SSC Selection Post 2025 29 August 2025 Shift 2 GK Questions – with answers & solutions

Correct Answer: Option 4 – Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita
The Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita (BNS), 2023 replaced the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860 and governs criminal offences (substantive criminal law) in India — defining crimes and prescribing punishments. It came into effect on July 1, 2024.
Option 1 ( Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Samhita): Replaced the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) — governs criminal procedure (how investigations, trials, and appeals are conducted), not the definition of offences.
Option 2 ( Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam): Replaced the Indian Evidence Act — governs rules of evidence in courts, not criminal offences.
Option 3 (Civil Procedure Code): Governs civil court procedure (disputes between private parties); not criminal offences.

Correct Answer: Option 1 – 1-b, 2-a, 3-c, 4-d
1. Habeas Corpus (b – To prevent unlawful detention): Latin for 'you shall have the body.' Issues to produce an arrested/detained person before the court to examine legality of detention. Protects against arbitrary or unlawful imprisonment.
2. Mandamus (a – Direct a person to perform public duty): Latin for 'we command.' Issues to a public official, body, or lower court directing them to perform a mandatory public duty they have failed or refused to perform.
3. Certiorari (c – Transfer of pending case): Latin for 'to be certified.' Issues to a lower court/tribunal to transfer a pending case to a higher court, or to quash an order already made beyond jurisdiction.
4. Quo Warranto (d – To inquire into illegal occupation of office): Latin for 'by what authority.' Issues to inquire into the authority by which a person holds a public office — used to remove a person illegally occupying a public position.
Correct: 1-b, 2-a, 3-c, 4-d = Option A.

Correct Answer: Option 1 – In duplicate, signed and sealed or sent via encrypted digital form
Under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, Section 63 specifies that every summons shall be in writing, in duplicate, signed by the presiding officer or by such other officer as the High Court may direct, and shall bear the seal of the Court. The BNSS also provides for digital/electronic summons — allowing service of summons via electronic communication (encrypted digital form), in keeping with India's digitization of judicial processes.
Option 2 (Only handwritten, personal messenger): BNSS explicitly allows digital summons and does not restrict them to handwritten form or personal messengers only.
Option 3 (Verbal instructions): Summons must be in writing under BNSS — verbal instructions have no legal validity as summons.
Option 4 (Signed by police officer): Summons are issued by the Court and signed by the presiding officer, not by police station officers.

Correct Answer: Option 3 – Federal system
Federalism is the constitutional arrangement where governmental powers are divided between the national/central government and the constituent state governments, each having defined areas of jurisdiction. India's Constitution divides legislative powers through the Union List (97 subjects), State List (66 subjects), and Concurrent List (47 subjects) in the Seventh Schedule. India is described as a 'quasi-federal' state — federal in structure with unitary features (strong Centre).
Option 1 (Unitary system): In a unitary system, all power is concentrated in the central government; states/regions are subordinate. UK, France, Japan are examples. India is not purely unitary.
Option 2 (Confederal system): In a confederation, states retain sovereignty and delegate limited powers to a weak central government (e.g., original United States under Articles of Confederation). India is not a confederation.
Option 4 (Presidential system): Refers to the executive-legislative relationship (president vs. parliament as head of government); India follows a Parliamentary system, not Presidential. Separate from the federal/unitary distinction.

Correct Answer: Option 1 – 1-R, 2-P, 3-S, 4-Q
1. Finance Commission (R – Tax distribution): The Finance Commission (Article 280) is a constitutional body that recommends distribution of central tax revenues between the Union and states, and principles for grants-in-aid. Its primary function is tax devolution/distribution. Match: 1-R.
2. Article 282 (P – Discretionary grants): Article 282 empowers both Union and States to make grants for public purposes even if not within their legislative competence. These are discretionary grants given for special purposes. Match: 2-P.
3. Consolidated Fund of India (S – All Union revenues): Article 266 — all revenues received by the Union government, all loans raised, and all money received in repayment of loans flow into the Consolidated Fund of India. It contains all Union government receipts. Match: 3-S.
4. Contingency Fund of India (Q – Unexpected expenses): Article 267 — the Contingency Fund is placed at the disposal of the President for meeting unforeseen/emergent expenditure pending parliamentary authorization. Match: 4-Q.
Correct: 1-R, 2-P, 3-S, 4-Q = Option A.

