Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: The Tropic of Cancer ($23{\frac{1}{2}}^{\circ }$ N) crosses 8 Indian states.

1. It passes through Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura and Mizoram.
2. So the two northeastern states are Tripura and Mizoram.
3. Nagaland and Manipur lie north of the line, so options with them are wrong.

Yaad rakhein: Order west to east: "Gu-Ra-M-Ch-J-WB-T-M" – the last two (Tripura, Mizoram) are the NE states.

Answer: (D) Tripura and Mizoram

Concept: Disaster management cycle: prevention/mitigation → preparedness → response (relief) → recovery/reconstruction.

1. Immediate help during a disaster – rescue, food, shelter, first aid – is the relief/response stage.
2. Prevention and preparation happen before the disaster; reconstruction comes later.

Trick: "During" = Response/Relief; "Before" = Prevention/Preparedness; "After" = Reconstruction.

Answer: (A) Relief response

Concept: The draft Advocates (Amendment) Bill, 2025 was released by the Law Ministry to update the Advocates Act, 1961.

1. It widened the definition of "legal practitioner" to include lawyers working in corporate entities, i.e. in-house counsel and corporate lawyers.
2. It did not dissolve the Bar Council of India or fix a retirement age of 60.

Yaad rakhein: Amendment Bill 2025 → "legal practitioner" now covers corporate/in-house lawyers too.

Answer: (C) Recognising in-house counsel and corporate lawyers as "legal practitioners"

Concept: The Eastern Ghats are discontinuous hills running from Odisha to Tamil Nadu.

1. Mahendragiri (about 1,501 m) in Odisha is the highest peak of the northern Eastern Ghats.
2. Nilgiri, Doddabetta (highest peak of the Nilgiris) and Anaimalai lie in the south, at the Western–Eastern Ghats junction or in the Western Ghats.

Yaad rakhein: Northern Eastern Ghats = Odisha = Mahendragiri; South = Nilgiri / Anaimalai.

Answer: (A) Mahendragiri hills

Concept: AARDO (African-Asian Rural Development Organization) is an inter-governmental body headquartered in New Delhi.

1. At its 21^st General Session held in New Delhi in February 2025, India was elected President for the triennium 2025–2027.
2. India is a founder member and the largest contributor of AARDO.

Yaad rakhein: AARDO HQ = New Delhi, and India got the President post for 2025–27.

Answer: (A) India

Concept: Urbanisation = share of a state/UT population living in urban areas.

1. Census 2011: NCT of Delhi had the highest urban share, about 97.5%.
2. Chandigarh was a close second (about 97.25%); Meghalaya and Assam are among the least urbanised.

Yaad rakhein: Delhi (97.5%) just beats Chandigarh (97.25%); among states, Goa leads.

Answer: (A) Delhi

Concept: India's first AI-centric Special Economic Zone is being set up in Nava Raipur, Chhattisgarh.

1. It is an AI data-centre park developed by RackBank Datacenters with an investment of about ₹1,000 crore, announced in 2025.
2. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have IT parks but not this first AI-SEZ.

Yaad rakhein: First AI SEZ → Nava Raipur (Chhattisgarh).

Answer: (D) Chhattisgarh

Concept: Content-creating applications produce new document files; a file manager only organises existing files.

1. Paint creates image files (.png, .bmp), Notepad creates .txt files, MS-Word creates .docx files.
2. Windows Explorer (File Explorer) is used to browse, copy, move, rename and delete files – it is not an application for creating file content.

Yaad rakhein: Explorer = file manager, not file maker.

Answer: (D) Windows Explorer

Concept: Internal energy $U$ of a gas is the total energy of its molecules measured in the frame where the container is at rest.

1. Molecular kinetic energy (translational + rotational + vibrational) is one part.
2. Potential energy due to intermolecular forces is the other part.
3. So $U=\text{KE}+\text{PE}$ of molecules; options B and D leave out one of these.

Yaad rakhein: $U=\sum \text{KE}+\sum \text{PE}$ (for an ideal gas PE = 0, so only KE remains).

Answer: (C) sum of kinetic and potential energies of its molecules when the box is at rest

Concept: RBI holds supervisory conferences with regulated entities to discuss governance and risk.

1. On 28 March 2025, RBI organised a conference for large NBFCs in Chennai.
2. Its theme was "Shared Vision, Shared Responsibility: Strengthening the NBFCs".

Yaad rakhein: Supervisor + NBFC = "Shared" responsibility – the word "Shared" recurs.

Answer: (A) Shared Vision, Shared Responsibility: Strengthening the NBFCs

Concept: The Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) Book Awards honour books in several categories.

