity of modern Carnatic music.
• Tyagaraja composed thousands of devotional compositions, most in Telugu and in
praise of Lord Rama, many of which remain popular today.
• Of special mention are five of his compositions called the Pancharatna Kritis
• in the Pancharatnas, Tyagaraja has given full, exhaustive and complete treatment as to how
to systematically and scientifically develop a raga.
• Tyagaraja saw the reigns of four kings of Maratha dynasty — Tulaja II (1763-1787),
Amarasimha (1787-1798), Serfoji II (1798-1832) and Sivaji II (1832-1855),[3] although he
served none of them
Taḷḷapaka Annamacharya or Annamayya ( 22 May 1408 – 4 April 1503)
• He was a 15th-century Hindu saint and is the earliest known Indian musician to
compose songs called sankirtanas in praise of the god Venkateswara, a form of
Vishnu.
• He is the first known composer in carnatic music.
• He is believed to have been the avatar of Nandaka, the sword of Vishnu.
• He is widely regarded as the Andhra Pada kavitā Pitāmaha (Godfather of Telugu song-
writing)
49. (a)
Sujni
• It is a form of embroidery originating from the Bhusura village of Bihar.
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• In ancient times, it was considered as a form of quilting wherein old sarees and dhotis
were used as the creative canvas, the cloth was folded twice or thrice and then simple
stitches were done on these used clothing to add newness to them.
• It is exclusively made by women in 15 villages of Bhusra in the Ghaighat block of
Muzaffarpur and a few villages of Madhubani in Bihar.
• It was accorded Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2006.
Jamdani
• It is one of the finest muslin textiles of Bengal, produced in South Rupshi,
Narayanganj, Dhaka District, Bangladesh for centuries.
• The historic production of jamdani was patronized by imperial warrants of the Mughal
emperors.
• Under British colonialism, the Bengali jamdani and muslin industries rapidly declined
due to colonial import policies favoring industrially manufactured textiles.
• In more recent years, the production of jamdani has witnessed a revival in Bangladesh.
• India filed a geographical indication for Jamdani in 2009, which Bangladesh
protested against.
• The traditional art of weaving jamdani has been declared by UNESCO as an
Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity from Bangladesh in 2013.
• Jamdani is a Persian terminology, in which - 'Jama' meaning cloth and 'dana' meaning
any small granule.
Uppada Jamdani Sari

• It is a silk sari style woven in Uppada of East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh.
• Uppada Jamdani saris are known for their light weight.
• It was accorded Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2009.
50. (d)
Bani Thani
• It is an Indian miniature painting painted by Nihal Chand
from the Marwar school of Kishangarh.
• It portrays a woman who is elegant and graceful.
• The painting's subject, Bani Thani, was a singer and poet in
Kishangarh in the time of king Sawant Singh (1748–1764).
• She has been compared to the Mona Lisa.
• Inspired by Radha, Bani Thani is characterized by idealized
distinct features such as arched eyebrows, lotus-like
elongated eyes and pointed chin.
• This painting was featured in an Indian stamp issued on 5 May 1973.
51. (b)
Sthanakavasi
• It is a sect of Svetambara Jainism founded by a merchant named Lavaji in 1653 AD.
• It believes that idol worship is not essential in the path of soul purification and
attainment of Nirvana/Moksha.
• The sect is essentially a reformation of the one founded on teachings of Lonka, a
fifteenth-century Jain reformer.
• Sthanakavasins accept thirty-two of the Jain Agamas, the Svetambara canon.
• Śvetambarins who are not Sthanakavasins are mostly part of the Murtipujaka sect.
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52. (d)
Fatehpur Sikri
• It is a town in the Agra District of Uttar Pradesh.
• The khanqah of Sufi saint Sheikh Salim existed at this place.
• Akbar's son Jahangir was born at the village of Sikri in 1569 and that year Akbar
began construction of a religious compound to commemorate the Sheikh who had
predicted the birth.
• After Jahangir's second birthday, he began the construction of a walled city and imperial
palace here.
• The city itself was founded as the capital of Mughal Empire in 1571 by Emperor
Akbar.
