Indian Industries & Trade

Total Questions: 65

31. Which one of the following statements is not correct? [2005]

Correct Answer: (a) Rourkela Steel Plant, the first integrated steel plant in the Public Sector of India was set up with the Soviet Union collaboration.
Solution:Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) is the first intergrated steel plant in the public sector in India. It was set up with German collaboration with an installed capacity of 1 million tonnes.
In the past 10–12 years, India’s steel sector has expanded significantly. Production has increased by 75% since 2008, while domestic steel demand has increased by almost 80%. The capacity for producing steel has grown concurrently, and the rise has been largely organic.
• India is home to the fifth-highest reserves of iron ore in the world.
• As of April 2022, India was the world’s second-largest producer of crude steel.
• In FY22, India’s export rose by 25.1%, compared with 2021.
The steel industry and its associated mining and metallurgy sectors have seen major investments and developments in the recent past.
• India was the largest producer of Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) or Sponge Iron in the world in 2021.
• India is the 2nd largest consumer of finished steel preceded by China as the largest steel consumer as per the World Steel Association

32. Consider the following statements: [2009]

1. MMTC Limited is India's largest international trading organization.

2. Neelachal Ispat Nigam Limited has been set up by MMTC jointly with the Government of Orissa.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: (c) Both 1 & 2
Solution:Neelachal Ispat Nigam Limited (NINL), a company promoted by MMTC Ltd, Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Orissa Limited (IPICOL) and other government agencies has set up an 1.1 million ton Integrated Iron and steel plant at Kalinganagar, Duburi, Orissa.

• About NINL
• NINL was a joint venture promoted by the Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) like MMTC Ltd., NMDC, MECON, BHEL, and Odisha state government PSUs like OMC and IPICOL.
• The government completed the strategic disinvestment of NINL in July 2022, with Tata Steel Long Products acquiring a 93.71% stake for ₹12,100 crore. This was a significant transaction involving the privatization of a debt-ridden PSU.
• The company’s integrated steel plant is located in the Kalinganagar Industrial Complex in Jajpur, Odisha.
• NINL is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Steel following the acquisition.

33. Which one of the following sets of commodities are exported to India by arid and semi-arid countries in the Middle East? [ [2009]

Correct Answer: (b) Fruits and palm oil
Solution:Fruits and palm oil are exported to India by arid and semi arid countries of middle east.

Conditions suitable for palm oil plantation

• Climate: Humid tropical climate.
• Temperature: 22°C to 24°C (minimum) and 20°C to 33°C (maximum).
• Sunshine: At least 5 to 6 hours of bright sunshine per day.
• Humidity: 80% of humidity for optimum growth.
• Rainfall: Annual evenly distributed rainfall of 250 to 400 cm.
• Soil: Thrive best in well-drained deep loamy moist and alluvial soils rich in organic matter.

34. Which one of the following is not a feature of Limited Liability Partnership firm? [2010]

Correct Answer: (a) Partners should be less than 20
Solution:Alimited liability partnership (LLP) is a partnership in which some or all partners (depending on the jurisdiction) have limited hability.

LLP shall be a body corporate and a legal entity separate from its partners. It will have perpetual succession. Indian Partnership Act, 1932 shall not be applicable to LLPs and there shall not be any upper limit on number of partners in an LLP unlike an ordinary partnership firm where the maximum number of partners can not exceed 20, LLP Act makes a mandatory statement where one of the partner to the LLP should be an Indian.

35. In India, which of the following, is regulated by the Forward Markets Commission? [2010]

Correct Answer: (b) Commodities Futures Trading
Solution:Forward Markets Commission (FMC) is the chief regulator of forwards and futures markets in India. As of March 2009, it regulates Rs 52 Trillion worth of commodity trade in India.

It is headquartered in Mumbai and is overseen by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Government of India. The commission allows commodity trading in 22 exchanges India of which 6 are national. It was established in 1953.

36. What is/are the recent policy initiative(s) of Government of India to promote the growth of manufacturing sector? [2012-1]

1. Setting up of National Investment and Manufacturing Zones

2. Providing the benefit of 'single window clearance"

3. Establishing the Technology Acquisition and Development Fund

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

Correct Answer: (d) 1, 2 & 3
Solution:All the three initiative (s) mentioned in the question are the part of National Manufacturing Policy. The objective of the National Manufacturing policy is to boost the country's share of industrial production, employment, development of world-class infrastructure and investments in India's manufacturing space.

