Solution (d)

Explanation:

• Amending the Constitution of India is the process of making changes to the nation’s fundamental law or supreme law. The procedure of amendment in the constitution is laid down in Part XX (Article 368) of the Constitution of India. This procedure ensures the sanctity of the Constitution of India and keeps a check on arbitrary power of the Parliament of India. It was borrowed from the South African constitution.
• Procedure for amendment of constitution:
• Amendment can be initiated only by the introduction of a bill for the purpose in either house of the Parliament.
• The bill can be introduced either by a minister or by a private member and does not require the permission of the President.
• The bill must be passed in each house by a special majority, that is, a majority of the total membership of the house and a majority of two-thirds of the members of the house present and voting
• Each house must pass the bill separately. If there is any disagreement, there is no provision for joint sitting of the houses
• If the bill seeks to amend the provisions of the constitution, it must be ratified by the legislatures of half of the states by a simple majority
• After passage of the bill by both the houses, it is presented to the President for his assent
• The president must give his assent to the bill. He can neither withhold his assent to the bill nor return the bill for reconsideration of the Parliament
• After the President’s assent, the bill becomes an act.

Solution (c)

Explanation:

• Article 371 of the Constitution includes “special provisions” for 11 states, including six states of the Northeast.
• Articles 370 and 371 were part of the Constitution at the time of its commencement on January 26, 1950; Articles 371A through 371J were incorporated subsequently.
• Article 371, Maharashtra and Gujarat: Governor has “special responsibility” to establish “separate development boards” for “Vidarbha, Marathwada, and the rest of Maharashtra”, and Saurashtra and Kutch in Gujarat; ensure “equitable allocation of funds for developmental expenditure over the said areas”, and “equitable arrangement providing adequate facilities for technical education and vocational training, and adequate opportunities for employment” under the state government.
• Article 371A (13th Amendment Act, 1962)Nagaland:Inserted after a 16-point agreement between the Centre and the Naga People’s Convention in 1960, which led to the creation of Nagaland in 1963.
• Parliament cannot legislate in matters of Naga religion or social practices, Naga customary law and procedure, administration of civil and criminal justice involving decisions according to Naga customary law, and ownership and transfer of land without concurrence of the state Assembly.
• Article 371B (22nd Amendment Act, 1969), Assam:
• The President may provide for the constitution and functions of a committee of the Assembly consisting of members elected from the state’s tribal areas.
• Article 371C (27th Amendment Act, 1971), Manipur:
• The President may provide for the constitution of a committee of elected members from the Hill areas in the Assembly, and entrust “special responsibility” to the Governor to ensure its proper functioning.
• Article 371D (32nd Amendment Act, 1973; substituted by The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014), Andhra Pradesh and Telangana:
• President must ensure “equitable opportunities and facilities” in “public employment and education to people from different parts of the state”. He may require the state government to organise “any class or classes of posts in a civil service of, or any class or classes of civil posts under, the State into different local cadres for different parts of the State”. He has similar powers vis-à-vis admissions in educational institutions.
• Article 371E: Allows for the establishment of a university in Andhra Pradesh by a law of Parliament. But this is not a “special provision” in the sense of the others in this part.
• Article 371F (36th Amendment Act, 1975), Sikkim:The members of the Legislative Assembly of Sikkim shall elect the representative of Sikkim in the House of the People. To protect the rights and interests of various sections of the population of Sikkim, Parliament may provide for the number of seats in the Assembly, which may be filled only by candidates from those sections.
• Article 371G (53rd Amendment Act, 1986), Mizoram:
• Parliament cannot make laws on “religious or social practices of the Mizos, Mizo customary law and procedure, administration of civil and criminal justice involving decisions according to Mizo customary law, ownership and transfer of land… unless the Assembly… so decides”.
• Article 371H (55th Amendment Act, 1986), Arunachal Pradesh:
• The Governor has a special responsibility with regard to law and order, and “he shall, after consulting the Council of Ministers, exercise his individual judgment as to the action to be taken”.
• Article 371J (98th Amendment Act, 2012), Karnataka:
• There is a provision for a separate development board for the Hyderabad-Karnataka region. There shall be “equitable allocation of funds for developmental expenditure over the said region”, and “equitable opportunities and facilities” for people of this region in government jobs and education. A proportion of seats in educational institutions and state government jobs in Hyderabad-Karnataka can be reserved for individuals from that region.
• Article 371I deals with Goa, but it does not include any provision that can be deemed ‘special’.