• The city came to be known as Fatehpur Sikri, the "City of Victory", after Akbar's
victorious Gujarat campaign in 1573.
• The Buland Darwaza was also built in honor of his successful campaign in Gujarat.
• In 1585, Akbar abandoned it due to a campaign in Punjab.
• The city was built massively and preferably with red sandstone.
• The Buland Darwaza is made of red and buff sandstone, decorated by white and
black marble
• White marble encases tomb of the Sufi saint, Salim Chisti.
Tomb of Sufi Saint Salim Chishti
.
Buland Darwaza
Rumi Darwaza in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
• It is an imposing gateway which was built under the patronage of Nawab Asaf-Ud-
daula in 1784.
• It is an example of Awadhi architecture.
• The Rumi Darwaza, which stands sixty feet tall, was modeled after the Sublime Porte
(Bab-i-Humayun) in Istanbul.
• It is adjacent to the Asafi Imambara in Lucknow and has become a logo for the city of
Lucknow.
Rumi Darwaza
Bara Imambada in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
• It is an imambada built by Asaf-ud-Daula, Nawab of Awadh, in 1784.
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• is also called the Asafi Imambara.
• Bara means big, and imambara is a sacred hall built for the purpose of Azadari
(Mourning of Moharram).
• It is one of the last major projects of India not incorporating any European elements
or the use of iron.
• At 50 by 16 meters and over 15 meters tall, it has no beams supporting the ceiling and is
one of the largest such arched constructions in the world.
Bara Imambada
53. (c)
Avalokiteshvara
• Avalokiteshvara is a bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas.
• This bodhisattva is variably depicted, described and is portrayed in different cultures as
either female or male.
• Bodhisattvas are enlightened beings who are destined to become Buddhas but postpone
that final state in order to help humanity.
• Avalokiteshvara is also referred to as Padmapani ("Holder of the Lotus") or
Lokeshvara ("Lord of the World").
• The most famous painting on the walls of the Ajanta caves is that of the Bodhisattva
Padmapani.
Maitreya
• According to Buddhist tradition, Maitreya is a bodhisattva who will appear on Earth in
the future, achieve complete enlightenment, and teach the pure dharma.
• According to scriptures, Maitreya will be a successor to the present Buddha, Gautama
Buddha.
54. (b)
Chapchar Kut
• It is a festival of Mizoram.
• It is celebrated during March after completion of their most arduous task of Jhum
operation i.e., jungle-clearing (clearing of the remnants of burning).
• Chapchar Kut was discouraged when the Missionaries came to Mizoram as it was felt
that it did not adhere to Christian values
• However, it was revived in 1973 on a mass scale sans animistic practice and alcohol.
• Chapchar Kut is one of three annual festivals of the Mizos celebrated to mark three
different stages of the agricultural cycle. The other two are Mim Kut and Pawl Kut, also
revived in the last century.
Khongjom Parba
• It is a style of ballad singing from Manipur using Dholak (drum) which depicts stories of
heroic battle fought by Manipuris against the mighty British Empire in 1891.
Thang Ta
• It is a popular term for the ancient Manipuri Martial Art known as Huyen Langlong.
• In the Meitei language, huyen means war while langlon or langlong can mean net,
knowledge or art.
• Huyen langlon consists of two main components: thang-ta (armed combat) and sarit
sarak (unarmed fighting).
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55. (b)
François Bernier (1620 –1688)
• He was a French physician and traveller.
• He was briefly personal physician to Mughal prince Dara Shikoh (28 October 1615 –
30 August 1659), the eldest son of the Mughal
• emperor Shah Jahan, and after Dara Shikoh's demise, was attached to the court of the
Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, for around 12 years during his stay in India.
Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (1605 – 1689)

• He was a 17th-century French gem merchant and traveller.
• Tavernier, a private individual and merchant traveling at his own expense, made six
voyages to Persia and India between the years 1630 and 1668.
• He visited the court of the Great Mughal—Emperor Shah Jahan—and made his first
trip to the diamond mines.
• He was the first European to describe the diamond mines in India.
