Search Previous Year Questions

The correct answer is Bidar and Kalaburagi.

Key Points

• The varying geographic and physiographic conditions of the State are responsible for the climatic variation in the State from arid to semi-arid in the plateau region, subhumid to humid tropical in the Ghats, and humid tropical monsoon type in the west coast plains. For meteorological purposes, the State has been divided into three sub-divisions:-
• Coastal Karnataka consisting of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, and Uttara Kannada districts.
• North interior Karnataka consisting of Belgaum, Bidar, Bagalkote, Bijapur, Dharwad, haveri, Gadag, Gulbarga, Koppal, and Raichur districts.
• South interior Karnataka consisting of Bangalore Rural, Bangalore Urban, Bellary, Chikmagalur, Chitradurga, Kodagu, Hassan, Kolar, Mysore, Chamrajnagar, Shimoga, and Tumkur districts.
• Stations(Zones): Districts
• North East Transition Zone(Bidar): Bidar
• Northeastern Dry Zone(Raichur): Kalaburgi, Raichur, Bellary, Yadgir, Koppala
• Hence, Option 2 is correct.
• Northern Dry Zone(Vijapur): Vijayapura,Gadag,Bagalakot
• Central Dry Zone(Tumkur): Tumkur,Chitradurga, Davanagere
• Eastern Dry Zone(Bengaluru): Bangalore Rural, Bangalore Urban•, Kolar, Ramnagar, Chickballapur
• Southern Dry Zone(Mysuru): Mysore, Kodagu, Chamarajanagar, Mandya
• Southern Transition Zone(Shivamogga ): Hassan, Shimoga, Chickmagalur
• North Transition Zone(Dharwad): Dharwad, Belgaum, Haveri
• Hill Zone(Uttara Kannada ): Uttara Kannada
• Coastal Zone(Dakshin Kannada): Dakshina Kannada, Udupi

The correct answer is All four banks were established in Karnataka.

Key Points

• Corporation Bank
• It was a public-sector banking company headquartered in Mangalore, India.
• The bank had a pan-Indian presence. Presently, the bank has a network of 2,432 fully automated CBS branches, 3,040 ATMs, and 4,724 branchless banking units across the country.
• Successor: Union Bank of India
• Headquarters: Mangalore
• Founder: Khan Bahadur Haji Abdullah Haji Kasim Saheb Bahadur
• Founded: 12 March 1906, Udupi. Hence, Statement 1 is correct.
• Canara Bank
• It is one of the largest Indian government-owned banks. It is under the ownership of the Ministry of Finance, Government of India. It is headquartered in Bengaluru. It was established at Mangalore in 1906 by Ammembal Subba Rao Pai and later the government nationalized the bank in 1969.
• Headquarters: Bengaluru
• Founder: Ammembal Subba Rao Pai. Hence, Statement 2 is correct.
• Subsidiaries: Syndicate Bank
• Corporation Bank
• It was a public-sector banking company headquartered in Mangalore, India. The bank had a pan-Indian presence. Presently, the bank has a network of 2,432 fully automated CBS branches, 3,040 ATMs, and 4,724 branchless banking units across the country.
• Successor: Union Bank of India
• Headquarters: Mangalore
• Founder: Khan Bahadur Haji Abdullah Haji Kasim Saheb Bahadur. Hence, Statement 4 is correct.
• Founded: 12 March 1906, Udupi
• ​Union Bank of India
• It is one of the largest Indian government-owned banks.
• It is under the ownership of the Ministry of Finance with 120+ million customers and a total business of US$106 billion.
• Headquarters: Mumbai. Hence, Statement 3 is incorrect.
• Founded: 11 November 1919
• Subsidiaries: Union Bank of India (UK) Ltd
• Parent organizations: Government of India, Ministry of Finance$

The correct answer is The act of RBI selling or buying government bonds from commercial banks.

• Open Market Operations (OMOs)
• This is conducted by RBI by way of sale/purchase of government securities to/from the market to adjust the rupee liquidity conditions in the market on a durable basis. Hence, Option 1 is correct.
• If there is excess liquidity, RBI resorts to the sale of securities and sucks out the rupee liquidity.
• Similarly, when the liquidity conditions are tight, RBI buys securities from the market, thereby releasing liquidity into the market.
• It is one of the quantitative (to regulate or control the total volume of money) monetary policy tools that are employed by the central bank of a country to control the money supply in the economy.

