Odisha Civil Services Examination Previous Year Question Paper - 2015

Board Name: Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) 

Exam Name: Odisha Civil Services Examination -  2015 (Prelim)
Subject : General Awareness - I
Time: 2 Hours

Total Questions: 100

Full Marks: 200

Each Question Carries: 2 Mark

Exam Year: 2015

Odisha Civil Services Examination Previous Year Question Paper : General Awareness - I (2015)

1. Who has been appointed as the First Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog ? 

1. Dr. V.K. Saraswat
2. Kaushik Basu
3. Arvind Panagariya
4. K.V. Kamath
Ans: (3)



2. Where was India's indigenouly built anti-tank missile 'Nag' test fired in July, 2015 ?

1. Pokhran
2. Chandipur
3. Jaisalmer
4. Wheeler Island
Ans: (3)



3. Which NGO is Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi associated with ?

1. Bachpan Bachao Andolan
2. Beti Bachao Abhiyan
3. Jungle Suraksha Andolan
4. Gana Siksha Abhiyan
Ans: (1)



4. Which are the fields of two MOUs signed between India and Egypt for bilateral co-operation on August 24, 2015 ?

1. Education and Culture
2. Air Connectivity and Tourism
3. Technology and Training & Research
4. Tourism and Scientific & Technical Co-operation
Ans: (4)



5. Who is the recipient of Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award for 2015 ?

1. Saina Nehwal
2. Sania Mirza
3. Sachin Tendulkar
4. Abhishek Verma
Ans: (2)



6. Why was the 50th anniversary of Indo-Pak War of 1965 observed on August 28, 2015 ?

1. The day marks the beginning of the war
2. The day marks the victory of India
3. The day marks the Tashkent Declaration
4. The day marks the first tank battle by Indian soldiers
Ans: (2)



7. What has Om Prakash Rawat been appointed as ?

1. Information Commissioner of India
2. Election Commissioner of India
3. Vigilance Commissioner of India
4. Knowledge Commissioner of India
Ans: (2)



8. What is the name of the Indian Coast Guard Ship that has been gifted to Sri Lanka ?

1. Virat
2. Vikrant
3. Varaha
4. Vijay
Ans: (3)





9. What is the "Start-up India, Stand-up India" campaign associated with ?

1. Sports
2. Scientific Research
3. Empowerment of Women
4. Entrepreneurship
Ans: (4)



10. Who is the Japanese Scientist to have won the Nobel Prize in Medicine for 2015 ?

1. Kosmas Prassides
2. Taakaki Kajita
3. Satoshi Omura
4. Tu Youyou
Ans: (3)



11. Where was the first facial recognition ATM unveiled on May 30, 2015 ?

1. USA
2. China
3. Japan
4. India
Ans: (2)



12. What has the UN declared the year 2015 as ?

1. International Year of Forests
2. International Year of Soils
3. International Year of Relieving the Hunger
4. International Year of Food
Ans: (2)



13. Which country did top the medals tally at the 15th World Championship in Athletics held in August, 2015 ?

1. Russia
2. China
3. USA
4. Kenya
Ans: (4)



14. Which country's First Woman President was sworn into office in February, 2015 ?

1. Greece
2. Croatia
3. Zambia
4. Thailand
Ans: (2)



15. Where have the remains of a highly advanced water management system of Indus Valley Civilisation been discovered ?

1. Kalibangan
2. Lothal
3. Ropar
4. Dholavira
Ans: (2)



16. Consider the following statements regarding Hatigumpha inscription :
    (i) It if found in Khandagiri
    (ii) It was discovered in 1820
    (iii) It is written in Pali language
    (iv) The inscription was deciphered by James Prinsep
    Which statement is / statements are correct ?

1. (i), (ii), (iv)
2. (i), (iii)
3. (ii), (iv)
4. All are correct
Ans: (3)



17. Who was the Court Physician of Kaniska ?

1. Charaka
2. Susruta
3. Palakapya
4. Bhagabatta
Ans: (1)



18. Which great Indian astronomer did give the theory that all things fell on the earth by law of nature as it was earth's nature to attract and keep things ?

