GENERAL AWARENESS PRACTICE MCQs

Q.1 Which former Prime Minister of India was also called ‘Yuva Turk’ ?
(A) Rajiv Gandhi
(B) V.P.Singh
(C) H.D.Deve Gowda (D) Chandrashekhar

Q2. Which mineral is used to make the Plaster of Paris ? (A) Gypsum
(B) Calcite
(C) Fluorite
(D) Apatite
Q3. Which is the most spoken language in the world ?
(A) English (B) Mandarin
(C) Spanish
(D) Hindi
Q4. Which planet in the Solar System is named after the Roman god of agriculture and harvest ?
(A) Mars
(B) Jupiter (C) Saturn
(D) Venus
Q5. From the Constitution of which country was the concept of the Fundamental Rights in the Indian Constitution borrowed ?
(A) Australia
(B) South Africa
(C) United Kingdom (D) United States of America

Q6. To which ocean does Panama Canal connect the Pacific Ocean ?
(A) Arctic Ocean
(B) Antarctic Ocean (C) Atlantic Ocean
(D) Indian Ocean
Q7. By what name is Krishna Dvaipayana, author of the epic Mahabharat, better known ? (A) Ved Vyas
(B) Valmiki
(C) Tulsidas
(D) Ramanujacharya
Q8. In which city is the Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI) located ?
(A) Nagpur
(B) Lucknow (C) Shimla
(D) Cuttack

Q9. ‘Bhutia’, ‘Kathiawadi’, ‘Marwari’, ‘Manipuri’, ‘Spiti’ and ‘Zanskari’ are the Indian breeds of which animal ?
(A) Cow (B) Horse
(C) Camel
(D) Goat
Q10. Who introduced the word ‘Robot’, for artificial workers, in his science fiction play R.U.R. in 1921 ?
(A) George Orwell (B) Karel Capek
(C) Daniel Defoe
(D) Rudyard Kipling
Q11. In the most popular internet domain name ‘.com’ (dot-com), the ‘com’ is the short form for which word ?
(A) Common (B) Commercial
(C) Computer
(D) Communication
Q12. Deficiency of which vitamin leads to ‘Rickets’ (softening of bones) ?
(A) Vitamin A
(B) Vitamin B
(C) Vitamin C (D) Vitamin D

Q13. Which freedom fighter was popularly known as the ‘Grand Old Man of India’ ?
(A) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
(B) Chittaranjan Das (C) Dadabhai Naoroji
(D) C.Rajagopalachari
Q14. Which Indian state has the longest coastline ? (A) Gujarat
(B) Maharashtra
(C) Tamil Nadu
(D) Andhra Pradesh
Q15. Naxalbari village, the birth place of Naxalite Movement, is located in which state ?
(A) Bihar
(B) Jharkhand (C) West Bengal
(D) Orissa
Q16. ‘Roopavahini’ is the National Television Network of which Asian country ?
(A) Nepal (B) Sri Lanka
(C) Bhutan
(D) Myanmar
Q17. On 17 Dec 1931, who founded the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) in Kolkata ?
(A) C.V.Raman
(B) Homi Bhabha (C) P.C.Mahalanobis
(D) Vikram Sarabhai
Q18. Named after Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi, famous Test cricket ground Gaddafi Stadium is located in which city ?
(A) Hyderabad (India)
(B) Dhaka (Bangladesh)
(C) Colombo (Sri Lanka) (D) Lahore (Pakistan)

Q19. Which mythological weapon is depicted on the Param Vir Chakra medal ? (A) Vajra
(B) Khatvanga
(C) Sudarshan Chakra
(D) Kaumodaki
Q20. Hydrogen and Carbon monoxide are the major constituents of which fuel gas ?
(A) Coal Gas (B) Water Gas
(C) Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)
(D) Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)
Q21. In May 1998, while addressing at nuclear tests site near Pokhran, who added ‘Jai Vigyan’ to the Lal Bahadur Shastri’s slogan ‘Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan’ ?
(A) Indira Gandhi
(B) Rajeev Gandhi
(C) P.V.Narsimha Rao (D) Atal Behari Vajpayee

