Directions (1-8): Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.
PARAGRAPH 1: The Centre has announced the constitution of a committee to revisit several provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 that impose stiff penalties and, in some cases, prison terms as well, for directors and key management personnel. The 2013 law entailed the first massive overhaul of India’s legal regime to govern businesses that had been in place since 1956 and was borne of a long-drawn consultative process. Now, this 10-member committee appointed by the Corporate Affairs Ministry has been tasked with checking if certain offences can be ‘de-criminalized’. The panel, which includes top banker Uday Kotak, has been given 30 days to work out whether some of the violations that can attract imprisonment (such as a clerical failure by directors to make adequate disclosures about their interests) may instead be punished with monetary fines. It will also examine if offences punishable with a fine or imprisonment may be re-categorized as ‘acts’ that attract civil liabilities. Importantly, the committee has also been asked to suggest the broad contours for an adjudicatory mechanism that allows penalties to be levied for minor violations, perhaps in an automated manner, with minimal discretion available to officials. In fact, some of the provisions in the law are so tough that even a spelling mistake or typographical error could be construed as a fraud and lead to harsh strictures.
PARAGRAPH 2: The government hopes such changes in the regulatory regime would allow trial courts to devote greater attention to serious offences rather than get overloaded with cases as zealous officials blindly pursue prosecutions for even minor violations. The decision to build in harsh penalties and prison terms for corporate misdemeanors in the 2013 law was, no doubt, influenced by the high-pitched anti-corruption discourse that prevailed in the country at that moment in time. Apart from several cases of crony capitalism that had come to light during the second UPA government, massive corporate frauds reported at once-revered firms such as the erstwhile Satyam Computer Services had spooked investors and other stakeholders about the credibility of corporate India’s books and governance standards. When the NDA came to power in May 2014, a comprehensive review of the Companies Act was at the top of industry’s wish list as a means to revive the economy. Industry captains had red-flagged the impact of such provisions on the ease of doing business, and investor sentiment in general. A trust deficit between industry and government owing to stray incidents of corporate malfeasance should not inhibit normal business operations, they had argued. Four years down the line, the government is finally moving purposefully on this, a rethink perhaps triggered by the fact that private sector investment is yet to pick up steam and capital still seeks foreign shores to avoid regulatory risks. One hopes this is followed up on swiftly, before the ruling party slips into election mode.
Q1. What are the tasks allotted to the committee constituted to consider the Companies Act, 2013?
(a) To reconsider certain violations under the companies, act that may be punished with fines instead of imprisonment.
(b) Task to outline ways for a legal mechanism for levying penalties on minor violations with minimal discretion available to officials.
(c) To find ways to build in harsh penalties and prison terms for corporate misdemeanors.
(d) Both (a) and (b)
(e) All of the Above.
Q2. Which of the following statements is/are correct in context with the passage?
(I) Under the Companies Act, listed and other specified companies have been mandated to establish a vigil mechanism for directors and employees to report concerns of unethical behavior, fraud, violation of the company’s code of conduct or ethics policy.
(II) Government hopes that the changes in the regulatory regime will help devote more attention to serious offences.
(III) Some provisions in the Companies Act 2013 are tough as they offer harsh restrictions for minor mistakes.
(a) Only (I)
(b) Both (I) and (II)
(c) Both (II) and (III)
(d) All of the Above
(e) None of the Above
Q3. Which of the following is the most appropriate title for the passage above?
(a) Stiffer Rules: On Companies Act 2013
(b) Incidents of Corporate Malfeasance
(c) Overdue Correction: on revisiting the Companies Act
(d) Highlights On New Indian Companies Act, 2013
(e) Decoding shell companies
Q4. What is the style of writing used by the author in the passage given above?
(a) Narrative
(b) Descriptive
(c) Critical
(d) Argumentative
(e) None of the Above
Q5. Which of the following word/words has/have a similar meaning to the word given in bold in the passage?
ENTAIL
(I) Encompass
(II) Untangle
(III) Mismatch
(IV) Necessitate
(a) Only (I)
(b) Only (IV)
(c) Both (III) and (IV)
(d) Both (I) and (III)
(e) Both (I) and (IV)
Q6. Which of the following word/words has/have a similar meaning to the word given in bold in the passage?
CONSTRUE
(I) Obfuscate
(II) Explicate
(III) Obscure
(IV) Elucidate
(a) Only (I)
(b) Only (IV)
(c) Both (II) and (IV)
(d) Both (I) and (III)
(e) Both (I) and (IV)
Q7. Which of the following word/pair of words is/are opposite in meaning to the word given in bold in the passage?
