Search Previous Year Questions

The correct answer is President.

Key Points

• The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is mandated by Article 323(1) of the Constitution of India to submit an annual report directly to the President of India, detailing the work performed by the Commission over the preceding year.
• The President is then constitutionally obligated to place this report before both Houses of Parliament (the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha), ensuring that the activities of the Commission are scrutinized by the legislative branch.
• Accompanying the report is a memorandum that must explain the reasons why the advice of the Commission was not accepted by the government in any specific instances, which serves as a safeguard against arbitrary executive decisions in civil service matters.
• Established under Articles 315 to 323 in Part XIV of the Constitution, the UPSC acts as an independent constitutional body to maintain the merit system of the Indian Civil Services without political interference.

 Additional Information

• State Public Service Commission (SPSC):
• According to Article 323(2), the SPSC follows a similar protocol at the state level by submitting its annual report to the Governor of the state, who then places it before the State Legislature.
• Appointment and Removal:
• The Chairman and members of the UPSC are appointed by the President for a term of six years or until they reach the age of 65 years.
• They can be removed by the President only on the grounds of misbehavior after an inquiry by the Supreme Court, as per Article 317.
• Role of Other Entities:
• Parliament: While Parliament discusses the report, it is the President who facilitates the submission process.
• Prime Minister: As the head of the Union Council of Ministers, the Prime Minister oversees the executive branch, but the UPSC remains an autonomous body reporting to the Head of State to preserve its neutrality.
• Cabinet Secretary: The highest-ranking civil servant who heads the Cabinet Secretariat, yet the UPSC operates outside this administrative hierarchy for recruitment and disciplinary functions.

The correct answer is President's assent.

Key Points

• According to Article 111 of the Constitution of India, when a Bill has been passed by both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, it must be presented to the President for their formal approval.
• The legislative process is completed only when the President provides their assent, at which stage the Bill officially becomes an Act or a law of the land.
• The President holds the authority to exercise Veto Powers; they can either grant assent, withhold assent, or return the Bill (except for a Money Bill) for reconsideration by the Parliament.
• If the Parliament passes the Bill again, with or without changes, and presents it to the President a second time, the President is constitutionally bound to give their assent.
• Once assent is received, the law is typically published in the Official Gazette of India to inform the public of its commencement.

 Additional Information

• Judicial Review:
• The Supreme Court does not approve bills; instead, it exercises Judicial Review under Article 13 to ensure that the laws enacted do not violate the Fundamental Rights or the Basic Structure of the Constitution.
• Constitutional Amendment Bills:
• Under Article 368, the President has no power to return or withhold assent for a Constitutional Amendment Bill; they must sign it once it is passed by the required majority in both houses.
• Parliamentary Components:
• As per Article 79, the Parliament of India consists of the President, the Council of States (Rajya Sabha), and the House of the People (Lok Sabha). Therefore, the President is an integral part of the legislative body.
• Money Bills:
• A Money Bill, defined under Article 110, is introduced only in the Lok Sabha with the prior recommendation of the President, and the President generally grants assent to it.

The correct answer is Bihu.

Key Points

• The Bihu dance is an indigenous folk dance from the Indian state of Assam, performed primarily during the Bihu festival, which marks the most important cultural celebration of the Assamese people.
• While there are three types of Bihu, the dance is most vigorously performed during Rongali Bihu (also known as Bohag Bihu), which occurs in mid-April to celebrate the Assamese New Year and the onset of the spring season.
• The performance is characterized by brisk dance steps, rapid hand movements, and a rhythmic swaying of the hips, symbolizing fertility, youth, and the joy of nature.
• Dancers wear traditional Assamese attire; women wear the Mekhela Chador made of Muga silk (golden silk), and men wear Dhoti and Gamosa.
• The musical accompaniment includes traditional instruments such as the Dhol (a two-sided drum), Pepa (an instrument made of buffalo horn), Gogona (a reed/bamboo instrument), Toka (a bamboo clapper), and Xutuli (a clay whistle).
• In April 2023, the Bihu dance created a Guinness World Record when over 11,000 dancers and drummers performed together at the Sarusajai Stadium in Guwahati.

 Additional Information

• Diwali:
• Known as the Festival of Lights, it is celebrated across India to signify the victory of light over darkness and good over evil.
• It usually falls between mid-October and mid-November and involves the lighting of Diyas and fireworks.
• Durga Puja:
• A major festival celebrated with great fervor in West Bengal, Odisha, and Assam, honoring the victory of Goddess Durga over the demon Mahishasura.
• It is inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
• Pongal:
• A four-day harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu and by the Tamil diaspora worldwide, dedicated to the Sun God (Surya).
• It typically occurs in January and coincides with Makar Sankranti, marking the start of the sun's six-month-long journey northwards (Uttarayanam).

The correct answer is Anandpur Sahib.

