Reading Comprehension

Which of the following views is taken by the author?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

The famous line by John Lennon from a song in his last album, “Life is what happens to you while you’re making other plans,” is an apt metaphor for urbanization in India. 
In September, a UN report, ‘State of the World’s Cities’, noted that Delhi had joined an exclusive league of ‘metacities’—massive conurbations of more than 20 million people. It now outstrips even Shanghai and similar behemoths to rank as the world’s second largest urban agglomeration behind Tokyo, a position it is likely to retain till 2025.
As with much of policy-making in the country, the pattern is one of being reactive not proactive, of forever playing catch-up, in this case trying to provide housing, water, transport and other services to a burgeoning urban population. To attribute purposiveness behind India’s urbanisation is to give our planners and policymakers credit (or blame) where it is not due!
Obviously a mega city has pros and cons - economies of scale that make possible good museums, hospitals and universities (agglomeration economies) have to be balanced against congestion, crime, pollution and administrative challenges (agglomeration diseconomies). In the ultimate analysis, one size-does-not-fit-all and there is space under the sun for cities of all sizes.
That said, three features of India’s urbanisation portend the future. First, till recently and contrary to popular belief, India on the whole urbanised slowly. In 1950 India was more urban than China, but the latter overtook us soon(45% urban compared to our 31%).
Second, in contrast to Europe and Africa, urban Indians tend to live in bigger cities — about 50% of them lived in cities of 5 lakh or more and 42% lived in cities of over a million.
Finally, and more worryingly, urban sprawl is increasing in India — we are urbanising wastefully in terms of land with all its attendant consequences for service delivery.
As Indian cities nibble away at their rural fringe (gobble-up would be a more appropriate description) they also corrode the nation’s moral fiber — the worst instances of corruption and scams are to be found in land deals and rural-urban conversion. Land transactions fuel the black economy and windfall gains of nouveau riche with scant regard for values.
The question then is not one of size since it alone does not make a Delhi or a Mumbai into Shanghai which are indeed bigger or of the same size. It is sensible (compact and dense) urban form, efficient service delivery and accountable and responsive city governments that would make our mega-dysfunctional-cities into Shanghai.

The passage does NOT

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

In this ever changing environment where companies are competing with each other to gain market space, to come up with innovation and increase their productivity, it becomes imperative that organizations adopt practices that help them to attract and retain competitive talent in the work place. It requires the organization to take the right set of people, create an ecosystem where talent can blossom/develop and at the same time weed out people who do not seem to fit into the roles assigned to them. Most of the organizations today have a performance measurement mechanism which helps them to categorize people, identify their competency gaps/strengths and decide compensation structure based on performance.
Performance management systems (PMS) have also evolved over the years. It has changed form in terms of the way it is administered and delivered as well as to the way in which PMS has been approached. It has evolved from a manual system or the normal annual form filling exercise to a more sophisticated system where even large information can be gathered using automated platforms. PMS has also emerged as part of a broader frame work where the organization’s vision, values and objectives are closely connected with each other. It has redefined its form into something more elaborate like a balance scorecard where the processes, financials, learning and development plans of the people are integrated into one. The beginning of the cold war era also saw the two major superpowers coming up with massive leaps in technology, production and making investments on a large scale in research and developmental functions. Both of these superpowers carried out a number of experiments on human beings to map the complications of human brain functioning and to find out what motivated people do to reach for greater heights in their professional as well as personal lives. Big companies with global footprint evermore felt the need to develop such systems as may stimulate people to excel in their roles. The result of these scientific studies and experiments laid the platform for the development of strength finding mechanisms where emphasis was laid on placing people in roles matching their inherent competencies.

