Where is the corporate office of RBL Bank located?

The correct answer is A, Bharatiya Mahila Bank. From 1 April 2017 the State Bank of India absorbed its five remaining associate banks, the State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, the State Bank of Hyderabad, the State Bank of Mysore, the State Bank of Patiala and the State Bank of Travancore, together with Bharatiya Mahila Bank, which had been set up in 2013 as a bank focused on women customers.

Option B, Dena Bank, was merged into Bank of Baroda in 2019. Option C, Corporation Bank, went into Union Bank of India in 2020. Option D, United Bank of India, went into Punjab National Bank in 2020. Note that two associate banks had been merged into the State Bank earlier, the State Bank of Saurashtra in 2008 and the State Bank of Indore in 2010, which is why only five were left in 2017.

The correct answer is B, the Bank Nationalisation case. R. C. Cooper, a shareholder and director of one of the affected banks, challenged the law of 1969, and an eleven judge bench of the Supreme Court struck it down because the compensation provided for the acquired undertakings was not adequate and the banks were barred from carrying on business. Parliament then enacted a fresh law, so nationalisation stood.

Option A, the Privy Purse case, is Madhav Rao Scindia v. Union of India, about the derecognition of the princes. Option C, the Fundamental Rights case, is Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala of 1973, which laid down the basic structure doctrine. Option D, the Judges Transfer case, is S. P. Gupta v. Union of India. All four are landmark cases of the same period, which is why they appear together as options.

The correct answer is B, Rupees 50 crore. The cut off used in the first round of nationalisation was deposits of fifty crore rupees or more as on the relevant date, and fourteen banks crossed it. The purpose stated in the preamble was to control the commanding heights of the economy and to direct credit to agriculture, small industry, exports and the weaker sections.

Option A, twenty-five crore rupees, matches no round. Option C, one hundred crore rupees, is a figure candidates invent as a midpoint. Option D, two hundred crore rupees, is the threshold of the second round in 1980, when six banks were nationalised. The pair to memorise is fifty crore rupees with fourteen banks in 1969 and two hundred crore rupees with six banks in 1980; papers often give the year and ask the amount, or give the amount and ask the number.

The correct answer is B, Bank of Baroda. With effect from 1 April 2019, Vijaya Bank of Karnataka and Dena Bank of Gujarat were merged into Bank of Baroda. It was the first three way amalgamation of public sector banks in India, and the merged entity became one of the largest public sector banks by branch network.

Option A, Punjab National Bank, took in Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank of India a year later. Option C, Union Bank of India, took in Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank in the same 2020 round. Option D, State Bank of India, had completed its own merger in 2017 by absorbing five associate banks and Bharatiya Mahila Bank. Note that Dena Bank was one of the fourteen banks of 1969 and Vijaya Bank one of the six of 1980.

The correct answer is B, Indian Bank. Allahabad Bank, founded in 1865 and one of the fourteen banks nationalised in 1969, was amalgamated into Indian Bank with effect from 1 April 2020. Indian Bank, founded in 1907 at Madras, was the anchor bank, so the older institution disappeared into the younger one, which is the detail examiners like about this pair.

Option A, Punjab National Bank, absorbed Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank of India in the same round. Option C, Canara Bank, absorbed Syndicate Bank. Option D, Bank of India, was not an anchor bank in this round at all and continues as a separate public sector bank. After this round the number of public sector banks came down from twenty-seven in 2017 to twelve.