Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: In Microsoft Office (Word/Excel), Alt (or F10 / Alt+F10) activates the Ribbon: it selects the active tab and displays Key Tips (access keys).

1. Pressing Alt or F10 shows letters/numbers over the Ribbon tabs; typing them opens that tab or command without the mouse.
2. Close document → Ctrl+W / Ctrl+F4; Help → F1; Maximize/restore window → Alt+Space then X (or Win+↑).

Trick: 'F10 family' = Ribbon: F10 / Alt+F10 show Key Tips, Shift+F10 opens the right-click menu, Ctrl+F10 maximises the document window.

Answer: (D) Selects the active tab on the Ribbon and shows access keys

Concept: Article 275 provides statutory grants-in-aid from the Consolidated Fund of India to States in need of assistance.

1. Article 275: Parliament may make grants to such States as it determines to be in need; includes special grants for tribal welfare and Scheduled Areas (e.g. Assam).
2. Article 285 – Union property exempt from State taxation; Article 265 – no tax without authority of law; Article 255 – requirements of recommendations/previous sanction are matters of procedure only.

Remember: '275 = Statutory grants (Finance Commission), 282 = Discretionary grants'.

Answer: (B) Article 275

Concept: The Energy Conservation Act, 2001 aims to promote efficient use of energy and reduce the energy intensity of the Indian economy.

1. It created the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE, 2002) under the Ministry of Power to set standards, labelling (star rating), energy audits and building codes (ECBC).
2. Promotion of renewables (C) is under separate MNRE policies/Electricity Act; options B and D are the opposite of conservation.
3. The 2022 amendment added carbon-credit trading and non-fossil energy obligations.

Remember: EC Act 2001 → BEE → 'energy efficiency = lower energy intensity'.

Answer: (A) To reduce energy intensity in the Indian economy

Concept: The Second Five-Year Plan (1956–61) was based on the P.C. Mahalanobis model emphasising heavy and basic industries.

1. The model argued that investment in capital goods (steel, machinery) would raise long-run growth; steel plants at Bhilai, Rourkela and Durgapur were set up.
2. The First Plan (Harrod–Domar model) focused on agriculture; the Second shifted to rapid industrialisation under the 1956 Industrial Policy.

Remember: 2nd Plan = 'Mahalanobis Plan' = heavy industry (1st = Harrod–Domar, agriculture).

Answer: (D) Mahalanobis heavy-industry model

Concept: The Golden Revolution (1991–2003) refers to the rapid growth of horticulture – fruits, vegetables, flowers and honey.

1. Planned investment in horticulture made the sector highly productive and a sustainable livelihood; Nirpakh Tutej is called its father.
2. White = milk (Verghese Kurien), Green = food grains (M.S. Swaminathan), Blue = fish.

Remember: Colour code: Green–grain, White–milk, Blue–fish, Golden–fruits/honey, Yellow–oilseeds, Pink–onion/prawn.

Answer: (B) Golden revolution

Concept: In ecological succession the whole sequence of communities that replace one another in an area is called a sere; each transitional community is a seral stage.

1. Steps of succession: nudation → invasion (migration, ecesis, aggregation) → competition → reaction → stabilisation (climax).
2. Ecesis = successful establishment of a species; Climax = the final stable community – so B is the correct term for the entire sequence.

Remember: Sere = Series of communities; Climax = Closing stage.

Answer: (B) Sere

Concept: Gokhale went to England in 1897 to testify before the Welby Commission (Royal Commission on Indian Expenditure).

1. Along with Dadabhai Naoroji, D.E. Wacha and Surendranath Banerjee, he presented evidence on the burden of military and administrative expenditure on India and the 'drain of wealth'.
2. Hunter Commission (1882) – education; Raleigh Commission (1902) – universities; Fraser Commission (1902) – police.

Remember: 'Gokhale–Welby–1897' – Expenditure; Hunter–Education; Raleigh–University; Fraser–Police.

Answer: (C) Welby Commission

Concept: The 73rd Amendment Act, 1992 (Part IX, Articles 243–243O) constitutionalised Panchayati Raj; the Finance Commission of India (Article 280) already existed since 1951.

1. Provisions: three-tier structure (village, intermediate, district/Zila), Gram Sabha, reservation for SC/ST and women, 5-year term, State Election Commission and State Finance Commission (Art. 243-I).
2. The Finance Commission of India is a 1950 constitutional body under Article 280 – not a creation of the 73rd Amendment.

Remember: 73rd → 'State' bodies (State Finance Commission, State Election Commission); 'Finance Commission of India' → Art. 280 original Constitution.

Answer: (D) Establishment of Finance Commission of India

Concept: Population density = population ÷ area. India has a very high density; Russia, Canada and Australia have among the lowest.

1. India: about 1.4 billion people on 3.29 million km² → density ≈ 480 per km² (Census 2011: 382).
2. Russia ≈ 9, Canada ≈ 4, Australia ≈ 3 persons per km² – huge areas with sparse population.

Remember: Big + cold/desert countries (Russia, Canada, Australia) = lowest density; India, Bangladesh = highest among large countries.

Answer: (D) India

Concept: Pherozeshah Mehta was a leading Moderate (1885–1905 phase) of the Indian National Congress.

1. Mehta – 'Lion of Bombay' – founded the Bombay Presidency Association and presided over the 1890 Calcutta Congress; he believed in constitutional methods, petitions and prayers.
2. Bal Gangadhar Tilak was an Extremist leader; Bhagat Singh was a revolutionary; Subhas Chandra Bose led the INA – none were Moderates.

