SSC CGL Tier II 3rd March 2023 Shift 1

In the following passage, some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank.

The effects of plastic bags on the environment are really (1)______ devastating because there is no disposal method that will really help eliminate the problem. The biggest problem with them is that once they have been (2)______, they end up In the trash, which then ends up in the landfill or is burned. The indefinite period of time that it takes for the average plastic bag to break (3)______ can be literally hundreds of years. Throughout the world, plastic bags are responsible for suffocation and deaths of woodland animals as well as (4)______ soil nutrients. The land litter that is made up of plastic bags has the potential to kill over and over again. It has been estimated that one bag has the potential to inadvertently kill one animal per every three months due to unintentional digestion or inhalation. There are always alternatives to plastic bags and the search for more alternatives continues.

Read the following passage and answer the questions given after it.

Amidst a maze of rocks tucked in the Aravalli mountain ranges of Haryana, a team of archaeologists discovered cave paintings they believe belong to the Upper Palaeolithic age. The cave paintings have been discovered just outside the national capital and a stone’s throw away from a holy grove called Mangar Bani- the region’s only surviving patch of primary forest.

While the residents of the villages have been familiar with the paintings for ages, the Haryana government’s museum and archaeology department took note of them just recently. A fact-finding team was sent to the area in the last week of June. The team came across cave paintings comprising images of human figurines, animals, foliage, and geometric drawings. While some have paled over time, others are still very visible. They also discovered rock art
and open-air ceremonial sites.

Banani Bhattacharyya, deputy director of the department of archaeology and museums informed, “So far, cave paintings in Delhi-NCR have only been found here. The paintings are yet to be dated but at least some of them belong to the Upper Palaeolithic period in all likelihood. We are viewing the paintings in continuation with the Soanian culture which has been found in Shivalik hills, Narmada and Aravallis.”

Most of the cave paintings found were in ochre colour, but some were in white. As per experts, cave paintings in white are usually from a later stage (early contemporary era), while Stone Age paintings are more often than not in ochre. “Stone age paintings generally use red and ochre colours. Stones of these colour used to be available locally and inhabitants crushed the stones for preparing the colour for paintings,” added Bhattacharyya. The Upper Paleolithic Age began around 40,000 years ago and lasted till around 10,000 years ago. While yet to be established through archaeological dating, Bhattacharyya says the Mangar cave art is 20,000-40,000 years old. Bhattacharyya claimed that the discovery is extremely significant. “Starting from the Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic then Upper Palaeolithic, we see the evolution here. We have found significant remains from Lower Palaeolithic till Middle and Upper Palaeolithic period too,” she explained. “Though tools from the Palaeolithic Age have been identified earlier in parts of the Aravallis, it is for the first time that cave paintings and rock art of a large magnitude have been found in Haryana,” she added.

Read the following passage and answer the questions given after it.

Total area sown under Rabi crops has increased by 3.25% from 697.98 lakh hectares in 2021-22 to 720.68 lakh hectares in 2022-23. This is 22.71 lakh hectares more this year compared to corresponding period of 2021-22. Comparing with normal sown area(average of the last five years), the increase is to the tune of 13.71% from 633.80 to 720.68 lakh hectares. The increase in area is across all crops, - highest being in rice. Out of 22.71 lakh hectares
increase in all Rabi crops, increase in rice area is 11.20 lakh hectares from 35.05 lakh hectares in 2021-22 to 46.25 lakh hectares in 2022-23. However, this is lower than normal sown area of 47.71 lakh hectares. Maximum increase in area under rice is in states of Telangana and West Bengal.

Area under oilseeds increased by 7.31% from 102.36 lakh hectares during 2021-22 to 109.84 lakh hectares this year. The increase in area under oilseeds at the rate of 7.31% is more than double the rate of increase of 3.25% in all crops together. Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh accounted for major expansion in area of oilseeds. 

Rapeseed & Mustard contributed maximum in increasing oilseeds area during this Rabi season. Mustard area increased by 6.77 lakh hectares from 91.25 lakh hectares in 2021-22 to 98.02 lakh hectares in 2022-23. Thus, out of 7.49 lakh hectares increase in area under oilseeds, rapeseed & mustard alone accounted for 6.44 lakh hectares. Pulse production is being focused to make country self-sufficient in these commodities. Area under pulses increased by 0.56 lakh hectares from 167.31 to 167.86 lakh hectares. Mung bean and lentil accounted for increase in area under pulses.

The United Nations General Assembly has declared the year 2023 as the International Year of Millets and India is at the forefront in celebrating the event in a big way. In order to create awareness about the benefits of millets as superfood and to meet its growing demand around the world, the Government is promoting millet production through the NFSM-Nutri Cereals component of National Food Security Mission programme in 212 districts of 14 states. Coarse cum Nutri-cereals saw an increase of 2.08 lakh hectares in area under cultivation from 51.42 lakh hectares in 2021-22 to 53.49 lakh hectares in 2022-23.