English Quizzes, for SBI/IBPS PO Prelims 2021 – 1st November – Miscellaneous

TOPIC: Miscellaneous

Directions (1-5): In each of the questions given below, a paragraph is given which has some blanks and those blanks must be filed with the same word out of five words given below it. You must choose that same as your answer and fill up the blanks with that appropriate answer.

Q1. After a muted Onam, Kerala woke up on Sunday to the reality of providing __________ to the humungous number of stranded people and to the enormity of rehabilitation and restoration of normal life. According to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who held a review of the __________ and rehabilitation work on Sunday, 462456 persons are still housed in 1435 __________ camps.
(a) Nonchalance
(b) Hindrance
(c) Succor
(d) Deluge
(e) Torrent

Q2. Four fresh recruits planning to enter Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) for arms training were __________ in the frontier district of Kupwara on Sunday. The four were __________ after a brief gunfight in the Kupwara district. Extreme restraint was exercised, and opportunity was given to the militants to surrender. The four surrendered and subsequently ___________.
(a) zapped
(b) killed
(c) spawned
(d) arrested
(e) eliminated

Q3. Former PM Manmohan Singh has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that the historic Teen Murti complex, ___________ to the memory of Jawaharlal Nehru, should be left undisturbed.
It comes in the wake of reports that the Modi government wants to create a museum ___________ to all Prime Ministers in the Teen Murti complex. Even his political rivals ___________ their reverence to his distinctiveness and greatness, said Dr. Singh.
(a) posited
(b) dedicated
(c) belonged
(d) imprinted
(e) altered

Q4. Chief Justice of India (CJI) Justice Dipak Misra on Sunday called upon law students to engage in the practice of ‘cause lawyering’ and develop the idea of serviceability to law by taking up pro bono cases to protect human rights, rights of individuals and rights of under-privileged.
(a) succor
(b) travesty
(c) equanimity
(d) deluge
(e) rights

Q5. Mr. Bhagat, a loco pilot of the Bamanhat-Siliguri Jn. passenger train applied the brakes after spotting a __________ of elephants close to the track between Sivok and Gumla stations in northern West Bengal on August 24 evening. My assistant [Mr. Kumar] spotted the __________ at about 5.35 p.m. The __________ was not visible from my side of the locomotive because of a bend in the track.
(a) herd
(b) pronouncement
(c) army
(d) fleet
(e) swarm

Q6. In the question given below, there are four sentences. Choose the sentence which is grammatically incorrect or illogical as your answer. In questions where all the given sentences are grammatically correct, choose option (E) ‘all are correct’ as your answer choice.
(a) Separatist organisations have called for a shutdown from Sunday against the hearing in Supreme Court.
(b) Cohen had paid her $130,000 for her silence.
(c) It being cold day in Kashmir most of the people out on the street were wearing the traditional Kashmiri winter dress.
(d) Only one team has come back from 0-2 down to win a Test series – Don Bradman’s Australia against England at home in 1936-37.
(e) All are correct

Q7. In the question given below, there are four sentences. Choose the sentence which is grammatically incorrect or illogical as your answer. In questions where all the given sentences are grammatically correct, choose option (E) ‘all are correct’ as your answer choice.
(a) The greater concentration of capital allows the giant oligopolies to raise prices which takes more of a worker’s pay cheque.
(b) Battling intense smoke and heat, the fire brigade rescued 35 people, many of trapped on the top four floors of the 16-storey building.
(c) Global emissions have not plateaued, reportedly having risen by 1.4% last year.
(d) A science book has bought by Ramesh to prepare for his class 12th exams.
(e) all are correct

Q8. In the question given below, there are four sentences. Choose the sentence which is grammatically incorrect or illogical as your answer. In questions where all the given sentences are grammatically correct, choose option (E) ‘all are correct’ as your answer choice.
(a) Richa came always late to her office last month.
(b) Fewer companies means workers have less choice of employers and so have less bargaining power.
(c) Recently, Apple became the first company to have a $1 trillion valuation and today just 30 companies reap half of all profits produced by all publicly traded companies.
(d) Indian banks are facing mounting non-performing assets or bad loans, especially at PSBs, which have reached more than 8 lakh crores.
(e) All are correct

Directions (9-15): Read the passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words/ phrases have been given in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.

