Q1. which one of the following Articles of the Directive Principles of State Policy deals with the promotion of international peace and security?

(a) 51                                    

(b) 48 A

(c) 43 A                                

(d) 41

Q2. Parliament can legislate matters in the State List:

(a) By wish of the President           

(b) If Rajya Sabha passes a resolution by 2/3rd majority

(c) Under any circumstances         

(d) By asking the legislature of the State concerned

Q3. Which one of the following is INCORRECT in respect of Local Government in India?

(a) According to the Indian Constitution, local government is not an independent tier in the federal system.

(b) 30% of the seats in local bodies are reserved for women.

(c) Local government finances are to be provided by a Commission.

(d) Elections to local bodies are to be determined by a Commission.

Q4. Freedom of the Press in India:

(a) is specifically provided in Article 19 (1)(a) of the Constitution.

(b) is implied in the wider freedom of expression guaranteed by Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.

(c) is guaranteed under the provisions of Article 361A of the Constitution.

(d) Emanates from the operation of the Rule of Law In the country.

Q5. Sarkaria Commission was set up to:

(a) Investigate about the riots that took place in Delhi in 1984

(b) Maintain Centre-State relationship

(c) Make necessary investigations and suggestions regarding the problem of Punjab

(d) Investigate about the assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi

Q6. which one of the following is not in the State List under the Constitution of India?

(a) Fisheries                       

(b) Agriculture

(c) Insurance                     

(d) Betting and Gambling

Q7. What is the system of governance in the Panchayati Raj setup?

(a) Single tier structure of local self-government at the village level

(b) Two-tier system of local self-government at the village and block levels

(c) Three-tier structure of local self-government, at the village, block and district levels

(d) Four-tier system of local self-government at the village, block, district and state levels

Q8. Which one of the following is also known as Top Slip?

(a) Simlipal National Park                 

(b) Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary

(c) Manjira Wildlife Sanctuary        

(d) Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary

Q9. Which one of the following is located is located in the Bastar region?

(a) Bandhavgarh National Park      

(b) Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary

(c) Rajaji National Park                   

(d) Indravati National Park

Q10. Consider the following statements:

1. In India, Red Panda is naturally found in the Western Himalayas only.

2. In India, Slow Loris lives in the dense forests of the North East.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only                            

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2              

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Q11. Match the following:

(Wildlife Sanctuary)       (Nearby Town)

A. Chandra Prabha                  1. Jaipur

B. Karera                                   2. Shivpuri

C. Jaisamand                           3. Udaipur

D. Nahargarh                          4. Varanasi

     A B C D

(a) 1 4 3 2

(b) 1 4 2 3

(c) 4 2 3 1

(d) 4 1 3 2

Q12. Which tax is not levied by the Central Government?

(a) Wealth tax                   

(b) Profession tax

(c) Income tax                   

(d) Excise duty

Q13. Invisible trade is a trade:

(a) Of corporate and financial institutions with government.

(b) Of government with public institutions

(c) Of government with other countries.

(d) Of the services like the banks, marine companies and shipping Companies

Q14. First Five Year Plan laid stress on:

(a) Agriculture                  

(b) Industry

(c) Services                        

(d) Green revolution

Q15. To prevent recurrence of scams in Indian Capital Market, the Government of India has assigned regulatory powers to:

(a) SEBI                

(b) RBI

(c) SBI                   

(d) SBI

Q16. Gilt edged market means:

(a) Bullion market               

(b) Market of Government securities

(c) Market of guns              

(d) Market of pure metals

Q17.  “Socialistic Pattern” comes through:

(a) Free Economy            

(b) Mixed Economy

(c) Public Sector               

(d) None of these

Q18. Which one of the following was the cause of disintegration of the Mughal Empire?

(a) War of succession among sons of Aurangzeb

(b) Attacks of Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah Abdali

(c) Revolts of various communities like Jats, Sikhs, Rajputs, etc.

(d) All of the above-mentioned factors contributed.

Q19. The succession of Delhi Sultans to the throne was generally:

(a) Hereditary                             

(b) After fight between each other’s

(c) By killing the father             

(d) Invasion

Q20. The supremacy and sovereignty of ‘Khalifa’ of Baghdad was strictly observed by Muslim kings in India because:

(a) ‘Khalifa’ was treated as religious head of the Muslim community

(b) ‘Khalifa’ was treated as the legal head of the Muslim community

(c) All the Muslim States in the world used to pay tribute to him

(d) He used to decide all the cases efficiently

Q21. Alauddin Khilji maintained control on price during his reign because:

(a) He wanted to keep large army at lower expenses.          

