UPPCS Prelims 2021 GS Paper I PYQs with explanations

Option (b), the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, is correct. The Wholesale Price Index is compiled and released monthly by the Office of the Economic Adviser in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, with base year 2011-12. The RBI (a) uses inflation data to set monetary policy but does not compile WPI. The Ministry of Finance (c) handles fiscal policy. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs (d) monitors retail prices of essential goods. Concept: the Consumer Price Index is released by the National Statistics Office under MoSPI, and CPI (combined) is the RBI's main inflation target at 4% ± 2%. A new WPI base year of 2022-23 is planned.

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Option (d), Kanpur, is correct. The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of India's first Indian Institute of Skills at Kanpur on 19 December 2016. It was modelled on Singapore's Institute of Technical Education, to provide advanced, industry-linked skill training. Indian Institutes of Skills were later approved at Mumbai (b) and Ahmedabad (a) too; the Mumbai institute, run with Tata, began training in 2023. Rohtak (c) was not chosen. Concept: the institutes are run under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship in public-private partnership. The ITI system, India's main vocational training network, is overseen by the Directorate General of Training, and PM-SETU (2025) aims to upgrade 1,000 ITIs.

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Option (a) is correct: both are true and R explains A. Assertion: bottleneck inflation is hard to tackle because it is a supply-side inflation, not driven by excess demand. Reason: it arises from structural deficiencies, such as supply bottlenecks, poor infrastructure, inefficient distribution, crop failures and hoarding, which raise prices even when demand is normal. Demand-management tools like higher interest rates cannot fix such shortages, which is why governments struggle. Options (b), (c) and (d) are therefore wrong. Concept: other types include demand-pull, cost-push and structural inflation. Supply-side measures such as storage, buffer stocks, import duty cuts and better logistics help. Stagflation combines high inflation with stagnant growth.

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Option (a), Gujarat, is correct. In NITI Aayog's SDG India Index and Dashboard 2020-21, Kerala ranked first with 75, Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu (d) shared second with 74, and Andhra Pradesh (b), Goa (c), Karnataka and Uttarakhand followed at 72. Gujarat scored 69 and was outside the top group. Bihar was last with 52. India's overall score rose from 60 to 66. Concept: the third edition added more indicators across all 17 goals, and all states were classed as Front Runners (65-99) or Performers (50-64). In the 2023-24 edition, India's score rose to 71, with Kerala and Uttarakhand jointly first. The index is built on MoSPI's National Indicator Framework.

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Option (d), technocrats and bureaucrats, is correct, because they are not a recognised factor of growth. Growth theory identifies capital accumulation and technological progress (a), as in the Solow model; changes in population and the labour force (b), which supply workers and demand; and division of labour and specialisation (c), which Adam Smith showed raises productivity, as in his pin factory example. Technocrats and bureaucrats are administrative personnel who may help implement policy, but they are not a basic factor of production or growth. Concept: other growth factors include natural resources, human capital (education and health), institutions and entrepreneurship. Endogenous growth theory, by Romer and Lucas, stresses innovation and knowledge.

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Option (b), K.C. Neogy, is correct. The First Finance Commission was set up in 1951 under Article 280 and chaired by Kshitish Chandra Neogy, a former member of the Constituent Assembly and of Nehru's first cabinet. K. Santhanam (a) chaired the Second Finance Commission (1956), A.K. Chanda (d) the Third (1960), and Dr P.V. Rajamannar (c) the Fourth (1964). Concept: the Finance Commission is a quasi-judicial body appointed by the President every five years to recommend how central taxes are divided between the Centre and states and among states, and the principles of grants-in-aid under Article 275. The Fifteenth was chaired by N.K. Singh, and the Sixteenth, under Arvind Panagariya, kept the states' share at 41% for 2026-31.

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Option (d), 29, is correct. The Union Budget 2021-22 introduced the Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC) on 29 products, including gold, silver, alcoholic beverages, crude palm and soybean oil, imported apples, pulses such as peas and chickpeas, coal, urea, cotton, petrol and diesel. To avoid extra burden on consumers, basic customs duty and excise were cut on most of these, so overall rates largely stayed the same. 12 (a), 20 (b) and 25 (c) are distractors, though 25 is roughly how many items had their duty cut. Concept: cesses and surcharges are not part of the divisible pool shared with states, which is why states criticise the Centre's growing reliance on them.

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Option (c), both, is correct. Capital formation is the net addition to the stock of real capital, such as machinery, buildings and infrastructure. It involves three steps: generating savings by households, firms and government; mobilising them through banks, capital markets and other financial institutions, whose efficiency decides how much saving reaches investors; and investing them in real assets. So statement 1 is right, since it depends on savings and effective financial institutions, and statement 2 is right, since investment is the act that adds to capital. Options (a), (b) and (d) fail. Concept: the Harrod-Domar model links growth to the saving rate divided by the capital-output ratio (ICOR). Gross fixed capital formation in India is about 30-33% of GDP.

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Option (b), 30, is correct. The BSE Sensex, launched in 1986 with base year 1978-79 (base value 100), tracks 30 large, well-established, financially sound companies on the Bombay Stock Exchange, chosen from key sectors. Since 2003 it has been calculated by free-float market capitalisation. 20 (a), 25 (c) and 10 (d) are distractors. Concept: the National Stock Exchange's Nifty 50 tracks 50 companies, with base year 1995. BSE, founded in 1875, is Asia's oldest stock exchange. Market regulation is by SEBI, which got statutory status in 1992. The index is now owned by Asia Index, a BSE-S&P Dow Jones venture, and the 'S&P' prefix was dropped in 2024.

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Option (a), the USA, is correct. In 2019-20 India's largest trade surplus was with the United States, about US$ 17 billion, as India exported more goods (pharmaceuticals, gems, textiles, engineering goods) than it imported. China (b) was where India had its largest trade deficit, nearly US$ 49 billion. Japan (c) is also a deficit partner. With the UAE (d), trade was large but the surplus was smaller. Concept: the US was India's largest trading partner in 2021-22 and again in recent years, displacing China. US tariffs of up to 50% on Indian goods from August 2025 strained trade, and both sides have been negotiating a trade deal.

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Option (a), recommending distribution of tax revenue, is correct. Under Article 280, the Finance Commission's main duty is to recommend how the net proceeds of Union taxes are divided between the Union and the States (vertical devolution) and among the States (horizontal devolution), and the principles of grants-in-aid under Article 275. It also advises on measures to augment state funds for panchayats and municipalities. Preparing the Union Budget (b) is the Finance Ministry's job. Advising the President on finance generally (c) is too broad; the Commission advises on specific referred matters. Allocating funds to ministries (d) is done through the Budget. Concept: the Sixteenth Finance Commission (2026-31) kept the states' share at 41%.

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Option (c), I, II and IV only, is correct. The Code on Wages, 2019 merged four laws: the Payment of Wages Act 1936, the Minimum Wages Act 1948 (I), the Payment of Bonus Act 1965 (II) and the Equal Remuneration Act 1976 (IV). It introduced a national floor wage and a uniform definition of wages. The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act 1970 (III) was merged into the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020, so options (b) and (d) are wrong, and option (a) leaves out IV. Concept: the four labour codes (Wages, Industrial Relations, Social Security and OSH) consolidated 29 central laws and came into force on 21 November 2025.

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Option (c), the Combined Consumer Price Index, is correct. Headline inflation measures price changes across the whole basket, including volatile items like food and fuel, while core inflation excludes them. Under the Flexible Inflation Targeting framework (2016), the RBI's target of 4% (with a band of 2-6%) is set on the all-India combined CPI (rural plus urban), compiled by MoSPI, so headline inflation is usually quoted on that basis. Wholesale Price Index (a) was the headline measure before 2014, following the Urjit Patel committee. CPI for Industrial Workers (b) is used for dearness allowance. Urban CPI (d) is only part of the combined index. Concept: CPI's base year was updated to 2024 in 2026.

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Option (d), (A) is false but (R) is true, is correct. Under Article 280(2), Parliament determines the qualifications of the Finance Commission's members and how they are selected. It did this through the Finance Commission (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1951, which requires the chairman to have experience in public affairs and members to be, for example, qualified to be High Court judges, or experts in finance, accounts or economics. So the assertion, that the President determines qualifications, is false. The reason is true: the President appoints the chairman and four members. Options (a), (b) and (c) fail. Concept: the Commission is appointed every five years and its recommendations are advisory.

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Option (c), the thermal power plant, is correct. Fly ash is the fine residue left after coal is burnt in thermal power stations and is carried out with the flue gases. Indian coal has a high ash content, about 30-45%. Unless captured by electrostatic precipitators and reused, it pollutes air, water and soil, and causes breathing problems. Oil refining (a) gives sulphur and hydrocarbon pollution. The fertiliser industry (b) emits ammonia and nitrogen compounds. Mining (d) causes dust, land degradation and acid mine drainage. Concept: fly ash is reused in bricks, cement, road embankments and land reclamation. The Environment Ministry's 2021 notification requires 100% fly ash use by thermal plants.

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Option (b), goods safe for the environment, is correct. Ecomark, introduced in 1991 by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and given by the Bureau of Indian Standards, labels consumer products that meet standards for causing less harm to the environment across their life cycle, such as soaps, detergents, paper, food items and lubricants. Its symbol is an earthen pot, a renewable and non-hazardous material. It does not certify best quality (a), which is ISI's role for industrial products, nor exports (c) or imports (d). Concept: Agmark certifies farm produce, Hallmark gold jewellery, and FPO processed fruit products. The Ecomark Rules were updated in 2024 under the Environment (Protection) Act, with the LiFE mission.

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Option (c), lichen, is correct. Lichens, a partnership of a fungus and an alga or cyanobacterium, are very sensitive to sulphur dioxide and other air pollutants because they absorb water and nutrients directly from the air. Their absence from trees and walls near industrial cities is used as a biological indicator of air pollution. Puffballs (a) are fungi that release spores. Algae (b) are indicators of water pollution and eutrophication. Mosses (d) are also somewhat sensitive but less widely used than lichens. Concept: lichens are pioneer species on bare rock in succession. Other bioindicators include stoneflies and mayflies for clean water and the tubifex worm for polluted water.

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Option (c), 16 September, is correct. 16 September is the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, declared by the UN General Assembly in 1994, marking the signing of the Montreal Protocol on 16 September 1987. 25 December (a) is Christmas and Good Governance Day in India. 21 April (b) is Civil Services Day. 30 January (d) is Martyrs' Day and World Leprosy Day in India. Concept: the Montreal Protocol, the first UN treaty ratified by every country, has phased out about 99% of ozone-depleting substances such as CFCs and halons. The ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 levels by around 2066 over Antarctica.

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Option (b), 1986, is correct. The Environment (Protection) Act was enacted in 1986, after the Bhopal gas tragedy of December 1984. It is an umbrella law passed under Article 253 to implement decisions of the 1972 Stockholm Conference, giving the Centre wide powers to set emission standards, regulate hazardous substances and close polluting industries. 1982 (a) is when India joined the Ramsar Convention. 1990 (c) and 1992 (d) are distractors, though the Rio Earth Summit was held in 1992. Concept: other key laws are the Water Act (1974), Air Act (1981), Forest (Conservation) Act (1980, amended 2023 as Van Sanrakshan evam Samvardhan Adhiniyam) and the National Green Tribunal Act (2010).

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Option (a), smoke, is correct. The Ringelmann chart, devised by Maximilian Ringelmann in the 1880s, grades the shade or optical density of smoke from chimneys and vehicles on a scale from 0 (clear) to 5 (totally black), by comparing it with grids of black lines on white cards. It is used by pollution boards to check emissions quickly. Polluted water (b) is assessed by BOD, COD and dissolved oxygen. Fog (c) is measured by visibility. Noise (d) is measured in decibels. Concept: modern opacity meters do the same job more precisely. The Air Quality Index, launched in India in 2014, uses eight pollutants, including PM2.5, PM10, NO₂, SO₂, CO, O₃, NH₃ and lead.