Which of the following best explains the utility aspect of financial literacy?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Financial literacy refers to knowledge required for managing personal finance. It does not necessarily refer to formal education in finance. Instead, it encompasses an understanding of how to use credit responsibly, manage money and savings, minimize financial risk and drive long term benefits of savings.
The ultimate goal of financial literacy is the empowerment of people to take action by them that are in their self interest. When people know about the financial products available and when they are able to evaluate the merits and demerits of each product and the suitability of the product for their specific needs, they are in a better position to decide what they want and feel empowered in a meaningful way..
Financial inclusion has been defined by United Nations as ‘a financial sector that provides access to credit for all bankable people and firms and saving and payment services to everyone. Inclusive finance does not require that everyone is eligible to use each of services but they should be able to choose if desired.’ The financial sector provides critical financial services to household and business enterprise which include safe savings and range of risk/return trade off services. It reduces dependence on informal financial sources such as pawn shops, money lenders or informal groups relating to savings and credit associations by poor low income vulnerable group of society. It facilitates payment between different parties and makes them safer to a cash transaction.
The access to financial services viz deposits, loans, money transfer and insurance to the poor and low income group households will help them to insure themselves against shocks such as illness of self or family members, loss of employment etc and equip to meet the eventualities in a better way and they need not be demoralized.
A sizeable population of the world particularly the poor, low income group and vulnerable groups remain excluded from the most basic financial assistance provided by financial sector. It has been universally accepted that developing financial sector and improving access to financial services accelerate economic growth helps to achieve inclusive growth. Although the level of banking exclusion varies across the world, it is the same group of people who are affected, people having low income or who have history of bad debt. Markets exclude them because they do not have sufficient income which can be translated into purchasing power or have assets or capabilities which are translatable into labour and capable of yielding income through wages.

In the context of the passage, financial literacy means

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Financial literacy refers to knowledge required for managing personal finance. It does not necessarily refer to formal education in finance. Instead, it encompasses an understanding of how to use credit responsibly, manage money and savings, minimize financial risk and drive long term benefits of savings.
The ultimate goal of financial literacy is the empowerment of people to take action by them that are in their self interest. When people know about the financial products available and when they are able to evaluate the merits and demerits of each product and the suitability of the product for their specific needs, they are in a better position to decide what they want and feel empowered in a meaningful way..
Financial inclusion has been defined by United Nations as ‘a financial sector that provides access to credit for all bankable people and firms and saving and payment services to everyone. Inclusive finance does not require that everyone is eligible to use each of services but they should be able to choose if desired.’ The financial sector provides critical financial services to household and business enterprise which include safe savings and range of risk/return trade off services. It reduces dependence on informal financial sources such as pawn shops, money lenders or informal groups relating to savings and credit associations by poor low income vulnerable group of society. It facilitates payment between different parties and makes them safer to a cash transaction.
The access to financial services viz deposits, loans, money transfer and insurance to the poor and low income group households will help them to insure themselves against shocks such as illness of self or family members, loss of employment etc and equip to meet the eventualities in a better way and they need not be demoralized.
A sizeable population of the world particularly the poor, low income group and vulnerable groups remain excluded from the most basic financial assistance provided by financial sector. It has been universally accepted that developing financial sector and improving access to financial services accelerate economic growth helps to achieve inclusive growth. Although the level of banking exclusion varies across the world, it is the same group of people who are affected, people having low income or who have history of bad debt. Markets exclude them because they do not have sufficient income which can be translated into purchasing power or have assets or capabilities which are translatable into labour and capable of yielding income through wages.

Financial Inclusion chiefly aims at

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Financial literacy refers to knowledge required for managing personal finance. It does not necessarily refer to formal education in finance. Instead, it encompasses an understanding of how to use credit responsibly, manage money and savings, minimize financial risk and drive long term benefits of savings.
The ultimate goal of financial literacy is the empowerment of people to take action by them that are in their self interest. When people know about the financial products available and when they are able to evaluate the merits and demerits of each product and the suitability of the product for their specific needs, they are in a better position to decide what they want and feel empowered in a meaningful way..
Financial inclusion has been defined by United Nations as ‘a financial sector that provides access to credit for all bankable people and firms and saving and payment services to everyone. Inclusive finance does not require that everyone is eligible to use each of services but they should be able to choose if desired.’ The financial sector provides critical financial services to household and business enterprise which include safe savings and range of risk/return trade off services. It reduces dependence on informal financial sources such as pawn shops, money lenders or informal groups relating to savings and credit associations by poor low income vulnerable group of society. It facilitates payment between different parties and makes them safer to a cash transaction.
The access to financial services viz deposits, loans, money transfer and insurance to the poor and low income group households will help them to insure themselves against shocks such as illness of self or family members, loss of employment etc and equip to meet the eventualities in a better way and they need not be demoralized.
A sizeable population of the world particularly the poor, low income group and vulnerable groups remain excluded from the most basic financial assistance provided by financial sector. It has been universally accepted that developing financial sector and improving access to financial services accelerate economic growth helps to achieve inclusive growth. Although the level of banking exclusion varies across the world, it is the same group of people who are affected, people having low income or who have history of bad debt. Markets exclude them because they do not have sufficient income which can be translated into purchasing power or have assets or capabilities which are translatable into labour and capable of yielding income through wages.

