Search Previous Year Questions

The correct answer is Dharmachakra Pravartana.

Key Points

• After his enlightenment, the Buddha preached his First Sermon Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta or 'Turning the Wheel of Dhamma' to five ascetics, who had previously been his companions, in the deer park near Varanasi on the eve of Saturday, the full moon day of July. Hence, option 2 is correct.
• Gautam Buddha, a Shakya prince, was born as Siddhartha in Lumbini, present-day Nepal.
• Buddha attained his enlightenment at Bodh Gaya after 49 days of deep meditation since then he was called the Buddha or the Enlightened one.
• He delivered his first sermon at Sarnat, near Varanasi, and attained Nirvana at Kushinagar.
• Buddha taught Four Noble Truths:
• The world is full of suffering.
• The main cause of suffering is desire.
• To overcome the suffering one must give up desire.
• One will attain nirvana if desires are given up.
• Buddha suggested the Eightfold Path that would help people to attain Nirvana. It comprises the right action, right determination, right exercise, right livelihood, right meditation, right memory, right observation, and right speech.
• The followers of Buddha formed Sangha and spread his teachings. Ashoka spread the teachings of Buddha to Sri Lanka and South-East Asia.
• The Buddhist literature includes Jataka Tales and Tripitaka that were written in Pali.

The correct answer is the Congress session at Nagpur.

Key Points

• ​In December 1920 the Nagpur Session of the Indian National Congress was held and the president of this session was Lala Lajpat Rai.
• The aim of the program was an endorsement of the Non-Cooperation Movement. Hence, option 2 is correct.
• A Congress Working Committee(CWC) of 15 members was set up and Provincial Congres on a linguistic basis were organised for the attainment of Swaraj.
• Gandhiji declared through Non-Corporation Movement, Swaraj could be attained.
• Surendra Nath Banerjee founded Indian National Liberal Federation in 1919.

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Additional Information

• The Jallianwalla bagh incident is also known as the Massacre of Amritsar.
• The incident took place on April 13, 1919, on Baisakhi day.
• There was dissatisfaction against Rowalatt Act that led to mass agitation.
• The government was determined to suppress the mass.
• A large crowd was gathered in the Amristar on 13 April 1919 at Amristar in Jallianwalla Bagh, to protest against the arrest of their popular leaders Dr. Saif-ud-din Kichlu and Dr.Satyapal.
• On the afternoon of April 13, a crowd of at least 10,000 men, women, and children gathered in the Jallianwala Bagh, which was nearly completely enclosed by walls and had only one exit.
• Brig. Gen. Reginald Edward Harry Dyer the military command of Amritsar wants to terrorize the people of Amritsar into complete submission.
• Dyer and his soldiers arrived and sealed off the exit. Without warning, the troops opened fire on the crowd, reportedly shooting hundreds of rounds until they ran out of ammunition.
• According to one official report, an estimated 379 people were killed, and about 1,200 more were wounded.
• The government of India ordered an investigation of the incident (the Hunter Commission), which in 1920 censured Dyer for his actions and ordered him to resign from the military.

The correct answer is Dara Sukoh.

Key Points

• Dara Shikoh translated 50 Upanishads from Sanskrit to Persian so they could be read by Muslim scholars. Hence, option 4 is correct.
• His translation is often called Sirr-i-Akbar.
• Dara Shikoh was the eldest son and heir apparent of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan.
• He devoted much effort towards finding a common mystical language between Islam and Hinduism.
• His spiritual quest for monotheistic strands in Hindu philosophy was a continuous process.
• This led him to study the Upanishads, with the help of some scholars of Benaras.
• This book was the greatest mystery and was completed in 1657.

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Additional Information

• Ramayana and Singhasan Batisi were translated by Mulla Abdul Qadir Badayuni into Persian.
• Panchatantra was translated into Persian by Faizi.
• Rajataringini was translated by Maulana Shah Mohammad Shahabadi.
• Abul Fazl wrote the Ain-i-Akbari and Akbar Nama.