• Long-term Repo Operations
• Under LTRO, RBI will conduct a term repo of one-year and three-year tenors of appropriate sizes for up to a total amount of Rs 1 lakh crore at the prevailing repo rate.
• As banks get long-term funds at lower rates, their cost of funds falls. In turn, they reduce interest rates for borrowers.
• LTRO helps RBI to ensure that banks reduce their marginal cost of funds-based lending rates, without reducing policy rates.
• Objectives of LTRO
• To assure banks about the availability of durable liquidity at a reasonable cost relative to prevailing market conditions.
• Further, encourage banks to undertake maturity transformation smoothly and seamlessly to augment credit flows to productive sectors.
• Maturity transformation is when banks take short-term sources of finance, such as deposits from savers, and turn them into long-term borrowings, such as mortgages.

The correct answer is August 1952.

Key Points

• National Development Council
• National Development Council (NDC) or the Rashtriya Vikas Parishad is the apex body for decision making and deliberations on development matters in India presided over by the Prime Minister.
• National Development Council was set up on August 6, 1952, to strengthen and mobilize the effort and resources of the nation in support of the Plan, to promote common economic policies in all vital spheres, and to ensure the balanced and rapid development of all parts of the country. Hence, Option 3 is correct.
• It is Non-constitutional and non-statutory.
• It is Also known as Rashtriya Vikas Parishad.
• NDC’s objective is to strengthen and mobilize the effort and resources of the nation in support of the Plan.
• The National Development Council is presided over by the Prime Minister of India and includes all Union Ministers, Chief Ministers of all the States, and Administrators of Union Territories and Members of the Planning Commission. Ministers of State with independent charge are also invited to the deliberations of the Council.

The correct answer is B and C only.

Key Points

• U.K. Sinha Committee on MSME: Hence, Pair 1 is incorrectly matched.
• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) formed a committee headed by former SEBI Chairman U.K. Sinha to study the problems faced by MSMEs.
• Form a ₹5,000 crore stressed asset fund for MSMEs which will assist units in a cluster becoming sick due to changes in external factors such as plastic ban, which had resulted in a large number of such entities becoming non-performing.
• RBI should increase the limit for non-collateralized loans to ₹20 lakh.
• It also suggested revision in the loan limit sanctioned under MUDRA by the Finance Ministry to ₹20 lakh from ₹10 lakh.
• Banks that wish to specialize in MSME lending, their sub-targets for farm loans under the priority sector lender could be waived off, and instead can be given a target for loans to the SME sector. The targets could be 50% of the net bank credit for universal banks and 80% for small finance banks.
• To provide loan portability seamlessly to MSMEs, RBI should come out with measures on the portability of MSME loans with a lock-in period of one year.
• On August 14, 2019, a committee headed by former RBI governor Bimal Jalan recommended transferring a sum of ~1,76,051 crore to the government, comprising ~1,23,414 crore of surplus for the year 2018-19 and ~52,637 crores of excess provisions identified as per the revised Economic Capital Framework (ECF).
• Nandan Nilekani Committee on Deepening digital payments: Hence, Pair 2 is correctly matched.
• To encourage digital payments, the Nandan Nilekani committee has suggested a host of measures, including elimination of charges, round-the-clock RTGS and NEFT facility, and duty-free import of point-of-sales machines.
• Bimal Jalan Committee on Economic capital framework: Hence, Pair 3 is correctly matched.
• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) accepted the Bimal Jalan panel recommendations, set up to review the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) economic capital framework.
• Following these recommendations, RBI decided to transfer Rs 1.76 lakh crore in dividend and surplus reserves to the government.
• The objective of the economic capital framework is to build harmony between the central bank’s need for autonomy and the Government's objectives of the development.
• The Bimal Jalan-led panel recommended holistic risk capital frameworks to assess the adequacy of RBI reserves.

The correct answer is Mysuru.

