Indian Economy & Art and Culture(P+M)

           Indian Economy, Art And Culture(P+M)

In this timetable we will be covering:

  • NCERT Class XI Indian Economic Development
  • NCERT Class XII Macroeconomics
  • NCERT Class XI Fine Art (Introduction to Indian Art)
  • NIOS – Indian Art and Culture
  • Economic Survey – 2015 (Volume 1 and 2)

Next Fifteen days will be hectic for you. We had told you that we would cover Ramesh Singh selectively, but looking at this year’s Economic Survey, we felt that the latter is more relevant to Prelims (+ Mains) than Ramesh Singh (This is still useful). Moreover, it is impossible to cover this book in such a short duration.

As you already know that the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Exam syllabus has the following topics related to Economy part:

Economic and Social Development Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives

The above mentioned sources adequately cover these topics in much more detail than required. However, reading them in-depth helps in Mains as well. Therefore, it is good to read them with utmost seriousness now itself.

Along with Economy part, we are also covering Art and Culture from two authentic sources – NCERT and NIOS. If you read these sources, you should be able to solve most of the questions asked in UPSC Preliminary Exam on the topics of Indian Art and Culture.

Some of you might wonder: How to complete so much in so less time?

If you read any source with extreme urgency and purpose, you usually read them better and comprehend better. It is possible to complete these targets within stipulated time. Well, there is no short-cut too. You have to complete them anyway. Please don’t listen to naysayers. If you want to complete these targets, you WILL complete them. Trust us.

Following is the Timetable for the Next Fifteen Days. Hope you will enjoy this. Meanwhile, let us know how useful were previous timetables and our questions. Your feedback is our motivation. Thank you.

Sl No. Date Economy Art & Culture
1 8 July 2015 NCERT, Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapters 1,2 and 3 NCERT, Class XI, Fine Art – Introduction to Indian Art, Chapters 1,2 and 3
2 9 July 2015 NCERT, Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapters 4, 5 and 6 NCERT, Class XI, Fine Art – Introduction to Indian Art, Chapters 4 and 5
3 10 July 2015 BREAK
4 11 July 2015 NCERT, Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapters 6,7, 8 and 9 NCERT, Class XI, Fine Art – Introduction to Indian Art, Chapters 6 and 7
5 12 July 2015 REVISION
6 13 July 2015 NCERT, Class XII, Macroeconomics, Chapters 1, 2 and 3 NCERT, Class XI, Fine Art – Introduction to Indian Art, Chapters 8 and 9 (Glossary is important!)
7 14 July 2015 NCERT, Class XII, Macroeconomics, Chapters 4, 5 and 6 NIOS, Art and Culture Module – 4Complete(http://www.nios.ac.in/online-course-material/secondary-courses/indian-culture-and-heritage-(223)-syllabus.aspx)
8 15 July 2015 Economic Survey, Volume – 1, Chapters – 1,2 and 3 NIOS, Art and Culture Module – 5Complete(http://www.nios.ac.in/online-course-material/secondary-courses/indian-culture-and-heritage-(223)-syllabus.aspx)
9 16 July 2015 Economic Survey, Volume – 1, Chapters – 4, 5, 6 and 7 NIOS, Art and Culture Module – 6 – Chapters 14, 15 and 16(http://www.nios.ac.in/online-course-material/secondary-courses/indian-culture-and-heritage-(223)-syllabus.aspx)
10 17 July 2015 Economic Survey, Volume – 1, Chapters – 8, 9 and 10  Economic Survey, Volume – 2, Chapters – 1 and 2
11 18 July 2015 REVISION
12 19 July 2015 REVISION
13 20 July 2015 Economic Survey, Volume – 2, Chapters – 3, 4 and 5
14 21 July 2015 Economic Survey, Volume – 2, Chapters – 6, 7, 8 and 9
15 22 July 2015 REVISION/LEFT OVER CHAPTERS

                                   Descriptive Questions

1) Give a quantitative appraisal of India’s demographic profile during the colonial period and highlight the salient features of India’s pre-independence occupational structure. (200 Words)

NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 1

2) Would you agree that the people of the Indus Valley Civilisation were great art lovers? Give reasons for your answer. (200 Words)

NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 2

                   

                     Multiple Choice Questions Quiz

1. Question

  1. With reference to Indian economy before and after the advent of the British, consider the following statements:

    1. The Indian economy was predominantly agrarian and the total absence of manufacturing industries was its main feature
    2. The British policies transformed India into a net importer of raw materials and exporter of finished industrial products to Britain

    Which of the above statements is/are correct?