SPOOKED
(I) Startle
(II) Petrify
(III) Soothe
(IV) Unnerve
(a) Only (I)
(b) Only (III)
(c) Both (III) and (IV)
(d) Both (I) and (III)
(e) Both (I) and (IV)
Q8. Which of the following word/pair of words is/are opposite in meaning to the word given in bold in the passage?
STRAY
(I) Erratic
(II) Random
(III) Haphazard
(IV) Desultory
(a) Only (I)
(b) Only (IV)
(c) Both (III) and (IV)
(d) Both (I) and (III)
(e) None of the Above
Directions (9-15): Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below them. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.
PARAGRAPH 1: Aware of the public anger at the functioning of the UGC, two governments in the past decade have tried to revamp the regulatory environment for higher education. The latest offering is in the form of a proposed Higher Education Commission of India (HECI). The intention is to leave the HECI to focus on quality while leaving funding of public institutions to the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD). This arrangement has raised the issue of the possibility of bias, in particular that the government may use its discretion to reward institutions according to its ideological predilections. While this is an ever-present hazard in a democracy, one cannot in principle object to an institutional arrangement whereby an elected government exercises the right to allocate funds. One can only pressurize it to be impartial and accountable in its actions. In higher education one would imagine that this accountability would be manifested in enabling the pursuit of excellence. It is not as if excellence is difficult to identify even if it may be impossible to measure. In the world of ideas, excellence lies in the participation as an equal in the global knowledge commons. The emphasis here is on engagement; it is not necessary that institutions in India ought to produce knowledge in every field or its members abide by every idea and protocol for its production in the fields chosen. It is moot whether the criterion of equal engagement is met by the majority of our universities. So, attention to this problem may be a seen as a priority of the proposed HECI.
PARAGRAPH 2: Even as we observe the progress of the HECI and wonder if it is going to be any more than old wine in a new bottle, we have already had an inkling of what could go wrong. This springs from the government’s announcement of a list of IoEs. For not, the government has chosen three public and three private institutions for this status. The public institutions are the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, and the Indian Institutes of Technology at Delhi and Mumbai. The private ones are the Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani, the JIO Institute and the Manipal Academy of Higher Education. This list suffers from a serious lack of credibility. Where in it are the universities of India? We understand that the government’s aim is to rectify the low presence of Indian institutions in the global rankings of universities.
PARAGRAPH 3: Universities by definition embody knowledge across a wide range of disciplines. While the early European universities may have started as academies of the arts they were soon to have medicine and astronomy as areas that they pursued with vigor. There was an emphasis on a depth of knowledge across a broad horizon. Somewhere along the line we seem to have lost this breadth and come to revel in a landscape dominated by engineering schools. These engineering schools, notably the IITs, have done us proud but cannot be equated with the great universities of the world for the simple reason that they are focussed on a narrow domain. Also, if the idea behind IoEs is that they will be left alone and given enhanced financial support, it must be acknowledged that until very recently the IITs have not been meddled with neither have they been starved of resources. The IISc is of course broader than the IITs but does not embrace the social sciences and the humanities, the presence of which would be considered necessary for a university.
Q9. As per the passage, Engineering colleges, especially the IITs have done us proud but they cannot be considered equivalent to the great universities. What reason has be cited for this?
(a) Engineering colleges produce a “low level” knowledge.
(b) Engineering Colleges are focussed upon a restricted sphere.
(c) The factor missing in an engineering College is the effectiveness of different types of methodologies to achieve specific educational goals.
(d) Engineering education became more and more theoretical based focussing less on practical studies.
(e) None of the Above
Q10. Which of the following statements cannot be inferred from the passage above?
(a) In order to improve the regulations for higher education, a Higher Education Commission of India has been proposed that would focus on quality of education.
(b) Engineering Schools have dominated the education sector and have done us proud.
(c) The inexorable shift to private school education along with the Right to Education Act represents a failure of the public-school system.
(d) Both (a) and (b)
(e) Both (b) and (c)
Q11. What is the meaning of the phrase “old wine in a new bottle” as used in the passage above?
(a) Mixing old wine from an old bottle into a new bottle of wine.
(b) Making amendments into a concept as per the requirements.
(c) An existing concept or institution offered as though it were a new one.
(d) Relating old norms with new norms to develop a balanced criteria.
(e) Discarding the old norms and developing new norms in a concept.
Q12. Which of the following word has similar meaning to the word given in bold in the passage?
REVAMP
(a) Stabilize
(b) Mangle
(c) Modify
(d) Mutilate
(e) Wreck
Q13. Which of the following word has similar meaning to the word given in bold in the passage?
MOOT
(a) Censor
(b) Doubtful
(c) Suppress
(d) Resolved
(e) Definite
Q14. Which of the following word is opposite in meaning to the word given in bold in the passage?