Q22. On the banks of which river is the Jamshedpur, the steel city of India, situated ?
(A) Tapti
(B) Narmada (C) Subarnarekha
(D) Hooghly
Q23. Which Indian city you would be in if you were standing on world’s longest railway platform ?
(A) Jabalpur (M.P.) (B) Kharagpur (W.Bengal)
(C) Mughalsarai (U.P.)
(D) Secunderabad (A.P.)
Q24. In 1953, which film won the first National Award for the Best Feature Film ? (A) Shyamchi Aai (Marathi)
(B) Pather Panchali (Bengali)
(C) Kabooliwala (Bengali)
(D) Mirza Galib (Hindi)
Q25. In his first voyage to India, at which place did Vasco da Gama land on 20 May 1498 ?
(A) Goa
(B) Kochi (Cochin)
(C) Mumbai (Bombay) (D) Kozhikode (Calicut)

Q26. Vikramshila University, an ancient university of India whose ruins are situated in present day Bihar, was founded by which Pala ruler ? (A) Dharmapala
(B) Devapala
(C) Mahipala
(D) Govindpala
Q27. ‘Freedom in Exile’ book is the autobiography of which Nobel Peace Prize winner ?
(A) Yasser Arafat
(B) Nelson Mandela (C) Dalai Lama XIV
(D) Aung San Suu Kyi
Q28. Which Indian woman athlete is popularly known as ‘Idukki Express’ ?
(A) P.T.Usha (B) K.M.Beenamol
(C) Jyotirmay Sikdar
(D) Anju Bobby George
Q29. Hoover Medal, a prize given for outstanding extra-career services by engineers to humanity, has been awarded to which Indian engineer for year 2008 ?
(A) Sam Pitroda
(B) G.Madhavan Nair
(C) N.R.Narayan Murthy (D) A.P.J.Abdul Kalam

Q30. In international cricket, Yuvraj Singh of India is the second batsman to hit 6 sixers in an over. Who was the first ?
(A) Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka)
(B) Adam Gilchrist (Australia) (C) Herschelle Gibbs (South Africa)
(D) Shahid Afridi (Pakistan)
Q31. On the banks of which river is the Kumbh Mela at Ujjain held ? (A) Kshipra
(B) Godavari
(C) Krishna
(D) Kaveri
Q32. Shivkasi in Tamil Nadu is famous for which industry ?
(A) Glass
(B) Leather
(C) Diamond (D) Fireworks

Q33. To put out the fire, which gas is released by Fire Extinguishers ?
(A) Oxygen
(B) Hydrogen (C) Carbon dioxide
(D) Carbon monoxide
Q34. ‘Dromedary’ and ‘Bactrian’ are the types of which animal ?
(A) Goat (B) Camel
(C) Elephant
(D) Bear
Q35. In which union territory of India, would you meet the people of the Onge tribe ?
(A) Daman and Diu
(B) Lakshadweep
(C) Dadra and Nagar Haveli (D) Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Q36. Ramon Magsaysay Award, often considered as Asia’s Nobel Prize, is given in memory of which Asian country’s former president ?
(A) Singapore
(B) Indonesia (C) Philippines
(D) Malaysia
Q37. The East-West Corridor, being constructed under National Highways Development Project, and which starts at Porbandar (Gujarat) in west, will terminate at which place in the east ? (A) Silchar (Assam)
(B) Kohima (Nagaland)
(C) Imphal (Manipur)
(D) Shillong (Meghalaya)
Q38. Asteroids, sometimes called minor planets or planetoids, are generally found between which planets ?
(A) Earth and Mars (B) Mars and Jupiter
(C) Jupiter and Saturn
(D) Saturn and Uranus
Q39. By what name is the observation in economics that ‘bad money drives out good money’ popularly known ?
(A) Say’s Law (B) Gresham’s Law
(C) Murphy’s Law
(D) Parkinson’s Law
Q40. The subatomic particle ‘Boson’ is named after which Indian scientist ?
(A) Meghnad Saha
(B) Jagdish Chandra Bose (C) Satyendra Nath Bose
(D) Homi Bhabha
Q41. On 1st July 1997, where was India’s first Science City inaugurated ?
(A) Mumbai
(B) Bengaluru
(C) Hyderabad (D) Kolkata