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Option (c) is the wrongly matched pair. The ICAR Central Agroforestry Research Institute (CAFRI) is at Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, not Banda. Banda has the Banda University of Agriculture and Technology. The other pairs are correct: the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF, now CIFOR-ICRAF) is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya (a); the Indian Institute of Forest Management is in Bhopal (b); and TERI (The Energy and Resources Institute, formerly Tata Energy Research Institute) is in New Delhi (d). Concept: India adopted a National Agroforestry Policy in 2014, the first country to do so, to promote trees on farms. The Forest Research Institute is at Dehradun.

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Option (d), Surinsar-Mansar Lakes, is correct, because they are in Jammu, not Uttar Pradesh. The twin lakes near Jammu were designated a Ramsar site in 2005 along with others in Jammu and Kashmir. Sur Sarovar (a), also called Keetham Lake near Agra, Samaspur Bird Sanctuary (b) in Raebareli, and Saman/Sarsai Nawar Jheel (c) in Etawah are all Uttar Pradesh Ramsar sites, mostly designated in 2019-20 along with Nawabganj, Parvati Arga, Sandi and Upper Ganga (Brijghat-Narora). Later additions include Haiderpur wetland (2021) and Bakhira (2022). Concept: the Ramsar Convention (1971, Iran) protects wetlands of international importance. India crossed 90 sites in 2025, with Tamil Nadu having the most.

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Option (d), (A) is false but (R) is true, is correct. The assertion is false because the biotic (producers, consumers, decomposers) and abiotic (light, water, soil, nutrients) components of an ecosystem are interdependent, linked through food chains and webs, energy flow and nutrient cycles. Removing one component, such as a predator or pollinator, affects the whole system. The reason is true: human activities like deforestation, pollution, urbanisation and burning fossil fuels clearly affect the environment. Options (a), (b) and (c) need the assertion to be true, so they fail. Concept: energy flow in an ecosystem is one-way, following the 10% law, while nutrients cycle. Keystone species, like tigers or sea otters, show interdependence clearly.

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Option (a), November 2020, is correct. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change launched the India Climate Change Knowledge Portal on 21 November 2020. It brings together, in one place, information on India's climate actions, policies, the National Action Plan on Climate Change and its missions, adaptation and mitigation measures, and international negotiations. December (b), September (c) and October (d) 2020 are distractors. Concept: India's National Action Plan on Climate Change (2008) has eight national missions, including the solar, energy efficiency and Green India missions. At COP26 Glasgow (2021), India announced the Panchamrit goals, including net zero by 2070, and the updated NDC (2022) targets a 45% cut in emissions intensity by 2030 from 2005 levels.

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Option (b), only 2, is correct. Statement 1 is wrong: net zero does not mean a country cuts its emissions to zero. Statement 2 is right: it means that any remaining greenhouse gas emissions are balanced by absorption and removal, through forests, soils, oceans or technologies like carbon capture and storage, so the net addition to the atmosphere is zero. Options (a), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: the IPCC says global CO₂ must reach net zero around 2050 to limit warming to 1.5°C. India's net zero target is 2070, announced at COP26 (2021); China's is 2060, and the EU, UK and US target 2050. Carbon neutrality and net zero are often used loosely as synonyms.

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Option (b), A-4, B-3, C-1, D-2, is correct. Similipal (A), a tiger reserve and biosphere reserve in Mayurbhanj, Odisha (4), is known for melanistic tigers. Pachmarhi (B) is in the Satpura hills of Madhya Pradesh (3). Nanda Devi (C) is in Uttarakhand (1) and, with the Valley of Flowers, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Nokrek (D) is in the Garo Hills of Meghalaya (2), home to wild citrus (Citrus indica). Options (a), (c) and (d) misplace these. Concept: India has 18 biosphere reserves under UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere (MAB) programme; 12 are in the world network, the first being Nilgiri (1986). Kachchh is the largest, and Panna was added to the world network in 2020.

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Option (b), the Kyoto Protocol, is correct. The Kyoto Protocol, adopted in 1997 under the UNFCCC and in force from 2005, set binding emission cuts for developed (Annex I) countries. It created three market mechanisms: emissions trading, joint implementation, and the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), under which projects in developing countries earn certified emission reductions. One carbon credit equals one tonne of CO₂-equivalent reduced. The Rio Earth Summit (a), 1992, created the UNFCCC itself. The Montreal Protocol (c), 1987, deals with ozone-depleting substances. The G8 Heiligendamm summit (d), 2007, discussed climate but did not create carbon credits. Concept: Article 6 of the Paris Agreement now governs carbon markets, and India launched its Carbon Credit Trading Scheme in 2023.

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Option (c), Madeira, is correct, because it is not in the Caribbean. Madeira is an autonomous Portuguese archipelago in the North Atlantic, about 500 km off the coast of Morocco, known for Madeira wine and as Cristiano Ronaldo's birthplace. Grenada (a), the 'Spice Isle' known for nutmeg, is an independent country in the southern Lesser Antilles. Montserrat (b) is a British overseas territory with the active Soufrière Hills volcano. Anguilla (d) is also a British overseas territory in the Leeward Islands. Concept: other Atlantic islands off Africa include the Canary Islands (Spain), Azores (Portugal) and Cape Verde. The Caribbean is divided into the Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles and Lucayan Archipelago.

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Option (a), Latvia, is correct, because it is not a cocoa producer. Cocoa is a tropical crop that needs high temperatures, heavy rainfall and humidity within about 20° of the equator. Latvia is a Baltic country with a cold climate, so it grows no cocoa. Ivory Coast (d) and Ghana (c) are the world's two largest cocoa producers, together producing about 60% of world output, and Cameroon (b) is another major West African grower. Concept: other large producers are Indonesia, Ecuador, Nigeria and Brazil. In India, cocoa is grown mainly in Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, often intercropped with arecanut and coconut. Cocoa prices hit record highs in 2024 after poor West African harvests.

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Option (c), western disturbances, is correct. Winter rain in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, western UP and snow in the western Himalaya come from western disturbances, extra-tropical low-pressure systems that form over the Mediterranean and travel east with the subtropical westerly jet stream. The rain is vital for the rabi wheat crop. The retreating monsoon (a) mainly brings rain to the Tamil Nadu coast in October-November. Tropical cyclonic depressions (b) affect coastal areas, especially the east coast. The south-west monsoon (d) brings summer rain from June to September. Concept: western disturbances also cause cold waves and fog in North India, and some can combine with the monsoon to cause heavy rain.

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Option (c), land covered with fresh snow, is correct. Fresh snow has the highest albedo of common surfaces, reflecting about 80-90% of incoming sunlight. Sand deserts (a) reflect about 30-40%. Paddy crop land (b) and prairie grassland (d) reflect only about 10-25%, and water-covered paddy fields even less. Concept: albedo is the share of sunlight a surface reflects. The earth's average albedo is about 0.3. Melting snow and ice lower albedo, so the land and sea absorb more heat, a positive feedback that makes the Arctic warm about four times faster than the global average. Old, dirty snow and black carbon deposits reduce snow's albedo, which speeds up Himalayan glacier melting.

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Option (b), Arunachal Pradesh, is correct. In Census 2011, Arunachal Pradesh had the lowest population density among states, 17 persons per sq km, because of its mountainous terrain and dense forests. Mizoram (d) had 52, Himachal Pradesh (a) 123, and West Bengal (c), at 1,028, was among the most densely populated. India's average density was 382. Concept: Bihar had the highest density among states (1,106), and Delhi the highest among UTs (11,320). Among UTs, Andaman and Nicobar had the lowest density (46). Uttar Pradesh is the most populous state, with about 19.98 crore people in 2011. The next census, with caste enumeration, is scheduled with reference date 1 March 2027.

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Option (b), only 2, is correct. Statement 1 is wrong because the Singrauli Super Thermal Power Station is at Shaktinagar in Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh, near the Madhya Pradesh border, not in Chhattisgarh. Statement 2 is right: it was NTPC's first project, with the first unit commissioned in 1982, so it is the company's oldest station. Options (a), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: the Singrauli coalfield spans UP and MP and is called India's 'energy capital', with several pithead plants such as Vindhyachal (MP), NTPC's largest station, and Rihand. NTPC was set up in 1975 and is India's largest power utility, with a growing renewable energy portfolio.

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Option (c), both, is correct. Statement 1: urbanisation helps reduce the birth rate because city life raises the cost of raising children, increases women's employment and education, delays marriage, and improves access to health care and family planning. Statement 2: high literacy, especially female literacy, is directly related to a low birth rate, through awareness of contraception, later marriage and fewer, healthier children. Options (a), (b) and (d) each leave out a true statement. Concept: this is the demographic transition model's later stage. Kerala, with the highest literacy, has among the lowest birth rates, while Bihar and UP have higher rates. India's TFR fell to 2.0 in NFHS-5.

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Option (c) is correct: A-4, B-3, C-2, D-1. ONGC's registered office is in New Delhi, though its corporate headquarters and operations centre is in Dehradun. Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd (MECL) is headquartered in Nagpur. National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), India's largest iron-ore producer, is in Hyderabad. National Aluminium Company (NALCO) is in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. Option (a) puts MECL in Hyderabad and NMDC in Nagpur; (b) puts ONGC in Bhubaneswar; (d) puts ONGC in Hyderabad. Concept: Coal India is in Kolkata, Hindustan Zinc in Udaipur, and the Geological Survey of India, founded in 1851, in Kolkata. NMDC's main mines are at Bailadila in Chhattisgarh.

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Option (b), the second stage, is correct. Ray Northam's S-shaped urbanisation curve (1975) has three stages. The initial stage (a) shows slow urban growth, with most people in rural farming. The acceleration stage, the second, shows rapid urban growth as industrialisation draws people to cities, with the urban share rising from about 25% to 70%. The terminal stage (c), the third, is when the curve levels off above about 70-80%, as in developed countries. A fourth stage (d) is not part of the classic model, though some later writers add counter-urbanisation. Concept: India, at about 31% urban in Census 2011 and around 36% now, is in the acceleration stage.

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Option (b), only 2, is correct. Statement 1 is wrong because the Socotra archipelago, off the Horn of Africa where the Gulf of Aden meets the Arabian Sea, belongs to Yemen, not Oman. Statement 2 is right: UNESCO inscribed Socotra as a World Natural Heritage Site in 2008 for its extraordinary biodiversity, with about a third of its plants found nowhere else, including the dragon's blood tree and the desert rose. Options (a), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: Socotra is called the 'Galápagos of the Indian Ocean'. During Yemen's civil war, UAE-backed forces took control of the island in 2020, raising concerns about its ecology and strategic use.

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Option (b), Chilika, is correct. Chilika Lake in Odisha is India's largest coastal brackish-water lagoon, covering about 1,100 sq km in the monsoon, at the mouth of the Daya river. It was India's first Ramsar site (1981) and is famous for Irrawaddy dolphins, migratory birds at Nalabana island and fishing. Pulicat (a), on the Andhra Pradesh-Tamil Nadu border, is the second largest lagoon and home to Sriharikota. Kolleru (c) is a freshwater lake between the Godavari and Krishna deltas. Kaliveli (d) is a smaller coastal wetland in Tamil Nadu. Concept: Chilika was removed from the Montreux Record in 2002 after a new sea mouth was opened, a celebrated restoration.

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Option (b), cultural diversity, is correct, because it is not an element of a rural community. Sociologists define a community by a definite territory or locality (c), a we-feeling or community sentiment that binds members (a), and a degree of self-sufficiency, as members meet most of their needs within it (d). Rural communities are marked by homogeneity: shared occupation (mainly agriculture), similar customs, strong primary relationships and informal social control. Cultural diversity, heterogeneity and anonymity are features of urban society. Concept: Ferdinand Tönnies contrasted Gemeinschaft (community) with Gesellschaft (society), and Redfield described the folk-urban continuum. Robert MacIver and Page defined community as an area of common life with community sentiment.

