Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: Black soil (regur) is clayey, rich in iron, lime and magnesia, and retains moisture for long – ideal for cotton.

1. Found in the Deccan Trap region: Maharashtra, Gujarat, MP, parts of Karnataka, Telangana, AP.
2. Hence called "black cotton soil"; red and laterite soils are porous and poor in moisture retention.

Yaad rakhein: Black soil = regur = cotton soil; swells when wet, cracks when dry (self-ploughing).

Answer: (D) Black soil

Concept: Lala Lajpat Rai led the protest against the Simon Commission at Lahore on 30 October 1928 and was severely lathi-charged; he died on 17 November 1928.

1. His words: "Every blow on my body will be a nail in the coffin of British rule."
2. Nehru Report (1928) was drafted by Motilal Nehru; Bardoli Satyagraha (1928) was led by Vallabhbhai Patel; the Salt March (1930) was after his death.

Yaad rakhein: Simon Commission → "Simon Go Back" → Lajpat Rai's death → Bhagat Singh's revenge (Saunders).

Answer: (B) Leading the anti-Simon Commission protests, where he suffered fatal injuries

Concept: The Faraizi Movement (founded 1818 by Haji Shariatullah in East Bengal) became a militant peasant movement against zamindars and indigo planters under his son Dudu Miyan (Muhsinuddin Ahmad).

1. Dudu Miyan organised peasants into a parallel administration and declared "land belongs to God", opposing rent demands.
2. U Kiang Nongbah led the Jaintia revolt (Meghalaya), Birsa Munda the Munda Ulgulan (1899–1900), Majnum Shah the Fakir uprising.

Yaad rakhein: Faraizi → Shariatullah & Dudu Miyan (Bengal); Wahabi → Syed Ahmad Barelvi.

Answer: (D) Dadu Mian

Concept: The CAA, 2019 fast-tracks Indian citizenship for Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who entered India on or before 31 December 2014.

1. Only these three Muslim-majority neighbours are covered; Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives are excluded.
2. Residence requirement for naturalisation was reduced from 11 years to 5 years for them; rules notified in March 2024.

Yaad rakhein: CAA = 3 countries (A-B-P), 6 communities, cut-off 31-12-2014.

Answer: (C) Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan

Concept: Harappan cities followed a grid plan – streets cut each other at right angles, dividing the Lower Town into rectangular blocks.

1. Cities had two parts: the raised Citadel (west) and the Lower Town (east), the residential area.
2. Main streets ran north–south, side lanes east–west; covered drains lined the streets – a hallmark of Harappan planning.

Yaad rakhein: Harappa = grid/chessboard pattern + baked bricks + drainage.

Answer: (B) Grid pattern intersecting at right angles

Concept: The UN Conference on the Human Environment, Stockholm (5–16 June 1972), was the first global meeting to make environment a major international issue.

1. It produced the Stockholm Declaration (26 principles) and led to the creation of UNEP; 5 June became World Environment Day.
2. Rio 1992 (Earth Summit) and Johannesburg 2002 (Rio+10) came later, building on Stockholm.

Yaad rakhein: Stockholm 1972 → Rio 1992 → Johannesburg 2002 → Rio+20 2012.

Answer: (D) Stockholm Conference, 1972

Concept: Article 37: the Directive Principles "shall not be enforceable by any court, but ... are nevertheless fundamental in the governance of the country".

1. DPSPs (Part IV, Articles 36–51) are non-justiciable, unlike Fundamental Rights (Part III).
2. Yet the State has a duty to apply them in making laws; courts use them to interpret laws.

Yaad rakhein: FR = justiciable (Art. 32); DPSP = non-justiciable but fundamental in governance (Art. 37).

Answer: (C) Not enforceable by courts, but fundamental in the governance of the country

Concept: The 69th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) was held at UN Headquarters, New York, from 10 to 21 March 2025.

1. It marked 30 years of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) and adopted a Political Declaration.
2. CSW sessions are always held annually in March at UN Headquarters in New York.

Yaad rakhein: CSW → every March → New York (UN HQ).

Answer: (B) New York, USA

Concept: In ancient texts (Bharata's Natyashastra, Dattilam), Gandharva was the formal, sacred music believed to please the gods, performed by trained musicians with strict rules.

1. Gana was the lighter, secular music used in drama and entertainment.
2. Dhrupad and Prabandh are later medieval forms (Prabandh led to Dhrupad).

Yaad rakhein: Gandharva = divine/formal; Gana = popular/secular.

Answer: (C) Gandharva

Concept: The Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF) was set up in 2014-15 under the Department of Agriculture to check volatility in prices of agri-horticultural commodities like onion, potato and pulses.

1. It funds buffer stocks and market interventions; in 2016 it was transferred to the Department of Consumer Affairs.
2. Pulses buffer (up to 20 lakh tonnes) is maintained under PSF.

Yaad rakhein: PSF 2014-15 → onion, potato, pulses → Consumer Affairs since 2016.

