Question

Direction: The passage below is accompanied by a set of questions. Choose the best Answer to each question. Throughout much of recorded human history, China has boasted the largest population in the world – and until recently, by some margin. So news that the Chinese population is now in decline, and will sometime later this year be surpassed by that of India, is big news even if long predicted. This decline in numbers will spur a trend that already concerns demographers in China: a rapidly aging society. By 2040, around a quarter of the Chinese population is predicted to be over the age of 65. In short, this is a seismic shift. It will have huge symbolic and substantive impacts on China in three main areas. This historical turning point in China’s population trend serves as a further wake-up call to move the country’s model more quickly to a post-manufacturing, post-industrial economy – an aging, shrinking population does not fit the purposes of a labour-intensive economic model. As to what it means for China’s economy, and that of the world, population decline and an aging society will certainly provide Beijing with short-term and long-term challenges. In short, it means there will be fewer workers able to feed the economy and spur further economic growth on one side of the ledger; on the other, a growing post-work population will need potentially costly support. It is perhaps no coincidence then that 2022, as well as being a pivotal year for China in terms of demographics, also saw one of the worst economic performances the country has experienced since 1976, according to data released on Jan. 17. How the Chinese government responds to the challenges presented by this dramatic demographic shift will be key. Failure to live up to the expectations of the public in its response could result in a crisis for the Chinese Communist Party, whose legitimacy is tied closely to economic growth. Any economic decline could have severe consequences for the Chinese Communist Party. It will also be judged on how well the state is able to fix its social support system. Indeed, there is already a strong case to be made that the Chinese government has moved too slowly. The onechild policy that played a significant role in the slowing growth, and now decline, in population was a government policy for more than three decades. It has been known since the 1990s that the Chinese fertility rate was too low to sustain current population numbers. Yet it was only in 2016 that Beijing acted and relaxed the policy to allow more couples to have a second, and then in 2021 a third, child. This action to spur population growth, or at least slow its decline, came too late to prevent China from soon losing its crown as the world’s largest nation. Loss of prestige is one thing though, the political impact of any economic downturn resulting from a shrinking population is quite another.
The author claims that, “Loss of prestige is one thing though, the political impact of any economic downturn resulting from a shrinking population is quite another.” Which one of the following statements best expresses the point being made by the author?

• A. Intangibles like a loss of prestige are far more important than the political consequences of a shrinking population.
• B. If the population decline is not adequately addressed, the Chinese government could lose its power.
• C. An economic slump due to population decline will have serious ramifications for the Chinese Communist party.
• D. Tangibles like an economic slump are far more important than intangibles like a loss of prestige.
• E. The consequences of China’s economic decline will have a bearing on global politics.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Passage Summary- China’s population decline poses a serious challenge for its government. If economic growth falters due to population decline, the government could be in serious trouble. As of now the government’s response has been too slow.

The quote can be interpreted as: Loss of prestige may not be as important as an economic downturn which would have serious consequences for the Chinese government. Option D expresses this quote relatively accurately and is the correct answer.

Option A distorts the meaning of the quote. Loss of prestige is less important than a slump in economic growth.

Option B is too strongly worded in stating that the Chinese government could lose its power. Population decline will have serious consequences for the Chinese government, but we are not sure exactly what this means for the government.

Option D is partly correct, but it does not talk about the loss of prestige past which is less serious.

Option E mentions ‘global politics’ which is beyond the scope of the passage.

Hence, the correct Answer is option D.