UPSC Prelims 1999 — solved PYQs

Rajagopalachari was a moderate leader who favoured negotiation and compromise. He did not view the war as an opportunity for militant exploitation.

Jinnah initially offered conditional cooperation with the British during the war and used the situation to strengthen the League's bargaining position, but the description better fits Bose.

Nehru was sympathetic to the Allied cause against fascism, though he insisted on Indian freedom as a precondition for cooperation. He did not view the war as simply an opportunity to exploit.

This is incorrect because the divisible pool of central taxes is shared with the States; the Union does not retain the whole amount.

This is incorrect because income tax is not wholly assigned to the States.

This is incorrect. In fact, surcharges imposed by the Union are generally not shareable, whereas the divisible pool of central taxes is shared.

Money lenders are non-institutional sources, and this option also excludes valid institutional sources.

Commercial banks are also a major institutional source and should not be excluded.

Money lenders are classified as non-institutional sources of credit.

No such constitutional removal happened.

Industrial production remained a core economic activity.

Many PSUs continued after 1991; there was no instantaneous blanket privatization.

The Cauvery basin lies further south along the Tamil Nadu coast and does not contain the Ravva block.

The Mahanadi basin is located off the Odisha coast, well to the north of the Ravva block.

The Palar-Pennar basin is a minor sedimentary basin; Ravva's oil operations are in the Krishna-Godavari area.

The Simon Commission (1927-29) was not about a Federal Union of British provinces in the manner described. It also did not make proposals in May of any significant year matching this context.

The Gandhi-Irwin Pact (1931) was an agreement between Gandhi and Lord Irwin regarding the suspension of civil disobedience. It did not propose a Federal Union.

The Cripps Mission (1942) offered Dominion Status after the war but did not use the specific formulation of a 'Federal Union' in the manner described here.

Scythia refers to the homeland of the Scythians (Sakas) in Central Asia, not the Indo-Greek kingdom.

Zedrasia (Gedrosia) was a region in southeastern Iran/Balochistan, not the location of the Indo-Greek kingdom.

Aria was a region in western Afghanistan around modern Herat, not the primary base of the Indo-Greek kingdom.

Incorrect. The Constitution protects linguistic minorities as well, particularly through Articles 29 and 30 which cover both religious and linguistic minorities.

Incorrect. The Constitution also protects religious minorities. Articles 29 and 30 explicitly cover both categories.

Incorrect. While religious and linguistic minorities are constitutionally recognised, 'ethnic minorities' is not a separate constitutional category used in the fundamental rights framework.

This incorrectly assigns Anand Math to Savarkar and The First Indian War of Independence to Bankim Chandra.

This incorrectly assigns Life Divine to Tagore and Sadhana to Aurobindo.

This incorrectly assigns works to multiple authors.

While racial discrimination existed under British rule, the specific term 'imperial preference' refers to trade and tariff policy, not racial attitudes.

The subordination of Indian interests was a broader consequence of colonial rule, but 'imperial preference' specifically denotes the preferential trade tariff system.

The term does not relate to the political hierarchy between British agents and Indian princes; it is an economic concept relating to trade tariffs.

Foreign capital was available but was channelled into extractive industries, railways and plantations that served British interests, not into Indian-owned manufacturing.

India had abundant natural resources including coal, iron ore, and cotton. The constraint was not resource scarcity but colonial economic policies.

While some wealthy Indians invested in land, the primary barrier was structural: colonial trade policies, tariff discrimination, and absence of heavy industry infrastructure.

This incorrectly matches 1775 with the Second Anglo-Mysore War. The First Anglo-Maratha War began in 1775.

This incorrectly pairs 1775 with the Second Anglo-Mysore War instead of the First Anglo-Maratha War.

This incorrectly places the First Anglo-Afghan War in 1824 and the First Anglo-Burmese War in 1838, reversing their actual dates.

Balban was known as a stern ruler, but this particular comment by Badauni was not made about his death. Balban died in 1287.

