Reading Comprehension Questions and Answers

Answer: B

Human existence is at a critical juncture because of the lack of understanding among individuals, communities and nations. The passage begins by saying that, with human existence faced with many crises, the only way to survive is to pick up the threads of understanding among individuals, communities, nations and the ecosystems. Explosive development of science and technology, religious fanaticism and material goals are all named elsewhere as causes of danger, but they are presented as effects or contributing factors, not as the reason for the juncture itself. Option B is correct.

Answer: A

The understanding of the religious scriptures is often overshadowed by fanaticism. The second paragraph says that, for lack of proper understanding of the spiritual association between human beings and nature described in the scriptures, religious traditions are often overpowered by fanaticism and various kinds of material goals. Scientific innovations and technological development are discussed in a different context, as sources of danger to humanity, and rational appraisal is what the passage wants religious traditions to adopt, so it cannot be what overshadows them. Option A is correct.

Answer: D

The passage says that human existence with peace can be built on a balance of scientific and spiritual progress. It speaks of the need for a balanced approach between scientific temper and spiritual values, and of a cooperative effort of science, spirituality and human organisations as the condition for protecting ecosystems and world peace. Technological progress alone, or material and scientific progress without the spiritual side, is exactly the lopsided path that the author blames for the dangers. Option C pairs spiritual with material progress, but the passage's contrast is between spiritual values and scientific temper, so option D is correct.

Answer: D

A trap being set for the human species stands for all of the dangers listed in the passage. The passage names the depletion of the ozone layer, global warming, the loss of biodiversity (ecological imbalances) and the prospect of a global nuclear war, and adds that there may be other dangers of which we are still ignorant. It says that individually and collectively they represent the trap. Since the options that name only the ozone layer, only ecological imbalances, or only nuclear war each leave out part of the list, option D, all the above, is correct.

Answer: A

The tone of the passage is analytical, according to the key. The author takes the dangers that science and religion each carry, sets out their causes, and then argues for a balance between scientific temper and spiritual values, so the passage is reasoned and examines causes and effects rather than only describing or telling a story. It does contain some advice, which is why prescriptive is the nearest rival, but the greater part of the text is analysis of the problem. Descriptive and narrative do not fit, because the passage neither lists features nor relates events. Option A is the keyed answer.

Answer: D

The passage says that, after liberalisation, public expectations from corporates and business are growing: the business sector must play a wider and more expansive societal role, beyond making good products at reasonable prices.

Earning more profits, serving market interests and international business are business aims, not what the public expects from them according to the passage. The last option is the one that follows the survey statement in the passage.

Answer: B

According to the passage, companies voluntarily contribute to a better society because they consider themselves an integral part of society and so act in a socially responsible way. This is the reason given in the passage for corporate social responsibility.

Improving business outcomes, improving image and finding shareholders are not given as the reason. The passage says the old view was that CSR was done as philanthropy when firms were in trouble, and that it is now seen as part of business strategy to reduce risk.

Answer: A

The passage says that most of the multinational corporates have a CSR wing or department exclusively dedicated to community development and CSR activities, staffed with professionals from social work, rural development and other fields. So CSR is best managed by a separate wing or department.

The chief executive, the human resource department and the finance department are not mentioned in the passage as the managers of CSR, so the answer follows from the statement about the dedicated wing.

Answer: C

The passage states that the major skills required of a successful CSR professional are business skills, people skills and technical skills. So the answer is business skills combined with people and technical skills.

Communication skills alone, or philanthropic and helping skills alone, name only a part of what is needed, and the passage lists three skills together. “None of these” is wrong because the passage names the skills.

Answer: D

The passage lists six core competencies for CSR managers: understanding society, building capacity, questioning business as usual, stakeholder relations, strategic view and harnessing diversity. Understanding the community, building the capacity of people and harnessing diversity are each among them, so the answer is “All of the above”.

Each of the first three options is correct but names only one of the competencies, so selecting any one of them alone is incomplete.