Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is India's apex body for disaster management, chaired by the Prime Minister.

1. It was first constituted on 30 May 2005 by an executive order of the Government of India.
2. It got statutory status under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 (notified 27 September 2006).
3. 2007, 2008 and 2010 are later dates.

Yaad rakhein: NDMA: executive order 2005 → DM Act 2005 → PM is ex-officio Chairperson.

Answer: (A) 2005

Concept: Pankaj Mishra is an Indian essayist and novelist known for books on Asia and the modern world.

1. His 2025 book 'The World After Gaza' examines the Gaza war and Middle Eastern conflict in a global, historical context.
2. His earlier works include 'From the Ruins of Empire' and 'Age of Anger'.
3. The other titles are not his books.

Yaad rakhein: Pankaj Mishra 2025 → 'The World After Gaza'.

Answer: (C) The World After Gaza

Concept: The SI base unit candela (cd) is defined by fixing the luminous efficacy $K_{cd}$ of monochromatic light of frequency $540\times {10}^{12}\text{Hz}$.

1. This frequency corresponds to green light of wavelength about $555\text{nm}$, where the human eye is most sensitive.
2. $K_{cd}$ is fixed exactly at $683\text{lm/W}$.
3. Hence $1\text{cd}=\frac{1}{683}\text{W/sr}$ of such light.

Yaad rakhein: Candela → '683' and '540 THz' are the two magic numbers.

Answer: (D) 683

Concept: Awadh became an autonomous state as Mughal power weakened in the 18th century.

1. Saadat Khan, titled Burhan-ul-Mulk, was appointed subadar (Nazim) of Awadh in 1722 by Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah.
2. He founded the Nawabi dynasty of Awadh and controlled its political, financial and military affairs.
3. Later rulers: Safdar Jang, Shuja-ud-Daula.

Yaad rakhein: Hyderabad 1724 (Nizam-ul-Mulk), Awadh 1722 (Burhan-ul-Mulk).

Answer: (D) 1722

Concept: The Council of Ministers (Articles 74 and 75) has three ranks: Cabinet Ministers, Ministers of State and Deputy Ministers.

1. The Cabinet is a smaller core group of senior ministers within the larger Council of Ministers.
2. Cabinet Ministers rank higher than Ministers of State, so (A) and (D) are wrong.
3. Ministers are appointed by the President on the PM's advice, not by the Chief Justice.

Yaad rakhein: Cabinet ⊂ Council of Ministers (part, not whole).

Answer: (B) Cabinet Ministers are a smaller group within the Council of Ministers.

Concept: Pitt's India Act, 1784 corrected the defects of the Regulating Act, 1773.

1. It created the Board of Control (6 members) in Britain to supervise the Company's civil, military and revenue affairs.
2. The Court of Directors kept commercial matters — a system of 'double government' in London.
3. The Supreme Court at Calcutta came from the Regulating Act (1774); Dual Government in Bengal was Clive's (1765).

Yaad rakhein: 1773 = Supreme Court; 1784 = Board of Control.

Answer: (C) Board of Control

Concept: Proteins are polymers of amino acids.

1. Every amino acid contains carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen (amino group); some contain sulphur (cysteine, methionine).
2. Phosphorus is a key element of nucleic acids (DNA/RNA), ATP and phospholipids — not a normal component of proteins.
3. So C, H, N are found in proteins; P generally is not.

Yaad rakhein: Protein = CHON + S; Nucleic acid = CHON + P.

Answer: (B) Phosphorus

Concept: The Green Revolution used high-yielding variety (HYV) seeds, fertilisers and irrigation from the mid-1960s.

1. Its biggest gains came in wheat (Punjab, Haryana, western UP), then in rice.
2. Pulses, oilseeds and coarse cereals gained little, so options with pulses/maize are wrong.
3. India became self-sufficient in food grains.

Yaad rakhein: Green Revolution = 'Wheat Revolution' first, then rice.

Answer: (C) Wheat and Rice

Concept: The 6th century BCE was a period of religious unrest in India against Vedic ritualism and the varna system.

1. Costly sacrifices and Brahmanical dominance caused discontent; the new agrarian economy also needed cattle protection.
2. Mahavira (Jainism) and Gautama Buddha (Buddhism) preached in this century; about 62 sects arose.
3. Hence the rise of both religions is placed in the 6th century BCE.

Yaad rakhein: 6th century BCE = Mahavira + Buddha + 16 Mahajanapadas.

Answer: (A) 6th century BCE

Concept: Globalisation means greater integration of economies through trade, investment, technology and capital flows.

1. Benefits: jobs, technology transfer and export growth — so (A), (B), (D) are advantages.
2. Gains often go to skilled workers, big firms and cities, while small producers and unskilled workers lag behind.
3. This widens income inequality — a key disadvantage for developing economies.

Yaad rakhein: Question asks DISADVANTAGE → pick the only negative option.

Answer: (C) Unequal income distribution

Concept: Laterite soil forms in areas of high temperature and heavy rainfall with alternate wet and dry seasons.