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Option (d) is the wrongly matched pair. Budha Ghagh, also called Lodh Falls, in Latehar district of Jharkhand, is on the Burha river and is the highest waterfall in Jharkhand (about 143 m). Dassam Falls near Ranchi is the one on the Kanchi river, a tributary of the Subarnarekha. The other pairs are correct: Hundru Falls (a) near Ranchi is on the Subarnarekha; Chachai Falls (b) in Rewa, Madhya Pradesh, is on the Bihad river; and Dhuandhar Falls (c) at Bhedaghat near Jabalpur is on the Narmada, flowing through marble rocks. Concept: the Ranchi plateau has many scarp falls. Kunchikal (Karnataka) is among India's highest falls, and Jog is on the Sharavathi.

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Option (b), A-4, B-1, C-2, D-3, is correct. Mount Rainier (A), an active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range, is in Washington state, USA (4). Mount Etna (B), Europe's most active volcano, is in Sicily, Italy (1). Paricutin (C) in Mexico (2) is famous for rising from a farmer's cornfield in 1943 and erupting until 1952, so scientists watched a volcano's whole life cycle. Mount Apo (D), the highest peak in the Philippines (3), is on Mindanao. Options (a), (c) and (d) misplace these. Concept: most of these lie on the Pacific Ring of Fire, while Etna results from African-Eurasian plate collision. Barren Island in the Andamans is India's only active volcano.

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Option (d), the Jonk river, is correct, because it belongs to the Mahanadi basin, not the Ganga. The Jonk rises in Odisha's Nuapada area, flows through Chhattisgarh and joins the Mahanadi near Sheorinarayan. The Punpun (a) rises in Jharkhand and joins the Ganga near Patna in Bihar. The Ajay (b) rises in Jharkhand and joins the Bhagirathi-Hooghly at Katwa in West Bengal. The Jalangi (c) is a distributary that branches from the Padma and joins the Hooghly at Nabadwip. Both are part of the Ganga system. Concept: the Mahanadi's other tributaries include the Seonath, Hasdeo, Mand, Ib and Tel. The Hirakud dam is on the Mahanadi.

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Option (c), Japan, is correct. The Kanto plain, around Tokyo and Yokohama, is the largest plain in Japan and its most densely populated and industrial region. The Nobi plain surrounds Nagoya and is drained by the Kiso, Nagara and Ibi rivers. Both lie on Honshu, Japan's main island. North Korea (a) and South Korea (b) are mostly hilly, and China's (d) major plains include the North China Plain and the Northeast (Manchurian) plain. Concept: Japan is about 75% mountainous, so population and industry are concentrated on small coastal plains, such as Kanto, Nobi (Chukyo) and Kinki (Osaka-Kobe). These form the Tokaido megalopolis, linked by the Shinkansen.

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Option (a), Syria, is correct, because it has no coast on the Black Sea. Syria lies on the eastern Mediterranean, with ports at Latakia and Tartus. The Black Sea is bordered by six countries: Turkey (b) to the south, Bulgaria (d) and Romania to the west, Ukraine to the north, Russia to the north-east, and Georgia (c) to the east. It connects to the Mediterranean through the Bosporus, the Sea of Marmara and the Dardanelles, which Turkey controls under the Montreux Convention (1936). Concept: the Black Sea's deep water is anoxic, with hydrogen sulphide. Since 2022, the Russia-Ukraine war has made it a battlefield, affecting grain exports through Odesa.

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Option (b), Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lombok, is correct. Indonesia's Sunda islands run from west to east: Sumatra lies across the Strait of Malacca from Malaysia; Java, the most populous island with Jakarta, lies east of Sumatra across the Sunda Strait (with Krakatoa); Bali lies just east of Java; and Lombok lies east of Bali across the Lombok Strait. Options (a), (c) and (d) misorder these, swapping Java and Sumatra or Bali and Lombok. Concept: the deep Lombok Strait marks Wallace's Line, separating Asian and Australasian fauna. Indonesia is the world's largest archipelagic country, with over 17,000 islands, and is moving its capital from Jakarta to Nusantara in Borneo (Kalimantan).

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Option (b), Sambhar, is the key. Sambhar Lake, near Jaipur in Rajasthan, is India's largest inland saline lake, covering up to about 230 sq km in the monsoon. It is a major source of salt, a Ramsar site, and a winter home for flamingos; in 2019 thousands of migratory birds died there of avian botulism. Chilika (a) in Odisha is bigger, but it is a brackish coastal lagoon open to the sea, so some books call it the largest saline water body; the key's choice reflects 'lake' as inland. Lonar (c) in Maharashtra is a small saline crater lake formed by a meteorite impact. Wular (d) in Kashmir is a large freshwater lake. Concept: Pulicat is the second largest lagoon.

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Option (a), only 1, is correct. Statement 1 is right: the Mekong rises on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai province of China, where it is called the Lancang. It flows through China, along the borders of Myanmar, Laos and Thailand, and through Cambodia. Statement 2 is wrong: its delta, the 'rice bowl', lies in southern Vietnam, not Cambodia, and empties into the South China Sea. Options (b), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: the Mekong is about 4,900 km long and supports one of the world's largest inland fisheries, including Cambodia's Tonle Sap. China's upstream dams affect flows, and India's Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (2000) links India with five Mekong countries.

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Option (d), A-4, B-3, C-2, D-1, is correct. Doddabetta (A), about 2,637 m in the Nilgiris, is the highest peak of Tamil Nadu (4). Guru Shikhar (B), about 1,722 m at Mount Abu, is the highest point of the Aravallis and Rajasthan (3). Saramati (C), about 3,826 m on the Myanmar border, is the highest peak of Nagaland (2). Dhupgarh (D), about 1,350 m near Pachmarhi in the Satpura range, is the highest point of Madhya Pradesh (1). Options (a), (b) and (c) misplace these. Concept: Anamudi (2,695 m) in Kerala is the highest peak in peninsular India, and Kangchenjunga is the highest in India.

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Option (d) is the wrongly matched pair. The Shamal is a hot, dry, dusty north-westerly wind that blows over Iraq and the Persian Gulf, especially in summer, not Austria. The other pairs are correct: Leveche (a) is a hot, dry southerly wind of south-east Spain, a local form of the Sirocco from the Sahara; Brickfielder (b) is a hot, dusty wind in south-east Australia; and the 'black roller' (c) is a dust storm of the North American Great Plains. Concept: other local winds include the Chinook (USA) and Foehn (Alps), which are warm descending winds; the Mistral (France) and Bora (Adriatic), which are cold; and the Loo, a hot wind of north India.

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Option (a) is the wrongly matched pair. The Koryak live on the Kamchatka peninsula in the Russian Far East, not Alaska. Alaska's native peoples include the Inuit and Yupik (Eskimo) and Aleuts. The other pairs are correct: the Punan (b) are forest hunter-gatherers of Borneo; the Ruwala (c) are a large Bedouin tribe of the Arabian desert (northern Saudi Arabia and Syria); and the Lapps (d), or Sami, are reindeer herders of northern Sweden, Finland, Norway and Russia's Kola peninsula. Concept: other tribes often asked include the Masai (Kenya-Tanzania), Bushmen or San (Kalahari), Pygmies (Congo basin), Bedouin (Arabia) and Kirghiz (Central Asia).

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Option (a), both true and R explains A, is the key. The Teesta once flowed south through the Karatoya-Atrai channels towards the Ganga (Padma). After the great flood of 1787, it changed course eastward and now joins the Brahmaputra (Jamuna) in Bangladesh. The reason is true: Himalayan rivers carry heavy sediment loads and flow over soft alluvium, so they often shift course or capture each other's flow, as the Kosi has done westward and the Yamuna over time. Options (b), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: strictly, the Teesta's shift is a change of course rather than classic river capture, but the key treats the reason as explaining it. India and Bangladesh have not concluded a Teesta water-sharing treaty.

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Option (d), Uttar Pradesh, is correct. Census 2011 counted about 19.98 crore people in Uttar Pradesh, about 16.5% of India's population, making it the most populous state. Maharashtra (c) came second with about 11.2 crore, Bihar (a) third with about 10.4 crore, and Madhya Pradesh (b) was fifth with about 7.3 crore, after West Bengal. Concept: Bihar had the highest density (1,106 per sq km), Kerala the highest sex ratio (1,084) and literacy (94%), and Sikkim the smallest population. Census 2011 counted about 121 crore people in India. The next Census, with caste enumeration, is being carried out in 2026-27, with reference date 1 March 2027.

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Option (c), Bharati and Maitri, is correct. India's two permanent, operational research stations in Antarctica are Maitri (1989), in the Schirmacher Oasis, and Bharati (2012), in the Larsemann Hills. Dakshin Gangotri (b, d), set up in 1983-84 as India's first station, was buried in ice and decommissioned, and now serves only as a supply base. 'Arya' (a) is not an Antarctic station. Concept: India's polar research is run by the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research in Goa. Himadri (2008), at Ny-Ålesund in Svalbard, is India's Arctic station. The Indian Antarctic Act 2022 applies Indian law to its stations, and a new station, Maitri II, is planned.

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Option (a) is correct: both are true and R explains A. Assertion: historians such as Ibn Hasan and R.P. Tripathi describe the Mughal state as essentially military in origin. It was founded by conquest, from Babur's victory at Panipat (1526), and the mansabdari system under Akbar ranked every noble and official by zat (personal rank) and sawar (the cavalry he had to maintain). Reason: the strength of the central administration rested on this armed nobility, which collected revenue through jagirs and enforced imperial authority, so the centre's vitality depended on military power. Options (b), (c) and (d) are therefore wrong. Concept: the jagirdari crisis under Aurangzeb weakened this military basis and hastened the empire's decline.

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Option (d), Uttar Pradesh, is correct. Mandi is in Muzaffarnagar district of western Uttar Pradesh, where farmers digging in 2000 found a hoard of Harappan-period gold and silver ornaments and beads. Gujarat (a) has sites like Lothal, Dholavira and Surkotada. Haryana (b) has Rakhigarhi, Banawali and Bhirrana. Rajasthan (c) has Kalibangan, known for ploughed fields and fire altars. Concept: other UP Harappan sites include Alamgirpur in Meerut, the easternmost Harappan site; Hulas in Saharanpur; and Sanauli in Baghpat, known for its copper-age chariot burials. Rakhigarhi in Haryana is the largest Harappan site in India, and Dholavira became a UNESCO site in 2021.

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Option (b), Rajasthan, is correct. The 151-inch 'Statue of Peace' of the Jain saint Acharya Vijay Vallabh Surishwar is at the Vijay Vallabh Sadhana Kendra in Pali district, Rajasthan. The Prime Minister unveiled it virtually in November 2020, marking the saint's 151st birth anniversary. It is made of an eight-metal alloy (ashtadhatu) with copper as the main metal. Madhya Pradesh (a), Gujarat (c) and Himachal Pradesh (d) are distractors; Gujarat has the Statue of Unity of Sardar Patel, the world's tallest at 182 m. Concept: other well-known statues include the Statue of Equality of Ramanujacharya in Hyderabad (2022) and the 108-foot Statue of Prosperity of Kempegowda in Bengaluru (2022).