• Tavernier is best known for his 1666 discovery/purchase of the 116-carat
Tavernier Blue diamond that he subsequently sold to Louis XIV of France in 1668 for
120,000 livres, the equivalent of 172,000 ounces of pure gold, and a letter of ennoblement.
• The diamond was recut and later re-emerged in London as the Hope Diamond.
56. (d)
A. A. Shah’s Class Notes - Modern history (notes Pg-44)
57. (a)
Indian Home Rule movement
• It was a movement in British India on the lines of Irish Home Rule movement.
• Indian home rule movement began in India in the background of World War I.
• It specifically demanded Home Rule, or self-government within the British Empire
for all of India.
• The movement lasted around two years between 1916–1918 and is believed to have
set the stage for the independence movement
• It was under the leadership of Annie Besant all over India except under B. G. Tilak in
western India.
• Tilak founded the first home rule league at the Bombay provincial congress at Belgaum in
April, 1916.
• Annie Besant founded second league at Adyar Madras in September 1916.
• While Tilak's league worked in areas like Maharashtra (excluding Bombay city),
Karnataka, Central provinces and Berar, Annie Besant's league worked in the rest of
India.
• In 1920 All India Home Rule League changed its name to Swarajya Sabha.
58. (b)
• 1875 - Swami Dayanand established Arya Samaj
• 1860 - Dinabandhu Mitra wrote Neeldarpan (Indigo Mirror).
• It is based on the Indigo Revolt of 1858 when the indigo farmers of Bengal revolted
against the indigo planters.
• 1882 - Banking Chandra Chattopadhyay wrote Anandmath.
It is a Bengali fiction, set in the background of the Sannyasi Rebellion in the late
18th century.
• 1863 - Satyendranath Tagore became the first Indian to succeed in the Indian Civil
Services Examination.
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59. (b)
• In 1791, Jonathan Duncan, the representative of the East India Company proposed the
establishment of a Sanskrit college for development and preservation of the Sanskrit
literature and to show that the English people were in favour of the development of the
Indian culture. This was sanctioned by then Governor General Lord Cornwallis.
• William Jones was one of the founders of the Asiatic Society of Bengal.
• In 1781, Warren Hastings founded the Madarasa Aliya or Calcutta Madarasa.
Fort William College
• It was an academy and learning centre of Oriental studies established in 1800 by Lord
Wellesley, then Governor-General of British India. (Arthur Wellesley was his
younger brother)
• Thousands of books were translated from Sanskrit, Arabic, Persian, Bengali, Hindi, and
Urdu into English at this institution.
60. (a)
A. A. Shah’s Class Notes - Modern history notes Pg.-44
Wood’s Despatch
• Sir Charles Wood, the President of the Board of Control of the English East India
Company, had an important effect on spreading English learning and female
education in India.
• In 1854 he sent a despatch to Lord Dalhousie, the then Governor-General of India.
• Wood suggested that primary schools must adopt vernacular languages, high schools
must adopt Anglo vernacular language and on college level English medium for education.
This is known as Wood's despatch.
• Vocational and women's education were stressed upon.
• One of the most favourable steps taken by EIC was to create English class in Indian people
to be used as workforce in company's administration.
• He recommended there in that:
1) English education will increase moral character in Indian's mind and thus supply EIC
with civil servants whom can be trusted upon
2) An education department was to be set up in every province.
3) Universities on the model of the London university be established in big cities
such as Bombay, Calcutta and Madras.
4) At least one government school be opened in every district.
5) Affiliated private schools should be given grant in aid.
6) The Indian natives should be given training in their mother tongue also.
7) Provision was made for a systematic method of education from primary level to the
university level.
8) The government should always support education for women.
9) The medium of instruction at the primary level was to be vernacular while at the
higher levels it would be English.
61. (c)
Santhal rebellion of 1855

• It was a native rebellion in present-day Jharkhand, against both the British colonial
authority and zamindari system by the Santhal people.
• The rebellion was led by the four Murmu Brothers - Sidhu Kanhu, Chand and Bhairav
• The movement was brutally ended by troops loyal to the British.
