Reading Comprehension || DUJAT 2021 || 25 August

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

With the early onset of the monsoon, heavy rainfall and concomitant flooding have caused widespread destruction and loss of lives, livestock and crops in many parts of the country. Although floods occur annually, this time around, the floods occurring at the time of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country had slowed down the mitigation and relief efforts, which has, in effect, exacerbated the scale and intensity of the crises. This has caused undue hardship, especially for the poor who have been disproportionately affected, and bear the brunt of both calamities, with the natural disaster and the pandemic occurring at the same time. Of the 10 states that have been the worst affected, the devastation has been most severe in Bihar and Assam.

After heavy rains in north Bihar and catchment areas, rivers breached their embankments at several places in the state, as the pressure on them had increased after the water levels rose in rivers after heavy rains. Breaching of embankments has also been caused due to the poor quality of flood-control measures undertaken, including that of the repair and maintenance of embankments. This was also because the prolonged pandemic-induced lockdown had delayed the routine flood-control measures undertaken before the onset of the monsoon each year.

The flood situation in Assam has also been very severe with two waves of floods, which has been further exacerbated by the spread of the pandemic. Most parts of Kaziranga and Orang National Parks and the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary were submerged in the floods, putting the lives of endangered animals in peril.

In both Bihar and Assam, the approach of the government policies to mitigate the impact of floods has been mainly focused on building embankments. However, the increasing intensity of floods had made these embankments largely ineffective.

Environmentalists have argued that an approach that integrates water management with land use planning, agriculture, and ecology is needed to manage floods. Additionally, it needs to be recognised that the political and economic systems that prioritise overconsumption and growth have also led to the destruction of nature. This being the root cause of recurring natural disasters, there is an urgent need to pursue alternative models of development that also accord importance to nature and its conservation.

Source - https://www.epw.in/journal/2020/32-33/editorials/recurring-flood-disasters.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

With the early onset of the monsoon, heavy rainfall and concomitant flooding have caused widespread destruction and loss of lives, livestock and crops in many parts of the country. Although floods occur annually, this time around, the floods occurring at the time of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country had slowed down the mitigation and relief efforts, which has, in effect, exacerbated the scale and intensity of the crises. This has caused undue hardship, especially for the poor who have been disproportionately affected, and bear the brunt of both calamities, with the natural disaster and the pandemic occurring at the same time. Of the 10 states that have been the worst affected, the devastation has been most severe in Bihar and Assam.

After heavy rains in north Bihar and catchment areas, rivers breached their embankments at several places in the state, as the pressure on them had increased after the water levels rose in rivers after heavy rains. Breaching of embankments has also been caused due to the poor quality of flood-control measures undertaken, including that of the repair and maintenance of embankments. This was also because the prolonged pandemic-induced lockdown had delayed the routine flood-control measures undertaken before the onset of the monsoon each year.

The flood situation in Assam has also been very severe with two waves of floods, which has been further exacerbated by the spread of the pandemic. Most parts of Kaziranga and Orang National Parks and the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary were submerged in the floods, putting the lives of endangered animals in peril.

In both Bihar and Assam, the approach of the government policies to mitigate the impact of floods has been mainly focused on building embankments. However, the increasing intensity of floods had made these embankments largely ineffective.

Environmentalists have argued that an approach that integrates water management with land use planning, agriculture, and ecology is needed to manage floods. Additionally, it needs to be recognised that the political and economic systems that prioritise overconsumption and growth have also led to the destruction of nature. This being the root cause of recurring natural disasters, there is an urgent need to pursue alternative models of development that also accord importance to nature and its conservation.

Source - https://www.epw.in/journal/2020/32-33/editorials/recurring-flood-disasters.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

With the early onset of the monsoon, heavy rainfall and concomitant flooding have caused widespread destruction and loss of lives, livestock and crops in many parts of the country. Although floods occur annually, this time around, the floods occurring at the time of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country had slowed down the mitigation and relief efforts, which has, in effect, exacerbated the scale and intensity of the crises. This has caused undue hardship, especially for the poor who have been disproportionately affected, and bear the brunt of both calamities, with the natural disaster and the pandemic occurring at the same time. Of the 10 states that have been the worst affected, the devastation has been most severe in Bihar and Assam.