Correct Answer: Option 1 – Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore is credited with reviving and popularizing Manipuri dance in the early 20th century. In 1919, Tagore witnessed a Manipuri dance performance at Sylhet (now Bangladesh) and was deeply moved. He invited Manipuri guru Budhimantra Singh to Shantiniketan (West Bengal) to teach Manipuri dance, incorporating it into the curriculum at Visva-Bharati University. This gave Manipuri dance national visibility and recognition, rescuing it from regional obscurity.
Option 2 (Uday Shankar): A pioneer of modern Indian dance who blended Indian classical with Western techniques; associated with creating contemporary Indian dance forms, not the revival of Manipuri specifically.
Option 3 (Rukmini Devi Arundale): Credited with reviving and classicizing Bharatanatyam through Kalakshetra (Chennai, 1936); not Manipuri.
Option 4 ( Kelucharan Mohapatra): The legendary guru credited with reviving and reforming Odissi dance; not Manipuri.

Correct Answer: Option 2 – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Gabriel Garcia Marquez (Colombian author, Nobel Prize in Literature 1982 for 'One Hundred Years of Solitude') did NOT win the Pulitzer Prize. The Pulitzer Prize is awarded by Columbia University for American journalism and arts — Garcia Marquez was a Latin American author and not eligible for the Pulitzer under standard categories.
Option 1 (Ernest Hemingway): Won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1953 for 'The Old Man and the Sea'; also won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954.
Option 3 (William Faulkner): Won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction twice — 1955 for 'A Fable' and 1963 for 'The Reivers'; won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1949.
Option 4 (John Steinbeck): Won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1940 for 'The Grapes of Wrath'; won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1962.

Correct Answer: Option 3 – Castling
Castling is a special chess move in which a player simultaneously moves their king two squares toward a rook, and that rook moves to the square the king crossed. It is the only move in chess where two pieces move simultaneously. Castling can be done kingside (short castling) or queenside (long castling). Conditions: neither piece has moved before, no pieces between them, king not in check, king not passing through or landing on an attacked square.
Option 1 (Check): Putting the opponent's king under direct attack — does not involve moving two pieces simultaneously.
Option 2 (Checkmate): The king is in check with no legal escape — ends the game. Not a move involving the rook.
Option 4 (Pawn Promotion): When a pawn reaches the 8th rank, it is replaced by a stronger piece (queen, rook, bishop, or knight). Does not involve moving both king and rook.

Correct Answer: Option 4 – China
The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) is an informal strategic forum comprising four democracies: the United States, India, Japan, and Australia. It was revived in 2017 and upgraded to leader-level summits in 2021. QUAD focuses on a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific, covering areas like infrastructure, climate, technology, health security, and maritime security. China is explicitly NOT a member — in fact, QUAD is widely viewed as a strategic response to China's growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific.
Option 1 (Australia): A founding QUAD member.
Option 2 (India): A founding QUAD member; India joined the original Quadrilateral Security Dialogue concept in 2007.
Option 3 (Japan): A founding QUAD member; Japan's PM Shinzo Abe was instrumental in proposing the QUAD concept in 2007.

Correct Answer: Option 3 – The use of banned substances or methods to unfairly enhance athletic performance
Doping in sports refers to the use of prohibited (banned) substances or methods to gain an unfair competitive advantage. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) maintains the Prohibited List (updated annually) of banned substances including anabolic steroids, EPO (erythropoietin), growth hormones, stimulants, blood doping, gene doping, and more. The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) governs anti-doping in India. Doping violates the spirit of fair play and poses serious health risks.
Option 1 (Advanced training techniques): Legal training methods (altitude training, strength and conditioning) are not doping.
Option 2 (Nutritional supplements): Most nutritional supplements are legal; doping specifically refers to PROHIBITED substances and methods.
Option 4 (Psychological conditioning): Sports psychology and mental conditioning are legitimate, legal aspects of athlete preparation.

Correct Answer: Option 1 – A-3, B-1, C-2
A. Thiruvathira Kali (3 – Kerala): Thiruvathira (also Thiruvatira ) is a traditional dance performed by women in Kerala, especially on the Thiruvathira festival (Dhanu month). Women dance in circles singing Thiruvathira songs, celebrating the day believed to be the birthday of Lord Shiva.
B. Saila (1 – Odisha): Saila is a folk dance of the tribal communities of Odisha, performed by men during festivals like Nuakhai and Dussehra using bamboo sticks. It is prominent in the Sambalpur region of western Odisha.
C. Rouf (2 – Kashmir): Rouf is a traditional folk dance of Kashmir, performed by women during festive occasions like Eid. Women stand in rows facing each other and perform graceful footwork and synchronized movements.
Correct matching: A-3 (Kerala), B-1 (Odisha), C-2 (Kashmir) = Option A.

