UPSC Aspirant 2025-26

Use following terms/concepts/ideas in your answers: * Ends & Means * Mass production v. Production by masses * Counter-hegemony * Democratic Deficit * Citizen-centric government * Public Debate * Public Opinion * Ideological Power * Minimization of wants * Power of Persuasion (Ethics) * Concept of Sarvodaya * Continuity of ends & means * Family Ethics * Shared Economy * Soft-power diplomacy * Proxy war * Psychological warfare * Vocational education * Collective farming * Golden Revolution (horticulture) * Evergreen Revolution * Green Revolution 2.0 #ias #upsc #mains #answerwriting

1. Unified Payments Interface has been developed by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). 2. With a UPI-enabled bank account, one can make real-time bank-to-bank payments, and even transact using Aadhaar number, mobile number or Virtual Payment Address (UPI-iD). Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) Both1 and 2 (b) 1 only (c) 2 only (d) Neither 1 nor 2 Ans: a Exp: Unified Payments Interface has been developed by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). While the payment platform has been around since 2015, it received a big push after demonetisation drive in November, 2016. Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is essentially a single platform that merges different banking services and features under one umbrella.

#Economics : #Quiz - 3 1. Consider following statements: National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) 1. is an initiative of Bank Board Bureau and RBI under the provisions of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 2. is “Not for Profit” Company, which intends to provide infrastructure to the entire Banking system in India for physical as well as electronic payment and settlement systems. 3. has developed the National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) program to meet the electronic tolling requirements of the Indian market. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b )1 and 2 only (c) 1 and 3 only (d) 2 and 3 only Ans: d Exp: It is an initiative of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) under the provisions of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007. It is a “Not for Profit” Company under the provisions of Section 25 of Companies Act 1956 (now Section 8 of Companies Act 2013), with an intention to provide infrastructure to the entire Banking system in India for physical as well as electronic payment and settlement systems. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has developed the National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) program to meet the electronic tolling requirements of the Indian market. 2. Reserve Bank of India recently revised its guidelines on liquidity risk management framework for: (a) Banks (b) Pension Funds (c) Insurance Companies (d) Non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) Ans: d Exp: Liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) norms for non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) will take effect on 1 December 2020. According to the RBI’s final guidelines on liquidity risk management framework for NBFCs and core investment companies, LCR, which refers to the share of high quality liquid assets to be set aside to meet short-term obligations, will be introduced in stages. Guidelines issued by the central bank on liquidity risk management would discourage NBFCs to go for short-tenor borrowings. Some non-banks in recent times came under financial stress due to the mismatch in the asset-liability profiles. In light of this, the recently issued guidelines by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) would also improve discipline in liquidity maintenance and transparency through better reporting standards. 3. Consider the following statements: 1. Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India was established on 1st October, 2016. 2. It has regulatory oversight over the Insolvency Professionals, Insolvency Professional Agencies, Insolvency Professional Entities and Information Utilities. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2 Ans: c Exp: The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India was established on 1st October, 2016 under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (Code). It has regulatory oversight over the Insolvency Professionals, Insolvency Professional Agencies, Insolvency Professional Entities and Information Utilities. 4. With reference to Merchant Discount Rate, consider following statements: 1. It is a fee charged from a merchant by a bank for accepting payments from customers through credit and debit cards in their establishments. 2. All companies with a turnover of Rs 50 crore or more need to provide the facility of payment through RuPay Debit card and UPI QR code to their customers, under which no MDR fee will be charged from customers as well as merchants Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) Both 1 and 2 (b) 2 only (c) 1 only (d) Neither 1 nor 2 Ans: a Exp: The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has notified a Budget announcement which said that business establishments with annual turnover of more than ₹50 crore, shall offer low-cost digital modes of payment (such as BHIM UPI, UPI QR Code, Aadhaar Pay, Debit Cards, NEFT, RTGS etc.) to their customers, and also no charge or Merchant Discount Rates (MDR) shall be imposed on customers and merchants. 5. Consider the following statements:

