XAT 2012 VARC | Previous Year XAT Paper
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“On a wing and a prayer the Indian team landed in Heathrow to take on their formidable oppenents”.
From the above sentence it can be inferred that the Indian team was
- A.
high in spirits
- B.
well prepared
- C.
over confident
- D.
under prepared
- E.
buoyant
Solution
Discuss
ReportIt _____________ not look like a great deal today, but back then it was a coup: no man before ___________ to import tea directly into Ireland.
The option that will best fill the blanks in the above sentences would be:
- A.
may, has dared
- B.
may, had dared
- C.
might, have dared
- D.
might, have ever dared
- E.
may, ever dared
“It was AC Milan’s success in Europe in the sixties that introduced the ‘libero’ as the Italian default and, a quarter of a century later, it was AC Milan’s success in Europe that killed it off.”
Which of the following was not implied in the above sentence?
- A.
AC Milan was successful in Europe in the sixties with the help of a ‘libero’
- B.
AC Milan was successful in Europe in the late eighties without a ‘libero’
- C.
The ‘libero’ was an Italian default for almost a quarter of a century.
- D.
AC Milan was not successful in Europe for almost a quarter of a century.
- E.
The Italians seldom used a ‘libero’ since late eighties.
Choose the odd one:
- A.
Chaos / Order
- B.
Fact / Fiction
- C.
Virtue / Vice
- D.
Study / Analyse
- E.
Light / Darkness
The 2001 census showed a sharp fall in the litreacy rate compared to 1991, but an increase in the litreacy rate by 2006 suggests that between 1991 and 2006 India progressed in terms of litreacy rate.
Which of the following statements, if true, best refutes the above argument?
- A.
One of the causes of more litreacy is the increased population growth rate.
- B.
Although there was no census in 2006 the information about the litreacy rate is reliable.
- C.
Many of those who were illitreate in 2001 become litreate by 2006.
- D.
The rate of fall in litreacy rate between 1991 and 2001 was more than the rate of rise in litreacy rate between 2001 and 2006.
- E.
The rise in litreacy rate between 2001 and 2006 was due to persistent campaign on television and FM radio.
Ravindra Dubey was guilty of embezzlement. It means that Ravindra Dubey
- A.
did not pay his bills.
- B.
misappropriated assets he was entrusted with.
- C.
engaged in circulating black money in the economy.
- D.
cheated on his spouse.
- E.
misreported educational qualification.
Read the sentences and choose the option that best arrange them in a logical order.
A. Some of these are tangible while others are not.
B. The micro factors look at brand building, product development, competition, pricing, decision making within organizations etc.
C. Another way to classify these factors is to distinguish which of them are macro in nature and which of them are micro.
D. The macro factors comprise government policies, state of the economy, changing demographics etc.
E. The factors influencing forecasts include social, technological, economic, political, religious, ethnic, governmental, and natural factors.
- A.
E-A-C-D-B
- B.
E-C-B-D-A
- C.
A-E-C-D-B
- D.
D-B-A-C-E
- E.
E-D-B-A-C
Read the following passage and answer the questions.
There is an essential and irreducible ‘duality’ in the normative conceptualization of an individual person. We can see the person in terms of his or her ‘agency’, recognizing and respecting his or her ability to form goals, commitments, values, etc., and we can also see the person in terms of his or her ‘well-being’. This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self-interested motivation, in which a person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is removed, it becomes possible to recognize the indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not covered – or at least not fully covered – by his or her own well-being. Agency may be seen as important (not just instrumentally for the pursuit of well-being, but also intrinsically), but that still leaves open the question as to how that agency is to be evaluated and appraised. Even though the use of one’s agency is a matter for oneself to judge, the need for careful assessment of aims, objective, allegiances, etc., and the conception of the good, may be important and exacting.
To recognize the distinction between the ‘agency aspect’ and the ‘well-being aspect’ of a person does not require us to take the view that the person’s success as an agent must be independent, or completely separable from, his or her success in terms of well-being. A person may well feel happier and better off as a result of achieving what he or she wanted to achieve – perhaps for his or her family, or community, or class, or party, or some other cause. Also it is quite possible that a person’s well-being will go down as a result of frustration if there is some failure to achieve what he or she wanted to achieve as an agent, even though those achievements are not directly concerned with his or her well-being. There is really no sound basis for demanding that the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person should be independent of each other, and it is, I suppose, even possible that every change in one will affect the other as well. However, the point at issue is not the plausibility of their independence, but the sustainability and relevance of the distinction. The fact that two variables may be so related that one cannot change without the other, does not imply that they are the same variable, or that they will have the same values, or that the value of one can be obtained from the other on basis of some simple transformation.