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Option (d) is the wrongly matched pair. Malik Sarwar, titled Khwaja Jahan, founded the Sharqi kingdom of Jaunpur in 1394 under the Tughlaqs, not Malwa; the Malwa sultanate was founded by Dilawar Khan Ghori around 1401. The other pairs are taken as correct: Rana Hamir recovered Chittor and refounded the Mewar state in the 14th century (a); Malik Raja Faruqi founded the Faruqi dynasty of Khandesh in 1382 (c); and the Chunda who ruled Marwar was Rao Chunda Rathore, who took Mandore in 1395 (b), though 'Rana' is a misprint, and Mewar's Chunda Sisodia gave up the throne. Concept: Jaunpur became a centre of Indo-Islamic architecture, such as the Atala Masjid, and is called the 'Shiraz of India'.

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Option (a), III, II, I, IV, is correct. The Simon Commission was appointed in November 1927, with no Indian members, which led to protests and 'Simon Go Back'. The Nehru Report, drafted by Motilal Nehru's committee in response, came out in August 1928 and demanded dominion status. The Sharda Act (Child Marriage Restraint Act) was passed in September 1929, setting the marriage age at 14 for girls and 18 for boys. The Dandi March began on 12 March 1930. Options (b), (c) and (d) misplace the Sharda Act or Dandi March. Concept: the Lahore session (December 1929) under Jawaharlal Nehru declared Purna Swaraj, and 26 January 1930 was celebrated as Independence Day.

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Option (c), Webb Miller, is correct. American journalist Webb Miller of the United Press reported on the beating of non-violent satyagrahis at the Dharasana salt works in Gujarat in May 1930. Led by Sarojini Naidu and Imam Sahib after Gandhi's arrest, volunteers marched in rows and were struck down by police lathis without resisting. His report, published worldwide, drew attention to British repression. Francis Louis (a) is a distractor. Mark Tully (b) was the BBC's Delhi correspondent much later. Philip Spratt (d) was a British communist tried in the Meerut Conspiracy Case (1929). Concept: the scene was famously recreated in the 1982 film Gandhi.

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Option (b), Lahore, is correct. Maharaja Ranjit Singh made Lahore his capital after taking it in 1799, and the Adalat-i-Ala, the highest court of the Sikh kingdom, sat there to hear appeals from provincial and local courts. Justice was otherwise largely customary and local, given by kardars, nazims and panchayats, and fines were a major source of revenue. Amritsar (a) was the religious centre with the Harmandir Sahib, which Ranjit Singh covered in gold. Firozpur (c) was a British frontier post. Multan (d) was annexed in 1818. Concept: the kingdom fell after the Anglo-Sikh wars, and Punjab was annexed under Dalhousie in 1849; the Koh-i-Noor passed to the British.

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Option (b) is the wrongly matched pair. Jain tradition places Vasupujya's nirvana, the 12th Tirthankara, at Champapuri near Bhagalpur in Bihar, not Sammed Shikhar. The other pairs are correct: Rishabhanatha, the first Tirthankara, attained nirvana at Ashtapada, identified with Mount Kailash (a); Neminatha, the 22nd, at Urjayanta, now Girnar in Gujarat (c); and Mahavira, the 24th, at Pavapuri in Bihar in about 527 BCE (d). Twenty of the 24 Tirthankaras attained nirvana at Sammed Shikhar (Parasnath hills, Jharkhand), the holiest Jain pilgrimage. Concept: Parshvanatha, the 23rd, also attained nirvana there. The Jharkhand government's 2019 tourism plan for Sammed Shikhar was withdrawn after Jain protests in 2023.

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Option (a), Amir Hasan Sijzi, is correct. Fawaid-ul-Fuad, the record of Nizamuddin Auliya's conversations (malfuzat), was compiled by his disciple, the poet Amir Hasan Sijzi Dehlavi, from 1307 to 1322. It is a key source on Chishti teachings and Delhi life under the Khaljis and Tughlaqs. Amir Khusrau (b) was Nizamuddin's best-known disciple, a poet and musician called the 'Tuti-i-Hind'. Ziauddin Barani (c) wrote Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi and Fatawa-i-Jahandari. Hasan Nizami (d) wrote Taj-ul-Maasir on the early sultans. Concept: malfuzat (conversations), maktubat (letters) and tazkiras (biographies) are the main types of Sufi literature.

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Option (c), both, is the key. Statement 1: the Vaikom Satyagraha (1924-25) in Travancore protested against untouchability and caste discrimination, demanding that lower castes be allowed to use the roads around the Vaikom Mahadeva temple. It was led by T.K. Madhavan, K.P. Kesava Menon and K. Kelappan, and supported by Periyar, called 'Vaikom Veeran'. Statement 2: Gandhi backed the movement and visited Vaikom in March 1925 to negotiate with the Travancore authorities and the temple's orthodox trustees, which the key treats as participation. Options (a), (b) and (d) are rejected. Concept: it led to the Guruvayur Satyagraha (1931-32) and the Temple Entry Proclamation of Travancore in 1936.

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Option (d), Auguste Comte, is correct. Auguste Comte, the French thinker who coined the term 'sociology', proposed the 'law of three stages' in the 1820s-1830s: human thought and society pass through the theological stage (explaining events by gods and spirits), the metaphysical stage (abstract forces), and the positive or scientific stage (observation and laws). Karl Marx (a) gave a stage theory based on modes of production, from primitive communism to communism. Talcott Parsons (b) developed structural functionalism and the AGIL scheme. Herbert Spencer (c) applied evolution to society, coining 'survival of the fittest'. Concept: Comte is called the father of sociology and positivism.

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Option (b), 1901, is correct. Dadabhai Naoroji's Poverty and Un-British Rule in India was published in London in 1901. Based on his earlier papers from 1867 onward, it set out the 'drain theory': that Britain was draining India's wealth through home charges, salaries and pensions of British officials, and profits sent abroad, causing poverty. The years 1900 (a), 1902 (c) and 1903 (d) are distractors. Concept: Naoroji, the 'Grand Old Man of India', was the first Indian elected to the British House of Commons (1892) and presided over the Congress three times. R.C. Dutt wrote The Economic History of India, and M.G. Ranade also developed economic nationalism.

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Option (a), the Indian Councils Act 1861, is correct. It gave legal recognition to the portfolio system that Lord Canning had introduced, under which each member of the Viceroy's executive council took charge of a department and could issue orders in its matters. This ended collective (corporate) decision-making and strengthened the Viceroy's control. The Act also began association of Indians with law-making by nominating non-officials and restored legislative powers to Bombay and Madras. The Government of India Act 1858 (b) transferred rule from the Company to the Crown. The 1892 Act (c) brought indirect election and budget discussion. The 1909 Morley-Minto Act (d) introduced separate electorates. Concept: the 1861 Act also empowered the Viceroy to issue ordinances.

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Option (b), Shahjahanpur, is correct. Ram Prasad Bismil, the revolutionary poet of 'Sarfaroshi ki tamanna', was born in Shahjahanpur on 11 June 1897. The Ministry of Culture celebrated his birth anniversary there in June 2021 as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, marking 75 years of independence. Chauri Chaura (a) in Gorakhpur is known for the 1922 police station incident that led Gandhi to withdraw Non-Cooperation; Bismil was later hanged in Gorakhpur jail. Rampur (c) and Ballia (d) are distractors, though Ballia is linked with Mangal Pandey. Concept: Bismil, a leader of the Hindustan Republican Association, was hanged in December 1927 for the Kakori train action (1925), along with Ashfaqulla Khan, Roshan Singh and Rajendra Lahiri.

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Option (b), Sir William Jones, is correct. Sir William Jones, a judge of the Calcutta Supreme Court and a linguist, founded the Asiatic Society in Calcutta on 15 January 1784 to promote oriental studies. Governor-General Warren Hastings (c) was its patron, not founder, although he encouraged oriental learning and set up the Calcutta Madrasa (1781). Jonathan Duncan (a) founded the Sanskrit College at Banaras in 1791. William Bentinck (d) introduced English education in 1835 following Macaulay's minute. Concept: Jones translated Kalidasa's Abhijnanashakuntalam and proposed the common origin of Sanskrit, Greek and Latin. Charles Wilkins translated the Bhagavad Gita (1785), and James Prinsep deciphered Brahmi in 1837.

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Option (a), II, I, IV, III, is correct. Ralph Fitch, an English merchant, came overland in 1583-84 during Akbar's reign and visited Agra and Fatehpur Sikri; his accounts encouraged the founding of the East India Company in 1600. William Hawkins reached Surat in 1608 and Jahangir's court at Agra in 1609, seeking trading rights. Nicholas Downton commanded the Company fleet that defeated the Portuguese off Surat (Swally) in 1614-15. Sir Thomas Roe arrived in 1615 as James I's ambassador and secured a farman for factories. Options (b), (c) and (d) misorder these. Concept: Thomas Best's victory at Swally (1612) first broke Portuguese naval dominance, and Surat became the first English factory.

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Option (d), Ambika Chakravarty, is correct, because he was not an early member of the Naujawan Bharat Sabha. He was a Bengal revolutionary in Surya Sen's group and took part in the Chittagong armoury raid (1930). The Naujawan Bharat Sabha was founded at Lahore in March 1926 by Bhagat Singh (a) with Bhagwati Charan Vohra, Sukhdev, Yashpal (b), later a noted Hindi writer, and teachers such as Chhabil Das (c) of National College, Lahore. It mobilised youth, peasants and workers with a secular, socialist outlook. Concept: in 1928 Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekhar Azad formed the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA) at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi. The Sabha was banned after the 1931 executions.

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Option (b), both, is correct. Statement 1 is right: the Satavahanas patronised Prakrit. Their inscriptions, such as Gautami Balashri's Nashik inscription, and coins use Prakrit, and King Hala compiled the Prakrit anthology Gatha Saptashati. Statement 2 is right: art of their period was largely public and religious, funded by kings, merchants, guilds and ordinary donors, as donor inscriptions show. Examples include the Amaravati stupa, Sanchi's gateways, the Karle chaitya and Nashik caves. Options (a), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: Gautamiputra Satakarni was the greatest ruler, defeating the Shaka Nahapana. The Satavahanas first gave land grants to Brahmins and Buddhist monks, and used matronymics.

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Option (d), M.A. Ansari, is correct, because he was not associated with the case. In the Cawnpore (Kanpur) Bolshevik Conspiracy Case of 1924, the British government prosecuted communists for trying to overthrow British rule by violent revolution with Soviet help. Muzaffar Ahmad (a), Nalini Gupta (b), Shaukat Usmani (c) and S.A. Dange were convicted and sentenced to four years. Dr M.A. Ansari was a Congress leader and Congress president in 1927, who founded Jamia Millia Islamia's support base. Concept: the Communist Party of India was formally founded at Kanpur in December 1925 (an earlier Tashkent group dates from 1920). The Meerut Conspiracy Case (1929) targeted communist trade unionists.

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Option (a), A-3, B-4, C-1, D-2, is correct. Ragamala (A) was written by Pundarika Vitthala (3), a 16th-century musicologist from Karnataka who worked at Mughal and Rajput courts. Rasa Kaumudi (B) is by Srikantha (4). Raga Vibodha (C), from 1609, is by Somanatha (1), who used the vina to classify ragas. Chaturdandi Prakashika (D), from about 1650, is by Venkatamakhin (2), who set out the 72-melakarta scheme of Carnatic music. Options (b), (c) and (d) misplace these. Concept: other music texts include Bharata's Natyashastra, Sharangadeva's Sangita Ratnakara (13th century), Matanga's Brihaddeshi and Ramamatya's Swaramela Kalanidhi. Pundarika also wrote Sadraga Chandrodaya.

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Option (b), Bal Gangadhar Tilak, is correct. Tilak, a leader of the Extremists, never presided over a Congress session. He was expected to preside at Nagpur in 1920 but died on 1 August 1920. Gopal Krishna Gokhale (c) presided at Banaras in 1905, Lala Lajpat Rai (a) at the special Calcutta session of 1920, which approved Non-Cooperation, and Subhas Chandra Bose (d) at Haripura (1938) and Tripuri (1939), where he defeated Pattabhi Sitaramayya before resigning. Concept: Tilak founded Kesari and Mahratta, coined 'Swaraj is my birthright', and set up the Home Rule League in 1916. The Congress split at Surat in 1907.

