Q.1 Consider the following:

1. Fringe Benefit Tax

2. Interest Tax

3. Securities Transaction Tax

Which of the above is/ are Direct Tax/Taxes?

A)1 only    

B) 1 and 3 only

C) 2 and 3 only

D) 1, 2 and 3

Ans. D

Fringe Benefit Tax: The fringe benefits tax (FBT) was the tax applied to most, although not all, fringe benefits in India. A new tax was imposed on employers by India’s Finance Act 2005 was introduced for the financial year commencing April 1, 2005. The fringe benefit tax was temporarily suspended in the 2009 Union budget of India by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. The following items were covered: • Employer’s expenses on entertainment, travel, employee welfare and accommodation. The definition of fringe benefits that have become taxable has been significantly extended. The law provides an exact list of taxable items. • Employer’s provision of employee transportation to work or a cash allowances for this purpose. • Employer’s contributions to an approved retirement plan (called a superannuation fund). • Employee stock option plans (ESOPs) have also been brought under fringe benefits tax from the fiscal year 2007–08. Minimum Support Price : Minimum Support Price (MSP) is a form of market intervention by the Government of India to insure agricultural producers against any sharp fall in farm prices. The minimum support prices are announced by the Government of India at the beginning of the sowing season for certain crops on the basis of the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP). MSP is price fixed by Government of India to protect the producer – farmers – against excessive fall in price during bumper production years. The minimum support prices are a guarantee price for their produce from the Government. The major objectives are to support the farmers from distress sales and to procure food grains for public distribution. In case the market price for the commodity falls below the announced minimum price due to bumper production and glut in the market, government agencies purchase the entire quantity offered by the farmers at the announced minimum price. In formulating the recommendations in respect of the level of minimum support prices and other non-price measures, the Commission takes into account, apart from a comprehensive view of the entire structure of the economy of a particular commodity or group of commodities, the following factors:- • Cost of production • Changes in input prices • Input-output price parity • Trends in market prices • Demand and supply • Inter-crop price parity • Effect on industrial cost structure • Effect on cost of living • Effect on general price level • International price situation • Parity between prices paid and prices received by the farmers. • Effect on issue prices and implications for subsidy The Commission makes use of both micro-level data and aggregates at the level of district, state and the country. The information/data used by the Commission, inter-alia include the following :- • Cost of cultivation per hectare and structure of costs in various regions of the country and changes there in; • Cost of production per quintal in various regions of the country and changes therein; • Prices of various inputs and changes therein; • Market prices of products and changes therein; • Prices of commodities sold by the farmers and of those purchased by them and changes therein; • Supply related information – area, yield and production, imports, exports and domestic availability and stocks with the Government/public agencies or industry; • Demand related information – total and per capita consumption, trends and capacity of the processing industry; • Prices in the international market and changes therein, demand and supply situation in the world market; • Prices of the derivatives of the farm products such as sugar, jaggery, jute goods, edible/non-edible oils and cotton yarn and changes therein; • Cost of processing of agricultural products and changes therein; • Cost of marketing – storage, transportation, processing, marketing services, taxes/fees and margins retained by market functionaries; and • Macro-economic variables such as general level of prices, consumer price indices and those reflecting monetary and fiscal factors.

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Q.2 Recently Bulldog bonds are in news, with reference to these bonds consider the following statements :

1. These are purchased from the sterling bonds in order to earn revenue

2. These bonds are similar to the Yankee bonds which can be sold to raise capital.

3. U.S. investors are restricted to purchase this bond as these are traded in United kingdom

Select the correct answer using the codes given below :

A) 2 & 3

B) Only 3

C) 1 & 2

D) Only 1

Ans. C

A type of bond purchased by buyers interested in earning a revenue stream from the British pound or sterling. A bulldog bond is traded in the United Kingdom. If the revenue is used to reduce debt also in British pounds, the exchange rate risk is decreased. These bonds are issued by non-British institutions that want to sell the bond in the United Kingdom. U.S. investors can also purchase this bond, but by doing so they take on the risk of the change in value of the sterling.

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Q.3 With reference to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), consider the following statements :

1. It is an intergovernmental organization to promote adoption and sustainable use of renewable energy.

2. It was founded in 2009

3. India is one of the 33 Permanent members of IRENA.

Select the correct answer using the codes given below :

A) Only 2 & 3

B) 1 & 2

C) 1 & 3

D) 1,2,3

Ans.D

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Q.4 Consider the following statements regarding the features of the World Bank:

1. The Board of Governors is the Supreme body.

2. The voting power of the governor of a member country is related to the financial contribution of the country concerned.

3. It gives short-term loan to its members to correct their temporary balance of payments disequilibrium.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

A) 1 only

B) 1,2 & 3

C) 1 & 2 only

D) 2 & 3 only

Ans. C

The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programs. It comprises two institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). The World Bank is a component of the World Bank Group, and a member of the United Nations Development Group.

