25 September 2025 · Shift 3

Guillotine The Speaker applies the guillotine when the time set for the demands for grants runs out. All outstanding demands, discussed or not, are then put to vote together. A closure motion cuts short debate on one matter, not the whole set of demands. Hence option (d).

Puducherry Puducherry was a French settlement until 1954. Its White Town still keeps French street names, villas and the Gothic Church of Sacred Heart. Goa was Portuguese and Kochi passed through Portuguese, Dutch and British hands. Hence option (a).

Annie Ernaux Annie Ernaux won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2022. The citation praised the courage and clinical acuity with which she uncovers personal memory. Her best-known works include Les Années (The Years). Hence option (d).

David Dixon Award The David Dixon Award goes to the outstanding athlete of the Games. Performance, fair play and overall contribution are all weighed. It is named after a former Honorary Secretary of the Commonwealth Games Federation. Hence option (a).

Permanent Settlement The Permanent Settlement fixed the land revenue demand for all time. Zamindars became owners of the land, on condition of paying that fixed sum punctually. The Company thus secured a steady income and a landed class tied to its interests. Hence option (a).

BNSS technology The BNSS, 2023 gives statutory backing to electronic processes. FIRs, summons and warrants may now be issued and served in electronic form. Search and seizure must also be videographed. Hence option (a).

Odissi postures Odissi rests on two basic stances — chowk and tribhanga. Chowk is a square, masculine posture; tribhanga bends the body at neck, waist and knee. Tandava and lasya are the vigorous and gentle moods, not postures. Hence option (a).

Didarganj Yakshi The Didarganj Yakshi was found near Patna and belongs to the Mauryan period. Its high Mauryan polish on sandstone is the giveaway. It is now kept in the Bihar Museum. Hence option (b).

Shore Temple The Shore Temple, built under Narasimhavarman II, is of dressed granite in the Dravidian style — Statement 1 correct. Earlier Pallava work at Mahabalipuram was cut out of rock; this is a built-up structure — Statement 2 correct. It is BECAUSE the Pallavas moved to structural building that dressed blocks were used, so Statement 2 explains Statement 1. Hence option (a).

Wangala Wangala is the post-harvest festival of the Garo tribe of Meghalaya. It thanks Misi Saljong, the sun god, for a good harvest. Hundreds of drums are played together, giving it its popular name. Hence option (d).

Rigveda The Rigveda holds 1,028 hymns in ten mandalas. They are addressed to deities such as Agni, Indra and Varuna, composed over several generations. It is the oldest of the four Vedas. Hence option (a).

Kho-Kho rules A Kho-Kho match runs four turns of 9 minutes with breaks, adding up to about 48 minutes in all — Statement 2 correct. The pole stands 1.20-1.25 m high but its diameter is only about 4 cm, not 9 cm — Statement 1 wrong. The block distance for sub-juniors is smaller than for juniors — Statement 3 wrong. Hence Only 2 — option (a).

Kunbis The Kunbis were the cultivating and cattle-rearing families of the Deccan. Many of them rose into the Maratha soldiery under Shivaji. The word itself comes from kutumb, meaning household. Hence option (d).

Anti-doping duties Athletes in the registered testing pool must file accurate whereabouts and submit to sample collection — Statement 1 correct. A doping sample is personal; nobody may give it on an athlete’s behalf, and sending a substitute is itself a violation — Statement 2 wrong. Three missed tests or filing failures in a year count as an anti-doping rule violation. Hence Only 1 — option (b).

Why Nations Fail Why Nations Fail (2012) was written by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson. It argues that inclusive political and economic institutions bring prosperity, extractive ones bring failure. The two shared the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics with Simon Johnson. Hence option (b).

Khelo India Winter Games At the 2024 Khelo India Winter Games the Indian Army topped the table with 10 golds — Statement 1 correct. It was the Army, not Jammu & Kashmir, that had been the defending champion, so Statement 2 is wrong. The Games were held at Gulmarg and Leh. Hence Only 1 — option (b).

73rd Amendment The 73rd Amendment Act, 1992 added Part IX and the Eleventh Schedule. It gave panchayats constitutional status, with elections every five years and reservation for SC, ST and women. The 74th Amendment did the same for urban local bodies. Hence option (a).

Myopia A negative power means a CONCAVE (diverging) lens. Concave lenses correct myopia, where distant objects appear blurred. Hypermetropia needs a convex lens of positive power. Hence option (a).

Fiat money Modern money is fiat money — it has value because the government declares it legal tender. The gold standard was abandoned; the last link went with the Bretton Woods collapse in 1971. So a note cannot be exchanged for a fixed weight of gold. Hence option (d).

Green Revolution The Green Revolution began during the Third Plan (1961-66). High-yielding varieties of wheat, chemical fertilizers and assured irrigation were introduced. M.S. Swaminathan and Norman Borlaug were its leading figures. Hence option (a).

Press Freedom Index The Index is published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF). A better rank means journalists work with more freedom and less pressure. Censorship and heavy state control push a country DOWN the ranking. Hence option (c).

Tana Bhagat The Tana Bhagat movement began in 1914 among the Oraons of the Chotanagpur plateau. That region lies in present-day Jharkhand. Jatra Bhagat started it, preaching non-violence, abstinence and refusal to pay rent to landlords. Hence option (d).

Gopinath Bordoloi The Cabinet Mission Plan put Assam in Group C along with Bengal. Bordoloi led a firm campaign against this grouping, backed by Gandhi. Assam was thereby kept out of the Bengal group and remained in India. Hence option (b).

Green Revolution plan The Green Revolution was launched during the Third Plan (1961-66). High-yielding seeds, fertilizers and irrigation transformed wheat output in Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh. Its gains carried on into the Fourth Plan. Hence option (d).

Fertilizer subsidy cut Fertilizer subsidy is an input support given to farmers. Cutting it raised input costs and squeezed farm incomes. Agriculture also drew little of the fresh investment that followed the reforms. Hence option (b).