READING COMPRENSION PYQS 2012-2020 FOR NTA UGC NET SET SLET
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NTA UGC NET JUNE 2020
Comprehension:
Read the passage given below carefully and answer questions that follow:
The representative dimension of the new liberal political orders designed to protect individual rights, appeared as the best mechanism for actualizing popular rule or sovereignty – indeed democracy. As a result, it is more beneficial to assess the meaning and value of ‘rights’ as historical and political practices, rather than conceptual forms (especially as counterparts to virtue). In this respect, the discourse of rights reflected a new official mode of combining ethics and power for political conduct. But the formally equal treatment of citizens belied relatively arbitrary element, for the involvement of the citizenry in shaping the conduct of their representatives was left to elite influenced election procedures, qualifications and voluntary participation. Still. representation became the mythical means of transposing the authorizing power of the people to the new authorities in government. After all, representatives had more time and money to perfect their virtue and skill in conducting their work and were not supposed to be corrupted by the power that attended their offices. They were supposed to be better guardians and agents of public virtue than ordinary citizens as representation became institutionalized in the new states. The state wielded power over the people, diversifying rather than restricting the problems of demagoguery in ancient democracy that modern republics were supposed to correct
Q.1. The aim of liberal democracy is to
- Provide a mechanism to ignore popular
- Safeguard individual rights
- Understand the political order
- Defocus representativeness
Answer: 4
Q.2. What will be the more beneficial assessment of democracy?
- Considering rights as a political practice
- Avoiding historical meanings of the concept
- Emphasizing on virtues
- Examining the conceptual forms of democracy
Answer: 1
Q.3. What does the discourse of rights focus on?
- Election procedures
- Arbitrary freedom
- Reasonable political conduct
- New priests of power
Answer: 3
Q.4. According to the author of the passage, the modern republics should
- Exercise power over people
- Institutionalize power and corruption
- Free themselves from the defects of ancient democracy
- Imitate the institutions of new states
Answer: 3
Q.5. What was expected of public representatives?
- Use power for personal gains
- Behave like ordinary citizens
- Become skilled in power politics
- Safeguard representation of virtue
Answer: 4
NTA UGC NET DEC 2019
Reading Comprehension
Read the following passage carefully and answer questions from 6-10.
Intra-industry trade arises in order to take advantage of important economies of scale in production. That is, International competition forces each firm or plant in industrial countries to produce only one, or at most a few, varieties and styles of the same product rather than many different varieties and styles. This is crucial in keeping unit costs low. With few varieties and styles, more specialised and faster machinery can be developed for a continuous operation and a longer production run. The nation then imports other varieties and styles from other nations. Intra-industry trade benefits consumers because of the wider range of choice, i.e., the greater variety of differentiated products, available at the lower prices made possible by economies of scale in production. Because of this, large welfare gains arise from the ability of consumers to greatly increase the variety of goods that they can purchase through trade. The importance of intra-industry trade became apparent when tariffs and other obstructions to the flow of trade among members of the European Union, or common market were removed in1958. It was found that volume of trade surged but most of the increase involved the exchange of differentiated products within each broad industrial classification.
Q.6. The impact of international competition on intra-industry trade can be seen in
(1) the available of wide varieties of products
(2) the limited varieties of the same product
(3) adverse effects on industrial production
(4) restrictive advantage of production
Answer: 2
Q.7. Mass production of a few varieties of products will result in
(1) low cost of unit
(2) advantage to industrial economies of scale
(3) benefits to the customers of important economies
(4) increased cost of production
Answer: 1
Q.8. Development and use of specialised machinery will lead to
(1) more varieties of products
(2) decrease consumer welfare
(3) import of varieties of products
(4) hindered intra-industry trade
Answer: 1
Q.9. Lower product price means
(1) continued production run
(2) absence of choice
(3) increase in trade information exchange
(4) increased consumer purchasing power
Answer: 4
Q.10. What was the consequences of removal of barriers to the flow of trade in European Union?
(1) Sluggish intra-industry trade
(2) Flow of uniform products
(3) Spurt in trade volume among member states
(4) Emphasis on differentiated products
Answer: 3
NTA UGC NET June 2019
Reading Comprehension (Q.11 to Q.15)
Geography seeks to understand the physical and human organization of the surface of the Earth. In the field of geography, inter-related themes are frequently seen. These are scale, pattern and process. Scale is defined as the level of structure on organisation at which a phenomenon is studied. Pattern is defined as the variation observed in a phenomenon studied at a particular scale.
The third theme, process, further connects the first two. Process is defined as the description of how the factors that aect a phenomenon act to product a pattern at a particular scale. For instance, when a passenger on an aircraft looks out of the window, the View changes according to the scale. At the global scale when the aircraft maintains its height, he can see the chunks of clouds in all their pattern, the sun or the moon, as per the time.
When the aircraft loses a little height, passengers can see the land and water masses in their dierent colours and the shape of land masses. At the continental scale, the passengers can see the shapes of the land features and how they are distributed. The pattern emerges as the variation of land and water and the proportion of each. Looking carefully, passengers can note how each land mass aligns with the others and how each mountain bears the signs of the process through which it emerged.
The processes in a geography change in a regular and repetitive manner. One instance of this is the annual solar cycle of the sun and the earth. Most systems in nature display time cycles that are organised in a rhythm of their own as these time cycles and natural processes are always active, the environment of the earth is always in a state of dynamism. This environmental change is not only the result of natural process but also the result of human activity. Physical geography works towards understanding the interaction between man and nature and also the results of this interaction in order to manage global climate change better.