Answer: (C) 2014-15

Concept: The Society of Association Executives (SAE) India – a body for professionals who run trade and professional associations – was formally launched in Bengaluru in October 2025.

1. It aims to professionalise association management and link Indian bodies with the global ASAE network.
2. Bengaluru was chosen as the host city for the launch event.

Yaad rakhein: SAE India launch – October 2025 – Bengaluru.

Answer: (A) Bengaluru

Concept: John McFall, a British Paralympic sprinter and surgeon, is an ESA astronaut reserve member and in 2025 became the first person with a physical disability medically cleared for a long-duration ISS mission.

1. He lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident at 19 and won bronze at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics.
2. He joined ESA's "Fly!" feasibility study in 2022 as the first "parastronaut".

Yaad rakhein: John McFall – UK – ESA parastronaut.

Answer: (B) United Kingdom

Concept: Non-renewable resources exist in fixed amounts and cannot be replenished within a human lifetime – fossil fuels like petroleum, coal and natural gas.

1. Petroleum formed from marine organisms buried over millions of years.
2. Wind, solar and biomass are renewable – they are naturally replenished.

Yaad rakhein: Fossil fuels (coal, petroleum, gas) + minerals = non-renewable.

Answer: (D) Petroleum

Concept: Proteins are polymers of amino acids; complete digestion by pepsin, trypsin and peptidases breaks them down to amino acids, absorbed in the small intestine.

1. Fats → fatty acids + glycerol (lipase); carbohydrates → glucose (amylase, maltase).

Yaad rakhein: Protein → amino acids; Fat → fatty acids + glycerol; Starch → glucose.

Answer: (A) Amino acids

Concept: Application software performs user tasks; MS Word is a word processor used to create and edit documents.

1. Windows and Linux are operating systems (system software).
2. BIOS is firmware that starts the computer – not for creating documents.

Yaad rakhein: OS/BIOS = system software; Word, Excel, browsers = application software.

Answer: (D) MS Word

Concept: Jute is the "golden fibre" of the Ganga–Brahmaputra delta; its cultivation needs a hot, humid climate, heavy rain and fresh alluvial soil.

1. West Bengal alone produces roughly three-fourths (about 75%) of India's jute, with mills concentrated along the Hooghly river.
2. Bihar and Assam come next but each contributes only a small share; Odisha is a minor producer.

Yaad rakhein: Jute = Hooghly belt of West Bengal; the first jute mill was set up at Rishra near Kolkata (1855).

Answer: (B) West Bengal

Concept: Empowerment means expanding women's capabilities and choices – education, skills and income – so that they can participate in and lead community development.

1. Vocational training and education tailored to women's needs give them skills, earnings and decision-making power, which flows back into the family and village (SHGs, DAY-NRLM are built on this idea).
2. The other three options restrict women to the household, deny them education, or ignore them altogether – all are the opposite of empowerment.

Trick: In such questions pick the only option that adds opportunity; options with "restricting / limiting / solely men" are always wrong.

Answer: (C) Promoting gender-specific vocational training and education

Concept: Indian temple architecture has three main styles – Nagara (north), Dravidian (south) and Vesara (Deccan, a mix of the two).

1. Dravidian temples have a pyramidal tower (vimana) over the sanctum, large enclosed courtyards and tall, richly carved gateway towers called gopurams – e.g. Meenakshi Temple (Madurai), Brihadeeswara (Thanjavur).
2. Nagara temples have a curvilinear shikhara and usually no boundary wall or gopuram; Pala is a school of sculpture/architecture of Bengal–Bihar, not a temple style of gopurams.

Yaad rakhein: Gopuram + Vimana + temple tank = Dravidian; Shikhara + Amalaka = Nagara.

Answer: (A) Dravidian style

Concept: The Andaman & Nicobar group is split by channels named after the latitude on which they lie.

1. The Ten Degree Channel (about 10°N) separates Little Andaman (Andaman group) from Car Nicobar (Nicobar group).
2. Nine Degree Channel separates Lakshadweep from Minicoy; Duncan Passage lies between South Andaman and Little Andaman; Palk Strait separates India from Sri Lanka.

Yaad rakhein: 10° = Andaman | Nicobar; 9° = Lakshadweep | Minicoy; 8° = Minicoy | Maldives.

Answer: (A) Ten Degree Channel

Concept: Article 141 of the Constitution: "The law declared by the Supreme Court shall be binding on all courts within the territory of India." This is the basis of the doctrine of precedent in India.

1. The binding effect covers every court – High Courts, district and subordinate courts – not just High Courts or tribunals.
2. Article 144 separately requires all civil and judicial authorities to act in aid of the Supreme Court; the Supreme Court itself is not bound by its own earlier decisions.

Yaad rakhein: 141 = law of SC binding on all courts; 142 = complete justice; 143 = advisory jurisdiction; 144 = authorities to aid SC.

Answer: (A) All courts within the territory of India