WBP SI Prelims General Knowledge Previous Year Questions with Answers

Correct Answer: (D) Satyandra Nath Bose

Explanation

The Padma Vibhushan was instituted in 1954 and its first batch of five awardees (1954) was Satyendra Nath Bose, Nandalal Bose, Zakir Husain, B. G. Kher and V. K. Krishna Menon. Flag: both Nandalal Bose (A) and S. N. Bose (D) were in that first batch; S. N. Bose is listed first in the official list, so (D) is kept.

Exam Facts

• The Padma awards are given on the eve of Republic Day, in the order Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri, after the Bharat Ratna.
• Satyendra Nath Bose was a physicist from Kolkata, famous for Bose-Einstein statistics and the boson.
• Nandalal Bose (option A) was the painter of the Bengal school, who illustrated the original Constitution of India.
• Zakir Husain became the third President of India.
• Jawaharlal Nehru (option C) received the Bharat Ratna in 1955 and not the Padma Vibhushan.
• Dr. Bir Bhan Bhatia (option B) is not among the five awardees of 1954.
• The Bharat Ratna and Padma awards were instituted in 1954.
• The Padma awards are announced by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• The awards are not titles and cannot be used as prefixes or suffixes to names.
• Bharat Ratna was first awarded in 1954 to C. Rajagopalachari, S. Radhakrishnan and C. V. Raman.

Correct Answer: (C) Maharashtra

Explanation

The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) is at Trombay, Mumbai, in Maharashtra. It is India’s premier nuclear research centre.

Exam Facts

• It was started by Homi J. Bhabha in 1954 as the Atomic Energy Establishment, Trombay (AEET).
• It was renamed BARC in 1967, after Bhabha’s death.
• Homi Bhabha is called the father of the Indian nuclear programme and founded TIFR in 1945.
• Apsara, the first nuclear reactor of Asia, went critical at Trombay in 1956.
• BARC works under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE).
• Telangana (option B) has the Nuclear Fuel Complex and ECIL at Hyderabad.
• Madhya Pradesh (option A) has the Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) at Indore.
• Odisha (option D) has the Indian Rare Earths (IREL) plant at Chatrapur.
• India’s first nuclear test (Smiling Buddha) was at Pokhran in 1974, and further tests were held in May 1998.
• Tarapur (Maharashtra) has India’s first nuclear power station (1969).

Correct Answer: (C) Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

Explanation

The academy at Hyderabad is the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy (SVPNPA). It trains Indian Police Service (IPS) probationers and is named after Sardar Patel, the first Home Minister of India.

Exam Facts

• It began at Mount Abu in 1948 and shifted to Hyderabad in 1975, when it got the present name.
• Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel is the ‘Iron Man of India’ and the ‘Bismarck of India’ for uniting about 562 princely states.
• His birthday, 31 October, is celebrated as National Unity Day (Rashtriya Ekta Diwas).
• The Statue of Unity (182 m tall) in Gujarat was inaugurated in 2018 in his honour.
• Lal Bahadur Shastri (option B) is the name of the LBS National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie, which trains IAS officers.
• Jawaharlal Nehru (option A) was the first Prime Minister of India.
• Mahatma Gandhi (option D) led the freedom movement and is called the ‘Father of the Nation’.
• The West Bengal Police Training College is at Barrackpore.
• IPS officers are recruited through the UPSC Civil Services Examination.
• Patel was a leader of the Bardoli Satyagraha (1928) and got the title ‘Sardar’ there.

Correct Answer: (A) Kaji Nazrul Islam

Explanation

Dhumketu (the comet) is linked with Kazi Nazrul Islam, the ‘rebel poet’ of Bengal, who started the fortnightly magazine Dhumketu in 1922. Flag: strictly, ‘Dhumketu’ is the pen name of the Gujarati writer Gaurishankar Joshi, so the question is loosely worded; Nazrul is the only option connected with the name.

Exam Facts

• Nazrul published the first issue of Dhumketu in August 1922, and it was a voice against British rule.
• He was arrested in 1923 for writing the poem ‘Anandamoyeer Agamone’ in Dhumketu.
• Nazrul is called ‘Bidrohi Kobi’ and wrote the poem ‘Bidrohi’ and the collection ‘Agnibina’ (1922).
• He is the national poet of Bangladesh.
• Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay (option B) wrote Devdas, Pather Dabi and Srikanta.
• Satyajit Ray (option C) was a film maker and also created the detective Feluda; he got the Bharat Ratna in 1992 and an honorary Oscar in 1992.
• Sunil Gangopadhyay (option D) wrote under the pen names Nil Lohit and Sanatan Pathak.
• Gaurishankar Joshi ‘Dhumketu’ (1892–1965) was a Gujarati short story writer.
• Nazrul got the title ‘Jagattarini Gold Medal’ from the University of Calcutta in 1945.
• Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay wrote Vande Mataram (from Anandamath).