Q.11. The time cycles of the system of nature follow their own
(1) Path
(2) Rhythm
(3) Process
(4) Cycle
Answer: (2)
Q.12. The view seen by a passenger looking out of the window of an aircraft; will be affected by the
(1) Process
(2) Pattern
(3) Scale
(4) Rhythm
Answer: (3)
Q.13. Physical geography studies the results of the interaction between man and nature in order to
(1) Understand global climate change
(2) Study the impact of man’s activities on nature
(3) Address the issue of global climate change
(4) Reduce man—animal conflict
Answer: (3)
Q.14. In geography, pattern studies the variation observed in a phenomenon at
(1) A particular scale
(2) Any scale
(3) Every scale
(4) Most scales
Answer: (1)
Q.15. The alignment of landmass with other elements can be seen by a passenger on a flight on a
(1) Global scale
(2) Continental scale
(3) Local scale
(4) Time scale
Answer: (2)
NTA UGC NET DEC 2018
Comprehension:
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions from 16 to 20.
One of the findings of the research into successful leadership is the fact that respect is always a two-way street. No matter how powerful you are, no matter what your experience, skills, and accomplishments, you will not be respected by others if you consistently treat them disrespectfully, Friendliness- that is treating others politely and showing interest them is a way of showing your respect for other people, and in return they respect you. If as a manager you are respected, your preventive maintenance strategy will be accepted as a sincere attempt to resolve problems rather than a mean-spirited attempt to cause problems.
As important as friendliness is, I want to make sure you are not mislead into believing that friendliness will replace or correct poor management. I have seen effective managers who didn’t use this friendliness element but could have been more effective if they did use it. I have seen very friendly managers who were ineffective because they were not doing effective management things. In other words, managers who intervene effectively in a friendly way are always more effective than managers who intervene effectively in a friendly way. Maintaining a friendly relationship is another part of maintaining work performance. It also helps you avoid having people try to hurt you because they don’t like you. It might save your life.
Q.16. What is reported in respect of successful leadership?
- Respect depends on the accomplishments of the leader.
- Respect depends on the skills of the leadership.
- Respect comes out of respect.
- Respect depends on experience of the leadership.
Answer: 3
Q.17. The preventive maintenance strategy used by a respected manager will mean to the subordinates:
- An attempt to resolve problems
- An attempt to become sincere
- An attempt to become mean-spirited
- An attempt to cause problems
Answer: 1
Q.18. The central idea of the passage is
- Friendliness avoids chances of feeling hurt.
- Friendliness is necessary for management.
- Friendliness improves work-ethos.
- Friendliness is a negative factor for management.
Answer: 3
Q.19. According to the passage friendliness in management terms implies:
- Making management effective
- Replacing poor management
- Correcting ineffective management
- Making management ineffective
Answer: 1
Q.20. The passage highlights which of the following feature of a successful leadership?
- Dependence of the leader
- Reciprocity of the leader
- Independence of the leader
- Least concern for relationship by the leader.
Answer: 2
NTA UGC NET JULY 2018
Read the following passage carefully and answer questions from 21 to 25:
If India has to develop her internal strengths, the nation has to focus on the technological imperatives, keeping in mind three dynamic dimensions: the people, the overall economy and the strategic interests. These technological imperatives also take into account a ‘fourth’ dimensions, time, and offshoot of modern day dynamism in business, trade, and technology that leads to continually shifting targets. We believe that technological strengths are especially crucial in dealing with this fourth dimension underlying continuous change in the aspirations of the people, the economy in the global context, and the strategic interests. The progress of technology lies at the heart of human history. Technological strengths are the key to creating more productive employment in an increasingly competitive market place and to continually upgrade human skills. Without a pervasive use of technologies, we cannot achieve overall development of our people in the years to come. The direct linkages of technology to the nation’s strategic strengths are becoming more and more clear, especially since 1990s. India’s own strength in a number of core areas still puts it in a position of reasonable strength in geo-political context. Any nation aspiring to become a developed one needs to have strengths in various strategic technologies and also the ability to continually upgrade them through its own creative strengths. For people-oriented actions as well, whether for the creation of large scale productive employment or for ensuring nutritional and health security for people, or for better living conditions, technology is the only vital input. The absence of greater technological impetus could lead to lower productivity and wastage of precious natural resources. Activities with low productivity or low value addition, in the final analysis hurt the poorest most important. India, aspiring to become a major economic power in terms of trade and increase in GDP, cannot succeed on the strength of turnkey projects designed and built abroad or only through large-scale imports of plant machinery, equipment and know how. Even while being alive to the short-term realities, medium and long-term strategies to develop core technological strengths within our industry are vital for envisioning a developed India.
Q.21. According to the above passage, which of the following are indicative of the fourth dimension?
(a) Aspirations of people
(b) Modern day dynamism
(c) Economy in the global context
(d) Strategic interests
Code:
(1) (a), (b) and (c) only
(2) (b), (c) and (d) only
(3) (a), (c) and (d) only
(4) (a), (b) and (d) only
Answer: 3
Q.22. More productive employment demands:
(1) Pervasive use of technology
(2) Limiting competitive market place
(3) Geo-political considerations
(4) Large industries
Answer: 1
Q.23. Absence of technology would lead to:
(a) Less pollution
(b) Wastage of precious natural resources
(c) Low value addition
(d) Hurting the poorest most
Codes:
(1) (a), (b) and (c) only
(2) (b), (c) and (d) only
(3) (a), (b) and (d) only
(4) (a), (c) and (d) only
Answer: 2
Q.24. The advantage if technological inputs would result in:
(1) Unbridled technological growth
(2) Importing plant machinery
(3) Sideling environmental issues
(4) Lifting our people to a life of dignity
Answer: 4
Q.25. Envisioning a developed India requires:
(1) Aspiration to become a major economics player
(2) Dependence upon projects designed abroad
(3) Focus on short-term projects
(4) Development of core technological strengths
Answer: 4
CBSE UGC NET NOV 2017
Read the passage carefully and answer question numbers from 26 to 30.