INKLING
(a) Intimation
(b) Indication
(c) Answer
(d) Allusion
(e) Flicker
Q15.Which of the following word is opposite in meaning to the word given in bold in the passage?
MEDDLE
(a) Interlope
(b) Infringe
(c) Encroach
(d) Intrude
(e) Eschew
Solutions
S1. Ans.(d)
Sol. Both (a) and (b) are correct.
Option (a) Refer the following lines “The panel, which includes top banker Uday Kotak, has been given 30 days to work out whether some of the violations that can attract imprisonment (such as a clerical failure by directors to make adequate disclosures about their interests) may instead be punished with monetary fines.”
Option (b) Refer the following lines “Importantly, the committee has also been asked to suggest the broad contours for an adjudicatory mechanism that allows penalties to be levied for minor violations, perhaps in an automated manner, with minimal discretion available to officials. “
S2. Ans.(c)
Sol. Both (II) and (III) are correct.
Option (II) Refer the following lines “The government hopes such changes in the regulatory regime would allow trial courts to devote greater attention to serious offences rather than get overloaded with cases as zealous officials blindly pursue prosecutions for even minor violations. ”
Option (III) Refer the following lines “In fact, some of the provisions in the law are so tough that even a spelling mistake or typographical error could be construed as a fraud and lead to harsh strictures.”
S3. Ans.(c)
Sol. The most appropriate title for the passage is “Overdue Correction: on revisiting the Companies Act”.
S4. Ans.(b)
Sol. The author uses a descriptive style of writing. He offers a detailed description of the subject.
S5. Ans.(e)
Sol. Entail: involve (something) as a necessary or inevitable part or consequence.
Encompass: include comprehensively.
Necessitate: make (something) necessary as a result or consequence.
Untangle: make (something complicated or confusing) easier to understand or deal with.
Mismatch: a failure to correspond or match; a discrepancy.
S6. Ans.(c)
Sol. Construe: interpret (a word or action) in a particular way.
Obfuscate: make obscure, unclear, or unintelligible.
Explicate: analyse and develop (an idea or principle) in detail.
Obscure: not discovered or known about; uncertain.
Elucidate: make (something) clear; explain.
S7. Ans.(b)
Sol. Spook: frighten; unnerve.
Startle: cause to feel sudden shock or alarm.
Petrify: make (someone) so frightened that they are unable to move.
Soothe: gently calm (a person or their feelings).
Unnerve: make (someone) lose courage or confidence.
S8. Ans.(e)
Sol. Stray: not in the right place; separated from the group or target.
Erratic: not even or regular in pattern or movement; unpredictable.
Random: made, done, or happening without method or conscious decision.
Haphazard: lacking any obvious principle of organization.
Desultory: lacking a plan, purpose, or enthusiasm.
S9. Ans.(b)
Sol. Refer the following lines “These engineering schools, notably the IITs, have done us proud but cannot be equated with the great universities of the world for the simple reason that they are focussed on a narrow domain. “
S10. Ans.(c)
Sol. Option (a) Refer the following lines “The latest offering is in the form of a proposed Higher Education Commission of India (HECI). The intention is to leave the HECI to focus on quality while leaving funding of public institutions to the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD). ”
Option (b) Refer the following lines “These engineering schools, notably the IITs, have done us proud but cannot be equated with the great universities of the world for the simple reason that they are focussed on a narrow domain.”
S11. Ans.(c)
Sol. The phrase “old wine in a new bottle” means an existing concept or institution offered as though it were a new one.
S12. Ans.(c)
Sol. Revamp: give new and improved form, structure, or appearance to.
Stabilize: make or become unlikely to give way or overturn.
Mangle: destroy or severely damage by tearing or crushing.
Modify: make partial or minor changes to (something).
Mutilate: inflict serious damage on.
S13. Ans.(b)
Sol. Moot: having little or no practical relevance.
Censor: examine (a book, film, etc.) officially and suppress unacceptable parts of it.
Doubtful: feeling uncertain about something.
Suppress: forcibly put an end to.
Resolved: firmly determined to do something.
Definite: clearly stated or decided; not vague.
S14. Ans.(c)
Sol. Inkling: a slight knowledge or suspicion; a hint.
Intimation: an indication or hint.
Indication: a sign or piece of information that indicates something.
Allusion: an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.
Flicker: (of light or a source of light) shine unsteadily; vary rapidly in brightness.
S15. Ans.(e)
Sol. Meddle: Interfere in something that is not one’s concern.
Interlope: to interest oneself in what is not one’s concern
Infringe: act so as to limit or undermine (something); encroach on.
Encroach: advance gradually beyond usual or acceptable limits.
Intrude: put oneself deliberately into a place or situation where one is unwelcome or uninvited.
Eschew: deliberately avoid using; abstain from.
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