Comprehension
In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev, launched an ill-fated anti-alcohol campaign in the then Soviet Union. The anti-alcohol campaign had some beneficial public health consequences: Crime fell and life expectancy rose. But the campaign was a political and economic disaster. Gorbachev forgot that the addiction of the state to alcohol revenue was even more incurable than the addiction of some citizens to alcohol itself. The budgetary losses created an economic crisis. Historians suspect that more than the loss of the Soviet Empire, it was this campaign that delegitimized Gorbachev. An old Soviet joke went like this: A disaffected and angry citizen, fed up of standing in lines for vodka, decided to go assassinate Gorbachev. He soon came back and ruefully reported that the lines to assassinate Gorbachev were even longer than the lines for Vodka. As the lockdown eased in India, and social distancing went for a toss at alcohol outlets, we were reminded of how difficult an issue alcohol is to rationally discuss in India. The stampede was caused by the ineptness with which the opening was handled in most cities. Alcohol has also migrated from being a question of personal freedom and choice to an issue in broader cultural wars, an odd site on which we measure progressivism in India. It is also a window on how liberalism has been misunderstood. Liberals should, rightly, be suspicious of prohibition on moral and practical grounds. Government grossly exceeds its legitimate power when it interferes with the rights of individuals to lead their lives as they please, and fashion their selves after their own ideals, interests and preferences. And certainly, moralism or puritanism on alcohol cannot be the basis of state policy. That moralism has no basis, and it violates the dignity and freedom of individuals.
[Excerpt from an Opinion by Bhanu Pratap Mehta, The Indian Express, May 7, 2020]
[Excerpt from an Opinion by Bhanu Pratap Mehta, The Indian Express, May 7, 2020]
Question: 1
In the above passage, the author uses a/an__________ to strengthen his argument.
In the above passage, the author uses a/an__________ to strengthen his argument.
Updated On: Aug 21, 2024
- Metaphor
- Analogy
- Personification
- None of the above
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The Correct Option is B
Solution and Explanation
The correct option is (B): Analogy
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Question: 2
Which of the following can be inferred from the passage above?
Which of the following can be inferred from the passage above?
Updated On: Aug 21, 2024
- State must not interfere at all with the individual‘s right to drink.
- Liberalism has always been misunderstood.
- It is very difficult to discuss any issue relating to personal freedom of individuals with rationality in India
- None of the above.
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The Correct Option is D
Solution and Explanation
The correct option is (D): None of the above.
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Question: 3
Which of the following statements weakens the argument that Moralism on Alcohol cannot be the basis of State Policy?
Which of the following statements weakens the argument that Moralism on Alcohol cannot be the basis of State Policy?
Updated On: Jul 18, 2024
- The State should not interfere with people‘s right to drink; but there will be a backlash if drinking takes forms that inflict great social harms.
- Freedom should not be divorced from Moderation.
- The State should not interfere in matters of sexuality or intimacy. But norms of freedom will impose serious costs and will not survive if the expressions of sexuality are consistently degrading or violent, as we have seen in the locker room scandals.
- All of the above
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The Correct Option is D
Solution and Explanation
The correct option is (D): All of the above
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Question: 4
Which of the following is true as per the passage above?
Which of the following is true as per the passage above?
Updated On: Jul 18, 2024
- Liberals should not be concerned about prohibition on Alcohol at all
- Moralism should be based on justified ideals.
- Moralism must not be the basis of any State action.
- All of the above.
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The Correct Option is B
Solution and Explanation
The correct option is (B): Moralism should be based on justified ideals.
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Question: 5
According to the passage, which of the following could be part of State‘s policy to regulate Alcohol use in India?
I. Ban on Alcohol shops.
II. Education on Intelligent Drinking.
III. Regulating Outlet density of Alcohol shops
IV. Community Intervention Policy
According to the passage, which of the following could be part of State‘s policy to regulate Alcohol use in India?
I. Ban on Alcohol shops.
II. Education on Intelligent Drinking.
III. Regulating Outlet density of Alcohol shops
IV. Community Intervention Policy
I. Ban on Alcohol shops.
II. Education on Intelligent Drinking.
III. Regulating Outlet density of Alcohol shops
IV. Community Intervention Policy
Updated On: Jul 18, 2024
- I, II and III
- II and IV
- II, III and IV
- I, II, III and IV.
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The Correct Option is C
Solution and Explanation
The correct option is (C): II, III and IV
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[Extracted with edits from "Education" by Swami Vivekananda]- CLAT - 2025
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(Extracted with edits from "An Astrologer's Day" by R.K. Narayan)- CLAT - 2025
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