SSC CPO Paper I 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 PYQs

Concept: Some taxes are levied by law but bring in very little revenue compared with their cost of collection.

1. Taxes like gift tax and wealth tax are called 'paper taxes' because they exist mainly on paper, yielding negligible revenue.
2. Gift tax was abolished in 1998 and wealth tax in 2015 for this reason.
3. They are also direct taxes, but the specific term asked for this group is 'paper taxes'.

Yaad rakhein: Paper tax = big on paper, tiny in collection.

Answer: (D) Paper taxes

Concept: Harshacharita is a Sanskrit biography of King Harshavardhana of Thanesar–Kannauj (7th century).

1. It was written by Banabhatta, Harsha's court poet, who also wrote Kadambari.
2. Harisena wrote the Allahabad Prashasti of Samudragupta; Amarasimha wrote Amarakosha; Vararuchi was a grammarian in Vikramaditya's court.

Yaad rakhein: Bana – Harshacharita + Kadambari.

Answer: (D) Banabhatta

Concept: Rashtrakuta king Krishna III (c. 939–967) invaded the Chola kingdom.

1. He defeated the Chola ruler Parantaka I at the battle of Takkolam (949 CE).
2. He then marched south and set up a victory pillar and a temple at Rameswaram.
3. Takkolam is the battle site, not the place of the pillar – the tempting wrong option.

Yaad rakhein: Battle – Takkolam; pillar and temple – Rameswaram.

Answer: (D) Rameswaram

Concept: Article 22(2) requires an arrested person to be produced before the nearest magistrate within 24 hours (excluding journey time).

1. Detention beyond that without a magistrate's order is illegal, and the court releases the person through the writ of Habeas Corpus ('to have the body').
2. Mandamus orders a public official to do a duty; Prohibition stops a lower court exceeding jurisdiction; Quo-warranto questions the right to hold a public office.

Yaad rakhein: Illegal detention → Habeas Corpus – 'produce the body'.

Answer: (D) Habeas Corpus

Concept: Article 22(4) limits preventive detention to three months unless an Advisory Board reports sufficient cause for longer detention.

1. The Advisory Board consists of persons who are, or have been, or are qualified to be appointed as Judges of a High Court.
2. Under the 44th Amendment, the chairman must be a serving High Court judge (this part is not yet in force).

Yaad rakhein: Preventive detention → Advisory Board of High Court-level judges.

Answer: (C) Judges of High court

Concept: India invites a foreign head of state or government as chief guest for Republic Day.

1. In 2023 the chief guest was Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, President of Egypt; an Egyptian Army contingent also marched on Kartavya Path.
2. 2024 – Emmanuel Macron (France); 2025 – Prabowo Subianto (Indonesia).

Yaad rakhein: 2023 Egypt, 2024 France, 2025 Indonesia.

Answer: (A) Egypt

Concept: Bajra (pearl millet) is a hardy crop of hot, dry areas with sandy soil.

1. As per Agricultural Statistics at a Glance 2022, Rajasthan is the largest producer of bajra, contributing over 40% of India's output.
2. It is followed by Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.

Yaad rakhein: Desert state → desert millet: Rajasthan tops bajra.

Answer: (D) Rajasthan

Concept: Openings of the body are controlled by ring-shaped muscles.

1. Sphincter muscles are circular muscles that open and close passages; the anal sphincters control the exit of faeces and the urethral sphincter controls urine.
2. Pectoralis is a chest muscle, rectus (e.g. rectus abdominis) an abdominal/eye muscle, and gastrocnemius the calf muscle.

Yaad rakhein: Sphincter = ring gate of the body (anus, bladder, stomach exit).

Answer: (B) Sphincter

Concept: Banks must keep a fraction (CRR) of deposits as reserves; the rest is lent and re-deposited, creating credit.

1. Money multiplier $=\frac{1}{\text{CRR}}$.
2. With CRR $=25\%=\frac{1}{4}$: multiplier $=\frac{1}{0.25}=4$.

Trick: Multiplier is just the reciprocal of the reserve ratio.

Answer: (A) 4

Concept: Patiala gharana of khayal singing was founded in the 19th century in the Patiala court.

1. Its founders were Ali Baksh Khan and Fateh Ali Khan, famous as the duo 'Aliya–Fattu', disciples of the Delhi gharana.
2. Bade Ghulam Ali Khan is its best-known later exponent.
3. Abdul Wahid Khan belongs to the Kirana gharana, so he is not a Patiala musician.

Yaad rakhein: Patiala = Aliya–Fattu → Bade Ghulam Ali Khan.

Answer: (D) Ali Baksh Khan

Concept: The Kalidas Samman is a national arts award given by the Government of Madhya Pradesh in fields such as classical music, dance, theatre and visual arts.