Key Points

• Hola Mohalla is a prominent Sikh festival that takes place annually at Anandpur Sahib in the state of Punjab, attracting millions of devotees from across the globe.
• The festival was started by the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh Ji, in March 1701, originally designed as a day for the Khalsa to perform military exercises and mock battles.
• The term Hola is a masculine variation of the word Holi, while Mohalla signifies an organized procession or a military-style column.
• The celebrations span three days and include a massive display of martial arts, such as Gatka (traditional weapon-based fighting), tent pegging, and bareback horse riding.
• The event serves as a platform for poetry competitions and kirtan (spiritual music), reinforcing the Sikh values of chardi kala (eternal optimism) and valour.
• The festivities culminate in a grand procession led by the Panj Pyaras, starting from Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib and passing through various historical Gurdwaras.

 Additional Information

• Anandpur Sahib:
• Founded in 1665 by Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, the ninth Sikh Guru, it is known as the City of Bliss.
• It is the historical site where the Khalsa Panth was formally established during the Vaisakhi of 1699.
• The city houses Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib, which is one of the five Takhts (seats of authority) of Sikhism.
• Other Notable Sikh Centers:
• Amritsar: Established by Guru Ram Das Ji, it is the site of the Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) and serves as the spiritual hub of the community.
• Patna Sahib: Located in Bihar, this is the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh Ji and is recognized as a Takht.
• Nankana Sahib: Currently located in Pakistan, it is the sacred birthplace of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of Sikhism.

The correct answer is 1/6.

Key Points

• The weight of an object is defined as the gravitational force exerted on it by a celestial body. It is mathematically expressed as the product of the object's mass (m) and the acceleration due to gravity (g) of that body.
• The acceleration due to gravity on the surface of the Moon is approximately 1.625 m/s², whereas the standard gravity on Earth is approximately 9.807 m/s².
• By comparing these two values, the ratio of the lunar gravity to terrestrial gravity is calculated as 1.625 ÷ 9.807, which is approximately 0.1657, or nearly 1/6.
• The Moon's gravity is significantly lower because its mass is about 1/81 of the Earth's mass and its radius is only 1/3.7 of the Earth's radius.
• Consequently, an object with a weight of 600 Newtons on Earth would weigh approximately 100 Newtons on the Moon, although its mass remains constant in both environments.

 Additional Information

• Fundamental Differences:
• Mass: Measured in kilograms (kg), mass is the measure of the quantity of matter in an object. It is a scalar quantity and is invariant across the universe.
• Weight: Measured in Newtons (N), weight is a vector quantity that changes depending on the strength of the local gravitational field.
• Gravitational Formula:
• The value of g is determined by Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation: g = G × M / R², where G is the Universal Gravitational Constant (6.674 × 10⁻¹¹ Nm²/kg²), M is the mass of the celestial body, and R is its radius.
• This inverse-square law indicates that while a smaller radius increases gravity, the Moon's significantly lower mass is the dominant factor in making its gravity one-sixth that of Earth.

The correct answer is Harper Lee.

Key Points

• Harper Lee, born Nelle Harper Lee in 1926, was an iconic American novelist whose reputation rests primarily on her debut novel, 'To Kill a Mockingbird', published in 1960.
• The novel was an immediate success, winning the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1961 and becoming a staple of modern American literature taught in schools worldwide.
• The story is set in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, during the Great Depression and is narrated by Jean Louise 'Scout' Finch, a young girl learning about social injustice and moral fortitude.
• The narrative centers on Atticus Finch, a principled lawyer who defends Tom Robinson, a Black man falsely accused of raping a white woman, highlighting themes of racial prejudice and the loss of innocence.
• Lee was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2007 for her contribution to literature, and her second novel, 'Go Set a Watchman', was published much later in 2015 as an earlier draft of her masterpiece.

 Additional Information

• Margaret Atwood:
• A prolific Canadian author known for her speculative fiction and environmental activism.
• Her most famous work is 'The Handmaid's Tale' (1985), which explores a dystopian society centered on theocratic totalitarianism.
• Toni Morrison:
• A Nobel Prize-winning American novelist celebrated for her examination of the Black female experience.
• Major works include 'Beloved' (1987), which won the Pulitzer Prize, and 'The Bluest Eye' (1970).
• Sylvia Plath:
• A renowned American poet and novelist associated with the Confessional poetry movement.
• She is best known for her semi-autobiographical novel 'The Bell Jar' (1963) and the posthumous poetry collection 'Ariel'.

The correct answer is Three.

Key Points

• The Himalayan mountain range is one of the youngest and highest mountain systems in the world, stretching approximately 2,400 kilometers across the northern borders of India.
• Geographically, it is divided into three distinct parallel longitudinal ranges based on their altitude, composition, and location from north to south.
• The northernmost and highest range is the Great Himalayas or Inner Himalayas, also known as Himadri. It is characterized by an average elevation of 6,000 meters and contains most of the world's highest peaks, including Mount Everest.
• Located to the south of the Himadri, the Lesser Himalayas or Himachal range is composed of highly compressed and altered rocks. The average altitude of this range fluctuates between 3,700 and 4,500 meters.
• The southernmost part of the system is the Outer Himalayas, known as the Shiwalik Range. These are composed of unconsolidated sediments brought down by rivers from the main Himalayan ranges and have an average height ranging between 900 and 1,100 meters.

