JKPSC Prelims Paper 1 Mock Test - 4 - JKPSC KAS (Jammu and Kashmir) MCQ

Statement 2 is not correct: After the battle, Maharana Pratap able to make a successful escape, the battle failed to break the deadlock between the two powers. Subsequently, Akbar led a sustained campaign against the Rana, and soon, Goganda, Udaipur, and Kumbhalgarh were all under Akbar’s control

Fortifications were significant in Vijayanagara as it was to protect from outsiders and they were unique as they enclosed agricultural tracts.

Statement 1 is correct. Often, the objective of mediaeval sieges was to starve the defenders into submission. These sieges could last for several months and sometimes even years. Rulers tried to be prepared for such situations by building large granaries within fortified areas and agricultural tracts.The rulers of Vijayanagara adopted a more expensive and elaborate strategy of protecting the agricultural belt itself. A second line of fortification went round the inner core of the urban complex, and a third line surrounded the royal centre, within which each set of major buildings was surrounded by its own high walls.

Statement 2 is correct. Abdur Razzaq noted that between the first, second and third walls there were cultivated fields, gardens and houses. Domingo Paes observed that there was a great distance from the first circuit until the entrance of the city. There were fields for sowing rice, many gardens and a lot of water, in which water came from two lakes. Present-day archaeologists, who have also found evidence of an agricultural tract between the sacred centre and the urban core, have corroborated these statements. An elaborate canal system drawing water from the Tungabhadra serviced this tract.

Stone tools have been used for:

• Digging the ground to collect edible roots.

• Stitching clothes made out of animal skin.

• Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots.

• Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting.

• Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools.

Stone tools have been used for:

1. Digging the ground to collect edible roots.

2. Stitching clothes made out of animal skin.

3. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots.

4. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting.

5. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools.

• The political developments after Harshavardhan, can be best understood if we divide the period from AD 750 to AD 1200 into two parts (a) AD 750–AD 1000; (b) AD 1000–AD 1200. The first phase was marked by the growth of three important political powers in India. These were Gurjara Pratiharas in north India, Palas in eastern India, and Rashtrakutas in South India. In the second phase, we notice the break-up of these powers. It resulted in the rise of many smaller kingdoms all over the country. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• These powers were constantly fighting with each other to set up their control of Kannauj of the Gangetic region in northern India. The struggle for control over Kannauj among these three dynasties is known as the tripartite struggle in Indian history. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
  • Control of Kanauj also implied control of the upper Gangetic valley and its rich resources in trade and agriculture.
• The Pratiharas who first had their capital at Bhinmal gained prominence under Nagabhatta I who offered stout resistance to the Arab rulers of Sind who were trying to encroach on Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, etc.
• However, the real founder of the Pratihara empire and the greatest ruler of the dynasty was Bhoja. He rebuilt the empire, and by about 836 he had recovered Kanauj which remained the capital of the Pratiharaempire for almost a century
• In the south, Dantidurga was the founder of the dynasty called, the Rashtrakuta dynasty (8th AD).
• The capital of the Rashtrakutas was Manyakheta or Malkhed near Sholapur. It was under the king Dhruva that the Rashtrakutas turned towards north India in a bid to control Kannauj, then the imperial city.
  • Soon, the Rashtrakuta king Dhruva from south India jumped into the fight. And thus began what is known as ‘Tripartite Struggle’ i.e struggle among three powers.
• The Pala empire was founded by Gopala, probably in AD 750 when he was elected king by the notable men of the area to end the anarchy prevailing there. Gopala was succeeded in AD 770by his son, Dharmapala, who ruled till AD 810. His reign was marked by a tripartite struggle between the Palas, the Pratiharas and the Rashtrakutas for the control of Kanauj and north India.

