Static general knowledge is six of the seven lines of the General Studies Paper-I syllabus in the UPSC CSE notice: History of India and the Indian National Movement; Indian and World Geography; Indian Polity and Governance; Economic and Social Development; Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change; and General Science. The Commission tests understanding rather than recall, through statements to be judged correct or incorrect, pairs to be matched and assertion-reason items, and it likes the edges of a topic: a lesser-known provision of the Constitution, a river's tributary, a species' conservation status, the mandate of a statutory body. This page holds GK24's topic-wise GK notes for UPSC, written as short facts and tables, in English and Hindi, with each note linked to the current affairs and previous-year questions on the same topic. Start with Polity and Modern History, which carry the most questions, then Geography, the Economy, Environment, Ancient and Medieval culture and Science. Read a note, solve its PYQs, take its quiz, and come back to it in your monthly revision. A candidate who knows these notes and reads the daily current affairs has covered the syllabus the notice prescribes for Paper-I.
Where is the Vikramkhol Cave located?
Vikramkhol is a rock shelter near Belpahar in the Jharsuguda district of western Odisha. The shelter is known for a long panel of engraved and painted signs on its rock wall.
Read the full explanation →Which of the following statements with respect to the Ordinance promulgated under Article 213 of the Constitution of India is/are correct?
1. It shall be laid before the Legislative Assembly of the State, or where there is a Legislative Council in the State, before both the Houses
2. It shall cease to operate at the expiration of two months from the reassembly of the Legislature
3. It may be withdrawn at any time by the Governor
Select the answer using the code given below:
Article 213 requires a Governor's ordinance to be laid before the state legislature and lets the Governor withdraw it at any time, but its life after reassembly is six weeks, not two months.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following statements :
Statement-I : Giant stars live much longer than dwarf stars.
Statement-II : Compared to dwarf stars, giant stars have a greater rate of nuclear reactions.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
Massive giant stars burn their fuel so fast that they live much shorter lives than dwarf stars, so Statement I is false and Statement II is true.
Read the full explanation →Ships from which of the following countries have to cross the Strait of Hormuz to reach out to the Indian Ocean ?
1. Bahrain
2. Syria
3. Qatar
4. Egypt
Select the answer using the code given below :
Bahrain and Qatar have coasts only on the Persian Gulf, whose sole outlet to the Indian Ocean is the Strait of Hormuz.
Read the full explanation →Which of the following is/are tributary/tributaries of Brahmaputra?
1. Dibang
2. Kameng
3. Lohit
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Dibang, Kameng and Lohit all flow from Arunachal Pradesh into the Brahmaputra.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following statements :
1. The Factories Act, 1881 was passed with a view to fix the wages of industrial workers and to allow the workers to form trade unions.
2. N.M. Lokhande was a pioneer in organizing the labour movement in British India.
Which of the above statements is/are correct ?
Only statement 2 is right: Narayan Meghaji Lokhande is regarded as the father of the labour movement in India. Lokhande, an associate of Jyotirao Phule, organised the textile mill workers of Bombay and in 1890 founded the Bombay Mill Hands Association, often called India's first labour organisation.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following statements :
1. The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 replaced the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954.
2. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is under the charge of Director General of Health Services in the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
The 2006 Act did replace the 1954 Act, but FSSAI is an independent statutory authority, not an office under the Director General of Health Services.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following statements :
1. Asiatic lion is naturally found in India only.
2. Double-humped camel is naturally found in India only.
3. One-horned rhinoceros is naturally found in India only.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Only the Asiatic lion survives in the wild in India alone, in the Gir landscape of Gujarat. The Asiatic lion once ranged from West Asia to central India, but today its only wild population lives in and around Gir National Park and the nearby districts of Saurashtra in Gujarat.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following is a filter feeder?
The oyster feeds by drawing water over its gills and straining out plankton and organic particles, which is filter feeding.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following lakes of West Africa has become dry and turned into a desert ?
Lake Faguibine in northern Mali, once one of the largest lakes of West Africa, has dried up and turned into desert.
Read the full explanation →With reference to radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs), consider the following statements :
1. RTGs are miniature fission reactors.
2. RTGs are used for powering the onboard systems of spacecrafts.
3. RTGs can use Plutonium-238, which is a by-product of weapons development.
Which of the statements given above are correct ?
