IBPS Clerk 30 Questions English Super Quiz
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Question 1
Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.
To restore small investor faith in financial savings, policymakers have trained their guns on Ponzi schemes. But retail investors often lose money in regulated financial products as well, due to mis-selling, over-blown product claims and inherently flawed products peddled by financial firms. This is why the report of the Sumit Bose committee on the mis-selling and streamlining of incentives for market-linked products, submitted last week, deserves careful consideration. With an unerring focus on consumer interests, the report has gone into the nitty-gritty of products such as mutual funds and insurance to make very specific recommendations on how their incentive and product structures can be reworked. This was the missing piece in the draft of the Indian Financial Code as well as recent consumer protection guidelines from the RBI and IRDA, which merely laid down ‘best practices’ for market players.
This report identifies three main problem areas in investor protection and goes on to recommend fixes for them. One is that front-loaded commissions are at the root of the problem of mis-selling. It finds that first-year commissions, as high as 35 percent on traditional insurance plans and 7-8 percent on new fund offers, have led to agents hard-selling them over low-cost NPS or exchange-traded funds. Therefore, it suggests that upfront commissions be banned, with all financial products moving to a full trail model, where distributor fees are pegged to returns. This is indeed the best way to seamlessly align the interests of distributors with those of investors and financial firms. Incomplete disclosures and confusing jargon play a key role in misleading investors. The report frowns upon practices such as insurers using the term ‘bonus’ to describe plain-vanilla returns and new fund offers being marketed as ‘at par’. It recommends moving all market-linked products to a uniform cap on costs and allowing investors an easy exit if they are disappointed with the performance. Noting the yawning regulatory arbitrage between assets, the committee recommends that either all the financial market regulators be merged (as suggested by the Indian Financial Code) or, somewhat over-optimistically, they willingly cede turf to each other.
Overall, while the report offers unambiguous solutions to plug the regulatory gaps in market-linked products, implementing them will cause quite a shakeup in the financial markets. The blanket ban on upfront commissions, as the ban on mutual fund entry loads has shown, cannot be achieved without sizeable upheavals in the agent force. Cracking down on the sky-high commissions on traditional insurance plans is bound to dent the profitability of insurers and force them to completely rework their business model. Similarly, transitioning all financial products to uniform cost and incentive structures will require hundreds of products to be withdrawn and reworked, with grandfathering clauses for older investors. But if policymakers want investors to shed their mistrust of market-linked products, they may have to bite the bullet on at least some of these prescriptions.
Source: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/
What is the author trying to suggest to his readers through the given passage?
Question 2
Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.
To restore small investor faith in financial savings, policymakers have trained their guns on Ponzi schemes. But retail investors often lose money in regulated financial products as well, due to mis-selling, over-blown product claims and inherently flawed products peddled by financial firms. This is why the report of the Sumit Bose committee on the mis-selling and streamlining of incentives for market-linked products, submitted last week, deserves careful consideration. With an unerring focus on consumer interests, the report has gone into the nitty-gritty of products such as mutual funds and insurance to make very specific recommendations on how their incentive and product structures can be reworked. This was the missing piece in the draft of the Indian Financial Code as well as recent consumer protection guidelines from the RBI and IRDA, which merely laid down ‘best practices’ for market players.
This report identifies three main problem areas in investor protection and goes on to recommend fixes for them. One is that front-loaded commissions are at the root of the problem of mis-selling. It finds that first-year commissions, as high as 35 percent on traditional insurance plans and 7-8 percent on new fund offers, have led to agents hard-selling them over low-cost NPS or exchange-traded funds. Therefore, it suggests that upfront commissions be banned, with all financial products moving to a full trail model, where distributor fees are pegged to returns. This is indeed the best way to seamlessly align the interests of distributors with those of investors and financial firms. Incomplete disclosures and confusing jargon play a key role in misleading investors. The report frowns upon practices such as insurers using the term ‘bonus’ to describe plain-vanilla returns and new fund offers being marketed as ‘at par’. It recommends moving all market-linked products to a uniform cap on costs and allowing investors an easy exit if they are disappointed with the performance. Noting the yawning regulatory arbitrage between assets, the committee recommends that either all the financial market regulators be merged (as suggested by the Indian Financial Code) or, somewhat over-optimistically, they willingly cede turf to each other.