• The caves of Bhimbetka were discovered in 1957–58 by eminent archaeologist V. S. Wakankar and later on, many more were discovered. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• The rock art of Bhimbetka has been classified into various groups on the bases of style, technique, and superimposition. The drawings and paintings can be categorized into seven historical periods. Period I, Upper Palaeolithic; Period II, Mesolithic; and Period III, Chalcolithic. After Period III there are four successive periods.
• The largest number of Bhimbetka paintings belong to Period II which covers the Mesolithic
• paintings.
  • During this period the themes are multiple but the paintings are smaller in size compared to Upper Palaeolithic paintings. Hence statement 2 is correct.
  • Hunting scenes predominate. The hunting scenes depict people hunting in groups, armed with barbed spears, pointed sticks, arrows and bows. In some paintings, these primitive men are shown with traps and snares probably to catch animals.
  • The hunters are shown wearing simple clothes and ornaments. Sometimes, men have been adorned with elaborate headdresses, and sometimes painted with masks also.
  • Elephant, bison, tiger, boar, deer, antelope, leopard, panther, rhinoceros, fish, frog, lizard, squirrel, and at times birds are also depicted.
  • The Mesolithic artists loved to paint animals. In some pictures, animals are chasing men. In others, they are being chased and hunted by men. Some of the animal paintings, especially in the hunting scenes, show fear of animals, but many others show a feeling of tenderness and love for them.
  • Though animals were painted in a naturalistic style, humans were depicted only in a stylistic manner. Hence statement 3 is correct.
  • Women are painted both in the nude and clothed. The young and the old equally find their place in these paintings. Children are painted running, jumping, and playing. Community dances provide a common theme.
  • There are paintings of people gathering fruit or honey from trees, and of women grinding and preparing food.
  • Some of the pictures of men, women, and children seem to depict a sort of family life. In many of the rock shelters, we find handprints, fist prints, and dots made by the fingertips.
  • The artists of Bhimbetka used many colors, including various shades of white, yellow, orange, red ochre, purple, brown, green, and black. But white and red were their favorite colors.

• The Gupta period is remarkable for the production of secular literature, which consisted of a fair degree of ornate court poetry. Bhasa was an important poet in the early phase of the Gupta period and wrote thirteen plays. He wrote in Sanskrit, but his dramas also contain a substantial amount of Prakrit.
• Bhasa was the author of a drama called Dradiracharudatta, which was later refashioned as Mrichchhakatika or the Little Clay Cart by Shudraka. The play deals with the love affair of a poor brahmana trader with a beautiful courtesan and is considered one of the best works of ancient drama. Hence option (d) is the correct answer.
• In his plays Bhasa uses the term yavanika for the curtain, which suggests Greek contact. However, what has made the Gupta period particularly famous is the work of Kalidasa who lived in the second half of the fourth and the first half of the fifth century. He was the greatest poet of classical Sanskrit literature and wrote Abhijnanashakuntalam which is very highly regarded in world literature.
• It relates the love story of King Dushyanta and Shakuntala, whose son Bharata appears as a famous ruler. Shakuntalam was one of the earliest Indian works to be translated into European languages, the other work being the Bhagavadgita. The plays produced in India during the Gupta period have two common features.
• First, they are all comedies; no tragedies are found. Secondly, characters of the higher and lower classes do not speak the same language; women and Shudras featured in these plays use Prakrit whereas the higher classes use Sanskrit. We may recall that Ashoka and the Satavahanas used Prakrit as the state language.

