Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: Urban population share from Census 2011.

1. Urban population = 37.7 crore out of 121 crore, i.e. about 31.2% (31.16%).
2. Rural share ≈ 68.8%.
3. In 2001 the urban share was 27.8%.

Yaad rakhein: 2011: 31% urban, 69% rural.

Answer: (C) 31.2%

Concept: The UN Ocean Conference supports SDG 14 (Life below water).

1. The 3rd UN Ocean Conference was held at Nice, France in June 2025, co-hosted by France and Costa Rica.
2. The 2nd conference (2022) was in Lisbon, Portugal – a common trap.
3. The 1st was in New York (2017).

Yaad rakhein: 2017 New York → 2022 Lisbon → 2025 Nice.

Answer: (B) Nice, France

Concept: Hexa = six; a plain built by the deltas of six rivers.

1. The Odisha coastal plain (Utkal plain) is formed by deltas of six rivers.
2. Rivers: Subarnarekha, Burhabalang, Baitarani, Brahmani, Mahanadi and Rushikulya.
3. Andhra's plain is mainly the Godavari–Krishna delta; Tamil Nadu's is the Kaveri delta.

Yaad rakhein: Utkal plain = hexadeltaic; Chilika lake lies in it.

Answer: (C) Coastal plain of Odisha

Concept: Rebels needed a symbolic all-India leader.

1. Sepoys from Meerut marched to Delhi on 11 May 1857 and proclaimed the Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar (Bahadur Shah II) as the leader (Emperor of Hindustan).
2. Rani Laxmibai led at Jhansi and Nana Saheb at Kanpur – regional leaders.
3. Shah Alam II had died in 1806.

Yaad rakhein: Meerut → Delhi → Bahadur Shah Zafar.

Answer: (C) Bahadur Shah Zafar

Concept: Colonial trade served British industry.

1. India exported raw materials – raw silk, cotton, wool, indigo, jute, sugar.
2. India imported finished consumer goods (cotton, silk, woollen cloth) and capital goods from British factories.
3. Britain monopolised over half of India's trade; the export surplus was drained, not used for development.

Yaad rakhein: Colony = supplier of raw material + market for finished goods.

Answer: (D) Export of raw materials and import of manufactured goods

Concept: INDRA = India–Russia joint exercise series.

1. INDRA Navy 2025 (14th edition) was held at Chennai and in the Bay of Bengal from 28 March to 2 April 2025.
2. VARUNA = India–France naval exercise; SHAKTI = India–France army exercise.
3. INDRA is derived from INDia–RussiA.

Yaad rakhein: INDRA = IND + RA (Russia).

Answer: (D) INDRA

Concept: Aurobindo Ghosh served the Baroda State (1893–1906).

1. After the partition of Bengal (1905), he left Baroda in 1906 and moved to Calcutta.
2. He became principal of the Bengal National College and edited Bande Mataram, leading the Extremists.
3. After the Alipore Bomb Case he moved to Pondicherry in 1910 – the trap option.

Yaad rakhein: 1905 partition → 1906 Calcutta → 1910 Pondicherry.

Answer: (A) 1906

Concept: Nagara (north) and Dravida (south) are the two main temple styles.

1. Dravida temples have a high, ornate gateway tower called the gopuram and a pyramidal tower (vimana) over the sanctum.
2. A curvilinear shikhara belongs to the Nagara style.
3. Dravida temples have many-pillared halls (mandapas), and an enclosing wall.

Yaad rakhein: South: Gopuram + Vimana; North: Shikhara.

Answer: (D) Gopuram

Concept: K2 lies in PoK; excluding it, India's highest peak is Kangchenjunga.

1. Kangchenjunga (8,586 m), the third-highest peak in the world, lies on the Sikkim–Nepal border.
2. Uttarakhand: Nanda Devi (7,816 m); Himachal: Reo Purgyil (6,816 m); Arunachal: Kangto (about 7,060 m).
3. So Sikkim has the highest elevation point.

Yaad rakhein: K2 (PoK) → excluded → Kangchenjunga, Sikkim.

Answer: (B) Sikkim

Concept: NMACC is a cultural centre at Jio World Centre, Mumbai.

1. The Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre organised the three-day 'NMACC India Weekend' at Lincoln Center, New York (September 2025).
2. It featured Indian theatre, music, dance, fashion and food.
3. ICCR, NSD and Sangeet Natak Akademi are government bodies, not the organisers here.