A major feature of the global food security scenario is that marked imbalances exist across regions. For instance, in 1985-86 there was a global surplus in cereal production of 92 million metric tonnes. Developed nations had a surplus of 182 million tonnes, while the developing countries and the socialist block had a deficit of 90 million tonnes. The estimated incidence of chronic malnutrition for 1985 was anywhere between 500 and 720 million people. This figure excludes China, for want of data. South Asia with about two-thirds of the undernourished and sub-Saharan Africa with one-fifth, account for nearly 80 per cent of the world’s total. This highly skewed profile of food insecurity across the major regions of the world shows little change over recent years. Any worthwhile contemporary discussion on food security must therefore have as its major focus the situation in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.

Alongside the regional differences in levels of food insecurity, within the vulnerable regions the causes of this condition also vary considerably. In certain countries, of which India is an example, the poor are largely net buyers of food. What is needed in this context are steps to increase domestic supplies and stabilize prices at reasonable levels. Policies are needed to promote food production to serve the public distribution system. In the other hand, in countries like Bangladesh, the majority of the poor are in fact net sellers of food. Security for them can be achieved by raising the prices of food grains and expanding markets mainlythrough increased export.An improved marketing system is relevant here. Another source of problems regarding food security lies in structural factors like lack of infrastructure for transporting food grains and their storage. The transport problem is acute in landlocked countries like Chad, Mali, Niger and Zimbabwe. This has led to considerable damage and wastage, and this includes imported food grains.

The problem of food insecurity over the globe has a distributing long-term aspect, namely the growing import needs of the developing countries. In over just six years following 1972, their imports rose from around 50 to over 70 million tonnes. There is also evidence that the annual growth rates for food production are negative for most low income countries. Given that food grain prices are likely to increase following the Uruguay Round (UR) of GAIT. This growing dependence on non-domestic sourcespoints only to a worsening situation. A short-term aspect of food insecurity lies in inter-year fluctuations in the availability of food supplies. Many factors operate together. A fall in production cannot be offset readily by imports because of foreign exchange restrictions, and a reduction in food exports is disallowed by existing contracts. The option of curtailing non-food imports while logically sound, is problematic because these imports usually cover items needed for sustaining ongoing development. Thus, there is a trade-off between current food security and growth. Food aid becomes an important mechanism under these circumstances.Indeed, figures show increased food aid over the decade after 1978. A limitation of this mechanism is that aid made available by donors generally does not respond to the specific needs of the individual countries targeted.

Q9. The writer cites the large cereal surplus in developed countries in order to
(a) illustrate the extent of exploration in the present world order.
(b) show how efficient modern agricultural practices can be.
(c) show that there will be a world level surplus even after meeting the deficits of poorer countries.
(d) highlight the marked imbalances across regions of the world in food security.
(e) argue that this quantum is actually small compared with the massive figures for malnutrition.

Q10. The important observation made in relation to South Asia and Sub Saharan Africa is that
(a) these regions have the highest levels of individual malnutrition and child mortality.
(b) a direct comparison between these regions and China would not be valid without more data.
(c) an effective solution to global food insecurity must be linked to their needs.
(d) they must be given priority assistance to reduce their dependence on costly food imports.
(e) their position on the ‘map’ of malnutrition across major regions remain unusually stable.

Q11. The significant difference between the group of countries represented by India and Bangladesh lies in
(a) the urban-rural population ratio.
(b) the level of dependence on imports for maintaining buffer stocks.
(c) the vulnerability of the rural population to the effects of high food prices.
(d) the importance of the functions of trading communities and castes to the rural economy.
(e) the proportion of small and marginal farmers who produce some surplus food.