• A geographical indication (GI) is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin. In order to function as a GI, a sign must identify a product as originating in a given place
  • Under Articles 1 (2) and 10 of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, geographical indications are covered as an element of IPRs. They are also covered under Articles 22 to 24 of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement.
• In December 1999, the Parliament passed the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act,1999. This Act seeks to provide for the registration and better protection of geographical indications relating to goods in India.
  • The Act is administered by the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks- who is the Registrar of Geographical Indications. The Geographical Indications Registry is located at Chennai. The Act has come into force with effect from 15th September 2003.
• Aranmula Kannadi (literally meaning Aranmula mirror) is a handmade metal-alloy mirror, unlike the usual glass mirror. Aranmula Kannadi is an extraordinary traditional handmade metal mirror which is famous for bringing prosperity, luck and wealth into life.
  • What’s unique about this front surface reflection mirror is that it eliminates secondary reflections that you typically see in back surface mirrors. Born out of Kerala’s rich culture and its inclination towards metallurgical articles, the mirror is said to have tremendous spiritual value and brings good luck.
  • In 2004, this rare craft belonging to a small town in Kerala was given worldwide recognition when a 45-centimeter tall Aranmula mirror was placed in London’s British Museum and awarded a geographical indication (GI) tag.
  • Owing to the unmatched splendor and religious significance of Aranmula Kannadi, Aranmula was declared a heritage village by Kerala Tourism in order to draw tourists’ attention to this dying craft.
• The making of Mysore Agarbathi became an organized industry in Bangalore during the 1900s. The incense sticks are locally known as oodabathies (blowing fumes). Herbs, flowers, essential oils, barks, roots and charcoal are ground into a smooth paste, then rolled onto bamboo sticks and dried in the sun.
  • The key ingredients Sandalwood and Ailanthus malabaricum (which yields halmadi) are indigenous to the forests of Karnataka, thus earning the product its GI tag status.
• The Hmaram was and is a popular article of clothing for Mizoram women. It is a handmade shawl and is worn like a short skirt by being wrapped around the waist and tucked in on one side. It is worn with a white blouse for ceremonies, festivals, or special events. It is made of cotton and dyed with natural indigo. It enjoys a GI tag status.
• The Lock manufacturing industry in Dindigul is hundreds of years old. Dindigul locks can guarantee aspects like quality, full safety & key facilities, most importantly they are attractive and unique in design.
  • The popular kinds of locks that are manufactured in Dindigul are Mango lock, Door Lock, Trick Lock, Bell Lock, Drawer Lock, Shutter Lock & Book Shutter Lock.
  • Dindigul Locks are specifically purchased for Temples. Government institutions and business places because of its foolproof Safety.
  • Dindigul lock manufacturers claim that the precision lever mechanism in their locks is manually assembled with a unique key code and shackles are meticulous in design that gives greater resistance to anyone who tries to break in.
  • Dindigul locks enjoy GI tag status.

Hence option (d) is the correct answer.

• Another step which Muhammad-Bin- Tughlaq took at this time was the introduction of the ‘token currency’. Since money is merely a medium of exchange, all countries in the world today have token currencies — generally paper currency, so that they do not have to depend upon the supply of gold and silver. There was a shortage of silver in the world in the fourteenth century. Moreover, Qublai Khan of China had already successfully experimented with a token currency. A Mongol ruler of Iran, Ghazan Khan, had also experimented with it.

• Muhammad Tughlaq decided to introduce a bronze coin which was to have the same value as the silver tanka. Specimen of this coin has been found in different parts of India, and can be seen in museums. The idea of a token currency was a new one in India and it was difficult to induce the traders, as well as the common man to accept it.

Statement 1 is correct. Magadha became the most important mahajanapada in about two hundred years. There were many reasons for it; many rivers such as the Ganga and Son flowed through it which was important for transportation, water supplies and making the land fertile. Also, as the parts of Magadha were forested, wood obtained from it was used to make houses, carts, and chariots. Elephants who lived in the forests could be captured and trained for the army. Also, there were iron ore mines that could be tapped to make strong tools and weapons. In Magadha usually, one person ruled.

Statement 2 is incorrect. Vajji was under a different form of government, known as gana or sangha. This was different from Magadha as here there were not one but many rulers, sometimes thousands of men ruled together and each one was called as raja. These rajas performed rituals together. The system was such that these rajas met in assemblies, and decided through discussion and debate what had to be done and hoe.

However, women, dasas, and kammakaras could not participate in these assemblies. Statement 3 is correct. Both the Buddha and Mahavira belonged to ganas or sanghas.

• Option (a) is incorrect: Raleigh Commission: The Viceroy filled with imperialistic design was not in favor of giving any power to the Indians. He concluded the Indian Universities and the college were slowly becoming cradle of Propaganda against the Government. So, with an idea to bring the Universities under control, Lord Curzon appointed Raleigh Commission under Sir Thomas Raleigh.