Yaad rakhein: Lincoln Center + India Weekend → NMACC.

Answer: (D) Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre

Concept: A tsunami is a series of long sea waves caused by sudden displacement of a large volume of water.

1. Most tsunamis are caused by undersea earthquakes at subduction zones, when the sea floor moves suddenly.
2. Volcanic eruptions and landslides can also cause tsunamis, but less often – so 'only volcanic' is wrong.
3. Cyclones cause storm surges, not tsunamis.

Yaad rakhein: 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami = Sumatra undersea earthquake (magnitude 9.1).

Answer: (B) Undersea earthquakes

Concept: Special Olympics are for athletes with intellectual disabilities.

1. At the Special Olympics World Winter Games, Turin (March 2025), India won 33 medals.
2. Tally: 8 gold, 18 silver and 7 bronze.
3. Medals came in sports such as alpine skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing and floor hockey.

Yaad rakhein: 8 + 18 + 7 = 33.

Answer: (A) 33

Concept: IIAS is a Brussels-based body on public administration.

1. In 2025 India won the presidency of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences (IIAS) for the first time, through an election.
2. V. Srinivas, Secretary DARPG, became President for the 2025–2028 term.
3. UNDP, WHO and ILO are led by appointed heads/DGs, not this election.

Yaad rakhein: IIAS → Brussels → V. Srinivas (DARPG).

Answer: (B) International Institute of Administrative Sciences (IIAS)

Concept: Article 370 limited Parliament's power over J&K.

1. Except defence, foreign affairs and communications, Parliament needed the concurrence of the State Government to apply Union List laws to J&K.
2. J&K had its own constitution; DPSPs did not fully apply.
3. J&K did have Lok Sabha seats and was listed in the First Schedule.

Yaad rakhein: 370 = Defence, External affairs, Communications only; rest needs State's consent.

Answer: (A) Parliament required the consent of the State Government to make laws for J&K on Union List matters.

Concept: UPSC is a constitutional body under Article 315–323.

1. Chairman and members hold office for 6 years or until 65 years of age, whichever is earlier (Art. 316).
2. State PSC members: 6 years or 62 years.
3. They are appointed by the President.

Yaad rakhein: UPSC: 6 years or 65; State PSC: 6 years or 62.

Answer: (D) 6 years or until the age of 65 years

Concept: ICAR-IISR, Kozhikode (Kerala) breeds new spice varieties.

1. IISR Surya is a light-coloured (pale-yellow) turmeric variety, useful for food processing and cosmetics.
2. It is high-yielding and released by IISR Kozhikode.
3. Other IISR turmeric varieties: Prathibha, Alleppey Supreme, Kedaram.

Yaad rakhein: Surya = light/sunny-yellow turmeric.

Answer: (D) IISR Surya

Concept: Rename changes only the name; the item must be selected first.

1. Select the item, open the File menu, choose Rename, type the new name and press Enter.
2. Copy makes a duplicate and Delete removes the item – neither renames it.
3. View menu only changes how items are displayed.

Yaad rakhein: Shortcut: select + F2 = Rename.

Answer: (A) Select the file/folder → File → Rename → type new name → Enter

Concept: Phad = long cloth scroll painting.

1. Phad paintings of Rajasthan (Shahpura, Bhilwara) depict the epics of folk deities Pabuji and Devnarayan.
2. Bhopas (priest-singers) perform at night using the scroll as a backdrop.
3. Other: Pithora – Gujarat/MP; Warli – Maharashtra.

Yaad rakhein: Phad → Pabuji → Bhilwara, Rajasthan.

Answer: (D) Rajasthan

Concept: Mriga-Pakshi-Shastra = treatise on animals (mriga) and birds (pakshi).

1. It was compiled in the 13th century by the Jain poet Hamsadeva.
2. It describes the habits and types of many animals and birds.
3. Jahangir (Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri) and painter Mansur studied nature in the 17th century – too late.

Yaad rakhein: 13th century + Sanskrit treatise → Hamsadeva.

Answer: (C) Hamsadeva

Concept: Divisibility by 3: sum of digits divisible by 3. By 2, 4, 8: last 1, 2, 3 digits.

1. Digit sum $=4+7+6+6+4+3=30$, and $30÷3=10$ → divisible by 3.
2. Last digit 3 is odd → not divisible by 2, hence not by 4 or 8 either.

Trick: An odd number can never be divisible by 2, 4 or 8 – check only 3.

Answer: (A) 3