2023 GS Paper I, all questions

UPSC Prelims 2023 · GS Paper I

Question 80: Polity and Governance

Consider the following statements in respect of election to the President of India :

  1. 1.The members nominated to either House of the Parliament or the Legislative Assemblies of States are also eligible to be included in the Electoral College.
  2. 2.Higher the number of elective Assembly seats, higher is the value of vote of each MLA of that State.
  3. 3.The value of vote of each MLA of Madhya Pradesh is greater than that of Kerala.
  4. 4.The value of vote of each MLA of Puducherry is higher than that of Arunachal Pradesh because the ratio of total population to total number of elective seats in Puducherry is greater as compared to Arunachal Pradesh.

How many of the above statements are correct?

aOnly one
bOnly two
cOnly three
dAll four

AnswerUPSC’s answer is (a).

Only statement 4 is correct. The electoral college has only the elected members of Parliament and State Assemblies; nominated members are excluded. An MLA's vote value is State population (1971 census) divided by the number of elected seats, divided by 1,000, so more seats lower each vote's value. Kerala (about 152) has a higher value than Madhya Pradesh (about 131). Puducherry (16) exceeds Arunachal Pradesh (8) because its population per elected seat is larger.

  • 1. Nominated members are not in the electoral college.
  • 2. More elected seats lower the value of each MLA's vote.
  • 3. Kerala's MLA vote value is higher than Madhya Pradesh's.
  • 4. Puducherry has a higher population per elected seat than Arunachal Pradesh.

How you could have got this

No shortcut here: in a “how many” question, ruling out options doesn’t help. Every statement has to be judged.

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) Correct: only statement 4 holds.
  • (b) Two would need another true statement; none of 1 to 3 holds.
  • (c) Statements 1 to 3 are wrong, so not three.
  • (d) Not all four hold.

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

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Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2023, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.