Read the following passage carefully:
(1) In recent years, air pollution has emerged as one of the most pressing environmental and public health issues in India. Cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru often record Air Quality Indices (AQI) that fall into the ‘hazardous’ category, posing several health risks to their inhabitants. The thick blanket of smog that shrouds these urban areas is composed of harmful pollutants such as particulate material (PM 2.5 and PM 10), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and sulphur dioxide (SO₂). These pollutants originate from various sources including vehicular emissions, industrial activities and construction dust.
(2) The constant emission of pollutants from vehicles, industrial activities and construction works exacerbate the problem. Residents of these cities are often seen wearing masks and using air purifiers in a desperate attempt to mitigate the effects of polluted air. The ‘urban haze’ not only affects physical health but also impacts mental well-being. Studies indicate that prolonged exposure to high pollution levels can lead to respiratory issues, such as cardiovascular diseases and even cognitive decline.
(3) Furthermore, children and the elderly are the most vulnerable groups. Children, with their developing respiratory systems, and the elderly, often with pre-existing health conditions, face the brunt of this environmental crisis. Schools frequently shut down during peak pollution periods, disrupting education and daily life. The economic cost of air pollution is staggering, with increased healthcare expenses and lost labour productivity. Businesses also suffer as employees’ health issues lead to increased absenteeism and decreased efficiency.
(4) Government initiatives, such as the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), aim at reducing air pollution levels across the country. However, these measures require robust implementation and public cooperation to be effective. Simple actions like reducing vehicle use, promoting public transportation and adopting cleaner technologies can significantly alleviate the situation. Additionally, the enforcement of stricter emission norms for industries and vehicles is crucial. Public awareness campaigns can play a pivotal role in encouraging others to adopt environmentally friendly practices.
(5) The role of technology in combating air pollution is also noteworthy. Innovative solutions such as air quality monitoring systems, green buildings and electric vehicles are gaining attraction. These technologies not only help in reducing pollution but also promote sustainable development. Urban planning that incorporates green spaces can also mitigate the effects of pollution by improving air quality and providing residents with a healthier living environment.
(6) As we navigate this challenge, it is imperative to remember that the solution lies not just in policy changes but also in the behavioural shifts of individuals. Embracing a lifestyle that prioritizes environmental health will pave the way for a cleaner, healthier India. Collective efforts and sustained commitments are crucial for ensuring breathable air for future generations. It is a shared responsibility that requires action from every segment of society, from policymakers to ordinary citizens.
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Answer the following questions, based on the above passage:
According to paragraph 1, what components make up the 'urban haze' that envelops Indian cities?
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Solution and Explanation
The writer refers to air pollution as a 'public health issue' in paragraph (1) because:
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- it disrupts the daily activities of urban inhabitants.
- it leads to the closure of schools during peak pollution periods.
- it disrupts industrial activities and construction works.
%Correct answer \textbf{Correct answer: }\textbf{(A) it is a threat to the physical well-being of the people.} \bigskip - it disrupts industrial activities and construction works.
The Correct Option is A
Solution and Explanation
Complete the analogy with one word from paragraph (2).
blanket : cover : : extended : \underline{\hspace{2cm}
blanket : cover : : extended : \underline{\hspace{2cm}
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- composed
- attempted
- declined
- prolonged
\bigskip
The Correct Option is D
Solution and Explanation
Complete the following sentence suitably (Paragraph (2)):
"The prolonged exposure to high pollution levels leads to cognitive decline" indicates that it impacts ___.
"The prolonged exposure to high pollution levels leads to cognitive decline" indicates that it impacts ___.
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- mental health
- economic development
- respiratory functions
- mobility
\bigskip
The Correct Option is A
Solution and Explanation
Provide one textual evidence with reference to paragraph (3), to prove the following:
"Children and the elderly are the most vulnerable groups affected by air pollution."
"Children and the elderly are the most vulnerable groups affected by air pollution."
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Solution and Explanation
Complete the following suitably with one advantage with reference to paragraph (4):
Implementing stricter emission norms for vehicles can help to ___.
Implementing stricter emission norms for vehicles can help to ___.
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Solution and Explanation
Assess the potential challenges and benefits of promoting public transportation as a solution to air pollution, as outlined in paragraph (4).
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Solution and Explanation
What is the significance of urban planning in mitigating air pollution according to paragraph (5)?
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Solution and Explanation
How does technology help in resolving the problem of air pollution?
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Solution and Explanation
Why does the author say that just the policy change is not the solution?
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Solution and Explanation
Top Questions on Reading Comprehension
During Bentham’s lifetime, revolutions occurred in the American colonies and in France, producing the Bill of Rights and the Declaration des Droits deHomme (Declaration of the Rights of Man), both of which were based on liberty, equality, and self-determination. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published The Communist Manifesto in 1848. Revolutionary movements broke out that year in France, Italy, Austria, Poland, and elsewhere. In addition, the Indus trial Revolution transformed Great Britain and eventually the rest of Europe from an agrarian (farm-based) society into an industrial one, in which steam and coal increased manufacturing production dramatically, changing the nature of work, property ownership, and family. This period also included advances in chemistry, astronomy, navigation, human anatomy, and im munology, among other sciences.