The World Bank’s official goal is the reduction of poverty. According to its Articles of Agreement, all its decisions must be guided by a commitment to the promotion of foreign investment and international trade and to the facilitation of capital Investment.

The World Bank is not to be confused with the United Nations World Bank Group, a member of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, and a family of five international organizations that make leveraged loans to poor countries:

•   International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)

•   International Development Association (IDA)

•   International Finance Corporation (IFC)

•   Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)

•   International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID)

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Q.5 With reference to the Central Board of Film Certification , consider the following statements :

1. It is a non- statutory body under the aegis of Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

2. Non-official members & Chairman are appointed by Central Government recommended by Prime Minister of India

Select the correct answer using the codes given below :

A) Only 1

B) Only 2

C) Both are correct

D) Both are incorrect

Ans. D

It is a statutory body under the aegis of Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

Location : Mumbai

Non-official members & Chairman are appointed by Union Government

Its function is to regulate the public exhibition of films in India under the provisions of the Cinematograph Act 1952 by granting them certificate under 4 categories. They are

U: Unrestricted Public Exhibition.

UA: Unrestricted Public Exhibition- but with a word of caution that Parental discretion required for children below 12 years.

A: Restricted to adults.

S: Restricted to any special class of persons.

Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) : Located in Delhi, It hears the appeals filed as per provisions of Cinematograph Act. Any applicant can file an appeal before the tribunal for a certificate in respect of a film who is aggrieved by an order of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

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Q.6 Which among the following are included in the African Union ?

1. Morocco

2. France

3. Portugal

4. United kingdom

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

A) 1,3,4

B) 2,3,4

C) 1,2,3

D) 1,2,3,4

Ans. B

The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of 54 countries in Africa. The only African state that is not a member is Morocco, due to the status of the Western Sahara, although Burkina Faso and the Central African Republic have had their memberships suspended due to the recent coup d’état and ongoing civil war, respectively. The AU was established on 26 May 2001 in Addis Ababa and launched on 9 July 2002 in South Africa, with the aim of replacing the Organisation of African Unity(OAU).

The objectives of the AU are:

1.  To achieve greater unity and solidarity between the African countries and Africans.

2.  To defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of its Member States.

3.  To accelerate the political and social-economic integration of the continent.

4.  To promote and defend African common positions on issues of interest to the continent and its peoples.

5.  To encourage international cooperation, taking due account of the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

6.  To promote peace, security, and stability on the continent.

7.  To promote democratic principles and institutions, popular participation and good governance.

8.  To promote and protect human and peoples’ rights in accordance with the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rightsand other relevant human rights instruments.

9.  To establish the necessary conditions which enable the continent to play its rightful role in the global economy and in international negotiations.

10. To promote sustainable development at the economic, social and cultural levels as well as the integration of African economies.

11. To promote co-operation in all fields of human activity to raise the living standards of African peoples.

12. To coordinate and harmonize the policies between the existing and future Regional Economic Communities for the gradual attainment of the objectives of the Union.

13. To advance the development of the continent by promoting research in all fields, in particular in science and technology.

14. To work with relevant international partners in the eradication of preventable diseases and the promotion of good health on the continent.

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Q.7 With reference to the International Monetary Fund, consider the following statements :

1. India’s voting right in IMF has been increased from 2.3 to 2.6 %

2. Doubling of quotas depicts share of European & Gulf countries has been increased

Select the correct answer using the codes given below :

A) Only 1

B) Only 2

C) Both are correct

D) Both are incorrect

Ans. A

Doubling of quotas depicts share of European & Gulf countries has been decreased.

China will have the 3rd largest IMF quota and voting share after the US and Japan. While, India, Russia and Brazil will also be among the top 10 members of the IMF.

Currently, US, Japan, France, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Canada and Saudi Arabia are among the top ten members of the IMF. While, the member countries with the 5 largest quotas appoint an Executive Director.

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Q.8 Which of the following is not an ASEAN member ?

A) Cambodia

B) China

C) Laos

D) Vietnam

Ans. B

The Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) is a 10-member international body that represents more than 500 million people living in the region. Set up in 1967 in Bangkok by Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore, it has since been joined by Brunei, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and Cambodia.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was formed in 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand to promote political and economic cooperation and regional stability.

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Q.9 With reference to the International Renewable Energy Agency , consider the following statements :

1. It is the governing body which is responsible for implementing various decisions of assembly

2. India is the founding member of IRENA

Select the correct answer using the codes given below :

A) Only 1

B) Only 2

C) Both are correct

D) Both are incorrect

Ans. C

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Q.10 Union Information and Broadcasting Minister launched Vivid Bharti Service.

With reference to the Vivid Bharti consider the following statements :

1. It is available on below 100 Megahertz (MHz) frequency

2. It is a service of All India Radio (AIR)

Select the correct answer using the codes given below :

A) Only 1

B) Only 2

C) Both are correct

D) Both are incorrect

Ans. B

It is available on below 102.8 Megahertz (MHz) frequency