UPSC Prelims 2016 · GS Paper I
Question 100: Polity and Governance
Consider the following statements :
- 1.The minimum age prescribed for any person to be a member of Panchayat is 25 years.
- 2.A Panchayat reconstituted after premature dissolution continues only for the remainder period.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
AnswerUPSC’s answer is (b).
The minimum age for membership of a Panchayat is 21 years, not 25. A Panchayat dissolved before its five-year term ends must be reconstituted by fresh elections within six months, and the new Panchayat continues only for the remainder of the original term, not for a fresh five years. So statement 2 is correct and statement 1 is wrong.
- 1. The minimum age for Panchayat membership is 21 years.
- 2. A reconstituted Panchayat serves only the remainder of the term.
How you could have got this
- If you were sure statement 2 is correct, (a) and (d) go: each of them leaves 2 out.
What you needed to know: A reconstituted Panchayat serves only the remainder of the term.
The red flag in statement 2 is “only”. In UPSC’s papers, statements with “only” were true 27% of the time (82 statements). A hint, not a rule.
- Then, if you were sure statement 1 is not correct, (c) goes: it includes 1.
What you needed to know: The minimum age for Panchayat membership is 21 years.
Only (b) is left. This one needs every statement.
Which options go is worked out from UPSC’s key and the options, not by a model.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Statement 1 is wrong: the minimum age is 21.
- (b) Right: only statement 2, on the remainder of the term, is correct.
- (c) Statement 1 is wrong, so 'both' fails.
- (d) Statement 2 is correct, so 'neither' fails.
Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2016, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.