The importance of an agency achievement does not rest entirely on the enhancement of well-being that it may indirectly cause. The agency achievement and well-being achievement, both of which have some distinct importance, may be casually linked with each other, but this fact does not compromise the specific importance of either. In so far as utility – based welfare calculations concentrate only on the well-being of the person, ignoring the agency aspect, or actually fails to distinguish between the agency aspect and well-being aspect altogether, something of real importance is lost.
According to the ideas in the passage, the following are not true expect:
- A.
The value of a person’s well-being cannot be obtained from the value of her agency.
- B.
A person’s agency aspect is independent of her well-being aspect.
- C.
A person’s agency is important because her well-being must depend on her agency.
- D.
A person’s agency must be entirely geared towards her own well-being.
- E.
A person’s well-being will be dependent on her agency in all circumstances.
Read the following passage and answer the questions.
There is an essential and irreducible ‘duality’ in the normative conceptualization of an individual person. We can see the person in terms of his or her ‘agency’, recognizing and respecting his or her ability to form goals, commitments, values, etc., and we can also see the person in terms of his or her ‘well-being’. This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self-interested motivation, in which a person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is removed, it becomes possible to recognize the indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not covered – or at least not fully covered – by his or her own well-being. Agency may be seen as important (not just instrumentally for the pursuit of well-being, but also intrinsically), but that still leaves open the question as to how that agency is to be evaluated and appraised. Even though the use of one’s agency is a matter for oneself to judge, the need for careful assessment of aims, objective, allegiances, etc., and the conception of the good, may be important and exacting.
To recognize the distinction between the ‘agency aspect’ and the ‘well-being aspect’ of a person does not require us to take the view that the person’s success as an agent must be independent, or completely separable from, his or her success in terms of well-being. A person may well feel happier and better off as a result of achieving what he or she wanted to achieve – perhaps for his or her family, or community, or class, or party, or some other cause. Also it is quite possible that a person’s well-being will go down as a result of frustration if there is some failure to achieve what he or she wanted to achieve as an agent, even though those achievements are not directly concerned with his or her well-being. There is really no sound basis for demanding that the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person should be independent of each other, and it is, I suppose, even possible that every change in one will affect the other as well. However, the point at issue is not the plausibility of their independence, but the sustainability and relevance of the distinction. The fact that two variables may be so related that one cannot change without the other, does not imply that they are the same variable, or that they will have the same values, or that the value of one can be obtained from the other on basis of some simple transformation.
The importance of an agency achievement does not rest entirely on the enhancement of well-being that it may indirectly cause. The agency achievement and well-being achievement, both of which have some distinct importance, may be casually linked with each other, but this fact does not compromise the specific importance of either. In so far as utility – based welfare calculations concentrate only on the well-being of the person, ignoring the agency aspect, or actually fails to distinguish between the agency aspect and well-being aspect altogether, something of real importance is lost.
In the case of Japan, there is a strong empirical evidence to suggest that systematic departure from self-interested behavior, in the direction of duty, loyalty and goodwill have played a substantial part in industrial success.
Which of the following in closest to the ideas presented in the passage?
- A.
Japanese are duty bound selfless people.
- B.
The sense of well-being of the Japanese people gets consistently enhanced due to this systematic departure from the self-interested behavior.
- C.
Had there been no enhancement of their own well-being, the Japanese people would have not been dutiful.
- D.
Ability to achieve their country’s objectives may have enhanced the sense of well-being of Japanese people. However the agency of the Japanese people in their industrial success is probably derived from factors beyond this sense of well-being.
- E.
Japanese people’s adherence to ethos of duty, loyalty and goodwill can well be explained within the paradigm of self-interested behavior.
Read the following passage and answer the questions.
There is an essential and irreducible ‘duality’ in the normative conceptualization of an individual person. We can see the person in terms of his or her ‘agency’, recognizing and respecting his or her ability to form goals, commitments, values, etc., and we can also see the person in terms of his or her ‘well-being’. This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self-interested motivation, in which a person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is removed, it becomes possible to recognize the indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not covered – or at least not fully covered – by his or her own well-being. Agency may be seen as important (not just instrumentally for the pursuit of well-being, but also intrinsically), but that still leaves open the question as to how that agency is to be evaluated and appraised. Even though the use of one’s agency is a matter for oneself to judge, the need for careful assessment of aims, objective, allegiances, etc., and the conception of the good, may be important and exacting.
