2016 general studies paper 1 prelims Series A

1. Laxmikanth

2. http://www.ifpri.org/topic/global-hunger-index

3. NCERT 12th Macroeconomics

4. https://rbi.org.in/scripts/BS_PressReleaseDisplay.aspx?prid=32615

5. http://www.sciencealert.com/li-fi-tested-in-the-real-world-for-the-first-time-is-100-times-faster-than-wi-fi

6. http://unfccc.int/focus/indc_portal/items/8766.php

7. Ministry of Power Website

8.

Justification:

Statement 1: The World Bank Group (WBG) consists of five organizations – IBRD, IDA, IFC, MIGA and ICSID.

IFC is a member of the World Bank Group (WBG) and at the same time it’s called as the World Bank’s private sector lending arm with a stated objective to ensure that any financing does not result in harm to communities and the environment. (Source: https://www.oxfam.org/en/pressroom/pressreleases/2013-02-08/world-banks-private-sector-financing-arm-doesnt-know)

Another source that mentions IFC as WB’s arm – https://www.icij.org/blog/2015/06/numbers-world-banks-lesser-known-arm-ifc (read first paragraph)

Another source: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/mar/30/world-bank-lending-arm-ifc-sees-off-lawsuit-by-indian-fishermen-power-plant

Statement 2: IFC has been issuing offshore rupee bonds known as ‘Masala Bonds’. They provide a new source of funding for Indian companies which benefit in the longer term from comparative pricing of bonds.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/bonds/masala-bonds-can-be-new-funding-source-for-indian-cos-ifc/articleshow/51762984.cms

http://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/news_ext_content/ifc_external_corporate_site/news+and+events/news/ifc+issue

9. UB Singh – Administrative System in India: Vedic Age to 1947 http://tinyurl.com/js458vk

10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C4%81lavik%C4%81gnimitram

11. WTO website

12. 12th NCERT Macroeconomics

13.

Solution: C

Statement 1 and 2: Please see the Q Source.

Statement 2: Though desertification affects Africa the most, where two-thirds of the continent is desert or drylands, it is not a problem confined to drylands in Africa. United States, Latin America and the Caribbean have a high percentage of degraded lands.

The problem is starker in developing countries (majority of population in drylands is living in these countries). So, the UNCCD secretariat facilitates south-south cooperation is addressing desertification.
We could not find any such provision that the UNCCD secretariat allocates majority of resources to the South Asian and North African regions, even though it focuses on these regions.

http://www.unccd.int/en/about-the-convention/Pages/About-the-Convention.aspx

http://www.unesco.org/mab/doc/ekocd/chapter14.html

http://www.unccd.int/en/resources/Library/Pages/FAQ.aspx

14. https://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/sdrcb.htm

15. http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/groups.htm

16. http://pib.nic.in/newsite/efeatures.aspx?relid=126057

17.

Solution: C

Justification: Statement 1: Siddhas believe in oneness of the transcendental being in the world as well as charity towards men. This clearly shows they believed there is only one God, i.e. monotheism.

The Siddhar tradition has also been contrasted with the Bhakti tradition. Their attitude against idol worship and their stress on yoga, knowledge right conduct distinguished them from Bhakti cults. So, clearly 1 is correct.

Statement 2: Basavanna (founder of Lingayatism) rebelled against the rigid practices of the caste system then prevalent in orthodox Hindu society and eventually began expounding his own philosophy with a casteless society at its core.

Lingayats believed that there is no rebirth and on death the devotee reunites with Shiva never coming back to the World. So, 2 is also correct.

Source: Religion, Philosophy, Yoga: A Selection of Articles By Jean Filliozat http://tinyurl.com/gnbkxhs

http://tinyurl.com/jophqme

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lingayatism

18. http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-12-29/news/69379605_1_import-cover-foreign-exchange-reserves-import-bill

19.

www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29702440

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Rohingya_refugee_crisis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madhesi_people

20. https://www.opcw.org/about-opcw/

21. https://india.gov.in/spotlight/pradhan-mantri-fasal-bima-yojana

22. http://www.hornbills.in/great-hornbill.php

23. http://cpcb.nic.in/ngrba/about.html

24. http://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/urea-coated-with-neem-12520

25.

