CHAPTER I— HISTORICAL FACTS OF INDIA

Indian History can be classified into three broad categories, viz. Ancient, Medieval and Modern.

Let us start with the Ancient History.

Ancient India

Indus Valley Civilization : The Indus Civilization belongs to Proto-Historic Period (Chalcolithic Age/Bronze

Age). Johan Marshall was the first scholar to use the term ‘Indus Civilization’. This civilization developed on

the banks of river Indus. It extended from Jammu in the north to Ahmednagar in the south, and in various

regions of Gujarat. The main sites which have been found in the excavation are : Kalibangan in Rajasthan,

Lothal I Gujarat, Banwall in Haryana and Ropar in Punjab. Indus Valley Civilization period lies between

3000 B/c and 1500 BC., The main cities associated with it are Harappa, Mohen-Daro and Lothal. The main

feature of this civilization was the town planning. They had great buildings, well-planned roads, cities and

drainage system. Hunting and agriculture were their main sources of livelihood. They were the first to

produce cotton. The Harappan people didn’t worship their gods in temple. No temple in fact has been

discovered. An idea of their religion can be formed from the statues & figurines found. The chief male deity

was the ‘Pasupati Mahadeva’ i.e. the lord of Animals (Proto-Shiva) represented in seals as sittings in yogic

posture; he is surrounded by four animals (elephant, tiger rhino & buffalo) & two deer appear at his feet.

Prevalence of Phallic (lingam) worship.

(A) Vedic Period: This is marked by the entry of Aryans, who were originally inhabitants of Central Asia

around the Caspian Sea and probably came through Hindukush mountains.

Their period lies between 2500-2000 BC. The main features of Aryans were: They were the admirers of nature

and worshipped sun, fire and water. Yagna was an important part of their religion. They had organized

system of living, and were quite matured socially and politically. They had flowing religious books:

(i)Vedas: These books were their most sacred books, (These are also the oldest known books of Indus Valley

Civilization). They were four in number, viz.

(a) Rig Veda – The oldest, and contained prayers of God, Vayu,

Varun, Indra and Agni.

(b) Sam Veda – It deal with music

(c) YajurVvda – It dealt with formulae and rituals.

(d) Atharva Veda – It dealt with medicines.

There are six Vedangas:

(i) Shiksha (Phonetics) – ‘Pratishkhya’– the oldest text on phonetics.

(ii) Kalpa Sutras (Rituals) Shrauta Sutras/ Shulva Sutras – deal with the sacrifices,

� Grihya Sutras – deal wth family ceremonies,

� Dharma Sutras – dea with Varnas,Ashrams & other.

(iii) Vyakarna (Grammar) – Ashtadyayi’ (Panini) – the olest grammaer.

(iv) Nirukta (Etymology) – ‘Ashtadyayi’(Panini) – the oldest grammer.

(v) Chhanda (Matrics) – ‘Chhandasutras’ (Pingal)– famous text.

(vi) Jyotisha (Astronomy) – ‘Vedanga Jyotisha’ (Lagadh Muni) –the oldest Jyotisha text

The upavedas (the auxiliary vedas) were traditionally associated with Vedas:

Upavedas Associated with

� Ayurveda i.e. Medicine Rig Veda

� Gandharvaveda i.e. Music Sama Veda

� Dhanurveda i.e. Archery Yajura Veda

� Shilpveda i.e. the science of craft / wealth (Vishwakarma)

Arthaveda

(ii) The Puranas: The Puranas were 18 in number and contained details of Aryan civilization,

like their rituals, traditions and formulae, etc.

(iii) The Upanishads : They are the main source of Indian philosophy and are 300 in number. The

Brahmans and Aranyakas are the other important religious books of Aryans.

(B) The later Vedic Period:

This period ranges from 2000-700 bc. The important features of this period are:

(i) It is also known as the period of Brahmanical Age which is very near to modern-day, Hindu

religion.

(ii) Society which was mainly Hindu was. divided into four castes:

(a)Brahmins (b)Kshatrlyas (c)Vaishya(d)Sudras,depending upon the work they did in the

mentioned order of preference Brahmins were the priestly class.Kshatriya were fighters.Vaisyas were the

business class & Sudras represented thelabour class.

(iii) Two great epics and Shastras were written in the period namely Mahabharata by Vedvyas, and

Ramayan by Maharishi, Valmiki. The Shastras basically dealt with Indian philosophy and concepts

of birth , death and God.

Eight Types of Hindu Marriage (Vivaha)

• Brahama Vivaha – giving the girl to a man with dowry.

• Daiva Vivaha – giving the girl to the priest himself in lieu of his fees.

• Arsha Vivaha – giving the girl to a man after accepting a bird-price.

• Prajapatya Vivaha – giving the girl to a man without demanding a bride-price.

• Gandharva Vivaha – Love Marriage.

• Asura Vivaha – marriage to a purchased girl.

• Rakshasa Vivaha – marriage to a daughter of defeated king or a kidnapped girl.

• Paishcha Vivaha – marriage to a daughter of defeated king or a kidnapped girl.

Sixteen Samskaras of Hinduism:

1. Garbhadhana

2. Pumsavana

3. Simantonnayan

4. Jatakarma

5. Namakaran

6. Nishkramana

7. Annaprashana

8. Chudakarma

9. Karnachhedana

10. Vidyarmbha

11. Upanayana

12. Vedarmabha

13. Samavaratana

14. Vivaha.

15. Vanprastana

16. Antyesti.

(C) Rise of religion (other than Hinduism)

(i) Budhism : Initiated by Kshatrya price of Shakya clan, Siddartha (later came to be known as Buddha)

around 6th century BC, who was born at Lumbini (in Nepal) near Kaiplavastu. He was the son of king

Shuddhodhana. He we went in search of truth and attained enlightenment under a papal tree at Bodh Gaya,

and delivered his first sermons at Sarnath in UP. He spread his message for many years and died at

Kusinagar in UP. There are many sects of Buddhism, out of which three are important viz.

• Mahayan (the higher vehicle): It believes Buddha to be a God.

• Hinyan (the lesser vehicle): It does not believes that Buddha was a God. It is a more pristine form

of Buddhism.

• Vajrayan: It is the tantric form of buddhism. Now prevelent in Laddakh and Bhutan. Buddhism

got divided into Hinyan and Mahayan at the fourth buddhist council held during the reign of

Harshavardhan.

The main Buddhist teachings are: The eight-fold path of right faith, thought, action, livelihood,

efforts, speech, remembrance and concentration, belief in nirvana (freedom from the cycle of

birth and death), ahimsa, law of karma.

• Doctrine of Buddhism

Chatwari Arya Satyani (Four Noble Truths) It is the essence of Buddhism

1.Life is full of sorrow (Dukha) – Sabbam Kukkam.

2.There are causes of sorrow (Dukha Samudaya) – Dwadash Nidan/ Pratitya

Samutpada.

3.This sorrow can be stopped (Dukha Nirodha) – Nirvana.

4. There is a path heading to cessation of sorrow (Dukha Nirodha Gamini Pratipada) –

Ashtangika Marga.

(ii) Jainism: Founded by Rishabha (a Kshatriya), Jainism attained peak under Vardharnana Mahavira (the

24th Tirthankara). Mahavira was born at Kundagrama in 540 BC in Bihar, and attained perfect knowledge,

'Kaivalya', after he became ascetic at the age of 30. He became a 'Jina' (one who has conquered happiness

and misery) and died at Pava near Rajagiri. Jainism is also divided into two sects, viz., digambars and

shwetambara; Former is a more pristine form, and remain naked, while latter, wear white clothes.

The main features of Jainism are:

The tri-ratna concept, consisting of:

(a) right knowledge,

(b) right faith, and

(c) right conduct. Belief in karma and belief in ahimsa, are the other two great teachings of this

religion.

There are 6 schools of Indian philosophy known as Shad-Darshanas.

Darshana Founder Basic Text

(i) Sankhya Darshan Kapila Sankhya Sutra

(ii) Yoga Darshana Akshapada Gautama Nayaya Sutra

(iii) Nayaya Darshana Akshapada Gautama Vishesika Sutra

(iv) Vaishesika Darshana Uluka Kanada Vishesika Sutra

(v) Mimansa/Purva-Mimansa Jaimini Purva Mimansa Sutra

(vi) Vedant/Uttara-Mimansa Badaryana Brahma Sutra/Vedant Sutra

(D) Various important empires and dynasties:

Name of empires/

dynasty

Period Important characteristics

Magadh Empire Around 542 BC Prominent kings were Bimbisara, Ajatashtru, Shishunaga and Nanda

Mauryan Dynasty 321-289 BC Founded by Chandragupta Murya, Ashoka was the other prominent king of this dynasty.

Gupta Dyansty (Golden Age) AD 320–550 Prominent rulers were Chandragupta I, Samudragupta and Chandragupta II

Harshavardhana AD 574–606 Harshavardhana was the last Hindu kings of North India

Rajputs AD 650–1200 Prominent rulers were Prithvi Raj Chauhan and Jaichand Rathore

Navaratna (i.e. nine gemes) of Chandragaputa II:

Kalidasa (Poetry-Ritusamhar, Meghadutam, Kumarsambhavam, Raghuvamshama; Dramas –

Malvikagnimitra, Vikramorvashiyam, Abhijnan- Shakuntalam). Amarsinh (Amarsinhkosha) Dhanavantri

(Vrihatsambhita, Vrihat, Jataka, Laghu Jataka). Vararuchi (Vartika – a comment on Ashtadhyayi)

Ghatakarna Kshapranaka Velabhatt Shanku.

Other Important Dynasties:

(i) Chalukyas (AD 550–642) – Prominent rulers were Pulkeshin I and II

(ii) Cholas – Founded by Rajaraja-I – Prominent rulers were Rajendra Chola and Rajendra III

(iii) Rashtrakutas (AD 753–973) – Prominent rulers were Krishna I, Amogha Varsha

(iv) Yadavas (AD 1191–1318) – Prominent rulers were Ramachandra and Singhana

(v)Vijayanagar’sempire (AD 1336–1646)

–

Krishnadev raya was the only prominent ruler of the empire and ruled in the Deccan part of India.

MEDIEVAL INDIA

Marked by the beginning of the Sultanate of Delhi, which was established after the conquest of Muhammad

Ghouri. The period of Sultanate of Delhi, ranges from ad 1206-1526. This is considered as the beginning of

Muslim rule in India.

(A) Important dynasties:

(i) The Slave dynasty's period ranges from ad 1206-1290: It was founded by Qutub-ud-din Aibak and

the prominent rulers of this dynasty were lltutmish and the only Muslim woman ruler of India, Razia

Sultana.

(ii) The Khilji dynasty was founded by Jalal-ud-din Khilji and its period ranges from AD 1290-1320.

Alaud-din Khilji was one of the most prominent rulers of this dynasty.

(iii) The Tughlak dynasty was founded by Ghiasuddin Tughlak and the period ranges

from AD 1320 - 1414. Ibn Batuta was an important African traveler who

visited India in 1333.

(iv) The Lodhi dynasty was founded by Bahlol Lodhi and the period of this dynasty ranges from AD

1451 -1526. Sikander and Ibrahim Lodhi were the other two prominent rulers belonging to this

dynasty.

(v) One of the most important dynasties of India is Mughal dynasty, which reigned almost

continuously from ad 152&-1857 (the longest period).

(B) Important rulers of Mughal dynasty:

(i) Babur: He is credited with the foundation of Mughal empire by defeating

Ibrahim Lodhi in the First Battle of Panipat on April 20,1526.

(ii) Humayun: He was the next emperor of Mughal empire after Babur.

(iii) Akbar:The most successful Mughal emperor. An excellent leader, who

separated religion and politics started a new religion called Din-e-llahi.

(iv) Jehangir: The son of Akbar, who ascended the throne after Akbar's death,

known for his administration and strict sense of justice. He was the husband of

famous Noor Jahan Begum.

(v) Shah Jahan: Famous ruler and son of Jehangir, who built Taj Mahal at Agra, in the memory of

his wife Mumtaj Mahal. Jama Masjid and Red Fort are the other two famous buildings that

were built by him.

(vi) Aurangzeb: A very cruel ruler and son of Shah Jahan, who demolished several religious

structures of Hindus, and ruled for about 50 years. Mughal empire started declining with the attack of

Nadir Shah who took the famous Kohinoor diamond with him to Afghanistan. Then came the

Marathas who became powerful under me leadership of Shivaji.

Note: Sher Shah Suri was a brilliant administrator who issued the coins and built the

famous Grand Trunk Road from Peshawar to Calcutta.

Important monuments built by Mughals

(i) Shalimar and Nishat Bagh by Jehangir

(ii) Taj Mahal, Red Fort, Jama Masjid, Agra Fort by Shah Jahan

MODERN INDIA

In 1498, a Portuguese sailor Vasco Da Gama's discovery of the sea route to India helped in

establishing the political structure in India. East India Company of Britain came here with the excuse of

trading and soon started developing its political dominion in India and, finally, succeeded in establishing their

rule over India.

(A) Important events related to modern Indian history:

(i) First War of Independence (Mutiny of Sepoys): It took place in 1857, when soldiers refused to touch

the new rifle cartridges which were said to have been greased with cover made of animal fat. Mangal

Pandey was a prominent figure, who surfaced during this mutiny. He killed two Britishers at

Barrackpore, and this was also one of the causes of the mutiny.

(ii) Government of India Act, 1858: This proclaimed the direct governance of British crown over India.

(iii) Formation of Indian National Congress: A.O. Hume is credited with the formation of Indian

National Congress in December 1885, which held its first sessionat Bombay, under the presidentship of W.C.

Banerjee.

(iv) Partition of Bengal: It took place in 1905.

(B) Other significant events related to Indian Freedom Movement:

Year Important events happenings in the year

1885 Formation of Congress by A. O. Hume

1905 Partiton of Bengal, launching of swadeshi movement

1906 Formation of Muslim League by Nawab Salimullah of Dacca

1907 Surat session of Congress, where congress got split into moderates and extremists

1909 Morley-Minto Reforms, in which separate electorates for Hindus and Muslims was introduced for the

first time.

1911 Capital shifted from Calcutta to New Delhi (architectured by Lutyen)

1916 Lucknow session of Congress, where the famous Lucknow pact was signed between congress and

muslim league. Formation of home rule league by Annie Besant.

1917 Champaran Satyagraha (Champaran is a place in Bihar) by Mahatma Gandhi. His first satyagraha in

India.

1919 The draconian Rowlatt Act, Jalliyawallah massacre at Amritsar on the orders of General O'Dyer,

Montague-Chemlsford reforms.

1920 Khilafat Movement against british by Shaukat and Muhammad Ali. Launching of non cooperation

movement by Mahatmas Gandhi.

1922 Chauri chaura, incident in UP and withdrawal of NCM by Gandhi, formation of Swaraj party by

Motilai Nehru and C.R. Das.

1927 Coming of Simon Commission to India, which was boycotted by Lala Lajpat Rai. He died during a

lathi charge during the protest.

1929 Passing of Purna Swaraj resolution at Lahore session of Congress under the presidentship of

Jawaharlal Nehru.

1930 Dandi March (Salt Satyagrah) by Mahatma Gandhi from Sabarmati ashram (a place in Gujarat).

First round table conference in London

1935 Government of India Act

1937 Formation of Congress Ministries in provinces

1939 Out break of World War 11, resignation of Congress ministries

1942 Quit India Movement, Wavell plan and Shimla conference. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad

attended the conference representing Congress

1945 Cabinet Mission Plan which envisaged forming of the interim government and to determine means of

transferring power.

1946 Formation of Constituent Assembly under Rajendra Prasad (Muslim league did not participate)

1947 Mountbatten Plan (June 3 plan) and partition of India

(C) Important Lords and Viceroys associated with British rule and related events:

Name Events associated with

Lord Dalhousie (1848-1856) Mainly known for Doctrine of Lapse, responsible for

annexing number of states on the basis of this philosophy. First train from Bombay to

Thane started during his reign in 1853.

Lord Cornwallis (17C6-1 793) Creaked witn a new revenue system under the

permanent settlement of Bengal.

Introduction of Civil services.

Lord Canning The revolt of 1857 The first Viceroy of India

Lord Weliesley (1798-1805) The subsidiary alliance system.

Lord Curzon (1899-1905) Partition of Bengal

William Bentinck (1828-35) Abolition of Sati and reducing the female

infanticide.

Thomas B. Macaulay His advice was instrumental in

introducing English, under the

leadership of William Bentinck.

Lord Hastings (1813-1823) Associated with Ryotwari settlement.

Robert Clive He was the first British Governor of

Bengal.

Waren Hastings (1773-1785) The first Governor-General of India;

Regulating Act 1773 and Pitt's

India Act of 1784 were passed during his

tenure.

Lord Mountbatten The first Governor-General of Free India.

C. Rajagopalachari First Indian and last Governor-General of

Independent India.

List of Important historical events

Year Events

326 bc Invasion of Alexander the Great on India

58 bc Beginning of Vikraml Era

AD 78 Beginning of Saka Era

AD 1001 First invasion of India by Mahmud Ghazni

AD 1236 Accession of only women ruler of India, Razia Sultana, to the throne of Delhi

1498 Discovery of sea route of India by Portuguese traveller Vasco da Gama, via the Cape of Good Hope

1526 First Battle of Panipat, between Babur and Ibrahim Lodi, Babur won and established Mughal empire.

1540 Battle of Kanauj

1556 Second Battle of Panipat

1576 Battle of Haldighati, Akbar defeated Rana Pratap

1600 East India Company was established

1675 Execution of the Ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur

1757 Battle of Plassey, British Rule established through Lord Clive

1761 Shah Alam II became Indian emperor and Third Battle of Panipat took place

1764 Battle of Buxar

1784 Pitt's India Act

1793 Permanent Settlement of Bengal

1829 Prohibition of Sati Practice

1853 First railway line became operational between Bombay and Thane

1857 First War of Independence or Mutiny of Sepoys

1885 Foundation of Indian National Congress

1905 First partition of Bengal under Lord Curzon

1914 Beginning of First World War

1931 Candhi-lrwin Pact

1939 Beginning of Second World War

1943-44 S.C. Bose formed Azad Hind Fauj (Indian National Army), Bengal famine also occurred during

this period.

1948 Mahatma Gandhi assassinated

LIST OF IMPORTANT PRESIDENTS OF INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS

Session Year Place President

1. 1885 Bombay W.C. Banerjee

2. 1986 Calcutta Dadarbhai Naoraji

3. 1887 Madras Badruddin Tayabji

4. 1888 Allahabad George Yule (First European),

Congress President

5. 1889 Bombay Sir William Wedderburn

6. 1890 Calcutta Sir Phirozshah Mehta

7. 1893 Lahore Dadabhai Naoroji

8. 1905 Banaras G K Gokhale

9. 1893 Calcutta Dadabhai Naoroji

21. 1905 Banaras G K Gokhale

22. 1906 Calcutta Dadabhai Naoroji

23. 1907 Surat Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh

33. 1917 Calcutta Mrs. Annie Beseant

(first women president of congress)

35. 1918 Delhi (Annual Session) M.M. Malviya

36. 1919 Amritsar Motilal Nehru

40. 1923 Special Session Lala Lajpat Rai

42. 1924 Belgaum M K Gandhi

43. 1925 Kanpur Mrs. Sarojini Naidu

56. 1938 Haripura S.C. Bose

57. 1939 Tripruri S.C. Bose

Important newspaper brought out by national leaders

1. Bengal Gazzette 1780, in Calcutta, started by James Augustus Hickey. It was the first newspaper of India

2. Aharatta and Kesari Bal Gangadhar Tilk

3. New India and Common Wheel Annie Besant

4. Harijan, Young Indis Mahatama Gandhi

Important visitors to India and the Kings whose courts they visited

Visitor King

1. Megasthenese (greek) Chandragupta Murya

2. Fahien(Chinese) Chandragupta II

3. Huen Tsang (Chinese) Harshavardhan

4. Al Beruni He accompanied Mehmood of Gazni, when he invaded Indis. Al-Beruni has written an important

book on Indis viz. Tariq-i-Hind, also known as Kitab-i-Hind.

5. Ibn Batuta He accompanied Mehmood of Gazni, when he invaded Indis. Al-Beruni has written an

important book on India viz. Tariq-i-Hind, also known as Kitab-i-Hind.

6. Amir Khusro Muhammed bin Tuglak

7. Sir Thomas Roe Jahagir

CHAPTER 2 – BASIC GEOGRAPHICAL FACTS

Universe:

Physical geography:

(A) Planets:

The revolving bodies around the Sun are called planets. There are eight known planets.

(1) Mercury (Closest to the Sun and is the fastest planet to revolve around the Sun, also

smallest planet)

(2) Venus (Brightest planet after the Sun and the Moon and, is the hottest planet in all)

(3) Earth (Only known planet to possess life)

(4) Mars (Known as the Red planet. Explored for life by astronomers now, as it is having

similarities with Earth)

(5) Jupiter (The largest planet of the solar system)

(6) Saturn (System of rings are the characteristic feature of this planet)

(7) Uranus

(8) Neptune

(B) Comets:

These are celestial bodies that move around the Sun. Two famous comets known, are as follows:

(i) Halley's comet: Discovered by British astronomer Edmond Halley, takes 76.1 years to encircle the Sun. It

was last seen in February 9,1986.

(ii) Smith-Tuttle comet: It's a huge comet heading on a collision course with Earth on August 17,

2116.

(C) Satellites:

These are the bodies which revolve around the planets. Mercury and Venus have no satellites. Earth has only

one satellite (natural), i.e. Moon. Jupiter has the maximum number (63) of satellites.

Moon: The first planet of our solar system visited by man. On July 20,1969, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin

were the first to set foot en the Moon, and between them, Neil Armstrong is the first person to have set foot on

the Moon.

(D) Earth:

Us shape is oblate spheroid, like a ball which is flattened at the poles.

Important facts about Earth:

(i) Mean distance from the Sun: 1,49,407,000 km.

(ii) Time taken by Earth to revolve around the Sun: 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes and 45.51 seconds.

(iii) Time taken by Earth for rotating on its own axis: 23 hours 56 minutes and 4.09 seconds,

(iv) Earth is covered 70% by water and 30% by land.

Movements of Earth:

(i) Revolution: The Earth revolves around the Sun in an elliptical orbit. One complete revolution

is called a year and this revolution of Earth causes change of seasons.

(ii) Rotation: Earth rotates on its own imaginary axis also, simultaneously revolving around the

Sun. It moves from west to east. This causes day and night

Note: Duration of days and nights is equal at the equator.

(E) Eclipses:

(i) Solar eclipse: It occurs when the Moon comes between the Sun and the Earth, and this causes hindrance

in Sun's light, when viewed from the Earth.

(ii) Lunar eclipse: When the Earth comes between the Moon and the Sun, the shadow cast by the Earth on

the Moon causes lunar eclipse. .

(F) Atmosphere:

The Earth is surrounded by a gaseous cover called the atmosphere. There are many gases in the atmosphere

like Oxygen, Nitrogen, Carbon Dioxide, Helium, Argon, Xenon, etc. The maximum percentage of gas present

In the atmosphere is Nitrogen and that comprises 77%.

Atmosphere is divided mainly into four layers:

(i) Troposphere: It is the nearest layer to the Earth's surface and is up to 15 km of height from the Earth's

surface.

(ii) Stratosphere: From the end of 15 km of troposphere, stratosphere is present till 50 km of the

atmosphere.

(iii) Mesosphere: It lies between 50 km and 80 km above the surface of the Earth,

(iv) Ionosphere: It lies above the mesosphere and extends from 80 km to 400 km above the Earth's

surface. Radio communication takes place because of this layer.

Note:

Ozone Layer: The ozone layer is situated in the stratosphere belt of earth's atmosphere. The basic Ozone gas

structure consists of three oxygen atoms. Ozone gas is present in the stratosphere in the form of a layer,

which extends from 12 km to 30 km above the earth's surface. The main function of Ozone is that it protects

mankind from harmful radiations which comes from outer space i.e.; Ultra Violet radiations (UV- radiations)

from the Sun. Now-a-days this Ozone layer is getting depleted which can cause skin cancer and damage

vegetation. The main reason behind the depletion of Ozone layer is pollution and pollutants present in the

atmosphere like Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC's, also known as Freons), which comes from refrigeration

systems, aerosols, air conditioners and solvents.

To minimize the Ozone layer depletion the governments of many countries are now replacing the CFC's with

simple hydrocarbons.

(G) Continents:

The surface of the Earth is made up of big land masses which are divided into seven continents.

The seven continents are as follows:

(i) Asia: The largest continent (covers approximately. 30 per cent of the world land and hosts 59 per cent of

the world population)

(ii) Africa: (The largest desert—Sahara—is there.)

(iii) North America

(iv) South America

(v) Antarctica: Covered with ice (coldest)

(vi) Europe

(vii) Oceania (Australia): The smallest continent (The only continent with capital. i.e., Canberra)

Note: Antarctica and Oceania are island continents.

(H) Oceans:

(i) There are five oceans on the Earth: (i) Pacific, (ii) Atlantic, (iii) Indian, (iv) Arctic, (v) Antarctic.

Pacific being the largest, occupies 35.25% of the Earth's surface.

(ii) South China Sea has the maximum area among all the seas of the world.

(I) Rocks:

These form the crust of the Earth. Basically rocks are mineral material. They are classified into three broad

categories:

(i) Igneous rocks: It constitutes 90% of the Earth's crust

(ii) Metamorphic rocks: Original igneous or sedimentary rocks when subject to change due to pressure or

temperature, and metamorphose into metamorphic rocks, i.e. slate, marble, etc.

(iii) Sedimentary rocks: As the name suggests, these rocks are formed from the sedimentary deposits on

the ocean beds, i.e. gypsum, limestone, etc.

(J) important Mountain Ranges and Mountain Peaks of the World:

(i) Mountain ranges:

Name Continent

Himalaya-Karakoram Asia

Rockies North America

Alps Europe

Andes South America

(ii) Mountain peaks:

Name Continent Height (in meters)

Everest Asia 8848

K2 (Godwin Austen) Asia 8,610

Kanchaenjuga Asia 8,590

Lhotse Asia 8,500

Makalu Asia 8,470

Dhaulagiri Asia 8,170

Nanga Parbat Asia 8,130

Nanda Devi Asia 7,820

Note: Everest is the highest mountain peak of the world, situated in Nepal and extended to Tibet and

K2 is India's highest mountain peak, but it is situated in POK. Therefore, Kanchanjunga is the

highest peak within India.

(K) Important Water Sources of the World:

(i) Lakes (Natural):

Name Location

Caspian (also called the Caspian Sea) Iran

Superior (largest fresh water lake) USA/Canada

Victoria Kenya and Tanzania

Baikal (deepest lake of the world) Russia

Titicaca (highest lake of the world) South America

(ii) Canals (Shipping):

(1) Panama Canal: It links the Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean. It is located in Central America and is 58

kilometres long.

(2) Suez Canal: It links the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. It is in Egypt and is 169 kilometres

long.

(3) Kiel Canal: It lies between Baltic Sea and North Sea ports. I! is in Germany and is 98 kilometres

long.

Note: Ange! Waterfall which is in Venezuela, is the highest waterfall in the world having a height

of 979 metres.

(iii) Important Rivers of the world:

Name Length (km) Location

Nile 6,690 Egypt, Africa

Amazon 6,570 Brazil, South America

Mississippi-Missouri 6,020 USA, North America

Yangtze-Kiang 5,980 China, Asia

HwangHo 4,840 China, Asia

Niger 4,800 Nigeria, Africa

Congo 4,800 Zaire, Africa

Murray 3,720 Australia

Volga 3,700 Russia, Asia

Indus 3,180 India and Pakistan, Asia

Brahmaputra 2,960 India, Asia

Danube 2,820 Austria, Hungary and Yugoslavia, Europe

Note: The longest river In the world la Nile (6,690 km).

L. New names of certain cities and countries

Old Names New Names

1. Abyssinia Ethiopia

2. Baroda Vadodra

3. Burma Myamar

4. Calicut Kozhikode

5. Congo Zaire

6. Constantinople Istanbul

7. Dacca Dhacca

8. Formosa Taiwan

9. Gold coost Ghanna

10. Irish Free State (Eire) Ireland

11. Kampuchea Combodia

12. Mesopotamia Iraq

13. Panjim Panaji

14. Peking Beijing

15. Siam Thailand

16. South Rhodesia Zimbabwe

17. Trivendrum Thiruvanthapuram

M. Important world cities on river banks

City River

1. London Thames

2. Rome Tiber

3. Paris Siene

4. Vienna Danuba

5. Budapest Danuba

6. Belgrade Danuba

7. Baghdad Tigiris

Polar Auroras and Winter Solstice

Polar Auroras are two Auroras, the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights and the Aurora Australis or Southern

Lights. These are lights that sweep across the sky in waves or streamers or folds. They are very often multi-

coloured and provide one of the finest spectacles in nature. They occur in the Arctic and the Antarctica

regions respectively. But the Northern Lights can be seen as far south as New Orleans in America and the

Southern lights as far north as Australia.

On 22 December, the earth is in an equivalent position, on the opposite front point, in its orbit. So the

Southern Hemisphere is tipped towards the Sun, and the Northern Hemisphere away from

it. The Sun is overhead on the Tropic of Capricorn resulting in the shortest day in Northern Hemisphere and

longest day in Southern Hemisphere.

Comet

Comet is a luminous celestial body which moves about the Solar System in elliptical or hyperbolic orbits.

Comets are usually accompanied by a long shining tail. Hyperbolic comets are seen only once and they do not

reappear. Elliptical comets are periodic and their recurrence can be calculated, as in the case of Halley’s

Comet.

Eclipse

The total or partial obscuration of light from a celestial body as it passes through the shadow of another body

is known as ‘eclipse’.

Equinox

Equinoxes or equal nights (and consequently equal days) are the times when the Sun is shining directly

overhead at the Equator. March 21 is called the Vernal Equinox and September 23 is called the Autumnal

Equinox.

Nebulae

The clouds of rarefied gas glow due to the radiation of the light of the stars. The radiated clouds of rarefied

gas are called ‘Nebulae’. Their visibility is hazy and faint.

Solstice

Summer Solstice

On June 21, the earth is so located in its orbit that the Sun is overhead on the Tropic of Cancer. The Northern

Hemisphere is tipped towards the Sun, having the longest day, while the Southern Hemisphere is tipped

away from the Sun, having the shortest day.

Principal Peaks

Name Country Height (m)

Nanga Parbat .......... India .................. 8124

Annapurna .............. Nepal ................. 8078

Mt. Everest ............. Nepal-Tibet ....... 8848

Nanda Devi ............. India .................. 7817

K2 (Mt. Godwin Austen) India (PoK) ....... 8611

Mt. Kamet ............... India .................. 7756

Saltoro Kangri ......... India .................. 7742

Kanchenjunga ......... Nepal-India ....... 8597

Gurla Mandhata ...... Tibet .................. 7728

Lhotse ..................... Nepal-India ....... 8511

Great Deserts

Name Location Area in sq. km.

Nile ..................... Africa ................. 6,650

Amazon ............... S.America ........... 6,437

Sahara ............. N.Africa .......... 8,400,000

Mississippi .......... U.S. ..................... 6,020

Libyan ............. N.Africa ...............1,550,000

Yangtze Kiang ..... China .................. 5,494

Nubian ............ N.Africa ................ 260,000

Ob-Irtysh ............. Russia ................. 5,410

Australian ........ Australia .............1,550,000

Zaire .................... Africa ................. 4,700

Great Victoria . Australia ................325,000

Lena .................... Russia ................. 4,400

Great Sandy .... Australia .................420,400

Hwang Ho ........... China .................. 4,344

Simpson .......... Australia .................310,000

Mackenzie ........... Canada ................ 4,241

Arabian ........... Arabia ...................1,300,000

Mekong ............... Asia .................... 4,180

Gobi ................ Mongolia, China ...1,040,000

Niger ................... Africa ................. 4,180

Kalahari .......... Botswana, Namibia 5,20,000

Largest Lakes

Name Location Area (sq. km.) Depth

1. Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan-Russia-Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran (salt water) 152,239 3,104

2. Superior, U.S.-Canada 31,820 1,333

3. Victoria, Tanzania-Uganda 26,828 270

4. Huron, U.S.-Canada 23,010 750

5. Michigan, U.S. 22,400 923

6. Aral, Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan 13,000 223

7. Tanganyika, Tanzania-Congo 12,700 4,708

8. Baikal, Russia 12,162 5,712

9. Great Bear, Canada 12,000 270

10. Nyasa, Malawi-Mozambique-Tanzania 11,600 2,316

Highest Waterfalls

The following table lists the world's tallest waterfalls including the name, location, source, and height. Angel

in Venezuela is the world's tallest waterfall dropping 979 meters.

Height

Name(s) (foreign) Location Source/River Feet Meters

Angel (Salto Angel) Canaima Nat'l Park,

Venezuela

upper trib. of Rio

Caroni

3,212 979

Tugela Natal Nat'l Park, South Africa Tugela River 3,110 947

Utigord (Utigordsfoss) Norway glacier fed 2,625 800

Monge (Mongefoss) Marstein, Norway Mongebeck 2,540 774

Gocta Cataracts Chachapoyas, Peru 2,532 771

Mutarazi (Mtarazi) Nyanga Nat'l Park, Zimbabwe Mutarazi River 2,499 762

Yosemite Yosemite Nat'l Park,

California, U.S.

Yosemite Creek 2,425 739

Espelands (Espelandsfoss) Hardanger Fjord, Norway Opo River 2,307 7031

Lower Mar Valley (Østra

Mardolafoss)

Eikesdal, Norway Mardals Stream 2,151 6552

Tyssestrengene Odda, Norway Tyssa River 2,123 6472

Cuquenan (Salto Kukenan) Kukenan Tepuy, Venezuela Cuquenan River 2,000 610

Sentinel Yosemite Nat'l Park,

California, U.S.

Sentinel Creek 2,000 610

Dudhsagar Goa/Karnataka, India Khandepar River 1,969 600

Sutherland Milford Sound, New Zealand Arthur River 1,904 580

Kjell (Kjellfossen) Gudvanger, Norway Gudvangen Glacier 1,841 561

Kahiwa Molokai, Hawaii, U.S. Unknown 1,750 533

Takkakaw Yoho Nat'l Park, B.C., Canada Takkakaw Creek 1,650 503

Ribbon Yosemite Nat'l Park,

California, U.S.

Ribbon Stream 1,612 491

King George VI Guyana Courantyne River 1,600 488

Upper Mar Valley

(Mardalsfossen)

nr. Eikesdal, Norway Mardals Stream 1,536 468

Kaliuwaa (Sacred) Pahu, Hawaii, U.S. Kalanui Stream 1,520 463

Della Strathcona Provincial Park,

B.C., Canada

Della Lake 1,444 440

Gavarnie nr. Lourdes, France Gave de Pau 1,384 422

Cachoeira da Fumaça

(Glass or Smoke)

Chapada Diamantia Nat'l

Park, Brazil

— 1,378 420

Giessbach Bern, Switzerland Giessbach River 1,312 400

Krimmler Hohe Tauern Nat'l Park,

Austria

Krimmler Ache 1,250 381

Vettis (Vettisfoss) Jotunheimen, Norway Utla (Trib.

Mörkedola)

1,215 370

Papalaua Molokai, Hawaii, U.S. Kawai Nui Stream 1,200 366

Tin Mine Kosciusko Nat'l Park,

Australia

Tin Mine Creek 1,182 360

Silver Strand (Widows'

Tears)

Yosemite Nat'l Park,

California, U.S.

Silver Strand Creek 1,170 357

Honokohau Maui, Hawaii, U.S. Honokohau Stream 1,120 341

Wallaman nr. Ingham, Australia Wallaman Creek 1,001 305

Spray Stream

(Staubbachfalle)

Lauterburnnental,

Switzerland

Staubbach Brook 984 300

King Edward VIII Guyana Courantyne 850 259

Gersoppa (Jog) Western Ghats, India Sharavati 830 253

Hunlen British Columbia, Canada Atnarko River 830 253

Basaseachic (Salto

Basaseachic)

Barance del Cobre, Mexico Piedra Volada Creek 812 246

Waipio Kauai, Hawaii, U.S. Kekee Stream 800 244

Kaieteur Guyana Potaro (trib. Rio

Essequibo)

740 225

Kalambo Tanzania/Zambia Kalambo River 726 221

Wollomombi nr. Armidale, Australia Wollomombi 722 220

Feigum Lusterfjord, Norway Feigumelvi 715 218

New Name Old Name

Laos ........................ Lanxang

Lesotho ................... Basutoland

Malawi .................... Nyasaland

Banjul ..................... Bathurst

Malabo .................... Santa Isabel

Beijing .................... Peking

Mumbai ................... Bombay

Belize ...................... British Honduras

Myanmar ................. Burma

Benin ....................... Dahomey

Namibia .................. South West Africa

Botswana ................ Beuchuanaland

Nauru ...................... Pleasant Island

Burkina Faso ........... Upper Volta

Oslo ......................... Christiana

Cambodia ................ Kampuchea; Khmer

Sri Lanka................. Ceylon

Chennai ................... Madras

Stalingrad ................ Volgograd

Congo ..................... Zaire

St.Petersburg ........... Leningrad

Djibouti ................... French Somaliland French

Suriname ................. Dutch Guyana

Taiwan .................... Formosa

Ethiopia ................... Abyssinia

Tasmania ................. Van Diemen’s Land

Ghana ...................... Gold Coast

Thailand .................. Siam

Guyana .................... British Guiana

Togo ........................ Togoland

Hanoi ...................... Kecho

Tuvalu ..................... The Ellice Islands

Harare ..................... Salisbury

Vanuatu ................... The New Hebrides

Ho Chi Minh City ... Saigon

Yangon .................... Rangoon

Indonesia ................. The Netherlands (Dutch)

Zambia .................... Northern Rhodesia

Zimbabwe ............... Southern Rhodesia

Iran.......................... Persia

Iraq .......................... Mesopotamia

Istanbul ................... Constantinople, Byzantium

Jakarta ..................... Batavia

Kalaallit Nunaat ...... Greenland

Kinshasa.................. Leopoldville

Korea ...................... The Hermit Kingdom

Riverside Cities – World/ India

City River Country/ State in India

Amsterdam ........ Amsel ................ Netherlands

Agra ................. Yanuma .......... Uttar Pradesh

Antwerp ............ Schelde .............. Belgium

Ahmedabad ...... Sabarmati ....... Gujarat

Baghdad ............ Tigris ................. Iraq

Ayodha ............. Sarayu ............ Uttar Pradesh

Bangkok ............ Menam ............... Thailand

Badrinath ......... Ganga............. —

Belgrade ............ Danube .............. Yugoslavia

Cuttack ............. Mahanadi ....... Orissa

Berlin ................ Spree .................. Germany

Delhi ................ Yamuna .......... Delhi

Bonn ................. Rhine ................. Germany

Dibrugarh ......... Brahmaputra .. Assam

Budapest ........... Danube .............. Hungary

Haridwar .......... Ganga............. Uttaranchal

Cairo ................. Nile .................... Egypt

Hyderabad ........ Musi ............... Andhra Pradesh

Glasgow ............ Clyde ................. Scotland

Jabalpur............ Narmada ........ MP

Hamburg ........... Elbe ................... Germany

Kanpur ............. Ganga............. Uttar Pradesh

Karachi ............. Indus .................. Pakistan

Kolkata ............ Hooghly ......... West Bengal

Lahore ............... Ravi ................... Pakistan

Kota ................. Chambal ......... Rajasthan

London .............. Thames .............. England

Lucknow .......... Gomti ............. Uttar Pradesh

Moscow ............ Moskva .............. Russia

Ludhiana .......... Sutlej .............. Punjab

New York .......... Hudson .............. U.S.

Nasik ................ Godavari ........ Maharashtra

Paris .................. Seine .................. France

Pandharpur ....... Bhima ............ Maharashtra

Quebuc .............. St.Lawrence .......Canada

Patna ................ Ganga............. Bihar

Yangon .............. Irrawaddy .......... Myanmar

Sambalpur ........ Mahanadi ....... Orissa

Rome ................. Tiber .................. Italy

Srinagar............ Jhelum ........... J & K

Tokyo ................ Sumida ...............Japan

Surat ................. Tapti ............... Gujarat

Vienna ............... Danube ..............Austria

Tirucharapalli... Cauveri .......... Tamil Nadu

Warsaw ............. Vistula ..............Poland

Varanasi ........... Ganga............. Uttar Pradesh

Washington ....... Potomac ............U.S.

Vijayawada ...... Krishna .......... Andhra Pradesh

Nations of The World

Name Area %(world)

1 Russia 17,098,242 11.50% Asia /Europe Largest country in the world. Encyclopaedia Britannica (EB): 17,075,400 km²

2 Canada 9,984,670 6.70% America, North Largest country in the Western Hemisphere. Longest coastline. EB: 9,984,670 km² Includes only the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The total area is listed as 9,826,630 km² by the CIA World Factbook. 3

United

States 9,629,091 6.50% America, North

EB: 9,522,055 km²

4 PR China 9,598,094 6.40% Asia, Eastern

Second largest Asian country (after Asian part of Russia). Total of separate UN figures for Mainland China (9,596,961) inclusive Hong Kong SAR (1,104 km²) and Macau (29 km²). (Excludes all disputed territories.) EB: 9,572,900 km²

5 Brazil 8,514,877 5.70% America, South Largest country in South America, and in the Southern Hemisphere. EB: 8,514,877 km²

6 Australia 7,692,024 5.20% Australia/Ocea

nia

Australia is the only country that is coterminous with a continent. Largest country without a land-border to neighbours. Largest country in Oceania. EB: 7,692,208 km²

7 India 3,287,263 2.30% Asia, South-

Central

Figure includes 120,849 km² of disputed territories with Pakistan and China. Third-largest country in Asia (after Russia and China). EB: 3,166,414 km² Second largest country in South America.

8 Argentina 2,780,400 2% America, South EB: 2,780,403 km²

9 Kazakhsta

n 2,724,900 1.80%

Asia, South-Central

Largest landlocked country in the world. EB: 2,724,900 km²

10 Sudan 2,505,813 1.70% Africa,

Northern Largest country in Africa. EB: 2,505,810 km²

11 Algeria 2,381,741 1.60% Africa,

Northern Second-largest country in Africa

12

Democrati

c Republic

of the

Congo

(Kinshasa)

2,344,858 1.60% Africa, Central Third-largest country in Africa

13 Greenland 2,166,086 1.50% Europe,

Northern Self-governing territory of Denmark. Largest island in the world.

14 Saudi

Arabia 2,000,000 1.40% Middle East Largest country in the Middle East

15 Mexico 1,964,375 1.30% America, Northern

Third-largest country in North America.

16 Indonesia 1,904,569 1.30% Asia, South-

East

Largest and most populous country situated only on islands. Also the largest country in South East Asia.

17 Libya 1,759,540 1.20% Africa,

Northern

18 Iran 1,648,195 1.10% Asia, South-

Central

19 Mongolia 1,564,100 1.10% Asia, Eastern

20 Peru 1,285,216 0.86% America, South Third-largest country in South America

21 Chad 1,284,000 0.86% Africa, Central

22 Niger 1,267,000 0.85% Africa, Western

23 Angola 1,246,700 0.85% Africa, Central

24 Mali 1,240,192 0.83% Africa, Western

25 South

Africa 1,221,037 0.82%

Africa, Southern

Includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island).

26 Colombia 1,138,914 0.76% America, South

Colombian census figure is 1,141,748 which includes three special districts and San Andrés and Providencia islands (52 km²) (disputed territories with Nicaragua).

27 Ethiopia 1,104,300 0.74% Africa, Eastern

28 Bolivia 1,098,581 0.74% America, South

29 Mauritani

a 1,025,520 0.69% Africa, Western

30 Egypt 1,002,000 0.67% Africa,

Northern Excluding the disputed region Hala'ib Triangle (20,580 km²).

31 Tanzania 945,087 0.63% Africa, Eastern Includes the islands of Mafia, Pemba, and Zanzibar.

32 Nigeria 923,768 0.62% Africa, Western

33 Venezuela 912,050 0.61% America, South

34 Namibia 824,292 0.55% Africa,

Southern

35 Mozambiq

ue 801,590 0.54% Africa, Eastern

36 Pakistan 796,095 0.53% Asia, South-

Central Excludes all disputed territories.

37 Turkey 783,562 0.53% Western Asia,

Southern Europe

Third-largest among countries with part of territory in Europe (after Russia and Kazakhstan)

38 Chile 756,102 0.51% America, South Includes Easter Island (Isla de Pascua; Rapa Nui) and Isla Sala y Gómez, excludes claims on Antarctica (1,250,000 km²).

39 Zambia 752,618 0.51% Africa, Eastern

40 Myanmar 676,578 0.45% Asia, South-

East

41 Afghanista

n 652,090 0.44%

Asia, South-Central

42 Somalia 637,657 0.43% Africa, Eastern

43 Central

African

Republic

622,984 0.42% Africa, Central

44 Ukraine 603,500 0.41% Europe, Eastern

Largest all-European country, fourth largest among countries with part of territory in Europe (after Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkey).

45 Madagasc

ar 587,041 0.39% Africa, Eastern

46 Botswana 582,000 0.39% Africa,

Southern

47 Kenya 580,367 0.39% Africa, Eastern

48 France 551,500 0.37% Europe, Western

Metropolitan France (European France including Corsica) only. The French Republic including French overseas territories covers 674,843 km².

49 Sweden 531,796 0.30% Europe,

Northern Includes Gotland and Öland.

50 Yemen 527,968 0.35% Middle East Includes the islands of Perim and Socotra.

51 Thailand 513,120 0.34% Asia, South-

East

52 Spain 505,992 0.34% Europe,

Southern

Sixth largest in Europe, second largest in western Europe. Includes mainland Spain, the Balearic Islands and Canary Islands, as well as the Spanish possessions (Plazas de Soberanía) off the coast of Morocco (Ceuta, Melilla, Islas Chafarinas, Peñón de Alhucemas, and Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera), and Isla de Alborán almost midway between Morocco and Spain, all the latter being claimed by Morocco.

53 Turkmenis

tan 488,100 0.33%

Asia, South-Central

54 Cameroon 475,442 0.32% Africa, Central

55 Papua

New

Guinea

462,840 0.31% Oceania,

Melanesia Second largest country in Oceania.

56 Uzbekista

n 447,400 0.30%

Asia, South-Central

The larger of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world.

57 Morocco 446,550 0.30% Africa,

Northern Excluding Western Sahara.

58 Iraq 438,317 0.29% Middle East

59 Paraguay 406,752 0.27% America, South

60 Zimbabwe 390,757 0.26% Africa, Eastern

61 Japan 377,915 0.25% Asia, Eastern

Includes Ryukyu Islands (Nansei Islands), Daito Islands, Ogasawara Islands (Bonin Islands), Minami-Torishima (Marcus Island), Okino-Torishima and Volcano Islands (Kazan Islands); excludes the southern Kuril Islands.

62 Germany 357,022 0.24% Europe, Western

EB: 357,046

63

Republic

of the

Congo

(Brazzavill

e)

342,000 0.23% Africa, Central

64 Finland 338,145 0.23% Europe,

Northern Includes Åland Islands (1,552 km²).

65 Vietnam 331,689 0.22% Asia, South-

East

66 Malaysia 329,847 0.22% Asia, South-

East

67 Norway 323,802 0.22% Europe,

Northern

Mainland Norway only; not included the overseas areas of Svalbard and Jan Mayen (62,422 km²) and the dependency of Bouvet Island (49 km²) and the Antarctic dependency claims of Queen Maud Land (2,500,000 km²) and Peter I Island (243 km²).

68 Côte

d'Ivoire 322,463 0.22% Africa, Western

69 Poland 312,685 0.21% Europe, Eastern

70 Oman 309,500 0.21% Middle East

71 Italy 301,318 0.20% Europe,

Southern

72 Philippine

s 300,000 0.20%

Asia, South-East

73 Ecuador 283,561 0.20% America, South Includes Galápagos Islands.

74 Burkina

Faso 274,222 0.18% Africa, Western

75 New

Zealand 270,467 0.18%

Oceania;Australia

Includes Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, Chatham Islands, and Kermadec Islands. Excludes Niue (260 km²), the Cook Islands (236 km²) and Tokelau (12 km²), as well as the Antarctic claim of Ross Dependency (450,000 km²). Third largest country in Oceania.

76 Gabon 267,668 0.18% Africa, Central

77 Western

Sahara 266,000 0.18%

Africa, Northern

Largely occupied by Morocco, some territory administered by the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.

78 Guinea 245,857 0.17% Africa, Western

79 United

Kingdom 242,900 0.16%

Europe, Northern

Not included are the three Crown dependencies (768 km²) of the islands of Jersey, Guernsey and Isle of Man, and British Overseas Territories (1,742,857 km²)

80 Uganda 241,038 0.16% Africa, Eastern

81 Ghana 238,533 0.16% Africa, Western

82 Romania 238,391 0.16% Europe, Eastern

83 Lao PDR 236,800 0.16% Asia, South-

East

84 Guyana 214,969 0.14% Europe,

Northern

85 Belarus 208,000 0.14% Europe, Eastern

Second-largest landlocked country in Europe (after Kazakhstan).

86 Kyrgyzsta

n 199,951 0.13%

Asia, South-Central

87 Senegal 196,722 0.13% Africa, Western

88 Syria 185,180 0.12% Middle East Includes the Golan Heights.

89 Cambodia 181,035 0.12% Asia, South-

East

90 Uruguay 176,215 0.12% America, South

91 Suriname 163,820 0.11% America, South Smallest country in South America.

92 Tunisia 163,610 0.11% Africa,

Northern

93 Nepal 147,181 0.10% Asia, South-

Central

94 Banglades

h 143,998 0.10%

Asia, South-Central

95 Tajikistan 143,100 0.10% Asia, South-

Central

96 Greece 131,957 0.09% Europe,

Southern

97 North

Korea 120,538 0.08% Asia, Eastern

98 Nicaragua 120,340 0.09% America, Central

Excludes San Andrés y Providencia islands (disputed territories with Colombia). Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America.

99 Malawi 118,484 0.08% Africa, Eastern

100 Eritrea 117,600 0.08% Africa, Eastern Includes Badme region.

101 Benin 112,622 0.08% Africa, Western

102 Honduras 112,492 0.08% America, Central

103 Liberia 111,369 0.07% Africa, Western

104 Bulgaria 110,879 0.07% Europe, Eastern

105 Cuba 109,886 0.07% Caribbean Cuba is the largest and most populous country in the Caribbean

106 Guatemala 108,889 0.07% America, Central

107 Iceland 103,000 0.07% Europe,

Northern

108 South

Korea 99,678 0.07% Asia, Eastern

109 Hungary 93,028 0.06% Europe, Eastern

110 Portugal 92,090 0.06% Europe,

Southern Includes Azores and Madeira Islands.