The correct answer is P. V. Sindhu.

Key Points

• Indian badminton star PV Sindhu won the Swiss Open 2022 women's singles title with a win over Thailand's Busanan Ongramrungphan at the St. Jakobshalle arena in Basel. Hence, option 2 is correct.
• Double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu won the final match 21-16, 21-8 in 49 minutes to claim the Super 300 crown.
• This was Sindhu’s second title of the year after winning the Syed Modi International in January. It was Sindhu's 16^th win over Busanan in 17 meetings, having lost to the Thai only once -- at the 2019 Hong Kong Open.
• After becoming the first Indian woman to win a silver medal at the Olympics and gold at the BWF World Championships, PV Sindhu added another piece of metal to her glittering cabinet by winning her second straight Olympic medal.
• The 2023 Swiss Open will be the eighth tournament of the 2023 BWF World Tour and is part of the Swiss Open championships which have been held since 1955. It is organized by the Swiss Badminton with sanction from the Badminton World Federation.

The correct answer is Nilgiri Hills.

Key Points

• Nilgiri hills- The meeting point of the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats is the Nilgiri plateau. Hence, option 3 is correct.
• Nilgiri hills are located in the southern part of India.
• These ranges are part of the Western Ghats series.
• Some parts of the Nilgiri mountain range lie in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala as well.
• The highest peak is Doda Betta whose height is about 2637 meters.
• Nilgiri is derived from the Tamil word in which Neelam means blue and Giri means mountain.

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Additional Information

​​Cardamom hills-

• Cardamom hills are in the state of Tamil Nadu.
• The highest peak of the cardamom hills is Anai Mudi.
• These hills are adjacent to Kanyakumari.
• It is widespread in the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
• These hills are famous for the production of good tea and cardamom.

Palani hills-

• Palani hills is a range of mountains that lie in the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
• The hill is an eastward extension of the Western Ghats, which aligns with the west coast of India.

Annamalai hills-

• The highest hill is Annamalai, which has a height (2,695 meters).
• These hills are the joint place of the Eastern and Western Ghats and are oriented towards the northwest and south-East.
• It is also called Elephant Mountains.

The correct answer is Attorney General of India.

Key Points

• Attorney General is said to be the first law officer of the Government of India. Hence, option 3 is correct.
• The Attorney General of India is appointed by the president and has a post parallel to any minister in Parliament and he can take part in proceedings of either House.
• The Attorney General of India can be a member of any committee of parliament as the Attorney General is the highest legal officer of the union government and renders legal assistance to the government.
• The Attorney General of India is entitled to the audience in all courts in the country as well as he also has the right to speak in the parliament.
• The Attorney General of India has no right to vote in parliament.
• Currently means the 16^th Attorney General of India is advocate R Venkataramani.
• Article 76 of the constitution mentions details about the Attorney General of India.

The correct answer isRajaraja I.

Key Points

Rajaraja I-:

• The original name, "Arumolivarman", who crowned himself as Rajaraja I in 985 AD the next thirty years of his rule formed the formative period of Chola imperialism. Hence, option 2 is correct.
• He was the successor of Parantaka II,
• The Chola kingdom grew under him into an extensive and well-knit empire, efficiently organized and administered and possessing a powerful standing army and navy.
• Rajaraja began his conquests by attacking the confederation between the rulers of the Pandya and Kerala kingdoms and of Ceylon.
• Polonnaruva became the capital of Chola province in North Ceylon after the defeat of Mahinda V, the Ceylonese king.
• He also annexed the Maldives. Elsewhere, several parts of modern Mysore were conquered and annexed which intensified their rivalry with the Chalukyas.
• Rajaraja built the magnificent Shiva temple of Brihadeshwara or Rajaraja temple at Thanjavur which was com­pleted in 1010.
• It is considered a remarkable piece of architecture in the South Indian style.
• Rajaraja I also encouraged Sri Mara Vijayottungavarman, the Sailendra ruler of Sri Vijaya to build a Buddhist Vihara at Negapatam.
• This vihara was called ‘Chudamani Vihara’ after the father of Sri Mara.