    • a) 1 Only
    • b) 2 Only
    • c) Both
    • d) None
    Solution: d)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 1

  2. 2. Question

    Consider the following statements:

    1. During the British rule, the jute mills dominated by the Indians were mainly concentrated in Bengal
    2. During the early British rule, capital goods industry dominated Indian economy

    Which of the above statements is/are correct?

    • a) 1 Only
    • b) 2 Only
    • c) Both
    • d) None
    Solution: d)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 1

    There was hardly any capital goods industry to help promote further industrialisation in India. Capital goods industry means industries, which can produce machine tools, which are, in turn, used for producing articles for current consumption.

  3. 3. Question

    With reference to opening up of the Suez Canal and its impacts, consider the following statements:

    1. The opening of Suez Canal benefited India’s foreign trade during the British rule
    2. The Suez Canal was planned by the French but constructed by the British
    3. The Suez Canal was opened for trade on the same year M.K. Gandhi was born

    Which of the above statements is/are correct?

    • a) 1 and 2 Only
    • b) 2 and 3 Only
    • c) 1 and 3 Only
    • d) All

    Solution: b)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 1

    https://people.hofstra.edu/geotrans/eng/ch2en/conc2en/suez.html

  4. 4. Question

    Consider the following statements:

    1. The most important characteristic of India’s foreign trade throughout the colonial period was the generation of a large export surplus
    2. During the colonial period India experienced acute scarcity of essential goods like kerosene, clothes etc

    Which of the above statements is/are correct?

    • a) 1 Only
    • b) 2 Only
    • c) Both
    • d) None
    Solution: c)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 1

  5. 5. Question

    With reference to India’s demographic characteristics during the colonial period, consider the following statements:

    1. Before 1921, India was in the second stage of demographic transition
    2. In 1921, urban India added more numbers to its population in a decade than rural India did

    Which of the above statements is/are correct?

    • a) 1 Only
    • b) 2 Only
    • c) Both
    • d) None
    Solution: b)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 1

    http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/census-findings-point-to-decade-of-rural-distress/article2485675.ece

  6. 6. Question

    Consider the following statements:

    1. The introduction of railways by the British increased commercialisation of Indian agriculture which adversely affected the comparative self-sufficiency of the village economies in India
    2. With the introduction of railways, during the colonial period Indian people accrued both economic and social benefits

    Which of the above statements is/are correct?

    • a) 1 Only
    • b) 2 Only
    • c) Both
    • d) None
    Solution: a)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 1

  7. 7. Question

    Consider the following statements:

    1. A steady increase in the GDP can be called as economic growth
    2. In India GDP is calculated at factor prices

    Which of the above statements is/are correct?

    • a) 1 Only
    • b) 2 Only
    • c) Both
    • d) None
    Solution: a)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

    http://www.livemint.com/Politics/xziKtmtOxBJntZb41p2hDL/India-GDP-seen-surging-74-in-data-that-has-puzzled-economi.html

  8. 8. Question

    Which of the following aptly explains the poor performance of the agricultural sector in the Soviet Union despite availability of vast areas of highly fertile land?

    • a) Ownership of land by the state
    • b) Collective farming
    • c) Landless laborers
    • d) All the above
    Solution: d)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculture_in_the_Soviet_Union

  9. 9. Question

    In India the earliest paintings have been reported from the

    • a) Upper Paleolithic age
    • b) Bronze age
    • c) Neolithic age
    • d) Mesolithic era
    Solution: a)

    NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 1

    http://www.diffen.com/difference/Neolithic_vs_Paleolithic

  10. 10. Question

    “The paintings of this period reveal the association, contact, and mutual exchange of requirements of the cave dwellers of this area with settled agricultural communities of the Malwa plains.”

