Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: India's first commercial civil aviation flight took place on 18 February 1911.

1. French pilot Henri Pequet flew airmail about 10 km from Allahabad to Naini across the Yamuna.
2. Air transport was nationalised in 1953 (Indian Airlines and Air India International).

Yaad rakhein: 1911 – first airmail – Allahabad (Prayagraj) to Naini.

Answer: (A) Allahabad and Naini

Concept: Electric current is the rate of flow of charge: $I=\frac{Q}{t}$.

1. Charge is in coulomb (C) and time in second (s), so the unit of current is $\text{C/s}$.
2. $1\text{C/s}=1$ ampere (A), the SI unit of current.
3. Capacitance – farad ($\text{C/V}$); resistance – ohm ($\text{V/A}$); magnetic field – tesla.

Yaad rakhein: $1\text{A}=1\text{C/s}$; $1\text{F}=1\text{C/V}$; $1\Omega =1\text{V/A}$.

Answer: (C) Electric current

Concept: Many features of the Indian Constitution were borrowed from the British (UK) Constitution.

1. From the UK: parliamentary government, single citizenship, rule of law, cabinet system, bicameralism, writs.
2. From the USA: Fundamental Rights, judicial review; Canada: federation with strong Centre; Australia: Concurrent List.

Yaad rakhein: UK = Parliament + Single citizenship + Rule of law; USA = Rights + Judicial review.

Answer: (D) The UK

Concept: India's silver comes mostly as a by-product of lead–zinc ores.

1. Rajasthan (Zawar mines, Udaipur) holds the largest reserves; others are in Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Karnataka (Kolar/Hutti gold fields).
2. Gujarat is not listed among India's silver-bearing states.

Yaad rakhein: Silver ↔ lead-zinc belt – Zawar (Rajasthan) is the main source.

Answer: (D) Gujarat

Concept: The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), India's oldest trade union federation, was founded on 31 October 1920 in Bombay.

1. Lala Lajpat Rai was elected its first President; Joseph Baptista was vice-president and N.M. Joshi a key founder.
2. It was formed to represent Indian workers at the International Labour Organization (ILO).

Yaad rakhein: AITUC 1920 – first President Lala Lajpat Rai.

Answer: (B) Lala Lajpat Rai

Concept: Places near the sea have an equable (maritime) climate because the sea moderates temperature.

1. Mumbai, on the west coast, has a very small annual and daily range of temperature, so people there hardly feel extremes of temperature or seasonal changes.
2. Indore, Lucknow and Jaisalmer are inland and have a continental climate with very hot summers and cold winters.

Yaad rakhein: Coastal = equable climate (Mumbai); interior = extreme climate (Jaisalmer, Delhi).

Answer: (B) Mumbai

Concept: Article 16 guarantees equality of opportunity in matters of public employment.

1. Article 16(2): no citizen shall be ineligible or discriminated against for any public employment on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth or residence.
2. Article 15(2) concerns access to shops, wells, public places; Article 17 abolishes untouchability; Article 18 abolishes titles.

Yaad rakhein: Art 15 – general discrimination; Art 16 – public jobs; Art 17 – untouchability; Art 18 – titles.

Answer: (A) Article 16 (2)

Concept: Cycas is a plant (not an animal); it belongs to the Gymnosperms – plants with naked seeds not enclosed in a fruit.

1. Cycas is the 'living fossil' of gymnosperms, with coralloid roots and palm-like leaves.
2. Pteridophytes (ferns) have no seeds; Bryophytes (mosses) have no vascular tissue; Angiosperms have seeds inside fruits.

Yaad rakhein: Gymnosperms: Cycas, Pinus, Ginkgo, Cedrus (naked seeds).

Answer: (C) Gymnosperms

Concept: Dr. B.R. Ambedkar led movements for the rights and dignity of the depressed classes.

1. In 1927 he started a temple entry movement in which his Mahar followers took part (NCERT).
2. The same year he led the Mahad Satyagraha for access to public water (Chavdar tank).
3. The well-known Kalaram Temple entry satyagraha at Nashik followed in 1930.

Yaad rakhein: Ambedkar 1927 – Mahad Satyagraha + temple entry movement.

Answer: (B) 1927

Concept: When there is a lack of quorum of permanent judges, the Chief Justice of India can appoint a High Court judge as an ad hoc judge of the Supreme Court.

1. This is provided in Article 127 (with consent of the President and after consulting the Chief Justice of that High Court).
2. Article 126 – acting Chief Justice; Article 128 – attendance of retired judges; Article 125 – salaries of judges.

Yaad rakhein: 126 acting CJI → 127 ad hoc judge → 128 retired judges.

Answer: (B) Article 127

Concept: Many fruits and foods owe their sour taste to specific organic acids.

