Instructions: –
1. Attempt all the questions.
2. Once you have completed all the questions of a particular section click on the submit button for scores and explanations then move to the next sections.
3. For each correct answer, you receive 1 mark. For this mock, there is no negative marking.
English Language
Read the passage and answer the following question.
A comprehensive report on the state of Indian fisheries, conducted by Dr. R. Naidu and recently received, sheds light on the fisheries of Bengal. Published by the Bengal Government Press, this report provides valuable insights into the present condition of the fisheries and highlights the urgent need for intervention to ensure their sustainability.
Dr. Naidu’s report begins with a detailed account of the various fishing methods employed in Bengal. It then delves into specific details regarding the commercially exploited fish groups found in different parts of the region. Additionally, the report highlights the efforts made in other provinces to improve their fisheries, offering a comprehensive overview of the fishing landscape in India.
One prominent concern highlighted in the report is the state of the hilsa or Indian shad (Hilsa ilisha) fishery, which holds significant importance in Bengal. The report makes a compelling case for the establishment of hatcheries and the enactment of protective legislation to prevent the rapid depletion of this valuable fishery. Without such measures, the report warns that the hilsa fishery will continue to decline at its current rate of fishing.
The report also sheds light on the condition of the carp fisheries, which are of equal importance in Bengal. While carp culture is widely practiced in the region, the methods currently in use are deemed wasteful and destructive. This calls for urgent reforms to ensure sustainable practices in carp farming.
Furthermore, the report draws attention to the dried fish and prawn industries, which have seen considerable development in the province. However, it points out that there is room for improvement in the methods employed for the preparation of these products for the market. Efforts must be made to enhance the quality and efficiency of these industries to meet consumer demands effectively.
In addition to addressing specific fisheries concerns, the report highlights the economic challenges faced by fishing populations who form the backbone of the industry. Despite abundant fish stocks and high market prices, a significant portion of the profits is unfairly distributed among intermediaries rather than benefiting the hardworking fishermen themselves. This economic disparity underscores the need for interventions that promote fair trade practices and protect the livelihoods of fishing communities.
To address these pressing issues, the report recommends the establishment of a new department dedicated to fisheries, equipped with the necessary resources and personnel. Implementing these recommendations would substantially improve the fishing industry in Bengal, ensuring sustainable practices, better market preparation, and equitable distribution of profits.
Interestingly, the report also notes that Bengal had a separate fisheries department in the past, which, unfortunately, was abolished in 1923. Given the findings presented in the report, it becomes evident that a properly organized fishery administration is crucial for the improvement and growth of the province’s fisheries industry.
Legal Reasoning
Read the passage and answer the following question.
Culpable Homicide under section 299 of the Indian Penal Code states that where an act is done with the intention of causing death or with such knowledge that the act which he/she is going to undertake will result in death of the person or would cause such bodily or physical injury that would lead to his death would satisfy both the physical and mental requirement.
The act must be committed with the intention of causing death. Intention is to be proved in acts where there is bodily injury likely to cause death. The act can be of two types – Firstly, where bodily injury itself is done in a fashion which causes death. Secondly, in situation where there are injuries and there are investigating events between the injuries and the death provided the delay is not so blatant, one needs to prove that injuries were administered with the intention of causing death.
Knowledge is different from intention to the extent that where a person may not have the intention to commit an act which kills, but knows that the act which he commits will take someone’s life or is likely to take someone’s life will be considered having the knowledge that he is likely by such act to cause death.
Section 300 states that culpable homicide is murder in certain situations:
The degree of intention required is very high for murder. There must be intention present and the intention must be to cause the death of the person, not only harm or grievous hurt without the intention to cause death.
Secondly, where the offender has special knowledge about the victim’s condition and causes harm in such a manner which causes death of the person. It states that the offender knows likely to be the cause of death.
