SSC CGL 2025 PYQs

Concept: Portuguese builders gave Old Goa's churches European architectural styles.

1. Built mainly in the 16th–17th centuries; Basilica of Bom Jesus (holds St. Francis Xavier's remains) and Se Cathedral are famous examples.
2. They show Baroque and Portuguese Manueline styles; Mughal and Dravidian are Indian styles.

Yaad rakhein: 'Churches and Convents of Goa' became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986.

Answer: (D) Baroque and Manueline

Concept: Pigment molecules arranged as an antenna (light-harvesting complex) capture light for the photosystems.

1. Chlorophylls and carotenoids in the thylakoid absorb light and pass the energy to the reaction-centre chlorophyll a.
2. ATPase (ATP synthase) makes ATP; polymerase and ligase work on DNA/RNA — not light collection.

Trick: Antenna = receives signals; in plants it 'receives' light — the name itself gives the answer.

Answer: (B) Antenna complex

Concept: India has hosted the Asian Games two times, both in New Delhi.

1. 1951 – the very first Asian Games, New Delhi.
2. 1982 – 9th Asian Games, New Delhi (Appu was the mascot; colour TV came to India for it).

Yaad rakhein: First Asian Games: Delhi 1951; India's two hostings are 31 years apart (1951, 1982).

Answer: (A) Twice

Concept: UCC means one common set of personal laws for all citizens, irrespective of religion.

1. Article 44 (DPSP): the State shall endeavour to secure a UCC.
2. It covers civil matters – marriage, divorce, adoption, inheritance; criminal law (BNS) is already common to all.

Yaad rakhein: Uttarakhand became the first state to implement a UCC after Independence (2025); Goa has had a common civil code since Portuguese times.

Answer: (D) To establish uniform laws on civil matters like marriage, divorce and inheritance

Concept: NCM is a statutory body; its chairperson is appointed by the Centre.

1. Iqbal Singh Lalpura, a former IPS officer from Punjab, was named NCM chairperson in 2021.
2. NCM was given statutory status by the NCM Act, 1992; six communities are notified minorities (Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis, Jains).

Yaad rakhein: Jains were the last to be notified as a minority community (2014).

Answer: (A) Iqbal Singh Lalpura

Concept: Pandwani is a narrative folk singing style of Chhattisgarh.

1. It tells episodes of the Mahabharata centred on the Pandavas (hence the name).
2. Teejan Bai, its most famous performer, has received the Padma Vibhushan.

Trick: Pandwani → Pandavas → Chhattisgarh (Teejan Bai). Link the name to the epic.

Answer: (D) Chhattisgarh

Concept: India's onshore oil comes mainly from Assam, Gujarat (Cambay basin) and the east-coast basins.

1. Statement 1: Ankleshwar, Kalol, Mehsana, Kosamba are Gujarat oilfields — correct.
2. Statement 2: Krishna-Godavari and Kaveri basins hold oil and gas — correct.

Yaad rakhein: Oldest oilfield: Digboi (Assam); largest offshore: Mumbai High.

Answer: (C) Both 1 and 2

Concept: Villages and towns depend on each other through a two-way exchange.

1. 1 ✓: villages give food, raw material, labour; towns give goods, services, jobs, markets.
2. 2 ✓: this exchange of goods, services, people and money is continuous.
3. 3 ✗: 'always in competition' is an overstatement; the link is mainly complementary.

Trick: Statements with absolute words like 'always' or 'never' are usually the wrong ones.

Answer: (C) 1 and 2 only

Concept: Volcanoes mostly form at plate boundaries; India has one active volcano.

1. Statement 1 ✗: Barren Island (Andaman & Nicobar) is an active volcano; it has erupted in recent years.
2. Statement 2 ✓: plate movements and mountain-building (orogenic) zones control where eruptions occur.

Yaad rakhein: Barren Island = India's only active volcano; Narcondam (also Andaman) is dormant.

Answer: (A) Only 2

Concept: The Rigveda is organised as Mandala → Sukta → Richa.

1. A sukta is a hymn/collection of verses addressed to a deity; there are 1,028 suktas in 10 mandalas.
2. Brahmanas are later prose texts explaining rituals; Puranas are much later texts.

Yaad rakhein: Order to remember: 10 Mandalas → 1,028 Suktas → about 10,600 Richas (verses).

Answer: (D) Suktas

Concept: Each basketball team plays with five players on court.

