SSC 2020 Previous Year GK Questions with Answers

The correct answer is C, Lakshadweep. With an area of only about 32 square kilometres, Lakshadweep is the smallest Union Territory of India. It is a group of 36 coral islands in the Arabian Sea, of which only ten are inhabited, and its capital is Kavaratti. Being coral atolls, the islands are tiny and low lying, which is why the total land area stays so small even though the lagoons and waters around them stretch very wide. Option A is wrong because Daman and Diu covers about 112 square kilometres, more than three times Lakshadweep, and since 2020 it is part of the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Option B is wrong because Ladakh is the largest Union Territory by area. Option D is wrong because Jammu and Kashmir is also far larger and is the Union Territory with the biggest population. Exam tip: Lakshadweep is the smallest by area, Ladakh the largest.

The correct answer is A, Greece. The Gandhara School of Art, which grew in the north west around Taxila and Peshawar between the first and fifth centuries, was shaped by Greek or Hellenistic sculpture that had reached the region after Alexander's campaign and stayed on through the Indo Greek and Kushana rulers. That is why its Buddha figures have wavy hair, sharp features, a halo without decoration and heavy robes with deep folds, carved mostly in blue grey schist. The school also produced the first images of the Buddha in human form, alongside the Mathura school. Kanishka was its best known patron. B is wrong because Roman influence came later and in small measure, mainly through trade. C and D are wrong because Hungary and Belgium had no contact with ancient India. Exam tip: Gandhara Greek and grey schist, Mathura Indian and red sandstone, Amaravati white marble.

The correct answer is B, Majjhima Nikaya. The Sutta Pitaka is the basket of the Buddha's discourses and is divided into five collections called Nikayas: Digha, Majjhima, Samyutta, Anguttara and Khuddaka. The Majjhima Nikaya is the collection of middle length discourses and holds about one hundred and fifty two sermons on meditation, right conduct and the middle path. The Sutta Pitaka is one of the three baskets of the Pali canon, the others being the Vinaya Pitaka on monastic rules and the Abhidhamma Pitaka on philosophy. A is wrong because the Dipavamsa is a Sri Lankan chronicle of the island's history, not part of the canon. C is wrong because the Dhammasangani is the first book of the Abhidhamma Pitaka. D is wrong because the Manu Smriti is a Brahmanical law text and has nothing to do with Buddhism. Exam tip: Tripitaka means Vinaya, Sutta and Abhidhamma, and Sutta holds five Nikayas.

The correct answer is A, Kerala. Ashtamudi is a backwater lake in Kollam district of Kerala and the second largest estuarine system in the state after Vembanad. Its name means eight braids, because the lake spreads out in several arms before meeting the Arabian Sea at Neendakara. It was declared a Ramsar site in 2002 for its mangroves, migratory birds and the short necked clam fishery, which became the first fishery in India to get Marine Stewardship Council certification. The lake also carries the houseboat route to Alappuzha. B is wrong because Karnataka's noted wetlands include Ranganathittu and Magadi. C is wrong because Tamil Nadu's Ramsar wetlands include Point Calimere and Pallikaranai. D is wrong because Assam has Deepor Beel near Guwahati. Exam tip: Kerala's Ramsar sites are Ashtamudi, Vembanad Kol and Sasthamkotta, the last being the largest freshwater lake in the state.

The correct answer is D, Assam. The Ambubachi Mela is held every year at the Kamakhya temple on Nilachal hill in Guwahati, Assam. It falls in the month of Ahaar, around the middle of June, and marks the belief that the goddess goes through her yearly cycle of menstruation, so the temple doors stay shut for three days and open on the fourth with the distribution of red cloth as prasad. Thousands of sadhus, tantriks and pilgrims gather for it, which is why the fair is sometimes called the Mahakumbh of the East. Kamakhya is counted among the Shakti Peethas. A is wrong because Kerala is known for the Thrissur Pooram and the Nehru Trophy boat race. B is wrong because Gujarat is known for the Rann Utsav and Tarnetar fair. C is wrong because Sikkim holds festivals such as Losar and Pang Lhabsol. Exam tip: Ambubachi, Kamakhya temple, Guwahati, June.

