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ECONOMIC SURVEY 2014-15

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1.

Which of the following reasons are

expected to maintain cost of energy imports
down?

(a) Power
(c) Steel
6.

i. Decline in oil prices.

ii. Increase in shale gas production by
USA.
iii. Rise of Russia as an alternate energy
provider and challenger to OPEC.
Codes

i. Increase in cost of Govt. borrowing.

ii. Reduction in cost of infrastructure
financing.
iii. Recapitalization of PSUs.
Codes
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
7.

5.

[ 2 ]

i Only
i and iii Only
ii and iii Only
All of the above

Which of the following was not a valid

reason to award special category status to
a state?

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

8.

GS

i. Presence of a large business lobby with

vested interests.
ii. Lack of funds to upgrade market
infrastructure.
Codes

4.

Which of the following is/are the likely

impacts of SLR reduction?

OR
E

3.

(a) Increase in public sector bank NPAs.

(b) Stalling of PPP projects.
(c) Decline in investors confidence and
fall in capital markets.
(d) Increase in inflation.
Which of the following is/are primary
reason of non-implementation of Model
APMC act recommendations?

SC

2.

(a) i Only
(b) i and ii
(c) ii and iii
(d) All of the above
Which of the following is not a likely risk
from private sector firms failure?

(b) Coal
(d) Transport

Reduction in CSS (Centrally sponsored

schemes) is expected to bring progressivity
to the Expenditure side to the government.
Which of the following is a valid
explanation for such effect?
i. CSS is poorly targeted and often the
benefits are received by relatively welloff.

(a) i Only
(b) ii Only
(c) Both
(d) None
Domestic convergence of industrial
productivity lacks in India and is one of the
major reasons for unbalanced regional
growth. Which of the following is not a
reason for such lack of convergence?
(a) Distortions in labour market.
(b) Development on the lines of
comparative advantage favors already
industrialized states.
(c) Distortions in capital markets.
(d) Lack of transparency and hurdles in
land acquisition.
Which of the following sectors is not a likely
beneficiary of the backward linkages of
growth in Railway infrastructure?

Difficult terrain.
Presence of International borders.
High share of tribal population.
Large income gap.

ii. There are huge leakages in the CSS,

which also benefit the non-needy.
Codes
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
9.

i Only
ii Only
Both
None

Which of the following is an example of

Pigouvian tax?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Tax on Diesel.
Education Cess.
Health Cess.
Compulsory contribution for disaster
relief.

ECONOMIC SURVEY

10.

According to Economic Survey, which of

the following have been identified as risk
factors on external sector in the coming
fiscal year?

14.

i. Despite high growth in financial

sector; there is decline in agricultural
credit.

i. Politics over Greece membership in EU.

ii. Increasing protectionism and rise of
trade-blocs.
iii. Strengthen of US Economy and exit
of FPI from emerging markets.

ii. Despite high credit creation; there is

no decrease in farm suicides.
iii. Despite high credit creation in
agriculture; there is limited capital
creation.

Codes:

Codes

Which of the following is not an example

of market distortionary force?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

12.

iv. Most of agricultural credit is disbursed

from urban and metropolitan
branches.

High MSP on rice and wheat.

Potassium based fertilizers subsidy.
Diesel subsidy (before Oct 2014).
LPG subsidy.

(a) i, ii and iii

(b) ii and iii
(c) iii and iv

(d) All of the above

15.

SC

11.

i and ii Only
i and iii Only
ii and iii Only
All of the above

OR
E

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Since the Balance of Payment crisis in Aug,

2013, Gold imports have declined steadily.
Which of the following are the valid reasons
for such a decline?

GS

i. Elimination of quantitative restrictions.

ii. Reduction in its value as a asset after
a steep decline in its price.
iii. Curbs on gold imports.

13.

16.

(b) Elimination of Government deficit.

