Analysis of UPSC Civil Services 2010 (GS Paper) : Part -II

For most infectious diseases for which effective vaccines are available , a single infection confers long standing protective immunity. A person who had measles does not develop measles again. This type of sterile protective immunity does not exist for malaria. So man lacks naturally acquired protective immunity against the plasmodium or other malarial parasites. Plasmodium has its own ingenious way of avoiding hosts’ immune response and that is why it has been very difficult. RTS,S is one of the malarial vaccine candidates.

Correct answer: B

22. Consider the following statements:
1. The boundaries of a National Park are defined by legislation.
2. A Biosphere Reserve is declared to conserve a few specific species of flora and fauna.
3. In a Wildlife Sanctuary, limited ‘ biotic interference is permitted.
Which of the statements given above is /are correct ?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Lets discuss this tricky question:
Statement 2 is correct: A biosphere reserve is a unique concept, which includes one, or more protected areas and surrounding lands that are managed to combine both conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. In India 13 states in have Biosphere Reserves and the funds allocated to them is utilized to monitor and promote bio-diversity conservation through surveys and assessment of flora and fauna. Basically Biosphere reserves are to protect larger areas of natural habitat, and often include one or more national parks and/or preserves, along buffer zones that are open to some economic uses as per the IUCN Category V.

Statement 3 is correct:
The difference between a national park and a sanctuary is that no human activity is allowed inside a national park, while limited activities are permitted within the sanctuary.

Now lets discuss statement 1:
please refer to The Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, amended 1993, CHAPTER IV, 35.

Declaration of National Parks. Ref
1. Whenever it appears to the State Government that an area, whether within a sanctuary or not, is, by reason of its ecological, faunal, floral, geomorphological, or zoological association or importance, needed to be constituted as a National Park for the purpose of protecting& propagating or developing wildlife therein or its environment, it may, by notification, declare its intention to constitute such area as a National Park.

3. Where any area is intended to be declared as a National Park, the provisions of Sec. [1219 to 26-A (both inclusive except clause (c) of sub-section (2) of section 24)] shall, as far as may be, apply to the investigation and determination of claims and extinguishment of rights, in relation to any land in such area as they apply to the said matters in relation to any land in a sanctuary.

4. When the following events have occurred, namely

(a) the period for preferring claims has elapsed, and all claims, if any, made in relation to any land in an area intended to be declared as a National Park, have been disposed of by the State Government, and

(b) all rights in respect of lands proposed to be included in the National Park have become vested in the State Government the State Government shall publish a notification specifying the limits of the area which shall be comprised within the National Park and declare that the said area shall be a National Park on and from such date as may be specified in the notification.

5. No alteration of the boundaries of a National Park shall be made except on a resolution passed by the Legislature of the State.

Correct answer: D (Hawk)

24. With reference to soil conservation, consider the following practices :
1. Crop rotation
2 Sand fences
3. Terracing
4. Wind breaks
Which of the above are considered appropriate methods for soil conservation in India ?
(a) 1, 2 and 3 only (b) 2 and 4 only (c) 1, 3 and 4 only (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
Correct answer : D all are appropriate

25.With reference to the Non-banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) in India, consider the following statements :
1. They cannot engage in the acquisition of securities issued by the government.
2. They cannot accept demand deposits like Savings Account.
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

Statement 1. A Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) is a company registered under the Companies Act, 1956 and is engaged in the business of loans and advances, acquisition of shares/stock/bonds/debentures/securities issued by Government or local authority or other securities of like marketable nature, leasing, hire-purchase, insurance business, chit business but does not include any institution whose principal business is that of agriculture activity, industrial activity, sale/purchase/construction of immovable property. so statement 1 is incorrect.
Statement 2. an NBFC cannot accept demand deposits; statement 2 is correct.

Correct Answer B : Two only.