The commission of those acts which are so imminently dangerous which when committed would cause death or bodily injury and would result in death of a person and that such an act is done without any lawful excuse.
When a person loses self-control and causes the death. The provocation must be grave and sudden that is there is no scope for premeditation and thirdly, it must not be self-invited so as to use it as an excuse to deprive a person of his life.
Culpable Homicide requires that the offender should have the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to result in death. On the other hand, Murder requires that the person committing the act have the knowledge that the act committed is so imminently dangerous that it must in all probability cause death.
Logical Reasoning
Read the passage and answer the following question.
Central bankers are waving red flags as the global economy slowly — but surely — starts to spin out of control with the prospect of a hard landing looming large. Just over a year ago, the monetary authorities in the advanced economies led by the Federal Reserve in the United States of America began to winch up interest rates in a desperate effort to rein in inflation, kick-starting what would become the fastest rate hike cycle in 40 years. Later this week, the Fed is expected to raise rates again before hitting a widely-anticipated pause button. But even before the rate increases could tame the bogey of runaway inflation, they have triggered the collapse of at least three regional banks in the US. The Reserve Bank of India does not want to take any chances. The RBI governor, Shaktikanta Das, has advised Indian banks to beef up their capital buffers so that they have adequate liquidity to meet their obligations in any kind of stressful situation. The central bank also intends to start looking closely at the business models that the banks employ in order to identify any potential vulnerabilities. The governor’s cryptic comments at a seminar on financial resilience did not seem to square with his recent assertion at the World Bank-International Monetary Fund annual meetings that the Indian banking system would not be affected by the financial shocks in the US.
Overall, bad loans in the gross non-performing assets have fallen to 4.41% at the end of December 2022 from 5.8% in March last year. Tests carried out by the RBI also reveal that none of the 46 scheduled commercial banks would breach the minimum capital requirement of 9% under the Basel III standards even in a situation of severe stress. But what looks good on paper today could unravel very quickly when a global banking crisis erupts. Domestic concerns brew as well. Credit growth in the banking sector surged to 17.5% in September last year — a rate last recorded in December 2011. The return of indiscriminate lending can spell trouble.
Quantitative Techniques
Read the data carefully and answer the question.
A mobile shopkeeper marks the prices of three different types of mobiles – Nokia 2.2, Vivo V9 and Realme 3i – in the ratio 11 : 16 : 20, respectively. The discount rates offered by the shopkeeper for Nokia 2.2, Vivo V9 and Realme 3i are 10%, 20% and 8%, respectively. Nokia 2.2 is sold at a profit of 20% and the cost price of this mobile is Rs. 4125.
Also, the selling price of a Samsung Galaxy M30 available at this shop after a discount of 16% is Rs. 2500 less than the sum of the marked prices of all three mobiles Nokia 2.2, Vivo V9 and Realme 3i.
General Knowledge
Read the passage and answer the following question.
India once again refused to endorse China’s Belt and Road Initiative, becoming the only nation at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit not to sign an agreement in support of the ambitious project.
All member nations barring India supported China’s BRI in a joint declaration. The declaration issued at the end of the summit, hosted by India, said Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan reaffirmed their support for the BRI.
“Reaffirming their support for China’s ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ (BRI) initiative, the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Russian Federation, Republic of Tajikistan and Republic of Uzbekistan note the ongoing work to jointly implement this project, including efforts to link the construction of the Eurasian Economic Union and BRI,” it said.
The declaration said the member states also considered it important to ensure the implementation of the SCO Economic Development Strategy 2030 adopted by “interested member states” and projects aimed at promoting cooperation in several areas such as digital economy, finance, energy and food security and modernisation of existing international routes for road and rail transport.
Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his opening remarks at the summit, asserted that it is essential to respect the basic principles of the SCO charter, especially the sovereignty and territorial integrity of member states, while making efforts to boost connectivity.
The summit, chaired by PM Modi, was attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif and other leaders of the grouping.