State Exams 2022 Previous Year GK Questions with Answers

The correct answer is C, Public sector undertakings. Maharatna, Navratna and Miniratna are status tags that the Government of India gives to central public sector enterprises on the basis of their size, profits and performance. The Navratna and Miniratna schemes began in 1997, and the Maharatna category was added later as the top tier for the very largest and most profitable companies. A higher tag means more financial freedom: the board of a Maharatna company can approve very large investments on its own, without going to the government for each project. The aim is to let strong public companies compete and expand like private firms, even abroad. Option A is wrong because Special Economic Zones are areas with special trade and tax rules, not grades of companies. Option B is wrong because India's civilian awards are the Bharat Ratna and the Padma awards. Option D is wrong because mineral-rich areas are not graded with such titles. Exam tip: the order from top is Maharatna, Navratna, Miniratna; all three are grades of central PSUs.

The correct answer is D, Tariff barriers. Globalisation means the growing integration of countries through trade, investment, technology and the movement of people, and it works by lowering barriers to trade, not by raising them. A tariff barrier is a tax placed on imports to shield domestic producers from foreign competition, so it restricts trade instead of opening it. In India, the 1991 reforms, known by the letters LPG for liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation, cut import duties sharply and opened the economy to foreign companies. Option A is wrong because foreign direct investment, in which a company sets up or buys businesses abroad, grows as countries open up. Option B is wrong because multilateral trade agreements, such as those under the World Trade Organization, are a main vehicle of globalisation. Option C is wrong because outsourcing, like Indian IT and call-centre work done for foreign firms, grew directly out of globalisation and cheap communication. Exam tip: globalisation lowers tariffs and quotas and raises FDI, trade and outsourcing; the WTO replaced GATT on 1 January 1995.

The correct answer is B, Godavari, Krishna, Mahanadi, Tapi. The Godavari, about 1,465 km long, is the longest river of peninsular India and is called the Dakshin Ganga; it rises at Trimbakeshwar near Nashik in Maharashtra. The Krishna, about 1,400 km long, rises near Mahabaleshwar. The Mahanadi flows about 851 km from Chhattisgarh through Odisha to the Bay of Bengal, and the Tapi, about 724 km long, rises in Betul district of Madhya Pradesh and flows west into the Arabian Sea. Option A is wrong because it puts the Mahanadi first, though it is shorter than the Godavari, the Krishna and the Narmada. Option C is wrong because the Narmada, about 1,312 km long, is shorter than the Godavari, and the Mahanadi cannot come before the Godavari either. Option D is wrong because the Krishna is longer than the Narmada, so the Narmada cannot come second. Exam tip: peninsular rivers by length are Godavari 1,465, Krishna 1,400, Narmada 1,312, Mahanadi 851 and Tapi 724 km.

The correct answer is D, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal. According to Census 2011, these were India's four most populous states in exactly this order. Uttar Pradesh had about 19.98 crore people, which was 16.5 per cent of India's total population of about 121 crore. Maharashtra came second with about 11.24 crore, Bihar third with about 10.41 crore and West Bengal fourth with about 9.13 crore. The ranking by density is different: Bihar was the most densely populated state, with 1,106 persons per square kilometre, followed by West Bengal. The least populous state was Sikkim, with about 6.1 lakh people. Option A is wrong because it puts Bihar above Maharashtra. Option B is wrong because it puts West Bengal in second place, when it was fourth. Option C is wrong because it puts West Bengal above Bihar. Exam tip: Census 2011 top four by population are UP, Maharashtra, Bihar and West Bengal; by density, Bihar comes first.

The correct answer is B, Wular Lake. NCERT's geography textbook describes Wular Lake in Jammu and Kashmir as a lake formed as a result of tectonic activity, that is, by movements of the Earth's crust. It lies in the Kashmir Valley in Bandipora district, and the Jhelum river flows into it and out of it, so the lake soaks up the river's floodwater. Wular is the largest freshwater lake in India and has been a Ramsar wetland since 1990. Its area changes a lot with the seasons, roughly from 30 to 260 square kilometres. Option A is wrong because Chilika in Odisha is a lagoon, a coastal lake cut off from the sea by a sand bar. Option C is wrong because Kolleru in Andhra Pradesh is a shallow lake lying between the deltas of the Godavari and the Krishna. Option D is wrong because Sambhar in Rajasthan is an inland salt lake of the dry region, fed by seasonal streams and known for salt production. Exam tip: Wular = largest freshwater lake and tectonic; Chilika = largest lagoon; Sambhar = largest inland salt lake.