26. Which one of the following was not stipulated in the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2003 ?
(a) Elimination of revenue deficit by the end of the fiscal year 2007-08
(b) Non-borrowing by the central government from Reserve Bank of India except under certain circumstances
(c) Elimination of primary deficit by the end of the fiscal year 2008-09
(d) Fixing government guarantees in any financial year as a percentage of GDP
Please refer tThe FRBM Act 2003 ref
FRBM Act 2003:
4. (1): The central government shall take appropriate measures to reduce the fiscal deficit and revenue deficit so as to eliminate the revenue deficit by the 31st march 2008. (statement 1 stipulated)
(2): The central government shall by rules made by it specify-
(a): the annual targets for reduction of fiscal deficit and revenue deficit during the period beginning with commencement of this act and ending on March 31, 2008

2 (b) the government shall specify the annual targets of assuming contingent liabilities in the form of guarantees and the total liabilities as a percentage of GDP (statement d was stipulated)

5(1): the central government will not borrow from the RBI excpet under certain circumstances.
Here I would like to mention that as per the target, revenue deficit, which is revenue expenditure minus revenue receipts, had to be reduced to nil in five years beginning 2004-05. Each year, the government was required to reduce the revenue deficit by 0.5% of the GDP. The fiscal deficit was required to be reduced to 3% of the GDP by 2008-09. It would mean reduction of fiscal deficit by 0.3 % of GDP every year. Under the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, the Centre should have eliminated the revenue deficit and brought down the fiscal deficit to 3 per cent of gross domestic product by March 2008. This target was extended by a year. Then, due to the global economic crisis, the government decided to suspend implementation of the FRBMA. Please read in this post para 6 titled Fiscal Deficit Problems

Correct Answer: C there was no stipulation of primary deficit to be brought to zero in the act.

27. Two trains leave New Delhi at the same time. One travels north at 60 kmph and the other travels south at 40 kmph. After how many hours will the trains be 150 km apart ?
(a) 3/2 (b) 4/3 (c) ¾ (d) 15/2

Correct Answer A

28. A question paper had ten questions. Each question could only be answered as True (T) or False (F). Each candidate answered all the questions. Yet, no two candidates wrote the answers in an identical sequence. How many different sequences of answers are possible?
(a) 20 (b) 40 (c) 512 (d) 1024

Correct Answer: D

29. In the parlance of financial investments, the term ‘bear’ denotes
(a) An investor who feels that the price of a particular security is going to fall
(b) An investor who expects the price of particular shares to rise
(c) A shareholder or a bondholder who has’ an interest in a company, financial or otherwise
(d) Any lender, whether by making a loan or buying a bond

Correct Answer : A, You must know about bull & bear.

30. A great deal of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to India comes from Mauritius than from many major and mature economies like UK and France. Why?
(a) India has preference, for certain countries as regards receiving FDI
(b) India has double taxation avoidance agreement with Mauritius
(c) Most citizens of Mauritius have ethnic identity with India and so they feel secure to invest in India
(d) Impending dangers of global climatic change prompt Mauritius to make huge investments in India

Correct Answer B

31. Six books A, B, C, D, E and F are placed side by side. B, C and E have blue cover and the other books have red cover. Only D and F are new books and the rest are old. A, C and D are law reports and others are Gazetteers. What book is a new law report with a red colour ?
(a) A
(b) B
(c) C
(d) D

Correct Answer D

32. Following are the characteristics of an area in India:
1. Hot and humid climate
2. Annual rainfall 200 cm
3. Hill slopes up to an altitude of 1100 metres
4. Annual range of temperature 15°C to 30°C
Which one among the following crops are you most likely to find in the area described above ?
(a) Mustard (b) Cotton (c) Pepper (d) Virginia tobacco

The above climate conditions are found in India in Western coastal area from Maharastra, Goa, Kerala, Coastal Karnataka including the Western Ghats, and hilly area of north east except some parts of Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh. Virginia tobacco is cultivated in Andhra Pradesh and can be grown in dry weather. So Pepper should be the correct option.

