Q.12385·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyNet profits are only 2-3% of their total assets for central public sector undertakings, lower than for the private corporate sector. While the public sector or the State-led entrepreneurship played an important role in triggering India's industrialization, our evolving development needs, comparatively less-than-satisfactory performance of the public sector enterprises, the maturing of our private sector, a much larger social base now available for expanding entrepreneurship and the growing institutional capabilities to enforce competition policies would suggest that the time has come to review the role of public sector. What should the portfolio composition of the government be? It should not remain static at all times. The airline industry works well as a purely private affair. At the opposite end are rural roads, whose sparse traffic makes them unviable, have to be on the balance-sheet of the State. If the government did not own our roads, they would not exist. Similarly, public health capital in our towns and cities will need public ownership for better sector. Equally, preservation and improvement of forest cover will have to be a new priority for the public sector assets. Take the example of steel. With near-zero tariffs, India is a globally competitive market for the metal. Indian firms export steel into the global market, which demonstrates there is no gap in technology. Indian companies are buying up global steel companies, which shows there is no gap in capital availability. Under these conditions, private ownership works best. Private ownership is clearly desirable in regulated industries, ranging from finance to infrastructure, where a government agency performs the function of regulation and multiple competing firms are located in the private sector. Here, the simple and clean solution – government as the umpire and the private sector as the players is what works best. In many of these industries, we have a legacy of government ownership, where productivity tends to be lower, fear of bankruptcy is absent, and the risk of asking for money from the tax payer is ever present. There is also the conflict of interest between government as an owner and as the regulator. The formulation and implementation of competition policy will be more vigorous and fair if government companies are out of action. According to the passage, what is/are the reason/reasons for saying that the time has come to review the role of public sector? 1.Now public sector has lost its relevance in the industrialisation process. 2.Public sector does not perform satisfactorily. 3.Entrepreneurship in private sector is expanding. 4.Effective competition policies are available now. Which of the statements given above is/are correct in the given context?View question
Q.12386·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyMany nations now place their faith in capitalism and government choices as the strategy to create wealth for their people. The spectacular economic growth seen in Brazil, China and India after the liberalisation of their economies is proof of its enormous potential and success. However, the global banking crisis and the economic recession have left many bewildered. The debates tend to focus on free market operations and forces, their efficiency and their ability for self-correction. Issues of justice, integrity and honesty are rarely elaborated to highlight the failure of the global banking system. The apologists of the system continue to justify the excesses of capitalism and argue that the recent crisis was a blip. Their arguments betray an ideological bias with the assumptions that an unregulated market is fair and competent, and that the exercise of private greed will be in the larger public interest. Few recognize the bidirectional relationship between capitalism and greed; that each reinforces the other. Surely, a more honest conceptualisation of the conflicts of interest among the rich and powerful types who have benefited from the system, their biases and ideology is needed; the course of unchecked creation should also highlight the resultant gross inequity. "The exercise of private greed will be in the larger public interest" from the passage 1.refers to the false ideology of capitalism. 2.underlines the righteous claims of the free market. 3.shows the benevolence of capitalism. 4.ignores resultant gross inequity. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?View question
Q.12387·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyMany nations now place their faith in capitalism and government choices as the strategy to create wealth for their people. The spectacular economic growth seen in Brazil, China and India after the liberalisation of their economies is proof of its enormous potential and success. However, the global banking crisis and the economic recession have left many bewildered. The debates tend to focus on free market operations and forces, their efficiency and their ability for self-correction. Issues of justice, integrity and honesty are rarely elaborated to highlight the failure of the global banking system. The apologists of the system continue to justify the excesses of capitalism and argue that the recent crisis was a blip. Their arguments betray an ideological bias with the assumptions that an unregulated market is fair and competent, and that the exercise of private greed will be in the larger public interest. Few recognize the bidirectional relationship between capitalism and greed; that each reinforces the other. Surely, a more honest conceptualisation of the conflicts of interest among the rich and powerful types who have benefited from the system, their biases and ideology is needed; the course of unchecked creation should also highlight the resultant gross inequity. With reference to "ideological bias", the passage implies thatView question
Q.12388·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyMany nations now place their faith in capitalism and government choices as the strategy to create wealth for their people. The spectacular economic growth seen in Brazil, China and India after the liberalisation of their economies is proof of its enormous potential and success. However, the global banking crisis and the economic recession have left many bewildered. The debates tend to focus on free market operations and forces, their efficiency and their ability for self-correction. Issues of justice, integrity and honesty are rarely elaborated to highlight the failure of the global banking system. The apologists of the system continue to justify the excesses of capitalism and argue that the recent crisis was a blip. Their arguments betray an ideological bias with the assumptions that an unregulated market is fair and competent, and that the exercise of private greed will be in the larger public interest. Few recognize the bidirectional relationship between capitalism and greed; that each reinforces the other. Surely, a more honest conceptualisation of the conflicts of interest among the rich and powerful types who have benefited from the system, their biases and ideology is needed; the course of unchecked creation should also highlight the resultant gross inequity. The apologists of the "Free Market System", according to the passage, believe inView question