Overall, while the report offers unambiguous solutions to plug the regulatory gaps in market-linked products, implementing them will cause quite a shakeup in the financial markets. The blanket ban on upfront commissions, as the ban on mutual fund entry loads has shown, cannot be achieved without sizeable upheavals in the agent force. Cracking down on the sky-high commissions on traditional insurance plans is bound to dent the profitability of insurers and force them to completely rework their business model. Similarly, transitioning all financial products to uniform cost and incentive structures will require hundreds of products to be withdrawn and reworked, with grandfathering clauses for older investors. But if policymakers want investors to shed their mistrust of market-linked products, they may have to bite the bullet on at least some of these prescriptions.
Source: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/
Why does the author of the given passage believe that the report submitted by the Sumit Bose Committee is a missing piece in the draft of the Indian Financial Code as well as recent consumer protection guidelines from the RBI and IRDA?
Question 3
Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.
To restore small investor faith in financial savings, policymakers have trained their guns on Ponzi schemes. But retail investors often lose money in regulated financial products as well, due to mis-selling, over-blown product claims and inherently flawed products peddled by financial firms. This is why the report of the Sumit Bose committee on the mis-selling and streamlining of incentives for market-linked products, submitted last week, deserves careful consideration. With an unerring focus on consumer interests, the report has gone into the nitty-gritty of products such as mutual funds and insurance to make very specific recommendations on how their incentive and product structures can be reworked. This was the missing piece in the draft of the Indian Financial Code as well as recent consumer protection guidelines from the RBI and IRDA, which merely laid down ‘best practices’ for market players.
This report identifies three main problem areas in investor protection and goes on to recommend fixes for them. One is that front-loaded commissions are at the root of the problem of mis-selling. It finds that first-year commissions, as high as 35 percent on traditional insurance plans and 7-8 percent on new fund offers, have led to agents hard-selling them over low-cost NPS or exchange-traded funds. Therefore, it suggests that upfront commissions be banned, with all financial products moving to a full trail model, where distributor fees are pegged to returns. This is indeed the best way to seamlessly align the interests of distributors with those of investors and financial firms. Incomplete disclosures and confusing jargon play a key role in misleading investors. The report frowns upon practices such as insurers using the term ‘bonus’ to describe plain-vanilla returns and new fund offers being marketed as ‘at par’. It recommends moving all market-linked products to a uniform cap on costs and allowing investors an easy exit if they are disappointed with the performance. Noting the yawning regulatory arbitrage between assets, the committee recommends that either all the financial market regulators be merged (as suggested by the Indian Financial Code) or, somewhat over-optimistically, they willingly cede turf to each other.
Overall, while the report offers unambiguous solutions to plug the regulatory gaps in market-linked products, implementing them will cause quite a shakeup in the financial markets. The blanket ban on upfront commissions, as the ban on mutual fund entry loads has shown, cannot be achieved without sizeable upheavals in the agent force. Cracking down on the sky-high commissions on traditional insurance plans is bound to dent the profitability of insurers and force them to completely rework their business model. Similarly, transitioning all financial products to uniform cost and incentive structures will require hundreds of products to be withdrawn and reworked, with grandfathering clauses for older investors. But if policymakers want investors to shed their mistrust of market-linked products, they may have to bite the bullet on at least some of these prescriptions.
Source: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/
Which of the following key problems have been identified in the report submitted by the Sumit Bose Committee?
Question 4
Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.