1. In 2025, journalist Neha Dixit won in the Debut category for her non-fiction 'The Many Lives of Syeda X'.
2. The book traces the life of a Muslim woman working in India's informal economy in Delhi.

Yaad rakhein: Syeda X → Neha Dixit (journalist, debut book).

Answer: (C) Neha Dixit

Concept: The New Economic Policy of 1991 was launched after the balance-of-payments crisis.

1. Its three pillars were Liberalisation (removing controls), Privatisation (reducing the public sector) and Globalisation (integration with the world economy) – the LPG model.
2. Nationalisation and protectionism were features of the pre-1991 era, the opposite of LPG.

Yaad rakhein: 1991 = LPG (Manmohan Singh, FM under PM Narasimha Rao).

Answer: (A) Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation

Concept: The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports runs the "Sports Fund for Pension to Meritorious Sportspersons".

1. It gives lifelong monthly pension to medal winners of major international events.
2. Silver or bronze medallists of Asian Games / Commonwealth Games get ₹12,000 per month (Olympic/Paralympic medallists get ₹20,000).

Yaad rakhein: Pension amount ladder: Olympic ₹20,000 → Asian/CWG gold ₹14,000 → silver/bronze ₹12,000.

Answer: (C) Sports Fund for Pension to Meritorious Sportspersons

Concept: Lok Adalats are forums for amicable settlement of disputes.

1. Statutory status was given by the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 (in force from 1995).
2. An award of a Lok Adalat is treated as a decree of a civil court and no appeal lies against it.

Yaad rakhein: Lok Adalat → LSA Act 1987 (also set up NALSA).

Answer: (D) The Legal Services Authorities Act

Concept: Indian temple styles: Nagara (North), Dravida (South), Vesara (mixed, Deccan).

1. Nagara temples have a curvilinear shikhara and no elaborate boundary walls – e.g. Khajuraho, Konark.
2. Baroque is a European style; Vesara belongs to Karnataka/Deccan.

Yaad rakhein: N for Nagara = N for North; D for Dravida = Down south.

Answer: (A) Nagara

Concept: Infrastructure = roads, railways, power, ports, communication, water, etc.

1. Like wheels move a vehicle, infrastructure moves the economy by enabling production and delivery of goods and services.
2. It also gives people access to markets, health and education.
3. Inflation control and currency circulation are monetary functions, not the role of infrastructure.

Yaad rakhein: "Wheels" = movement = delivery of goods, services and access.

Answer: (C) It enables delivery of goods, services and access.

Concept: Directive Principles are grouped as Socialist, Gandhian and Liberal-intellectual.

1. Organisation of village panchayats (Article 40) is a Gandhian principle, reflecting gram swaraj.
2. Equal pay for equal work (Art. 39(d)) is socialist; Uniform Civil Code (Art. 44) and separation of judiciary (Art. 50) are liberal-intellectual.

Yaad rakhein: Gandhian DPSPs: Art. 40 (panchayats), 43 (cottage industries), 46 (weaker sections), 47 (prohibition), 48 (cow protection).

Answer: (B) Organisation of village panchayats

Concept: Rajendra Chola I (1014–1044 CE) built a powerful Chola navy.

1. Around 1025 CE he sent a naval expedition against the Srivijaya empire.
2. Srivijaya was centred in Sumatra and the Malay peninsula – present-day Indonesia (and Malaysia).
3. Sri Lanka was conquered too, but it was never the Srivijaya empire.

Yaad rakhein: Srivijaya = Sumatra = Indonesia; Rajendra I = "Gangaikonda" + "Kadaram-konda".

Answer: (A) Indonesia

Concept: Differences between Moderates (Gokhale, Pherozeshah Mehta) and Extremists (Lal-Bal-Pal) grew after the Partition of Bengal.

1. The open split happened at the Surat Session of 1907, presided over by Rash Behari Ghosh.
2. Partition of Bengal (1905) was a background cause; the Muslim League was formed in 1906; Simon Commission came in 1928.

Yaad rakhein: Surat 1907 = Split; Lucknow 1916 = Reunion.

Answer: (A) Surat Session

Concept: TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) issues consultation papers and recommends spectrum assignment terms.

1. In April 2025 TRAI floated a consultation on assignment of spectrum for satellite-based services, supporting future 6G backhaul.
2. WPC is a wing of DoT that allots frequencies; NIXI runs internet exchanges; NIC handles government IT.

Yaad rakhein: Consultation papers on spectrum → TRAI.

Answer: (A) TRAI