RRB NTPC CBT 1 2026 General Awareness Questions with Solutions

Explanation

In July 2023, extreme rainfall and flash floods triggered by cloudbursts severely disrupted power generation infrastructure in Himachal Pradesh. Torrential floods significantly increased silt levels in key river basins like the Satluj and Beas, forcing the emergency shutdown of several major hydroelectric power plants to protect turbines from severe damage. Key facilities affected included the 1,500 MW Nathpa Jhakri Hydro Power Station and the 412 MW Rampur Hydro Power Station.

Explanation

Lala Lajpat Rai was popularly known as 'Punjab Kesari' or the 'Lion of Punjab' for his fierce nationalism and leadership during the Indian freedom struggle. As a prominent leader of the Extremist phase of the Indian National Congress, he formed the famous 'Lal-Bal-Pal' triumvirate alongside Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Bipin Chandra Pal, advocating aggressively for Swadeshi, boycott, and self-reliance against British colonial rule.

Explanation

World Wetlands Day is observed globally every year on February 2 to commemorate the adoption of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in Ramsar, Iran, on February 2, 1971. The day aims to raise global awareness about the vital ecological, economic, and cultural significance of wetlands. In 2026, World Wetlands Day was celebrated under the theme "Wetlands and traditional knowledge: Celebrating cultural heritage," highlighting the deep-rooted connections between wetland ecosystems and the ancestral knowledge, stewardship, and cultural practices of local and Indigenous communities.

Explanation

Alleles are alternative or variant forms of a specific gene that occupy the same position (locus) on homologous chromosomes. They arise due to minor variations in the DNA sequence of a gene, which can result in different observable traits, such as distinct eye colors or blood groups. An individual inherits two alleles for each gene, one from each biological parent.

Explanation

Pandit Birju Maharaj, a legendary exponent of the Lucknow Kalka-Bindadin gharana of Kathak dance, received the Padma Vibhushan in 1986 for his exceptional contribution to Indian classical dance. He was a master performer, choreographer, and vocalist who played a pivotal role in promoting Kathak globally and training generations of classical dancers.

Explanation

The Siachen Glacier, located in the Eastern Karakoram range of the Himalayas in Ladakh, spans a length of approximately 76 km (47 miles). This makes it the longest glacier in the Karakoram range and the second-longest non-polar glacier in the world, after the Fedchenko Glacier in Tajikistan. Originating at Indira Col at an altitude of around 5,753 meters above sea level, its meltwater forms the Nubra River, a primary tributary of the Shyok and Indus River systems.

Explanation

Speed is a fundamental characteristic of a computer that refers to its ability to process instructions and perform calculations at extremely high rates. Operating at clock frequencies measured in megahertz or gigahertz, a computer can execute millions or billions of mathematical operations per second, completing complex tasks in mere fractions of a second.

Explanation

Madayagari Mallana was a distinguished 16th-century Telugu poet and one of the Ashtadiggajas (eight court poets) during the reign of Emperor Krishnadevaraya in the Vijayanagara Empire. His primary literary contribution is Rajashekharachritra (or Rajasekhara Charitramu), a prabandha-style epic poem in three cantos that details the military exploits, courtly life, and romantic pursuits of King Rajashekhara of Avanti. Composed as an original narrative without direct Sanskrit antecedents, the work is renowned for its refined poetic style and vivid depiction of medieval Indian warfare and romance.

Explanation

Following the 1991 economic reforms, India transitioned from direct monetary controls and administered interest rate structures toward market-oriented indirect policy instruments. A central feature of this structural adjustment was the progressive deregulation of interest rates, which empowered commercial banks to set deposit and lending rates based on market forces of demand and supply, significantly reducing direct administrative intervention by the Reserve Bank of India.

Explanation

In a decimal number less than 1, zeros appearing before the first non-zero digit are leading zeros and are not significant as they merely locate the decimal point. Therefore, the three zeros before 2 in 0.00200 are not significant. The non-zero digit 2 is significant, and all trailing zeros to the right of a decimal point are significant because they indicate the precision of the measurement. Consequently, the significant digits are 2, 0, and 0, giving a total of 3 significant figures.

