Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: Total internal reflection (TIR) happens when light, going from an optically denser to a rarer medium, meets the boundary at an angle of incidence larger than the critical angle $C$, where $\sin C=\frac{1}{\mu }$.

1. Light must travel from denser (glass, water) to rarer (air) medium; from rarer to denser it always bends towards the normal, so no TIR.
2. Angle of incidence $i>C$; then no refracted ray exists and all light reflects back.
3. At $i=0^{\circ }$ (along the normal) light passes straight; equal refractive indices mean no bending at all.

Yaad rakhein: Two conditions: Dense → Rare and $i>C$. Examples: optical fibre, sparkling diamond, mirage.

Answer: (B) Light must travel from a denser to a rarer medium at an angle greater than the critical angle.

Concept: Google Beam is the new name of Project Starline, unveiled at Google I/O in May 2025.

1. It is an AI-first 3D video communication platform: an AI model turns normal 2D video streams into a realistic 3D view on a light-field display.
2. Aim: make remote meetings feel like face-to-face conversation (eye contact, depth); devices made with HP for enterprises.
3. It is not a satellite, translation app or internet-speed device.

Yaad rakhein: Starline → Beam = 3D video calling with AI.

Answer: (B) An AI-powered video communication platform aiming to redefine virtual interactions

Concept: The First Five Year Plan (1951–56), based on the Harrod–Domar model, gave top priority to agriculture.

1. After Partition India faced food shortage and refugee pressure, so agriculture, irrigation and power (e.g. Bhakra-Nangal, Hirakud) got the largest share.
2. Heavy industrialisation was the focus of the Second Plan (Mahalanobis model, 1956–61).
3. IT services and PSU privatisation belong to the post-1991 era.

Yaad rakhein: 1st Plan = Agriculture; 2nd Plan = Heavy industry.

Answer: (D) Agricultural development

Concept: Padma Bhushan 2025 recipients from cinema included film-maker Shekhar Kapur (Art, Maharashtra).

1. Shekhar Kapur directed Mr. India, Bandit Queen and the Oscar-nominated Elizabeth.
2. Other cinema names in the 2025 Padma Bhushan list: Ajith Kumar, Nandamuri Balakrishna, Anant Nag.
3. Aamir Khan, Mukesh Khanna and Subhash Ghai were not in the 2025 Padma Bhushan list.

Yaad rakhein: Padma Bhushan 2025 cinema: Shekhar Kapur, Ajith, Balakrishna, Anant Nag.

Answer: (B) Shekhar Kapur

Concept: Wheat is a rabi crop needing cool growing season, moderate rain (50–75 cm) and well-drained fertile soil.

1. North-western plains (Punjab, Haryana, west UP) have deep fertile alluvial soil from the Indus–Ganga rivers.
2. Winters are cool, with some rain from western disturbances; canal irrigation fills the gap.
3. Heavy monsoon rain suits rice, not wheat; red soil with low rain suits millets.

Yaad rakhein: Wheat = Rabi + cool winter + alluvial soil (Punjab–Haryana belt).

Answer: (C) Because the region has fertile alluvial soil and cool winters

Concept: In Windows, the Start Menu is the main launching point of the desktop.

1. Start Menu lists installed programs/apps, gives Settings (system settings) and the Power button (Shut down, Restart, Sleep).
2. Taskbar is the strip that holds the Start button and running apps; File Explorer browses files; Notification Area shows clock, network, volume icons.

Yaad rakhein: Programs + Settings + Power = Start Menu (Windows key).

Answer: (C) Start Menu

Concept: Kesavananda Bharati vs State of Kerala (1973), a 13-judge bench, gave the Basic Structure doctrine.

1. Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution under Article 368, including Fundamental Rights.
2. But it cannot alter or destroy the basic structure (e.g. supremacy of Constitution, secularism, federalism, judicial review).
3. So neither "unlimited power" nor "no power" is correct; the President has no independent veto over amendments (Art. 368 assent is mandatory).

Yaad rakhein: Golaknath (1967): cannot amend FRs → Kesavananda (1973): can amend, but not basic structure.

Answer: (C) The Parliament can amend the Constitution, but it cannot change or destroy its basic structure or essential features.

Concept: In Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) vs Union of India (24 August 2017), a 9-judge bench declared privacy a Fundamental Right.

1. Privacy was held intrinsic to Article 21 (life and personal liberty) and Part III as a whole.
2. Shreya Singhal (2015) struck down Section 66A IT Act; Indira Sawhney (1992) – OBC reservation, 50% cap; Navtej Johar (2018) – decriminalised Section 377.

Yaad rakhein: Puttaswamy = Privacy.

Answer: (C) Puttaswamy vs. Union of India

Concept: Railways are the most suitable land transport for carrying heavy and bulky goods over long distances.

1. Trains carry huge loads (coal, ores, cement, food grains) cheaply per tonne-km over long routes.
2. Roadways suit short distances and door-to-door delivery; airways are costly and carry light, high-value or perishable goods.
3. Pipelines carry only liquids/gases (oil, gas), not bulky solid goods.

Yaad rakhein: Heavy + bulky + long distance = Railways (on land); short distance = roads.

Answer: (A) Railways

Concept: Impulse $J$ is the product of force and the time interval for which it acts: $J=F\times t$.

1. By Newton's second law $F=\frac{\Delta p}{t}$, so $J=F\times t=\Delta p$ (change in momentum).
2. SI unit: $\text{N s}$ (same as $\text{kg m/s}$); it is a vector.
3. Mass × velocity is momentum, not impulse; displacement per time is velocity.