Correct Answer: Option 3 – 1 and 3 only
Statement 1 (TRUE): 'The Argumentative Indian: Writings on Indian History, Culture and Identity' (2005) by Amartya Sen is indeed a collection of essays examining India's long tradition of debate, heterodoxy, intellectual pluralism, and secular democratic values.
Statement 2 (FALSE): Amartya Sen won the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences (1998) — NOT the Nobel Prize in Literature. Additionally, 'The Argumentative Indian' did NOT win the Booker Prize — the Booker Prize is for fiction, and this is a non-fiction work of essays. Sen is an economist, not a literature laureate.
Statement 3 (TRUE): The essays in 'The Argumentative Indian' prominently discuss figures like Rabindranath Tagore (intellectual pluralism), Ashoka (tolerance and public reasoning), and Akbar (religious pluralism and secularism) as exemplars of India's democratic and argumentative tradition.
Only Statements 1 and 3 are correct.

Correct Answer: Option 3 – Mixed Economy
From 1947 to 1990, India followed a Mixed Economy model — combining elements of both socialism (state ownership of key industries, central planning via Five-Year Plans, public sector dominance) and capitalism (private enterprise, market mechanisms, property rights). The state controlled 'commanding heights' of the economy (steel, coal, banking, heavy industry) while allowing private sector participation in other areas. This model was articulated by the Industrial Policy Resolution 1948 and 1956.
Option 1 (Pure Capitalism): Pure capitalism involves free markets with no government intervention — the opposite of India's heavily planned economy pre-1991.
Option 2 (Pure Socialism): Pure socialism involves state ownership of all means of production — India retained a significant private sector, so it was not pure socialism.
Option 4 (Laissez-faire Economy): Laissez-faire means minimal government intervention — India had extensive licensing (License Raj), regulations, and planning; this is the antithesis of India's pre-1991 economy.

Correct Answer: Option 3 – Reduce inequalities in land ownership and abolish intermediaries
Post-independence land reforms in India aimed primarily at: (a) Abolition of zamindari/intermediary systems (Zamindari Abolition Acts, 1950s) — removing exploitative landlords between the state and actual cultivators; (b) Land ceiling laws — limiting maximum landholding size and redistributing surplus land to landless poor; (c) Tenancy reforms — giving security of tenure and regulating rents; (d) Consolidation of fragmented holdings. The overarching goal was social justice and reducing agrarian inequality.
Option 1 (Large-scale commercial farming): Indian land reforms focused on small peasant ownership, not consolidating into large commercial farms.
Option 2 (Consolidate for efficiency): Consolidation of fragmented holdings was a minor component; the primary goal was equity, not efficiency.
Option 4 (Cash crops for export): Export-oriented cash crop cultivation was not the objective of land reforms; food security and equity were.

Correct Answer: Option 2 – Ujjwala Yojana
Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), launched May 1, 2016, provides free LPG connections to women from Below Poverty Line (BPL) households to replace traditional biomass fuels with clean cooking gas. Over 10 crore connections have been provided. PMUY 2.0 (2021) extended coverage to migrants and additional beneficiaries.
Option 1 (PM-KISAN): Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi provides ₹6,000/year direct income support to farmers; not an LPG scheme.
Option 3 (Swachh Bharat Abhiyan): A sanitation and cleanliness mission focused on building toilets and eliminating open defecation; not an LPG scheme.
Option 4 (Ayushman Bharat): PM Jan Arogya Yojana provides health insurance coverage of ₹5 lakh per family; not related to LPG connections.