Q42. What is the name of Morarji Desai’s samadhi in Ahmedabad ?
(A) Raj Ghat
(B) Vijay Ghat (C) Abhay Ghat
(D) Narayan Ghat
Q43. In 1829, which Governor-General prohibited the practice of ‘Sati’ ?
(A) Lord Auckland
(B) Lord Amherst (C) Lord William Bentinck
(D) Lord Dalhousie
Q44. Who authored the book ‘Indica’ ?
(A) Fa Hian (B) Megasthanese
(C) Al Beruni
(D) Huen Tsang
Q45. Which is the oldest stock exchange in Asia ?
(A) Tokyo Stock Exchange
(B) Hong Kong Stock Exchange
(C) Shanghai Stock Exchange (D) Bombay Stock Exchange

Q46. Who is the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission of India ?
(A) Mangala Rai
(B) Sam Pitroda (C) Anil Kakodkar
(D) G.Madhavan Nair
Q47. By defeating Harshavardhana on the banks of river Narmada, which Chalukya ruler stopped him from expanding into south ?
(A) Pulkesin I (B) Pulkesin II
(C) Vinayaditya
(D) Vijayaditya
Q48. In 1892, who became the first Indian to be elected to the House of Commons (lower house of British Parliament) ?
(A) Mahatma Gandhi (B) Dadabhai Naoroji
(C) Tej Bahadur Sapru
(D) Gopal Krishna Gokhale
Q49. Which military training institute located at Khadakwasla near Pune in Maharashtra has adopted ‘Seva Parmo Dharma’ (Service before Self) as its motto ? (A) National Defence Academy
(B) Indian Military Academy
(C) Defence Services Staff College
(D) Dundigul Air Force Academy
Q50. Which city houses the headquarters of Asian Development Bank (ADB) ? (A) Manila (Philippines)
(B) Bangkok (Thailand)
(C) Kualalampur (Malaysia)
(D) Seoul (South Korea)
Q51. Which natural sugar is found in the milk ? (A) Lactose
(B) Sucrose
(C) Maltose
(D) Fructose
Q52. ‘Nepali’, ‘Lepcha’, ‘Bhutia’ and ‘Limbu’ are the main spoken langauges of which Indian state ?
(A) Manipur
(B) Mizoram (C) Sikkim
(D) Nagaland
Q53. On 15 May 1952, who became the first speaker of the Lok Sabha ?
(A) Sukumar Sen (B) G.V.Mavalankar
(C) Harilal J. Kania
(D) S.Radhakrishnan
Q54. Which royal poet of Delhi Sultanate is regarded as the ‘Father of Qawwali’ ?
(A) Tansen
(B) Baiju Bawra
(C) Nayak Charju (D) Amir Khusro

Q55. In 1976, which Bengali lady novelist became the first woman to receive the Jnanpith Award for her novel ‘Pratham Pritisruti’ (First Promise) ? (A) Ashapurna Devi
(B) Mahasveta Devi
(C) Mahadevi Varma
(D) Amrita Pritam
Q56. Which Article of the Indian Constitution gives special status to Jammu and Kashmir ?
(A) Article 352
(B) Article 356
(C) Article 360 (D) Article 370

Q57. Immortalized in the voice of Lata Mangeshkar, Kavi Pradeep’s famous patriotic song ‘Aye mere watan ke logon’ was set to music by which musician ?
(A) Naushad
(B) S.D.Burman
(C) O.P.Nayyar (D) C.Ramchandra

Q58. Coined by French priest Henri Didon, ‘Citius, Altius, Fortius’ (Swifter, Higher, Stronger) slogan is the motto of which tournament ? (A) Olympic Games
(B) Commonwealth Games
(C) FIFA World Cup
(D) Asian Games
Q59. Who was popularly known as the ‘Lady with the Lamp’ ?
(A) Mother Teresa
(B) Sister Nivedita (C) Florence Nightingale
(D) The Mother (Mirra Alfassa)
Q60. Falkland Islands, located in South Atlantic Ocean, are a self-governing Overseas Territory of which country ?
(A) France (B) United Kingdom
(C) Argentina
(D) Spain
Q61. What is the minimum age limit to become the Governor of a state in India ?
(A) 18 years
(B) 25 years
(C) 30 years (D) 35 years