Remember: Moderates = Naoroji, Gokhale, Mehta, W.C. Bonnerjee, S.N. Banerjee; Extremists = Lal–Bal–Pal + Aurobindo.

Answer: (A) Pherozeshah Mehta

Concept: Under the RTI Rules 2012, the application fee is ₹10, but persons below the poverty line (BPL) are fully exempt from any fee.

1. Rule 3: fee ₹10 by cash/DD/IPO/e-payment; Rule 4: ₹2 per page for copies; Rule 5 read with Section 7(5) of the RTI Act 2005: no fee from BPL applicants (proof of BPL status needed).
2. Information must be given within 30 days (48 hours if life/liberty is involved).

Remember: RTI: ₹10 to apply, ₹2 per page, ₹0 for BPL.

Answer: (A) No payment

Concept: The 1991 LPG reforms (Liberalisation, Privatisation, Globalisation) moved India to a higher and more sustainable growth path.

1. GDP growth rose from about 3.5% ('Hindu rate') before the 1980s to 6–7% average after the reforms, with forex reserves and exports rising sharply.
2. Options A–C contradict the record: the reforms ended the 1991 crisis and reduced instability rather than causing stagnation.

Remember: 1991 reforms = Manmohan Singh (FM) + Narasimha Rao → 'crisis to sustained growth'.

Answer: (D) They led to more sustainable growth.

Concept: World Diabetes Day is observed every year on 14 November, the birthday of Sir Frederick Banting, co-discoverer of insulin.

1. Created by IDF and WHO in 1991; 2024–26 theme: 'Diabetes and Well-being'. In India 14 November is also Children's Day (Nehru's birthday).
2. World Malaria Day – 25 April; World Hypertension Day – 17 May; World Health Day – 7 April.

Remember: 14 Nov = Banting's birthday = Diabetes Day (blue circle logo).

Answer: (C) World Diabetes Day

Concept: Odissi is the classical dance of Odisha that grew out of temple worship (Maharis/Devadasis in the Jagannath temple).

1. Its themes are drawn from Jayadeva's Gita Govinda – the divine love of Radha and Krishna; postures Tribhangi and Chauka are characteristic.
2. Karam, Ghumura and Dalkhai are folk/tribal dances of Odisha, not temple-origin classical forms.

Remember: Odissi = 'mobile sculpture' of Konark/Jagannath temples; exponents – Kelucharan Mohapatra, Sonal Mansingh.

Answer: (A) Odissi

Concept: The 104th Amendment Act, 2019 (effective 25 Jan 2020) extended SC/ST reservation in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies for 10 years but ended the nomination of Anglo-Indians.

1. Articles 331 and 333 had allowed the President (2 members) and Governors (1 member) to nominate Anglo-Indians; this provision was not renewed beyond 2020.
2. SC/ST reservation (Art. 334) continues till 2030; Jains were never given nominated seats.

Remember: 104th = 'SC/ST +10 years, Anglo-Indians out'.

Answer: (D) Anglo-Indians

Concept: Simplify the surds first, then substitute. $(\sqrt{225}{)}^2=225$.

1. $x=\sqrt{225}+\sqrt{484}=15+22=37$, so $x^2=1369$.
2. Bracket: $(\sqrt{225}{)}^2+(32{)}^2=225+1024=1249$.
3. $x^2-1249=1369-1249=120$.

Trick: Squaring a square root just removes the root sign – no need to compute $\sqrt{225}$ for that term.

Answer: (C) 120

Concept: In a right-angled triangle the hypotenuse is the diameter of the circumcircle, so $R=\frac{\text{hypotenuse}}{2}$.

1. Hypotenuse $=\sqrt{{13}^2+{84}^2}=\sqrt{169+7056}=\sqrt{7225}=85\text{m}$.
2. Outer radius $R=\frac{85}{2}=42.5\text{m}$.
3. Track width 2 m ⇒ inner radius $=42.5-2=40.5\text{m}$.
4. Inner perimeter $=2\pi \times 40.5=81\pi \text{m}$.

Yaad rakhein: 13–84–85 is a Pythagorean triplet. Inner perimeter $=2\pi (R-w)=\pi (85-4)$.

Answer: (C) $81\pi \text{m}$

Concept: Take the number of ₹20 notes as $x$ and express every count in $x$; total value gives one equation.

1. ₹20 notes $=x$, ₹10 notes $=x+16$, ₹5 notes $=2x$.
2. Value: $20x+10(x+16)+5(2x)=1000\Rightarrow 40x+160=1000\Rightarrow x=21$.
3. Total notes $=21+37+42=100$.

Trick: Check: $21\times 20+37\times 10+42\times 5=420+370+210=1000$ ✓.

Answer: (C) 100

Concept: Successive discounts multiply: price paid $=\text{MP}\times (1-d_1)(1-d_2)$.

1. After 17%: $2000\times 0.83=1660$.
2. After further 10%: $1660\times 0.9=1494$.

Trick: Single equivalent discount $=17+10-\frac{17\times 10}{100}=25.3\%$; $2000\times 0.747=1494$.

Answer: (A) ₹1,494

Concept: Form an equation for the future ages; the age difference never changes.

1. Son $=s$, father $=s+30$.
2. After 12 years: $s+42=3(s+12)\Rightarrow s+42=3s+36\Rightarrow 2s=6$.
3. $s=3$ years.

Trick: When father is 3 times the son, the difference (30) equals 2 times son's age ⇒ son then is 15, so now $15-12=3$.

Answer: (B) 3 years