Which of the following can be said to have been suggested by the author?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Financial literacy refers to knowledge required for managing personal finance. It does not necessarily refer to formal education in finance. Instead, it encompasses an understanding of how to use credit responsibly, manage money and savings, minimize financial risk and drive long term benefits of savings.
The ultimate goal of financial literacy is the empowerment of people to take action by them that are in their self interest. When people know about the financial products available and when they are able to evaluate the merits and demerits of each product and the suitability of the product for their specific needs, they are in a better position to decide what they want and feel empowered in a meaningful way..
Financial inclusion has been defined by United Nations as ‘a financial sector that provides access to credit for all bankable people and firms and saving and payment services to everyone. Inclusive finance does not require that everyone is eligible to use each of services but they should be able to choose if desired.’ The financial sector provides critical financial services to household and business enterprise which include safe savings and range of risk/return trade off services. It reduces dependence on informal financial sources such as pawn shops, money lenders or informal groups relating to savings and credit associations by poor low income vulnerable group of society. It facilitates payment between different parties and makes them safer to a cash transaction.
The access to financial services viz deposits, loans, money transfer and insurance to the poor and low income group households will help them to insure themselves against shocks such as illness of self or family members, loss of employment etc and equip to meet the eventualities in a better way and they need not be demoralized.
A sizeable population of the world particularly the poor, low income group and vulnerable groups remain excluded from the most basic financial assistance provided by financial sector. It has been universally accepted that developing financial sector and improving access to financial services accelerate economic growth helps to achieve inclusive growth. Although the level of banking exclusion varies across the world, it is the same group of people who are affected, people having low income or who have history of bad debt. Markets exclude them because they do not have sufficient income which can be translated into purchasing power or have assets or capabilities which are translatable into labour and capable of yielding income through wages.

What impression about Indian attitude towards corruption does the reading of the second paragraph make on the reader?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Corruption in India has become so pervasive that it has seeped into the most revered institutions. No wonder then that Justice Bharucha was compelled to remark in 2001, “about 20 per cent of the judges in the courts are corrupt; corruption among public servants has reached monstrous dimensions in India. Its tentacles have started grappling even the institutions created for the protection of public.” Even a powerful prime minister like Rajiv Gandhi admitted defeat and bemoaned that “out of every 100 crore allocated to an anti-poverty project, I know that only about Rs. 15 crore reach the people. The remainder is gobbled up by middlemen, power brokers, contractors, and the corrupt.” As much as Rs. 37,000 crore or about 1.5 to 2 per cent of the GDP surfaced as part of the Voluntary Disclosure scheme in 1997 alone. It should surprise no one that Transparency International has ranked India among the top fifty-five corrupt countries in the world.
Is corruption the sole prerogative of the politicians and the bureaucracy? I am afraid not. In fact, the biggest corruption cases have been outside the government. The Harshad Mehta scam of around Rs. 10,000 crore and Ketan Parikh’s scam of Rs. 5,000 crore put other scandals to shame. It is estimated that non-banking financial companies have swindled over 30 million small investors. The other day, it was reported that a sizeable number of software professionals in a well-known multinational had fudged their bills. This morning, I received an e-mail from an erstwhile, dismissed colleague of mine arguing why she was not all that wrong in swiping an attendance card on behalf of another colleague! The cricket match-fixing scandal is still fresh in our memories. The list goes on. It is very clear that corruption is now an accepted phenomenon in the psyche of Indians from all walks of life.

Is there a solution to this seemingly unsolvable problem? Is there any hope at all? Will we ever see a corruption-free society? Can we at least work towards creating a corruption-free society for our children and grandchildren? I am an optimist and I believe that every problem can be solved. It requires leadership that is inspirational, selfless and courageous. We do have a few such people in India among our politicians, bureaucrats and corporate leaders. They have to come together to fight this scourge. Let me detail a few steps needed to fight corruption.
Fairness, transparency and accountability displayed by leaders are what instil confidence in a government, a community and society. Unfortunately, in our society, the government rarely practises these attributes when it comes to the elite. Only when we practise these attributes in fighting corruption among the elite and the powerful, will we succeed in rooting it out.

