UPSC Prelims 2017
Current Affairs Previous Year Questions (PYQs)

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 2 — Connecting institutions of higher education with local communities to address development challenges through appropriate technologies.

Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA) is a flagship programme launched by the Ministry of Education (formerly MHRD) to enable higher educational institutions (HEIs) to work with rural communities.

The core objective is to identify local development challenges and devise appropriate, sustainable solutions using academic expertise and technology.

Under this programme, participating institutions adopt clusters of villages and engage in activities related to infrastructure development, livelihood enhancement, health, education, and skill development.

This creates a symbiotic relationship where academic institutions contribute to rural transformation while gaining practical insights for research and pedagogy. The programme emphasizes participatory rural development, leveraging institutional knowledge for inclusive growth.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 4 — Neither 1 nor 2

❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: National Career Service (NCS) is an initiative of the Ministry of Labour & Employment, not the Department of Personnel and Training. It is implemented through the Directorate General of Employment & Training under the Ministry of Labour & Employment.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: NCS has been launched in Mission Mode, but it aims to improve employment opportunities for all citizens, not specifically for uneducated youth. The platform provides career-related services including job matching, career counselling, vocational guidance, information on skill development courses, apprenticeships, and internships to jobseekers across all education levels. It connects jobseekers with employers and training providers through a single digital platform.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 1 — 1 and 2 only

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: Creating awareness about malnutrition among pregnant women and lactating mothers is a core objective of the National Nutrition Mission (POSHAN Abhiyaan), launched in 2018 to address malnutrition comprehensively.

✅ Statement 2 – Correct: Reducing anaemia among young children (6 months to 6 years), adolescent girls, and women (15-49 years) is an explicit target of the mission, with specific goals to reduce anaemia prevalence by 3% per annum.

❌ Statement 3 – Incorrect: While promoting millets, coarse cereals, and unpolished rice aligns with nutritional goals, these are not explicitly stated as objectives of the National Nutrition Mission. The mission focuses on behavior change, service delivery, and convergence rather than specific food promotion.

❌ Statement 4 – Incorrect: Promoting consumption of poultry eggs is not an objective of the National Nutrition Mission. The mission emphasizes adequate nutrition through diverse diets but does not mandate specific food items like eggs.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 1 — Certifying the skills acquired by construction workers through traditional channels.

The Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Scheme is a key component of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY). It aims to certify and recognize the skills acquired by workers through informal or non-formal means, particularly those gained through work experience rather than formal training. The scheme is particularly relevant for construction workers, domestic workers, and others in the unorganized sector who have learned skills through traditional channels or on-the-job experience. RPL provides them with formal certification aligned to the National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF), enhancing their employability and enabling them to access better opportunities. The scheme does not focus on distance learning enrollment (Option 2), job reservation in PSUs (Option 3), or certifying trainees under formal NSDP programs (Option 4), as those who complete formal training receive regular certification.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 2 — 2 only

❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: NSQF allows learners to acquire competency certification through multiple pathways, not just formal learning. It recognizes formal learning (schools/colleges), non-formal learning (skill development programs), and informal learning (on-the-job training, self-learning). This flexibility is a core feature of NSQF.

✅ Statement 2 – Correct: A key objective of NSQF is enabling mobility between vocational and general education. By establishing equivalence between vocational qualifications and general education levels (across 10 levels), NSQF allows individuals with vocational skills to pursue higher education and vice versa, creating a more flexible education ecosystem.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 1 — 2 only

❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: Vidyanjali Yojana does not deal with foreign educational institutions opening campuses in India. It is focused on improving existing government schools.

✅ Statement 2 – Correct: Vidyanjali Yojana is a school volunteer initiative launched by the Ministry of Education to improve the quality of education in government schools. It facilitates community and private sector participation by connecting volunteers (professionals, retired teachers, subject experts, NGOs) with government schools to contribute their time, knowledge, and skills.

❌ Statement 3 – Incorrect: The primary purpose of Vidyanjali is to enable volunteer participation through time and expertise, not monetary contributions. While volunteers may support various activities, the scheme's core focus is on non-monetary contributions like teaching support, mentoring, skill development, and enrichment activities.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 3 — All State Government employees joining the services after the date of notification by the respective State Governments

✅ Option 3 – Correct: The National Pension System (NPS) was introduced by the Central Government on January 1, 2004. Subsequently, various State Governments adopted the NPS architecture for their employees. State Government employees joining after the date of notification by their respective State Governments are mandatorily covered under NPS.

❌ Option 1 – Incorrect: NPS is available to all Indian citizens including both Resident Indians and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), not just resident Indian citizens.

❌ Option 2 – Incorrect: The eligibility age for joining NPS is 18 to 70 years, not 21 to 55 years. The age range was expanded over time to include a broader segment of citizens.

❌ Option 4 – Incorrect: NPS specifically excludes Armed Forces personnel. Additionally, the correct implementation date for Central Government employees was January 1, 2004, not April 1, 2004.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 2 — 2 only

❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: Smart India Hackathon (SIH) is not a scheme for developing Smart Cities. It is a nationwide initiative to harness creative digital technology solutions from students and innovators to solve pressing problems faced by ministries, departments, and industries.

✅ Statement 2 – Correct: SIH 2017 was launched as a unique open platform to identify new digital technology innovations for addressing challenges across various sectors including agriculture, healthcare, education, clean energy, water resources, and waste management. It brings together students, startups, and tech enthusiasts to develop practical solutions.

❌ Statement 3 – Incorrect: SIH is not focused solely on making financial transactions digital. While digital payments may be one potential solution area, the hackathon covers a broad spectrum of national challenges requiring innovative technological interventions, not just financial digitization.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 4 — Neither 1 nor 2

The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) is India's first sovereign wealth fund established by the Government of India in February 2015 to provide long-term capital for infrastructure projects. It is registered with SEBI as a Category II Alternative Investment Fund, not an organ of NITI Aayog.

❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: NIIF is not an organ of NITI Aayog; it is an independent sovereign wealth fund registered with SEBI as an Alternative Investment Fund.
❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: The initial corpus was Rs. 20,000 crores from the Government of India as announced in Union Budget 2015-16, not Rs. 4,00,000 crores.