(b) He had mercy with poor people.

(c) He wanted to gain popularity.                                            

(d) All of the above

Q22. Indian National Congress took the stand during Second World War that:

(a) It would support axis powers.

(b) It would support allied powers.

(c) It would cooperate with the British if India is promised dominion status after the war.

(d) It would cooperate with the British if India is granted complete Independence.

Q23. “Inqilab Zindabad” slogan was coined by:

(a) Chandra Shekhar Azad         

(b) Subhash Chandra Bose

(c) Bal Gangadhar Tilak             

(d) Hasrat Mohani

Q24. Which of the following was not the occurred due to Jallianwala Bagh massacre?

(a) Suspension of Gen. Dyer              

(b) Change in Gandhiji’s outlook towards Britishers

(c) Temporary peace in Punjab         

(d) Renunciation of British titles and positions by many Indians

Q25. Which party was in power in U.K. when India became independent?

(a) Labour Party           

(b) Conservative Party

(c) Liberal Party           

(d) Democratic Party

Q26. What was the impact of Western Industrial Revolution on India?

(a) Handicrafts of India were ruined

(b) Machines were introduced in textile industry

(c) Heavy import duty was imposed on foreign goods

(d) All technical hands got employment

Q27. The DYARCHY was introduced by the Government of India Act, 1919 postulated which of the following?

(a) A system of dual government in Bengal

(b) Backward classes were entitled to vote

(c) A few subjects were transferred to the Provincial Ministries and the rest retained by the Executive Council.

(d) Hindus and Muslims could vote separately

Q28. Which one of the following was the contemporary Bengal king during the time of Harsha of Kannauj?

(a) Bhaskaravarman           

(b) Divakaramitra

(c) Sasanka                         

(d) Devagupta

Q29. Some Buddhist rock cut caves are called chaityas while the others viharas. What is the difference between the two?

(a) Chaitya is a place of worship while vihara is the dwelling place for the monks.

(b) Chaitya is the stupa at the far end of the cave while vihara is the hall axial to it.

(c) There is no material difference between them.

(d) Vihara is a place of worship while chaitya is the dwelling place of the monks

Q30. Which one of the following does not indicate regarding Kautilya’s Arthshastra as an ancient Indian Sanskrit treatise on?

(a) State craft                    

(b) Economic policy

(c) Ayurveda                     

(d) Military strategy

Q31. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change deals with:

(a) Reduction in fossil fuel usage                 

(b) SO₂ emissions mitigation

(c) Reduction in Uranium production        

(d) Greenhouse gases emissions mitigation

Q32. Who is the new Secretary General of the United Nations?

(a) Matthew Rycroft                      

(b) Anibal Cavaco Silva

(c) Antonio Guterres                     

(d) Vitaly Churkin

Q33. Which of the following countries has recently joined the Hague Code of Conduct [HCOC], a global initiative to prevent ballistic missile proliferation?

(a) Palestine                                      

(b) Israel

(c) India                                           

(d) Iran

Q34. Which of the following is the newest member of the Eurozone?

(a) Lithuania                                      

(b) Croatia

(c) Bulgaria                                         

(d) Cyprus

Q35. India’s first and Asia’s longest cycle highway has been opened in which State of India?

(a) Uttar Pradesh                            

(b) Andhra Pradesh

(c) Bihar                                             

(d) Assam

Q36. A person with which blood group will be a universal receiver?

(a) A                                      

(b) B

(c) O                                      

(d) AB

Q37. Dysentery and Influenza are caused by:

(a) Bacteria                                                        

(b) Protozoa

(c) Bacteria and Viruses respectively           

(d) Viruses and Bacteria respectively

Q38. Which organ is associated with the production of insulin in the human body?

(a) Heart                             

(b) Liver

(c) Kidney                           

(d) Pancreas

Q39. When light enters a closed room through a small hole in the door, the image of an outside building appears as inverted on the opposite wall. This is because:

(a) Of rectilinear propagation of light          

(b) The hole acts as a convex lens

(c) The hole acts as a concave lens               

(d) Light takes curvature at the edges of the hole

Q40. How the body temperature is maintained?

(a) Due to temperature regulating mechanism located in the base of the brain.

(b) Due to excessive intake of water.

(c) Due to regular intake of foods.

(d) Due to the constant flow of blood in the capillaries.