• Option (b) is incorrect: Mahalwari System: In Mahalwari system, all the properties of a Mahal were jointly and severally responsible, in their persons and property, for the sum assessed by the government on that Mahal. If the number of the proprietors was large, some of them were made representatives of all. The ownership and occupancy right was reserved for individual peasants. Even cultivation was to be done individually. But for the payment of the land revenue, the peasants were jointly responsible. Usually the village as a whole would be designated a Mahal and it paid the revenue via its headman called Lambardar. Thus, Lambardars worked as a link between the individual tillers and the government, but they were not given rights like those of Zamindars under permanent settlement.

• Option (c) is correct: Permanent Settlement: In permanent settlement, fixed revenue demand would give zamindars a sense of security and, assured of returns on their investment, encourage them to improve their estates. Initial demands were very high. The revenue was invariable, regardless of the harvest, and had to be paid punctually. In fact, according to the Sunset Law, if payment did not come in by sunset of the specified date, the zamindari was liable to be auctioned.

• Option (d) is incorrect: Macdonnell Commission: When the people were dying out of starvation and diseases, a MacDonnell Commission was appointed by Lord Curzon in 1901 which submitted its report in the same year. This commission came out with a “Moral Strategy”, distribution of advances and loans to the peasants and setting up a Famine Commissioner in the famine affected province.

Statement 2 is incorrect. In 1883, Surendranath Banerjea became the first Indian journalist to be imprisoned. In an angry editorial in The Bengalee Banerjea had criticised a judge

Option c is correct

• Policy of Ring Fence: It is followed by Warren Hastings, under which aimed at creating buffer zones to defend the Company’s frontiers. Broadly speaking, it was the policy of defence of their neighbours’ frontiers for safeguarding their own territories. This policy of Warren Hastings was reflected in his war against the Marathas and Mysore. NOT by Lord Hastings. Both are different.

• Policy of Subsidiary Alliance: It is followed by Lord Wellesley, under which the allying Indian state’s ruler was compelled to accept the permanent stationing of a British force within his territory and to pay a subsidy for its maintenance. Also, the Indian ruler had to agree to the posting of a British resident in his court. Under the system, the Indian ruler could not employ any European in his service without the prior approval of the British. Nor could he negotiate with any other Indian ruler without consulting the governor-general. In return for all this, the British would defend the ruler from his enemies and adopt a policy of non-interference in the internal matters of the allied state.

• Policy of Doctrine of Lapse: It is followed by Lord Dalhousie, under which the adopted son could be the heir to his foster father’s private property, but not the state; it was for the paramount power (the British) to decide whether to bestow the state on the adopted son or to annex it.

• Statement 1 is not correct: The share-croppers demand two-third of the produce from the land. There was huge participation of peasants from rural areas. North Bengal was the epicentre of the movement. The demands of sharecroppers were incorporated in the Bengal Bargadars Temporary Regulation Bill. At the request of the jotedars, the police suppressed the sharecroppers and the movement slowly disappeared by the end of March 1947.

• Statement 2 is not correct: The demands were based on the recommendation of the Floud Commission also known as the Bengal Land Revenue Commission which recommended two-third share to the bargardars (sharecroppers).

• In 1935, the Government of India Act was passed. It evolved into the concept of the All India Federation. Provincial Autonomy was introduced. There was to be a transfer of financial control from London to Delhi in response to the long-standing demand of the Government of India for fiscal autonomy. Provinces were given independent financial powers and resources. Provincial governments could borrow money for their own security. So, Statement 1 is correct.
• The Government of India Act 1935 expanded the size of the electorate to 30 million but retained high property qualifications. Only 10 percent of the Indian population got the right to vote. So, Statement 2 is not correct.
• The Government of India Act 1935 expanded women's franchise through preferential or special franchise qualifications, it also reserved seats for women in legislatures in accordance with the allocation of seats for different communities. So, Statement 3 is correct.
• The Government of India Act 1935 replaced the diarchy. At the same time, it gave provincial governors enormous 'discretionary power' to call the legislature, to not give consent to bills passed in legislatures, and, most important and undemocratic of all, to take over the control of a province from its elected majority ministry on the grounds of public order. Dyarchy was introduced at the center under the condition of several safeguards, and the Viceroy retained full control over foreign affairs, defense, and internal security. So, Statement 4 is correct.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT, 1935
Main Features 3⁄4 The establishment of an All-India Federation in which Governors' Provinces, the
Chief Commissioners' Provinces, and those Indian states which might accede to
be united were to be included.

