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Correct option is B) a, b only

Correct option is C) Osmosis

The plastids are flat, circular cytoplasmic cell organelles. Plastids are found only in plant cells and certain protists. 

Two types of plastids are: 

(i) Chromoplasts: These are the coloured plastids which have the pigment other than the chlorophyll. These are found in the floral leaves and fruits imparting them different colors for attracting insects and animals for pollination. 

(ii) Chloroplasts: These are the green plastids found in the green parts of the plants. These plastids are concerned with the manufacture of carbohydrates by photosynthesis.

The main function of vacuoles is the storage of many important molecules like amino acids, sugars, various organic acids, and some proteins. In plants, the vacuoles are very large in size and filled with cell sap that helps to maintain the turgidity and rigidity of the cell. In animals, the vacuoles are very small in size and also possess the function of storage

D) Both A & B

The autonomic movement of the matrix of cytoplasm of eukaryotic cells is called cytoplasmic or protoplasmic streaming or cyclosis. 

These are of two types : 

(i) Rotation, 

(ii) Circulation. 

In rotation, the cytoplasmic matrix moves in one direction around a central vacuole. 

In circulation, the matrix moves in different directions around different vacuoles of the cell.

(i) Centrioles help in cell division by forming spindle fibres that give rise to spindle apparatus during cell division in animal cells. 

(ii)They form basal bodies which gives rise to cilia and flagella. 

(iii) Out of two centrioles in a spermatozoan, the distal one give rise to axial filament or tail.

Active transport plays an important role in: 

(i) Absorption of most nutrients from the intestine. 

(ii) Rapid and selective absorption of nutrients by cells. 

(iii) Maintaining a membrane potential. 

(iv) Maintaining water and ionic balance between cells and extracellular fluid.

Endocytosis is the process of active cellular intake of materials. It involves invagination of a small region of plasma membrane, forming an intracellular membrane bound vesicles. 

It is of two types: 

(i) Pinocytosis is a process of intake of droplets of extracellular fluid. 

(ii) Phagocytosis is a process of intake of solid particles.

This statement is False.

(i). On 7th February 1992, the Maastricht Treaty was signed to create the European Union. 

(ii). This treaty led to the expansion of spheres of cooperation in internal affairs, foreign policies and defence policies.

This statement is False. 

(i) The 1990s are seen as the ‘golden age of humanitarian intervention.’ In 1993, the World Conference on Human Rights was held in Vienna, which led to the creation of the office of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. 

(ii) Increasing awareness about human rights and their protection in international law gave rise to the phenomenon for protection of rights in the form of ‘humanitarian intervention'.

One of the main purposes of the UN is maintenance of international peace, security and cooperation. UN Peacekeeping Force comprises of military personnel and resources sent by member States. In the post-cold war era, the UN rationale for intervention was not just to stop ongoing wars but also to prevent reoccurrence of conflicts and protect the human rights of the affected people. The UN intervened in Cambodia, Somalia, Yugoslavia, East Timor, Eritrea, Syria, etc., for this purpose.

In 1993, over 170 nations participated in the World Conference on Human Rights, held in Vienna to reaffirm their commitment to protect human rights. The office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights was created to coordinate human rights initiatives. The increasing awareness about human rights protection in international law gave rise to humanitarian intervention especially in conflict zones. NGO’s have contributed significantly in the spread of humanitarian intervention for e.g. ICRC, Oxfam, etc. The 1990s are described as “golden age” of humanitarian intervention.

Soft power.

Soft power is use of military force.

Countries which lie in geographical proximity create or join regional organisations which are based on common political, ideological, economic and infrastructural concerns. Some nations make special agreements regarding trade and economic cooperation. This is called a trade bloc.

(i) European Union (EU) was created in 1992 by Maastricht Treaty. It led to increased spheres of cooperation between European nations e.g. foreign affairs, defense, trade and creation of Euro as a common currency. Creation of Schengen Area is one of the achievements of the EU since the Schengen visa allows eligible individuals to travel freely within the 26 nations of the Schengen area.

