IT, computing & emerging technologies

Answer: (c) 3 only

Only statement 3 is correct. Section 3(j) of the Patents Act, 1970 rules out plants, seeds, varieties and essentially biological processes as patentable inventions. An Intellectual Property Appellate Board did exist when the question was set in 2019.

• ✗ 1. Section 3(j) treats seeds, varieties and species, and processes that are essentially biological, as non-inventions, so a biological method of making a seed cannot be patented.
• ✗ 2. In 2019 the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) was still in existence, so the statement was wrong at the time.
• ✓ 3. Section 3(j) excludes plant varieties from patenting. New plant varieties are protected under the separate Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001.
• • Since then The Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 (13 August 2021) lists the IPAB among the bodies it wound up, with pending cases transferred to the courts. Statement 2 would now read differently, but the answer for the 2019 paper stands.

Remember · Patents Act, section 3(j): plants, seeds, varieties and essentially biological processes are not patentable; plant varieties go to the PPV&FR Act, 2001.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2

Neither statement is correct. LTE is a 4G mobile network standard, not 3G, and VoLTE is not 'advanced 3G': it is simply the way voice calls are carried as data over an LTE network. LTE is therefore not 'data-only', and VoLTE is not a separate 'voice-only' technology.

• ✗ 1. LTE is marketed as 4G. TRAI's regulations treat VoLTE as voice over a 4G network (they cite ITU-T G.1028, end-to-end quality of service for voice over 4G mobile network). Nothing about either is '3G' or 'advanced 3G'.
• ✗ 2. An LTE network can carry voice as well as data. When it does, that voice service is VoLTE; when it does not, calls fall back to older circuit-switched networks (CSFB), as TRAI's explanatory memorandum notes. VoLTE runs on LTE, so the two are not data-only versus voice-only.

Remember · LTE is the 4G data network; VoLTE is voice calls carried over that LTE network, so a phone without VoLTE falls back to 2G or 3G for calls.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (a) 1 only

Only statement 1 is correct. The RBI's directive of 6 April 2018 requires payment system providers to keep all payment data in a system located only in India. It says nothing about public-sector ownership, and the audit report goes to the RBI, not to the CAG.

• ✓ 1. The directive says all system providers must ensure that the entire data relating to payment systems operated by them is stored in a system only in India. Only the foreign leg of a transaction may also be stored abroad.
• ✗ 2. The directive is about where data is stored. It does not require the systems to be owned or run by public sector enterprises.
• ✗ 3. Providers had to submit a System Audit Report, prepared by CERT-In empanelled auditors and approved by their Board, to the Reserve Bank by 31 December 2018. It was not to be sent to the CAG.

Remember · RBI's data-localisation directive (6 April 2018): all payment data stored only in India; system audit report by a CERT-In empanelled auditor goes to the RBI.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) The European Union

The European Union adopted the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Regulation (EU) 2016/679, on 27 April 2016, and it has applied since 25 May 2018. It is an EU-wide law, so it is not a law of Australia, Canada or the USA.

• ✓ (c) The European Parliament and the Council of the EU adopted Regulation (EU) 2016/679 on 27 April 2016. It entered into force on 24 May 2016 and has applied since 25 May 2018.
• ✗ (a) Australia is not the source of the GDPR; the regulation is EU law.
• ✗ (b) Canada did not adopt the GDPR; the regulation is EU law.
• ✗ (d) The USA did not adopt the GDPR; the regulation is EU law.

Remember · GDPR = EU Regulation 2016/679: adopted 27 April 2016, in force 24 May 2016, applicable from 25 May 2018.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (b) 3 and 4

Statements 3 and 4 are correct; statements 1 and 2 swap the definitions. Augmented reality adds computer-generated content to the real world you are still in, while virtual reality replaces your surroundings with a simulated one.

• ✗ 1. This describes VR, not AR. AR does not shut out the physical world; it adds digital elements to it.
• ✗ 2. This describes AR, not VR. VR places the user inside an artificial, computer-generated reality instead of projecting images onto real surroundings.
• ✓ 3. AR keeps the user in the real world and adds to it, using devices as simple as a smartphone camera or as advanced as AR headsets.
• ✓ 4. VR, typically through a headset, transposes the user into an artificial, computer-generated world for a fully immersive experience.

Remember · AR adds digital content to the real world you can still see; VR replaces the real world with a simulated one.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) 3 only

Why not the tempting option · UPSC's key is (c). Statement 2 is tempting because the Controller of Certifying Authorities says a digital signature 'provides the electronic authentication of individual', but the same sentence binds that authentication 'to the documents or transactions being signed': a digital signature authenticates a record, whereas proving one's identity to get access to information or a server is the job of a login credential or of a Digital Signature Certificate presented as one. Statements 1 and 2 both describe the certificate, not the signature. In the exam, keep the IT Act's distinction between the signature (section 2(1)(p)) and the certificate (section 35).

A digital signature is a method of authenticating an electronic record, and it also shows whether the record has been altered, so statement 3 is correct. Statement 1 describes a digital signature certificate issued by a Certifying Authority, and statement 2 describes proof of identity for access, which is not what a digital signature is.

• ✗ 1. This describes a Digital Signature Certificate, not the signature. The IT Act defines the two separately, and certificates are issued to users by licensed Certifying Authorities.
• ✗ 2. This too describes what a Digital Signature Certificate is used for. The signature itself authenticates a particular electronic record and ties the signer to it: the CCA says it provides electronic authentication of the individual and binds it to the documents or transactions being signed. A one-time proof of identity to get access to information or a server is a different thing.
• ✓ 3. Under the IT Act, 2000 a digital signature authenticates an electronic record through an asymmetric crypto system and a hash function, and anyone can verify the record with the signer's public key. Since the same record always gives the same hash result, a changed record fails verification.

Remember · Digital signature = electronic authentication of a record (asymmetric keys plus hash), which also shows the content is unchanged. The certificate that names the Certifying Authority is separate.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) 1, 2 and 3

All three tasks are done by wearable devices. Wrist-worn trackers and watches with GPS locate the wearer, their motion sensors estimate sleep patterns, and worn hearing aids help people with hearing loss.

• ✓ 1. WHO describes global positioning system locators that track the location of the wearer, used for example to find people with dementia who wander. Some fitness wearables also carry a built-in GPS receiver that records position, speed and altitude.
• ✓ 2. WHO notes that wrist- or hip-worn accelerometers give continuous data on physical activity and potentially sleep; accelerometer-based fitness wearables can estimate sleep patterns, along with steps and energy use.
• ✓ 3. Hearing aids are among the assistive products WHO prioritises to mitigate hearing loss, and they are worn on or in the ear, so wearable devices can assist the hearing impaired.

Remember · Wearables include GPS trackers (location), fitness bands and watches (sleep, activity) and hearing aids: all three tasks are covered.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error