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Direction (1-10): Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it.
Most federations in the world have arrangements for the mobilisation and devolution of resources. In India, the Constitution provides for the appointment of a Finance Commission every five years to recommend methodology to share resources such that the fiscal space of the constituents, especially the States, is well protected. The terms of reference of the 15th Finance Commission are thus a matter of utmost importance to the resources available to the States of India. The terms of reference of this Commission have created apprehension among States about principles of fairness and equity in the distribution of public resources for development.
First, Article 1 of the Constitution of India recognises India as a Union of States. The unity of India can be preserved only if there is real fairness and equity in the matter of devolution of powers and resources to the States by the Central government. The foremost objective of the Finance Commission is an equitable distribution of financial resources between the two units of the Union. Even a cursory glance at the State List in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution shows that in the allocation of duties between the Centre and the States, fundamental tasks of enhancing human development, income growth, livelihoods, and protecting and sustaining the environment are entrusted to the States. However, although these major tasks of nation-building are the duty of the States, the resources to finance them are substantially controlled by the Centre. The States in India today neither have the resources to fulfil their tasks as laid down in the Constitution, nor do they have the right to raise such resources .There is thus a great asymmetry in India’s federal system. The Centre’s capacity to mobilise resources is far greater than that of the States, but the latter are required to undertake development expenditures that far exceed their revenue generating capabilities. So the basic mandate of the Finance Commission should be seen as that of deciding an appropriate quantum of unconditional devolution of resources from the Centre to the States, combined with more specific grants. The devolution of resources by the 15th Finance Commission assumes further significance in the current environment, in which the finances of States have received a double blow in the form of demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax (GST). The freedom of States to raise resources has been restricted by the introduction of the GST.
Second, using the population data of 2011 as the base for tax devolution should not reduce the allocation of resources to States that have successfully reduced their rate of population growth. These States have incurred huge fiscal costs in order to achieve a lower population growth and healthy demographic indicators. They have made substantial investments on education, health and directly on family welfare programmes. Bringing down the rate of growth of population does not mean less expenditure for States. On the contrary, it creates new commitments by the States to those in the labour force and to senior citizens. Many States of India today have achieved a replacement rate of growth of population or have gone below that rate in a short span of time. An immediate effect of this is a sharp rise in the proportion of elderly in the population. The care of the elderly is the responsibility of State governments. Third, the current terms of reference go far beyond the constitutional mandate of the Finance Commission. Indeed, they intensify efforts to use the Finance Commission as an instrument of fiscal consolidation and to impose the ideological and economic agenda of the Central government on the States. It is not the task of a Finance Commission to recommend “road maps for fiscal management” or to impose its perception of what policies are good for the people of the States.
Fourth, this blatant interventionism finds further and dangerous expression in a statement that should not find a place in any list of terms of reference, that is: the Commission may also examine whether revenue deficit grants be provided at all. Revenue deficits are offshoots of the path of development followed by States and cannot be brought down in the short term. Public expenditure on them is a large part of the government spending and it has not been easy to bring down revenue deficits despite higher tax efforts. To discontinue post-tax devolution of revenue deficit grants would go against the principle of cooperative federalism. Fifth, the terms of reference explicitly privilege the “committed expenditures” of the Centre. We should request the Commission to affirm its constitutional status and responsibility by upholding federalism and fiscal autonomy of the States. The Finance Commission should not take a residual approach to the question of vertical devolution. The approach should not be that of distributing what is left over after providing for the requirements of the Centre. Sixth, the terms of reference are unprecedented in asking the 15th Finance Commission to consider proposing performance-based incentives beyond those relating to fiscal responsibility, population and devolution to local bodies. This reflects the viewpoint and ideological inclinations of the Central government and is an attempt to micro-manage the fiscal domain of the State governments. It is also not for the Finance Commission to declare this or that policy as “populist”. Any measure, from welfare pensions for the poor and weaker sections of the society to food assistance, can be termed as “populist” and recommended to be curtailed.
1) What do you mean by phrase laid down in the sentence-The States in India today neither have the resources to fulfill their tasks as laid down in the Constitution?
a) To devise or contrive
b) To force out
c) To evict something
d) To uproot
e) None of these
2) Which of the following given statements have been mentioned correct about the revenue deficits?
- Revenue deficits are offshoots of the path of development which are followed by States
- It has been easy to bring down revenue deficits with higher tax efforts
- On discontinuing post-tax devolution of revenue deficit, grants would go against the principle of cooperative federalism.
a) Only iii
b) i and ii
c) ii and iii
d) all except ii
e) all are correct
3) According to the passage what are the objectives of finance commission?
- Finance Commission focuses on equitable distribution of financial resources between the two units of the Union.
- Finance commission take a residual approach to the question of vertical devolution.