(ii) ASEAN created in 1967 with headquarters at Jakarta comprises of 10 South-East Asian nations such as Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, etc. It aims to promote political economic and security cooperation among it’s members.

(iii) SAARC formed in 1985 at Dhaka with 7 members. Today, it has 8 member countries of South Asia like India, Bhutan, Pakistan, etc. It aims to promote regional integration and economic development. It’s main achievement is the SAFTA.

(iv) BIMSTEC – is a regional organisation founded in 1997 comprising of 7 member countries lying around Bay of Bengal for e.g. Bangladesh, India, Thailand, Myanmar. It aims to facilitate collaboration in economic, security and other concerns between member States.

(v) Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is an Eurasian political, economic and security organisation formed in 2001 with 6 member states. In 2016, India and Pakistan joined SCO. It’s focus is on maintaining peace and stability in the region, cooperation in trade, technology, etc.

Regional organisations play an important role in international politics. Due to this, unipolarity (US as the only superpower) ended leading to multipolarity.

Super power.

War on Terror

1. Syria, Jordan, Iran, Kuwait.

2. Sudan, Eritrea

3. Yemen, Somalia, Djbouti.

4. Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea.

European Commission

Option (a). End of bipolarity

(a) History – The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and European Economic Community (EEC) were created to foster economic interdependence. On 7th February 1992, the Maastricht Treaty was signed to create the European Union. This led to expansion of spheres of cooperation to include internal affairs, judicial matters, foreign policy, etc. The Euro (€) is the official currency of 19 out of 28 countries of the EU. These nations are collectively called ‘Eurozone’.

(b) European Commission – The Commission is the executive bureaucratic arm of the EU. It is mainly responsible for drawing up proposals for new European legislation,and it implements the policy decisions of the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.

(c) European Parliament – The European Parliament is composed of 751 Members, who are directly elected every five years. It is a body entrusted with legislative, supervisory, and budgetary responsibilities.

(d) European Council – The structure of the European Council consists of the Presidents or Prime Ministers of each member State, accompanied by their foreign ministers, and a full¬time President of the European Council. The European Council meets four times a year and provides strategic leadership for the EU.

(e) European Court of Justice (ECJ) – The ECJ interprets, and adjudicates on, EU law and treaties. As EU law has primacy over the national law of EU member States.

Correct option: (c) USA

1. Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, France.

2. Norway, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia.

3. Belarus, Ukraine Serbia

Schengen Agreement

Correct Answer is: (c) SAARC – Afghanistan

(b) it allows individuals to travel freely in 26 Schengen area countries.

Trade Bloc .

(a) they desired more freedom and economic wellbeing

The disintegration of the Soviet Union ended the era of the Cold War as well as the East West division of the world. 

Developments in the post-Cold War period can be analyzed through five dimensions.

(a) Rise of new States – The East European revolution of 1989, led to assertion of ethnic nationalism based on the right to self determination. It was an expression of the middle class for freedom and economic well being as well as for autonomy and eventually for independence. Many new States were created based on ethnic identity for e.g., Yugoslavia split into States like Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, etc. Similarly, 15 new States were created after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

(b) Emergence of unipolarity – In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait. The USA led a multinational force to free Kuwait from Iraqi control. The US President, George H. Bush had described this victory as ‘New World Order’ as the multinational support to the USA came from NATO, Israel, Soviet Union, China and many Arab countries. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the world became unipolar and the New World Order implied US dominance and leadership in matters of global security. They had political and economic dimensions. The US employed “Soft Power” method i.e., without use of coercion or military force but through socio-cultural and economic influence.

(c) Humanitarian intervention – There have been many instances of ethnic conflicts and bloodshed in the creation of new States particularly in Bosnia, East Timor, Somalia, Cambodia, etc. The UN Peacekeeping Force has intervened in a number of conflict situations to bring about peaceful resolution of the conflict as well as to maintain peace and protect human rights. Humanitarian intervention refers to an increasing awareness about the significance of human rights and the need for their protection.