Solution (c)

Explanation:

• Both 1 and 2 are correct.
• Statement1: The value of the vote of an MLA is calculated by dividing the population of the state as per 1971 census. So it differs from state to state.
• Statement2: Value of the vote of an MP remains same for every state because the value of the states is divided by the total number of elected members of the parliament.

Solution (b) 

Explanation:

• The 69^th amendment to the Constitution of India inserted Article 239AA, which declared the Union Territory of Delhi to be administered by a L-G who works on aid and advice of the elected legislative assembly.

Solution (a)

Explanation:

• Statement 4 is incorrect- The salaries and allowance of the ministers shall be determined by parliament.

Solution: (c)

Explanation:

• The Prime Minister shall be appointed by the President under Article 74 and the other Ministers shall be appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.
• The total number of ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers, shall not exceed 15% of the total strength of the Lok Sabha under Article 75(1A). Hence both 1 and 2 are correct.

Solution (d)

Explanation:

• The vice president has a term of 5 years from the date on which he enters upon his office has been mentioned in the constitution under the article 67.Hence option 1 is correct.
• Hamid Ansari was the only vice-president who have got a second term in office from 2007-2017. Hence option 2 is correct.
• As per Article 66 of the Constitution of India, the Vice-President is elected by the members of the Electoral College consists of: Elected members of Rajya Sabha, Nominated members of Rajya Sabha .Elected members of Lok Sabha. Hence option 3 is correct.

Solution (c)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 incorrect: The president and governor have concurrent jurisdiction for suspension, remission, and commutation of death sentence.
• Statement 2 correct: The president and the governor can grant pardon only in case a person has already been punished. So, if someone surrenders and asks for pardon, he might not avail the same.

Solution (c)

Explanation:

• Indian constitution does not explicitly grant any discretionary powers to the president of India. The president is expressly required by Article 74 of the constitution to always have a council of ministers to aid and advice and always to act in accordance with its advice in exercise of one’s functions. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• Governor has to reserve a bill for the president’s consideration. Only after having reserved a bill, disallowance of state legislature by the president is possible. Hence statement 2 is correct.

Solution (c)

Explanation:

• Article 130 – The Supreme Court shall sit in Delhi or in such other place or places, as the chief justice of India may, with the approval of the president, from time to time, appoint.

Solution (c)

Explanation:

• Mohammad Hamid Ansari is the first and only Indian vice-president to serve during the terms of three presidents. He served during the tenure of Parthiba Patel, Pranab mukherjee, Ramnath Kovind. He is the longest serving vice-president of India. He served two terms from 2007-2002 and 2012-2017.

Solution: (c)

Explanation:

• Vice-President of India is elected in a similar way to that of the President, by the system of Proportional Representation by means of a single transferable vote using secret ballot.
• Unlike the election of the President, only the elected and nominated members of both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha participate in the voting process. The members of the State Legislative Assemblies do NOT participate in the voting process like they do for the President.

Solution (b)

Explanation:

• The Prime Minister does not “directly” appoint the Council of Ministers, but he advices the President on who should be appointed and it is the President who does the task of direct appointing.
• As per Article 75, The President can ask the Council of Ministers to reconsider the advice given to him by Council of Ministers, but has to act in accordance with the advice that is generated after such reconsideration. Hence option 3 is correct.
• Article 78 makes it necessary for the Prime Minister to communicate to the President any decisions of the council of ministers that relate to the administrative affairs of the Union. Hence option 4 is correct.

Solution (d)
Explanation:

• As per Article 75 of the Constitution, the President can remove the minister ONLY on the advice of the Prime Minister. And a person who is NOT a member of either Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha can also be appointed as a minister provided that he/she gets elected/nominated to either Houses of the Parliament within 6 months. Hence option 4 is incorrect.

Solution (b)

Explanation:

• In 93rd constitution amendment 2006, the arrangements were made for the reservation of seats for the admission of citizens belonging to schedule caste and schedule tribes and other backward classes in the educational institution. And under the provisions of section 4 of the article 15 of the constitution. Hence option B is correct.