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Option (d), 'Reimagining Youth Skills Post-Pandemic', is correct. The UN's theme for World Youth Skills Day, 15 July 2021, focused on how young people could rebuild skills and jobs after the COVID-19 disruption to education and training. Options (a), (b) and (c) are general phrases not used as the 2021 theme. Concept: the UN General Assembly declared 15 July as World Youth Skills Day in 2014, on a proposal by Sri Lanka, to highlight the importance of skills for youth employment and entrepreneurship. In India, the Skill India Mission was launched on this day in 2015. Recent themes have focused on youth skills for green transition and artificial intelligence.

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Option (a), the Czech Republic, is correct. Barbora Krejčíková of the Czech Republic won the 2021 French Open women's singles title, beating Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the final, and also won the women's doubles with Kateřina Siniaková, the first such double since 2000. She later won Wimbledon 2024. Serbia (b), Croatia (c) and Spain (d) are distractors. Concept: the French Open (Roland Garros) is the only Grand Slam played on clay, and the men's record holder is Rafael Nadal with 14 titles. Iga Świątek won the women's title in 2020 and from 2022 to 2024, and Coco Gauff won in 2025. The four Grand Slams are the Australian, French and US Opens and Wimbledon.

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Option (a), the World Food Programme, is correct. The 2020 Nobel Peace Prize went to the UN World Food Programme for its efforts to combat hunger, its contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict areas, and for acting to prevent hunger being used as a weapon of war and conflict. The UNDP (b), WHO (c) and World Bank (d) have not won the Peace Prize. Concept: the WFP, founded in 1961 and based in Rome, is the world's largest humanitarian organisation fighting hunger. Earlier UN Peace Prize winners include UNHCR (1954, 1981), UNICEF (1965), the IPCC (2007) and the UN with Kofi Annan (2001). Nihon Hidankyo won in 2024 and María Corina Machado in 2025.

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Option (c), World Tuberculosis Day 2021, is correct. 'The Clock is Ticking' was the WHO theme for World TB Day, 24 March 2021, stressing that time was running out to meet commitments to end TB. International Yoga Day 2021 (a) was 'Yoga for wellness'. International Women's Day 2021 (b) was 'Women in leadership: achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world'. World Malaria Day 2021 (d) was 'Reaching the zero malaria target'. Concept: 24 March marks Robert Koch's 1882 discovery of the TB bacterium. India aims to end TB earlier than the SDG target of 2030 under the National TB Elimination Programme, and runs Ni-kshay Poshan Yojana for patient nutrition.

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Option (b), the United States, is correct. Antony Blinken was the US Secretary of State, America's foreign minister, in the Biden administration from 2021 to January 2025. His first visit to India was on 27-28 July 2021, when he discussed COVID-19 vaccines, the Indo-Pacific, Afghanistan and the Quad with India's leaders. The United Kingdom (a), France (c) and Australia (d) are distractors. Concept: the US Secretary of State is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. India and the US hold a '2+2' ministerial dialogue between their foreign and defence ministers, begun in 2018. Marco Rubio became Secretary of State in January 2025 under President Trump.

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Option (a), only 1, is correct. Statement 1: the 47th G7 summit was hosted by the United Kingdom at Carbis Bay, Cornwall, on 11-13 June 2021, the first in-person summit after the pandemic, under the UK's presidency. Statement 2 is wrong because the invited guest countries were India, Australia, South Korea and South Africa, not Brazil. Options (b), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: the G7 includes the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Canada, with the EU attending. Russia was suspended in 2014 after annexing Crimea. The 2021 summit launched the Build Back Better World initiative, and Canada hosted the 2025 summit at Kananaskis.

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Option (b), Janet Yellen, is correct. Janet Yellen, an economist and former Federal Reserve chair (the first woman in that post, 2014-18), became the first woman US Treasury Secretary in January 2021 in the Biden administration, serving until January 2025. Lloyd Austin (a) became the first Black Defence Secretary. Merrick Garland (c) became Attorney General. 'Tullipan' (d) is a distractor. Concept: the Treasury Secretary manages federal finances and public debt, while the Federal Reserve sets monetary policy. Yellen pushed for a global minimum corporate tax of 15%, agreed by about 136 countries under the OECD in 2021. Scott Bessent became Treasury Secretary in January 2025.

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Option (b), The New York Times, is correct. The 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, the most prestigious category, went to The New York Times for its courageous and wide-ranging coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, which exposed racial and economic inequities and government failures. The Wall Street Journal (a), The Washington Post (c) and the New York Post (d) did not win this category that year. Concept: the Pulitzer Prizes were set up in 1917 by the will of publisher Joseph Pulitzer and are administered by Columbia University. They cover journalism, books, drama and music. Darnella Frazier received a special citation in 2021 for filming George Floyd's murder.

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Option (a), Nigeria, is correct. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a former finance minister and foreign minister of Nigeria and a former World Bank managing director, took office as Director-General of the World Trade Organization on 1 March 2021. She was the first woman and the first African to lead the WTO, and was re-appointed for a second four-year term starting September 2025. South Africa (b), Kenya (c) and Ethiopia (d) are distractors. Concept: the WTO was set up on 1 January 1995, replacing GATT, and is based in Geneva with 166 members. Its Appellate Body has been non-functional since 2019 because the US blocks appointments of judges.

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Option (d), Noida, is correct. The Saras Aajeevika Mela 2021, organised by the Ministry of Rural Development and its National Institute of Rural Development, was held at Noida Haat in Uttar Pradesh in February-March 2021. It showcased handicrafts, handlooms and food products made by rural women's self-help groups under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM). Patna (a), Raipur (b) and Lucknow (c) were not the venues for this edition. Concept: Saras melas give rural SHG producers direct access to urban markets. DAY-NRLM, launched in 2011, now covers about 10 crore women in SHGs, and the 'Lakhpati Didi' target aims for 3 crore women earning at least Rs 1 lakh a year.

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Option (c), Home in the World, is correct. Amartya Sen's 'Home in the World: A Memoir' was published in July 2021. It recounts his childhood in Dhaka and Santiniketan, his student years at Presidency College and Cambridge, and the ideas that shaped him. Development as Freedom (a), from 1999, argues that development means expanding people's capabilities and freedoms. The Argumentative Indian (b), from 2005, discusses India's tradition of public debate. The Idea of Justice (d), from 2009, compares niti and nyaya. Concept: Sen won the Economics Nobel in 1998 for work on welfare economics, famine and social choice, and the Bharat Ratna in 1999. His capability approach shaped UNDP's Human Development Index.

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Option (b), Europe, is correct. The Global Peace Index 2021, published by the Institute for Economics and Peace in Sydney, ranked Europe as the world's most peaceful region again; it has held that place since the index began in 2008. Iceland was the most peaceful country, followed by New Zealand and Denmark, while Afghanistan was the least peaceful. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) was the least peaceful region. Africa (a) has regions of conflict, Australia (c) is a country, not a region in the index, and South America (d) ranks lower. Concept: the index uses 23 indicators across societal safety, ongoing conflict and militarisation. India ranks in the lower half.

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Option (a), Chloé Zhao, is correct. At the 93rd Academy Awards in April 2021, Chloé Zhao won Best Director for Nomadland, becoming the first woman of colour and the second woman ever (after Kathryn Bigelow, 2010) to win it. Nomadland also won Best Picture, with Zhao as a producer, and Frances McDormand won Best Actress. Emerald Fennell (b) won Best Original Screenplay for Promising Young Woman. Lee Isaac Chung (c) directed Minari. Thomas Vinterberg (d) directed Another Round, which won Best International Feature. Concept: India's 'Naatu Naatu' (RRR) won Best Original Song and The Elephant Whisperers Best Documentary Short in 2023.

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Option (b) is the wrongly matched pair. Bajrang Punia won bronze, not silver, in men's 65 kg freestyle wrestling at Tokyo 2020 (held in 2021). India's wrestling silver went to Ravi Kumar Dahiya in the 57 kg category. The other pairs are correct: P.V. Sindhu won bronze in badminton (a), her second Olympic medal after Rio silver; Mirabai Chanu won silver in women's 49 kg weightlifting (c), India's first medal of the Games; and Neeraj Chopra won gold in the javelin (d), India's first Olympic athletics gold. Concept: India won 7 medals at Tokyo, its best tally then. At Paris 2024, India won 6, with Neeraj taking silver.

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Option (b), the United Nations Population Fund, is correct. UNFPA publishes the annual State of World Population report. The 2021 edition, titled 'My Body Is My Own', focused on bodily autonomy, finding that nearly half of women in 57 developing countries could not make their own decisions on health care, contraception or sex. The IMF (a) publishes the World Economic Outlook. The WHO (c) publishes the World Health Statistics. UNDP (d) publishes the Human Development Report. Concept: the UN's World Population Prospects comes from the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA). India overtook China as the most populous country in 2023, and UNFPA's 2025 report focused on fertility choices.

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Option (a), the World Economic Forum, is correct. The WEF, based in Geneva, launched 'The Great Reset' initiative in June 2020 with the then Prince of Wales (now King Charles III), to rebuild the global economy more sustainably and fairly after COVID-19, focusing on stakeholder capitalism, green investment and technology. It was also the theme of the Davos Agenda in January 2021. The World Bank (b), the OECD (c) and UNCTAD (d) issued their own recovery reports but did not launch this initiative. Concept: the WEF was founded by Klaus Schwab in 1971 and publishes the Global Competitiveness, Global Gender Gap and Global Risks reports.

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Option (a), the Prime Minister, is correct. Under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the Prime Minister is the ex-officio chairperson of the National Disaster Management Authority, which sets policies, plans and guidelines for disaster management. The Home Minister (b) heads the ministry that is the nodal agency for disasters other than drought, and chairs the National Executive Committee through the Home Secretary. The Defence Minister (c) and Health Minister (d) are not chairpersons. Concept: State Disaster Management Authorities are headed by Chief Ministers, and District Disaster Management Authorities by District Collectors. The NDRF is the specialised response force, and the Act was amended in 2025.

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Option (c), Article 267, is correct. Article 267 provides for a Contingency Fund of India and of each state, an imprest placed at the disposal of the President (or Governor) to meet unforeseen expenditure before Parliament (or the legislature) approves it. Article 265 (a) says no tax shall be levied or collected without the authority of law. Article 266 (b) covers the Consolidated Funds and Public Accounts of India and the states. Article 268 (d) deals with duties levied by the Union but collected and kept by the states. Concept: the Contingency Fund of India was set up by the Contingency Fund of India Act, 1950, and its corpus was raised to Rs 30,000 crore in 2021. It is operated by the Finance Secretary.

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Option (d), Dr S. Radhakrishnan, is correct. In the Constituent Assembly, Dr S. Radhakrishnan said the declaration of fundamental rights 'is of the nature of a pledge to our people and a pact with the civilized world', adding that the liberty of the human spirit must be safeguarded against encroachment by the state. Jawaharlal Nehru (a) moved the Objectives Resolution in December 1946. Dr B.R. Ambedkar (b) called Article 32 'the heart and soul' of the Constitution. Dr Rajendra Prasad (c) was the Assembly's President. Concept: the Fundamental Rights are in Part III (Articles 12-35), inspired by the US Bill of Rights, and the Advisory Committee on rights was chaired by Sardar Patel.