Correct Answer: Option 2 – Simple rules
Ease of Doing Business ( EoDB ) measures the regulatory environment for starting and operating a business. Simple, transparent, and streamlined rules directly improve EoDB by: reducing compliance burden, cutting time and cost of obtaining licenses/permits, enabling faster dispute resolution, and encouraging entrepreneurship and investment. India's EoDB rank improved significantly (from 142nd in 2014 to 63rd in 2019, World Bank) through regulatory simplification.
Option 1 (Long delays): Delays in approvals, permits, and dispute resolution worsen EoDB — increasing time and cost of doing business.
Option 3 (High taxes): High tax rates increase cost of doing business, discouraging investment and entrepreneurship — negatively impact EoDB .
Option 4 (Lots of paperwork): Excessive documentation requirements increase compliance costs and time — a key barrier to ease of doing business.

Correct Answer: Option 1 – Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan
PM JANMAN (Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan), launched in November 2023, specifically targets the 75 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) identified across India. PVTGs are the most vulnerable among tribal communities, characterized by pre-agricultural technology, stagnant/declining population, extremely low literacy, and subsistence-level economy. PM JANMAN covers 9 ministries with 11 critical interventions including housing, clean water, roads, telecom, electricity, education, health, and livelihood for PVTG habitations.
Option 2 (SPMRM): Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission focuses on development of rural clusters with urban amenities; not specifically for PVTGs.
Option 3 ( Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana): A broader tribal welfare scheme from 2014; PM JANMAN is the specific 2023 scheme for PVTGs.
Option 4 (NRLM): National Rural Livelihood Mission focuses on SHG formation and rural poverty for all rural poor; not exclusively for PVTGs.

Correct Answer: Option 2 – Increasing Returns to Scale
Returns to Scale measures how output changes when all inputs are increased proportionally. Here: inputs increased by 50% (multiplied by 1.5); output increased by 75% (multiplied by 1.75). Since output (75%) increased MORE than inputs (50%), this is Increasing Returns to Scale (IRS) — also called economies of scale. The firm is becoming more productive as it scales up.
Types of Returns to Scale:
Constant Returns to Scale (CRS): Output increases by same proportion as inputs (50% inputs → 50% output).
Increasing Returns to Scale (IRS): Output increases by MORE than the proportional increase in inputs (50% inputs → more than 50% output). Here: 75% > 50% → IRS.
Decreasing Returns to Scale (DRS): Output increases by LESS than the proportional increase in inputs (50% inputs → less than 50% output).
Option 4 (Negative Returns): Output actually falls when inputs increase — an extreme scenario not applicable here.

Correct Answer: Option 1 – Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
Assertion (A) is TRUE: The New Economic Policy (NEP) of 1991 — comprising Liberalization, Privatization, and Globalization (LPG) — transformed India's economy. By dismantling the License Raj, opening markets to competition, and integrating with the global economy, it led to more efficient and competitive markets, higher growth rates, and increased FDI.
Reason (R) is TRUE: Privatization (disinvestment of PSUs, allowing private sector competition in previously reserved sectors) reduced government control over commercial enterprises, introduced market discipline, improved productivity, and reduced fiscal burden of loss-making PSUs. Examples: Maruti Suzuki, VSNL, Air India disinvestment process.
R correctly explains A: The privatization and deregulation components of NEP 1991 are directly responsible for creating more efficient and competitive markets — R is the correct explanation of why markets became more efficient (A).

Correct Answer: Option 3 – Both statements 1 and 2 are correct
Statement 1 (TRUE): The historical roots of the Chipko (tree-hugging) movement trace back to 1730 AD when Amrita Devi Bishnoi and 363 Bishnoi community members sacrificed their lives to protect Khejri trees in Khejarli village, Rajasthan, against the orders of the Maharaja of Jodhpur. This 18th-century event is considered the precursor and spiritual inspiration for the modern Chipko movement.
Statement 2 (TRUE): The modern Chipko Movement was revived in March 1973 in Mandal village, Chamoli district, Uttarakhand (then Uttar Pradesh), when villagers — inspired by Sundarlal Bahuguna, Chandi Prasad Bhatt, and Gaura Devi — embraced trees to prevent them from being felled by a sports goods company. The 50th anniversary (1973–2023) was indeed celebrated in 2023.
Both statements are historically accurate.