Q41. The genetic code can be translated through an intermediate, adaptor molecule by:

(a) ADP                                

(b) mRNA

(c) ATP                                 

(d) tRNA

Q42. The deficiency of causes goitre:

(a) Protein                          

(b) Iodine

(c) Calcium                         

(d) Vitamin B

Q43. The rich source of iron is:

(a) Eggs                                

(b) Green vegetables

(c) Pulses                            

(d) Milk

Q44. Match the columns:

Earth’s Layer                                            Elements

A. Mantle                                                     1. Magnesium

B. Upper layer of the earth’s crust         2. SiMa

C. Light rocks of the lithosphere            3. Bill

D.Small Peninsula                                    4. SiAl

     A B C D

(a) 2 3 4 1

(b) 3 2 1 4

(c) 1 3 4 2

(d) 2 4 1 3

Q45. Different seasons are formed because:

(a) Sun is moving around the earth                      

(b) Of revolution of the earth around the sun on its orbit

(c) Of rotation of the earth around its axis         

(d) All of the above

Q46. Extrusive (Intrusive) rocks are forms of:

(a) Igneous rocks                          

(b) Sedimentary rocks

(c) Metamorphic rocks                

(d) None of the above

Q47. Mean Sea Level (MSL) is the:

(a) Average level of the sea              

(b) Height of water above ground level

(c) Average height of waves            

(d) None of the above

Q48. Which of the following is the correct order of increasing size of the grains of soil particles?

1. Clay

2. Silt

3. Sand

4. Gravel

(a) 1-2-3-4                          

(b) 4-3-1-2

(c) 2-3-1-4                           

(d) 3-4-2-1

Q49. Which one of the following countries is the largest producer of fuelwood in the world?

(a) Indonesia                     

(b) Russia

(c) India                             

(d) China

Q50. Which one of the following port cities in Venezuela has been developed as an oil port?

(a) Caracas                         

(b) Maracaibo

(c) Maracay                        

(d) Carupano

01. Answer: A

• Article 51 of the constitution (Directive Principles of State Policy) directs the Indian state to promote the following things: 1. Promotion of international peace and security.

02. Answer: B

• a single state cannot request parliament to make law on state subject.

• It can be done when the legislatures of two or more states pass resolutions requesting the Parliament to enact laws.

• Beside above given conditions, parliament can also make laws on matters enumerated in state list, if parliament thinks that the particular matter is of importance for implementing the international treaties.

• For such change’s parliament requires simple majority in Lok Sabha.

03. Answer: A

• Local self-government in India refers to governmental jurisdictions below the level of the state. India is a federal republic with three spheres of government: central (union), state and local.

04. Answer: B

• Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India guarantees to all its citizens the right to freedom of speech and expression. The law states that, “all citizens shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression”.

• This right is available only to a citizen of India and not to foreign nationals.

05. Answer: B

• Sarkaria Commission was set up in June 1983 to examine the relationship and balance of power between state and central governments.

• To suggest changes within the framework of the Constitution.

• However, the discretionary powers of the Governor offer him or her vast liberty in actions.

• The Main recommendations of the Commission with regard to Inter-State Council and its Secretariat were: The Council should be charged with duties in broad terms embracing the entire gamut of clauses (b) and (c) of Article 263.

• The Commission was so named as it was headed by Justice Rajinder Singh Sarkaria, a retired judge of the Supreme Court of India. The other two members of the committee were Shri B Sivaraman and Dr SR Sen.

06. Answer: C

• Insurance – Union List

07. Answer: C

• In India, the Panchayati Raj generally refers to the local self-government of villages in rural India as opposed to urban and suburban municipalities, this system was introduced by a constitutional amendment in 1992.

• The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act was passed by the Parliament in April 1993.

• The Amendment provided a Constitutional status to the Panchayati Raj Institutions in India through insertion of Article 243 to Part IX of Indian Constitution.

• Although it is based upon the historical panchayat system of the Indian subcontinent.

• The recommendation of LM Singhvi Committee (1986) was accepted.

• This Panchayati Raj system was formalized in 1992, following a study conducted by a number of Indian committees on various ways of implementing more decentralized administration.

• The modern Panchayati Raj and its Gram Panchayats are not to be confused with the extra-constitutional Khap Panchayats (or Caste Panchayats) found in northern India.

• In India, the Panchayati Raj now functions as a system of governance in which gram panchayats are the basic units of local administration.

• The system has three levels: Gram Panchayat (village level), Mandal Parishad or Block Samiti or Panchayat Samiti (block level), and Zila Parishad (district level).