After heavy rains in north Bihar and catchment areas, rivers breached their embankments at several places in the state, as the pressure on them had increased after the water levels rose in rivers after heavy rains. Breaching of embankments has also been caused due to the poor quality of flood-control measures undertaken, including that of the repair and maintenance of embankments. This was also because the prolonged pandemic-induced lockdown had delayed the routine flood-control measures undertaken before the onset of the monsoon each year.

The flood situation in Assam has also been very severe with two waves of floods, which has been further exacerbated by the spread of the pandemic. Most parts of Kaziranga and Orang National Parks and the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary were submerged in the floods, putting the lives of endangered animals in peril.

In both Bihar and Assam, the approach of the government policies to mitigate the impact of floods has been mainly focused on building embankments. However, the increasing intensity of floods had made these embankments largely ineffective.

Environmentalists have argued that an approach that integrates water management with land use planning, agriculture, and ecology is needed to manage floods. Additionally, it needs to be recognised that the political and economic systems that prioritise overconsumption and growth have also led to the destruction of nature. This being the root cause of recurring natural disasters, there is an urgent need to pursue alternative models of development that also accord importance to nature and its conservation.

Source - https://www.epw.in/journal/2020/32-33/editorials/recurring-flood-disasters.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

With the early onset of the monsoon, heavy rainfall and concomitant flooding have caused widespread destruction and loss of lives, livestock and crops in many parts of the country. Although floods occur annually, this time around, the floods occurring at the time of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country had slowed down the mitigation and relief efforts, which has, in effect, exacerbated the scale and intensity of the crises. This has caused undue hardship, especially for the poor who have been disproportionately affected, and bear the brunt of both calamities, with the natural disaster and the pandemic occurring at the same time. Of the 10 states that have been the worst affected, the devastation has been most severe in Bihar and Assam.

After heavy rains in north Bihar and catchment areas, rivers breached their embankments at several places in the state, as the pressure on them had increased after the water levels rose in rivers after heavy rains. Breaching of embankments has also been caused due to the poor quality of flood-control measures undertaken, including that of the repair and maintenance of embankments. This was also because the prolonged pandemic-induced lockdown had delayed the routine flood-control measures undertaken before the onset of the monsoon each year.

The flood situation in Assam has also been very severe with two waves of floods, which has been further exacerbated by the spread of the pandemic. Most parts of Kaziranga and Orang National Parks and the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary were submerged in the floods, putting the lives of endangered animals in peril.

In both Bihar and Assam, the approach of the government policies to mitigate the impact of floods has been mainly focused on building embankments. However, the increasing intensity of floods had made these embankments largely ineffective.

Environmentalists have argued that an approach that integrates water management with land use planning, agriculture, and ecology is needed to manage floods. Additionally, it needs to be recognised that the political and economic systems that prioritise overconsumption and growth have also led to the destruction of nature. This being the root cause of recurring natural disasters, there is an urgent need to pursue alternative models of development that also accord importance to nature and its conservation.

Source - https://www.epw.in/journal/2020/32-33/editorials/recurring-flood-disasters.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

With the early onset of the monsoon, heavy rainfall and concomitant flooding have caused widespread destruction and loss of lives, livestock and crops in many parts of the country. Although floods occur annually, this time around, the floods occurring at the time of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country had slowed down the mitigation and relief efforts, which has, in effect, exacerbated the scale and intensity of the crises. This has caused undue hardship, especially for the poor who have been disproportionately affected, and bear the brunt of both calamities, with the natural disaster and the pandemic occurring at the same time. Of the 10 states that have been the worst affected, the devastation has been most severe in Bihar and Assam.

After heavy rains in north Bihar and catchment areas, rivers breached their embankments at several places in the state, as the pressure on them had increased after the water levels rose in rivers after heavy rains. Breaching of embankments has also been caused due to the poor quality of flood-control measures undertaken, including that of the repair and maintenance of embankments. This was also because the prolonged pandemic-induced lockdown had delayed the routine flood-control measures undertaken before the onset of the monsoon each year.

The flood situation in Assam has also been very severe with two waves of floods, which has been further exacerbated by the spread of the pandemic. Most parts of Kaziranga and Orang National Parks and the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary were submerged in the floods, putting the lives of endangered animals in peril.

In both Bihar and Assam, the approach of the government policies to mitigate the impact of floods has been mainly focused on building embankments. However, the increasing intensity of floods had made these embankments largely ineffective.

