Question

Which of the following statements is least likely to be inferred from the passage?

• A. Younger generations of Indians are more tolerant of foreign scribes who write about their country.
• B. The writer believes that a section of Indian intelligentsia is very hostile to upward economic mobility.
• C. Mr. William Dalrymple has been accused of recolonising India through his writings.
• D. Most of the criticism that has been recently directed at Patrick French has emphasized mainly on the writer’s underwhelming literary style.
• A. Barrage
• B. Breach
• C. Temper
• D. Row
• A. Foreign writers who have written books on India
• B. Critics who have attacked foreign writers writing on India for their mere foreignness.
• C. Elite residents of South Delhi and South Bombay.
• D. Cultural pluralists.
• A. Most such condemnation has emerged from elite Indians.
• B. Such critics are hostile to upward immobility.
• C. These censures are not centered on the books of such writers or their literary styles but are targeted at their identity instead.
• D. These critics ignore the plural ethos of India.
• A. Ascriptive identities like caste, tribe, etc. are becoming more and more important with the passage of time.
• B. Patrick French believes that the new market friendly economic policies followed for the last decades have resulted in the rise of tawdry capitalism and rapacious imperialism.
• C. The writer is of the opinion that a section of the intelligentsia is divorced from the views of their compatriots.
• D. While India has historically been very hospitable to a variety of religions, it has not been equally open to linguistic foreigners.
• A. Writers like Patrick French do not know the real India.
• B. Most of the condemnation heaped on Dalrymple, French and himself has been on expected lines.
• C. India’s reputation of pluralism is cosmetic at best, one that hides deep rooted hatred towards foreigners.
• D. The new generation of Indians have internalized the idea that people should be rewarded for what they do and not who they are.
• A. Show India’s openness to foreigners who have visited India in the quest for yoga.
• B. Argue that India is a country of hundred of dialects.
• C. Demonstrate the religiosity pervading in an average Indian.
• D. India’s deep in the bones pluralism.
• A. Such criticism has been limited to a very small minority of Indians.
• B. These writers are popular among Indian youth, even among those who have not read their books.
• C. The literary styles of these writers are not the sole focus of such criticism.
• D. Such literary styles is less about what has been written in their books than about who can write on India.
• A. India has been historically open to and tolerant of foreign writers and artists.
• B. This issue can be satisfactorily resolved only if we can decide who gets to decide who gets to write about India.
• C. Ascriptive identities are becoming more and more important in a globalised world.
• D. This world results in a shift of attention from what has been written to who has written.
• A. Has
• B. Have
• C. Was
• D. Did

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Identify the nature of criticism discussed
The passage explicitly states that the criticism is focused more on “identity” and “foreignness” rather than on the literary style.
In fact, one critic even refused to read the book at all.
Step 2: Evaluate the options
(a) Supported – young Indians welcome foreign writers.
(b) Supported – some elites oppose social mobility.
(c) Directly stated – Dalrymple was accused of re-colonization.
(d) Incorrect – this misrepresents the passage; criticism was *not* about literary style. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(d)} \]

Answer 2

Step 1: Contextual meaning of “fusillade”
The passage says the writers came under a “fusillade of criticism” – meaning a sudden, intense burst of criticism.
Step 2: Match with closest synonym
(a) Barrage – matches perfectly: an overwhelming attack.
(b) Breach – means gap or break.
(c) Temper – irrelevant to criticism.
(d) Row – means argument, but not a barrage. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(a)} \]

Answer 3

Step 1: Analyze the phrase used in the passage
The passage explicitly discusses criticism focused on “who gets to write” – targeting writers like Dalrymple and French for being foreign, not for content.
Step 2: Evaluate options
(a) Incorrect – the writers themselves are not being described.
(b) Correct – this refers to the critics questioning foreigners’ right to write.
(c) Partly correct – mentioned in context, but not the full meaning.
(d) Incorrect – cultural pluralists are described positively. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(b)} \]

Answer 4

Step 1: Locate author’s view on criticism
The passage says: “What is most interesting… is their essential nature makes reading the book superfluous.”
That is, critics attack identity, not writing. Step 2: Evaluate options
(a) Partially true but not the “most peculiar” part.
(b) Stated but not as the main critique.
(c) Correct – central theme: criticism is about identity.
(d) Mentioned, but not the most peculiar aspect. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(c)} \]

Answer 5

Step 1: Understand the author's tone about intelligentsia
The writer states that “a certain portion of the intelligentsia” is out of sync with India’s changing ethos — where deeds matter more than identities.
Step 2: Evaluate options
(a) Opposite – the passage says caste and other identities are becoming *less* important.
(b) False – French supports those policies; the critics call them imperialist.
(c) Correct – this is directly stated.
(d) Incorrect – passage highlights linguistic pluralism and tolerance. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(c)} \]

Answer 6

Step 1: Identify the author’s belief about the youth
The passage clearly praises young Indians as “the future” and says they’ve embraced the “glimmering idea” that merit and deeds, not identity, should define worth.
Step 2: Eliminate incorrect options
(a) False – French is criticized by others, not by the author.
(b) Not mentioned as “expected”; criticism is described as identity-focused, not predicted.
(c) False – the author defends India’s deep pluralism.
(d) Correct – it’s the central hopeful idea in the last paragraph. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(d)} \]

Answer 7

Step 1: Examine the specific phrase in the passage
The passage says: “But it is not just this deep in the bones pluralism…”
This directly follows the list of religious diversity and linguistic tolerance in India.
Step 2: Eliminate the incorrect choices
(a) Partial – yoga is mentioned, but it’s not the reason for the historical religious reference.
(b) Dialects are mentioned, but not the point here.
(c) Not supported – religiosity is not the focus.
(d) Correct – “deep in the bones pluralism” is a direct quote and intended idea. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(d)} \]

Answer 8

Step 1: Analyze author's main point about criticism
The author states that some critics “refuse to read the book” and focus instead on **who wrote** it. The debate is about “who gets to write,” not the **content** of the book. Step 2: Eliminate incorrect options
(a) Not stated – no mention of the size of the critic population.
(b) Irrelevant – popularity among youth not discussed here.
(c) Partially true, but not main reason for “superfluous reading.”
(d) Correct – criticism is about identity, not literary style. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(d)} \]

Answer 9

Step 1: Focus on the key sentence in the passage
The passage humorously states that to decide “who gets to write” we’d need to decide “who gets to decide” — illustrating the complication. Step 2: Evaluate all options
(a) True but not the **reason** it’s complicated.
(b) Correct – captures the essence of why the issue is difficult.
(c) False – the passage argues **deeds matter more**, so ascriptive identities are less important.
(d) This is a **result**, not the reason for complication. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(b)} \]

Answer 10

Step 1: Identify the subject of the verb
The subject is “sensitivity” (singular). The verb must match it. Step 2: Match tense and number
“Has flared” is present perfect, agrees with singular subject.
“Have” is plural, incorrect. “Was” is past, but does not match “flared into...” in the sentence. “Did” is simple past, but inappropriate here. % Final Answer \[ \boxed{(a)} \]