- The Finance commission recommends methodology to share resources of the constituents.
a) ii and iii
b) i and iii
c) only iii
d) i and ii
e) all are correct
4) Which of the following is true in the context of the passage?
- It is not the task of a Finance Commission to recommend “road maps for fiscal management
- Bringing down the rate of growth of population means less expenditure for States.
- The capacity of Centre to mobilise resources is far greater than that of the States.
a) All except ii
b) i and ii
c) ii and iii
d) only i
e) all are correct
5) According to the passage which of the following measures given cannot be termed as a populist?
- Pensions for the poor and weaker sections of the society
- Human development
- Income growth
- Food assistance
a) Only i
b) ii and iii
c) ii and iv
d) i and iv
e) None of these
6) According to the passage why it has been mentioned that there is a great asymmetry in India’s federal system?
a) Because the terms of reference explicitly privilege the “committed expenditures” of the Centre.
b) Because states intensify efforts to use the Finance Commission as an instrument of fiscal consolidation
c) Because the States neither have the resources to fulfill their tasks nor do they have the right to raise such resources
d) Because Centre is required to undertake development expenditures that far exceed their revenue generating capabilities
e) None of these
7) Which of the following is not true in the context of the passage?
- The tasks of nation-building is the duty of the States but the resources to finance it are substantially controlled by the Centre.
- It is the task of finance commission to impose its perception of what policies are good for the people of the States.
- The care of the elderly is the responsibility of State governments.
- The freedom of States to raise resources has been restricted by the introduction of the demonization.
a) i and ii
b) ii and iii
c) iii and iv
d) ii and iv
e) None of these
8) Choose the word which is most nearly the same in meaning as the word “blatant” printed in bold as used in the passage
a) Subtle
b) Veiled
c) Obscured
d) Enshrouded
e) Unabashed
9) Choose the word which is most nearly the same in meaning as the word “apprehension” printed in bold as used in the passage
a) Delusion
b) Tranquil
c) Imperceptions
d) Realization
e) Misreckoning
10) Choose the word which is most opposite in meaning of the word “unprecedented” printed in bold as used in the passage
a) Anomalous
b) Unrivaled
c) Customary
d) Aberrant
e) Unique
Direction (11-15): Choose the set of word for each blank that best fits sentence and are grammatically correct.
11) President Donald Trump’s recent _______on executing drug dealers raised Amnesty’s ire, it has long been lobbying emerging economies to end capital punishment for drug-related _______.
a) Reflection, delights
b) Musings, offences
c) Ruminates, misdeed
d) Pondering, lapse
e) Deliberation, assistance
12) In its latest phase, from the 1990s, Germany has _____, become a normal country again and shed some of the ______of its past, now the wheels of history are turning once more.
a) Reconcile, hamstring
b) Estranged, chains
c) Reconvene, release
d) Reunified, fetters
e) Assemble, hitches
13) A vibrant literary movement _______ __the ostracism of an entire community from mainstream society, and chronicles the nerve ______experience of being treated as an outcaste.
a) Excoriated, afflicting
b) Censure, agonized
c) Denounces, racking
d) Discredited, crucifying
e) Condemns, distressed
14) Research by the OECD suggests that income taxes, more than those on consumption and wealth, strongly _________people from working, thus ________economic growth.
a) Discourage, cramping
b) Intimidate, hampers
c) Afflicting, thwarting
d) Dehorts, limiting
e) Commend, encumbering
15) Disrespect reinforces other injustices _______by the community in everyday life and it ________social relationships based on the reciprocal obligation to see each other as equal and as worthy of dignity.
a) Accosting, convulses
b) Encountered, agitate
c) Confronted, disrupts
d) Affront, retards
e) Strained, unsettle
Directions (16-20): Each of the following sentences are divided into parts, which are marked a, b, c and d. One of these parts may contain an error. Mark that part as your answer from the options given below and choose e if you find out there is no error. (Ignore punctuation error if any)
16) Broadly speaking, a government can tax three things a)/income, consumption and wealth, economists like taxes to b)/ be simple, progressive and to c)/avoid unintentional distorting behaviour d)/no error e)/
a) a
b) b
c) c
d) d
e) e
17) Despite historical struggles for rank discrimination in words, verse, and a)/ collective action, despite acceptance of historical wrongs by the b)/leaders of the freedom struggle, caste-based discrimination continues to relentlessly c)/stalk the political biography of independent India d)/ no error e)/
a) a
b) b
c) c
d) d
e) e
18) The biggest change comes from Mrs. Merkel’s “open door” policy a)/ towards refugees, which brought in 1.2m new migrants in b)/ 2015-16, this has confirmed once-homogeneous c)/Germany transformation into a melting-pot d)/no error e)/
a) a
b) b
c) c
d) d
e) e
19) In independent India, the onus of battling discrimination a)/ has fallen onto the shoulders of Dalits, the rest of b)/society wend its way without regard c)/for the infirmities of its fellow citizens d)/no error e)/
a) a
b) b
c) c
d) d
e) e
20) Affirmative action policies centred on the politics of a)/presence have certainly contributed to the repair of historical wrongs b)/, the advantages of these policies are c)/, however, unevenly spread out d)/no error/e)
a) a
b) b
c) c
d) d
e) e
Answers:
Direction (1-10):
1) Correct Answer is: a)
Laid down means to specify or plan something
2) Correct Answer is: d)
It is clearly mentioned in para 4- Revenue deficits are offshoots of the path of development followed by States and cannot be brought down in the short term. Public expenditure on them is a large part of the government spending and it has not been easy to bring down revenue deficits despite higher tax efforts. To discontinue post-tax devolution of revenue deficit grants would go against the principle of cooperative federalism.