• Currently, the Panchayati Raj system exists in all states except Nagaland, Meghalaya, and Mizoram, and in all Union Territories except Delhi.

The Panchayats receive funds from three sources:

1. Local body grants, as recommended by the Central Finance Commission

2. Funds for implementation of centrally sponsored schemes

3. Funds released by the state governments on the recommendations of the State Finance Commissions

08. Answer: D

• Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park is also known as Top Slip.

• It is located in Annamalai hills of Tamil Nadu.

09. Answer: D

• Indravati National Park is a national park located in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh state of India.

• It derives its name from the nearby Indravati River.

• It is home to one of the last populations of rare wild buffalo.

• Indravati National Park is the finest and most famous wildlife parks of Chhattisgarh.

10. Answer: B

Red Panda:

• The red panda is a small arboreal mammal found in the forests of India, Nepal, Bhutan and the northern mountains of Myanmar and southern China.

• In India, it is found in Sikkim, western Arunachal Pradesh, Darjeeling district of West Bengal and parts of Meghalaya. It is also the state animal of Sikkim.

Slow Loris:

• The Bengal slow loris (Nycticebus bengalensis) or northern slow loris is a strepsirrhine primate and a species of slow loris native to the Indian subcontinent and Indochina.

• The Bengal slow loris is nocturnal and arboreal, occurring in both evergreen and deciduous forests.

11. Answer: C

12. Answer: B

• The taxes levied by the state government are determined, collected, and retained by them as the taxation amount varies from state to state.

• Professional tax and motor vehicle tax are some of the taxes that are levied and collected by the state.

13. Answer: D

• Visible trade, in economics, exchange of physically tangible goods between countries, involving the export, import, and re-export of goods at various stages of production.

• Invisible trade, which involves the export and import of physically intangible items such as services.

14. Answer: A

• The Indian prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, presented the First Five-Year Plan to the Parliament of India and needed urgent attention.

• The First Five-year Plan was launched in 1951 which mainly focused in development of the primary sector.

15. Answer: A

• The Securities and Exchange Board of India is the regulator of the securities and commodity market in India owned by the Government of India.

• It was established in 1988 and given Statutory Powers on 30^th January 1992 through the SEBI Act, 1992.

16. Answer: B

• The market for government securities or the securities guaranteed by the government.

• Since government cannot default on its payment obligations, the government securities are risk free and hence known as “gilt-edged” – which means ‘of the best quality’.

17. Answer: C

• A socialist economy is a system of production where goods and services are produced directly for use, in contrast to a capitalist economic system, where goods and services are produced to generate profit (and therefore indirectly for use).

• In a socialist economy, the means of production and distribution are owned, controlled and regulated by the public, either through the state or through cooperatives.

• The basic motive is not to use the means of production for profit, but rather for the interest of social welfare.

18. Answer: D

• A series of foreign invasions affected Mughal Empire very badly. Attacks by Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah Abdali, which were themselves the consequences of the weakness of the Empire, drained the Empire of its wealth, ruined its trade and industry in the North, and almost destroyed its military power.

• Aurangzeb’s hard headed attitude towards the Marathas, Rajputs and the Jats and the refusal to grant them regional autonomy broke the former loyalty that existed between them and the Mughal Empire.

19. Answer: B

• The rulers of Delhi Sultanate came in power with the help of sword and army, so there was no definite law of succession.

• Military strength between brothers was the main factor in succession to the throne, which later gave birth to political instability.

20. Answer: C

• Khalifa is an Arabic word literally meaning means “successor”, “ruler” or “leader”.

• Khalifa is a related Arabic word which, in the context of Islam, is used to denote the government of the Muslim state, of which the Khalifa is the head.

• Muslim Khalifa is the successor to Prophet Muhammad’s position as the political, military, and administrative leader of the Muslims.

• The prophetic role of Muhammad is strictly not included in this definition, as the Qur’an and Hadith clearly state that Muhammad was the last of the prophets.

21. Answer: D

• The market reform of Alauddin Khilji was one of the most effective and far reaching economic regulations of the Sultanate period.

• As per Barni, the basic objective of these reforms was to maintain a large and efficient army for keeping the Mongols in check.

• Such a large army could not be maintained and kept content out of the normal revenues of the state, unless the prices of commodities were reduced.

• Thus, economic regulations were primarily a military measure.

