This is Set 17 of 42 in the smartvidya question bank on the Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964. Part IV: Gifts and dowry. This set covers Rule 13(1), the Explanation defining "gift", Note (1) on casual hospitality and Note (2) on lavish or frequent hospitality.
Try each question first, then tap Show answer to see the correct option, a short explanation and the rule reference. The gift limits in Rule 13(3) are as revised in 2019, and share-trading intimation follows the DoPT OM of 07.02.2019.
Set 17: Rule 13 – Gifts: the basic prohibition and meaning of "gift"
1. What does Rule 13(1) prohibit, save as otherwise provided in the rules?
(a) Giving any gift to a colleague
(b) Accepting gifts only from foreign nationals
(c) Accepting a salary advance
(d) Accepting, or permitting any family member or person acting on his behalf to accept, any gift
Ans. (d) Accepting, or permitting any family member or person acting on his behalf to accept, any gift — Explanation: Rule 13(1) bars a Government servant from accepting, or permitting any member of his family or any other person acting on his behalf to accept, any gift, except as provided in the rules. [Ref: Rule 13(1)]
2. Under the Explanation to Rule 13(1), "gift" includes which of the following?
(a) Free transport, boarding, lodging or other service, or any other pecuniary advantage
(b) Only cash payments
(c) Only articles of jewellery
(d) Only gifts above Rs. 25,000
Ans. (a) Free transport, boarding, lodging or other service, or any other pecuniary advantage — Explanation: The Explanation gives "gift" a wide meaning: free transport, boarding, lodging or other service or any other pecuniary advantage. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Explanation]
3. Free services count as a "gift" under the Explanation to Rule 13(1) when provided by:
(a) Only a subordinate
(b) Only a company registered in India
(c) Any person other than a near relative or personal friend having no official dealings with the Government servant
(d) Only a foreign national
Ans. (c) Any person other than a near relative or personal friend having no official dealings with the Government servant — Explanation: The Explanation excludes only near relatives or personal friends having no official dealings. Free services from anyone else are gifts. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Explanation]
4. According to Note (1) under Rule 13(1), which of these is NOT deemed to be a gift?
(a) A casual meal, lift or other social hospitality
(b) A free weekend stay at a contractor's resort
(c) A free air ticket from a supplier
(d) A cash payment from a client
Ans. (a) A casual meal, lift or other social hospitality — Explanation: Note (1) says a casual meal, lift or other social hospitality shall not be deemed to be a gift. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Note (1)]
5. Note (2) under Rule 13(1) advises a Government servant to avoid accepting what kind of hospitality from persons having official dealings with him?
(a) Any hospitality whatsoever, even a glass of water
(b) Lavish or frequent hospitality
(c) Hospitality only on weekdays
(d) Hospitality only in hotels
Ans. (b) Lavish or frequent hospitality — Explanation: Note (2) asks Government servants to avoid lavish hospitality or frequent hospitality from any individual, industrial or commercial firms, organisations and the like having official dealings with them. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Note (2)]
6. A contractor with pending bills offers an officer a free five-star holiday package for his family. How is this treated under Rule 13?
(a) It is permitted if the officer does not go himself
(b) It is a gift, since free lodging and transport from a person with official dealings are within the definition
(c) It is social hospitality under Note (1)
(d) It is not a gift because it is a service, not an article
Ans. (b) It is a gift, since free lodging and transport from a person with official dealings are within the definition — Explanation: The Explanation includes free transport, lodging and services. Acceptance by family members is also barred by Rule 13(1). [Ref: Rule 13(1), Explanation]
7. A colleague gives a Government servant a lift home in his car after office. Is this a gift?
(a) Yes, if it happens more than once
(b) Yes, if the distance is over 10 km
(c) Yes, it is free transport
(d) No, a casual lift is social hospitality and not a gift
Ans. (d) No, a casual lift is social hospitality and not a gift — Explanation: Note (1) specifically says a casual lift or other social hospitality is not a gift. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Note (1)]
