General awareness

Fiscal deficit measures the gap between the government's total expenditure and its non-debt receipts, representing the total borrowing needed. Option B is correct because it accurately defines this financial gap. In contrast, option C is incorrect because the difference between exports and imports is referred to as the trade deficit.

A fixed deposit receipt is not a negotiable instrument because it cannot be transferred freely to another person by mere delivery or endorsement. In contrast, cheques, promissory notes, and bills of exchange are explicitly defined as negotiable instruments under the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.

The RBI's core monetary function includes issuing banknotes and managing the country's money supply, making option A the correct choice. A diagram for this topic isn't available yet — the worked example below walks the same reasoning step by step.

• !Collecting income tax (option B) is the responsibility of the Income Tax Department, not the central bank, so that answer is incorrect.
• !Option A is incorrect because the rate at which banks lend to customers is known as the base rate or MCLR, not the repo rate.
• !Option A is incorrect because NPAs represent unprofitable, bad loans rather than profitable investments for a financial institution.
• !In contrast, option C is incorrect because the difference between exports and imports is referred to as the trade deficit.

Answer each from memory — you'll see instantly whether you're right and why.

Run a focused 10-question mini-mock on General awareness and see it stick.