Pre '91 Challenge: India Before 1991 Quiz Contest

 

Questions, Answers and Winners

Question 1

When did India take the first steps towards relaxing the controls associated with the "license raj"?

 a) 1947

 b) 1966

 c) 1985

 d) 1998

Answer. 1985

Winners: Shaurya Arora, Neha Yadav and Robin Verma

 

Question 2:

What was the average GDP growth rate for India for the period 1960-1980?

Answer. 3.5%

Winners: Sadaf Hussain and Sarneet Broca

 

Question 3:

India in 1985 had the highest level of tariffs in the world. What were the nominal tariff rates as percentage of values in 1985 for Consumer goods?

Answer. 140.9 percent for consumer goods

Winners: Sadaf Hussain and Robin Verma

 

Question 4:

In 1991, India was only weeks way from defaulting on its external balance of payment obligations. India's immediate response was to secure an emergency loan from the International Monetary Fund by pledging India’s gold reserves as collateral. How much gold did India pledge and what was the amount of money it borrowed?

Answer. India's immediate response was to secure an emergency loan of USD 2.2 billion from the International Monetary Fund by pledging 67 tons of India's gold reserves as collateral.

Winners: Shaurya Arora and Ravi Shekar

 

Question 5:

India’s customs tariff rates have been declining since 1991. What was the ‘peak’ rate in 1991-92 and 1997-98?

  1. 150% and 40%
  2. 300% and 80%
  3. 120% and 50%
  4. 200% and 40%

Answer: (a) The “peak” rate had come down from 150% in 1991-2 to 40% in 1997-98. (Source: http://planningcommission.nic.in/reports/wrkpapers/wp_vat.pdf)

Winners: Ushma Goswami, Neha Yadav and Robin Verma

 

Question 6:

Apart from Dr. Manmohan Singh, who was the other candidate being considered by Narasimha Rao for the position of Finance Minister, as per PC Alexander’s narrative?

Answer. Dr. IG Patel

Winners: Pulkit Garg, Shreyas Bhardwaj and Robin Verma

 

Question 7:

Which car companies dominated the Indian automobile sector in 1970’s?

Answer. Hindustan and Premier

Winners: Mandar Kagade and Ishita Goyal

 

Question 8:

In order to promote competition in aviation sector, the government adopted a policy through which private players were allowed into aviation sector in 1991. What was the name of this policy?

Answer: Open Skies Policy

Winners: Ashay Jain, Sadaf Hussain and Robin Verma

 

Question 9:

Which was the leading soft drink brand in India until 1977?

Answer. Coco Cola

Winners: Medha Sethia, Princy Saini and Akshita Sharma

 

Question 10:

Who was the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao in 1991?

Answer. Jairam Ramesh

Winners: Adarsh Pachera and Inderjeet Rai

 

The following were the rules for the Quiz:

  1. Questions will be posted at 6 PM on Twitter and Facebook daily from 11th -22nd March 2016.
  2. Answers given within 12 hours of posting the question will be accepted, answers posted after would be considered void.
  3. Only one answer per person will be accepted, in case of multiple answers only the first comment will be considered.
  4. If the answer is in more than one part, then the whole answer should be correct. Even if one part of the answer is wrong or missing, then the answer will be considered wrong.
  5. Answers submitted from 6 PM to 6 AM (of the next day) will be considered for the prizes. Winners will be chosen by the method of random sampling.
    Disclaimer: The decision of the organization (CCS) will be final and abiding. Any objection to this may be notified to the committee by mailing us at indiabefore91@ccs.in. The quiz committee will take action (if any) accordingly.
  6. The Winner will be announced the next day of posting of the question.

Winners will get attractive prizes.

If you have any question regarding the Quiz rules or marking scheme, please write to us at indiabefore91@ccs.in. Suggestions are welcome.

Please spread the news of this Quiz and invite your family and friends (by tagging them in the comments) to participate.