RTGs power spacecraft using heat from the natural decay of plutonium-238; they are not reactors and involve no fission. In an RTG, a radioactive isotope gives off heat as it decays on its own.
Read the full explanation →The FAO accords the status of 'Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS)' to traditional agricultural systems. What is the overall goal of this initiative?
1. To provide modern technology, training in modern farming methods and financial support to local communities of identified GIAHS so as to greatly enhance their agricultural productivity
2. To identify and safeguard eco-friendly traditional farm practices and their associated landscapes, agricultural biodiversity and knowledge systems of the local communities
3. To provide Geographical Indication status to all the varieties of agricultural produce in such identified GIAHS
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
GIAHS exists to identify and safeguard traditional farming systems together with their landscapes, agrobiodiversity and local knowledge. The Food and Agriculture Organization launched the GIAHS programme in 2002, at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following pairs :
Tradition — State
1. Chapchar Kut festival — Mizoram
2. Khongjom Parba ballad — Manipur
3. Thang-Ta dance — Sikkim
Which of the pairs given above is/are correct ?
Chapchar Kut belongs to Mizoram and Khongjom Parba to Manipur, but Thang-Ta is from Manipur, not Sikkim. Chapchar Kut is the spring festival of the Mizos, held in March after the bamboo and forest are cut and left to dry for jhum cultivation; Cheraw, the bamboo dance, is its highlight.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following groups of plants was domesticated in the 'New World' and introduced into the 'Old World'?
Tobacco, cocoa and rubber all come from the Americas and spread to Asia, Africa and Europe after Columbus. The exchange of plants and animals between the Americas (New World) and Afro-Eurasia (Old World) after 1492 is called the Columbian Exchange.
Read the full explanation →In the context of recent advances in human reproductive technology, "Pronuclear Transfer" is used for
Pronuclear transfer is a mitochondrial replacement technique that stops a mother from passing faulty mitochondria to her child. Mitochondria have their own small DNA, inherited only from the mother; defects in it cause serious muscle, heart and brain diseases.
Read the full explanation →Magnetite particles, suspected to cause neurodegenerative problems, are generated as environmental pollutants from which of the following?
1. Brakes of motor vehicles
2. Engines of motor vehicles
3. Microwave stoves within homes
4. Power plants
5. Telephone lines
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Magnetite nanoparticles in polluted air come from high-temperature combustion and friction: vehicle engines, brake wear and power plants. Magnetite is an iron oxide (Fe3O4).
Read the full explanation →"System of Rice Intensification" of cultivation, in which alternate wetting and drying of rice fields is practised, results in :
1. Reduced seed requirement
2. Reduced methane production
3. Reduced electricity consumption
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
SRI saves seed, cuts methane and, by using less irrigation water, saves the electricity spent on pumping. The System of Rice Intensification was developed in Madagascar in the 1980s by the French priest Henri de Laulanié.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following :
1. Demographic performance
2. Forest and ecology
3. Governance reforms
4. Stable government
5. Tax and fiscal efforts
For the horizontal tax devolution, the Fifteenth Finance Commission used how many of the above as criteria other than population, area and income distance?
Besides population, area and income distance, the Fifteenth Finance Commission used demographic performance, forest and ecology, and tax and fiscal efforts.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following :
1. Cashew
2. Papaya
3. Red sanders
How many of the above trees are actually native to India ?
Of the three, only red sanders is native to India; cashew and papaya were brought from the Americas. Red sanders (Pterocarpus santalinus) is endemic to the southern Eastern Ghats, mainly the Seshachalam and nearby hills of Andhra Pradesh.
Read the full explanation →Which among the following is/are the objective(s) of the Rainfed Area Development (RAD) initiative under the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) ?
1. Encouraging monoculture in rainfed areas
2. Increasing rice cultivation in irrigated regions
3. Enhancing productivity and minimising climatic risks through Integrated Farming Systems (IFS)
Select the answer using the code given below :
RAD aims to raise productivity and cut climate risk in rainfed farming by promoting Integrated Farming Systems. The National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture is one of the missions under India's National Action Plan on Climate Change.
Read the full explanation →