Environmentalists have argued that an approach that integrates water management with land use planning, agriculture, and ecology is needed to manage floods. Additionally, it needs to be recognised that the political and economic systems that prioritise overconsumption and growth have also led to the destruction of nature. This being the root cause of recurring natural disasters, there is an urgent need to pursue alternative models of development that also accord importance to nature and its conservation.

Source - https://www.epw.in/journal/2020/32-33/editorials/recurring-flood-disasters.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.

The new National Education Policy (NEP 2020) is the third overhaul of India’s education system in the life of the Republic. Unfortunately, notwithstanding various policy measures, what we have is a shambles of an education system: one where students achieve perfect scores in history and literature at school, but PhD theses are, in a great many instances, embarrassing documents attached to unemployable graduates. Let us look at the substantive issues of NEP.

The language conundrum is one. There is great merit in valuing Indian languages, including Sanskrit. However, the Indian state spends pitiful amounts on education and it is unclear how the devaluation of Indian languages as a result of national and global forces can be addressed by devoting resources to bolster the performance of politics. Given the country’s socioeconomic disparities, it is not difficult to imagine whose children are most likely to be the subjects of such arbitrary experiments in instilling “civilisational" pride.

The mostly anti-learning board examination system—and the coaching culture around it—is sought to be tackled through continuous evaluations involving “state school examinations in grades 3, 5, and 8". In a wildly uneven system such as ours, the immediate need is to attend to the basics of teaching methods, inflationary grading, school infrastructure and outdated curricula. There is little value in evaluating continuous failure.

Barring a handful of professional institutions, our higher education system neither produces employable graduates nor capable researchers. This is the outcome of a lack of proper training of both teachers and students, the neglect of regional universities, and an exaggerated deference towards teachers that inhibits the development of a critical attitude.

The structural problems faced by the university system are extremely unlikely to be solved by the establishment of a centralized administrative body, the noble but utopian goal of erasing distinctions between arts and science education, multiple exit options at the undergraduate level, creation of large multidisciplinary institutions, and allowing foreign universities to set up local campuses. The problem isn’t with the form of the university system—and it is entirely unhelpful to hold up Ivy League colleges of the US as models to emulate—but, rather, the content.

There have been two kinds of prominent responses to NEP 2020. The first suggests that it is another tool to dislodge an older “Nehruvian" intelligentsia through the emphases on Indian languages and Sanskrit. The second is adamant that the crisis of education can best be addressed by greater privatization of education, with the state funding (poor) parents to send their children to private schools of their choice.

If the NEP were as systematic a document as to change the fundamentals of India’s social structure, it would be remarkable indeed. It might even have been an object of admiration if it had discovered an easy way of _____(A)_____ in social and economic change. Unfortunately, this is a chimera. Our most likely future is the continuing decline of an educational system that requires transformations in content and not form.

Source: https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/our-national-education-policy-is-high-on-goals-but-low-on-realism-11596982878601.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.

The new National Education Policy (NEP 2020) is the third overhaul of India’s education system in the life of the Republic. Unfortunately, notwithstanding various policy measures, what we have is a shambles of an education system: one where students achieve perfect scores in history and literature at school, but PhD theses are, in a great many instances, embarrassing documents attached to unemployable graduates. Let us look at the substantive issues of NEP.

The language conundrum is one. There is great merit in valuing Indian languages, including Sanskrit. However, the Indian state spends pitiful amounts on education and it is unclear how the devaluation of Indian languages as a result of national and global forces can be addressed by devoting resources to bolster the performance of politics. Given the country’s socioeconomic disparities, it is not difficult to imagine whose children are most likely to be the subjects of such arbitrary experiments in instilling “civilisational" pride.

The mostly anti-learning board examination system—and the coaching culture around it—is sought to be tackled through continuous evaluations involving “state school examinations in grades 3, 5, and 8". In a wildly uneven system such as ours, the immediate need is to attend to the basics of teaching methods, inflationary grading, school infrastructure and outdated curricula. There is little value in evaluating continuous failure.

Barring a handful of professional institutions, our higher education system neither produces employable graduates nor capable researchers. This is the outcome of a lack of proper training of both teachers and students, the neglect of regional universities, and an exaggerated deference towards teachers that inhibits the development of a critical attitude.

