State Exams 2013 Previous Year GK Questions with Answers

The correct answer is C, Edward Jenner. In 1796 Jenner showed that material from a cowpox sore protected a boy against smallpox, the first deliberate vaccination, and the word vaccine itself comes from vacca, the Latin for cow. That experiment founded the science of immunology. Option A is wrong because Robert Koch identified the bacteria that cause tuberculosis and cholera and gave the rules for linking a microbe to a disease, so he belongs to bacteriology. Option B is wrong because Louis Pasteur gave the germ theory of disease, pasteurisation and the rabies vaccine, and is called the father of microbiology, although his vaccine work came after Jenner. Option D is wrong because Karl Landsteiner discovered the human blood groups. The trap in this question is Pasteur, whose fame in vaccines makes candidates skip the earlier name.

The correct answer is D, Charter Act – 1833. This Act ended the last trading rights of the East India Company, its monopoly of trade with China and of the tea trade, and turned the Company into a purely administrative body holding India in trust for the British Crown. The same Act made the Governor-General of Bengal the Governor-General of India, with William Bentinck the first to hold that title, gave him alone the power to legislate for the whole of British India, and added a Law Member to his council, a post first held by Macaulay, who led the work on a common code of law. A is wrong because the Regulating Act of 1773 was only the first step towards control, setting up a Supreme Court at Calcutta. B is wrong because Pitt's India Act of 1784 created the Board of Control and the system of dual government. C is wrong because the Charter Act of 1813 opened Indian trade to all British merchants but kept the Company's monopoly of trade with China and in tea. Exam tip: 1813 – Indian trade opened except tea and China; 1833 – that exception also removed.

The correct answer is B, Bihar. Madhubani painting, also called Mithila painting, belongs to the Mithila region of northern Bihar around the districts of Madhubani and Darbhanga. It was traditionally painted by women on the plastered walls and floors of the house for weddings and festivals, using natural dyes and a nib of bamboo wrapped in cloth, and it is now also done on paper and cloth. Its styles are Bharni, Katchni, Godna and Tantrik, and Sita Devi, Ganga Devi and Mahasundari Devi are its best known artists. It carries a Geographical Indication tag.

Option A, Uttar Pradesh, is not its home, though Mithila culture extends towards the Nepal border and not into the Doab. Option C, Kerala, is known for temple murals and Kathakali, not Madhubani. Option D, Tamil Nadu, is known for Tanjore painting with its gold foil, so it is the usual distractor in this question.

The correct answer is A, Article 164. Clause (2) of Article 164 says that the Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly of the State, which is the rule of collective responsibility in a parliamentary system: the ministry stays in office only while it holds the confidence of the elected house, and a no-confidence motion removes the whole ministry, not one minister. The same Article also provides that the Governor appoints the Chief Minister and, on the Chief Minister's advice, the other ministers, and that a minister who is not a member of the legislature for six consecutive months ceases to hold office. Option B is wrong because Article 154 vests the executive power of the State in the Governor. Option C is wrong because Article 161 gives the Governor the power to pardon, reprieve and remit sentences. Option D is wrong because Article 151 deals with the audit reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General. Exam tip: collective responsibility is Article 75(3) for the Union and Article 164(2) for a State.