Previous Year UPSC Questions

Explanation

The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 was introduced in Lok Sabha on September 19, 2023. The Bill seeks to reserve one-third of the total number of seats in Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies for women. Key features of the Bill:

Statement 1 is incorrect: The next delimitation exercise, or redrawing of constituency boundaries, is scheduled to be held in 2026. Effectively, this means that the earliest implementation of the women’s quota in the Lok Sabha can be in the 2029 general election (19th Lok Sabha), rather than in next year’s polls.

Statement 2 is correct: The reservation will be effective after the census conducted after the commencement of this Bill has been published. Based on the census, delimitation will be undertaken to reserve seats for women. The reservation will be provided for a period of 15 years. However, it shall continue till such date as determined by a law made by Parliament.

Statement 3 is correct: The Bill reserves, as nearly as may be, one-third of all seats for women in Lok Sabha, state legislative assemblies, and the Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. This will also apply to the seats reserved for SCs and STs in Lok Sabha and state legislatures. Seats reserved for women will be rotated after each delimitation, as determined by a law made by Parliament.

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect: The authority to recognize and declare a community as a Scheduled Tribe is vested in the President of India under Article 342 of the Indian Constitution. The President issues a notification specifying the Scheduled Tribes in relation to a State or Union Territory, after consulting with the Governor of the concerned State. However, the Governor does not have independent authority to declare any community as a Scheduled Tribe.

Statement 2 is correct: The status of a Scheduled Tribe is State/ Union Territory-specific. A community recognized as a Scheduled Tribe in one State may not necessarily enjoy the same status in another State unless it is explicitly notified as such for that State by the President. This reflects the differing socio-economic and cultural contexts across States, as well as variations in tribal populations.

Explanation

Pair 1 is correctly matched: Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS: Indian People’s Association) was established in 1951 by Shyama Prasad Mukherjee.

Pair 2 is incorrectly matched: Rajagopalachari was associated with the Swatantra Party, not with the Socialist Party.

Pair 3 is correctly matched: Jagjivan Ram formed the Congress for Democracy in 1977. It was established after Jagjivan Ram, Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna, and Nandini Satpathy parted ways with Indira Gandhi’s Indian National Congress, criticizing her leadership during the Emergency.

Pair 4 is incorrectly matched: Acharya Narendra Dev was deeply involved in the peasant movement and held the position of president of the All-India Kisan Congress. He remained affiliated with the Socialist Party and later the Praja Socialist Party until his passing in 1956.

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct: Part IXA of the Constitution was inserted by the Constitution (Seventy-fourth Amendment) Act, 1992. It contains provisions for local self-government at the urban level (including powers of the municipalities).

Statement 2 is correct: Emergency provisions are outlined in Part XVIII of the Constitution, covering Articles 352 to 360, including National Emergency (Article 352), State Emergency (Article 356), and Financial Emergency (Article 360). These provisions empower the Central government to address any extraordinary situations effectively.

Statement 3 is correct: Part XX deals with the provisions related to the amendment of the Constitution (Art 368). Parliament may, in the exercise of its constituent power, amend by way of addition, variation or repeal any provision of the Constitution in accordance with the procedure laid down in this part.

Explanation

The Ganga River originates from the Gangotri Glacier in the Himalayas and flows into the Bay of Bengal. It drains about one-fourth of India’s land area and supports hundreds of millions of people. The river generally flows from northwest to southeast. The Yamuna River passes through the Delhi region and follows a southeastward path, roughly parallel to the Ganges. It eventually joins the Ganges near Prayagraj (Allahabad).

Option (b) is correct: The main left-bank tributaries of the Ganga are (from west to east)- in the order of joining:

1. Ramganga 2. Gomati

3. Ghaghara 4. Gandak

5. Kosi The major Right bank tributaries are Yamuna, Son, Punpun, Damodar, and Ajay. Among these, Yamuna is the largest and most significant.

Explanation

The longest border between any two countries in the world is between Canada and the United States, which spans approximately 8,891 kilometers (5,525 miles). The border is divided into two: the border shared with Canada by the continental United States and the border that the state of Alaska shares with northern Canada. Eight Canadian provinces and thirteen American states run along the shared boundary.

Explanation

The Red Sea is a narrow body of water. It stretches about 1,200 miles (1,930 km) southeast from Suez, Egypt. The sea ends at the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects to the Gulf of Aden. From there, it leads into the Arabian Sea.

Statement 1 is correct: The Red Sea is located in a region characterized by arid and semi-arid climates, with very little rainfall throughout the year. The surrounding regions, such as parts of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan, experience low annual precipitation. The average annual rainfall along the Red Sea coast is less than 100 mm(annually) in most areas, with some regions experiencing no rainfall at all. For example, the city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on the Red Sea coast, has an annual rainfall of only about 80 mm.

Statement 2 is correct: The Red Sea is almost unique in that it does not receive significant inflows from any large rivers. While there are some small streams and wadis (seasonal rivers such as Wadi Fatimah) that flow into the Red Sea, they do not significantly contribute to the volume of water in the sea. The Red Sea’s water balance is mainly influenced by evaporation, with a very high rate due to the hot and dry climate. However, according to Britannica, no water enters the Red Sea from rivers.

Explanation

Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) and Ghana are the two largest cocoa producers in the world, contributing over 60% of the global cocoa supply. Cote d’Ivoire alone produces about 40%, making it the top producer, while Ghana, the second-larg-est producer, is known for its high-quality cocoa beans. Cocoa from these countries is a key ingredient in the global chocolate industry, supplying major manufacturers like Nestlé, Mars, and Hershey. Their dominance in cocoa production is due to a tropical climate with hot, humid conditions, fertile soil ideal for cocoa cultivation, and a labor-intensive farming system supported by extensive smallholder networks.

Explanation

The North Sea is a shallow, northeastern arm of the Atlantic Ocean located between the British Isles and the mainland of northwestern Europe and covering an area of 220,000 square miles (570,000 square km).

Option (b) is correct:

The sea is bordered by:

The island of Great Britain to the southwest and west, The Orkney and Shetland islands to the northwest, Norway to the northeast, Denmark to the east, Germany and the Netherlands to the southeast Belgium and France to the south.

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect: The concept of stupa originates from pre-Buddhist burial mounds in India which were used for funerary purposes such as burial mounds called ’Megalithic cairns’. Buddhism adopted and transformed these existing structures into significant religious monuments. While the architectural form of the Stupa was adapted and refined by Buddhists, its origins are not exclusively Buddhist.

Statement 2 is correct: Stupas were primarily built to serve as repositories of sacred relics. These relics could include the ashes or bodily remains of the Buddha, his disciples, or other revered figures. Example: the Dhamek Stupa at Sarnath (Uttar Pradesh) is believed to mark the spot where the Buddha delivered his first sermon. The relics were placed in a small chamber called the ’harmika’ at the center of the stupa, making it a focal point for veneration and pilgrimage.

Statement 3 is correct: Stupas serve both votive and commemorative functions often constructed as acts of reverence and offerings to the Buddha or other enlightened figures. They are built to honor important events, individuals, or historical locations. Stupas also function as centers of devotion, meditation, and pilgrimage. For example, the Dhamek Stupa at Sarnath commemorates the Buddha’s first sermon.