• The Federal Legislature was to have two chambers (bicameral)—the Council of States and the  Federal Legislative Assembly. The Council of States (the Upper House) was to be a permanent body
• There was a provision for joint sitting in cases of deadlock between the houses. There were to be three subject lists—the Federal Legislative List, the Provincial Legislative List, and the Concurrent Legislative List. Residuary legislative powers were subject to the discretion of the governor-general.
• Dyarchy in the provinces was abolished, and provinces were given autonomy, Provinces derived their power and authority directly from the British Crown. They were given independent financial powers and resources Provincial legislatures were further expanded.
• The principles of 'communal electorates' and 'weightage' were further extended to depressed classes, women, and labor The franchise was extended, with about 10 percent of the total population getting
• the right to vote.
• The Act also provided for a Federal Court
• The India Council of the Secretary of State was abolished
   

Satyasodhak Samaj – 

1. It was a social reform organisation founded by Jyotiba Phule 1873. It espoused a mission of education and increased social rights and political access for underprivileged groups, focused especially on women, shudras and Dalits in Maharashtra. 
2. Satyasodhak Samaj argued equality of all human beings. It maintained faith in one-god, rejected any kind of intermediary between god and man (No need of Brahmans to connect with God) and rejected the caste system. 
3. Phule in his book Ghulamgiri claimed that Brahmans were Aryan invaders who came from Central Asian and invaded India. Later they enslaved all the other population of India. They wrote scriptures, law and custom to conceal their crimes. 
4. The Samaj thus advocated that to reclaim their social status, low caste group should oppose priests as middlemen between man and God in religious rituals. The Samaj also advocated for less expensive weddings, inter-caste marriages, end of child marriage and right to marry for the widows.
5. Emphasised on English education

• The Sanyasis rose in rebellion after the great famine of 1770 in Bengal which caused acute chaos and misery. The Bengal famine of 1770 led peasants whose lands were confiscated, displaced zamindars, and disbanded soldiers, and poor to come together in a rebellion. They were joined by the Sanyasis (who were originally peasants) and Fakirs.
• However, the immediate cause of the rebellion was the restrictions imposed by the British upon pilgrims visiting holy places among both Hindus and Muslims. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• Two famous Hindu leaders who supported them were Bhawani Pathak and a woman, Devi Choudhurani. They attacked English factories and seized their goods, cash, arms and ammunition. Maznoom Shah was one of their prominent leaders.
  • It was only after a prolonged action that Lord Warren Hastings (Governor-General of Bengal) could subdue the sanyasis. Equal participation of Hindus and Muslims characterized the uprisings. Hence statement 3 is correct.
• Anandamath, a semi-historical novel by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, is based on the Sanyasi Revolt. Bankim Chandra also wrote a novel, Devi Chaudhurani, as he saw the importance of women too taking up the struggle against an alien rule that posed a threat to traditional Indian values. Hence statement 2 is correct.

The main form of political work by the early Communists was to organize the peasants‘ and workers‘ parties, and work through them. The basic objective of the Workers‘ and Peasants‘ Party (WPP) was to work within the Congress to give it a more radical orientation. The first such organization was the Labour-Swaraj Party of the Indian National Congress, organized by Muzaffar Ahmed, Qazi Nazrul Islam, Hemanta Kumar Sarkar and others in Bengal in November, 1925.

• In late 1926, a Congress Labour Party was formed in Bombay and a Kirti- Kisan Party in Punjab. A Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan had been functioning in Madras since 1923.
• By 1928, all of these provincial organizations had been renamed the Workers‘ and Peasants‘ Party (WPP) and knit into an All India party. All Communists were the members of this party. Moreover, Jawaharlal Nehru and other radical Congressmen welcomed the WPPs’ efforts to radicalize the Congress. In 1924, the Government had tried to cripple the nascent Communist Movement by trying S.A. Dange, Muzaffar Ahmed, Nalini Gupa and Shaukat Usmani in the Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case. All four were sentenced to four years of imprisonment.