Which of the following are among the

benefits provided by Direct Cash Transfers
over the product subsidy?
i. Non-distortionary
ii. Lesser leakages
iii. Last mile outreach
Codes
(a) i and ii
(b) ii and iii

According to Economic Survey 2014-15, a

large number of infrastructure projects are
stuck with private sector. Which of these is
not among the causes for such delays?

ECONOMIC SURVEY

(a) Increase in production capacity.

(d) Elimination of non-merit subsidies.

i Only
i and ii Only
ii and iii Only
i and iii Only

(a) Weak balance sheets.

(b) Poor market conditions.
(c) Deterioration in macro-economic
environment.
(d) Regulatory clearances.

Which of the following measures is most

appropriate for long term inflation control?

(c) Active Inflation targeting by RBI.

Codes
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Which of the following statements best

explain the agricultural credit puzzle in
India?

(c) i and iii

(d) All of the above
17.

Which of the following is/are not used as a

parameter for horizontal devolution by 14th
Finance Commission?
(a) Population

(b) Forest Cover

(c) Fiscal Discipline

(d) Income Gap

[3]

18.

Which of the following factors affect the

overall welfare impact of the Subsidy
allocated?
i. Demand elasticity of the product
among targeted population.
ii. Income elasticity of the product
among non-targeted population.
Codes:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Which of the following is not a spill-over

effect of improvement in railway freight
transport?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Reduction in environmental pollution.

Reduction in highway congestion.
Last mile delivery.
Reduction in transportation costs.

Which of the following reason have been

responsible for a rise in Debt-GDP ratio
since 2007?

SC

20.

Code:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

i. Decline in occupational share of

Industry.
ii. Reaching the peak production at least
5 years ago.
iii. Decline in share of organized or
registered industries.
iv. Share of manufacturing peaking at less
than 20 per cent share of GDP.
Codes

i only
i and ii only
i, ii and iii
i and iii only

Bitcoins
Credit Cards
Mobile money
Online Wallets (e.g., Paytm)

Most subsidies in India are regressive in

nature. Which of the following statements
is appropriate definition of regressive
subsidy?
(a) A regressive subsidy is one which is
in favor of rich instead of poor.

[ 4 ]

(a) i and ii
(b) i and iii
(c) ii and iii
(d) All of the above
24. Most of the states in India are experiencing
pre-mature de-industrialization. Which of
the following features is/are a symptom of
pre-mature de-industrialization?

Which of the following is an example of

virtual currency?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

22.

Codes

GS

i. Global financial crisis.

ii. Excessive spending on social sector.
iii. Increase in spending on infrastructure.

21.

i. Spillover effects to other sectors.

ii. Improvement in service quality.
iii. Backward linkages of railways.

OR
E

19.

i Only
ii Only
Both
None

(b) A regressive subsidy is one whose

benefits increase with increasing level
of consumption
(c) A regressive subsidy is one whose
benefits increase with increasing levels
of income.
(d) None of the above.
23. An increase in Investment in Indian
Railways increases investment in private
sector too. Which of the following are
among the reasons that lead to such
increase?

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
25.

i, ii and iii
ii, iii, and iv
iii and iv
All of the above

Which of the following factor is responsible

for achievement of prosperity under Lewis
model of structural transformation?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Labor productivity
Industrial Growth
Services Growth
Employment generation

ECONOMIC SURVEY

26.

(c) It is not enough to counter dumping

of untaxed or subsidized goods.
(d) It wouldnt be useful once GST is
implemented.

Which of the following options is/are

appropriate reason(s), because of which
Indian Government is not opting for big
bang reforms like 1991?
i. Currently Indian economy is not
facing any economic crisis.
ii. Big-bang economic reforms would
require constitutional changes in some
cases.

