CATProbe
What does the report mean? Graphical Analysis for Verbal test 22 Analysis of each question
Two important factors need to be working in sync, if you want to crack CAT.
Question Selection
Accuracy
How to interpret the difficulty levels?
There are two kinds of difficulty levels associated with any question.
Perceived Difficulty
Actual Difficulty
What does the report mean? Graphical Analysis Analysis of each question
Graphical Analysis
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What does the report mean? Graphical Analysis Analysis of each question
Analysis for every question
| Verbal test 22 | |
| Directions: Read the passage and answer the questions that follow: | |
| Governments looking for easy popularity have frequently been tempted into announcing give-aways of all sorts; free electricity, virtually free water, subsidized food, cloth at half price, and so on. The subsidy culture has gone to extremes: cooking gas (used mostly by top 10% of income earners) has been sold at barely half its cost. The wealthiest people in the country have had access for years to subsidized sugar. The richest farmers in the country get subsidized fertilizer. University education, typically accessed by the wealthier sections, is charged at a fraction of cost. Postal services are subsidized, and so is railway travel. Bus fares cannot be raised to economical levels because there will be violent protests, so bus travel subsidized too. In the past, price control on a variety of items, from steel to cement, meant that industrial consumers of these items got them at less than cost, while the losses of the public sector companies that produced them were borne by the taxpayer! One study, done a few years ago, came to the conclusion that subsidies too in the Indian economy total as much as 14.5% of gross domestic product. At today’s level that would work out to about Rs. 150,000 crores. And who pays the bill? The theory – and the political fiction on the basis of which it is sold to unsuspecting voters – is that subsidies go to the poor, and are paid for by the rich. The fact is that most subsidies go to the “rich” (defined in the Indian context as those who are above the poverty line), and much of the tab goes indirectly to the poor. Because the hefty subsidy bill results in fiscal deficits, which in turn push up rates of inflation – which, as everyone knows, hits the poor the hardest of all. Indeed, that is why taxmen call inflation the most regressive form of taxation. The entire subsidy system is built on the thesis that people cannot help themselves, therefore governments must do so. That people cannot afford to pay for a variety of goods and services, and therefore the government must step in. This thesis has been applied not just in the poor countries but in the rich ones as well; hence the birth of the welfare state in the West, and an almost Utopian social security system: free medical care, food aid, old age security, et al. But with the passage of time, most of the wealthy nations have discovered that their economies cannot sustain this social safety net that it in fact reduces the desire the desire among people to py their own way, and takes away some of the incentive to work. In short, the bill was unaffordable, and their societies were simply not willing to pay. To the regret of many, but because the laws of economics are harsh, most Western societies have been busy pruning the welfare bill. In India, the lessons of this experience – over several decades, and in many countries – do not seem to have been learnt. Or, they are simply ignored in the pursuit of immediate votes. People who are promised cheap food or clothing do not in type pursuit of immediate votes. People who are promised cheap food or clothing do not in most cases look beyond the gift horses – to the question of who picks up the tab. The uproars over highest petrol, diesel and cooking gas prices ignored this basic question: if the user of cooking gas does not want to pay for its cost, who should pay? Diesel in the country is subsidized, and if the trucker or owner of a diesel generator does not to pay for its full cost, who does he or she think should pay the balance of the cost? It is a simple question. Nevertheless, it remains unasked. The Deve Gowda government has shown some courage in biting the bullet when it comes to the price of petroleum products. But it has been bitten by a much bigger subsidy bug. It wants to offer food at half its cost to everyone below poverty line, supposedly estimated at some 380 million people. How much will this cost? And, of course, who will pick up the tab? The Andhra Pradesh government has been bankrupted by selling rice at Rs. 2 per kg. Should the central government be bankrupted too before facing up to the question of what is affordable and what is not? Already, India is perennially short of power because the subsidy on electricity has bankrupted most electricity boards, and made private investment wary, unless it gets all manner of state guarantees. Delhi’s subsidized bus fares have bankrupted the Delhi Transport Corp., whose buses have slowly disappeared from the capital’s streets. It is easy to be soft and sentimental, by looking at programmers that will be popular. After all, who doesn’t like a free lunch? But the evidence is surely mounting that the lunch isn’t free at all. Somebody is paying the bill. And if you want to know who, take a look at the country’s poor economic performance over the years. |
