Q.1-15. In the following passage there are
blanks each of which has been numbered. These numbers are printed below the
passage and against each five words have been suggested, one of which fits the
blanks appropriately. Find out the appropriate word in each case.
India is a country in
which retail inflation continues to be high and unpopular. It is a
country that has taken to the online world with great speed; younger
consumers are comfortable (1) time and money online, and their numbers
are only growing. It is a country with challenging distances and with many
differing levels of availability for (2). All these things put together
suggest that there is both extraordinary demand and a social need for more
online shopping, not less. Organized e-commerce will not only
lead to an increase in consumer surplus and satisfaction, but will also help (3)
India's problematic supply chains. And it would provide that little kick to
demand that no country enduring a slowdown can (4) to ignore. And yet
India's government has been persistently (5) to creating an environment
in which e-commerce can grow of its own accord. It is worth noting that this
sector asks for no great subsidies from the government, nor sops or concessions
or tax holidays. Instead, what it wants, simply, is to be freed of government
restrictions and harassment. Yet the government is determined to harass it. It
was reported last week that one of India's big four online retailers, Myntra,
will be investigated by the Enforcement Directorate for possible
violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act. Its rival, Flipkart, is
already being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate. The government's (6)
is that e-commerce companies are taking money that has been invested by
foreigners into their business-to-business operations - which is legal - and
using it partly for their business-to-consumer operations - which is not. This
is, of course, a (7) distinction that seems to have been introduced
merely to protect domestic bricks-and-mortar retailers - particularly the big
organized retail chains, which are already facing hard times and are (8)of
the threat that online retail poses.
The government must recognize
that it cannot introduce (9) policy and regulatory uncertainty into a
sunrise sector and expect it to grow nevertheless. Nor is it acceptable for it
to protect entrenched interests at the cost of consumer (10) and the
battle against inflation. While the outgoing government may have staked its (11)
on the presence of foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail,
it nevertheless carved out too many exceptions. One such was for e-commerce.
The putative reason was to retain states' rights in allowing FDI on their territory.
But e-commerce uses the postal system or courier system, and must logically be
regulated nationally, not regionally. This was a backward step that needed to
be (12) a long time ago. Instead, the government has doubled down on
these absurd, artificial distinctions, and chosen to go after successful Indian
companies that are trying to carve out a niche for themselves in this
competitive and challenging sector. It is hard enough to make a profit in
e-commerce without having to deal with (13) paperwork, legal fees and
the constant threat of harassment by revenue officials. The four major
companies - Myntra, Flipkart, Jabong and Snapdeal, along with
the new (14) Amazon India - have been forced into tortuous
"marketplace" business models in which the great savings inherent in
a unitary inventory and supply chain are (15) to consumers. This state
of affairs must end.
Q.1. (1) applying (2) evading (3)
draining (4) spending (5) liquidating
Q.2. (1) supplies (2) shipments (3)
orders (4) creativity (5) products
Q.3. (1) strike (2)
fix (3) corner (4) dilemma (5) produce
Q.4. (1) afford (2)
terminate (3) stand (4) support (5) convenient
Q.5. (1) sympathetic (2) allergic (3)
averse (4) hostile (5) sluggish
Q.6. (1) flattery (2) arrangement (3)
disturbance (4) accusation (5) motive
Q.7. (1) hesitant (2) debatable (3)
questioned (4) certain (5) absolute
Q.8. (1) petrified (2) timid (3)
excited (4) justified (5) terrified
Q.9. (1) poor (2)
smart (3) prior (4) advance (5) declare
Q.10. (1) luck (2)
progress (3) welfare (4) timed (5) euphoria
Q.11. (1) formation (2)
survival (3) retaliation (4) continued (5) reformation
Q.12. (1) liberated (2)
entertained (3) energized (4) reversed (5) preserved
Q.13. (1) focused (2)
needful (3) excessive (4) dramatize (5) limited
Q.14. (1) level (2)
entrant (3) convert (4) compete (5) existence
Q.15. (1) credited (2) curbed
(3) decided (4) denied (5) raised
ANSWERS
Q.1.(4) Spending
For
other options:
Evading
(v)- moving away
Draining
(v)- reducing to
Liquidating
(v)- converting into money
Q.2.(5) Products
Q.3.(2) Fix
For
other options:
Dilemma
(n)- a puzzling situation
Q.4.(1) Afford
For
other options:
Terminate
(v)- end
Q.5.(3) Averse
For
other options:
Allergic
(adj)- not suiting
Hostile (adj)- adverse
Sluggish
Q.6.(4) Accusation
For
other options:
Flattery
(n)-false praise
Q.7.(2) Debatable
For
other options:
Hesitant
(adj)- reluctant
Absolute
(adj)- complete
Q.8.(5) Terrified
For
other options:
Petrified
(adj)- turned into stone
Timid
(adj)- shy
Q.9.(1) Poor
Q.10.(3) Welfare
For
other options:
Euphoria
(n)- passion
Q.11.(2) Survival
For
other options:
Retaliation
(n)- counter action
Reformation
(n)- betterment
Q.12.(4) Reversed
For
other options:
Liberated
(v)- freed
Energized
(v)- made active
Q.13.(3) Excessive
For
other options:
Dramatize
(v)- made dramatic
Q.14.(2) Entrant
For
other options:
Convert
(v)- change
Q.15.(4) Denied
For
other options:
Curbed
(v)- controlled
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