Previous Year UPSC Questions

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect: Prorogation (ending a session of Parliament) is done by the President on the advice of the Council of Ministers, as per Article 85(2)(a). The President does not act independently in this matter.

Statement 2 is correct: The presiding officer (Speaker or Chairman) declares the House adjourned sine die, when the business of a session is completed. Within the next few days, the President issues a notification for prorogation of the session. However, the President can also prorogate the House while in session.

Statement 3 is correct: Rajya Sabha, being a permanent House, is not subject to dissolution. Only the Lok Sabha is subject to dissolution. Unlike a prorogation, a dissolution ends the very life of the existing House, and a new House is constituted after general elections are held. Dissolution of the Lok Sabha is done by the President of India, who, save in exceptional circumstances, does so on the advice of the Council of Ministers.

Explanation

Pumped-storage hydropower (PSH) is primarily discussed in the context of long-duration energy storage. It is a type of hydroelectric power generation that stores excess electricity by pumping water from a lower reservoir to an upper reservoir during times of low energy demand. When energy demand is high, the stored water is released back down through turbines to generate electricity. This technology helps balance grid fluctuations, integrate renewable energy sources like wind and solar, and provide a reliable backup power supply.

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct: Article 109 outlines the special procedure for the passage of Money Bills, that include the exclusive role of the Lok Sabha and limited powers of the Rajya Sabha.

Statement 2 is correct: As per Article 109, a Money Bill shall not be introduced in the Council of States.

Statement 3 is correct: Rajya Sabha can only suggest amendments; it can neither amend nor reject the bill. If Lok Sabha accepts Rajya Sabha’s recommendations, the Money Bill is deemed passed with the accepted amendments. If Lok Sabha rejects all Rajya Sabha recommendations, the Money Bill is deemed passed in its original form, without any amendments suggested by the Council of States. If Rajya Sabha fails to return a Money Bill within 14 days, it is deemed passed by both Houses in its original form as approved by Lok Sabha.

Statement 4 is incorrect: After a Money Bill has been passed by the House of the People, it shall be transmitted to the Council of States for its recommendations, and the Council of States shall, within a period of fourteen days from the date of receipt of the Bill, return the Bill to the House of the People with its recommendations and the House of the People may thereupon either accept or reject all or any of the recommendations of the Council of States.

Explanation

The exhaust pipe emission from Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs) powered by hydrogen is water vapour. These vehicles use hydrogen fuel cells to generate electricity through an electrochemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. The only by-product of this process is water (H₂O), which is released as vapour, making FCEVs a clean and environmentally friendly transportation option. Fuel cells are unique in terms of the variety of their potential applications; they can use a wide range of fuels and feedstocks and can provide power for systems as large as a utility power station and as small as a laptop computer.

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct: The Lok Sabha Ethics Committee was first constituted as an ad hoc committee in 2000 by Speaker Late G.M.C. Balayogi, following a Committee of Privileges recommendation during the 13th Lok Sabha. It became a permanent committee in 2015.

Statement 2 is incorrect: Any person can complain against a Member through another Lok Sabha Member of Parliament, along with evidence of the alleged misconduct and an affidavit stating that the complaint is not "false, frivolous, or vexatious". If the Member himself complains, the affidavit is not needed.

Statement 3 is correct: The Committee does not entertain complaints based only on media reports or on matters that are sub-judice. The Committee makes a prima facie inquiry before deciding to examine a complaint. It makes its recommendations after evaluating the complaint. The Committee presents its report to the Speaker, who asks the House if it should be considered. A half-hour discussion is also provided.

Explanation

Delimitation means the act or process of fixing the limits or boundaries of territorial constituencies in a country having a legislative body. In India, such Delimitation Commissions have been constituted four times:

1952 under the Delimitation Commission Act, 1952

1963 under the Delimitation Commission Act, 1962

1973 under the Delimitation Act, 1972

2002 under the Delimitation Act, 2002 Under Article 82, Parliament enacts a Delimitation Act after each Census, while Article 170 mandates the division of states into territorial constituencies as per the Delimitation Act. The ‘Delimitation Commission’ is set up under an act of Parliament.

Explanation

Many animals are predators, parasites or parasitoids, using other animals as food. They use a great diversity of hunting strategies and behaviours to capture or feed on their prey. Invertebrate predators, parasites and parasitoids play an important role in keeping many animal populations under control. Parasitoid is an insect whose larvae feed and develop within or on the bodies of other arthropods. Each parasitoid larva develops on a single individual and eventually kills that host. Most parasitoids are wasps, but some flies and a small number of beetles (carabid beetles), moths, lacewings, and even one caddisfly species have evolved to be parasitoids. Parasitoids alone number about 68,000 named species, and most have yet to be named and described. Predator: They are organisms that capture and eat another (the prey). This act is called predation. The predatory invertebrates include scorpions, centipedes, predatory mites, predatory snails and slugs, nematodes and planarian worms. Detritivores: Termites are detritivores that eat dead and decaying organic matter like logs of wood in a forest. They form an important link in the cycling of nutrients in the forests by breaking down wood and organic residues on the ground

Explanation

The banyan fig tree Ficus microcarpa is famous for its aerial roots, which sprout from branches and eventually reach the soil. Aerial roots are roots above the ground that are found in diverse plant species like mangroves, banyan figs and orchids. The tree also has a unique relationship with a wasp that has co-evolved with it and is the only insect that can pollinate it. Figs are known to sustain at least 1,200 bird and mammal species. Fig trees were among the earliest domesticated crops and appear as sacred symbols in Hinduism, Buddhism and other spiritual traditions.

Explanation

Butterflies: Hybrid Heliconius butterflies are poisonous in nature. In nature, these butterflies are rare. Heliconius melpomene and Heliconius cydno are both highly poisonous, having evolved to produce their own cyanide, and predators have learned exactly what both of these toxic insects look like. Fish: "Venomous" fish are those that can inject their toxic venom into victims, whereas "poisonous" fish are those that cause toxic symptoms only if they are eaten. For example: Lionfish, red-bel-lied piranha etc. Frogs: Frogs are amphibians which can survive both on land and water. Some of them can be poisonous also. Poison dart frogs are small, brightly colored amphibians that live on tropical rainforest floors across Central and South America. Poison dart frogs are named for the toxins they secrete from their skin, which have traditionally been used to tips of hunters’ weapons. For example, the Embera and Noanama Indigenous people in western Colombia have used the skin of golden poison frogs (Phyllobates terribilis) to tip blowgun darts for hundreds of years.

Explanation

Pair 1 is incorrectly matched: The Indri is endemic to the island country of Madagascar, specifically inhabiting the eastern rainforests. The unique geographical features and climate of Madagascar have facilitated the evolution of numerous species found nowhere else on Earth, including the Indri.

Pair 2 is incorrectly matched: Elk is the largest and most advanced subspecies of red deer, found in North America and in the high mountains of Central Asia. It is a member of the deer family. Recent genetic studies suggest that the "red deer" may have three species:

European red deer.

Tibetan-West Chinese red deer.

Elk.

Pair 3 is incorrectly matched: Bonobos and chimpanzees look very similar and both share 98.7% of their DNA with humans--making the two species our closest living relatives. Bonobos are usually a bit smaller, leaner, and darker than chimpanzees. They are found only in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Their discontinuous range extends from the Lualaba River in the east to the Kasai/Sankuru Rivers in the south and as far as the Congo River in the west and around Lake Tumba/Lake Mai-Ndombe.