UPSC GK Questions 2026

All three statements follow from how the Coriolis force turns winds around low and high pressure. A cyclone is a low-pressure centre into which winds blow, and an anticyclone is a high-pressure centre from which winds blow out.

Condensation depends on how much air there is, how much moisture it holds and how cold it becomes, so all three factors count.

Extratropical cyclones form outside the tropics and cover wide areas, but they travel from west to east, not east to west.

All three statements correctly describe slash-and-burn farming in India. Slash-and-burn is a form of primitive subsistence farming: farmers clear a patch of forest by cutting and burning the vegetation, grow food crops on it with simple tools, and mainly feed their own families.

The commission asked the district administrations to strengthen coordination between farmers, Custom Hiring Centres, machinery providers and other stakeholders so that farmers can obtain residue management solutions without waiting.

The commission emphasised this route and further directed that sector-wise nodal officers be made responsible for the actual use of stubble by their sectors and for monitoring and reporting compliance regularly.

Both Amritsar and Tarn Taran are districts of Punjab, and the commission's team held its review meeting with their Deputy Commissioners and other concerned officers.

The meeting took stock of the arrangements for comprehensive paddy stubble management and of the measures needed to end the burning of residue.

Its location is convenient for industry because it lies close to National Highways 22 and 19 and Gaya airport is roughly 39 kilometres away, giving access to major industrial and commercial centres.

BIMCGL was incorporated on 6 January 2025 as the dedicated implementing agency for the Gaya cluster and will handle coordinated planning, infrastructure work, statutory clearances, utility connectivity and investor facilitation.

Those agreements were signed with prospective investors for roughly 300 acres of industrial land at the Gaya cluster, and the employment potential attached to them was estimated at 16,095.

The cluster is spread over about 1,670 acres in Dobhi block of Gaya district, and the Union government approved it on 28 August 2024 at a total cost of ₹1,339 crore including the cost of land.

The Secretary of the Department of Urban Development listed the Urban Challenge Fund of that size among recent initiatives and reforms, along with reforms under the SASCI scheme.

The Union Minister of State said the urban population had grown from roughly 377 million in 2011 to around 500 million at present and was expected to reach that mark by 2036, adding that by the centenary of independence nearly one in every two Indians would be living in a…

The correct answer is the National Institute of Urban Affairs, which is the knowledge partner for the conclave, with the Housing and Urban Development Corporation and the National Buildings Construction Corporation as principal sponsors.

The second edition of the conclave opened on 24 October 2026 in Bhubaneswar under this theme, organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs with support from the Odisha government, and it brought together more than 1,200 participants including urban development ministers, mayors and representatives of urban local bodies.

The Minister told the valedictory session that the operational metro network had grown to that length, and that nine metro projects covering nearly 174 km and costing more than ₹59,000 crore had been approved since December 2025, with about 102 km of network becoming operational in the same period.

Integration means seamless connectivity between the metro, bus, rail and other services with strong first-mile and last-mile links. Inclusiveness means transport that is safe, accessible and convenient for women, senior citizens, persons with disabilities and every section of society.

The meeting brought together policymakers, officials of the central and state governments, international experts, transport professionals, researchers and industry representatives, and fourteen sessions were held over the two days with about 1,500 delegates taking part.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs organised the event through the Institute of Urban Transport (India) with the support of the Odisha government, and Union Minister Manohar Lal addressed the valedictory session.