• Amir Khusru says that sultan introduced these reforms for the general welfare of the people and these were intended to ensure the supply of important commodities for the benefit of common people as also collect food grains for the royal treasury at prescribed rates to combat famines.

22. Answer: D

• To negotiate India’s support during World War II, the British government sent a senior minister Sir Stafford Cripps to India.

• The Cripps Mission was a failed attempt in late March 1942 by the British government to secure full Indian cooperation and support for their efforts in World War II.

• Cripps belonged to the left-wing Labour Party, traditionally sympathetic to Indian self-rule, but was also a member of the coalition War Cabinet led by the Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who had long been the leader of the movement to block Indian independence.

• Cripps was sent to negotiate an agreement with the nationalist Congress leaders, who spoke for the majority Indians and Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the Muslim League, who spoke for the Muslim population.

• Cripps worked to keep India loyal to the British war effort in exchange for a promise of elections and full self-government (Dominion status) once the war was over.

• Cripps discussed the proposals, which he had drafted himself with the Indian leaders, and published them.

• Both the major parties rejected his proposals, and they were also unacceptable to Churchill; no middle way was found and the mission failed.

• Congress moved towards the Quit India movement whereby it refused to cooperate in the war effort.

23. Answer: D

• Syed Fazl-ul-Hasan, Best known by his pen-name Hasrat Mohani, was an Indian activist, freedom Fighter in the Indian independence movement and a noted poet of the Urdu language.

• He coined the notable slogan Inquilab Zindabad (“Long live the revolution!”) in 1921.

• Together with Swami Kumaranand, he is regarded as the first person to demand complete independence for India in 1921 at the Ahmedabad Session of the Indian National Congress.

24. Answer: B

• Gandhi said that “it would be sin for me to serve General Dyer and co-operate with him to shoot innocent men. But it will be an exercise of forgiveness or love for me to nurse him back to life, if he was suffering from a physical malady (sic)”. (Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (CWMG) Vol 18, P195, ‘Religious Authority for Non-Cooperation’, Young India, 25 August 1920)

• Gandhi even wrote that Dyer “merely destroyed a few bodies but the others tried to kill the soul of a nation”. He said that “the fury that has been spent upon General Dyer is, I am sure, largely misdirected”. (Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, Volume 18, P46, Young India, 14 July 1920)

25. Answer: A

• Clement Richard Attlee of Labour Party was the Prime Minister of Britain when India became independent.

26. Answer: A

• The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain, and many of the technological innovations were of British origin.

• By the mid-18th century Britain was the world’s leading commercial nation, controlling a global trading empire with colonies in North America and the Caribbean, and with major military and political hegemony on the Indian subcontinent, particularly with the proto-industrialised Mughal Bengal, through the activities of the East India Company.

• The development of trade and the rise of business were among the major causes of the Industrial Revolution, but it caused steep fall in Indian handicrafts demand because of cheap products now available in the market.

27. Answer: C

• Dyarchy was a system of dual-government introduced by the Government of India Act, 1919 for the provinces of British India.

• It was introduced as a constitutional reform by Edwin Samuel Montague (Secretary of State for India) and Lord Chelmsford (Viceroy of India) and 1919 act is hence known as Montague-Chelmsford Reforms.

• Under this reform, the spheres of the central and provincial governments were demarcated by a division of subjects into “central” and “provincial”.

• The central subjects included all subjects directly administered by the Government of India or in which extra-provincial interests were dominant.

• The provincial subjects were divided into two categories viz. reserved and transferred.

• The reserved subjects were kept with the Governor and transferred subjects were kept with Governor acting with the Indian Ministers.

28. Answer: C

• Sasanka was the contemporary Bengal king during the time of Harsha of Kannauj.

• He reigned in 7th century AD, and some historians place his rule approximately between 590 AD and 625 AD.

• He created the first separate political entity in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, called the Gauda Kingdom and is a major figure in Bengali history.

29. Answer: A

30. Answer: C

• The title Arthashastra is often translated to “the science of politics”, but the book Arthashastra has a broader scope.

• It includes books on the nature of government, law, civil and criminal court systems, ethics, economics, markets and trade, the methods for screening ministers, diplomacy, theories on war, nature of peace, and the duties and obligations of a king.

• The text incorporates Hindu philosophy, includes ancient economic and cultural details on agriculture, mineralogy, mining and metals, animal husbandry, medicine, forests and wildlife.

• The Arthashastra explores issues of social welfare, the collective ethics that hold a society together, advising the king that in times and in areas devastated by famine, epidemic and such acts of nature, or by war, he should initiate public projects such as creating irrigation waterways and building forts around major strategic holdings and towns and exempt taxes on those affected.