To recognize the distinction between the ‘agency aspect’ and the ‘well-being aspect’ of a person does not require us to take the view that the person’s success as an agent must be independent, or completely separable from, his or her success in terms of well-being. A person may well feel happier and better off as a result of achieving what he or she wanted to achieve – perhaps for his or her family, or community, or class, or party, or some other cause. Also it is quite possible that a person’s well-being will go down as a result of frustration if there is some failure to achieve what he or she wanted to achieve as an agent, even though those achievements are not directly concerned with his or her well-being. There is really no sound basis for demanding that the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person should be independent of each other, and it is, I suppose, even possible that every change in one will affect the other as well. However, the point at issue is not the plausibility of their independence, but the sustainability and relevance of the distinction. The fact that two variables may be so related that one cannot change without the other, does not imply that they are the same variable, or that they will have the same values, or that the value of one can be obtained from the other on basis of some simple transformation.
The importance of an agency achievement does not rest entirely on the enhancement of well-being that it may indirectly cause. The agency achievement and well-being achievement, both of which have some distinct importance, may be casually linked with each other, but this fact does not compromise the specific importance of either. In so far as utility – based welfare calculations concentrate only on the well-being of the person, ignoring the agency aspect, or actually fails to distinguish between the agency aspect and well-being aspect altogether, something of real importance is lost.
Of the options presented below, which one is the best example for the ideas propounded in the passage?
- A.
‘Change for Equality’ was a campaign by women of Iran to remove discrimination against women in their country. Activities of the movement were attacked and jailed by the government, but the campaign continued.
- B.
In January 2011, the Egyptian people came out against the regime to topple it. Their grievances included police atrocities, state emergency laws, lack of free election, and lack of freedom of speech, corruption, unemployment, food price inflation and low minimum wages.
- C.
A worker immolated himself to highlight injustice being perpetrated by the management against the employees in the company.
- D.
The factory workers carried on with the strike in demand for increased wages, even though they were not paid wages for the duration they were on strike.
- E.
A politician went on a hunger strike against corruption which not only galvanized the state government in enacting new laws, but also increased his image in the minds of the voters.
Read the following passage and answer the questions.
There is an essential and irreducible ‘duality’ in the normative conceptualization of an individual person. We can see the person in terms of his or her ‘agency’, recognizing and respecting his or her ability to form goals, commitments, values, etc., and we can also see the person in terms of his or her ‘well-being’. This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self-interested motivation, in which a person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is removed, it becomes possible to recognize the indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not covered – or at least not fully covered – by his or her own well-being. Agency may be seen as important (not just instrumentally for the pursuit of well-being, but also intrinsically), but that still leaves open the question as to how that agency is to be evaluated and appraised. Even though the use of one’s agency is a matter for oneself to judge, the need for careful assessment of aims, objective, allegiances, etc., and the conception of the good, may be important and exacting.
To recognize the distinction between the ‘agency aspect’ and the ‘well-being aspect’ of a person does not require us to take the view that the person’s success as an agent must be independent, or completely separable from, his or her success in terms of well-being. A person may well feel happier and better off as a result of achieving what he or she wanted to achieve – perhaps for his or her family, or community, or class, or party, or some other cause. Also it is quite possible that a person’s well-being will go down as a result of frustration if there is some failure to achieve what he or she wanted to achieve as an agent, even though those achievements are not directly concerned with his or her well-being. There is really no sound basis for demanding that the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person should be independent of each other, and it is, I suppose, even possible that every change in one will affect the other as well. However, the point at issue is not the plausibility of their independence, but the sustainability and relevance of the distinction. The fact that two variables may be so related that one cannot change without the other, does not imply that they are the same variable, or that they will have the same values, or that the value of one can be obtained from the other on basis of some simple transformation.
The importance of an agency achievement does not rest entirely on the enhancement of well-being that it may indirectly cause. The agency achievement and well-being achievement, both of which have some distinct importance, may be casually linked with each other, but this fact does not compromise the specific importance of either. In so far as utility – based welfare calculations concentrate only on the well-being of the person, ignoring the agency aspect, or actually fails to distinguish between the agency aspect and well-being aspect altogether, something of real importance is lost.