#History : Quiz - 2 The radical wing of the Congress Party with Jawaharlal Nehru as one of its main leaders, founded the Independence for India League in opposition to : (a) the Finance Commission (b) the National Development Council (c) Nehru Report (d) the Constitution of India Answer: (c) Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose as Secretaries and S. Srinivasa Iyengar as President founded Independence for Indian League to oppose the Nehru Report. They demanded complete independence and imposition of social structure in the country 2. Which one of the following was an emigre communist journal of M.N. Roy? (a) Kisan Sahba (b) The Worker (c) Vanguard (d) Anushilan Answer: (c) Communist Vanguard was an emigre Communist journal of M.N. Roy 3. What is the correct sequence of the following events? 1. The Lucknow Pact 2. The Introduction on Dyarchy 3. The Rowlatt Act 4. The Partition of Bengal Codes: (a) 1, 3, 2, 4 (b) 4, 1, 3, 2 (c) 1, 2, 3, 4 (d) 4, 3, 2, 1 Answer: (b) Lucknow Pact - 1916; Introduction of Diarchy under Montford Reforms (GIA 1919) - December, 1919; Rowlatt Act - February 1919; Partition of Bengal - 1905 4. The Barrah dacoity was the first major venture of the revolutionary terrorists of the freedom movement in : (a) Bombay–Karnataka (b) Punjab (c) East Bengal (d) The Madras Presidency Answer: (c) In 1908, Barrah Dacoity was organized by Dacca Anushilan under Pulin Das in East Bengal. 5. In 1930, Mahatma Gandhi started Civil Disobedience Movement from : (a) Sevagram (b) Dandi (c) Sabarmati (d) Wardha Answer: (c) On 12 March, 1930, Gandhi started his civil disobedience movement by starting Dandi March from Sabarmati Ashram in Gujarat and reached Dandi on 6 April 1930 and broke the salt law. #prelims #prelims2021 #quiz #ias

#Geography & #Environmental Studies : #Quiz No - 1 1. The standard time of the following countries is ahead of or behind Greenwich Mean Time depending on whether they are East or West of the longitude passing through Greenwich. 1. Cuba 2. Greece 3. Iraq 4. Costa Rica 5. Japan Which one of the following sequential orders gives the correct arrangement of the countries according to their standard time from ahead to behind GMT ? (a) 5, 3, 2, 1, 4 (b) 2, 4, 1, 3, 5 (c) 4, 1, 3, 2, 5 (d) 3, 5, 4, 1, 2 Answer: (a) Greenwich Mean Time is the standard time for time assessment in different countries. The countries which lies east of the Greenwich line is ahead of Greenwich Mean Time while the countries which lies west of Greenwich has their standard time behind the Greenwich Mean Time. So, the correct sequence of the countries are Japan, Iraq, Greece, Cuba and Costa Rica. 2. The original home of the gypsies was : (a) Egypt (b) Russia (c) India (d) Persia Answer: (c) The ‘Gypsies’ are a group of people found in Central Asia. But, the original home of Gypsies was in India (Western Rajasthan and Punjab) area. ‘Gypsies’ are an ethnic group, which for unknown reasons took to a wandering life style during the late middle ages. 3. Arakan Yoma is the extension of the Himalayas located in : (a) Baluchistan (b) Myanmar (c) Nepal (d) Kashmir Answer: (b) Arakan Yoma is located in western Myanmar. It is a part of eastern Himalayas. It includes the Naga hills, the Chin hills and the Patkai range which includes the Lushai hills. 4. Which one of the following regions of India is now regarded as an 'ecological hot spot'? (a) Western Himalayas (b) Eastern Himalayas (c) Western Ghats (d) Eastern Ghats Answer: (c) Western Ghat is known as an ecological hot spot in India notified under the Wild Life Act of 1972. 5. The Palk Bay lies between : (a) Gulf of Kutch and Gulf of Khambhat (b) Gulf of Mannar and Bay of Bengal (c) Lakshadweep and Maldive Islands (d) Andaman and Nicobar Islands Answer: (b) The Palk Bay (strait) separates India and Srilanka. It lies between the Gulf of Mannar and the Bay of Bengal. #upscprelims #prelims #prelims2021 #quiz

Answer to How do I improve my writing skills for the UPSC? by Ravi Kapoor https://www.quora.com/How-do-I-improve-my-writing-skills-for-the-UPSC-1/answer/Ravi-Kapoor-14?ch=99&share=ab957dd2&srid=uQZK9j