Alauddin Khalji was a powerful but oppressive ruler. However, Badauni's famous remark was not directed at his death.

Firoz Shah Tughlaq was generally regarded as a benevolent ruler who tried to reverse many harsh policies of his predecessor. This comment would not fit his reign.

R is the correct explanation of A. Chile's copper production leadership stems directly from its porphyry copper deposits.

R is true. Chile's porphyry copper deposits are the largest in the world.

A is true. Chile has been the world's largest copper producer for decades.

Incorrect. Equality before law under Article 14 is available to all persons, including foreign nationals residing in India.

Incorrect. Protection of life and personal liberty under Article 21 extends to all persons, not just citizens.

Incorrect. Freedom of religion under Articles 25-28 is available to all persons in India, not restricted to citizens alone.

While the mosque does feature turrets, this answer excludes the other two correct features, making it incomplete.

This excludes the turret feature, which is a notable architectural element of the mosque.

This excludes the similarity with Buddhist pagodas, which is one of the most distinctive features of Kashmiri mosque architecture.

R does correctly explain A; the gene's bacterial origin is the reason it was identified and transferred into cotton for pest resistance.

R is true; the Bt gene comes from Bacillus thuringiensis, a soil bacterium.

A is also true; Bt cotton producing Cry proteins toxic to bollworms has been commercially cultivated worldwide.

This statement is broadly correct. The Konkan Railway stretches approximately 741 km (often rounded to about 760 km) from Roha in Maharashtra to Mangalore in Karnataka.

This is correct. The Konkan Railway passes through Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and touches Kerala near Mangalore.

This is correct in context. The Konkan Railway was the first dedicated railway line cutting through the Western Ghats along the coast.

The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 directly deals with environmental protection by regulating diversion of forest land for non-forest purposes.

The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 provides for mandatory insurance against liability arising from accidents involving hazardous substances, serving an environmental protection purpose.

The Port Laws Amendment Act has provisions relating to environmental safeguards for port operations.

This incorrectly pairs adrenaline with females and estrogen with anger/fear, reversing the well-known associations.

This wrongly assigns insulin to partner attraction and pheromones to glucose regulation.

This is entirely incorrect, swapping adrenaline with estrogen and insulin with pheromones.

Incorrect. A Constitution Amendment Bill can be introduced in either House of Parliament, not just in the Lok Sabha. The Rajya Sabha has equal power to initiate such bills.

Incorrect. State Legislatures cannot introduce a Constitution Amendment Bill. They can only ratify certain amendment bills passed by Parliament. The amendment process under Article 368 is initiated only in Parliament.

Incorrect. Neither State Legislatures nor the President can introduce a Constitution Amendment Bill. The President's role comes only at the end, when assent is required after the bill is passed.

The term 'Aryan' was historically misused to denote an ethnic or racial category, but modern scholarship firmly rejects this interpretation. It is a linguistic label, not an ethnic one.

While the early Vedic people were semi-nomadic pastoralists, the word 'Aryan' itself does not mean nomadic people. It refers to a language family grouping.

The idea of a 'superior race' was a 19th-century European distortion that has been thoroughly discredited. The original Sanskrit 'arya' meant 'noble' in a cultural sense, and the term is now understood as a linguistic classification.

William Hawkins arrived at Jahangir's court in 1608-1609 seeking trading privileges. This pair is correctly matched.

Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, the French gem merchant and traveller, visited India during Shah Jahan's reign and later. This pair is correctly matched.

Niccolao Manucci was an Italian traveller who spent decades in India and chronicled Aurangzeb's reign extensively. This pair is correctly matched.

Employment days may correlate with poverty but are not the basis for the BPL classification.

Social group membership alone does not determine BPL status.

Daily wages alone do not define the poverty line methodology.

The Indian Councils Act of 1861 lasted until 1892, a span of about 31 years.

The Indian Councils Act of 1892 lasted until 1909, approximately 17 years.

The Government of India Act of 1919 (Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms) lasted until 1935, approximately 16 years.