Solution (d)

Explanation:

• Cabinet Ministers-Participates in every meeting of the Cabinet.
• Minister of State with independent charge-He is a Minister of State who does not work under a Cabinet Minister. When any matter concerning his Department is on the agenda of the Cabinet, he is invited to attend the meeting.
• Minister of State-He is a Minister who does not have independent charge of any Department and works under a Cabinet Minister. The work to such Minister is allotted by his Cabinet Minister.
• Deputy Minister-He is a Minister who works under a Cabinet Minister or a Minister of State with independent charge. His work is allotted by the Minister under whom he is working.

Solution (a)

Explanation:

• Parliamentary System of Government. There are two executives: The nominal executive is the head of state e.g. President while the real executive is the Prime Minister, who is the head of government. Where executive is responsible to its acts and policies. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• Presidential System of Government. There is only one executive. In this system, the President is both head of state and government, e.g. USA, South Korea etc. The executive is not responsible to the legislature for its policies and acts. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• Indonesia follows a Presidential form of government whereas South Korea follows parliamentary form of government. Hence statement 3 is incorrect.

Solution(c)

Explanation:

Demerits of parliamentary form of government:.

1. No separation of powers: Since there is no genuine separation of powers, the legislature cannot always hold the executive responsible. This is especially true if the government has a good majority in the house. Also, because of anti-defection rules, legislators cannot exercise their free will and vote as per their understanding and opinions. They have to follow the party whip.

1. Unqualified legislators: The system creates legislators whose intention is to enter the executive only. They are largely unqualified to legislate.
2. Instability: Since the governments sustain only as long as they can prove a majority in the house, there is instability if there is no single-largest party after the elections. Coalition governments are generally quite unstable and short-lived. Because of this, the executive has to focus on how to stay in power rather than worry about the state of affairs/welfare of the people. Hence option 1 is incorrect.
3. Ministers: The executive should belong to the ruling party. This rules out the hiring of industry experts for the job.
4. Failure to take a prompt decision: Since there is no fixed tenure enjoyed by the Council of Ministers, it often hesitates from taking bold and long-term policy decisions.
5. Party politics: Party politics is more evident in the parliamentary system where partisan interests drive politicians more than national interests.
6. Control by the bureaucracy: Civil servants exercise a lot of power. They advise the ministers on various matters and are also not responsible to the legislature.

Demerits of presidential form of government:

1. Less responsible executive: Since the legislature has no hold over the executive and the president, the head of the government can turn authoritarian.
2. Deadlocks between executive and legislature: Since there is a more strict separation of powers here, there can be frequent tussles between both arms of the government, especially if the legislature is not dominated by the president’s political party. This can lead to an erosion in efficiency because of wastage of time. Hence option 2 is incorrect.
3. Rigid government: Presidential systems are often accused of being rigid. It lacks flexibility.
4. Spoils system: The system gives the president sweeping powers of patronage. Here, he can choose executives as per his will. This gives rise to the spoils system where people close to the president (relatives, business associates, etc.) get roles in the government.

Solution (d)

Explanation:

• Kesavananda Bharati vs. the State of Kerala: This was a writ petition under Article32 of the constitution. The idea of PIL did not exist in India then.
• Vishaka vs. State of Rajasthan: This case was against sexual harassment at workplace, brought by Bhanwari Devi to stop the marriage of a one-year-old girl in rural Rajasthan. Five men raped her. She faced numerous problems when she attempted to seek justice. Naina Kapur decided to initiate a PIL to challenge sexual harassment at the workplace in this Supreme Court.
• C. Mehta vs. Union of India: In this case, the court passed three landmark judgments and several orders against polluting industries which were more than 50,000 in the Ganga basin. The court shut down numerous industries and allowed them to reopen only after controlled pollution. In the end, millions of people escaped air and water pollution in the Ganga basin, including eight states in India.
• Hence all the three statements are correct.

Solution (c)

Explanation:

• The flag and constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, as well as the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC), cease to exist, with the Indian Penal Code (IPC) now extending to both UTs.  Both the statements are correct.
• The Union Territory of J&K will have a 114-member elected Assembly and a Chief Minister whereas the Union territory of Ladakh will be controlled directly by the L-G (i.e., without an Assembly).