Key Points

• The density of Karnataka state in the current decade is 825 per sq mile. Karnataka is a state of India with a population of Approximate 6.11 Crores. The population of Karnataka state is 61,095,297. The density of Karnataka state is 319 per sq km.
• Karnataka State has spread over 191,791 Sq Km.
• Mysuru
• In 2011, Mysore had a population of 3,001,127 of which male and female were 1,511,600 and 1,489,527 respectively. In the 2001 census, Mysore had a population of 2,641,027 of which males were 1,344,670 and the remaining 1,296,357 were females.
• There was a change of 13.63 percent in the population compared to the population as of 2001. In the previous census of India 2001, Mysore District recorded an increase of 15.75 percent to its population compared to 1991.
• The initial provisional data released by census India 2011, shows that the density of the Mysore district for 2011 is 476 people per sq. km. Hence, Option 1 is correct.
• Dharwad
• This city is located in the northwestern part of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of the Dharwad district of Karnataka and forms a contiguous urban area with the city of Hubballi. It was merged with Hubballi in 1962 to form the twin cities of Hubballi-Dharwad.
• The district has a population density of 434 inhabitants per square kilometer (1,120/sq mi).
• Its population growth rate over the decade 2001–2011 was 15.13%. Dharwad has a sex ratio of 967 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 80.3%.
• Davanagere
• In 2011, Davanagere had a population of 1,945,497 of which male and female were 986,400 and 959,097 respectively.
• There was a change of 8.63 percent in the population compared to the population as of 2001. In the previous census of India 2001, Davanagere District recorded an increase of 14.86 percent to its population compared to 1991.
• The initial provisional data released by census India 2011, shows that the density of Davanagere district for 2011 is 328 people per sq. km.
• Dakshina Kannada
• In 2011, Dakshina Kannada had a population of 2,089,649 of which males and females were 1,034,714 and 1,054,935 respectively. In the 2001 census, Dakshina Kannada had a population of 1,897,730 of which males were 938,434 and the remaining 959,296 were females.
• There was a change of 10.11 percent in the population compared to the population as of 2001. In the previous census of India 2001, Dakshina Kannada District recorded an increase of 14.59 percent to its population compared to 1991.
• The initial provisional data released by census India 2011, shows that the density of Dakshina Kannada district for 2011 is 430 people per sq. km.

The correct answer is Nagavi, Lakkundi, Salotagi, Hariharapura.

Key Points

• Agraharas
• Agraharas were exclusive townships founded by kings, queens, big officers, and philanthropic rich men to further the cause of education.
• Scholars were invited and were made to settle at these places by donating them with land for their living.
• Although the Agraharas consisted of Brahmin settlements, others also used to live there. Otherwise, they would live in the nearby hamlets, known as Kaluvallis, carved out of the land donated for scholars, who were known as Mahajanas.
• The famous agraharas of Karnataka are Nagavi, Lakkundi, Salotagi, Hariharapura. Hence, Option 1 is correct.
• Agraharas were centers of higher learning, and the Brahmins living there were expected to pursue with earnestness, the Shatkarmas (Yajana, Yaajana, Adhyayana, Adhyaapana, Daana, and Pratigraha) and master the fourteen branches of learning, starting with the Vedas.
• Such Agraharas could be found all over the country. The word Agrahara connotes the settlement of scholars. Ghatikasthanas were examination centres for the candidates trained in these Agraharas. Gadag, Lakshmeshwara, Potteyuru, Kotumachigi, and others had such Ghatikasthanas. They used to house Traipurusha temples.
• While the Agraharas were exclusive settlements for Brahmins, Brahmapuris were rows of houses of scholars doing the same duties as the Brahmins of the Agraharas. Mutts were established in the vicinity of temples, where both the teacher and the taught lived together. One of the Brahmins among those who lived in the Agrahara would be appointed on .akkariga vritti. to teach young children.
• Those Agraharas, which were established when Shaivism became dominant, came to be known as Shivapuris. After the advent of Veerashaivism, there was a prolific establishment of Mutts, which became centers of Primary Education. Such Mutts were in existence even at the beginning of this century. Apart from these, there were private teaching centers, which were known as Odisuva Mutt, Kooli Mutt, and Sali Mutt.

The correct answer is Rs.69,000 Crores.