 Additional Information

• Great Himalayas (Himadri):
• Contains the Gangotri and Yamunotri glaciers, which are the sources of the Ganga and Yamuna rivers.
• Includes prominent peaks such as Kanchenjunga, Lhotse, and Nanga Parbat.
• Lesser Himalayas (Himachal):
• Known for major mountain ranges like the Pir Panjal Range, Dhauladhar Range, and Mahabharat Range.
• Home to famous hill stations like Mussoorie, Nainital, and Ranikhet.
• Outer Himalayas (Shiwaliks):
• Feature longitudinal valleys between the Lesser Himalayas and the Shiwaliks known as Duns, such as Dehra Dun, Kotli Dun, and Patli Dun.
• The width of this range varies between 10 to 50 kilometers.

The correct answer is National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).

Key Points

• The National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) was launched by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in January 2019 as a comprehensive pan-India strategy.
• The program originally targeted 102 non-attainment cities, but the scope was later expanded to include 131 cities across the country that do not meet the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).
• The primary objective of NCAP is to achieve a 20% to 30% reduction in the concentration of Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5) by the year 2024, using 2017 as the base year for comparison.
• It promotes a collaborative and multi-sectoral approach, involving various Central Ministries, State Governments, and local bodies to mitigate air pollution through city-specific action plans.
• The program emphasizes capacity building, increasing the air quality monitoring network, and creating awareness among the public to ensure sustainable air quality management.

 Additional Information

• Green India Mission (GIM):
• It is one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) aimed at protecting and enhancing India’s forest cover.
• The mission focuses on carbon sequestration and improving ecosystem services like biodiversity and hydrological services.
• PRANA Portal:
• The Portal for Regulation of Air-pollution in Non-Attainment cities is a tracking platform launched to monitor the implementation of NCAP.
• It provides real-time information on the physical and financial progress of air quality improvement initiatives in targeted cities.
• Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB):
• A statutory organization under the MoEFCC responsible for executing the technical aspects of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
• The CPCB coordinates the activities of State Pollution Control Boards and provides technical assistance for air quality data collection.

The correct answer is Gallup World Poll.

Key Points

• The World Happiness Report is an annual publication of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) that ranks global happiness levels based on survey data.
• The primary source of data used for the index is the Gallup World Poll, which conducts surveys in more than 160 countries and in over 140 languages to capture the perspectives of respondents worldwide.
• The core measure used is the Cantril Self-Anchoring Striving Scale (or Cantril Ladder), where participants rate their current life on a scale from 0 to 10, where 10 represents the best possible life.
• The index analyzes six key factors to explain the variation in happiness: GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perceptions of corruption.
• The first World Happiness Report was released in April 2012, following the UN High-Level Meeting on 'Happiness and Well-Being: Defining a New Economic Paradigm'.

 Additional Information

• Pew Global Attitudes Survey
• A series of worldwide public opinion surveys conducted by the Pew Research Center.
• It focuses on subjects ranging from people's assessment of their own lives to their views on the global economy, technology, and international policy.
• Transparency International Survey
• This organization is best known for the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).
• The survey measures the perceived levels of public sector corruption in countries around the world based on expert assessments and opinion surveys.
• World Bank Enterprise Survey
• A firm-level survey that collects data from a representative sample of an economy's private sector.
• It covers topics such as access to finance, corruption, infrastructure, crime, and performance indicators like sales and employment growth.

The correct answer is Corona.

Key Points

• The Corona is the outermost layer of the solar atmosphere, extending millions of kilometers into space and consisting of extremely hot, low-density plasma.
• Under ordinary conditions, the Corona is invisible to the human eye because its light is approximately one million times fainter than that of the Photosphere.
• During a total solar eclipse, the Moon moves directly between the Earth and the Sun, completely occulting the bright solar disk and revealing the Corona as a shimmering, pearly white halo.
• Scientifically, the Corona is noted for its extreme temperatures, which range from 1 million to 3 million degrees Celsius, far exceeding the surface temperature of the Sun.
• The structure and appearance of the Corona are dictated by the Sun magnetic field, often appearing as streamers, loops, or plumes that fluctuate with the 11-year solar cycle.

 Additional Information

• Photosphere:
• It is the visible surface of the Sun that we see daily, with a thickness of about 500 kilometers.
• This layer has a temperature of roughly 5,500 degrees Celsius and is where sunspots are formed.
• Chromosphere:
• Located above the Photosphere, this layer is approximately 2,000 kilometers thick.
• It emits a distinctive reddish glow due to hydrogen heating, which is briefly visible at the beginning and end of a total solar eclipse as the flash spectrum.
• Core:
• The innermost region where nuclear fusion occurs, converting hydrogen into helium at temperatures reaching 15 million degrees Celsius.
• The Core is never visible from Earth as it is contained within the dense solar interior.