Practice Test: General Awareness - 15 - SSC CGL MCQ

• MANAS Biosphere Reserve is located in the state of Assam in India.
• Biosphere reserves are areas of land, coastal or marine ecosystems recognized by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) as having important ecological, biological and cultural value. They are designed to promote the conservation of biodiversity, support sustainable development, and foster scientific research and education.
• Biosphere reserves are typically composed of three zones:
  • The core area, which is strictly protected and serves as a reference for the natural ecosystems and biodiversity of the region.
  • The buffer zone, which surrounds the core area and is designated for activities that are compatible with conservation, such as sustainable agriculture, forestry, and ecotourism.
  • The transition zone, which is the area outside of the buffer zone where human activities are more intense and where the emphasis is on sustainable development, community involvement, and cultural preservation.
  • Biosphere reserves aim to balance conservation and development by promoting sustainable use of natural resources, fostering local economic development, and promoting cultural diversity. They also serve as important sites for scientific research, monitoring and education, and help to raise awareness about the importance of protecting our natural environment.

• ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI) at Karnal, Haryana is one of the premier institutes in the dairy sector
• It has contributed a lot to the growth of the dairy industry
• NDRI played a crucial role in India's development of milk production with its continuous research.
• National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal was originally started as the Imperial Institute of Animal Husbandry and Dairying in 1923 in Bangalore.
• It was expanded and renamed Imperial Dairy Institute in 1936
• It was known as National Dairy Research Institute after India's independence in 1947.
• In 1970, NDRI was brought under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.
• The institute has the distinction of being a Deemed University for implementing its academic programs since 1989.

• The word Hindu is derived from the Sanskrit word Sindhu which is the local name for the Indus River. Hence option 3 is correct.
• Indus flows through the north-western part of the Indian subcontinent.
• Sindhu also means sea. 

• Ustad Sultan Khan was an Indian Sarangi player.
• A sarangi is a bowed stringed instrument with a skin-covered resonator.
• Ustad Sultan Khan was also a classical vocalist belonging to Sikar Gharana.
• He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2010.

• The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are located in the Bay of Bengal, southeast of the Indian mainland.
• There are numerous beaches on the island, which draw vacationers.
• The capital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands is Port Blair.
• The Indira Point on the island of Andaman & Nicobar is where India's southernmost point is situated.

• The Nawab of Awadh was forced to accept the Policy of Subsidiary Alliance by Wellesley in 1801.
• The first king to form a secondary alliance with the British following the Battle of Buxar was the Nawab of Awadh.
• The Nizam of Hyderabad was the first to consent to a carefully crafted subsidiary alliance, though.

• The Citizenship Act of 1955 was amended by the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA act), which was first introduced in Lok Sabha in 2016.
• A Joint Parliamentary Committee was given this act, and it later produced a report that was delivered on January 7, 2019.
• The Lok Sabha passed the Citizenship Amendment Act on January 8, 2019, but it expired with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Parliament.
• Amit Shah, the minister of home affairs, reintroduced this bill on December 9 in the 17th Lok Sabha, and it was later approved on December 10.
• On December 11th, the Rajya Sabha also approved the legislation.

• The chemical formula of gypsum is CaSO₄.2H₂O.
• A soft sulphate mineral called gypsum is made up of calcium sulphate dihydrate.
• It is widely mined, used as fertiliser, and the primary component of numerous plaster, sidewalk or blackboard chalk, and plasterboard products. 
• Several cultures, including Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Rome, the Byzantine Empire, and the Nottingham alabasters of Medieval England, have employed alabaster, a fine-grained, white or subtly coloured type of gypsum, for sculpture.
• Gypsum can also form selenite crystals, which are transparent. 

• The Dance from Bidesia is very renowned among the locals in the state of Bihar.
• This dance is popularly known for its unique theme, which talks about social issues, contradictory topics and conflict between traditional and modern lifestyles.
• The dance form Bidesia is one of the traditional dances of the state, which originated in a twentieth-century folk theatre.
• In some performances, men and women both participate but in some only men participate. If only men are participating in a performance they do the role of both male and female characters. To represent women men used to wear long artificial hair and a saree. 
• The plays are based on social issues like poverty, the condition of women in their households and the roots of the emotions we fight with every day. 

