Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (2000) provides all-weather roads to rural habitations.

1. In 2020-21 Jammu and Kashmir built about 3,300 km of rural roads under PMGSY – a record for the UT.
2. This placed J&K among the top performers in PMGSY road construction that year.

Yaad rakhein: PMGSY launched 25 December 2000; J&K – 3,300 km in 2020-21.

Answer: (D) Jammu and Kashmir

Concept: The Slave (Mamluk) dynasty was the first dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate.

1. Qutb-ud-din Aibak, a slave and general of Muhammad Ghori, founded it in 1206 after Ghori’s death.
2. Aram Shah, Iltutmish and Balban were later rulers of the same dynasty.

Yaad rakhein: Aibak – ‘Lakh Bakhsh’, began Qutub Minar; founder of Slave dynasty (1206).

Answer: (D) Qutub-Din Aibak

Concept: Article 79: Parliament = President + Lok Sabha + Rajya Sabha; the President has a five-year term and assents to bills (Article 111).

1. Options A, B and C are correct statements.
2. A Money Bill is introduced only with the President’s prior recommendation, so he cannot return it for reconsideration and in practice always gives assent – he does not exercise veto over it as he does over ordinary bills.
3. Hence the statement giving him a veto to refuse Money Bills is the incorrect one.

Yaad rakhein: Money Bill – prior recommendation of President; no suspensive veto (cannot return).

Answer: (D) He has veto power… including Money Bill passed by the Parliament.

Concept: Group 13 (boron family): B (5), Al (13), Ga (31), In (49), Tl (81).

1. Atomic number $31$ belongs to Gallium (Ga).
2. Gallium melts at about ${29.8}^{\circ }\text{C}$ – it can melt in the palm of the hand.

Yaad rakhein: Al $13$ + $18$ = Ga $31$ + $18$ = In $49$.

Answer: (B) Gallium

Concept: Kathak gets its name from ‘katha’ (story); ‘Katha kahe so Kathak kahave’.

1. It was performed by the Kathakars – travelling storytellers of north Indian temples.
2. Kathakali also tells stories but its name means ‘story-play’; the title ‘dance of storytellers’ belongs to Kathak.

Yaad rakhein: Kathak – Katha (story) – storytellers of North India.

Answer: (A) Kathak

Concept: Match each dam with its state.

1. Hirakud Dam on the Mahanadi is in Odisha – correct pair.
2. Tehri – Uttarakhand (Bhagirathi); Bhakra Nangal – Himachal Pradesh/Punjab (Sutlej); Nagarjuna Sagar – Telangana/Andhra Pradesh (Krishna).

Yaad rakhein: Hirakud – Mahanadi – Odisha, one of the longest earthen dams.

Answer: (B) Hirakud dam – Odisha

Concept: The mixed $4\times 400\text{m}$ relay (two men + two women per team) made its Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020.

1. Its inclusion was approved by the IOC Executive Board at Lausanne as part of the new-event package for Tokyo, decided before the 2018–19 qualification cycle.
2. Among the given years, 2018 is the answer; 2019 and 2020 are too late for event inclusion.

Yaad rakhein: Tokyo 2020 debut events – mixed $4\times 400\text{m}$ relay, 3x3 basketball, mixed team events.

Answer: (A) 2018

Concept: The 50th World Artistic Gymnastics Championships were held in October 2021.

1. Venue: Kitakyushu, Japan (18–24 October 2021).
2. Stuttgart hosted 2019, Doha 2018 and Liverpool 2022.

Yaad rakhein: 2021 – Kitakyushu; 2022 – Liverpool.

Answer: (D) Kitakyushu, Japan

Concept: Classical dance has three elements: Nritta, Nritya and Natya.

1. Nritta – pure, non-narrative and abstract dance (rhythmic movements, no story).
2. Nritya – interpretative/expressive dance; Natya – dramatic, narrative element.

Yaad rakhein: Nritta = pure dance; Nritya = expression; Natya = drama.

Answer: (B) Non-Narrative and Abstract Dancing

Concept: Bhagta Parab is a tribal festival of Jharkhand, between spring and summer.

1. It is celebrated mainly by the Sarna tribes and is associated with worship of Budha Baba with fasting and acrobatic rituals.
2. Nongkrem – Meghalaya (Khasi); Losar – Tibetan New Year (Sikkim, Ladakh, Arunachal).

