UPSC CSAT 2017 PASSAGE PRACTICE 02

Directions for the following 3 (THREE) items: 

Read the following passage and answer the items that follow. Your answers to these items should be based on the passage only

A country under foreign domination seeks escape from the present in dreams of a vanished age, and finds consolation in visions of past greatness. That is a foolish and dangerous pastime in which many of us indulge. An equally questionable practice for us in India is to imagine that we are still spiritually great though we have come down in the world in other respects. Spiritual or any other greatness cannot be founded on lack of freedom and opportunity, or on starvation and misery. Many western writers have encouraged that notion that Indians are other-worldly. I suppose the poor and unfortunate in every country become to some extent other-worldly, unless they become revolutionaries, for this world is evidently not meant for them. So also subject peoples. 

As a man grows to maturity he is not entirely engrossed in, or satisfied with, the external objective world. He seeks also some inner meaning, some psychological and physical satisfactions. So also with peoples and civilizations as they mature and grow adult. Every civilization and every people exhibit these parallel streams of an external life and an internal life. Where they meet or keep close to each other, there is an equilibrium and stability. When they diverge conflict arises and the crises that torture the mind and spirit.

1. The passage mentions that “this world is evidently not meant for them”. It refers to people who

1. Seek freedom from foreign domination.

2. Live in starvation and misery.

3. Become revolutionaries.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 and 2

(b) 2 only

(c) 2 and 3

(d) 3 only

2. Consider the following assumptions:

1. A country under foreign domination cannot indulge in spiritual pursuit

2. Poverty is an impediment in the spiritual pursuit.

3. Subject peoples may become other-worldly.

With reference to the passage, which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

(a) 1 and 2

(b) 2 only

(c) 2 and 3

(d) 3 only

3. The passage thematically centers on

(a) The state of mind of oppressed people

(b) Starvation and misery

(c) The growth of civilization

(d) Body, mind and spirit of people in general 

ANSWERS:

RC UPSC CSAT 2017 PRACTICE 01

A moral act must be our own act; must spring from our own will. If we act mechanically, there is no moral content in our act. Such action would be moral, if we think it proper to act like a machine and dos so. For, in doing so, we use our discrimination. We should bear in mind the distinction between acting mechanically and acting intentionally. It may be moral of a king to pardon a culprit. But the messenger carrying out the order of pardon plays only a mechanical part in the king’s moral act. But if the messenger were to carry out king’s order considering it to be his duty, his action would be a moral one. How can a man understand morality who does not use his own intelligence and power of thought, but lets himself be swept along like a log of wood by a current? Sometimes a man defies convention and acts on his own with a view to absolute good.

4. Which of the following statements best describe/describes the thought of the writer?

1. A moral act calls for using our discretion.

2. Man should react to a situation immediately.

3. Man must do his duty.

4. Man should be able to defy convention in order to be moral.

Select the correct answer from the codes given below:

(a) 1 only

(b) 1 and 3

(c) 2 and 3

(d) 1 and 4

5. Which of the following statements is the nearest definition of moral action, according to the writer?

(a) It is a mechanical action based on official orders from superiors.

(b) It is an action based on our sense of discretion.

(c) It is a clever action based on the clarity of purpose.

(d) It is a religious action based on understanding.

6. The passage contains a statement “lets himself be swept along like a log of wood by a current.” Among the following statements, which is/are nearest in meaning to this?

1. A person does not use his own reason.

2. He is susceptible to influence/pressure.

3. He cannot withstand difficulties/challenges.

4. He is like a log of wood

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

(a) 1 only

(b) 1 and 2

(c) 2 and 3

(d) 1 and 4 

ANSWERS :

RC UPSC CSAT 2017 PRACTICE

Directions for the following 6 (six) items: 

Read each of the following two passages and answer to these items that follow. Your answers to items should be based on the passages only. 

Ecosystems provide people with a variety of goods and services; food, clean water, clean air, flood control, soil stabilization, pollination, climate regulation, spiritual fulfillment and aesthetic enjoyment, to name just a few. Most of these benefits either are irreplaceable or the technology necessary to replace them is prohibitively expensive. For example, potable fresh water can be provided by desalinating sea-water, but only at great cost. 

