50. Consider:
1. Under the MSMED Act, medium enterprises have plant investment of ₹15–25 crore.
2. All bank loans to MSMEs qualify as priority-sector lending.
Which statements are correct?
[UPSC CSE Prelims — 2023]
(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (B) 2 only
Explanation: The investment band cited for medium enterprises is not the applicable MSME definition. RBI priority-sector directions classify eligible loans to micro, small and medium enterprises under the priority-sector framework. Read the answer in its 2023 examination context because enterprise thresholds have since changed.
49. Which modern industries operated in colonial India: cotton, jute and iron-and-steel?
[SSC CGL Tier-I, 24 July 2023 Shift 1 — 2023]
(A) All three
(B) Cotton and jute only
(C) Cotton only
(D) Iron-and-steel only
Answer: (A) All three
Explanation: Modern cotton and jute mills developed in British India, while integrated iron-and-steel production also emerged before Independence. These industries used factory technology and modern capital organisation to varying degrees. The existence of all three makes the combined option correct.
48. How many industries were in Schedule A under the 1956 Industrial Policy Resolution?
[SSC CGL Tier-I, 18 July 2023 Shift 1 — 2023]
(A) 16
(B) 17
(C) 10
(D) 12
Answer: (B) 17
Explanation: Schedule A of the 1956 Industrial Policy Resolution identified 17 industries envisaged under exclusive state responsibility. The resolution also defined Schedule B, in which state enterprise would progressively dominate, and Schedule C, containing remaining industries primarily open to private enterprise.
47. Which is NOT an agro-based industry?
[SSC MTS, 19 May 2023 Shift 3 — 2023]
(A) Vegetable oils
(B) Iron and steel
(C) Cotton textiles
(D) Leather
Answer: (B) Iron and steel
Explanation: Agro-based industries process raw materials obtained from agriculture or animal husbandry. Vegetable oils use oilseeds, cotton mills use cotton and leather production uses hides. Iron-and-steel factories principally process mineral resources, so they belong to a mineral-based industrial category.
46. What organisation did Indian industrialists establish in 1927 to represent commercial interests?
[SSC MTS, 12 September 2023 Shift 3 — 2023]
(A) Indian Industrial and Commercial Congress
(B) Organisation of Industries of India
(C) Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry
(D) Confederation of Indian Industries
Answer: (C) Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry
Explanation: FICCI was established in 1927 as a representative body for Indian trade and industry. Business leaders, including G. D. Birla and Purshottamdas Thakurdas, supported its formation. It became a prominent forum for commercial advocacy and industrial policy dialogue.
45. Which claim about Rajasthan’s Mukhya Mantri Laghu Udyog Protsahan Yojana is incorrect?
[RPSC RAS Prelims 2023 — 2023]
(A) 4% subsidy on loans up to ₹15 crore
(B) 5% subsidy on loans up to ₹10 crore
(C) 6% subsidy on loans up to ₹5 crore
(D) 8% subsidy on loans up to ₹25 lakh
Answer: (A) 4% subsidy on loans up to ₹15 crore
Explanation: The Rajasthan scheme provided tiered interest subsidies for qualifying small-enterprise loans, including eight per cent up to ₹25 lakh, six per cent up to ₹5 crore and five per cent up to ₹10 crore. The cited four-per-cent ₹15-crore tier was not provided.
44. Which statement about an Indian steel plant is incorrect?
[UPSC NDA-II, General Ability — 2023]
(A) Bokaro lies in the Damodar river basin
(B) Jamshedpur is at the Damodar–Barakar confluence
(C) Salem Steel Plant is in Tamil Nadu
(D) Bhilai receives water from the Tandula reservoir
Answer: (B) Jamshedpur is at the Damodar–Barakar confluence
Explanation: Jamshedpur lies near the meeting of the Subarnarekha and Kharkai rivers, not the Damodar and Barakar. The other statements correctly associate steel-industry locations with their geographic settings. Rivers and reservoirs were crucial factors in siting integrated steelworks.
43. Which location was identified as a major centre of India’s paper industry?
[WBCS Executive Prelims 2023 — 2023]
(A) Ballarpur
(B) Salkia
(C) Nepanagar
(D) Nagpur
Answer: (A) Ballarpur
Explanation: Ballarpur in Maharashtra is associated with large-scale paper manufacturing and Ballarpur Industries. Paper mills depend on fibre inputs, power, water and transport. The city developed an important place in India’s paper-production geography, distinguishing it from the alternatives.
42. Consider foreign-owned marketplace e-commerce firms in India:
1. They may sell their own goods on their marketplaces.
2. Their ownership or control of large sellers is restricted.
Which statements are correct?
[UPSC CSE Prelims — 2022]
(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (B) 2 only
Explanation: India’s FDI policy distinguishes a marketplace platform from an inventory-led retail model. Foreign investment in marketplace e-commerce is permitted subject to conditions, including seller-related restrictions, but the platform cannot simply operate as an unrestricted owner-seller. Therefore only the second statement stands.
41. For the 1956 Industrial Policy, assess:
I. Schedule A was reserved for state ownership.
II. Schedule B consisted exclusively of small industries.
III. Schedule C covered the remaining industries.
Which are true?
[RRB Group D, 26 August 2022 Shift 1 — 2022]
(A) I and II only
(B) I and III only
(C) II and III only
(D) All three
Answer: (B) I and III only
Explanation: Schedule A identified industries assigned to the state, while Schedule C contained the remaining industries. Schedule B was not a collection of small-scale enterprises; it covered sectors where the state would increasingly lead alongside permissible private participation. Thus I and III are correct.