Given this historical context, it is understandable that Bentham used reason and science to explain human behaviour. His ethical system was an attempt to quantify happiness and the good so they would meet the conditions of the scientific method. Ethics had to be empirical, quantifiable, verifiable, and reproducible across time and space. Just as science was beginning to understand the workings of cause and effect in the body, so ethics would explain the causal relationships of the mind. Bentham rejected religious authority and wrote a rebuttal to the Declaration of Independence in which he railed against natural rights as “rhetorical nonsense, nonsense upon stilts.” Instead, the fundamental unit of human action for him was utility—solid, certain, and factual.
What is utility? Bentham’s fundamental axiom, which underlies utilitarianism, was that all so cial morals and government legislation should aim for producing the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. Utilitarianism, therefore, emphasizes the consequences or ultimate purpose of an act rather than the character of the actor, the actor’s motivation, or the particu lar circumstances surrounding the act. It has these characteristics: (1) universality, because it applies to all acts of human behaviour, even those that appear to be done from altruistic mo tives; (2) objectivity, meaning it operates beyond individual thought, desire, and perspective; (3) rationality, because it is not based in metaphysics or theology; and (4) quantifiability in its reliance on utility.- CLAT PG - 2026
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“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights”.
This statement, in spite of literal inaccuracy in its every phrase, served the purpose for which it was written. It expressed an aspiration, and it was a fighting slogan. In order that slogans may serve their purpose, it is necessary that they shall arouse strong, emotional belief, but it is not at all necessary that they shall be literally accurate. A large part of each human being’s time on earth is spent in declaiming about his “rights,” asserting their existence, complaining of their violation, describing them as present or future, vested or contingent, absolute or conditional, perfect or inchoate, alienable or inalienable, legal or equitable, in rem or in personam, primary or secondary, moral or jural (legal), inherent or acquired, natural or artificial, human or divine. No doubt still other adjectives are available. Each one expresses some idea, but not always the same idea even when used twice by one and the same person.
They all need definition in the interest of understanding and peace. In his table of correlatives, Hohfeld set “right” over against “duty” as its necessary correlative. This had been done num berless times by other men. He also carefully distinguished it from the concepts expressed in his table by the terms “privilege,” “power,” and “immunity.” To the present writer, the value of his work seems beyond question and the practical convenience of his classification is convincing. However, the adoption of Hohfeld’s classification and the correlating of the terms “right” and “duty” do not complete the work of classification and definition.- CLAT PG - 2026
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- Cite two evidences from the text to show that Indian youth is adapting itself to the needs of the job market.
- CBSE CLASS XII - 2025
- English Core
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- The first thing that a scholar should bear in mind is that a book ought not to be read for mere amusement. Half-educated persons read for amusement, and are not to be blamed for it; they are incapable of appreciating the deeper qualities that belong to a really great literature. But a young man who has passed through a course of university training should discipline himself at an early day never to read for mere amusement. And once the habit of this discipline has been formed, he will find it impossible to read for mere amusement. He will then impatiently throw down any book from which he cannot obtain intellectual food, any book that does not make an appeal to the higher emotions and to his intellect. But on the other hand, the habit of reading for amusement becomes with thousands of people exactly the same kind of habit as wine-drinking or opium-smoking; it is like a narcotic; something that helps to pass the time, something that keeps up a perpetual condition of dreaming, something that eventually results in destroying all capacity for thought, giving exercise only to the surface parts of the mind, and leaving the deeper springs of feeling and the higher faculties of perception unemployed.
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- Out of debt, out of danger is, like many other proverbs, full of wisdom ; but the word 'danger' does not sufficiently express all that the warning demands. To one that is not insensible, a state of debt is a state of positive misery ; the sufferer is as one haunted by an evil spirit, and his heart can know neither rest nor peace till it is cast out. But as example is at all times more instructive than mere words of mouth, a living writer shall describe his own feelings when beset with creditors, and perhaps he may prove a beacon to the thoughtless ones who are likely to fall into the same gulf.
- UP Board XII - 2025
- English
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Questions Asked in CBSE CLASS XII exam
- The capital of the firm of Seema and Avi is ₹ 12,00,000 and the market rate of interest is 10%. Salary of each partner is ₹ 10,000 per annum. The profits for the last four years were ₹ 3,00,000, ₹ 4,00,000, ₹ 5,00,000 and ₹ 4,00,000 respectively. Goodwill of the firm is to be valued on the basis of three years purchase of last four years average super profits. Calculate the goodwill of the firm.
- Verify that lines given by \( \vec{r} = (1 - \lambda) \hat{i + (\lambda - 2) \hat{j} + (3 - 2\lambda) \hat{k} \) and \( \vec{r} = (\mu + 1) \hat{i} + (2\mu - 1) \hat{j} - (2\mu + 1) \hat{k} \) are skew lines. Hence, find shortest distance between the lines.}
- The side of an equilateral triangle is increasing at the rate of 3 cm/s. At what rate is its area increasing when the side of the triangle is 15 cm?
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- Differentiate $2\cos^2 x$ w.r.t. $\cos^2 x$.
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