• The text was influential on other Hindu texts that followed, such as the sections on kings, governance and legal procedures included in Manusmriti.

31. Answer: D

• The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change deals with Greenhouse gases emissions mitigation.

32. Answer: C

• Antonio Guterres is Portuguese politician and diplomat.

• He was the Prime Minister of Portugal from 1995 to the year 2000.

• Antonio Guterres is the general secretary of the United Nations.

• He is the ninth Secretary-General; his term began 1 January 2017.

33. Answer: C

• India has recently joined the Hague Code of Conduct [HCOC], a global initiative to prevent ballistic missile proliferation.

34. Answer: A

• Newest member of the Eurozone is Lithuania. Lithuania is situated at the edge of the Baltic Sea, in Europe. its capital is Vilnius.

35. Answer: A

• India’s longest highway is National Highway 7 which connects Varanasi city of Uttar Pradesh to Kanyakumari in southern India, Tamil Nadu. Its length is 2369 km.

36. Answer: D

• Those with type AB Rh D positive blood are called universal recipients.

37. Answer: C

• The cause of dysentery is usually the bacteria Shigella, in which case it is known as shigellosis, or the amoeba Entamoeba histolytica.

• The Influenza is caused by influenza viruses that infect the nose, throat, and lungs.

38. Answer: D

• Insulin – They are hormones secreted by islet cells within the pancreas.

39. Answer: A

• This phenomenon occurs because of rectilinear propagation of light.

• The rectilinear propagation of light means that light travels in straight lines as a wave.

• The wave travels, some part of it gets refracted, due to which only a part of building is formed as the image.

40. Answer: A

• Hypothalamus: a part of the brain that controls things like thirst, hunger, body temperature, and the release of many hormones.

• When heat activates sweat glands, these glands brings water, along with the body’s salt, to the surface of the skin as sweat.

• Once on the surface, the water evaporates. Water evaporating from the skin cools the body, keeping its temperature in a healthy range.

41. Answer: D

• tRNA is called as an adapter molecule this is because of the fact that the tRNA attaches itself to the elongation factors of the ribosome that is mRNA complex.

42. Answer: B

• A goitre commonly develops as a result of iodine deficiency or inflammation of the thyroid gland.

43. Answer: B

• Green Vegetables are rich source of iron.

• Eggs, Pulses and Milk are rich source of protein.

44. Answer: D

• Sima is the earth’s crusts lower layer and contains rocks with an abundance of magnesium silicate minerals, the word SiMa is an amalgam of the first two letters of Silica and Magnesium.

• In geology, the term ‘SiAl’ refers to the composition of the upper layer of the Earth’s crust, namely rocks rich in silicates and aluminium minerals. As these elements are less dense than the majority of the earth’s elements, they tend to be concentrated in the upper layer of the crust.

• The crust and the upper layer of the mantle together make up a zone of rigid, brittle rock called the Lithosphere. The layer below the rigid lithosphere is a zone of asphalt-like consistency called the Asthenosphere. The asthenosphere is the part of the mantle that flows and moves the plates of the Earth.

• A peninsula is a landform surrounded by water on the majority of its border while being connected to a mainland from which it extends. Peninsulas are not always named as such; one can also be a headland, cape, island promontory, bill, point, fork, or spit.

45. Answer: C

• The seasons are caused by the tilt of the Earth’s rotational axis away or toward the sun as it travels through its year-long path around the sun.

• The Earth has a tilt of 23.5 degrees relative to the “ecliptic plane” (the imaginary surface formed by it’s almost-circular path around the sun).

46. Answer: A

• Extrusive rocks and intrusive rocks both form when hot molten material crystallizes. However, extrusive rocks form from lava at the surface of the Earth, whereas intrusive rocks form from magma underground, often relatively deep in the Earth.

• A pluton is a block of intrusive igneous rock.

47. Answer: A

• Mean sea level is an average level of the surface of one or more of Earth’s bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured.

48. Answer: A

• Clay is the finest of all the particles then slit which has slightly larger particles than clay. Sand has bigger particles and gravel has the largest particle size.

49. Answer: B

• Russia is the largest producer of fuelwood in the world.

50. Answer: B

• Puerto Mirandais an oil port situated on the east side of Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela opposite the city of Maracaibo and is operated by the Venezuelan State Oil Company (PDVSA PETROLEO, S.A.) It is the largest crude oil export port in South America.