To restore small investor faith in financial savings, policymakers have trained their guns on Ponzi schemes. But retail investors often lose money in regulated financial products as well, due to mis-selling, over-blown product claims and inherently flawed products peddled by financial firms. This is why the report of the Sumit Bose committee on the mis-selling and streamlining of incentives for market-linked products, submitted last week, deserves careful consideration. With an unerring focus on consumer interests, the report has gone into the nitty-gritty of products such as mutual funds and insurance to make very specific recommendations on how their incentive and product structures can be reworked. This was the missing piece in the draft of the Indian Financial Code as well as recent consumer protection guidelines from the RBI and IRDA, which merely laid down ‘best practices’ for market players.
This report identifies three main problem areas in investor protection and goes on to recommend fixes for them. One is that front-loaded commissions are at the root of the problem of mis-selling. It finds that first-year commissions, as high as 35 percent on traditional insurance plans and 7-8 percent on new fund offers, have led to agents hard-selling them over low-cost NPS or exchange-traded funds. Therefore, it suggests that upfront commissions be banned, with all financial products moving to a full trail model, where distributor fees are pegged to returns. This is indeed the best way to seamlessly align the interests of distributors with those of investors and financial firms. Incomplete disclosures and confusing jargon play a key role in misleading investors. The report frowns upon practices such as insurers using the term ‘bonus’ to describe plain-vanilla returns and new fund offers being marketed as ‘at par’. It recommends moving all market-linked products to a uniform cap on costs and allowing investors an easy exit if they are disappointed with the performance. Noting the yawning regulatory arbitrage between assets, the committee recommends that either all the financial market regulators be merged (as suggested by the Indian Financial Code) or, somewhat over-optimistically, they willingly cede turf to each other.
Overall, while the report offers unambiguous solutions to plug the regulatory gaps in market-linked products, implementing them will cause quite a shakeup in the financial markets. The blanket ban on upfront commissions, as the ban on mutual fund entry loads has shown, cannot be achieved without sizeable upheavals in the agent force. Cracking down on the sky-high commissions on traditional insurance plans is bound to dent the profitability of insurers and force them to completely rework their business model. Similarly, transitioning all financial products to uniform cost and incentive structures will require hundreds of products to be withdrawn and reworked, with grandfathering clauses for older investors. But if policymakers want investors to shed their mistrust of market-linked products, they may have to bite the bullet on at least some of these prescriptions.
Source: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/
Which of the following represents the recommendations of the Sumit Bose Committee, as suggested in the report?
Question 5
Direction: Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. Certain words are printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of these.
To restore small investor faith in financial savings, policymakers have trained their guns on Ponzi schemes. But retail investors often lose money in regulated financial products as well, due to mis-selling, over-blown product claims and inherently flawed products peddled by financial firms. This is why the report of the Sumit Bose committee on the mis-selling and streamlining of incentives for market-linked products, submitted last week, deserves careful consideration. With an unerring focus on consumer interests, the report has gone into the nitty-gritty of products such as mutual funds and insurance to make very specific recommendations on how their incentive and product structures can be reworked. This was the missing piece in the draft of the Indian Financial Code as well as recent consumer protection guidelines from the RBI and IRDA, which merely laid down ‘best practices’ for market players.
This report identifies three main problem areas in investor protection and goes on to recommend fixes for them. One is that front-loaded commissions are at the root of the problem of mis-selling. It finds that first-year commissions, as high as 35 percent on traditional insurance plans and 7-8 percent on new fund offers, have led to agents hard-selling them over low-cost NPS or exchange-traded funds. Therefore, it suggests that upfront commissions be banned, with all financial products moving to a full trail model, where distributor fees are pegged to returns. This is indeed the best way to seamlessly align the interests of distributors with those of investors and financial firms. Incomplete disclosures and confusing jargon play a key role in misleading investors. The report frowns upon practices such as insurers using the term ‘bonus’ to describe plain-vanilla returns and new fund offers being marketed as ‘at par’. It recommends moving all market-linked products to a uniform cap on costs and allowing investors an easy exit if they are disappointed with the performance. Noting the yawning regulatory arbitrage between assets, the committee recommends that either all the financial market regulators be merged (as suggested by the Indian Financial Code) or, somewhat over-optimistically, they willingly cede turf to each other.