111 French

Guiana 90,000 0.06% America, South French overseas département.

112 Jordan 89,342 0.06% Middle East

113 Azerbaijan 86,600 0.06% Asia, Western Includes the exclave of Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic and the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh.

114 Austria 83,871 0.06% Europe, Western

115 United

Arab

Emirates

83,600 0.06% Middle East

116 Czech

Republic 78,867 0.05%

Europe, Eastern

117 Serbia 77,474 0.05% Europe,

Southern

This figure does not include Kosovo, which recently unilaterally declared itself independent to partial recognition; Serbia, Russia, China and others object. Including Kosovo, which is still claimed by Serbia, the total area is 88,361 km², ranking Serbia at 113.

118 Panama 75,517 0.05% America, Central

119 Sierra

Leone 71,740 0.05% Africa, Western

120 Ireland

(Republic

of)

70,273 0.05% Europe,

Northern The island of Ireland has an area of 84,421 km².

121 Georgia 69,700 0.05% Asia, Western Includes Abkhazia (8,600 km²) and South Ossetia

122 Sri Lanka 65,610 0.04% Asia, South-

Central

123 Lithuania 65,300 0.04% Europe,

Northern

124 Latvia 64,589 0.04% Europe,

Northern

125 Svalbard

and Jan

Mayen

62,422 0.04% Europe,

Northern

126 Togo 56,785 0.04% Africa, Western

127 Croatia 56,594 0.04% Europe,

Southern

128

Bosnia

and

Herzegovi

na

51,197 0.03% Europe,

Southern

129 Costa Rica 51,100 0.03% America, Central

Includes Isla del Coco.

130 Slovakia 49,035 0.03% Europe, Eastern

131 Dominican

Republic 48,310 0.03% Caribbean

132 Estonia 45,228 0.03% Europe,

Northern Includes Estonia's 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea.

133 Denmark 43,094 0.03% Europe,

Northern

Includes Denmark proper only; the entire Kingdom of Denmark, including Greenland and Faroe Islands covers 2,220,093 km² and would be 13th.

134 Netherlan

ds 41,543 0.03%

Europe, Western

Includes the Netherlands proper only; the entire Kingdom of the Netherlands covers 42,437 km².

135 Switzerlan

d 41,285 0.03%

Europe, Western

source: swissworld.org

136 Bhutan 38,394 0.03% Asia, South-

Central

137 Taiwan

(Republic

of China)

36,188 0.02% Asia, Eastern Includes only the territories under the administration of the ROC, namely Taiwan, and the islands of Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu.

138 Guinea-

Bissau 36,125 0.02% Africa, Western

139 Moldova 33,851 0.02% Europe, Eastern

Includes the de facto independent autonomous territory of Transnistria (Pridnestrovie).

140 Belgium 30,528 0.02% Europe, Western

141 Lesotho 30,355 0.02% Africa,

Southern

142 Armenia 29,743 0.02% Asia, Western

143 Solomon

Islands 28,896 0.02%

Oceania, Melanesia

144 Albania 28,748 0.02% Europe,

Southern

145 Equatorial

Guinea 28,051 0.02% Africa, Central

146 Burundi 27,834 0.02% Africa, Eastern

147 Haiti 27,750 0.02% Caribbean

148 Rwanda 26,338 0.02% Africa, Eastern

149 Macedonia 25,713 0.02% Europe,

Southern

150 Djibouti 23,200 0.02% Africa, Eastern

151 Belize 22,966 0.02% America, Central

152 Israel 22,072 0.01% Middle East

Including data for East Jerusalem and Israeli residents in certain other territories under occupation by Israeli military forces since June 1967.

153 El

Salvador 21,041 0.01%

America, Central

154 Slovenia 20,273 0.01% Europe,

Southern

155 New

Caledonia 18,575 0.01%

Oceania, Melanesia

French dependency.

156 Fiji 18,274 0.01% Oceania,

Melanesia

157 Kuwait 17,818 0.01% Middle East

158 Swaziland 17,364 0.01% Africa,

Southern

159 East

Timor 14,874 >0.01%

Asia, South-East

160 The

Bahamas 13,943 >0.01% Caribbean

161 Montenegr

o 13,812 >0.01%

Europe, Southern

162 Vanuatu 12,189 >0.01% Oceania,

Melanesia

163 Falkland

Islands 12,173 >0.01%

America, Southern

British Overseas Territory. Claimed by Argentina. Excludes South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

164 Qatar 11,586 >0.01% Middle East

165 The

Gambia 11,295 >0.01% Africa, Western

166 Jamaica 10,991 >0.01% Caribbean

167 Kosovo 10,887 >0.01% Europe,

Southern

Kosovo unilaterally declared itself independent to partial recognition, with objections from Serbia, Russia, China and others. Serbia still claims the territory.

168 Lebanon 10,400 <0.01% Middle East

169 Cyprus 9,251 <0.01% Asia, Western Includes Northern Cyprus (only recognized by Turkey) and Akrotiri and Dhekelia (British Sovereign Base Areas).

170 Puerto

Rico 8,870 <0.01% Caribbean Commonwealth of the United States.

171 Palestinia

n

territories

6,020 <0.01% Middle East The figure consists of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

172 Brunei 5,765 <0.01% Asia, South-

East

173 Trinidad

and

Tobago

5,130 <0.01% Caribbean

174 Cape

Verde 4,033 <0.01% Africa, Western

175 French

Polynesia 4,000 <0.01%

Oceania, Polynesia

French overseas collectivity.

176 Samoa 2,831 <0.01% Oceania, Polynesia

177 Luxembou

rg 2,586 <0.01%

Europe, Western

178 Réunion 2,510 <0.01% Africa, Eastern French overseas département.

179 Comoros 2,235 <0.01% Africa, Eastern

Listed figure inccludes Mayotte (373 km²). Mayotte is officially an overseas collectivity of France and is not under the sovereignty of Comoros.

180 Mauritius 2,040 <0.01% Africa, Eastern Includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues.

181 Guadeloup

e 1,705 <0.01% Caribbean

French overseas département includes La Désirade, Marie Galante, Les Saintes, Saint-Barthélemy and Saint Martin (French part). Note that Saint-Barthélemy and Saint Martin became separate overseas collectvities in 2007 and are no longer politically part of Guadeloupe.

182 Faroe

Islands 1,393 <0.01%

Europe, Northern

A self-governing territory of Denmark.

183 Martiniqu

e 1,102 <0.01% Caribbean French overseas département.

184 São Tomé

and

Príncipe

964 <0.01% Africa, Central Second smallest country in Africa.

185 Turks and

Caicos

Islands

948 <0.01% Caribbean British Overseas Territory. Area includes protected waters.

186 Netherlan

ds Antilles 800 <0.01% Caribbean

Self-governing part of the Netherlands; includes Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin).

187 Dominica 751 <0.01% Caribbean

188 Tonga 747 <0.01% Oceania, Polynesia

189 Bahrain 741 <0.01% Middle East

190 Kiribati 726 <0.01% Oceania,

Micronesia Includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands.

191

Micronesi

a,

Federated

States of

702 <0.01% Oceania,

Micronesia Includes Pohnpei (Ponape), Chuuk (Truk) Islands, Yap Islands, and Kosrae (Kosaie).

192 Singapore 699 <0.01% Asia, South-

East UN figure is as of 2005. Official area in 2007 is 707.1 km².

193 Isle of Man 572 <0.01% Europe,

Northern Crown dependency of the UK.

194 Guam 549 <0.01% Oceania,

Micronesia Organized unincorporated territory of the USA.

195 Saint

Lucia 539 <0.01% Caribbean

196 Andorra 468 <0.01% Europe,

Southern

197 Northern

Mariana

Islands

464 <0.01% Oceania,

Micronesia

Commonwealth in political union with the USA; includes 14 islands including Saipan, Rota, and Tinian.

198 Palau 459 <0.01% Oceania,

Micronesia

199 Seychelles 455 <0.01% Africa, Eastern Smallest country in Africa.

200 Antigua

and

Barbuda

442 <0.01% Caribbean Includes the island of Redonda, 1.6 km².

201 Barbados 430 <0.01% Caribbean

202

Saint

Vincent

and the

Grenadine

s

389 <0.01% Caribbean

203 Virgin

Islands

U.S.

347 <0.01% Caribbean Unincorporated, organized territory of the USA.

204 Grenada 344 <0.01% Caribbean

205 Malta 316 <0.01% Europe,

Southern

206 Maldives 298 <0.01% Asia, South-

Central Smallest country in Asia.

207 Cayman

Islands 264 <0.01% Caribbean British Overseas Territory.

208 Saint Kitts

and Nevis 261 <0.01% Caribbean

Smallest nation in North America and in the Western Hemisphere.

209 Niue 260 <0.01% Oceania, Polynesia

Self-governing nation in free association with New Zealand.

210 Saint

Pierre and

Miquelon

242 <0.01% America, Northern

French overseas collectivity; includes eight small islands in the Saint Pierre and the Miquelon groups.

211 Cook

Islands 236 <0.01%

Oceania, Polynesia

Self-governing in free association with New Zealand.

212 American

Samoa 199 <0.01%

Oceania, Polynesia

Unorganized, unincorporated territory of the USA; includes Rose Island and Swains Island.

213 Marshall

Islands 181 <0.01%

Oceania, Micronesia

Includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik.

214 Aruba 180 <0.01% Caribbean Self-governing part of the Netherlands.

215 Liechtenst

ein 160 <0.01%

Europe, Western

Smallest country in the world that borders more than one other country.

216 British

Virgin

Islands

151 <0.01% Caribbean British Overseas Territory; comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the island of Anegada.

217 Wallis and

Futuna 142 <0.01%

Oceania, Polynesia

French overseas collectivity; includes Île Uvéa (Wallis Island), Île Futuna (Futuna Island), Île Alofi, and 20 islets.

218 Saint

Helena 122 <0.01% Africa, Western

British Overseas Territory; excluding dependencies.

219 Jersey 116 <0.01% Europe,

Northern Crown dependency of the UK.

220 Montserra

t 102 <0.01% Caribbean British Overseas Territory.

221 Tristan da

Cunha 98 <0.01%

South Atlantic Ocean

Dependency of St Helena (UK). Area refers to the only inhabited island.

222 Anguilla 91 <0.01% Caribbean British Overseas Territory.

223 Ascension

Island 88 <0.01%

South Atlantic Ocean

Dependency of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena.

224 Guernsey 78 <0.01% Europe,

Northern

Crown dependency of the UK; includes Alderney, Guernsey, Herm, Sark, and some other smaller islands.

225 San

Marino 61 <0.01%

Europe, Southern

226 Bermuda 54 <0.01% Caribbean British Overseas Territory.

227 Norfolk

Island 36 <0.01%

Oceania, Australia

Self-governing area of Australia.

228 Tuvalu 26 <0.01% Oceania, Polynesia

229 Nauru 21 <0.01% Oceania,

Micronesia

Smallest country in Oceania, smallest island nation in the world, and third smallest country in the world.

230 Tokelau 12 <0.01% Oceania/Austra

lia Territory of New Zealand.

231 Gibraltar 6 <0.01% Europe,

Southern British Overseas Territory.

232 Pitcairn

Islands 5 <0.01%

Oceania, Polynesia

British Overseas Territory and smallest dependent territory of the world.

233 Monaco 1.95 <0.01% Europe,

Southern Second smallest country of the world.

234 Vatican

City 0.44 <0.01%

Europe, Southern

Smallest country in the world. Home of the Pope and the governing body of the Roman Catholic Church.

Country Population Location

Country Name: Population Area

(Sq. Km.)

Populatio

n

Density

(Sq. Km.)

Area

(Sq. Mi.)

Populati

on

Density

(Sq. Mi.)

1 China 1,339,190,000 9,596,960.00 139.54 3,705,405.45 361.42

2 India 1,184,639,000 3,287,590.00 360.34 1,269,345.07 933.27

3 United States of America 309,975,000 9,629,091.00 32.19 3,717,811.29 83.38

4 Indonesia 234,181,400 1,919,440.00 122.01 741,099.62 315.99

5 Brazil 193,364,000 8,511,965.00 22.72 3,286,486.71 58.84

6 Pakistan 170,260,000 803,940.00 211.78 310,402.84 548.51

26 Korea (South) 49,773,145 98,480.00 505.41 38,023.32 1,309.02

27 Spain 46,951,532 504,782.00 93.01 194,897.34 240.90

28 Ukraine 45,871,738 603,700.00 75.98 233,089.78 196.80

29 Colombia 45,569,000 1,138,910.00 40.01 439,735.43 103.63

30 Tanzania 45,040,000 945,087.00 47.66 364,899.98 123.43

31 Kenya 40,863,000 582,650.00 70.13 224,962.33 181.64

32 Argentina 40,518,951 2,766,890.00 14.64 1,068,301.76 37.93

33 Poland 38,167,329 312,685.00 122.06 120,728.30 316.14

34 Algeria 35,423,000 2,381,740.00 14.87 919,594.58 38.52

35 Canada 34,207,000 9,976,140.00 3.43 3,851,807.61 8.88

36 Uganda 33,796,000 236,040.00 143.18 91,135.52 370.83

37 Sudan 31,894,000 1,886,068.00 16.40 728,215.12 42.40

38 Morocco 31,892,000 446,550.00 71.42 172,413.85 184.97

39 Iraq 31,467,000 437,072.00 72.00 168,754.37 186.47

40 Nepal 29,853,000 140,800.00 212.02 54,363.16 549.14

41 Peru 29,461,933 1,285,220.00 22.92 496,226.01 59.37

42 Afghanistan 29,117,000 647,500.00 44.97 250,001.05 116.47

7 Bangladesh 164,425,000 144,000.00 1,141.84 55,598.69 2,957.35

8 Nigeria 158,259,000 923,768.00 171.32 356,668.67 443.71

9 Russia 141,927,297 17,075,200.00 8.31 6,592,768.87 21.53

10 Japan 127,380,000 377,835.00 337.13 145,882.85 873.17

11 Mexico 108,396,211 1,972,550.00 54.95 761,605.50 142.33

12 Phillipines 94,013,200 300,000.00 313.38 115,830.60 811.64

13 Vietnam 85,789,573 329,560.00 260.32 127,243.78 674.21

14 Germany 81,757,600 357,021.00 229.00 137,846.52 593.11

15 Ethopia 79,221,000 1,127,127.00 70.29 435,185.99 182.04

16 Egypt 78,848,000 1,001,450.00 78.73 386,661.85 203.92

17 Iran 75,078,000 1,648,000.00 45.56 636,296.10 117.99

18 Turkey 72,561,312 780,580.00 92.96 301,383.50 240.76

19 Congo (Dem. Rep. of ) 67,827,000 2,345,410.00 28.92 905,567.49 74.90

20 France 65,447,374 547,030.00 119.64 211,209.38 309.87

21 Thailand 63,525,062 514,000.00 123.59 198,456.43 320.10

22 United Kingdom (UK) 62,041,708 244,820.00 253.42 94,525.49 656.35

23 Italy 60,340,328 301,230.00 200.31 116,305.51 518.81

24 Myanmar 50,496,000 678,500.00 74.42 261,970.21 192.75

25 South Africa 49,991,300 1,219,912.00 40.98 471,010.46 106.14

43 Venezuela 28,888,000 912,050.00 31.67 352,144.33 82.03

44 Malaysia 28,306,700 329,750.00 85.84 127,317.13 222.33

45 Uzbekistan 27,794,000 447,400 62.12 172,742.03 160.90

46 Saudi Arabia 26,246,000 1,960,582.00 13.39 756,984.63 34.67

47 Ghana 24,333,000 239,460.00 101.62 92,455.98 263.18

48 Yemen 24,256,000 527,970.00 45.94 203,850.27 118.99

49 Korea (North) 23,991,000 120,540.00 199.03 46,540.74 515.48

50 Mozambique 23,406,000 801,590.00 29.20 309,495.50 75.63

51 Syria 22,505,000 185,180.00 121.53 71,498.37 314.76

52 Australia 22,421,417 7,686,850.00 2.92 2,967,908.16 7.55

53 Cote d'Ivoire 21,571,000 322,460.00 66.90 124,502.45 173.26

54 Romania 21,466,174 237,500.00 90.38 91,699.23 234.09

55 Madagascar 21,146,000 587,040.00 36.02 226,657.32 93.30

56 Sri Lanka 20,410,000 65,610.00 311.08 25,332.15 805.70

57 Cameroon 19,958,000 475,440.00 41.98 183,568.33 108.72

58 Angola 18,993,000 1,246,700.00 15.23 481,353.36 39.46

59 Chile 17,114,000 756,950.00 22.61 292,259.91 58.56

60 Netherlands 16,609,518 41,526.00 399.98 16,033.27 1,035.94

61 Burkina Faso 16,287,000 274,200.00 59.40 105,869.17 153.84

62 Kazakhstan 16,197,000 2,717,300.00 5.96 1,049,154.96 15.44

63 Niger 15,891,000 1,267,000.00 12.54 489,191.23 32.48

64 Malawi 15,692,000 118,480.00 132.44 45,745.36 343.03

65 Mali 14,517,176 1,240,000.00 11.71 478,766.48 30.32

66 Guatemala 14,377,000 108,890.00 132.03 42,042.65 341.96

67 Ecuador 14,228,000 283,560.00 50.18 109,483.08 129.96

68 Cambodia 13,395,682 181,040.00 73.99 69,899.91 191.64

69 Zambia 13,257,000 752,614.00 17.61 290,585.77 45.62

70 Senegal 12,861,000 196,190.00 65.55 75,749.35 169.78

71 Zimbabwe 12,644,000 390,580.00 32.37 150,803.72 83.84

72 Greece 11,306,183 131,940.00 85.69 50,942.30 221.94

73 Chad 11,274,106 1,284,000.00 8.78 495,754.97 22.74

74 Cuba 11,204,000 110,860.00 101.06 42,803.27 261.76

75 Belgium 10,827,519 30,510.00 354.88 11,779.97 919.15

76 Portugal 10,636,888 92,391.00 115.13 35,672.35 298.18

77 Czech Republic 10,512,397 78,866.00 133.29 30,450.32 345.23

78 Tunisia 10,432,500 163,610.00 63.76 63,170.15 165.15

79 Guinea 10,324,000 245,857.00 41.99 94,925.88 108.76

80 Rwanda 10,277,000 26,338.00 390.20 10,169.15 1,010.61

81 Dominican Republic 10,225,000 48,730.00 209.83 18,814.75 543.46

82 Haiti 10,188,000 27,750.00 367.14 10,714.33 950.88

83 Bolivia 10,031,000 1,098,580.00 9.13 424,163.94 23.65

84 Hungary 10,013,628 93,030.00 107.64 35,919.07 278.78

85 Serbia & Montenegro 9,856,000 102,350.00 96.30 39,517.54 249.41

86 Belarus 9,471,900 207,600.00 45.63 80,154.78 118.17

87 Sweden 9,366,092 449,964.00 20.82 173,732.00 53.91

88 Somalia 9,359,000 637,657.00 14.68 246,200.64 38.01

89 Benin 9,212,000 112,620.00 81.80 43,482.81 211.85

90 Azerbaijan 8,997,400 86,600.00 103.90 33,436.43 269.09

91 Burundi 8,519,000 27,830.00 306.11 10,745.22 792.82

92 Austria 8,372,930 83,858.00 99.85 32,377.74 258.60

93 South Sudan 8,260,490 619,745.00 13.32 239,285.00 34.52

94 Switzerland 7,782,900 41,290.00 188.49 15,942.15 488.20

95 Honduras 7,616,000 112,090.00 67.95 43,278.17 175.98

96 Israel 7,602,400 20,770.00 366.03 8,019.34 948.01

97 Bulgaria 7,576,751 110,910.00 68.31 42,822.57 176.93

98 Tajikstan 7,075,000 143,100.00 49.44 55,251.20 128.05

99 Papua New Guinea 6,888,000 462,840.00 14.88 178,703.45 38.54

100 Togo 6,780,000 56,785.00 119.40 21,924.80 309.24

101 Libya 6,546,000 1,759,540.00 3.72 679,361.91 9.64

102 Jordan 6,472,000 92,300.00 70.12 35,637.21 181.61

103 Paraguay 6,460,000 406,750.00 15.88 157,046.99 41.13

104 Laos 6,436,000 236,800.00 27.18 91,428.95 70.39

105 El Salvador 6,194,000 21,040.00 294.39 8,123.59 762.47

106 Sierra Leone 5,836,000 71,740.00 81.35 27,698.96 210.69

107 Nicaragua 5,822,000 129,494.00 44.96 49,997.89 116.44

108 Kyrgyzstan 5,550,000 198,500.00 27.96 76,641.25 72.42

109 Denmark 5,540,241 43,094.00 128.56 16,638.68 332.97

110 Slovakia 5,426,645 48,845.00 111.10 18,859.15 287.75

111 Finland 5,366,100 337,030.00 15.92 130,127.96 41.24

112 Eritrea 5,224,000 121,320.00 43.06 46,841.89 111.52

113 Turkmenistan 5,177,000 488,100.00 10.61 188,456.39 27.47

114 Singapore 4,987,600 693.00 7,197.11 267.57 18,640.45

115 Norway 4,896,700 324,220.00 15.10 125,181.99 39.12

116 United Arab Emirates 4,707,000 82,880.00 56.79 32,000.13 147.09

117 Costa Rica 4,640,000 51,100.00 90.80 19,729.81 235.18

118 Central African Republic 4,506,000 622,984.00 7.23 240,535.37 18.73

119 Ireland 4,459,300 70,280.00 63.45 27,135.25 164.34

120 Georgia 4,436,000 69,700.00 63.64 26,911.31 164.84

121 Croatia 4,435,056 56,542.00 78.44 21,830.98 203.15

122 New Zealand 4,383,600 268,680.00 16.32 103,737.89 42.26

123 Lebanon 4,255,000 10,400.00 409.13 4,015.46 1,059.65

124 Bosnia & Herzegovina 3,760,000 51,129.00 73.54 19,741.01 190.47

125 Congo (Rep.) 3,759,000 342,000.00 10.99 132,046.88 28.47

126 Moldova 3,563,800 33,843.00 105.30 13,066.85

272.74

127 Liberia 3,476,608 111,370.00 31.22 43,000.18 80.85

128 Uruguay 3,372,000 176,200.00 19.14 68,031.17 49.57

129 Mauritania 3,366,000 1,030,700.00 3.27 397,955.33 8.46

130 Lithuania 3,329,227 65,200.00 51.06 25,173.85 132.25

131 Panama 3,322,576 78,200.00 42.49 30,193.18 110.04

132 Armenia 3,238,000 29,800.00 108.66 11,505.84 281.42

133 Albania 3,195,000 28,748.00 111.14 11,099.66 287.85

134 Kuwait 3,051,000 17,820.00 171.21 6,880.34 443.44

135 Oman 2,905,000 212,460.00 13.67 82,031.23 35.41

136 Mongolia 2,768,800 1,565,000.00 1.77 604,249.63 4.58

137 Jamaica 2,730,000 10,991.00 248.39 4,243.65 643.31

138 Latvia 2,237,800 64,589.00 34.65 24,937.94 89.73

139 Namibia 2,212,000 825,418.00 2.68 318,695.54 6.94

140 Lesotho 2,084,000 30,355.00 68.65 11,720.13 177.81

141 Slovenia 2,062,700 20,273.00 101.75 7,827.45 263.52

142 Macedonia 2,048,620 25,333.00 80.87 9,781.12 209.45

143 Botswana 1,978,000 600,370.00 3.29 231,804.06 8.53

144 Gambia 1,751,000 11,300.00 154.96 4,362.95 401.33

145 Qatar 1,696,563 11,437.00 148.34 4,415.85 384.20

146 Guinea-Bissau 1,647,000 36,120.00 45.60 13,946.00 118.10

147 Gabon 1,501,000 267,667.00 5.61 103,346.76 14.52

148 Trinidad & Tobago 1,344,000 5,128.00 262.09 1,979.93 678.81

149 Estonia 1,340,021 45,226.00 29.63 17,461.85 76.74

150 Mauritius 1,297,000 2,040.00 635.78 787.65 1,646.67

151 Swaziland 1,202,000 17,363.00 69.23 6,703.89 179.30

152 East Timor 1,171,000 15,007.00 78.03 5,794.23 202.10

153 Djibouti 879,000 23,000.00 38.22 8,880.35 98.98

154 Fiji 854,000 18,270.00 46.74 7,054.08 121.06

155 Bahrain 807,000 665.00 1,213.53 256.76 3,143.04

156 Cyprus 801,851 9,250.00 86.69 3,571.44 224.52

157 Guyana 761,000 214,970.00 3.54 83,000.35 9.17

158 Bhutan 708,000 47,000.00 15.06 18,146.79 39.02

159 Equatorial Guinea 693,000 28,051.00 24.71 10,830.55 63.99

160 Comoros 691,000 2,170.00 318.43 837.84 824.74

161 Solomon Islands 536,000 28,450.00 18.84 10,984.60 48.80

162 Suriname 524,000 163,270.00 3.21 63,038.87 8.31

163 Cape Verde 513,000 4,033.00 127.20 1,557.15 329.45

164 Luxembourg 502,207 2,586.00 194.20 998.46 502.98

165 Malta 416,333 316.00 1,317.51 122.01 3,412.34

166 Brunei 407,000 5,770.00 70.54 2,227.81 182.69

167 Bahamas 346,000 13,940.00 24.82 5,382.26 64.29

168 Belize 322,100 22,966.00 14.03 8,867.22 36.32

169 Iceland 317,900 103,000.00 3.09 39,768.51 7.99

170 Maldives 314,000 300.00 1,046.67 115.83 2,710.86

171 Barbados 257,000 431.00 596.29 166.41 1,544.38

172 Vanuatu 246,000 12,200.00 20.16 4,710.44 52.22

173 Samoa 179,000 2,944.00 60.80 1,136.68 157.48

174 Saint Lucia 174,000 616.00 282.47 237.84 731.59

175 Sao Tome & Principe 165,000 1,001.00 164.84 386.49 426.92

176 Micronesia 111,000 702.00 158.12 271.04 409.53

177 St. Vincent & the Grenadines 109,000 389.00 280.21 150.19 725.73

178 Tonga 104,000 748.00 139.04 288.80 360.11

179 Grenada 104,000 344.00 302.33 132.82 783.02

180 Kiribati 100,000 811.00 123.30 313.13 319.36

181 Antigua & Barbuda 89,000 443.00 200.90 171.04 520.34

182 Seychelles 85,000 455.00 186.81 175.68 483.84

183 Andorra 84,082 468.00 179.66 180.70 465.32

184 Dominica 67,000 754.00 88.86 291.12 230.14

185 Marshall Islands 63,000 181.00 348.07 69.88 901.49

186 Saint Kitts & Nevis 38,960 261.00 149.27 100.77 386.61

187 Liechtenstein 35,904 160.00 224.40 61.78 581.19

188 Monaco 33,000 2.00 16,500.00 0.77 42,734.82

189 San Marino 32,386 61.00 530.92 23.55 1,375.07

190 Palau 20,000 458.00 43.67 176.83 113.10

191 Tuvalu 10,000 26.00 384.62 10.04 996.15

192 Nauru 10,000 21.00 476.19 8.11 1,233.33

193 Vatican City 800 1.00 800.00 0.39 2,071.99

Geographical Facts of India

(A) Geographical Location

India lies in the Asian continent and Northern Hemisphere between parallels of latitude 8° 4' and 37° 6'

North and between the meridians of longitude 68° 7’ and 97° 25' East.

(1) In the west, India shares its boundary with Pakistan.

(2) In the south, Sri Lanka is India's neighbouring country.

(3) In the north, Nepal and China are the neighbouring countries.

(4) In the east, Bangladesh and Myanmar are the two major countries which surround India.

In south-east of India, there is Bay of Bengal, in south-west it is Arabian Sea and in south, it is the Indian

Ocean and in the north, it is surrounded by the Himalayan range of mountains. ;

Important dimensions of India

(1) India covers 2.4 per cent of the Earth's surface.

(2) Total land area of India is 32,87,263 sq.km.

(3) Distance from east to west is 2,933 km.

(4) Distance from north to south is 3,214 km.

(5) The total length of the coastline of the mainland, Lakshadweep Islands and Andaman and

Nicobar Islands, is 7,516.6 km. The coastline of only mainland is about 6300 km.

(B) Important Geographical Structures Of India

Major rivers of India: The longest Indian river is Ganga, its length is 2,640 km. The other major

rivers of India are Indus (has five major tributaries: Sutlej, Chenab, Jhelum, Ravi and Beas), Brahmaputra,

Godavari, Krishna, Narmada, Tapti, Cauvery, Damodar, Mahanadi and Periyar.

Note: The world's largest delta, (in West Bengal) Sundarban, is made by Brahmaputra and Ganga.

Mountains: They are Himalayas (highest mountains in the world and one of the youngest mountain ranges),

Vindhyas, Satpura, Sahyadri, Aravallis (one of the oldest mountain ranges of the world), Patkai (Purvanchal

or Eastern mountains) and the Eastern Ghats.

(C) Soil: The following table shows various types of soils and related information

Types of soil Major areas of presence

Black soils: Most suitable for the Maharasntra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, cultivation

of cotton Madhya Pradesh (Western), Gujarat

Laterite soils: Originated from weathering of Andhra Pradesh, Deccan, Eastern Ghats,

laterite rocks Tamil Nadu, Mysore

Alluvial soils: Very fertile soil, covering Haryana, West Bengal, Punjab, Bihar, UP.

approximately 25% of all the Indian soil

Red soils: Good for cultivating coarse grains Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh,

Orissa and pulses because of high iron content

(D) Agriculture

Agriculture in India: More than 50 percent of the area of the country is under the cultivation and about 64%

of the Indian population is engaged in agriculture.

There are two major crop seasons in India, viz.:

(1)Rabi

(2)Kharif

Rabi: It is sown in October or December and harvested in April or May. Major crops are: barely,

wheat, peas, gram and mustard.

Kharif: It is sown in June or July and harvested in September or October. Major crops are: bajra, cotton,

jowar, rice and jute.

Some important facts about Indian agriculture

(1) Green Revolution was launched in India in 1967-68 for improving agricultural productivity.

(2) Operation Flood was initiated in 1970 and mainly aimed at improving the milk production in India.

(3) Yellow Revolution for improving oil seed production.

(4) Blue Revolution for fisheries

(E) Forests: India has about 2% of the world's area under forest cover. About 21% India is covered by forest

The target as per the national forest policy is to cover 33% of area by forests

Important National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries:

Name Location

Bandipur National Park Border of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu

Jim Corbeti National Park Nainital, Uttaranchal

Dachigam Sanctuary Dachigam

Ghana Bird Sanctuary Bharatpura, Rajathan

Gir National Park Junagarh, Gujarat

Kanha National Park Chhatishgarh

Kaziranga National Park Jorhat Assam

Penyar Sanctuary Idduki Kerala

Ranthmbore Tiger Sanctuary Swaimadhopur, Rajasthan

Sariska Sanctuary Alwar, Rajasthan

Snarvethy Sanctuary Shimoga, Karnataka

Similipal Tiger Sanctuary Mayurbhanj, Orissa

Sonal Rupal Sanctuary Teapur, Assam

Sundarbans Tiger Reserve South 24 Parganas, West Bengal

Tungabhadra Sanctuary Bellary, Karnataka

Wild Ass Sanctuary Kuchh Ki Run, Gujarat

Sobriquets

Distinctive Name Country / Place

Bengal's Sorrow Damodar river

Blue Mountains Nilgiris

City of Arabian Nights Baghdad

City of Palaces Kolkata

City of Seven Hills/Eternal city Rome

City of Skyscrapers /Empire city / Big Apple New York

City of the Golden Gate San Francisco

City of Joy Kolkata

Commercial Capital of India Mumbai

Dairy of Northern Europe Denmark

Dark Continent Africa

Forbidden City Lhasa (Tibet)

Garden of England Kent

Garden City of India Bangalore

Gate of Tears Bab-el-Mandab, Jerusalem

Gateway of India Mumbai

Gift of the Nile Egypt

Golden City Johannesburg

Great White Way Broadway (New York)

Hermit's Kingdom Korea

Holy Land Palestine

Island of Pearls Bahrain

Key to the Mediterranean Gibraltar

Land of Five Rivers Punjab

Land of a Thousand Lakes Finland

Land of Cakes Scotland

Land of Kangaroos Australia

Land of Lillies /Lady of Snow Canada

Land of Morning Calm Korea

Land of the Golden Fleece Australia

Land of the Golden Pagoda Myanmar

Land of the Midnight Sun Norway

Land of the Rising Sun Japan

Land of Thunderbolt Bhutan

Land of White Elephants Thailand

Manchester of South India Coimbatore

Mother-in-Law of Europe Denmark

Never, Never Land Prairies (North America)

Pink City of India Jaipur

Playground of Europe Switzerland

Queen of the Arabian Sea Cochin (India)

Roof of the World Pamir (Tibet)

Sick Man of Europe Turkey

Sorrow of China /Yellow river River Hwang Ho

Spice Garden of India Kerala

Sugar Bowl of the World Cuba

Sugar Bowl of India UttarPradesh

The Battlefield of Europe Belgium

The Down Under Australia

The Imperial City Rome

The Promised Land Canaan

The Saw Mill of Europe British Colombia

The Sea of Mountains Sweden

The Spice Island of the West Grenada

Twin City Budapest

Valley of Kings Thebes

White City Belgrade

White Man's Grave Guinea Coast (West Africa)

Windy City Chicago

Workshop of Europe Belgium

World's Bread Basket Prairies of North America

CHAPTER 3 - CONSTITUTION OF INDIA

The Constitution of India was framed by the Drafting Committee which was appointed by the Constituent

Assembly. The Chairman of the Drafting Committee of the Constitution was Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar. The

Constituent Assembly adopted the Constitution on November 26,1949. On January 26,1950,1ndia became

republic as the Constitution came Into force. Originally, there were eight Schedules and 395 Articles. There

are four major parts of the Constitution of India at present:

(1) The Preamble

(2) Parts I to XXII having over 400 Articles

(3) Twelve Schedules

(4) Appendix

The Preamble: Through forty-second amendment, words secular and socialist are added into the

Preamble.

(A) Important features of Indian constitution, borrowed from outside sources

Features Source

1. Fundamental rights U.S. Constitution

2. Directive Principles of State policy (DPSP's) Irish Constitution

3. Emergency provisions Weimar constitution of Germany

4. Parliamentary system of governance, British Constitution

Single citizenship

5. Federation with a strong centre Canadian constitution

6. Fundamental duties Soviet Union, Japan

(B) Important Articles in Indian Constitution and their areas of focus

Articles Focus areas

1. Articles 5 - 11 Citizenship

2. Article 21 Right to life

3. Article 32 Right to constitutional remedies

4. Article 44 Uniform civil code

5. Article 51A Fundamental duties

6. Article 61 Impeachment of president

7. Article 110 Definition of money bill

8. Article 123 Ordinance making powers of president

9. Article 324 Establishment of election commission of India

10. Article 300A Right to property

11. Article 280 Finance commission

12. Article 352 National emergency

13. Article 356 Emergency in states

14. Article 360 Financial emergency

15. Article 368 Amendment of Constitution

16. Article 370 Special status of Jammu and Kashmir

(C) Fundamental Rights

Initially, these were six in number, but now with the inclusion of right to education they are seven in !

number. These are as follows

(1) Right to Equality

(2) Right to Freedom

(3) Right against Exploitation

(4) Cultural and Educational Rights

(5) Right to Freedom of Religion

(6) Right to Constitutional Remedies

(7) Right to Education

Note: It was the right to property which earlier used to be the fundamental right, and has now been

converted into legal right by the forty-fourth amendment in the constitution in 1978.

Directive Principles of state policy: They come under the Part IV of the Constitution. They are basically

instructions to the government to carry out certain responsibilities. They cannot be enforced in any court of

law.

(D) Structure of the Union Government

President: He is the constitutional head of the parliamentary system of government and the Supreme

Commander of the armed forces. Elected by an electoral college consisting of the elected members of the State

Legislatures and both the Houses of the Parliament for a period of five years. He can be removed from the

office for violating the Constitution by Impeachment under Article 61. He is responsible for appointing the

senior officials including the Prime Minister.

Vice President: Elected by the members of an electoral college consisting of the members of both the Houses

of the Parliament. He is elected for a tenure of five years. He is the Ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

He is the person who works in place of the President, in case of death, resignation, or when he is unable to

discharge his functions due to any reason.

Important facts about the EXECUTIVE of the Union:

President of India:

(1) Dr Rajendra Prasad was the first President of India and the longest serving President of India, who served

for 12 years.

(2) At present Smt. Pratibha Patil is the President of India. She is the 12th President of India.

Vice President of India:

(1) Dr S. Radhakrishnan was the first Vice President and also the longest serving Vice President, who

served for 10 years. He was also a well - known philosopher .

(2) At present, Mr Hamid Ansari is the Vice President and Ex-officio Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha.

Prime Minister: Appointed by the President, he is the head of the council of ministers and is the leader of

the party which is in majority in the Lok Sabha. He is appointed for five years.

The Parliament: It consists of two Houses: (a) Lok Sabha, (b) Rajya Sabha.

Lok Sabha: Also known as the Lower House of the Parliament, consists of people directly elected from the

constituencies in various States and Union Territories. It consists of 552 members, in which two are from the

Anglo-Indian community, nominated by the President and 530 from the States and 20 are from the Union

Territories. The presiding officer of Lok Sabha is the Speaker, who is elected by their members of the Lok

Sabha. At present, Smt Meera Kumar is the speaker of the Lok Sabha.

Rajya Sabha: Known as the Upper House, it is chaired by the Vice President (Ex-officio). Rajya Sabha

cannot be diluted, therefore, it is a permanent body. One-third of its members retire every two years. Total; of

250 members are present in the Rajya Sabha, out of which 12 members are nominated by their President and

238 members come through the elections from the States and the Union Territories;

Both, the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha, are the grounds for debating, passing the bills, constitutional

amendments and other issues pertinent to the welfare of the nation.

Bills: Except the money bill, all the bills (ordinary) can be introduced in either House of the Parliament. They

are, if needed, amended and then passed by either House, before becoming an act. The money bill originates

in the Lok Sabha only.

Supreme Court: This is the Apex Judicial body in India, based in Delhi, consists of 25 judges and the Chief

Justice, who is appointed by the President. The judges of the Supreme Court retire at the age of 65. The main

functions include solving disputes between the States and Union Governments, hearing of appeals from

various High Courts and any matter pertaining to the law for its opinion. The first Chief Justice of India was

H. J. Kania. At present, Justice S.H.Kapadia is the Chief Justice of India.

(E) Other Important Officials:

(1) The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG): Appointed by the President, he is responsible for

keeping an eye over the finances of the States and the Union, and to make sure that the money allocated by

the voting of the Legislature is spent in a fair and judicious manner. At present, Mr. V.N.Kaul is the CAG of

India.

(2) The Attorney General of India: He is appointed by the President, can take part in the proceedings of the

Parliament and its committees but do not have the right to vote. Mainly responsible for giving expert legal

advice to the Government of India and other legal tasks assigned to him. At present, Mr Milon kumar

Bannerjee is the Attorney General of India.

(3) Governor: He is the executive head of the state and is appointed by the President for five years and can

hold the office with the President's consent. The main functions of the Governor are as follows.

(a) Being the executive head of the state, he is responsible for appointing the council of ministers.

(b) He is responsible for causing the normal or supplementary budgets to be presented each year. He can

sanction advances to the government out of the contingency fund of the state to meet unexpected expenses of

the state.

(c) He is responsible for giving assent to the bills passed by the State Legislature, without which they

cannot become an act.

(4) Chief Minister: The real executive authority of the state administration, he is the leader of the party

that commands a majority in the Legislative Assembly and is appointed by the Governor on this basis. He

recommends the names of the ministers along with their portfolios to the Governor who then appoints them.

He formulates the administrative and executive policies of the state and presides over the cabinet meetings.

(F) Table of Schedules and Their Areas of Concern

Schedule Area of concern

First All the States and Union Territories of India

Second Salaries and allowances of the President, Governor, Chief Justice, Judges of High

Court and Supreme Court and CAG

Third Prescriptions regarding forms of affirmations and oaths for the new entrants to the public

offices.

Fourth Allocation of seats in Rajya Sabha to each Union Territory and State

Fifth Provisions to the control of administration of scheduled areas

Sixth Administrative provisions for tribal areas in Meghalaya, Mizoram and Assam

Seventh Three lists of subjects and powers to be looked after by the State and the Union, i.e.: (1)

Union list, containing the subjects of national importance, railway, defense, income tax, etc. (2) State list

contains locally important subjects. (3) Concurrent list contains subjects under the authority of the

Parliament and the State Legislature

Eighth Deals with 18 (now 22) officially recognized regional languages by the Constitution.

Ninth Contains acts and regulations dealing with abolition of zamindari system and land

reforms of the State Legislatures. The provisions of this schedule cannot be challenged in Supreme Court.

Tenth Contains provisions for the disqualification of members on the grounds of defection.

Eleventh Deals with implementation of schemes needed for social justice and economic

development at the rural levels.

Twelfth Deals with municipal committees and their categorizations.

Note: Originally, there were sight schedules. Later, four more schedules were added to it, taking the total

tally of schedules to twelve.

(G) Table of Important Constitutional Amendments

Number of

constitutional

amendment

Year of

amendment

Resisted to

First 1951 Added Ninth Schedule to the Constitution and made

provision for special treatment of socially and educationally

backward classes.

Third 1954 Transfer of certain items from state to concurrent list.

Fourteenth 1953 Incorporation of Pondicherry in the Indian Union

Twenty-fourth It declared that amending power of parliament was supreme.

Not challengeable in a court of law.

Twenty-sixth 1971 Abolition of special privileges and titles of former rulers of

princely states.

Thirty first 1973 Increasing the elective strength of Lower House from 525 to

545.

Thirty eight 1975 Gave President the power to declare emergency and that the

promulgations by the heads of states would be final and non-

challengeable in the court.

Forty-second 1976 (i) Added 10 fundamental duties in the Constitution.

(ii) Gave supremacy to the Parliament and added words

'Socialist' and 'Secular' in the Preamble of the Constitution

and altered ‘Unity of the Nation’ to 'Unity and Integrity of

the Nation'.

Fifty second 1985 Inserted the Tenth Schedule to the Constitution.

Fifty Sixth 1987 Goa was given the statehood, and Hindi version of the

Constitution was accepted.

Sixty-first 1989 For Lok Sabha and Assemblies voting age lowered to 18 from

21.

Seventy-second 1992 Related to Panchayati Raj Bill.

Seventy-third 1992 Related to Nagarpalika Bill.

Eighty-fourth 2000 Creation of new states of Chattisgarh, Uttranchal and

Jharkhand.

Eighty-fifth 2002 Restoration of reservation in promotion in services to the

members of Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribes.

Ninety-third 2002 Right to education made a fundamental right.

Ninety-seven 2003 Changes in antidefection law and amendment of Xth

schedule

(H) Few important cases and supreme Court’s judgement on them

Case Supreme Court Judgement

1. Keshvanada Bharti vs

State of Kerala (1973)

The twenty-fourth amendment was challenged in this case.

Supreme court held that fundamental rights can be amended

subject to eh doctrine of basic structure. This doctrine was

profounded in this case only.

2. Minerva Mills case (1980) 42nd Amendment was challenged. Supreme Court once again

stressed on the doctrine of basic structure.

3. Indira Sawhney vs Union

of India (1993)

Total reservation in government jobs cannot exceed 50% of total.

4. T.A. Pai (2003) It related to education in minority educational institutions.

CHAPTER 4 - SCIENCE

(a) Various important Branches of Science

Name of science Related to

Acoustics Sound and sound waves

Aeronautics Activities of flying

Agronomy Production of crops and soil management

Anatomy Bisectional learning of animal and human body

Anthropology Origin, cultural and physical development of man

Archaeology Study of material remains of past as proofs

Astronautics Space vehicles and traveling in space

Astronomy Planets (the heavenly bodies)

Biology Science of living organism

Botany Plants

Cardiology Heart and relate?! diseases

Ceramics Manufacturing of clay objects

Cetology Aquatic mammals, especially the whales

Cosmology Universe

Cryogenics Studying effects of low temperature

Cytology Structure and function of cells

Dactylogy Study of fingerprints

Dermatology Skin .

Dietetics Diet and nutrition

Ecology Organisms and environment relationship

Entomology Insects

Endocrinology Endocrine glands

Etymology Origin and history of words

Genetics Heredity and its laws

Geology Earth's (chemical and physical) structure

Gerontology Ageing process, problems and diseases

Gynaecology Female diseases of reproductive system

Haematology Blood and related disorders

Histology Tissues

Immunology Body's immune system

Morphology External structure of living organisms

Mycology Fungi and fungal diseases

Nephrology Kidney

Obstetrics Pregnancy, child birth and their follow up

Ornithology Birds

Orthopaedics Human skeletal system

Osteology Study of bones

Paediatrics Child diseases

Palaeontology Fossils and ancient life-forms

Pathology Mechanisms and manifestation of diseases

Pharmacology Drugs and their effects on the body

Physiology Life processes of various organs of living beings

Psychiatry Mental disorders

Semiology Sign language and signs

Seismology Earthquakes

Theology Religions

Toxicology Toxic substances and poisons

Zoology. Animal life

Zymology Fermentation process

(B) Units of Measurement

Name of the unit

Ampere Electric current

Angstrom Wavelength of light

Bar Atmospheric pressure

Calorie Quantity of heat

Candela Luminous intensity

Celsius (Centrigrade) Temperature

Coulomb Electric charge

Decibel Sound level

Dyne Force

Erg Work

Fahrenheit Temperature (commonly used by doctors to measure

body temperature)

Fathom Depth of water

Faraday Electric charge (used in electrolysis) = 96,500 coulomb

Gauss Magnetic induction/Magnetic flux density

Henry Inductance

Hertz Frequency

Horsepower Power

Joule Work or Energy

Kelvin Temperature (SI unit)

Light year Distance, (Distance light travels in one year at a

speed of 2,97,600 km)

Newton Force (SI unit)

Ohm Electrical resistance

Pascal Pressure

Poise Viscosity

Volt Electrical potential

Watt Power'

(C) Medical Discoveries

Discovery Discovered by

Antibiotic (Penicillin) Alexander Fleming

Aspirin Felix Hoffmann

Blood circulation William Harvey

Blood group K. Landsteiner

Cholera/TB germs Robert Koch

Electro cardiogram (ECG) Williem Einthoven

Heart transplant surgery Christian Barnard

Malaria germs A. Laveran

Ultrasound lan Donald

(D) Important Scientific Inventions

Invention Inventor

Aeroplane Wright B'others

Bicycle K. Macmillan

Centigrade scale A. Celsius

Computer Charles Babbage

Diesel engine Rudolf Diesel

Dynamite Alfred Nobel

Dynamo Michael Faraday

Electric lamp Thomas Alva Edison

Fountain pen L.E. Waterman

Gramophone Thomas Alva Edison

Jet engine Sir Frank Whittle

Microphone David Hughes

Microscope Z. Jansen

Radium Marie and Pierre Cure

Sir Humphery Safety lamp

Davy William Hurst Safety pin

B. Thimmonnier Sewing machine

Sir Isaac Pitman Shorthand (modern)

Thomas Newcome Steam engine (piston)

James Watt Steam engine (condenser)

Samuel F,B. Morse Telegraph code

Alexander Graham Bell Telephone

Hans Lippershey Telescope

John Logie Baird Television

Galileo Galilei Thermometer

Wilhelm Roentgen X-ray

(E) Important Vaccines

Vaccine Discovered by

Smallpox Edward Jenner

Cholera Rabies Vaccine Louis Pasteur

TB vaccine Leon Calmette and Camilla Guerin

Polio vaccine Jonas E. Salk

(F) Scientific Instruments

Name of instrument Function

Ammeter Used for measuring strength of electric current

Barometer Used for measuring atmospheric pressure

Calorimeter Used for measuring quantities of heat

Cardiograph (ECG) Used for measuring movements of the heart; recorded on a cardiograph

Dynamo Converts mechanical energy into electrical energy

Electroencephalograph Records and interprets the electrical waves of the brain

(EEC) Electrometer Used for measuring very small, potential difference in electric currents

Endoscope Examines internal organs of the body and can be used for minor

Fathometer Used for measuring depth of the ocean

Galvanometer Used for measuring the electric current

Hydrometer Used for measuring the relative density of liquids

Hygrometer Used for measuring the level of humidity in the atmosphere

Kymograph Graphically records physiological movements (e.g. blood pressure/ heartbeat)

Lactometer Used for measuring the relative density of milk to determine the purity (fat

content)

Manometer Used for measuring the pressure of gases

Micrometer Measures distances/angles

Microscope Used for obtaining a magnified view of small objects

Periscope Used for viewing objects above sea level (used in submarines)

Polygraph Used for recording changes simultaneously in physiological processes such as

heart beat, blood pressure and respiration; also used as a lie detector

Pyrometer Used for measuring very high temperature

Salinometer Used for determining the salinity of solutions

Sextant Used by navigators to find the latitude of a place by measuring the elevation

above the horizon of the sun or another star ; also measures the height of distant objects

Sphygmomanometer Used for measuring blood pressure

Stethoscope Used by doctor’s hear and analyze heart and lung sounds

Tacheometer Used for measuring distances and elevations and bearings during survey

Telescope Used for viewing distant objects in space

Transponder Used to receive a signal and transmit a reply immediately

Viscometer Used for measuring the viscosity of liquid

Voltmeter Used to measure electric potential difference between two points

Wattmeter Used for measuring the power of an electric circuit

(G) Important Information About the Human Body

Blood: It is a red, viscous fluid which circulates in the human body. It is basically a connective tissue which is

contained in the blood vessels. A healthy man possesses on an average, 5 litres of blood in the body.

Composition: It is made up of two chief constituents:

(a) Plasma (fluid), constitutes the major part while (b) Blood cells (solid), which constituted the minor

part.

The blood cell corpuscles are of two types: (1) RBC (2) WBC. The RBC is red blood corpuscles which contains

a pigment called haemoglobin which is responsible for the red colour of the blood. Iron is the element which is

present in the haemoglobin. The WBC are white blood corpuscles which are primarily responsible for

combating with the infection of the body or they fight with the foreign harmful organisms of the body.

Blood groups: They are of four types, viz.

(i) A-type (ii) B-type (iii) AB-type (iv) O-type

AB - type is called universal recipient as it can receive all the four types (mentioned above) of blood and

0-type is called as universal donor as it can be given to any of the four types of blood groups (mentioned

above).

Bones: (i) There are 206 bones in the skeletal system of an adult.

(ii) The largest bone is femur present in the thigh.

