Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: The Extremist phase (1905–1920) was led by Lal-Bal-Pal and Aurobindo Ghose.

1. Bal Gangadhar Tilak gave the slogan "Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it"; he founded Kesari and Mahratta and started the Ganapati and Shivaji festivals.
2. Lala Lajpat Rai (Punjab Kesari) and Bipin Chandra Pal (Bengal) were his associates, not the authors of this slogan.

Yaad rakhein: Tilak = 'Lokmanya', 'Father of Indian Unrest' (Valentine Chirol), Home Rule League 1916.

Answer: (D) Bal Gangadhar Tilak

Concept: The Peninsular plateau tilts eastward, so most of its rivers (Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri) flow east into the Bay of Bengal.

1. Narmada and Tapi are the exceptions: they flow west through rift valleys and drain into the Arabian Sea (Gulf of Khambhat).
2. They form estuaries, not deltas.

Yaad rakhein: West-flowing trio: Narmada, Tapi, Mahi → Arabian Sea, no delta.

Answer: (D) Narmada and Tapi

Concept: A Polaroid transmits only the component of light vibrating in one plane.

1. For unpolarised light, the transmitted intensity is half the incident intensity ($I=\frac{I_0}{2}$), so Polaroid filters cut glare and reduce light intensity.
2. Polaroids are used in camera filters and sunglasses to remove reflected glare; they do not change resolution or focusing.

Yaad rakhein: Unpolarised light through one Polaroid → intensity halves; through a second at angle $\theta$ → Malus' law $I=I_0{\cos }^2\theta$.

Answer: (D) it reduces the light intensity to half on account of polarisation

Concept: The immediate cause of the 1857 revolt was the new Enfield rifle.

1. Its cartridges had to be bitten open and were rumoured to be greased with cow and pig fat, offending Hindu and Muslim sepoys alike.
2. Mangal Pandey's protest at Barrackpore (29 March 1857) and the Meerut outbreak (10 May 1857) followed from this grievance.

Yaad rakhein: Enfield rifle → greased cartridge → Barrackpore → Meerut → Delhi.

Answer: (A) Forcing sepoys to bite cartridges greased with animal fat

Concept: Each Schedule of the Constitution lists details for specific Articles.

1. The Fourth Schedule (Articles 4 and 80) allocates Rajya Sabha seats among States and Union Territories.
2. First Schedule – names of States/UTs; Second – salaries of President, Governors, Judges etc.; Sixth – tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram.

Yaad rakhein: 4th Schedule = Rajya Sabha seats (think: 'four' – 'floor of the Upper House').

Answer: (D) Fourth Schedule

Concept: The Thousand Pillar Temple at Hanamkonda (Warangal) is a star-shaped Kakatiya monument.

1. It was built in 1163 CE by Kakatiya king Rudra Deva, dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu and Surya (trikutalaya).
2. Hoysalas built Belur–Halebidu, Chalukyas Badami–Pattadakal and Rashtrakutas the Kailasa temple at Ellora.

Yaad rakhein: Kakatiya = Warangal: Thousand Pillar Temple, Ramappa Temple (UNESCO 2021), Warangal Fort.

Answer: (A) Kakatiya dynasty

Concept: Match each term of the Delhi Sultanate with its meaning.

1. Circle of Justice – the idea (explained by Barani) that the ruler depends on soldiers, soldiers on salaries, salaries on peasants' revenue, and peasants on justice → A-1.
2. Iqta – land assignment to muqtis/governors for revenue and army upkeep → B-2; Razia Sultan – Iltutmish's daughter opposed for being a woman → C-3; Minhaj-us-Siraj – chronicler (Tabaqat-i-Nasiri) who disapproved of a woman ruling → D-4.

Yaad rakhein: Here the natural order A-1, B-2, C-3, D-4 is itself the answer.

Answer: (D) A-1, B-2, C-3, D-4

Concept: The Global Gender Gap Index is published annually by the World Economic Forum (WEF).

1. In the 2025 report India ranked 131st out of 148 countries, two places lower than 129th in 2024.
2. Iceland topped the index for the 16th consecutive year.

Yaad rakhein: WEF Gender Gap 2025: India 131 of 148, Iceland No. 1.

Answer: (D) 131

Concept: The Eighth Schedule lists the 22 scheduled languages of India.

1. Sanskrit and Urdu were in the original list of 14 (1950); Nepali was added by the 71st Amendment (1992) along with Konkani and Manipuri.
2. English is not in the Eighth Schedule; it is only an associate official language of the Union under the Official Languages Act, 1963.

Yaad rakhein: Latest additions (92nd Amendment, 2003): Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, Santhali → total 22; English never included.

Answer: (D) English

Concept: Analysing fast-changing market data in real time to forecast outcomes is predictive analytics.

1. Real-time predictive analytics uses statistical models and machine learning on streaming data to detect patterns and guide trading/investment decisions.
2. Inventory systems track stock, encryption protects data, and word processing creates documents – none analyses market patterns.