The correct answer is B, NR Narayana Murthy. A Better India: A Better World was written by N R Narayana Murthy, the co-founder of Infosys, and published in 2009. The book collects his lectures and talks to students and business audiences, and argues that India will improve only through honest institutions, respect for public money and what he calls compassionate capitalism, in which business creates jobs and pays its taxes rather than seeking favours. Narayana Murthy started Infosys in 1981 with six colleagues and a small sum borrowed from his wife Sudha Murty. A is wrong because Shashi Tharoor wrote An Era of Darkness and The Great Indian Novel. C is wrong because Ratan Tata has not written such a book, though several biographies of him exist. D is wrong because Gurcharan Das wrote India Unbound and The Difficulty of Being Good. Exam tip: Narayana Murthy, Infosys, A Better India A Better World, 2009.

The correct answer is D, Section 7. Section 7 of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 lets the Central Government, after consulting the Governor, give the Reserve Bank such directions as it thinks necessary in the public interest, and it also allows the Governor and the Central Board to be superseded in that sense. The power has never been used formally, but it was discussed publicly in 2018 when the government and the Reserve Bank differed over lending rules and liquidity, which is why the section became an exam favourite. A is wrong because Section 5 deals with the offices and branches of the Bank. B is wrong because Section 1 only gives the short title and extent of the Act. C is wrong because Section 3 provides for the establishment and incorporation of the Reserve Bank itself. Exam tip: RBI Act 1934, Section 7 for government directions, Section 3 for the Bank's establishment, and the Bank began work on 1 April 1935.

The correct answer is A, Punjab National Bank. The slogan The Name you can Bank Upon belongs to Punjab National Bank. PNB was set up in 1894 at Lahore and was the first Indian bank started wholly with Indian capital, with Lala Lajpat Rai among those behind it; its head office is now in New Delhi. Taglines like this are asked often because each large bank keeps one for years, and PNB has used this line through its branding. B is wrong because the State Bank of India uses The Banker to Every Indian, and earlier With you all the way. C is wrong because HDFC Bank uses We understand your world. D is wrong because Canara Bank uses Together We Can. Exam tip: pair the bank with its line and its founding year, PNB 1894 Lahore and The Name you can Bank Upon, SBI 1955 and The Banker to Every Indian.

The correct answer is C, Giani Zail Singh. Rajiv Gandhi was sworn in as Prime Minister on 31 October 1984, the day his mother Indira Gandhi was assassinated, and Giani Zail Singh, who was President from 1982 to 1987, administered the oath. Zail Singh was the first Sikh to hold the office and had earlier been Chief Minister of Punjab and Union Home Minister. The swearing in shows the President's power under Article 75, by which the Prime Minister is appointed by the President and the other ministers are appointed on the Prime Minister's advice. A is wrong because R Venkataraman became President only in 1987. B is wrong because Shankar Dayal Sharma became President in 1992, after serving as Vice President. D is wrong because N Sanjiva Reddy's term ended in 1982. Exam tip: Zail Singh 1982 to 1987, Venkataraman 1987 to 1992, Sharma 1992 to 1997.

The correct answer is B, Raigad. Raigad is the hill fort in Maharashtra that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj made his capital, and it has nothing to do with the Buddha. The Ashta Mahasthana are the eight places tied to the main events of the Buddha's life: Lumbini where he was born, Bodh Gaya where he gained enlightenment, Sarnath where he gave his first sermon, Kushinagar where he died, and Sravasti, Rajgir, Sankasya and Vaishali, each linked to a miracle or an important episode of his teaching years. A is wrong because Sarnath, near Varanasi, is where the wheel of law was first turned. C is wrong because Lumbini in Nepal is the birthplace. D is wrong because Bodh Gaya in Bihar is where he sat under the Bodhi tree. Exam tip: remember the core four first, Lumbini, Bodh Gaya, Sarnath and Kushinagar, then add the other four.