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• The colonial took steps to redress the grievances of the Santhals, with the result that a
more cordial relationship ensued.
• The territories that they inhabited were grouped under a new territorial unit –
Santhal Parganas and it was henceforth stipulated that the usual bureaucratic and
judicial procedures of British India would not apply there.
• Further, there were special provisions for land rights and it became illegal for a
Santhal to transfer land to non-Santhals.
• The administrative centre moved to Dumka while a new role was assigned to Santhal
village headmen, thereby making them protected tribal subjects of the colonial state.
62. (c)
63. (c)
64. (b)
65. (d)
66. (c)
67. (c)
Subsidiary Alliance
• It was a tributary alliance between a Native state and either French India, or later
the British East India Company.
• The pioneer of the subsidiary alliance system was French Governor Joseph François
Dupleix, who in the late 1740s established treaties with the Nizam of Hyderabad, and
Carnatic.
• The methodology was subsequently adopted by the East India Company.
• To counter the intrigues of Napoleon and any further development in French Power in
India, Wellesley, who was extremely influenced with the imperial thoughts, used the
scheme to eliminate the French Power from India for ever.
• In a subsidiary alliance, princely rulers were not allowed to make any negotiations and
treaty with any other ruler. They were also not allowed to have an independent armed
force. They were to be protected by the East India Company but had to pay for the
subsidiary forces that the company was to maintain for protection.
• If Indian rulers failed to make the payment, part of their territory was taken away as
penalty.
68. (d)
Hind Mazdoor Sabha
• The HMS was founded in Howrah in West Bengal on 29 December 1948, by socialists,
Forward Bloc followers and independent unionists.
• founders included Basawon Singh (Sinha), Ashok Mehta, R.S. Ruikar, Maniben Kara,
Shibnath Banerjee, R.A. Khedgikar, T.S. Ramanujam, V.S. Mathur, G.G. Mehta.
• R.S. Ruikar was elected president and Ashok Mehta general secretary.
69. (a)
Kodaikanal Lake
• It is a manmade lake located in the Kodaikanal city in Dindigul district in Tamil Nadu.
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• Sir Vere Henry Levinge, the then Collector of Madurai, was instrumental in creating the
lake in 1863, amidst the Kodaikanal town which was developed by the British and early
missionaries from USA
70. (b)
71. (a)
Barren Island
• It is an island located in the Andaman Sea, dominated
by Barren Volcano, the only confirmed active
volcano in South Asia, and the only active volcano
along a chain of volcanoes from Sumatra to
Myanmar.
• The first recorded eruption of the volcano dates back
to 1787. Since then, the volcano has erupted more
than ten times, with the most recent one being in
2017.
• Along with the rest of the Andaman Islands, it is a part of the Indian Union Territory of
Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and lies about 138 km northeast of the territory's
capital, Port Blair.
72. (c)
73. (a)
Aral Sea
• The Aral Sea was an endorheic lake (one with no outflow) lying between
Kazakhstan in the north and Uzbekistan in the south.
• The name roughly translates as "Sea of Islands", referring to over 1,100 islands that
had dotted its waters.
• Formerly one of the four largest lakes in the world with an area of 68,000 km2, the
Aral Sea has been shrinking since the 1960s after the rivers that fed it were
diverted by Soviet irrigation projects.
• By 1997, it had declined to 10% of its original size, splitting into four lakes.
• By 2009, the southeastern lake had disappeared and the southwestern lake had retreated
to a thin strip at the western edge of the former southern sea; in subsequent years,
occasional water flows have led to the southeastern lake sometimes being replenished to
a small degree.
• The shrinking of the Aral Sea has been called "one of the planet's worst
environmental disasters".
Lake Baikal
• It is a rift lake located in southern Siberia, Russia.
• Baikal means in Mongolian, "the Nature Lake"
• Lake Baikal is the largest freshwater lake by volume in the world, containing 22–
23% of the world's fresh surface water.[
• With a maximum depth of 1,642 m (5,387 ft), Baikal is the world's deepest lake.
• Like Lake Tanganyika, Lake Baikal was formed as an ancient rift valley, having the
typical long, crescent shape.
