English
Language Practice Questions for Bank Exams
Directions (1 – 10): Read the following passage carefully
and certain words in the passage are printed in bold letters to help you locate
them easily while answering some of these questions.
The Ministry of Home Affairs
recently posted the draft of a bill aimed at regulating the acquisition and use of geospatial
information pertaining to India. In brief, the provisions of the draft
Geospatial Information Regulation Bill, 2016, make it illegal to acquire and even
maintain previously acquired Indian geospatial data without applying for and
receiving a licence from an authority that is to be created for this purpose.
The remit of this authority, as per the draft, is, first, to conduct “sensitivity
checks” on the geospatial information being used, and, second, to “screen” the “credentials”
of both end users and end applications. Media reports have tended to focus on
the aspect of the bill that talks about heavy penalties for misrepresenting the
boundaries of India, but let us instead focus on the important aspects that pertain
to the data ecosystem. The bill, as written, raises some questions.
What happens if the data need
an update? The draft bill‘s definition of geospatial information has a wide remit.
It covers information that we think of as relatively stable but also talks
about “graphical or digital data depicting... man-made physical features”. Geospatial
information, especially when so widely defined, keeps changing. In Delhi, for
example, we see roads being modified, overpasses being constructed, temporary
and permanent diversions being created almost on a daily basis. So, what
happens when the data change?
Consider the
illustrative, though not earthshakingly important, case of your favourite restaurant
discovery app: will it have to apply for a new licence every time a new restaurant
opens (or closes) in Hauz Khas Village? Effectively it will have to, since the
draft bill proposes that only data that bear the watermark of the vetting authority
be used for display. Changing the name of a restaurant in such data would amount
to tampering with watermarked data. Not propagating updates till security clearance
is released may affect the business model of businesses premised on providing up-to-date
information. The bill promises a three-month turnaround on all clearances. This
might not be quick enough, even if it was feasible, which leads us to the next
question.
Do we have the bandwidth to
handle all applications for this usage inside and outside India? It is hard to estimate
how many different non-governmental services inside and outside India are
currently using Indian geospatial data, but we can safely say that there are a large
number with significant impact. Add to these all those 17-year-olds dreaming of
start-up glory who are mashing Google maps into their soon-to-be-world-dominating
app. A government regulator that is yet to be set up will need hundreds of
experts who can vet terabytes of
data from each applicant.
The logistics of getting these
data across to the vetting authority alone boggles the mind, forget about the logistics
of hiring and training these hundreds of experts. Unless this bill, on becoming
an act, manages to single-handedly kill the innovation ecosystem that depends
on geospatial data, the number of requests will keep going up. And all these
people will be “acquiring” and
wanting to propagate updates. Which further leads us to the next question.
Does every single end user
of such data also need a licence? Large organisations like Google, which are acquiring
and making geospatial data available through their application programming interfaces
(APIs), are in some sense at the lowest level of an application stack which could
potentially have several layers (and probably already has). Application A buys a
service that uses geospatial data from application B that has in turn bought it
from provider C who has licensed it from organisation D. Or, in a more complex turn
of events, app A mashes up data from services B, C and D which in turn have bought
their data from E, F and G and, guess what, F and G have some kind of data-sharing
agreement. How will A get its data acquisition vetted?
The complexity of the
ecosystem and the trajectories such
data can take are only limited by the imagination of developers and service
creators working on different kinds of problems in a host of different sectors.
And, in fact, typically such complexity emerges organically as different actors
in the innovation ecosystem work to create new efficiencies or leverage existing ones, and so it is something
to be encouraged. To satisfactorily “vet” the complex mishmashes of data that are
bound to emerge over time will be a challenging task; in fact some of the questions
raised in vetting involved data provenance patterns may almost be research-level
questions. All this will further burden the vetting authority and stretch its
capabilities.
1. What is the main purpose of the author to write
the above passage?
(a) To explain the important aspects
that related to the complex network system.
(b) To explain the disadvantages
associated with the bill.
(c) To describe the importance of the
bill for internal security of the country.
(d) To throw light on the penalty for
misrepresenting the boundaries of India.