Key Points

• Allocated to the Healthcare sector in the Union Budget 2020 - 21.
• The total allocation of Rs 69,000 crore for the health sector in Union Budget 2020-21 fiscal, with Rs 6,400 crore earmarked for the Centre's flagship health insurance scheme Prime Minister Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY). Hence, Option 1 is correct.
• In the Union budget, Rs 65,011.8 crore has been allocated to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, up from Rs 62,659.12 crore in 2019-20.
• An allocation of Rs 2,100 crore has been made to the Department of Health Research in the 2020-21 Budget.
• The Ministry of AYUSH has been allocated Rs 2,122.08 crore for the next fiscal.
• TB Harega Desh Jeetega campaign has been launched to end Tuberculosis by 2025.
• The Finance Minister also announced the expansion of the Jan Aushadhi Kendra Scheme to all districts, offering 2,000 medicines and 300 surgical by 2024.
• The government, to give impetus to domestic industry and to generate resources for health services, has proposed to impose a nominal health cess of 5 percent on imports of specified medical equipment.
• FIT India movement is a vital part of the fight against non-communicable diseases coming out of lifestyle issues, she said.
• A very focused safe water (JalJeevan Mission) and comprehensive sanitation program (Swachch Bharat Mission) have been launched to support the health vision.

The correct answer is A.

Key Points

• The Lodh Falls 
• It is also known as Budha Ghagh is a waterfall in a mid forest of Palamu Tiger Reserve, South division of Latehar district ( 14 km from mahua dand) in Jharkhand state in India.
• It is the highest waterfall in Jharkhand and the 21^st highest waterfall in India.
• It is located on the Burha River, deep in the forest of the Latehar district the Chota Nagpur Plateau. Hence, Pair 1 is incorrectly matched.
• It is also part of India's only sanctuary for the conservation of Indian Grey Wolf, known as Mahuadanr Wolf Sanctuary.
• The Lodh Falls is a tiered waterfall with multiple distinct drops in relatively close succession. It is 143 meters (469 ft) high. The thundering sound of the fall is audible even 10 km away.
• The Dhuandhar Falls
• It is a waterfall in the Jabalpur district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.
• The Dhuandhar Falls are located on the Narmada River in Bhedaghat and are 30 meters high. Hence, Pair 2 is correctly matched.
• The Narmada River, making its way through the world-famous Marble Rocks, narrows down and then plunges in a waterfall known as Dhuandhaar. The plunge, which creates a bouncing mass of mist, is so powerful that its roar is heard from a far distance.
• The best time to visit Dhuandhar falls is during Sharad Purnima when Narmada Mahotsava gets celebrated.
• The white marble appears spectacular when the moonlight falls on it and gives it a silver appearance. Once in Dhuandhar don't forget to have a pleasure boat ride in the valley of white marble which appears yellow during sunsets.
• Dudhsagar Falls
• It is a four-tiered waterfall located on the Mandovi River in the Indian state of Goa. Hence, Pair 3 is correctly matched.
• It is 60 km from Panaji by road and is located on the Belgaum–Vasco da Gama rail route about 46 km east of Madgaon and 80 km south of Belagavi.
• Gokak
• The Gokak Falls is a waterfall located on the Ghataprabha River in the Belagavi district of Karnataka, India. Hence, Pair 4 is correctly matched.
• The waterfall is six and a half kilometers away from Gokak town.

The correct answer is Secondary market.

Key Points

• Capital Market
• Capital Market is an institutional arrangement for borrowing medium and long-term funds and which provides facilities for marketing and trading of securities.
• So it constitutes all long-term borrowings from banks and financial institutions, borrowings from foreign markets, and raising of capital by issue various securities such as shares, debentures, bonds, etc.
• The securities market has two different segments namely-
• Primary markets
• Secondary markets
• The primary market consists of arrangements for procurement of long-term funds by companies by the fresh issue of shares and debentures.
• The secondary market or stock exchange provides a ready market for existing long-term securities.
• The stock exchange is the secondary market, which provides a place for regular sale and purchase of different types of securities like shares, debentures, bonds & government securities.
• It is an organized market where all transactions are regulated by the rules and laws of the concerned stock exchanges.
• Hence, Option 2 is correct.

Additional Information

• Secondary Markets or Stock Exchanges :
• The functions of stock exchanges are to provide a ready and continuous market for securities, information about prices and sales, safety to dealings and investment, helps mobilization of savings and capital formation.
• It acts as a barometer of economic and business conditions and helps in better allocation of funds.
• Stock exchanges provide many benefits to companies, investors, and society as a whole.
• But they also suffer from limitations like exclusive speculation and fluctuation in prices due to rumours and unpredictable events.
• There are 21 stock exchanges in India presently, including BSE, NSE, and OTCEI. Stock Exchanges are regulated by the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act and by SEBI.
• SEBI has initiated several reforms in the primary and secondary markets to regulate the stock market.