Free daily practice · Prelims and Mains
Daily Current Affairs Quiz 31 October 2026
Daily Current Affairs Quiz · Free
How it works
- 20 questions from 31 October’s current affairs, 20 minutes.
- Test timer counts down and submits at zero; a clock on each question shows your time.
- +2 for right, −0.67 for wrong; blanks carry no penalty.
- Answers, explanations and your time per question appear after you submit.
- Your first attempt today is ranked (ties go to less time); later attempts are practice.
- Free, no login. Mains practice with model answers is below.
Mains practice
2 questions · write first, then compareGS-315 marks250 words
Q1. Every winter, Delhi-NCR faces severe air pollution. Examine the causes and evaluate the measures such as construction bans and work from home recently ordered by the Commission for Air Quality Management.
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Introduction: The Commission for Air Quality Management has banned dust-raising construction in Delhi-NCR from 5 to 20 November and told offices to keep half their staff at home. The Environment Minister called this 'the peak time' for pollution.
Causes: (1) Stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana after the paddy harvest. (2) Deepavali firecrackers. (3) Vehicle exhaust and road dust. (4) Construction dust and industry. (5) Cold, still winter air that traps pollutants near the ground.
Strengths of the measures: (1) They act before the peak, not after the air turns severe. (2) They cut dust and traffic quickly. (3) Delhi and five nearby districts act together. (4) The PAVAN control centre links 111 monitoring stations, over 2,300 industries and over 3,200 sites on one screen.
Limits: (1) Daily-wage workers lose income. (2) Short bans do not fix root causes like stubble burning and vehicle pollution. (3) Enforcement across many districts is hard.
Way forward: (1) Pay construction workers from the welfare fund during bans. (2) Machines and bio-decomposers so farmers need not burn straw. (3) Clean public transport and electric vehicles. (4) Year-round dust control at sites. (5) Regional airshed planning under the National Clean Air Programme.
Conclusion: Emergency curbs buy time, but clean air needs steady, year-round action across the whole region.
Battle IAS model answer
GS-315 marks250 words
Q2. India's poverty has fallen sharply, yet job quality and regional gaps remain a concern. Discuss in the light of the World Bank's latest assessment.
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Introduction: The World Bank says extreme poverty in India (below $3 a day) fell from 27.1% in 2011 to 2.6% in 2023. At the $4.2-a-day line, it fell from 57.7% to 16.1%, lifting about 496 million people.
What drove the fall: (1) Higher consumption. (2) About 134 million more jobs in 2017–2023, led by rural women. (3) Social transfers such as free food grains, housing and cooking gas. (4) Better access to electricity, water and sanitation, reflected in a lower Multidimensional Poverty Index.
Concerns: (1) Most new jobs are low-productivity, so real earnings stayed flat. (2) Youth unemployment rose from 14.6% to 15.9%. (3) The top 10% earn about 13 times the bottom 10%. (4) About 57% of the poor live in a belt from Uttar Pradesh to West Bengal.
Way forward: (1) Labour-intensive manufacturing and services to move workers off farms. (2) Skills matched to industry needs. (3) More investment in the eastern States. (4) Better health and education to raise productivity. (5) Social security for informal and gig workers.
Conclusion: India has won a major battle against extreme poverty. The next step is better jobs and balanced regional growth so that gains last.
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