The correct answer is A, Right to personal liberty. Even during a national emergency, the enforcement of Articles 20 and 21 cannot be suspended. Article 21 protects life and personal liberty, and Article 20 protects a person from retrospective criminal laws, from being punished twice for the same offence and from being forced to be a witness against himself. This safeguard was added by the 44th Amendment, 1978, after the 1975-77 Emergency, when people held in detention could not challenge it in court. Under Article 359, the President may suspend the enforcement of the other Fundamental Rights while an emergency lasts. Option B is wrong because freedom of speech under Article 19 is suspended automatically under Article 358 when an emergency is declared on the ground of war or external aggression. Option C is wrong because the right to equality under Articles 14 to 18 can be suspended by a presidential order under Article 359. Option D is wrong because freedom of religion under Articles 25 to 28 can also be suspended under Article 359. Exam tip: in an emergency, Articles 20 and 21 always stay enforceable.

The correct answer is C, Repeal of the Indian Independence Act, 1947. Article 395, the last article of the Constitution, repeals the Indian Independence Act, 1947 and the Government of India Act, 1935, along with the laws that amended or added to the 1935 Act. By removing these British laws, the framers made the Constitution the only source of legal authority in India and ended the legal link with the British Parliament. The article makes one exception: the Abolition of Privy Council Jurisdiction Act, 1949 was not repealed. Article 395 sits in Part XXII with Article 393 (short title) and Article 394 (commencement), and it took effect on 26 January 1950. Option A is wrong because the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 is an ordinary law made by Parliament, not an article of the Constitution. Option B is wrong because new states are formed under Articles 2 and 3. Option D is wrong because a national emergency is proclaimed under Article 352. Exam tip: Article 395 repeals the Indian Independence Act 1947 and the Government of India Act 1935.

The correct answer is C, Ahmad Shah Abdali. On 14 January 1761 the Afghan ruler Ahmad Shah Abdali, also called Ahmad Shah Durrani, crushed the Maratha army at Panipat in present-day Haryana. The Marathas were led by Sadashivrao Bhau, and Vishwasrao, the young son of Peshwa Balaji Bajirao, was killed in the fighting. Abdali was backed by the Rohilla chief Najib-ud-daula and by Shuja-ud-daula, the Nawab of Awadh. The defeat checked Maratha expansion in north India for about a decade and made it easier for the British to rise to power. Option A is wrong because Hemu lost the Second Battle of Panipat to Akbar's forces in 1556. Option B is wrong because Muhammad Ghori fought the battles of Tarain in 1191 and 1192, not at Panipat. Option D is wrong because Babur won the First Battle of Panipat against Ibrahim Lodi in 1526 and founded the Mughal empire. Exam tip: Panipat I 1526 Babur vs Ibrahim Lodi; Panipat II 1556 Akbar vs Hemu; Panipat III 1761 Abdali vs Marathas.

The correct answer is B, Tax. In the Later Vedic age, bali had become a regular tax collected by the king. In the Rig Vedic period, bali was a voluntary offering that the people or defeated tribes gave to the chief, often in the form of cattle or grain. As kingdoms grew larger after about 1000 BCE and settled farming spread in the Ganga plains, this gift turned into a compulsory payment. The texts of this period name royal officers linked to it, such as the bhagadugha, who collected the king's share, and the sangrihitri, the treasurer. With this income the king could maintain a court and a standing force. Option A is wrong because a sacrifice was called a yajna, and bali in this context was a payment to the ruler. Option C is wrong because bali never meant a person; it refers to what was paid. Option D is wrong because 'income' is too general, while bali was specifically the share paid to the king. Exam tip: Rig Vedic bali was a voluntary gift; Later Vedic bali became a compulsory tax, and the bhagadugha collected it.

The correct answer is C, (a), (b) and (c). Statements (a), (b) and (c) describe the Subsidiary Alliance correctly, while (d) does not. Lord Wellesley, Governor-General from 1798 to 1805, turned the Subsidiary Alliance into the main tool of British expansion. An Indian ruler who signed it had to keep a British force in his state and pay for it, either in cash or by giving up territory. He also had to accept a British Resident at his court, and he could not deal with other powers or employ other Europeans without British consent. The Nizam of Hyderabad was the first to sign, in 1798, and Awadh had to give up about half its territory in 1801 to meet the cost. Statement (d) is wrong because the British promised protection from outside enemies as well as internal revolts. So option A misses (a) and (c), option B misses (c), and option D wrongly includes (d). Exam tip: Subsidiary Alliance means Wellesley, 1798, Hyderabad first; Doctrine of Lapse means Dalhousie.

The correct answer is C, 24 January. On 24 January 1950, two days before the Constitution came into force, the United Provinces was officially renamed Uttar Pradesh. The state government began celebrating this date as Uttar Pradesh Diwas, or UP Foundation Day, in 2018, with events across the state showing its culture, crafts and achievements. The One District One Product (ODOP) scheme, which promotes a special product from each district, was launched on the first UP Diwas in 2018. Conveniently, the short form ‘U.P.’ stayed the same, since both names begin with the same letters. Option A is wrong because 26 January is Republic Day, when the Constitution came into force in 1950. Option B is wrong because 25 January is National Voters’ Day, marking the founding of the Election Commission in 1950, and also Himachal Pradesh’s statehood day. Option D is wrong because 23 January is the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, observed as Parakram Diwas. Exam tip: on 24 January 1950 the United Provinces became Uttar Pradesh; the day has been celebrated as UP Diwas since 2018.

