1st February 2025

Explanation: Both the assertion and reason are correct statements. The ED is not legally bound to provide a copy of the ECIR to the accused, as it is considered an internal document. The Supreme Court has indeed ruled that an ECIR cannot be equated with an FIR. However, the reason (R) is not the direct explanation for why the ED is not bound to provide the ECIR. The ED's stance is based on the ECIR being an internal document, rather than its non-equivalence to an FIR.

Explanation: The Occupational Shortage Index (OSI) is designed to provide data-driven insights into occupations facing shortages and help align job seekers' skills with industry demands. It supports policymakers, training institutions, and businesses in bridging skill gaps in high-demand sectors, optimizing job matching, and guiding targeted skill development programs.

Explanation: Statements 1 and 2 are correct. The HCES is used to determine the basket of goods for CPI calculation, and MPCE is the primary analytical indicator. Statements 3 and 4 are incorrect. The Gini coefficient has decreased in both rural and urban areas, not increased. Kerala has the lowest difference between urban and rural average MPCE among major states, not the highest.

Explanation: The statement is incorrect. According to the Supreme Court's ruling, each High Court may appoint 2 to 5 ad-hoc judges, not exceeding 10% of its sanctioned strength, not 15% as stated in the option. The other statements are correct: ad-hoc appointments can be made even if vacancies don't exceed 20% of sanctioned strength, ad-hoc judges will hear criminal appeals in benches headed by sitting judges, and Chief Justices can recommend retired judges for ad-hoc appointments.

Explanation: All three statements are correct. The IndiaAI Mission has a budget of ₹10,370 crore and aims to develop a culturally contextualised AI model (statement 1). The government has approved 18,693 GPUs from 10 companies for AI model training (statement 2). The post-subsidy GPU access rates for startups will be around $1 per hour, which is lower than global rates of $2.5-$3 per hour (statement 3).