    To which of the following periods does above statement refer?

    • a) Chalcolithic age
    • b) Mesolithic age
    • c) Neolithic age
    • d) Paleolithic age
    Solution: a)

    NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 1

  11. 11. Question

    If there is more marketed surplus in an economy, what will happen to the price of foodgrains?

    • a) It will decline
    • b) It will increase
    • c) It will remain same
    • d) None of the above
    Solution:. a)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

    The portion of agricultural produce which is sold in the market by the farmers is called marketed surplus. Fortunately, as pointed out by the famous economist C.H. Hanumantha Rao, a good proportion of the rice and wheat produced during the green revolution period (available as marketed surplus) was sold by the farmers in the market. As a result, the price of food grains declined relative to other items of consumption.

  12. 12. Question

    Which of the following Indus Valley Civilization sites is NOT located in India?

    1. Dholavira
    2. Kalibangan
    3. Ganeriwala
    4. Ropar
    5. Rakhigarhi
    6. Kot Bala

    Choose the correct answer using the codes below:

    • a) 2,4 and 5 Only
    • b) 3 and 5 Only
    • c) 3 and 6 Only
    • d) 12,3 and 6 Only
    Solution: c)

    NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 2

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Indus_Valley_Civilization_sites

                  INDIAN ECONOMY & ART 02nd & 03rd  DAY

                                         

                                        Descriptive Questions

    1) Critically analyse the components of New Economic Policy which India initiated in early 1990s and their impact on the Indian economy. (200 Words)

    NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 3

    2) Critically evaluate the performance of poverty alleviation programmes in India. (200 Words)

    NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 4

    3) Illustrate the difference between rural and urban poverty. Is it correct to say that poverty has shifted from rural to urban areas? Use the trends in poverty ratio to support your answer. (200 Words)

    NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 4

    4) With suitable examples, critically analyse the importance of human capital for economic growth and human development. (200 Words)

    NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 5

    5) What are the alternative channels available for agricultural marketing? Give some examples and examine if they are efficient. (200 Words)

    NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 6

    6) Compared to the 1970s, there has hardly been any change in the distribution of workforce across various industries in India. Comment. (200 Words)

    NCERT Class XI, Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter – 7

                   

                         Multiple Choice Questions Quiz

    1. 1. Question

      Consider the following statements:

      1. Tariffs decrease the price of the good in the domestic market
      2. Quotas harm consumers while benefiting foreign and domestic goods producers

      Which of the above statements is/are correct?

      • a) 1 Only
      • b) 2 Only
      • c) Both
      • d) None
      Solution: b)

      Tariffs are taxes imposed on imported goods; they will increase the price of the good in the domestic market. Domestic producers benefit because they receive higher prices. The government benefits by collecting tax revenues

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

      http://www.investopedia.com/exam-guide/cfa-level-1/global-economic-analysis/tariffs-quotas.asp

    2. 2. Question

      Which of the following can be termed as an important failure of India’s economic policies followed during 1950-1990?

      • a) Failing to improve agricultural productivity
      • b) Failing to boost exports
      • c) Failing to absorb employment from agriculture into manufacturing and services sector
      • d) None of the above
      Solution: c)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

      In India, between 1950 and 1990, the proportion of GDP contributed by agriculture declined significantly but not the population depending on it (67.5 per cent in 1950 to 64.9 per cent by 1990). Why was such a large proportion of the population engaged in agriculture although agricultural output could have grown with much less people working in the sector? The answer is that the industrial sector and the service sector did not absorb the people working in the agricultural sector. Many economists call this an important failure of our policies followed during 1950-1990. (NCERT)

    3. 3. Question

      Post – Independence, the government of India had to play an extensive role in promoting the industrial sector. This was primarily due to which of the following reasons?

      1. Lack of will on the part of industrialists
      2. Lack of capital in private sector
      3. Lack of big market for goods

      Which of the above statements is/are correct?