1. Malic acid is most abundant in apples (its name comes from Latin 'malum' = apple).
2. Lemon – citric acid; tamarind – tartaric acid; ginger is not known for malic acid.

Yaad rakhein: Apple – malic; lemon/orange – citric; tamarind/grapes – tartaric; tomato – oxalic; curd – lactic.

Answer: (C) apple

Concept: Brahma Gana Sabha, a Chennai cultural organisation, confers the 'Naatya Padhmam' title on dancers during the December Margazhi season.

1. On 24 December 2021 it conferred the Naatya Padhmam award on Bharatanatyam dancer Srekala Bharath.

Yaad rakhein: Naatya Padhmam 2021 (Brahma Gana Sabha) – Srekala Bharath.

Answer: (B) Srekala Bharath

Concept: Amylase is an enzyme that breaks down starch into sugars (maltose).

1. Salivary amylase (ptyalin) is present in saliva – digestion of starch begins in the mouth.
2. Pancreatic amylase also acts in the small intestine.
3. The stomach secretes pepsin (proteins); the liver makes bile, stored in the gall bladder – bile has no enzymes.

Yaad rakhein: Saliva – amylase (starch); stomach – pepsin (protein); pancreas – lipase (fat).

Answer: (D) saliva

Concept: Kathak legend Pandit Birju Maharaj (1938–2022) of the Lucknow gharana received the Padma Vibhushan in 1986.

1. He also received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1964) and the Kalidas Samman.
2. Padma Vibhushan is India's second-highest civilian award, above Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri.

Yaad rakhein: Birju Maharaj – Padma Vibhushan 1986; National Award (choreography) for Vishwaroopam.

Answer: (C) Padma Vibhushan

Concept: Article 352 allows a National Emergency on grounds of war, external aggression or armed rebellion.

1. The first was declared in October 1962 during the Chinese aggression and stayed in force till January 1968 (1962–68).
2. The second was in 1971 (Indo-Pak war) and the third in 1975 (internal disturbance), revoked in 1977.

Yaad rakhein: Emergencies: 1962 (China), 1971 (Pakistan), 1975 (internal).

Answer: (D) 1962-68

Concept: The FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m short course) 2022 were hosted by Melbourne, Australia (December 2022).

1. Melbourne replaced Kazan (Russia), which lost hosting rights after the Russia–Ukraine war.
2. Abu Dhabi hosted the 2021 edition; Budapest hosted the 2022 long-course World Aquatics Championships.

Yaad rakhein: Short-course 2021 – Abu Dhabi; 2022 – Melbourne.

Answer: (B) Melbourne, Australia

Concept: Laxmipriya Mohapatra, wife of Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra, was an Odissi dancer from Odisha.

1. She is credited with the first public stage performance of Odissi in 1948 at Annapurna Theatre, Cuttack.
2. Other Odissi greats: Kelucharan Mohapatra, Sonal Mansingh, Sanjukta Panigrahi.

Yaad rakhein: Odissi – Kelucharan & Laxmipriya Mohapatra; Sattriya – Assam; Kathakali – Kerala; Kuchipudi – Andhra Pradesh.

Answer: (C) Odissi

Concept: Amoghavarsha I (c. 814–878 CE) was a Rashtrakuta king and patron of literature.

1. Kavirajamarga, the earliest available literary work on poetics in Kannada, is attributed to him (with court poet Srivijaya).
2. He also wrote 'Prashnottara Ratnamalika' in Sanskrit, but Kavirajamarga is in Kannada.

Yaad rakhein: Kavirajamarga = first Kannada work on poetics – Amoghavarsha (Rashtrakuta).

Answer: (C) Kannada

Concept: A Wheatstone bridge has four resistors P, Q, R, S joined in a closed quadrilateral, with a galvanometer across one diagonal and a cell across the other.

1. At balance no current flows through the galvanometer, and $\frac{P}{Q}=\frac{R}{S}$.
2. Knowing three resistances, the fourth (unknown) is found accurately: $S=\frac{QR}{P}$.
3. The metre bridge works on the same principle.

Yaad rakhein: Wheatstone bridge = 4 arms, balance when $\frac{P}{Q}=\frac{R}{S}$.

Answer: (D) four

Concept: Under Article 366(12A) of the Constitution, GST covers all goods and services except alcoholic liquor for human consumption.

1. Alcohol for human consumption remains taxed by the States through State excise duty and VAT.
2. Hand sanitisers, pens and ventilators are all taxable under GST.
3. Petroleum crude, diesel, petrol, ATF and natural gas are in GST law but not yet notified for levy.

Yaad rakhein: Outside GST: alcoholic liquor for human consumption (State excise).

Answer: (C) Alcohol for human consumption