Q.12389·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyNet profits are only 2-3% of their total assets for central public sector undertakings, lower than for the private corporate sector. While the public sector or the State-led entrepreneurship played an important role in triggering India's industrialization, our evolving development needs, comparatively less-than-satisfactory performance of the public sector enterprises, the maturing of our private sector, a much larger social base now available for expanding entrepreneurship and the growing institutional capabilities to enforce competition policies would suggest that the time has come to review the role of public sector. What should the portfolio composition of the government be? It should not remain static at all times. The airline industry works well as a purely private affair. At the opposite end are rural roads, whose sparse traffic makes them unviable, have to be on the balance-sheet of the State. If the government did not own our roads, they would not exist. Similarly, public health capital in our towns and cities will need public ownership for better sector. Equally, preservation and improvement of forest cover will have to be a new priority for the public sector assets. Take the example of steel. With near-zero tariffs, India is a globally competitive market for the metal. Indian firms export steel into the global market, which demonstrates there is no gap in technology. Indian companies are buying up global steel companies, which shows there is no gap in capital availability. Under these conditions, private ownership works best. Private ownership is clearly desirable in regulated industries, ranging from finance to infrastructure, where a government agency performs the function of regulation and multiple competing firms are located in the private sector. Here, the simple and clean solution – government as the umpire and the private sector as the players is what works best. In many of these industries, we have a legacy of government ownership, where productivity tends to be lower, fear of bankruptcy is absent, and the risk of asking for money from the tax payer is ever present. There is also the conflict of interest between government as an owner and as the regulator. The formulation and implementation of competition policy will be more vigorous and fair if government companies are out of action. The author prefers government as the umpire and private sector as players because
Q.12390·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyA question paper must have a question on one of the eight poets – A, B, C, D, E, F, G or H. The first four belong to the medieval period while the rest are considered modern poets. Generally, modern poets figure in the question paper in alternate years. Generally, those who like H like G also; and those who like F like E also. The paper-setter does not like to ask about F as he has written a book on F, but he likes F. Last year, the paper contained a question on A. On the basis of the information given, this year’s paper is most likely to contain a question on:View question
Q.12391·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyIn a group of six women there are four dancers, four vocal musicians, one actress and three violinists. Girija and Vanaja are among the violinists while Jalaja and Shailaja do not know how to play the violin. Shailaja and Tanuja are among the dancers. Jalaja, Vanaja, Shailaja and Tanuja are all vocal musicians and two of them are also violinists. If Pooja is an actress, who among the following is certainly a dancer and a violinist?View question
Q.12392·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyCynthia was a shy girl. She believed that she was plain and untalented. One day her teacher ordered the entire class to show up for audition for the school play. Cynthia nearly died of fright when she was told that she would have to stand on stage in front of the entire class and deliver dialogues. The mere thought of it made her feel sick. But a remarkable transformation occurred during the audition. A thin, shy girl, her knees quaking, her stomach churning in terror, began to stun everyone with her excellent performance. Her bored classmates suddenly stopped their noisy chat to stare at her slender figure on the stage. At the end of her audition, the entire room erupted in thunderous applause. Cynthia was afraid to stand on stage becauseView question
Q.12393·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyIn front of us was walking a bare-headed old man in tattered clothes. He was driving his beasts. They were all laden with heavy loads of clay from the hills and looked tired. The man carried a long whip which perhaps he himself had made. As he walked down the road he stopped now and then to eat the wild berries that grew on bushes along the uneven road. When he threw away the seeds, the bold birds would fly to peck at them. Sometimes a stray dog watched the procession philosophically and then began to bark. When this happened, my two little sons would stand still holding my hands firmly. A dog can sometimes be dangerous indeed. The expression “a stray dog watched the procession philosophically” means thatView question
Q.12394·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyIn front of us was walking a bare-headed old man in tattered clothes. He was driving his beasts. They were all laden with heavy loads of clay from the hills and looked tired. The man carried a long whip which perhaps he himself had made. As he walked down the road he stopped now and then to eat the wild berries that grew on bushes along the uneven road. When he threw away the seeds, the bold birds would fly to peck at them. Sometimes a stray dog watched the procession philosophically and then began to bark. When this happened, my two little sons would stand still holding my hands firmly. A dog can sometimes be dangerous indeed. The author's children held his hands firmly becauseView question
Q.12395·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyThe letters L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S and T in their order are substituted by nine integers 1 to 9 but not in that order. 4 is assigned to P. The difference between P and T is 6. The difference between N and T is 3. What is the integer assigned to N?View question
Q.12396·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyThe number of deaths among the army personnel is 18 in 1000, but among the civilian population it is 20 per 1000. Which one of the following inferences can be drawn from this statement?View question
Q.12397·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyGiven the statement: "Buses are the cause of more accidents than cars, and trucks cause fewer accidents than buses", which of the following conclusions can we draw?View question
Q.12398·Miscellaneous·2014·Easy"If political leadership fails to emerge, there is likelihood of military taking over power in developing countries. Rational student groups or labour may try to raise revolution but they are not likely to compete with the military. Military intervention, rule, and withdrawal from politics is closely related to a society’s level of political development." In the context of political development, the assumption in the above passage is that:View question
Q.12399·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyExamine the following statements: 1.George attends Music classes on Monday. 2.He attends Mathematics classes on Wednesday. 3.His Literature classes are not on Friday. 4.He attends History classes on the day following the day of his Mathematics classes. 5.On Tuesday, he attends his Sports classes. If he attends just one subject in a day and his Sunday is free, then he is also free on:View question
Q.12400·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyIn a row 'A' is in the 11th position from the left and 'B' is in the 10th position from the right. If 'A' and 'B' interchange, then 'A' becomes 18th from the left. How many persons are there in the row other than 'A' and 'B'?View question
Q.12401·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyThe following table gives population and total income of a city for four years : Which one of the following statements is correct in respect of the above data?View question
Q.12402·Miscellaneous·2014·EasyAs per agreement with a bank, a businessman had to refund a loan in some equal instalments without interest. After paying 18 instalments he found that 60 percent of his loan was refunded. How many instalments were there in the agreement?View question