UPSC 2023: Nexus 71—80
Unearthing the structural logic of the paper. [Set A]
Question 71
Economy & IndustryConsider the following statements with reference to India:
- According to the 'Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006', the 'medium enterprises' are those with investments in plant and machinery between ₹15 crore and ₹25 crore.
- All bank loans to the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises qualify under the priority sector.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Official Verdict: (b) 2 only
The Core Concept: The definition of MSMEs was radically revised in 2020. A "Medium" enterprise is now defined as having an investment up to ₹50 crore and a turnover up to ₹250 crore (making Statement 1 entirely outdated and false). Statement 2 is true: RBI guidelines mandate that bank loans granted to MSMEs (manufacturing and services) are strictly classified as Priority Sector Lending (PSL).
Tethered to: REALM 97: MSMEs in India
Question 72
Digital FinanceWith reference to Central Bank digital currencies, consider the following statements:
- It is possible to make payments in a digital currency without using US dollar or SWIFT system.
- A digital currency can be distributed with a condition programmed into it such as a time-frame for spending it.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Official Verdict: (c) Both 1 and 2
The Core Concept: A CBDC is sovereign digital money. Because it operates on direct blockchain/DLT ledgers between central banks (e.g., mBridge projects), cross-border transactions can completely bypass the traditional SWIFT messaging system and the US Dollar monopoly (1). Furthermore, CBDCs are "programmable money." Governments can issue digital tokens programmed to expire after a certain date (to force stimulus spending) or restricted to specific purchases like food or fertilizer (2).
Tethered to: REALM 62: Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)
Question 73
Financial MarketsIn the context of finance, the term 'beta' refers to
- (a) the process of simultaneous buying and selling...
- (b) an investment strategy of a portfolio manager...
- (c) a type of systemic risk...
- (d) a numeric value that measures the fluctuations of a stock to changes in the overall stock market
Official Verdict: (d)
The Core Concept: In investing, Beta (β) is the standard measure of a stock's volatility relative to the broader market (like the NIFTY 50). If the market goes up 1%, and a stock with a Beta of 1.5 goes up 1.5%, it's more volatile. A Beta of exactly 1 means it moves perfectly with the market. Option (a) describes arbitrage, (b) describes hedging/portfolio management.
Tethered to: REALM 118: India's Stock Market
Question 74
MicrofinanceConsider the following statements:
- The Self-Help Group (SHG) programme was originally initiated by the State Bank of India by providing microcredit...
- In an SHG, all members of a group take responsibility for a loan that an individual member takes.
- The Regional Rural Banks and Scheduled Commercial Banks support SHGs.
How many of the above statements are correct?
Official Verdict: (b) Only two
The Core Concept: The SHG-Bank Linkage Programme was famously pioneered in 1992 by NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development), not SBI (Statement 1 is false). The genius of the SHG model is "joint liability"—peer pressure ensures repayment because the whole group is liable for an individual's loan (2). Under the framework, RRBs, cooperative banks, and scheduled commercial banks all actively lend to SHGs (3).
Tethered to: REALM 47: Self-Help Groups (SHGs)
Question 75
Health GovernanceConsider the following statements:
- Statement-I: India's public sector health care system largely focuses on curative care with limited preventive, promotive and rehabilitative care.
- Statement-II: Under India's decentralized approach to health care delivery, the States are primarily responsible for organizing health services.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
Official Verdict: (b) Both correct; II is NOT the correct explanation for I
The Core Concept: Statement I is a well-known criticism of Indian healthcare: we build massive hospitals to cure sick people, but underfund sanitation, nutrition, and early diagnostics (preventive care). Statement II is also true: Health is a State Subject in the 7th Schedule. However, the fact that States run healthcare (II) is not the reason why it is curatively biased (I). The bias stems from historical policy design, funding structures, and political visibility, not mere decentralization.
Tethered to: REALM 41: Public & Private Health Structure
Question 76
Water ResourcesConsider the following statements:
- Statement-I: According to the UN's 'World Water Development Report', India extracts more than a quarter of the world's groundwater withdrawal each year.