Why, according to the author, has the government failed to tackle this problem of corruption?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Corruption in India has become so pervasive that it has seeped into the most revered institutions. No wonder then that Justice Bharucha was compelled to remark in 2001, “about 20 per cent of the judges in the courts are corrupt; corruption among public servants has reached monstrous dimensions in India. Its tentacles have started grappling even the institutions created for the protection of public.” Even a powerful prime minister like Rajiv Gandhi admitted defeat and bemoaned that “out of every 100 crore allocated to an anti-poverty project, I know that only about Rs. 15 crore reach the people. The remainder is gobbled up by middlemen, power brokers, contractors, and the corrupt.” As much as Rs. 37,000 crore or about 1.5 to 2 per cent of the GDP surfaced as part of the Voluntary Disclosure scheme in 1997 alone. It should surprise no one that Transparency International has ranked India among the top fifty-five corrupt countries in the world.
Is corruption the sole prerogative of the politicians and the bureaucracy? I am afraid not. In fact, the biggest corruption cases have been outside the government. The Harshad Mehta scam of around Rs. 10,000 crore and Ketan Parikh’s scam of Rs. 5,000 crore put other scandals to shame. It is estimated that non-banking financial companies have swindled over 30 million small investors. The other day, it was reported that a sizeable number of software professionals in a well-known multinational had fudged their bills. This morning, I received an e-mail from an erstwhile, dismissed colleague of mine arguing why she was not all that wrong in swiping an attendance card on behalf of another colleague! The cricket match-fixing scandal is still fresh in our memories. The list goes on. It is very clear that corruption is now an accepted phenomenon in the psyche of Indians from all walks of life.

Is there a solution to this seemingly unsolvable problem? Is there any hope at all? Will we ever see a corruption-free society? Can we at least work towards creating a corruption-free society for our children and grandchildren? I am an optimist and I believe that every problem can be solved. It requires leadership that is inspirational, selfless and courageous. We do have a few such people in India among our politicians, bureaucrats and corporate leaders. They have to come together to fight this scourge. Let me detail a few steps needed to fight corruption.
Fairness, transparency and accountability displayed by leaders are what instil confidence in a government, a community and society. Unfortunately, in our society, the government rarely practises these attributes when it comes to the elite. Only when we practise these attributes in fighting corruption among the elite and the powerful, will we succeed in rooting it out.

Which of the following, according to the author, could lead to solving the problem of corruption?

1. Legislation of stricter laws
2. Quality leadership
3. Coming together of like-minded people

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Corruption in India has become so pervasive that it has seeped into the most revered institutions. No wonder then that Justice Bharucha was compelled to remark in 2001, “about 20 per cent of the judges in the courts are corrupt; corruption among public servants has reached monstrous dimensions in India. Its tentacles have started grappling even the institutions created for the protection of public.” Even a powerful prime minister like Rajiv Gandhi admitted defeat and bemoaned that “out of every 100 crore allocated to an anti-poverty project, I know that only about Rs. 15 crore reach the people. The remainder is gobbled up by middlemen, power brokers, contractors, and the corrupt.” As much as Rs. 37,000 crore or about 1.5 to 2 per cent of the GDP surfaced as part of the Voluntary Disclosure scheme in 1997 alone. It should surprise no one that Transparency International has ranked India among the top fifty-five corrupt countries in the world.
Is corruption the sole prerogative of the politicians and the bureaucracy? I am afraid not. In fact, the biggest corruption cases have been outside the government. The Harshad Mehta scam of around Rs. 10,000 crore and Ketan Parikh’s scam of Rs. 5,000 crore put other scandals to shame. It is estimated that non-banking financial companies have swindled over 30 million small investors. The other day, it was reported that a sizeable number of software professionals in a well-known multinational had fudged their bills. This morning, I received an e-mail from an erstwhile, dismissed colleague of mine arguing why she was not all that wrong in swiping an attendance card on behalf of another colleague! The cricket match-fixing scandal is still fresh in our memories. The list goes on. It is very clear that corruption is now an accepted phenomenon in the psyche of Indians from all walks of life.