The rapidly expanding human their increased requirements of some of the goods and services, particularly food, fresh water, timber, fibre and fuel. These modifications have contributed substantia economic development. The benefits have not been equally distributed. Some people have actually been harmed by these changes. Moreover, short goods and services have come at the cost of the long efforts to increase the production of food and fibre have decreased the ecosystems to provide clean water, regulate flooding and support biodiversity.

1 . With reference to the passage, consider the following statements.

Expanding human population has an adverse effect on :

1. Spiritual fulfillment

2. Aesthetic enjoyment

3. Potable fresh water

4. Production of food and fibre

5. Biodiversity

Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) 1, 2 and 3 only

(b) 2, 4 and 5 only

(c) 3 and 5 only

(d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5

2. The passage mentions that “some people have actually been harmed by these changes”. What does it imply?

1. The rapid expansion of population has adversely affected some people.

2. Sufficient efforts have not been made to increase the production of food and fibre.

3. In the short term some people may be harmed, but in the long term everyone will benefit from modifications in the Earth’s ecosystems.

Which of the statement given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2

(c) 1 and 3

(d) None of the statements given above

3. With reference to the passage, consider the following statements:

1. It is imperative to modify the Earth’s ecosystems for the well being of mankind.

2. Technology can never replace all the goods and services provided by ecosystems.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 Only

(b) 2 Only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2 

Answers :

UPSC CSAT 2017 PASSAGE 01

For achieving inclusive growth there is critical need to rethink the role of the State. The early debate among economists about the size of the Government can be misleading. The need of the hour is to have an enabling Government. India is too large and complex a nation for the State to be able to deliver all that needed. Asking the Government to produce all the essential goods, create all the necessary jobs, and keep a curb on the prices of all goods is to lead to a large cumbersome bureaucracy and widespread corruption. 

The aim must be to stay with the objective of inclusive growth that was laid down by the founding fathers of the nation and also to take a more modern view of what the State can realistically deliver. 

This is what leads to the idea of an enabling State, that is, a Government that does not try to directly deliver to the citizens everything that they need. Instead, it (1) creates an enabling ethos for the market so that individual enterprise can flourish and citizens can, for the most part, provide for the needs of one another, and (2) steps in to help those who do not manage to do well for themselves, for there will always be individuals, no matter what the system, who need support and help. Hence we need a Government that, when it comes to the market, sets effective, incentive-compatible rules and remains on the sidelines with minima interference, and, at the same time, plays an important role in directly helping the poor by ensuring that they get basic education and health services and receive adequate nutrition and food.

1. According to the passage:

1. The objective of inclusive growth was laid down by the founding fathers of the nation.

2. Need of the hour is to have an enabling Government.

3. The Government should engage in maximum interference in market processes.

4. There is a need to change the size of the Government.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 2 and 3 only

(c) 1 and 4 only

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

2. According to the passage, the strategy of inclusive growth can be effected by focusing on

(a) Meeting all the needs of every citizen in the country.

(b) Increasing the regulations over the manufacturing sector.

(c) Controlling the distribution of manufactured goods.

(d) Delivery of the basic services to the deprived sections of the society. 

3. What constitutes an enabling Government?

1. A large bureaucracy.

2. Implementation of welfare programmes through representatives.

3. Creating an ethos that helps individual enterprise.

4. Providing resources to those who are underprivileged.

5. Offering direct help to the poor regarding basic services.

Select the correct answer from the codes given below:

(a) 1, 2 and 3 only

(b) 4 and 5 only

(c) 3, 4 and 5 only

(d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5

4. Why is the State unable to deliver “ all that is needed”?

1. It does not have sufficient bureaucracy.

2. It does not promote inclusive growth.

Select the correct answer from the codes given below:

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

5. What is the essential message being conveyed by the author of the passage?

(a) The objectives of inclusive growth laid down by the founding fathers of the nation should be remembered.

(b) The Government needs to make available more schools and health services.

(c) The Government needs to establish markets and industries to meet the needs of the poor strata of the society.

(d) There is a need to rethink the role of the State in achieving inclusive growth.

Answer :