Read the sentences given below and choose the option that is best in accordance with the ideas in the passage.
I. There is a need to distinguish between the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person.
II. A person can be conceptualized in terms of either agency or well-being.
III. A person is important, not just instrumentally, for the pursuit of well-being
- A.
I only
- B.
II only
- C.
III only
- D.
I and III
- E.
II and III
Read the following passage and answer the questions.
There is an essential and irreducible ‘duality’ in the normative conceptualization of an individual person. We can see the person in terms of his or her ‘agency’, recognizing and respecting his or her ability to form goals, commitments, values, etc., and we can also see the person in terms of his or her ‘well-being’. This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self-interested motivation, in which a person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is removed, it becomes possible to recognize the indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not covered – or at least not fully covered – by his or her own well-being. Agency may be seen as important (not just instrumentally for the pursuit of well-being, but also intrinsically), but that still leaves open the question as to how that agency is to be evaluated and appraised. Even though the use of one’s agency is a matter for oneself to judge, the need for careful assessment of aims, objective, allegiances, etc., and the conception of the good, may be important and exacting.
To recognize the distinction between the ‘agency aspect’ and the ‘well-being aspect’ of a person does not require us to take the view that the person’s success as an agent must be independent, or completely separable from, his or her success in terms of well-being. A person may well feel happier and better off as a result of achieving what he or she wanted to achieve – perhaps for his or her family, or community, or class, or party, or some other cause. Also it is quite possible that a person’s well-being will go down as a result of frustration if there is some failure to achieve what he or she wanted to achieve as an agent, even though those achievements are not directly concerned with his or her well-being. There is really no sound basis for demanding that the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person should be independent of each other, and it is, I suppose, even possible that every change in one will affect the other as well. However, the point at issue is not the plausibility of their independence, but the sustainability and relevance of the distinction. The fact that two variables may be so related that one cannot change without the other, does not imply that they are the same variable, or that they will have the same values, or that the value of one can be obtained from the other on basis of some simple transformation.
The importance of an agency achievement does not rest entirely on the enhancement of well-being that it may indirectly cause. The agency achievement and well-being achievement, both of which have some distinct importance, may be casually linked with each other, but this fact does not compromise the specific importance of either. In so far as utility – based welfare calculations concentrate only on the well-being of the person, ignoring the agency aspect, or actually fails to distinguish between the agency aspect and well-being aspect altogether, something of real importance is lost.
The idea of agency, as used in the passage, is implied in all the options given below, except:
- A.
A student arguing for a grade revision
- B.
A lawyer arguing the case for his rich client
- C.
A politician on dharma to gain publicity
- D.
A hungry child crying for food
- E.
An ascetic praying for world peace
Which of the following sentences is grammatically incorrect?
- A.
Bats are able to fly in the dark.
- B.
Bats can fly in the dark
- C.
Bats have the ability to fly in the dark.
- D.
Bats cannot fly in the dark if it rains.
- E.
Bats have the ability of flying in the dark, if it does not rain.
Alfredo, Diego and Lionel are discussing Argentinean football.
Alfredo: Argentina was a football powerhouse.
Diego: Argentina is a football powerhouse.
Lionel: Argentina will be a football powerhouse.
Which of the following cannot be inferred from the above conversation?
- A.
Lionel is optimistic about the future.
- B.
Alfredo, Diego and Lionel may disagree on certain things.
- C.
Diego views the present positively.
- D.
Alfredo completely disagrees with Diego.
- E.
Alfredo has positive feelings about the past.
Choose the grammatically correct sentence from the options given below.
- A.
Surprisingly, given the recent labour problems in the factory, the factory manager has enjoyed considerable support from they who had previously challenged his leadership.
- B.
Surprisingly, given the recent labour problems in the factory, the factory manager has enjoyed considerable support from them who had previously challenged his leadership.
- C.
Surprisingly, given the recent labour problems in the factory, the factory manager has enjoyed considerable support from he who had previously challenged his leadership.
- D.
Surprisingly, given the recent labour problems in the factory, the factory manager has enjoyed considerable support from those who had previously challenged his leadership.
- E.
Surprisingly, given the recent labour problems in the factory, the factory manager has enjoyed considerable support from that who had previously challenged his leadership.
Ethologists, people who study animal behavior, have traditionally divided an organism’s actions into two categories: learned behavior (based on experience) and instinctive behavior (based on genotype). Some current scholars reject this distinction, claiming that all behavior is a predictable interaction of experience and genotype.
