English Test for NIACL AO Prelims Exam Set – 8

Directions(1-5): In the passage given below there are 5 blanks. Every blank has four alternative words given in options (A),(B),(C), and (D). You have to tell which word is APPROPRIATE according to the context. If all are appropriate then mark your answer as “E”.

The shifting of Indian Premier League cricket matches out of Chennaireflects poorly on the Tamil Nadu administration. It is misleading to see the development as a victory for protesters espousing the Cauvery cause or as the ___1___ result of the current political mood in Tamil Nadu. By conveying its inability to give adequate police security to the remaining matches to be held in the city, the State government, which had adopted a wishy-washy attitude towards holding the IPL in Chennai, simply ___2___. It is undeniable that there were aggressive protests around the Chepauk stadium just before the season’s first match in the city. Road blockades, ___3___ tempers and scuffles between the police and protesters suggested it would be a challenge to hold more matches. But governments exist to maintain public order and are expected to stand up to threats made by a ___4___, whether it is calling for the ban of a book, a film or a cricket match. If cricket is a victim of such protests, it is because of its very success. It is a soft, high-profile target for those who want to raise their visibility and profile. This is why the ___5___ irrationality of singling out one tournament – which has no connection whatsoever to the Centre or the State government or the Cauvery crisis for that matter — was lost on those leading the call for a ban.

1. preventable
   inevitable
   fortuitous
   preventable
   All are Correct
   Option B
   

    

2. overpowered
   conquered
   capitulated
   deluged
   All are Correct
   Option C
   

    

3. pristine
   primeval
   calmed
   frayed
   All are Correct
   Option D
   

    

4. fringe
   centrum
   tendency
   crux
   All are Correct
   Option A
   

    

5. moderate
   sheer
   uncertain
   bland
   All are Correct
   Option B
   

    

Directions(6-10): In each of the following questions there are sentences. There is error in one of the parts. Mark the option which contains error parts as your answer. If no part contains error mark option E as your answer.

6. (A) Fifteen years ago, on April 9, a few weeks into the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, a 39-foot statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad’s al-Fardous Square /(B) was bring down under the watch of American troops. /(C) It was an iconic moment that highlighted more than just the end of the Ba’ath party’s decades-long reign. Within a month, U.S. President George W. Bush had declared “mission accomplished” in Iraq. /(D) But one and a half decades later, the country is still fighting the ghosts of the destructive war.
   A
   B
   C
   D
   NE
   Option B
   bring down = brought down

    

7. (A) One will have to wait till October 2019, when the Finance Commission’s final recommendations come up, to assess the actual impact on States’ cash flows, /(B) but framing the issue as a southern vs northern States debate is not constructive. /(C) The 14th Finance Commission had also given a 10% weightage for the 2011 Census in its calculations and there was no discernible impact on allocations to the more populous States such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. /(D) Also, there are other States whose share of India’s total population has declined between 1971 and 2011, including West Bengal, Goa, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.
   A
   B
   C
   D
   NE
   Option A
   come up = come in

    

8. (A) There is a legitimate and widespread concern in Tamil Nadu upon the Centre’s inexplicable delay in framing a scheme to resolve the Cauvery problem, /(B) over which there has been more than one protest over the last few days. But the fact that the Chennai Super Kings’ ‘home’ /(C) matches will now be played in Pune is a blow to the game’s fans in Chennai. /(D) That the IPL is a commercially driven extravaganza bordering on entertainment does not justify it being fair game for protesters.
   A
   B
   C
   D
   NE
   Option A
   upon = over

    

9. (A) Prime Minister Narendra Modi thinks vested interests are behind the “baseless” allegation that the terms of reference of the 15th Finance Commission /(B) are biased against certain States or a region. He did not name the region, but he was clearly /(C) responding to growing clamour from the southern States for a rethink on the parameters for the Commission to determine revenue-sharing between the Centre and the States. /(D) The southern States are concerned that the Commission is switching from the 1971 Census to the 2011 Census.
   A
   B
   C
   D
   NE
   Option E
   

    

10. (A) Instead of going weak and ambivalent on assurances of safety, the State government and the police should have worked out /(B) a solution under which scheduled matches and the right of the protesters to voice /(C) their grievances were both protected. As for the IPL management, /(D) it may have felt there was sufficient reason to drop Chepauk as a venue because of the State government’s attitude. While cricket stadiums are now securely protected, there were no mechanism to screen ticket-buyers and — as the last match in Chepauk revealed — very little that can be done to stop protesters from flinging shoes and other objects on to the ground.
    A
    B
    C
    D
    NE
    Option D
    were = was