Q62. Yakshagana, literally meaning celestial music, is a popular dance drama of which Indian state ?
(A) Gujarat
(B) Maharashtra (C) Karnataka
(D) West Bengal
Q63. Hirakud Dam at Sambalpur in Orissa, the longest dam in India, is built across which river ?
(A) Narmada (B) Mahanadi
(C) Godavari
(D) Kaveri
Q64. Among terrestrial (land) animals, which animal has the longest gestation period ?
(A) Tiger (B) Elephant
(C) Rhinoceros
(D) Horse
Q65. For writing the Punjabi language, which Sikh guru developed the Gurumukhi script ? (A) Guru Angad
(B) Guru Amar Das
(C) Guru Ram Das
(D) Guru Arjan
Q66. Which among the following disease is caused by female Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes ?
(A) Malaria
(B) Kala-Azar (C) Dengue Fever
(D) Typhoid
Q67. ‘Mein Kampf’ (My Struggle) book is the autobiography of which dictator ?
(A) Pol Pot
(B) Idi Amin (C) Adolf Hitler
(D) Joseph Stalin
Q68. Who was the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations on 26th January 2009 in New Delhi ?
(A) Vladimir Putin (Russian President)
(B) Nicolas Sarkozy (French President)
(C) Zigme Singye Wangchuk (Bhutan King) (D) Nursultan Nazarbayev (Kazakhstan President)

Q69. In 1916, who founded Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey (SNDT) Women’s University at Pune, the first women’s university in India ?
(A) Annie Besant
(B) Mahatma Gandhi
(C) Madan Mohan Malaviya (D) Dhondo Keshav Karve

Q70. In which African city are the headquarters of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) located ? (A) Nairobi (Kenya)
(B) Cairo (Egypt)
(C) Abuja (Nigeria)
(D) Addis Ababa (Ethiopia)
Q71. Which hormone, released when danger threatens, is known as Emergency hormone ?
(A) Insulin (B) Adrenaline
(C) Melatonin
(D) Thyroxine
Q72. ‘Kathakali’, ‘Mohiniaattam’ and ‘Thullal’ dance forms are native of which state ?
(A) Karnataka
(B) Andhra Pradesh
(C) Tamil Nadu (D) Kerala

Q73. Which is the only continent through which all longitude lines passes ?
(A) Asia
(B) Africa (C) Antarctica
(D) Australia
Q74. ‘Vinaya Pitaka’, ‘Sutta Pitaka’ and ‘Abhidhamma Pitaka’ – collectively known as the ‘Tripitaka’ (three baskets) – are sacred texts of which religion ?
(A) Jainism
(B) Sikhism (C) Buddhism
(D) Christianity
Q75. In 1997, to which Indian film star did Pakistan Government present its highest civilian award ‘Nishan-e-Intiaz’ ?
(A) Dev Anand
(B) Raj Kapoor
(C) Amitabh Bachchan (D) Dilip Kumar