Overall, while the report offers unambiguous solutions to plug the regulatory gaps in market-linked products, implementing them will cause quite a shakeup in the financial markets. The blanket ban on upfront commissions, as the ban on mutual fund entry loads has shown, cannot be achieved without sizeable upheavals in the agent force. Cracking down on the sky-high commissions on traditional insurance plans is bound to dent the profitability of insurers and force them to completely rework their business model. Similarly, transitioning all financial products to uniform cost and incentive structures will require hundreds of products to be withdrawn and reworked, with grandfathering clauses for older investors. But if policymakers want investors to shed their mistrust of market-linked products, they may have to bite the bullet on at least some of these prescriptions.
Source: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/
Which of the following best defines 'bite the bullet', as used in the given passage?
Question 6
Eleven years after it was first mooted in Parliament, the Rajya Sabha has finally adopted a goods and services tax. After the mere formality of its passage in the Lok Sabha for an approval of the amendments made, it will have to be considered and approved by a majority of State Assemblies before it can be sent to the President for (6). For now, Parliament’s stamp is historic as the proposed tax will alter the powers of taxation that States enjoyed under the Constitution and (7) in a uniform consumption-based tax structure across the land for almost all goods and services. Only potable alcohol is proposed to be excluded from the GST’s (8), according to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, with petroleum products set to be pegged at a zero per cent rate till such time as the proposed GST Council reaches an agreement with the States and the Centre on an acceptable framework for taxation. That the two main players — the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress — were able to narrow their differences restores a degree of faith in the capacity of the political class to put the nation above petty self-serving interests. While it is a (9) that consensus took so long to forge, both parties deserve a measure of credit for seeing the legislation through. The BJP for being accommodative in the face of reservations about specific provisions, which was accompanied by a much-needed change in tack in dealing with the Opposition. And the Congress, which became increasingly isolated on the issue and risked appearing (10) obstructionist, for overcoming its desire to pay the BJP back in its own coin.
Question 7
Eleven years after it was first mooted in Parliament, the Rajya Sabha has finally adopted a goods and services tax. After the mere formality of its passage in the Lok Sabha for an approval of the amendments made, it will have to be considered and approved by a majority of State Assemblies before it can be sent to the President for (6). For now, Parliament’s stamp is historic as the proposed tax will alter the powers of taxation that States enjoyed under the Constitution and (7) in a uniform consumption-based tax structure across the land for almost all goods and services. Only potable alcohol is proposed to be excluded from the GST’s (8), according to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, with petroleum products set to be pegged at a zero per cent rate till such time as the proposed GST Council reaches an agreement with the States and the Centre on an acceptable framework for taxation. That the two main players — the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress — were able to narrow their differences restores a degree of faith in the capacity of the political class to put the nation above petty self-serving interests. While it is a (9) that consensus took so long to forge, both parties deserve a measure of credit for seeing the legislation through. The BJP for being accommodative in the face of reservations about specific provisions, which was accompanied by a much-needed change in tack in dealing with the Opposition. And the Congress, which became increasingly isolated on the issue and risked appearing (10) obstructionist, for overcoming its desire to pay the BJP back in its own coin.
Question 8
Eleven years after it was first mooted in Parliament, the Rajya Sabha has finally adopted a goods and services tax. After the mere formality of its passage in the Lok Sabha for an approval of the amendments made, it will have to be considered and approved by a majority of State Assemblies before it can be sent to the President for (6). For now, Parliament’s stamp is historic as the proposed tax will alter the powers of taxation that States enjoyed under the Constitution and (7) in a uniform consumption-based tax structure across the land for almost all goods and services. Only potable alcohol is proposed to be excluded from the GST’s (8), according to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, with petroleum products set to be pegged at a zero per cent rate till such time as the proposed GST Council reaches an agreement with the States and the Centre on an acceptable framework for taxation. That the two main players — the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress — were able to narrow their differences restores a degree of faith in the capacity of the political class to put the nation above petty self-serving interests. While it is a (9) that consensus took so long to forge, both parties deserve a measure of credit for seeing the legislation through. The BJP for being accommodative in the face of reservations about specific provisions, which was accompanied by a much-needed change in tack in dealing with the Opposition. And the Congress, which became increasingly isolated on the issue and risked appearing (10) obstructionist, for overcoming its desire to pay the BJP back in its own coin.