• By 1929, the government was deeply worried about the rapidly growing Communist influence in the National and Trade Union Movements.
• It decided to strike hard. In a sudden swoop, in March, 1929, it arrested 32 radical political and trade union activists, including three British Communists — Philip Spratt, Ben Bradley and Lester Hutchinson — who had come to India to help organize the Trade Union Movement.
• The basic aim of the government was to behead the Trade Union Movement and to isolate the Communists from the National Movement.
• The 32 accused were put up for trial at Meerut.
• The Meerut Conspiracy Case was soon to become a cause celebre.
• The defence of the prisoners was to be taken up by many nationalists, including Jawaharlal Nehru, M.A. Ansari and M.C. Chagla. Gandhiji visited the Meerut prisoners in the jail to show his solidarity with them and to seek their co-operation in the coming struggle.

● The famous Bardoli Satyagraha occurred at this time. In 1928, under the leadership of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel the peasants organised a No Tax Campaign and in the end won their demand.

● The Champaran Satyagraha of 1917 was the first Satyagraha movement inspired by Gandhi and a major revolt in the Indian Independence Movement. It was a farmer's uprising that took place in Champaran district of Bihar.

● The Kheda Satyagraha of 1918, in Kheda district of Gujarat, India during the period of the British Raj, was a Satyagraha movement organised by Mohandas Gandhi. It was a major revolt in the Indian independence movement.

● Ahmedabad Mill Strike, 1918 was one of the initial movements led by Gandhi in the beginning of the 20th century after his return from South Africa. It was one of the formative events in the political career of Mahatma Gandhi. Mahatma Gandhi intervened in a dispute between the workers and mill owners of Ahmedabad. He undertook a fast unto death to force a compromise.

Statement 1 is correct. The key objectives of the policy are:

• Broadband for all;

• Creating four million additional jobs in the Digital Communications sector;

• Enhancing the contribution of the Digital Communications sector to 8% of India's GDP from ~ 6% in 2017;

• Propelling India to the Top 50 Nations in the ICT Development Index of ITU from 134 in 2017;

• Enhancing India's contribution to Global Value Chains; and

• Ensuring Digital Sovereignty.

Statement 2 is correct. The policy advocates:

• Establishment of a National Digital Grid by creating a National Fibre Authority;

• Establishing Common Service Ducts and utility corridors in all new city and highway road projects;

• Creating a collaborative institutional mechanism between Centre, States and Local Bodies for Common Rights of Way, standardization of costs and timelines;

• Removal of barriers to approvals; and

• Facilitating development of Open Access Next Generation Networks. Features: The policy aims to Provide universal broadband connectivity at 50 Mbps to every citizen;

• Provide 1 Gbps connectivity to all Gram Panchayats by 2020 and 10 Gbps by 2022;

• Ensure connectivity to all uncovered areas;

• Attract investments of USD 100 billion in the Digital Communications Sector;

• Train one million manpower for building New Age Skills;

• Expand IoT ecosystem to 5 billion connected devices;

• Establish a comprehensive data protection regime for digital communications that safeguards the privacy, autonomy and choice of individuals

• Facilitate India's effective participation in the global digital economy;

• Enforce accountability through appropriate institutional mechanisms to assure citizens of safe and

• Secure digital communications infrastructure and services.

The earth’s crust constantly undergoes changes and that plays a very important role in rejuvenation of a river.

Statement 3 is incorrect. When there is an uplift of land or a fall in sea level occurs then a negative movement occurs in the river system which steepen the slope and active down-cutting of the river is renewed.

Statement 1 is correct. A fall in sea level results in the increase in the altitude of flood plain above the sea level. The river with its new energy starts to cut the former floodplain leaving behind terraces on both sides of the river. The point where the old and rejuvenated profile meet is known as Knick point or Rejuvenated head.

Statement 2 is incorrect. A positive movement occurs when there is a depression of land or rise in sea level. This submerges the land along the coast drown, the valleys and weaken the erosive power of the river

• The direction of surface winds is usually controlled by the pressure gradient and rotation of the earth. Because of rotation of the earth along its axis the winds are deflected. The force which deflects the direction of winds is called deflection force. This force is also called coriolis force.