The correct answer is D, Guler Paintings – Karnataka, because this pair is the wrong one. Guler painting belongs to Himachal Pradesh, not Karnataka. Guler, a small hill state in the Kangra valley, is where the Pahari school took its gentle new form in the eighteenth century under artists of the Seu family, and from there it grew into the famous Kangra style of soft lines and green hill landscapes. A is a correct pair, since Phad is the long cloth scroll painting of Rajasthan that tells the story of folk gods such as Pabuji and Devnarayan. B is a correct pair, as Saura painting is the wall art of the Saura tribe of Odisha, close in look to Warli. C is a correct pair, because the Bagh paintings are the cave murals near the Bagh caves in Madhya Pradesh. Exam tip: Guler and Kangra are both Pahari schools of Himachal Pradesh.

The correct answer is A, Heritage Foundation. The Index of Economic Freedom has been published by this research organisation based at Washington DC since 1995, and it scores countries on matters such as property rights, tax burden, government spending, trade freedom and business regulation. Questions on this topic usually pair an index with the body that publishes it, so this name is worth memorising along with the index it produces.

Option B, the Fraser Institute of Canada, publishes a similarly named report called Economic Freedom of the World, which makes it the closest trap in the set. Option C, the International Monetary Fund, publishes the World Economic Outlook and the Global Financial Stability Report. Option D, the World Bank, brings out the World Development Report and earlier the Ease of Doing Business rankings, but not this index.

The correct answer is B, Sasaram. The tomb of Sher Shah Suri stands at Sasaram in the Rohtas district of Bihar, the town where he grew up. It is an octagonal tomb of grey sandstone, about 37 metres high, raised on a square platform in the middle of a large artificial lake so that it seems to float on the water, and it is reached by a causeway from the north. The architect was Mir Muhammad Aliwal Khan, and the work was finished in 1545 soon after Sher Shah died at Kalinjar. The design grew out of the tombs of the Lodis and is counted the high point of the Indo-Islamic style before the Mughals. A is wrong because Chausa is where Sher Shah defeated Humayun in 1539. C is wrong because Delhi holds his Purana Qila and the Qila-i-Kuhna mosque, not his grave. D is wrong because Rohtasgarh is the hill fort he captured, not his burial place. Exam tip: born in Sasaram, died at Kalinjar in 1545, buried in the lake tomb at Sasaram.

The correct answer is A, 1780-1784. The Second Anglo-Mysore War ran from 1780 to 1784. It began when the English took Mahe, a French port inside Haidar Ali's territory, and he answered by attacking the Carnatic. In 1780 he crushed Colonel Baillie's force at Pollilur, one of the worst English defeats in India, and Warren Hastings had to send Sir Eyre Coote south, who beat Haidar Ali at Porto Novo in 1781. Haidar Ali died of cancer in December 1782 and his son Tipu Sultan carried the war on. It closed with the Treaty of Mangalore in March 1784, under which both sides returned their conquests; it is remembered as the last treaty whose terms an Indian ruler set for the English. B is wrong because no Anglo-Mysore war was fought in 1769-1775. C is wrong because 1785-1789 was a break between wars. D is wrong because the first war was fought in 1767-1769 and ended with the Treaty of Madras. Exam tip: First 1767-69 Madras, Second 1780-84 Mangalore, Third 1790-92 Seringapatam, Fourth 1799.

The correct answer is D, Deogarh. The Dashavatara Temple stands at Deogarh in the Lalitpur district of Uttar Pradesh, on the banks of the Betwa, and was built of stone around the sixth century in the late Gupta period. It is dedicated to Vishnu and is named after the ten incarnations shown on its walls, where the panels of Sheshashayi Vishnu, Nara-Narayana and Gajendramoksha are the best known. The temple is the earliest surviving example in north India of the Panchayatana plan, in which the main shrine stands on a raised platform with four smaller shrines at the corners, and it also carries an early curved shikhara that leads on to the Nagara style. A is wrong because Nachna-Kuthara in Madhya Pradesh has the Parvati temple, not this one. B is wrong because Bhitargaon near Kanpur is the well-known Gupta temple built of brick. C is wrong because Tigawa in Madhya Pradesh has the small flat-roofed Kankali Devi temple. Exam tip: Deogarh Dashavatara, stone, Panchayatana; Bhitargaon, brick; both Gupta work.