• In order to serve the needs of the western and northwestern regions of the country and to relieve strain on Mumbai port, Kandla Port, located at the head of the Gulf of Kuchchh, has being constructed as a significant port.
• The port is specifically made to take in massive amounts of fertiliser, fertiliser derivatives, and petroleum products.
• To relieve the strain on the Kandla port, the offshore terminal at Vadinar was built.
• The hinterland's border cannot be precisely defined because it is not fixed in space.
• In the majority of circumstances, the hinterlands of two ports may cross paths.

Lithification:

• It refers to the process that loose and under-consolidated sediment particles transform into hard and solid rocks.
• This process includes a number of geological processes, such as consolidation, deep bury, cementation, recrystallization and dehydration.

Igneous Rocks

• As igneous rocks form out of magma and lava from the interior of the earth, they are known as primary rocks.
• The igneous rocks (Ignis – in Latin means ‘Fire’) are formed when magma cools and solidifies.
• When magma in its upward movement cools and turns into a solid form it is called igneous rock.
• The process of cooling and solidification can happen in the earth’s crust or on the surface of the earth.
• Igneous rocks are classified based on texture which depends upon the size and arrangement of grains or other physical conditions of the materials.
• Granite, gabbro, pegmatite, basalt, volcanic breccia, and tuff are some examples of igneous rocks.

Sedimentary Rocks

• The word ‘sedimentary’ is derived from the Latin word sediment, which means settling.
• Rocks (igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic) of the earth’s surface are exposed to denudational agents and are broken up into various sizes of fragments.
• Such fragments are transported by different exogenous agencies and deposited.
• These deposits through compaction turn into rocks.
• In many sedimentary rocks, the layers of deposits retain their characteristics even after lithification.
• Hence, we see a number of layers of varying thickness in sedimentary rocks like sandstone, shale, geyserite, chalk, limestone, coal etc.

Metamorphic Rocks

• Metamorphic means ‘change of form’.
• These rocks form under the action of pressure, volume, and temperature (PVT) change.
• Metamorphism occurs when rocks are forced down to lower levels by tectonic processes or when molten magma rising through the crust comes in contact with the crustal rocks or the underlying rocks are subjected to great amounts of pressure by overlying rocks.
• Metamorphic rocks are formed due to the proximity of sedimentary rocks with molten magma.
• Mechanical disruption and reorganization of the original minerals within rocks due to breaking and crushing without any appreciable chemical changes are called dynamic metamorphism.
• Examples- Marble, Quartzite, Schist, etc.

• Although there may be some fish that consume phytoplanktons, the main consumers in a lake environment are zooplanktons. Zooplankton is thus the dominant second trophic level in a lake environment.
• The majority of zooplankton species are tiny, microscopic organisms. a single-celled protist that primarily consumes bacteria, for instance. Nonetheless, some zooplankton species can grow fairly large such as jellyfish, arrow worms, etc.
• They are the main consumers because they consume producers like phytoplankton, which are then consumed by small fish (secondary consumers).

Panchayati Raj:

• Panchayati Raj was constitutionalized through the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992.
• The term Panchayati Raj in India signifies the system of rural local self-government.
• It has been established in all the states of India by the Acts of the state legislatures to build democracy at the grass-root level.
• It is entrusted with rural development.
• 73rd Constitutional Amendment has added a new Part-IX entitled ‘the panchayats’ and a new 11th Schedule containing 29 functional items of the panchayats.

• Coal is a combustible black or brownish black sedimentary rock with a high amount of carbon and hydrocarbons.
• It is a important source of non-renewable energy.
• It is known as black gold.
• Sonipat was earlier known as Sonprastha, which later became Svarnaprastha (Golden City), which is derived from two Sanskrit words, Svarna (Gold) and Prastha (Place).

• After a volcanic eruption, weathering and cooling of lava (igneous rocks) result in the formation of black soil.
• Black basalt soil, which is abundant in humus and iron and also contains high grade magnesia, lime, and alumina, makes up the soil in the Deccan Plateau.
• The Deccan trap region, which is distributed across the northwest Deccan plateau, is home to black soil, which is also referred to as regur soil.
• It is best suited for growing cotton because it is composed of lava flow.
• In addition to the weathering or cracking of igneous rocks, the cooling or solidification of lava following a volcano eruption also contributes to the formation of black soil.
• As a result, it is also known as lava soil.