• Because of coriolis force all the winds are deflected to the right in the northern hemisphere while they are deflected to the left in the southern hemisphere with respect to the rotating earth. This is why winds blow counter-clockwise around the centre of low pressure (to make cyclonic circulation) in the northern hemisphere while they blow clockwise in the southern hemisphere.

• The magnitude of deflection (Coriolis effects) is directionally proportional to

  • the sine of the latitude

  • the mass of the moving body, and

  • horizontal velocity of the wind.

Hence, option d is the correct.

• The importance of foodgrains in the Indian agricultural economy may be gauged from the fact these crops occupy about two-thirds of the total cropped area in the country. Foodgrains are dominant crops in all parts of the country whether they have subsistence or commercial agricultural economy. On the basis of the structure of grain, the foodgrains are classified as cereals and pulses.

• The cereals occupy about 54 percent of the total cropped area in India. India produces a variety of cereals, which are classified as fine grains (rice, wheat) and coarse grains (jowar, bajra, maize, ragi), etc. Hence statement 1 is correct.

• Rice is a staple food for the overwhelming majority of the population in India. About one-fourth of the total cropped area in the country is under rice cultivation. West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab are the leading rice-producing states in the country.

• Wheat is the second most important cereal crop in India after rice. About 14 percent of the total cropped area in the country is under wheat cultivation. Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan are leading wheat-producing states. Hence statement 2 is not correct.

• Ocean currents are like river flow in oceans. They represent a regular volume of water in a definite path and direction.
• The ocean currents may be classified based on their depth as surface currents and deep water currents :
  • surface currents constitute about 10 per cent of all the water in the ocean, these waters are the upper 400 m of the ocean
  • deep water currents make up the other 90 per cent of the ocean water.
• These waters move around the ocean basins due to variations in the density and gravity. Deep waters sink into the deep ocean basins at high latitudes, where the temperatures are cold enough to cause the density to increase.
• Ocean currents can also be classified based on temperature: as cold currents and warm currents: o cold currents bring cold water into warm water areas. These currents are usually found on the west coast of the continents in the low and middle latitudes (true in both hemispheres) and on the east coast in the higher latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere o warm currents bring warm water into cold water areas and are usually observed on the east coast of continents in the low and middle latitudes (true in both hemispheres). In the northern hemisphere they are found on the west coasts of continents in high latitudes.
• The Kuroshio Current, also known as the Black or Japan Current or the Black Stream, is a north-flowing, warm ocean current on the west side of the North Pacific Ocean basin. • Hence option (b) is the correct answer. 

• The most well-known rift valley on Earth is probably the so-called "Great Rift Valley System" which stretches from the Middle East in the north to Mozambique in the south.
• The area is geologically active, and features volcanoes, hot springs, geysers, and frequent earthquakes. It is a series of contiguous geographic trenches that runs from Lebanon in Asia to Mozambique in Southeast Africa.
• The Afar Triple Junction (also called the Afro-Arabian Rift System) is located along a divergent plate boundary dividing the Nubian, Somali, and Arabian plates. This area is considered a present-day example of continental rifting leading to seafloor spreading and producing an oceanic basin. Here, the Red Sea Rift meets the Aden Ridge and the East African Rift. Hence option (d) is the correct answer.

• Statement 1 is correct. The Karbi Anglong-Meghalaya plateau is an extension of the Peninsular plateau. They are two different plateaus - Karbi Anglong Plateau and Meghalaya plateau.

• Statement 2 is incorrect. These are separated from the Peninsular plateau by a huge fault. This fault is believed to have formed due to the force exerted by the north-eastward movement of the Indian plate at the time of formation of the Himalayas. The fault was created between the Rajmahal hills and the Karbi-Meghalaya plateau. It later filled up with river deposits from numerous rivers. The plateau region receives most of its rainfall from the south west monsoons. Places like Cherrapunji and Mawsynram are located here, which receive the highest rainfall in the world.

• Statement 3 is correct. Despite heavy rainfall the region has an eroded and bare rocky structure, with little to no permanent vegetation.