The correct answer is D, 1765. Robert Clive signed the two Treaties of Allahabad in August 1765, the year after the English won the Battle of Buxar. By the first, Shuja-ud-Daula of Awadh got his territory back except Kara and Allahabad, paid fifty lakh rupees as war costs and became a dependent ally who would help pay for English troops in his state. By the second, the Mughal emperor Shah Alam II was given Kara and Allahabad and an annual pension of twenty-six lakh rupees, and in return he granted the Company the Diwani, the right to collect revenue in Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. That grant began the dual government in Bengal, where the Company held the purse and the Nawab held the duties of administration. A is wrong because 1764 is the year of the Battle of Buxar. B and C are wrong because no such treaty was signed in 1767 or 1766. Exam tip: Plassey 1757, Buxar 1764, Treaties of Allahabad and Diwani rights 1765.

The correct answer is D, Article 168. Article 168 provides for the constitution of Legislatures in the states. It says every state shall have a Legislature made up of the Governor and either one House or two Houses. Where there are two, they are the Legislative Assembly or Vidhan Sabha and the Legislative Council or Vidhan Parishad; the other states have an Assembly alone. The Governor is counted as part of the Legislature even though he does not sit in either House, because a bill becomes law only after his assent. Article 169 allows Parliament to create or abolish a Council when the Assembly of that state passes a resolution by a special majority, which is how the number of states with a Council keeps changing. A is wrong because Article 167 lists the Chief Minister's duty to furnish information to the Governor. B is wrong because Article 165 provides for the Advocate General of a state. C is wrong because Article 163 deals with the Council of Ministers that aids and advises the Governor. Exam tip: 163 aid and advice, 165 Advocate General, 167 Chief Minister's duties, 168 constitution of the state Legislature.

The correct answer is A, Joystick. A joystick is an input device with a stick fixed in a base that can be tilted in several directions, and the movement of the stick moves an image or a pointer on the screen in the same direction. It was first built for aircraft controls, and today it is used for computer games, flight simulators, wheelchairs and cranes. Most joysticks also carry buttons and a trigger, and the base sends the direction and the amount of tilt to the computer, so it is an analog pointing device like the mouse, the trackball and the light pen. B is wrong because an Optical Mark Reader only reads pencil marks on answer sheets and forms. C is wrong because a Visual Display Unit is the monitor, which is an output device and controls nothing. D is wrong because MIDI devices such as electronic keyboards carry music data between instruments and a computer. Exam tip: joystick, mouse, trackball, light pen and touch screen are pointing input devices; the monitor and printer are output devices.

The correct answer is A, Maulvi Liaquat Ali. Maulvi Liaquat Ali of Mahgaon village led the revolt of 1857 at Allahabad, now Prayagraj. He was declared governor of the city by the rebels, set up his headquarters at Khusro Bagh and held the town for about a fortnight in June 1857 before Colonel Neill retook it with troops moving up from Calcutta. He escaped, stayed underground for fourteen years and was caught at Bombay in 1871, then transported for life to the Andaman Islands. C is wrong because Khan Bahadur Khan, a grandson of Hafiz Rahmat Khan, led the revolt at Bareilly. B is wrong because Tatya Tope fought at Kanpur beside Nana Saheb and later at Gwalior with the Rani. D is wrong because Rani Lakshmibai led the fighting at Jhansi and died near Gwalior in June 1858. Exam tip: Allahabad Maulvi Liaquat Ali, Kanpur Nana Saheb, Lucknow Begum Hazrat Mahal, Bareilly Khan Bahadur Khan, Jhansi Rani Lakshmibai, Faizabad Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah.

The correct answer is A, Brazil. Brazil is called the Coffee Bowl of the World because it grows and sends out more coffee than any other country and has done so for more than a century. Its coffee belt lies in the south-east, in the states of Minas Gerais, Sao Paulo and Parana, where the deep red soil called terra rossa, the warm climate and the rolling plateau suit the plant. The large estates there are known as fazendas, and the port of Santos handles much of the export. Coffee needs a hot, wet climate with well drained slopes, which is why it is a plantation crop of the tropics. B is wrong because Mexico is a smaller coffee grower and is better known for maize and silver. C is wrong because India grows coffee mainly in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu but is far behind Brazil. D is wrong because Serbia has a cool climate that cannot support coffee at all. Exam tip: Brazil Coffee Bowl of the World, Sri Lanka Pearl of the Indian Ocean, Cuba Sugar Bowl of the World.