(iii) The shortest bone is the stirrup which is preserft in the middle ear.

Other important facts about the various organs of the human body:

1. The largest organ of the human body is skin.

2. Heart is responsible for regulating the circulation of blood in the body. The heart beat of adult males is

72 beats per minute.

3. Liver is the largest gland of the human body. It is concerned with the digestion of the food intake. •

4. Two kidneys are responsible for the filtering of nitrogenous waste of the body and throw it all in the form

of urine.

5. Pituitary gland is called the master gland as it influences the growth and metabolism by controlling

the other ductless glands, viz. thymus thyroid, adrenal, prostrate, pancreas and gonads.

(H) Vitamins, Their Sources and Diseases Caused Due to Their Deficiencies

Name of the vitamin Vitamin A

Vitamin B, (Thiamine) Vitamin B2(Riboflavin) Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) Niacin (Nicotinic acid) Folic Acid

Pantothenic Acid

Vit. B12 (Cyanocobalamin)

Vitamin C (Ascorbic acid)

VitaminD (Calciferol) Vitamin E (Tbcopherol)

Vitamin K (Menadione)

(H) Vitamins, Their Source and Diseases caused Due to their Deficiencies

Name of the vitamin Main Source Disease caused the to their

deficiencies

Vitamin A Milk, carrot, egg, animal fat,

etc

Night Blindness

Vitamin B1 ( Thiamine) Cereals, pulses, carrots Beriberi

Vitamin B2 ( Riboflavin) Liver, kidney, milk Chilosis, dermatitis

Vitamin B6 ( Pyridoxine) Yeast, cereals, liver Anemia

Niacin (Nicotinic acid) Peas, tomato, eggs Polyneuritis

Folic Acid

Pantothenic Acid Kidney, meat, Yeast Dermatitis

Vit. B12 (Cyanocobalamin) Milk, liver meat Pernicious anaemia

Vitamin C (Ascorbic acid) Lemons, milk, organs, fresh fruits

and vegetables

Scurvy, sore mouth and gums

bleeding

Vitamin D (Calciferol) Dairy products, sun rays, eggs, oil

fish, milk

Many diseases of the bones, rickets

in children, osteomalacia

Vitamin E (Tocopherol) Milk, beef, soybeans, egg yolk Interferes with reproduction and

causes abortion and menstrual

irrgulaties.

Vitamin K (Mendaione) Fish, peas and green vegetables Cause the delayed clotting of blood

(I) Other Diseases of the Human Body

Name of the disease Caused by Affected pat of the human body

Anaemia Deficiency of

haemoglobin

AIDS

(acquired immuno deficiency

syndrome)

Virus Weakness in the immune system of

the body.

Asthma Allergens Lungs

Diabetes Less production of

insulin hormone which

causes an increase in the

sugar level of the blood

Pancreas and blood

Diphtheria Bacteria Throat

Glaucoma High pressure in the eyes Eyes

Goitre Deficiency of iodine Throat

Hepatitis Virus (mainly) Jaundice

Malaria Plasmodium

Polio Virus Legs

Rheumatism Streptococuus bacteria in

children

Joints

Tonsillitis Bacterial and viral infection Glands in throat

Tuberculosis Bacteria Lungs

(J) Major Enzymes in the human digestive system

Body Part Enzyme Action

1. Mouth Salivary Amylase (Ptyalin, acidic, medium) Converts starch into disaccharides

2. Stomach Pepsin and Renin (Acidic medium) They act on proteins

3. Intestine Lipase, Trypsin, Carbohydrases (Medium is

now basic)

Lipase converts fats into acid and

glycerol. Trypsin converts proteins

into amino acids and carbohydrases

converts monosaccharides into

glucose.

CHAPTER 5 - SPORTS

(A) Major Sports Festivals of the World

(a) The Olympics: This is the world's most prestigious, international sports festival. These Games

originated in the ancient city of Greece.

Modern Olympic Games: Frenchman Baron Plerre de Coubertin is the father of modern Olympic

Games which started In 1896, in Athens. These' Games are held every four years, since then. The Winter

Olympic Games were started separately in 1924 in France.

Some important facts about Olympic Games:

(i) The first Modern Olympic Games were held at Athens, capital of Greece in 1896.

(ii) India has never hosted the Olympic Games in its history.

(iii) The last Olympic Games were held in 2004 at Athems in Australia and were the 28th edition of the

Games.

(iv) The Olympic flag is white in colour and has the emblem embedded in the centre of the flag.

(v) The emblem is made up of five intertwined rings having different colours which represent the five

continents of the world.

(vi) The Olympic motto is 'Citius, Altius, Furtius' which means swifter, higher, stronger.

(b) Commonwealth Games: They were held first in 1930 at Canada. They are also held every four years,

midway between the Olympic Games.

(c) Asian Games: It is a sports festival of Asian countries. J.L. Nehru was instrumental in giving shape to

Asian Games. First Asian Games were he-Id at New Delhi in 1951 and since then, these games have been

taking place every four years.

Modern Olympics: Pierre de Coubertin founded the International Olympic Committee in 1894 and

from since on Modern Olympics games started to be staged. In 1896, first modern Olympics games

were held in Athens (Greece). First Winter Olympics was stages in 1924 in Chamonix (France).

International Olympic Committee (IOC) is responsible for selecting the host, overseeing the

planning of Olympic games and other activities. IOC headquarters are in Laussane. The 1936

Summer Olympics In Berlin was the first games to be broadcast on television, though only to local

audiences. The 1956 Winter Olympics were the first internationally televised Olympics games.

The Olympic Symbol consists of five intertwined rings and represents the unity of five inhabited continents

(America, Asia, Africa, Europe and Australasia). The coloured version of the rings – Blue, Yellow, Black,

Green and Red – over a white field forms the Olympic flag. The flag was adopted in 1914 but flown for the

first time only at 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium.

The Olympic Motto is “Citius, Altius, Fortius” a latin expression meaning “Faster, Higher, Stronger. The

Olympic mascot, an animal or a human figure representing the Cultural heritage of host country was

introduced in 1968. In the opening ceremony parade, Greece is the first country to enter the ring in order to

honour the origins of Olympics. Nations then enter the stadium alphabetically according to host country’s

chosen language, with the host country’s athletes entering last.

The Summer Olympics consists of 26 sports, 30 disciplines and nearly 300 events, while Winter Olympics

features 15 sports. 2012 Summer Olympics are going to be held in London, while 2016 Summer Olympics will

be held in Rio De Janerio (Brazil). The next Winter Olympics will be hosted in Sochi, Russia in 2014, which

will be the first time this nation has hosted.

USA has hosted 4 Summer Olympics and 4 Winter Olympics, more than any other nation. Among host cities,

Los Angeles, Paris, Athens and London have played host to Olympics games twice and with 2012 Olympics

being held at London, London will become the first city to host Olympic Games thrice.

The first Olympic athlete to test positive for performance-enhancing drugs was Hans-Gunnar Lijenwall, a

Swedish athlete at 1968 Summer Olympics at Mexico City.

Olympic games are held every two years, with Summer and Winter games alternating one after the another.

So, actually Summer Olympics are held after every 4 years and same holds for Winter Olympics.

Last Summer Olympics was held in 2008 in Beijing in which participants from 204 countries took part, while

the most recent Winter Olympics was held in 2010 in Vancouver (Canada).

Que: Which Olympic athlete has won the most gold medals in a single Olympics?

Ans: Michael Phelps (8 gold medals) of USA in 2008 Beijing Olympics. Michael Phelps broke the record of

winning maximum gold medals at Beijing surpassing 7 gold medals won by USA swimmer Mark Spitz in 1972

Munich Olympics.

Que: Which Olympic athlete has won maximum medals at Olympic game?

Ans: Alexander Dityatin of Russia first won 8 medals at 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. And then

Michael Phelps of US won 8 gold medals in Athens Olympics in 2004 ( 6 gold & 2 bronze) and 8 gold medals at

Beijing Olympics in 2008, thus equalling the record of winning maximum number of medals in Olympic.

Que: Which Olympic athlete has won maximum number of medals in all the Olympics games played?

Ans: Soviet Gymnast Larissa Latynina has won 18 medals (9 gold) over three Olympics and second in the list

is Michael Phelps with 16 medals in two Olympics.

India at Olympics:

India first participated in Olympics in 1900, with a lone athlete (Norman Pritchard) winning two silver

medals in athletics (200m race and 200m hurdles).[International Olympic Committee regards the medals won

by Norman Pritchard as credited to India, but International committee credits it to Great Britian]. India first

sent a team to Olympics in 1920 Summer Olympics and has participated in every summer games since then.

India has also competed at Winter Olympics since 1964.

Indian Athletes have won a total of 20 medals, mostly in field hockey. Indian hockey team has won a total of

11 medals including six gold medals from 1928-1956.

Gold Medals: Hockey (1928, 1932, 1936, 1948, 1952, 1956, 1964, 1980) and Abhinav Bindra in 2008

Beijing Shooting.

Silver Medals: Hockey (1960), Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore in (Shooting 2004 Athens) and Norman

Pritchard (in Athletes 1900 Paris).

Bronze Medals: K.D.Jadhav (Wrestling in 1952 Helsinki Olympics), Hockey in (1968 & 1972), Leander Paes

in (1996 tennis singles), Karnam Maaleshwari in (Weightlifting 2000 Sydney), Sushil Kumar (wrestling in

2008 Beijing) and Vijender Kumar in (Boxing in 2008 Beijing).

Note: If we do not count Norman Pritchard as Indian as it is debated, then the first Indian to win a medal at

Olympics in individual event will be K.D.Jadhav (Wresting in 1952 helsinki).

FIFA World Cup Winner 2010: Spain and finalist: The Netherlands.

Golden ball Winner: Diego Forlan (5 goals) (Uruguay) (Best Player of the tournament)

Golden Boot Winner: Thomas Muller (5 goals, Germany).

Que: Which country has won maximum times Football World Cup?

Ans: Brazil (5 times.) And also Brazil are the only team to have played in all 19 World Cup tournaments.

Que: Where will be the 2014 FIFA World Cup Football be organized?

Ans: Brazil

(B) Important International Cups, Trophies and Associated Sports Disciplines

Name of the cup/trophy Associated sports

Davis Cup

Wimbledon Trophy lawn tennis

Derby Horse racing

Merdeka (Asian Cup) Football

Thomas Cup (Men) Badminton

Uber Cup (Women) Badminton

Yonex Cup Badminton

Walker Cup Golf

Ryder Cup Golf

Canada Cup Golf

William Jones Cup Basketball

(C) Important National Cups, Trophies and Associated Sports Disciplines

Name of the cup/trophy Associated sports

Duleep Trophy

Shish Mahal Trophy

Ranji Trophy (National Title) Cricket

Vizzy Trophy

Irani Cup

Durand Cup

Santosh Memorial Trophy

Subroto Mukherjee Cup

Rovers Cup Football

Sanjay Gold Cup

Nizam Gold Cup

B.C, Roy Trophy (National Junior Championship

Rangaswarni Cup (National Title) Hockey

Lady Ratan Tata Trophy (Women's)

Nehru Trophy

Aga Khan Cup Hockey

Seighton Cup

GuruNanak Championship (All-India Women)

Dhyan Chand Trophy

Murugappa Gola Cup

EzarCup Polo

(D) Important Terms Associated with various sports Disciplines

Sports Terms associated with sports disciplines

Badminton Luv, deuce, drop, smash, double touch

Basketball Pivot, dribble, basket, block, held ball

Billiards Spider, baulk, cue, scratch, cannon

Boxing Hook, rounds, punch, Jab, countdown, knock-outs,

all the weights, (flyweight, middleweight, heavyweight, etc.)

Bridge Tricks, trump, suite, little slam, rubber

Chess Knight, king, Sicilian defence, move, gambit,

checkmate, rook, stalemate, queen, bishop, pawn

Cricket Gully, hat-trick, pull, beamer, hook, googly, flick,

follow-on, maiden, declare

Golf Tee, birdie, club, course, Iron, eagle, links, caddie,

putt, hole, Bogey, Fore, Niblic

Hockey Centre, penalty-stroke, free-hit, foul, carry, stick,

corner, dribble, trapping

Table tennis Deuce, drop, spin, smash, let

Tennis Grand slam, lob, ace, passing shot, top-spin,

forehand, crosscourt, deuce, down the line, slice

Volleyball Heave, serve, blocking, point, doubling

Commonwealth group:

The commonwealth Group previously known as British Commonwealth is an organization of 54 sovereign

states. All these countries except two ( Mozambique and Rwanda) were formerly part of British Empire.

Headquarters of Commonwealth Group is at London.

Head of Commonwealth Group is Queen Elizabeth II.

Secretary-general of Commonwealth Group is Kamalesh Sharma.

Chairperson-in-office of Commonwealth is Kamla Prasad.

First Commonwealth games were held in 1930.

The Flag of Commonwealth consists of the symbol of Commonwealth Secretariat, represented by a gold

globe surrounded by rays on a dark blue field and was officially adopted in 1976.

Some Facts related to 2010 Commonwealth Games:

XIX Commonwealth games were held in new Delhi in October 2010. A total of 6081 athletes from 71

Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events.

The mascot of the games was “SHERA”.

It was the largest multi-sport international event to be held in India after 1951 and 1982 Asian games.

The opening and closing ceremonies of the event was held at the jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, New Delhi. It

was for the first time that commonwealth games were held in India and second time in Asia after 1998 Kuala

Lumpur Malaysia 1998.

The official song of the games was “Jiyo Utho Badho Jeeto” composed by A.R.Rahman.

All member nations of Commonwealth Group participated in these games except Fiji (which is suspended

from the Commonwealth) and Tokelau (which did not send a team).

Australia topped the tally with 74 Golds and total of 177 medals. While India put up a strong display with 38

Gold medals and ended in second position. While England ended in 3rd position with 37 Gold medals.

President of Commonwealth Games federation is Mike Fenell.

The Queen’s Baton relay began when the baton, left Buckingham Palace London on 29th October 2009 and

reached New Delhi at opening ceremony of 2010 Games. The Queen’s baton relay contains Queen Elizabeth’s

message to all participating athletes in games.

The baton was designed by Michael Foley.

Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Pratibha Patil, president of India officially declared the games open.

Chief Guests of Opening Ceremonies were a) Mohamed Nasheed, President of Maldives

b) Marcus Stephen, President of Nauru

c) and Prince Albert II of Monaco.

Kabaddi was a demonstration sport at games.

Organizers had removed triathlon and basketball from the games.

The games closed on 14th October 2010 and commonwealth games flag was handed over to the

representatives of Glasgow, Scotland where the 2014 XX Commonwealth games will be held.

Indian Premier League

Team Owner

Mumbai Indians Mukesh Ambani

Royal Challengers Bangalore Vijay Mallya

Deccan Chargers Deccan Chronicle

Delhi Daredevils GMR Group

Chennai Super Kings India Cements

Kings XI Punjab Ness Wadia, Preity Zinta, Mohit Burman, Gaurav Burman,

Karan Paul, Aditya Khanna, Arvind Khanna

Kolkata Knight Riders Red Chillies Entertainment (Shahrukh Khan, Gauri Khan,

Juhi Chawla, & Jai Mehta)

Rajasthan Royals Emerging Media (Lachlan Murdoch, A. R. Jha) Shilpa Shetty,

Raj Kundra, Suresh & Kavita Chellaram

Pune Warriors Sahara Group

Kochi Rendezvous Sports

Khel Ratna Awards (Year Awardee Discipline)

1991-1992................ Viswanathan Anand ......................................... Chess

1992-1993................ Geet Sethi ........................................................ Billiards

1993-1994................ Not Conferred*................................................ —

1994-1995................ Cdr. Homi D. Motivala (Joint) ........................ Yachting (Team Event)

1994-1995................ Lt Cdr P. K. Garg (Joint) ................................. Yachting (Team Event)

1995-1996................ Karnam Malleswari .......................................... Weightlifting

1996-1997................ Nameirakpam Kunjarani (Joint) ...................... Weightlifting

1996-1997................ Leander Paes (Joint) ......................................... Tennis

1997-1998................ Sachin Tendulkar ............................................. Cricket

1998-1999................ Jyotirmoyee Sikdar ........................................... Athletics

1999–2000 ............... Dhanraj Pillay .................................................. Hockey

2000-2001................ Pullela Gopichand ............................................ Badminton

2001-2002................ Abhinav Bindra................................................ Shooting

2002-2003................ Anjali Ved Pathak Bhagwat (Joint) ................... Shooting

2002-2003................ K. M. Beenamol (Joint) ................................... Athletics

2003-2004................ Anju Bobby George ......................................... Athletics

2004-2005................ Lt Col Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore ................. Shooting

2005-2006................ Pankaj Advani .................................................. Billiards and Snooker

2006-2007................ Manavjit Singh Sandhu ................................... Shooting

2007-2008................ Mahendra Singh Dhoni ................................... Cricket

2008-2009................ Mary Kom (Joint) ............................................ Boxing

2008-2009................ Vijender Singh (Joint)...................................... Boxing

2008-2009................ Sushil Kumar (Joint) ........................................ Wrestling

2009-2010................ Saina Nehwal ................................................... Badminton

2010-2011 Gagan Narang Shooting

* The award was not conferred upon any sportsperson or team in the year 1993-94.

List of Indian Gold medal winners at the CWG

Gold Medalist Discipline

1. Abhinav Bindra, Gagan Narang ...Shooting

2. Rahi Sarnobat, Anisa Sayyed....... Shooting

3. Anil Kumar ................................. Wrestling

4. Sanjay ......................................... Wrestling

5. Ravinder Singh ........................... Wrestling

6. Gagan Narang ............................. Shooting

7. Anisa Sayyid ................................ Shooting

8. Omkar Singh .............................. Shooting

9. Somdev Burman ......................... Tennis

10. Rajendra Kumar..........................Wrestling

11. Ravi Kumar.................................Wrestling

12. Vijay Kumar, Gurpreet Sing .......Shooting

13. Geeta Devi ..................................Wrestling

14. Omkar Singh, Gurpreet Singh .... Shooting

& Bombayala Devi .................. Archery

15. Manoj Kumar ............................. Boxing

16. Gagan Narang, Imran Hassan .... Shooting

Sharat Kamal ........................... Table Tennis

17. Vijay Kumar ................................ Shooting

18. Alka Tomar ................................. Wrestling

19. Anitha ......................................... Wrestling

20. Omkar Singh .............................. Shooting

21. Harpreet Singh, Vijay Kumar ..... Shooting

22. Gagan Narang .......................... Shooting

23. Yogeshwar Dutt ........................ Wrestling

24. Narsingh Pancham Yadav ......... Wrestling

25. Deepika Kumari ....................... Archery

26. Harpreet Singh......................... Shooting

27. Rahul Banerjee ......................... Archery

28. Sushil Kumar ........................... Wrestling

29. Renu Bala Chanu..................... Weightlifting

30. Krishna Poonia ......................... Discus Throw

31. Annu Raj Singh, Heena Sidhu .. . Shooting

32. A. C. Ashwini, Manjeet Kaur,

Mandeep Kaur, & Sini Jose ..... Athletics

33. Dola Banerjee, Dipika Kumari, Do

34. Subhajit Saha & Achanta Do

35. Paramjeet Samota ..................... Boxing

36. Suranjoy Mayengbam Singh .... Boxing

37. Jwala Gutta, Ashwini Ponappa ... Badminton

38. Saina Nehwal ........................... Badminton

CHAPTER 6 - CULTURE OF INDIA

Indian Culture

Indian culture is one of the oldest known cultures to humanity. Although it is very difficult to cater the

unique and vast cultural heritage of India but still an attempt has been made to cover all the relevant areas

that are related to Indian culture.

The important sections are as follows:

A. Literature

B. Dance

C. Music

D. Architecture

A. Literature:

The literature of India is one of the oldest literature in the world. Here ie the collection of some of the famous

works of Indian literature.

Book Author

1. Ramayana Valmiki

2. Mahabharata Ved Vyas

3. Ramcharit Manas Ttilsidas

4. Ashtadhyayi Panini

5. Abhigyan Shakuntalam Kalidas

6. Meghdoot Kalidas

7. Vkmovarshiyam Kalidas

8. Rtusamhar Kalidas

9. Mrichchkatika Shuciraka

10. Ratnavali Harsha

11 Geetgovinda Jayadeva

12. Arthashastra Vishnugupt / Chanakya

13. Kamasutra Vatsyayan

14. Svapnavasavdattam Bhaasa

15. Manusmriti Manu

16. Ananda Math Sharat Chandra Chatterjee

17. Devdas Bankim Chandra Chatterjee

18. Gitanjali Rabindranath Tagore

19. GitaRahasya B. G. Tilak

20. Harsha Charita Banabhatl

21. Kadambari Banabhatl

22. Kamayani Jai Shankar Prasad

23. Mudra Rakshas Vishakhadutta

24. Panchatantra Vishnu Sharma

25. Satyariha Prakash Swami Dayananda Sarasvvati

26. Mitakshara Vignaneslwara

B. Dace

important and famous dances of India:

Broadly the dance forms can be classified into two types, viz. classical dance and folk dance.

(i) important and famous classical dances of India:

Kathakali, Mohiniattam, Chakiarkoothu. Ottum Thulal: These are the famous dance forms that belongs

to Kerala. Polio vi Krishnan and Bharti Shivaj; are :he famous exponents of Mohiniattam form of dance.

Maciavoor Vasudevan Nair U a famous exponent of Kathakali form c: uance.

(ii) Bharatnatyam: This is a famous dance form '.hat belongs to Tamil Nadu.The famous exponents of

this dance form are Yarrini Krishnamurty, Padma SubrainaiVyain. Mallika Satabhai.:

3. Kuchipudi: This dance form belongs to Andhra Pradesh. The famous exponents of this dance form are

Raja and Radha Reddy (duo), Yamini Krishnamurty, Mallika Sarabhai.

4. Odissi: This dance form belongs to Orissa. The famous exponents of this dance form are late Kelucharan

Mahapatra, Sonal Mansingh.

5. Kathak: This is a dance form that belongs to Uttar Pradesh. The famous exponents of this dance

form are Birjoo Maharaj, Uma Sharma.

6. Manipuri: This is a famous dance form of Manipur.

7. Yakshagana: This is a famous dance form of Kamataka.

(ii) Important Folk Dances of India:

1. Jatra: This is a famous folk dance form of West Bengal.

2. Kolattam: This is a folk dance form that belongs to Kerala.

3. Bhangara: This is a famous folk dance form of Punjab.

4. Nautanki: This is a famous folk dance form of Uttar Pradesh.

5. Dandya Ras and Garba: These are the famous folk dance forms of Gujarat.

6. Tamasha: This is a famous folk dance form of Maharashtra.

7. Fagun and Jata Jatin: These are the folk dance forms of Bihar.

8. Macha: This is a folk dance form of Madhya Pradesh

9. Ankia Nat and Bihu: These are the famous (oik dance forms of Assam.

(i) Famous and Important music artists of India and their associated disciplines

1. Pt. Bhimsen Joshi: Hindustani Vocalist

2. Pt. Jasraj: Hindustani Vocalist

3. Late M. S. Subbulakshmi: Famous Camatic Vocalist

4. Allauddin Khan: Hindustani Vocalist

5. Bade Gulam AH Khan: Hindustani Vocalist

6. Basavraj Rajguru: Hindustani Vocalist

7. Dr. M. Balmuralikrishna: Camatic Vocalist

8. D. K. Pattamal: Camatic Vocalist

9. K. J. Yesudas: Carnatic Vocalist

10. Gangubai Hangal: Hindustani Vocalist

11. Parveen Sultana: Hindustani Vocalist

12. Rajan and Sajan Mishra: Hindustan Vocalist

13. Kishori Amonkar: Hindustani Vocalist

(ii) Famous and important musical instrumentalists of India

Musical Instrument Artist

1. Sitar Pandit Ravi Shankar, Debu Chaudhary, Annapuma Devi, Anoushka Shankar

2. Flute Pt. Hart Prasad Chourasiya, Jayantha Bannerjee

3. Violin N. Rajam, P. L Pawar

4. Sarod Amjad All Kihan, All Akbar Khan, Aman and Ayan All Bangish, Sharan Rani.

5. Shehnai Bismillah Khan, Shailesh Bhagat, Anant Lal

6. Tabla Shafat Ahmed Khan, Kishan Maharaj, Late Allah Rakha, Ustad Zakir Hussain

7. Santoor Bhajan Sonora, Shiv Kumar Sharma

8. Others

(a) Mohan Veena Vishwa Mohan Bhatt

(b) Sarangi RamNarayan

D. Architecture: India has a very rich architectural legacy as a result of which we have so many

marvellous architectural monuments in India. Mughal architecture and Dravidian architecture are to name a

few. Given below is the list of the architectural monuments.

Important and famous architectural marvels of India

1. Bhimbetka Caves: Located in Madhya Pradesh at the edge of Vindhyachal hills, rock shelters of

Bhimbetka are believed to be the place where earliest known traces of human life have been found in India.

The interesting features of Bhimbetka include rock shelters, caves and the rock paintings of Bhimbetka.

2. Taj Mahal: Built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in the memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal, this is a

marvellous piece of Islamic architecture in India and is one of the finest buildings of the world. Taj Mahal is

located in Agra, a town in Uttar Pradesh on the banks of the river Yamuna.

3. Konark Temple: Built in the 13th century by King Narsimhadeva, this temple is dedicated to the Lord

Sun. This temple is located in Orissa and is the epitome of the Oriya temple architecture.

4. Mahabodhi Temple: This is a famous Bodh temple located at Bodh Gaya in Bihar. This is the place

where the founder of Buddhism, Gautam Buddha, attained enlightenment.

5. Fatehpur Slkri: This city of historical importance was built by the great Mughal emperor Akbar in

1569 in the honour of Muslim saint Sheikh Salim Chishti at a place near Agra in Uttar Pradesh.

6. Khajuraho Temples: This temple is situated in Madhya Pradesh. Built by the Chandela dynasty

rulers, these temples are the wonderful work of medieval temple architecture.

7. Mahabalipuram: The temple is located in Tamil Nadu. These group of monuments including the

temples were built by the Pallava Dynasty rulers and is considered as an exceptional work of Dravidian

architecture. The monuments are mostly rock cut and monolithic.

8 Qutub Minar: Situated in New Delhi, this minaret is a wonder of Islamic architecture. Started by

Qutub-ud-din-Aibak, this minaret was completed by Firoz Shah Tughlaq. The height of the towe,r is 72.5

metres.

9 Humayun'sTomb: This tomb of Humayun was built by Humayun's wife, Haji Begham. The Humayun's

tomb also encompasses the tomb of Babur. The tomb located in New Delhi is an excellent piece of work ol

Mughal architecture.

10. Ellora Caves: The Ellora caves was built between 6th to 10th century. It is known for

magnificent work of rock cu architecture, comprising of Jain. Buddhist, Hindu temples and monasteries.

These caves are locate in Maharashtra.

11. Ajanta Caves: Situated in Maharashtra, these caves have lot of dwelling halls, also known as Viharas.

12. Brihadeshwara Temple: Located in Tamil Nadu. this temple was built by Rajraja - I of Chola dynasty,

around 10th centur The main god of this temple is Lord Shiva. This temple is a very good example of

Dravidian architecture

CHAPTER-7-Bussiness GK

Top six destinations for FDI in 2009–2011

Summary of survey results (concluded) (Per cent of responses to the UNCTAD survey)

China 56

United States 47

India 34

Brazil 25

Russian Federation 21

United Kingdom 18

Leading factors influencing the location of companies, 2009–2011 (per cent of responses)

Size of local market 17

Growth of market 16

Presence of suppliers and partners 10

Access to international/regional markets 10

Stable and business-friendly environment 8

Most important location criteria by sector, 2009–2011 Primary sector Manufacturing sector

Services sector

Access to natural resources Size of local market Size of local market

Stable and business-friendly environment Growth of market Growth of market

Size of local market Presence of suppliers and partners Presence of suppliers and partners

India’s FDI inflow scenario

Introduction

India enjoys a strong position as a global investment hub with the country registering high economic growth

figures even during the peak of financial meltdown. As a result, overseas investors rested their confidence in

the economy which eventually pushed foreign direct investments (FDI) in India. The fact is further

consolidated by the excerpts of a research by Morgan Stanley which anticipates that India could attract FDI

worth as much as US$ 80 billion in next 1-2 years. Around US$ 48 billion of FDI has been pumped in the

Indian economy in the last two years.

Considering the pace of FDI growth in India, KPMG officials believe that FDI in 2011-12 may cross US$ 35

billion mark.

Key Statistics

• FDI inflow rose by 50 per cent to US$ 20.76 billion during January-August 2011, while the cumulative

amount of FDI equity inflows from April 2000 to August 2011 stood at US$ 219.14 billion, according to the

latest data released by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).

• Services (financial and non- financial), telecom, housing and real estate, construction and power were the

sectors that attracted maximum FDI during the first eight months of 2011 while Mauritius, Singapore, the

US, the UK, the Netherlands, Japan, Germany and the UAE, among others, are the major investors in India.

• India's foreign exchange (Forex) reserves have increased by US$ 858 million to US$ 318.4 billion for the

week ended October 21, 2011, according to the weekly statistical bulletin released by the Reserve Bank of

India (RBI). In the considered week, foreign currency assets went up by US$ 861 million to US$ 282.5 billion,

while the gold reserves stood at US$ 28.7 billion.

• Quenching its thirst for foreign assets, India Inc announced 177 M&A deals worth US$ 26.8 billion in the

first nine months of 2011. For the quarter July-September 2011, inbound deals worth US$ 7.32 billion were

registered as against the deals worth US$ 2.65 billion in the previous quarter; total value being largely

accounted for by two mega deals - BP's US$ 7.2 billion acquisition of stake in Reliance Industries' oil and gas

properties and Vodafone Group's purchase of partner Essar's 33 per cent stake in Vodafone Essar Limited for

US$ 5.46 billion.

Important Developments

DIPP has proposed to permit 26 per cent FDI in domestic airlines, allowing foreign airlines to hold a stake in

their Indian counterparts. The draft Cabinet note has been circulated for inter-ministerial consultation.

Indian government cleared 11 FDI proposals on October 10, 2011 entailing investment of around Rs 182.78

crore (US$ 37.53 million). Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), headed by Economic Affairs Secretary

R Gopalan, gave its nod to the following major proposals:

• Kolkata-based Pran Beverages’ FDI proposal for Rs 16.45 crore (US$ 3.38 million), to be pumped as

foreign equity by a Bangladesh-based company.

• Another Rs 39.36 crore (US$ 8.08 million) FDI proposal by DMV-Fonterra Excipients entailing induction

of foreign investment to an extent of up to 100 per cent in the capital of a newly-formed Limited Liability

partnership (LLP) firm involved in the business of manufacturing and sale of pharmaceutical excipients.

• Further, Mumbai-based Ace Derivatives and Commodity Exchange’s proposal to transfer its equity

shares to foreign institutional investors (FIIs), such that the holding of each FII does not exceed 5 per cent of

the equity of the company. The proposal is worth Rs 10.53 crore (US$ 2.16 million).

South Africa-based Life Healthcare Group Holdings is buying 26 per cent stake in the healthcare arm of Max

India, valued at Rs 1,984 crore (US$ 405 million). PE firms such as Warburg Pincus, Goldman Sachs and

International Finance Corporation hold around 25 per cent stake in Max India while its Foreign Institutional

Investors (FII) also include Temasek.

Marking its second investment in India, Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway will induce investment in a

chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) industrial unit in Gujarat, through its wholly owned subsidiary

Lubrizol Corporation. Lubrizol will initially invest Rs 1,177 crore (US$ 242 million) in the project and its

construction work is expected to commence by January 2013.

In order to tap more foreign funds, Cox and Kings has got the nod from Foreign Investment Promotion Board

(FIPB) to increase its foreign equity by 10 per cent to 53.94 per cent, from the previous 43.81 per cent.

Currently, foreign promoters have a stake of 19.87 per cent and FIIs hold 22.72 per cent. FIPB has granted its

approval to the travel company to raise Rs 750 crore (US$ 154 million) from foreign markets.

Meanwhile, Singapore-based Global Schools Foundation plans to invest Rs 300 crore (US$ 61.6 million) and

start 25 schools in India over 2011-16. The foundation owns and operates Global Indian International Schools

(GIIS) and Global School of Silicon Valley (GSSV) across eight countries all over the world.

Policy Initiatives

Recently, the government has further liberalised the FDI mechanism for allowing overseas investment in bee-

keeping and share-pledging for raising external debt.

Moreover, it has eased FDI norms for construction of old-age homes and educational institutions. The

modification endorses removal of issues pertaining to the minimum and built-up area, capitalisation and lock-

in period as applicable for other construction activities.

In a bid to facilitate addition of manufacturing capacities, technology acquisition and development in Indian

pharmaceutical sector, FDI in Brownfield investment will be allowed through the FIPB for six months,

following which such acquisitions will be coursed through the Competition Commission of India (CCI), while

it will be allowed through automatic route for Greenfield projects. When FIPB will clear the acquisition in six

months, CCI will put regulations in place to ensure effective M&A deal while monitoring public health

concerns.

Meanwhile, seeing the expansion of luxury brands market in India, the government is considering raising

FDI bar to 100 per cent from current 51 per cent in single-brand retailing. The proposal has been placed

before a joint government-industry task force for consultation.

The above stated initiatives clearly show that the Indian Government continues to work on streamlining

policies and make the environment friendlier to FDI.

[Exchange Rate used: INR1 = US$ 0.0205 as on October 31, 2011]

Top 10 GDP Countries 2000-2050(predicted

2050

Ran

k

Country

Name

2000

GD

P

2010

GDP

2020

GDP

2030

GDP

2040

GDP

2050

GDP

1 China 1078 2998 7070 14312 26439 44453

* European 9395 12965 16861 21075 28323 35288

Union *

2 United

States 9825 13271 16415 20833 27229 35165

3 India 469 929 2104 4935 12367 27803

4 Japan 4176 4601 5221 5810 6039 6673

5 Brazil 762 668 1333 2189 3740 6074

6 Russia 391 847 1741 2980 4467 5870

7 United

Kingdom 1437 1876 2285 2649 3201 3782

8 Germany 1875 2212 2524 2697 3147 3603

9 France 1311 1622 1930 2267 2668 3148

10 Italy 1078 1337 1553 1671 1788 2061

* European Union GDP is calculated and shown for comparison, but not ranked.

Foreign Direct Investment

% of FDI Cap / Equity following activities / sectors:

(a) Retail Trading (except Aquaculture, Tea Plantation 100 single brand product Mining 100 retailing)

(b) Lottery Business including

Airports (Greenfield & Existing) 100

Banking – Private Sector 49 through automatic route

Government / private 74 via Govt. approval lottery, online lotteries,

Banking – Public Sector 20 (both FDI & FII) etc.

(c) Gambling and Betting

- Terrestrial FM 20

- Cable Network 49 (incl FDI, FII, & NRI) including casinos, etc.

- Direct-to-Home 49 (incl FDI, FII, & NRI)

(d) Business of chit fund

Commodity Exchange 49 (includes 23% for FII)

(e) Nidhi company

Real Estate (Townships, Housing) 100

(f) Trading in Transferable

Credit Information Companies 49 (both FDI & FII)

Industrial Parks 100

Development Rights

Insurance 26

(TDRs)

Non-Banking Finance Companies 100

(g) Real Estate Business or

Petroleum & Gas Sector (exploring

Construction of Farm

& refining)

Houses

- by private sector companies 100

- by public sector companies 49

(h) Manufacturing of Cigars, cigarettes, cheroots, cigarillos and of tobacco or of tobacco substitutes

(i) Activities / sectors not opened to private sector

Satellites – Establishment & operation 74

Telecommunication – 49 through automatic route

Telecom Services 74 via Govt. approval

investment including

Internet Service Providers 49 through automatic route

Atomic Energy and 74 via Govt. approval

Railway Transport (other Trading than Mass Rapid Transport Systems).

(j) Print Media

Current Affairs & News 26

Scientific & Technical journals 100

Facsimile edition of foreign newspapers 100

(K) Defence 26

(l) Wholesale cash & carry 100

(m) Single Brand Retail 51

Top Ten Recent Global M&A

Target Buyer Deal Value (in U.S.$)

7/22/2010 – General Motors [GM] – AmeriCredit Corp ($3.5 billion).

7/29/2010 – Sanofi-Aventis [SNY] – Genzyme [GENZ] ($18.5 billion).

7/19/2010 – Intel [INTC] – McAfee [MFE] ($7.7 billion).

9/2/8/14/2010 -BHP Billiton [BHP] – Potash Corp [POT/tse:POT] ($40 billion).

82010 – Goldcorp [GG/tse:G] – Andean Resources Ltd [tse:AND] ($3.4 billion).

9/17/2010 – Johnson & Johson [JNJ] – Crucell [CRXL] ($2.3 billion).

9/27/2010 – Unilever Plc [UL] – Alberto Culver [ACV] ($3.7 billion).

11/22/2010 – The Bank of Nova Scotia [BNS/tse:BNS] agreed to acquire all shares of DundeeWealth Inc

[tse:DW] ($3.2 billion).

12/7/2010 – Toronto-Dominion Bank [TD/tse:TD] agreed to acquire Chrysler Financial, the auto lender

owned by Cerberus Capital Management ($6.3 billion).

12/17/2010 – Bank of Montreal [BMO/tse:BMO] announced it was buying Marshall & Ilsley Corp [MI] ($4.1

billion).

1/28/2010 – BHP Billiton’s [BHP] acquisition of Athabasca Potash Inc. (API), with a total

equity value of approximately $341 million CDN ($320 million USD).

8/14/2010 – BHP Billiton’s [BHP] announced intention to acquire all outstanding common shares of Potash

Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. [POT/tse:POT] at a price of US$130 per share (approximately US$40

billion), which was eventually rejected by the company and the Canadian government.

11/22/2010 – European fertilizer giant K+S Group’s $434 million takeover of Potash One Inc [tse:KCL].

Punchline of ‘YES Bank’: Experience are expertise

New Punchline of Dabur is: Celebrate Life

‘Let your heart fly’ is associated with: Indian Airlines

‘Big Bazaar’ and ‘Food Bazaar’ are owned by: Pantaloon Retail

‘We understand your world” is the punchline of HDFC Bank

Branded diesel ‘Turbojet’ belongs to : HPCL

Popular Whisky brand ‘Johnny Walker’ belongs to company: DIAGEO

‘The future of Automobile’ is the punchline of: Mercedes Benz

Electrolux, world’s largest home appliance company belongs to : Sweden

‘Honours yours Trust’ is the punchline of bank: UCO Bank

Hindi Business Channel ‘Awaaz’ is owned by: CNBC TV 18

Ashok Leyland company belongs to industrial group: Hinduja

HSBC Bank holds stakes in Indian Bank: AXIS Bank

‘Delighting you always’ is the punchline of Canon

AC Manufacturer Voltas belongs to group: Tata

SBI’s rank on the list of World’s top Bank is 80

Hindi News Channel ‘Channel 7’ belongs to group: Dainik Jagran

Spencers supermarket is owned by group: RPG

‘Inspiring Confidence’ is the tagline of Bajaj

‘Putting news first’ is the punchline of news channel: BBC

Amitabh Bachchan is the brand ambassador of this Jewellery Brand: D’dmas

Promoter of Optical Storage Maker ‘Moser Baer’: Deepak Puri

Global telecom and networking company Cable and Wireless has tied up with this Indian Company: VSNL

The punchline ‘Let there be light’ is associated with: Hindustan Times

‘Uncommon Sense’ adline is associated with: Marico Industries

Domestic Rating Agency CRISIL has been acquired by: Standard & Poor

Walton family is promoter of which famous Company: Walmart

“India’s International Bank” is tagline of: Bank Of Baroda

The company which has acquired mobile handset business of Siemens(Germany): BenQ

“Hindi at its best” is associated with: Navbharat Times

‘Petronas’ is one of the Petroluem Company based in: Malaysia

The foreign tobacco company which holds equity stakes in ITC is: British American Tobacco

Two confectionary brands ‘Maha Lacto’ and ‘Eclair’ are owned by company: Nutrine

‘An Indian Multinational’ is adline associated with: Videocon

The Times of India is set to launch a 24 hour news channel in alliance with this international media entity:

Reuters

Essar Steel is promoted by: Ruia family

Prime Minister of England when India got its independence: Clement Atlee

The person who has been given the sobriquet “Little Corporal”: Napoleon Bonaparte

Mughal ruler who started a new religion “Din-e-Elahi”: Akbar

The country which has been admitted to G-20: Uruguay

The city which has the sobriquet “ Paris of Latin America”: Buenos Aires

In Greek Mythology, the father of Pegasus(the winged horse): Poseidon

The airline which has common man as its lucky mascot: Air Deccan

France Telecom sold its 9.9 % stake in this cellular service company: BPL Telecom

The company which has entered into branded filter coffee segment under the name Mr. Bean Coffee

Junction: Tata Coffee

HB written on the HB pencils stands for: Hard Bond

Corporate Tax is levied on : Income of Companies

I was created by Bobby Kooka in 1938. Who am I?: Air India’s Maharaja

This European Bank holds 6 % stake in HCL technologies: Deutsche Bank

The company which owns the brand “Vicks Vaporub”: P & G

“The Power on your side” is the punchline of : Bajaj Allianz

“Going beyond Expectations” is the punchline of: Malaysia Airlines

Footwear company Aero Club owns this brand: WoodLand

The biggest airport in the world(area): King Fahd International Airport, Riyadh(Saudi Arabia)

Nobel Prize was started in this year: 1901

Anatoly Karpov(Russia) is associated with: Chess

“Statue of Liberty” was a gift to US from this country: France

“Man of Destiny” was the sobriquet given to: Napoleon Bonaparte

UN day is celebrated on: 24th October

The emblem of UN is: The Olive branch

Owner of Star T.V Network is: Rupert Murdoch

“Delighting You Always” is the punchline of: Canon

Kolkata based clubs Mohan Bagan and East Bengal are owned by this businessman: Vijay Mallaya

Chik and Fairever brands are owned by this company: Cavin Care

India’s first Corporatized port is at: Ennore(near Chennai)

“Swarmala Entertainment” a music company is a joint venture between: BMG & Sony

Strepsils, Clearsil drugs are from: Boots Piramal Health Care

Nivea Brand is owned by: Beiersdorf

World’s largest Spirits Company: DIAGEO

Spiritual Channel Jagran is promoted by: Zee TV

Nicklodeon a channel for kids belongs to: Viacom Inc. Media Group

Company which is largest supplier of HIV AIDS drug: Glaxo

Brand Ambassdor of Gillette: David Beckham

“Blue Box”, “Green Box” are terms related with: Agricultural subsidies in WTO

India’s first LNG Terminal has been established at: Dahej (Gujrat)

Some Punch lines

Toshiba: Choose Freedom

Walmart: Always low prices. Always.

Haier: Inspired living

JVC: The perfect Experience

Sony: Like no other

Samsung: Imagine the possibilities

Hyundai: Drive your way

Honda: The power of dreams

Louis Phillipe: The upper Crest

Peter England: Honestly Impressive

BMW: The ultimate Driving Machine

TCS: Beyond the obvious

Star Sports: We know your game

Infosys: Powered by Intellect, driven by values

Apple Macintosh: Think different

NDTV Profit: News you can use

Servo: 100 % performance. Every time.

Speed: High Performance Petrol.

ONGC: Making tomorrow brighter

Air Canada: A breath of fresh air

British Airways: The way to fly.

At &T: Your world. Delivered

Standard Chartered Bank: Leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East

Sun Microsystems: The network is the Computer

DELL: Yours is here

LEE: The jeans that built America

IBM: On demand Business, in demand people

FIAT: Driven by Passion

Volkswagen: The Car

Accenture: High Performance, delivered.

HP-Invent: Everything is possible

Windows XP: Do more with less

Microsoft: Your Potential Our Passion

Amazon.com: … and you are done

MRF Tyres: Tyres with muscles

Chevron Corporation: Human Energy

IBP: Pure Bhi, Poora Bhi

GAIL: Gas and beyond

EPZ stands for: Export Processing Zone

Kelkar Committee related to: Direct Taxes

Chairman of Britannia Industries: Mr. N.N. Wadia

Newspaper started by Jawaharlal Nehru: National Herald

Punch lines for Famous Brands

• Digit: Your Technology Navigator

• Fiat: Driven By Passion

• Abn Amro Bank: Making More Possible

• Accenture : High Performance Delivered

• Adobe: Simplicity At Work Better By Adobe

• AIG Or American International Group Insurance Company: We Know Money

• Air Canada: A Breath Of Fresh Air

• Air Deccan: Simply Fly

• Allianz Group: The Power On Your Side

• American Red Cross: Together We Prepare

• Andhra Bank: Much More To Do, With YOU In Focus

• Andhra Pradesh : The Kohinoor Of India

• Apple Macintosh: Think Different

• Arcelor: Steel Solutions For A Better World

• Astrazeneca : Life Inspiring Ideas

• At & T: The World’s Networking Company

• Audi: Vorsprung Durch Technik

• Austrian Airlines: Fly With Friends

• Axa UK: Be Life Confident

• Bank Of America: Higher Standards

• Bank Of Baroda: India’s International Bank

• Bank Of Rajasthan: Dare To Dream

• Barclays: Fluent In Finance; Its Our Business To Know Your Business

• Big Bazaar: Is Se Sasta Aur Achcha Kahee Nahee

• Biocon : The Difference Lies In Our Dna

• Blogger.com: Push Button Publishing

• Bloomingdales: Like No Other Store In The World

• BMW: The Ultimate Driving Machine

• Boeing: Forever New Frontiers

• Bombay Stock Exchange: The Edge Is Efficiency

• BPCL: Pure For Sure

• Brand Of BPCL, Speed: High Performance Petrol

• Brand Of IOCL, Servo: 100 % Performance Everytime

• Bridgestone: Passion For Excellence

• Bill And Melinda Gates Foundation : Bringing Innovations In Health And Learning To The Global

Community

• Bristol Myers Squibb : Extending And Enhancing Human Life

• British Airways: The Way To Fly

• British Petroleum: Beyond Petroleum

• Business India: The Magazine Of The Corporate World

• Business Today: For Managing Tomorrow

• Business World: Play The Game

• Cast Away: At The Edge Of The World, His Journey Begins (Movie)

• CEAT Tyre: Born Tough

• Central Mall: Shop Eat Celebrate

• Chattisgarh Tourism: Full Of Surprises

• Chevrolet Aveo: When Good Is Not Good Enough

• Chevron Corporation: Human Energy

• Cry : Child Relief & YOU

• Chip: Intelligent Computing

• Cipla: Caring For Life

• Citigroup Or Citibank: The Citi Never Sleeps

• CNBC Television: Profit From It

• Comptron And Greaves: Everyday Solutions

• Computer Associates: The Software That Powers The E Business

• Continental Airlines: Work Hard, Fly Right

• Daimler Chrysler: The Future Of Automobile

• Amazon.com: Earth’s Biggest Bookstore

• Deutsche Bank: A Passion To Perform

• Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge (Movie) : Come And Fall In Love

• Dow Chemical Company: Living Improved Daily

• Dr Reddy’s Laboratories : Life Research Hope

• Dunlop: Accelerate Your Soul

• Dupont: The Miracles Of Science

• Ebay: The World’s Online Market Place

• Emirates Air: Keep Discovering

• Epson: Exceed Your Vision

• Ernst And Young: Quality In Everything We Do

• Essar Corp: A Positive A++Itude

• Euronext : Go For Growth

• Exxon Mobil: Taking On The World’s Toughest Energy Challenges

• Ford: Built For The Road Ahead

• Ford Motor: Make Every Day Exciting

• Fortune: Every Fortune Tells The Story

• Franklin Templeton Investments: Gain From Our Perspective

• FT Financial Times: No FT, No Comments

• Gail: Gas And Beyond

• Glaxo Smithkline : Today’s Medicines Finance Tomorrow’s Miracles

• GM: Only GM

• Goa Tourism : 365 Days On A Holiday

• Guiness Beer: My Goodness My Guiness

• Haier: Inspired Living

• Himachal Pradesh Tourism: The Perfect Host

• Hindustan Times: The Name India Trusts For News

• Hollywood Stock Exchange : It’s Your Hollywood

• Home Depot: You Can Do It We Can Help

• Honda : The Power Of Dreams

• Hp Invent: Everything Is Possible

• HSBC: The World’s Local Bank

• Hyundai: Drive Your Way

• IBM: On Demand

• IBM: I Think, Therefore IBM

• IBP: Pure Bhi Poora Bhi

• ICICI Bank: Hum Hain Na !!!

