Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:
Vultures provide a crucial ecosystem service through the disposal of livestock carcasses, and their loss has had huge socioeconomic impacts across the Indian Subcontinent. Without these scavenging birds of prey, hundreds of thousands of animal carcasses have gone uneaten — left to rot in the sun, these pose a serious risk to human health. Livestock carcasses provide a potential breeding ground for numerous infectious diseases, including anthrax, and encourage the proliferation of pest species, such as rats. In 2006, the governments of India, Pakistan and Nepal introduced a ban on the manufacture of diclofenac, and pharmaceutical firms are now encouraged to promote an alternative drug called ‘meloxicam’ which is proven to be safe for vultures and an effective treatment for many livestock diseases. The manufacturing ban has had some success in reducing the drug’s prevalence, for example the use of diclofenac has dropped by 90% in local areas within Nepal and, across India, contamination of cattle carcass with diclofenac has fallen by nearly a half, down from 10–11% before and around the time of the ban to 6.5% in 2007–2008; a reduction that has led to a fall in the estimated decline in the vulture population to 40% of the rate before the ban. Unfortunately, misuse of human forms of diclofenac in the veterinary sector remains a significant threat to vultures, along with the widescale use of untested veterinary medicines in the region. However, in spite of these ongoing threats, recent surveys suggest vulture numbers have stabilized in South Asia. Although, numbers remain very low across the region and any recovery will be slow.
Question 1
Vultures are considered valuable for the ecosystem. Which of the following reasons supports this statement?
1. They help in disposal of livestock carcasses.
2. They are considered holy in some communities and worshiped.
3. Their disappearance allows rats to multiply.
(A) 1 only
(B) 1 and 2
(C) 1 and 3
(D) 2 and 3
Question 2
According to the passage, how does a vulture manage to get exposed to diclofenac?
(A) From the DDT sprayed onto mosquito breeding grounds.
(B) Because sick livestock is given diclofenac and vultures kill them.
(C) Livestock carcasses become breeding grounds for various diseases.
(D) None of these.
Question 3
Which of the following is not a threat to vulture populations?
1. Meloxicam
2. Use of diclofenac amongst pets
3. Rotting livestock carcasses
4. Huge rise in the number of rats
(A) 1 only
(B) 1 and 3
(C) 1, 3 and 4
(D) 1, 2, 3, and 4
Question 4
Which of the following statements is/are true according to the passage?
1. The wide scale use of untested veterinary medicines to livestock reduces vulture death.
2. Vulture population has stabilized in South Asia as diclofenac usage has been banned.
(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2
Question 5
The above passage provides some information about vultures. Which of the following is not one of them?
1. That vulture numbers in the region appear to be stabilizing.
2. Diclofenac is the only drug that is toxic for vultures.
3. Vultures prey on sick livestock.
4. Vultures live in packs.
(A) 1 and 3 only
(B) 2 and 4 only
(C) 3 and 4 only
(D) 2, 3 and 4 only
N.B. Please note that the official timings for publication of these questions is 11 am daily.
SOLUTIONS TO DAILY CSAT MISSION # 86
1. (C) 2. (D) 3. (B) 4. (A) 5. (D)
Explanations
The information provided can be represented as:
Now, because only one guy stays close to the school, and that guy is Kartik, Adarsh and Jacob both stay far from the school. Since Rahul is good at Maths only, lets fill out his other subjects as “Not Good”. And since Kartik is weak at Maths only, lets fill out his other subjects as “Not Weak”. The table now looks like this:
The guy who is good at all subjects studies in class V. Rahul, Kartik and Jacob can not be this student because they are either not good at all subjects or they do not study in class V. So, that student is Adarsh, his information goes into the “Class” and each “Subject” column. Table now becomes:
That leaves Jacob as the guy weak at everything and his “Subject” information goes into the table. Finally, the two students who study in Class IV are identified as Rahul and Kartik. The final compilation is:
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