Which of the following, if true, most strengthens the arguments made in the sentence above?
- A.
All organisms with identical genotypes and identical experience sometimes respond differently in different situations.
- B.
All organisms with different genotypes and identical experience always respond identically in identical situations.
- C.
All organisms with similar genotypes and similar experience always respond differently in identical situations.
- D.
All organisms with identical genotypes and identical experience always respond identically in identical situations.
- E.
All organisms with identical genotypes and different experience always respond identically in identical situations.
The benefits of psychotherapy result not only from the advice the therapist gives but also from the supportive relationship offered to the patient. Even though this relationship may cost large amounts of money over many years, most patients interpret the therapist’s concern for them as genuine and identify this caring relationship as the primary factor in improving their mental health. However, recent studies have found that only eight percent of therapist/patient relationships continue after the patient terminates formal paid visits.
Which of the following is in accordance with the ideas contained in the passage? Choose the best option.
- A.
therapists are equally concerned with moneymaking and their patients’ well-being.
- B.
reading published articles of reputed psychotherapists will hardly be beneficial.
- C.
therapists can always treat mental illness without the use of prescription drugs.
- D.
therapists who terminate relationships are likely to improve mental health of their patients.
- E.
eight percent of patients will continue to improve after termination of therapy.
Most of the Asian countries have trade-deficit with China. Bangladesh’s trade deficit with China this year has increased by 35%. Despite large increases in exports to China, Indonesia’s trade deficit with China continues to increase. So does that of South Korea, home of Samsung Electronics, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of electronic gadgets.
Which of the following, if true, would be most inconsistent with the above passage?
- A.
China is the largest manufacturer of parts of electronic gadgets and Samsung Electronics imports parts for their gadgets from China.
- B.
Exports to Bangladesh are insignificant in proportion of China’s total exports.
- C.
Exports to Indonesia from China decreased.
- D.
Indonesia’s chief exports are natural resources.
- E.
China has trade deficit with Iran.
All who studied commerce enjoy sports. No tax consultant enjoys sports. All those who enjoy sports love classical music.
If the above sentences are true, which of the following also must be true?
- A.
No one who enjoys classical music is a tax consultant by profession.
- B.
Every tax consultant enjoys classical music.
- C.
No tax consultant enjoys classical music.
- D.
No tax consultant studied commerce.
- E.
No one who studied commerce enjoy classical music.
Fill in the blanks with the most appropriate word/set of words from the given options.
The head ___________ was annoyed to see a _________ in the soup.
The option that would best fill the blanks in the above sentence would be:
- A.
chief, house fly
- B.
chef, housefly
- C.
chief, house-fly
- D.
chef, house fly
- E.
chef, house-fly
Which word is the opposite of the word ‘hypothesize’?
- A.
posit
- B.
propose
- C.
conjecture
- D.
refute
- E.
speculate
Read the sentences and choose the option that best arrange them in a logical order.
A. In fact, it is considered as a dumping ground for unwanted people in quite a few organizations.
B. In many parts of the country, traditional castes such as Kothari, Kotwal, Bhandari and Bhandarkar have for generations been dealing in procuring, stocking, distributing goods and merchandise.
C. This is due to the fact that Indian traders have been trading with many parts of the world.
D. However, though the concept of warehousing has been prevalent for over 2000 years, the warehouse has not yet obtained due recognition in modern times.
E. The concept of warehousing or stores function is not new in India.
- A.
E-A-C-D-B
- B.
E-C-B-D-A
- C.
A-E-C-D-B
- D.
D-B-A-C-E
- E.
E-D-B-A-C
Concurrence means all of the following except:
- A.
Agreement
- B.
Accord
- C.
Consensus
- D.
Coincidence
- E.
Harmony
Read the sentences and choose the option that best arrange them in a logical order.
i. All it has to do is to drive up the inflation rate-examples are the damage Lyndon Johnson’s inflationary policies did to the US economy and the damage which consistently pro-inflationary policies have done to the economy of Italy.
ii. It is easy, the record shows, for a government to do harm to its domestic economy.
iii. Contrary to what economists confidently promised forty years ago, business cycles have not been abolished.
iv. They still operate pretty much the way they have been operating for the past 150 years.
v. But there is not the slightest evidence that any government policy to stimulate the economy has impact, whether that policy be Keynesian, monetarist, supply – side or neoclassical.
- A.
(iii)-(iv)-(ii)-(i)-(v)
- B.