• Infosys: Powered By Intellect, Driven By Values;Improve Your Odds With Infosys Predictability

• Intel: Intel Inside

• IOCL: Bringing Energy To Life

• Jaguar: Born To Perform

• Jet Airways: The Joy Of Flying

• Jurassic Park: An Adventure 65 Million Years In The Making

• JVC: The Perfect Experience

• Kerala Tourism: God’s Own Country

• KFC: There’s Fast Food, Then There’s Kfc

• Kingfisher Airlines: Fly The Good Times

• Kit Kat : Have A Break Have A Kit Kat

• KLM Airlines: The Reliable Airline

• KMART: The Stuff Of Life

• Kotak: Think Investments Think Kotak

• Kroger: Costs Less To Get More

• Larsen And Toubro: We Make Things Which Make India Proud

• Lee: The Jeans That Built America

• Lehman Brothers: Where Vision Gets Built

• Lenovo: We Are Building A New Technology Company

• Lexus: The Pursuit Of Perfection

• LG: Life’s Good

• LIC: Trust Thy Name Is LIC, Jindagi ke Saath Bhi, Jindagi ke Baad Bhi

• London Metal Exchange : The World’s Center For Non Ferrous Metal Trading

• Louis Phillips: The Upper Crest

• Lufthansa Airlines: There’s No Better To Fly

• Lukoil: Always Moving Forward

• Macromedia: What The Web Can Be

• Malaysian Airlines: Going Beyond Expectations

• Mastercard: There Are Some Things Money Can’t Buy For Everything Else There’s Mastercard

• Max Newyork Life Insurance: Your Partner For Life

• Mcdowells Signature: The New Sign Of Success

• MCX: Trade With Trust

• Merck : Where Patients Come First

• Metro: The Spirit Of Commerce

• Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Or Metlife : Have You Met Life Today

• Michelin: A Better Way Forward

• Microsoft: Where Do You Want To Go Today ; Your Potential Our Passion

• Microsoft Office 2003: Microsoft Office Has Evolved Have You? Better, Faster, And Newer

• Mittal Steel: Shaping The Future Of Steel

• Monstor.Com : Never Settle

• Madhya Pradesh : The Very Heart Of India

• MRF: Tyres With Muscle

• Nasdaq : Stock Market For The Digital World

• NDTV Profit: New You Can Use

• Dell: Easy As Dell

• NYSE New York Stock Exchange : The World Puts Its Stock In Us

• ONGC: Making Tomorrow Brighter

• Orange: The Future Is Bright The Future Is Orange

• Peter England: Honestly Impressive

• Petronas: 10 Years In Formula One The World Is Watching Us

• Pfizer: Life Is Our Life’s Work

• Phillips: Sense And Simplicity

• Prudential Insurance Company: Growing And Protecting Your Wealth

• Qantas: The Spirit Of Australia

• Rajasthan Tourism : Simply Colorful

• Raymonds: The Complete Man

• Reid & Taylor: Bond With The Best

• Reliance Industries Limited: Growth Is Life

• Sahara: Emotionally Yours

• SAIL: There Is A Little Bit Of Sail In Everyone’s Life

• Samsung: Everyone’s Invited Or Its Hard To Imagine

• Sanofi Aventis : Because Health Matters

• Sansui: Born In Japan Entertaining The World

• SAP: The Best – Run Businesses Run SAP

• SBI Debit Card: Welcome To A Cashless World

• Rotary International: Service Above Self

• Sholay: The Greatest Story Ever Told

• Singapore Stock Exchange, SGX : Tomorrow Market’s Today

• Skoda: Obsessed With Quality Since 1897

• Sony: Like No Other

• Standard Chartered Bank: Your Right Partner

• Standard Insurance Company Limited: Positively Different

• Star Sports: We Know Your Game

• Star Wars The Revenge Of Sith: The Saga Is Complete

• Sun Microsystems: The Network Is The Computer

• Suzlon Energy: Powering A Greener Tomorrow

• Swiss Air: The World’s Most Refreshing Airline

• Symantec: Be Fearless

• Tata Motors: Even More Car Per Car

• TCS: Beyond The Obvious

• TESCO: Every Little Helps

• The Daily Telegraph: Read A Bestseller Everyday

• The Day After Tomorrow (Movie) : Where Will You Be

• The Economic Times: The Power Of Knowledge

• The Indian Express: Journalism Of Courage

• Thomas Cook : Don’t Just Book It Thomas Cook It

• Timesjobs.com: If You Have A Reason, We Have The Job

• Titanic (Movie) : Collide With Destiny

• To Learn To Heal To Raise: Csim

• Toshiba: Choose Freedom

• Total: Trademark Of Energy

• Toyota: Touch The Perfection

• Toyota Innova: All You Desire

• Union Bank Of India: Good People To Bank With

• United Airlines: It’s Time To Fly

• Uttarpradesh Tourism : Amazing Heritage, Grand Experience

• Videocon: The Indian Multinational

• Virgin Atlantic: Your Never Forget Your First Time

• Vizag Steel: Pride Of Steel

• Voice : Helping Children Write Their Future

• Volkswagen: Drivers Wanted

• Wallet365com: Pay Anyone Online

• Walmart: Always Low Prices Always

• West Bengal: Complete Destination

• Wills Lifestyle: Enjoy The Change

• Windows XP: Do More With Less

• Wipro: Applying Thought

• Blue Cross India : Working For Animals Since 1954

• Amnesty International : Working To Protect Human Rights Worldwide:

• Larsen and Toubro : Its all about imagineering.

• Essar : A possitive attitude

• Maruti Suzuki : Count on us

• Dell : Here is yours.

Top CEOs of the world

1. Steve Jobs - Apple

1997–2011

United States

Information Technology

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 3,226%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 3,188%

Market Cap Change $150B

2. Yun Jong-Yong -Samsung Electronics

1996–2008

South Korea

Information Technology

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 1,559%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 1,458%

Market Cap Change $127B

3. Alexey B. Miller -Gazprom

2001–Present

Russia

Energy

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 2,032%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 2,427%

Market Cap Change $101B

4. John T. Chambers -Cisco Systems

1995–Present

United States

Information Technology

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 922%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 1,054%

Market Cap Change $152B

5. Mukesh D. Ambani -Reliance Industries

2002–Present

India

Energy

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 1,001%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 1,430%

Market Cap Change $72B

6. John C. Martin -Gilead Sciences

1996–Present

United States

Health Care

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 2,089%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 2,054%

Market Cap Change $39B

7. Jeffrey P. Bezos -Amazon.com

1996–Present

United States

Retail

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 4,592%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 4,586%

Market Cap Change $37B

8. Margaret C. Whitman -eBay

1998–2008

United States

Information Technology

Outsider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 1,434%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 1,368%

Market Cap Change $37B

9. Eric E. Schmidt -Google

2001–Present

United States

Information Technology

Outsider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 387%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 344%

Market Cap Change $101B

10. Hugh Grant -Monsanto

2003–Present

United States

Materials

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 684%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 572%

Market Cap Change $35B

11. Robert L. Tillman -Lowe’s

1996–2005

United States

Retail

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 459%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 456%

Market Cap Change $40B

12. William E. Greehey -Valero Energy

1997–2005

United States

Energy

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 613%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 525%

Market Cap Change $33B

13. Gareth Davis -Imperial Tobacco Group

1996–Present

United Kingdom

Consumer Goods & Services

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 937%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 638%

Market Cap Change $25B

14. William J. Doyle -PotashCorp

1999–Present

Canada

Materials

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 651%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 939%

Market Cap Change $24B

15. Benjamin Steinbruch -Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional

2002–Present

Brazil

Materials

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 2,337%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 3,360%

Market Cap Change $18B

16. Bart Becht -Reckitt Benckiser Group

1999–Present

United Kingdom

Consumer Goods & Services

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 402%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 364%

Market Cap Change $38B

17. Masahiro Sakane -Komatsu

2003–2007

Japan

Industrials

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 652%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 497%

Market Cap Change $28B

18. Terry Leahy -Tesco

1997–Present

United Kingdom

Retail

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 309%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 307%

Market Cap Change $47B

19. John W. Thompson -Symantec

1999–2009

United States

Information Technology

Outsider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 839%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 851%

Market Cap Change $19B

20. Graham Mackay -SABMiller

1997–Present

United Kingdom

Consumer Goods & Services

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 341%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 291%

Market Cap Change $38B

21. Mikael Lilius -Fortum

2000–2009

Finland

Utilities

Outsider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 768%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 964%

Market Cap Change $18B

22. Mikhail Prokhorov -Norilsk Nickel

2001–2007

Russia

Materials

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 260%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 739%

Market Cap Change $30B

23. Mark G. Papa -EOG Resources

1998–Present

United States

Energy

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 1,128%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 908%

Market Cap Change $17B

24. C. John Wilder -TXU

2004–2007

United States

Utilities

Outsider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 396%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 313%

Market Cap Change $31B

25. Frank Chapman -BG Group

2000–Present

United Kingdom

Energy

Outsider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 333%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 242%

Market Cap Change $50B

26. Paul Chisholm -Colt Telecom Group

1996–2001

United Kingdom

Telecommunications

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 1,923%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 1,770%

Market Cap Change $16B

27. David B. Snow, Jr. -Medco Health Solutions

2003–Present

United States

Health Care

Outsider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 418%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 396%

Market Cap Change $25B

28. Tomeo Kanbayashi -NTT Data

1995–1999

Japan

Information Technology

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 658%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 436%

Market Cap Change $21B

29. Chung Mong-Koo -Hyundai Motor

1998–Present

South Korea

Automobiles & Components

Outsider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 357%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 822%

Market Cap Change $21B

30. John C.S. Lau -Husky Energy

2000–Present

Canada

Energy

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 504%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 576%

Market Cap Change $21B

31. Stanley Fink -Man Group

2000–2007

United Kingdom

Financial Services

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 637%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 738%

Market Cap Change $18B

32. Antoine Zacharias -Vinci

1997–2006

France

Industrials

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 861%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 1,048%

Market Cap Change $16B

33. Juan Villalonga Navarro -Telefónica

1996–2000

Spain

Telecommunications

Outsider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 252%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 219%

Market Cap Change $127B

34. Harry Roels -RWE

2003–2007

Germany

Utilities

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 223%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 281%

Market Cap Change $52B

35. Charles Goodyear -BHP Billiton

2003–2007

United Kingdom

Materials

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 407%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 157%

Market Cap Change $103B

36. Matteo Arpe -Capitalia

2003–2007

Italy

Financial Services

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 322%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 392%

Market Cap Change $22B

37. Florentino Pérez Rodríguez -Grupo ACS

1997–Present

Spain

Industrials

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 536%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 751%

Market Cap Change $16B

38. Fujio Mitarai -Canon

1995–Present

Japan

Information Technology

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 292%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 226%

Market Cap Change $39B

39. Roy Gardner -Centrica Utilities

1997–2006

United Kingdom

Outsider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 342%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 482%

Market Cap Change $19B

40. Thierry Desmarest -Total Energy

1995–2007

France

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 261%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 169%

Market Cap Change $209B

41. Wang Jianzhou

China Mobile

2004–Present

China (Hong Kong)

Telecommunications

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 186%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 244%

Market Cap Change $138B

42. Fu Chengyu -CNOOC Ltd.

2003–Present

China (Hong Kong)

Energy

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 239%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 226%

Market Cap Change $46B

43. Mark C. Pigott -Paccar

1997–Present

United States

Industrials

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 696%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 705%

Market Cap Change $15B

44. William A. Osborn -Northern Trust

1995–2008

United States

Financial Services

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 552%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 604%

Market Cap Change $15B

45. Craig S. Donohue -CME Group

2004–Present

United States

Financial Services

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 350%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 379%

Market Cap Change $19B

46. David Simon -Simon Property Group

1995–Present

United States

Financial Services

Insider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 325%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 497%

Market Cap Change $18B

47. Larry C. Glasscock –Well Point

1999–2007

United States

Health Care

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 240%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 203%

Market Cap Change $53B

48. A.J. Scheepbouwer -Royal KPN

2001–Present

Netherlands

Telecommunications

Insider CEO

MBA No

Country-Adjusted TSR 253%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 356%

Market Cap Change $23B

49. Fred Kindle -ABB

2005–2008

Switzerland

Industrials

Outsider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 262%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 205%

Market Cap Change $38B

50. David E.I. Pyott -Allergan

1998–Present

United States

Health Care

Outsider CEO

MBA Yes

Country-Adjusted TSR 609%

Industry-Adjusted TSR 610%

Market Cap Change $15B

(Source Harvard Bussiness Review- )

Some Famous Indian CEOS

Peter Mukerjea - Star TV India

Aditya Puri - HDFC Bank

Uday Kotak - Kotak Mahindra Bank

AM Naik - Larsen & Toubro

SB Mathur - UTI

Harish Manwani - Hindustan Lever

Renuka Ramnath - ICICI Ventures

AK Khandelwal - Bank of Baroda

AK Purwar - State Bank of India

Suresh Krishna - Sundaram Fasteners

Ashok Sinha - Bharat Petroleum

Kishore Biyani - Pantaloon Retail

B Ramalinga Raju - Satyam Computers

YV Reddy - Reserve Bank of India

M Damodaran - SEBI

AK Sinha - BSNL

Naina Lal Kidwai - HSBC India

Jeh & Ness Wadia - Bombay Dyeing

Asim Ghosh - Hutch

VK Mittal - Ispat Industries

RS Lodha - Birla Corp

VC Burman - Dabur

Venugopal Dhoot - Videocon Industries

Gautam Singhania - Raymond

Ravi Venkatesan - Microsoft India

BVR Subbu - Hyundai India

FV Vandrewala - Motorola India

Niall Booker - HSBC India

Shikha Sharma - ICICI Prudential

Ashwin Dani - Asian Paints

Rajeev Bakshi - Pepsi Co.

B Muthuraman - Tata Steel

SP Hinduja - Hinduja Group

Anil Agarwal - Vedanta Resources

YK Hamied - Cipla

AC Muthaiah - SPIC

Bharat Puri - Cadbury India

Sanjay Nayar - Citigroup India

Karsanbhai Patel - Nirma

Brian Tempest - Ranbaxy

NS Sekhsaria - Gujarat Ambuja Cement

Proshanto Banerjee - GAIL

R Seshasayee - Ashok Leyland

MB Lal - Hindustan Petroleum

BN Kalyani - Bharat Forge

Onkar S Kanwar - Apollo Tyres

Shashi Ruia - Essar Group

Vinita Bali - Britannia

Gautam Thapar - Cromptom Greaves

Ajay Piramal - Nicholas Piramal

BS Nagesh - Shoppers' Stop

VS Jain - SAIL

Shobana Bhartia - HT Media

KR Kim - LG India

Rana Kapoor - Yes Bank

Hemendra Kothari - DSP Merrill Lynch

K Ramachandran - Phillips India

Mallika Srinivasan - TAFE

Hans-Michael Huber - Diamler-Chrysler India

Nimesh Kampani - JM Morgan Stanley

Scott Bayman - GE India

Zia Mody - AZB Partners

Noel Tata - Trent

Sarthak Behuria - IOC

Harsh Goenka - RPG Group

Arun Maira - BCG India

Adil Zainulbhai - McKinsey India

MV Subbiah - EID Parry

The list of top ten brand ambassadors in India 2011 is as follows

1. MS Dhoni 29%

2. Shahrukh Khan 10%

3. Kareena Kapoor 8%

4. Sachin Tendulkar 7%

5. Hrithik Roshan 7%

6. Virender Sehwag $%

7. Saif Ali Khan 3%

8. Ranbir Kapoor 3%

9. Saina Nehwal 3%

10. Salman Khan 3%

Key Features of Budget 2010-2011

CHALLENGES

To quickly revert to the high GDP growth path of 9 per cent and then find the

means to cross the ‘double digit growth barrier’.

To harness economic growth to consolidate the recent gains in making development

more inclusive.

To address the weaknesses in government systems, structures and institutions at

different levels of governance.

OVERVIEW OF THE ECONOMY

India among the first few countries in the world to implement a broad-based

counter-cyclic policy package to respond to the negative fallout of the global

slowdown.

The Advance Estimates for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for 2009-10

pegged at 7.2 per cent. The final figure expected to be higher when the third and

fourth quarter GDP estimates for 2009-10 become available.

The growth rate in manufacturing sector in December 2009 was 18.5 per cent – the

highest in the past two decades.

A major concern during the second half of 2009-10 has been the emergence of

double digit food inflation. Government has set in motion steps, in consultation

with the State Chief Ministers, which should bring down the inflation in the next

few months and ensure that there is better management of food security in the

country.

CONSOLIDATING GROWTH

Fiscal Consolidation

With recovery taking root, there is a need to review public spending, mobilise

resources and gear them towards building the productivity of the economy.

Fiscal policy shaped with reference to the recommendations of the Thirteenth

Finance Commission, which has recommended a calibrated exit strategy from the

expansionary fiscal stance of last two years.

It would be for the first time that the Government would target an explicit reduction

in its domestic public debt-GDP ratio.

Tax reforms

On the Direct Tax Code (DTC) the wide-ranging discussions with stakeholders

have been concluded – Government will be in a position to implement the DTC

from April 1, 2011.

Centre actively engaged with the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers

to finalise the structure of Goods and Services Tax (GST) as well as the modalities

of its expeditious implementation. Endeavour to introduce GST by April, 2011

People’s ownership of PSUs

Ownership has been broad based in Oil India Limited, NHPC, NTPC and Rural

Electrification Corporation while the process is on for National Mineral

Development Corporation and Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam. This will raise about

Rs 25,000 crore during the current year.

Higher amount proposed to be raised during the year 2010-11.

Fertiliser subsidy

A Nutrient Based Subsidy policy for the fertiliser sector has been approved by the

Government and will become effective from April 1, 2010.

This will lead to an increase in agricultural productivity and better returns for the

farmers, and overtime reduce the volatility in demand for fertiliser subsidy and

contain the subsidy bill.

Petroleum and Diesel pricing policy

Expert Group to advise the Government on a viable and sustainable system of

pricing of petroleum products has submitted its recommendations.

Decision on these recommendations will be taken in due course.

Improving Investment Environment

Foreign Direct Investment

Number of steps taken to simplify the FDI regime.

Methodology for calculation of indirect foreign investment in Indian companies

has been clearly defined.

Complete liberalisation of pricing and payment of technology transfer fee and

trademark, brand name and royalty payments.

Financial Stability and Development Council

An apex level Financial Stability and Development Council to be set up with a

view to strengthen and institutionalise the mechanism for maintaining financial

stability.

This Council would monitor macro-prudential supervision of the economy,

including the functioning of large financial conglomerates, and address interregulatory

coordination issues.

Banking Licences

RBI is considering giving some additional banking licenses to private sector players.

Non Banking Financial Companies could also be considered, if they meet the RBI’s

eligibility criteria.

Public Sector Bank Capitalisation

Rs.16,500 crore provided to ensure that the Public Sector Banks are able to attain

a minimum 8 per cent Tier-I capital by March 31, 2011.

Recapitalisation of Regional Rural Banks (RRB)

Government to provide further capital to strengthen the RRBs so that they have

adequate capital base to support increased lending to the rural economy.

Corporate Governance

Government has introduced the Companies Bill, 2009 in the Parliament to replace

the existing Companies Act, 1956, which will address issues related to regulation

in corporate sector in the context of the changing business environment.

Exports

Extension of existing interest subvention of 2 per cent for one more year for exports

covering handicrafts, carpets, handlooms and small and medium enterprises.

Agriculture Growth

Government will follow a four-pronged strategy, covering

(a) Agricultural production

Rs. 400 crore provided to extend the green revolution to the eastern region of the

country comprising Bihar, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Eastern UP, West Bengal and

Orissa.

Rs. 300 crore provided to organise 60,000 “pulses and oil seed villages” in rain-fed

areas during 2010-11 and provide an integrated intervention for water harvesting,

watershed management and soil health, to enhance the productivity of the dry land

farming areas.

Rs. 200 crore provided for sustaining the gains already made in the green revolution

areas through conservation farming, which involves concurrent attention to soil

health, water conservation and preservation of biodiversity.

(b) Reduction in wastage of produce

�Government to address the issue of opening up of retail trade. It will help in bringing

down the considerable difference between farm gate, wholesale and retail prices.

Deficit in the storage capacity met through an ongoing scheme for private sector

participation – FCI to hire godowns from private parties for a guaranteed period of

7 years.

(c) Credit support to farmers

Banks have been consistently meeting the targets set for agriculture credit flow in

the past few years. For the year 2010-11, the target has been set at Rs.3,75,000

crore.

In view of the recent drought in some States and the severe floods in some other

parts of the country, the period for repayment of the loan amount by farmers extended

by six months from December 31, 2009 to June 30, 2010 under the Debt Waiver

and Debt Relief Scheme for Farmers.

Incentive of additional one per cent interest subvention to farmers who repay

short-term crop loans as per schedule, increased to 2% for 2010-11.

(d) Impetus to the food processing sector

In addition to the ten mega food park projects already being set up, the Government

has decided to set up five more such parks.

External Commercial Borrowings to be available for cold storage or cold room

facility, including for farm level pre-cooling, for preservation or storage of

agricultural and allied produce, marine products and meat.

Infrastructure

Rs 1,73,552 crore provided for infrastructure development which accounts for over

46 per cent of the total plan allocation.

Allocation for road transport increased by over 13 per cent from Rs. 17,520 crore

to Rs 19,894 crore.

Rs 16,752 crore provided for Railways, which is about Rs.950 crore more than last

year.

India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited (IIFCL)

IIFCL’s disbursements are expected to touch Rs 9,000 crore by end March 2010

and reach around Rs 20,000 crore by March 2011.

IIFCL has refinanced bank lending to infrastructure projects of Rs. 3,000 crore during

the current year and is expected to more than double that amount in 2010-11.

The take-out financing scheme announced in the last Budget is expected to initially

provide finance for about Rs. 25,000 crore in the next three years.

Energy

Plan allocation for power sector excluding RGGVY doubled from Rs.2230 crore

in 2009-10 to Rs.5,130 crore in 2010-11.

Government proposes to introduce a competitive bidding process for allocating

coal blocks for captive mining to ensure greater transparency and increased

participation in production from these blocks.

A “Coal Regulatory Authority” to create a level playing field in the coal sector

proposed to be set up.

Plan outlay for the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy increased by 61 per

cent from Rs.620 crore in 2009-10 to Rs.1,000 crore in 2010-11.

Solar, small hydro and micro power projects at a cost of about Rs.500 crore to be

set up in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.

Environment and Climate change

National Clean Energy Fund for funding research and innovative projects in clean

energy technologies to be established.

One-time grant of Rs.200 crore to the Government of Tamil Nadu towards the cost of

installation of a zero liquid discharge system at Tirupur to sustain knitwear industry.�

Rs.200 crore provided as a Special Golden Jubilee package for Goa to preserve the

natural resources of the State, including sea beaches and forest cover.

Allocation for National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) doubled in

2010-11 to Rs.500 crore.

Schemes on bank protection works along river Bhagirathi and river Ganga-Padma

in parts of Murshidabad and Nadia district of West Bengal included in the Centrally

Sponsored Flood Management Programme.

A project at Sagar Island to be developed to provide an alternate port facility in

West Bengal.

INCLUSIVE DEVELOPMENT

The spending on social sector has been gradually increased to Rs.1,37,674 crore in

2010-11, which is 37% of the total plan outlay in 2010-11.

Another 25 per cent of the plan allocations are devoted to the development of rural

infrastructure.

Education

Plan allocation for school education increased by 16 per cent from Rs.26,800 crore

in 2009-10 to Rs.31,036 crore in 2010-11.

In addition, States will have access to Rs.3,675 crore for elementary education

under the Thirteenth Finance Commission grants for 2010-11.

Health

An Annual Health Survey to prepare the District Health Profile of all Districts

shall be conducted in 2010-11.

Plan allocation to Ministry of Health & Family Welfare increased from Rs 19,534

crore in 2009-10 to Rs 22,300 crore for 2010-11.

Financial Inclusion

Appropriate Banking facilities to be provided to habitations having population in

excess of 2000 by March, 2012.

Insurance and other services to be provided using the Business Correspondent model.

By this arrangement, it is proposed to cover 60,000 habitations.

Augmentation of Rs.100 crore each for the Financial Inclusion Fund (FIF) and the

Financial Inclusion Technology Fund, which shall be contributed by Government

of India, RBI and NABARD.

Rural Development

Rs. 66,100 crore provided for Rural Development.

Allocation for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme

stepped up to Rs.40,100 crore in 2010-11.

An amount of Rs.48,000 crore allocated for rural infrastructure programmes under

Bharat Nirman.

Unit cost under Indira Awas Yojana increased to Rs.45,000 in the plain areas and

to Rs.48,500 in the hilly areas. Allocation for this scheme increased to Rs.10,000

crore.

Allocation to Backward Region Grant Fund enhanced by 26 per cent from Rs.5,800

crore in 2009-10 to Rs 7,300 crore in 2010-11.

Additional central assistance of Rs 1,200 crore provided for drought mitigation in

the Bundelkhand region.

Urban Development and Housing

Allocation for urban development increased by more than 75 per cent from Rs.3,060

crore to Rs.5,400 crore in 2010-11.

Allocation for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation raised from Rs.850 crore to

Rs.1,000 crore in 2010-11.

Scheme of one per cent interest subvention on housing loan upto Rs.10 lakh, where

the cost of the house does not exceed Rs.20 lakh — announced in the last

Budget — extended up to March 31, 2011. Rs.700 crore provided for this scheme

for the year 2010-11.

Rs.1,270 crore allocated for Rajiv Awas Yojana as compared to Rs.150 crore last

year.

Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises

High Level Council on Micro and Small Enterprises to monitor the implementation

of the recommendations of High-Level Task Force constituted by Prime Minister.

Allocation for this sector to be increased from Rs.1,794 crore to Rs.2,400 crore for

the year 2010-11.

The corpus for Micro-Finance Development and Equity Fund doubled to Rs.400

crore in 2010-11.

Unorganised Sector

National Social Security Fund for unorganised sector workers

National Social Security Fund for unorganised sector workers to be set up with an

initial allocation of Rs.1000 crore. This fund will support schemes for weavers,

toddy tappers, rickshaw pullers, bidi workers etc.

Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana benefits extended to all such Mahatma Gandhi

NREGA beneficiaries who have worked for more than 15 days during the preceding

financial year.

A new initiative, “Swavalamban” will be available for persons who join New

Pension Scheme (NPS), with a minimum contribution of Rs.1,000 and a maximum

contribution of Rs.12,000 per annum during the financial year 2010-11, wherein

Government will contribute Rs.1,000 per year to each NPS account opened in the

year 2010-11. Allocation of Rs.100 crore made for this initiative.

Skill development

National Skill Development Corporation has approved three projects worth about

Rs 45 crore to create 10 lakh skilled manpower at the rate of one lakh per annum.

An extensive skill development programme in the textile and garment sector to be

launched by leveraging the strength of existing institutions and instruments of the

Textile Ministry to train 30 lakh persons over 5 years.

Social Welfare

Plan outlay for Women and Child Development stepped up by almost 50 per cent.

The ICDS platform being expanded for effective implementation of the Rajiv Gandhi

Scheme for Adolescent Girls.

“Saakshar Bharat” to further improve female literacy rate launched with a target

of 7 crore non-literate adults which includes 6 crore women.

Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana to meet the specific needs of women

farmers to be launched with a provision of Rs 100 crore as a sub-component of the

National Rural Livelihood Mission.

Plan outlay of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment enhanced by 80

per cent to Rs.4500 crore. With this enhancement, the Ministry will be able to

revise rates of scholarship under its post-matric scholarship schemes for SCs and

OBC students.

Plan allocation for the Ministry of Minority Affairs increased by 50 per cent from

Rs.1,740 crore to Rs.2,600 crore for the year 2010-11.

STRENGTHENING TRANSPARENCY & PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILTY

Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission to be set up to rewrite and clean

up the financial sector laws to bring them in line with the requirements of the

sector.

Rs 1,900 crore allocated to the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI)

for 2010-11. UIDAI will be able to meet its commitments of issuing the first set of

UID numbers in the coming year

A Technology Advisory Group for Unique Projects (TAGUP) to be set up to look

into various technological and systemic issues for effective tax administration and

financial governance.

Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) chaired by the Deputy Chairman, Planning

Commission to be set up to evaluate the impact of flagship programmes.

Security and Justice

Allocation for Defence increased to Rs. 1,47,344 crore including Rs 60,000 crore

for capital expenditure.

About 2,000 youth to be recruited as constables in five Central Para Military Forces

from Jammu and Kashmir in the year 2010.

Planning Commission to prepare an integrated action plan for the thirty-three left

wing extremism affected districts. Adequate funds will be made available to support

the action plan.

Government has approved the setting up of the National Mission for Delivery of

Justice and Legal Reforms to help reduce legal backlog in courts from an average

of 15 years at present to 3 years by 2012.

BUDGET ESTIMATES 2010-11

The Gross Tax Receipts are estimated at Rs. 7,46,651 crore

The Non Tax Revenue Receipts are estimated at Rs. 1,48,118 crore.

The net tax revenue to the Centre as well as the expenditure provisions in 2010-11

have been estimated with reference to the recommendations of the Thirteenth

Finance Commission.

The total expenditure proposed in the Budget Estimates is Rs. 11,08,749 crore,

which is an increase of 8.6 per cent over last year.

The Plan and Non Plan expenditures in BE 2010-11 are estimated at Rs. 3,73,092

crore and Rs. 7,35,657 crore respectively. While there is 15 per cent increase in

Plan expenditure, the increase in Non Plan expenditure is only 6 per cent over the

BE of previous year.

Fiscal deficit for BE 2010-11 at 5.5 per cent of GDP, which works out to Rs.3,81,408

crore.

Taking into account the various other financing items for fiscal deficit, the actual

net market borrowing of the Government in 2010-11 would be of the order of

Rs.3,45,010 crore. This would leave enough space to meet the credit needs of the

private sector.

The rolling targets for fiscal deficit are pegged at 4.8 per cent and 4.1 per cent for

2011-12 and 2012-13, respectively.

Against a fiscal deficit of 7.8 per cent in 2008-09, inclusive of oil and fertilizer

bonds, the comparable fiscal deficit is 6.9 per cent as per the Revised Estimates for

2009-10.

Conscious effort made to avoid issuing bonds to oil and fertilizer companies.

Government would like to continue with this practice of extending Government

subsidy in cash, thereby bringing all subsidy related liabilities into Government’s

fiscal accounting.

PART B TAX PROPOSALS

The Centralized Processing Centre at Bengaluru is now fully functional and is

processing around 20,000 returns daily. This initiative will be taken forward by

setting up two more Centres during the year.

The Income Tax department has introduced “Sevottam”, a pilot project at Pune,

Kochi and Chandigarh through Aayakar Seva Kendras, which provide a single window

system for registration of all applications including those for redressal of grievances

as well as paper returns. The scheme will be extended to four more cities in the year.

Automation of Central Excise & Service Tax, has already been rolled out throughout

the country this year. Similarly, a Mission Mode Project for computerization of

Commercial Taxes in States has been approved recently. With an outlay of

Rs. 1133 crore of which the Centre’s share is Rs. 800 crore, the project will lay the

foundation for the launch of GST.

The income tax department to notify SARAL-II form for individual salaried

taxpayers for the coming assessment year.

Scope of cases which may be admitted by the Settlement Commission expanded to

include proceedings related to search and seizure cases pending for assessment.

Scope of Settlement Commission also expanded in respect of Central Excise and

Customs to include certain categories of cases that hitherto fell outside its

jurisdiction.

Bi-lateral discussions commenced to enhance the exchange of bank related and

other information to effectively track tax evasion and identify undisclosed assets

of resident Indians lying abroad.

Direct Taxes

Income tax slabs for individual taxpayers to be as follows

Income upto Rs 1.6 lakh Nil

Income above Rs 1.6 lakh and upto Rs. 5 lakh 10 per cent

Income above Rs.5 lakh and upto Rs. 8 lakh 20 per cent

Income above Rs. 8 lakh 30 per cent

Deduction of an additional amount of Rs. 20,000 allowed, over and above the

existing limit of Rs.1 lakh on tax savings, for investment in long-term infrastructure

bonds as notified by the Central Government

Besides contributions to health insurance schemes which is currently allowed as a

deduction under the Income-tax Act, contributions to the Central Government Health

Scheme also allowed as a deduction under the same provision.

Current surcharge of 10 per cent on domestic companies reduced to 7.5 per cent.

Rate of Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) increased from the current rate of 15 per

cent to 18 per cent of book profits.

To further encourage R&D across all sectors of the economy, weighted deduction

on expenditure incurred on in-house R&D enhanced from 150 per cent to 200 per

cent. Weighted deduction on payments made to National Laboratories, research

associations, colleges, universities and other institutions, for scientific research

enhanced from 125 per cent to 175 per cent.

Payment made to an approved association engaged in research in social sciences

or statistical research to be allowed as a weighted deduction of 125 per cent. The

income of such approved research association shall be exempt from tax.

Benefit of investment linked deduction under the Act extended to new hotels of

two-star category and above anywhere in India to boost investment in the tourism

sector.

Allow pending projects to be completed within a period of five years instead of

four years for claiming a deduction of their profits, as a one time interim relief to

the housing and real estate sector. Norms for built-up area of shops and other

commercial establishments in housing projects to be relaxed to enable basic facilities

for their residents.

Limits for turnover over which accounts need to be audited enhanced to Rs. 60

lakh for businesses and to Rs. 15 lakh for professions.

Limit of turnover for the purpose of presumptive taxation of small businesses

enhanced to Rs. 60 lakh.

If tax has been deducted on payment by way of any expense and is paid before the

due date of filing the return, such expenditure to be allowed for deduction. Interest

charged on tax deducted but not deposited by the specified date to be increased

from 12 per cent to 18 per cent per annum.

To facilitate the conversion of small companies into Limited Liability Partnerships,

transfer of assets as a result of such conversion not to be subject to capital gains

tax.

“The advancement of any other object of general public utility” to be considered as

“charitable purpose” even if it involves carrying on of any activity in the nature of

trade, commerce or business provided that the receipts from such activities do not

exceed Rs.10 lakh in the year .

Proposals on direct taxes estimated to result in a revenue loss of Rs. 26,000 crore

for the year.

Rate reduction in Central Excise duties to be partially rolled back and the standard

rate on all non-petroleum products enhanced from 8 per cent to 10 per cent

ad valorem.

The specific rates of duty applicable to portland cement and cement clinker also

adjusted upwards proportionately. Similarly, the ad valorem component of excise

duty on large cars, multi-utility vehicles and sports-utility vehicles increased by 2

percentage points to 22 per cent.

Restore the basic duty of 5 per cent on crude petroleum; 7.5 per cent on diesel and

petrol and 10 per cent on other refined products. Central Excise duty on petrol and

diesel enhanced by Re.1 per litre each.

Some structural changes in the excise duty on cigarettes, cigars and cigarillos to be

made coupled with some increase in rates. Excise duty on all non-smoking tobacco

such as scented tobacco, snuff, chewing tobacco etc to be enhanced. Compounded

levy scheme for chewing tobacco and branded unmanufactured tobacco based on

the capacity of pouch packing machines to be introduced.

Agriculture & Related Sectors

Provide project import status with a concessional import duty of 5 per cent for the

setting up of mechanised handling systems and pallet racking systems in ‘mandis’

or warehouses for food grains and sugar as well as full exemption from service tax

for the installation and commissioning of such equipment.

Provide project import status at a concessional customs duty of 5 per cent with full

exemption from service tax to the initial setting up and expansion of�Cold storage, cold room

including farm pre-coolers for preservation or storage

of agriculture and related sectors produce ; and�Processing units for such produce.

Provide full exemption from customs duty to refrigeration units required for the

manufacture of refrigerated vans or trucks.

Provide concessional customs duty of 5 per cent to specified agricultural machinery

not manufactured in India;

Provide central excise exemption to specified equipment for preservation, storage

and processing of agriculture and related sectors and exemption from service tax

to the storage and warehousing of their produce; and

Provide full exemption from excise duty to trailers and semi-trailers used in

agriculture.

Concessional import duty to specified machinery for use in the plantation sector to

be, extended up to March 31, 2011 along with a CVD exemption.

To exempt the testing and certification of agricultural seeds from service tax.

The transportation by road of cereals, and pulses to be exempted from service tax.

Transportation by rail to remain exempt.

To ease the cash flow position for small-scale manufacturers, they would be

permitted to take full credit of Central Excise duty paid on capital goods in a single

installment in the year of their receipt. Secondly, they would be permitted to pay

Central Excise duty on a quarterly, rather than monthly, basis.

Environment

To build the corpus of the National Clean Energy Fund, clean energy cess on coal

produced in India at a nominal rate of Rs.50 per tonne to be levied. This cess will

also apply on imported coal.

Provide a concessional customs duty of 5 per cent to machinery, instruments,

equipment and appliances etc. required for the initial setting up of photovoltaic

and solar thermal power generating units and also exempt them from Central Excise

duty. Ground source heat pumps used to tap geo-thermal energy to be exempted

from basic customs duty and special additional duty.

Exempt a few more specified inputs required for the manufacture of rotor blades

for wind energy generators from Central Excise duty.

Central Excise duty on LED lights reduced from 8 per cent to 4 per cent at par with

Compact Fluorescent Lamps.

To remedy the difficulty faced by manufacturers of electric cars and vehicles in

neutralising the duty paid on their inputs and components, a nominal duty of 4 per

cent on such vehicles imposed. Some critical parts or sub-assemblies of such

vehicles exempted from basic customs duty and special additional duty subject to

actual user condition. These parts would also enjoy a concessional CVD of 4 per

cent.

A concessional excise duty of 4 per cent provided to “soleckshaw”, a product

developed by CSIR to replace manually-operated rickshaws. Its key parts and

components to be exempted from customs duty.

Import of compostable polymer exempted from basic customs duty.

Infrastructure

Project import status to ‘Monorail projects for urban transport’ at a concessional

basic duty of 5 per cent granted.

To allow resale of specified machinery for road construction projects on payment

of import duty at depreciated value.

To encourage the domestic manufacture of mobile phones accessories, exemptions

from basic, CVD and special additional duties are now being extended to parts of

battery chargers and hands-free headphones. The validity of the exemption from

special additional duty is being extended till March 31, 2011.

Medical Sector

Uniform, concessional basic duty of 5 per cent, CVD of 4 per cent with full

exemption from special additional duty prescribed on all medical equipments. A

concessional basic duty of 5 per cent is being prescribed on parts and accessories

for the manufacture of such equipment while they would be exempt from CVD

and special additional duty.

Full exemption currently available to medical equipment and devices such as

assistive devices, rehabilitation aids etc. retained. The concession available to

Government hospitals or hospitals set up under a statute also retained.

Specified inputs for the manufacture of orthopaedic implants exempted from import

duty.

Infotainment

To address the difficulties experienced by film industry in importing digital masters

of films for duplication or distribution loaded on electronic medium vis-a-vis those

imported on cinematographic film, owing to a differential customs duty structure,

customs duty to be charged only on the value of the carrier medium. The same

dispensation would apply to music and gaming software imported for duplication.

In all such cases the value representing the transfer of intellectual property rights

would be subjected to service tax.

Provide project import status at a concessional customs duty of 5 per cent with full

exemption from special additional duty to the initial setting up “Digital Head End”

equipment by multi-service operators.

Precious Metals

Rates on precious metals indexed as follows:

�On gold and platinum from Rs.200 per 10 grams to Rs.300 per 10 grams

�On silver from Rs.1,000 per kg to Rs.1,500 per kg.

Basic customs on Rhodium – a precious metal used for polishing jewellery reduced

to 2 per cent.

Basic customs duty on gold ore and concentrates reduced from 2 per cent ad valorem

to a specific duty of Rs.140 per 10 grams of gold content with full exemption from

special additional duty. Further, the excise duty on refined gold made from such

ore or concentrate reduced from 8 per cent to a specific duty of Rs.280 per 10

grams.

Other Proposals

Full exemption from import duty available to specified inputs or raw materials

required for the manufacture of sports goods expanded to cover a few more items.

Basic customs duty on one of key components in production of micro-wave ovens,

namely magnetrons, reduced from 10 per cent to 5 per cent.

Value limit of Rs. 1 lakh per annum on duty-free import of commercial samples as

personal baggage enhanced to Rs. 3 lakh per annum.

Outright exemption from special additional duty provided to goods imported in a

pre-packaged form for retail sale. This would also cover mobile phones, watches

and ready-made garments even when they are not imported in pre-packaged form.

The refund-based exemption is also being retained for cases not covered by the

new dispensation.

Toy balloons fully exempted from Central Excise duty.

Reduction in basic customs duty on long pepper from 70 per cent to 30 per cent;

Reduction in basic customs duty on asafoetida from 30 per cent to 20 per cent;

Reduction in central excise duty on replaceable kits for household type water filters

other than those based on RO technology to 4 per cent;

Reduction in central excise duty on corrugated boxes and cartons from 8 per cent

to 4 per cent;

Reduction in central excise duty on latex rubber thread from 8 per cent to 4 per

cent; and

Reduction in excise duty on goods covered under the Medicinal and Toilet

Preparations Act from 16 per cent to 10 per cent.

Proposals relating to customs and central excise are estimated to result in a net

revenue gain of Rs. 43,500 crore for the year.

Service Tax

Rate of tax on services retained at 10 per cent to pave the way forward for GST.

Certain services, hitherto untaxed, to be brought within the purview of the service

tax levy. These to be notified separately.

Process of refund of accumulated credit to exporters of services, especially in the

area of Information Technology and Business Process Outsourcing, made easy by

making necessary changes in the definition of export of services and procedures.

Accredited news agencies which provide news feed online that meet certain criteria,

exempted from service tax.

Proposals relating to service tax are estimated to result in a net revenue gain of Rs

3,000 crore for the year.

Proposals on direct taxes estimated to result in a revenue loss of Rs. 26,000 crore

for the year. Proposals relating to Indirect Taxes estimated to result in a net revenue

gain of Rs.46,500 crore for the year. Taking into account the concessions being

given in the tax proposals and measures taken to mobilise additional resources, the

net revenue gain is estimated to be Rs. 20,500 crore for the year.

Chapter 8 – Miscellaneous

(A) World's Largest, Longest and Highest Man-made Structures

Structure Name Location

Longest Rail Line Trans Siberian line from

Moscow to

Nakhodka, 9,438 kilometres long Russia

Largest Temple (Hindu) Angkor Vat Cambodia

Longest Wall The Great Wall of China China

Longest Railway Platform Kharagpur (833 metres) Kharagpur, West

Bengal

Largest Cathedral Diocese of New York New York

Longest Railway Bridge Huey P. Long Bridge Metairie, Louisiana,

US

Busiest Airport Chicago, O'Hare International Airport Chicago, Illinois

Highest Road Bridge over Water Royal Gorge River Arkanas,

Colorado

Largest Library The Library of Congress Capital Hill,

Washington,DC

(B) Important Natural Entities of the World

Natural Entity Names

Largest Ocean Pacific

Largest Gulf Gulf of Mexico

Largest Island Greenland (renamed Kalaatlit Nunaat)

Largest Bay Hudson Bay, Northern Canada

Tallest Animal Giraffe •

Largest Bird North American Ostrich

Largest Animal Blue Whale

Largest.Egg Ostrich Egg

Smallest Bird Bee Hummingbird

Smallest River (shortest) Roe River in Montana

Largest Sea South China Sea

Largest Delta Sunder bans

Driest Place Atacama Desert. Chile

Highest Waterfall Salto Angel, Venezuela

Largest Desert The Sahara, North Africa

Hottest Place Aziza. Libya

Largest Glacier Siachen. Inao-Pak border

Coldest Place Vostok Staion (Antarctica)

C) Important Airlines and Their Countries

Name of the airlines Country

Cathay Pacific Hongkong

Delta Airlines USA

KLM Holland

Lufthansa Germany

Northwest Airlines USA

Qantas" Australia

United Airlines USA

Emirates Saudi Arabia

(D) National Insignia and Other Important Facts

(1) National Flag: It was adopted by Constituent Assembly on July 221947. Ratio of width to

length is 2:3 having three bands of equal width; lowest is green, middle one is white and saffron

is the colour at the top. A wheel is at the centre of the flag of navy blue colour having 24 spokes.

Madam Bhlkaji Cama was the first to unfurl the tri-colour at an international body.

(2) National Emblem: It was adopted by the Government of India on January 261950.

Basically, it is a replica of the capital of Ashoka's pillar at Samath.

(3) National Anthem: Composed by Rabindranath Tagore, have wordings: Jana Gana Mana,

in 1911. Adopted on January 24 1950, by the Constituent Assembly of India and takes about 52

seconds to sing ri completely. It was first sung on 27th Dec. 1911 at Calcutta session of Congress.

(4) National Song: Composed by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, wordings: Vande Mataram...,

taken from 'Anand Math', a novel by him and was adopted on January 241950.

(5) National Flower is Lotus.

(6) National Animal is Tiger.

(7) National Bird is Peacock.

(E) Important Boundaries and Lines of the World

(1) DurandLine: It is the line which separates India and Afghanistan.

(2) MacMahon Line: It demarcates the boundaries of China and India.

(3) Radcliffe Line: It demarcates the boundary between India and Pakistan.

(4) 38th Parallel: It is the parallel separating North Korea and South Korea.

(5) 49th Parallel: It is the boundary between USA and Canada.

(6) Siegfried Line: It is the line between Germany and France, from German side.

(7) MaginotLine: It is the line between Germany and France from French Side.

(8) 17th parallel: It is the parallel (latitude) which separated north Vietnam from

south Vietnam.

(F) States of India and Their Capitals

States Capitals

Andhra Pradesh Hyderabad

Arunachal Pradesh Itanagar

Assam Dispur

Bihar Patna

Chhatisgarh Raipur-

Goa Panaji

Gujarat Gandhinagar

Haryana Chandigarh '

Himachal Pradesh Shimla

Jammu& Kashmir Srinagar/Jammu Ranchi

Jharkhand Ranchi

Kamataka Bangalore

Kerala Thiruvananthapuram Bhopal

Maharashtra Mumbai

Manipur Imphal

Meghalaya Shillong

Mizoram Aizawl

Nagaland Kohima

Orissa Bhubaneswar

Punjab Chandigarh

Rajasthan Jaipur

Sikkim Gangtok

Madhya Pradesh Bhopal

Tamil Nadu Chennai

Tripura Agartala

Uttranchal Dehra Dun

Uttar Pradesh Lucknow

West Bengal Kolkata

National Capital Territory Capital

Delhi Delhi

Union Territories Capitals

1. Andaman & Nicobar Islands PortBlair

2. Chandigarh Chandigarh

3. Dadra & Nagar Haveli Sirvassa

4. Daman & Diu Daman

5. Lakshadweep Kavarattf

6. Pondicherry Pondicherry

Islands: India possesses two groups of Islands, i.e. (i) Lakshadweep, (ii) Andaman &

Nicobar group.

(i) Lakshadweep: It is a collection of 27 islands present in the Arabian Sea lying about 300

kilometres west of Kerala.

(ii) Andaman & Nicobar group: Nicobar consists of 19 small islands and Andaman has a

collection of 204 small islands.

(iii) Indira point is the Southmost extremity of India.

(G) Important Indian Towns and Associated Industries

Town Industry

Aligarh Locks

Ankleshwar Oil

Bhilai Steel plant

Criittaranjan Locomotive

Digboi Oil

Durgapur Steel plant

Jhamshedpur Embroidery, pottery, brassware

Jharia Coal

Katni Cement

Khetri Copper

Ludhiana Hosiery, cycles, sewing machines

Mysore Silk

Nangal Fertilizers

Nepanagar Newsprint

Perambur Railway coach factory

Pimpri Penicillin factory

Raniganj Coal mining

Rourkela Steel plant

Sindri Fertilizers

Surat Textiles

Titagarh Paper

Vishakhapatnam Ship-building

(H) Important Indian Cities on River Banks

City River

Ahmedabad Sabarmati

Ayodhya Sarayu

Delhi Yamuna

Guwahati Brahmaputra

Howrah Hugli

Hyderabad Musa

Kota Chambal

Lucknow Gomti

Ludhiana Sutlej

Nashik Godavari

Srinagar Jhelum

Tiruchirapalli Cauvery

Ujjain Sripra

Varanasi Ganges

Vijayawada Krishna

(I) Important Indian Sites and Monuments and Their Locations

Site/Monument Location

Ajanta Caves Aurangabad

Anand Bhawan Allahabad

Buland Darwaza Fatehpur Sikri near Agra

CharMinar Hyderabad

Dilwara Temples Mount Abu

Elephanta Caves Mumbai

Ellora Temples Aurangabad

Gol Gumbaz Bijapur

Golden Temple Amritsar

Gomateshwara Mysore

Jallianwala Bagh Amritsar

Jama Masjid Delhi

Jantar Mantar Delhi

Kanyakumari Tamil Nadu

Khajuraho Bhopal

Kranti Maidan Mumbai

Minakshi Temple Madurai

Red Fort Delhi

Sabarmati Ahmedabad

Sanchi Madhya Pradesh

Sarnath Varanasi

Shantiniketan Burdwan

Victoria Memorial Kolkata

(J) Major Indian Crops and Their Leading Products

Name of the crop Main Proucer

Cashew nuts Tamil Nadu, Kerala

Cloves Kerala ;

Coconut Tamil Nadu Kerala

Coffee Kerala, Kamataka

Cotton Gujarat, Maharashtra

Groundnut Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu

Jute Bihar, W. Bengal, Orissa

Mustard Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan

Rice West Bengal, Tamil Nadu

Rubber Kerala, Kamataka

Saffron Karnataka, Tamil Nadu

Silk Kamataka, Kerala

Sugar cane Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra

Tea Assam, Kerala

Tobacco Maharashtra, Gujarai, Madhya Pradesh

Wheat U.P., Punjab, Haryana

(K) Minerals and Their states of Abundance

Minerals States

Bauxite Bihar

Coal Bihar, Bengal (Raniganj and Jharia)

Copper Bihar and Rajasthan (Khetri)

Diamond Madhya Praciesh (Panna)

Iron Orissa (Mayuibhanj, Bcmai, Keonjhar)

Lignite Tamil Nadu (Neyveli fields)

Limestone Madhya Pradesh

Manganese Orissa

Mica Bihar

(L) Important River-based Projects

Name of the project River

Bhakra Nangal Project Chambal

Chambal Project Chambal

Damodar Valley Project Damodar

Farakka Project Bhagirathi, Ganga

Gandak River Project Gandak

Hirakud Dam Project Mahanadi

Idukki Project Periyar

Kosi Project Kosi

Koyna Project Koyna

Mayurakshi Project Murali

Nagarjunasagar Project Krishna

Riband Scheme Rihand

Tawa Project Tawa

Tehri Dam Project Bhilangana, Bhagirathi

Tungabhadra Project Tungabhadra

Ukai Project Tapti

(M) Important Dances of India Name of the dance

Name of the dance State which it belongs to

Bihu Assam

Bidesia Bihar

Bharatanatyam South India

Bhangra, Gidda Punjab

Chiraw Mizoram

Jatra, Chau West Bengal

Jhulan leela, Jhumar or Ghumar Rajasthan

Kathak North India

Kuchipudi, Kottam Andhra Pradesh

Lota, Pandavani Madhya Pradesh

Mohiniattam, Kathakali.Theyyam Kerala

Manipuri, Maharasa Manipur

Nautanki, Kajri Uttar Pradesh

Odissi Orissa

Raslila. Bhavai Gujarat

Tamasha, Lavani Maharashtra

Yakshagana Karnataka

Kathakali Kerla

(N) Important Indian Tribes and Their habitats

Name of the tribe Habitat

Abors Assam, Arunachal Pradesh

Baiga Madhya Pradesh

Bhils Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan

Bhotias Uttar Pradesh

Garos Meghalayan

Gonds Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh

Khonds Orissa

Khasis Assam, Meghalaya

Kuki Manipur

Mina Rajasthan

Mundas Jharkhand

Murias Chhatishgarh

Santhals West Bengal, Bihar, Chhattisgarh

Todas (it is a polyandrous tribe) Tamil Nadu

Warlis Maharashtra

(O) Presidents of India

Dr Rajendra Prasad 1950-1962, he is the only president to serve two

terms and is also the longest serving president to the Government of India

Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan 1962-1967,

Dr Zakir Hussain 1967-1969, he died in office

Varahgiri Venkta Giri 1969-1974

Justice Mohammed Hidayatullah July-August 1969 (Acting)

Fakhruddin All Ahmed 1974-1977, he died in office

B. D. Jatti February-July 1977 (Acting)

Neelam Sanjiva Reddy 1977-1982

Giani Zail Singh 1982-1987

R. Venkataraman 1987-1992

Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma 1992-1997

K. R. Narayanan 1997-2002

Dr A. P. J. Abdul Kalam 2002-2007

Pratibha Patil 2007 to till date

(P) Vice Presidents

Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan 1952-1962

Dr Zakir Hussain 1962-1967

Varahagiri Venkata Giri 1967-1969

Gopal Swarup Pathak 1969-1974

B. D. Jatti 1974-1979

Mohammed Hidayatullah 1979-1984

R. Venkatarama 1984-1987

Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma 1987-1992

K. R. Narayanan 1992-1997

Krishna Kant 1997-2002

Bhairon Singh Shekhawat 2002-2007

M. H. Ansari 2007 to till date

(Q) Prime Ministers

JawaharLal Nehru 1947-1964

Gulzari Lal Nanda May-June, 1964 (Acting). He has become the acting

prime minister for maximum number of times.

