निम्नलिखित में से कौन-सा एक कथन, इस परिच्छेद में व्यक्त सर्वाधिक तर्कसंगत, विवेकपूर्ण और निर्णायक सन्देश को सर्वोत्तम रूप से प्रतिबिंबित करता है ?
Read this question in English
Which one of the following statements best reflects the most logical, rational and crucial message conveyed by the passage?
(a) We must use WPI exclusively in measuring price rise and CPI should be done away with. · (b) The present calculation of inflation rate does not correctly measure price rise of individual item/commodity. · (c) Inflation data under-presents services in the consumption basket. · (d) Knowledge of inflation rate is not really of any use to anybody in the country.
उत्तर और व्याख्या · explanation in English
Answer: (b) मुद्रास्फीति दर का वर्तमान परिकलन, अलग-अलग मद/उपभोक्ता-वस्तु की कीमत-वृद्धि का सही-सही मापन नहीं करता ।
The passage explains that a single inflation figure is a weighted average across goods and services whose prices rise at different rates, with weights that differ from class to class. Such an aggregate cannot show the actual price rise of any one item, which is the point of (b).
- ✗ (a) Extreme and unsupported: the passage explains how WPI and CPI are built; it never says CPI should be scrapped.
- ✓ (b) The single number is 'an aggregate' of items whose 'price rise differs', arrived at by weighting, and baskets differ for the poor, middle classes and rich. A single weighted figure therefore does not reflect the price rise of individual items.
- ✗ (c) The passage never says services are under-represented; it mentions commodities and services together.
- ✗ (d) Extreme: the passage explains how inflation is measured, not that the figure is useless.
Remember · When a passage explains how an average is built, its key message is usually what the average hides.
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2025, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·