UPSC Prelims 2020 · GS Paper I
Question 9: Polity and Governance
In India, Legal Services Authorities provide free legal services to which of the following type of citizens ?
- 1.Person with an annual income of less than ₹ 1,00,000
- 2.Transgender with an annual income of less than ₹ 2,00,000
- 3.Member of Other Backward Classes (OBC) with an annual income of less than ₹ 3,00,000
- 4.All Senior Citizens
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
AnswerUPSC’s answer is (a).
Free legal aid under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 goes to the categories listed in Section 12, such as members of SC and ST, women and children, the disabled and people in custody, and to persons whose income is below a ceiling the State fixes. UPSC treats the income-based items 1 and 2 as eligible. OBC status alone does not qualify, and being a senior citizen is no automatic ground.
- 1. Persons below an income ceiling are eligible for free legal aid.
- 2. Counted as eligible by UPSC: transgender persons below the income limit.
- 3. OBC membership is not a ground in Section 12; only SC and ST are named.
- 4. Senior citizens as a class are not entitled; an income test applies.
How you could have got this
- If you were sure statement 4 is not correct, (b) and (d) go: each of them includes 4.
What you needed to know: Senior citizens as a class are not entitled; an income test applies.
The red flag in statement 4 is “all”. In UPSC’s papers, statements with “all” were true 41% of the time (76 statements). A hint, not a rule.
- Then, if you were sure statement 1 is correct, (c) goes: it leaves 1 out.
What you needed to know: Persons below an income ceiling are eligible for free legal aid.
Only (a) is left. You didn’t need statements 2 or 3.
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: items 1 and 2 are counted as eligible.
- (b) Wrong: OBC status alone is not a Section 12 category, and not every senior citizen qualifies.
- (c) Wrong: item 2 is eligible but item 3, OBC with income below the stated figure, is not.
- (d) Wrong: item 4 is wrong because senior citizens are not covered as a class.
Worth knowing: The Act leaves the income ceiling to each State, so the rupee figures vary across States and the question is loosely framed.
Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2020, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.