Q1. With reference to catalysts, consider the following statements:
- Catalysts increase the rate of a chemical reaction without being consumed.
- Catalysts increase the activation energy of a reaction.
- Catalysts are widely used in pharmaceutical and industrial processes.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 1 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (a)
Explanation:
- Statement 1 – Correct: Catalysts participate in intermediate steps but are regenerated at the end, hence not consumed.
- Statement 2 – Incorrect: Catalysts lower activation energy, making reactions faster; they never increase it.
- Statement 3 – Correct: Catalysts are extensively used in pharmaceutical synthesis, petrochemicals, fertilizers, and industrial processes.
Q2.
Assertion (A): Improved Cookstoves (ICS) can significantly reduce household cooking costs compared to LPG.
Reason (R): Biomass fuels like firewood are cheaper and widely available compared to LPG.
(a) Both A and R are correct, and R is the correct explanation of A
(b) Both A and R are correct, but R is not the correct explanation of A
(c) A is correct, but R is incorrect
(d) A is incorrect, but R is correct
Answer: (a)
Explanation:
- Assertion – Correct: ICS reduce costs due to lower fuel consumption and cheaper biomass fuels, often resulting in >60% savings.
- Reason – Correct: Firewood (~₹10/kg) is far cheaper than LPG (>₹100/kg).
- Linkage: ICS efficiency (38–45%) + cheaper fuel → directly explains cost reduction.
Q3. The Ghaggar River is often associated with which of the following?
(a) Indus River system
(b) Ancient Saraswati River
(c) Brahmaputra paleo-channel
(d) Narmada Rift Valley
Answer: (b)
Explanation:
- Ghaggar is widely (though controversially) linked to the ancient Saraswati River in archaeological and geological studies.
- It is a seasonal inland river, not part of Indus mainstream or peninsular systems.
Q4. Consider the following statements:
- Shadow libraries are increasingly being used as datasets for training artificial intelligence models.
- Use of such datasets raises concerns related to copyright and data ethics.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (c)
Explanation:
- Statement 1 – Correct: AI models increasingly rely on large datasets, and shadow libraries have emerged as potential data sources.
- Statement 2 – Correct: This raises issues of:
- Copyright violation
- Uncompensated use of authors’ work
- AI ethics and data governance concerns
Q5. Exercise DUSTLIK is conducted between India and which of the following countries?
(a) Kazakhstan
(b) Uzbekistan
(c) Kyrgyzstan
(d) Tajikistan
Answer: (b)
Explanation:
- Exercise DUSTLIK is a bilateral joint military exercise between India and Uzbekistan.
- It focuses on counter-terrorism operations and interoperability in semi-mountain terrain.
- Conducted annually, alternately in both countries.
