UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Get seed fund usage details from NTA, House panel tells Education Ministry

Q1. Consider the following statements regarding the financial assistance given to the National Testing Agency and the utilisation certificates recently sought from it: 1. ... 2. ... 3. ... Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The ₹10 crore for which utilisation certificates are outstanding was released to the Agency as a recurring annual grant, separate from the one-time assistance given at its inception.
  2. The one-time assistance to the Agency was ₹25 crore, and the amount for which utilisation certificates remain outstanding is a part of that same assistance.
  3. The outstanding certificates relate to the financial year 2018-19, whereas the prescribed period for furnishing utilisation certificates for non-recurring grants is 12 months from the close of the relevant financial year.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q2. The parliamentary directive of 2026 on the pending utilisation certificates of the National Testing Agency placed the compliance obligation on which one of the following, and on what basis?

  • A. The Ministry of Education, as the administrative ministry under which the Agency functions
  • B. The Ministry of Finance, since it alone monitors every grant-in-aid released to autonomous bodies
  • C. The University Grants Commission, since it exclusively regulates the funding of all testing bodies in higher education
  • D. The Comptroller and Auditor General, whose audit findings are binding on every grantee body without exception

Q3. The National Testing Agency, registered as a society, functions as an autonomous body under which one of the following departments?

  • A. The Department of Higher Education under the Ministry of Education
  • B. The Department of School Education and Literacy under the Ministry of Education
  • C. The Department of Personnel and Training under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
  • D. The Department of Science and Technology under the Ministry of Science and Technology

Q4. Consider the following statements about the creation and legal character of the National Testing Agency: 1. ... 2. ... 3. ... Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Its creation was approved by the Union Cabinet in November 2017, and it stands registered as a society under the Societies (Registration) Act, 1860.
  2. It was conceived as a self-sustained organisation, the Centre extending only one-time financial assistance at its inception.
  3. Unlike the University Grants Commission, which is a registered society, the Agency owes its existence to an Act of Parliament.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q5. Which examination did the National Testing Agency conduct first after examinations were entrusted to it, and in which year?

  • A. UGC-NET, in December 2018
  • B. JEE (Main), in January 2019
  • C. NEET-UG, in May 2019
  • D. CMAT, in January 2019

Q6. The Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee is appointed in which one of the following ways?

  • A. By the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, from amongst the members of the Committee
  • B. By the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, from amongst the Rajya Sabha members of the Committee
  • C. By the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, from amongst the members of the Committee
  • D. By election within the Committee, from amongst its Lok Sabha members

Q7. In the working of the Public Accounts Committee, the term 'Appropriation Accounts' denotes which one of the following?

  • A. Accounts showing expenditure actually incurred against each grant voted by Parliament, with reasons for variations
  • B. Accounts showing the sums appropriated by the Union from the Consolidated Fund for transfer to the States under Finance Commission awards
  • C. Accounts showing the appropriation of surplus revenue of public undertakings, examined by the Committee on Public Undertakings
  • D. Accounts showing the amounts appropriated from the Contingency Fund of India pending regularisation by Parliament

Q8. Consider the following statements regarding audit and the scrutiny of grants given to autonomous bodies: 1. ... 2. ... 3. ... Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The office of the Comptroller and Auditor General is provided for by the Constitution, whereas the duties, powers and conditions of service attached to that office are laid down by a law of Parliament of 1971.
  2. Reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General relating to the accounts of the Union are laid before each House of Parliament, while corresponding State reports are laid before the State Legislature.
  3. Audit reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General on Union accounts are examined by the Estimates Committee, while the Public Accounts Committee scrutinises the budget estimates before they are voted.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q9. With reference to the audit of grants received by an autonomous body such as the National Testing Agency, which one of the following statements is correct?

  • A. Audit reports covering the accounts of such bodies are laid before Parliament and may be taken up by the Public Accounts Committee
  • B. Accounts of every autonomous body are audited exclusively by the Committee on Public Undertakings before being laid before Parliament
  • C. Grants-in-aid to autonomous bodies are audited solely by the Ministry of Finance, the Comptroller and Auditor General being barred from examining them
  • D. A utilisation certificate accepted by the administrative ministry permanently closes audit scrutiny of that particular grant

Q10. Consider the following statements about the transfer of entrance examinations to the National Testing Agency: 1. ... 2. ... 3. ... Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Examinations such as JEE (Main) and NEET-UG were being conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education before the Agency was created.
  2. The Agency was mandated to conduct these examinations in pen-and-paper mode at least twice a year.
  3. A stated purpose of creating the Agency was to relieve the Central Board of Secondary Education of this responsibility so that it could fulfil its core mandate.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q11. The CMAT and GPAT examinations, now conducted by the National Testing Agency, were earlier conducted by which one of the following bodies?

  • A. The All India Council for Technical Education, the apex body for technical education
  • B. The Central Board of Secondary Education, the national school examination board
  • C. The University Grants Commission, the apex body for university education
  • D. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, the national research laboratories network