Yaad rakhein: Impulse = Force × time = change in momentum (e.g. catching a ball by pulling hands back).

Answer: (B) The product of force and the time for which it acts

Concept: Chandragupta II (c. 375–415 CE), son of Samudragupta, took the title Vikramaditya.

1. He defeated the Western Kshatrapas (Shakas) and so is also called Shakari; his court had the Navaratnas, including Kalidasa.
2. Chinese pilgrim Fa-Hien (Faxian) visited India in his reign; he issued silver coins after conquering Gujarat-Malwa.
3. Dhruvasena was a Maitraka king of Valabhi, not a Gupta.

Yaad rakhein: Chandragupta II = Vikramaditya = Shakari; Fa-Hien + Kalidasa.

Answer: (D) Vikramaditya

Concept: The Ryotwari system was a British land-revenue settlement made directly with the ryot (cultivator).

1. Statement 1 – correct: developed by Captain Alexander Read and Thomas Munro (Governor of Madras, 1820).
2. Statement 2 – correct: no zamindar in between; the ryot paid revenue directly to the state.
3. Statement 3 – correct: first tried in Baramahal, territory taken from Tipu Sultan (1792).
4. Statement 4 – wrong: it was extended to Madras and Bombay Presidencies; the Ganga plains (north-west) got the Mahalwari system.

Yaad rakhein: Permanent – Bengal; Ryotwari – Madras, Bombay; Mahalwari – north-west/Ganga plains.

Answer: (C) 1, 2 and 3 only

Concept: Amir Khusrau (1253–1325), a disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya, wrote in Persian and Hindavi.

1. He served several Delhi Sultans (Balban to Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq) and is called Tuti-e-Hind (Parrot of India).
2. He wrote Persian works like Khazain-ul-Futuh and riddles, poems in Hindavi; he is linked with qawwali.

Yaad rakhein: Khusrau = Tuti-e-Hind, Persian + Hindavi, qawwali.

Answer: (D) Persian and Hindavi

Concept: The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 (passed April 2025, renamed UMEED Act) made Waqf Tribunal orders appealable in the High Court.

1. Earlier, the Tribunal's decision was final; the amendment allows an appeal to the High Court within 90 days of the order.
2. Other changes: two non-Muslim members in Central Waqf Council/State Boards, District Collector role in surveys, removal of "waqf by user" for future cases.

Yaad rakhein: Waqf Tribunal → High Court appeal in 90 days.

Answer: (C) 90 days

Concept: At the AIFF Awards 2024-25 (May 2025), Mohun Bagan defender Subhasish Bose was named Men's Player of the Year.

1. He captained Mohun Bagan Super Giant to the ISL League Shield and ISL Cup double in 2024-25.
2. Women's Player of the Year went to Sangita Basfore.

Yaad rakhein: AIFF 2025 Men's best = Subhasish Bose (defender, Mohun Bagan captain).

Answer: (D) Subhasish Bose

Concept: Jhumur is a folk dance of the tea-garden (Adivasi) communities of Assam, also seen in Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha.

1. Performed by young girls and boys with madal and flute, usually during the autumn and harvest season.
2. Among the given options it belongs to Assam; Punjab – Bhangra, Kerala – Mohiniyattam/Theyyam, Gujarat – Garba.

Yaad rakhein: Jhumur = tea tribes of Assam; Bihu is the other famous Assam dance.

Answer: (A) Assam

Concept: The HDI was created in 1990 by Pakistani economist Mahbub ul Haq with Amartya Sen for UNDP's first Human Development Report.

1. HDI combines three dimensions: health (life expectancy), education (years of schooling) and standard of living (GNI per capita).
2. Jean Drèze worked with Sen on hunger and India's development, but did not create HDI.

Yaad rakhein: HDI = Mahbub ul Haq + Amartya Sen, UNDP 1990.

Answer: (D) Mahbub ul Haq

Concept: Standing Committees are permanent and constituted every year or periodically; Ad hoc committees are made for a specific task and end after it.

1. Public Accounts Committee (since 1921) is a permanent financial Standing Committee: 22 members (15 LS + 7 RS), chaired by an Opposition member.
2. Select Committee on a Bill and a JPC (e.g. on 2G Spectrum) are ad hoc committees.
3. Delimitation Commission is a statutory body, not a parliamentary committee.

Yaad rakhein: Financial standing trio: PAC, Estimates, COPU.

Answer: (D) Public Accounts Committee

Concept: In 2025, scientists at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru proposed developing the world's smallest semiconductor chips.

1. The IISc team submitted a proposal to the government for angstrom-scale (sub-nanometre) chips using 2D materials such as graphene and transition-metal dichalcogenides.
2. This would place India among leaders in next-generation chip technology beyond the silicon limit.

Yaad rakhein: Smallest (angstrom-scale) chip proposal 2025 = IISc Bengaluru.

Answer: (A) Indian Institute of Science

Concept: Writs (habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, certiorari, quo warranto) enforce Fundamental Rights.

1. Article 32 – Supreme Court can issue writs; Ambedkar called it the "heart and soul" of the Constitution.
2. Article 226 – High Courts can issue writs for Fundamental Rights and also for other legal rights (wider scope).
3. RTI is read into Article 19(1)(a), so it is enforced through these writs.

Yaad rakhein: Writs: 32 = SC, 226 = HC.

Answer: (D) Articles 32 and 226