Yaad rakhein: Jharkhand – Sarhul, Karma, Sohrai, Bhagta Parab.

Answer: (D) Bhagta Parab

Concept: El Niño is the abnormal warming of the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean.

1. It recurs irregularly about every three to seven years.
2. It weakens the Indian monsoon (drought) and causes floods in coastal Peru.

Yaad rakhein: El Niño – warm, every 3 to 7 years; La Niña – cool phase.

Answer: (A) seven

Concept: Article 21A was inserted by the 86th Amendment Act, 2002.

1. It makes free and compulsory education a Fundamental Right for children aged 6 to 14 years.
2. The RTE Act, 2009 gives effect to it; Article 22 – arrest, 20 – offences, 23 – trafficking.

Yaad rakhein: 21A – Right to Education (86th Amendment, 2002; RTE Act 2009).

Answer: (B) Article 21A

Concept: Bryophyta has two groups: liverworts and mosses.

1. The passage describes thalloid, dorsiventral plants like Marchantia in moist shady places – these are liverworts.
2. Sphagnum is a moss; Selaginella and Salvinia are pteridophytes.

Yaad rakhein: Marchantia – liverwort; Funaria, Sphagnum – mosses.

Answer: (C) Liverworts

Concept: Sekrenyi is the purification festival of the Angami Nagas.

1. It is celebrated in February (about 25 February) for ten days.
2. Hornbill festival is in December (state-wide), Losoong is of Sikkim, Majuli festival is of Assam.

Yaad rakhein: Angami – Sekrenyi (February); Hornbill – 1–10 December.

Answer: (A) Sekrenyi festival

Concept: The Constitution has no provision of joint sitting for State Legislatures.

1. A deadlock over an ordinary bill in a state is resolved by the Assembly’s will (Council can delay at most four months), not by a joint session.
2. Maintaining order, certifying Money Bills and adjourning for lack of quorum are real powers of the Speaker.

Yaad rakhein: Joint sitting (Article 108) – only for Parliament, presided by Lok Sabha Speaker.

Answer: (C) He calls for a joint session of the Assembly and Council…

Concept: The All-India Khilafat Committee organised a conference against the treatment of the Turkish Caliph.

1. The All-India Khilafat Conference met at Delhi on 23 November 1919, with Gandhiji attending.
2. It decided on boycott of British goods and non-cooperation.

Yaad rakhein: Khilafat Conference – Delhi, November 1919; leaders – Ali brothers.

Answer: (B) Delhi

Concept: Image by a concave mirror depends on object position (P = pole, F = focus, C = centre of curvature).

1. Object at infinity: parallel rays meet at F, so the image is at F, highly diminished (point-sized) – not at C. Option D is wrong.
2. At F → image at infinity, highly enlarged ✓; between C and F → beyond C, enlarged ✓; beyond C → between F and C, diminished ✓.

Yaad rakhein: Infinity → F; At C → At C (same size); At F → Infinity.

Answer: (D) At infinity – At C – Highly diminished

Concept: The Meghalaya (Shillong) Plateau is an extension of the Peninsular plateau, separated by the Garo–Rajmahal gap.

1. From west to east it has the Garo, Khasi and Jaintia Hills.
2. The Nilgiri Hills are in Tamil Nadu, where the Western and Eastern Ghats meet.

Yaad rakhein: Meghalaya west → east: Garo – Khasi – Jaintia (GKJ).

Answer: (A) Nilgiri Hills

Concept: INSAT (Indian National Satellite System) is a multipurpose geostationary series for communication, broadcasting and meteorology.

1. INSAT satellites carry the Very High Resolution Radiometer (VHRR) that observes clouds, temperature and winds.
2. IRS – remote sensing; GSAT – communication; SROSS – scientific small satellites.

Yaad rakhein: INSAT = Communication + Weather (VHRR); IRS = resources.

Answer: (C) INSAT series

Concept: The Fifth Five-Year Plan (1974–79) was drafted by D.P. Dhar.

1. Its two main objectives were removal of poverty (Garibi Hatao) and attainment of self-reliance.
2. It was ended a year early in 1978 by the Janata government (Rolling Plan).

Yaad rakhein: 5th Plan – Garibi Hatao + Self-reliance.

Answer: (B) Fifth