Solution: A

Justification: Statement 1 is ambiguous and debatable.

Statement 1: Arguments that Governor appoints the Chief Secretary (CS) are:

An appointment order is:
- Essentially an executive action published in the State gazette notification
- It is officially taken in the name of the Governor as all executive actions of a State government ought to be.
He is the highest officer of the state and Governor should ideally be the appointing authority of the CS.
So, even if CM “de facto” appoints the Chief Secretary, “de jure” appointment is made by the Governor, which should make statement 1 correct.

http://himachal.nic.in/WriteReadData/personnel/pdfs/CSMar2012_A1b.pdf

But, clearly it’s CM who selects and appoints CS of his state.

We are going with Option A because, the given statement is not ‘incorrect’ per se (He selects or not, he does appoint CS) If there was absolutely NO ROLE involved from the Governor, the statement would be definitely incorrect.

Statement 2: There is no fixed tenure for the post of Chief Secretary. In this context, the Administrative Reforms Commission, in its report on State Administration in 1969, had recommended that a Chief Secretary should have a minimum tenure of three to four years.

Source: Indian Public Administration: Institutions and Issues http://tinyurl.com/hozxoma

26. http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=134220

27. http://www.fao.org/giahs/giahs-home/en/

28. Justification: http://www.india-wris.nrsc.gov.in/wrpinfo/index.php?title=Brahmaputra

29. http://www.bankofbaroda.co.in/cbs.asp

30.

Solution: C

Justification: Statement 1: Annex-I countries are related to Kyoto Protocol. See http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/items/3145.php

Statement 2: A certified emission reduction (CER) is generated from a clean development mechanism (CDM) project activity. See http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/mechanisms/clean_development_mechanism/items/2718.php

Statement 3: Same link as above.

31. http://www.nature.com/scitable/definition/transcriptome-296

32. Justification: http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=114103

33. http://www.envfor.nic.in/major-initiatives/national-mission-green-india-gim

34. http://www.fssai.gov.in/Portals/0/Pdf/Food%20Safety%20and%20standards%20(Packaging%20and%20Labelling)%20regulation,%202011.pdf

35. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/internet/google-may-get-government-nod-to-conduct-pilot-for-project-loon-in-india/articleshow/52408455.cms

36. http://www.mass.gov/eea/grants-and-tech-assistance/guidance-technical-assistance/agencies-and-divisions/dpu/net-metering-faqs.html

37. Justification: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/definition/ease-of-doing-business

38. http://tinyurl.com/j7ejmq8

39. https://www.cs.colostate.edu/~malaiya/ashoka.html

40. http://doj.gov.in/sites/default/files/gramnyayalayas_0.pdf

41. https://ustr.gov/tpp/

42. http://www.idsa.in/idsacomments/3rd-india-africa-forum-summit_rberi_291015

43. https://rbi.org.in/SCRIPTs/BS_PressReleaseDisplay.aspx?prid=35749

44. http://www.downtoearth.org.in/coverage/the-sinking-ship-40705

45. http://indiatoday.intoday.in/education/story/banana-species/1/498242.html (recent news geography)

46. http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ins-astradharani-commissioned/article7730364.ece (recent news navy)

47. http://www.nasa.gov/langley/ten-engine-electric-plane-completes-successful-flight-test (recent news)

48. http://agricoop.nic.in/Admin_Agricoop/Uploaded_File/INSIMP.pdf

49. History straight forward answer

50. http://www.sgi.org/about-us/buddhism-in-daily-life/bodhisattva.html (religion culture)

51. http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/about-us (recent news)

52. http://www.teebweb.org/about/the-initiative/

53. (Recent news)

http://www.moef.nic.in/downloads/public-information/Chap-8-new.pdf

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/international-red-sanders-smuggler-nabbed/article8813238.ece