Solution (d)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 – Incorrect, The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) was launched by United States (US) President Biden in Tokyo on May 23, 2022. Except Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, other Southeast Asian nations are a part of the IPEF.
• Statement 2 – Correct, The IPEF has four pillars: Trade; supply chains; clean energy, decarbonisation and infrastructure; tax and anti-corruption.
• Statement 3 – Incorrect, There is no such measure.

Source: CLICK HERE

Solution (a)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 – Correct, Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The nuclear have-nots successfully negotiated a Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW, also called Ban Treaty) in 2017 that entered into force in January 2021. All 86 signatories are nuclear have-nots and parties to the NPT. It is the first legally binding international agreement to comprehensively prohibit nuclear weapons, with the goal of leading towards their total elimination.
• Statement 2 – Incorrect, The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) was concluded in 1996 but has yet to formally enter into force because two major powers, the U.S. and China, have yet to ratify it. The CTBT is the Treaty banning all nuclear explosions – everywhere, by everyone. The Treaty will enter into force after all 44 States listed in Annex 2 to the Treaty will ratify it. These States had nuclear facilities at the time the Treaty was negotiated and adopted.

Source: CLICK HERE

Solution (b)

Explanation:

• Shumang Leela is a traditional form of theatre in Manipur and the roles of female artists are all played by male actors and male characters are played by female artists in case of female theatre groups. Shumang Leela Groups of the early stage attempted to preserve and promote humanism, tolerance, confidence, devotion, truth and justice through their performances. The present day Shumang Leelas have been trying to focus on the issues of moral values, unity and integrity.

Source: CLICK HERE

Solution (d)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 – Incorrect, The Martand Temple was built by the Karkota dynasty king Lalitaditya Muktapida, who ruled Kashmir from 725 AD to 753 AD.
• Statement 2 – Correct, Dedicated to Vishnu-Surya, the Martand Temple has three distinct chambers—the mandapa, the garbhagriha, and the antralaya—probably the only three-chambered temple in Kashmir.
• Statement 3 – Correct, A major historical source for Kashmir’s history remains Rajatarangini, written in the 12th century by Kalhana, and various translations of the work contain descriptions of Martand’s grandeur.
• Statement 4 – Correct, The temple is influenced by Classical Greco-Roman, Buddhist-Gandharan, and North Indian styles.

Source: CLICK HERE

Solution (d)

Explanation:

Mohenjodaro (Mound of Dead) was excavated by R.D Banerjee in 1922

Important Findings are – Great bath, Granary, Bronze dancing girl, Seal of Pasupathi Mahadeva,

Source: CLICK HERE

Solution (a)

John = x units/day

Jack = 2x units/day

Jim = x units/day (1/3rd of John does = 3x units, out of which jack does 2x)

Total = 4x units/day

John’s time taken = x(n+3) = 4x × n

Then n = 1 day for 4x units

For x units, Jim will take 4 days

Solution (c)

Let x be the number of days in which 150 workers finish the work.

According to the given information, 150x = 150 + 146 + 142 + …. (x + 8) terms

The series 150 + 146 + 142 + …. (x + 8) terms is an A.P. with first term 150, common

difference –4 and number of terms as (x + 8)

• 150x = [(x+8)/2] [2*150 + (x+8-1) (-4)]

On solving, we get x = 17

Therefore, originally, the number of days in which the work was completed is 17.

Thus, required number of days = (17 + 8) = 25 days

Solution (a)

Let the number of days taken by a woman and a man be x and y respectively.

Therefore, work done by a woman in 1 day = 1/x

Work done by a man in 1 day = 1/y

According to the question,

-> 4[(2/x) + (5/y)] = 1

->2/x + 5/y = 1/4 -> (1)

-> 3[(3/x) + (6/y) = 1

-> 3/x + 6/y = 1/3-> (2)

On solving both equations 1 and 2, we get x = 18 days and y = 36 days

Hence, number of days taken by a woman = 18

Solution (a)

(B+C)’s 2 day’s work = 2*(1/20+1/30) = 2*(3+2/60) = 1/6 part.

Remaining work = 1-1/6 = 5/6 part

A’s one day’s work = 1/18 part

Time taken to complete the work = (5/6) / (1/18) days

Hence, Time taken to complete the work = (5/6)*18 = 15 days.

Solution (a)

Refer to, “…it is essential, as never before, that their gross ignorance of one another should be diminished, that they should begin to understand a little of one another's historical experience and resulting mentality.” This statement makes it clear that option a is the correct answer