The structural problems faced by the university system are extremely unlikely to be solved by the establishment of a centralized administrative body, the noble but utopian goal of erasing distinctions between arts and science education, multiple exit options at the undergraduate level, creation of large multidisciplinary institutions, and allowing foreign universities to set up local campuses. The problem isn’t with the form of the university system—and it is entirely unhelpful to hold up Ivy League colleges of the US as models to emulate—but, rather, the content.

There have been two kinds of prominent responses to NEP 2020. The first suggests that it is another tool to dislodge an older “Nehruvian" intelligentsia through the emphases on Indian languages and Sanskrit. The second is adamant that the crisis of education can best be addressed by greater privatization of education, with the state funding (poor) parents to send their children to private schools of their choice.

If the NEP were as systematic a document as to change the fundamentals of India’s social structure, it would be remarkable indeed. It might even have been an object of admiration if it had discovered an easy way of _____(A)_____ in social and economic change. Unfortunately, this is a chimera. Our most likely future is the continuing decline of an educational system that requires transformations in content and not form.

Source: https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/our-national-education-policy-is-high-on-goals-but-low-on-realism-11596982878601.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.
The new National Education Policy (NEP 2020) is the third overhaul of India’s education system in the life of the Republic. Unfortunately, notwithstanding various policy measures, what we have is a shambles of an education system: one where students achieve perfect scores in history and literature at school, but PhD theses are, in a great many instances, embarrassing documents attached to unemployable graduates. Let us look at the substantive issues of NEP.

The language conundrum is one. There is great merit in valuing Indian languages, including Sanskrit. However, the Indian state spends pitiful amounts on education and it is unclear how the devaluation of Indian languages as a result of national and global forces can be addressed by devoting resources to bolster the performance of politics. Given the country’s socioeconomic disparities, it is not difficult to imagine whose children are most likely to be the subjects of such arbitrary experiments in instilling “civilisational" pride.

The mostly anti-learning board examination system—and the coaching culture around it—is sought to be tackled through continuous evaluations involving “state school examinations in grades 3, 5, and 8". In a wildly uneven system such as ours, the immediate need is to attend to the basics of teaching methods, inflationary grading, school infrastructure and outdated curricula. There is little value in evaluating continuous failure.

Barring a handful of professional institutions, our higher education system neither produces employable graduates nor capable researchers. This is the outcome of a lack of proper training of both teachers and students, the neglect of regional universities, and an exaggerated deference towards teachers that inhibits the development of a critical attitude.

The structural problems faced by the university system are extremely unlikely to be solved by the establishment of a centralized administrative body, the noble but utopian goal of erasing distinctions between arts and science education, multiple exit options at the undergraduate level, creation of large multidisciplinary institutions, and allowing foreign universities to set up local campuses. The problem isn’t with the form of the university system—and it is entirely unhelpful to hold up Ivy League colleges of the US as models to emulate—but, rather, the content.

There have been two kinds of prominent responses to NEP 2020. The first suggests that it is another tool to dislodge an older “Nehruvian" intelligentsia through the emphases on Indian languages and Sanskrit. The second is adamant that the crisis of education can best be addressed by greater privatization of education, with the state funding (poor) parents to send their children to private schools of their choice.

If the NEP were as systematic a document as to change the fundamentals of India’s social structure, it would be remarkable indeed. It might even have been an object of admiration if it had discovered an easy way of _____(A)_____ in social and economic change. Unfortunately, this is a chimera. Our most likely future is the continuing decline of an educational system that requires transformations in content and not form.

Source: https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/our-national-education-policy-is-high-on-goals-but-low-on-realism-11596982878601.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.
The new National Education Policy (NEP 2020) is the third overhaul of India’s education system in the life of the Republic. Unfortunately, notwithstanding various policy measures, what we have is a shambles of an education system: one where students achieve perfect scores in history and literature at school, but PhD theses are, in a great many instances, embarrassing documents attached to unemployable graduates. Let us look at the substantive issues of NEP.

The language conundrum is one. There is great merit in valuing Indian languages, including Sanskrit. However, the Indian state spends pitiful amounts on education and it is unclear how the devaluation of Indian languages as a result of national and global forces can be addressed by devoting resources to bolster the performance of politics. Given the country’s socioeconomic disparities, it is not difficult to imagine whose children are most likely to be the subjects of such arbitrary experiments in instilling “civilisational" pride.