(iii)-(v)-(ii)-(i)-(iv)
- C.
(ii)-(iv)-(i)-(v)-(iii)
- D.
(ii)-(i)-(iii)-(iv)-(v)
- E.
(ii)-(i)-(v)-(iii)-(iv)
When income tax rates are reduced, there is an increase in taxable income, and an increase in taxable income results in increased total income tax revenues for the government.
Which of the following is analogues to the argument above in terms of its logical features?
- A.
If the city municipal corporation increases taxes on property by 1% it will raise tax revenues, which can be used for garbage disposal management.
- B.
The Leader of the Opposition at the Parliament argued that a restriction on the import of Chinese manufacturing products will increase the sales of Indian manufacturing products.
- C.
An advertisement using more than 25 words of text will not be read, and when an advertisement is not read, the product is not sold. Therefore, the fewer words an advertisement has, the more effective it will be in promoting its product.
- D.
The balance of payment of a country will improve if the country reduces its imports and increases exports.
- E.
Citizens earning more than 15 lakh rupees per annum pay at an increased tax rate of 40% Citizens earning less than 1 lakh rupees per annum can be exempted from paying income taxes without decreasing the revenues of the Income Tax Department
Fill in the blanks with the most appropriate word/set of words from the given options.
Not wanting to present an unwanted optimistic picture in the board meeting, the CEO estimated the sales growth _____________.
The option that will best fill the blank in the above sentence would be:
- A.
strictly
- B.
liberally
- C.
fancifully
- D.
pessimistically
- E.
conservatively
Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.
The idea of demarcating certain areas within the country as special economic zones to promote investment and growth is not new. A large country unable to provide the kind of facilities and environment that can attract foreign investment throughout the country often finds it feasible and attractive to carve up some of its areas where such facilities can be provided. The laws and procedures for setting up new industries are waived to make the area business-friendly with developed infrastructure and a one-window interaction with government. In addition, huge tax benefits are promised to lure investors. China’s experience shows that if chalked out and implemented with care such a policy can accelerate the flow of capital and technology from abroad and thereby speed up growth.
However, SEZs may not be the best option in all situations to clear the bottlenecks in growth.
India’s experience with export processing zones (EPZs) bears this out. They have failed in India for the simple reason that the factors that made the SEZs successful in China have been absent here. In India, as in China, EPZs were thought of as a way of providing an escape route from the stranglehold of control that prevailed over the Indian economy. But even while promising to ease the rigours of controls, Indian policy-makers could not give up their penchant for micromanaging from the centre and undoing the promised relaxations with all kinds of qualifications and “guidelines”.
Over last two decades India has evolved into a market economy and much of governmental control has disappeared, but the flow of foreign direct investment has not reached anywhere near the levels of China. Besides, infrastructure building has fallen far short of what is required. Even after three years of the enactment of the Electricity Act (2003), private investment in electricity generation is still a trickle with the states refusing to give up the monopoly of their electricity boards in the matter of purchase of the power generated. While swearing by growth, governments at both the centre and the states cite the fiscal responsibility laws to plead their helplessness in making the required investments to improve infrastructure.
Given the situation, the SEZs have apparently been thought of as a simple way out. In its enthusiasm for SEZs the commerce ministry forgot two critical lessons of the Chinese experience, viz., that an SEZ must be of an adequate size to provide opportunities for reaping the benefits of large-scale operations and their number should be few. Every industry or economic activity worth its name is now seeking SEZ status. Proposals are now being floated to invite foreign educational institutions to come to India with promises of SEZ treatment! The finance ministry apprehends a loss of nearly Rs. 1,75,000 crore in direct taxes, customs duties and excise duties over the next five years.
The objective of the author in writing the above passage seems to be to
- A.
highlight the failure of Indian policy makers regarding EPZs.
- B.
narrate the pros and cons of SEZs.
- C.
compare between the Indian EPZs and Chinese SEZs.
- D.
oppose the proliferation of SEZs in India.
- E.
argue that India should imitate the Chinese policies regarding SEZs.
Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.
The idea of demarcating certain areas within the country as special economic zones to promote investment and growth is not new. A large country unable to provide the kind of facilities and environment that can attract foreign investment throughout the country often finds it feasible and attractive to carve up some of its areas where such facilities can be provided. The laws and procedures for setting up new industries are waived to make the area business-friendly with developed infrastructure and a one-window interaction with government. In addition, huge tax benefits are promised to lure investors. China’s experience shows that if chalked out and implemented with care such a policy can accelerate the flow of capital and technology from abroad and thereby speed up growth.