Correct Answer: (D) Dev Anand

Explanation

‘Romancing with Life’ is the autobiography of Dev Anand, the evergreen Hindi film actor and director, published in 2007.

Exam Facts

• Dev Anand (1923–2011) is famous for films such as Guide (1965), Hum Dono, Jewel Thief and Kala Pani.
• He founded the film company Navketan Films with his brother Chetan Anand.
• He received the Padma Bhushan in 2001 and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2002.
• Dilip Kumar (option A) wrote ‘The Substance and the Shadow’ (2014).
• Amitabh Bachchan (option B) is known for Sholay and Deewar; his father Harivansh Rai Bachchan wrote Madhushala.
• Raj Kapoor (option C) was the ‘Showman’ of Indian cinema and made Awaara and Shree 420.
• The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is the highest honour of Indian cinema, started in 1969.
• Dadasaheb Phalke made India’s first full-length feature film Raja Harishchandra (1913).
• The first Indian sound film was Alam Ara (1931).
• Guide (1965), based on R. K. Narayan’s novel, is considered Dev Anand’s best-known film.

Correct Answer: (C) Jawaharlal Nehru

Explanation

Letters from a Father to His Daughter was written by Jawaharlal Nehru to his daughter Indira in 1928, when she was ten years old and staying at Mussoorie. It was published in 1929.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (C) Geneva

Explanation

The International Labour Organization (ILO) has its headquarters at Geneva, Switzerland.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (A) Dehradun

Explanation

The Forest Research Institute (FRI), the oldest forestry research institution in India, is at Dehradun, Uttarakhand.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (B) Weight Lifting

Explanation

Kunjarani Devi (Nameirakpam Kunjarani Devi, from Manipur) is a famous Indian weightlifter, who won several silver medals at the World Weightlifting Championships.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (A) Myanmar

Explanation

Myanmar is not a member of SAARC; it is only an observer (it is a member of ASEAN and BIMSTEC).

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (C) North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

Explanation

NATO stands for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. It is a military alliance formed by the North Atlantic Treaty (Washington Treaty), signed on 4 April 1949.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (C) Coaches

Explanation

The Dronacharya Award is given by the Government of India to coaches, for outstanding work in training sportspersons who win medals in international events.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (D) Four

Explanation

Carl Lewis (USA) won four gold medals at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics: the 100 m, 200 m, long jump and 4 × 100 m relay, equalling Jesse Owens’s feat of 1936.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (A) ITBP

Explanation

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) guards the 3,488 km India-China border, from the Karakoram Pass in Ladakh to Jachep La in Arunachal Pradesh.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (B) Spain

Explanation

Rafael Nadal is a Spanish tennis player from Manacor, Mallorca, known as the “King of Clay”. By mid-2018 he had 17 Grand Slam singles titles, including a record 11 French Open titles (the 11th in June 2018).

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (B) 21st June

Explanation

International Day of Yoga is celebrated on 21 June. The date was proposed by PM Narendra Modi at the UN General Assembly on 27 September 2014, and the UNGA adopted the resolution on 11 December 2014. It was first observed in 2015.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (A) Motor racing

Explanation

Formula One (F1) is the highest class of international single-seater motor racing, governed by the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile). The World Championship began in 1950 at Silverstone.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (A) Canada

Explanation

BRICS has five members: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Canada is not a member (it belongs to the G7).

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (A) a-iv, b-ii, c-i, d-iii

Explanation

Sattriya belongs to Assam (iv), Mohiniattam to Kerala (ii), Bharatanatyam to Tamil Nadu (i) and Kuchipudi to Andhra Pradesh (iii). So the correct match is a-iv, b-ii, c-i, d-iii.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (B) France

Explanation

The Cannes Film Festival is held every year in Cannes, France, on the French Riviera, usually in May. Its top prize is the Palme d’Or.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (B) Tamil Nadu

Explanation

Jallikattu is a traditional bull-taming sport of Tamil Nadu, held in the Pongal (harvest) festival season, especially in Madurai district (Alanganallur, Palamedu, Avaniyapuram).

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (A) Amartya Sen

Explanation

“The Argumentative Indian” (2005) is a collection of essays on Indian history, culture and identity by Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (C) Kolkata to Khulna

Explanation

The Bandhan Express runs between Kolkata (Chitpur) and Khulna in Bangladesh. It was flagged off on 14 April 2017 by PM Narendra Modi and Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina (by video link).

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF

Correct Answer: (B) Unique Identification Authority of India

Explanation

UIDAI stands for the Unique Identification Authority of India. It issues the 12-digit Aadhaar number.

Want more exam facts on this question? Get the WBP SI Prelims PYQ PDF