- Statement-II: India needs to extract more than a quarter of the world's groundwater... to satisfy the drinking water and sanitation needs of almost 18% of world's population...
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
Official Verdict: (c) Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect
The Core Concept: India is indeed the world's largest extractor of groundwater, pumping up over 25% of the global total (Statement I is true). However, the reason is absolutely not for drinking water and sanitation. Nearly 89% of all groundwater extracted in India is brutally guzzled by agriculture (irrigation for water-intensive crops like rice and sugarcane). Domestic drinking/sanitation accounts for less than 10%.
Tethered to: REALM 46: Groundwater Resources
Question 77
Internal Security & LawConsider the following statements:
- According to the Constitution... the Central Government has a duty to protect States from internal disturbances.
- The Constitution... exempts the States from providing legal counsel to a person being held for preventive detention.
- According to the Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002, confession of the accused before the police cannot be used as evidence.
How many of the above statements are correct?
Official Verdict: (b) Only two
The Core Concept: Under Article 355, the Union explicitly has the duty to protect every State against external aggression and internal disturbance (1 is correct). Article 22(3) explicitly denies the right to consult a legal practitioner to an enemy alien or someone held under Preventive Detention laws (2 is correct). The trap is Statement 3: Ordinary law (Evidence Act) bans police confessions, but draconian anti-terror laws like POTA 2002 explicitly allowed confessions made to a police officer (SP rank or above) to be admissible as evidence.
Tethered to: REALM 203: Anti-Terror Laws & Human Rights
Question 78
Global CrisisWhich one of the following countries has been suffering from decades of civil strife and food shortages and was in news in the recent past for its very severe famine?
- (a) Angola
- (b) Costa Rica
- (c) Ecuador
- (d) Somalia
Official Verdict: (d) Somalia
The Core Concept: Located in the Horn of Africa, Somalia has been functionally a failed state for decades due to the Al-Shabaab insurgency, warlords, and weak central governance. Compounding this civil strife, the region suffered an unprecedented sequence of failed rainy seasons leading up to 2023, pushing millions into acute, catastrophic famine conditions.
Tethered to: REALM 69: Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa
Question 79
Environmental GovernanceConsider the following statements:
- In India, the Biodiversity Management Committees are key to the realization of the objectives of the Nagoya Protocol.
- The Biodiversity Management Committees have important functions in determining access and benefit sharing, including the power to levy collection fees on the access of biological resources within its jurisdiction.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Official Verdict: (c) Both 1 and 2
The Core Concept: The Nagoya Protocol is entirely about Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS)—ensuring local communities get paid when pharma or biotech companies use their traditional flora/fauna. Under India's Biological Diversity Act, 2002, local Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs) are the grassroots enforcers of this. They maintain the People's Biodiversity Register and hold the legal power to levy collection fees/taxes on anyone extracting biological resources from their specific jurisdiction.
Tethered to: REALM 99: Nagoya Protocol
Question 80
Presidential ElectionConsider the following statements in respect of election to the President of India:
- The members nominated to either House... are also eligible to be included in the Electoral College.
- Higher the number of elective Assembly seats, higher is the value of vote of each MLA of that State.
- The value of vote of each MLA of Madhya Pradesh is greater than that of Kerala.
- The value of vote of each MLA of Puducherry is higher than that of Arunachal Pradesh because the ratio of total population to total number of elective seats... is greater.
Official Verdict: (a) Only one
The Core Concept: Only Statement 4 is true. 1: Nominated members absolutely cannot vote in the Presidential election (only elected members do). 2: The value of an MLA's vote is `Total Population / (Total Elected MLAs * 1000)`. Thus, a higher denominator (more seats) actually lowers the vote value if population is constant. 3: The value in Kerala is 152, while Madhya Pradesh is 131. So Kerala > MP. 4: Puducherry's value is 16, and Arunachal's is 8. The mathematical reasoning provided in the statement exactly matches the constitutional formula.
Tethered to: REALM 100: Election of President