1. Aryabhatta
2. Varahamihira
3. Brahmagupta
4. Chandrasekhara
Ans: (3)





19. Which of the following books was not written by Harshavardhana ?

1. Ratnavali
2. Nagananda
3. Kadambari
4. Priyadarsika
Ans: (3)



20. Who did introduce the system of land measurement in India ?

1. Alauddin Khilji
2. Sikandar Lodi
3. Sher Shah Suri
4. Akbar
Ans: (3)



21. With reference to the monuments built by the Mughals, which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched ?

1. Buland Darwaza - Akbar
2. Itimud-ud-Daula's tomb - Jahangir
3. Fatehabad Mosque - Babar
4. Agra Fort - Shahjahan
Ans: (4)



22. Who was the first native ruler of India to accept Subsidiary Alliance ?

1. Nawab of Oudh
2. Gaikward of Baroda
3. Scindia of Gwalior
4. Nizam of Hyderabad
Ans: (4)



23. Which Act did change the designation of Governor General of Bengal to Governor General of India ?

1. Regulating Act of 1773
2. Charter Act of 1833
3. Government of India Act of 1858
4. Government of India Act of 1935
Ans: (2)



24. When did Ranjit Singh sign a treaty of perpetual friendship with British at Amritsar ?

1. 1799
2. 1805
3. 1806
4. 1809
Ans: (4)



25. Who is associated with introduction of Local Self Government in India ?

1. Lord Dalhousie
2. Lord Lytton
3. Lord Ripon
4. Lord Curzon
Ans: (3)



26. Which place did Kunwar Singh, a leader during the Revolt of 1857 belong to ?

1. Uttar Pradesh
2. Madhya Pradesh
3. Rajasthan
4. Bihar
Ans: (4)



27. Consider the following events that occurred during India's Freedom Struggle :
    (i) Chauri Chaura Violence
    (ii) Morley-Minto Reforms
    (iii) Dandi March
    (iv) Mont-Ford Reforms
    Which one of the following is the correct chronological order of their occurrence ?

1. (i), (iii), (ii), (iv)
2. (ii), (iv), (i), (iii)
3. (i), (iv), (ii), (iii)
4. (ii), (iii), (i), (iv)
Ans: (2)



28. Where did Netaji Subhash Bose hoist the Indian Flag ?

1. Imphal
2. Port Blair
3. Kohima
4. Delhi
Ans: (3)



29. Khajjiar Lake is located in :

1. Tamil Nadu
2. Himachal Pradesh
3. Odisha
4. J & K
Ans: (2)



30. Minicoy and Suheli Islands are separated by :

1. Six degree channel
2. Seven degree channel
3. Eight degree channel
4. Nine degree channel
Ans: (4)



31. KBR National Park is located at :

1. Hyderabad
2. Nainital
3. Darjeeling
4. Sunderban
Ans: (1)



32. Where from the Narmada River originates ?

1. North Eastern part of Satpura Range
2. Eastern Central part of Satpura Range
3. Southern slopes of Satpura Range
4. None of the above
Ans: (2)



33. The Sutlez river is a tributary of :

1. The Hindus River
2. The Beas
3. The Jhelum
4. The Chenab
Ans: ()



34. The length of Gangotri glacier is :

1. 90 km
2. 60 km
3. 30 km
4. 10 km
Ans: (3)



35. Which one of the following regions is famous as Sahyadris ?

1. Himalayan region
2. Plain region
3. Eastern ghat region
4. Western ghat region
Ans: (4)





36. Eastern most point of East-West corridor is :

1. Imphal
2. Agartala
3. Silchar
4. Kohima
Ans: (3)



37. Indira Point is near to :

1. Car Nicobar
2. Little Nicobar
3. Great Nicobar
4. Kamorta
Ans: (3)



38. In our country second largest area is occupied by :

1. Alluvial soil
2. Red soil
3. Black soil
4. Laterite soil
Ans: (2)



39. Which one of the following states possesses the largest forest area ?

1. Arunachal Pradesh
2. Chhattisgarh
3. Maharashtra
4. M.P.
Ans: (4)



40. Largest producer of manganese in India is :

1. Odisha
2. Jharkhand
3. Maharashtra
4. Karnataka
Ans: (1)



41. What is the total surface area of Lakshadweep ?

1. 32 sq km
2. 35 sq km
3. 39 sq km
4. 30 sq km
Ans: (1)