Q12. Chad and Mali are examples of countries where
(a) transportation facilities can be maintained only with heavy technical and financial outlays.
(b) lack of infrastructure leads to a deadlock in the food distribution system.
(c) inadequate transport and storage facilities lead to wastage of food supplies.
(d)the costs of transport and storage effectively neutralise the value of the significant food aid.
(e) infrastructure deficiencies rather than low domestic production is at the base of food insecurity.

Q13. The long term dimension of the food insecurity problem of the poor countries is
(a) the tendency to rely on cheap imports and aid rather than invest in infrastructure.
(b) the likely increase ingrain prices following the UR of GATT.
(c) the negative growth rate for food supplies that shows signs of stabilizing.
(d) the need to maintain exports at high levels even when earnings are falling.
(e) the increasing dependence on food imports of many developing countries.

Q14. The option of reducing non-food imports when short term food shortages arise is often not practical because
(a) there is a trade-off between food security and growth of GNP.
(b) the conventional methods of containing insecurity are too expensive.
(c) such imports are necessary to sustain ongoing development efforts.
(d) curtailing imports arbitrarily goes against the UR agreements .
(e) dumping of surplus supply by the exporting nations so affected can cause even more difficulties.

Q15. While food aid has increased over the 1980s,
(a) it remains a mechanism that can be misused by wealthy nations.
(b) it has not been effective in controlling price rise after the UR.
(c) it is not usually sensitive to the specific needs of the countries being targeted.
(d) its potentially key role in mediating between food security and growth has yet to be activated.
(e)under certain circumstances it cannot sustain ongoing development.

ALSO CHECK:

Solutions

S1. Ans.(c)
Sol.
Stranded people requires ‘Relief’. People should be housed in ‘Relief’ camps. CM would have held a review of the ‘Relief’ and rehabilitation work.
Nonchalance [noun] means ‘The state of being nonchalant; calm behavior that suggests you are not interested or do not care; calmness; equanimity; coolness;’.
Succor [noun] means ‘assistance and support in times of hardships and distress’.
Deluge [noun] means ‘a severe flood’;
Torrent [noun] means ‘a severe flood’;
Among the given options, ‘succor’ has a meaning very close to the meaning of ‘relief’.
Hence, ‘Succor’ is the correct answer and option (c) is the correct answer.

S2. Ans.(d)
Sol. The last two sentences give the hint for the word which would fill the blank. ‘Extreme restraint was exercised, and opportunity was given to the militants to surrender. The four surrendered’.
The highlighted sentences suggest that the militants weren’t killed or eliminated because extreme restraint was exercised, and the militants surrendered.
Zap [verb] means ‘go quickly’;
Spawn [verb] ‘(of a fish, frog, mollusk, crustacean, etc) release or deposit eggs; produce (offspring)’;
The words ‘zapped’ and ‘spawned’ are irrelevant to the context of the sentences.
It makes more sense that the surrendered militants were arrested.
Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

S3. Ans.(b)
Sol. Posit [verb] means ‘to put forward as a fact or as a basis for argument’. The meaning of the word is irrelevant in the context of the given blanks.
Similarly, the meaning of the words ‘belonged’, ’imprinted’ and ‘altered’ is irrelevant in the context of the given blanks.
The Teen Murti Complex should be ‘attributed’ to Nehru Ji.
The meaning of the word ‘dedicated’ is closer to the meaning of the word ‘attributed’.
Hence, option (b) is the correct answer.

S4. Ans. (e)
Sol. Succor [noun] means ‘assistance and support in times of hardships and distress’;
Travesty [noun] means ‘something that fails to represent the values and qualities that it is intended to represent, in a way that is shocking or offensive’;
Equanimity [noun] means ‘calmness and composure, especially in a difficult situation’;
Deluge [noun] means ‘a severe flood’;
The words succor, travesty, equanimity and deluge are irrelevant in the context of the blanks.
There is something called ‘rights of humans, rights of individuals, and rights of under-privileged;
The word ‘rights’ correctly fits the blank.
Hence, option (e) is the correct answer.