54. http://www.unep.org/forests/Portals/142/docs/UN-REDD%20Programme%20Strategy.pdf

55. http://www.ghgprotocol.org/about-ghgp

56. http://finmin.nic.in/fsdc/StrucFSDC.pdf

57. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/outcomedocuments/agenda21

58. http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/20396/11/11_chapter%205.pdf

59. http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=16+2160&aid=2956 (Science)

60. http://www.oecd.org/tax/beps/ (recent news)

61. http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-09-21/news/66760948_1_andhra-pradesh-nimz-manufacturing-zone (recent news)

62. http://www.arthapedia.in/index.php?title=District_Mineral_Foundation_(DMF)

63. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/education/pm-narendra-modi-to-launch-swayam-massive-open-online-courses-platform-on-aug-15/articleshow/53029959.cms

64. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/education/pm-narendra-modi-to-launch-swayam-massive-open-online-courses-platform-on-aug-15/articleshow/53029959.cms (history)

65. (Art religion culture)

http://asi.nic.in/asi_monu_whs_mahabalipuram.asp

http://asi.nic.in/asi_monu_whs_ajanta.asp

66. https://bitcoin.org/en/how-it-works (recent news)

67. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Development_Bank

68. (Recent news)

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/developmental-issues/Gadgil-committee-recommendations-on-Western-Ghats-ideal-practical-Experts/articleshow/41136674.cms

http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/kasturirangan-report-to-be-basis-for-eco-sensitive-areas-in-western-ghats-114082701235_1.html

69. history

http://www.thebrahmosamaj.net/founders/keshub.html

http://www.thebrahmosamaj.net/history/chronology.html

70. https://www.mea.gov.in/Portal/ForeignRelation/Gulf_Cooperation_Council_MEA_Website.pdf

71. http://www.financialexpress.com/markets/commodities/gold-monetisation-scheme-gold-monetization-scheme-indian-gold-coin-launched-2015/161906/

72. http://thediplomat.com/tag/one-belt-one-road/

73. http://www.icicibank.com/Personal-Banking/loans/pradhan-mantri-mudra-yojana.page (recent news)

74. http://www.teriin.org/policybrief/docs/Shale_gas.pdf (static gk)

75. https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/gfsr/ (static gk)

76. (Recent news + Static gk)

http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=116208

Some recent changes (on which statement 3 is based): http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/wealth/plan/government-amends-atal-pension-yojana/articleshow/51511223.cms

77. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regional_Comprehensive_Economic_Partnership (static gk + news)

78. http://www.beepindia.org/sites/default/files/Chapter%206%20-%20Appliances.pdf

79. https://www.iter.org/proj/inafewlines

80. history

81. http://newsroom.unfccc.int/clean-energy/international-solar-energy-alliance-launched-at-cop21/ (news)

82. www.esm.europa.eu/ (recent news)

83. geography

https://www.irrigationdirect.com/articles/drip-irrigation-history-benefits

http://www.agriinfo.in/default.aspx?page=topic&superid=8&topicid=2243

84. https://india.gov.in/spotlight/digilocker-online-document-storage-facility (recent news)

85. http://indianexpress.com/article/explained/godavari-and-krishna-rivers-interlink-when-two-rivers-meet/ (recent news)

86. http://www.hindustantimes.com/india/modi-launches-air-quality-index-wants-change-in-lifestyle-to-save-environment/story-C8VHWyZWYe36La6PQ7v2eO.html (recent news)

87. (recent science n tech news isro)

http://www.isro.gov.in/Spacecraft/astrosat

http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/isro-launches-astrosat-first-space-observatory/article7697707.ece

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_space_telescopes

88. medieval history

http://base.d-p-h.info/en/fiches/dph/fiche-dph-7866.html

http://tinyurl.com/zktanrk

89. History

Excerpts from Romila Thapar, Ancient India, “The memorizing of chronicles, dynastic histories, or epic tales was the work of a group of people, the sutas and magadhas.”