UPSC Prelims 2015 · Question 67 of 98

UPSC Prelims 2015 question on Indian Ocean Rim Association

With reference to the 'Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC)', consider the following statements:

1. It was established very recently in response to incidents of piracy and accidents of oil spills.

2. It is an alliance meant for maritime security only.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer

Answer: D. Neither 1 nor 2

Verdict

The answer is neither 1 nor 2. IOR-ARC was established in 1997 and is a broad economic grouping, not a recent anti piracy or maritime security alliance.

Analysis

Statement 1 is INCORRECT. The Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation was established at Mauritius in March 1997 with the aim of promoting economic and technical cooperation, which is neither very recent nor a response to piracy and oil spills. Statement 2 is INCORRECT. It is the only pan Indian Ocean grouping and provides a platform for trade, socio economic and cultural cooperation across the rim, bringing together countries from three continents, so it is not confined to maritime security.

Source

Ministry of External Affairs material on IOR-ARC.

How to crack it

The word only in statement 2 and the words very recently in statement 1 are both restrictive, and restrictive words are where these questions are decided. Regional organisations are typically founded with broad economic mandates and later add security agendas, so a claim that a grouping is for one purpose alone is usually false. Check the founding decade too, since most Indian Ocean and Asian groupings date from the 1990s wave of regionalism.

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