UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Need for a unified urbanisation plan

Q1. With reference to how settlements are classified as urban under the Census criteria that Census 2027 retains from 2011, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A settlement identified as a census town in 2011 can be classified as rural in a later Census if the share of its male main workers in non-agricultural work falls below the prescribed threshold.
  2. A settlement that satisfies all three demographic tests becomes a statutory town for Census purposes even without any notification by the State.
  3. A settlement can move from the census-town category to the statutory-town category between two Censuses without any change in its population or workforce.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3
  • D. 1 and 3 only

Q2. Under the Census 2011 criteria for 'urban', which Census 2027 will retain, which one of the following settlements would be classified as urban?

  • A. Population 7,200; density 650 per sq km; 80% of all main workers but 70% of male main workers in non-farm work; run by a gram panchayat
  • B. Population 3,100; density 300 per sq km; 50% of male main workers in non-farm work; notified by the State as a Nagar Panchayat
  • C. Population 4,800; density 1,200 per sq km; 90% of male main workers in non-farm work; run by a gram panchayat
  • D. Population 9,500; density 350 per sq km; 85% of male main workers in non-farm work; gram panchayat proposed for Nagar Panchayat status, not yet notified

Q3. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Census towns, though counted as urban, are governed by panchayats and lack the institutional and fiscal powers of municipalities.
  2. Under Article 243Q, an area becomes a municipality through a public notification by the Governor, not through its classification in the Census.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q4. Suppose a State notifies an existing census town as a Nagar Panchayat. Consider the following statements about the likely consequences: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. It becomes eligible for Finance Commission grants meant for urban local bodies.
  2. Its elected local body will be constituted under Part IXA of the Constitution rather than Part IX.
  3. It ceases to be counted as urban in the Census, since the urban category covers only unnotified settlements meeting the demographic tests.
  4. It falls outside the purview of the District Planning Committee, which consolidates the plans of panchayats alone.
  • A. 1, 2, 3 and 4
  • B. 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3 only

Q5. With reference to Article 243Q of the Constitution of India, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A 'transitional area', for which a Nagar Panchayat is constituted, is an area in transition from an urban area to a rural area.
  2. The factors the Governor may consider in specifying an area include the revenue it generates for local administration and its share of employment in non-agricultural activities.
  3. A municipality need not be constituted in an urban area that the Governor specifies as an industrial township, having regard to the municipal services provided by an industrial establishment there.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q6. Consider the following facts: (i) Census 2011 identified 3,892 census towns and 4,041 statutory towns. (ii) In the Census 2027 frame, as on 1 January 2026, there are 4,580 census towns and 5,128 statutory towns. (iii) Census towns are governed by rural local bodies. (iv) Census 2027 applies the same urban criteria as Census 2011. Which of the following inferences can be drawn from the above facts?

  1. The number of settlements counted as urban but lacking an urban local body has grown since 2011.
  2. The rise in statutory towns since 2011 came entirely from notifying settlements that were census towns in 2011.
  3. Census 2027 will record a higher share of India's population as urban than Census 2011 did.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 1 only
  • D. 1 and 2 only

Q7. With reference to Urban Agglomerations (UAs) and Outgrowths (OGs) in the Census of India, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. An outgrowth is counted as urban only as part of an urban agglomeration, not as an independent urban unit.
  2. An urban agglomeration can be formed by two or more physically contiguous towns even where no outgrowth is attached to them.
  3. A railway colony or university campus adjoining a town, with urban amenities, can be treated as an outgrowth even if it would not qualify as a town on its own.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1 and 2 only

Q8. With reference to District Planning Committees (DPCs) and Metropolitan Planning Committees (MPCs) under Part IXA of the Constitution, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. In preparing its draft plan, a DPC must have regard to matters of common interest between panchayats and municipalities, such as spatial planning and sharing of water.
  2. An MPC must be constituted for every district whose largest municipality has a population of ten lakh or more.
  3. Elected members of a DPC are drawn from panchayats and municipalities in proportion to the ratio between the rural and urban population of the district.
  4. An MPC prepares a draft development plan for the metropolitan area as a whole rather than separate plans for each constituent local body.
  • A. 2, 3 and 4 only
  • B. 1, 2, 3 and 4
  • C. 1 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 3 and 4 only