UPSC Prelims 2018 · CSAT
Question 28: Reading Comprehension
Which of the following is/are the correct inference/inferences that can be made from the passage?
- 1.Deforestation can cause changes in the course of rivers.
- 2.Salinization of land takes place due to human activities only.
- 3.Intense monoculture practice in plains is a major reason for desertification in Tropical Asia, Africa and South America.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
AnswerUPSC’s answer is (a).
Statement 1 is supported: the passage describes the Assam river changing course and its bed rising through siltation, a result of deforestation upstream. Statement 2 says salinization comes from human activities only; the passage shows it in human-impacted areas but never rules out other causes, so 'only' is unsupported. Statement 3 ties monoculture to desertification across three continents; the passage links monoculture to site decline in the Indian plains and does not say this. Only statement 1 holds.
- 1. Deforestation-driven siltation changes the course of the river.
- 2. The passage does not say human activity is the only cause of salinization.
- 3. Monoculture is linked to site decline in the Indian plains, not to desertification in three continents.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Correct: only the changing-river-course inference is supported.
- (b) Statement 2 uses 'only', which the passage does not establish.
- (c) Neither 2 nor 3 is supported, so this is wrong.
- (d) Statement 1 is a correct inference, so this is wrong.
Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2018, General Studies Paper II (CSAT), Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.