However, SEZs may not be the best option in all situations to clear the bottlenecks in growth.
India’s experience with export processing zones (EPZs) bears this out. They have failed in India for the simple reason that the factors that made the SEZs successful in China have been absent here. In India, as in China, EPZs were thought of as a way of providing an escape route from the stranglehold of control that prevailed over the Indian economy. But even while promising to ease the rigours of controls, Indian policy-makers could not give up their penchant for micromanaging from the centre and undoing the promised relaxations with all kinds of qualifications and “guidelines”.
Over last two decades India has evolved into a market economy and much of governmental control has disappeared, but the flow of foreign direct investment has not reached anywhere near the levels of China. Besides, infrastructure building has fallen far short of what is required. Even after three years of the enactment of the Electricity Act (2003), private investment in electricity generation is still a trickle with the states refusing to give up the monopoly of their electricity boards in the matter of purchase of the power generated. While swearing by growth, governments at both the centre and the states cite the fiscal responsibility laws to plead their helplessness in making the required investments to improve infrastructure.
Given the situation, the SEZs have apparently been thought of as a simple way out. In its enthusiasm for SEZs the commerce ministry forgot two critical lessons of the Chinese experience, viz., that an SEZ must be of an adequate size to provide opportunities for reaping the benefits of large-scale operations and their number should be few. Every industry or economic activity worth its name is now seeking SEZ status. Proposals are now being floated to invite foreign educational institutions to come to India with promises of SEZ treatment! The finance ministry apprehends a loss of nearly Rs. 1,75,000 crore in direct taxes, customs duties and excise duties over the next five years.
The author’s arguments suggest the following conclusions, except
- A.
SEZs may be the best option for countries unable to provide infrastructure and business environment to attract foreign direct investment.
- B.
SEZs must be large enough to house large scale operations.
- C.
fiscal responsibility laws actually limit the investment on infrastructure by the Government of India.
- D.
government of India must limit the number of SEZs.
- E.
SEZs cause loss of tax revenue for the central Government.
Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.
The idea of demarcating certain areas within the country as special economic zones to promote investment and growth is not new. A large country unable to provide the kind of facilities and environment that can attract foreign investment throughout the country often finds it feasible and attractive to carve up some of its areas where such facilities can be provided. The laws and procedures for setting up new industries are waived to make the area business-friendly with developed infrastructure and a one-window interaction with government. In addition, huge tax benefits are promised to lure investors. China’s experience shows that if chalked out and implemented with care such a policy can accelerate the flow of capital and technology from abroad and thereby speed up growth.
However, SEZs may not be the best option in all situations to clear the bottlenecks in growth.
India’s experience with export processing zones (EPZs) bears this out. They have failed in India for the simple reason that the factors that made the SEZs successful in China have been absent here. In India, as in China, EPZs were thought of as a way of providing an escape route from the stranglehold of control that prevailed over the Indian economy. But even while promising to ease the rigours of controls, Indian policy-makers could not give up their penchant for micromanaging from the centre and undoing the promised relaxations with all kinds of qualifications and “guidelines”.
Over last two decades India has evolved into a market economy and much of governmental control has disappeared, but the flow of foreign direct investment has not reached anywhere near the levels of China. Besides, infrastructure building has fallen far short of what is required. Even after three years of the enactment of the Electricity Act (2003), private investment in electricity generation is still a trickle with the states refusing to give up the monopoly of their electricity boards in the matter of purchase of the power generated. While swearing by growth, governments at both the centre and the states cite the fiscal responsibility laws to plead their helplessness in making the required investments to improve infrastructure.
Given the situation, the SEZs have apparently been thought of as a simple way out. In its enthusiasm for SEZs the commerce ministry forgot two critical lessons of the Chinese experience, viz., that an SEZ must be of an adequate size to provide opportunities for reaping the benefits of large-scale operations and their number should be few. Every industry or economic activity worth its name is now seeking SEZ status. Proposals are now being floated to invite foreign educational institutions to come to India with promises of SEZ treatment! The finance ministry apprehends a loss of nearly Rs. 1,75,000 crore in direct taxes, customs duties and excise duties over the next five years.
The author does not oppose
- A.
SEZ treatment of foreign educational institutes in India.
- B.
qualifiers undoing relaxation of government control.
- C.
tax benefits to strategically promote SEZs.