Q76. On 18 March 1965, who became the first human to walk in the space ?
(A) Yuri Gagarin (B) Alexey Leonov
(C) Neil Armstrong
(D) Buzz Aldrin
Q77. Washington D.C., the capital of United States of America, is located on the banks of which river ?
(A) Seine
(B) Thames (C) Potomac
(D) Moskva
Q78. Which among the following is the first indigenous civilian aircraft of India ? (A) Saras
(B) Tejas
(C) Chetak
(D) Cheetah
Q79. Near which city is the Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History located ?
(A) Panaji (Goa) (B) Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu)
(C) Bharatpur (Rajasthan)
(D) Sultanpur (Haryana)
Q80. Which Central American country was formerly known as ‘British Honduras’ ? (A) Belize
(B) Malawi
(C) Botswana
(D) Benin
Q81. What name has been given to the first Boeing 747/700 jet, inducted into Indian Air Force, designed to work as the Indian President’s office-in-the-sky ?
(A) Samrat (B) Rajdoot
(C) Maharaja
(D) Badshah
Q82. Which pigment gives plants and leaves their green colour ?
(A) Betalain (B) Chlorophyll
(C) Carotenoid
(D) Anthocyanin
Q83. As a token of protest against Jallianwala Bagh massacre on 13 April 1919, who returned the Knighthood conferred on him by the British Government ? (A) Rabindranath Tagore
(B) Tej Bahadur Sapru
(C) Gopal Krishna Gokhle
(D) Syed Ahmed Khan
Q84. On 6 Apr 2009, which Indian cricketer surpassed Australian Mark Waugh’s world record for the most catches in Test Cricket by a fielder (excluding wicket-keeper) ?
(A) Sunil Gavaskar
(B) V.V.S.Laxman (C) Rahul Dravid
(D) Mohammed Azharuddin
Q85. What is the retirement age of High Court judges ?
(A) 60 years (B) 62 years
(C) 65 years
(D) 70 years
Q86. Which apparatus is used to measure the blood pressure ?
(A) Hygrometer
(B) Chronometer
(C) Thermometer (D) Sphygmomanometer

Q87. Which renowned dancer established classical dance school ‘Kalakshetra’ at Adyar near Chennai in 1931 ?
(A) Protima Gauri Bedi
(B) Sonal Mansingh
(C) Mrinalini Sarabhai (D) Rukmini Devi Arundale

Q88. Kudremukh hills, name literally meaning Horse face, in Karnataka are famous for mines of which mineral ?
(A) Gold
(B) Lignite
(C) Bauxite (D) Iron Ore

Q89. Ghatigaon Sanctuary, set up for the conservation of the Son Chiriya (great Indian bustard), is located in which state ?
(A) Haryana
(B) Rajasthan (C) Madhya Pradesh
(D) Karnataka
Q90. The novel ‘Q & A’, on which 8 Oscar awards winning film ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ (2008) is based, was authored by which Indian civil servant ? (A) Vikas Swarup
(B) Vikram Seth
(C) Amitav Ghosh
(D) Aravind Adiga
Q91. Which is the only bird that can fly backwards ?
(A) Sunbird
(B) Kingfisher
(C) Honeyeater (D) Hummingbird

Q92. ‘Chanderi’ and ‘Maheshwari’ sarees are native of which state ?
(A) Tamil Nadu
(B) West Bengal (C) Madhya Pradesh
(D) Maharashtra
Q93. Quinine, the anti-malaria drug, is made from the bark of which tree ? (A) Cinchona
(B) Wintergreen
(C) Peppermint
(D) Eucalyptus
Q94. Titan, the only moon (natural satellite) known to have a dense atmosphere, is the largest moon of which planet ?
(A) Mars
(B) Jupiter (C) Saturn
(D) Uranus
Q95. Which dynasty, founded by Mauryan senapati (commander-in-chief) Pushyamitra, was immediate successor of the Maurya dyanasty ?
(A) Gupta dynasty
(B) Kanva dynasty
(C) Nanda dynasty (D) Shunga dynasty

Q96. Which coastal city is known as the ‘Queen of the Arabian Sea’ ? (A) Kochi (Kerala)
(B) Mangalore (Karnataka)
(C) Ratnagiri (Maharashtra)
(D) Marmagao (Goa)
Q97. On 1 September 1939, attack on which country by Germany marked the start of World War II ?
(A) France (B) Poland
(C) Britain
(D) Belgium
Q98. In 1981, which Mumbai born British writer won the Booker Prize for his novel ‘Midnight’s Children’ ? (A) Salman Rushdie
(B) V.S.Naipaul
(C) Arundhati Roy
(D) Kiran Desai
Q99. In 1913, at which American city did Lala Har Dayal found the ‘Ghadar Party’ ?
(A) Boston
(B) California
(C) Philadelphia (D) San Francisco

Q100. By voter strength, which Indian parliamentary constituency (Lok Sabha seat) having more than 33 lakh voters holds the world record of the largest constituency ?
(A) Chandni Chowk (Delhi) (B) Outer Delhi (Delhi)
(C) Nandyal (Andhra Pradesh)
(D) Samastipur (Bihar)