1. 5 per side: point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, centre.
2. Volleyball has 6, so option C is the common trap.

Yaad rakhein: Team sizes: basketball 5, volleyball 6, kabaddi 7, hockey/football/cricket 11.

Answer: (B) 5

Concept: The Act created dual control over the East India Company's Indian affairs.

1. A Board of Control (British Government) was set up to supervise civil, military and revenue affairs.
2. The Court of Directors kept trade matters but became answerable to this Board — dual government lasted till 1858.

Yaad rakhein: Regulating Act 1773 → first control; Pitt's India Act 1784 → Board of Control (dual system); GoI Act 1858 → Crown rule.

Answer: (B) They became accountable to the British Government for civil and military matters

Concept: 'The Ocean of Churn: How the Indian Ocean Shaped Human History' is by Sanjeev Sanyal.

1. Sanyal is an economist (member, PM's Economic Advisory Council) who writes popular history.
2. Tony Joseph wrote 'Early Indians'; Devdutt Pattanaik writes on mythology.

Yaad rakhein: Sanyal's other books: 'Land of the Seven Rivers', 'Revolutionaries'.

Answer: (B) Sanjeev Sanyal

Concept: The National Games began as the 'Indian Olympic Games' in 1924.

1. Statement 1 ✓: first held at Lahore in 1924, organised by Dr A.G. Noehren and H.C. Buck.
2. Statement 2 ✗: the name 'National Games' was adopted at the Bombay meet (9th edition), not a 10th meet in Delhi.

Trick: In two-statement questions, one wrong detail (number or city) is enough to make the whole statement false.

Answer: (A) 1 only

Concept: All India Services (Art. 312) serve both Centre and States and are controlled jointly.

1. Three AIS: IAS, IPS, Indian Forest Service. Officers are recruited by UPSC and allotted to State cadres.
2. IRS and Central Secretariat Service are Central services; State Civil Service is purely state-level.

Trick: AIS = 'IAS, IPS, IFoS'. Any service with 'Revenue', 'Secretariat' or 'State' in the name is not an AIS.

Answer: (D) Indian Administrative Service (IAS)

Concept: On 9 August 1942, after top Congress leaders were arrested, Aruna Asaf Ali unfurled the tricolour at Gowalia Tank, Bombay.

1. The ground is now called August Kranti Maidan.
2. She went underground and is called the 'Grand Old Lady' of the freedom movement; later she became Delhi's first Mayor.

Yaad rakhein: Quit India resolution was passed at Gowalia Tank on 8 Aug 1942 — 'Do or Die' slogan.

Answer: (C) Aruna Asaf Ali

Concept: The first phase of the Green Revolution helped only irrigated wheat areas.

1. HYV seeds needed assured irrigation and fertiliser — available in Punjab, Haryana, western UP.
2. Bihar had weak irrigation and small fragmented holdings, so it gained the least.

Trick: First phase = wheat + north-west India; rice and eastern states benefited only in the later phase.

Answer: (B) Bihar

Concept: LPG = Liberalisation, Privatisation, Globalisation — the New Economic Policy of 1991.

1. 'P' = Privatisation: reducing government ownership/control and giving a bigger role to the private sector (e.g., disinvestment).
2. Poverty, Publicity, Planning are not part of the acronym.

Yaad rakhein: 1991 reforms: PM P.V. Narasimha Rao, Finance Minister Manmohan Singh.

Answer: (D) Privatisation

Concept: Aditya-L1 is ISRO's first solar observatory, placed in a halo orbit around Sun–Earth L1.

1. Launched on 2 September 2023 (PSLV-C57); reached the halo orbit on 6 January 2024.
2. Sept 2 → Jan 6 ≈ 127 days; L1 is about 1.5 million km from Earth.

Trick: Count quickly: Sep (28) + Oct (31) + Nov (30) + Dec (31) + Jan (6) ≈ 126–127 days.

Answer: (C) 127

Concept: Article 123 lets the President promulgate ordinances when Parliament (either House) is not in session.

1. Legally, an ordinance works just like a law passed by Parliament.
2. It must be laid before Parliament and lapses 6 weeks after Parliament reassembles unless approved earlier (or withdrawn).

Trick: Art. 123 → President; Art. 213 → Governor. Max life of an ordinance ≈ 6 months + 6 weeks.

Answer: (D) Article 123; till Parliament meets again or up to 6 weeks after reassembly