2019 CSAT, all questions

UPSC Prelims 2019 · CSAT

Question 63: Reading Comprehension

Passage - 2 · as printed by UPSC
Passage beginning “In a study, scientists compared the microbiomes…”

Which one of the following is the most logical, rational and crucial inference that can be derived from the above passage ?

aIf malnourished condition in children is caused by gut bacteria, it cannot be treated.
bThe guts of malnourished babies should be inoculated with mature microbiomes.
cBabies of malnourished mothers should be fed with dairy milk fortified with sialylated oligosaccharides instead of mother's milk.
dResearch on benign effects of gut bacteria on nutrition has policy implications.

AnswerUPSC’s answer is (d).

The passage links malnutrition to immature gut bacteria in infants, with a sugar in mother's milk that feeds those bacteria and is low in malnourished mothers. The sound inference is that research on how gut bacteria aid nutrition matters for policy, for example on maternal nutrition and infant feeding. The other options give treatments the passage never proposes, or claim the condition cannot be treated.

Why each option is right or wrong
  • (a) Wrong: the passage gives a cause, not a claim that it cannot be treated.
  • (b) Wrong: inoculation is not proposed.
  • (c) Wrong: replacing mother's milk with fortified dairy milk is not suggested.
  • (d) Right: the findings on gut bacteria and nutrition bear on policy.

Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.

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Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2019, General Studies Paper II (CSAT), Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.