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Option (c), the 61st Amendment, is correct. The 61st Constitutional Amendment Act, 1988, which came into force on 28 March 1989, amended Article 326 to lower the voting age for Lok Sabha and state assembly elections from 21 to 18 years, under Rajiv Gandhi's government. The 62nd Amendment (b) extended SC/ST reservation in legislatures, the 63rd (d) repealed the Punjab emergency provision of the 59th, and the 66th (a) added land reform laws to the Ninth Schedule. Concept: Article 326 provides for universal adult franchise. National Voters' Day is celebrated on 25 January, the Election Commission's foundation day. The minimum age to contest Lok Sabha elections remains 25.

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Option (d), the Sarkaria Commission, is correct. The Sarkaria Commission on Centre-State relations (1983-88) recommended a permanent Inter-State Council under Article 263. It was set up by a Presidential order on 28 May 1990, chaired by the Prime Minister, with all Chief Ministers and six Union Cabinet ministers as members. The Punchhi Commission (a, 2007-10) was the second commission on Centre-State relations and suggested strengthening the Council. The Rajamannar Committee (b, 1969) was appointed by Tamil Nadu to examine state autonomy. The Kothari Commission (c, 1964-66) dealt with education. Concept: the Council is advisory and meets rarely; zonal councils, under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, are statutory.

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Option (d), Wi-Fi in public places, is correct. PM-WANI (Prime Minister's Wi-Fi Access Network Interface), approved by the Union Cabinet in December 2020, lets Public Data Offices such as tea shops and kirana stores set up public Wi-Fi hotspots and sell internet access without a licence or registration fee. Public Data Office Aggregators and app providers register with the Department of Telecommunications' central registry. It has nothing to do with media censorship (a), folk music (b) or Lok Sabha broadcasts (c). Concept: the scheme builds on TRAI's 2017 recommendation for public Wi-Fi, similar to the old PCO model. BharatNet aims to connect all gram panchayats with optical fibre broadband.

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Option (a), voting in general elections, is correct, because it is not a Fundamental Duty. Article 51A lists eleven duties, including to abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the national flag and anthem (d), to develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry (b), and to safeguard public property and abjure violence (c). Voting is a constitutional and statutory right under Article 326 and the Representation of the People Act, 1951, not a duty. Concept: ten duties were added by the 42nd Amendment (1976) on the Swaran Singh Committee's advice, and the eleventh, on education for children aged 6-14, by the 86th Amendment (2002). Fundamental Duties are not enforceable in courts.

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Option (a), the 101st Amendment Act, is correct. The 101st Amendment Act, 2016 inserted Article 246A (concurrent power of Parliament and state legislatures to tax goods and services), Article 269A (IGST on inter-state supply) and Article 279A (GST Council), paving the way for GST from 1 July 2017. The 102nd Amendment (b, 2018) gave constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes. The 103rd (c, 2019) brought a 10% quota for economically weaker sections. The 104th (d, 2020) extended SC/ST reservation in legislatures and ended Anglo-Indian nomination. Concept: the GST Council is chaired by the Union Finance Minister. GST 2.0 in September 2025 cut slabs mainly to 5% and 18%.

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Option (b), IV, I, III, II, is correct. Haryana was carved out of Punjab on 1 November 1966 under the Punjab Reorganisation Act. Goa became India's 25th state on 30 May 1987, having been a UT with Daman and Diu since its liberation from Portugal in 1961. Jharkhand was formed from Bihar on 15 November 2000, Birsa Munda's birth anniversary. Telangana was separated from Andhra Pradesh on 2 June 2014, becoming the 29th state. Options (a), (c) and (d) misplace these dates. Concept: in 2000, Chhattisgarh (1 November) and Uttarakhand (9 November) were also formed. In 2019, Jammu and Kashmir was reorganised into two UTs, leaving India with 28 states.

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Option (c) is the wrongly matched pair. Residual powers vested in the Centre were borrowed from the Canadian Constitution, not Australia. Australia gave the Concurrent List, freedom of trade, commerce and intercourse, and the joint sitting of both Houses. The other pairs are correct: Fundamental Rights came from the USA (a), along with judicial review; Directive Principles came from Ireland (b), which took them from Spain; and the suspension of Fundamental Rights during an emergency came from Germany's Weimar Constitution (d). Concept: the parliamentary system came from Britain and amendment procedure from South Africa. Residual powers lie with the Union under Article 248 and Entry 97 of the Union List.

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Option (a), the CAG's report, is correct. The Public Accounts Committee examines the appropriation and finance accounts of the Union and the audit reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General laid before Parliament, checking whether money was spent as Parliament authorised and with economy. The CAG is called its 'friend, philosopher and guide'. It does not directly scrutinise the Consolidated Fund (b), Public Account (c) or Contingency Fund (d) as such, though their spending appears in the accounts it reviews. Concept: the PAC has 22 members (15 Lok Sabha, 7 Rajya Sabha), elected by proportional representation; ministers cannot be members, and by convention it is chaired by an opposition member since 1967.

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Option (d), a Money Bill, is correct. Under Article 109, a Money Bill can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha and only on the President's recommendation. The Speaker certifies whether a bill is a Money Bill, and the decision is final. The Rajya Sabha can only make recommendations within 14 days, which the Lok Sabha may reject. Ordinary bills (a), constitutional amendment bills (b) under Article 368, and state reorganisation bills (c) under Article 3 can be introduced in either House. Concept: Article 110 defines a Money Bill, covering taxes, borrowing and the Consolidated Fund. In Puttaswamy (Aadhaar, 2018), the Supreme Court upheld the Aadhaar Act's passage as a Money Bill, but larger benches are reviewing the question.

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Option (d), the time immediately after Question Hour, is correct. Zero Hour is an Indian parliamentary innovation from the early 1960s, not mentioned in the Rules of Procedure. It begins right after Question Hour, around 12 noon, when members raise urgent matters of public importance with only short notice to the Speaker. The first hour of the sitting (a) is usually Question Hour itself. Privilege motions (b) concern breaches of parliamentary privilege. The hour before Question Hour (c) is wrong, since Question Hour starts the day. Concept: Question Hour has starred questions (oral answers, supplementaries allowed), unstarred (written) and short-notice questions. The Lok Sabha has moved Question Hour times in some sessions.

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Option (a), I, III, II, IV, is correct. In Golaknath v. State of Punjab (1967), the Supreme Court held that Parliament could not amend Fundamental Rights. The 24th Amendment (1971) responded by affirming Parliament's power to amend any part of the Constitution, including Part III, under Article 368, and making Presidential assent to amendment bills compulsory. In Kesavananda Bharati (1973), the Court upheld the 24th Amendment but ruled that Parliament cannot alter the basic structure. The 42nd Amendment (1976), the 'mini-Constitution', tried to bar judicial review of amendments. Options (b), (c) and (d) misplace these. Concept: Minerva Mills (1980) struck down those parts of the 42nd Amendment.

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Option (d), federal, is correct, because the word does not appear in the Preamble. The Preamble describes India as a 'Sovereign, Socialist, Secular, Democratic Republic'. 'Sovereign' (a) and 'Democratic' (b) were in the original text. 'Socialist' and 'Secular' (c) were added by the 42nd Amendment (1976), along with 'integrity'. The word 'federal' does not appear anywhere in the Constitution; Article 1 calls India a 'Union of States', which Ambedkar explained means the states have no right to secede. Concept: in Berubari (1960) the Court said the Preamble was not part of the Constitution, but Kesavananda (1973) held it is. In 2024 the Court upheld the 42nd Amendment's additions.

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Option (d), (A) is false but (R) is true, is correct. Under Article 75(3), the Council of Ministers is collectively responsible only to the Lok Sabha, the directly elected House. A no-confidence motion can be moved only in the Lok Sabha, and its passing forces the government to resign, so the assertion is false. The reason is true: members of either House can become Union ministers, and a non-member can be appointed but must enter Parliament within six months. A minister can speak in both Houses but votes only in the House he or she belongs to. Concept: individual responsibility (Article 75(2)) is to the President, who acts on the PM's advice. Manmohan Singh was a Rajya Sabha PM.

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Option (c), the President after an inquiry by the Supreme Court, is correct. Under Article 317, a Chairman or member of a State Public Service Commission is appointed by the Governor but can be removed only by the President. For misbehaviour, removal follows an inquiry by the Supreme Court on a reference by the President, and the Court's advice is binding. The Governor can suspend the member during the inquiry. The President can also remove a member for insolvency, outside paid employment, or infirmity of mind or body. Impeachment in the Vidhan Sabha (a), removal by the Governor (b) and High Court inquiry (d) are wrong. Concept: the same rule applies to UPSC members; State PSC members serve until 62.

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Option (b), Madras, is correct. The first municipal corporation in India was set up at Madras in 1688 under a charter of the East India Company, modelled on English boroughs, with a mayor and aldermen. Bombay (c) and Calcutta (a) got municipal corporations in 1726. Delhi (d) got a municipal committee in 1863, and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi was set up in 1958. Concept: Lord Mayo's resolution of 1870 promoted financial decentralisation, and Lord Ripon's resolution of 1882 is called the Magna Carta of local self-government. The 74th Amendment (1992) gave constitutional status to urban local bodies, adding Part IXA and the Twelfth Schedule with 18 functions.

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Option (c), both, is correct. Statement 1 is right: Sukumar Sen, an ICS officer, was the first Chief Election Commissioner (1950-58). He conducted the first two general elections, 1951-52 and 1957, and later advised Sudan on its elections. Statement 2 is right: V.S. Ramadevi served as CEC briefly from 26 November to 11 December 1990, and is the only woman to have held the post. She later became Governor of Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka. Options (a), (b) and (d) fail. Concept: the Election Commission was set up under Article 324 on 25 January 1950 (National Voters' Day), and became a three-member body in 1993. The 2023 Act changed how the CEC is selected.

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Option (c), Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, is correct. Patel chaired the Constituent Assembly's Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights, Minorities and Tribal and Excluded Areas. In August 1947, when some members proposed keeping separate electorates for Muslims, he said, 'Can you show me one free country where there are separate electorates?' and warned that the British had 'left mischief behind', since separate electorates had helped bring about Partition. The Assembly then adopted joint electorates with reservation of seats only for SCs and STs. Somnath Lahiri (a) was a communist member. Nehru (b) moved the Objectives Resolution. N.G. Ranga (d) was a peasant leader. Concept: separate electorates began with the Morley-Minto reforms (1909).

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Option (a), disabled persons, is correct. The Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan, or Accessible India Campaign, was launched on 3 December 2015, International Day of Persons with Disabilities, by the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities. It aims to make public buildings, transport and information and communication technology accessible to persons with disabilities, in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Child health care (b), women empowerment (c) and underprivileged people (d) are covered by other schemes, such as Mission Indradhanush and Beti Bachao Beti Padhao. Concept: the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 raised recognised disabilities from 7 to 21, with 4% reservation in government jobs. 'Divyang' is the official term.

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Option (b), 2004, is correct. The Committee on Civil Services Reforms, headed by former UPSC Chairman P.C. Hota, was constituted by the Department of Personnel and Training in 2004 and submitted its report the same year. It recommended a code of ethics for civil servants, lateral entry at higher levels, fixed tenure for senior posts, performance-based assessment and greater use of e-governance. 2003 (a), 2005 (c) and 2006 (d) are distractors, though the Second Administrative Reforms Commission under Veerappa Moily was set up in 2005. Concept: other committees include Kothari (1976, UPSC exam), Satish Chandra (1989), Alagh (2001) and Baswan (2016).

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Option (a), A-1, B-3, C-4, D-2, is correct. Seats in the Rajya Sabha are allotted to states under the Fourth Schedule, roughly by population. Rajasthan (A) has 10 seats (1), Gujarat (B) has 11 (3), Karnataka (C) has 12 (4), and Punjab (D) has 7 (2). Options (b), (c) and (d) misplace these. Concept: Uttar Pradesh has the most seats, 31, followed by Maharashtra with 19 and Tamil Nadu with 18. The Rajya Sabha has a maximum strength of 250, with 238 elected by state and UT assemblies through proportional representation with single transferable vote, and 12 nominated by the President for art, literature, science and social service. Its members serve six years.