Climate change is considered to be one of the most serious threats to sustainable development, with adverse impacts on the environment, human health, food security, economic activity, natural resources and physical infrastructure. Global climate varies naturally. According to the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the effects of climate change have already been observed, and scientific findings indicate that precautionary and prompt action is necessary. Vulnerability to climate change is not just a function of geography or dependence on natural resources; it also has social, economic and political dimensions which influence how climate change affects different groups. Poor people rarely have insurance to cover loss of property due to natural calamities i.e. drought, floods, super cyclones etc. The poor communities are already struggling to cope with the existing challenges of poverty and climate variability and climate change could push many beyond their ability to cope or even survive. It is vital that these communities are helped to adapt to the changing dynamics of nature. Adaptation is a process through which societies make themselves better able to cope with an uncertain future. Adapting to climate change entails taking the right measures to reduce the negative effects of climate change (or exploit the positive ones) by making the appropriate adjustments and changes. These range from technological options such as increased sea defences or flood – proof houses on stilts to behavioural change at the individual level, such as reducing water use in times of drought. Other strategies include early warning systems for extreme events, better water management, improved risk management, various insurance options and biodiversity conservation. Because of the speed at which climate change is happening due to global temperature rise, it is urgent that the vulnerability of developing countries to climate change is reduced and their capacity to adapt is increased and national adaptation plans are implemented. Adapting to climate change will entail adjustments and changes at every level from community to national and international. Communities must build their resilience, including adopting appropriate technologies while making the most of traditional knowledge, and diversifying their livelihoods to cope with current and future climate stress. Local coping strategies and knowledge need to be used in synergy with government and local interventions. The need of adaptation interventions depends on national circumstances. There is a large body of knowledge and experience within local communities on coping with climatic variability and extreme weather events. Local communities have always aimed to adapt to variations in their climate. To do so, they have made preparations based on their resources and their knowledge accumulated through experience of past weather patterns. This includes times when they have also been forced to react to and recover from extreme events, such as floods, drought and hurricanes. Local coping strategies are an important element of planning for adaptation. Climate change is leading communities to experience climatic extremes more frequently, as well as new climate conditions and extremes. Traditional knowledge can help to provide efficient, appropriate and time – tested ways of advising and enabling adaptation to climate change in communities who are feeling the effects of climate changes due to global warming.
Q.26. To address the challenge of climate change, developing countries urgently require:
(1) Adoption of technological solutions
(2) Imposition of climate change tax
(3) Implementation of national adaptation policy at their level
(4) Adoption of short-term plans
Answer: 3
Q.27. Adaptation as a process enables societies to cope with:
(a) An uncertain future
(b) Adjustments and changes
(c) Negative impact of climate change
(d) Positive impact of climate change
Select the most appropriate answer from the following code:
(1) (c) only
(2) (a), (b), (c) and (d)
(3) (a) and (c)
(4) (b), (c) and (d)
Answer: 2
Q.28. The traditional knowledge should be used through:
(1) Modern technology
(2) Its dissemination
(3) Improvement in national circumstances
(4) Synergy between government and local interventions
Answer: 4
Q.29. Given below are the factors of vulnerability of poor people to climate change. Select the code that contains the correct answer.
(a) Their dependence on natural resources
(b) Geographical attributes
(c) Lack of financial resources
(d) Lack of traditional knowledge
Code:
(1) (c) only
(2) (a), (b) and (c)
(3) (b), (c) and (d)
(4) (a), (b), (c) and (d)
Answer: 2
Q.30. The main focus of the passage is on:
(1) Social dimensions of climate change
(2) Combining traditional knowledge with appropriate technology
(3) Co-ordination between regional an national efforts
(4) Adaptation to climate change
Answer: 4
CBSE UGC NET JANUARY 2017
Read the following passage carefully and answer questions from 31 to 36:
The last great war, which nearly shook the foundations of the modern world, had little impact on Indian literature beyond aggravating the popular revulsion against violence and adding to the growing disillusionment with the ‘humane pretensions’ of the Western World. This was eloquently voiced in Tagore’s later poems and his last testament, Crisis in Civilization. The Indian intelligentsia was in a state of moral dilemma. On the one hand, it could not help sympathising with England’s dogged courage in the hour of peril, with the Russians fighting with their backs on the wall against ruthless Nazi hordes, and with China groaning under the heel of Japanese militarism; on the other hand, their own country was practically under the military occupation of their own soil, and an Indian army under Subhas Bose was trying from the opposite camp to liberate their country. No creative impulse could issue from such confusion of loyalties. One would imagine that the achievement of Indian independence in 1947, which came in the wake of the Allies’ victory and was followed by collapse of colonialism in the neighbouring countries of South-East Asia, would have released an upsurge of creative energy. No doubt it did, but unfortunately it was soon submerged in the great agony of partition, with its inhuman slaughter of the innocents and the uprooting of millions of people from their homeland, followed by the martyrdom of Mahatma Gandhi. These tragedies, along with Pakistan’s Invasion of Kashmir and its later atrocities in Bangladesh, did indeed provoke a poignant writing, particularly in the languages of the regions most affected, Bengali, Hindi, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Sindhi and Urdu. Both poignant or passionate writing does not by itself make great literature. What reserves of enthusiasm and confidence survived these disasters have been mainly absorbed in the task of national reconstruction and economic development. Great literature has always emerged out of chains of convulsions. Indian literature is richer today in volume, range and variety than it ever was in the past.
