Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh) is developing India's first Integrated Waste Management City-cum-Learning Centre.

1. It is being built at Sutani in Gorakhpur by the Gorakhpur Municipal Corporation, targeted for completion by September 2025.
2. It aims at scientific processing of all waste to make the city garbage-free.

Yaad rakhein: First integrated waste city = Gorakhpur (UP).

Answer: (C) Gorakhpur

Concept: CCPI is published annually by Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute and CAN International.

1. In CCPI 2025 (released at COP29, Nov 2024) India ranked 10th, staying among high performers.
2. The first three ranks were left vacant; Denmark was 4th.

Yaad rakhein: CCPI 2025: India 10th (CCPI 2024: 7th).

Answer: (B) ${10}^{th}$

Concept: Directive Principles of State Policy are in Part IV (Articles 36–51).

1. Article 38: State to secure a social order for the promotion of welfare of the people (social, economic, political justice).
2. Art. 37 – DPSPs not justiciable; Art. 39 – principles of policy (livelihood, equal pay); Art. 40 – village panchayats.

Yaad rakhein: 38 = Welfare State; 40 = Panchayats.

Answer: (C) Article 38

Concept: Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) uses quantum properties of light to share encryption keys that cannot be intercepted unnoticed.

1. In 2025, Sterlite Technologies Limited (STL) and the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) successfully tested India's first QKD transmission over STL's optical fibre.
2. C-DOT is the telecom R&D centre of the Department of Telecommunications; C-DAC is the computing body under MeitY, so it is the tempting wrong option.

Yaad rakhein: QKD + telecom fibre → telecom lab → C-DOT.

Answer: (A) Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT)

Concept: India expands its diplomatic presence abroad through embassies and consulates.

1. In November 2024, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar inaugurated India's new Consulate General in Brisbane (Queensland).
2. India already had consulates in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, so Brisbane became the 4th.

Yaad rakhein: Sydney, Melbourne, Perth already existed → the new one is Brisbane.

Answer: (B) Brisbane

Concept: Padma awards are given in fields such as Art, Literature & Education, Medicine, Science & Engineering, Public Affairs etc.

1. Film-maker Shekhar Kapur (Masoom, Mr. India, Bandit Queen, Elizabeth) received the Padma Bhushan 2025.
2. Cinema comes under the field of Art; he is from Maharashtra in the list.

Yaad rakhein: Film, music, dance, painting – all are listed as 'Art' in Padma awards.

Answer: (D) Art

Concept: The Harappan Civilisation was a Bronze Age (Chalcolithic) civilisation.

1. Harappans used copper and bronze (copper + tin) for tools, weapons and vessels, along with stone blades.
2. Iron was unknown to them – iron came in India much later (around 1000 BCE, Later Vedic period); steel is even later.

Yaad rakhein: Harappa = Bronze Age; Iron Age = Later Vedic.

Answer: (B) Bronze tools

Concept: INDRA is the bilateral naval exercise between India and Russia.

1. The 14th edition, INDRA-2025, was held from 28 March to 2 April 2025 off Chennai, with a harbour phase at Chennai followed by a sea phase in the Bay of Bengal.
2. Russian ships participated with Indian Navy ships of the Eastern Fleet.

Yaad rakhein: INDRA = INDia + Russia.

Answer: (D) Chennai

Concept: MS Word has mouse-click shortcuts for selecting text.

1. Double-click → selects one word.
2. Triple-click → selects the whole paragraph.
3. Ctrl + click → selects a sentence; Ctrl + A → whole document.

Trick: 1 click = cursor, 2 = word, 3 = paragraph.

Answer: (C) Triple-click on any word within the paragraph.

Concept: Per capita income = national income ÷ population; it rises when GDP grows faster than population.

1. The 1991 LPG reforms (Liberalisation, Privatisation, Globalisation) pushed GDP growth to about 6–8% per year.
2. As a result, India's per capita income rose significantly in the following decades; it never became negative or stagnant.

Yaad rakhein: LPG 1991 → high growth → higher per capita income.

Answer: (B) Rose significantly

Concept: PowerPoint uses function keys to run slide shows.

1. F5 → starts the slide show from the first slide.
2. Shift + F5 → starts from the current slide.
3. Ctrl + P = Print, Ctrl + M = New slide, Ctrl + S = Save.

Trick: F5 = from start; Shift + F5 = from current slide.