The mostly anti-learning board examination system—and the coaching culture around it—is sought to be tackled through continuous evaluations involving “state school examinations in grades 3, 5, and 8". In a wildly uneven system such as ours, the immediate need is to attend to the basics of teaching methods, inflationary grading, school infrastructure and outdated curricula. There is little value in evaluating continuous failure.

Barring a handful of professional institutions, our higher education system neither produces employable graduates nor capable researchers. This is the outcome of a lack of proper training of both teachers and students, the neglect of regional universities, and an exaggerated deference towards teachers that inhibits the development of a critical attitude.

The structural problems faced by the university system are extremely unlikely to be solved by the establishment of a centralized administrative body, the noble but utopian goal of erasing distinctions between arts and science education, multiple exit options at the undergraduate level, creation of large multidisciplinary institutions, and allowing foreign universities to set up local campuses. The problem isn’t with the form of the university system—and it is entirely unhelpful to hold up Ivy League colleges of the US as models to emulate—but, rather, the content.

There have been two kinds of prominent responses to NEP 2020. The first suggests that it is another tool to dislodge an older “Nehruvian" intelligentsia through the emphases on Indian languages and Sanskrit. The second is adamant that the crisis of education can best be addressed by greater privatization of education, with the state funding (poor) parents to send their children to private schools of their choice.

If the NEP were as systematic a document as to change the fundamentals of India’s social structure, it would be remarkable indeed. It might even have been an object of admiration if it had discovered an easy way of _____(A)_____ in social and economic change. Unfortunately, this is a chimera. Our most likely future is the continuing decline of an educational system that requires transformations in content and not form.

Source: https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/our-national-education-policy-is-high-on-goals-but-low-on-realism-11596982878601.html

Direction: Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.
The new National Education Policy (NEP 2020) is the third overhaul of India’s education system in the life of the Republic. Unfortunately, notwithstanding various policy measures, what we have is a shambles of an education system: one where students achieve perfect scores in history and literature at school, but PhD theses are, in a great many instances, embarrassing documents attached to unemployable graduates. Let us look at the substantive issues of NEP.

The language conundrum is one. There is great merit in valuing Indian languages, including Sanskrit. However, the Indian state spends pitiful amounts on education and it is unclear how the devaluation of Indian languages as a result of national and global forces can be addressed by devoting resources to bolster the performance of politics. Given the country’s socioeconomic disparities, it is not difficult to imagine whose children are most likely to be the subjects of such arbitrary experiments in instilling “civilisational" pride.

The mostly anti-learning board examination system—and the coaching culture around it—is sought to be tackled through continuous evaluations involving “state school examinations in grades 3, 5, and 8". In a wildly uneven system such as ours, the immediate need is to attend to the basics of teaching methods, inflationary grading, school infrastructure and outdated curricula. There is little value in evaluating continuous failure.

Barring a handful of professional institutions, our higher education system neither produces employable graduates nor capable researchers. This is the outcome of a lack of proper training of both teachers and students, the neglect of regional universities, and an exaggerated deference towards teachers that inhibits the development of a critical attitude.

The structural problems faced by the university system are extremely unlikely to be solved by the establishment of a centralized administrative body, the noble but utopian goal of erasing distinctions between arts and science education, multiple exit options at the undergraduate level, creation of large multidisciplinary institutions, and allowing foreign universities to set up local campuses. The problem isn’t with the form of the university system—and it is entirely unhelpful to hold up Ivy League colleges of the US as models to emulate—but, rather, the content.

There have been two kinds of prominent responses to NEP 2020. The first suggests that it is another tool to dislodge an older “Nehruvian" intelligentsia through the emphases on Indian languages and Sanskrit. The second is adamant that the crisis of education can best be addressed by greater privatization of education, with the state funding (poor) parents to send their children to private schools of their choice.

If the NEP were as systematic a document as to change the fundamentals of India’s social structure, it would be remarkable indeed. It might even have been an object of admiration if it had discovered an easy way of _____(A)_____ in social and economic change. Unfortunately, this is a chimera. Our most likely future is the continuing decline of an educational system that requires transformations in content and not form.

Source: https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/our-national-education-policy-is-high-on-goals-but-low-on-realism-11596982878601.html