Economics Miscellaneous (Part – II)

Total Questions: 50

31. Which of the following statements is/are correct regarding Smart India Hackathon 2017? [I.A.S. (Pre) 2017]

1. It is a centrally sponsored scheme for developing every city of our country into Smart Cities in a decade.

2. It is an initiative to identify new digital technology innovations for solving the many problems faced by our country.

3. It is a programme aimed at making all the financial transactions in our country completely digital in a decade.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 2 and 3 only

Correct Answer: (b) 2 only

Solution:Smart India Hackathon 2017' had been launched to build Digital India of our dreams and to engage our youth directly with nation building. It was started as a digital product development competition during which teams of thousands of technology students built innovative digital solutions for the problems posted by different central government ministries/departments. Since then this competition is organized on annual basis to provide students with a platform to solve some of the pressing problems we face in our daily lives, and thus inculcate a culture of product innovation and a mindset of problem solving.

32. With reference to the 'Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 (PBPT Act)', consider the following statements: [I.A.S. (Pre) 2017]

1. A property transaction is not treated as a benami transaction if the owner of the property is not aware of the transaction.

2. Properties held benami are liable for confiscation by the Government.

3. The Act provides for three authorities for investigations but does not provide for any appellate mechanism.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 2 and 3 only

Correct Answer: (b) 2 only

Solution:According to the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions (PBPT) Act, 1988 (as amended in 2016) a property transaction is also treated as a benami transaction where the owner of the property has no knowledge/denies having any knowledge of the ownership of such property. Properties held benami are liable for confiscation by the Government without payment of any compensation. The PBPT Act provides an appellate mechanism in the form of Adjudicating Authority and Appellate Tribunal. Therefore, with reference to the PBPT Act, only statement 2 is correct.

33. The first Indian State to start State Data Centre (SDC) is: [M.P.P.C.S. (Pre) 2017]

(a) Telangana
(b) Rajasthan
(c) Chhattisgarh
(d) Himachal Pradesh

Correct Answer: (d) Himachal Pradesh

Solution:In June 2016, Himachal Pradesh became the first Indian State to have a State Data Centre (SDC). The SDC is designed using green dată centre concept. The centre is offering above 100 people-oriented services online through an integrated data base.

Data centres are specialized facilities used to store, manage, and process large volumes of electronic data.
These centres house critical Information Technology (IT) infrastructure, including servers, storage devices, and networking equipment, along with systems for cooling, power supply, and security.
They are designed to provide reliable and scalable solutions for data storage, processing, and management.
Growth Projection: India's data centre market is forecasted to grow significantly, from USD 4.5 billion in 2023 to USD 11.6 billion by 2032, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.98.

34. The web portal 'DACNET" is related to: [J.P.S.C. (Pre) 2016]

(a) e-Agriculture
(b) e-Commerce
(c) e-Business
(d) e-Logistics

Correct Answer: (a) e-Agriculture

Solution:The web portal 'DACNET' is related to e-Agriculture. This is an e-governance project of Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, being executed by National Informatics Centre to facilitate Agriculture-online.

Focus Areas: DACNET focuses on integrating various aspects of agriculture through online platforms:
Government to Government (G2G): Facilitating communication and data exchange within the government.
Business to Business (B2B): Connecting agri-business partners for transactions and information sharing.
Consumer to Consumer (C2C): Empowering farmers and facilitating direct interactions.

DACNET is also associated with the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, and its Directorate of Economics and Statistics (DES) is responsible for collecting, disseminating, and publishing agricultural statistics.

35. World's first country to have cashless economy: [J.P.S.C. (Pre) 2016]

(a) Canada
(b) Sweden
(c) France
(d) Belgium

Correct Answer: (b) Sweden

Solution:Among the given options, Sweden is assumed to be the world's first country to have total cashless economy.

A cashless economy is a type of economy where all types of monetary transactions are done through digital means like - debit/credit cards, e-wallets, internet banking, electronic fund transfer, mobile payments, and other evolving payment channels. When such an economy thrives, there is little or no scope for hard cash to flow in the economy.
In India nearly 90 per cent of all transactions are in cash. This is due to the large informal sector, which employs more than 90 per cent of the workforce.
During last five years, various easy and convenient modes of digital payments, including Bharat Interface for Money-Unified Payments Interface (BHIM-UPI), Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), and National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) have registered substantial growth and have transformed digital payment ecosystem by increasing person-to-person (P2P) as well as person-to-merchant (P2M) payments. BHIM UPI has emerged as the preferred payment mode of the citizens and has recorded 803.6 crore digital payment transactions with a value of 12.98 lakh crore in January 2023.

36. Which one of the following statements is not correct? [U.P. Lower Sub. (Pre) 2013]

(a) 'Golden Hand Shake Scheme' relates to voluntary retirement.
(b) The real ownership of a joint stock company remains with the shareholders.
(c) According to Human Development Report, 2010 in India, the mean year of schooling and expected year of schooling respectively is: 4.4 and 10.3.
(d) In the context of India's Population Projection, the concept 'Age-quake' is related to Child Age population.

Correct Answer: (d) In the context of India's Population Projection, the concept 'Age-quake' is related to Child Age population.

Solution:Age-quake is not related to child age population, rather it is related to increasing ratio of old age persons in population. The term 'Age-quake' was coined by Paul Wallace. It refers to the earthquake-like phenomenon of the world shaking due to the impact from a change in population structure due to societal aging. Statements of other options are correct.