Correct Answer: Option 1 – Winter (Oct-Dec) and harvested in summer (April-June)
Rabi crops (winter crops) are sown after the monsoon season — typically October to December — when temperatures are cool and dry. They are harvested in spring/early summer — March to June. Rabi crops require cool growing conditions and rely on residual soil moisture and winter rains. Major Rabi crops: wheat (largest Rabi crop), barley, mustard, gram (chickpea), linseed, and peas.
Option 2 (Monsoon sown, winter harvested): This describes Kharif crops — sown at monsoon onset (June-July), harvested in autumn (Sept-Oct). Kharif crops include rice, maize, cotton, groundnut, sugarcane.
Option 3 (Spring sown, monsoon harvested): Describes Zaid crops (summer crops) like watermelon, cucumber, fodder; sown in March-April after Rabi harvest.
Option 4 (Summer sown, autumn harvested): Does not accurately describe any major Indian crop season.

Correct Answer: Option 2 – Drainage basin
A drainage basin (also called a river basin, catchment area, or watershed) is the geographical area from which all surface runoff and precipitation drains into a single river system (including its tributaries). Drainage basins are separated by topographic divides called watersheds/water divides. Examples: the Ganga basin drains ~860,000 sq km into the Bay of Bengal; the Indus basin drains into the Arabian Sea.
Option 1 (Plateau): A plateau is an elevated flat-topped landform; it can contain parts of drainage basins but is not itself a drainage area definition.
Option 3 (Waterfall zone): A waterfall zone describes a geographical region along a river where multiple waterfalls occur (e.g., the fall line in eastern USA); not the same as a drainage basin.
Option 4 (Inland depression): A low-lying inland area that may collect water (endorheic basin — water that doesn't flow to the sea); not the standard term for a river drainage area.

Correct Answer: Option 2 – O₂ + UV → O + O; O + O₂ → O₃
Ozone (O₃) formation in the stratosphere follows the Chapman mechanism: Step 1: O₂ + UV radiation (λ < 242 nm) → O + O (photodissociation of oxygen molecule into two oxygen atoms). Step 2: O + O₂ + M → O₃ + M (atomic oxygen combines with molecular oxygen; M is a third body for energy transfer). Net: 3O₂ + UV → 2O₃. This process creates the ozone layer in the stratosphere (15–50 km altitude), which absorbs harmful UV-B and UV-C radiation.
Option 1 (CO₂ + UV → CO + O): This describes photodissociation of carbon dioxide, not ozone formation.
Option 3 (O₂ + Heat → O + O): Thermal dissociation of O₂ requires extremely high temperatures; stratospheric ozone formation is driven by UV photons, not heat.
Option 4 (O₂ → O + O; O + O → O₂): This describes dissociation and recombination producing O₂, not O₃.

Correct Answer: Option 3 – The stability of the atom and the atomic spectrum
Rutherford's nuclear model (1911) had two critical failures: (1) Stability — Classical electrodynamics predicts that an electron in circular orbit continuously accelerates and must radiate energy, spiraling into the nucleus within ~10⁻⁸ seconds. Rutherford could not explain why atoms are stable. (2) Atomic spectrum — Rutherford's model predicted continuous electromagnetic radiation from orbiting electrons, but experiments showed atoms emit discrete line spectra (specific wavelengths). These limitations were resolved by Bohr's model (1913) which introduced quantized orbits.
Option 1 (Isotopes): Isotopes (same element, different mass numbers) were explained later by the discovery of neutrons; this was not a specific limitation of Rutherford's nuclear model.
Option 2 (Deflection of alpha particles): Rutherford's model was specifically DESIGNED to explain alpha particle deflection — the gold foil experiment results led to the nuclear model. This is its success, not its limitation.
Option 4 (Indivisible nature of atoms): The indivisibility of atoms was the assumption of Dalton's model; Rutherford's model already divided the atom into nucleus and electrons.

Correct Answer: Option 3 – Dehydration
Dehydration (drying/desiccation) preserves food by removing water content, thereby reducing the water activity (aw) below the level needed for microbial growth. Most bacteria require aw > 0.91, yeasts > 0.88, and moulds > 0.70 to grow. By removing moisture through sun-drying, spray drying, freeze-drying, or hot air drying, microbial growth is inhibited. Examples: dried fruits, jerky, powdered milk, spices.
Option 1 (Refrigeration): Preserves by lowering temperature, slowing metabolic rates and microbial growth — not primarily through moisture removal.
Option 2 (Canning): Preserves by heat sterilization (killing microbes) and vacuum sealing to prevent recontamination — not primarily through moisture reduction.
Option 4 (Pasteurization): Uses controlled heat treatment (e.g., 72°C for 15 seconds for milk) to kill pathogenic microorganisms — not moisture-based preservation.