Which one of the following is best implied in the passage?
- (a) Strong measures need to be taken to reduce the rural to urban migration of labour.
- (b) The working condition in construction and unregistered manufacturing needs to be improved.
- (c) Service sector has been reducing the problem of unemployment.
- (d) Increased social sector spending is imperative for large-scale job creation. ✓ UPSC's answer
Why the answer is (d)
• The passage states that India needs 24 million jobs over the next decade and that e-commerce can close only half of this gap.
• It explicitly identifies sectors driving domestic demand, specifically health and education, as the only ones capable of comfortably filling the remaining half of the jobs gap.
• Health and education are core components of the social sector, implying that investment in these areas is necessary to meet the employment target.
• Therefore, the passage implies that increased spending in the social sector is imperative for large-scale job creation.
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) Strong measures need to be taken to reduce the rural to urban migration of labour.
- The passage does not suggest stopping migration but rather highlights the poor quality of jobs in the sectors where labor is migrating to.
- (b) The working condition in construction and unregistered manufacturing needs to be improved.
- While the passage notes that construction and unregistered manufacturing are not markedly better jobs, it does not imply that improving working conditions in these sectors is the solution to the jobs gap.
- (c) Service sector has been reducing the problem of unemployment.
- The passage explicitly states that the services sector is not generating the additional jobs the country needs, contradicting the claim that it is reducing unemployment.
Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2020, held on 4 October 2020. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.