30.

i. Liability side repression means that

banks balance-sheet suffer from poor
quality and risky loans due to PSL
(Priority Sector Lending) targets.
ii. Liability side repression means that
banks are losing their deposits to
physical assets due to poor returns.
iii. Liability side repression is also
increased by high SLR requirements.

iii. There is no major demand for bigbang reforms from the private sector.
Codes

OR
E

(a) i and ii
(b) i and iii
(c) ii and iii
(d) iii only

Policy Paralysis is credited as one of the

most depressing feature of economic
performance of India in recent past. Which
of the following bottleneck was recognized
as the most stifling as per the economic
survey?
(a) Environmental clearance
(b) Lack of Funds

Codes

SC

27.

31.

GS

(c) Bureaucratic indifference

(d) Financial crisis 2008-09
28.

Which of the following factors is/are

among the variables that increase the Asset
side repression on financial sector?

(a) i Only

Countervailing duty doesnt suffers from

which of the following shortcomings in its
present implementation form in India?
(a) It is market distorting.
(b) It is against WTO norms.

ECONOMIC SURVEY

AAI has inaugrated 4 new airports in year

2014-15. Which of the following are among
the newly built airports?

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Codes

(d) All of the above

i and ii
i and iii
ii and iii
All of the above

Bhatinda
Bikaner
Jodhpur
Cuddapah

Codes:

ii. CRAR
iii. PLR

(b) i and ii
(c) i and iii

a.
b.
c.
d.

i.
ii.
iii.
iv.

i. High SLR

29.

The Indian banking sector suffers from

double repression; one side of such
repression is called liability side repression.
Which of the following statements are true
regarding liability side repression?

32.

i, ii and iii
i, iii and iv
i, ii and iv
All of the above

The Govt. of India has launched a new TV

Channel, Kissan TV. The funding towards
this channel would be considered as part
of which of the following subsidies of WTO?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Green Box Subsidy

Blue Box Subsidy
Amber Box Subsidy
None of the above
[5]

33.

(d) A moderate river inter-linking

program, to connect some water
deficient region with water surplus
region.

Which of the following statement(s) is/are

true about G-33?
i. A coalition of 33 developing countries
in WTO.
ii. Its major contention is protection of
the right of a country to provide PDS
and maintain public stocks.

36.

iii. Its suggestions were accepted in Bali

ministerial meet.
Codes:

i. Increase in ratio and share of faster

growing sectors.

(a) i and ii Only

(b) i and iii Only

ii. Better and more relevant calculation

model.

(c) ii and iii Only

iii. Correct indexing and inclusion of new

economic activities.

OR
E

(d) All of the above

34.

Government of India has introduced a

Special Focus Market Scheme from 2012.
Which of the following statements correctly
explain the difference between Special FMS
and FMS scheme?

SC

i. Special FMS provides Duty Credit

Scrip equivalent to 4% of FOB value
of exports, whereas the figure for FMS
is 3%.

Codes:

(a) i Only
(b) i and ii
(c) i and iii

(d) ii and iii

37.

ii. Special FMS is a temporary scheme

and eventually country moves to FMS
category.

(b) ERD = RD grants for creation of

capital assets

GS

(a) i Only
(b) i and ii
(c) i and iii
(d) All of the above
35.

Government has started a new program

called for Neeranchal from 2014 onwards.
Which of the following sector does the
program cater?
(a) Watershed development.
(b) Drinking water in urban slums.
(c) Public provision of drinking water in
market areas and along the highways.

[ 6 ]

Which of the following is correct regarding

Effective Revenue Deficit (ERD)?
(a) ERD = RD CFC

iii. The cost involved in providing duty

credit strip is covered by Counter
vailing duty.
Codes:

The change in base year from 2004-2005

to 2011-2012 in national income statistics
has increased the growth projections and
current growth rates. Which of the
following factors explain such increase
correctly?

(c) ERD = RD spending on physical

infrastructure
(d) ERD = RD + external loans for nonplan expenditure
38.