Based on the passage answer the following questions from 31 to 36:
Q.31. What was the stance of Indian intelligentsia during the period of great war?
(1) Indifference to Russia’s plight
(2) They favoured Japanese militarism
(3) They prompted creativity out of confused loyalties
(4) They expressed sympathy for England’s dogged courage.
Answer: 4
Q.32. Identify the factor responsible for the submergence of creative energy in Indian literature.
(1) Military occupation of one’s own soil
(2) Resistance to colonial occupation
(3) Great agony of partition
(4) Victory of Allies
Answer: 3
Q.33. What was the aftermath that survived tragedies in Kashmir and Bangladesh?
(1) Suspicion of other countries
(2) Continuance of rivalry
(3) Menace of war
(4) National reconstruction
Answer: 4
Q.34. The passage has the message that
(1) Disasters are inevitable
(2) Great literature emerges out of chains of convulsions
(3) Indian literature does not have a marked landscape
(4) Literature has no relation with war and independence.
Answer: 2
Q.35. What was the impact of the last great war on Indian literature?
(1) It had no impact
(2) It aggravated popular revulsion against violence
(3) It shook the foundations of literature
(4) It offered eloquent support to the Western World
Answer: 2
Q.36. What did Tagore articulate in his last testament?
(1) Offered support to Subhas Bose
(2) Exposed the humane pretensions of the Western World
(3) Expressed loyalty to England
(4) Encouraged the liberation of countries
Answer: 2
CBSE UGC NET JULY 2016
Read the following passage carefully and answer question numbers from 37 to 42:
In terms of labour, for decades the relatively low cost and high quality of Japanese workers conferred considerable competitive advantage across numerous durable goods and consumer-electronics industries (eg. Machinery, automobiles* televisions, radios). Then labour-based advantages shifted to South Korea, then to Malaysia, Mexico and other nations. Today, China appears to be capitalizing best on the basis of labour. Japanese firms still remain competitive in markets for such durable goods, electronics and other products, but the labour force is no longer sufficient for competitive advantage over manufacturers in other industrializing nations. Such shifting of labour-based advantage is clearly not limited to manufacturing industries. Today, a huge number of IT and service jobs are moving from Europe and North America to India, Singapore, and like countries with relatively well-educated, low-cost workforces possessing technical skills. However, as educational levels and technical skills continue to rise in other countries, India, Singapore, and like nations enjoying labour-based competitive advantage today are likely to find such advantage cannot be sustained through emergence of new competitors. hf terms of capital, for centuries the days of gold coins and later even paper money restricted financial flows. Subsequently regional concentrations were formed where large banks, industries and markets coalesced. But today capital flows internationally at rapid speed. Global commerce no longer requires regional interactions among business players. Regional capital concentrations in places such as New York, London and Tokyo still persist, of course, but the capital concentrated there is no longer sufficient for competitive advantage over other capitalists distributed worldwide. Only if an organization is able to combine, integrate and apply its resources (eg. Land, labour, capital, IT) in an effective manner that is not readily imitable by competitors can such an organization enjoy competitive advantage sustainable overtime.
In a knowledge-based theory of the firm, this idea is extended to view organizational knowledge as a resource with atleast the same level of power and importance as the traditional economic inputs. An organization with superior knowledge can achieve competitive advantage in markets that appreciate the application of such knowledge. Semiconductors, genetic engineering, pharmaceuticals, software, military warfare, and like knowledge-intensive competitive arenas provide both time-proven and current examples. Consider semiconductors (e.g. computer chips), which are made principally of sand and common metals. These ubiquitous and powerful electronic devices are designed within common office buildings, using commercially available tools, and fabricated within factories in many industrialized nations. Hence, land is not the key competitive resource in the semiconductor industry.
Based on the passage answer the following questions:
Q.37. Which country enjoyed competitive advantages in automobile industry for decades?
(1) South Korea
(2) Japan
(3) Mexico
(4) Malaysia
Answer: 2
Q.38. Why labour-based competitive advantages of India and Singapore cannot be sustained in IT and service sectors?
(1) Due to diminishing levels of skill.
(2) Due to capital-intensive technology making inroads.
(3) Because of new competitors.
(4) Because of shifting of labour-based advantage in manufacturing industries.
Answer: 3
Q.39. How can an organization enjoy competitive advantage sustainable overtime?
(1) Through regional capital flows.
(2) Through regional interactions among business players.
(3) By making large banks, industries and markets coalesced.
(4) By effective use of various instrumentalists.
Answer: 4
Q.40. What is required to ensure competitive advantages in specific markets?
(1) Access to capital
(2) Common office buildings
(3) Superior knowledge
(4) Common metals
Answer: 3
Q.41. The passage also mentions about the trend of
(1) Global financial flow
(2) Absence of competition in manufacturing industry
(3) Regionalisation of capitalists
(4) Organizational incompatibility
Answer: 1
Q.42. What does the author lay stress on in the passage?
(1) International commerce
(2) Labour-intensive industries
(3) Capital resource management
(4) Knowledge-driven competitive advantage
Answer: 4
CBSE UGC NET DEC 2015
Read the following passage carefully and answer question numbers 43 to 47.
I did that thing recently where you have to sign a big card – which is a horror unto itself, especially as the keeper of the Big Card was leaning over me at the time. Suddenly I was on the spot, a rabbit in the headlights, torn between doing a fun message or some sort of in-joke or a drawing. Instead overwhelmed by the myriad options available to me, I decided lo just write: “Good luck, best, Joel”.