Is there a solution to this seemingly unsolvable problem? Is there any hope at all? Will we ever see a corruption-free society? Can we at least work towards creating a corruption-free society for our children and grandchildren? I am an optimist and I believe that every problem can be solved. It requires leadership that is inspirational, selfless and courageous. We do have a few such people in India among our politicians, bureaucrats and corporate leaders. They have to come together to fight this scourge. Let me detail a few steps needed to fight corruption.
Fairness, transparency and accountability displayed by leaders are what instil confidence in a government, a community and society. Unfortunately, in our society, the government rarely practises these attributes when it comes to the elite. Only when we practise these attributes in fighting corruption among the elite and the powerful, will we succeed in rooting it out.

The author states or implies that corruption

1. is bad economics as it stalls progress
2. is an insurmountable problem
3. creates wealth in the hands of a few

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Corruption in India has become so pervasive that it has seeped into the most revered institutions. No wonder then that Justice Bharucha was compelled to remark in 2001, “about 20 per cent of the judges in the courts are corrupt; corruption among public servants has reached monstrous dimensions in India. Its tentacles have started grappling even the institutions created for the protection of public.” Even a powerful prime minister like Rajiv Gandhi admitted defeat and bemoaned that “out of every 100 crore allocated to an anti-poverty project, I know that only about Rs. 15 crore reach the people. The remainder is gobbled up by middlemen, power brokers, contractors, and the corrupt.” As much as Rs. 37,000 crore or about 1.5 to 2 per cent of the GDP surfaced as part of the Voluntary Disclosure scheme in 1997 alone. It should surprise no one that Transparency International has ranked India among the top fifty-five corrupt countries in the world.
Is corruption the sole prerogative of the politicians and the bureaucracy? I am afraid not. In fact, the biggest corruption cases have been outside the government. The Harshad Mehta scam of around Rs. 10,000 crore and Ketan Parikh’s scam of Rs. 5,000 crore put other scandals to shame. It is estimated that non-banking financial companies have swindled over 30 million small investors. The other day, it was reported that a sizeable number of software professionals in a well-known multinational had fudged their bills. This morning, I received an e-mail from an erstwhile, dismissed colleague of mine arguing why she was not all that wrong in swiping an attendance card on behalf of another colleague! The cricket match-fixing scandal is still fresh in our memories. The list goes on. It is very clear that corruption is now an accepted phenomenon in the psyche of Indians from all walks of life.

Is there a solution to this seemingly unsolvable problem? Is there any hope at all? Will we ever see a corruption-free society? Can we at least work towards creating a corruption-free society for our children and grandchildren? I am an optimist and I believe that every problem can be solved. It requires leadership that is inspirational, selfless and courageous. We do have a few such people in India among our politicians, bureaucrats and corporate leaders. They have to come together to fight this scourge. Let me detail a few steps needed to fight corruption.
Fairness, transparency and accountability displayed by leaders are what instil confidence in a government, a community and society. Unfortunately, in our society, the government rarely practises these attributes when it comes to the elite. Only when we practise these attributes in fighting corruption among the elite and the powerful, will we succeed in rooting it out.

What kind of picture of India does the author paint in the opening paragraph of the passage?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Corruption in India has become so pervasive that it has seeped into the most revered institutions. No wonder then that Justice Bharucha was compelled to remark in 2001, “about 20 per cent of the judges in the courts are corrupt; corruption among public servants has reached monstrous dimensions in India. Its tentacles have started grappling even the institutions created for the protection of public.” Even a powerful prime minister like Rajiv Gandhi admitted defeat and bemoaned that “out of every 100 crore allocated to an anti-poverty project, I know that only about Rs. 15 crore reach the people. The remainder is gobbled up by middlemen, power brokers, contractors, and the corrupt.” As much as Rs. 37,000 crore or about 1.5 to 2 per cent of the GDP surfaced as part of the Voluntary Disclosure scheme in 1997 alone. It should surprise no one that Transparency International has ranked India among the top fifty-five corrupt countries in the world.
Is corruption the sole prerogative of the politicians and the bureaucracy? I am afraid not. In fact, the biggest corruption cases have been outside the government. The Harshad Mehta scam of around Rs. 10,000 crore and Ketan Parikh’s scam of Rs. 5,000 crore put other scandals to shame. It is estimated that non-banking financial companies have swindled over 30 million small investors. The other day, it was reported that a sizeable number of software professionals in a well-known multinational had fudged their bills. This morning, I received an e-mail from an erstwhile, dismissed colleague of mine arguing why she was not all that wrong in swiping an attendance card on behalf of another colleague! The cricket match-fixing scandal is still fresh in our memories. The list goes on. It is very clear that corruption is now an accepted phenomenon in the psyche of Indians from all walks of life.

