50. Regarding India’s international trade:
(1) merchandise exports were below imports;
(2) imports of steel, chemicals and machinery had recently fallen;
(3) services exports exceeded services imports;
(4) India had an overall current-account deficit.
Which are correct?
[UPSC CSE Prelims, GS Paper I — 2020]
(A) 1 and 2 only
(B) 2 and 4 only
(C) 3 only
(D) 1, 3 and 4 only
Answer: (D) 1, 3 and 4 only
Explanation: India typically runs a merchandise trade deficit but earns a surplus on services exports. Import demand for industrial inputs had not uniformly declined, and the overall current account often remained in deficit. The current account includes services and income flows as well as goods.
49. Which World Bank Doing Business parameter saw India’s position deteriorate between 2014 and the 2019 ranking period?
[CDS General Knowledge (8 November) — 2020]
(A) Starting a business
(B) Getting electricity
(C) Registering property
(D) Paying taxes
Answer: (C) Registering property
Explanation: Although India’s overall Doing Business ranking improved during the referenced period, its position on registering property deteriorated. The now-discontinued World Bank index compared regulatory procedures across multiple business stages; movement in the overall rank can conceal weaker individual indicators.
48. Which age group yields a demographic dividend when it grows as a share of population?
[WBCS Executive Preliminary Examination — 2019]
(A) 0–5 years
(B) 6–15 years
(C) 16–64 years
(D) 65 years and above
Answer: (C) 16–64 years
Explanation: A demographic dividend may arise when the working-age share expands relative to dependent children and older people. Its benefits depend on education, productive jobs, health and participation, so a favourable age structure alone does not guarantee rapid economic growth.
47. What was West Bengal’s literacy rate according to Census 2011?
[WBCS Executive Preliminary Examination — 2019]
(A) 82.67%
(B) 74.04%
(C) 76.26%
(D) 71.16%
Answer: (C) 76.26%
Explanation: Census 2011 placed West Bengal’s literacy rate at 76.26 percent, above the all-India figure of 74.04 percent. Literacy measures people aged seven and above who can read and write with understanding, not formal school attendance alone.
46. During which census decade did India’s sex ratio record its sharpest decline among those listed?
[MPPSC State Service Preliminary Examination — 2019]
(A) 1931–1941
(B) 1961–1971
(C) 1981–1991
(D) 2001–2011
Answer: (B) 1961–1971
Explanation: India’s sex ratio declined markedly over the decade 1961–1971. Sex ratio counts females per thousand males and can shift with migration, differential survival and enumeration patterns. Comparisons must be made between successive census years.
45. What were India’s rural and urban sex ratios, respectively, under Census 2011?
[RPSC Senior Teacher Grade II, Social Science (17 February) — 2019]
(A) 969 and 949
(B) 959 and 939
(C) 949 and 929
(D) 939 and 919
Answer: (C) 949 and 929
Explanation: The rural sex ratio was 949 females per thousand males, while the urban ratio was 929 in Census 2011. These ratios differed because demographic and migration patterns vary between rural and urban settlements. They should not be confused with child sex ratios.
44. Consider these statements about the AIIB:
(1) it has more than 80 member nations;
(2) India is its largest shareholder;
(3) it has no members outside Asia.
Which is correct?
[UPSC CSE Prelims, GS Paper I — 2019]
(A) 1 only
(B) 2 and 3 only
(C) 1 and 3 only
(D) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (A) 1 only
Explanation: At the time of the examination, AIIB membership exceeded 80, but China rather than India was its largest shareholder. The bank also included members outside Asia. It finances sustainable infrastructure and regional connectivity projects.
43. Which lower currency-crisis risk for India:
(1) foreign-exchange earnings of IT services;
(2) increased government expenditure;
(3) remittances from overseas Indians?
[UPSC CSE Prelims, GS Paper I — 2019]
(A) 1 only
(B) 1 and 3 only
(C) 2 only
(D) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (B) 1 and 3 only
Explanation: IT exports and workers’ remittances create foreign-exchange inflows, improving the ability to finance imports and external liabilities. Higher public spending by itself need not strengthen the currency and could worsen macroeconomic imbalances if it expands the fiscal deficit.
42. Regarding India’s external debt:
(1) most is owed by government entities;
(2) all is denominated in US dollars.
Which is correct?
[UPSC CSE Prelims, GS Paper I — 2019]
(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (D) Neither 1 nor 2
Explanation: India’s external debt includes obligations of private and public borrowers, and non-government entities account for a substantial proportion. Debt instruments are denominated in several currencies, including the US dollar, yen and euro, rather than exclusively in dollars.
41. Regarding purchasing power parity, which is correct:
(1) PPP compares prices of a comparable basket across economies;
(2) India ranked sixth worldwide by PPP-based GDP?
[UPSC CSE Prelims, GS Paper I — 2019]
(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (A) 1 only
Explanation: PPP compares the cost of a similar basket of goods and services across countries, adjusting for differences in domestic price levels. India was not ranked sixth on PPP GDP in the relevant period; it was among the largest economies.