It was then that I realised, to my horror, that 1 had forgot Len how to write. My entire existence is “tap letters into computer”. My shopping lists are hidden in the notes function of my phone. If I need to remember something I send an e-mail to myself. A pen is something I chew when I’m struggling to think. Paper is something I pile beneath my laptop to make it a more comfortable height for me to type on.
A poll of 1,000 teens by the stationers, Bic found that one in 10 don’t own a pen, a third have never written a letter, and half of 13 to 19 years – old have never been forced to sit down and write a thank you letter. More than 80% have never written a love letter, 56% don’t have letter paper at home. And a quarter have never known the unique torture of writing a birthday card. The most a teen ever has to use a pen is on an exam paper.
Bic, have you heard of mobile phones? Have you heard of e-mail, Facebook and snap chatting? This is the future. Pens are dead. Paper is dead. Handwriting is a relic.
“Handwriting is one of the most creative outlets we have and should be given the same importance as other art forms such as sketching, painting or photography.”
Answer the following questions:
Q.43. When confronted with signing a big card, the author felt like “a rabbit in the headlight”. What does this phrase mean?
(1) A slate of confusion
(2) A state of pleasure
(3) A state of anxiety
(4) A state of pain
Answer: 1
Q.44. According to the author, which one is not the most creative outlet of pursuit?
(I) Handwriting
(2) Photography
(3) Sketching
(4) Reading
Answer: 4
Q.45. The entire existence of the author revolves round:
(a) Computer
(b) Mobile phone
(c) Typewrite?
Identify the correct answer from the codes given below:
(1) (b) only
(2) (a) and (b) only
(3) (a), (b) and (c)
(4) (b) and (c) only
Answer: 2
Q.46. How many teens, as per the Bic survey, do not own a pen?
(1) 800
(2) 560
(3) 500
(4) 100
Answer: 4
Q.47. What is the main concern of the author?
(1) That the teens use social networks for communication.
(2) that the teens use mobile phones.
(3) That the teens use computer.
(4) That the teens have forgotten the art of handwriting.
Answer: 4
CBSE UGC NET JUNE 2015
Read the following passage carefully and answer questions 48 to 53.
Story telling is not in our genes. Neither it is an evolutionary history. It is the essence of what makes us Human.
Human beings progress by telling stories. One event can result in a great variety of stories being told about it. Sometimes those stories differ greatly. Which stories are picked up and repeated and which ones are dropped and forgotten often determines how we progress. Our history, knowledge and understanding are all the collections of the few stories that survive. This includes the stories that we tell each other about the future. And how the future will turn out depends partly, possibly largely, on which stories we collectively choose to believe.
Some stories are designed to spread fear and concern. This is because some story-tellers feel that there is a need to raise some tensions. Some stories are frightening, they are like totemic warnings: “Fail to act now and we are all doomed.” Then there are stories that indicate that all will be fine so long as we leave everything upto a few especially able adults. Currently, this trend is being led by those who call themselves “rational optimists”. They tend to claim that it is human nature to compete and to succeed and also to profit at the expense of others. The rational optimists however, do not realize how humanity has progressed overtime through amiable social networks and how large groups work in less selfishness and in the process accommodate rich and poor, high and low alike. This aspect in story-telling is considered by the ‘Practical Possibles’, who sit between those who say all is fine and cheerful and be individualistic in your approach to a successful future, and those who ordain pessimism and fear that we are doomed. What the future holds for us is which stories we hold on to and how we act on them.
Answer the following questions:
Q.48. Our knowledge is a collection of:
(1) all stories that we have heard during our life-time
(2) some stories that we remember
(3) a few stories that survive
(4) some important stories
Answer: 3
Q.49. Story telling is:
(1) an art
(2) a science
(3) in our genes
(4) the essence of what makes us human
Answer: 4
Q.50. How the future will turn out to be, depends upon the stories?
(1) We collectively choose to believe in
(2) Which are repeatedly narrated
(3) Designed to spread fear and tension
(4) Designed to make prophecy
Answer: 1
Q.51. Rational optimists:
(a) Look for opportunities.
(b) Are sensible and cheerful.
(c) Are selfishly driven.
Identify the correct answer from the codes given below:
(1) (a), (b) and (c)
(2) (a) only
(3) (a) and (b) only
(4) (b) and (c) only
Answer: 1
Q.52. Humans become less selfish when:
(1) they work in large groups
(2) they listen to frightening stories
(3) they listen to cheerful stories
(4) they work in solitude
Answer: 1
Q.53. ‘Practical Possibles’ are the ones who:
(1) follow Midway Path
(2) are doom-mongers
(3) are self-centred
(4) are cheerful and carefree
Answer: 1
CBSE UGC NET DECEMBER 2014
Read the following passage carefully and answer questions 54 to 58:
The literary distaste for politics, however, seems to be focused not so much on the largely murky practice of politics in itself as a subject of literary representation but rather more on how it is often depicted in literature, i.e., on the very politics of such representation. A political novel often turns out to be not merely a novel about politics but a novel with a politics of its own, for it seeks not merely to show us how things are but has fairly definite ideas about how things should be, and precisely what one should think and do in order to make things move in that desired direction. In short, it seeks to convert and enlist the reader to a particular cause or ideology; it often is (in an only too familiar phrase) not literature but propaganda. This is said violate the very spirit of literature which is to broaden our understanding of the world and to range of our sympathies rather than to narrow them down through partisan commitment. As John Keats said, ‘We hate poetry that has a palpable design upon us’.