42. Karaganda coal basin belongs to :

1. Russia
2. Kazakhastan
3. Ukraine
4. Mongolia
Ans: (2)



43. The provision of providing identity cards to voters has been made in :

1. The Constitution of India
2. The Representation of the People Act, 1958
3. The Election Laws (Amendment) Act, 1975
4. The Criminal and Election Laws (Amendment) Act, 1969
Ans: (3)



44. Who among the following describes the Indian economy as 'Bullock-cart Capitalism' ?

1. Rajni Kothari
2. Atul Kohli
3. Lloyd and Sussane Rudolph
4. Granville Austin
Ans: (3)



45. What will follow if a Money Bill is substantially amended by the Rajya Sabha ?

1. The Lok Sabha may still proceed with the Bill, accepting or not accepting the recommendations of the Rajya Sabha
2. The Lok Sabha cannot consider the Bill further
3. The Lok Sabha may send the Bill to Rajya Sabha for reconsideration
4. The President may call a joint sitting
Ans: (1)



46. Rajya Sabha is dissolved after every :

1. Two years
2. Six years
3. Five years
4. Is not subjected to dissolution
Ans: (4)



47. A money bill can be introduced only in :

1. Rajya Sabha
2. Lok Sabha
3. Both Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha
4. None of the above
Ans: (3)



48. Panchyati Raj is included in :

1. Union List
2. Stage List
3. Concurrent List
4. None of the above
Ans: (2)



49. Who among the following has the power to issue ordinances under Article 129 ?

1. Chief Justice of India
2. The President of India
3. Speaker of the Lok Sabha
4. Chairman of the Rajya Sabha
Ans: (2)



50. The doctrine of basic structure of the Indian Constitution was pronounced by the Supreme Court of India in which of the following cases ?

1. Minerva Mills Ltd vs Union of India
2. Kesavananda Bharti vs State of Kerala
3. S.R. Bommai vs Union of India
4. None of the above
Ans: (2)



51. Writs can be issued for the enforcement of Fundamental Rights by :

1. District Courts
2. High Courts only
3. Supreme Court only
4. Both Supreme Court as well as the High Courts
Ans: (4)



52. Which one of the following was the First State to establish the institution of the Lokayukta in India ?

1. Bihar
2. Maharashtra
3. Rajasthan
4. Odisha
Ans: (2)



53. Which one the following was the first committee to demand constitutional recognition for Panchayats ?

1. Balwant Rai Mehta Committee
2. Ashok Metha Committee
3. Santhanam Committee
4. G.V.K. Rao Committee
Ans: (2)





54. In India, 'Collegium System' was first introduced in relation to :

1. Executive
2. Legislature
3. Judiciary
4. Union State Relations
Ans: (3)



55. Central Vigilance Commission was set up on the recommendations of :

1. First Administrative Reforms Commission
2. Gorwala Committee Report
3. Kriplani Committee Report
4. Santhanam Committee Report
Ans: (4)



56. Which constitutional amendment provided for the setting up of Administrative Tribunals in India ?

1. 24th Amendment
2. 42nd Amendment
3. 44th Amendment
4. 59th Amendment
Ans: (2)



57. Which of the following committee voiced concern about 'Criminalization of Politics and Politicization of Criminals' ?

