Melghat Tiger Reserve, one of the earliest tiger reserves of India, is located in which district of Maharashtra?

The correct answer is B, 1 May 1960. On that day the bilingual Bombay State was divided into Maharashtra and Gujarat under the Bombay Reorganisation Act, 1960, after the Samyukta Maharashtra movement had pressed for a separate state for Marathi speakers. The day is observed every year as Maharashtra Day, and Gujarat Day falls on the same date.

Option A, 1 November 1956, is the day the States Reorganisation Act came into force, which created many states on a linguistic basis but left Bombay State bilingual, and it is the commonest wrong answer here. Option C, 1 April 1936, is the day Odisha was carved out as a separate province. Option D, 1 November 2000, is the day Chhattisgarh was created. Only 1960 belongs to Maharashtra.

The correct answer is C, Nagpur. Mumbai is the capital of Maharashtra, but Nagpur was given the status of the second capital under the Nagpur Pact when Vidarbha joined the new state, and one session of the state legislature is held there every year, usually in winter, which is why it is called the winter capital. Nagpur also has the Zero Mile marker and the Deekshabhoomi.

Option A, Pune, was the seat of the Peshwas and is the cultural and education centre of the state, but it holds no capital status. Option B, Nashik, is known for the Kumbh at Trimbakeshwar, its grapes and the currency press. Option D, Kolhapur, is the city of the Mahalaxmi temple and of the Kolhapuri chappal. Each is a major city, but the second capital is Nagpur.

The correct answer is B, Ahmednagar. Kalsubai stands in the Sahyadri range in the Ahmednagar district, at about one thousand six hundred and forty six metres, which makes it the highest point in Maharashtra, and a small temple at the summit draws a steady stream of trekkers along the route from Bari village. The range here is the Sahyadri, the local name of the Western Ghats, which UNESCO inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2012.

Option A, Satara, holds Mahabaleshwar, where the Krishna rises, and the hill station of Panchgani. Option C, Raigad, is the district of Shivaji's capital fort and of the Konkan coast. Option D, Nashik, is where the Godavari rises at Trimbakeshwar and where several other Sahyadri peaks stand, which is why it is a strong distractor. The peak itself, however, is in Ahmednagar district.

The correct answer is A, Buldhana. Lonar Lake lies at Lonar in the Buldhana district of the Vidarbha region. It was formed when a meteorite struck the basalt of the Deccan trap, which makes it one of very few crater lakes anywhere formed in basaltic rock, and both its water and its ecology are of interest to scientists. It has been designated a Ramsar site as a wetland of international importance.

Option B, Chandrapur, is the district of the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve. Option C, Solapur, has the Nannaj sanctuary known for the great Indian bustard and the temple town of Pandharpur nearby. Option D, Jalgaon, lies in Khandesh on the Tapi and is known for bananas. All four are Maharashtra districts, so the pairing of the lake with Buldhana is the fact being tested.

The correct answer is A, Waghora. The Ajanta Caves were cut into a steep scarp above a horseshoe bend of the Waghora river, a small stream in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district. They are Buddhist caves, both chaityas and viharas, and their wall paintings on themes from the Jataka stories are the finest surviving examples of ancient Indian painting. UNESCO inscribed them on the World Heritage List in 1983.

Option B, the Godavari, is the longest river of the state but flows well away from the site. Option C, the Tapi, runs westward through Khandesh to the Arabian Sea. Option D, the Bhima, is a tributary of the Krishna that flows past Pandharpur. The distractors are all real Maharashtra rivers, which is why the small Waghora must be remembered by name.