Question 9
Eleven years after it was first mooted in Parliament, the Rajya Sabha has finally adopted a goods and services tax. After the mere formality of its passage in the Lok Sabha for an approval of the amendments made, it will have to be considered and approved by a majority of State Assemblies before it can be sent to the President for (6). For now, Parliament’s stamp is historic as the proposed tax will alter the powers of taxation that States enjoyed under the Constitution and (7) in a uniform consumption-based tax structure across the land for almost all goods and services. Only potable alcohol is proposed to be excluded from the GST’s (8), according to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, with petroleum products set to be pegged at a zero per cent rate till such time as the proposed GST Council reaches an agreement with the States and the Centre on an acceptable framework for taxation. That the two main players — the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress — were able to narrow their differences restores a degree of faith in the capacity of the political class to put the nation above petty self-serving interests. While it is a (9) that consensus took so long to forge, both parties deserve a measure of credit for seeing the legislation through. The BJP for being accommodative in the face of reservations about specific provisions, which was accompanied by a much-needed change in tack in dealing with the Opposition. And the Congress, which became increasingly isolated on the issue and risked appearing (10) obstructionist, for overcoming its desire to pay the BJP back in its own coin.
Question 10
Eleven years after it was first mooted in Parliament, the Rajya Sabha has finally adopted a goods and services tax. After the mere formality of its passage in the Lok Sabha for an approval of the amendments made, it will have to be considered and approved by a majority of State Assemblies before it can be sent to the President for (6). For now, Parliament’s stamp is historic as the proposed tax will alter the powers of taxation that States enjoyed under the Constitution and (7) in a uniform consumption-based tax structure across the land for almost all goods and services. Only potable alcohol is proposed to be excluded from the GST’s (8), according to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, with petroleum products set to be pegged at a zero per cent rate till such time as the proposed GST Council reaches an agreement with the States and the Centre on an acceptable framework for taxation. That the two main players — the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress — were able to narrow their differences restores a degree of faith in the capacity of the political class to put the nation above petty self-serving interests. While it is a (9) that consensus took so long to forge, both parties deserve a measure of credit for seeing the legislation through. The BJP for being accommodative in the face of reservations about specific provisions, which was accompanied by a much-needed change in tack in dealing with the Opposition. And the Congress, which became increasingly isolated on the issue and risked appearing (10) obstructionist, for overcoming its desire to pay the BJP back in its own coin.
Question 11
Question 12
Question 13
Question 14
Question 15
Question 16
i. it would become more
ii. it was becoming more
iii. it became lesser
Question 17
i. though it transforms
ii. as it changes
iii. though it boils
Question 18
i. need different kettles of fishes.
ii. wants a different kettle of fish.
iii. wanted a different kettle of fish.
Question 19
i. Imposed upon a taxpayer
ii. Stolen from a taxpayer
iii. Reimbursed to a taxpayer
Question 20
i. Kept his nose on the grindstone
ii. Keeping his nose on the grindstone
iii. Keeping his nose to the grindstone
Question 21
I. voracious
II. rigours
III. slight
Question 22
I. Alcoves
II. Indelible
III. Tenaciousness
Question 23
I. Sting
II. Twinge
III. Chore
Question 24
Question 25
Question 26
A. The editors, however, contest the Assam Rifles’ remit in asking them to refrain from carrying press releases of banned groups such as the NSCN (K).
B. On November 16, a day marked as National Press Day, three newspapers made a statement in that cause by publishing blank spaces on their editorial pages.
C. The editors were told they could be violating the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967.
D. They were protesting against a notice served by the Assam Rifles to the editors of newspapers in Nagaland, warning them on coverage of the banned National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Khaplang).