- D.
monopoly of state electricity boards in power purchase.
- E.
lack of Government initiative in infrastructure development.
Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.
The idea of demarcating certain areas within the country as special economic zones to promote investment and growth is not new. A large country unable to provide the kind of facilities and environment that can attract foreign investment throughout the country often finds it feasible and attractive to carve up some of its areas where such facilities can be provided. The laws and procedures for setting up new industries are waived to make the area business-friendly with developed infrastructure and a one-window interaction with government. In addition, huge tax benefits are promised to lure investors. China’s experience shows that if chalked out and implemented with care such a policy can accelerate the flow of capital and technology from abroad and thereby speed up growth.
However, SEZs may not be the best option in all situations to clear the bottlenecks in growth.
India’s experience with export processing zones (EPZs) bears this out. They have failed in India for the simple reason that the factors that made the SEZs successful in China have been absent here. In India, as in China, EPZs were thought of as a way of providing an escape route from the stranglehold of control that prevailed over the Indian economy. But even while promising to ease the rigours of controls, Indian policy-makers could not give up their penchant for micromanaging from the centre and undoing the promised relaxations with all kinds of qualifications and “guidelines”.
Over last two decades India has evolved into a market economy and much of governmental control has disappeared, but the flow of foreign direct investment has not reached anywhere near the levels of China. Besides, infrastructure building has fallen far short of what is required. Even after three years of the enactment of the Electricity Act (2003), private investment in electricity generation is still a trickle with the states refusing to give up the monopoly of their electricity boards in the matter of purchase of the power generated. While swearing by growth, governments at both the centre and the states cite the fiscal responsibility laws to plead their helplessness in making the required investments to improve infrastructure.
Given the situation, the SEZs have apparently been thought of as a simple way out. In its enthusiasm for SEZs the commerce ministry forgot two critical lessons of the Chinese experience, viz., that an SEZ must be of an adequate size to provide opportunities for reaping the benefits of large-scale operations and their number should be few. Every industry or economic activity worth its name is now seeking SEZ status. Proposals are now being floated to invite foreign educational institutions to come to India with promises of SEZ treatment! The finance ministry apprehends a loss of nearly Rs. 1,75,000 crore in direct taxes, customs duties and excise duties over the next five years.
The passage was most likely written in the year:
- A.
1991
- B.
2001
- C.
2003
- D.
2006
- E.
2011
Answer the following question based on the information given below.
This is one of the unanswered questions that I want to explore. I believe that this is certainly one of the deeper questions about technology. Why do I say so? Without evolution technologies seem to be born independently and improve independently. Each must come from some unexplained mental process, some form of creativity or thinking outside the box that brings it into existence and separately develops it. With evolution, new technologies would be birthed in some precise way from previous ones, albeit with considerable mid-wifing, and develop though some understood process of adaptation. In other words, if we could understand evolution, we could understand the most precious of processes: innovation. But, let me define evolution before I proceed further. The word evolution has two general meanings. One is the gradual development of something, as with the evolution of ballet or the English madrigal. The other is the process by which all objects of some class are related by ties of common descent from the collection of earlier objects. The latter is what I mean by evolution.Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
I. The author’s main concern is to develop a theory of innovation.
II. The author is interested in putting forth a theory of technological evolution.
III. The author believes before developing a theory of technological evolution, one needs to investigated whether technology evolves at all.
IV. Evolution, as the author puts it, is a sense of common relatedness.
- A.
I and II
- B.
I and IV
- C.
II and IV
- D.
I, II and III
- E.
All the above statements
In 1867, S. Colum Gilfillan, a sociologist traced the evolution of ships from the dugout canoe to the modern steamship of the day.
Many theories propose the existence of a technology in many forms. From these variations, some perform better and are selected for further use and development.
Till date the people who have thought hardest about the general questions of technology have only been social scientists. They have viewed technology from the outside as stand-alone objects without studying earlier technologies.
Some technologies, for example, the laser, the jet engine, the radar, the quick sort algorithm and the locomotive just appear, or at least they seem to just appear unlike novel biological species which are versions of earlier objects.Radar descends from radio but you can vary 1930s radio circuits as radically you like but you will never get radar. Radar requires a different principle.
Assuming the above statements are true, which option would most strengthen the author’s premise that the question that he has identified has not been solved as yet?
- A.
I and III
- B.
II and III
- C.
I, III and IV
- D.
II, V and III
- E.
IV, V and III