1. Tarakunde Committee
2. Sachar Committee
3. Vohra Committee
4. Indrajeet Gupta Committee
Ans: (3)



58. Under whose auspices, the concept 'sustainable development' was coined ?

1. UN Conference on the Human Environment
2. UN World Commission on Environment and Development
3. UN General Assembly Special Session on the Environment
4. UN Conference on Sustainable Development
Ans: (2)



59. What is the goal of sustainable development ?

1. To ensure quality of life to present and future generations 
2. To meet the day-to-day consumption needs of the people
3. To shift rural population to urban areas
4. To increase the pace of industrialisation 
Ans: (1)



60. Per capita consumption expenditure as a measure of poverty in India was used for the first time by :

1. Jagdish Bhagwati and Arvind Panagariya
2. Amartya Sen and Jean Dreze
3. T. N. Srinivasan and Suresh Tendulkar
4. V. M. Dandekar and N. Rath
Ans: (4)



61. Name the economist who related 'poverty' with the concept of 'entitlement' :

1. Amartya Sen
2. C. Rangarajan
3. Elinor Ostrom
4. Partha Dasgupta
Ans: (1)



62. Economic growth is said to be inclusive when :

1. It generates more foreign exchange from exports
2. It creates economic opportunities along with ensuring equal access to it
3. It causes the largest segment of the people to remain outside the mainstream economy
4. It earns the highest share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from service sector
Ans: (2)



63. Which one of the following can be considered as a step towards achieving 'financial inclusion' in India ?

1. Privatisation of all the nationalised commercial banks
2. Opening of branches of all commercial banks in mega cities
3. Discontinuation of the practice of opening accounts by commercial banks with zero balance
4. Adoption of villages by bank branches
Ans: (4)



64. A great demographic divide in India occurred in the year :

1. 1901
2. 1911
3. 1921
4. 1931
Ans: (3)



65. Which one of the following is the correct definition of Dependency Ratio ?

1. Ratio of non-working population to working population
2. Ratio of ageing population to total population
3. Ratio of female population to male population
4. Ratio of non-working population to total population
Ans: (1)



66. Which one of the following was launched in India in 2014 with the aim of covering children against seven vaccine-preventable diseases which include diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, tuberculosis, measles and hepatitis B ?

1. Mission Indradhanush
2. National Health Mission
3. Swachh Bharat Mission
4. Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission
Ans: (1)



67. Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) aims to provide useful and relevant education to all children in the age group :

1. 5-10 years
2. 4-10 years
3. 4-14 years
4. 6-14 years
Ans: (4)



68. The MRTP Act of 1969 has been :

1. Replaced by Competition Act of 2002
2. Merged in Industrial Policy Act of 1978
3. Replaced by Trade Unions (Amendment) Act, 2001
4. Merged in Industrial Policy Act of 1991
Ans: (1)



69. If interest payments are subtracted from gross fiscal deficit, the remainder will be :

1. Revenue deficit
2. Gross primary deficit
3. Capital deficit
4. Budgetary deficit
Ans: (2)



70. The act of simultaneously buying in one market and selling in another market is called :

1. Speculating
2. Spotting
3. Forwarding
4. Arbitrage
Ans: (4)

71. The first (and current) President of the New Development Bank, headquartered at Shanghai, China and formed by countries of the BRIC block is nominated by India. Who among the following is the current incumbent ?

1. K. V. Kamath
2. Arun Maira
3. Arun Shourie
4. Nachiket Mor
Ans: (1)



72. Halophytes are the types of plants that prefer to grow on :

1. Dry soil
2. Sandy soil
3. Saline soil
4. Waterlogged soil
Ans: (3)



73. Thick vegetation of mangroves is present in :

1. Western Ghats
2. Sunderban
3. Gir forest
4. Himalayas
Ans: (2)



74. Broad leaved deciduous forests are typical of :

1. Monsoon region
2. Mediterranean region
3. Temperature region
4. Alpine region
Ans: (1)





75. Which of the following is mutually beneficial to the organisms in an association ?

1. Parasitism
2. Antagonism
3. Neutralism
4. Symbiosis
Ans: (4)



76. A thick and fleshy stem covered with a thick cuticle stores water in :

1. Hydrilla
2. Opuntia
3. Tecoma
4. Magnolia
Ans: (2)



77. The largest amount of freshwater of our planet is present in :

1. Lakes and rivers
2. Ground water
3. Pond and wells
4. Polar ice and glaciers
Ans: (4)



78. A habitat of long severe winters and few months of summer constituting the only growing season for plants are the characteristics of :