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Option (b), III, I, IV, II, is correct. The Balwant Rai Mehta Committee (1957) recommended three-tier democratic decentralisation, and Rajasthan began Panchayati Raj at Nagaur in 1959. The Ashok Mehta Committee (1978) recommended a two-tier system with the mandal panchayat. The G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985) studied rural development and called the bureaucratised system 'grass without roots'. The L.M. Singhvi Committee (1986) recommended constitutional status for panchayats. Options (a), (c) and (d) misorder these. Concept: the 73rd Amendment (1992), in force April 1993, added Part IX and the Eleventh Schedule with 29 subjects. 24 April is National Panchayati Raj Day. The P.K. Thungon Committee (1988) also recommended constitutional status.

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Option (d), the Uttar Pradesh State Legislature, is correct. Under Article 321, an Act of the State Legislature can give additional functions to the State Public Service Commission, including functions relating to the services of local authorities, corporate bodies and public institutions. Parliament can similarly extend the UPSC's functions. The Prime Minister (a), the Union Ministry of Personnel (b) and the President (c) cannot extend a State PSC's functions. Concept: under Article 320, State PSCs conduct recruitment exams and advise on methods of recruitment, promotions, transfers and disciplinary matters, but their advice is not binding. The Governor can exclude some posts from their purview through regulations under Article 320(3).

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Option (c) is the wrongly matched pair. The promotion of co-operative societies is Article 43B, added by the 97th Amendment (2011), which also made forming co-operatives a fundamental right under Article 19(1)(c) and added Part IXB. Article 43A, added by the 42nd Amendment (1976), deals with workers' participation in the management of industries. The other pairs are correct: Article 50 directs separation of the judiciary from the executive (a); Article 46 promotes educational and economic interests of SCs, STs and weaker sections (b); and Article 40 directs organising village panchayats (d). Concept: in 2021 the Supreme Court struck down Part IXB as it applied to state co-operatives.

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Option (c), both, is correct. Statement 1 restates Article 87: the President addresses both Houses of Parliament assembled together at the start of the first session after each general election to the Lok Sabha, and at the start of the first session of each year. Statement 2 is also from Article 87: the President informs Parliament of the causes of its summons. Options (a), (b) and (d) fail. Concept: the address is drafted by the government and sets out its policy, and both Houses discuss it through a Motion of Thanks. Defeat of the motion in the Lok Sabha would mean defeat of the government. Article 86 lets the President address either House at any time.

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Option (c), A-3, B-1, C-4, D-2, is the key. Aam Aadmi Bima Yojana (A), a life and disability insurance scheme for rural landless households, dates from 2007 (3). PM Aatmanirbhar Swasthya Bharat Yojana (B), to strengthen health infrastructure, was announced in the 2021-22 Budget (1). PM Jan Arogya Yojana (C), the Ayushman Bharat health cover of Rs 5 lakh a family, was launched in September 2018 (4). The key matches PM Suraksha Bima Yojana (D) with 2016 (2), but it was actually launched in May 2015, along with PM Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana and Atal Pension Yojana; 2016 is simply the only year left in the list. Options (a), (b) and (d) misplace the others.

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Option (b), IIT Bombay, is correct. In April 2021, during the second wave of COVID-19, IIT Bombay with Tata Consulting Engineers showed that a pressure swing adsorption (PSA) nitrogen plant could be converted into an oxygen generator by replacing its carbon molecular sieve with a zeolite sieve. This simple change helped increase medical oxygen supply during the shortage. IISc Bengaluru (a), IIT Madras (c) and IIT Kanpur (d) worked on other COVID solutions, such as IIT Kanpur's oxygen concentrator work. Concept: PSA plants separate gases using adsorbents that trap one gas under pressure. The PM CARES fund financed many PSA oxygen plants in district hospitals.

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Option (d), cheilosis, is correct. Riboflavin (vitamin B2) deficiency, called ariboflavinosis, causes cheilosis (cracks and sores at the corners of the lips), glossitis (inflamed tongue), sore throat and skin lesions. Pellagra (a) is due to niacin (B3) deficiency, causing the 'three Ds' of dermatitis, diarrhoea and dementia. Scurvy (b) is caused by vitamin C deficiency, leading to bleeding gums. Beriberi (c) results from thiamine (B1) deficiency, often linked to polished rice. Concept: riboflavin is found in milk, eggs, green leafy vegetables and liver, and is light-sensitive, which is why milk is often stored in opaque containers. It forms the coenzymes FAD and FMN.

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Option (c), sleeping sickness, is correct, because it is not spread by mosquitoes. African sleeping sickness (trypanosomiasis) is caused by Trypanosoma parasites and spread by the bite of the tsetse fly. Dengue fever (a) is spread by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which bite by day. Filariasis (b), or elephantiasis, is spread mainly by Culex mosquitoes. Malaria (d) is spread by female Anopheles mosquitoes carrying Plasmodium. Concept: other mosquito-borne diseases include chikungunya, Zika and yellow fever (Aedes) and Japanese encephalitis (Culex), which has been a major problem in eastern UP around Gorakhpur. Kala-azar is spread by sandflies, and India aims to eliminate filariasis.

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Option (b), food-borne intoxication, is correct. Botulism is caused by botulinum toxin, produced by Clostridium botulinum in badly canned, bottled or preserved food where low oxygen allows the bacteria to grow. Illness comes from eating the toxin already formed in the food, not from the bacteria multiplying in the body, so it is an intoxication, not an infection. It is not a food-borne infection (a), like salmonellosis, nor water-borne (c, d), like cholera or typhoid. Concept: the toxin blocks the release of acetylcholine, causing paralysis, and is among the most lethal substances known. Diluted, it is used as Botox for cosmetic and medical purposes. Staphylococcal food poisoning is another intoxication.

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Option (a), only 1, is correct. Statement 1: radioactivity is the spontaneous decay of unstable atomic nuclei, emitting alpha, beta and gamma radiation. It is a nuclear property, unaffected by chemical state, temperature or pressure. Statement 2 is wrong because the hydrogen bomb works on nuclear fusion of hydrogen isotopes, deuterium and tritium, using a fission bomb as a trigger; the atom bomb is the fission weapon. Options (b), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: radioactivity was discovered by Henri Becquerel in 1896 and studied by Marie and Pierre Curie. The sun is powered by fusion. India conducted nuclear tests in 1974 (Pokhran-I) and 1998 (Pokhran-II, including a thermonuclear device).

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Option (b), dust particles, is correct. Sunlight is diffused, or scattered, in all directions by tiny particles suspended in the air, such as dust, smoke and aerosols, as well as by air molecules. This scattering spreads light into shaded areas, which is why we get diffuse daylight even without direct sunlight, and why the sky does not look black. Carbon dioxide (a) and helium (c) are gases that absorb or let light through but do not cause noticeable scattering at their concentrations. Water vapour (d) absorbs infrared rather than scattering visible light. Concept: Rayleigh scattering by molecules makes the sky blue and sunsets red, while larger droplets scatter all colours equally, making clouds white (Mie scattering).

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Option (a) is the wrongly matched pair. Oranges are valued chiefly for vitamin C, not vitamin A; the main sources of vitamin A are liver, milk, butter and eggs, and of its precursor beta-carotene are carrots, mangoes, papaya and green leafy vegetables. The other pairs are correct: lemon is a classic source of vitamin C (b), whose deficiency causes scurvy; cod liver oil is rich in vitamin D (c), which prevents rickets; and rice bran is rich in B vitamins including B6 (d). Concept: vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble and stored in the body, while B and C are water-soluble. Vitamin A deficiency causes night blindness and xerophthalmia; India runs a biannual vitamin A supplement programme for children.

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Option (b), methaemoglobin, is correct. Blue baby syndrome (methaemoglobinaemia) occurs when infants drink water with high nitrate levels, often from fertilisers in groundwater. In the gut nitrate is converted to nitrite, which turns haemoglobin into methaemoglobin, a form that cannot carry oxygen, so the skin turns bluish. Haemoglobin (a) is normal and carries oxygen. Lead (c) causes anaemia and brain damage, not blue skin. Nitrate (d) is the cause in drinking water, but the substance actually present in the blood that causes the condition is methaemoglobin. Concept: the BIS limit for nitrate in drinking water is 45 mg per litre. Fluoride causes fluorosis and arsenic causes skin lesions and cancer.

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Option (c), INS Talwar, is correct. Exercise Cutlass Express is a multinational maritime exercise sponsored by US Africa Command (AFRICOM), held off East Africa and the western Indian Ocean to improve maritime security, anti-piracy and law enforcement. The Indian Navy's guided-missile stealth frigate INS Talwar took part in the 2021 edition in July-August 2021. INS Vikrant (a), India's first indigenous aircraft carrier, was commissioned in September 2022. INS Magar (b) was an amphibious landing ship. INS Vikramaditya (d) is the carrier bought from Russia. Concept: other naval exercises include Malabar (India, US, Japan, Australia), Varuna (France), and the Indian-hosted MILAN.

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Option (d), carbohydrate, is correct. Carbohydrates such as glucose, starch and cellulose are made only of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, usually in the ratio Cn(H₂O)n, so nitrogen is not their constituent. Chlorophyll (a) has four nitrogen atoms in its porphyrin ring around a central magnesium atom. RNA (b) and DNA (c) contain nitrogenous bases, adenine, guanine and cytosine, with thymine in DNA and uracil in RNA. Concept: proteins also contain nitrogen in their amino groups, which is why nitrogen deficiency causes yellowing (chlorosis) of leaves and stunted growth. Nitrogen makes up about 78% of the air but plants absorb it as nitrate or ammonium after fixation.

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Option (c), lower respiration rate, is correct. Fruits keep respiring after harvest, breaking down stored sugars and releasing heat, CO₂ and water. Low temperature slows respiration and enzyme activity, along with ripening and microbial growth, so cold storage delays decay. Preventing sunlight (a) has little effect on respiration. Raised CO₂ (b) is used in controlled-atmosphere storage, but it is not why a simple cold chamber works. Higher humidity (d) reduces water loss but does not by itself extend life. Concept: ethylene is the ripening hormone, so ripening rooms add it, while 1-MCP blocks it. Banana, mango and tomato are climacteric fruits, which show a respiration peak during ripening.

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Option (b), the neutrino, is correct. The neutrino is electrically neutral and almost massless, so it interacts very weakly with matter and passes through the earth easily. It was proposed by Wolfgang Pauli in 1930 to explain beta decay. The positron (a), the electron's antiparticle, carries +1 charge. The electron (c) carries -1 charge. The alpha particle (d), a helium nucleus of two protons and two neutrons, carries +2. Concept: other neutral particles include the neutron and the photon. The India-based Neutrino Observatory planned in the Bodi West hills of Theni, Tamil Nadu, has faced environmental objections, and Japan's Super-Kamiokande showed neutrinos have mass (Nobel 2015).

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Option (c), osmosis, is correct. When salt is sprinkled on cut cucumber, it dissolves in the surface moisture and forms a strongly concentrated (hypertonic) solution outside the cells. Water then moves out of the cells through the semi-permeable cell membranes, from lower to higher solute concentration; this is osmosis, specifically exosmosis, and the cells shrink (plasmolysis). Active transport (a) needs energy (ATP) to move substances against a gradient. Passive transport (b) is a broad category, not the specific process asked. Diffusion (d) is the movement of solute or gas particles, not water across a membrane. Concept: the same principle explains why salting and sugaring preserve pickles and jams, as microbes lose water and die.

