Score well in Economics

Amit Mangtani

Economics is among the most popular elective subjects for civil services aspirants. It is considered to be a subject that can fetch one high marks, but preparation for the civil services is not a cakewalk. In spite of its importance, it is one of the trickiest subjects and is usually not understood easily by students. Here are some pointers to help you prepare for this elective subject.

Firstly, read the NCERTs – Class XI: Economic Development and Class XII: Introduction to Macroeconomics.

Simultaneously, one should also go through the Previous Year Question Papers of Economics asked in the Exam. This will help the aspirants to keep their studies in tune with the UPSC exam pattern.

Consistently, read the business page of newspapers for updating with the economics terminologies which is in news.

It is very important that you understand certain terms which will come across while reading the newspapers. This can be done by understanding concepts from websites such as Arthapedia or Investopedia.

Students can also go for a Comprehensive Course of Economic Development available online. This course covers the complete syllabus of Economics for both Prelims and Mains in the most simplified manner.

One should keep practicing questions of different topics of Economics for assessing their level of understanding. This can be done by practicing the Topic-wise Questions of Economics available online

Sample Questions (Static + Current)

1.    Which of the following component comes under the India’s GDP but not under the India’s GNP?

1.    Profits from the Honda car manufacturing plant in Pune

2.    Wages given to Indian workers who are working in Dubai

3.    Wages received by foreign employees working in Jamnagar Refinery.

Select the correct answer from the codes given below:

(a)  1 and 3 only

(b)  2 only

(c)   1, 2 and 3

(d)  None of the above

2.    Consider the following actions:

1.    Reduction of Repo Rate

2.    Reduction of tax exemptions for individuals and corporates

3.    Hike in MSPs for doubling farmer’s income

4.    Launch of National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP)

Which of the given above actions comes under the ‘Expansionary Fiscal Policy’?

(a)  1 and 4 only

(b)  3 and 4 only

(c)   1, 2, 3 and 4

(d)  1, 3 and 4 only

3.    Which of the following form part of the ‘Non-Tax Revenue Receipts’ of the Central Government Budget?

1.    Interest paid by the state government to the central government

2.    Profits earned by Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs)

3.    Dividend from Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

4.    Hundred Million Dollar grant by the Japanese Government

Select the correct answer from the codes given below:

(a)  1 and 4 only

(b)  3 and 4 only

(c)   1, 2, 3 and 4

(d)  1, 3 and 4 only

4.    Consider the following statements with reference to the 'All India Rural Financial Inclusion Survey 2016-2017’:

1.    It has been conducted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

2.    More than 80% of the households in rural areas have a bank account.

3.    More than half the agricultural households in the country have outstanding debt.

4.    Average annual income of an agricultural household is less than that of households engaged in non-agricultural activities in rural areas.

Which of the given above statement(s) is/are correct? 

(a)  2 and 3 only

(b)  1, 2 and 4 only

(c)   2 only

(d)  4 only

5.    Consider the following statements about 'Shadow Banking', sometimes seen in news:

1.    It refers to all non-bank financial intermediaries that provide services similar to those of traditional commercial banks.

2.    Shadow banking can create money unlike commercial banks.

3.    Like commercial banks, shadow banking liabilities are also insured.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 1, 2 and 3

(c)   2 and 3 only

(d) 1 and 3 only

The writer is expert faculty of Economics, baliyans.com.