Lal Bahadur Shastri 1964-1966

Gulzari Lal Nanda 11-24, January 1966 (Acting)

Indira Gandhi 1966-1977

MorarjiDesai 1977-1979

Charan Singh 1979-1980

Indira Gandhi 1980-1984

Rajiv Gandhi 1984-1989

Vishwanath Pratap Singh 1989-1990

Chandrasekhar 1990-1991

P. V.Narsimha Rao 1991-1996

Atal Bihari Vajpayee May 16- June 1, 1996

H. D. DeveGowda 1996-1997

I. K. Gujrai 1997-1996

Atal Bihari Vajpayee 1998 to 2004

Manmohan Singh 2004 to till date

(R) Heads of Important International Organization

United Nations (UN) Bank-Ki-Moon

World Trade Organization (WTO) Pascal Lamy

World Bank (WB) Robert Zoellick

World Economic Forum (WEF) Claude Schwab

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Dominique-Strauss-Khan

International Olympic Committee Jacques Rogge

FIFA Joseph Blatter

International Cricket Council (ICC) Ray Mali (President)

List of Famous Airports

Riyadh ............... King Khalid Intrnl. Airport

Amsterdam ........ Schiphol

Rome ................. Leonardo do Vinci-Fiumicino

Bangkok ............ Suvarnabhumi

Sao Paulo ........... Congonhas / Guarulhos

Beijing ............... Capital

Seoul .................. Incheon International Airport

Berlin ................. Schonefeld

Shanghai ............ Pudong / Hongqiao

Bucharest ........... Henri Coanda

Singapore ........... Changi

Budapest ............ Ferihegy

Tehran ............... Mehrabad / Imam Khomeini

Chicago ............. O’Hare

Dhaka ................ Shahjalal

Tel Aviv .............. Ben Gurion

Islamabad........... Benazir Bhutto

Tokyo ................ Narita

Istanbul ............. Ataturk / Sabiha Gokcen

Venice ................ Marco Polo

Jakarta ............... Halim Perdanakusuma

Warsaw .............. Frederic Chopin

Jakarta ............... Soekarno-Hatta

Washington, DC Dulles / Ronald Reagen

Jeddah ............... King Abdulaziz Intrnl. Airport

Karachi .............. Jinnah

Lahore ............... Allama Iqbal

Ahmedabad ....... Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

London .............. Heathrow / Stansted /

Amritsar ............. Raja Sansi

Gatwick / Luton

Bhopal ............... Raja Bhoja

Madrid .............. Barajas

Bhubaneswar ..... Biju Patnaik

Milan ................. Malpensa / Linate

Moscow ............. Domodedovo / Sheremeteyo

Chennai ............. Meenambakkam

New York ........... John F. Kennedy / LaGuardia

Guwahati ........... Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi

Osaka ................ Kansai International Airport

Kochi ................. Nedumbassery

Paris ................... Charles de Gaulle / Orly

Kolkata .............. Netaji Subhash Chandra

International Airport

Mumbai ............. Chhatrapati Shivaji

Pisa .................... Galileo Galilei

Nagpur .............. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar

Prague................ Ruzyne

New Delhi ......... Indira Gandhi

Rio de Janeiro .... Galeao-Antonio Carlos Jobim

Port Blair ........... Vir Savarkar / Santos Dumont

Railways

On April 16, 1853, the first train carrying 400 people in 14 carriages was flagged off from

Bombay (now Mumbai) to Thane, a distance of 34 km.

Broad Gauge – 1.675 m; Meter Gauge –

1.0 m; Narrow Gauge – 0.762 / 0.610 m

Indian Railways employs 1.6 million workers, making it the second largest

(Some Interesting Facts)

Indian Railways is divided into 16 zones

Northern Railway Zone has the longest route length.

Bholu (Elephant) is the mascot of Indian Railways.

Kharagpur (West Bengal) has the longest platform in the world.

Himsagar Express between Jammu Tawi and Kanyakumari, covers the longest distance – 3,974

km.

Kolkata Metro Railway was opened in 1984-85.

Delhi and Chennai have Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) while Hyderabad has Multi Modal

Transport System (MMTS).

Zone / Zonal Headquarters

Northern sector New Delhi

Southern Chennai

Eastern Kolkata

Western Mumbai

Central Mumbai

North Eastern Gorakhpur

North Western Jaipur

North Central Allahabad

South Central Secunderabad

South Eastern Kolkata

South Western Hubli

North East Frontier Maligaon (Guwahati)

East Coast Bhubaneshwar

West Central Jabalpur

East Central Hajipur

South East Central Bilaspur

Railway production units:

Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Chittaranjan,

Diesel Loco Works, Varanasi

Diesel Modernization Works, Patiala

Integral Coach Factory, Perambur

Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala

Wheel and Axle Plant (now Rail Wheel Factory), Bangalore

Waterways

The share of inland water transport in total transport in India is only around 1%. In India,

14,500km of river channels are navigable, of which 3,700km are usable by mechanised boats. But

actually, only 2000km are used. Of the total canal length of 4,300km in India, 900km is

navigable, but only 330km is used.

Following are the important navigable waterways

Ganga–Bhagirathi (upper course of Hoogly)

Brahmaputra and its tributaries

Deltaic courses of Mahanadi, Krishna and Godavari

Barak river (North-East)

Rivers of Goa – Mandovi and Zuari

Backwaters (Kayals) of Kerala

Canals like Buckingham Canal,

Vedarraniyam Canal

Lower reaches of Narmada and Tapti

Creeks of West flowing rivers such as Kali, Sharavati and Netravati

Canal (168 km)

The Champakara Canal in Kerala (14 km)

Roadways

India has one of the world’s largest road networks. Half of this road network is made up of

unsurfaced roads. The Nagpur Plan (1944-54) for the first time gave a four-fold classification of

roads in India.

National Highways,

State Highways,

District Roads, and

Rural Roads.

Besides these, there are Border Roads,

International Highways and Express Highways.

Maharashtra has the highest road route length.

Goa has the highest surfaced road density.

National Highway No.7 connecting Kanyakumari with Varanasi (via Madurai, Hyderabad,

Nagpur) is the longest National Highway (2,369 km).

The Golden Quadrilateral Project envisages a six-lane express gridway connecting

New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata.

Two other mega projects include:

(a) Allahabad-Haldia stretch (1620 km)

(b) North-South Corridor connecting Dhubri-Sadia stretch of Brahmaputra

(c) Srinagar with Kanyakumari; (891 km)

(d) East-West Corridor will connect Kohima (Nagaland) with Porbandar (Gujarat).

(e) Kollam-Kottapuram stretch of the West Coast.

There are 12 major ports and 139 minor ports.

India has 12 major ports in the public sector:

Mumbai - a natural harbour.

Jawaharlal Nehru Port (formerly Nhava Sheva), Mumbai

Kandla (Gujarat) - a tidal port.

Mormugoa (Goa)

New Mangalore (Karnataka)

Kochi - a natural harbour

Tuticorin (Tamil Nadu)

Chennai

Paradeep (Orissa)

Visakhapatnam - India’s deepest port

Kolkata (riverine port)

Haldia (near Kolkata)

Ennore (TN) - India’s first corporatised port

First in country and at global level:

1. First American President to visit China: Richard Nixon (In 1972)

2. First American President to Visit India: Dwight Eisenhower (in 1959)

3. First Asian Games held: New Delhi (1951)

4. First Asian to win Nobel Prize for Literature: Rabindranath Tagore (India 1913)

5. First Asian Woman to cross the English Channel: Aarti Saha (India 1959)

6. First Bowler to claim hatrick in successive tests : Wasim Akram

7. First Chinese Piligrim to visit India: Fahien (401- 410)

8. First Cricketer to achieve a hatrick in both innings of a test match: Thomas James Matthews

(Australia in 1912).

9. First European Invader of India: Alexander (Greece in 326 BC)

10. First European to visit China: Marco Polo (Italy)

11. First Foreigner to receive Bharat Ratna: Abdul Ghaffar Khan (1987)

12. First Man Cosmonaut in Space: Yuri Gagarin (Former Russia 1961)

13. First Man to walk in space: Alexi Lenov (Russia)

14. First Person to sail around the World: Ferdinand Magellan (Portugal)

15. First President of Chinese Repulbic: Yuan Shikai (1912-1916)

16. First President of Pakistan: Iskander Mirza (1956-60)

17. First Prime Minister of Pakistan: Liaquat Ali Khan (1947-51)

18. First President of USA: George Washington (1789 -1797)

19. First Secretary-General of UN: Trygve Lie (of Norway 1946-1953)

20. First Speaker in Hindi At the United Nations: Atal bihari Vajpayee

21. First Test Tube baby: Louise Joy Brown (1978, England)

22. First Woman Cosmonaut in Space: Valentina Tereshkova (Russia 1963)

23. First Women Judge of International Court of Justice: Rosalyn Higgins (Britain 1995)

24. First Woman Pilot to circle the globe: Jerrie Mock (1964)

25. First Woman President of country: Isabel Martinez de Peron (Argentina 1974-76)

26. First Woman Prime Minister of Country: Sirimavo Bhandarnayke (Sri Lanka 1960)

27. First Woman to climb Mount Everest: Junko Tabei (Japan 1975)

28. First Woman to reach North Pole: Ann Bancroft (1986)

29. First Woman President of UN General Assembly: Vijayalakshmi Pandit (India 1953)

30. First Pope to visit India: Pope Paul VI (1964)

31. First Actress of Indian talkies: Zubeida, of the movie Alam Ara (1931).

32. First Bharat Ratna Medal Winner: C.Rajgopalachari (1954).

33. First British Governor-general of Free India: Lord Louis Mountbatten

34. First Captain of Inidan test Cricket team: C.K.Nayudu (1932).

35. First Player to hit a century for Indian Cricket team: Lala Amarnath.

36. First Chairman of Rajya Sabha: S.V.Krishnamoorthy (1952).

37. First Chief Election Commissioner: Sukumar Sen (1950-1958).

38. First Chief Justice of India: Hiralal J. Kania

39. First Chief of Indian Air Staff: Sir Thomas Elmhirst.

40. First Indian Commander-in-chief: K.M.Cariappa

41. First Indian Cosmonaut to go in space: Rakesh Sharma (1984)

42. First Indian cricketer to have batted in all positions (1 to 11): Vinoo Mankad

43. First Dada Saheb Phalke Award Winner: Devika Rani

44. First Indian Field Marshal: S.H.F.J. Manekshaw

45. First Indian film star chief minister of a state: M.G.Ramachandran (Tamil Nadu)

46. First Finance Minister of Independent India: R.K.Shanmugham Chetty (1947)

47. First Indian Finance Minister to present the Budget three times in a row: Manmohan Singh

(1993, 1994, 1995).

48. First Governor-general of British India: Warren hastings

49. First Indian Home Minister: Sardar Vallabhai Patel

50. First Indian ICS officer: Satyendranath Tagore.

51. First Indian Governor general of free India: C. Rajgopalachari

52. First Indian Woman President Of Indian National Congress: Sarojini Naidu (1925).

53. First Jain Tirthankara: Rishabh Dev (Total of 24 tirthankaras and Mahavir was the last of

them).

54. First Indian to climb Mount Everest without Oxygen: Phu Dorjee

55. First Indian to climb Mount Everest: Tenjing Norgay (with Sir Edmund Hillary, 1953)

56. First Indian to win an individual Olympic Medal: K.D.Jadhav (Bronze in weightlifting –

Helsinki 1952 Olympics).

57. First Indian member of British Parliament: Dadabhai Naoroji(1862).

58. First Indian Miss Universe: Sushmita Sen (1994)

59. First Indian Miss World: Reeta Faria (1966).

60. First Woman Chief Minister of Indian State: Sucheta Kriplani

61. First Woman Speaker of Lok Sabha: Meira kumar

62. First Youngest Indian chief Minister of state: Prafuula Mohanta, Assam at the age of 32

63. First Indian Cabinet Minister: Rajkumari Amrit Kaur

64. First Woman Minister in India: Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit.

65. First Indian Prime Minister to resign from office: Morarji Desai, 1979.

66. First Indian President to die in office: Dr. Zakir Hussain, 1969

67. First Indian Chief Minister to die in office: C.N.Annadurai (Tamil nadu)

68. First Speaker Of Lok Sabha: G.V.Mavlankar (1952-1956)

69. First Non-Congress government at centre: Janta Party with morarji Desai as PM (1977).

70. First Indian Deputy Prime Minister: Sardar Vallabhai Patel (1947-50)

71. First Indian Vice-President: S. Radhakrishnan

72. First female Indian President: Pratibha patil

73. First hindi film to be screened at United nations: Lago Raho munna Bhai

74. First Indian 3D film: My Dear kuttichathan, (malyalam film of 1984)

75. First Indian 70 mm film: Padayottam (malyalam film in 1982)\

76. First Indian movie to be nominated in Best Foreign Category for Oscars: Mother India (1957).

77. First Indian Oscar Winner: Bhanu Atahaiya (for Costume designing) for movie “Gandhi”

(1982).

78. First Sound film made in India: Alam Ara (1931).

79. First silent film to be made in India: Raja Harishchandra (1913) by Dadasaheb phalke.

IIFT Questions with answers

1. Who completed the work of Qutab Minar? Ans. Iltutmish

2. Who was associated with the construction of Golden Temple? Ans. Guru Ramdas

3. GE’s technology center in Bangalore is named after whom? Ans: Jack Welch

4. Which newspaper was started by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru? Ans. National Herald

5. The Parliament of state legislature can declare a seat vacant if a member is absent without

permission for……. Ans. 120 days.

6. “Spoil yourself” is associated with ……. ? Ans. Indigo

7. President of Nasscom is…… Ans. Mr. SOM Mittal

8. Arthur Anderson was the auditor of which of these companies? Ans.- Enron

9. Who is the Chairman of Britannia Industries? Ans. Mr. Nusli Wadia

10. Where is the Head Quarters of European Central Bank is located at? Ans. Frankfurt

11. Which of the following person is the present Chairperson of Reliance? Ans. Mukesh

Ambani

12. Which is the only country in the world, which has a convergence bill for telecom

media? Ans. India

13. According to the latest release by Tourism ministry Delhi topped foreign tourist arrivals

among the Indian states. Which among the following states was number 1 in terms of domestic

tourists arrival?

(1) Uttar Pradesh (2) Andhra Pradesh (3) Maharashtra (4) Karnataka

14. What is the Strait between Srilanka and India is called? Ans. Adam’s Bridge

15. From which of the following city the ‘Morning Star’ newspaper is published? Ans. London

16. Which country is the largest producer of Tin in the world? Ans. Bolivia

17. What does TRIPS stands for? Ans. Trade related Intellectual Property Rights

18. Who coined the term USP ? Ans. Jack Trout

19. What does EPZ stands for? Ans. Export Processing Zone

20. Which was the first product manufactured by Sony? Ans. Rice cooker

21. Ranbaxy calls it ‘Caverta’, what is it popularly known as? Ans. Viagra

22. Tatas have taken over which PSU? Ans. VSNL

23. Which country’s PM receives the highest salary in terms of dollars? Ans. Japan

24. Who is the lowest paid CEO in the world? Ans. Steve Jobs, Apple computers, $1 annually

25. The word ‘Knesset’ is relates to which of the following country? Ans. Israel

26. Which is the suffix used for a German Company? Ans. -leich

27. Which is the oldest public sector bank in India? Ans. Allahabad Bank

28. Which popular car audio system company’s name when translated to German means” blue

point”? Ans. Blaupunkt

29. Indian kids channel Hungama.com has been acquired, for a reported sum of $30 mn, by

(1) Walt Disney (2) Viacom (3) Bloomberg (4) B Sky B Ans.(1)

30. What is the value of 20°C in Fahrenheit? Ans. 48F

31. Match the following states with their capitals:

(1) Uttranchal A. Kohima

(2) Andhra Pradesh B. Shillong

(3) Nagaland C. Dehradoon

(4) Meghalaya D. Hyderabad

Ans. 1 – C, 2 – D, 3 – A, 4 – B

32. Coffee store chain, Barnie’s, recently entered the Indian market with plans to invest close to

Rs. 75 crore to open 300 stores across the country in the next five year. It belongs to

(1) Canada (2) USA (3) UK (4) Italy Ans.(2)

33. ‘Imagine Cup’, an international competition for young technologists is organised by global IT

giant

(1) SAP (2) Oracle (3) Microsoft (4) Macromedia Ans.(3)

34. India’s chief negotiator at WTO is …….? Ans. Gopal K Pillai

35. Which country has the highest rating in HDI. Ans. Norway

36. Who acted in the role of Harry Potter? Ans. Daniel Radcliffe

37. Why does an egg floats on salt water? Ans. Because it is less Dense than salt water

38. What is Certiorari writ in Courts? Ans. Certiorari is the legal term in ‘Roman, English

and American Law referring to a type of Writ seeking judicial review’.

39. Which of the following has been rated as the No.1 country in World Economic Forum

(Finland, US, Canada, Denmark) Ans. Denmark

40. When does Euro becomes finally applicable in Europe? Ans. 22nd May 2001.

41. Who founded e-bay.com? Ans. San Jose

42. Which is the No.1 Fortune 500 Company for the year 2010? Ans. Wal Mart Stores

43. Which is the world’s first mobile virus? Ans. Cabir

44. Which is not a member of the European Union (Switzerland, Portugal, Spain, Germany)

Ans. Switzerland

45. Which of the following gas is used in the decorative lights? Ans. Neon

More Questions with answers

1. Which is the oldest parliamentary democracy in the world? : Great Britain

2. What is the holy book of Parsis called? : The Zend Avesta

3. Which city was founded by Alexander the Great in Egypt? : Alexandria

4. Who was known as Maid Of Orleans? : Joan of Arc

5. What is the Japanese parliament called? : Diet

6. Who was the German-Jewish girl who hid in an Amsterdam attic during WW II and wrote a

diary which later became famous? : Anne Frank

7. Which Roman emperor build Byzantium?: Constantine

8. Which is the largest pyramid?

The Great Pyramid was built for King Cheops (khufu), the second king of the IV Dynasty

9. After which Florentine explorer was America named? : Amerigo Vespucci

10. In which century was Lord Buddha born?: 6th Century BC (around 560 BC)

11. Which famous Englishman was killed in the Battle of Trafalgar?: Admiral Lord Nelson

12. Who discovered the electron? : Sir J J Thompson

13. Which is the longest bone in the human body?: The femure, the thigh bone

14. At which temperature do both the Centigrade and Fahrenheit show the same reading?: -40C

equals -40F

15. Who invented the bifocal lens?: Benjamin Franklin

16. Why we do not feel pains to cut our nails?: Nails are not connected to cartilages or blood

vessels. Hence, there is no pain felt when we cut nails.

17. Who invented the jet engine?: Sir Frank Wittle of England in 1973.

18. What is Mach Number? : The ratio of speed of the body to the speed of the sound under

similar conditions.

19. What is the scientific name for study of handwriting?: Graphology

20. What causes an object to look black?

When the radiation falling on an object is fully absorbed, the object appears black.

21. Who discovered insulin? : Sir Frederick Grant Banting and J J R Macleod

22. Which element has the highest boiling point?: Tantalum, around 6000C

23. Why does a tennis ball bounce higher on hills than on plains?

The gravitational pull in the hills is less than that of in the plains.

24. Which planet has the biggest satellite?: Saturn’s seventh, known as Titan (diameter 5680 km)

25. Which is the most common of all the metals in the earth’s crust? : Aluminum, 8.13%

25. What is the source of caviar?: It is made by salting the roe of sturgeon

26. What is herpetology? : Study of reptiles

27. What is an aardvark?: An ant-eating animal

28. From which plant is morphine obtained?: Opium poppy

29. Who discovered the cause of malaria?: Roland Ross

30. How do we term plants specially adapted to capture and digest insects?: An insectivorous

31. To which family of plants does the apple belong?: The rose family

32. In which country is tea first believed to have been cultivated?: South China

33. What is known as ‘vegetable gold’?: Saffron

34. Which vegetable contains the most iron?: Spinach, 100gm of which 2.2gm is iron

35. To which botanical family does the onion belong?: The lily family (allium cepa)

36. From which tree is quinine obtained?: Cinchona tree

37. Marie Curie was awarded the Nobel Prize twice. In which categories did she win them?

Physics 1903 (radioactivity) and Chemistry 1911 (metallic radiation)

38. Which scientist received Nobel Prizes for both Chemistry and Peace?

Linus Pauling

39. Who invented the vacuum flask?: James Dewar (U.K.) in 1892

40. With which important invention is the name of Leeuwenhoek associated? : The microscope

41. Which Russian born American is so famous for research connected with television that he has

been described as ‘the father of modern television’?

Vladimir Zworykin

42. The first words to be spoken over a telephone were: “Mr. Watson, come here, I want you”, who

spoke them?

Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) to his assistant on 10th March 1876.

43. When the indicator methyl orange is introduced in an alkaline substances what colour does it

become?

Yellow

44. What is generally considered to be the forerunner of chemistry?: Alchemy

45. What branch of chemistry is concerned with carbon compounds?: Organic Chemistry

46. Of what is the molecule of ozone composed?: 3 oxygen atoms

47. What is the different of aluminium and aluminum? : No difference at all

48. Name the famous diplomat who proved that lightning is a form of electricity?: Benjamin

Franklin

49. Name the three men involved in the first voyage to the Moon? : Neil Armstrong, Edwin Aldrin

and Michael Collins

50. Who propounded the laws of planetary motion?: Johannes Kepier, German astronomer.

51. Which planet has the largest number of moons?: Saturn

52. What is another name for an asteroid?: Planetoid

53. What is an angstrom?

A unit of length equal to 1/10th of a millimicron or 10 millionth of a millimeter.

54. How long is a nautical mile?: 1853m or 1.85km

55. Who founded in 300 B.C., a school of mathematics is Alexandria in ancient Egypt?: Euclid

Longest, biggest, largest, first etc.

The first Prime minister of Bangladesh was: Mujibur Rehman

The longest river in the world is: the Nile

The longest highway in the world is: the Trans-Canada

The longest highway in the world has a length of About: 8000 km

The highest mountain peak in the world is: Mount Everest(8848 m)

The country that accounts for nearly one third of the total teak production of the world is:

Myanmar

The biggest desert in the world is: the Sahara desert

The largest coffee growing country in the world is: Brazil

The country also known as “country of Copper” is: Zambia

The name given to the border which separates Pakistan and Afghanistan is: Durand line

The river Volga flows out into: the Caspian Sea

The coldest place on the earth is Verkoyansk in Siberia

The country which ranks second in terms of land area is: Canada

The largest Island in the Mediterranean sea is: Sicily

The river Jordan flows out into the Dead sea

The biggest delta in the world is: the Sunderbans

The capital city that stands on the river Danube is: Belgrade

The Japanese call their country as: Nippon

The length of the English channel is: 564 kilometres

The world’s oldest known city is: Damascus

The city which is also known as the City of Canals is: Venice

The country in which river Wangchu flows is Myanmar

The biggest island of the world is: Greenland

The city which is the biggest centre for manufacture of automobiles in the world is: Detroit, USA

The country which is the largest producer of manganese in the world is: USA

The country which is the largest producer of rubber in the world is: Malaysia

The country which is the largest producer of tin in the world is: Malaysia

The river which carries maximum quantity of water into the sea is: the Mississippi

The city which was once called the `Forbidden City’ was: Peking

The country called the Land of Rising Sun is: Japan

Mount Everest was named after Sir George Everest

The active volcano Vesuvius is located in Italy

The country known as the Sugar Bowl of the world is: Cuba

The length of the Suez Canal is 162.5 kilometers

The lowest point on earth is the coastal area is: Dead sea

The Gurkhas are the original inhabitants of Nepal

The largest ocean of the world is: the Pacific ocean

The largest bell in the world is: the Tsar Kolkol at Kremlin, Moscow

The biggest stadium in the world is: the Strahov Stadium, Prague

The world’s largest diamond producing country is: South Africa

Australia was discovered by James Cook

The first Governor General of Pakistan is: Mohammed Ali Jinnah

Dublin is situated at the mouth of river Liffey

The earlier name of New York city was New Amsterdam

The Eifel tower was built by Alexander Eiffel

The Red Cross was founded by Jean Henri Durant

The country which has the greatest population density is Monaco

The national flower of Britain is Rose

Niagara Falls was discovered by Louis Hennepin

The national flower of Italy: Lily

The national flower of China is Narcissus

The permanent secretariat of the SAARC is located at Kathmandu

The gateway to the Gulf of Iran is Strait of Hormuz

The first Industrial Revolution took place in England

World Environment Day is observed on 5th June

The First Republican President of America was George Washington

The country famous for Samba dance is Brazil

The name of Alexander’s horse was Beucephalus

Singapore was founded by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles

The famous British one-eyed Admiral was Nelson

The earlier name of Sri Lanka was Ceylon

The UNO was formed in the year 1945

UNO stands for United Nations Organization

The independence day of South Korea is celebrated on 15th August

`Last Judgment’ was the first painting of famous Italian painter: Michelangelo

Paradise Regained was written by John Milton

The first President of Egypt was Mohammed Nequib

The first man to reach North Pole was Robert Peary

The most famous painting of Pablo Picasso was Guermica

The primary producer of newsprint in the world is Canada

The first explorer to reach the South Pole was Cap. Ronald Amundson

The person who is called the father of modern Italy is G.Garibaldi

World literacy day is celebrated on 8th September

The founder of modern Germany is Bismarck

The country known as the land of the midnight sun is Norway

The place known as the Roof of the world is Tibet

The founder of the Chinese Republic was San Yat Sen

The first Pakistani to receive the Nobel Prize was Abdul Salam

The first woman Prime Minister of Britain was Margaret Thatcher

The first Secretary General of the UNO was Trygve Lie

The sculptor of the statue of Liberty was Frederick Auguste Bartholdi

The port of Baku is situated in Azerbaijan

John F Kennedy was assassinated by Lee Harry Oswald

The largest river in France is Lore

The Queen of England who married her brother-in-law was Catherine of Aragon

The first negro to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize was Ralph Johnson Bunche

The principal export of Jamaica is Sugar

New York is popularly known as the city of Skyscrapers

Madagascar is popularly known as the Island of Cloves

The country known as the Land of White Elephant is Thailand

The country known as the Land of Morning Calm is Korea

The country known as the Land of Thunderbolts is Bhutan

The highest waterfalls in the world is the Salto Angel Falls, Venezuela

The largest library in the world is the United States Library of Congress, Washington DC

India’s National Dairy Research Institute’ is located at: Hyderabad

Who amongst the following is the author of the book ‘Pakistan Papers’: Janardan Thakur

Arjun Munda has taken over as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand

Which of the following is no more in the small savings schemes? Kisan Vikas Patra

The country readmitted to the Commonwealth recently: Pakistan

Who is India’s first Grand Master in Chess?: Koneru Humpy

The age of a tree can be determined by:Counting the annual growth rings of its stem

Which one of the following is essentially a solo dance ?: Mohiniattam

The deepest oceanic trench Mariana is located in: Pacific Ocean

During the Mughal period, which one of the followingwere the first to come to India as traders:

Portuguese

The term Punter is associated with the game of: Horse Racing

The system of Proportionate Representation is used in the election for the: President of India

Which one of the following is available in the sea in plenty and is given to the patient suffering

from a deficiency disease “Goitre”? Iodine

How many bones are there in human body?: 206

The headquarters of the ILO are at: Geneva

The drama King Lear was written by: William Shakespeare

What is the other name of India mentioned in our Constitution ? Bharat

Which of the following places is associated with Jainism?: Pavapuri

Deficiency of which of the following causes knock-knee, bow legs and pigeon chest in children:

Vitamin D

Blood is filtered by which pair of organs: Kidneys

With which bank is Noble Laureate Mohammad Younus associated: Grameen Bank

Football World Cup of 2010 is going to be held in: South Africa

Which Indian Cricketer is nicknamed “Haryana Hurricane”: Kapil Dev

The term ‘Eagle’ is associated with: Golf

International Organizations

Major International Organizations of the World are as follows:

(A) United Nations: United Nations is world's largest organization which was formed on

October 24,1945. Since then October 24 is celebrated as the United Nations Day. The main

objective of the United Nations is to make the world a better place to live in by maintaining peace

and security all over the world. There are 192 members at present in the UN and Montenegro is

the last entrant. The organization headquartered at New York has got five countries as the

permanent members in its security council. They are China, UK, USA, Russia and France; J

Besides this they have 10 non-permanent members.

(1) Structure of the Organization: The following principle bodies of United Nations

Organization.

(i) General Assembly: It is headquartered at New York.. Its members are all member

states o! the United Nations Organization (UNO).

(ii) Security Council: Headquartered at New York, it has five permanent members

(mentioned earlier) who enjoy veto power and 10 non-permanent elected members. The non-

permanent elected members are elected by the General Assembly and retire on rotation, every

two years. The main function is to look after the international peace and security.

(iii) The Economic and Social Council: Headquartered at New York, it consists of

representatives of 54 member countries elected by two-third majority in the General Assembly. It

functions in international economic, social and culture-related matters.

(iv) Trusteeship Council: Headquartered at New York, it looks after the interests of

inhabitants of territories which are not yet fully self-governing and are governed by any

administrating country

(v) International Court of Justice: Headquartered at the Peace Palace the Hague, in

Holland, it consists of 15 judges elected by General Assembly and Security Council for a term of

nine years. Its function is to give legal advice on legal matters to the bodies and special agencies

of the UNO and considers the legal disputes which are brought before it.

Note: Three persons from India have been elected as Judges of International Court of Justice till

date. They are:

(1) B. N. Rao

(2) Negendra Singh

(3) R. S. Pathak

(vi) Secretariat: It is headed by the Secretary - General who is the Chief Administrative Officer

of the UNO and supervises the activities of UNO. The Secretary - General is appointed by the

General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council. The term is of five years and

can be re-elected after the expiry of the term.

(2) Secretary - General of UNO:

(i) First Secretary - General was Trygve Lie, from Norway.

(ii) At present, Ban-Ki-Moon of South Korea is the Secretary - General of UN.

(3) Official languages of the UNO: They are six in number, viz.:

(i) English (ii) Chinese (iii) French

(vi) Spanish (v) Russian (vi) Arabic

(4) Important agencies related to United Nations Organization:

Name of the organization Headquartered at

International Labour Organization (ILO) Geneva

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Vienna

United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization Paris

(UNESCO)

World Metrological Organization (WMO) Geneva

World Health Organization (WHO): Geneva

Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) Rome

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) New York

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)

[Now known as World Trade Organization (WTO)] Geneva

United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) New York

International Development Association (IDA) Washington

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Nairobi

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Washington

United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) New York

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Geneva

(B) North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO):

Primarily concerned with the individual as well as collective security of the member nations,

many countries signed the Treaty which gave birth to NATO on 4, April 1949. The organization

is headquartered at Brussels in Belgium. The members are USA, UK, Canada, Denmark,

Belgium, France, Iceland, Italy Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Norway, Greece, Spain,

Turkey and former West Germany. '

(C) South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC):

It was formed on December 8, 1985, at Dhaka but the idea for tie organization was first mooted

by the former President of Bangladesh Zia-ur-Rahman. There are seven members in the

organization

i.e. (i) Nepal, (ii) Bangladesh, (iii) Sri Lanka, (iv; Maldives, (v) Bhutan, (vi) Pakistan

and (vii) India The Secretariat of SAARC is at Kathmandu (Nepal).

(D) The Common Wealth: This is an association of independent states which originated in

1947 and formally made up the Empire. The symbolic head of the Commonwealth is the British

monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. At present, there are over 50 countries which are the members of

the Commonwealth and the present Secretary General is Don Mckinnon from New Zealand.

(E) Group of 77: For defending the economic and trade interests of the developing world, this

organization was established under the auspices of UNO in 1964.

(F) Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC): For controlling the

production and pricing of crude oil, OPEC was established on November 14,1960. Its

headquarters are at Vienna in Austria. Any country can be member of OPEC provided it has

substantial exports of crude petroleum. Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates,

Libya are some of the prominent members of OPEC.

(G) Non-Aligned Movement (NAM): The concept of Non-Aligned Movement was developed by

R. Jawahar Lal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of Independent India. The former members of

this movement were.

President of Egypt - G.A. Nasser

President of Indonesia-Dr. Sukarno /

President of former Yugoslavia - Marshal Tito

(H) Other important organizations:

Organization Year of establishment Headquartered at

SEATO (South East Asia Treaty Organization) September 4, 1954 Bangkok in Thailand

OAU (Organization of African Unity) May 25, 1963 Adis Ababa in

Ethiopia

ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) August 9,1967 Jakarta in Indonesia

(I) World Trade Organization (WTO): By replacing General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade

(GATT), it came Into existence on January 1, 1995. It is the third important Economic

Organization after the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and it can settle trade

disputes between nations and encourages the principle of free trade to sectors such as

agriculture and services, etc. India was one of the founding members of WTO

The Group of 15(G-15):

It is an economic grouping of 15 nations of the world which are Third World nations and was

formed in 1989 in Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit at Belgrade.

(K) Amnesty International:

It was established by a British lawyer Peter Berenson on May 28,1961 in London which is its

headquarters also. It is primarily concerned with the investigation in the violations of human

rights. It has more than 11 lakhs members in about 150 countries throughout the world.

(L) Interpole:

It's an international organization of police commissions of the member countries which are about

150 in number and was established in 1923. Its headquarters are at Lyons In France.

(M) European Union (EU):

It is a group of European countries which got united to become strong — politically and

economically, so that war would not be a threat any more. This organization came into existence

after Second World War, in 1957, having its headquarters at Brussels, Belgium. At present, there

are 27 members In the European Union and the membership is open to any European country.

(N) Organization of Islamic Conference (QIC):

Having 45 muslim countries as members, it was established in May, 1971. It aims to promote

Islamic cooperation and solidarity.

(O) Red Cross:

Formed by Swiss businessman J.H. Durant in 1864, it is the pioneering organization in providing

medical aid throughout the world. Red Cross Day is celebrated on May 8; its symbol is red cross

on a white background. This organization has received Nobel Prize on three occasions.

(P) The Group of Eight (G-8):

It is basically a group of eight countries (as the name indicates). These are world's richest

industrialized nations, i.e. Italy, Canada, USA, UK, Japan, Germany, France and Russia.

(Q) Median Sans Frontiers (MSF):

It was formed in 1971 by a small group of French doctors who believed that all people have the

right to medical care. It is a private, non-profit organization. This organization is also known as

Doctors without borders. This delivers emergency aid to the needy. This organization won the

Nobel Peace Prize for the year 1999.

(R) Red Cross and Red Crescent movement:

International Red Cross and Red Crescent movement is world's largest humanitarian network,

with a presence and activity in almost every country.

The movement incorporates the Geneva - based International Committee of the Red Cross

(ICRC) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (the

international Federation) as well as National Societies in 178 Countries. The movement covers

the institutions mentioned above with headquarters in Geneva and National societies in 178

countries.

(S) World Bank/International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)

Established by U.N. in 1944 with the objective of assisting the member nations for their

reconstruction and development. The bank is Headquartered at Washington D.C.

(T) International Monetary Fund (IMF)

It provides loans to member nations to tide over their balance of payment (lack of foreign

exchange to pay for imports) problems. It is headquartered in Washington D.C. It is also called

the twin organization of World Bank. Both of them are popularly referred to as Bretton Wood

Twins.

(U) World Social Forum (WSF)

World social forum was started in Porto Alegre in Brazil. It is an antiglobalization movement,

and its annual meets are held parallel to the annual sessions of World Economic Forum (at

Davos).

Important Awards

I. International Awards

(A) Nobel Prize: It is the highest and most prestigious award the world.

Instituted in 1901, named after Swedish scientist Alfred Nobel (who is credited for the

discovery of dynamite), this prize at present is awarded for outstanding contributions In six

fields, namely:

i. Physics

ii. Chemistry

iii. Medicine

iv. Literature

v. Peace

vi. Economics

Note: Economics award was instituted in 1967 and was awarded for the first time in

1969.

Important facts related to Nobel Prize:

(i) International Committee of Red Cross have won Nobel Prize three times.

(ii) Madame Curie won the prize twice, once for physics and next time for chemistry. She was

also the first woman to have won the Nobel Prize.

(iii) Linus Pauling also won this award twice, once for chemistry and the second time for peace.

(iv) Six Indians have won the Nobel Prize in different disciplines. They are:

Name Year Field/Work

Rabindranath Tagore 1913 Literature (For his love lyrics -Gitanjali)

Dr. C.V. Raman 1930 Physics (For discovering Raman effect)

Dr. Hargobind Khorana 1968 Medical (For first artificial gene's synthesis)

Mother Teresa 1979 Peace

Dr. S. Chandrasekhar 1983 Physics (For his astronomical discovery

related to Chandrashekhar limit)

Prof. Amartya Sen 1998 Economics (For his work on poverty and

famine)

(B) Pulitzer Prize: Given for achieving excellence and producing outstanding work in the field

of journalism, literature and music.This award was instituted in 1970 in the United States of

America.

(C) Magsaysay Award:

Known as the Asia's Nobel Prize, instituted in 1957and named after Philippine's President

Ramon Magsaysay. This prize is given in the fields of public service, creative arts, journalism,

literature and international understanding and community service. Vinoba Bhave was the first

Indian to receive this award.

(D) Right Livelihood Award: Instituted in 1980, given to people who give practical solution to

present world problems and is considered as the alternative Nobel Prize.

(E) Templeton Award: This award is given by Templeton Foundation and is given for the

progress in religion.

(F) Booker Prize: Highest Literary award from Britain. Till now free Indians( out of which two

are native Indians) have won it. Salman Rushdie (for the Mid-night's Children), Arundhati Roy

(The God of Small Things) and V. S. Naipaul. J. M. Coetze of South Africa is the only person to

win it twice. .

(G) Jawahar Lal Nehru Award for International Understanding: Founded in the memory

of J.L. Nehru in 1965 by the Government of India, this award is given for promoting

(H) Oscar Award: Also known as Academy Awards (given by Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts

and Sciences in the United States. This award is given for the recognition of exceptional work in

Cinema.

(I) Grammy Awards: These are the awards presented annually by the National Academy of

Recording Arts and Sciences USA. These awards are considered as the most coveted of the many

contemporary awards.

The Man Booker Prize for Fiction is a literary awarded each year for the best original full- length

novel, written in the English language, by a citizen of the Commonwealth of Nations, Ireland, or

Zimbabwe

Year Author Title

1969 P. H. Newby Something to Answer For

1970 Bernice Rubens The Elected Member

1971 V. S. Naipaul In a Free State

1972 John Berger

1973 J. G. Farrell The Siege of Krishnapur

1974 a. Nadine Gordimer The Conservationist

b. Stanley Middleton Holiday

1975 Ruth Prawer Jhabvala Heat and Dust

1976 David Storey Saville

1977 Paul Scott Staying On Peepli Live, produced by actor Aamir

Khan, is

a Hindi film India’s official entry t-2010

AcademyAwards(Oscar)

1978 Iris Murdoch The Sea, the Sea

1979 Penelope Fitzgerald Offshore

1980 William Golding Rites of Passage

1981 Salman Rushdie Midnight’s Children in the best foreign

language film

1982 Thomas Keneally Schindler’s Ark

1983 J. M. Coetzee Life & Times of Michael K

1984 Anita Brookner Hotel du Lac

1985 Keri Hulme The Bone People farmer suicides in the

country

1986 Kingsley Amis The Old Devils and talks about how the

media

1987 Penelope Lively Moon Tiger

1988 Peter Carey Oscar and Lucinda

1989 Kazuo Ishiguro The Remains of the Day

1990 A. S. Byatt Possession

1991 Ben Okri The Famished Road

1992 Barry Unsworth Sacred Hunger

1993 Roddy Doyle Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha

1994 James Kelman How Late It Was, How Late

1995 Pat Barker The Ghost Road

1996 Graham Swift Last Orders

1997 Arundhati Roy The God of Small Things

1998 Ian McEwan Amsterdam

1999 J. M. Coetzee Disgrace

2000 Margaret Atwood The Blind Assassin

2001 Peter Carey True History of the Kelly

2002 Yann Martel The Life of Pi

2003 DBC Pierre Vernon God Little

2004 Alan Hollinghurst The Line of Beauty

2005 John Banville The Sea

2006 Kiran Desai The Inheritance of Loss

2007 Anne Enright The Gathering

2008 Aravind Adiga The White Tiger

2009 Hilary Mantel Wolf Hall

2010 Howard Jacobson The Finkler Question

2011 Julian Barnes The Sense of an Ending

II. National Awards

(A) Bharat Ratna: The highest national award of India given for excellent contribution in the

fields of Literature, Science, Arts and Public Science. The first recipients were C.

Rajagopalachari and S. Radhakrishnan in 1954.

(B) Padma Awards: These come next to the Bharat Ratna Award. Basically, they are of

three types:

(i) Padma Vibhushan: Second-highest national award.

(ii) Padma Bhushan: Third-highest national award.

(iii) Padma Shree: Fourth-highest national award.

(C) Gallantry Awards: These are: Ashok Chakra, Kirti Chakra, Shaurya Chakra, Param Vir

Chakra, Mahavir Chakra and Vir I Chakra.

Note: Param Vir Chakra is the highest decoration for bravery during wartime and

Ashok Chakra is , the highest decoration for bravery during peace time.

(D) Other Important National Awards:

Name of the award Field they are given in Other related facts

Arjuna Award Sports Instituted in 1967

Dronacharya Award Coaching in sports

Dada Saheb Phalke Award Outstanding contribution to

Indian cinema

Instituted in 1970 and

named after the father of

Indian cinema, Dada Saheb

Phalke, who made the first

feature film of India, Raja

Harishchandra

Bhartiya Jnanpith Award Literature

Sahitya Akademi Award Literature

Recipients of Bharat Ratna

Year Recipient

1954 Chandrasekhar Venkat Raman

1954 Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan

1955 Bhagwan Das

1955 Mokshagundam Viswesvarayya

1955 Jawaharlal Nehru

1957 Govind Ballabh Pant

1958 Dhondo Keshav Karve

1961 Bidhan Chandra Roy

1961 Purushotham Das Tandon

1962 Rajendra Prasad

1963 Zakir Hussain

1963 Pandurang Vaman Kane

1966 Lal Bahadur Shastri (Posthumous)

1971 Indira Gandhi

1975 Varaha Venkata Giri

1976 Kumaraswami Kamaraj (Posthumous)

1980 Mother Teresa

1983 Vinoba Bhave(Posthumous)

1987 Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan

1988 M. G. Ramachandra (Posthumous)

1990 B. R. Ambedkar (Posthumous)

1990 Nelson Mandela

1991 Morarji Desai

1991 Rajiv Gandhi (Posthumous)

1991 Sardar Vallabbhai Patel (Posthumous)

1992 J. R. D. Tata

1992 Satyajit Ray

1992 Abul Kalam Azad (Posthumous)

1997 Aruna Asaf Ali (Posthumous)

1997 Gulzarilal Nanda (Posthumous)

1997 A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

1998 M. S. Subbulakshmi

1998 C. Subramaniam

1999 Jayaprakash Narayan (Posthumous)

1999 Amartya Sen

1999 Ravi Shankar

1999 Gopinath Bordoloi (Posthumous)

2001 Lata Mangeshkar

2001 Bismillah Khan

2008 Bhimsen Joshi

Important Days

International

Date Name of the Day

January 26 Intentional Customs Day

March 8 International Women's Day

March 15 World Disabled 'Day; World Consumers' Day

March 21 World Forestry Day

March 22 World Day for Water

March 23 World Meteorological Day

April 7 World Health Day

April 17 World Haemophilia Day

April 18 World Heritage Day

April 22 World Earth Day

May 1 International Labour Day

May 3 International Press Freedom Day

May 8 World Red Cross Day

May 31 Anti-tobacco Day

June 5 World Environment Day

June 26 International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit

Trafficking

July 11 World Population Day

September 8 World Literacy Day

September 16 World Ozone Day

September 27 World Tourism Day

October 3 World Habitat Day

October 14 World Standards Day

October 16 World Food Day

October 14 World Diabetes Day

December 1 World AIDS Day

December 10 World Human Rights Day

January 12 National Youth Day (birth anniversary of Swami

Vivekananda)

January 15 Army Day

January 23 Netaji S.C. BOsa's Birth Anniversary

January26 RepublicDay

January 30 Martyr's Day (Mahatma Gandhi's Death

Anniversary)

February 24 Central Excise Day

February 28 National Science Day

May 21 Antiterrorism Day (Rajiv Gandhi's Death

Anniversary)

August 15 Independence Day

August 29 National Sports Day

Septembers Teachers'Day; Sanskrit Day

October 2 Gandhi Jayanti

Octobers Indian Air Force Day

November 14 Children's Day

December 4 Navy Day

December 23 Kisan Divas (Farmers’ Day)

Book and Authors

Name of the book

A

Adventures of Sheriock Holmes Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Mark Twain

Ain-i-Akbari Abul Fazal

Alchemist, The Ben Johnson

Alice in Wonderland Lewis Carroll

All's Well that Ends Well William Shakespeare

An American Tragedy Theodore Dreiser

An Idealist View of Life Dr S. Radhakrishnan

Anand Math Bankim Chandra Chatterjee

Androcles and the Lion George Bernard Shaw

Ape and Essence A. Huxley

Apple Cart Gdorge Bernard Shaw

Arabian Nights Sir Richard Burton

Area of Darkness V. S. Naipaul

Arthashastra Kautilya

Arms and the Man George Bernard Shaw

Around the World in Eighty Days Jules Verne

As You Like it William Shakespeare

Autobiography of an Unknown Indian Nirad C. Choudhury

B

Babur-Nama Babur

Between the Lines Kuldip Nayar

Bharat Bharati Maithili Sharan Gupt

Bitter Sweet Noel Coward

Brave New World Aldous Huxley

Broken Wing Sarojini Naidu

Bunch of Old Letters. A Jawaharlal

C

Caesar and Cleopatra George Bernad Shaw

Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer

Chitra Rabindranath Tagore

Comedy of Errors William Shakespeare

Coolie Mulk Raj Anand

Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky

D

Das Capital Karl Marx

David Copperfield Charles Dickens

Descent of Man Charles Darwin

Dilemma of our time Harold Joseph Laski

Discovery of India Jawaharlal Nehru

Divine Life Swami Sivananda

Doctor’s Dilemma George Bernand Shaw

Doctor Zhivago Boris Pasternak

Don Jauan Lor Byron

E

End and Means Aldous Huxley

F

Farewell to Arms, A Ernest Hemingway

First Among Equals Jeffery Archer

For whom the Bell Tolls Ernest Hemingway

Freedom at Midnight Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre

Future Shock Alvin Toffler

G

Geet Govinda Jaya Dev

Gitanjali Rabindranath Tagore

Gita Rahasya Bal Gangadhar Tailak

Glimpse of World History Jawaharlal Nehru

Godan Munsi Premchand

Golden Threshold Sarojini Naidu

Golden Gate, The Vikram Seth

Gone with the wind Margaret Mitcheli

Gora Rabindranath Tagore

Grammar of Politics Harold Laski

Great expectations Charles Dickens

Guide, The R.K. Narayan

Gul-e-Naghma Raghupati Sahai Firaq

Gulliver’s Travels Jonathan Swift

H

Hamlet William Shakespeare

Harsha Charita Bana Bhatt

Heat and Dust Ruth P Jhabwala

Hindu View of Life Dr. S. Radhakrishnan

I

If I am Assassinated Z. A. Bhutto

Illiad Homer

Importance of Being Earnest Oscar Wilde

India Divided Rajendra Prasad

India Wins Freedom Maulana Abul Kalam Azad

Indian Home Rule M.K. Gandhi

Indian Philosophy Dr. S. Radhakrishnana

Invisible Man H.G. Wells

Iron in the Soul Jean Paul Sartre

Ivanhoe Walter Scott

J

Judgment, The Kuldip Nayar

Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

Jungle Book Rudyard Kipling

K

Kadambari Bana Bhatt

Kamasutra Vatsyayan

Kamayani Jai Shankar Prasad

King Lear William Shakespeare

Kumar Sambhava Kalidas

L

Life Divine Aurobindo Ghosh

Letters from a Father to his daughter Jawahar Lal Nehru

Lolita V. Nabakov

Love Story Eric Segal

M.

Macbeth William Shakespeare

Mahabharata Ved Vyas

Man and Superman Goerge Bernand Shaw

Man of Destiny George Bernand Shaw

Meghdoot Kalidas

Merchant of Venice William Shakespeare

Merchant of Venice William Shakespeare

Midnight’s Children Salmen Rushdie

Mother Maxim Gorky

Much Ado about nothing William Shakespeare

Mudra Rakshas Vishakadutta

My Experiments with Truth Mahata Gandhi

My Music, My Life Rav Shankar

My Truth Indira Gandhi

N

Natya Shastra Homer

Nine Days Wonder John Masefield

O

Odyssey Homer

Oliver Twist Charles Dickens

Origin of Species Charles Darwin

Othello William Shakespeare

P

Panchatantra Vishnu Sharma

Passage to England, A Nirad C. Choudhary

Paradise Lost John Milton

Passage to India, A E. M. Forster

Patriot, The Pearls S. Buck

Post Office Rabindranath Tagore

Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen

R

Raghuvarnsa Kalidas

Ram Charita Manas Tulsidas

Ramayan Valmiki

Ratnavali Harsha Vardhan

Ritu Samhara Kalidas

Romeo and Juliet William Shakeshpeare

Rubaiyat Omar Khayam

S

Sadar-i-Riyasat Karan Singh

Satyartha Prakash Swami Dayananad Sawarswati

Savitri Sri Aurobindo Ghosh

Sense and Sensibility Jane Austen

Satanic Verses, The Salman Rushdie

Shahanama Firdausi

Shakuntala Kalidas

Shape of Things to Come H.G. Wells

Shame Salman Rushdie

Sohrab and Rustum Mathew Aronold

Sunny Days Sunil Gavaskar

T.

