2013

1. Regional Rural Banks (RRBs): RRBs are established to provide credit and banking facilities to rural areas, especially to small and marginal farmers, agricultural laborers, and rural artisans. They grant direct credit assistance to rural households.

2. National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD): NABARD primarily provides refinance facilities to banks and financial institutions for lending to rural sectors. It does not directly lend to rural households, except in very limited cases through pilot schemes.

3. Land Development Banks (LDBs): LDBs provide long-term credit to farmers for land development and agricultural improvements. They grant direct loans to rural households.

Contour Bunding is associated with terracing, to check the flow of water on a hill slope in order to reduce soil erosion. This method is crucial for preventing soil erosion and is a part of sustainable land management practices.

An optical illusion is a perception that differs from physical reality, often caused by atmospheric effects or the brain's processing of visual information.

Size of the sun at dusk is an optical illusion: The sun appears larger near the horizon than when it's high in the sky, even though its actual angular size is unchanged. This is a psychological illusion caused by our brain misinterpreting distance cues.

Colour of the sun at dawn is an optical illusion: The sun appears red because its light travels through more of the atmosphere, which scatters away blue light. This phenomenon, known as Rayleigh scattering, creates a perception of color that differs from the sun's actual light.

Moon being visible at dawn is not an optical illusion: This is a real astronomical event. The moon is often in a position in its orbit where it is bright enough to be seen during daylight hours.

The twinkle of stars in the sky is an optical illusion: Stars don't actually blink. Their light is refracted by turbulent layers in Earth's atmosphere, causing their apparent brightness to change rapidly, which we perceive as twinkling.

Polestar being visible in the sky is not an optical illusion: This is a real phenomenon based on celestial mechanics. The Polestar's apparent fixed position is due to its close alignment with the Earth's axis of rotation

Steppes: Steppes are usually characterized by a semi-arid or continental climate. Extremes can be recorded in the summer of up to 45 °C (113 °F) and in winter, -50 °C (-58°F). Besides this huge difference between summer and winter, the differences between day and night are also very great.


African Savannah & North American Prairie: These regions have more rainfall and varied landscapes compared to the Steppe. Nomadic herding existed, but wasn't the sole way of life.

Siberian Tundra: Colder, less rain, permafrost. Not ideal for grazing animals. Nomadic herding is less prevalent.

Therefore, the Central Asian Steppe, with its extreme climate, limited rainfall, and historical dependence on nomadic herding, best fits the description in the statement.

Higgs Boson is a particle postulated by the Standard Model of Physics to provide mass to all particles in the universe.

Statement 1 is correct: Discovery of the Higgs Boson will help us further understand why elementary particles have mass.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The technology of transferring physical matter without traversing the physical space in between is not presently related to the discovery of the Higgs Boson.

Statement 3 is incorrect: The Higgs Boson will not help in creating better fuels for nuclear fission. It has to be understood that the discovery of the Higgs Boson will only confirm what has already been theorised and is not the discovery of a new principle in Physics.

Babur took over in 1526, Dadu Dayal lived between 1544-1603 and Tyagaraja between 1767-1847, thus statements one and three are definitely incorrect.

Guru Nanak lived between 1469 and 1539 and was preaching in 1526 when the Lodi Dynasty fell and Babur took over.

Statement 1 is incorrect: The collision of clouds does not produce thunder.

Statement 2 is incorrect: Thunder is the sound produced by the rapid expansion of air due to the intense heat of lightning, not by the separation of clouds.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Strong updrafts contribute to cloud formation but do not directly cause thunder.

Thus, none of the above produces the thunder.

Explanation: Thunder is produced by the rapid expansion of air surrounding a lightning bolt, which creates a shock wave that we hear as sound. None of the options directly describes this mechanism.


A chaitya is a Buddhist shrine or prayer hall with a stupa at one end. In modern texts on Indian architecture, the term chaitya-griha is often used to denote an assembly or prayer hall that houses a stupa.

Vihara generally refers to a monastery for Buddhist renunciates. The concept is ancient and in early Sanskrit and Pali texts, it meant any arrangement of space or facilities for pleasure and entertainment.

The term evolved into an architectural concept wherein it refers to living quarters for monks with an open shared space or courtyard, particularly in Buddhism. The term is also found in Ajivika, Hindu, and Jain monastic literature, usually referring to the temporary refuge for wandering monks or nuns during the annual Indian monsoons.

In modern Jainism, the monks continue to wander from town to town except during the rainy season (Chaturmas), the term "vihara" refers to their wanderings. Vihara or vihara hall has a more specific meaning in the architecture of India, especially ancient Indian rock-cut architecture. Here it means a central hall, with small cells connected to it, sometimes with beds carved from stone.

The correct answer is Nitrogen Dioxide, Ozone, and peroxyacetyl nitrate in the presence of sunlight.

* Nitrogen Dioxide: Released mainly from vehicle exhaust and industrial emissions.

* Sunlight: Sunlight's energy initiates the chemical reactions that form smog.

* Volatile Organic Compounds: These are released from gasoline, paints, solvents, and other sources. They react with NO2 in the presence of sunlight.