(d) Terrorism – Terrorism is defined as the use of violence, or the threat to use violence with an intention to create panic in society, in the pursuit of political/religious/ideological goals. Terrorist groups indulge in hijackings, bombings, etc., and are usually associated with separatist movements. Modern day terrorist operations are global in nature. Some instances of terrorist attacks post 1991, include Al-Qaeda attacks on 11th September 2001 in Washington D.C, Bali (2002), Mumbai (2008), etc.

(e) Multipolarity and Regionalism – In the post cold war era, the USA emerged as the only superpower. However, in recent times, the dominant position of the USA has been challenged due to the rise of Asian nations like China, Japan and India creation of the European Union; military resurgence of Russia and growing importance of regional organisations like SAARC, etc.

Regionalism refers to creation of regional organisations based on geographical proximity or on common ideological, political, economic concerns in areas like communication, health, energy, education, etc. In the 1960s organisations like ASEAN focused on economic issues.

(a) History – The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and European Economic Community (EEC) were created to foster economic interdependence. On 7th February 1992, the Maastricht Treaty was signed to create the European Union. This led to expansion of spheres of cooperation to include internal affairs, judicial matters, foreign policy, etc. The Euro (€) is the official currency of 19 out of 28 countries of the EU.

These nations are collectively called ‘Eurozone’.

(b) European Commission – The Commission is the executive bureaucratic arm of the EU. It is mainly responsible for drawing up proposals for new European legislation, and it implements the policy decisions of the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.

(c) European Parliament – The European Parliament is composed of 751 Members, who are directly elected every five years. It is a body entrusted with legislative, supervisory, and budgetary responsibilities.

(d) European Council – The structure of the European Council consists of the Presidents or Prime Ministers of each member State, accompanied by their foreign ministers, and a fulltime President of the European Council.

The European Council meets four times a year and provides strategic leadership for the EU.

(e) European Court of Justice (ECJ) – The ECJ interprets, and adjudicates on, EU law and treaties. As EU law has primacy over the national law of EU member States.

One of the main tasks of the UN Peacekeeping is to prevent conflicts from escalating or recurring, to maintain peace and to protect human rights of the affected people. The UN thus intervened in Cambodia, Somalia, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Syria, etc.

The United Nations does not have its own army. But in order to maintain international peaee and security, member States of the United Nations, have created a peacekeeping force out of their own military resources. This force known as UN Peacekeeping Force. The Peacekeepers are sent to conflict-prone or war zones, based upon UN Security Council recommendations, often when ceasefires are established.

Non-Aligned Movement : 

The first summit of Non-Aligned countries was held in September 1961 at Belgrade and attended by representatives of 25 countries. The purpose of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) was to help countries keep "national sovereignty, territorial integrity and security in their struggle against imperialism, colonialism, racism and all forms of foreign aggression, occupation, domination or interference as well as against great power and bloc politics".

The objectives of the Non-Aligned Movement are -

1. To keep the newly independent nations of Asia and Africa away from the rivalry of the two viz. USA and Soviet Union 

2. To oppose colonialism, imperialism, and racial discrimination. 

3. To eliminate all those factors and tendencies in the international arena that could lead to war. 

4. To advocate the sovereign equality of all States. 

5. To oppose the use of force and nuclear weapons in international disputes.

1. Dr. Sun Yat-Sen 

2. Peking 

3. Chiang-Kai-Sheik 

4. Central Treaty organisation 

5. Versailles 

6. 1955 

7. Strasbourg 

8. Maastricht

After the end of the Cold War, USA emerged as the only super power due to it’s technological and military superiority and the use of Soft Power’. However, this dominant position of the USA has been challenged in recent times by China and Russia.