Another reason why politics does not seem amenable to the highest kind of literary representation seems to arise from the fact that politics by its very nature is constituted of ideas and ideologies. If political situations do not lend themselves to happy literary treatment, political ideas present perhaps an even greater problem in this regard. Literature, it is argued, is about human experiences rather than about intellectual abstractions; it deals in what is called the ‘felt reality’ of human flesh and blood, and in sap and savour (rasa) rather than in arid and lifeless ideas. In an extensive discussion of the matter in her book Ideas and the Novel the American novelist Mary McCarthy observed that ‘ideas are still today felt to be unsightly in the novel though that was not so in ‘former days’, i.e. in the 18th and 19n centuries. Her formulation of the precise nature of the incompatibility between ideas on the one hand and the novel on other betrays perhaps a divided conscience in the matter and a sense of dilemma shared by many writers and readers: ‘An idea cannot have loose ends, but a novel, I almost think, needs them Nevertheless, there is enough in common for the novelists to feel… the attraction of ideas while taking up arms against them – most often with weapons of mockery.’
Q.54. The constructs of politics by its nature is
(A) Prevalent political situation
(B) Ideas and Ideologies
(C) Political propaganda
(D) Understanding of Iranian nature
Answer: C
Q.55. Literature deals with
(A) Human experiences in politics
(B) Intellectual abstractions
(C) Dry and empty ideas
(D) Felt reality of human life
Answer: D
Q.56. The observation of the novelist. Mary McCarthy reveals
(A) unseen felt ideas of today in the novel
(B) dichotomy of conscience on political ideas and novels
(C) compatibility between idea and novel
(D) endless ideas and novels
Answer: B
Q.57. According to the passage, a political novel often turns out to be a
(A) Literary distaste for politics
(B) Literary representation of politics
(C) Novel with its own politics
(D) Depiction of murky practice of politics
Answer: C
Q.58. A political novel reveals
(A) Reality of the things
(B) Writer’s perception
(C) Particular ideology of the readers
(D) The spirit of literature
Answer: B
CBSE UGC NET JUNE 2014
Read the following passage carefully and answer questions 59 to 63:
Traditional Indian Values must be viewed both from the angle of the individual and from that of the geographically delimited agglomeration of peoples or groups enjoying a common system of leadership which we call the ‘State’, The Indian ‘State’s’ special feature is the peaceful, or perhaps mostly peaceful, co-existence of social groups of various historical provenances which mutually adhere in a geographical, economic, and political sense, without ever assimilating to each other in social terms, in ways of thinking, or even in language. Modern Indian law will determine certain rules, especially in relation to the regime of the family, upon the basis of how the loin-cloth is tied, or how the turban is worn, for this may identify the litigants as members
of a regional group, and therefore as participants in its traditional law, though their ancestors left the region three or four centuries earlier. The use of the word ‘State’ above must not mislead us. There was no such thing as a conflict between the individual and the State, at least before foreign governments became established, just as there was no concept of state ‘sovereignty’ or of any church-and-state dichotomy.
Modern Indian ‘secularism’ has an admittedly peculiar feature: It requires the state to make a fair distribution of attention and support amongst all religions. These blessed aspects of India’s famed tolerance (Indian kings so rarely persecuted religious groups that the exceptions prove the rule) at once struck Portuguese and other European visitors to the West Coast of India in the sixteenth century, and the impression made upon them in this and other ways gave rise, at one remove, to the basic constitution of Thomas More’s Utopia. There is little about modern India that strikes one at once as Utopian: but the insistence upon the inculcation of norms, and the absence of bigotry and institutionalized exploitation of human or natural resources, are two very different features which link the realities of India and her tradition with the essence of all Utopians.
Answer:
Q.59. The basic construction of Thomas More’s Utopia was inspired by
(A) Indian tradition of religious tolerance.
(B) Persecution of religious groups by Indian rulers.
(C) Social inequality in India.
(D) European perception of Indian State.
Answer: A
Q.60. What is the striking feature of modern India?
(A) A replica of Utopian State
(B) Uniform laws
(C) Adherence to traditional values
(D) Absence of Bigotry
Answer: D
Q.61. Which of the following is a special feature of the Indian State?
(A) Peaceful co-existence of people under a common system of leadership
(B) Peaceful co-existence of social groups of different historical provenances attached to each other in a geographical, economic and political sense
(C) Social integration of all groups
(D) Cultural assimilation of all social groups.
Answer: B
Q.62. The author uses the word ‘State’ to highlight
(A) Antagonistic relationship between the state and the individual throughout the period of history.
(B) Absence of conflict between the state and the individuals upto a point in time.
(C) The concept of state sovereignty.
(D) Dependence on religion.
Answer: B
Q.63. Which one is the peculiar feature of modern Indian ‘Secularism’?
(A) No discrimination on religious considerations
(B) Total indifference to religion
(C) No space for social identity
(D) Disregard for social law
Answer: A
CBSE UGC NET December 2013
Read the following passage carefully and answer questions 64 to 69:
Heritage conservation practices improved worldwide after the International Center for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) was established with UNESCO’s assistance in 1959. The inter-governmental organization with 126 member states has done a commendable job by training more than 4,000 professionals, providing practice standards, and sharing technical expertise. In this golden jubilee year, as we acknowledge its key role in global conservation, an assessment of international practices would be meaningful to the Indian conservation movement. Consistent investment, rigorous attention, and dedicated research and dissemination are some of the positive lessons to imbibe. Countries such as Italy have demonstrated that prioritizing heritage with significant budget provision pays. On the other hand, India, which is no less endowed in terms of cultural capital, has a long way to go. Surveys indicate that in addition to the 6,600 protected monuments, there are over 60,000 equally valuable heritage structures that await attention. Besides the small group in the service of Archaeological Survey of India, there are only about 150 trained conservation professionals. In order to overcome this severe shortage the emphasis has been on setting up dedicated labs and training institutions. It would make much better sense for conservation to be made part of mainstream research and engineering institutes, as has been done in Europe. Increasing funding and building institutions are the relatively easy part. The real challenge is to redefine international approaches to address local contexts. Conservation cannot limit itself to enhancing the art-historical value of the heritage structures, which international charters perhaps over emphasize. The effort has to be broad-based: It must also serve as a means to improving the quality of life in the area where the heritage structures are located. The first task therefore is to integrate conservation efforts with sound development plans that take care of people living in the heritage vicinity. Unlike in western countries, many traditional building crafts survive in India, and conservation practices offer an avenue to support them. This has been acknowledged by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage charter for conservation but is yet to receive substantial state support. More strength for heritage conservation can be mobilized by aligning it with the green building movement. Heritage structures are essentially Eco-friendly and conservation could become a vital part of the sustainable building practices campaign in future.