1. Which of the following may not be subsidized now, according to the passage? Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 3 Your answer: Option 4 Actual Difficulty Level: Difficult Perceived Difficulty Level: Easy This question looks easy but it is actually difficult. Moreover, it has tricky options. Many people tend to go wrong and give the same answer as you gave. So, you need to work on two things. Selection as well as seeing through the trick. University education Postal Services Steel None of the above Skip this question 2. It can be inferred from the passage that the author… Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 2 Your answer: Option 2 Actual Difficulty Level: Easy Perceived Difficulty Level: Easy Spotting this question indicates a good selection skill. As this is a real easy question, its just a matter of spotting this question and getting maximum value in minimum time. believes that people can help themselves and do not need the government. believes that the theory of helping people with subsidy is destructive. believes in democracy and free speech. is not a successful politician Skip this question 3. The statement that subsidies are paid for by the rich and go to the poor is… Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 4 Your answer: Option 4 Actual Difficulty Level: Moderate Perceived Difficulty Level: Easy Though it looked very easy, this was a reasonably difficult question. Though you got it correct, we would recommend attempting these questions in the second round of scanning the paper. fiction fact fact, according to the author fiction, according to the author Skip this question 4. Which of the following is not true, in contest of the passage? Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 4 Your answer: Skipped Actual Difficulty Level: Moderate Perceived Difficulty Level: Moderate Being a moderately difficult question at first glance and a moderately difficult one to solve, it is good that you did not attempt this question at first. But remember to attempt this kind of questions in second round of scanning. They willl yield better results than a difficult question or a question with tricky set of options. Where subsidies are concerned, the poor ultimately pay the tab. Inflation is caused by too much subsidies. Experts call subsidies the most regressive for of taxation. The dangerous reduction in fiscal deficits is another result of high subsidies. Skip this question 5. Why do you think the author calls the Western Social security system Utopian? Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 1 Your answer: Skipped Actual Difficulty Level: Moderate Perceived Difficulty Level: Moderate Being a moderately difficult question at first glance and a moderately difficult one to solve, it is good that you did not attempt this question at first. But remember to attempt this kind of questions in second round of scanning. They willl yield better results than a difficult question or a question with tricky set of options. The countries’ belief in efficacy of the system was bound to turn out to be false. The system followed by these countries is the best available in the present context. Everything under this system was supposed to be free but people were charging money for them. The theory or system followed by these countries was devised by Dr. Utopia Skip this question 6. What according to the author is a saving grace of the Deve Gowda government? Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 1 Your answer: Option 1 Actual Difficulty Level: Moderate Perceived Difficulty Level: Moderate Good!!! This was a moderately difficult question. We recommend to solve these questions in the second round of scanning the paper. However, as this is not a very difficult question, if you are confident of cracking this category of questoins in less time, Go For It!!! It has realized that it has to raise the price of petroleum products. It has avoided been bitten by a bigger subsidy bug. Both (a) and (b) Neither (a) nor (b) Skip this question 7. A suitable title to the passage would be… Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 1 Your answer: Option 2 Actual Difficulty Level: Moderate Perceived Difficulty Level: Moderate A moderately difficult question both in looks as well as in actual difficulty. You must remember that these kind of questions is your safest bet in next scanning of question paper. So, it is very important to get them right. There’s no such thing as a free lunch. The Indian Economic overview Deve Gowda government and it’s follies. It takes two to tango. Skip this question 8. Which of the following is a victim of extreme subsidies? Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 4 Your answer: Option 4 Actual Difficulty Level: Moderate Perceived Difficulty Level: Easy Though it looked very easy, this was a reasonably difficult question. Though you got it correct, we would recommend attempting these questions in the second round of scanning the paper. The poor The Delhi Transport Corporation The Andhra Pradesh government. All of the above Skip this question |
| Directions: Arrange the sentences A,B,C,D between the sentences 1 and 6 in order to form a coherent paragraph. | |
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9. 1. Historically, stained glass was almost entirely reserved for ecclesiastical spaces. Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 2 Your answer: Skipped Actual Difficulty Level: Easy Perceived Difficulty Level: Moderate The questions looks a bit difficult but actually it is easy. Many students tend to skip it because it looks a bit tough. You must develop the skill to select this kind of questions as they are a very safe bet towards a good score. CBAD BADC ABDC DBAC Skip this question 10. 1. So how big is the potential market? Analysis: Correct Answer: Option 3 Your answer: Skipped Actual Difficulty Level: Moderate Perceived Difficulty Level: Moderate Being a moderately difficult question at first glance and a moderately difficult one to solve, it is good that you did not attempt this question at first. But remember to attempt this kind of questions in second round of scanning. They willl yield better results than a difficult question or a question with tricky set of options. BCAD DABC BDCA DCAB Skip this question |
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