19 September 2025 · Shift 1

Kambala Kambala is the traditional buffalo race of coastal Karnataka — Udupi and Dakshina Kannada. Pairs of buffaloes are driven through slushy paddy fields by a farmer. It is held after the harvest, between November and March. Hence option (b).

Monument chronology Akbar built the Agra Fort between 1565 and 1573 — the earliest of the three. Bir Singh Deo raised the Jahangir Mahal at Orchha around 1605. Shah Jahan completed the Red Fort in Delhi in 1648. Order C → B → A — option (b).

Gupta fiscal terms Dasaparadha refers to the fines levied for ten specified offences — correctly matched. Bhoga was the king’s periodic share of produce, but the pair asked for here is Dasaparadha. Dhanya was the tax paid in GRAIN, not forced labour (that was vishti). Hence option (a).

Teentaal The composition is set to Teentaal. Teentaal has 16 beats divided into four vibhags of four beats each. It is the most widely used taal in Hindustani classical music. Hence option (b).

Table tennis ball The ITTF fixed the ball diameter at 40 mm from the year 2000. Earlier the ball measured 38 mm; the larger size slowed rallies for television. Its weight is 2.7 grams. Hence option (a).

Krishna III Krishna III defeated Parantaka I at the battle of Takkolam in 949 CE. The victory extended Rashtrakuta power deep into Tamil country. Dantidurga founded the dynasty and Amoghavarsha I wrote the Kavirajamarga. Hence option (b).

Governor-General policies Wellesley used the Subsidiary Alliance to expand British power aggressively — correctly matched. Cornwallis followed non-intervention only partly and is known for the Permanent Settlement. Dalhousie in fact ANNEXED states through the Doctrine of Lapse. Hence option (b).

Athletics lane width World Athletics fixes the lane width at 1.22 m (± 0.01 m), and up to 1.25 m on older tracks. The white marking lines are 5 cm wide and belong to the lane on their outside. Races up to 400 m are run entirely in lanes. Hence option (a).

India–Sri Lanka defence (A–R) India has given Sri Lanka Dornier maritime surveillance aircraft and backed maritime cooperation structures — A is true. Colombo accepted this defence cooperation; the claim that it was rejected is incorrect — R is false. The two sides in fact signed a defence cooperation MoU in 2025. Hence option (c).

'Half the Night is Gone' Amitabha Bagchi won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2019 for Half the Night is Gone. The novel weaves together the lives of a Hindi novelist and a wealthy Delhi family. Kiran Desai won the Booker for The Inheritance of Loss. Hence option (b).

Archery 2024 Dhiraj Bommadevara won the men’s recurve title at the 2024 Nationals in Jamshedpur. Deepika Kumari took the women’s recurve gold. Both were part of India’s Paris Olympics squad the same year. Hence option (b).

Water Polo Championship The championship was hosted by the Eastern Naval Command at the Dolphin Hill Pool, Visakhapatnam ✓. The Indian Navy beat the Indian Army in the final to take the title ✓. Inter Services meets are contested between the Army, Navy and Air Force. Hence Both — option (c).

Article 286 Article 286 bars a state from taxing supplies that take place outside the state or in the course of inter-state trade or import/export. Parliament may lay down principles for deciding when such supplies occur. Article 269 deals with taxes levied by the Union but assigned to states. Hence option (b).

Enzymes Enzymes LOWER the activation energy — that is how they speed up reactions — Statement 1 wrong. The shape of the active site lets an enzyme bind only its specific substrate — Statement 2 correct. Each enzyme works best at an optimum temperature and pH; beyond it the protein denatures — Statement 3 correct. Hence Only 2 and 3 — option (a).

Finance Commission The Finance Commission is a recommendatory body under Article 280. Its advice on tax devolution and grants is not legally binding on the government. The report is submitted to the PRESIDENT, who lays it before Parliament. Hence option (b).

Energy Transition Index 2025 The World Economic Forum publishes the Energy Transition Index each year. Its 2025 edition stresses that stable, adaptive policy frameworks give investors the certainty they need. Without policy predictability, long-term clean-energy capital stays away. Hence option (c).

Hojagiri dance Hojagiri is performed by the Reang (Bru) community of Tripura. Women dance on an earthen pitcher balancing a bottle with a lamp on the head. It is linked to the worship of Lakshmi after the harvest. Hence option (a).

Core inflation 2024 Core inflation eased in 2024 mainly because global commodity prices — energy and industrial inputs — fell. Cheaper inputs feed through to lower manufacturing and service costs. A rise in money supply or consumption would push inflation UP, not down. Hence option (b).

Mixed economy In a mixed economy the state and private enterprise both own and run industries. India adopted this model after Independence with the 1948 and 1956 industrial policies. A purely private system is capitalism; a purely state-run one is socialism. Hence option (d).

Green Credit Programme The Green Credit Programme (2023) issues tradable credits for voluntary environmental work. Activities such as tree plantation, water conservation and waste management earn credits. It works on incentives rather than penalties. Hence option (c).

Article 131 Article 131 gives ORIGINAL jurisdiction to the SUPREME COURT, not the High Courts — Statement 1 wrong. It covers disputes between the Union and one or more states, or between states — Statement 2 correct. No other court can hear such a dispute at first instance. Hence Only 2 — option (a).

Globalisation Globalisation, part of the 1991 LPG reforms, integrated India with world markets. Trade barriers were cut and foreign investment allowed in most sectors. Liberalisation and privatisation were the other two prongs. Hence option (c).

Disinvestment (A–R) Disinvestment was criticised for undervaluation of assets, job losses and the sale of profitable PSUs — A is correct. But it did the OPPOSITE of what R says: it brought private players in and reduced public sector dominance — R is incorrect. So the reason contradicts the facts. Hence option (c).

Rouf dance Rouf (Rauf) is danced by Kashmiri women in two facing rows during Ramzan and spring festivals. Its defining feature is the rhythmic FOOTWORK, with rows swaying forward and back. Costume and gestures are secondary to that stepping pattern. Hence option (b).

Atmospheric layers Clouds of the troposphere obviously lie in the TROPOSPHERE, the lowest layer. The exosphere is the outermost, extremely thin layer where atoms escape into space — so this pair is wrong. Meteors burn in the mesosphere, ozone lies in the stratosphere and the ISS orbits in the thermosphere. Hence option (b).