Statement 1 is incorrect. India has 615 islands/islets. Majority of them, around 572 islands/islets are located in the Bay of Bengal and remaining 43 islands/islets are located in the Arabian Sea. Apart from these, there are some coral islands in the Gulf of Mannar and Khambhat regions and there are some offshore islands along the mouth of Ganga river.

The Indian Island groups are generally grouped into two:

• The Andaman and Nicobar Islands located in the Bay of Bengal

• The Lakshadweep and Minicoy Islands located in the Arabian Sea (adjacent to Kerala coast) Lakshadweep Islands situated in the Arabian Sea is a group of 36 islands having an area of 32 square kilometres and extending between 8 N and 12 N latitude.

The main islands under the Lakshadweep Islands group are:

• Kavaratti

• Agatti

• Minicoy

• Amini

These islands were earlier known as Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindivi Islands.

• The name Lakshadweep was adopted on 1 November 1973

• These islands are separated from one another by very narrow straits.

• The Lakshadweep Islands group is a Union Territory administered by the President through a Lt. Governor.

• It is the smallest Union Territory of India.

• Kavaratti is the administrative capital of the Lakshadweep Islands. It is also the principal town of the Union Territory.

• It is a uni-district Union Territory and is comprised of 12 atolls, three reefs, five submerged banks and ten inhabited islands.

• The name Lakshadweep in Malayalam and Sanskrit means 'a hundred thousand islands'.

• The Lakshadweep Islands are located at a distance of 280 km to 480 km off the Kerala coast.

• These islands are a part of the Reunion Hotspot volcanism.

• Statement 2 is correct. The entire Lakshadweep islands group is made up of coral deposits.

• Fishing is the main occupation on which livelihoods of many people depend.

• The Lakshadweep islands have storm beaches consisting of unconsolidated pebbles, shingles, cobbles and boulders.

• Minicoy Island, located to the south of nine-degree channel is the largest island among the Lakshadweep group.

• 8 Degree Channel (8 degrees north latitude) separates islands of Minicoy and Maldives.

• Statement 3 is incorrect. 9 Degree Channel (9 degrees north latitude) separates the island of Minicoy from the main Lakshadweep archipelago.

• In Lakshadweep region, there is an absence of forests.

• Pitti Island is an important breeding place for sea turtles and for a number of pelagic birds such as the brown noddy, lesser crested tern and greater crested tern. The Pitti island has been declared a bird sanctuary.

• Cold air masses: Cold air masses originate in the polar and arctic regions. They are characterized by the following properties in their source regions:

  • Specific humidity is extremely low. Hence statement 1 is correct.

  • Stability increases and normal lapse rate of temperature is low.

• Cold air masses after moving from their source regions and reaching other areas have the following properties:

  • Temperature of that areas where cold air masses reach starts decreasing.

  • The air mass is warmed from below and thus normal lapse rate increases and the air becomes unstable. This mechanism causes convective currents.

  • If the cold air mass lies over warm ocean surface, then its specific humidity increases and cumulo- nimbus clouds are formed.

• Precipitation occurs only when the cold air mass lies over warm ocean surface but if it lies over warm continent, there is clear weather. Hence statement 2 is correct.

• If the cold air mass lies partly over warm ocean surface and partly over the adjoining cold land surface, then cyclonic conditions are induced.

• Warm air mass: Warm air mass is that whose temperature is greater than the surface temperature of the areas over which it moves.

• Warm air masses generally originate in the subtropical regions characterized by anticyclonic conditions. Hence, statement 3 is the correct.

• Pulses are a very important ingredient of vegetarian food as these are rich sources of proteins. These are legume crops that increase the natural fertility of soils through nitrogen fixation. India is a leading producer of pulses in the world. Hence statement 1 is correct.

• The cultivation of pulses in the country is largely concentrated in the drylands of Deccan and central plateaus and northwestern parts of the country. Pulses occupy about 11 percent of the total cropped area in the country. Hence statement 2 is not correct.

• Being the rainfed crops of drylands, the yields of pulses are low and fluctuate from year to year. Gram and tur are the main pulses cultivated in India.