Questions

Read the passage carefully and select the best answer to each question out of the given four alternatives.

The conclusion of World Trade Organization’s 11th biennial ministerial conference at Buenos Aires was worrisome. From an Indian standpoint, there was no loss as status quo continues in the most important issue: the right to continue the food security programme by using support prices. But the inability of the negotiators to reach even one substantive outcome suggests that WTO’s efficacy is under question. As a 164-country multilateral organisation dedicated to crafting rules of trade through consensus, WTO represents the optimal bet for developing countries such as India. Strengthening WTO is in India’s best interest.

Perhaps the biggest threat to WTO’s efficacy today is the attitude of the US. The world’s largest economy appears to have lost faith in the organisation and has begun to undermine one of its most successful segments, the dispute redressal mechanism. This is significant as the US has been directly involved in nearly half of all cases brought to WTO. Separately, large groups of countries decided to pursue negotiations on e-commerce, investment facilitation and removal of trade obstacles for medium and small scale industries. By itself this should not weaken WTO. But it comes at a time when there is growing frustration with gridlock at WTO.

India did well to defend its position on its food security programme. The envisaged reform package which will see a greater use of direct cash transfers to beneficiaries will be in sync with what developed countries do. But it’s important for India to enhance its efforts to reinvigorate WTO. In this context, India’s plan to organise a meeting of some countries early next year is a step in the right direction. WTO represents the best available platform to accommodate interests of a diverse set of nations. Therefore, India should be at the forefront of moves to fortify it.

What is the biggest threat to WTO’s efficacy today?

A passage is given with 5 questions following it. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.

I had seen this road many years ago when my parents moved to Mundakotukurussi, our ancestral village. However, in those early years, I hadn't begun exploring the countryside. I stored the unknown road in my head under 'One Day I Will'. Ten years ago, when I recovered from a herniated disc, it was to discover that I had a useless left leg. Though I managed to lose the limp, I hated not being able to stride around as I used to. I needed a challenge to tell myself that I wasn't going to buckle to a creature called sciatica. Thus the 'One Day I Will' arrived. "Where does the road by the medical shop lead to?" I asked my parents while visiting them next. "Chalavara," they said. "It's not an easy road to walk on," my father added. "There are too many ups and downs." Chalavara was a superior grade of a village as compared to Mundakotukurussi, with a high school, a fine library, ATMs and several shops. But it also has two approach roads. The one I had chosen was a narrow back road used by the locals and that settled it for me. I needed to know for myself I could walk a road that wasn't going to be easy. And the next day, I would get up and walk that road again.

What disability did the writer suffer due to the herniated disc?

The Magna Carta established the rights of

What event prompted the formation of the first continental congress?

Find arc elasticity of demand, if quantity demanded falls from 1000 to 950 when price of the item is increased from Rs. 240 to Rs. 280?

In the following question, out of the given four alternatives, select the one which is opposite in meaning of the given word.

Egregious

Which statement is true of the 1950s?

A passage is given with 5 questions following it. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives and click the button corresponding to it.

Most successful companies, institutions and organizations have mission statements. Most individuals don't. As the Chief Executive Officer of your own life in the knowledge era, you need a laser like focus in your vision. You need a mission and a mission statement describing how you want to live, not just what you want to own; defining the person you want to become, not just the title you want to see on your door; outlining the knowledge you will receive, not just the degree you'll earn or your next promotion.

I began the process this way : "To be aware of the uniqueness of my associates, clients, friends and family, and to treat that uniqueness with loving concern. I was created to lead myself and others to understand win­win relationships and how to use them to improve the lives of all persons with whom I come into contact."

You, too, can frame your mission statement starting with your core values, working outward to your material desires and financial needs.

What is the narrator's mission?