Q.64. The outlook for conservation heritage changed
(A) after the establishment of the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property.
(B) after training the specialists in the field.
(C) after extending UNESCO’s assistance to the educational institutions.
(D) after ASI’s measures to protect the monuments
Answer: A
Q.65. The inter-govemment organization was appreciated because of
(A) increasing number of members to 126.
(B) imparting training to professionals and sharing technical expertise.
(C) consistent investment in conservation.
(D) its proactive role in renovation and restoration
Answer: B
Q.66. Indian conservation movement will be successful if there would be
(A) Financial support from the Government of India.
(B) Non-governmental organizations role and participation in the conservation movement.
(C) consistent investment, rigorous attention, and dedicated research and dissemination of awareness for conservation.
(D) Archaeological Survey of India’s meaningful assistance.
Answer: C
Q.67. As per the surveys of historical monuments in India, there is very small number of protected monuments. As per given the total number of monuments and enlisted number of protected monuments, percentage comes to
(A) 10 percent
(B) 11 percent
(C) 12 percent
(D) 13 percent
Answer: D
Q.68. What should India learn from Europe to conserve our cultural heritage?
(i) There should be significant budget provision to conserve our cultural heritage.
(ii) Establish dedicated labs and training institutions.
(iii) Force the government to provide sufficient funds.
(iv) Conservation should be made part of mainstream research and engineering institutes.
Choose correct answer from the codes given below:
(A) (i) (ii), (iii, (iv)
(B) (i). (ii) (iv)
(C) (i), (ii)
(D) (i), (iii), (iv)
Answer: B
Q.69. INTACH is known for its contribution for conservation of our cultural heritage. The full form of INTACH is
(A) International Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage.
(B) Intra-national Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage
(C) Integrated Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage
(D) Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage
Answer: D
CBSE UGC NET JUNE 2013
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions (70 to 75):
The Taj Mahal has become one of the world’s best known monuments. This domed white marble structure is situated on a high plinth at the southern end of a four-quartered garden evoking the gardens of paradise, enclosed within walls measuring 305 by 549 metres. Outside the walls, in an area known as Mumtazabad, were living quarters for attendants, markets, serais and other structures built by local merchants and nobles. The tomb complex and the other imperial structures of Mumtazabad were maintained by the income of thirty villages given specifically for the tomb’s support. The name Taj Mahal is unknown in Mughal chronicles, but it is used by contemporary Europeans in India, suggesting that this was the tomb’s popular name. In contemporary texts, it is generally called simply the Il1urninated Tomb (Rauza-i-Munavvara), Mumtaz Mahal died shortly after delivering her fourteenth child in 1631. The Mughal court was then residing in Burhanpur. Her remains ‘were temporarily buried. by the grief stricken emperor in a spacious garden known as Zainabad on the bank of the river Tapti. SIX months later her body was transported to Agra, where it was interred in land chosen for the mausoleum. This land, situated south of the- Mughal city on the bank of the Jamuna, had belonged to the Kachhwaha rajas since the time of Raja Man Singh and was purchased from the then current raja, Jai Singh. Although contemporary chronicles indicate Jai Singh’s willing cooperation in this exchange, extant, farmans (imperial commands) indicate that the final price was not settled until almost two years after the mausoleum’s commencement. Jai Singh’s further cooperation was insured by imperial orders issued between 1632 and 1637 demanding that he provide stone masons and carts to transport marble from the mines at Makrana, within his “ancestral domain”, to Agra where both the Taj Mahal and Shah Jahan’s additions to the Agra fort were constructed concurrently. Work on the mausoleum was commenced early in 1632. Inscriptional evidence indicates much of the tomb was completed by 1636. By 1643, when Shah Jahan most lavishly celebrated the ‘Urs ceremony for Mumtaz Mahal’, the entire complex was virtually complete.
Q.70. Marble stone used for the construction of the Taj Mahal was brought from the ancestral domain of Raja Jai Singh. The name of the place where mines of marble is
(A) Burhanpur
(B) Makrana
(C) Amber
(D) Jaipur
Answer: B
Q.71. The popular name Taj Mahal was given by
(A) Shah Jahan
(B) Tourists
(C) Public
(D) European travellers
Answer: D
Q.72. Point out the true statement from the following.
(A) Marble was not used for the construction of the Taj Mahal.
(B) Red sandstone is non-visible in the Taj Mahal complex.
(C) The Taj Mahal is surrounded by a four-quartered garden known as Chahr Bagh..
(D) The Taj Mahal was constructed to celebrate the ‘Urs ceremony for Mumtaz Mahal’.
Answer: C
Q.73. In the contemporary texts the Taj Mahal is known
(A). Mumtazabad
(B) Mumtaz Mahal
(C) Zainabad
(D) Rauza-i-Munavvara
Answer: D
Q.74. The construction of the Taj Mahal was completed between the period
(A) 1632 – 1636 A.D.