Indias External Debt now stands at about

455 Billion USD. Arrange the following
currencies in decreasing order of their share
in the Indias external debt.
i. US Dollar
ii. Euro
iii. SDR
iv. INR
Codes:
(a) i > iii > ii > iv
(b) i > ii > iii >iv

ECONOMIC SURVEY

(c) i > iv > iii > ii

factors was not responsible for such a

continuous decline?

(d) i > iv > ii > iii

39.

Which of the following taxes is/are example

of destination based tax?

(a) High interest rates.

(b) Lack of domestic demand.
(c) Increase in public sector investment
and crowing out.
(d) Lack of global demand.

i. Sales tax
ii. Excise duty
iii. GST

43.Quantitative easing by US FED (Federal

Reserve) has disturbing effects on Indian
economy at times. Which of the following
are most direct and immediate among
them?

Codes:
(a) i and iii
(b) ii and iii
(d) ii Only
40.

i. Creation of excess liquidity in US

domestic market.
ii. Huge FII inflows to emerging markets.
iii. Fall in exchange rate of USD.

OR
E

(c) iii Only

The newly launched Kissan TV comes under
which of the following support programs
to agricultural?

Codes:

(a) Lab to Farm support.

(b) Research and Development support.
(d) None of the above.

SC

(c) Agricultural extension support.

GS

41.Govt. of India has increased the sectors with

100 % FDI through automatic route. Which
of the following statement is/are true
regarding the FDI through automatic
route?
i. It allows FDI without permission in
any of the designated/listed sectors.

ii. It allows the rise in existing share

holding up to 100 % without any
permission, but not the first instance
of investment.
iii. It is compatible with Ease of Doing
Business Program and Make in
India.
Codes:
(a) i and ii
(b) i and iii
(c) ii and iii
(d) All of the above
42.The IIP (Index of Industrial Production) has
declined continuously since 2011 until third
quarter of 2014. Which of the following

ECONOMIC SURVEY

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

i and ii Only
ii and iii Only
i and iii Only
All of the above

44.Government of India has increased the

purview of Income Tax Settlement
Commission in 2014. Which of the
following statement is true regarding ITSC?
(a) It is Regulatory body.
(b) It is a Quasi-judicial body.
(c) It is a think-tank that specializes in
arbitration.
(d) None of the above.
45. Gross savings have declined by nearly 4
percent in India in past 5 years. Which of
the following sector is/are responsible for
such a steep decline?
i. PSU
ii. Private corporate sector
iii. Household sector
Codes
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

i Only
iii Only
i and iii Only
All of the above
[7]

46.

Codes:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
49.

SC

GS

Codes:

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

50.

51.

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

i Only
ii Only
iii Only
i and ii

Baltic Dry Index is used in shipping

industry. Which of the following statements
is/are true regarding the index?
i. It is an assessment of the price of
moving the major raw materials by
sea.
ii. It is calculated only for Baltic sea
countries.

High backward linkages

High Forward linkages
Low efficiency
Colonial economy

Service sector has been engine of growth

for Indias overall growth. On considered
inter-state, which of the state has grown
fastest in India?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

52.

i and ii
i and iii
ii and iii
All of the above

What does a low GVA to GVO ratio in

manufacturing sector in India signifies?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Codes:

[ 8 ]

Which of the following initiatives were

taken in 2014 to achieve labour welfare and
ensure labour reforms?
i. UAN for EPF
ii. Shram Suvidha Portal
iii. Amendments in Industrial Disputes
Act

Service sector contributes most towards

national income in India as well at a
cumulative level in the global GDP. Which
of the following statements is/are true
regarding the relationship in trends of
Indias service sector growth and Global
service sector?

i. As a percentage of total output share

of services has increased both in India
as well as globally.
ii. Average productivity in service sector
in both India and world are
converging towards other sectors.
iii. Average productivity level of service
sector labour is highest in both India
and world average, when compared
to other sectors.