Answer: (B) Starts the slide show from the beginning

Concept: Different bars of the Excel window have fixed jobs.

1. Name Box (left of the formula bar) shows the address/name of the active cell or selected range, e.g. B4 or A1:C5.
2. Formula Bar shows the content/formula of the active cell; Status Bar shows Sum/Average/Count; Ribbon holds the command tabs.

Trick: Name Box = where you are; Formula Bar = what is inside.

Answer: (C) The Name Box

Concept: Anaimudi (2,695 m), in Kerala's Idukki district, is the highest peak of the Western Ghats and of South India.

1. It lies at the junction of the Annamalai Range, the Cardamom Hills and the Palani Hills.
2. Nilgiri's highest peak is Doddabetta, not Anaimudi.

Yaad rakhein: Anaimudi → 'A-C-P': Annamalai, Cardamom, Palani.

Answer: (D) Annamalai Range, Cardamom Hills, Palani Hills

Concept: A rain-shadow area lies on the leeward side of a mountain, where descending winds are dry.

1. The south-west monsoon gives heavy rain on the windward (western) slopes of the Western Ghats – Cochin, Goa.
2. Pune, on the leeward (eastern) side of the Ghats, gets much less rain – a classic rain-shadow city.
3. Shillong lies near the rainy Khasi hills (Mawsynram, Cherrapunji).

Yaad rakhein: Windward = Mumbai/Goa (wet); Leeward = Pune (dry).

Answer: (C) Pune

Concept: The Northern Plains are divided by relief into Bhabar, Tarai, Bhangar and Khadar.

1. Bhabar: pebble belt at the foothills; Tarai: marshy belt south of it; Bhangar: older alluvium; Khadar: newer alluvium of floodplains.
2. The Vindhyan Plateau belongs to the Peninsular Plateau, not to the Northern Plains.

Yaad rakhein: B-T-B-K: Bhabar, Tarai, Bhangar, Khadar.

Answer: (D) Vindhyan Plateau

Concept: Primary memory (RAM, cache) works directly with the CPU; secondary memory (HDD, SSD) stores data permanently.

1. Primary memory is faster but smaller and costly; secondary memory is slower but large and cheap.
2. RAM is volatile; secondary memory is non-volatile – so option (D) is reversed.
3. The CPU cannot directly access secondary memory; data is first loaded into RAM.

Trick: Primary = Fast, Small, Volatile; Secondary = Slow, Large, Permanent.

Answer: (C) Primary memory is faster but has lower storage capacity, while secondary memory is slower but provides large storage capacity.

Concept: Newer Excel (Microsoft 365, Excel 2021) supports dynamic array formulas.

1. When a formula such as =SORT(A2:A10) or =UNIQUE(...) returns many values, the results 'spill' into neighbouring cells – this block is the spill range.
2. The range automatically grows or shrinks as the result changes; a blocked range shows #SPILL!.
3. Restricting entries is Data Validation; co-editing is co-authoring.

Trick: Spill = formula output flows into many cells.

Answer: (C) It dynamically resizes a formula's output range when the formula returns multiple values.

Concept: The senior-most judge of the Supreme Court is usually appointed Chief Justice of India by the President.

1. After Justice Sanjiv Khanna retired, Justice Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai took oath as Chief Justice of India on 14 May 2025 – the 52nd CJI.
2. He is the first Buddhist and second Dalit CJI (after Justice K. G. Balakrishnan).

Yaad rakhein: May 2025 → CJI B. R. Gavai, successor of Sanjiv Khanna.

Answer: (B) Justice Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai

Concept: Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra is one of the earliest mosques of the Delhi Sultanate, in Ajmer (Rajasthan).

1. It was built by Qutb-ud-din Aibak around 1192–99 CE on orders of Muhammad Ghori, and later beautified by Iltutmish.
2. Aibak and Iltutmish belong to the Slave (Mamluk) dynasty.

Yaad rakhein: Aibak's two early mosques: Quwwat-ul-Islam (Delhi) and Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra (Ajmer).

Answer: (A) Slave Dynasty

Concept: Vedic recitation uses three accents (svaras) of pitch.

1. Udātta – raised pitch; Anudātta – lowered pitch; Svarita – falling/combined pitch.
2. 'Mandrata' is not a Vedic accent ('mandra' only means low register in music).

Yaad rakhein: U-A-S: Udatta, Anudatta, Svarita.

Answer: (D) Mandrata