Question:

Read the passage and answer the question that follows.

Vaatsalya Healthcare is one among a rapidly spreading group of "for profit" social enterprises that serve the poor and still bring in profit. Mumbai based Ziqitza, an ambulance services company, is another; it never refuses a patient for lack of money and charges only Rs. 50 to Rs. 200. Entrepreneurial minds with a social conscience are now building such models at a much faster pace than before. Varun Sahni, country director of Acumen Fund, a US based social fund that invests in companies targeting low income communities, says there has been a boom in such enterprises over the past two years, with about 1,000 of them now operating in India. These enterprises work across healthcare, education, rural energy, agriculture, arts and crafts, banking and more. "For profit" entrepreneurs care about social and environmental impact along with financial returns, and because they are answerable to investors, they try to expand the business rapidly. SKS Microfinance, for instance, started in 1998 and now has over 900,000 customers, 440 branches and an outstanding loan disbursement of over Rs. 452 crore as of August 2007.

Which of the following companies does not illustrate the idea explained by the author?

Show Hint

Look at which option only provides money to other businesses instead of directly serving low income customers itself.
Updated On: Jul 14, 2026
  • SKS Microfinance
  • Acumen Fund
  • Ziqitza
  • Vaatsalya Healthcare
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The Correct Option is B

Solution and Explanation

This question is based on the passage about "for profit" social enterprises, organisations that serve poor and low income communities while still running as a real, profit making business. The passage names several such enterprises and one investor. We need to pick the option that is NOT itself an enterprise of this kind.

  1. SKS Microfinance: The passage says SKS Microfinance started in 1998 and now has over 900,000 customers, 440 branches and an outstanding loan disbursement of over Rs. 452 crore. It lends money directly to low income borrowers and earns interest on those loans, so it fits the "for profit" social enterprise pattern the author describes.
  2. Acumen Fund: The passage describes Acumen Fund as "a US based social fund that invests in companies that target low income communities". This means Acumen Fund puts money into other enterprises, it does not itself run hospitals, ambulances or microfinance branches for the poor. It is an investor sitting one step away from the direct service delivery the author is writing about, so it does not illustrate the idea in the same way the other three do.
  3. Ziqitza: Ziqitza is named as a Mumbai based ambulance services company that never turns away a patient for lack of money and charges only Rs. 50 to Rs. 200. It delivers a direct paid service to the poor, exactly the model the author describes.
  4. Vaatsalya Healthcare: This is the very enterprise the passage opens with, a chain of hospitals bringing paediatric surgery and other care to smaller towns on a for profit basis. It is the clearest example of the idea in the passage.

Three of the four options, SKS Microfinance, Ziqitza and Vaatsalya Healthcare, are enterprises that sell a service or product directly to low income customers and earn a profit doing it. Acumen Fund is different: it is a fund that finances such enterprises rather than running one, so it does not illustrate the author's idea in the same direct sense.

Let's summarize:

  • SKS Microfinance, Ziqitza and Vaatsalya Healthcare all directly serve low income customers while earning a profit, matching the passage.
  • Acumen Fund only invests in such companies, it is a financier, not a service delivering enterprise.

So the company that does not illustrate the author's idea is Acumen Fund, option B.

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