Minimalist IAS
Economy & social development

Prelims · Economy & social development · 37 questions

Poverty, inclusion, demographics & social sector

Every UPSC Prelims question on this topic, 2016–2026, newest first. Tap an option to check yourself; the answer and explanation open below it.

Poverty, inclusion, demographics & social sector questions per year: 2016: 3, 2017: 2, 2018: 3, 2019: 3, 2020: 0, 2021: 2, 2022: 1, 2023: 2, 2024: 1, 2025: 0, 2026: 2 Asked in 9 of 11 years · most in 2019 (3)

Practising Economy & social development? Take it as timed sets of 25 →

UPSC syllabus: “Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.” Sub-topics in the detailed syllabus →

एक राष्ट्रीय मुहिम ‘राष्ट्रीय गरिमा अभियान’ चलाई गई है

Read this question in English

'Rashtriya Garima Abhiyaan' is a national campaign to

(a) rehabilitate the homeless and destitute persons and provide them with suitable sources of livelihood · (b) release the sex workers from their practice and provide them with alternative sources of livelihood · (c) eradicate the practice of manual scavenging and rehabilitate the manual scavengers · (d) release the bonded labourers from their bondage and rehabilitate them

उत्तर और व्याख्या · explanation in English

Answer: (c) मैला ढोने की प्रथा को समाप्त करने और मैला ढोने वाले कर्मियों के पुनर्वासन के लिए

Rashtriya Garima Abhiyan ('national campaign for dignity') is a civil-society campaign to end manual scavenging and rehabilitate the people, mostly Dalit women, pushed into it. The Government of India itself named it among the NGOs associated with identifying and rehabilitating manual scavengers. 'Garima' means dignity, which is exactly what manual scavenging denies.

  • ✓ (c) The campaign targets manual scavenging, the carrying of human excreta from dry latrines, which the 1993 Act prohibited and the 2013 Act (in force from 6 December 2013) outlawed together with a duty to rehabilitate.
  • ✗ (d) Release of bonded labourers is governed by the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, and is not the aim of this campaign.
  • ✗ (a) Livelihoods for the homeless and destitute are addressed by government shelter and livelihood schemes, not by the Garima Abhiyan.

Remember · Rashtriya Garima Abhiyan = campaign against manual scavenging (dignity for safai workers). Law: Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013.

Sources

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2016, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

प्रधानमंत्री MUDRA योजना का लक्ष्य क्या है?

Read this question in English

Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana is aimed at

(a) bringing the small entrepreneurs into formal financial system · (b) providing loans to poor farmers for cultivating particular crops · (c) providing pensions to old and destitute persons · (d) funding the voluntary organizations involved in the promotion of skill development and employment generation

उत्तर और व्याख्या · explanation in English

Answer: (a) लघु उद्यमियों को औपचारिक वित्तीय प्रणाली में लाना

MUDRA Yojana (announced 8 April 2015) gives loans to small and micro enterprises that were mostly left out of formal banking, so that they need not depend on informal lenders. Its purpose is to bring such small entrepreneurs into the formal credit system.

  • ✓ (a) The scheme was designed for the crores of small units that stand outside the formal banking system and borrow from informal sources; it offers Shishu, Kishore, Tarun (and later Tarun Plus) loans through banks, NBFCs and micro-finance institutions.
  • ✗ (b) MUDRA loans go to income-generating micro enterprises in manufacturing, trading and services. It is a business-loan scheme, not a scheme of crop loans for farmers.
  • ✗ (c) MUDRA is a credit scheme for enterprises; it does not pay pensions to anyone.
  • ✗ (d) MUDRA lends to enterprises through financial intermediaries; it does not fund voluntary organisations for skill development.

Remember · MUDRA = Micro Units Development & Refinance Agency: collateral-free loans up to a set limit to small enterprises, to bring them into formal credit.

Sources

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2016, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

‘अटल पेंशन योजना’ के संबंध में निम्नलिखित कथनों में से कौन-सा/से सही है/हैं?

  1. 1.यह एक न्यूनतम गारंटित पेंशन योजना है, जो मुख्य रूप से असंगठित क्षेत्र के मजदूरों को लक्ष्य बनाती है।
  2. 2.परिवार का केवल एक ही व्यक्ति इस योजना में शामिल हो सकता है।
  3. 3.अभिदाता (सब्स्क्राइबर) की मृत्यु के पश्चात् जीवनसाथी को आजीवन पेंशन की समान राशि गारंटित रहती है।

नीचे दिए गए कूट का प्रयोग कर सही उत्तर चुनिए।

Read this question in English

Regarding 'Atal Pension Yojana', which of the following statements is/are correct?

1. It is minimum guaranteed pension scheme mainly targeted at unorganized sector workers.

2. Only one member of a family can join the scheme.

3. Same amount of pension is guaranteed for the spouse for life after subscriber's death.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

(a) 1 only · (b) 2 and 3 only · (c) 1 and 3 only · (d) 1, 2 and 3

उत्तर और व्याख्या · explanation in English

Answer: (c) केवल 1 और 3

Statements 1 and 3 are correct; statement 2 is wrong. Atal Pension Yojana gives a Government-guaranteed monthly pension after age 60 to subscribers, especially unorganised-sector workers, and the same pension continues to the spouse; but every eligible family member can join separately.

  • ✓ 1. APY is a voluntary scheme with a guaranteed monthly pension of Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000 from age 60, meant for all citizens but especially the poor and unorganised-sector workers.
  • ✗ 2. One person can hold only one APY account, but all eligible family members aged 18 to 40 can open their own accounts.
  • ✓ 3. After the subscriber's death, the spouse receives the same pension for life; after both have died, the accumulated pension wealth goes to the nominee.

Remember · Atal Pension Yojana: guaranteed Rs 1,000 to 5,000 a month from 60; spouse gets the same pension; one account per person, but every eligible family member may join.

Sources

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2016, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

The Syllabus X-Ray of this topic

1 of its 7 sub-topics is Core

1 Core · 2 High · 3 Steady · 1 Rare

  • Core #26Employment, labour & social security · 8 questions
  • HighDemography & human development · 3 questions
  • HighHealth, education & nutrition · 3 questions

The X-Ray ranks all 928 sub-topics of the UPSC syllabus by what UPSC has asked since 2016. The 60 Prelims Core sub-topics are behind 51% of Prelims questions.

See the whole X-Ray →

The same topic in Mains