Current Status of India’s Manufacturing Sector

• The manufacturing sector is emerging as an integral pillar in the country’s economic growth with 17% of the nation’s GDP and over 27.3 million workers.
• Growth and Performance: According to the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) for 2022-23, the manufacturing sector registered a robust growth rate of 21.5% in output, with a Gross Value Added (GVA) growth of 7.3%.
            o Key sectors such as basic metal manufacturing, coke and refined petroleum products, food products, chemicals, and motor vehicles collectively contributed 58% to the total manufacturing output.
• Employment Generation: The manufacturing sector has also been a significant source of employment, adding approximately 22 lakh jobs in 2022-23.
            o It has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, indicating a steady                          recovery and expansion.
            o Major states like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka,                   and Uttar Pradesh have been leading contributors to the                            sector’s GVA and employment.
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI): FDI in India’s manufacturing sector has reached US$ 165.1 billion, a 69% increase over the past decade, driven by production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes.
          o In the last five years, total FDI inflows amounted to US$ 383.5                        billion.

37. In India, in the overall Index of Industrial Production, the Indices of Eight Core Industries have a combined weight of 37.90%. Which of the following are among those Eight Core Industries? [2012-1]

1. Cement

2. Fertilizers

3. Natural gas

4. Refinery products

5. Textiles

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

Correct Answer: (c) 1, 2, 3 & 4 only
Solution:The Eight core industries have a combined weight of 37.90 per cent in the index of Industrial Production (IIP). They are as follows:
Coal, crude oil, Natural Gas, Petroleum Refinery Products, fertilizers, steel (Alloy + Non-Alloy), Cement and Electricity.
Index Of Eight Core Industries
• Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) measures combined and individual performance of production of eight core sectors in India, comprising- coal, crude oil, natural gas, petroleum refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity.
• These eight core industries constitute 40.27% of the total index of industrial production (IIP).
• This index is prepared by the Office of the Economic Advisor, Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
• It is published monthly with the base year as 2011-12.

38. Despite having large reserves of coal, why does India import millions of tonnes of coal? [2012-1]

1. It is the policy of India to save its own coal reserves for future, and import it from other countries for the present use.

2. Most of the power plants in India are coal-based and they are not able to get sufficient supplies of coal from within the country.

3. Steel companies need large quantity of coking coal which has to be imported.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: (b) 2 & 3 only
Solution:The coal requirement will not end any time soon. Also, we have power plants at the coasts which are based on imported coal. Their boilers are designed only for imported coal. They will continue to use imported coal. So, it is only the third category of thermal power plants which were using imported coal as a substitute for domestic coal because if its scarcity, which we can do something about.

India imports millions of tonnes of coal due to a lack of availability of good coal. Hence, statement 1 is not correct. India does not have enough reserves for good quality coking coal and most of it is imported from Indonesia, South Africa, Russia, and Australia. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Coking coal is imported by the state-run Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and other steel manufacturing units mainly to bridge the gap between the requirement and indigenous availability and to improve the quality. Hence, statement 3 is correct.

39. The balance of payments of a country is a systematic record of [2013-1]

Correct Answer: (a) all import and export transactions of a country during a given period of time, normally a year
Solution:The balance of payments (BOP) of a country is the record of all economic transactions between the residents of a country and the rest of the world in a particular period cover a quarter of a year or more commonly over a year.
The Balance of Payments is significant for several reasons:
• Economic Health Indicator: It provides an overview of a country’s financial and economic status, indicating whether the economy is growing sustainably.
• Currency Valuation: BoP data helps determine the direction of a country’s currency, whether it is appreciating or depreciating relative to other currencies.
• Policy Formulation: Governments and central banks use BoP statistics to shape fiscal, trade, and monetary policies.
• Investment Decisions: International investors and agencies rely on BoP data to assess the economic environment and investment potential of a country.
• Understanding Trade Performance: BoP allows policymakers to analyze trade imbalances, capital flows, and international investment patterns.

40. Which one among the following industries is the maximum consumer of water in India? [2013-1]

Correct Answer: (d) Thermal power
Solution:The focus initially would be on water-intensive sectors such as thermal power plants, textiles, pulp, chemicals etc. Of the total water use by the industry, thermal power plants are the biggest users of water and account for 88% of the total industrial water use.

They are followed by engineering (5.05%) pulp & paper (2.26%) and textiles (2.07%) industries. Hence the correct option is d.