Tale of Two Cities, A Charles Dickens

Tempest, The William Shakeshpear

Three Musketeers Alexander Dumas

Time Machine H. G. Wells

To Live or Not to Live Nirad C. Choudhary

Triumph John Kenneth Galbraith

Twelfth Night William Shakespeare

Twenty Years After Alexander Dumas

Two Leavers and a Bud Mulk Raj Anand

U

Ulysses James Joyce

Unto This Last John Ruskin

Utopia Thomas Moore

Uttar Ramcharita Bhavbuti

V

Valley of Dolls Jacqueline Susann

Vanity Fair William Thackeray

Vinay Patrika Tulsidas

Virginians, The William Thackeray

Vish Vriksha Bankim Chandra Chatterjee

Voice of Conscience V.V. Giri

W

Wake up India Annie Beseant

War and Peace Leo Tolstoy

Wealth of Nations Adam Smith

Wonder that Was India, The A. L. Basham

Y

Yama Mahadevi Verma

Treaties

1765 Treaty of Allahabad

- Mughal Emperor Shah Alam grants Diwani rights to the British East India Company.

1768 Treaty of Masulipatam

- confirms the conquest of the state of Hyderabad by the British.

1782 Treaty of Salbai

- between the Maratha Empire and the British East India Company.

1783 Treaty of Paris

- ended the American War of Independence.

1801 Carnatic Treaty

- Nawab of Arcot cedes territories in India to the British Empire in exchange for two-hundred

rupees.

1802 Treaty of Bassein

- The Maratha Peshwa of Pune cedes territories in western India to the British Empire.

1803 Louisiana Purchase

- United States buys Louisiana from France.

1815 Congress of Vienna

- conference between ambassadors from the major powers in Europe.

1821 Treaty of Córdoba

- Mexico becomes independent from Spain.

1840 Treaty of Waitangi

- New Zealand becomes a British colony.

1846 Treaty of Amritsar

- settles dispute over territory in Kashmir.

1846 Treaty of Lahore

- ends the First Sikh War.

1854 Convention of Kanagawa

- Japan is opened to American trade.

1864 First Geneva - convention Established

1867 Alaska Purchase

- The United States buys Alaska from Russia.

1875 Treaty of Kanghwa

- ends Korea’s status as a Chinese tributary state and opens it to Japanese trade.

1875 Treaty of Saint Petersburg

- in exchange for the Kuril Islands, Japan relinquishes claims on Sakhalin.

1895 Treaty of Shimonosek

- ends the First Sino-Japanese War.

1898 Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory

- cedes the New Territories to the United Kingdom.

1919 Treaty of Saint Union.

- Germain Dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

1919 Treaty of Versailles

- formally ends World War I.

1920 Treaty of Sèvres

- peace between the Allies of World War I and the Ottoman Empire.

1944 Bretton Woods Agreement

- establishes rules for commercial and financial relations among the major industrial states.

1945 UN Charter

- establishes the United Nations

1947

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade

- establishes international trade rules.

1947 Paris Peace Treaties

- formally ends World War II.

1949 North Atlantic Treaty

- establishes NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.

1950 Liaquat-Nehru Pact

- between Pakistani Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan and

Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. rules for the treatment of battlefield casualties.

1955 Warsaw Pact

- alliance of Central and Eastern European communist states.

1957 Treaty of Rome

- establish the European Community.

1960 Indus Waters Treaty

- water-sharing treaty between India and Pakistan.

1963 Vienna Convention

- on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Sets rules of liability for any and all forms of nuclear

damage.

1967 Bangkok Declaration

- founding document of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

1971 Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation

- Specifies strategic cooperation between India and the Soviet

1971 Ramsar Convention

- focuses on the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands; goes into effect in 1975.

1972 Simla Treaty

- normalised relations between India and Pakistan following the Bangladesh Liberation War.

1973 Paris Peace Accords

- formalised American withdrawal from Vietnam.

1978 Camp David Accords

- agreement between Egypt and Israel.

1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration

- The United Kingdom relinquishes Hong Kong to the People’s Republic of China.

1987 Ottawa Convention on Landmines Bans

Joint Declaration on the Question ofall anti-personnel landmines (AP-mines).

Macau Protocol

- Portugal relinquishes Macau to the People’s Republic of China.

Chemical Weapons Convention -Outlaws the production, stockpiling and use of chemical

weapons.

1989 Montreal Protocol

- attempts to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of a number of substances

believed to be responsible for ozone depletion.

Kyoto Protocol- Mandates the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions; negotiated in 1997, ratified

in 2004, and went into effect1992

1992 Treaty of Maastricht

- on European Union.

1993 Oslo Accords

- between the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation

1994 Marrakech Agreement

- established the World Trade Organisation.

1995 Dayton Agreement

- ends Bosnian War.

1997 Amsterdam Treaty

- substantially revises the Maastricht Treaty; comes into effect on May 1, 1999.

2004 Maastricht Treaty

- establishes the European Union.

2003 Treaty of Accession

- integrates ten nations into the European Union; came into force

2007 Treaty of Lisbon

- reforming the European Union.

2008 Constitutive Treaty

- Treaty establishing the Union of South American Nations.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST 1

1. This disease is caused by the deficiency of protein. Can you identify it from the given options?

a. Goitre b. Kwashiorkar c. Hypokalemia d. Dermatosis

2. We all know very well that the Pacific Ocean is the earth’s largest ocean. Which of the

following represents the percentage area (approximately) of the earth covered by it?

a. 25% b. 35% c. 40% d. 45%

3. This place is the wettest place on earth. Can you identify it from the given options?

a. Mount Waialeale b. Cherapoonji c. Mawsynram d. None of these

4. The number of non-permanent members of the UN Security Council is

a. 5 b. 10 c. 15 d. 20

5. According to the latest population Census, the state with the least population density is

a. Sikkim b. Mizoram c. Andaman & Nicobar Islands d. Arunachal Pradesh

6. The number of Union Territories in India is

a. 5 b. 6 c. 7 d. 8

7. The maximum duration for which the President’s office can remain vacant is

a. 1 month b. 2 months c. 3 months d. 6 months

8. Which of the following represents the minimum age required to become the member of the

Rajya Sabha?

a. 25 years b. 30 years

c. 35 years d. There is no age limit as such

9. Which of the following represents the percentage contribution of the agriculture sector to the

Growth Domestic Product of the Indian Economy (approximately)?

a 15% b. 17% c. 21% d. 30%

10. Sakyamuni is another name of

a. Mahavir b. Buddha c. Lord Shiva d. Lord Vishnu

11. The last amendment to the Preamble of the Constitution of India was carried out in the year

a. 1958 b. 1962 c. 1976 d. 1978

12. Which of the following is NOT a primary activity?

a. Fishing b. Mining c. Agriculture d. Banking

13. How many Bharat Ratna awardees have won the Nobel Prize till date?

a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

14. Who discovered Ultrasound ?

a. Ian Donald b. Roger Bacon c. JP Merril d. Joseph Lister

15. Maltimadhava is the famous creation of which of the following personalities?

a. Kalidas b. Bharat Muni

c. Bhavabhuti d. Vishnu Sharma

16. The work for which French Nobleman Baron Pierre de Coubertin is known for, is

a. He was the founder of Scouts movement

b. He was the founder of Amnesty International

c. He was the founder of Red Cross Society

d. He was responsible for the revival of modern Olympic games.

17. Which of the following is NOT a recipient of Bharat Ratna?

a. Aruna Asaf Ali b. PV Kane c. DK Karve d. MGK Menon

18. Which of the following is not matched properly?

Biosphere reserve State

a. Dibru Saikhowa Assam

b. Dehang Debang Mizoram

c. Norkek Meghalaya

d. Pachmarhi Madhya Pradesh

19. The first cotton mill of India was set up at…

a. Surat b. Mumbai c. Kanpur d. Ahmedabad

20. Which Indian city is also known as the ‘school capital of India’?

a. Lucknow b. New Delhi c. Dehradun d. Ajmer

21. Reserve Bank of India was nationalized in

a. 1949 b. 1952 c. 1955 d. 1964

22. We all know very well that the largest planet of the solar system is Jupiter. Can you identify

the name of the second largest planet of the solar system?

a. Earth b. Saturn c. Uranus d. Venus

23. You would find Andes mountain range in

a. North America b. South America c. Europe d. Australia

24. The world’s rarest element on earth is

a. Palladium b. Astatine c. Radium d. None of these

25. Which of the following is the densest planet of the solar system?

a. Earth b. Saturn c. Jupiter d. Mercury

26. Which of the following is NOT based on the banks of river Danube?

a. Vienna b. Belgrade c. Budapest d. Warsaw

27. Which of the following cases highlighted that ‘total reservation in the government jobs cannot

exceed 50% of total?

a. T.A. Pai case b. Minerva Mills case

c. Keshvanand Bharti case d. Indira Sawhney case

28. Ngultrum is the name of the currency of

a. Chile b. Bhutan c. Botswana d. Bulgaria

29. International Committee of Red Cross has won the Nobel Peace Prize for record _____times.

a. Three b. Four c. Five d. Six

30. Poise is the unit of

a. pressure b. viscosity

c. luminous intensity d. inductance

31. This personality is credited with the invention of Electro cardiogram (ECG). Can you identify

the personality from the given options?

a. Ian Donald b. A. Laveran

c. Williem Einthoven d. C.Sholes

32. Time Machine is the name of a famous work of

a. Carl Segan b. H.G. Wells

c. Alvin Tofler d. Arthur C. Clarke

33. Jakob Von Vexkull was the founder of

a. Booker Prize b. Pulitzer Prize

c. Right Livelihood Award d. Templeton Prize

34. Which of the following chemical elements is used for the bleaching process?

a. Fluorine b. Bromine c. Chlorine d. Xenon

35. Cirrhosis is the disease which affects the

a. brain b. liver c. kidney d. lungs

36. Which of the following is the capital of Ireland?

a. Dublin b. Istanbul c. Amsterdam d. Berne

37. Where would you find the Indian Textile Institute?

a. Surat b. Kanpur c. Pune d. Mysore

38. Which of the following is the least populous union territory of India?

a. Pondicherry b. Lakshadweep

c. Dadra and Nagar Haveli d. Andaman & Nicobar Islands

39. The first Indian state where the President’s rule was imposed in the year 1951 was ...

a. Uttar Pradesh b. Rajasthan

c. Punjab d. Orissa

40. Which of the following Indian states has the lowest sex ratio (number of females per thousand

males)?

a. West Bengal b. Haryana c. Punjab d. Uttar Pradesh

41. Which of the following is NOT a work of Salman Rushdie?

a. Moor’s Last Sigh b. Midnight’s Children

c. Shalimar The Clown d. The Piano Teacher

42. International Labor Day is celebrated on ___every year.

a. August 1 b. March 1 c. September 1 d. May 1

43. Who wrote Ramayana?

a. Vishwamitra b. Maharishi Valmiki

c. Tulasidas d. None of these

44. Who is credited with the construction of the Grand Trunk road?

a. Tipu Sultan b. Mohammed –bin-Tughlaq c. Shershah Suri d. Jehangir

45. Which of the following is also known as “ Silicon valley of India”?

a. Hyderabad b. Bangalore c. Chennai d. Noida

46. This personality is also considered as the Father of computers . Can you name him from the

given options?

a. Blaise Pascal b. Alan M. Turing

c. Charles Babbage d. None of these

47. Peace Palace is the official headquarters of

a. WHO b. FAO c. ICJ d. IBRD

48. Find the odd one out.

a. DOS b. WINDOWS c. LINUX d. LISP

49. Which of the following is the capital of ‘the land of midnight sun’?

a. Vienna b. Oslo c. Helsinki d. Prague

50. Christiana is the former name of which of the following cities?

a. Copenhagen b. Oslo c. Ottawa d. Berlin

51. She is the first woman Chief Justice of a High Court in India. Can you identify her from the

given options?

a. M. Fathima Bibi b. Leila Seth

c. Kadambini Ganguli d. Dina Vakil

52. Who is the first Indian to have crossed the English Channel?

a. Mihir Gupta b. Mihir Sharma

c. Mihir Sen d. Mihir Mukherjee

53. Mohiniattam is a dance form from

a. Andhra Pradesh b. Kerala c. Tamil Nadu d. Karnataka

54. Which of the following represents the name of the India’s first indigenously built submarine?

a. INS Shakti b. INS Delhi c. INS Savitri d. INS Vibhuti

55. Narora Atomic Power station is in

a. Uttar Pradesh b. Rajasthan c. Madhya Pradesh d. Tamil Nadu

56. The earth’s axis is inclined to the ___ to the plane of its orbit.

a. 33.5° b. 46.5° c. 52.8° d. 66.5°

57. Equinoxes are the dates when the sun shines directly over the

a. Tropic of Cancer b. Tropic of Capricorn c. Equator d. None of these

58. The second most abundant gas in the atmosphere after nitrogen is

a. hydrogen b. carbon dioxide c. oxygen d. helium

59. Which of the following is NOT matched properly?

Mountain Range Continent

a. Himalayan Karakoram Asia

b. Alps Europe

c. Andes South America

d. Rockies Asia

60. What is the capital of Tanzania?

a. Kiev b. Dodoma c. Abuja d. Capetown

61. ‘AFP’, is the news agency of

a. UK b. USA c. Germany d. None of these

62. Which of the following represents the year in which Alexander invaded India?

a. 323 BC b. 324 BC c. 326 BC d. 328 BC

63. In which of the following years did United Nations (UN) come into existence?

a. 1941 b. 1943 c. 1944 d. 1945

64. Khyber Pass is in

a. Pakistan b. India c. Myanmar d. Afghanistan

65. The first Secretary-General of the United Nations was

a. U. Thant b. Trygve Lie

c. Boutros-Boutros Ghali d. Javier Perez de Cuellar

66. Southern Railway is headquartered at

a. Hyderabad b. Bangalore c. Secunderabad d. Chennai

67. First ministerial meeting of World Trade Organization took place at

a. Washington b. New York c. Geneva d. Singapore

68. The first Chief Election Commissioner of India was

a. S. L. Shakadhar b. Sukumar Sen c. H. J. Kania d. P. C. Sen

69. Identify the correct match:

Date Celebrated as

a. May 8 World Health Day

b. May 1 World Literacy Day

c. May 17 World Telecommunication Day

d. June 5 World Ozone Day

70. Mount Etna is a famous volcano located in

a. Argentina b. Italy c. Mexico d. Phillipines

71. Tungabhadra Sanctuary is located at

a. Madhya Pradesh b. Uttar Pradesh c. Karnataka d. West Bengal

72. The agency of United Nations that was set-up to strengthen the international cooperation in

the field of education and improve the standards of education is

a. UNEP b. UNCTAD c. UNESCO d. UNDP

73. What is the approximate length of Indian coastlines?

a. 3,440 km b. 4,589 km c. 7,500 km d. 8,924 km

74. Reserve Bank of India is headquarted at

a. Kolkata b. New Delhi c. Mumbai d. Chennai

75. Jana Gana Mana, was accepted as the National Anthem of India by the Constituent

Assembly of India in

a. 1950 b. 1949 c. 1948 d. 1947

76. Which of the following cricketers holds the world record for maximum number of double

centuries in test cricket?

a. Mark Waugh b. Martin Crowe c. Marwan Atapattu d. Don Bradman

77. The person who has climbed Mount Everest the most — 12 times is

a. Babu Chheri b. Appa Sherpa c. Peter Hillary d. T. W. Tenzing

78. Which Indian state has its maximum area under the forest cover?

a. Maharashtra b. Madhya Pradesh c. Arunachal Pradesh d. Kerala

79. This personality is known as ‘The Father of Geometry’. Identify him from the given options.

a. Euclid b. Pythagoras c. Newton d. Laplace

80. Who is the founder of the World Economic Forum?

a. George McDonald b. Jack Barry c. Robert Allen d. Klaus Schwab

81. Who among the following is the author of Meghdoot?

a. Bana Bhatta b. Kalhana c. Kalidas d. Tulsidas

82. Under whose presidentship, the first session of Indian National Congress took place in

Bombay?

a. A. O. Hume b. Dadabhai Naoroji

c. G. K. Gokhale d. W. C. Bannerjee

83. How many members are there in the Rajya Sabha?

a. 238 b. 242 c. 246 d. 250

84. Panama Canal links

a. Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean b. Red Sea and Mediterranean Sea

c. Red Sea and Caspian Sea d. Atlantic Ocean and Arctic Ocean

85. Which of the following rays is NOT harmful?

a. Ultraviolet rays b. X-rays

c. Infrared rays d. Short radio waves

86. Who is considered as ‘The Father of Genetics’?

a. Robert Hook b. G. J. Mendel c. Charles Darwin d. T. H. Morgan

87. Which Indian President has also been the speaker of the Lok Sabha?

a. N. Sanjiva Reddy b. R. Venkatraman

c. Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma d. Giani Zail Singh

88. Bhakhra Nangal dam is built over

a. Ravi b. Chenab c. Sutluj d. Beas

89. Between Hope and History, is a work of

a. Mikhail Gorbachev b. Boris Yeltsin c. Bill Clinton d. Mao Tse Sung

90. The Ottawa process negotiations are related to

a. environmental pollution b. ozone layer’s depletion

c. nuclear weapons d. banning of landmines

91. What percentage of the world area is occupied by India?

a. 1.3% b. 2.4% c. 4.5% d. 5.7%

92. General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade (GATT) came into existence in

a. 1947 b. 1948 c. 1969 d. 1984

93. Vyas Samman is given by

a. Rajiv Gandhi Foundation b. K. K. Birla Foundation

c. UNESCO d. Uttar Pradesh Government

94. January 26 — besides, being Republic Day of India, is also celebrated as

a. International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking

b. World Ozone day

c. International Customs Day

d. World Food Day

95. Which among the following is the world’s smallest republic?

a. Tonga b. Tuvalu c. Nauru d. Vatican

96. Which party was founded by Subhash Chandra Bose in 1939, after he broke away from the

Congress?

a. South Bloc b. Forward Bloc

c. AIADMK d. Indian National Party

97. ‘Diet’ is the name of the parliament of

a. Norway b. Spain c. Sweden d. Japan

98. International Rice Research Institute is based at

a. Bangkok b. Manila c. Kuala Lumpur d. Tokyo

99. What is the effect on the density of a gas if it is heated under constant pressure?

a. It will decrease b. It will increase

c. Remains constant d. First increases and then decreases

100. This person has written National Anthem for two nations. Who is he?

a. Iqbal b. Bankim Chandra Chatterjee

c. Rabindra Nath Tagore d. Sharat Chandra Chatterjee

101. The second largest Indian state in terms of area is

a. Maharashtra b. Rajasthan c. Uttar Pradesh d. Madhya Pradesh

102. According to latest Census 2001, the least populated state in India is

a. Mizoram b. Manipur c. Sikkim d. Goa

103. Which of the following countries was earlier called Northern Rhodesia?

a. Zimbabwe b. Zambia c. Zaire d. Namibia

104. United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is

headquartered at

a. Rome b. Geneva c. Paris d. New York

105. Brettonwoods conference is related with the establishment of

a. ADB b. IMF c. EU d. WTO

106. The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre is based at

a. Bangalore b. Pune c. Hyderabad d. Thiruvananthapuram

107. Which of the following Union Territories is the largest in India, in terms of area?

a. Pondicherry

b. Dadra & Nagar Haveli

c. Andman & Nicobar islands

d. Daman & Diu

108. Which city is known as the ‘Garden city of India’?

a. Hyderabad b. New Delhi c. Mumbai d. Bangalore

109. Marcel Corbillion Cup is associated with

a. hockey b. lawn tennis c. football d. table tennis

110. First Asian Games was held at which of the following place ?

a.Bejing b.Tokyo c.Singapore d.New Delhi

111. Milk is basically a type of

a. emulsion b. solvent c. suspension d. gel

112. Scientific principle of electric motor was discovered by

a. Michael Faraday b. B. Franklin c. T. A. Edison d. Enrico Fermi

113. ‘The Sojourner’ is the name of

a. a space observatory of Russia

b. a vehicle deployed by NASA on Mars

c. space shuttle to be launched by USA for exploration of Jupiter

d. this year’s Booker Prize winning book

114. World Consumer Rights Day is observed on

a. March 4 b. March 15 c. March 30 d. April 7

115. This Indian state is the most literate, biggest producer of natural rubber and is promoted by

the tag line God’s Own Country. Identify the state in question from the given options.

a. Andhra Pradesh b. Kerala c. Karnataka d. Tamil Nadu

116. The capital of Portugal is

a. Algiers b. Lisbon c. Brussels d. Madrid

117. Where are the headquarters of the world’s foremost Human Right’s Organization, Amnesty

International?

a. Berlin b. New York c. London d. Geneva

118. Huen Tsang visited India during the reign of

a. Kanishka b. Harsha c. Ashok d. Chandragupta

119. Which of the following is not an official language of the United Nations?

a. Chinese b. French c. German d. Arabic

120. In which of the following years was the name of G7 changed to G8?

a. 1994 b. 1996 c. 1998 d. 1999

121. Which of the following countries is not a member of G-15 group?

a. Kenya b. Chile c. Nigeria d. Pakistan

122. ‘White Revolution’ is related with

a. flood control b. fish production c. wheat production d. milk production

123. Ozone layer is depleted the most by

a. carbon dioxide b. carbon monoxide c. chloroflourocarbons d. sulphur dioxide

124. Which of the following days is celebrated as the World Food Day throughout the world?

a. April 14 b. October 16 c. June 19 d. December 10

125. Brass is an alloy that is made up of

a. zinc and sulphur b. sulphur and copper c. copper and zinc d. zinc and magnesium

126. What is the limit of thermosphere, a division of atmosphere?

a. 220 km b. 430 km c. 690 km d. 810 km

127. Golden Revolution is associated with the increased production of

a. fertilisers b. eggs c. fruits d. milk

128. The youngest mountaineer to have scaled Mount Everest is

a. Temba Tsheri b. Ang Rita c. Nawang Gombu d. Fu Dorjee

129. The World Tourism Day is celebrated on

a. August 16 b. September 3 c. September 27 d. October 7

130. India’s first steel plant was set-up at

a. Rourkela b. Bhilai c. Durgapur d. Jamshedpur

131. The application of mathematics to the study of living beings is known as

a. bionomics b. biotechnology c. bionics d. biometry

132. LIBOR stands for

a. Long Island Borrowing Offer Rate

b. London Inter Bank Offer Rate

c. Luxemburg International Banks Organisation Regime

d. None of the above

133. ‘Deenabandhu’, was the title given to

a. C. R. Dass b. A.O. Hume c. B.G. Tilak d. C.F. Andrews

134. When was the rupee devalued for the first time after independence?

a. 1948 b. 1949 c. 1952 d. 1954

135. Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI) is based at

a. Jabalpur b. Pune c. Lucknow d. Hyderabad

136. The nature of Indian Economy can best be described as

a. socialist b. mixed c. capitalist d. None of these

137. ‘Cue’ is a term used in

a. billiards b. football c. hockey d. chess

138. Word ‘secular’, was inserted into the Constitution of India with the help of

a. 38th Constitutional amendment

b. 36th Constitutional amendment

c. 44th Constitutional amendment

d. 42nd Constitutional amendment

139. A person bends forward while climbing to

a. reduce atmospheric pressure b. decrease friction

c. increase stability d. avoid slip-ups

140. Tripitakas, are the sacred text of

a. Jainism b. Buddhism c. Hinduism d. Sikhism

141. Animal that can live both on land and water, are known as

a. mammals b. reptiles c. amphibians d. None of these

142. Sanjukta Panigrahi was a famous dancer of

a. Bharat Natyam b. Kathak c. Odissi d. Mohiniattam

143. India’s percentage area under agriculture is

a. 47% b. 56% c. 63% d. 74%

144. K.C. Neyogy was the

a. first chair person of finance commission of India

b. first governor of RBI

c. first finance minister of Independent India

d. None of these

145. ‘Sugar Bowl of India’, is

a. Madhya Pradesh b. Uttar Pradesh c. Kerala d. Karnataka

146. Approximately 90 percent of the earth’s crust is made up of

a. metamorphic rocks

b. sedimentary rocks

c. igneous rocks

d. None of these

147. Who among the following is credited with the invention of polio vaccine?

a. Louis Pasteur b. Albert Sabin

c. Jonas Salk d. Alexander Flemming

148. Pick the odd one out.

a. Juan Antonio Samaranch b. Perez de Cuellar

c. Boutros-Boutros Ghali d. Kofi Annan

149. Which of the following countries is also known as ‘Dairy of Northern Europe’?

a. Switzerland b. Finland c. Denmark d. Belgium

150. Currency of Denmark is

a. Rand b. Krone c. Pound d. Peseta

151. Who was the person behind the ‘Kuka movement’?

a. Kunwar Singh b. V. B. Phadke

c. Guru Ram Singh d. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan

152. In the 552 — strong Lok Sabha, how many members are there from the Union Territories?

a. 10 b. 20 c. 30 d. 40

153. Which of the following personalities gave ‘The Laws of Heredity’?

a. Robert Hook b. G. J. Mendel c. Charles Darwin d. William Harvey

154. Name the personality who was also known as Deshbandhu.

a. S. Radhakrishanan b. G. K. Gokhale

c. Chittaranjan Das d. Madan Mohan Malviya

155. Which of the following is NOT the language enshrined in the eighth schedule of the Indian

Constitution, as the language of the state?

a. Nepali b. Kashmiri c. English d. Konkani

156. Bhopal Gas leak disaster took place in the year…

a.1980 b.1984 c.1990 d.1994

157. The Dewang Mehta award is given in the field of

a. Medicine b. Sports c. IT d. None of these

158. Which of the following article is related to Finance Commissions ?

a. 260 b. 270 c. 280 d. 290

159. World Trade Organization came into existence in

a. 1992 b. 1993 c. 1994 d. 1995

160. According to the Constitution of India, which of the following is NOT one of the main organs

of the Government?

a. Legislature b. Bureaucracy c. Executive d. Judiciary

161. Which of the following is a Central Government Tax?

a. Income tax b. Corporation tax c. Sales tax d. Octroi

162. English education in India was introduced by

a. Lord Dalhousie b. Lord Curzon c. Lord Macaulay d. Lord Rippon

163. Governor is apointed by the

a. Prime Minister

b. President

c. Chief Justice

d. Chief Justice of the concerned state’s high court

164. My Passage from India, is a book authored by

a. E. M. Foster b. Ismail Merchant

c. Nirad C. Choudhary d. Mulk Raj Anand

165. When did the Second Round Table conference take place?

a. 1915 b. 1922 c. 1928 d. 1931

166. Metals which chemically behave both as metals and non-metals are called

a. alloys b. metalloids c. halogens d. chalkogens

167. The fear of heights is termed as

a. acrophobia b. phosophophobia c. claustrophobia d. hydrophobia

168. Jalianwala Bagh massacre took place during the governorship of

a. Lord Dalhousie b. Lord Ripon

c. Lord Minto d. Lord Chelmsford

169. Which of the following articles of the Constitution deals with Financial Emergency?

a. Article 352 b. Article 356 c. Article 360 d. Article 370

170. Scurvy is a disease caused by the deficiency of

a. Vitamin B b. Vitamin C c. Vitamin K d. Vitamin A

171. The largest river (in terms of volume of water it carries) is

a. Nile b. Mississippi Missouri

c. Amazon d. Yangtze

172. ‘Hasan’ is situated in

a. Madhya Pradesh b. Karnataka c. Orissa d. Tamil Nadu

173. ‘Manchester of South India’, is

a. Madurai b. Coimbatore

c. Bangalore d. Thiruvananthapuram

174. Approximately what portion of the world’s population reside in India?

a. One-third b. One-fourth c. One-fifth d. One-sixth

175. Decibel is the unit of

a. frequency b. wavelength c. sound d. luminous intensity

176. Which of the following US state is also known as the ‘Empire State’?

a. Chicago b. San Francisco c. New York d. Washington DC

177. He is also known as the ‘Light of Asia’. Can you identify him from the given options?

a. Guru Nanak Dev b. Mahavir Swami

c. Swami Vivekananda d. Gautam Buddha

178. Which of the following trains is India’s first certified ISO-9001 train?

a. Tamilnadu Express b. Magadh Express

c. Bhopal Express d. AP Express

179. Which of the following represents the name of the Chinese character on whom the emblem

of Beijing Olympics is based?

a. Yan b. Ying c. Jing d. Jang

180. Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI) is based at

a. Varanasi b. Chennai c. Hyderabad d. Kanpur

181. Who wrote the book The Algebra of Infinite Justice?

a. Vikram Seth b. Rohington Mistry c. Anurag Mathur d. Arundhati Roy

182. Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), is based at

a. Kolkata b. Bangalore c. Hyderababd d. Chennai

183. Global Trust Bank is founded by…

a. Deepak Parekh b. K. V. Kamath

c. Ramesh Gelli d. P. V. Narasimhan

184. ‘Manas Tiger Sanctuary’, is in

a. Uttar Pradesh b. Assam

c. West Bengal d. Rajasthan

185. Panini was

a. a Greek philosopher

b. an Indian astronomer and famous mathematician

c. a sanskrit grammarian of vedic times

d. great poet of ancient times

186. Mein Kemf is authored by

a. Napoleon Bonaparte b. Karl Marx

c. Adolf Hitler d. Benito Mussolini

187. Which of the following is the largest and the deepest ocean of the world?

a. Arctic b. Atlantic c. Pacific d. Indian

188. The literacy rate of India according to 2001 census is

a. 57.86% b. 61.34% c. 63.98% d. 65.38%

189. North Korea and South Korea are divided by

a. Durand line b. 17th Parallel c. 49th Parallel d. 38th Parallel

190. Which Indian state has the least literacy rate?

a. Bihar b. Rajasthan

c. Orissa d. Arunachal Pradesh

191. SAARC was formed in

a. 1982 b. 1984 c. 1985 d. 1986

192. Which of the following is NOT the member of the European Union?

a. Greece b. Finland

c. Norway d. United Kingdom

193. Euro was launched in 12 European Union Countries on January 1,

a. 2000 b. 2001 c. 2002 d. 2003

194. ASEAN is headquartered at

a. Male b. Kathmandu c. Jakarta d. Kuala Lumpur

195. Which of the following personalities is the first woman chairperson of Planning Commission

of India?

a. Vijaylakshmi Pandit b. Indira Gandhi c. Sucheta Kripalani d. Sarojini Naidu

196. Which of the following is the capital of Zimbabwe?

a. Dar-es-Salam b. Abidjan c. Harare d. Nairobi

197. Who is the youngest cricketer in the world to have played 100 test matches?

a. Shoaib Akhtar b. Mohammed Sami

c. Michael Bevan d. Sachin Tendulkar

198. Which Indian state is inhabited by ‘Jaintiya tribes’?

a. Arunachal Pradesh b. Mizoram c. Manipur d. Meghalaya

199. Nagarjuna Sagar is a dam built over

a. Cauvery b. Mahanadi c. Krishna d. Godavary

200. TISCO was established in

a. 1947 b. 1937 c. 1927 d. 1907

ANSWER KEY

1. (b) 21. (a) 41. (d) 61. (d) 81. (c) 101. (d) 121. (d) 141. (c) 161. (a) 181. (d) 2. (b) 22. (b) 42. (d) 62. (c) 82. (d) 102. (c) 122. (d) 142. (c) 162. (c) 182. (c) 3. (c) 23. (b) 43. (b) 63. (d) 83. (d) 103. (b) 123. (c) 143. (a) 163. (b) 183. (c) 4. (b) 24. (b) 44. (c) 64. (d) 84. (a) 104. (c) 124. (b) 144. (a) 164. (b) 184. (b) 5. (d) 25. (a) 45. (b) 65. (b) 85. (d) 105. (b) 125. (c) 145. (b) 165. (d) 185. (c) 6. (c) 26. (d) 46. (c) 66. (d) 86. (b) 106. (d) 126. (c) 146. (c) 166. (b) 186. (c) 7. (d) 27. (d) 47. (c) 67. (d) 87. (a) 107. (c) 127. (c) 147. (c) 167. (a) 187. (c) 8. (b) 28. (b) 48. (d) 68. (b) 88. (c) 108. (d) 128. (a) 148. (a) 168. (d) 188. (d) 9. (c) 29. (a) 49. (b) 69. (c) 89. (c) 109. (d) 129. (c) 149. (c) 169. (c) 189. (d) 10. (b) 30. (b) 50. (b) 70. (b) 90. (d) 110. (d) 130. (d) 150. (b) 170. (b) 190. (a) 11. (c) 31. (c) 51. (b) 71. (c) 91. (b) 111. (c) 131. (d) 151. (c) 171. (c) 191. (c) 12. (d) 32. (b) 52. (c) 72. (c) 92. (b) 112. (a) 132. (b) 152. (b) 172. (b) 192. (c) 13. (d) 33. (c) 53. (b) 73. (c) 93. (b) 113. (b) 133. (d) 153. (b) 173. (b) 193. (c) 14. (a) 34. (c) 54. (c) 74. (c) 94. (c) 114. (b) 134. (b) 154. (c) 174. (d) 194. (c) 15. (c) 35. (b) 55. (a) 75. (a) 95. (c) 115. (b) 135. (c) 155. (c) 175. (c) 195. (b) 16. (d) 36. (a) 56. (d) 76. (d) 96. (b) 116. (b) 136. (b) 156. (b) 176. (c) 196. (c) 17. (d) 37. (b) 57. (c) 77. (b) 97. (d) 117. (c) 137. (a) 157. (c) 177. (d) 197. (d) 18. (b) 38. (b) 58. (c) 78. (b) 98. (b) 118. (b) 138. (d) 158. (c) 178. (c) 198. (d) 19. (b) 39. (c) 59. (d) 79. (a) 99. (a) 119. (c) 139. (c) 159. (d) 179. (c) 199. (c) 20. (c) 40. (b) 60. (b) 80. (d) 100. (c) 120. (c) 140. (b) 160. (b) 180. (b) 200. (d)

TEST 2

DIRECTIONS for Questions 1 to 50: For the following questions, choose the correct option.

1. NASSCOM once carried an ad saying, “Copy software. You get this hardware absolutely

free”. What was the hardware?

[1] A Computer [2] A free modem! [3] A Mouse [4] Handcuffs

2. In the 2nd century, Greek writer Julius Pollux described a game - apoiddraskinda. What is

the modern day equivalent of this game?

[1] Hide and Seek [2] 7 stones [3] Polo [4] Housie

3. Which games were funded by a gift, from a wealthy architect called Georgios Averoff, of one

million drachmas, and by the sale of souvenir stamps and medals?

[1] 1904 St. Louis [2] 1896 Athens [3] 1900 Paris [4] None

4. Inspired by the original Ancient Olympics, a certain Frenchman conceived the idea of the

modern Olympic Games, proposing the idea publicly in 1892, and spending the next three and a

half years drumming up support. Who?

[1] Louis XVI [2] Napoleon

[3] Baron Pierre de Coubertin [4] None of these

5. Who was referred to as "The Milwaukee Meter"?

[1] Milkha Singh [2] Carl Lewis [3] Archie Hahn [4] Ben Johnson

6. The world's largest archipelago is?

[1] The Cyclades Islands, Greece [2] Hawaii

[3] Indonesia [4] None of these

7. Which capital city in Europe straddles the Danube and is named after the two sections of

the city - one on either bank of the river?

[1] Budapest, Hungary [2] Vienna, Austria [3] Bratislava, Slovakia [4] None of

these

8. This island in the Indian Ocean was named for the day on which it was first discovered in

1643. An Australian territory, it is famous for the annual migration of millions of red crabs which

go right across the island. Which is it?

[1] Easter Island [2] Christmas Island [3] Tromelin Island [4] None

9. Which two countries lie completely within the borders of Italy?

[1] The Vatican and San Narino [2] Andorra and Liechtenstein

[3] The Vatican and Andorra [4] None of these

10. 'The City of Dreaming Spires'- which is it?

[1] Hong Kong [2] Vienna [3] Oxford [4] London

11. Their first LP featured the full frontal nude of a duo, resulting in it being sold in a brown

paper bag. Which duo?

[1] Simon and Garfunkel [2] Bob Dylan and Joan Baez

[3] Lennon and Yoko Ono [4] None of these

12. What is the latest estimate of food grains in million tones in 2002-2003?

[1] 183.17 [2] 186.43 [3] 189.4 [4] 184.06

13. This band was named after the first synthesizer that Liam Hewlett from the band had.

Which band?

[1] Pearl Jam [2] Prodigy [3] Alice in Chains [4] Rolling stone

14. Which group were named after a popular fifties hairdo?

[1] Vee Zees [2] B-52s [3] Iron Maiden [4] Spice Girls

15. Roberta Flack wrote the song "Killing Me Softly" about which singer?

[1] Don Henley [2] Elvis Presley [3] Don McLean [4] Julio Iglesias

16. Which structure got its name from the old French word meaning "to build"?

[1] Buttress [2] Bastion [3] Bastille [4] None

17. What was built by General Motors executive John Raskob, in the teeth of the Depression, as

a sign of rebirth?

[1] White House [2] Empire State Building [3] Twin Towers [4]

Statue of Liberty

18. A famous painting by Rubens depicts the birth of a goddess? Which one?

[1] Venus [2] Cassandra [3] Aphrodite [4] None

19. According to legend, what was erected at the point where Muhammed Quli Shah first set

eyes on Queen Baghmati?

[1] Red Fort [2] Charminar [3] Shalimar Bagh [4] Qutb Minar

20. The statue, "The Thinker", by Auguste Rodin, is a portrait of which poet?

[1] Homer [2] Dante [3] Virgil [4] None

21. Which country's National Anthem begins with lines that translate as "Thou art the ruler of

minds"?

[1] India [2] Sri Lanka [3] Bangladesh [4] Russia

22. Which English word is derived from the Latin for "teach"?

[1] Doctor [2] Mentor [3] Engineer [4] Father

23. Which actor lives in a New Jersey mansion called "Bubble Hill"?

[1] Michael Douglas [2] Julia Roberts [3] Eddie Murphy [4] Denzel Washington

24. Who wrote a collection of poems called "Beejak"?

[1] Surdas [2] Kalidas [3] Ravidas [4] Kabir

25. Trishala was the name of whose mother?

[1] Buddha [2] Mahavira [3] Ashoka [4] Devadutta

26. Who has been named India's new ambassador to China?

[1] K. Kasturirangan [2] S.S. Menon [3] Nalin Surie [4] Anna Hazare

27. The smallest newspaper in the world is ?

[1] Birmingham News [2] Vossa Senhoria [3] Voice of the hill [4] Challenge

28. Which country won the women’s World Cup hockey championship in 2002?

[1] Argentina [2] Netherlands [3] India [4] Australia

29. Which country is planning to open a mobile phone station at the Everest base camp?

[1] US [2] China [3] India [4] Nepal

30. Who is the editor of "The Hindu"?

[1] N. Ravi [2] Vinod Mehta [3] Aveek Sarkar [4] Sanjay Narayan

31. Angel, the highest waterfall in the world, is situated in which of the following countries?

[1] Norway [2] USA [3] Venezuela [4] Canada

32. Kanha National Park is in

[1] Uttar Pradesh [2] Maharashtra [3] Madhya Pradesh [4] Karnataka

33. Gandhi-Irwin pact was signed in which of the following years?

[1] 1916 [2] 1923 [3] 1929 [4] 1931

34. Which of the following personalities has/have authored ‘Straight from the Gut’?

[1] Bill Gates [2] Richard Branson

[3] Jack Welch and John A. Byrne [4] Louis Gerstner Jr.

35. Charak and Sushruta are the famous names in the field of

[1] Astrology [2] Medicine [3] Literature [4] Dance and Drama

36. Who among the following was appointed as the first Governor of Bengal by the East India

Company in 1758?

[1] Warren Hastings [2] Lord Cornwallis [3] Lord William Bentick [4] Robert

Clive

37. Which of the following days is celebrated as International Women’s Day?

[1] February 28 [2] March 8 [3] April 3 [4] June 5

38. Who among the following is also called the ‘Light of Asia’?

[1] Swami Vivekananda [2] Mahavira [3] Buddha [4] Confucius

39. The first Asian Games were held at

[1] Bangkok [2] Tokyo [3] New Delhi [4] Jakarta

40. The former name of the now famous ‘Idea Cellular’ is

[1] BATATA [2] BT & T [3] Idea AT & T [4] CTAL

41. Where is the headquarters of World Trade Organization (WTO)?

[1] London [2] Washington [3] Geneva [4] Paris

42. Which of the following is NOT a kharif crop?

[1] Mustard [2] Rice [3] Cotton [4] Bajra

43. Which of the following is the capital of Belgium?

[1] Berne [2] Sofia [3] Brussels [4] Vienna

44. How many members are nominated by the President for the Rajya Sabha?

[1] 2 [2] 8 [3] 10 [4] 12

45. Who of the following cricketers has been selected as Wisden’s Indian Cricketer of the

Century recently?

[1] Sachin Tendulkar [2] Kapil Dev [3] Sunil Gavaskar [4] G. Vishwanath

46. EI AI is the airlines of

[1] Qatar [2] Israel [3] Saudi Arabia [4] Algeria

47. ‘N.K. Ranga’, who died in the month of July 2002, was a famous

[1] cricketer [2] actor [3] cartoonist [4] politician

48. Sir Thomas Roe visited the court of which of the following Indian rulers?

[1] Shah Jahan [2] Aurangzeb [3] Akbar [4] Jehangir

49. Which of the following is NOT a watch company?

[1] Roche [2] Tissot [3] Cartier [4] Omega

50. ‘Fish’, is a best selling book authored by

[1] Tom Peters [2] Stephen C Lundin, Harry Paul and John Christ

[3] John Humphries [4] Jack Welch and Louis Gerstner

1. [4] 2. [1] 3. [2] 4. [3] 5. [3]

6. [3] 7. [1] 8. [2] 9. [1] 10. [3]

11. [3] 12. [1] 13. [2] 14. [2] 15. [3]

16. [3] 17. [2] 18. [3] 19. [4] 20. [2]

21. [1] 22. [1] 23. [3] 24. [4] 25. [2]

26. [3] 27. [2] 28. [1] 29. [2] 30. [1]

31. [3] 32. [3] 33. [4] 34. [3] 35. [2]

36. [4] 37. [2] 38. [3] 39. [3] 40. [1]

41. [3] 42. [1] 43. [3] 44. [4] 45. [2]

46. [2] 47. [3] 48. [4] 49. [1] 50. [2]

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST 3

1. The table below matches the company with its auto brand. Choose the correct match.

Company Brand

a. Tata (i) Santa Fe

b. Hyundai (ii) Aria

c. Skoda (iii) Yeti

d. Chevrolet (iv) Volt

A. a – (ii), b-(iv), c-(iii), d-(i)

B. a – (ii), b-(i), c-(iv), d-(iii)

C. a – (i), b-(iv), c-(iii), d-(ii)

D. a – (ii), b-(i), c-(iii), d-(iv)

2. “Dynamite” is a mobile handset from

a. Spice b. Micromax c. LG d. Samsung

3. The slogans in the table below have been matched with the company they relate to. Choose the

correct match.

Slogan Company

a. Jet Airways (i) You are our world

b. Air Sahara (ii) The joy of flying

c. Sri Lankan Airways (iii) Emotionally Yours

d. Cathay Pacific (iv) The heart of Asia

A. a – (ii), b-(iii), c-(i), d-(iv)

B. a – (ii), b-(iii), c-(i), d-(iv)

C. a – (i), b-(iv), c-(iii), d-(ii)

D. a – (ii), b-(i), c-(iii), d-(iv)

4. Indian Cricket team is opposed to “UDRS”. What does UDRS stand for?

a. Umpire decision rating system

b. Umpire decision review system

c. Umpire decision resolution system

d. Umpire decision review service

5. Identify the indirect tax from the given options.

a) Wealth tax b) Sales tax c.) Corporation tax d.) Gift tax

6. The DTH service launched recently by which company has the tagline “ Direct hai Correct

hai”?

a. Samsung b. Onida c. Videocon d. Sun TV

7. Who among the following is the chairman of Wipro?

a. Azim Premji b. Girish Paranjpe c. Suresh Vaswani d.

T.Balakrishnan

8. Which famous European company was founded by cousins of Communist ideologue Karl Marx?

a. Siemens b. Philips c. Bayer d. Volkswagen

9. The table below matches the painting with its painter. Choose the correct match.

Painter Painting

a. Leonardo da Vinci (i) Sistine chapel

b. Michael Angelo (ii)The Last Supper

c. M.F. Hussain (iii) Vase with fifteen sunflowers

d. Vincent Van Gogh (iv) Sufi Paintings

A. a – (ii), b-(iii), c-(iv), d-(i)

B. a – (i), b-(ii), c-(iv), d-(iii)

C. a – (ii), b-(i), c-(iv), d-(iii)

D. a – (iii), b-(i), c-(iv), d-(ii)

10. Which of the following players won 2010 US open tennis Grand slam?

a. Serena Williams b. Caroline Wozinacki c. Kim Clijsters d. Venus Williams

11. Which golfer has won maximum number of GOLF MASTERS?

a. Tiger Woods b. Arnold Palmer c. Greg Norman d. Jack Nicklaus

12. The table below matches the tournament with its sport. Choose the correct match.

Sport Tournament

a. Golf (i) Uber Cup

b. Badminton (ii) Ryder Cup

c. Football (iii) Frank Worell trophy

d. Cricket (iv) UEFA Cup

A. a – (ii), b-(i), c-(iv), d-(iii)

B. a – (i), b-(ii), c-(iv), d-(iii)

C. a – (iv), b-(i), c-(ii), d-(iii)

D. a – (iii), b-(i), c-(iv), d-(ii)

13. Name the managing director of Bajaj Auto Limited.

a. Rahul Bajaj b. Rajiv Bajaj c. Sanjiv Bajaj d. Madhur

Bajaj

14. Which footballer won the “Golden boot” award in 2010 Football World cup?

a. David Villa b. Lionel Messey c. Diego Forlan d. Thomas Mueller

15. Tesco is a famous retailing giant from

a. Germany b. France c. Italy d. United

Kingdom

16. The e-biz project of Indian Government has been awarded to

a. Wipro technologies b. Infosys technologies

c. Polaris Software d. Tata Consultancy services

17. “BIG Entertainment” is the name of the company that belongs to the stable of

a. Reliance b. AV Birla Group c. Tatas d. Times Group

18. Alcoa, Xstrata, RIO Tinto and BHP Billiton are the names of the companies in the field of

a. Oil Exploration b. FMCG c. Metals & Mining d. Agro products

19. “Renminbi” is the currency of

a. Ireland b. Phillipines c. Malaysia d. China

20. The headquarters of WTO are at

a. Paris b. New York c. Geneva d. Rio de

Janerio

21. Name the current prime minister of United Kingdom from the options.

a. Gordon Brown b. David Cameron c. Justin Green d. ED Miliband

22. Select the correct author- book match.

Author Book

a. George Bush (i) Under the dome

b. John Grisham (ii) Decision Points

c. Stephen King (iii) The Finkler Question

d. Howard Jacobson (iv) Confession

A. a – (ii), b-(i), c-(iv), d-(iii)

B. a – (ii), b-(iv), c-(iii), d-(i)

C. a – (ii), b-(iv), c-(i), d-(iii)

D. a – (i), b-(iv), c-(ii), d-(iii)

23. What was the rank of India in overall medals tally in just concluded Commonwealth games

2010?

a. 3rd b. 2nd c. 4th d. 1st

24. Which writer has won Nobel Prize 2010 for literature?

a. Salman Rushdie b. Mario Vargas Llosa c. Jorge Luis Borges d. Doris

Lessing

25. Of the following brands, choose the brand which Amir Khan does not endorse?

a. Mahindra bikes b. Tata sky c. Etisalat d. Cinthol

Answer key

1. d 2. C 3. B 4. B 5. B

6. c 7. A 8. B 9. C 10. C

11. d 12. A 13. B 14. D 15. D

16. b 17. A 18. C 19. D 20. C

21. b 22. C 23. B 24. B 25. d

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST 4

1. Which is the correct Stock-Exchange-Country Match?

Stock-Index Country

a. Borsa Italiana (i) Australia

b. Asia-Pacific Exchange (ii) Argentina

c. Cordoba Stock Exchange (iii) China

d. Shenzen Stock Exchange (iv) Italy

A. (a) –(iv), (b) – (i), (c) – (iii), (d) – (ii)

B. (a) –(iv), (b) – (ii), (c) – (iii), (d) – (i)

C. (a) –(iv), (b) – (i), (c) – (ii), (d) – (iii)

D. (a) –(iv), (b) – (iii), (c) – (i), (d) – (ii)

2. The author Mario Vargas Llosa Who has recently won Nobel Prize 2010 for literature belongs

to nationality

a. Argentina b. Bolivia c. Peru d. Brazil

3. Who was the winner of “Golden Ball” award in 2010 FIFA World Cup?

a. Wesley Snejider b. Diego Forlan c. David Villa d. Moroslav Klose

4. Match the President, Currency and Country.

President Currency Country

a. Christian Wulff (i) Euro 1. Panama

b. Luiz La Silva (ii) Euro 2. Spain

c. Jose Luis Rodriguez (iii) Real 3. Germany

d. Ricardo Alberto (iv) Balboa 4. Brazil

A. (a) –(iv)- 1, (b) – (i)- 2, (c) – (iii)-3, (d) – (ii)-4

B. (a) –(i)- 3, (b) – (iii)- 4, (c) – (ii)-2, (d) – (iv)-1

C. (a) –(iv)- 2, (b) – (ii)- 3, (c) – (iii)-1, (d) – (i)-4

A. (a) –(ii)- 1, (b) – (iii)- 2, (c) – (i)-3, (d) – (ii)-4

5. Which female tennis player won 2010 Wimbledon Championship?

a. Vera Zvoraneva b. Kim Clijsters c. Serena Williams d. Maria

Sharapova

6. The abbreviations given in the first column are explained in the second column. Select the

option which has all wrong explanations of the abbreviations.

a. UNICEF (i) United Nations Development Program

b. ANC (ii) National Institute of Insemination Technology

c. TRAI (iii) African National Council

d. UNDP (iv) United Nations International Children Education Forum

e. NIIT (v) India Satellite Research Organization

f. ISRO (vi) Intellectual Property

g. IP (vii) Telecom Regulatory Authority Of India

A. (a)- (iv), (c) – (vii), (b)-(iii), (d)-(i)

B. (a)- (iv), (f) – (v), (g)-(vi), (d)-(i)

C. (e)- (ii), (b) – (iii), (f)-(v), (d)-(i)

D. (a)- (iv), (b) – (iii), (f)-(v), (e)-(ii)

7. Identify the cricketer who has batted in all the positions (from 1 to 11) in test match cricket.

a. Ashok Mankad b. Wilfred Rhodes c. Garfield Sobers d. Lance Cairns

8. What is RED HERRING in an IPO?

a. Prospectus b. Submission of form

c. Funds generated during IPO d. Minimum offer per share

9. Who declares the Credit Policy of India?

a. The Finance Ministry b. Reserve Bank Of India

c. The Commerce Ministry d. The Indian Banks Association

10. Temujin was the famous historical character of the world, but can you identify him by his

original name?

a. Babar b. Akbar c. Genghis Khan d. Kublai Khan

11. Which city is also known as “Windy City”?

a. Rome b. New York c. Ottawa d. Chicago

12. Which country has the largest road network in the world?

a. India b. USA c. China d. Russia

13. One barrel of Oil is approximately equal to how many litres?

a. 200 b. 150 c. 120 d. 160

14. Who invented Computer laptop?

a. Arthur Wynna – USA b. Q .Daimler – Germany

c. Sinclair – Britain d. Adam Osborne – USA

15. Which of the following countries is a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting

Countries (OPEC)?

a. Venezuela b. Russia c. Panama d. USA

16. Indian Standard time is based on the longitude of 82.5 degrees passing through which of the

following places?

a. Mirzapur, UP b. Jabalpur, MP

c. Nagpur, Maharashtra d. Jaipur, Rajasthan

17. Which of the following pair is not correct?

a. George Harrison – Sitar b. Ustad Amjad Ali Khan – Sarod

c. Dr. Kamala Shankar – Tabla d. HariPrasad Chaurasia – Flute

18. At what frequency SENSEX calculation carried out?

a. Every half an hour b. 6 times a day c. Every hour d. Real time

19. Burj Khalifa is

a. A mosque in UAE b. A University in UAE

c. A small mountain range in UAE d. Tallest Skyscraper in World

20. Match the following national parks with their respective states.

National Parks States

a. Bandipur National Park (i) Uttar Pradesh

b. Dachigam National Park (ii) Rajasthan

c. Sariska National Park (iii) Karnataka

d. Dudhwa national Park (iv) Jammu & Kashmir

A. (a) –(iii), (b) – (iv), (c) – (ii), (d) – (i)

B. (a) –(iv), (b) – (ii), (c) – (iii), (d) – (i)

C. (a) –(iii), (b) – (ii), (c) – (i), (d) – (iv)

D. (a) –(iii), (b) – (i), (c) – (ii), (d) – (iv)

21. What is the colour of the black-box in a commercial plane?

a. Obviously black b. Green c. Orange d. Yellow

22. Find the person who plays the odd sport out of the following.

a. Chris Evert b. Tiger Woods c. Annika Sorenstam d. Ernie Els

23. Who was the second person to set foot on moon?

a. Edwin Aldrin b. Neil Armstrong c. Michael Collins d. Yuri Gagarin

24. Who is the current chairman of Reserve Bank of India?

a. C. Rangrajan b. Y.V.Reddy c. D. Subbarao d. S. Gopinath

25. Who is the current Chief Election Commissioner Of India?

a. Naveen Chawla b. B.B. Tandon c. N. Gopalaswami d. S.Y. Quraishi

Answer key

1 c 2 c 3 b 4 b 5 c 6 d 7 b 8 a 9 b 10 c 11 d 12 b 13 d 14 d 15 a 16 a 17 c 18 d 19 d 20 a 21 c 22 a 23 a 24 c

25 d

TEST 5

1. Identify the INCORRECT statement about GATT.

(1) India was among the 23 original signatories of GATT.