(B) 1630 – 1643A.D.
(C) 1632 -1643 A.D.
(D) 1636 – 1643 A.D.
Answer: C
Q.75. The documents indicating the ownership of land, where the Taj Mahal was built, known as
(A) Farman
(B) Sale Deed
(C) Sale-Purchase Deed
(D) None of the above
Answer: A
CBSE UGC NET DECEMBER 2012
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions (76 to 81):
The popular view of towns and cities in developing countries and of urbanization process is that despite the benefits and comforts it brings, the emergence of such cities connotes environmental degradation, generation of slums and squatters, urban poverty, unemployment, crimes, lawlessness, traffic chaos etc. But what is the reality? Given the unprecedented increase in urban population over the last 50 years from 300 million in 1950 to 2 billion in 2000 in developing countries, the wonder really is how well the world has coped, and not how badly.
In general, the urban quality of life has improved in terms of availability of water and sanitation, power, health and education, communication and transport. By way of illustration, a large number of urban residents have been provided with improved water in urban areas in Asia’s largest countries such as China, India, Indonesia and Philippines. Despite that, the access to improved water in terms of percentage of total urban population seems to have declined during the last decade of 20th century, though in absolute numbers, millions of additional urbanites, have been provided improved services. These countries have made significant progress in the provision of sanitation services too, together, providing for an additional population of more than 293 million citizens within a decade (1990-2000). These improvements must be viewed against the backdrop of rapidly increasing urban population, fiscal crunch and strained human resources and efficient and quality-oriented public management.
Q.76. The popular view about the process of urbanization in developing countries is
(A) Positive
(B) Negative
(C) Neutral
(D) Unspecified
Answer: B
Q.77. The average annual increase in the number of urbanites in developing countries, from 1950 to 2000 A.D. was close to
(A) 30 million
(B) 40 million
(C) 50 million
(D) 60 million
Answer: A
Q.78. The reality of urbanization is reflected in
(A) How well the situation has been managed.
(B) How badly the situation has gone out of control.
(C) How fast has been the tempo of urbanization.
(D) How fast the environment has degraded.
Answer: A
Q.79. Which one of the following is not considered as an indicator of urban quality of life?
(A) Tempo of urbanization
(B) Provision of basic services
(C) Access to social amenities
(D) All the above
Answer: D
Q.80. The author in this passage has tried to focus on
(A) Extension of Knowledge
(B) Generation of Environmental Consciousness
(C) Analytical Reasoning
(D) Descriptive Statement
Answer: C
Q.81. In the above passage, the author intends to state
(A) The hazards of the urban life
(B) The sufferings of the urban life
(C) The awareness of human progress
(D) The limits to growth
Answer: D
CBSE UGC NET JUNE 2012
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions 82 to 87:
James Madison said, “A people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with power that knowledge gives.” In India, the Official Secrets Act, 1923 was a convenient smokescreen to deny members of the public access to information. Public functioning has traditionally been shrouded in secrecy. But in a democracy in which people govern themselves, it is necessary to have more openness. In the maturing of our democracy, right to information is a major step forward; it enables citizens to participate fully in the decision-making process that affects their lives so profoundly. It is in this context that the address of the Prime Minister in the Lok Sabha is significant. He said, “I would only like to see that everyone, particularly our civil servants, should see the Bill in a positive spirit; not as a draconian law for paralyzing Government, but as an instrument for improving Government-Citizen interface resulting in a friendly, caring and effective Government functioning for the good of our People.” He further said, “This is an innovative Bill, where there will be scope to review its functioning as we gain experience. Therefore, this is a piece of legislation, whose working will be kept under constant reviews.”
The Commission, in its Report, has dealt with the application of the Right to Information in Executive, Legislature and Judiciary. The judiciary could be a pioneer in implementing the Act in letter and spirit because much of the work that the Judiciary does is open to public scrutiny, Government of India has sanctioned an e-governance project in the Judiciary for about ` 700 crores which would bring about systematic classification, standardization and categorization of records. This would help the judiciary to fulfil its mandate under the Act. Similar capacity building would be required in all other public authorities. The transformation from non-transparency to transparency and public accountability is the responsibility of all three organs of State.
Q.82. A person gets power
(A) by acquiring knowledge
(B) from the Official Secrets Act, 1923
(C) through openings
(D) by denying public information
Answer: A
Q.83. Right to Information is a major step forward to
(A) enable citizens to participate fully in the decision making process
(B) to make the people aware of the Act
(C) to gain knowledge of administration
(D) to make the people Government friendly
Answer: A
Q.84. The Prime Minister considered the Bill
(A) to provide power to the civil servants
(B) as an instrument for improving Government-citizen interface resulting in a friendly, caring and effective Government
(C) a draconian law against the officials
(D) to check the harassment of the people
Answer: B
Q.85. The Commission made the Bill effective by
(A) extending power to the executive authorities
(B) combining the executive and legislative power
(C) recognizing Judiciary a pioneer in implementing the act in letter and spirit
(D) educating the people before its implementation
Answer: C
Q.86. The Prime Minister considered the Bill innovative and hoped that
(A) It could be reviewed based on the experience gained on its functioning.
(B) The civil servants would see the Bill in a positive spirit.
(C) It would not be considered as a draconian law for paralyzing Government
(D) All the above
Answer: D
Q.87. The transparency and public accountability is the responsibility of three organs of the State. These three organs are
(A) Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and Judiciary
(B) Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and Executive
(C) Judiciary, Legislature and the Commission
(D) Legislature, Executive and Judiciary
Answer: D