1. Savannah ecosystem
2. Tundra ecosystem
3. Coniferous ecosystem
4. Taiga ecosystem
Ans: (4)



79. The pyramid that always remains erect in a stable ecosystem with homeostasis is :

1. Pyramid of biomass
2. Pyramid of number
3. Pyramid of energy
4. Pyramid of population
Ans: (4)



80. The role of bacteria in an ecosystem is to :

1. Recycle nutrients
2. Immobilize nutrients
3. Fix carbon for secondary production
4. Supply organic carbon
Ans: (1)



81. The biochemical oxygen demand in water is enhanced by :

1. Increase in load of organic matter
2. Increase in dissolved nitrogen
3. Increase in heavy metal content
4. Dense population of phytoplankton
Ans: (1)



82. Green plant commonly :

1. Releases CO2 in day time and O2 in night
2. Releases O2 in day time and CO2 in night time
3. Releases both O2 and CO2 in day as well as night
4. Releases both O2 and CO2 in day and only O2 in night
Ans: (2)



83. Fuse is the most important safety device used for protecting the circuits due to :

1. Short circuiting
2. Over load
3. Both of the above
4. Leakage of the current
Ans: (3)



84. Which is not a hardware of a computer ?

1. CPU
2. Monitor
3. Mouse
4. Microsoft windows
Ans: (4)



85. At the time of short circuit, the current in the circuit :

1. Reduces substantially
2. Does not change
3. Increases heavily
4. Vary continuously
Ans: (3)



86. Which is not the function of CPU ?

1. Storage
2. Processing
3. Displaying
4. Communication
Ans: (3)



87. Myopia, also known as near-sightedness, can be corrected by use of :

1. Convex lens
2. Concave lens
3. Plane lens
4. Magnifying lens
Ans: (2)



88. Microsoft excel is used for :

1. Writing letter
2. Multimedia presentation
3. Spread sheet
4. All of the above
Ans: (3)



89. Non-conventional source of energy is :

1. Fossil fuel
2. Nuclear energy
3. Biomass energy
4. All of the above
Ans: (2)



90. Which of the following constitute a food chain ?

1. Grass, Pulses, Mango
2. Grass, Goat, Human
3. Grass, Goat, Cow
4. Grass, Fish, Goat
Ans: (2)



91. Which of the following is a plant hormone ?

1. Melatonin
2. Gastrin
3. Cytokinin
4. Cholecystokinin
Ans: (3)



92. The roots of  a plant always grow downwards while shoots usually grows upwards and away from the earth. It is known as :

1. Hydrotropism
2. Geotropism
3. Chemotropism
4. All of the above
Ans: (2)



93. Type II diabetes is characterized by

1. Hyperglycemia
2. Polyuria
3. Both of the above
4. None of the above
Ans: (3)



94. Artificial kidney helps :

1. Remove nitrogenous waste products from blood
2. Reabsorbs useful substances from tubules to blood
3. Secretes wasteful substances from blood to tubules
4. All of the above
Ans: (1)

95. Coal should be used judiciously because it causes :

1. Air pollution
2. Acid rain
3. Global warming
4. All of the above
Ans: (4)

96. Which of the following should be avoided in biological marriage ?

1. A⁺ boy and A^- girl
2. A⁺ boy and A⁺ girl
3. O⁺ boy and O⁺ girl
4. AB⁺ boy and AB⁺ girl
Ans: (1)





97. Which instrument is used for measuring the altitude, direction and velocity of clouds ?

1. Pyrgeometer
2. Nephoscope
3. Nephelumeter
4. Venturimeter
Ans: (2)



98. Which of the following instruments is used for measuring very high temperature ?

1. Photometer
2. Pyrgeometer
3. Solarimeter
4. Pyrometer
Ans: (4)



99. Low pressure turning to cyclone is resulted if the temperature of water at the sea level rises above :

1. 26.5^OC
2. 20.5^OC
3. 15.5^OC
4. 10.5^OC
Ans: (1)



100. Insulin is secreted from which gland or organ of human body?

1. Kidney
2. Liver
3. Pancreas
4. Small Intestine
Ans: (3)