48.

i, ii and iv
i, iii and iv
i and iii
i and iv

OR
E

(a) The amount of pollution created

annually, cant be recharged in a year,
even if all carbon emission is stopped.
(b) Humanitys annual demand on the
renewable resources has exceeded
what the Earth can renew in a year.
(c) Human requirements has increased
from what Earth can produce each
year.
(d) The pollution that is spread in a year,
takes more than a year before it is
naturally cleaned up by the
environment.
47.

iii. It is calculated only for goods crossing

from the trade route that falls on Baltic
sea.
iv. Baltic Sea Index has touched its lowest
level in its recorded history in 2015.

Which of the following statements

accurately explains Ecological Overshoot
Problem?

Bihar
Karnataka
Gujarat
Pondicherry

RBI decided to anchor its monetary policy

to headline CPI from April 2014; which of
the following is true correct about monetary
policy anchor?
(a) It involves targeting inflation in the
monetary policy.

ECONOMIC SURVEY

(b) It involves setting a target range for

inflation and then design policy
accordingly.
(c) It involves setting targets to keep
inflation below the bank rates and
design monetary policy to achieve
that.
(d) None of the above.
53.

Indian banking has suffered from lower

deposits in past 3 years. Which of the
following were the valid reasons for such a
slowdown?

Which of the following represents

relationship between CRAR and bank
stability?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

55.

GS

54.

i and ii
i and iii
ii and iii
All of the above

SC

Codes:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Inversely proportional.
Directly proportional.
hedging indicator for later.
None of the above.

Gross fixed capital formation in India has

declined in last 5 years. Which of the
following sectors has most downward
effect towards this?
(a) Decline in House construction.
(b) Decline in construction of new plants
and factories.
(c) Decline in machinery import and
manufacturing.
(d) Decline in investment in IPRs.

56.

Which of the following income heads is part

of Non- debt receipts?
i. Disinvestment receipts.
ii. Profits of PSUs.

ECONOMIC SURVEY

(a) i and ii
(b) i, ii and iii
(c) i, ii and iv
(d) All of the above
57. Debt service ratio is an important macro
economic indicator measuring a countrys
financial health. Which of the following is
true regarding Indias External Debt?
i. Despite
increase
in
Indias
Governmental Debt, the external debt
has remained within manageable
limits at less than 25 % of GDP.
ii. The ratio of short-term external debt
to Indias Forex reserves is greater
than 50% and is a cause of worry.
iii. Debt service ratio measures external
payable debt in ratio to exports
earning.
iv. Debt service ratio measures external
payable debt in ratio to NDP at Factor
Cost.
Codes:

OR
E

i. Negative real returns on deposits.

ii. Reduction in valuation of assets due
to settlements of past bad debts.
iii. Emergence of new alternate modes of
investment, such as mutual funds.

iii. Fines and penalties imposed by courts

and government.
iv. Recovery of loans.
Codes:

(a) i, ii and iii

(b) i and iii
(c) i and iv
(d) i, ii and iv
58. Which of the following statement is/are
true regarding Shanta Kumar committee
recommendations?
i. PDS price shall be slowly anchored to
MSP.
ii. PDS coverage must be limited only for
BLP card holders exclusively.
iii. Cash transfers shall be introduced over
time.
Codes:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

i and ii
ii and iii
i and iii
All of the above
[9]

59.

RESIDEX index is maintained by which of

the financial agency?

(a) Housing Development Finance

Corporation
(b) HDFC bank
(c) RBI
(d) National Housing Bank
60. Govt. of India has introduced Visa on
Arrival for a large number of countries to
boost tourism. Which of the following
statements captures Indias tourism
industry accurately?

ii. Indias global share among Annual

tourist arrival is very poor at 0.6
percent.
iii. Indias global share among annual
tourist receipts is even less than its
tourist arrivals due to low cost of
living.
Codes:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

i and ii
i and iii
ii and iii
All of the above

OR
E

i. India even lags behind Vietnam in

terms of annual Tourist arrivals.

GS

SC

[10]

ECONOMIC SURVEY