37. Drishti 2025, is related to: [Uttarakhand U.D.A/L.D.A. (Pre) 2003]

(a) Stablization of Population
(b) Industrial Development
(c) Increase in Food Production
(d) Global Warming

Correct Answer: (c) Increase in Food Production

Solution:Drishti (Vision) 2025 of Indian Council of Agricultural Re- search (ICAR) is related to increase in food production.

1. ICAR is an autonomous organisation under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers
2. It was established on 16 July 1929.
3. ICAR was Formerly known as Imperial Council of Agricultural Research.
4. Headquartered at New Delhi, ICAR has 101 institutes and 71 agricultural universities spread across the country.
5. Indian Council of Agriculture Research is the apex body for coordinating, guiding and managing research and education in agriculture includina horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences in the entire country.
6. Union Minister of Agriculture is the ex-officio President of the ICAR Society. Shri Narendra Singh Tomar is the President of ICAR.
7. 'ICAR Vision 2050', provides the strategic framework for innovation-led inclusive and sustainable agricultural growth in the country

38. Consider the following graphs: [I.A.S. (Pre) 1997]

The behaviour of a fictitious stock market index comprising a weighted average of the market prices of a selected list of companies including some multinational corporations (MNCs) over a 15 day period is shown in the graph. The behaviour of the MNCs in the same period is also shown in the second graph.

(a) MNCs fell steeper in the period depicted
(b) Share prices of every non-MNC company soared by over 5% on the 12th day
(c) Government announced a policy disfavouring MNCs on the 11th day
(d) Whatever be the reason favouring market revival on the 12th day, it appears to be relevant only to non- MNC companies

Correct Answer: (d) Whatever be the reason favouring market revival on the 12th day, it appears to be relevant only to non- MNC companies

Solution:By analyzing both graphs option (d) should be the correct answer. Due to insufficient data we cannot conclude that (b) and (c) are also correct.

A Multinational Company (MNCs) or Transnational Corporation (TNC), or Multinational Enterprise (MNE) is a business organization whose operations are carried on in more than one country (other than the home country).
Multinational Corporations (MNCs) operate their business simultaneously in different countries of the world. MNCs have their main offices (headquarters) in their home country, and secondary offices, assets, factories in other countries (known as host countries).
MNCs operate worldwide and hence, are also known as global enterprises.
They are multi-process and multi-product enterprises. A few examples of MNCs, are Sony of Japan, IBM of USA, Siemens of Germany, Videocon and ITC of India, etc. There are over 40,000 MNCs with over 2, 50,000 overseas affiliates. The top 300 MNCs control over 25 percent of the world economy.

39. Consider the following statements: [I.A.S. (Pre) 2023]

Statement-1: Carbon markets are likely to be one of the most widespread tools in the fight against climate change.

Statement-II: Carbon markets transfer resources from the private sector to the State.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

(a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I
(b) Both Statement-1 and Statement-II are correct and Statement-11 is not the correct explanation for
Statement-1 (c) Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect
(d) Statement-1 is incorrect but Statement-II is correct

Correct Answer: (b) Both Statement-1 and Statement-II are correct and Statement-11 is not the correct explanation for

Solution:Carbon markets, for years short of puff, have at last become one of the most widespread tools in the fight against climate change. By the end of 2021 more than 21% of the world's emissions were covered by some form of carbon pricing, up from 15% in 2020. For decades, carbon markets have been seen as part of the solution to climate change. They have mostly been dominated by the private sector, but this will soon change. More than two thirds of countries are planning to use carbon markets to meet their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to the Paris Agreement. Carbon markets help mobilize resources and reduce costs to give countries and companies the space to smooth the low- carbon transition. It is estimated that trading in carbon credits could reduce the cost of implementing NDCs by more than half-by as much as $ 250 billion by 2030. Over time, carbon markets are expected to become redundant as every country gets to net zero emissions and the need to trade emissions diminishes.

Like taxes, carbon markets transfer resources from the private sector to the State, which irks those standing for small government. Higher carbon prices can also help to push up consumer prices, angering voters, while hurting the margins of firms that donate to political parties.

Hence, both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I.

40. The term 'Intended Nationally Determined Contributions' is sometimes seen in the news in the context of: [I.A.S. (Pre) 2016]

(a) Pledges made by the European countries to rehabilitate refugees from the war-affected Middle East
(b) Plan of action outlined by the countries of the world to combat climate change
(c) Capital contribution by the member countries in the establishment of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
(d) Plan of action outlined by the countries of the world regarding Sustainable Development Goals

Correct Answer: (b) Plan of action outlined by the countries of the world to combat climate change

Solution:Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) is related to plan of action outlined by the countries of the world to combat climate change, INDCs identifies the post- 2020 voluntary national climate targets, including mitigation and adaptation, which countries committed to and which will become a Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) when a country ratifies the Paris Agreement. INDCs are the heart of the Paris Agreement and the achievement of these long-term goals. INDCs are not legally binding on the par- ties of UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change). But the Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. It was adopted by 196 Parties at COP 21 in Paris on 12 December, 2015 and entered into force on 4 November 2016. Its goal is to limit global warming to well below 2, preferable to 1.5 degrees celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels. INDCs falls under the Paris Agreement of UNFCCC. India has submitted its INDC to UNFCCC. India has pledged to reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 percent by 2030 from 2005 levels.

« Previous 1 2 345 Next »