• Baikal is home to thousands of species of plants and animals, many of which exist
nowhere else in the world.
• The lake was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996.
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• In 2014, for the first time over the past 60 years the water level in the lake Baikal
dropped by 40 centimeters to almost a critical level - 456.09 meters.
74. (a)
75. (c)
Conservation Agriculture
• It is a farming system that promotes maintenance of a permanent soil cover,
minimum soil disturbance (i.e. no tillage), and diversification of plant species.
• It enhances biodiversity and natural biological processes above and below the ground
surface, which contribute to increased water and nutrient use efficiency and to improved
and sustained crop production.
• Three principles of Conservation Agriculture are:
1) Minimum mechanical soil disturbance (i.e. no tillage)
2) Permanent soil organic cover (at least 30 percent) with crop residues and/or cover
crops.
3) Species diversification through varied crop sequences and associations involving at
least three different crops.
76. (b)
National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP)
• Ministry of Commerce has implemented the NPOP since 2001.
• The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority’ (APEDA)
functions as the Secretariat for the implementation of NPOP.
Sikkim became India’s first fully organic state in January 2016.
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77. (c)
The government conducts a ‘situation assessment survey of agricultural households’ from time
to time. The survey was last conducted by the NSSO [National Sample Survey Office] during its
70th round (January-December 2013).
Out of the total agricultural households in the country, around 45 percent belong to OBCs.
78. (b)
A. A. Shah’s Class Notes - Polity notes Page- 42
79. (b)
In the first Lok Sabha, the single largest party in the opposition was the Communist Party of
India (CPI).
In the Lok Sabha, a party needs minimum of 10% (55) members, for its leader to be recognised
as the Leader of the Opposition.
http://www.aashah.com/Article/11-April-2018-3531.aspx
80. (a)
81. (a)
82. (c)
83. (b)
“Where There is No Law, There is No Liberty.” This is a statement by John Locke.
He explains that, liberty is to be free from restraint and violence from others; which cannot
be, where there is no law.
84. (c)
The "rule of law" was popularized in the 19th century by British jurist A. V. Dicey.
Rule of law implies that every person is subject to the law, including people who are
lawmakers, law enforcement officials, and judges.
85. (b)
The expression 'subordinate legislation' means the act of making statutory instruments by a
body subordinate to the Legislature and in exercise of the power, within specific limits,
conferred by the Legislature.
86. (b)
Legal tender
• It is any official medium of payment recognized by law that can be used to extinguish a
public or private debt, or meet a financial obligation.
• The national currency is legal tender in practically every country.
• A creditor is obligated to accept legal tender toward repayment of a debt
87. (c)
88. (c)
89. (c)
Intangible wealth includes intellectual property rights like patents, copyrights, etc.
15 | Page
90. (d)
91. (b)
1957 - The first democratically elected communist party government formed in an Indian
state in Kerala
1955 - India’s then largest bank, ‘Imperial Bank of India’, was renamed ‘State Bank of India’.
1953 - Air India was nationalised and became the national carrier
1961 - Goa became a part of independent India
92. (a)
93. (a)
Pakhui Wildlife Sanctuary lies in the foothills of the Eastern Himalaya in the East Kameng
District of Arunachal Pradesh. It was declared a sanctuary in 1977, and was earlier part of the
Khellong Forest Division. It has been declared as a tiger reserve in 2002 based on a proposal in
1999.
94. (a)
The Forest Rights Act, 2006 calls on the Gram Sabha to decide and declare Habitat Rights for
Primitive and Vulnerable Tribal Groups.
95. (d)
96. (d)
97. (c)
Momentum for change : Climate Neutral Now” is an initiative launched by the UNFCCC
Secretariat in 2015.
98. (b)
The Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture (GACSA), was launched on 23
September 2014 at the UN Climate Summit.
99. (a)
100. (d)
16 | Page

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UPSC PRELIMS 2018

Current Affairs (Polity) (3 Qs)

Current Affairs (Geography) (1 Q)

Current Affairs (Economy) (8 Qs)

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