3) Correct Answer is: b)
It is clearly mentioned in para 1&2- The foremost objective of the Finance Commission is an equitable distribution of financial resources between the two units of the Union, In India, the Constitution provides for the appointment of a Finance Commission every five years to recommend methodology to share resources such that the fiscal space of the constituents.
4) Correct Answer is: a)
It is clearly mentioned in para 2-It is not the task of a Finance Commission to recommend “road maps for fiscal management, the Centre’s capacity to mobilise resources is far greater than that of the States.
5) Correct Answer is: a)
It is clearly mentioned in last lines of para 4-Any measure, from welfare pensions for the poor and weaker sections of the society to food assistance, can be termed as “populist” and recommended to be curtailed.
6) Correct Answer is: c)
It is mentioned in para 2-The States in India today neither have the resources to fulfill their tasks as laid down in the Constitution, nor do they have the right to raise such resources .There is thus a great asymmetry in India’s federal system
7) Correct Answer is: d)
It is mentioned in para 2-However, although these major tasks of nation-building are the duty of the States, the resources to finance them are substantially controlled by the Centre, It is not the task of a Finance Commission to recommend “road maps for fiscal management” or to impose its perception of what policies are good for the people of the States, The care of the elderly is the responsibility of State governments.
8) Correct Answer is: e)
The meaning of the word blatant is something done openly or something that is very obvious
9) Correct Answer is: d)
The meaning of the word apprehension is understanding; grasp.
10) Correct Answer is: c)
The meaning of the word unprecedented is something never done or known before.
Direction (11-15):
11) Correct Answer is: b)
The meaning of “musings” is “thinking or introspecting.” and it is suitable for i blank and the meaning of “offences” is “an illegal act” so it is appropriate for ii blank.
12) Correct Answer is: d)
The meaning of “reunified” is “restore political unity to a place or group, especially a divided territory or patch up” and it is suitable for i blank and the meaning of “fetters” is “a chain used to restrain a prisoner” so it is appropriate for ii blank.
13) Correct Answer is: c)
The meaning of “denounces” is “to publicly declare to be wrong or evil” and it is suitable for i blank and the meaning of “racking” is “to cause extreme pain or trouble” so it is appropriate for ii blank.
14) Correct Answer is: a)
The meaning of “discourage” is “to prevent someone against an action” and it is suitable for i blank and the meaning of “cramping” is “to inhibit the development of” so it is appropriate for ii blank.
15) Correct Answer is: c)
The meaning of “confronted” is “face up to and deal with a problem or difficulty” and it is suitable for i blank and the meaning of “disrupts” is “to interrupt a process by causing a disturbance or problem” so it is appropriate for ii blank
Directions (16-20):
16) Correct Answer is: d)
In part d in place of unintentional it should be unintentionally
17) Correct Answer is: a)
In part a in place of for it should be against
18) Correct Answer is: d)
In part d in place of Germany it should be Germanys’
19) Correct Answer is: c)
In part c in place of wend it should be wends
20) Correct Answer is: a)
In part a in place of centred it should be centring
Daily Practice Test Schedule | Good Luck
| Topic | Daily Publishing Time |
| Daily News Papers & Editorials | 8.00 AM |
| Current Affairs Quiz | 9.00 AM |
| Logical Reasoning | 10.00 AM |
| Quantitative Aptitude “20-20” | 11.00 AM |
| Vocabulary (Based on The Hindu) | 12.00 PM |
| Static GK Quiz | 1.00 PM |
| English Language “20-20” | 2.00 PM |
| Banking Awareness Quiz | 3.00 PM |
| Reasoning Puzzles & Seating | 4.00 PM |
| Daily Current Affairs Updates | 5.00 PM |
| Data Interpretation / Application Sums (Topic Wise) | 6.00 PM |
| Reasoning Ability “20-20” | 7.00 PM |
| English Language (New Pattern Questions) | 8.00 PM |
| General / Financial Awareness Quiz | 9.00 PM |
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