(2) GATT too was constituted at the Bretton Woods conference along with the IMF and World

Bank.

(3) After GATT was set up in 1947, there was a series of negotiating rounds culminating in

Uruguay round, finally signed at Marrakech.

(4) None of the above.

2. What does TRIMS stand for?

(1) Trade Related International Movements (both goods and services).

(2) Trade in Resources, which are Internationally Mobilized.

(3) Trade Related Investment Measures.

(4) Trade Rising in International Markets.

3. The classification of subsides in different boxes of amber, blue and green, at WTO is done in

the area of:

(1) Agriculture (2) Textiles (3) Pharmaceuticals (4) Services

4. The country’s first corporatised port is at:

(1) Ennore (2) Vishakhapatnam (3) Cochin (4)Mormugao

5. ‘National treatment’ provisions under the WTO implies

(1) treating one’s different trading partners equally.

(2) equal treatment for foreign and domestic goods and services once the foreign goods have

entered domestic market.

(3) treating one’s trading partner preferentially than domestic traders.

(4) giving special treatment to goods and services produced in domestic market.

6. Which is the world’s biggest exporting nation?

(1) Japan (2) USA (3) Germany (4) China

7. The last country to join WTO on October 13, 2004 is

(1) Cambodia (2) Brazil (3) Botswana (4) Chad

8. Which of the following became the first company to cross the 50 million subscriber mark in

mobile phone services?

(1) Reliance Communications (2) Vodafone (3) BSNL (4) Bharti Airtel

9. Which of the following Countries is not a member of WTO?

(1) Brazil (2) Pakistan (3) China (4) Russia

10. A complaint in WTO is processed at:

(1) The GATT – Bretton woods standing committee

(2) The trade policy review body

(3) The dispute settlement body

(4) The General Council

11. Iran, Iraq and North Korea (President Bush’s axis of evil),

(1) are permanent WTO members.

(2) have observer status in WTO.

(3) have been imposed sanctions and boycotted by WTO.

(4) have no formal association with WTO.

12. EPCG starts for

(1) Excise protection of Capital goods

(2) Export promotion Capital goods

(3) Earnings provided by Capital goods

(4) Excelling in performance through capital goods

13. ‘Cairns Group’ is a group of countries that accounts for more than 20% of global exports of:

(1) Wildlife (2) Agriculture (3) Textiles (4) Jems and Jwellery

14. India’s major competitor in exporting tea worldwide is

(1) Sri Lanka (2) Thailand (3) Russia (4) Myanmar

15. Japan, Australia and China have imposed bans on fruits, like Mangoes and Grapes, from

India on account of presence of fruit flies. This would come under

(1) tariff barriers (2) sanitary and phytosanitary

measures

(3) dumping (4) non trade barrier

16. The Apex body regulating foreign trade in India is

(1) Federation of India Export Organisation (FIEO) (2) Export Promotion Council,

India

(3) Exim Bank (4) Ministry of Foreign Trade

17. The US corporation which acquired the basmati patent:

(1) Monsanto (2) Rice tech (3) DuPont (4) Dow

18. A specifically delineated duty free enclave, deemed to be a foreign territory, for the purposes

of trade operations of duties and tariffs is known as SEZ. It stands for

(1) Special Economic Zone (2) Special Export Zone

(3) Specifically Export Zone (4) Specific Economic Zone

19. Which of the following has tied up with lifestyle design company Giorgio Armani for the

design of its portable devices recently?

(1) Samsung (2) Sony (3) Nokia (4) LG

20. Which of the following sells its automotive batteries at shops branded ‘Powerzone’?

(1) Standard Furukawa (2) Amara Raja

(3) Exide Industries (4) Tata Auto-components

Company (TACO)

21. Which of the statements is NOT correct, in reference to the trends in Indian exports, over

the past 10 years?

(1) The share of manufactured goods in total exports has increased.

(2) Exports in petroleum products have declined sharply.

(3) India’s exports to Asia and Oceania, Africa, America and Latin American countries

have seen an upward trend.

(4) India’s exports to West Europe have plummeted.

22. A currency that has a continuing high level of demand, relative to supply, in the market of

foreign exchange is often called as

(1) soft currency (2) hard currency (3) cold currency (4) hot currency

23. India has a share of .67% of world exports, whereas China’s share is

(1) 2% (2) 3.9% (3) 5% (4) 4.2%

24. In the centre state financial relations in India, Gadgil formula is used in:

(1) division of tax revenues. (2) formulating the policy for fresh

borrowings.

(3) writing off state’s indebtness to the center. (4) allocating central plan assistance between

states.

25. ‘Non tariff’ barriers imply

(1) regulations relating to environment, health and safety (EHS) to restrict international

trade.

(2) imposing high duties on imported goods.

(3) applying physical barriers and check points to prevent inflow of foreign goods.

(4) None of the above

26. The ‘Theory of Comparative Advantage’ in Economics is related to

(1) Welfare Economics (2) Managerial Economics

(3) International Economics (4) Micro Economics

27. WTO is often criticized for being anti democratic. But the fact most contrary to it, is that

(1) dispute resolution is achieved at the WTO by consensus.

(2) all views can be expressed at ‘People Forum’ just outside WTO, HQ in Geneva.

(3) there are substantial elected officials at WTO.

(4) every one, of the 148 members, has a veto over changing rules.

28. The vast expansion of international trade, in the second half of the 20th century, owed much

to

(1) a new method of shipping goods in containers.

(2) the opening up of Brazil, South America’s largest market.

(3) Change in the economic rationale of new economists, who encouraged international

trade.

(4) Industrial revolution.

29. The tariff, imposed on imports to offset the impact of subsidy given by government in the

country of origin of commodity, is known as:

(1) Anti dumping duty (2) Customs duty (3) Countervailing duty (4) Ad Valorem

duty

30. The stocks of commodities held by the countries or international organizations to moderate

the price fluctuations are called:

(1) Contingency stocks (2) Buffer stocks (3) Shock absorbing stocks (4) Emergency

stocks

31. The difference in value over a period of time of a country’s imports and exports of

merchandise is known as:

(1) Balance of Trade (2) Balance of Payment (3) Export import balance (4) Trade gap

32. ‘Dollar drain’ implies:

(1) Sharp devaluation of dollar, thus value of dollar going down the drain.

(2) a situation when country’s imports from USA exceed its export to USA, resulting in

dollar reserves plummeting.

(3) fake US dollars flooding financial markets.

(4) None of the above

33. Tarapore Committee is associated with:

(1) select markets and thrust products. (2) implementation of SEZs.

(3) utilizing the burgeoning forex reserves. (4) capital account convertibility.

34. Which of these has brands like CellOne for its mobile services, Bfone for fixed line telephone

and Tarang for CDMA-based WLL limited mobility phones?

(1) Reliance Communications (2) MTNL (3) BSNL (4) Bharti Airtel

35. Which of the following countries is NOT a member of the regional grouping ASEAN?

(1) Singapore (2) Brunei (3) Thailand (4) China

36. Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)

does NOT have following country as its member.

(1) Bangladesh (2) Nepal (3) Sri Lanka (4) Thailand

37. A small country that is economically dependent on a single export commodity and is

typically governed by a dictator or armed forces is known as

(1) Banana Republic (2) Eggs in Single Basket Republic

(3) Weather Republic (4) Crutches Republic

38. Which advertising agency devised the campaign for the change of brand name Hutch to

Vodafone recently?

(1) Rediffusion DYR (2) Ogilvy & Mather

(3) J Walter Thompson (4) McCann Ericsson

39. Tripitakas are the sacred books of:

(1) Jainism (2) Buddhism (3) Hinduism (4) Shaivism

40. The Great Bath of the Indus Valley Civilization was discovered in:

(1) Harappa (2) Lothal (3) Mohenjodaro (4) Ropar

41. Buland Darwaza, built by Akbar, is to commemorate the victory of

(1) Orrisa (2) Bengal (3) Delhi (4) Gujrat

42. The latest Global Information Technology Report ranks India

(1) 40th (2) 50th (3) 14th (4) 15th

43. Which company recently launched a premium prêt denim line in the Indian fashion arena,

co–branding it with John Abraham?

(1) Killer (2) Wrangler (3) Lee Copper (4) Milky Way

44. Which company is planning to launch a multi–purpose vehicle called “Ingenio”?

(1) Mahindra and Mahindra (2) Maruti Udyog

(3) Eicher Motors (4) Isuzu Motors

45. The well–known confectionary brand “Nutrine” has been acquired by

(1) Cadbury (2) Modern Foods

(3) Godrej Beverages and Foods (4) Perfetti

46. Which company joined hands with Nasscom (National Association of Software and Service

Companies) and Tata Teleservices for developing 65 village resource centres to provide valuable

information in education, healthcare and agriculture through wireless connectivity to residents of

nine coastal States?

(1) Computer Associates (2) CISCO (3) Qualcomm (4) Motorola

47. Pick out the incorrect pair.

(1) Rajat Gupta – McKinsey and Company (2) Arun Sarin – Vodafone

(3) Arun Netravali – Bell Labs (4) Rajesh Hukku – IBM

51. ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL) has recently won a joint bid to acquire Omimex De Columbia, a

Columbian oil firm, in partnership with:

(1) Rosnfet (2) Sinopec (3) Malaysian Oil Bhd (4) Reliance Petrochemical

52. With the presence in 27 countries…. which company is called “three oceans”?

(1) Sanyo (2) Microsoft (3) Sun Microsys (4) Nokia

53. Which country is famous for Lego?

(1) Australia (2) Denmark (3) Czechoslovakia (4) India

54. Which auto major’s head quarter is known as four cylinder tower?

(1) Toyota (2) Mahindra (3) BMW (4) Ford

55. “Bata” shoes originated in which country:

(1) Czechoslovakia (2) India (3) Korea (4) USA

56. Which former Indian test cricketer is the representative of Musco lighting in India?

(1) Sachin Tendulkar (2) Kapil Dev (3) Ravi Shastri (4) Mohinder Amarnath

57. Zzapi Nercor is the mascot of which Indian pizza company?

(1) Pizza Corner (2) Pizza Hut (3) Spicy Pizza (4) None of these

58. Top Gear is the retail outlet of which Indian company?

(1) HP (2) BP (3) IOC (4) NACL

59. Which search engine was first named Architext and created by a group of Stanford

University grads? (1) MSN (2) Search (3) Excite (4) Dot Com

60. What is the name of ‘Tainwala Chemicals’ mosquito repellant brand?

(1) Good Night (2) Moon Light (3) All Out (4) Casper

61. Which company is the official ice-cream supplier to Wimbledon?

(1) Wall’s (2) Vadilal (3) Amul (4) None of these

62. Which was the first insurance company in India to start a 24 hour call centre?

(1) LIC (2) Reliance General Insurance (3) Tata AIG (4) HDFC

63. Rasik Dhariwal is the owner of which Gutkha company?

(1) Baba (2) Manikchand (3) Panparag (4) Manikram

64. Which Indian retail chain was started by former Carona employee B.S Nagesh?

(1) Shopper’s Stop (2) Big Bazar (3) Landmark (4) Westside

65. Which company was first founded and registered in Delaware, US as Quantum Computer

Services?

(1) LOA (2) AOL (3) Oracle (4) Microsoft

66. MAT expands to …..

(1) Medium Advisory Tax (2) Minimum Accounted Tax (3) Minimum Automated Tax (4)

Minimum Alternate Tax

67. Which of the following represents the expansion of ‘T’ in ‘TIN’?

(1) Trade (2) Tax (3) Transmission (4) Total

68. Awaz is the Hindi business news channel that belongs to the stable of …

(1) NDTV (2) CNBC TV 18 (3) Zee News (4) Sony TV

69. ‘Make your own road’ is the catchphrase that you would associate with….

(1) Chevrolet Tavera (2) ata Safari (3) Tata Sumo (4) Ford Endeavor

70. The maximum revenue to the government comes from….

(1) Service tax (2) Custom duty (3) Excise duty (4) Income tax

71. Identify the indirect tax from the given options.

(1) Wealth Tax (2) Gift Tax (3) Sales Tax (4) Corporation Tax

72. Which of the following represents the expansion of ‘R’ in RFID?

(1) Regional (2) Radio (3) Recorded (4) Reliance

73. This bank, in collaboration with NGOs, launched the ’social card’ for those people who want

to contribute to the welfare of the society but either do not have time to do so or do not know

which because they would like to support. Can you identify the name of the bank in question

from the given options?

(1) Canara Bank (2) SBI (3) Punjab National Bank (4) Bank of India

74. Which of these became the first cellular service provider in India to launch a call filter service

countrywide that would allow subscribers to filter incoming calls by blocking specific numbers

recently?

(1) Reliance Communications (2) Vodafone (3) BSNL (4) Bharti Airtel

75. The year in which the World Bank was incorporated in the UN system was….

(1) 1994 (2) 1946 (3) 1947 (4) 1949

76. Which of the following personalities is the author of ‘Jeh: A Life of JRD Tata’?

(1) RM Lala (2) BK Dadabhoy (3) Dwijendra Tripathi (4) BK Karanjia

77. Identify the incorrect match. Automobile company Car Model

(1) Fiat Automobiles Panda (2) Skoda Automobiles Fabia (3) Honda Automobiles Civic (4) All of

them are correct

78. Where was Motorola’s sixth global design centre, its first in India, launched?

(1) Bangalore (2) Chennai (3) Delhi (4) Pune

79. Which insurance company runs a credit card business in a joint venture with GE Money and

Corporation Bank?

(1) Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) (2) Bajaj Allianz (3) Birla Sun Life (4) Aviva Life

Insurance

80. Which promoter family sold off its stake in India Cements in 2007?

(1) Murugappa (2) Sankar (3) Srinivasan (4) Iyengar

81. Prannoy Roy’s “NDTV MetroNation” is the first city specific English language channel that

was launched in _____ recently.

(1) Delhi (2) Chennai (3) Mumbai (4) Bangalore

82. What is the DTH service launched recently by Chennai based Sun TV Group called?

(1) Sun Sky (2) Sun Satellite (3) Sun Network (4) Sun Direct

83. Which entertainment channel launched a nationwide hunt for India’s first space tourist?

(1) Zee Café (2) Zone Reality (3) Bindass (4) Zee

84. BigStreet is the out-of-home (OOH) advertising venture of ___________

(1) Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) (2) Mudra (3) Nimbus (4) Sahara India

85. Which is the first magazine from Condé Nast, world’s leading publisher of lifestyle and

fashion magazines, launched in India?

(1) Vogue (2) Glamour (3) Condé Nast Traveller (4) Vanity Fair

86. Where would you find your deltoid muscle?

(1) Big muscle on the shoulder (2) Big muscle on the feet (3) Big muscle on the thyroid (4) Big

muscle on the elbow

87. American police have SWAT teams, what do the initials stand for?

(1) Special Weapons & Tactics (2) Specialized Weapons & Tactics (3) Specialized Warriors &

Technique (4) None of these

88. Which public sector oil refining major launched a pilot project to build cinema halls at its

highways fuel stations in Gujarat and tied up with Cinemata, a film distribution unit of SET?

(1) IOC (2) BPCL (3) HPCL (4) IBP

89. Which of these acquired the acquisition of polyester and textile manufacturing assets of the

Malaysia-based Hualon Corporation?

(1) Tata Chemicals (2) Aditya Birla Nuvo (3) Reliance Industries Ltd (4) Arvind Mills

90. Which of these owns the Star Bazaar hypermarket brand in India?

(1) Trent (2) Future Group (3) Shopper’s Stop (4) Reliance Retail

91. Rural retail chain, Hariyali Kisaan Bazaar, is owned by________

(1) DCM Shriram (2) ITC Agro (3) Mahindra & Mahindra (4) Chambal Fertilsers

92. Which famous European company was founded by cousins of Communist ideologue Karl

Marx?

(1) Siemens (2) Philips (3) Bayer (4) Volkswagen

93. Which acid gives nettles their sting?

(1) Formic acid (2) Acetic acid (3) Carbonic acid (4) Sulphuric acid

94. For their discovery of what did Watson, Crick and Evans win the 1962 Nobel Prize for

medicine?

(1) WBC (2) RNA (3) DNA (4) Genes

95. ‘Air Wick’ is the air freshener brand from:

(1) Reckitt Benckiser (2) Godrej Sara Lee (3) Marico Industries (4) Hindustan Unilever

96. Which was the album the Beatles recorded the last time together?

(1) Abbey Road (2) Any Road (3) Every thing for you (4) Hard days night

97. Who painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel?

(1) Leonardo da Vinci (2) Michelangelo (3) MF Hussain (4) None of these

98. What is the sport in which you could get into a headlock?

(1) Wrestling (2) Rugby (3) Baseball (4) Boxing

99. Which business family owns the world’s oldest active sailing ship, ‘The Foundroyant’ which

started its life in Mumbai in 1817?

(1) Wadia (2) Tata (3) Godrej (4) Bajaj

100. Which is the country where reggae music originated?

(1) Barbados (2) USA (3) Russia (4) Jamaica

Answers Key

1.(4) 2.(3) 3.(1) 4.(1) 5.(2) 6.(2) 7.(1) 8.(4) 9.(4) 10.(3) 11.(4) 12.(2) 13.(2) 14.(1) 15.(2) 16.(1) 17.(2)

18.(1) 19.(4) 20.(2) 21.(2) 22.(2) 23.(2) 24.(4) 25.(1) 26.(1) 27.(4) 28.(1) 29.(3) 30.(2) 31.(1) 32.(2)

33.(4) 34.(3) 35.(4) 36.(2) 37.(1) 38.(2) 39.(2) 40.(3) 41.(4) 42.(1) 43.(2) 44.(1) 45.(3) 46.(3) 47.(4)

51.(2) 52.(1) 53.(2) 54.(3) 55.(1) 56.(2) 57.(1) 58.(3) 59.(3) 60.(4) 61.(1) 62.(3) 63.(2) 64.(1) 65.(2)

66.(4) 67.(2) 68.(2) 69.(2) 70.(3) 71.(3) 72.(2) 73.(2) 74.(2) 75.(3) 76.(2) 77.(4) 78.(1) 79.(1) 80.(2)

81.(1) 82.(4) 83.(3) 84.(1) 85.(1) 86.(1) 87.(1) 88.(2) 89.(3) 90.(1) 91.(1) 92.(2) 93.(1) 94.(3) 95.(2)

96.(1) 97.(2) 98.(1) 99.(1) 100.(4)

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TEST 6

1. Which business was sold off by Richard Branson of Virgin group in 2008?

(1) Music records (2) Business process outsourcing (BPO) (3) Foods & restaurants (4)

Publishing

2. Which company launched its baby care brand ‘Baby Dreams’?

(1) Wipro Consumer Care (2) JL Morison (3) Hindustan Unilever (4) Johnson & Johnson

3. Which famous cosmetics company launched its Visage range of products in India?

(1) L’Oreal (2) Oriflame (3) Maybelline (4) Nivea

4. Which cosmetics company was founded by Dame Anita Roddick?

(1) Avon (2) Body Shop (3) Christian Dior (4) Elizabeth Arden

5. Which of the following is not a brand owned by Shahnaz Hussain?

(1) Veda Dynamics (2) Kaya Skin clinics (3) Shahnaz Herbal (4) Forever Beautiful

6. Which of the following exports marine products under the Shogun, Hima, Gold Seal and Tara

brands?

(1) Godrej Agro (2) Nestle India (3) Temptation Foods (4) Hindustan Unilever

7. EL Rothschild Ltd and Del Monte Pacific Ltd are JV partners of _____ in its farm products

foray.

(1) Reliance Industries Ltd (2) Bharti (3) Godrej (4) AV Birla

8. Which of the following is not a snack brand owned by PepsiCo Company Frito Lay?

(1) Lays (2) Bingo (3) Kurkure (4) Uncle Chipps

9. Which beer giant operates in India through its 100% owned subsidiary–South Asia Breweries?

(1) Carlsberg (2) Anheuser-Busch (3) Heineken (4) Scottish & Newcastle

10. Coca-Cola India’s marketing communication campaign–‘ghoonth bhar sharart kar ley’ is for:

(1) Fanta (2) Minute Maid (3) Diet Coke (4) Thums up

11. Which cooking oil brand is owned by US-based $26-billion Bunge Ltd in India?

(1) Dalda (2) Dhara (3) Saffola (4) Postman

12.Tata Group’s Indian Hotels acquired Ritz Carlton Hotel in ______and Campton Palace in

_____ 2007.

(1) Boston, San Francisco (2) New York, Seattle (3) Las Vegas, Washington DC (4) Atlanta,

Honolulu

13. The Trident Hotel brand in India is owned by________

(1) Eastern India Hotels (2) Tata Group’s Indian Hotels (3) ITC Hotels (4) Park Hotels

14.Which of the following launched Penryn chips?

(1) American Micro devices (AMD) (2) Intel (3) Texas Instruments (4) Samsung

15.Which of the following launched of its Barcelona processor?

(1) American Micro devices (AMD) (2) Intel (3) Texas Instruments (4) Samsung

16. Which of these acquired American PC maker Gateway?

(1) Hewlett Packard (2) Acer (3) IBM (4) BenQ

17. Which IT company introduced its social networking site called Mash in India?

(1) Microsoft (2) Yahoo (3) Google (4) America Online

18. Which Japanese company introduced Robina–its 1.2 metre tall humanoid robot that can

comunicate

with visitors verbally and also with gestures?

(1) Toshiba (2) Toyota (3) Hitachi (4) Honda

19. Which TV channel is promoted by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi?

(1) Vijay TV (2) Sun TV (3) K tv (4) Kalaignar Tv

20. TV 18 Group was rechristened as________

(1) Newsline18 (2) Network18 (3) Media18 (4) News18

21. The turmeric soap brand ‘Wave’ was recently introduced by________

(1) Wipro Consumer Care (2) Karnataka Soaps (3) Godrej Soaps (4) Nirma Soaps

22. What is the trade name of polytetrafluoroethylene?

(1) Nylon (2) Teflon (3) Rayon (4) Rexene

23. Which of the following was an attempt in late March of 1942 by the British government to

secure

Indian cooperation and support for their efforts in World War II? The mission was headed by a

senior left-wing politician and government minister in the War Cabinet of Prime Minister

Winston Churchill.

(1) Rowlett Act (2) Cripps mission (3) Wavell Plan (4) Cabinet Mission Plan

24. Bravia brand of LCD TVs was introduced by____________ (1) Sony (2) LG (3) Samsung (4)

Philips

25. Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu is a masterpiece of which dynasty’s architecture?

(1) Pallava (2) Chola (3) Chalukya (4) Rashtrakuta

26. Which institution publishes the World Investment Report every year?

(1) World Trade Organisation (WTO) (2) International Monetary Fund (IMF) (3) United

Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) (4) World Bank

27. Which economist was awarded the ‘Commander of the Order of the Southern Cross’ for his

pioneering work in introducing VAT in Brazil?

(1) Parthasarathi Shome (2) C Rangarajan (3) Vijay Kelkar (4) Ashok Lahiri

28. Zahi Hawass is a famous__________ (1) Novelist (2) Zoologist (3) Archaeologist (4) Journalist

29. Of which cash crop is “Chandragiri”, a new variety that was introduced in Bangalore?

(1) Silk (2) Coffee (3) Pepper (4) Rubber

30. What is the train plying between Munabao in Rajasthan and Kokhrapar in Sindh, Pakistan

called?

(1) Friendship Express (2) Thar Express (3) Samjhauta Express (4) Kutch Express

31. Which of the following facts about the Yangtze River in China is/are true?

I. It is the longest river in Asia

II. It is the second longest in the world, after the Nile in Africa

III. It flows from its source in Qinghai Province and drains into East China Sea

(1) I, II & III (2) I & II only (3) II and III only (4) III and I only

32. The Lumière brothers were the pioneers in which industry?

(1) Automobile (2) Motion pictures (3) Printing & publishing (4) Aviation

33. Indian Petrochemicals Ltd is a subsidiary of________

(1) Reliance Industries Ltd (2) Indian Oil Company (3) Essar Oil (4) Bharat Petroleum

34. Which famous UK based football club is owned by the Glazer family?

1) Manchester United (2) Liverpool (3) Chelsea (4) Arsenal

35. Which popular brand of vegetable oil is market by Amrit Corp Ltd?

(1) Gagan (2) Postman (3) Dalda (4) Dhara

Answers Key

1.(1) 2.(2) 3.(4) 4.(2) 5.(2) 6.(4) 7.(2) 8.(2) 9.(1) 10.(1) 11.(1) 12.(1) 13.(1) 14.(2) 15.(1) 16.(2) 17.(2)

18.(1) 19.(4) 20.(2) 21.(2) 22.(2) 23.(2) 24.(1) 25.(1) 26.(1) 27.(3) 28.(1) 29.(3) 30.(2) 31.(4) 32.(2)

33.(1) 34.(1) 35.(1)

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TEST 7

1. Where did the Steve Ballmer work before Bill Gates persuaded him to join Microsoft?

(1) Unilever (2) Procter & Gamble (3) General Electric (4) 3M

2. US want Iran to stop enriching:

(1) Plutonium (2) Uranium (3) Thorium (4) Heavy Water

3. Which is the capital of Israel?

(1) Jerusalem (2) Tel Aviv (3) Gaza (4) Haifa

4. Who is the President of South Africa?

(1) Thabo Mbeki (2) Jacob Zuma (3) Nelson Mandela (4) Walter Sisulu

5. In which state is Microsoft headquartered?

(1) Washington (2) California (3) Utah (4) Texas

6. Which retailing company has introduced the snacks brand ‘Tasty Treat’?

(1) Pantaloon (2) Reliance Retail (3) Subhiksha (4) Shopper’s Stop

7. Which of the following is world’s nuclear watchdog?

(1) Atomic Energy Regulation Board (2) Nuclear Supplier’s Group

(3) International Atomic Energy Agency (4) Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty

8. Who ruled Zimbabwe when it was under white racist rule?

(1) Charles Kingsley (2) Ian Smith (3) Wilfred Rhodes (4) F W de Clerk

9. Wintel refers to Windows and:

(1) Telecom (2) Intel (3) Intelligent (4) International

10. Bank Melli is the biggest bank in:

(1) Iraq (2) Iran (3) Pakistan (4) Egypt

11. United Nations Security Council comprises how many members?

(1) 5 (2) 10 (3) 15 (4) 20

12. What is Microsoft’s mail-server software, introduced recently, known as?

(1) Exchange (2) Postbag (3) Mail It (4) Letterman

13. Strife-torn Darfur is a province of:

(1) Ethiopia (2) Sudan (3) Somalia (4) Egypt

14. Which company is in news these days for offering free basic word-processors and

spreadsheets online?

(1) Microsoft (2) Adobe (3) Google (4) Apple

15. Bill Gates helped to found Microsoft how many years ago?

(1) 25 (2) 27 (3) 29 (4) 33

16. Whose objective was to put a PC “on every desk and in every home”?

(1) Bill Gates (2) Paul Allen (3) Steve Jobs (4) Steve Ballmer

17. Symbian is a mobile phone operating system invented by:

(1) Nokia (2) Microsoft (4) Google (4) Sony

18. Bill Gates has decided to devote his time to which of the following tasks?

(1) To acquire Yahoo (2) To work for his charitable

foundation

(3) To design a new version of Windows operating system (4) To supervise space research at

NASA

19. Boris Tadic is the President of which Balkan country?

(1) Slovenia (2) Serbia (3) Croatia (4) Bosnia

20. Which of the following is the Sweden based direct selling cosmetics company that introduced

its

product in the Indian market recently?

(1) Oriflame (2) Amway (3) Avon (4) Mary Kay

21. Which of these was launched its Superia range of natural soaps and shampoos?

(1) ITC (2) Godrej Soaps (3) Wipro Consumer Care (4) Marico

22. Which serving Head of State has authored the book “Courage-Eight Portraits”?

(1) Gordon Brown, PM of UK (2) Nicholas Sarkozy, PM of France (3) John Howard, PM of

Australia (4) 23. Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany

23. Oxyrich is the mineral water brand from_________

(1) Manikchand (2) Mount Everest Mineral Water (3) T-Series (4) Bisleri

24. Which South India based business family set up FACT (Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore

Ltd) in 1943; the company was later nationalized by the govt of India and is one of the largest

fertilizer companies in the country?

(1) Murugappas (2) Seshasayees (3) Chettiars (4) Iyengars

25. Where in Tamil Nadu was Lord Swraj Paul’s 125-acre Caparo industrial complex located?

(1) Sriperumbudur (2) Kanchipuram (3) Chidambaram (4) Pudukkottai

26. Mark out the wrong combination of famous brand names and the range of apparel launched

for women.

(1) Allen Solly–Allen Solly Women’s Wear (2) Color Plus–Color Plus Woman

(3) John Players–John Players Women’s Wear (4) Park Avenue–Park Avenue Woman

27. Which MNC cement company holds controlling stakes in ACC & Ambuja Cement–two of the

three largest cement companies in India?

(1) Holcim (2) Lafarge (3) Holdersbank (4) Cemex

28. Mark out the wrong statement regarding the 2011 Cricket World Cup?

(1) India will host the 2011 World cup Final (2) Pakistan and Sri Lanka will host the two

semi-finals

(3) The opening ceremony will he held in Bangladesh (4) Some of the matches will be held in

UAE

29. ‘Blue Tool’, ‘Don’t Leave Home Without It’ and ‘Optima’ are trademarks of:

(1) Nokia (2) Visa Cards (3) American Express Bank (4) Ericsson

30. Anil Moolchandani is the creator of which legendary Indian brand?

(1) Fevicol (2) Rupa Publishing (3) Baron (4) Archie’s Cards

31. Which flower served as Adidas’s logo till 1991?

(1) Chrysanthemum (2) Edelweiss (3) Trefoil (4) Lotus

32. The store FoodWorld is a joint venture between Dairy Farm International and which Indian

group?

(1) RPG group (2) NEPC Khemka (3) Essel (4) Amalgamations

33. Art TV and Pet TV are TV brands of which TV maker?

(1) TCL (2) Thomson (3) Akai (4) Konka

34. With which product would you associate the ad “You’ll wonder where the yellow went”?

(1) Colgate (2) Pepsodent (3) Forhans (4) Tide

35. With which oil major would you associate the Glide range of engine oils?

(1) IOC (2) IBP (3) BPCL (4) HPCL

Answer Key

1.(2) 2.(2) 3.(2) 4.(2) 5.(1) 6.(1) 7.(3) 8.(2) 9.(2) 10.(2) 11.(3) 12.(1) 13.(2) 14.(3) 15.(4) 16.(1) 17.(1)

18.(2) 19.(2) 20.(1) 21.(1) 22.(1) 23.(1) 24.(2) 25.(1) 26.(3) 27.(1) 28.(4) 29.(3) 30.(4) 31.(3) 32.(1)

33.(4) 34.(2) 35.(3)

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TEST 8

Note: Bold options are the answer of the questions given below.

1. A solemn ceremony to mark the 60th Anniversary of D-Day landings of the Allies troops

during the Second World War, was held in

(a) Pearl Harbour (b) Normandy (c) New York (d) Lisbon

2. Who among the following is the Vice-President who passed away while in office?

(1) Dr. Zakir Husain (2) Shri Krishna Kant

(3) Shri Gopal Swarup Pathak (4) Shri B. D. Jatti

3. Who is the only Vice- President to have served for a period of ten years?

(1) Shri R. Venkatraman (2) Shri K. R. Narayanan

(3) Shri V. V. Giri (4) Dr. S. Radhakrishnan

4. How many of the former presidents of India have been awarded the Bharat Ratna?

(1) Only one (2) Four (3) Seven (4) All

5. Two of the Presidents died while in Office. One of them is Dr. Zakir Husain. The other is

(1) Shri Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (2) Shri Neelam Sanjiva Reddy

(3) Justice M. Hidayatullah (4) Dr. S. Radhakrishnan

6. All of the following presidents served as Vice-presidents before taking up office as the

president except for

(1) Dr. S. Radhakrishnan (2) Dr. Rajendra Prasad

(3) Shri V.V.Giri (4) Shri B.D. Jatti

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TEST 9

Legal Awareness

1. How many organs are there in Central as well as State Government?

a) 1 b) 3 c) 4 d) 5

2. Who among the following is the supreme institution of the people?

a) Parliament b) Loksabha c) Rajya Sabha d) Judiciary

3. Who among the following can amend the constitution?

a) The President b) Parliament c) Chief Justice d) Executive

4. Who among the following countries follows the Presidential System?

a) UK b) India c) USA d) Australia

5. Of which house, the members are not directly elected?

a) Lok Sabha b) Rajya Sabha c) None of these

6. “Education” falls under which list?

a) Concurrent List b) Central List c) State list d) None of these

7. Who among the following has the power to impeach the President?

a) Prime Minister b) Lok Sabha c) Chief Justice of India d) Parliament

8. Who elects the Vice-President?

a) President b) Parliament (Two houses) c) Prime Minister d) Cabinet

Minister

9. Who has the power to dissolve the Parliament?

a) Prime Minister b) Vice-President c) President d) Chief Justice

of India

10. How many members can be nominated by President of India from various fields like the

arts, science etc.?

a) 10 b) 2 c) 12 d) 15

11. How many members from the Anglo-Indian Community can be nominated by the

President

a) 5 b) 2 c) 10 d) 12

12. Who appoints the members of the planning commission?

a) Prime Minister b) Chief Justice of India c) Vice-President d) The

President

13. Who is the ex-officio chairperson of the planning commission?

a) Deputy speakers of Lok Sabha b) President

c) Prime Minister d) Vice-President

14. According to which article, the law declared by the Supreme Court shall be binding on

all courts within the teritory of India?

a) Article 156 b) Article 141 c) Article 260 d) Article 361

15. When was the Supreme court established?

a) 26th Jan. 1950 b) 26th Jan. 1948 c) 26th Jan. 1947 d) 26th Jan. 1949

16. Which commission recommended the reservation of jobs in government services and

when?

a) Mandal Commission, 1990 b) Chopra Commission, 1989

c) Shri Krishna Commission, 1952 d) Venkiah Commission, 1990

17. How many Presidents has India had uptil now?

a) 10 b) 12 c) 15 d) 14

18. How many Prime Ministers have been in India until now ?

a) 18 b) 14 c) 12 d) 15

19. What is the legal age for contesting elections in India?

a) 21 b) 25 c) 30 d) 18

20. When did the United Nations adopt “Universal Declaration of Human Right”?

a) 1945 b) 1947 c) 1948 d) 1950

21. How many fundamental rights have been granted by the Indian constitution?

a) 5 b) 6 c) 4 d) 7

22. Under which article can the right to freedom be suspended by the government during an

emergency?

a) Article 141 b) Article 40 c) Article 19 d) Article 20

23. By which Amendment act of 1976, were the fundamental duties were introduced?

a) 42nd b) 40th c) 54th d) 48th

24. Which article guarantees to the Indian citizens the right to move the Supreme Court for

the enforcement of the fundamental Rights?

a) Article 19 b) Article 32 c) Article 141 d) Article 40

25. How many countries are members of the United Nations?

a) 178 b) 180 c) 193 d) 200

26. Who defined Democracy as “the government of the people, by the people, for the people”?

a) George Washington b) Rousseau c) Abraham Lincoln d) Aristotle

27. Who wrote the book “The Prince”?

a) Plato b) Socrates c) Aristotle d) Machiavelli

28. The Glorious Revolution took place in

a) U.S.A. b) France c) England d) Russia

29. The French Revolution took place in which year?

a) 1911 b) 1789 c) 1688 d) 1776

30. How many members of the Security Council have the decision-making capability?

a) 10 b) 5 c) 20 d) 15

31. The President of World Bank is

a) always from a Third World Country

b) always from the U.S.A.

c) always from the U.K.

d) from any country

32. Who was elected president of the Constituent Assembly?

a) Jawahar Lal Nehru b) Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

c) Sardar Patel d) Dr. Rajendra Prasad

33. Who was the chairman of the Drafting Committee formed in 1946?

a) Dr. B.R. Ambedkar b) Mahatma Gandhi

c) Jawaharlal Nehru d) Sardar Patel

34. How many subjects come under the Union List?

a) 97 subjects b) 47 subjects c) 66 subjects d) 100 subjects

35. How many subjects come under the state list?

a) 97 subjects b) 100 subjects c) 66 subjects d) 47 subjects

36. How many subjects are there in the concurrent list?

a) 47 subjects b) 105 subjects c) 97 subjects d) 66 subjects

37. How many General Elections have been conducted by the Indian Parliament till now?

a) 15 b) 10 c) 11 d) 14

38. What is the strength of Lok Sabha, generally ?

a) 544 b) 552 c) 540 d) 545

39. Which state has the largest Vidhan Sabha? (403 members)

a) Maharashtra b) Gujarat c) Madhya Pradesh d) Uttar Pradesh

40. Who gave the slogan “Garibi Hatao” in 1971 Lok Sabha elections?

a) Indira Gandhi b) Morarji Desai c) Lal Bahadur Shastri d) Charan Singh

41. How many parties are recognised as national parties in India?

a) 4 b) 8 c) 7 d) 6

42. Who appoints the Chief Election Commissioner of India?

a) Prime Minister b) The President

c) Chief Justice of India d) Cabinet Ministers

43. The minimum age required to become the president of India is

a) 25 years b) 30 years c) 35 years d) 40 years

44. Which of the following constitutional amendments was responsible for deleting the right

to property from the list of fundamental rights?

a) 43rd amendment b) 44th amendment

c) 52nd amendment d) 48th amendment

45. According to the Constitution of India, which of the following is not one of the main

organs of the Government?

a) Bureaucracy b) Judiciary c) Executive d) Legislature

46. What is the minimum age required to become Vice-President of India or Governor of an

Indian State?

a) 25 b) 30 c) 35 d) 40

47. Which of the following constitutional amendments was responsible for the inclusion of

Konkani Manipuri and Nepali languages in the eight schedule of the constitution?

a) 68th Amendment b) 70th Amendment

c) 71st Amendment d) 76th Amendment

48. The maximum duration for which the Presidents office can remain vacant is

a) 1 Month b) 2 Months c) 3 Months d) 6 Months

49. Which of the following represents the minimum age required to become the member of

Rajya Sabha?

a) 30 Years b) 35 Years c) 25 Years d) There is no age limit

50. National emergency arising out of war, armed rebellion or external aggression is dealt

under.

a) Article 280 b) Article 352 c) Article 356 d) Article 370

51. Which of the following represents the original number of officially recognized languages

enchained in the Indian Constitution?

a) 14 b) 16 c) 18 d) 20

52. Which of the following heads the table of precedence of the Government of India?

a) Prime Minister b) Vice-President c) President d) Chief-Justice of India

53. The first speaker of the Lok Sabha was

a) K. M. Munshi b) C D. Deshmukh c) G. V. Mavalankar d) J. J. Kania

54. How many members are there in the Rajya Sabha?

a) 238 b) 242 c) 246 d) 250

55. Who among the following Presidents has also been the speaker of the Lok Sabha?

a) N. Sanjiv Reddy b) R. Venkatraman

c) G. Zail Singh d) Dr. S. D. Sharma

56. Word ‘Secular’ was inserted into the constitution of India with the help of which of the

following constitutional amendments?

a) 38th b) 36th c) 44th d) 42nd

57. Which of the following is a Central Government Tax?

a) Income Tax b) Corporation Tax c) Sales Tax d) Octroi

58. Governor is appointed by the

a) Prime Mister b) President

c) Chief Justice of India d) Chief Justice of concerned State High Court

59. Which of the following articles of the constitution deals with financial emergency?

a) Article 352 b) Article 356 c) Article 360 d) Article 370

60. Which of the following represents the number of judges in the International Court of

Justice?

a) 12 b) 15 c) 18 d) 21

61. From which country, has the fundamental duties of the constitution been borrowed?

a) US b) UK c) Ireland d) Soviet Union

62. From which country has the fundamental rights of the constitution been borrowed?

a) UK b) US c) Soviet Union d) Germany

63. Which article is concerned with the impeachment of the president?

a) Article 51 b) Article 61 c) Article 3 d) Article 21

64. From which country, has the Directive Principles of State Policy been borrowed?

a) Ireland b) US c) Britain d) Germany

65. Which article is related to Citizenship?

a) Article 3 b) Article 21 c) Article 51 A d) Article 32

66. Which Article granted the special status to Jammu & Kashmir?

a) Article 368 b) Article 370 c) Article 110 d) Article 327

67. Who is the ex-officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha?

a) President b) Vice-President

c)Prime Minister d) Chairman of Rajya Sabha

68. Who was the first Vice-President of India?

a) N. Sanjeev Reddy b) Dr. Rajendra Prasad

c) F. Ali Ahmed d) Dr. S. Radhkrishnan

69. How many Rajya Sabha Members are nominated by the President?

a) 12 b) 20 c) 2 d) 5

70. What is the retirement age of the judges of the Supreme Court?

a) 60 b) 62 c) 65 d) 58

71. How many judges are there in the Supreme Court, excluding Chief Justice of India?

a) 15 b) 26 c) 20 d) 25

72. Who appoints the Controller and Auditor General of India?

a) Prime Minister b) President

c) Vice-President d) Chief Election Commissioner

73. Who among the following does not have the right to vote in the parliament?

a) Prime Minister b) Leader of Opposition

c) Attorney General of India d) None of these

74. Who gives the expert legal advice to the Government of India?

a) Attorney General of India b) Chief Justice of India

c) Controller & Auditor General d) None of these

75. Which of the following constitutional amendments is responsible for making “Right to

Education” a fundamental right?

a) 97th b) 93rd c) 56th d) 61st

76. Which of the following constitutional amendments is responsible for Panchayati Raj Bill?

a) 72nd b) 56th c) 61st d) 42nd

Answer Key

(Legal Awareness)

1) b 2) a 3) b 4) c 5) b

6) a 7) d 8)b 9) c 10) c

11) b 12) d 13) c 14) b 15) a

16) a 17) d 18) a 19) b 20) c

21) d 22) c 23) a 24) b 25) c

26) c 27) d 28) c 29) b 30) d

31) b 32) d 33) a 34) a 35) c

36) a 37) d 38) b 39) d 40) a

41) d 42) b 43) c 44) b 45) a

46) c 47) c 48) d 49) a 50) b

51) c 52) c 53) c 54) d 55) a

56) d 57) a 58) b 59) c 60) b

61) d 62) b 63) b 64) a 65) a

66) b 67) b 68) d 69) a 70) c

71) d 72) b 73) c 74) a 75) b

76) a

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TEST 10

Health Awareness

1. Identify the genetic disease from the following

a) Anaemia b) Cholera c) Malaria d) Haemophilia

2. Which disease is caused by the deficiency of Vitamin A?

a) Beri-beri b) Night-Blindness c) Scurvy d) AIDS

3. Which Vitamin do we get while being exposed to sunlight?

a) A b) C c) D d) K

4. Which disease is caused by the deficiency of Iodine?

a) Marasmus b) Goitre c) Kwashiorkor d) Rickets

5. Which disease is caused by the deficiency of Iron?

a) Rickets b) Scurvy c) Beri-beri d) Anaemia

6. Identify the disease which spreads through sexual contact.

a) Syphilis b) Malaia c) Encephalitis d) Ascariasis

7. Which body part malfunctioning results in Diabetes?

a) Liver b) Heart c) Kidney d) Pancreas

8. Which of the following causes Diarrhoea?

a) Bacteria b) Fungi c) Virus d) Worms

9. Which of the following causes AIDS?

a) Fungi b)Virus c) Protozoa d) Worms

10. Who among the following is the carrier of plasmodium, which causes Malaria?

a) Pig b) Anopheles Mosquito (female) c) Fly d) Butterfly

11. Which of the following causes Ringworm?

a) Fungi b) Protoza c) Bacteria d) Virus

12. Which of the following food items is rich in Vitamins?

a) Milk b) Orange c) Meat d) Rickets

13. Which Vitamin deficiency leads to Rickets?

a) A b) K c) D d) C

14. Which disease is caused by deficiency of Vitamin B?

a) Rickets b) Beri-beri c) Osteoprosis d) Anaemia

15. Which disease is caused by coming in contact with infected person?

a) Diptheria b) Chicken Pox c) Cold d) Malaria

16. Which among the following is an air-borne disease?

a) Malaria b) Tuberculosis c) AIDS d) Diptheria

17. Which disease is caused by housefly being its carrier?

a) Malaria b) Cholera c) Rabies d) Chicken Pox

18. Which among the following is responsible for tetanus disease?

a) Bacteria b) Fungi c) Virus d) Worms

19. Who discovered Penicillin?

a) Sir Issac Newton b) Robert Brown c) Sir Alexander. Fleming d) Greg Mendel

20. Who developed the technique of vaccination?

a) Louis Pasteur b) Edward Jenner

c) Sir Alexander Fleming d) Copernicus

21. Which among the following is caused by air pollution?

a) AIDS b) Malaria c) Bronchitis d) Cholera

22. Whose Oxide mixes with rain to form acid rain?

a) Sulphur b) Oxygen c) Carbon d) Hydrogen

23. What are the components of SMOG?

a) Smoke + Hail b) Smoke + fog

c) Smoke + Vapour d) Smoke + Water Droplets

24. What is the percentage of water in our body weights?

a) 60% b) 90% c) 75% d) 70%

25. Which among the following is caused due to water pollution?

a) Cholera b) Asthma c) Syphilis d) Cold

26. Which gas among the following is responsible for Greenhouse effect?

a) Oxygen b) Nitrogen c) Argon d) Methane

27. Which element is most responsible for depletion of Ozone layer?

a) Pollution b) Smog c) Chlorofluorocarbons d) Arsenic

28. Who discovered Nucleus in 1831?

a) Sir Alexander Fleming b) Robert Brown

c) Gregory Mendel d) Charles Darwin

29. Which of the following disease is caused due to deficiency of Protein intake?

a) Goitre b) Tuberculosis c) Kwashiorkar d) Beri-beri

30. Which of the Vitamins help in stopping bleeding?

a) Vitamin A b) Vitamin K c) Vitamin D d) Vitamin C

31. In which of the following diseases, the main symptom is loss of body weight?

a) Kwashiorkor b) Ricket c) Scurvy d) Marasmus

32. Vitamin B12 is most useful for combating

a) Anaemia b) Goitre c) Night Blindness d) Rickets

33. Which of the following Vitamins is stored in the liver?

a) Vitamin C b) Vitamin K c) Vitamin A d) Vitamin E

34. Huntington’s disease is caused by malfunctioning of

a) Kidney b) Brain c) Liver d) Pancreas

35. Which of the following is the maximum source of energy?

a) Fats b) Minerals c) Vitamins d) Proteins

36. Which of the following Proteins help in fighting infections by forming complexes with

antigens?

a) Haemoglobin b) Insulin c) Pepsin d) Antibodies

37. Which of the following Proteins is also a hormone?

a) Actin b) Myosin c) Thyroxine d) Collagen

38. Which of the following Vitamins is not in Vitamin B Complex group?

a) Vitamin B1 b) Vitamin D c) Folic Acid d) Vitamin B12

39. Which Vitamin is found in Cod liver oil?

a) Vitamin A b) Vitamin B1 c) Vitamin C d) Vitamin D

40. Which mineral deficiency leads to muscular cramps?

a) Potassium b) Iron c) Sodium d) Iodine

41. Which of the following minerals helps in clotting of blood?

a) Calcium b) Phosphorus c) Iron d) Iodine

42. Which of the following minerals is essential for building of bones & teeth?

a) Sodium b) Potassium c) Calcium d) Iron

43. Which Vitamin is necessary for proper absorption of Calcium?

a) Vitamin A b) Vitamin C c) Vitamin B d) Vitamin D

44. Which Mineral is responsible for regulation of heart-beat?

a) Phosphorus b) Iodine c) Iron d) Potassium

45. Which Mineral is responsible for formation of haemoglobin in R.B.C.?

a) Calcium b) Iron c) Sodium d) Potassium

46. Which Mineral is responsible for formation of thyroxine hormone secreted by thyroid

gland?