* Ozone: Ground-level ozone is a major component of photochemical smog, created by the reactions between NO2 and VOCs.

* Peroxyacetyl Nitrate (PAN): PAN is another harmful component of smog, formed in the same reactions.

The simplified process: Sunlight triggers reactions between Nitrogen Dioxide and VOCs, leading to the formation of ozone, PAN, and other noxious components of photochemical smog.

According to Article 88 of the Constitution every Minister and the Attorney-General of India shall have the right to speak in, and otherwise to take part in the proceedings of either House, any joint sitting of the Houses, and any committee of Parliament of which he may be named a member, but shall not by virtue of this article be entitled to vote.

The Constituent Assembly of India was partially elected to write the Constitution of India. Following India's independence from Great Britain in 1947, its members served as the nation's first Parliament.

The members of the Constituent Assembly were elected by the provincial assemblies by a single, transferable vote system of proportional representation.

Bank rate is the rate charged by the central bank for lending funds to commercial banks.

To curb liquidity, the central bank can resort to raising the bank rate and vice versa.

An increase in rate points toward a tight money policy is being followed by the RBI.

Out of the three organisms listed, only 2. Nostoc is commonly used as a biofertilizer.

Agaricus: This is a type of mushroom and not typically used as a biofertilizer.

Nostoc: This is a filamentous, nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium. Cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae, are one of the main groups of organisms used in biofertilizers due to their ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen and make it available to plants.

Spirogyra: This is a green alga and not generally used as a biofertilizer.

The Tebhaga movement was significant peasant agitation, initiated in Bengal by the Kisan Sabha (peasant front of the Communist Party of India) in 1946-47.

At that time sharecroppers had contracted to give half of their harvest to the landlords. The demand of the Tebhaga (sharing by thirds ) movement was to reduce the landlord share to one third.

Statement 1 is correct: According to the quantity theory of money, if the money supply increases faster than output, it leads to more money chasing the same amount of goods, causing inflation.

Statement 2 is correct: When output decreases but demand remains the same, there is excess demand relative to supply, which can push prices up (cost-push inflation).

Statement 3 is correct: Effective demand refers to the total demand for goods and services at a given price level. If it increases beyond the economy's productive capacity, it causes demand-pull inflation.

Nirvana (Sanskrit for "becoming extinguished" or "blowing out") is a central concept in Indian religious thought, particularly within Buddhism.

It represents the ultimate goal sought by practitioners of certain meditation disciplines, signifying the extinction of desire, hatred, and ignorance.

In Buddhism, Nirvana holds the distinction of being the oldest and most prevalent designation for the ultimate objective on the Buddhist path. This state of liberation is believed to lead to the cessation of suffering and rebirth.

Jainisms, Indian religion teaching a path to spiritual purity and enlightenment through disciplined nonviolence (ahimsa, literally noninjury) to all living creatures.

Statement 1 is correct: The annihilation (nirjara) of karma comes about through penance.

Statement 2 is correct: Souls are not only the property of animal and plant life, but also of entities such as stones, rocks, running water, and many other natural objects not looked upon as living by other sects.

Statement 3 is correct: The Jaina holds that every living and non-living being is gifted with souls. They are obstructed by karma, just as the natural light of the sun is hindered by clouds. By removing the karma, a soul can remove bondage and regain its natural perfections.

Statement 1 is incorrect: The National Development Council (NDC) is not an organ of the Planning Commission. It's an independent advisory body headed by the Prime Minister and includes Chief Ministers of all states, Union Cabinet Ministers, and members of the NITI Aayog (successor to the Planning Commission). It was set up on 6 August 1952.

Statement 2 is correct: Economic and Social Planning is listed in the Concurrent List (List III) of the Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

Statement 3 is correct: The Constitution (Article 243G) empowers Panchayats (local village governments) to prepare plans for economic development and social justice at the village level. This promotes decentralized planning and community participation.

Hence, statement one is incorrect and statements two and three are correct.

_Note: While the NDC was proposed to be abolished, it has not been formally dissolved, although its powers have largely been transferred to the NITI Aayog's Governing Council._

* The Quit India Movement was launched in 1942 in response to the failure of the Cripps Proposals.

* The Cripps Mission, led by Sir Stafford Cripps, aimed to secure Indian cooperation in World War II by offering limited self-government after the war. However, the proposals were rejected by both the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League as they were deemed inadequate.

* The Wavell Plan was an event of 1945 and the Cabinet Mission Plan was announced in 1946, much later than the Quit India movement while the Simon Commission arrived in India in 1928.

The Balance of Payments (BoP) is a systematic record of all economic transactions between the residents of a country and the rest of the world during a specific period, usually a year. These transactions include the export and import of goods (visible trade), services (invisible trade), and financial assets (capital transfers). According to NCERT Class 12 Macroeconomics, "residents" include individuals, business firms, and government agencies. Option A is the correct choice as it provides the most comprehensive definition of the BoP's scope. Other options are incorrect because they either focus on a single component (Option B for goods, Option D for capital) or incorrectly limit the participants to only governments (Option C).