1. The Kalidas Samman 2022 for Hindustani classical music went to Pandit Venkatesh Kumar, a celebrated vocalist from Karnataka.
2. K.G. Subramanyan was a painter (visual arts) and died in 2016.
3. Mallikarjun Mansur (died 1992) and Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer (died 2003) were great musicians of earlier decades, so they could not receive a 2022 award.

Yaad rakhein: Kalidas Samman = Madhya Pradesh Government; check whether the person was alive in the award year.

Answer: (B) Pandit Venkatesh Kumar

Concept: A Suitable Boy (1993) is one of the longest single-volume novels in English, set in newly independent India.

1. It was written by Vikram Seth, also known for The Golden Gate.
2. Arundhati Roy – The God of Small Things (1997).
3. Kiran Desai – The Inheritance of Loss (2006).
4. David Davidar – The House of Blue Mangoes.

Yaad rakhein: Seth – Suitable Boy; Roy – Small Things; Desai – Inheritance.

Answer: (A) Vikram Seth

Concept: An atom has three fundamental particles; their charges decide the electrical nature of matter.

1. Electron (discovered by J.J. Thomson) – negative charge.
2. Proton (Goldstein's canal rays, Rutherford) – positive charge.
3. Neutron (Chadwick, 1932) – no charge (neutral).

Yaad rakhein: Order e, p, n → minus, plus, zero.

Answer: (A) negative, positive and neutral

Concept: Kojagiri Poornima is the Maharashtrian name for Sharad Poornima, the full moon of Ashwin month.

1. It is celebrated mainly in Maharashtra (also in parts of Gujarat and Goa).
2. Goddess Lakshmi is worshipped; people stay awake at night ('Ko Jagarti?' – who is awake?).
3. Spiced (masala) milk is cooled in moonlight and shared.

Yaad rakhein: Kojagiri = 'Ko Jagarti' – Lakshmi asks who is awake; Marathi festival.

Answer: (B) Maharashtra

Concept: Rainfall in India is highest on windward slopes facing the monsoon winds and lowest in deserts and rain-shadow areas.

1. Meghalaya has Mawsynram and Cherrapunji (Sohra), the wettest places on Earth; Bay of Bengal winds are trapped by the Garo–Khasi hills.
2. Ladakh is a cold desert (rain shadow of the Himalayas).
3. Rajasthan has the Thar desert; Delhi gets moderate rainfall.

Yaad rakhein: Wettest place on Earth = Mawsynram, Meghalaya.

Answer: (B) Meghalaya

Concept: Under Article 356, the President can impose President's Rule in a State on failure of constitutional machinery, usually on the Governor's report.

1. The proclamation must be approved by both Houses of Parliament within two months.
2. Once approved, it continues for six months at a time.
3. It can be extended by fresh approvals every six months up to a maximum of three years (with conditions after one year – 44th Amendment).

Yaad rakhein: 356 → 2 months to approve, 6 months per approval, 3 years maximum.

Answer: (B) six months

Concept: The first modern Olympics (Athens, 1896) had only male athletes.

1. Women first competed at the 1900 Paris Olympics.
2. Charlotte Cooper (Britain, tennis) became the first female Olympic champion.
3. 1896 was men-only; 1904 was held at St. Louis; 1916 was cancelled due to World War I.

Yaad rakhein: Athens 1896 – men only; Paris 1900 – women enter.

Answer: (A) 1900

Concept: The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 lists animals in Schedules according to the level of protection they get.

1. Felis chaus is the jungle cat, the most common wild cat of India.
2. It was listed in Schedule II of the Act.
3. Schedule I holds the most endangered animals (tiger, lion, snow leopard) with the highest penalties.

Yaad rakhein: Common cat, lower list – jungle cat in Schedule II; big endangered cats in Schedule I.

Answer: (B) Schedule II

Concept: The Objectives Resolution laid down the basic philosophy of the Constitution and later became the Preamble.

1. It was moved by Jawaharlal Nehru on 13 December 1946 in the Constituent Assembly.
2. It was adopted on 22 January 1947.
3. The Assembly's first meeting was on 9 December 1946.

Yaad rakhein: 9 Dec first meeting → 13 Dec Objectives Resolution → 22 Jan 1947 adopted.

Answer: (B) 13 December 1946

Concept: Each classical dance has famous exponents who are often asked in exams.

1. Rukmini Devi Arundale revived Bharatanatyam and founded Kalakshetra (Chennai, 1936).
2. Kelucharan Mohapatra – Odissi.
3. Pandit Birju Maharaj – Kathak (Lucknow gharana).
4. Guru Bipin Singh – Manipuri.

Yaad rakhein: Rukmini – Kalakshetra – Bharatanatyam.

Answer: (B) Rukmini Devi Arundale