a) Iron b) Potassium c) Sodium d) Iodine

47. In which form is the roughage present in fruits and vegetables?

a) Cellulose b) Fructose c) Sucrose d) Maltose

48. Which of the following diseases occur due to excessive eating?

a) Marasmus b) Heart disease c) Kwashiorkor d) Anaemia

49. How can a Marasmus affected child be cured?

a) Rich Protein diet b) Giving Roughage diet

c)Rich Mineral diet d) Rich Vitamin diet

50. Which vegetable source is the best source of Protein?

a) Milk b) Soyabean c) Fruits d) Vegetables

51. In which part of country will the disease “Goitre” be rarely found?

a) Plains b) Hilly regions c) Coastal Regions d)None of these

52 Which Vitamin deficiency is responsible for causing Dermatitis (Pellagra)?

a) Vitamin B b) Vitamin B5 c) Vitamin C d) Vitamin K

53. What is the scientific name of Vitamin C ?

a) Ascorbic Acid b) Nicotinic Acid c) Retinal d) Riboflavin

54. Which of the these disease has symptoms of bleeding gums and loosening of teeth?

a) Beri-beri b) Scurvy c) Pellagra d) Anemia

55. Which of the following Vitamins is fat-soluble?

a) Vitamin E b) Vitamin C c) Folic Acid d) Vitamin B-Complex

56. The diseases which are present from the time of birth are called?

a) Acquired Disease b) Congenital Disease

c) Infections Disease d) Non-Communicable Diseases

57. The biological agents like bacteria which cause disease are called?

a) Pathogens b) Antibodies c) Vaccines d) None of these

58. Which scientist first proved that pathogen were responsible for spreading disease?

a) Louis Pasteur b) Edward Jenner

c) Robert Koch d) Alexander Fleming

59. Which of the following is given instantly to Cholera infected patient?

a) Streptomycin b) ORS (Oral rehydration Salts)

c) Antitoxin d) Vaccination

60. Which of the following is a contagious disease?

a) Leprosy b) Tuberculosis c) Tetanus d) Polio

61. Which of the following diseases begins with recurrent shivering chills and fever?

a) Polio b) Mumps c) Small-Pox d) Malaria

62. Which of the following diseases is caused by Filarial Worm?

a) Ascariasis b) Taeniasis c) Elephantiasis d) Measles

Answer Key

(HEALTH AWARENESS)

1) d 2) b 3) c 4) b 5) d

6) a 7) d 8)a 9) b 10) b

11) a 12) b 13) c 14) b 15) b

16) b 17) b 18) a 19) c 20) b

21) c 22) a 23) b 24) d 25) a

26) d 27) c 28) b 29) c 30) b

31) d 32) a 33) c 34) b 35) a

36) d 37) c 38) b 39) a 40) c

41) a 42) c 43) d 44) a 45) b

46) d 47) a 48) b 49) a 50) b

51) c 52) b 53) a 54) b 55) a

56) b 57) a 58) c 59) b 60) a

61) d 62) c

------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST 11

CURRENT AFFAIRS QESTIONS

1. United Nations Climate Change Conference 2010 is officially referred to as the ... session of the

Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

a. 18th

b. 17th

c. 16th

d. 15th

2. Neutrino Observatory (INO) project is located near which of the following hills?

a. Anamalai Hills

b. Nilgiri Hills

c. Khasi Hills

d. Patkai Hills

3. Where was fi rst the Asia–Europe Meeting (ASEM) summit held?

a. Thailand

b. Malaysia

c. India

d. Pakistan

4. Who has been awarded the Nobel Prize for medicine 2010?

a. Richard Heck

b. Ei-ichi Negishi

c. Akira Suzuki

d. Robert Edwards

5. Ajay Jayaram is a well known … player.

a. Badminton

b. Golf

c. Tennis

d. Hockey

6. Toxic red sludge, a waste product from making which metal, burst out of a Hungarian factory's

reservoir reachedDanube River of Europe?

a. Copper

b. Aluminum

c. Lithium

d. Rubidium

7. Who authored Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter?

a. Ruskin Bond

b. Mario Vargas

c. Jonathan

d. None of these

8. Suresh Tendulkar is associated with ...

a. Prime Minister’s Relief Fund

b. Telecom Regulatory Au- thority of India

c. UN

d. None of these

9. Omkar Singh and Anisa Sayyed are associated with which of the following games?

a. Hockey

b. Basketball

c. Shooting

d. Cricket

10. With which company would you associate Partha S. Bhattacharyya?

a. Coal India Limited

b. NTPC

c. IOC

d. Bharat Electronics Limited

11. Robert Edwards shares an association with?

a. Physics

b. Chemistry

c. Biology

d. Mathematics

12. The total number of medals that India has won in Common Wealth Games 2010 is …

a. 101

b. 102

c. 103

d. 105

13. Which of the following is a Tennis Player?

a. Dan Carter

b. Greg Jones

c. Johnny Weissmuller

d. None of these

14. H. R. Bhardwaj is the governor of …

a. Karnataka

b. Kerala

c. Tamil Nadu

d. Andra Pradesh

15. Who has been awarded the Nobel Economics Prize2010?

a. Peter Granger

b. Jilly Cooper

c. Dale Mortensen

d. None of these

16. Jaitapur nuclear power plant is in which city?

a. Ratnagiri

b. Nagpur

c. Pune

d. Mumbai

17. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin fl agged off the construction of which space centre?

a. Vostochny Space Center

b. Vladimir Space Center

c. Hioto Space Center

d. None of these

18. Who is the State Chief Information Commissioner of Chennai?

a. Hiren Singh

b. R. K. Narayan

c. Vinod Joshi

d. K. S. Sripathi

19. Who is known as the "Father of the Green Revolution in India"?

a. Norman Ernest Borlaug

b. M. S. Swaminathan

c. J. S. Thomson

d. None of these

20. Burning Bright: Irom Sharmila and the Struggle for Peace in Manipur has been written by ...

a. Arundhati Ray

b. Deepti Priya Mehrotra

c. Shivani Jain

d. None of these

21. South Korean Pohang-class cor-vette sank because of which of the following torpedoes?

a. Wang Geon

b. Ulchi Mundok

c. Cheonan

d. None of these

22. Naoto Kan, the Prime Minister of Japan was preceded by …

a. Yukio Hatoyama

b. Yon Ki

c. Chiang Zell

d. Yukoto Ziang

23. Srikumar Banerjee is associated with which of the following?

a. Atomic Energy Commission

b. Bhaba Atomic Research Centre

c. Defence Research And Development Organisation

d. None of these

24. Who built the Brihadishwara Temple?

a. Rajaraja

b. Vengi

c. Rajendra Chola

d. None of these

25. Sutlej River originates from?

a. India

b. China

c. Pakistan

d. None of these

26. Pallavan Double Plus and Pallavan Muthusaram RD are deposit schemes that belong to …

a. Indian Bank

b. Bank of Baroda

c. State Bank of India

d. Allahabad Bank

27. Indian Constituent Assembly adopted the design of Indian National flag on?

a. August 23, 1947

b. September 13, 1947

c. August 15, 1947

d. July 22, 1947

28. The Indian National Anthem was sung for the fi rst time in …

a. 1910

b. 1911

c. 1947

d. 1945

29. National fruit of India is?

a. Apple

b. Sugarcane

c. Orange

d. Mango

30. When was the 42nd Amendment of the Constitution adopted?

a. 1970

b. 1972

c. 1974

d. 1976

31. Who elects the Vice President of India?

a. Members of Parliament

b. Members of Lok Sabha

c. Only b

d. Both a and b

32. Department of Agricultural Research and Education comes under the Ministry of …

a. Commerce and Industry

b. Agriculture

c. Commerce and Industry

d. Food Processing Industries

33. An insurance plan, ‘JiyoFit', has been launched by ...

a. HDFC standard life

b. Bharti AXA

c. LIC

d. Bajaj Allianz

34. Where is the National Institute of Smart Government located?

a. Hyderabad

b. Mumbai

c. Pune

d. Chennai

35. Defender Z+ is a …

a. Locker

b. Fighter plane

c. Car

d. Motorbike

36. Asia’s 1st EPZ was set up at …

a. Kandla

b. Delhi

c. Falta

d. Noida

37. In which year was the Integrated Defence Staff formed?

a. 1959

b. 1961

c. 1981

d. 2001

38. How many Integrated Test Ranges does DRDO have?

a. 1

b. 2

c. 3

d. 4

39. The Integrated Education for Disabled Children scheme was launched in …

a. 1954

b. 1965

c. 1974

d. 1991

40. When was the Rural Electrifi -cation Corporation Limited incorporated as a Company under

Companies Act, 1956?

a. 1969

b. 1971

c. 1989

d. 1991

41. Fort William is located in ...

a. Chennai

b. Goa

c. Kolkata

d. Mysore

42. The Indian Tennis player who turned to Hollywood filmmaking is ...

a. Leander Paes

b. N. Night Shyamlan

c. Vijay Amritraj

d. Ashok Amritraj

43. Tritum is an isotope of ...

a. Nitrogen

b. Oxygen

c. Hydrogen

d. Phosphorous

44. In which country would you buy things using Lira?

a. Germany

b. Italy

c. USA

d. Myanmar

45. What does the acronym cc in an email mean?

a. Character conversion

b. Column code

c. Carbon Copy

d. Computer control

46. “Love” is associated with which of the following games?

a. Tennis

b. Horse riding

c. Lawn ball

d. Billiards

47. Which country will host the Commonwealth Games 2014?

a. Australia

b. Srilanka

c. Scotland

d. Canada

48. The Vrindavan Gardens are located in...

a. Mathura

b. Manali

c. Mysore

d. Mohali

49. For measuring the diameter of a thin wire, you would use ...

a. Screw driver

b. Screw gauge

c. Screw metre

d. Measuring tape

50. El sueño del celta has been written by …

a. Pablo Neruda

b. Shakespeare

c. Mario Llosa

d. None of these

ANSWERS

CURRENT AFFAIRS

1. c. 16th

2. b. Nilgiri Hills

3. a. Thailand

4. d. Robert Edwards

5. a. Badminton

6. b. Aluminum

7. b. Mario Vargas

8. a. Prime Minister’s Relief Fund

9. c. Shooting

10. a. Coal India Limited

11. c. Biology

12. a. 101

13. b. Greg Jones

14. a. Karnataka

15. d. None of these

16. a. Ratnagiri

17. a. Vostochny Space Center

18. d. K.S. Sripathi

19. a. Norman Ernest Borlaug

20. b. Deepti Priya Mehrotra

21. c. Cheonan

22. a. Yukio Hatoyama

23. b. Bhaba Atomic Research Centre

24. a. Rajaraja

25. b. China

26. a. India Bank

27. d. 22nd July 1947

28. b. 1911

29. d. Mango

30. d. 1976

31. d. Both a and b

32. b. Agriculture

33. d. Bajaj Allianz

34. a. Hyderabad

35. a. Locker

36. a. Kandla

37. d. 2001

38. b. 2

39. c. 1974

40. a. 1969

41. c. Kolkata

42. c. Vijay Amritraj

43. c. Hydrogen

44. b. Italy

45. c. Carbon copy

46. a. Tennis

47. c. Scotland

48. c. Mysore

49. b. Screw guage

50. c. Mario Llosa

------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST 12

1. Who has bagged the prestigious NTR National Award for the year 2009?

a. Waheeda Rehman

b. Gattamaneni Siva Ramakrishna

c. B Saroja Devi

d. Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao

2. An Indian American cancer specialist, his first book 'The Emperor of All Maladies: A

Biography of Cancer' has been rated among 'The 10 Best Books of 2010' by the New York Times.

Name the Indian American.

a. Tulasi Polavarapu

b. Siddhartha Mukherjee

c. Dinesh D'Souza

d. Ravi Batra

3. Who has been awarded the Indira Super Achievers award for 2010-11, at a function held at

Hyderabad International Convention Centre?

a. Debasis Chatterji

b. Naresh Gupta

c. Bhupesh Upadhye

d. Vipul Mathur

4. Which of the following agencies bagged the Effie Agency of the Year? The agency bagged a

total of 14 metals, totaling a tally of 145 points as compared to its last year’s tally of 13 metals

and a score of 120 points. It also took home the Brand Equity Bravery Award for its work for

Vodafone ZooZoos. Name the agency

a. Mudra b. Ogilvy India

c. Lowe Lintas d. JWT

5. Which of the following banks has tied up with Diebold to upgrade ATMs for visually

challenged

a. ICICI b. HDFC

c. IDBI d. HSBC

6. First woman to be UP Chief Secretary has been sentenced to jail in Noida Land Scam case.

She was facing 23 departmental inquiries pending against her, and also had been charge sheeted

in five corruption cases during her appointment as chief Secretary. Name her

a. Madhuri Gupta b. Abha R

c. Neera Yadav d. Hema S

7. Who received the Nobel Peace Prize for the year 2010?

a. Martti Ahtisaari b. Barack Obama

c. Liu Xiaobo d. Al Gore

8. AWho was presented with the Asian Television award for the Best Current Affairs presenter?

a. Shireen Bhan b. Rajdeep Sardesai

c. Arnab Goswami d. Karan Thapar

9. Who won the 2010 Hong Kong women’s singles crown?

a. Saina Nehwal b. Aparna Popat

c. Jwala Gutta d. Lili

10. Who was named the US PGA Tour Comeback Player of the Year after bouncing back from the

worst season of his career to make golf history?

a. Michael Clayton b. Stuart Appleby

c. Peter Thomson d. Adam Scott

11. Which is the smallest ocean in the world?

a. Indian ocean b. Pacific ocean

c. Artic ocean d. Atlantic ocean

12. _________ is the national game of India

a. Hockey b. Cricket

c. Basketball d. Tennis

13. __________is the smallest state in Australia

a. Victoria b. Queensland

c. Tasmania d. New South Wales

14. The science dealing with the description, identification, naming, and classification of

organisms is known as

a. Taxonomy b. Biology

c. Zoology d. Ornithology

15. Who was the 12th president of India?

a. Abdul Kalam

b. Pratibha Patil

c. K. R. Narayanan

d. Shankar Dayal Sharma

Answer key

1. c 2. b 3. a 4. b 5. b 6. c 7. c 8. d 9. a 10. b 11. c 12. a 13. c 14. a 15. b

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST 13

1.Who is the new chairman of PWC India

a. Sudip Bandyopadhyay b. Kaushik Chakravorty

c. Deepak Kapoor d. G V Babu

2. General Electric has agreed to buy British oil drilling pipe-maker Wellstream Holdings for

a. £ 500 million b. £ 250 million

c. £ 400 million d. £800 million

3. An American diplomat, magazine editor, author, professor, Peace Corps official, and

investment banker. He was the only person to have held the position of Assistant Secretary of

State for two different regions of the world (Asia from 1977 to 1981 and Europe from 1994 to

1996). He was also the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan under the Obama

administration. He passed away on December 13, 2010.

a. John Harvey b. Richard Holbrooke

c. Jimmy Carter d. Alexander Watson

4. An English actress, she was nominated for a BAFTA TV Award for playing the title character

in ‘Margaret Thatcher: The Long Walk to Finchley’. She is to be honoured with a Shooting Star

award at the Berlin Film Festival next year. Name her.

a. Gwyneth Paltrow b. Andrea Riseborough

c. Kate Beckinsale d. Catherine Bell

5. JSW is all set to acquire 45.5 percent stake in Ispat industries for __________

a. Rs 2,157 crore b. Rs 1,522 crore

c. Rs 1,500 crore d. Rs 1, 2527 crore

6. Who has been named the star of a `golden year` in Indian boxing?

a. Vijender Singh b. Suranjoy Singh

c. Amandeep Singh d. Dingko Singh

7. Who is the new SBI chairman?

a. Shuman Mukherjee b. Pratip Chaudhuri

c. Sameer Pitalwalla d. U K Sinha

8. Who is the chairman of Federal Reserve?

a. William Miller b. Paul A. Volcker

c. Alan Greenspan d. Ben Bernanke

9. Which company has introduced Solar Power Keyboards (K750) that helps in computing for

longer hours in the sunlight?

a. Logitec b. Motorola

c. Sony d. Philips

10. __________ is the biggest desert in the world

a. Karakum

b. Kalahari Desert

c. Sahara

d. Chihuahuan

11. __________ are the fastest land animals

a. Cheetah

b. Wildebeest

c. Lion

d. Thomson's Gazelle

12. Which of the following countries is the largest producer of tin

a. China

b. Indonesia

c. Belize

d. Japan

13. Who authored Keep off the Grass?

a. Salman Rushdie

b. Vikram Seth

c. Karan Bajaj

d. Farookh Dhondy

14. How many states are there in the United States of America

a. 49

b. 52

c. 50

d. 54

ANSWER KEY

1. c

2. d

3. b

4. b

5. a

6.a

7. b

8. d

9. a

10. c

11. a

12. a

13. c

14. c

15. a

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST 14

1. What does the term GPS stand for?

a. Global Positioning System

b. Government Positioning Satellites

c. Global Positioning Satellites

d. Going Places Sometimes

2. When was the first GPS satellite launched?

a. 1978 b. 1985

c. 1992 d. 1998

3. What does Mp3 stand for?

a. Media Player 3 b. Nothing in particular, just Mp3

c. Microsoft Player 3 d. MPEG Audio layer 3

4. An Mp3 player runs on rechargeable batteries. Which of the following is not a rechargeable

battery?

a. Nickel Metal Hydride b. Nickel Cadmium

c. Alkaline d. Lithium ion

5. What does DOS stand for?

a. Data Operating System b. Disk Operating system

c. Digital Operating system d. Data on synergy

6. There are two Stevens credited with the making of Apple Computers. One is Steven Jobs, what

is the other Stevens’ last name?

a. Macintosh b. Mac

c. Apple d. Wozniac

7. A TI-83 is a

a. Old Antique Computer b. Scientific calculator

c. Intel processor d. Slide Rule Model

8. After a gigabyte comes a

a. Terabyte b. Zedabyte

c. Kilobyte d. Mezobyte

9. An electrode is the same as

a. circuit b. terminal

c. battery d. neutron

10. What does a laser do?

a. it generates a beam of light b. it focuses heat rays

c. it converts electrons into light energy d. it blocks the visible spectrum

11. Which of these are satellites?

a. Sputnik b. The moon

c. Ganymede d. All of the above

12. What is a watt?

a. a degree of brightness

b. a closed circuit

c. a charge of electricity

d. a unit of power

13. For what is Guglielmo Marconi best known?

a. the invention of the steam engine

b. the development of the incandescent lamp

c. development of wireless telegraphy

d. invention of the polygraph test

14. On 16th September, 2008, Intel rolled out its Xeon 7400 series of CPUs, code named

Dunnigton, that was designed out of the company's Bangalore development centre. What is the

maximum number of cores the chip can have?

a. 3 b. 4 c. 6 d. 8

15. What did Anton Van Leeuwenhoek invent?

a. the thermometer

b. the microscope

c. the bifocal lens

d. the telescope

16. In what year did the Wright brothers successfully design and fly a motorized aircraft?

a. 1900

b. 1896

c. 1910

d. 1903

ANSWER KEY

1. a

2. a

3. d

4. c

5. b

6. d

7. b

8. a

9. b

10. a

11. d

12. d

13. c

14. c

15. b

16. d

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST 15

MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS

1. Who has topped the list of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in 2011?

(1) Barack Obama

(2) Aruna Roy

(3) Azim Premji

(4) Wael Ghonim*

(5) None of these.

2. Jwala Gutta and V. Diju of India are related to which among the following sports/games?

(1) Table Tennis

(2) Lawn Tennis

(3) Badminton*

(4) Athletics

(5) None of these.

3. The Sri Lankan spearhead Lasith Malinga announced his retirement from ….. cricket.

(1) One Day

(2) Test*

(3) Twenty 20

(4) Domestic

(5) None of these.

4. Novak Djokovic is from which of the following countries?

(1) Bulgaria

(2) Romania

(3) Hungary

(4) Serbia*

(5) None of these.

5. Who has clinched the Joola Austria Junior and Cadet Open title?

(1) Harmed Desai*

(2) Soumyajit Ghosh

(3) Sharath Kamal

(4) Kamlesh Mehta

(5) None of these.

6. On which of the following dates World Press Freedom Day is observed in May?

(1) May 1

(2) May3*

(3) May 6

(4) May 10

(5) None of these.

7. What is the position of the State Bank of India Group in the Forbes Global 2000 list of 2011?

(1) 126th

(2) 136th*

(3) 146th

(4) 156th

(5) None of these.

8. Who among the following has won the World Snooker Championship for the fourth / time in

May 2011?

(1) Stephen Hendry

(2) Steve Davis

(3) Ray Reardon

(4) John Higgins*

(5) None of these.

9. The Indian ….. team coach Bob Houghton has resigned.

(1) Football*

(2) Basketball

(3) Volleyball

(4) Handball

(5) None of these.

10. Which among the following is the correct full form of COMESA?

(1) Common Market for Eastern and Southern America

(2) Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa*

(3) Common Market for Eastern and Southern Asia

(4) Common Market for Eastern and Southern Argentina

(5) None of these.

11. Rafael Nadal beat David Ferrer to win the ….. 2011 Barcelona Open Title.

(1) Fourth

(2) Fifth

(3) Sixth*

(4) Seventh

(5) None of these.

12. Which among the following rivers originates from the Amarkantak?

(1) Betwa

(2) Mahi

(3) Narmada*

(4) Tapti

(5) None of these.

13. The Senior Asian Wrestling Championship 2011 was held at …..

(1) Dushanbe

(2) Tashkent*

(3) Ashgabat

(4) Patiala

(5) None of these.

14. The Murugappa Gold Cup is related to which among the following sports?

(1) Football

(2) Hockey*

(3) Cricket

(4) Table Tennis

(5) None of these.

15. Hatf8

is a …..

(1) Naval Ship

(2) Fighter Plane

(3) Nuclear Bomb

(4) Cruise Missile*

(5) None of these.

16. In which year was the Imperial Records Department established, which is now known as

National Archives of India?

(1) 1881

(2) 1891*

(3) 1981

(4) 1999

(5) None of these.

17. Elton Chigumbura has resigned as ….. cricket captain.

(1) West Indies

(2) Kenya

(3) Zimbabwe*

(4) Sri Lanka

(5) None of these.

18. RBI was nationalized in …..

(1) 1959

(2) 1947

(3) 1945

(4) 1949*

(5) None of these.

19. Who is Lee Chong Wei?

(1) Badminton Player*

(2) Table Tennis Player

(3) Tennis Player

(4) Hockey Player

(5) None of these.

20. NABARD was established in …..

(1) Fourth Plan

(2) Fifth Plan

(3) Sixth Plan*

(4) Eighth Plan

(5) None of these.

21. Who has won the title in the Asian snooker championship 2011?

(1) Passakorn Suwannawat*

(2) Aditya Mehta

(3) Pankaj Advani

(4) Mohammad Rais Senzahi

(5) None of these.

22. IRDP was introduced in the year

(1) 197879*

(2) 197980

(3) 198081

(4) 198182

(5) None of these.

23. What is Dhruv?

(1) Missile

(2) Tank

(3) Helicopter*

(4) Gun

(5) None of these.

24. BCCI is

(1) an International Terrorist Organisation.

(2) an International Industrial Organisation.

(3) a Movement for International Peace.

(4) an International Banking Organisation.*

(5) None of these.

25. Who is Environment and Forests Minister of India?

(1) Jairam Ramesh

(2) M. Karunanidhi

(3) Jayanthi Natarajan*

(4) Pawan Kumar Bansal

(5) None of these.

26. Index 'Residex' is associated with

(1) Share Prices.

(2) Mutual Fund Prices.

(3) Price Inflation Index.

(4) Land Prices.*

(5) None of these.

27. What is the latest Reverse Repo Rate?

(1) 4.25%

(2) 5.25%

(3) 6.25 %*

(4) 7.25%

(5) None of these.

28. Dalal Street is situated at …..

(1) London

(2) Paris

(3) Mumbai*

(4) New Delhi

(5) None of these.

29. Alastair Cook is the ….. ODI skipper.

(1) South Africa

(2) New Zealand

(3) Canada

(4) England*

(5) None of these.

30. When was the first Nobel Prize awarded?

(1) 1890

(2) 1896

(3) 1901*

(4) 1969

(5) None of these.

31. Who has been appointed as the new captain of England's Twenty20team?

(1) Adil Rashid

(2) Andrew Strauss

(3) Stuart Broad*

(4) Paul Collingwood

(5) None of these.

32. According to a survey conducted by the Austinbased

Global Language Monitor, The Royal Wedding of Prince William

and Kate Middleton became the ….. biggest news of the 21st century.

(1) Fourth

(2) Fifth*

(3) Sixth

(4) Seventh

(5) None of these.

33. 150th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore was celebrated on …..

(1) 07May2011*

(2) 17May2011

(3) 17 April 2011

(4) 07 April 2011

(5) None of these.

34. Who has won the Malaysian Open Grand Prix Gold 2011 Badminton tournament?

(1) Saina Nehwal

(2) Xin Wang*

(3) Zhang Ning

(4) Wang Chen

(5) None of these.

35. Who has won the gold in the 48 kg category at the ASBC Women's Boxing Asian Cup 2011?

(1) M.C. Mary Kom*

(2) Neetu

(3) Kavita Goyat

(4) Laxmi Padiya

(5) None of these.

36. Who has won the Madrid Open 2011 Women's Singles title?

(1) Venus Williams

(2) Petra Kvitova*

(3) Victoria Azarenka

(4) Jelena Jankovic

(5) None of these.

37. Who has won the Madrid Open 2011 Men's Singles title?

(1) Novak Djokovic*

(2) Rafael Nadal

(3) John McEnroe

(4) Bjorn Borg

(5) None of these.

38. According to the global brands agency Millward Brown, what is the position of ICICI Bank in

World's 100 most valuable

brands list 2011?

(1) 53rd*

(2) 63rd

(3) 73rd

(4) 83rd

(5) None of these.

39. Assam Rifles team has won the ….. National Renbukan Karate Do championship.

(1) 5th

(2) 6th

(3) 7th*

(4) 8th

(5) None of these.

40. Who is the Power Minister of India?

(1) Virbhadra Singh

(2) Vilasrao Deshmukh

(3) Sushil Kumar Shinde*

(4) Ghulam Nabi Azad

(5) None of these.

41. Kollam district is one of fourteen districts of ….. state.

(1) Kerala*

(2) Karnataka

(3) Andhra Pradesh

(4) Arunachal Pradesh

(5) None of these.

42. Which state government has approved 100 mobile schools for the Gujjar and Bakerwal

communities?

(1) Uttar Pradesh

(2) Jammu and Kashmir*

(3) Punjab

(4) Haryana

(5) None of these.

43. Who has been appointed the bowling coach of Australia?

(1) Craig Mc Dermbtt*

(2) Stuart Mac Gill

(3) Jeff Thomson

(4) Shane Warne

(5) None of these.

44. Haryana's ….. will become the "first" district in the country to get solar street lights in all its

villages.

(1) Sirsa*

(2) Sonipat

(3) Panchkula

(4) Panipat

(5) None of these.

45. Who won the 20th edition of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup?

(1) India

(2) Pakistan

(3) Australia*

(4) South Korea

(5) None of these.

46. Which of the following players is associated with the game of hockey?

(1) Christopher Ciriello*

(2) Cristiano Ronaldo

(3) Darren Bravo

(4) David Beckham

(5) None of these.

47. Which state government has decided to replace issuance of ration cards to consumers under

the Public Distribution

System with smart cards which would be linked to the Unique Identification Card?

(1) Punjab

(2) Haryana*

(3) Delhi

(4) Uttar Pradesh

(5) None of these.

48. Who won the Rome Masters 2011?

(1) Rafael Nadal

(2) Bob Bryan

(3) Andy Murray

(4) Novak Djokovic*

(5) None of these.

49. The ….. Olympic marathon champion Sammy Wanjiru committed suicide.

(1) Kenyan*

(2) South African

(3) Brazilian

(4) Indian

(5) None of these.

50. Who is the President of Uzbekistan?

(1) Rustam Mirzaev

(2) Rustom Azimov

(3) Islam Abcluganievich Karimov*

(4) Emomali Rahmonov

(5) None of these.

51. What is the full form of IFRS?

(1) International Financial Reporting Standards*

(2) International Financial Radio Services

(3) International Financial Research School

(4) International Finance Reporting System

(5) None of these.

52. What is SEBI?

(1) An Advisory Body

(2) A Statutory Body*

(3) A Constitutional body

(4) All the above.

(5) None of these.

53. Which of the following schemes is associated with the Financial Inclusion?

(1) Shaktimaan

(2) Saksham

(3) Swabhimaan*

(4) Swawlamban

(5) None of these.

54. Many a time, we come across a term in field of Banking Operation which reads "CBS". What

is the full form of the

same?

(1) Coding Banking System

(2) Clearing Banking System

(3) Canadian Broadcasting System

(4) Core Banking System*

(5) None of these.

55. Yuan currency belongs to which one of the following countries?

(1) Japan

(2) France

(3) China*

(4) Malaysia

(5) None of these.

56. Who is the author of the book "Jinnah and Tilak"?

(1) Nirmala Deshpande

(2) A.G Noorani*

(3) A.H.M. NormanKhan

(4) Muhammad Anyad

(5) None of these.

57. Moortidevi Award is given for excellence in the field of …..

(1) Dance

(2) Music

(3) Literature*

(4) Cinematography

(5) None of these.

58. Which of the following is the book written by Siddhartha Mukherjee?

(1) Higher than Everest

(2) A Passage to England

(3) Affluent Society

(4) The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer*

(5) None of these.

59. Which of the following days was observed as International Museum Day2011?

(1) 16 May

(2) 17 May

(3) 18 May*

(4) 19 May

(5) None of these.

60. Which of the following is used in the game of Golf?

(1) Love

(2) Tee*

(3) Penalty Stroke

(4) No Ball

(5) None of these.

61. Who amongst the following is the director of the popular Hindi film "Dabangg"?

(1) Mani Ratnam

(2) David Dhavan

(3) Abhinav Singh Kashyap*

(4) Arbaaz Khan

(5) None of these.

62. In which of the following states, Rosa Power Plant is located?

(1) Orissa

(2) Haryana

(3) Uttar Pradesh*

(4) Madhya Pradesh

(5) None of these.

63. Which film won the 'Whole some Entertainer' award of 2010 at the 58th National Awards?

(1) Dabangg*

(2) Do Dooni Chaar

(3) Ishqiya

(4) Baboo Band Baaja

(5) None of these.

64. Which one of the following is not a member of BRICS?

(1) Brazil

(2) Russia

(3) China

(4) South Korea*

(5) None of these.

65. Phase I of Bharat Nirman was implemented in the period 200506

to 200809

while Phase II is being implemented from

200910

to …..

(1) 201112*

(2) 201213

(3) 2013 14H

(4) 201415

(5) None of these.

66. Which one of the following is presently the Saving Bank Interest Rate?

(1) 3%

(2) 3.5%

(3) 4%*

(4) 4.5%

(5) None of these.

67. The Indian Census is a credible source of statistical information on different characteristics of

the citizens since …..

(1) 1870

(2) 1871

(3) 1872*

(4) 1873

(5) None of these.

68. According to provisional results, India's population grew to …..

(1) 1.21 billion*

(2) 1.22 billion

(3) 1.23 billion

(4) 1.24 billion

(5) None of these.

69. According to ….., population Census is a Union Subject in India.

(1) Article 236

(2) Article 246*

(3) Article 256

(4) Article 266

(5) None of these.

70. D. Harika, whose name was in news recently, is a …..

(1) Badminton Player

(2) Chess Player*

(3) Table Tennis Player

(4) Cricket Player

(5) None of these.

71. Which Zone of Indian railways has celebrated its 155th anniversary on August 16, 2009?

(1) Northern Railway

(2) Eastern Railway*

(3) Western Railway

(4) Southern Railway

72. Service Sector registers highest share in GDP during AprilJune

2009 as per data released by CSO on August 31, 2009.

This share stands at

(1) 57.3 percent*

(2) 59.2 percent

(3) 60.3 percent

(4) 61.4 percent

73. The teledensity

in India at the end of July 2009 has been estimated at

(1) 36.8 percent

(2) 41.1 percent*

(3) 42.3 percent

(4) 44.2 percent

74. The first Chairman of newly constituted AERA (Airport Economic Regulatory Authority) is

(1) Yashwant S. Bhave*

(2) Alok Mishra

(3) Subhash Pani

(4) C. Rangrajan

75. Indian railways has granted a bonus to their employees for the year 200809,

equal to the salary of

(1) 60 days

(2) 75 days*

(3) 80 days

(4) 100 days

76. Passport Service Project has been given to

(1) Tata Group*

(2) Reliance (Anil) Group

(3) Wipro

(4) Infosys

77. The first Islamic Bank is being established in

(1) Uttar Pradesh

(2) Kerela*

(3) Maharashtra

(4) Madhya Pradesh

78. Who among the following has issued the coin rupee for the first time?

(1) MuhammadbinTughluq (2) Alauddin Khilji

(3) Sher Shah* (4) Akbar

79. Who among the following had won the Wimbledon Women's Singles Title, 2008?

(1) Ana Ivanovic (2) Maria Sharapova

(3) Serena Williams (4) Venus Williams*

80. Which one of the following books had been named as winner of the Best of the Booker Award

in 2008?

(1) The Enchantress of Florence

(2) Disgrace

(3) Midnight's Children*

(4) The Siege of Krishnapur

81. What is the correct sequence of the following events?

I. Bardoli Satyagrah II. Rajkot Satyagrah

III. Champaran Satyagrah IV. Nagpur Satyagrah

Select the correct answer using the code given below

(1) IIIIVIII (2) IVIIIIII

(3) IIIIIVII* (4) IIIIVIII

82. What is the correct chronological order of conferring Bharat Ratna to the following?

I. M.S. Subbalakshmi

II. Professor Amartya Sen

III. Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

IV. Sushri Lata Dinanath Mangeshkar

Select the correct answer using the code given below

(1) IIIIIIIV

(2) IIIIIIIV*

(3) IIIIVIII

(4) IVIIIIII

83. Consider the following statements

I. National Parks are a special category of protected areas of land and sea coasts where people

are an integral part

of the system.

II. Sanctuaries are concerned with conservation of particular speceis.

III. Biosphere Reserves are connected with the habitat of a particular wild animal.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(1) I, II and III

(2) II only

(3) I and II only*

(4) I and III only

84. Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists

List I List II

(Medicinal Product) (Source)

I. Quinine (A) Poppy plant

II. Morphine (B) Bacterium

III. Penicillin (C) Cinchona bark

IV. Tetracycline (D) Fungus

(1) I(C), II(D), III(A), IV(B)

(2) I(B), II(C), III(A), IV(D)

(3) I(C), II(A), III(D), IV(B)*

(4) I(B), II(A), III(C), IV(D)

85. Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists.

List I List II

(Pass) (State)

I. Zoji La Pass (A) Sikkim

II. Bara Lacha Pass (B) Uttarakhand

III. Jelep La Pass (C) Himachal Pradesh

IV. Niti Pass (D) Jammu and Kashmir

(1) ID,IIA,IIIC,IVB

(2) IB,IIC,IIIA,IVD

(3) ID,IIC,IIIA,IVB*

(4) IB,IIA,IIIC,IVD

86. Which of the following pairs is not correctly matched?

National Park State

(1) Kanha National park Madhya Pradesh

(2) Sultanpur National Park Haryana

(3) Ranthambore National Park Gujarat *

(4) Bandipur National Park Karnataka

87. The Veerapa Moily Commission in its report on Administration Reforms among other aspects

has suggested doing away

with which one of the following pairs of Articles of the Constitution of India?

(1) Articles 305 and 306 (2) Articles 307 and 308

(3) Articles 308 and 309 (4) Articles 310 and 311*

88. What does Fuwa, the Official Mascot of the 2008 Olympic Games, contain?

(1) Four popular animals of China and the Olympic Flame*

(2) Five popular animals of China and the map of China

(3) Five popular animals of China

(4) Four popular animals of China and the world map.

89. Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists

List I (Year) List II (UN's International Year)

I. 2002 (A) International Year of Ecotourism

II. 2004 (B) International Year of Microcredit

III. 2005 (C) International Year of Planet Earth

IV. 2008 (D) International Year of Struggle against

Slavery and its abolition.

(1) IC,IID,IIIB,IVA (2) IA,IID,IIIB,IVC*

(3) IC,IIB,IIID,IVA (4) IA,IIB,IIID,IVC

90. Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched?

Nobel Laureate of 2008 Discipline

(1) Martti Ahtisaari Peace

(2) Yoichiro Nambu Physics

(3) JeanMarie Clezio Literature

(4) Osamu Shimomura Physiology*

91. Which business was sold off by Richard Branson of Virgin group in 2008?

(1) Music records (2) Business process outsourcing (BPO)

(3) Foods & restaurants (4) Publishing

92. Which company launched its baby care brand 'Baby Dreams'?

(1) Wipro Consumer Care (2) J. L. Morison*

(3) Hindustan Unilever (4) Johnson & Johnson

93. Which famous cosmetics company launched its Visage range of products in India?

(1) L'Oreal (2) Oriflame

(3) Maybelline (4) Nivea*

94. Which cosmetics company was founded by Dame Anita Roddick?

(1) Avon (2) Body Shop*

(3) Christian Dior (4) Elizabeth Arden

95. Which of the following is not a brand owned by Shahnaz Hussain?

(1) Veda Dynamics (2) Kaya Skin clinics*

(3) Shahnaz Herbal (4) Forever Beautiful

96. Which of the following exports marine products under the Shogun, Hima, Gold Seal and Tara

brands?

(1) Godrej Agro (2) Nestle India

(3) Temptation Foods (4) Hindustan Unilever*

97. EL Rothschild Ltd. and Del Monte Pacific Ltd are JV partners of ..... in its farm products

foray.

(1) Reliance Industries Ltd (2) Bharti*

(3) Godrej (4) A. V. Birla

98. Which of the following is not a snack brand owned by PepsiCo Company Frito Lay?

(1) Lays (2) Bingo*

(3) Kurkure (4) Uncle Chipps

99. Which beer giant operates in India through its 100% owned subsidiarySouth

Asia Breweries?

(1) Carlsberg* (2) AnheuserBusch

(3) Heineken (4) Scottish & Newcastle

100. CocaCola

India's marketing communication campaign' ghoonth bhar sharart kar ley' is for

(1) Fanta* (2) Minute Maid

(3) Diet Coke (4) Thumbs up

Answer Key

1.(4) 2.(3) 3.(2) 4.(4) 5.(1) 6.(2) 7.(2) 8.(4) 9.(1) 10.(2)

11.(3) 12.(3) 13.(2) 14.(2) 15.(4) 16.(2) 17.(3) 18.(4) 19.(1) 20.(3)

21.(1) 22.(1) 23.(3) 24.(4) 25.(3) 26.(4) 27.(3) 28.(3) 29.(4) 30.(3)

31.(3) 32.(2) 33.(1) 34.(2) 35.(1) 36.(2) 37.(1) 38.(1) 39.(3) 40.(3)

41.(1) 42.(2) 43.(1) 44.(1) 45.(3) 46.(1) 47.(2) 48.(4) 49.(1) 50.(3)

51.(1) 52.(2) 53.(3) 54.(4) 55.(3) 56.(2) 57.(3) 58.(4) 59.(3) 60.(2)

61.(3) 62.(3) 63.(1) 64.(4) 65.(1) 66.(3) 67.(3) 68.(1) 69.(2) 70.(2)

71.(2) 72.(1) 73.(2) 74.(1) 75.(2) 76.(1) 77.(2) 78.(3) 79.(4) 80.(3)

81.(3) 82.(2) 83.(3) 84.(3) 85.(3) 86.(3) 87.(4) 88.(1) 89.(2) 90.(4)

91.(1) 92.(2) 93.(4) 94.(2) 95.(2) 96.(4) 97.(2) 98.(2) 99.(1) 100.(1)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TEST-16

Business Awareness

1. “Fresh” and “Select” are the names of the brands that have been launched as entry of the

company into the retail sector. Identify the company

a) Tata Group b) Bharati Enterprises

c) Reliance Industries Ltd. d) AV Birla Group

2. Which of the following personalities is the present brand ambassdor of Siyaram suiting

shirtings?

a) Virender Sehwag b) M S Dhoni

c) Vijender Singh d) Jeev Milkha Singh

3. With which of the following giants would you associate ‘One India’ tariff plan?

a) MTNL b) VSNL c) BSNL d) Reliance Infocomm

4. The Car-Maker Renault belongs to….

a) England b) Germany c) France d) USA

5. Which of the following companies has the tagline “Be more ambitious”?

a) Raymonds b) NIIT

c) Bombay Dyeing d) Zodiac

6. What is the rank of India in tea production throughout the world?

a) fourth b) second c) first d) tenth

7. Which of the following companies would you associate with the gizmo X-Box 360?

a) Sony b) Microsoft c) Apple d) Nintendo

8. The present chairperson of Institute of Rural Management, Anand is

a) V. Kurien b) Yoginder Alagh

c) Amrita Patel d) Parthi Bhatol

9. Which of the following personalities is the latest brand ambassdor of the Deutsche Bank?

a) Sania Mirza b) Baichung Bhutia

c) Vishwanathan Anand d) Mahesh Bhupathi

10. The Hospitality group Hilton hails from

a) UK b) USA c) France d) Australia

11. Which of the following companies has recently tied up with Google to offer search services

for the mobile customer?

a) BSNL b) Airtel c) Hutch d) Idea

12. Starbucks is a World leader in the

a) Tea business b) Food Business

c) Coffee Business d) Print Business

13. Which of the following personalities is the present European Union’s Trade Commissioner?

a) Karel De Gucht b) Robert Zoellick

c) Peter Mandelson d) Jose Mannual Barrosso

14. “Forever New Frontiers” is the punchline of

a)CiscoSystem b) Airbus c) Boeing d) AT & T

15. Which of the following banks was in the news recently as it was merging the Sangli Bank

with itself?

a) State Bank of India b) HDFC Bank

c) ICICI Bank d) UTI Bank

16. Can you identify the name of this Indian Company that became the first ever Indian

company to enter the elite NASDAQ-100 Club?

a) ICS b) Infosys Technologies

c) Wipro Technologies d) HCL Technologies

17. The first ever Indian company to be listed on NASDAQ was . ..

a) WIPRO b) HCL c) INFOSYS D) SATYAM

18. The number of Indian companies that are on the list of the Forbes most reputed companies

are..

a) 4 b) 8 c) 6 d) 10

19. “Simply Priceless” is the punchline of

a) Air India Express b) Indigo Airlines

c) Kingfisher Airlines d) Paramount Airways

20. Who among the following is the MD & CEO of ICICI Bank?

a) Chanda Kochar b) Jaspal Singh c) K.V. Kamath d) Nakul Arula

21. Vogue is the name of

a) cosmetics brand b) jewellery brand

c) clothing giant d) magazine

22. In which state is the Volkswagen AG planning to set up its manufacturing facility in India ?

a) Andhra Pradesh b) Tamil Nadu

c) Maharashtra d) Karnataka

23. “Passat” is the name of the car model that belongs to the stable of. ..

a) General Motors b) Volkswagen

c) Honda Motors d) Hyundai Motors

24. Four interwoven rings represent the logo of

a) Olympics b) Audi c) Mercedes Benz d) Octavia

25. “Truly Japanese Truly Advanced” is the punchline of

a) Sony b) Sharp c) Akai d) Aiwa

26. Which group has recently bought less than 10% stake in Spice Jet for rupees 100 Cr ?

a) Tatas b) A.V. Birla Group c) Wadias d) Ruias

27. “Engineering your tomorrows” is the punchline of

a) Volvo b) Mahindra & Mahindra

c) Tata Motors d) Ashok Leyland

28. “Consider the possibilities” is the tagline that you would associate with . . ..

a) CISCO System b) Dell Computers

c) Nortel d) UNIX

29. Which of the following personalities is the present president of NASSCOM?

a) Kiran Karnik b) Som Mittal

c) K.V. Kamath d) V. Damodaran

30. “Lotto” is the name of Sports company that belongs to

a) Germany b) Italy c) U.K. d) France

31. What is the rank of India in terms of absolute GDP throughout the World?

a) 6th b) 8th c) 12th d) 10th

32. “Diamond Trading Company”, the largest diamond trading company hails from…

a) Australia b) S. Africa c) India d) New Zealand

33. “Imagination at work” is the punchline of

a) Dell Computer b) Microsoft c) GE d) IBM

34. “Business @ speed of thought” is the name of a bestseller by

a) Larry Ellison b) Bill Gates c) Jack Welsch d) Steve Jobs

35. “Putting news first” is the punchline of

a) CNN b) CNBC c) Fox News d) BBC

36. Which of the following personalities would you associate with the Cable News Network

Channel?

a) Rupert Murdoch b) Ted Turner

c) Warren Buffett d) Tom Glocer

37. Which Indian state promotes itself by using the tagline “The heart of incredible India”?

a) Orissa b) Madhya Pradesh c)

Kerela d) Rajasthan

38. Find the odd one out

a) Karizma b) Glamour c) Avenger

d) Passion

39. Who among the following personalities is known as the “Oracle of Omaha”?

a) Bill Gates b) Larry Ellison

c) Warren Buffett d) Steve Jobs

40. Which of the following personalities is the CEO of the World’s largest retail chain, Wal-

Mart?

a) Sam Watton b) Robert Walton

c) H Lee Scott Junior d) John Davison

41. “Believe in Yourself” is the ad campaign that you would associate with…

a) Lotto b) Adidas c) Nike d) Reebok

42. NASDAQ, the first electronic stock exchange of the world, came into existence in …

a) 1967 b) 1969 c) 1971 d) 1973

43. Hutchinson is the name of the telecom giant that belongs to

a) Hong Kong b) Taiwan c) Thailand d) S. Korea

44. Which airlines displays the tag line, “There is no better way to fly”?

a) Singapore Airlines b) Lufthansa

c) Emirates d) Air India

45. “Fair & Lovely” was launched by

a) P & G b) Lakme

c) Hindustan Lever d) Godrej

46. The adline “Good People to Bank With” is associated with

a) Punjab National Bank b) State Bank of India

c) Union Bank of India d) Citi Bank

47. The slogan “Live Your Dreams” is associated with which company?

a) Liberty b) Bata c) Woodland d) Reebok

48. Where are the headquarters of Asian Development Bank located?

a) New Delhi b) Manila c) Singapore d) Mumbai

49. “Your World Delivered” is the punchline of

a) Accenture b) AT & T c) DHL d) Chevron Texaco

50. The number of nationalised bank & in India are ….

a) 15 b) 17 c) 19 d) 21

51. Ginger is the brand name of hotels that will be run by

a) AV Birla Group b) Tatas c) Ambanis d) Wadias

52. Find the odd one out.

a) Flair b) Fusion c) Fiesta d) Verna

53. Which of the following is not one of the Navratna companies?

a) IOC b) BHEL c) GAIL d) VSNL

54. “Sense and Simplicity” is the punchline of

a) GE b) Siemens AC c) Philips d) Motorola

55. “Uncommon Sense” is the punchline that you would associate with …

a) P & G b) Marico Industreis c) Boeing

d) Air Bus

56. Which of the following companies is the largest computer manufacturing company of the

world?

a) Lenovo computers b) Acer

c) Compaq d) Dell Computers.

57. “Happiness on Earth” is the tagline that you would associate with promotion of tourism in

a) Malaysia b) Singapore

c) Thailand d) Indonesia

58. “Growth is life” is the punchline of

a) AV Birla Group b) Tata Motors

c) Tisco d) Reliance Industries Ltd.

59. Of which electronic giant is the Howard Stringer Chairman and CEO?

a) Philips b) Sony c) Samsumg d) Dell Computer

60. Neotel is the new name of the telecommunication venture of ……………in South Africa.

a) Birlas b) Ruias c) Tatas d) Ambanis

61. Which Indian State has the highest share in the foreign direct investment in India?

a) Tamil Nadu b) Karnataka c) Maharashtra d) Gujarat

62. The Tata Group is coming up with the retail chain of stores under the brand name of

a) Fresh b) Infinity c) Select d) Croma

63. Which of the following companies was in the news recently as it launched India’s first IPTV?

a) MTNL b) BSNL c) VSNL d) Airtel

64. Which of the following brands is NOT owned by Reckitt & Benckiser?

a) Iodex b) Strepsils c) Sweetex d) Clearsil

65. Who is the new brand ambassdor of Provogue?

a) Fardeen Khan b) Hrithik ROshan c) John Abraham d) Saif Ali Khan

66. What was the worth of the deal in which Videocon acquired Daewoo Electronics recently?

a) $ 700 mn b) $ 750 mn c) $ 500 mn d) $ 300 mn

67. “Elegance is an Attitude” is the punchline of

a) Rado b) Longines c) Tag Huer d) Rolex

68. This personality is the newly appointed CEO of Acelor Mittal Name him.

a) Aditya Mittal b) Joseph Kinseh c) L.N. Mittal d) Jack Welsch

69. “Kal Par Control” is the punchline of

a) Bajaj Allianz b) Aviva Life

c) HDFC Standard Life d) General Motors

70. X-Trail is the name of an SUV that belongs to

a) Honda b) Nissan c)Ford d)

General Motors

71. Kishore Biyani is the promoter of

a) Reliance b) Infinity Retail

c) Vishal Megamart d) Future Group

72. “All Desire” is the punchline of

a) Ford Endeavour b) Toyota Innova

c) Lancer Cedia d) Skoda Laura

73. Which Indian Cricketer has been roped in by the ITC Foods to create a line of energy foods?

a) Rahul Dravid b) MS Dhoni

c) Yuvraj Singh d) Sachin Tendulkar

74. Which of the following personalities is the CEO of Airbus?

a) Louis Gallois b) Andeas Sperl c) John Leahy d) Tom Enders

75. Which is the 2nd largest steel company in the World?

a) Arcelor-Mittal b) BaoSteel c) NIPPON d) Tata-Corus

Answer Key (BUSINESS AWARENESS)

1) c 2) c 3) a 4) c 5) b

6) b 7) b 8)b 9) a

10) b 11) b 12) c 13) a 14) c

15) c 16) b 17) c 18) a 19) b

20) a 21) d 22) c 23) b

24) b 25) c 26) a 27) b 28) b

29) a 30) b 31) d 32) b 33) c

34) b 35) d 36) b 37) b 38) c

39) c 40) c 41) a 42) c 43) a

44) b 45) c 46) c 47) a 48) b

49) a 50) c 51) b 52) d 53) d

54) c 55) b 56) d 57) c 58) d

59) b 60) c 61) c 62) d 63) a

64) a 67) a 68) d 69) c 60) d

61) b 62) c 63) c 64) d 65) a

66) a 67) a 68) d 69) a 70) b

71) d 72) b 73) a 74) d 75) b