      • a) 1 and 2 Only
      • b) 2 and 3 Only
      • c) 1 and 3 Only
      • d) All
      Solutions: b)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

    4. 4. Question

      Consider the following statements:

      1. The Industrial Policy Resolution of 1956 formed the basis of the Second Five Year Plan
      2. The Second Five Year plan tried to build the basis for a capitalist pattern of society

      Which of the above statements is/are correct?

      • a) 1 Only
      • b) 2 Only
      • c) Both
      • d) None
      Solution: a)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

      Please read this important article:

      http://forbesindia.com/article/independence-day-special/economic-milestone-second-five-year-plan-(1956)/38393/1

    5. 5. Question

      The Karve Committee, which was appointed by the Planning Commission in June, 1955, recommended

      • a) Gradual adoption of improved technologies in village and small scale industries without affecting employment
      • b) Adoption of modern technology in heavy industries to compete with then global majors
      • c) Decentralization of industries into rural regions
      • d) None of the above
      Solution: a)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

      http://planningcommission.nic.in/plans/planrel/fiveyr/2nd/2planch20.html

    6. 6. Question

      Import substitution, which was resorted to during India’s first seven five Year Plans, mainly involved

      • a) Boosting exports
      • b) Replacing imports with domestic production
      • c) Increasing investment in exports
      • d) Importing cheaper substitutions from other nations
      Solution: b)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

    8. 7. Question

      It is said that in India one had to wait for long duration to get a telephone connection before 1990s. Which of the following factors is/are responsible for this?

      1. State monopoly
      2. Lack of competition
      3. Increased demand

      Choose the correct answer using the codes below:

      • a) 1 and 2 Only
      • b) 1 and 3 Only
      • c) 2 and 3 Only
      • d) All

      Solution: d)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 3

    9. 8. Question

      Which of the following factors pushed India to approach World Bank and IMF to seek loan to rescue its economy in early 1990s?

      1. Fall in price of essential goods
      2. Huge imports
      3. Huge government expenditure
      4. Huge decline in foreign exchange reserves

      Choose the correct answer using codes below:

      • a) 1,2 and 3 Only
      • b) 1,3 and 4 Only
      • c) 2,3 and 4 Only
      • d) All
      Solution: c)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 2

      In the late 1980s, government expenditure began to exceed its revenue by such large margins that it became unsustainable. Prices of many essential goods rose sharply. Imports grew at a very high rate without matching growth of exports. As pointed out earlier, foreign exchange reserves declined to a level that was not adequate to finance imports for more than two weeks. There was also not sufficient foreign exchange to pay the interest that needs to be paid to international lenders. India approached the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), popularly known as World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and received $7 billion as loan to manage the crisis.

    10. 9. Question

      The New Economic Policy (NEP) of early 1990s consisted of policies that can broadly be classified into two groups: the stabilisation measures and the structural reform measures. Which of the following is not a ‘structural reform measure’?

      • a) Controlling inflation
      • b) Deregulation of industrial sector
      • c) Liberalization of banking sector
      • d) Tax reforms
      Solution: a)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 3

    11. 10. Question

      Which of the following Public Sector Undertaking is/are NOT a Maharatna company?

      1. Bharat Electronics Limited
      2. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited
      3. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited
      4. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited
      5. Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited

      Choose the correct answer using the codes below:

      • a) 1 and 3 Only
      • b) 2 and 4 Only
      • c) 1,2 and 4 Only
      • d) None of the above
      Solution: d)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 3 

      Maharatna CPSEs

      1. Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited
      2. Coal India Limited
      3. GAIL (India) Limited
      4. Indian Oil Corporation Limited
      5. NTPC Limited
      6. Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited
      7. Steel Authority of India Limited

      http://dpe.nic.in/publications/list_of_maharatna_navratna-and_miniratna

    12. 11. Question

      Which of the following organization was set-up as a successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)?

      • a) International Trade Organization
      • b) World Trade Organization
      • c) World Trade Centre
      • d) Both a and b
      Solution: b)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 3

      Difference between WTC and WTO:

      http://www.wtcdenver.org/about/wtc-vs-wto

    13. 12. Question

      Consider the following statements:

      1. A reduction in capital expenditure, or the decision of a company not to replenish depleted capital goods can be called as disinvestment
      2. Divestment is the reduction of some kind of asset for financial, ethical, or political objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm

      Which of the above statements is/are correct?

