2020 GS Paper I, all questions

UPSC Prelims 2020 · GS Paper I

Question 84: Economy and Social Development

According to India’s National Policy on Biofuels, which of the following can be used as raw materials for the production of biofuels ?

  1. 1.Cassava
  2. 2.Damaged wheat grains
  3. 3.Groundnut seeds
  4. 4.Horse gram
  5. 5.Rotten potatoes
  6. 6.Sugar beet

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

a1, 2, 5 and 6 only
b1, 3, 4 and 6 only
c2, 3, 4 and 5 only
d1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6

AnswerUPSC’s answer is (a).

India's National Policy on Biofuels (2018) permits ethanol from sugarcane juice, sugar beet, sweet sorghum, starchy crops such as maize and cassava, and damaged food grains such as wheat and broken rice, or rotten potatoes, which are unfit for human consumption. Groundnut seeds and horse gram are edible oilseed and pulse, and are not listed feedstocks.

  • 1. Cassava is a starchy raw material.
  • 2. Damaged wheat grains unfit for consumption are allowed.
  • 3. Groundnut seeds are edible oilseed, not a listed feedstock.
  • 4. Horse gram is a pulse, not a listed feedstock.
  • 5. Rotten potatoes unfit for human consumption are allowed.
  • 6. Sugar beet is a sugar-containing raw material.

How you could have got this

  1. If you were sure statement 3 is not correct, (b), (c) and (d) go: each of them includes 3.

    What you needed to know: Groundnut seeds are edible oilseed, not a listed feedstock.

Only (a) is left. You didn’t need statements 1, 2, 4, 5 or 6.

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) Right: cassava, damaged wheat, rotten potatoes and sugar beet.
  • (b) Wrong: groundnut seeds and horse gram are not listed raw materials.
  • (c) Wrong: groundnut seeds and horse gram are not listed.
  • (d) Wrong: includes groundnut seeds and horse gram.

Worth knowing: The policy was amended in 2022, which advanced the 20 per cent ethanol blending target to 2025-26; the question follows the 2018 text.

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

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Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2020, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.