China’s rise to global prominence began in the mid 1970s due to market reforms introduced by Deng Xiaoping. China aims to create a sphere of influence in Central and East Asian regions through ambitious projects like One Belt One Road and China Pakistan Economic Corridor. China is also building up it’s naval and air power in order to back up it’s claims in the South China Sea.

Russia has emerged as an energy superpower due to its progress in oil and gas production and military assertiveness. It continues to influence Central and Eastern Europe. Both China and Russia are founding members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. Thus, China and Russia have also become significant centres of power, challenging US dominance.

One Belt One Road also called OBOR or Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) since 2016, is a global development strategy adopted by the Chinese government in 2013 involving infrastructure development and investments in nearly 70 countries in Asia, Europe and Africa. It is an ambitious economic development and commercial project that focuses on improving cooperation among multiple countries.

BRI involves building a network of roadways, railways, power grids, maritime ports, oil and gas pipelines and associated infrastructure projects. The project covers two parts i.e., Silk Road Economic Belt (land based) and expects to connect China with Central Asia, East and West Europe to connect China with Central Asia, East and West Europe) and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (sea based and connects China to Africa, South East Asia, Mediterranean) BRI consists of six economic corridors such as China-Pakistan corridor, China- Indochina Peninsula corridor etc.

China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) launched in 2015 is a part of the greater OBOR. It is a collection of infrastructure projects that are currently under construction throughout Pakistan for e.g., special economic zones, ports, energy projects, etc. The Gwadar Port (Balochistan province of Pakistan) which is considered the deepest seaport in the world is considered to be significant in the BRI. India has objected to the CPEC as upgrade works to the Karakoram Highway are taking place in Gilgit Baltistan (which is Indian territory) and will undermine India’s security and position in the region.

Correct Answer is; (d) 1991

Correct Answer is: (d) $ 13

(a) (i) and (ii) are correct

Correct option: (b) Belgrade

U.K did not join the EEC, when it was formed.

He was born in a small town in Central Vietnam. He studied in French school that produced great leaders. After his studies he worked on a French liner operating between Saigon and Marseilles. He was greatly inspired by European communist parties, became member of commintem and was instrumental in bringing together competing nationalists groups to form the Vietnamese communist party in 1930. It was later renamed the Indo-Chinese communist party. After spending 30 years abroad in Europe, China Thailand, he returned to Vietnam in 1941. He became President of the Vietnam Democratic Republic in 1943.

After the split of Vietnam, he and the communists took control of North Vietnam. With the help of his government, National Liberation Front in the south fought for unification of the country. He fought hard to maintain the autonomy of Vietnam and till the end proved true to his name. Ho Chi Minh meaning He, Who Enlightens.

Correct Answer is: (b) Truman

(a) East German began to construct a wall in 1961 which virtually cut off West Berlin and East Berlin.

(b) It was guarded with watchtowers and other lethal impediments to stop people from the east.

(c) It was symbolic boundary between Communism and Capitalism.

(d) With the fall of the Berlin wall , followed by the collapse of the Soviet Union, the cold war came to an end.

Correct option: (b) Deng Xiaoping

(d) September 1949

Correct Answer is: (b) Belgrade

(i) In Palestine, the ancient home of Jews, only a few thousand Jews were living in 1900. 

(ii) Some 15 million were scattered around Europe and North America. 

(iii) These Jews had been subjected to systematic persecution for centuries. 

(iv) But in the late nineteenth century, the persecution in Russia (Where two-thirds of the world’s jews lived), France and Germany was intense. 

(v) Some Jews emigrated to Palestine, while many more went to the United States and Britain. 

(vi) In 1896, Thodore Herzel, a Viennese journalist, published a pamphlet called the Jewish state in which he called for the creation of a Jewish national home. In 1897 the world zionist organisation was founded.

(a) Council of Europe

Correct Answer is: (b) 1976

Truman, the president of USA announced a policy of containment of communism. This implies U.S. would support those countries which were threatened by USSR to spread communism.