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Option (d), alveoli, is correct. The lungs contain millions of tiny air sacs called alveoli, with very thin walls (one cell thick) surrounded by a dense network of capillaries. Oxygen diffuses from the alveolar air into the blood, and carbon dioxide diffuses out, driven by differences in partial pressure. Tracheoles (a) are the fine breathing tubes of insects, which carry air directly to tissues. Bronchioles (b) only conduct air to the alveoli; no exchange happens there. The pulmonary vein (c) carries oxygenated blood from the lungs to the left atrium. Concept: surfactant keeps alveoli from collapsing, and the huge surface area of about 70-100 sq m makes efficient exchange possible. Emphysema destroys alveolar walls.

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Option (b), Moraceae, is correct. Tapa is the traditional bark cloth of the Pacific islands, such as Tonga, Samoa and Fiji. It is made by soaking and beating the inner bark of the paper mulberry tree (Broussonetia papyrifera), which belongs to Moraceae, the mulberry and fig family that also includes jackfruit, banyan and peepal. Asclepiadaceae (a), the milkweed family, gives Calotropis floss. Graminae (c), the grass family, includes cereals and bamboo. Malvaceae (d), the cotton family, gives cotton and okra. Concept: other plant fibres include jute (Corchorus, Malvaceae/Tiliaceae), coir from coconut, and flax (linen). Paper mulberry is also used for traditional paper in Japan and Korea.

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Option (c) is the wrongly matched pair. Milk turns sour because lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus) ferment lactose, the milk sugar, into lactic acid, which also curdles milk proteins into curd. Nitric acid is a strong mineral acid with no role in it. The other pairs are correct: vinegar contains about 5-8% acetic acid (a); bones are mainly calcium phosphate, as hydroxyapatite (b); and the stomach's gastric juice contains hydrochloric acid, secreted by parietal cells, which kills microbes and activates pepsin (d). Concept: other natural acids include citric acid in lemons, tartaric acid in tamarind and grapes, oxalic acid in tomatoes and spinach, and formic acid in ant stings.

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Option (c), butane, is correct. Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is mainly butane mixed with propane, which liquefies easily under moderate pressure, so it can be stored in cylinders. It is obtained from crude oil refining and natural gas processing. Since LPG is odourless, ethyl mercaptan is added so that leaks can be smelled. Hexane (a) and pentane (b) are liquids at room temperature, used as solvents and in petrol. Methane (d) is the main constituent of natural gas, CNG and biogas. Concept: LPG is heavier than air, so leaked gas collects near the floor. The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (2016) gives LPG connections to poor households.

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Option (b), milligrams per decilitre, is correct. In India and the USA, blood glucose is usually reported in mg/dL. A normal fasting level is about 70-100 mg/dL, 100-125 mg/dL suggests prediabetes, and 126 mg/dL or more on repeated tests indicates diabetes. Many other countries use millimoles per litre (mmol/L); divide mg/dL by 18 to convert. mm of Hg (a) is the unit for blood pressure. Parts per million (c) is used for trace concentrations, such as pollutants. Grams per litre (d) is not the standard clinical unit. Concept: HbA1c shows average glucose over about three months, with 6.5% or more indicating diabetes. Insulin from pancreatic beta cells lowers blood glucose.

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Option (c), Christiaan Barnard, is correct. The South African surgeon Christiaan Barnard performed the world's first human-to-human heart transplant at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, on 3 December 1967. The patient, Louis Washkansky, lived 18 days before dying of pneumonia. Dr P. Venugopal (a) performed India's first heart transplant at AIIMS, New Delhi, on 3 August 1994. William Harvey (b) described the circulation of blood in 1628. 'William Betrick' (d) is a distractor. Concept: immunosuppressant drugs such as cyclosporine (from the 1980s) made transplants successful in the long term. India's transplants are governed by the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994, and NOTTO coordinates donation.

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Option (d), retinol, is correct. Retinol, or vitamin A, is converted into retinal, which combines with the protein opsin to form rhodopsin, the visual pigment in the rods of the retina needed for vision in dim light. Its deficiency causes night blindness, then xerophthalmia, Bitot's spots and even blindness. Folic acid (a), vitamin B9, is needed for DNA synthesis and prevents anaemia and neural tube defects. Riboflavin (b), B2, deficiency causes cracks at the corners of the mouth. Niacin (c), B3, deficiency causes pellagra. Concept: carrots, leafy greens, mangoes and liver are good sources. India gives vitamin A supplements to children under five, and golden rice contains beta-carotene.

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Option (d), (A) is false but (R) is true, is correct. The assertion is false because the human body cannot synthesise most vitamins, which must come from food. It makes only some: vitamin D in the skin when exposed to UV-B sunlight, niacin from tryptophan in small amounts, and vitamin K and some B vitamins produced by gut bacteria. The reason is true: vitamins are essential micronutrients for growth, metabolism and immunity. Options (a), (b) and (c) need the assertion to be true, so they fail. Concept: vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble and stored in the body; B and C are water-soluble and need regular intake. Vitamin C deficiency causes scurvy.

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Option (a), only 1, is correct. Electric potential at a point is the work done per unit positive charge in bringing it from infinity to that point. Since work and charge are scalars, potential has magnitude only and no direction, so it is a scalar quantity, measured in volts (joule per coulomb). Statement 2 is therefore wrong. Options (b), (c) and (d) fail. Concept: electric field is a vector and equals the negative gradient of potential (E = -dV/dr); electric current, though it has a direction, is also treated as a scalar because it does not obey vector addition. Potential difference drives current in a circuit, as per Ohm's law V = IR.

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Option (b), petroleum, is correct. Petroleum is a fossil fuel formed over millions of years from buried marine organisms under heat and pressure. It cannot be replaced on a human time scale, so it is non-renewable, like coal, natural gas and uranium. Solar energy (a) comes continuously from the sun. Wind energy (c) is driven by uneven heating of the earth. Biogas (d), mainly methane, is produced by anaerobic digestion of dung and organic waste, which are constantly renewed. All three are renewable. Concept: India targets 500 GW of non-fossil capacity by 2030 and crossed 50% of installed capacity from non-fossil sources in 2025, ahead of its NDC target.

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Option (d), Crookes glass, is correct. Crookes glass contains cerium oxide, which absorbs ultraviolet rays while letting visible light through, so it is used in sunglasses, welders' goggles and protective lenses. Soda glass (a), or soda-lime glass, is ordinary window and bottle glass made from sand, soda ash and limestone. Pyrex (b) and Jena glass (c) are heat-resistant borosilicate glasses used in laboratory apparatus and cookware, because their low thermal expansion lets them survive sudden temperature changes. Concept: other special glasses include flint glass (with lead oxide, for lenses and prisms), hard glass (potash glass), photochromic glass (silver halide, darkens in sunlight) and fibre glass.

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Option (c), flower bud, is correct. Clove, the spice, is the dried, unopened flower bud of the evergreen tree Syzygium aromaticum, native to the Moluccas in Indonesia. Its main compound, eugenol, has antiseptic and pain-relieving properties, used for toothache. Terminal (a), accessory (b) and vegetative (d) buds develop into shoots, not flowers. A garlic 'clove' is a different structure, an axillary bud with fleshy scale leaves. Concept: other spice parts include saffron (stigma of crocus), cinnamon (bark), black pepper (fruit), cardamom (fruit and seeds), turmeric and ginger (rhizomes), nutmeg (seed) and mace (aril). India grows cloves mainly in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

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Option (a), the Chief Minister Abhyudaya Yojana, is correct. The UP budget for 2021-22 announced free tablets for students preparing for competitive exams under the Mukhyamantri Abhyudaya Yojana, a free coaching scheme launched in February 2021 on Basant Panchami. It provides physical and virtual coaching for exams such as UPSC, UPPSC, NEET and JEE, with officers and subject experts as mentors. The Chief Minister Rozgar Yojana (b) is a self-employment scheme. 'Balseva Yojana' (c) supports children orphaned by COVID-19. 'Education Yojana' (d) is a distractor. Concept: UP later launched the Swami Vivekananda Yuva Sashaktikaran Yojana (2021) to distribute free tablets and smartphones to students.

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Option (d), labourers, is correct. The Uttar Pradesh Swami Vivekanand Etihasik Paryatan Yatra Yojana 2021, run by the state Labour Department, gives registered workers in factories, shops and establishments financial help of up to Rs 12,000 for visiting religious and historical places. Elderly people (a) are covered under other state schemes, such as the Mukhyamantri Tirth Darshan Yojana in some states. Women (b) and widows (c) have separate welfare schemes like the Kanya Sumangala and widow pension schemes. Concept: India's Pravasi Teerth Darshan Yojana (2023) gives Indian-origin diaspora members free trips to religious sites, and IRCTC runs Bharat Gaurav trains for heritage circuits.

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Option (c), both, is the key. The draft UP Population (Control, Stabilisation and Welfare) Bill, 2021, released by the state Law Commission in July 2021 along with the state population policy 2021-30, aimed to bring the total fertility rate down from about 2.7 to 2.1 by 2026. It proposed incentives for families with two or fewer children and disincentives, such as being barred from government jobs and local elections, for those with more. Note that TFR is measured in children per woman, not per thousand population as the statements word it. Options (a), (b) and (d) are rejected per key. Concept: NFHS-5 later recorded UP's TFR at about 2.4, still above replacement level.

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Option (d) is correct, because it is not an eligibility criterion. The UP Mukhyamantri Yuva Swarozgar Yojana is for permanent residents of Uttar Pradesh, so a citizen from any state is not eligible. The other options are actual criteria: applicants must be aged 18-40 (a); must have passed at least high school (b); and must not already be benefiting from another central or state self-employment scheme (c). The scheme gives loans with a margin money subsidy for setting up small industries and service units. Concept: UP also runs the Vishwakarma Shram Samman Yojana for artisans, and the One District One Product (ODOP) scheme, launched in 2018. The CM Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan (2025) offers interest-free loans.

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Option (a), I, II and III, is correct. Uttar Pradesh's 2021-22 budget, presented in February 2021, announced three new schemes: the Atmanirbhar Krishak Samanvit Vikas Yojana (Rs 100 crore) to strengthen farmer producer organisations; the Mukhyamantri Saksham Suposhan Yojana for malnourished and anaemic children and adolescent girls; and the Mukhyamantri Pravasi Shramik Udyamita Vikas Yojana (Rs 100 crore) to help migrant workers who returned during the COVID-19 lockdown start businesses. Item IV, the Yuva Udyamita Vikas Abhiyan, was not part of that budget; the Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan (CM-YUVA) came later, offering interest-free loans to young entrepreneurs. So options (b), (c) and (d), which include IV, are wrong. Concept: the 2021-22 budget was UP's first paperless budget.

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Option (d), Hapur, is correct. Hapur was carved out of Ghaziabad in 2011 (briefly named Panchsheel Nagar) and covers only about 660 sq km, making it the smallest of these and one of the smallest in the state. Hathras (c) covers about 1,800 sq km, Hamirpur (a) in Bundelkhand about 4,300 sq km, and Hardoi (b) about 6,000 sq km, one of the larger districts. Concept: Lakhimpur Kheri is the largest district of Uttar Pradesh by area, and Bhadohi (Sant Ravidas Nagar) is the smallest. Uttar Pradesh has 75 districts in 18 divisions, and is India's fourth largest state by area and the most populous.

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Option (c), 8, is correct. The Aspirational Districts Programme, launched by NITI Aayog in January 2018, covers 112 relatively backward districts, improving them through convergence, collaboration and competition on indicators of health and nutrition, education, agriculture, financial inclusion and infrastructure. Uttar Pradesh has eight: Bahraich, Balrampur, Chandauli, Chitrakoot, Fatehpur, Shrawasti, Siddharthnagar and Sonbhadra. 4 (a), 6 (b) and 10 (d) are distractors. Concept: districts are ranked monthly on the Champions of Change dashboard. The Aspirational Blocks Programme, launched in January 2023, covers 500 blocks, and the Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana (2025) targets 100 low-productivity agricultural districts.

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