APPSC Group-1 2019 Economy Previous Year Questions

This definition of Sustainable Development was given in the Brundtland Report (1987), formally known as ‘Our Common Future’, published by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) chaired by Gro Harlem Brundtland. It is the most widely accepted definition of sustainable development.

The basic goals of Sustainable Development are Equality and Inclusive Growth. Sustainable development aims to ensure that economic growth benefits all sections of society (inclusive) and reduces inequality, while preserving ecological balance for future generations.

The Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) explains the relationship between economic growth (measured by per capita income) and environmental degradation. It suggests that pollution initially increases with growth but eventually decreases after a turning point — forming an inverted U-shape.

According to the UNDP Human Development Report 2010, which ranked 169 countries, India was placed at rank 119. This reflected India’s medium human development status based on life expectancy, education, and GNI per capita indicators.

NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India), which replaced the Planning Commission in 2015, follows the approach of Co-operative Federalism. It encourages active participation of States in national development planning, unlike the top-down approach of the old Planning Commission.

The Fifth Five Year Plan (1974–79) was the first to specifically focus on poverty alleviation and employment generation as central objectives, through programmes like SFDA, MFAL, and others. From the Fifth Plan onwards, unemployment became a priority concern.

The statement that ‘About 60% of agricultural lands have irrigational facilities’ is incorrect. In reality, only about 40% of agricultural land in India has irrigation facilities. About 55% of net cropped area is indeed rainfed, HYVP was constrained for 5 crops, and Green Revolution led to intensive cultivation — all correct.

The National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) was launched in 2011-12 as one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan for Climate Change (NAPCC). It aims to make Indian agriculture more resilient to climate change and to enhance food and nutritional security.

Water supply (along with gas, electricity, and construction) belongs to the Secondary Sector (also called the Industrial Sector). The Secondary Sector involves processing of raw materials and manufacturing. Water supply infrastructure involves processing and distribution activities.

The 12th Five Year Plan (2012–2017) had the central objective of ‘Faster, Sustainable and More Inclusive Growth.’ It targeted a GDP growth rate of 8% with emphasis on sustainability and ensuring that growth benefits all sections of society, especially the poor.

The correct formula is: GDP at Market Price = GNP at Market Price – Net Income from Abroad. This is because GNP includes income earned by residents abroad, so GDP (domestic) = GNP minus net factor income from abroad.

Chronic (or long-term/usual status) unemployment is measured using the ‘Usual Status’ method, which considers the activity status of a person over the reference period of 365 days (one year). It captures those who remain unemployed for the major part of the year.

According to NSSO’s 68th Round Survey (2011-12), the unemployment rate in India based on the Usual Status (principal + subsidiary) method was 5.6%. This is considered the most commonly cited figure for unemployment measurement in India.

India’s Special Economic Zone (SEZ) policy was announced in the year 2000, and the first SEZ was set up at Kandla, Gujarat. The SEZ Act was formally passed by Parliament in 2005, coming into effect in 2006. The policy was modeled on China’s successful SEZ experience.

According to the UN Millennium Development Goals Report 2011-2012, approximately 21.9% of India’s population lived below the international poverty line (then $1.25/day). This figure was used as India’s official poverty estimate for MDG reporting purposes.

Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY, 1999) was restructured and relaunched as the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), also known as Aajeevika, in 2011. It was later renamed as DAY-NRLM (Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – NRLM).

Mission Indradhanush was launched in December 2014 by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Its primary goal is immunization — specifically to fully immunize all children under 2 years of age and pregnant women against 7 vaccine-preventable diseases by 2020.

D-Krishi (Digital Krishi) application of Andhra Pradesh received the CSI Nihilent e-Governance Award for 2017-18. This app was developed to provide farmers with real-time information on agriculture, weather, market prices, and government schemes.

RuPay card was launched by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in 2012. NPCI is an umbrella organization for all retail payment systems in India. RuPay is India’s own domestic card payment network, an alternative to Visa and Mastercard.

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), launched in 2016, carries the tagline ‘One Nation – One Scheme.’ It replaced multiple crop insurance schemes and provides a unified comprehensive crop insurance coverage to farmers across India at low premiums.

India experienced a continuous current account surplus during 2001-04. During this period, India’s exports grew significantly and remittances increased, resulting in a surplus in the current account balance of payments for three consecutive years.

The Government of India issues Treasury Bills (T-bills) with three maturity periods: 91 days, 182 days, and 364 days. These are short-term money market instruments used for government borrowing. Earlier 14-day and 182-day T-bills were also issued but 91, 182, and 364-day are standard.

Under Basel III norms, the Minimum Tier 1 capital ratio should be 6% (not 8%). The total minimum capital (Tier 1 + Tier 2) should be 8%, and with the capital conservation buffer it becomes 10.5%. The statement saying Tier 1 should be 8% is incorrect.

Under NRLM (Aajeevika), the primary borrowers are Women Self-Help Groups (SHGs). The mission promotes formation, strengthening and financing of SHGs to improve rural livelihoods. These SHGs then access credit from banks for income-generating activities.

The National Credit Fund for Women (Rashtriya Mahila Kosh), established in 1993, was created to meet the asset needs of poor and assetless women in the informal sector. It provides micro-credit to poor women who lack access to formal banking channels.

After the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014 (when Telangana was carved out), the residual Andhra Pradesh state had 50 revenue divisions across its 13 districts. These were later reorganized further, but as per the 2014 Reorganization Act, the count was 50.

After bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, NITI Aayog recommended that the State Government of Andhra Pradesh should take the construction responsibility of the Polavaram Project. The project was later declared a National Project and the Centre agreed to fund it, but construction responsibility remained with AP State Government.

The South Coastal Railway Zone (headquarters at Visakhapatnam) was carved out and comprises of Guntakal, Guntur, and Vijayawada divisions of the existing South Central Railway. This was a major reorganization to better serve Andhra Pradesh.

E-suvidha (also written as e-Suvidha) is the project launched in Andhra Pradesh with the objective of computerizing Urban Local Bodies (municipalities and municipal corporations) to improve service delivery and governance at the local urban level.

Krishna district in Andhra Pradesh has the largest area under food crops (including rice, which is the dominant crop). The Krishna delta region is highly fertile and irrigated by the Krishna river, making it one of the most productive agricultural districts in the state.