• The dance form, Dhaman is associated with the state of Himachal Pradesh.
• The Nati dance is unique to the Sirmaur, Kullu, and Shimla areas of Himachal Pradesh. The dance was the "most people attending and participating in a Nati dance session at a single place," according to Guinness World Records.
• Himachal Pradesh also features additional dance styles as Kinnauri, Thoda, Jhora, Jhali, Chharhi, Dhaman, Chhapeli, Mahasu, Dangi, Chamba, Thali, Jhainta, Daf, and Stick dance.

Amphibians-

• The characteristics of the organisms present in class amphibia are as follows:
• These can live both on land and in water.
• They are ectothermic animals, found in a warm environment.
• Their body is divided into head and trunk. The tail may or may not be present.
• The skin is smooth and rough without any scales, but with glands that make it moist.
• They have no paired fins. Unpaired fins might be present.
• They have two pairs of limbs for locomotion.
• They respire through the lungs and skin. Gills might be present externally in some adults.
• The heart is three-chambered.
• They possess ten pairs of cranial nerves.
• The lateral line is present during their development.
• The sexes are separate and fertilization is usually external. However, in salamanders, the fertilization is internal.
• Development is indirect with metamorphosis.
• Breeding occurs in water. The copulatory organs are absent in males.
• Example- Frogs, Salamanders

• Jagdeep Dhankhar is an Indian politician who is the elected 14th Vice President of India.
• He served as the Governor of West Bengal and also a member of Bharatiya Janata Party.
• He served as the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs in the Chandrashekhar Mantralaya.
• He won the 2022 election with 74.37% of the votes and recorded the highest election-win margin since the 1992 election.
• Earlier, the 13th Vice President of India was Venkaiah Naidu.

• The Ex-officio Chairman of NITI Aayog is the Prime Minister of India.
• As per the NITI Aayog Act of 2014, the Prime Minister is the Chairperson of NITI Aayog, and the governing council of the organization includes chief ministers of all states and union territories, as well as members appointed by the central government.
• The Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog is appointed by the central government and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of the organization.

The sea sargasso located within the Atlantic ocean is the only sea that does not have a land boundary is named after the sargassum algae which is a type of brown algae.

Blue-green algae are also called as cyanobacteria or cyanophytes.

• They obtain energy through photosynthesis.
• They originate in the freshwater or terrestrial environment.
• They produce toxins known as cyanotoxins which are dangerous to humans and animals.
• They are used as colours in food items, biotechnology for the production of bioethanol, human and animal food sources, dietary supplements, and raw materials.

• Black soil is also called as ‘Regur Soil’ or the ‘Black Cotton Soil’.
• It is well suited for the cultivation of cotton so it is also called cotton soil.
• They are generally clayey, deep, and impermeable.
• They are formed by the disintegration of basalt.
• It has the ability to retain moisture for a very long time.
• They are rich in soil nutrients, such as calcium carbonate, magnesium, and potash.

• Hoarding is the purchase and warehousing of large quantities of a commodity by a speculator with the intent of benefiting from future price increases.
• Trade or exchange of goods involves several difficulties, which are removed by auxiliaries or supplementary supports known as Aids to Trade.
• Aids to trade include Transport, Communication, Warehousing, Banking, Insurance, Advertising, Salesmanship, Mercantile agents, Trade promotion organizations in a country and Global organizations for international trade. These important auxiliaries ensure a smooth flow of goods from producers to the consumers

Kolleru Lake is one of the largest freshwater lakes in India located in the state of Andhra Pradesh, 15 km from the city of Eluru.

• Kolleru is situated between the Krishna and Godavari deltas. Kolleru is spread over two districts - Krishna and West Godavari.
• The lake serves as a natural flood-balancing reservoir for these two rivers.
• The RAMSAR site of Kolleru Sanctuary is facing pollution and degradation due to large-scale shrimp cultivation for export.

• Disinvestment by the government in a company can be either a capital receipt or a revenue receipt, depending on the nature of the transaction.
• If the government sells its equity shares in a company to the public or to another entity, the proceeds from the sale are considered a capital receipt.
• This is because the government is selling a capital asset (i.e., its ownership stake in the company) and receiving cash in return.
• However, if the government sells its goods or services to a company, such as land or buildings, the proceeds from the sale would be considered a revenue receipt.
• This is because the government is receiving cash for the sale of goods or services, which is a normal business transaction and not the sale of a capital asset.
• In summary, the classification of disinvestment receipts as capital or revenue depends on the nature of the transaction and the asset being sold.