Statement 1 is Correct: Recombinant DNA technology allows for the movement of genes across different plant species to introduce desirable traits, such as transferring genes from wild grass species to cultivated wheat to improve disease resistance.

Statement 2 is Correct: Genes can be transferred from animals to plants. A well-known research example involves transferring antifreeze protein genes from cold-water fish (like the winter flounder) into plants like tomatoes and strawberries to enhance their frost tolerance.

Statement 3 is Correct: Genes from microorganisms are routinely transferred to higher organisms (plants and animals). For example, genes from the soil bacterium *Bacillus thuringiensis* (Bt) are transferred into crops like cotton and corn to provide resistance against lepidopteran pests.

Statement 1 is incorrect: The caves at Badami (in Karnataka) were built during the 6th–7th centuries CE under the Chalukyas, but they are not the oldest. The oldest surviving rock-cut caves in India are the Barabar Caves in Bihar, dating to the 3rd century BCE (Mauryan period).

Statement 2 is incorrect: The Barabar Caves were indeed made for the Ajivika sect, but they were constructed during the reign of Emperor Ashoka (and later his grandson Dasaratha), not Chandragupta Maurya.

Statement 3 is correct: At Ellora, caves were excavated for three different faiths — Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism — reflecting religious harmony during the period (6th to 9th centuries CE).

The correct sequence of ecosystems in order of decreasing productivity is 1. Mangroves > 2. Grasslands > 3. Lakes > 4. Oceans

Mangroves: These coastal ecosystems boast exceptionally high productivity due to several factors. They receive rich nutrients from both land and sea, have a warm climate, and benefit from tidal flushing that brings in fresh nutrients and removes waste products.

Grasslands: These moderate-productivity ecosystems are characterized by abundant grasses and herbaceous plants. Their productivity depends on factors like rainfall, soil quality, and grazing pressure.

Lakes: Freshwater lakes exhibit varying levels of productivity depending on the nutrient availability (oligotrophic - nutrient-poor, eutrophic - nutrient-rich). Generally, they are less productive than mangroves and grasslands.

Oceans: Marine ecosystems, particularly open oceans, have the lowest overall productivity. Nutrient availability is limited in vast stretches of the ocean, leading to a slower rate of organic matter production compared to the other ecosystems listed.

Out of the listed pairs, only Nokrek Biosphere Reserve is correctly matched to Garo Hills.

Pair 1 is correctly matched: Nokrek Biosphere Reserve is situated in the Garo Hills of Meghalaya.

Pair 2 is incorrectly matched: Logtak (Loktak) Lake (famous for Phumdis) is located in Manipur, not the Barail Range (which is a mountain range in Assam).

Pair 3 is incorrectly matched: Namdapha National Park is indeed found in Arunachal Pradesh, but not specifically in the Dafla Hills region. It's on the eastern border with Myanmar.


Statement A is incorrect: Gravity is actually the weakest of the four fundamental forces for a given distance.

Statement B is correct: Electromagnetism acts only on charged particles, where the charge can be negative or positive.

Statement C is correct: The weak force is responsible for the existence and structure of atomic nuclei, including radioactivity and nuclear fusion.

Statement D is correct: Strong nuclear force is responsible for holding protons and neutrons together inside the atomic nucleus and is 100 times stronger than electromagnetism.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, over 68 percent of the freshwater on Earth is found in ice caps and glaciers, and just over 30 percent is found in groundwater.

Only about 0.3 percent of our freshwater is found in the surface water of lakes, rivers, and swamps.


Statement 1 is not correct: The Council of Ministers in the Centre shall be collectively responsible to Lok Sabha, not parliament.

Statement 2 is correct: The Union Ministers shall hold the office during the pleasure of the President of India.

Statement 3 is correct: The Prime Minister shall communicate to the President about the proposals for legislation.

A ball bearing is a type of Rolling element bearing that uses the ball to maintain the separation between the bearing races. The purpose of round ball bearings is to reduce the surface area of contact between the object being moved and the one which is providing the power.

Thus, reduced area means less friction and more efficiency. The balls have a much lower coefficient of friction than the two flat surfaces sliding against each other.


Statement 1 is incorrect: No temples or religious places have been discovered in Harappan cities.

Statement 2 is correct: Figurines resembling a female deity have been found. They suggest the worship of Mother Goddess. A seal with a male figure sitting in a yogic posture with a trident-like headgear, surrounded by animals, has been found. This has a lot of similarities with Shiva. From this, it is figured that the Harappans might be worshipping Shiva.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Based on the Indus seals, it can be said that a large number of animals, including goats, buffaloes, oxen, elephants, dogs, and camels, were domesticated. But the Harappans seem not to have been familiar with the horse.

India's foreign-exchange reserves include:

1. Foreign currency assets (FCAs): This is the largest component, consisting of deposits and holdings in major currencies like US Dollars, Euros, and Yen.

2. Gold reserves: India holds a significant amount of gold bullion as part of its foreign exchange reserves.

3. Special drawing rights (SDRs): These are international reserve assets created by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that supplement official foreign reserves.

4. Reserve position in the IMF: This refers to India's quota or shareholding position in the IMF, which can be a source of additional foreign currency if needed.