S5. Ans.(a)
Sol. Only the option (a) ‘herd’, upon filling the blanks, satisfy the contextual and grammatical requirements of the blanks.
Hence, Option (a) is the correct answer.
herd [noun] means ‘a large group of animals, especially hoofed mammals, that live together or are kept together as livestock’;
Pronouncement [noun] means ‘a formal or authoritative announcement or declaration’;
Army [noun] means ‘a group of soldiers’;
Fleet [noun] means ‘a group of ships’;
Swarm [noun] means ‘a large group of flying insects’;

S6.Ans. (c)
Sol. In the option (c), the phrase ‘cold day’ would be preceded by an article ‘a’ because ‘day’ is a singular countable noun which must be preceded by ‘a’, but ‘day’ is preceded by an adjective ‘cold’ due to which the article ‘a’ would precede the word ‘cold’. Hence, (c) is the correct answer.

S7. Ans. (d)
Sol. Option (d) is given in the passive form, but the syntax is incorrect. ‘Been’ should follow the helping verb ‘has’.
So, the correct sentence is ‘A science book has been bought by Ramesh to prepare for his class 12^th exams.’
Hence, option (d) is the correct answer.

S8. Ans. (a)
Sol. In the option (a), the use of ‘always’ is incorrect because always, seldom, never etc are primarily used before the main verb.
Hence, option (a) is the correct answer.

S9. Ans.(d)
Sol. Refer to the first sentence of the passage, “A major feature of the global food security scenario is that marked imbalances exist across regions. For instance, in 1985-86 there was a global surplus in cereal production of 92 million metric tonnes. Developed nations had a surplus of 182 million tonnes, while the developing countries and the socialist block had a deficit of 90 million tonnes.” Hence option (d) is correct.

S10. Ans.(e)
Sol. Refer to the last three sentences of the first paragraph of the passage, “South Asia with about two-thirds of the undernourished and sub-Saharan Africa with one-fifth, account for nearly 80 per cent of the world’s total. This highly skewed profile of food insecurity across the major regions of the world shows little change over recent years. Any worthwhile contemporary discussion on food security must therefore have as its major focus the situation in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.” Hence option (e) is true.

S11. Ans.(c)
Sol. Refer to the first few lines of the second paragraph of the passage, “Alongside the regional differences in levels of food insecurity, within the vulnerable regions the causes of this condition also vary considerably. In certain countries, of which India is an example, the poor are largely net buyers of food. What is needed in this context are steps to increase domestic supplies and stabilize prices at reasonable levels. Policies are needed to promote food production to serve the public distribution system. In the other hand, in countries like Bangladesh, the majority of the poor are in fact net sellers of food.” Hence option (c) is true.

S12. Ans.(c)
Sol. Refer to the eighth sentence of the second paragraph of the passage, “Another source of problems regarding food security lies in structural factors like lack of infrastructure for transporting food grains and their storage. The transport problem is acute in landlocked countries like Chad, Mali, Niger and Zimbabwe. This has led to considerable damage and wastage, and this includes imported food grains.” Hence option (c) is true.

S13. Ans.(e)
Sol. Refer to the eleventh sentence of the second paragraph, “The problem of food insecurity over the globe has a distributing long-term aspect, namely the growing import needs of the developing countries.” Hence option (e) is true.

S14. Ans.(c)
Sol. Refer to the fifth last sentence of the passage, “The option of curtailing non-food imports while logically sound, is problematic because these imports usually cover items needed for sustaining ongoing development.” Hence option (c) is true.

S15. Ans.(c)
Sol. Refer to the last three sentences of the passage, “Food aid becomes an important mechanism under these circumstances. Indeed, figures show increased food aid over the decade after 1978. A limitation of this mechanism is that aid made available by donors generally does not respond to the specific needs of the individual countries targeted.” Hence option (c) is true.