Is there a solution to this seemingly unsolvable problem? Is there any hope at all? Will we ever see a corruption-free society? Can we at least work towards creating a corruption-free society for our children and grandchildren? I am an optimist and I believe that every problem can be solved. It requires leadership that is inspirational, selfless and courageous. We do have a few such people in India among our politicians, bureaucrats and corporate leaders. They have to come together to fight this scourge. Let me detail a few steps needed to fight corruption.
Fairness, transparency and accountability displayed by leaders are what instil confidence in a government, a community and society. Unfortunately, in our society, the government rarely practises these attributes when it comes to the elite. Only when we practise these attributes in fighting corruption among the elite and the powerful, will we succeed in rooting it out.

Which of the following statements can be inferred from the passage?

Passage:
The spirit of nationality is one of the great dynamics of modern times. The question at once arises: What is nationalism? Many theories have been advanced, seeking variously to identify nationalism with language, culture, race, politics, geography, economics, or religion. Now these, and even other, matters may be factors predisposing or contributing to the formation of national Consciousness. But, in the last analysis, nationalism is something over and above all its constituent elements, which it works into a new and higher synthesis. There is really nothing recondite or mysterious about nationalism, despite all the arguments that have raged concerning its exact meaning. As a matter of fact, nationalism is a state of mind. Nationalism is a belief, held by a fairly large number of individuals, that they constitute a "Nationality"; it is a sense of belonging together as a "Nation." This "Nation," as visualized in the minds of its believers, is a people or community associated together and organized under one government, and dwelling together in a distinct territory. When the nationalist ideal is realized, we have what is known as a body-politic or "State." But we must not forget that this "State" is the material manifestation of an ideal, which may have pre-existed for generations as a mere pious aspiration with no tangible attributes like state sovereignty or physical frontiers.

Higher education, the author would have us believe, is

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

A country is as good as the quality of intellectuals it produces. Progress comes from thinking, articulating, discussing, debating and executing ideas in an environment of respect for pluralism. We should remember Benjamin Disraeli’s words that a university should be a place of light, of liberty and of learning. The aim of a country’s higher education system is sustainable development and improvement of the economy as a whole. Research has shown that, on average, countries that have higher levels of literacy and have invested steadily in raising the education levels of their labor force have sustained high levels of economic growth.  
Science is about unraveling nature, and creating a foundation for technology to make life better for humankind. The higher the quality of university education is in a country, the more prosperous and competitive the people. The USA is the finest example of this thesis, since it has built a vibrant educational system which is the second largest in the world. Seventeen of the world’s top twenty universities are American. Not only do US universities produce workers to drive economic growth, but they are also world-class incubators of innovation and knowledge creation. American universities currently employ 70 per cent of the world’s Nobel Prize winners.
The American education system has helped seed the growth of key ‘new technology’ industries in the USA—the semiconductor, information technology, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries—through the early discoveries of university researchers.
Similarly, since the 1960s, the South-East and East Asian countries pursued a strategy of building a ‘stock’ of highly-trained human resources to attract knowledge-intensive investment and boost economic growth. The Republic of South Korea is a good example of such an economy. As early as 1980, the country had achieved a primary enrolment rate of 96 per cent, and a tertiary enrolment rate of 40 per cent, figures similar to the industrialized nations. The country’s education policy has significantly contributed to South Korea’s rapid export-led growth, the sustained economic development the country has experienced since the 1980s, and the rising prosperity of its people.
Even in India, the value of higher education was realized by our early leaders. India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, recognized the importance of institutes of higher learning for the development of the country. It was this vision that led to the establishment of the IITs, the IIMs, AIIMS and the national laboratories resulting in many high-impact initiatives including Vikram Sarabhai’s space programme and Homi Bhabha’s atomic programme. Over the last two decades, India has made strong economic gains leveraging its educational infrastructure. India’s vast pool of low-cost, educated workers has helped establish the country’s burgeoning software, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.

What, according to the passage, is not the enabling tool for social and economic development of a country?

