December 16 2023 Prelims Practice Questions (PPQs)

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• Tax Inspectors Without Borders (TIWB), a joint initiative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and OECD, and was launched in July 2015 to strengthen developing countries’ auditing capacity and multinationals’ compliance worldwide.
• Recently, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), launched a programme in Saint Lucia on 14th December, 2023 and India has been chosen as the Partner Administration and will provide Tax Experts for this programme.

Statement 2 is correct

• This programme is expected to be of 12-18 months’ duration in which India, in collaboration with the TIWB Secretariat and support of the UNDP Country Office, Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, aims to aid Saint Lucia in strengthening its tax administration by transferring technical knowledge and skills to its tax administration, and through sharing of best practices.
• The focus of the programme will be on effective use of automatic exchange of information under the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) framework.

Answer: (b) 2 Only ; Difficulty Level: Easy

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct

• Vote value of each MLA differs from State to State based on a calculation that factors in its population vis-a-vis the number of members in its legislative Assembly.
• The value of each MLA’s vote is determined by dividing the population of the State by the number of MLAs in its legislative Assembly, and the quotient achieved is further divided by 1000.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• The fixed value of each vote by an MP of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha is 700.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• According to Article 61, the President can be removed from his office before the expiry of his term only on the grounds of violation of the constitution.
• However, the Constitution does not define the meaning of the phrase ‘violation of the constitution’.

Statement 4 is correct

• The impeachment process can be started from any house of the parliament by levelling charges against him.
• The notice bearing the charges against the president must be signed by at least a quarter of the members of the house.
• The resolution to impeach the president must be passed by a special majority (two-thirds) in the originating house.

Answer: (b) Only two; Difficulty Level: Medium

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct

• As per Article 128 of Indian Constitution, any retired judge of the Supreme Court of India can be called back to sit and act as a Supreme Court judge by the Chief Justice of India with the prior permission of the President of India.

Statement 2 is correct

• Features of Phase III of e-Courts Mission

• Digital and Paperless Courts aimed at bringing court proceedings under a digital format in a court;
• Online Court focussing on eliminating the presence of litigants or lawyers in the court;
• Expansion of the scope of Virtual Courts beyond adjudication of Traffic Violations;
• Use of emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its subsets like Optical Character Recognition (OCR) etc for analysis of case pendency, forecasting future litigation.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• As part of the National e-Governance Plan, the project is under implementation since 2007 for Information and Communications Technology (ICT) development of the Indian Judiciary
• e-Courts project is being implemented in association with e-Committee Supreme Court of India and the Department of Justice.

Statement 4 is correct

• NJDG Database: National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) is a database of orders, judgments, and cases, created as an online platform under the e-Courts Project.
• It provides information relating to judicial proceedings/decisions of all computerized district and subordinate courts.

Answer: (c) Only three ; Difficulty level: Medium

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct

• Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs) are government securities denominated in grams of gold, providing a viable alternative to owning physical gold.
• Investors are required to pay the issue price in cash and receive a cash redemption upon maturity.
• SGBs will be sold through Scheduled Commercial banks (except Small Finance Banks, Payment Banks and Regional Rural Banks), Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited, Clearing Corporation of India Limited, designated post offices and National Stock Exchange of India Limited and Bombay Stock Exchange Limited, either directly or through agents.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• The nominal value of the bond based on the simple average of closing price published by the Indian Bullion and Jewellers Association (IBJA) for gold of 999 purity of the last three working days of the week preceding the subscription period.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• For individual investors who undergo a change in residential status from resident to non-resident, they are permitted to retain the SGB until its early redemption or maturity.

Statement 4 is incorrect

• The Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs) offer a fixed interest rate of 2.50% per annum on the initial investment amount. The interest is credited semi-annually to the investor’s bank account, and the final interest payment is made upon maturity, along with the principal amount invested.
• While the interest income is subject to taxation in the hands of investors, the capital appreciation upon maturity remains exempt from taxes.

Answer: (a) Only one ; Difficulty Level: Medium

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect

• Channapatna Toys are traditional craft of Karnataka with a Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
• The 10-day Dussehra festival, also known as Gombe Habba or Gudiya Utsav is special for the toy makers of Channapatna as a large number of buyers come to buy the toys.

Statement 2 is incorrect

• These toys are made of ivory and wood.
• The wooden toys are inanimate and ideal for children as the chemical dye is not used in them and they do not have sharp edges.
• The demand for Channapatna’s toys increased after the government imposed a ban on the import of toys from China.

  

Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2 ; Difficulty Level: Easy

Correct

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct

• Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP): It is aimed at reducing the country’s dependence on crude oil imports, cutting carbon emissions and boosting farmers’ incomes.
• It is one of the principal biofuels, which is naturally produced by the fermentation of sugars by yeasts or via petrochemical processes such as ethylene hydration.
• Availability of large arable land, rising production of foodgrains and sugarcane leading to surpluses, availability of technology to produce ethanol from plant-based sources, and the feasibility of making vehicles compliant to ethanol blended petrol (EBP) are some of the supporting arguments used in the roadmap for E20, which refers to the target as “not only a national imperative, but also an important strategic requirement.

Statement 2 is correct

• The Government of India has advanced the target for 20% ethanol blending in petrol (also called E20) to 2025 from 2030.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• Nearly 25% of the country’s ethanol is made from cane juice, while another 50% comes from molasses, and the rest comes from grains, such as rice and maize.
• The Centre has signed off on a plan to procure maize, or corn, at minimum support prices (MSP) to incentivize more farmers to grow it enough to meet the country’s biofuel needs affordably.
• Maize has emerged as a key commercial crop in the country because of its use in making ethanol, which is blended with petrol.
• It is also a major poultry feed. Therefore, apart from being food and feed, its industrial use makes it a lucrative crop that can benefit farmers with a bigger market provided they get the right price.
• The government’s decision will help to reduce the dependence on sugar or staples, such as broken rice and full-grain rice, which are also primary sources for making ethanol.

Statement 4 is incorrect

• One of the significant issues related to Ethanol Blending is of its Efficiency. Fossil Fuels produce more energy than some of the biofuels. E.g. 1 gallon of ethanol produces less energy as compared to 1 gallon of gasoline (a fossil fuel).

Answer: (b) Only two; Difficulty Level: Easy