      • a) 1 Only
      • b) 2 Only
      • c) Both
      • d) None
      Solution: c)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 3

      http://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/disinvestment.asp

      http://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/divestment.asp

    14. 13. Question

      With reference to poverty line estimations made by a most recent committee, consider the following statements:

      1. Those spending over Rs 32 a day in rural areas and Rs 47 in towns and cities are not considered poor
      2. The Rangarajan panel’s recommendation of poverty line results in decrease in the below poverty line population compared to population estimate based on the Tendulkar formula

      Which of the above statements is/are correct?

      • a) 1 Only
      • b) 2 Only
      • c) Both
      • d) None
      Solution: a)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 4

      http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/understanding-the-poverty-line/article4989045.ece

      http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/New-poverty-line-Rs-32-in-villages-Rs-47-in-cities/articleshow/37920441.cms

      http://www.hindustantimes.com/business-news/below-the-belt-here-s-the-lowdown-on-india-s-poverty-line/article1-1344286.aspx

    15. 14. Question

      During the British rule as many as 26 million people died in famines between 1875 and 1900. Which of the following is one of the causes of these deaths?

      • a) Export of food grains by the British from India
      • b) Low production of food grains
      • c) Increased production of cash crops
      • d) None of the above
      Solution: a)

      As over 70 per cent of Indians were engaged in agriculture throughout the British Raj period, the impact on that sector was more important on living standards than anything else. British policies involved sharply raising rural taxes that enabled merchants and moneylenders to become large landowners. Under the British, India began to export food grains and, as a result, as many as 26 million people died in famines between 1875 and 1900.

    16. 15. Question

      Vaccination is an example of

      • a) Preventive medicine
      • b) Curative medicine
      • c) Social medicine
      • d) Community medicine
      Solution: a)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 5

    17. 16. Question

      With reference to National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NBARD), consider the following statements:

      1. RBI holds 20% stake in the NABARD
      2. NABARD is a cooperative bank
      3. It was established by RBI

      Which of the above statements is/are INCORRECT?

      • a) 1 Only
      • b) 3 Only
      • c) 1 and 3 Only
      • d) All
      Solution: b)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 6

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Bank_for_Agriculture_and_Rural_Development

    18. 17. Question

      Which of the following is/a component of organic farming?

      1. Crop Rotation
      2. Biofertilizers
      3. Vermicompost
      4. Crop Residue
      5. Bio pesticide

      Choose the correct answer using the codes below:

      • a) 1,2,3 and 4 Only
      • b) 2,3 and 5 Only
      • c) 1,2,3 and 5 Only
      • d) All
      Solution: d)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 6

      http://megapib.nic.in/org_farm_comp.htm

    19. 18. Question

      Electricity, Gas, Water Supply and Construction sectors are examples of

      • a) Primary sector
      • b) Secondary sector
      • c) Tertiary sector
      • d) Quaternary sector
      Solution: b)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 7

    20. 19. Question

      Consider the following statements:

      1. During the period 1960–2000, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of India grew positively and was higher than the employment growth
      2. During the period 1960–2000 employment grew at a stable rate of about 2 per cent

      Which of the above statements is/are correct?

      • a) 1 Only
      • b) 2 Only
      • c) Both
      • d) None
      Solution: c)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 7

    21. 20. Question

      Casualization of workforce means

      • a) Movement from self-employment to salaried employment
      • b) Movement from salaried employment to self-employment
      • c) Movement from self – employment to unemployment
      • d) None of the above
      Solution: d)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 7

    22. 21. Question

      Consider the following statements:

      1. Decrease in sex ratio indicates increase in female feticide
      2. Among major states, Haryana has both lowest adult and child sex ratio in India

      Which of the above statements is/are correct?

      • 1 Only
      • 2 Only
      • Both
      • None
      Solution: c)

      NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, Chapter – 8

      http://www.census2011.co.in/sexratio.php

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