Yaad rakhein: 'Predict' + 'real-time' + 'patterns' → Predictive Analytics (used in algorithmic trading).

Answer: (C) Real-time Predictive Analytics

Concept: Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) promotes self-employment of the rural poor through SHGs.

1. It organises poor women into Self-Help Groups, gives them bank credit and skill support to start micro-enterprises; it replaced the earlier SGSY.
2. MGNREGA gives wage employment (not self-employment), PMAY gives houses, NRHM is a health mission.

Yaad rakhein: Self-employment → DAY-NRLM (SHGs); wage employment → MGNREGA (100 days).

Answer: (C) Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana

Concept: Chhau is a semi-classical martial dance of eastern India with three styles.

1. Seraikela Chhau originated in Seraikela (Jharkhand); the other styles are Purulia (West Bengal) and Mayurbhanj (Odisha).
2. It was inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2010.

Yaad rakhein: Chhau triangle: Seraikela–Jharkhand, Purulia–Bengal, Mayurbhanj–Odisha (masks in the first two).

Answer: (B) Jharkhand

Concept: Networks are classified by the area they cover.

1. LAN = Local Area Network – connects computers within a small area such as a school, office or building, usually via Ethernet or Wi-Fi.
2. MAN covers a city and WAN (e.g. the Internet) covers large distances.

Yaad rakhein: L-M-W = Local → Metropolitan → Wide, in increasing size.

Answer: (B) Local Area Network

Concept: Pandit Birju Maharaj (1938–2022) was the leading exponent of the Lucknow gharana of Kathak.

1. In 1998 he founded Kalashram in Delhi to teach Kathak and allied arts such as music and yoga.
2. Kathak Kendra (Delhi) is a Sangeet Natak Akademi unit where he earlier taught; it was not founded by him.

Yaad rakhein: Birju Maharaj → Kalashram (1998), Padma Vibhushan 1986, Lucknow gharana.

Answer: (B) Kalashram

Concept: Photosynthesis converts CO₂ and water into glucose using light energy.

1. Glucose (C₆H₁₂O₆) is a simple sugar, i.e. a carbohydrate; it is stored as starch, also a carbohydrate.
2. Proteins, vitamins and minerals are not products of photosynthesis.

Yaad rakhein: $6{\text{CO}}_2+6{\text{H}}_2\text{O}\stackrel{\text{light}}{\to }{\text{C}}_6{\text{H}}_{12}{\text{O}}_6+6{\text{O}}_2$ – product is sugar (carbohydrate).

Answer: (A) Carbohydrate

Concept: The IMF's World Economic Outlook Update (January 2026) gave global growth projections for 2026 and 2027.

1. Global growth was projected at 3.3% for 2026 and 3.2% for 2027.
2. India remained the fastest-growing major economy in the same report.

Yaad rakhein: IMF Jan 2026 update: world 3.3% (2026) → 3.2% (2027).

Answer: (D) 3.2 percent

Concept: Karst landscapes (sinkholes, caves, stalactites) form in limestone and dolomite regions.

1. Rainwater containing dissolved CO₂ forms weak carbonic acid, which dissolves calcium carbonate – this is carbonation, a type of chemical weathering.
2. Mechanical/thermal weathering only breaks rock into pieces; it cannot dissolve it to form caves.

Yaad rakhein: Limestone + carbonic acid → solution → karst (named after the Karst plateau of Slovenia).

Answer: (C) Chemical weathering

Concept: Eliminate one variable by subtracting equations; here $Y$ has the same coefficient in all three.

1. Equations: $X+2Y+4Z=12$ …(i), $2X+2Y+3Z=10$ …(ii), $3X+2Y+Z=8$ …(iii).
2. (ii) − (i): $X-Z=-2$; (iii) − (ii): $X-2Z=-2$.
3. Subtracting: $Z=0$, so $X=-2$.
4. From (i): $-2+2Y=12\Rightarrow Y=7$.

Trick: In an exam, just plug each option into (iii): $3(-2)+2(7)+0=8$ ✓ only for option A.

Answer: (A) $X=-2,Y=7,Z=0$

Concept: Follow BODMAS: division and multiplication first, then addition/subtraction from left to right.

1. $(-60)÷(-6)=10$ and $(-2)\times 9=-18$.
2. Expression becomes $(-9)-10+(-18)$.
3. $=-9-10-18=-37$.

Trick: Negative ÷ negative = positive; then the whole thing is a sum of three negatives: $9+10+18=37$ with a minus sign.

Answer: (D) $-37$

Concept: $(a-b{)}^2=(a+b{)}^2-4ab$. Take $a=3x$, $b=2y$.

1. $(3x-2y{)}^2=(3x+2y{)}^2-4(3x)(2y)=(3x+2y{)}^2-24xy$.
2. $24xy=12\times (2xy)=12\times 3=36$.
3. $(3x-2y{)}^2={10}^2-36=64$.
4. $3x-2y=8$ (positive value).

Trick: $(a-b{)}^2=(a+b{)}^2-4ab$; here $4ab=24xy=12(2xy)=36$.

Answer: (A) 8