The correct answer is Dadabhai Naoroji.

Key Points

• The wealth drain was the amount of India's wealth and economy that was not accessible to Indians.
• Dadabhai Naoroji proposed the 'drain of wealth' hypothesis in 1867, claiming that Britain was draining India of all its wealth. Poverty and Un-British Rule in India, a book that he wrote, stated this theory. Hence, option 1 is correct.
• The external drain was caused by six factors, according to Naoroji.
• Firstly, India was ruled by a foreign power.
• Second, India did not draw immigrants who would have brought labour and capital to help the country develop economically.
• Third, India footed the bill for Britain's civil administration and army in India.
• Fourth, India was responsible for the expansion of empires both within and outside of its borders.
• Fifth, by allowing free trade, foreigners were able to take high-paying jobs away from Indians who were equally skilled.
• Finally, since they were mainly foreign personnel, the main income earners would spend their money outside of India or leave with the money.

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Additional Information

• Dadabhai Naoroji, also known as the "Grand Old Man of India" and the "Unofficial Ambassador of India," was an Indian scholar, trader, and politician who served as a Liberal Party Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom House of Commons from 1892 to 1895.

The correct answer is Balkrishna Doshi.

Key Points

• Balkrishna Doshi has been formally presented, on June 15, with the 2022 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture by RIBA President, Simon Allford. Hence, option 1 is correct
• Granted by the Royal Institute of British Architects, on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen, the annual award is “given to a person or group of people who have had a significant influence either directly or indirectly on the advancement of architecture”.
• A principal figure in shaping the architecture of India and its adjacent regions, known especially for his visionary urban planning and social housing projects, Balkrishna Doshi has “combined pioneering modernism with the vernacular.

Additional Information

• Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi OAL (26 August 1927 – 24 January 2023) was an Indian architect.
• He is an important figure in Indian architecture and is noted for his contributions to the evolution of architectural discourse in India.
• Having worked under Le Corbusier and Louis Kahn, he was a pioneer of modernist and brutalist architecture in India.

The correct answer is Harishena.

Key Points

Allahabad Prashasti: 

• It is also known as Prayag Prashasti.
• It is a pillar inscription of Samudragupta found at Allahabad and written in Sanskrit.
• It was composed by Harisena.
• It is one of the important epigraphic sources to know about the political history of the Guptas.
• There are thirty-three lines in total.
• Line 22 of the inscription especially describes the conquests of Samudragupta over the frontier states.
• Lines 13-15 of the inscription refer to the conquests of Samudragupta in his first Aryavarta war in which he defeated three important rulers namely, Achyuta, Nagasena, and Ganapatinaga of the Naga Dynasty.
• Lines 19-20 described his South India Campaign.
• Line 23 refers to Samudragupta violently exterminating a number of kings of Aryavarta.

Additional InformationSamudragupta (335-380 AD)

• He was the son of Chandragupta-I.
• Harishena was the court poet of Samudragupta.
• Allahabad Pillar Inscription (Prayag Prasasti) was issued by Samudragupta and was composed by Harishena.
• It was composed in Sanskrit.

Panini was a Sanskrit grammarian who gave a comprehensive and scientific theory of phonetics, phonology, and morphology.

Banabhatta was the court poet of  Harshvardhana and he composed the Harshacharita which gives an account of Harsha’s life and deeds.

Chanakya:  

• Chandragupta Maurya became the king of Magadha with the help of Chanakya, also known as Vishnu Gupta.
• The Arthashastra is an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy, and military strategy, written in Sanskrit by Chanakya.