UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Nearly 2,000 left in the lurch as Jharkhand govt. cancels exams

Question 1

With reference to the decisions taken by the Jharkhand Cabinet in August 2026 on recruitment examination irregularities, consider the following:
1. Cancellation of the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission's Combined Graduate Level examination
2. Cancellation of all recruitment examinations conducted since 2014 by the outsourced agency TSR Data Processing Pvt Ltd
3. Constitution of an exam reforms committee headed by a senior IAS officer
4. Transfer of the investigation into the alleged examination irregularities to the Central Bureau of Investigation
Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

Accepted Answer

1, 2 and 3

Answer

1 and 2 only

Answer

2, 3 and 4

Answer

1 and 4 only

Question 2

The recruitment examinations that the Jharkhand government annulled in August 2026 had been operationally conducted on the Commission's behalf, from 2014 onwards, by which one of the following agencies?

Accepted Answer

TSR Data Processing Private Limited, a private examination services firm

Answer

National Testing Agency, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Education

Answer

Tata Consultancy Services–iON, the digital assessment arm of a private IT firm

Answer

Institute of Banking Personnel Selection, an autonomous examination body

Question 3

Consider the following statements about India's recruiting bodies:
1. The Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission is a statutory body constituted under a State Act of 2008.
2. The Jharkhand Public Service Commission is a State Public Service Commission traceable to Article 315 of the Constitution.
3. The Staff Selection Commission is a constitutional body established under Article 315 to recruit to Group 'B' and Group 'C' posts under the Union.
4. The Chairman and members of a State Public Service Commission are appointed by the Governor, but can be removed only by the President.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1, 2 and 4 only

Answer

2 and 3 only

Answer

1, 3 and 4 only

Answer

1, 2, 3 and 4

Question 4

Consider the following statements comparing a State Public Service Commission with a State Staff Selection Commission and with the Union Public Service Commission:
1. A State Staff Selection Commission recruits mainly to non-gazetted posts, whereas the State Public Service Commission conducts recruitment to the gazetted state services.
2. The expenses of a State Public Service Commission are charged on the Consolidated Fund of the State, whereas those of the Union Public Service Commission are charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.
3. The annual report on the work done by a State Public Service Commission is submitted to the President, who causes it to be laid before Parliament.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1 and 2 only

Answer

2 and 3 only

Answer

1 only

Answer

1, 2 and 3

Question 5

The requirement of a departmental inquiry with a hearing may be dispensed with where the President or the Governor is satisfied that it is not expedient to hold such inquiry in the interest of the security of the State. This dispensation is expressly provided by which one of the following?

Accepted Answer

Clause (c) of the second proviso to Article 311(2)

Answer

Clause (1) of Article 310, which embodies the doctrine of pleasure

Answer

The proviso to Article 309, on rules regulating conditions of service

Answer

Sub-clause (c) of clause (3) of Article 320, on disciplinary consultation

Question 6

Consider the following grounds on which the constitutional requirement of an inquiry with a reasonable opportunity of being heard stands excluded in the case of a civil servant:
1. Where the person is dismissed, removed or reduced in rank on the ground of conduct that has led to conviction on a criminal charge
2. Where the authority empowered to dismiss or remove is satisfied, for reasons to be recorded in writing, that it is not reasonably practicable to hold the inquiry
3. Where the President or the Governor is satisfied that holding the inquiry is not expedient in the interest of the security of the State
4. Where the person concerned holds the post on a temporary or probationary basis at the time of the action
Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

Accepted Answer

1, 2 and 3 only

Answer

1 and 3 only

Answer

2, 3 and 4 only

Answer

1, 2, 3 and 4

Question 7

Consider the following statements regarding the constitutional protections available to government servants under Article 311:
1. The protection extends to holders of civil posts under a State as well as to members of an all-India service.
2. The actions guarded against are dismissal, removal and reduction in rank.
3. The protection additionally bars the transfer of a government servant to another post without a prior inquiry.
4. A government servant cannot be dismissed or removed by an authority subordinate to that by which he was appointed.
Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

Accepted Answer

3 only

Answer

1 and 3 only

Answer

2 and 4 only

Answer

3 and 4 only

Question 8

Which one of the following is the primary constitutional source of the rule that a member of a civil service of a State holds office during the pleasure of the Governor, that rule being itself subject to the safeguards in Article 311?

Accepted Answer

Article 310, on the tenure of persons serving the Union or a State

Answer

Article 309, on recruitment and conditions of service of persons serving the State

Answer

Article 312, on the creation of all-India services by the Council of States

Answer

Article 320, on the functions of the Public Service Commissions

Question 9

Consider the following statements about the State of Jharkhand:
1. It was carved out of Bihar by an Act of Parliament of 2000, the appointed day being 15 November 2000.
2. It has a unicameral legislature, with 81 seats in its Legislative Assembly.
3. Ranchi is the state capital and also the seat of the State's High Court.
4. It was the twenty-seventh State of the Indian Union, and the first of the three States created in the year 2000.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1, 2 and 3 only

Answer

1 and 4 only

Answer

2, 3 and 4 only

Answer

1, 2, 3 and 4

Question 10

Consider the following pairs of a State and the reorganisation legislation that created it:
1. Jharkhand — the Bihar Reorganisation Act, 2000
2. Uttarakhand — the Uttar Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2000
3. Chhattisgarh — the Madhya Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2000
4. Telangana — the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2000
Which of the above pairs is/are NOT correctly matched?

Accepted Answer

4 only

Answer

2 and 4 only

Answer

3 only

Answer

1 and 3 only

Question 11

The amending legislation of 2026 that requires every State and Union Territory to designate a Court of Session as a Special Fast Track Court for offences relating to malpractice in public examinations was piloted in Parliament by which one of the following?

Accepted Answer

The Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions

Answer

The Ministry of Education, through the Department of Higher Education

Answer

The Ministry of Home Affairs, through the Department of Internal Security

Answer

The Ministry of Law and Justice, through the Department of Justice

Question 12

Consider the following statements comparing the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 with the amending legislation of 2026, in so far as they deal with service providers engaged to conduct examinations:
1. The period for which a service provider found to have engaged in unfair means is barred from being assigned the conduct of any public examination has been raised from four years to eight years.
2. The amending legislation empowers the State Governments to constitute a Special Task Force to investigate offences under the Act.
3. Under the parent Act, offences are cognizable and non-bailable, and are to be investigated by an officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1 and 3 only

Answer

2 and 3 only

Answer

1 only

Answer

1, 2 and 3

UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Nearly 2,000 left in the lurch as Jharkhand govt. cancels exams

Q2. The recruitment examinations that the Jharkhand government annulled in August 2026 had been operationally conducted on the Commission's behalf, from 2014 onwards, by which one of the following agencies?

Q5. The requirement of a departmental inquiry with a hearing may be dispensed with where the President or the Governor is satisfied that it is not expedient to hold such inquiry in the interest of the security of the State. This dispensation is expressly provided by which one of the following?

Q8. Which one of the following is the primary constitutional source of the rule that a member of a civil service of a State holds office during the pleasure of the Governor, that rule being itself subject to the safeguards in Article 311?

Q11. The amending legislation of 2026 that requires every State and Union Territory to designate a Court of Session as a Special Fast Track Court for offences relating to malpractice in public examinations was piloted in Parliament by which one of the following?