1. Respect for pluralism
2. Scientific temperament
3. Higher education
4. Dissemination of knowledge

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

A country is as good as the quality of intellectuals it produces. Progress comes from thinking, articulating, discussing, debating and executing ideas in an environment of respect for pluralism. We should remember Benjamin Disraeli’s words that a university should be a place of light, of liberty and of learning. The aim of a country’s higher education system is sustainable development and improvement of the economy as a whole. Research has shown that, on average, countries that have higher levels of literacy and have invested steadily in raising the education levels of their labor force have sustained high levels of economic growth.  
Science is about unraveling nature, and creating a foundation for technology to make life better for humankind. The higher the quality of university education is in a country, the more prosperous and competitive the people. The USA is the finest example of this thesis, since it has built a vibrant educational system which is the second largest in the world. Seventeen of the world’s top twenty universities are American. Not only do US universities produce workers to drive economic growth, but they are also world-class incubators of innovation and knowledge creation. American universities currently employ 70 per cent of the world’s Nobel Prize winners.
The American education system has helped seed the growth of key ‘new technology’ industries in the USA—the semiconductor, information technology, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries—through the early discoveries of university researchers.
Similarly, since the 1960s, the South-East and East Asian countries pursued a strategy of building a ‘stock’ of highly-trained human resources to attract knowledge-intensive investment and boost economic growth. The Republic of South Korea is a good example of such an economy. As early as 1980, the country had achieved a primary enrolment rate of 96 per cent, and a tertiary enrolment rate of 40 per cent, figures similar to the industrialized nations. The country’s education policy has significantly contributed to South Korea’s rapid export-led growth, the sustained economic development the country has experienced since the 1980s, and the rising prosperity of its people.
Even in India, the value of higher education was realized by our early leaders. India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, recognized the importance of institutes of higher learning for the development of the country. It was this vision that led to the establishment of the IITs, the IIMs, AIIMS and the national laboratories resulting in many high-impact initiatives including Vikram Sarabhai’s space programme and Homi Bhabha’s atomic programme. Over the last two decades, India has made strong economic gains leveraging its educational infrastructure. India’s vast pool of low-cost, educated workers has helped establish the country’s burgeoning software, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.

““The USA is the finest example of this thesis”, says the author. What thesis is he referring to?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

A country is as good as the quality of intellectuals it produces. Progress comes from thinking, articulating, discussing, debating and executing ideas in an environment of respect for pluralism. We should remember Benjamin Disraeli’s words that a university should be a place of light, of liberty and of learning. The aim of a country’s higher education system is sustainable development and improvement of the economy as a whole. Research has shown that, on average, countries that have higher levels of literacy and have invested steadily in raising the education levels of their labor force have sustained high levels of economic growth.  
Science is about unraveling nature, and creating a foundation for technology to make life better for humankind. The higher the quality of university education is in a country, the more prosperous and competitive the people. The USA is the finest example of this thesis, since it has built a vibrant educational system which is the second largest in the world. Seventeen of the world’s top twenty universities are American. Not only do US universities produce workers to drive economic growth, but they are also world-class incubators of innovation and knowledge creation. American universities currently employ 70 per cent of the world’s Nobel Prize winners.
The American education system has helped seed the growth of key ‘new technology’ industries in the USA—the semiconductor, information technology, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries—through the early discoveries of university researchers.
Similarly, since the 1960s, the South-East and East Asian countries pursued a strategy of building a ‘stock’ of highly-trained human resources to attract knowledge-intensive investment and boost economic growth. The Republic of South Korea is a good example of such an economy. As early as 1980, the country had achieved a primary enrolment rate of 96 per cent, and a tertiary enrolment rate of 40 per cent, figures similar to the industrialized nations. The country’s education policy has significantly contributed to South Korea’s rapid export-led growth, the sustained economic development the country has experienced since the 1980s, and the rising prosperity of its people.
Even in India, the value of higher education was realized by our early leaders. India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, recognized the importance of institutes of higher learning for the development of the country. It was this vision that led to the establishment of the IITs, the IIMs, AIIMS and the national laboratories resulting in many high-impact initiatives including Vikram Sarabhai’s space programme and Homi Bhabha’s atomic programme. Over the last two decades, India has made strong economic gains leveraging its educational infrastructure. India’s vast pool of low-cost, educated workers has helped establish the country’s burgeoning software, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.