E. In its defence, the Assam Rifles has drawn attention to a clause in the UAPA, under which the press can be made accountable in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of the country.
F. Such crucial technicalities apart, the diktat begs the larger question about both the freedom of expression and the independence of the press.
G. This expression of defiance draws attention to the problems faced by the press in places described as conflict zones, trapped as mediapersons are between the state armed with the law to enforce varying degrees of censorship, and militant groups who use all methods of intimidation to have their versions published.
Question 27
A. The editors, however, contest the Assam Rifles’ remit in asking them to refrain from carrying press releases of banned groups such as the NSCN (K).
B. On November 16, a day marked as National Press Day, three newspapers made a statement in that cause by publishing blank spaces on their editorial pages.
C. The editors were told they could be violating the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967.
D. They were protesting against a notice served by the Assam Rifles to the editors of newspapers in Nagaland, warning them on coverage of the banned National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Khaplang).
E. In its defence, the Assam Rifles has drawn attention to a clause in the UAPA, under which the press can be made accountable in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of the country.
F. Such crucial technicalities apart, the diktat begs the larger question about both the freedom of expression and the independence of the press.
G. This expression of defiance draws attention to the problems faced by the press in places described as conflict zones, trapped as mediapersons are between the state armed with the law to enforce varying degrees of censorship, and militant groups who use all methods of intimidation to have their versions published.
Question 28
A. The editors, however, contest the Assam Rifles’ remit in asking them to refrain from carrying press releases of banned groups such as the NSCN (K).
B. On November 16, a day marked as National Press Day, three newspapers made a statement in that cause by publishing blank spaces on their editorial pages.
C. The editors were told they could be violating the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967.
D. They were protesting against a notice served by the Assam Rifles to the editors of newspapers in Nagaland, warning them on coverage of the banned National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Khaplang).
E. In its defence, the Assam Rifles has drawn attention to a clause in the UAPA, under which the press can be made accountable in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of the country.
F. Such crucial technicalities apart, the diktat begs the larger question about both the freedom of expression and the independence of the press.
G. This expression of defiance draws attention to the problems faced by the press in places described as conflict zones, trapped as mediapersons are between the state armed with the law to enforce varying degrees of censorship, and militant groups who use all methods of intimidation to have their versions published.
Question 29
A. The editors, however, contest the Assam Rifles’ remit in asking them to refrain from carrying press releases of banned groups such as the NSCN (K).
B. On November 16, a day marked as National Press Day, three newspapers made a statement in that cause by publishing blank spaces on their editorial pages.
C. The editors were told they could be violating the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967.
D. They were protesting against a notice served by the Assam Rifles to the editors of newspapers in Nagaland, warning them on coverage of the banned National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Khaplang).
E. In its defence, the Assam Rifles has drawn attention to a clause in the UAPA, under which the press can be made accountable in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of the country.
F. Such crucial technicalities apart, the diktat begs the larger question about both the freedom of expression and the independence of the press.
G. This expression of defiance draws attention to the problems faced by the press in places described as conflict zones, trapped as mediapersons are between the state armed with the law to enforce varying degrees of censorship, and militant groups who use all methods of intimidation to have their versions published.
Question 30
A. The editors, however, contest the Assam Rifles’ remit in asking them to refrain from carrying press releases of banned groups such as the NSCN (K).
B. On November 16, a day marked as National Press Day, three newspapers made a statement in that cause by publishing blank spaces on their editorial pages.
C. The editors were told they could be violating the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967.
D. They were protesting against a notice served by the Assam Rifles to the editors of newspapers in Nagaland, warning them on coverage of the banned National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Khaplang).
E. In its defence, the Assam Rifles has drawn attention to a clause in the UAPA, under which the press can be made accountable in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of the country.
F. Such crucial technicalities apart, the diktat begs the larger question about both the freedom of expression and the independence of the press.
G. This expression of defiance draws attention to the problems faced by the press in places described as conflict zones, trapped as mediapersons are between the state armed with the law to enforce varying degrees of censorship, and militant groups who use all methods of intimidation to have their versions published.
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