1. Heavy rain causes leaching: silica and bases (lime) wash away, leaving iron and aluminium oxides.
2. Loss of bases makes the soil acidic and poor in nitrogen, phosphate and calcium.
3. Found in Western Ghats, Kerala, Karnataka, Odisha, Meghalaya; good for tea, coffee, cashew.

Yaad rakhein: Laterite = 'later' (Latin brick) + leaching + acidic + red due to iron.

Answer: (A) Laterite soil

Concept: MILAN is a biennial multilateral naval exercise hosted by the Indian Navy, started in 1995 at Port Blair.

1. MILAN means 'meeting'; it brings together friendly foreign navies at Visakhapatnam (recent editions).
2. Its aim is to promote maritime cooperation, professional interaction and interoperability among navies.
3. It is not about submarine building, satellites or desert warfare.

Yaad rakhein: MILAN = 'milan' (meeting) of friendly navies.

Answer: (A) To promote maritime cooperation among friendly navies

Concept: Alt + Tab is the Windows task-switcher shortcut.

1. Holding Alt and pressing Tab repeatedly moves through the open windows, ordered by most recent use.
2. Releasing Alt brings the selected window to the front.
3. Win + L locks the PC, Ctrl + Shift + Esc opens Task Manager, Alt + F4 closes the active window.

Yaad rakhein: Alt + Tab = switch; Alt + F4 = close; Win + L = lock.

Answer: (B) It cycles through open applications in the order of last use.

Concept: The Extremist (Garam Dal) phase of the national movement (1905–1919) demanded Swaraj through boycott, swadeshi and mass agitation.

1. Its leading trio was Lala Lajpat Rai (Punjab), Bal Gangadhar Tilak (Maharashtra) and Bipin Chandra Pal (Bengal) — 'Lal-Bal-Pal'.
2. Gokhale was a Moderate; Gandhi, Nehru and Patel led the later mass phase.

Yaad rakhein: Lal (Punjab) – Bal (Maharashtra) – Pal (Bengal) = three regions, one ideology.

Answer: (A) Lal-Bal-Pal

Concept: Yakshagana is a traditional theatre form combining dance, music, dialogue, costume and make-up.

1. It is popular in coastal Karnataka (Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada) and parts of Kerala (Kasaragod).
2. Stories come mainly from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and Puranas, performed through the night.
3. Tamil Nadu's folk theatre is Therukoothu; Gujarat's is Bhavai.

Yaad rakhein: Yakshagana – Karnataka; Bhavai – Gujarat; Therukoothu – Tamil Nadu; Jatra – Bengal.

Answer: (C) Karnataka

Concept: The Football Writers' Association (FWA) in England names a Footballer of the Year each season.

1. Mohamed Salah of Liverpool won the 2025 FWA Men's Footballer of the Year after leading Liverpool to the Premier League title.
2. It was his third FWA award (2018, 2022, 2025), a record shared with Thierry Henry.
3. He also won the PFA Players' Player of the Year 2025.

Yaad rakhein: 2024–25 season: Liverpool champions → Salah sweeps FWA + PFA.

Answer: (B) Mohamed Salah

Concept: Mountains are classified by origin: fold, block, volcanic and residual.

1. Fold mountains form when compressional forces push layers of sedimentary rock into folds (anticlines and synclines) and uplift them.
2. Examples: Himalayas, Alps, Andes, Rockies (young); Aravallis (old).
3. Block mountains form by faulting; volcanic by eruption; residual by erosion.

Yaad rakhein: Folded sedimentary layers = Fold mountains (Himalayas).

Answer: (C) Fold Mountains

Concept: Pali was the language of the earliest Buddhist canon (Tipitaka) and Theravada scholarship.

1. Over time Mahayana Buddhists in India shifted to Sanskrit for their texts and philosophy.
2. In the medieval period, with Buddhism's decline in India, Pali lost its place as the main medium of Buddhist literature in India (it survived in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia).
3. Apabhramsha and regional languages were rising, not declining.

Yaad rakhein: Tipitaka = Pali; Mahayana = Sanskrit.

Answer: (A) Pali

Concept: The Right to Information Act, 2005 lets citizens seek information from 'public authorities'.

1. Section 2(h) defines public authorities: bodies set up by the Constitution, Parliament, State legislatures or government notification, and bodies substantially financed by government.
2. So it covers Central and State governments, courts, legislatures, PSUs and funded NGOs — not just one branch.
3. Some security/intelligence bodies are exempted under Section 24.

Yaad rakhein: RTI = all public authorities (Centre + States + local bodies).

Answer: (C) All Public Authorities

Concept: Cyanide is highly toxic even in very small amounts, so quick detection in water and cells is important.

1. Researchers at IIT Guwahati developed a fluorescent chemical sensor that detects cyanide in water and in living human cells.
2. The sensor changes its glow under a simple UV light, so detection needs no costly equipment.
3. It is useful for water-quality testing and biological studies.

Yaad rakhein: Cyanide + UV fluorescent sensor (2025) → IIT Guwahati.

Answer: (D) IIT Guwahati