Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: CAT was set up in 1985 under Article 323A to decide service matters of Central Government employees.

1. Its Principal Bench is at New Delhi.
2. CAT functions through 19 regular benches across India (plus circuit sittings).
3. It was created by the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985 (42nd Amendment added Art. 323A).

Yaad rakhein: CAT – Art. 323A – 1985 – 19 benches, Principal Bench Delhi.

Answer: (A) 19

Concept: BRICS expanded in 2024–25; Indonesia became its newest full member.

1. Indonesia was admitted as a full member in January 2025.
2. The 17th BRICS Summit (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, July 2025) was the first summit with Indonesia as a full member.
3. Türkiye and others are not full members; Pakistan and Mexico are not members.

Yaad rakhein: BRICS 2024 entrants: Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE; 2025: Indonesia.

Answer: (D) Indonesia

Concept: The Preamble is based on the Objectives Resolution of Jawaharlal Nehru.

1. Nehru moved the Objectives Resolution in the Constituent Assembly on 13 December 1946.
2. It was adopted on 22 January 1947 and became the basis of the Preamble.
3. Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles are parts of the Constitution, not resolutions.

Yaad rakhein: 13 Dec 1946 moved → 22 Jan 1947 adopted → Preamble.

Answer: (A) Objectives Resolution

Concept: The People’s Plan Campaign (Sabki Yojana Sabka Vikas) was launched on 2 October 2018 by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.

1. It prepares the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) through special Gram Sabha meetings.
2. Villagers themselves identify needs and priorities – bottom-up, participatory planning.
3. Centralised control, corporate investment or uniform templates are the opposite of this idea.

Yaad rakhein: Sabki Yojana Sabka Vikas = Gram Sabha + GPDP + participation.

Answer: (A) Participatory Gram Sabha-based planning

Concept: Diligence means working continuously without tiredness or loss of concentration.

1. A computer can do millions of operations for hours with the same accuracy – it never gets bored or tired.
2. Speed = how fast it works; Accuracy = error-free results; Versatility = ability to do different kinds of tasks.
3. The statement stresses ‘tirelessly’ and ‘consistently’ → Diligence.

Trick: Tireless worker = Diligent.

Answer: (A) Diligence

Concept: Brahui is a North Dravidian language spoken outside India.

1. Brahui is spoken mainly in Balochistan (Pakistan) and parts of Afghanistan and Iran.
2. It is isolated from other Dravidian languages, surrounded by Balochi and Indo-Iranian languages.
3. Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam are South Dravidian languages spoken mainly in South India.

Yaad rakhein: Brahui → Balochistan; the only Dravidian language mainly spoken outside the Indian subcontinent’s south.

Answer: (B) Brahui

Concept: The Battle of Plassey (23 June 1757) was the result of Siraj-ud-Daulah’s attack on the English in Calcutta.

1. The English had fortified Calcutta without the Nawab’s permission and misused trade privileges – these were long-term causes.
2. In June 1756 Siraj-ud-Daulah captured Calcutta (Fort William) and English factories – the direct trigger (Black Hole incident).
3. Clive recaptured Calcutta and, with Mir Jafar’s betrayal, defeated Siraj at Plassey.

Yaad rakhein: Long-term cause = misuse of farman (dastak); immediate cause = capture of Calcutta, 1756.

Answer: (B) Capture of Calcutta and attack on British factories by Siraj-ud-Daulah

Concept: SpaDeX (Space Docking Experiment) demonstrated docking of two satellites in orbit.

1. Launched on PSLV-C60 on 30 December 2024 with two satellites SDX01 (Chaser) and SDX02 (Target).
2. Docking was achieved on 16 January 2025, making India the 4th country after the USA, Russia and China.
3. Docking technology is needed for Bharatiya Antariksh Station and Chandrayaan-4.

Yaad rakhein: SpaDeX = Chaser + Target, PSLV-C60, 4th nation.

Answer: (A) SpaDeX

Concept: Google’s AI hub/data-centre project in India is coming up at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.

1. In December 2025 the Andhra Pradesh government allotted 480 acres to Adani Infra (India) Pvt. Ltd., a partner of Google-owned Raiden Infotech India, for 1 GW AI data centres.
2. The project is linked to Google’s large AI-hub investment in Visakhapatnam announced in 2025.
3. Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Gujarat are not the states of this allotment.

Yaad rakhein: Google AI hub → Visakhapatnam (Vizag), Andhra Pradesh.

Answer: (B) Andhra Pradesh

Concept: The National Agricultural Policy (2000) aimed at food security for a huge population together with better farm incomes.

1. NAP 2000 targeted over 4% annual growth in agriculture.
2. Its core concern was producing enough food for the country’s large and growing population while raising farmers’ incomes and ensuring sustainable growth.
3. Renewable energy, urban infrastructure and export zones are unrelated to farm policy.

Yaad rakhein: NAP 2000 = 4%+ growth, food & nutrition security, higher farmer income.

Answer: (C) Feeding 1.4 billion people while improving farmers’ incomes

Concept: Under Article 178, every Legislative Assembly chooses its Speaker and Deputy Speaker from among its members.