(e) None of these
2. Which of the following option(s) is/are TRUE according
to the given passage?
(i)
Geospatial Information Regulation Bill makes it illegal to access Indian
geospatial data.
(ii) Nod from the government will be needed before updating graphical or
digital data.
(iii) Geospatial information is quite passive.
(a) Only (i)
(b) Only (ii)
(c) Only (iii)
(d) Both (i) and (ii)
(e) Both (i) and (iii)
3. Which of following option(s) is/are NOT TRUE according
to the given passage?
(i)
There are a large number of users of Indian geospatial data.
(ii) A regulating authority has been set up for issuing the licence for the
usage of Indian geospatial data.
(iii) With the introduction of the new bill it will become difficult for
various service providers to provide up-to-date information.
(a) Only (i)
(b) Only (ii)
(c) Both (i) and (ii)
(d) All are true
(e) None is true
4. According to the given passage, what is the main
provision of the Information Regulation Bill?
(a) It introduces heavy penalties for
misrepresenting the boundaries of India.
(b) It makes it difficult for foreign
companies like Google to acquire Indian geospatial data.
(c) It makes it mandatory to apply
for and receive a licence from a proposed authority to acquire and even maintain
Indian geospatial data.
(d) Not given in the passage.
(e) None of these.
5. Which of the following option(s) are going to be
burdensome for the scrutinizing authority?
(a) To satisfactorily examine the complex
mess of data that is bound to emerge over time.
(b) To clear the licence within three-months.
(c) To estimate the number of non-governmental
services inside and outside India is currently using Indian geospatial data.
(d) Not given in the passage
(e) Other than those given in the
options.
6. On the basis of your reading, suggest a suitable
title for the passage.
(a) Indian geospatial data
(b) Licence Raj
(c) Sensitivity Checks
(d) Key to internal security
(e) A licence to kill innovation
Directions (7 – 8): Choose the word/group of words which
is MOST SIMILAR in meaning to the word/group of words printed in bold as used
in the passage.
7. LEVERAGE
(a) advantage
(b) Blemish
(c) Impairment
(d) Decrepitude
(e) Vulnerability
8. TRAJECTORIES
(a) Blockage
(b) Bar
(c) Impasse
(d) Clog
(e) course
Directions (9 – 10): Choose the word/group of words
which is MOST OPPOSITE in meaning of the word/group of words printed in bold as
used in the passage.
9. ACQUIRING
(a) Hustle
(b) Corral
(c) Forfeit
(d) Win
(e) Promote
10. VET
(a) Canvass
(b) Overlook
(c) Praise
(d) Assay
(e) Approve
Answers with Explanation:
1. (a); It‘s given in the first paragraph that’‘
....... but let us instead focus on the important aspects that pertain to the
data ecosystem‘. Hence (a) is the correct option.
2. (d); From
the first and third paragraphs, we can conclude that (i)and (ii) are true. Now
it is given in the fourth paragraph that “Geospatial information, especially when
so widely defined, keeps changing”. Hence, (iii) is false. Hence (d) is the
correct option.
3. (b) It
is given in the fourth paragraph that’A government regulator that is yet to be
set up....‘ Hence, (b) is the correct option.
4. (c); From
the first paragraph, we can conclude that (c) is the correct option.
5. (a); It
is given in the last paragraph that ‘To satisfactorily “vet” the complex mishmashes
of data that are bound to emerge over time will be a challenging task’. Hence,
(a) is the correct option.
6. (e); ‘A
licence to kill innovation’ is the apt title.
7. (a); ‘Leverage
́ means’use (something) to maximum advantage‘. Hence,’advantage‘ is the word which
is most similar in meaning to it.
8. (e); ‘Trajectories
́ means’the path followed by a projectile‘. Hence,’course‘ is the word which is
most similar in meaning to it.
9. (c); ‘Acquiring’
means ‘buy or obtain for oneself’. Hence, ‘Forfeit’ is the word which is most
opposite in meaning to it.
10. (b);
‘Vet’ means ‘make a careful and critical examination of something’. Hence, ‘Overlook‘ is the word which
is most opposite in meaning to it.