Correct answer C pepper.
33. Running at a speed of 60 km per hour, a train passed through a 1-5 km long tunnel in two minutes. What is the length of the train ?
(a) 250 m
(b) 500 m
(c) 1000 m
(d) 1500 m

Correct Answer : D
34. India-based Neutrino Observatory is included by the Planning Commission as a mega science project under the 11th five-Year Plan. In this context, consider the following statements:
1. Neutrinos are chargeless elementary particles that travel close to the speed of light.
2. Neutrinos are created in nuclear reactions of beta decay.
3. Neutrinos have a negligible, but nonzero mass.
4. Trillions of Neutrinos pass through human body every second.
Which of the statements given above are correct ?
(a) 1 and 3 only (b) 1, 2 and 3 only (c) 2, 3 and 4 (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Correct Answer: All statements are correct.
The neutrino observatory was amid controversy recently. it is country’s biggest physics projects. The proposed site in Tamil nadu was recently rejected by the Government due to the proximity of the lab near a wild life sanctuary. please refer Megaquiz December Q. 10

35. The “Instrument of Instructions” contained in the Government of India Act 1935 have been incorporated in the Constitution of India in the year 1950 as
(a) Fundamental Rights
(b) Directive Principles of State Policy
(c) Extent of executive power of State
(d) Conduct of business of the Government of India

Instruments of instructions were issued by British Government under the 1935 Act under the Draft Constitution.
Correct Answer B

36. Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles produce one of the following as “exhaust”
(a) NH3 (b) CH4 (c) H2O (d) H2O2
One of the few questions which did not confuse the candidates. C is the correct answer.

37. Recently, LASIK (Laser Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis) procedure is being made popular for vision correction. Which one of the following statements in this context is not correct ?
(a) LASIK procedure is used to correct refractive errors of the eye
(b) It is a procedure that permanently changes the shapes of the cornea
(c) It reduces a person’s dependence on glasses or contact lenses
(d) It is a procedure that can be done on the person of any age

The first 3 options are correct. LASIK involves cutting of the cornea and B is a correct statement. D is an incorrect statement. The FDA stipulates the correct minimum age 18 years for most situations.

38. Consider the following:
1. Oxides of Hydrogen
2. Oxides of Nitrogen
3. Oxides of Sulphur
Which of the above causes/cause acid rain ?
(a) 1 and 2 only (b) 3 only (c) 2 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3

Again this is a tricky question. Oxide of Hydrogen is water and Hydrogen Oxide is the simple and systematic name of water. The acid rain is basically a result of reactions of Oxides of Hydrogen, Nitrogen and Sulphur.
The Acid rain is acid rain because of the presence of Nitric acid and Sulphuric Acid.
Water Reacts with CO2 in the atmosphere to form carbonic acid (the one which we enjoy in Cola drinks) . It is a weak acid and partially gets dissociated in the following Ions.
CO2 + H2O <----> H2CO3 <-----> H+ + HCO3-

Oxide of Nitrogen that is Nitric Oxide reacts with oxide of Hydrogen that is water to give rise to Nitric acid as follows:
2NO2 + H2O —-> HNO2 + HNO3

Oxide of sulphur reacts with oxide of Hydrogen (water) to form H2SO3 known as a unstable sulphurous acid.
SO2 + H2O <-----> H2SO3

The Oxide of Sulphur reacts with atmospheric Oxygen to also create sulphur trioxide (SO3) which is again unstable.
2SO2 + O2 —–> 2SO3

This unstable Sulphur Trioxide reacts with Oxide of water to get Sulphuric acid.

SO3 + H2O —–> H2SO4

This means acid rain is a result of reactions of oxides of Hydrogen. Nitrogen and Sulphur.
Correct Answer: D (all 1, 2,3 )

39. Six persons M, N, O, P, Q and R are sitting in two rows, three in each. Q is not at the end of any row. P is second to the left of R, O is the neighbour of Q and is sitting diagonally opposite to P. N is the neighbour of R. On the basis of above information, who is facing N ?
(a) R
(b) Q
(c) P
(d) M
Correct Answer B

40. A person X has four notes of Rupee 1, 2, 5 and 10 denomination. The number of different sums of money she can form from them is
(a) 16
(b) 15
(c) 12
(d) 8
Correct Answer B

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