Dear readers,

This quiz consists of questions from various Banking
entrance exams held during the last few years. Leave your answers/ responses in
the comments section below and we’ll soon let you know the correct answers!

Directions (Q. Nos. 1 to 10) In the following passage
there are numbered blanks. Below the passage, against each of these numbers, five words are suggested, one of which fits
the blank appropriately. Find out the
appropriate word in each case.

The world is witnessing food price turbulence
again.  A bad drought in Russia, rising
demand in the US and developing countries, and Pakistan’s blighted crop
prospects after its floods are keeping prices of commodities such as cereals,
sugar, oil and meat high.  The Food and
Agriculture Organization’s monthly food price (1) is heading North.

India is not (2)
from this problem even at the best of times. For the week that ended on 11 September, food prices (as (3) by the Wholesale Price Index) rose
by 15.86%. Given the robust demand for foodstuffs, a time of price volatility
calls for a careful look at the “design” issues surrounding food supply
management.  At times, even huge food
stocks are not able to (4) rising
food prices.  The fault lies in how food
is released to traders by government agencies such as the Food Corporation of
India (FCI).  This problem is apart from
FCI’s high carrying cost of foodgrains. 
But this is not the problem at (5).

For example, under the Open Market Sales Scheme (OMSS)
a fixed quantity of grain, usually in multiples of 10 metric tonnes, is sold to
traders, flour mills and other buyers when supplies are (6) or there is price volatility. 
But a combination of price rigidity, terms of sale and the quantity sold
under OMSS defeat its purpose.  One
reason for this is the large volume in the hands of very few individual
buyers.  This (7) to perverse economic incentives.

Often, the grain sold under this scheme winds up back
with food (8) agencies because of
price differentials (the price at which it is sold and the prevailing market
price).  This has been observed many
times in states as diverse as Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.  If the number of buyers is (9) and the quantity sold to each buyer
reduced, or the price fixed but he amount of grain that can be bought kept flexible,
these problems can be (10).

1.

(a) index

(b) state

(c) scheme

(d) rate

(e) value

2.

(a) affected

(b) above

(c) immune

(d) away

(e) seperate

3.

(a) developed

(b) increased

(c) reported

(d) handled

(e) measured

4.

(a) arrest

(b) identified

(c) find

(d) slow

(e) stop

5.

(a) this

(b) juncture

(c) all

(d) best

(e) hand

6.

(a) nil

(b) short

(c) plenty

(d) enough

(e) least

7.

(a) rises

(b) leads

(c) gives

(d) is

(e) jumps

8.

(a) hoarding

(b) storing

(c) supply

(d) producing

(e) procurement

9.

(a) controlled

(b) promoted

(c) constant

(d) increased

(e) decreased

10.

(a) neglected

(b) solve

(c) overcome

(d) indicated

(e) highlighted

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