The correct answer is D, Bolivia. A landlocked country has no coastline on an open sea or ocean. South America has only two such countries, Bolivia and Paraguay. Bolivia once had a Pacific coast, but it lost that coastal province to Chile in the War of the Pacific (1879–1884) and has been landlocked ever since. It still keeps a navy, which patrols Lake Titicaca, the lake it shares with Peru and one of the highest navigable lakes in the world. La Paz is the seat of government, while Sucre is the constitutional capital. Option A is wrong because Uruguay lies on the Atlantic coast, and its capital Montevideo stands on the Rio de la Plata estuary. Option B is wrong because Suriname has an Atlantic coastline in the north of the continent, with Paramaribo as its port capital. Option C is wrong because Peru has a long Pacific coast, with Lima and the port of Callao. Exam tip: South America’s two landlocked countries are Bolivia and Paraguay.

The correct answer is A, 82° 30′ E longitude. India keeps one standard time for the whole country, Indian Standard Time, based on the 82° 30′ E meridian, which passes near Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh. Since the Earth turns one degree every 4 minutes, 82.5 degrees gives 330 minutes, so IST is 5 hours 30 minutes ahead of Greenwich Mean Time. The meridian was chosen because it runs roughly through the middle of India’s east-west spread of about 30 degrees of longitude, from about 68° 7′ E in Gujarat to 97° 25′ E in Arunachal Pradesh. That spread makes the sun rise nearly two hours earlier in Arunachal than in Gujarat. The line passes through five states: Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. Option B is wrong because 83° 30′ E is one degree too far east. Option C is wrong because 82° E is half a degree short of the standard meridian. Option D is wrong because 82° 50′ E is not the chosen line either. Exam tip: 82° 30′ E × 4 minutes = 5 hours 30 minutes ahead of GMT.

The correct answer is C, 86th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2002. The 86th Amendment inserted Article 21A, which makes free and compulsory education for all children aged 6 to 14 years a Fundamental Right, in the manner the State decides by law. The same amendment rewrote Article 45 so that the State should provide early childhood care and education until age six, and added Fundamental Duty 51A(k), making parents and guardians responsible for giving their children education. The law that gives effect to Article 21A, the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, came into force on 1 April 2010. Option A is wrong because the 103rd Amendment (2019) created 10 per cent reservation for economically weaker sections. Option B is wrong because the 93rd Amendment (2005) added Article 15(5), allowing reservation in educational institutions, including private ones. Option D is wrong because the 71st Amendment (1992) added Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali to the Eighth Schedule. Exam tip: the 86th Amendment made three changes: Article 21A, a new Article 45 and duty 51A(k).

The correct answer is B, Rabindranath Tagore. On 13 April 1919, General Dyer’s troops fired on an unarmed crowd at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, killing hundreds. At the end of May 1919 Tagore wrote to the Viceroy, Lord Chelmsford, giving up the knighthood he had received in 1915, saying that such badges of honour had become a mark of shame. The poet had won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 for Gitanjali, so his protest carried great weight across the world. Option A is wrong because M. A. Jinnah resigned from the Imperial Legislative Council in March 1919 in protest against the Rowlatt Act; he returned no knighthood. Option C is wrong because Maharaja Rameshwar Singh of Darbhanga was a loyal supporter of the government and gave up no title. Option D is wrong because Sir C. Sankaran Nair protested by resigning from the Viceroy’s Executive Council, not by returning his knighthood. Exam tip: Tagore gave up his knighthood in 1919; Gandhi returned the Kaiser-i-Hind medal in 1920.

The correct answer is B, North Atlantic Ocean. The Sargasso Sea lies in the middle of the North Atlantic and is the only sea in the world with no coastline. Instead of land, it is bounded by four ocean currents that circle clockwise around it: the Gulf Stream on the west, the North Atlantic Current on the north, the Canary Current on the east and the North Atlantic Equatorial Current on the south. Because it sits in the calm centre of this gyre, its water is warm, clear and very salty. It is named after sargassum, a brown seaweed that floats on its surface in huge mats, and it is the breeding ground of the American and European eels. Option A is wrong because the Arctic Ocean lies around the North Pole, far from this sea. Option C is wrong because the Sargasso Sea is north of the equator, not in the South Atlantic. Option D is wrong because the Indian Ocean is on the other side of Africa. Exam tip: Sargasso Sea means North Atlantic, no coastline, walled by currents, named after floating seaweed.