1. The Speaker is elected by the members of the Vidhan Sabha themselves.
2. The Governor, Chief Minister or public do not elect the Speaker.
3. The Speaker can be removed by a resolution passed by a majority of all the then members of the Assembly.

Yaad rakhein: Lok Sabha Speaker – Art. 93; Vidhan Sabha Speaker – Art. 178; both elected by the House.

Answer: (D) By the members of the Vidhan Sabha

Concept: Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity: $a=\frac{\Delta v}{t}$.

1. Unit of velocity $=\text{m/s}$; dividing by time (s) gives ${\text{m/s}}^2$.
2. Force has unit newton $={\text{kg m/s}}^2$; energy has joule $={\text{kg m}}^2{\text{/s}}^2$.
3. So ${\text{m/s}}^2$ is the unit of acceleration.

Trick: $\text{m}$ → length, $\text{m/s}$ → velocity, ${\text{m/s}}^2$ → acceleration.

Answer: (C) acceleration

Concept: National Emergency (Article 352) could originally be declared on grounds of war, external aggression or ‘internal disturbance’.

1. The 1975 Emergency was declared on the ground of internal disturbance.
2. The 44th Amendment (1978) replaced ‘internal disturbance’ with ‘armed rebellion’.
3. President’s Rule (Art. 356) is for failure of constitutional machinery; Financial Emergency (Art. 360) for financial crisis.

Yaad rakhein: 44th Amendment: internal disturbance → armed rebellion (Art. 352).

Answer: (C) National Emergency

Concept: The bomb attack on Lord Hardinge (Delhi Conspiracy Case, 23 December 1912) occurred during his state entry into the new capital Delhi.

1. It was planned by Rash Behari Bose with Sachindranath Sanyal; Basanta Kumar Biswas threw the bomb.
2. Madanlal Dhingra (Curzon Wyllie, London 1909) and Khudiram Bose–Prafulla Chaki (Muzaffarpur, 1908) are linked to other attacks.
3. Surya Sen led the Chittagong Armoury Raid (1930).

Yaad rakhein: Hardinge bomb 1912 → Rash Behari Bose + Sachindranath Sanyal.

Answer: (C) Rasbehari Bose and Sachindranath Sanyal

Concept: Intensive subsistence farming is practised where land is scarce and population is dense.

1. Small holdings are cultivated with family labour, simple tools and high inputs to get maximum output.
2. Monsoon Asia (India, Bangladesh, China, SE Asia) grows rice mainly this way, often two–three crops a year.
3. Shifting cultivation is in thinly populated forests; Mediterranean farming is in mild-winter, dry-summer regions; nomadic herding is in dry grasslands.

Yaad rakhein: Dense population + small land = Intensive subsistence (rice paddy).

Answer: (B) Intensive subsistence farming

Concept: Compounded half-yearly → rate becomes half and time (periods) becomes double: $A=P{(1+\frac{R/2}{100})}^{2T}$.

1. Rate per half-year $=\frac{10}{2}=5\%$, periods $=1.5\times 2=3$.
2. $A=12000\times {\left(\frac{21}{20}\right)}^3=12000\times \frac{9261}{8000}$.
3. $A=1.5\times 9261=13891.50$

Trick: 3 years of 5% CI = $15.7625\%$ → $12000\times 1.157625=13891.5$.

Answer: (C) ₹$13,891.50$

Concept: After successive discounts, $SP=MP\times (1-\frac{d_1}{100})(1-\frac{d_2}{100})$.

1. After 15% discount: $16000\times 0.85=13600$.
2. $13600\times (1-\frac{N}{100})=12240\Rightarrow 1-\frac{N}{100}=\frac{12240}{13600}=0.9$.
3. $N=10\%$

Trick: Second discount $=\frac{13600-12240}{13600}\times 100=\frac{1360}{13600}\times 100=10\%$.

Answer: (C) $10\%$

Concept: Solve the bracket first (BODMAS): division and multiplication, then addition.

1. $\frac{8.16}{2.4}=\frac{81.6}{24}=3.4$
2. $3.64\times 1.5=5.46$
3. $3.4+5.46=8.86$

Trick: $3.64\times 1.5=3.64+1.82=5.46$ (half of the number added to itself).

Answer: (D) $8.86$

Concept: In a ratio, find the value of 1 part from the known quantity, then multiply by total parts.

1. Passed : Failed $=11:2$; total parts $=13$.
2. Failed $=2$ parts $=44\Rightarrow 1$ part $=22$.
3. Total students $=13\times 22=286$

Trick: Total must be a multiple of 13 → only 286 ($13\times 22$) fits.

Answer: (C) $286$

Concept: $(a-b{)}^2=(a+b{)}^2-4ab$.

1. $(a-b{)}^2={31}^2-4\times 220=961-880=81$
2. $a-b=\sqrt{81}=9$
3. Check: numbers are 20 and 11 ($20+11=31$, $20\times 11=220$).

Trick: Factor 220 into a pair adding to 31 → $20\times 11$ → difference 9.

Answer: (B) $9$