8. Rule 13(1) forbids a Government servant from permitting whom to accept gifts on his behalf?
(a) Only his personal staff
(b) Any member of his family or any other person acting on his behalf
(c) Only his spouse
(d) Only his dependent children
Ans. (b) Any member of his family or any other person acting on his behalf — Explanation: Rule 13(1) covers gifts accepted by members of the family or any other person acting on his behalf, preventing indirect acceptance. [Ref: Rule 13(1)]
9. A supplier sends a costly watch to the house of an Assistant Engineer, addressed to his wife. Under Rule 13(1):
(a) The Government servant must not permit his wife to accept it, as gifts through family members are covered
(b) The gift may be kept if it is below two months' basic pay
(c) The gift is outside the rules because it is addressed to the wife
(d) The wife may keep it if she has her own income
Ans. (a) The Government servant must not permit his wife to accept it, as gifts through family members are covered — Explanation: Rule 13(1) bars permitting a member of the family to accept a gift that the Government servant could not accept himself. [Ref: Rule 13(1)]
10. Which of the following is a "pecuniary advantage" that can be a gift under the Explanation to Rule 13(1)?
(a) A Government-sanctioned travelling allowance
(b) A casual cup of tea at a colleague's desk
(c) A heavy discount on a car offered by a dealer who supplies vehicles to his department
(d) His regular salary
Ans. (c) A heavy discount on a car offered by a dealer who supplies vehicles to his department — Explanation: A special discount from a person with official dealings is a pecuniary advantage and therefore a gift. Salary and admissible allowances are entitlements, not gifts. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Explanation]
11. The exclusion in the Explanation to Rule 13(1) applies to near relatives or personal friends only if they:
(a) Are Government servants themselves
(b) Are wholly dependent on him
(c) Live in the same city
(d) Have no official dealings with the Government servant
Ans. (d) Have no official dealings with the Government servant — Explanation: A near relative or personal friend who has official dealings is not excluded. The test is the absence of official dealings. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Explanation]
12. A personal friend of an officer is also a contractor dealing with the officer's division. The friend pays for the officer's hotel stay at a conference. Is this a gift?
(a) No, because conferences are official
(b) Only if the stay exceeds three nights
(c) Yes, because the friend has official dealings with him
(d) No, because he is a personal friend
Ans. (c) Yes, because the friend has official dealings with him — Explanation: The exclusion for personal friends applies only where they have no official dealings. Free lodging from a friend with official dealings is a gift. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Explanation]
13. Consider these statements about Rule 13(1): 1. A casual meal is not a gift. 2. Free boarding and lodging can be a gift. 3. Lavish hospitality from firms with official dealings should be avoided. Which are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1, 2 and 3
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 2 and 3 only
Ans. (b) 1, 2 and 3 — Explanation: All three restate Rule 13(1): Note (1) on casual meals, the Explanation on boarding and lodging, and Note (2) on lavish hospitality. [Ref: Rule 13(1)]
14. Which of the following entities is specifically mentioned in Note (2) under Rule 13(1)?
(a) Only foreign embassies
(b) Industrial or commercial firms and organisations having official dealings
(c) Only political parties
(d) Only public sector banks
Ans. (b) Industrial or commercial firms and organisations having official dealings — Explanation: Note (2) refers to individuals, industrial or commercial firms, organisations and the like having official dealings with the Government servant. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Note (2)]
15. An officer attends monthly dinners at a luxury hotel hosted by a firm whose files he processes. Which provision of Rule 13 cautions against this?
(a) Note (2), on avoiding lavish or frequent hospitality from those having official dealings
(b) Rule 13A, on dowry
(c) Rule 13(2), on social occasions
(d) Note (1), since dinners are social hospitality
Ans. (a) Note (2), on avoiding lavish or frequent hospitality from those having official dealings — Explanation: Note (1) covers casual hospitality only. Regular lavish dinners from a firm with official dealings fall squarely under Note (2). [Ref: Rule 13(1), Note (2)]
16. Under Rule 13, is free air travel offered by an airline to a Government servant on its inaugural flight a gift?
(a) Only if the officer is in the Civil Aviation Ministry
(b) No, inaugural flights are promotional events
(c) No, if the flight is within India
(d) Yes, the Government has treated free inaugural flights as gifts
Ans. (d) Yes, the Government has treated free inaugural flights as gifts — Explanation: Government instructions of 25.05.1965 treat free passage on inaugural flights as a gift, since it is free transport under the Explanation to Rule 13(1). [Ref: Rule 13(1); GoI decision dt 25.05.1965]
17. Which rule of the CCS (Conduct) Rules deals with gifts?
(a) Rule 12
(b) Rule 15
(c) Rule 14
(d) Rule 13
Ans. (d) Rule 13 — Explanation: Rule 13 deals with gifts, Rule 12 with subscriptions, Rule 14 with public demonstrations in honour and Rule 15 with private trade or employment. [Ref: Rule 13]
18. Government instructions of 18.01.1965 advise what to do when a Government servant is in doubt about accepting private hospitality?
