SSC CHSL 2024 Previous Year GK Questions with Answers

The correct answer is D, inflation. Inflation is a sustained rise in the general price level, measured in India by the CPI and the WPI. It is fought in three ways: monetary measures by the RBI such as raising the repo rate or CRR, fiscal measures such as higher taxes and lower government spending, and direct or administrative measures. Price control, rationing through the Public Distribution System and stock limits under the Essential Commodities Act 1955 are the direct measures: they cap what sellers may charge and how much each family may buy, so that scarce goods are shared and hoarding is checked. Option A is wrong because reflation is the deliberate effort to push prices and demand up after a slump, the opposite aim. Option B is wrong because disinflation is only a slowing of the inflation rate, not a problem that needs rationing. Option C is wrong because deflation is a fall in the general price level, when governments spend more rather than control prices. Exam tip: inflation = prices rise, deflation = prices fall, disinflation = prices rise more slowly, reflation = pushing prices up again.

The correct answer is A, Mizo Hills. The Lushai Hills are the old British name for the hills of present-day Mizoram, home of the Mizo (Lushai) people. The Lushai Hills district of Assam was renamed the Mizo Hills district in 1954, became the Union Territory of Mizoram in 1972 and the 23rd State on 20 February 1987 under the 53rd Amendment. These hills form the southern part of the Purvanchal, the eastern extension of the Himalayas along the Myanmar border, and their highest point is Phawngpui, the Blue Mountain, at 2,157 metres. Option B is wrong because the Patkai Hills lie further north on the Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland border with Myanmar. Option C is wrong because the Khasi Hills are in Meghalaya, with Shillong, Cherrapunji and Mawsynram. Option D is wrong because the Naga Hills are in Nagaland, with Mount Saramati as the highest peak. Exam tip: Purvanchal from north to south runs Patkai, Naga, Manipur and Mizo (Lushai) hills; the Garo, Khasi and Jaintia hills of Meghalaya are a separate plateau block.

The correct answer is B, Parantaka I. Parantaka I (907 to 955 CE), son of Aditya I, crushed the Pandya king Maravarman Rajasimha II and his Sri Lankan allies at the battle of Vellur, or Vellore, around 915 CE, and took the title Maduraikonda, 'captor of Madurai'. His reign is also remembered for the Uttaramerur inscriptions of 919 and 921 CE, which describe how village assemblies were elected by lot, and for covering the Nataraja shrine at Chidambaram with gold. Late in his rule he lost the battle of Takkolam (949 CE) to the Rashtrakuta king Krishna III, where his son Rajaditya was killed. Option A is wrong because Rajaraja I (985 to 1014 CE) came later and is known for the Brihadisvara temple at Thanjavur. Option C is wrong because Rajendra I led the Ganga expedition and took the title Gangaikonda Chola. Option D is wrong because Vijayalaya founded the imperial Chola line by capturing Thanjavur around 850 CE, before this battle. Exam tip: Vellur = Parantaka I (Maduraikonda), Takkolam = Chola defeat by Krishna III.

The correct answer is A, Article 11. Part II of the Constitution, Articles 5 to 11, deals with citizenship. Articles 5 to 10 only settled who was a citizen when the Constitution commenced on 26 January 1950; Article 11 then hands the whole subject to Parliament, giving it full power to make any law on acquisition and termination of citizenship. Using this power Parliament passed the Citizenship Act 1955, which lists five ways of acquiring citizenship: birth, descent, registration, naturalisation and incorporation of territory. India provides single citizenship, and citizenship is a Union List subject (Entry 17). Option B is wrong because Article 5 defines citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution by domicile. Option C is wrong because Article 8 covers persons of Indian origin living outside India. Option D is wrong because Article 6 covers migrants who came from Pakistan. Exam tip: Articles 5 to 10 = who was a citizen in 1950, Article 11 = Parliament's power, Citizenship Act = 1955.

The correct answer is Article 30. Article 30(1) gives all minorities, whether based on religion or on language, the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice. Article 30(2) adds that the State, when giving aid to educational institutions, shall not discriminate against an institution because it is managed by a minority. Together with Article 29, it makes up the Cultural and Educational Rights.

Article 26 is the most tempting wrong answer, because it too speaks of establishing institutions. But Article 26 gives religious denominations the right to establish and maintain institutions for religious and charitable purposes and to manage their own religious affairs; it is about religion, not education. Article 30 is specifically about educational institutions and specifically for minorities. Article 29, by contrast, protects any section of citizens with a distinct language, script or culture, majority or minority. Of the other options, Article 24 bans child labour in hazardous work and Article 32 is the right to constitutional remedies.

The correct answer is Sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic, republic. This is the order in which the Preamble describes India: "a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC". Socialist and secular were inserted between sovereign and democratic by the 42nd Amendment in 1976; before that the phrase read "sovereign democratic republic".

The first option swaps socialist and secular, which is the most common slip, since both words were added at the same time. The third option repeats "secular" and begins with the wrong word, and the fourth moves "sovereign" from the front to the end. A simple way to hold the order is to say the three S-words by sound: So, So, Se (Sovereign, Socialist, Secular), followed by the original last two words, Democratic Republic. The two words added in 1976 sit together in the middle.