(a) Accept it if the value is small
(b) Accept it and report later
(c) Ask the host to pay in cash instead
(d) Abstain from accepting it
Ans. (d) Abstain from accepting it — Explanation: The 1965 instructions advise that when in doubt about private hospitality, the Government servant should abstain. [Ref: Rule 13; GoI decision dt 18.01.1965]
19. Government instructions of 03.04.1967 under Rule 13 relate to:
(a) Frequent-flier benefits
(b) Hospitality from firms contracting with the Government
(c) Dowry
(d) Gifts on retirement
Ans. (b) Hospitality from firms contracting with the Government — Explanation: The 1967 instructions deal with acceptance of hospitality from contracting firms, reinforcing Note (2) under Rule 13(1). [Ref: Rule 13; GoI decision dt 03.04.1967]
20. A Government servant is offered free membership of a luxury club by a company that has applied to his office for a licence. How should he treat this?
(a) As social hospitality
(b) As a casual service
(c) As a gift, which he must not accept
(d) As permitted if the membership is in his wife's name
Ans. (c) As a gift, which he must not accept — Explanation: A free membership is a pecuniary advantage from a person having official dealings, so it is a gift. Putting it in his wife's name does not help. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Explanation]
21. Instructions of 10.05.1988 under Rule 13 ask Government servants to be careful about:
(a) Joining sports bodies
(b) Buying property at auctions
(c) Lavish hospitality from business contacts
(d) Displaying posters
Ans. (c) Lavish hospitality from business contacts — Explanation: The 1988 instructions reiterate that lavish hospitality from business contacts should be avoided. [Ref: Rule 13; GoI decision dt 10.05.1988]
22. The consolidated instructions on acceptance of gifts under Rule 13 were issued on:
(a) 27.08.1976
(b) 24.01.1994
(c) 26.08.1971
(d) 07.02.2019
Ans. (a) 27.08.1976 — Explanation: Consolidated instructions on gifts were issued on 27.08.1976. The other dates relate to posters, property returns and share transactions. [Ref: Rule 13; GoI decision dt 27.08.1976]
23. A Government servant is given a free room in the guest house of a public sector undertaking that he is inspecting, in line with rules on payment of charges. If he stays free when charges were payable, what does it amount to?
(a) An entitlement of all inspecting officers
(b) A subscription under Rule 12
(c) A pecuniary advantage that can be a gift under Rule 13
(d) Social hospitality under Note (1)
Ans. (c) A pecuniary advantage that can be a gift under Rule 13 — Explanation: Free lodging where charges are payable is a pecuniary advantage from a body with official dealings. He should pay the prescribed charges. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Explanation]
24. Which of these best describes the purpose of Rule 13?
(a) To prevent Government servants from being placed under obligation to those who deal with them
(b) To regulate gifts given by Government servants
(c) To prevent all social contact
(d) To collect gifts for the Government
Ans. (a) To prevent Government servants from being placed under obligation to those who deal with them — Explanation: Rule 13 ensures that gifts and hospitality do not compromise impartiality, in line with Rule 3(1)(xiv) on not placing oneself under obligation. [Ref: Rule 13; Rule 3(1)(xiv)]
25. A neighbour who has no official dealings invites a Government servant to a family dinner. Under Rule 13, the dinner is:
(a) Social hospitality, not a gift
(b) A gift that must be reported
(c) Prohibited, since meals are gifts
(d) A gift that needs sanction
Ans. (a) Social hospitality, not a gift — Explanation: A casual meal or social hospitality is not a gift under Note (1), and the host has no official dealings. [Ref: Rule 13(1), Note (1)]
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These questions are prepared for practice from the text of the CCS (Conduct) Rules, 1964 and related Government of India instructions. Always check the latest DoPT orders before relying on any point for official decisions.