Explanation

Nagabhata I, the founder of the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty, played a crucial role in halting Arab expansion into northern India during the early 8th century. He successfully repulsed the invading Umayyad Arab forces coming from Sindh, defeating their commander Junayd and his successors. This victory, recorded in the Gwalior Prashasti inscription, established the Gurjara-Pratiharas as a primary defensive shield for northern India against western invaders.

Explanation

In the Microsoft Windows operating system, the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut is a standard system-level command used to close the currently active application or window. If all windows are closed or minimized and the desktop is active, pressing Alt + F4 opens the Shut Down Windows dialog box.

Explanation

The Regulating Act of 1773 was the first parliamentary legislation passed by the British Parliament to control and regulate the affairs of the East India Company in India, particularly in Bengal. It designated the Governor of Bengal, Warren Hastings, as the first Governor-General of Bengal and subordinated the presidencies of Bombay and Madras to Bengal's authority in matters of war and peace, establishing a centralized administrative and judicial framework.

Explanation

When white light passes through a glass prism, its constituent wavelengths bend by different amounts because the refractive index of glass varies with the wavelength of light. Shorter wavelengths like violet deviate the most, while longer wavelengths like red deviate the least. This phenomenon of splitting white light into its constituent colors is known as dispersion, which forms the band of seven colors called a spectrum.

Explanation

Olympic medalist and former world No. 1 badminton player Saina Nehwal was the chief guest at the inauguration of the 58th Inter-IIT Sports Meet hosted by IIT Hyderabad.

Explanation

Particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5) consists of fine inhalable particles that pose the greatest risk to human health. Due to their microscopic size, PM2.5 particles penetrate deep into the pulmonary alveoli of the lungs and enter the bloodstream, causing systemic health impacts. According to the World Health Organization, long-term exposure to PM2.5 is the leading air pollution driver behind increased respiratory illnesses globally, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma exacerbations, lung cancer, and acute lower respiratory infections such as pneumonia.

Explanation

The Trans-Siberian Railway is the longest railway system in the world, spanning approximately 9,289 km across Russia. It connects St. Petersburg in the west through Moscow across Eurasia to Vladivostok, a major Russian port city situated on the Golden Horn Bay along the Pacific Ocean coast in the Far East.

Explanation

The Stand Up India Scheme was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 5, 2016, to promote entrepreneurship at the grassroots level among underserved communities. It aims to facilitate bank loans between ₹10 lakh and ₹1 crore to at least one Scheduled Caste (SC) or Scheduled Tribe (ST) borrower and at least one woman borrower per bank branch for setting up greenfield enterprises in the manufacturing, services, agriculture-allied, or trading sectors.

Explanation

Proteins are essential macronutrients composed of amino acids, which serve as the fundamental building blocks of all cells and tissues. They play a critical role in cellular growth, structural integrity, enzyme production, and muscle regeneration, making them primarily responsible for constructing, maintaining, and repairing tissue throughout the human body.

Explanation

The Ultra Mega Power Projects (UMPP) initiative was launched by the Ministry of Power, Government of India, in 2005 to develop high-capacity thermal power stations across the country. Each project is designed with a generation capacity of around 4,000 MW, utilizing supercritical coal-fired technology to achieve higher efficiency and lower carbon emissions per unit of electricity generated compared to conventional thermal plants.

Explanation

Article 33 of the Constitution of India empowers Parliament to restrict or abrogate the Fundamental Rights of the members of the Armed Forces, para-military forces, police forces, intelligence agencies, and analogous forces. This provision ensures the proper discharge of their duties and the maintenance of discipline among them. Under Article 33, the power to make such restrictions is vested exclusively in Parliament and cannot be exercised by state legislatures.

Explanation

The Central Information Commission is a statutory body established under Section 12 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, rather than a constitutional body. It was created by an Act of Parliament through an official Gazette notification and derives its powers, duties, and functions entirely from statutory provisions rather than from any explicit article in the Constitution of India.

Explanation

Article 42 of the Indian Constitution, contained within Part IV under the Directive Principles of State Policy, directs the State to make effective provisions for securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief. This article forms the constitutional foundation for key labor and social welfare legislation in India, such as the Maternity Benefit Act.

Explanation

Barren Island is located in the Andaman Sea approximately 138 km northeast of Port Blair, as part of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It contains South Asia's only confirmed active volcano, positioned along the volcanic chain created by the tectonic subduction of the Indian Plate beneath the Burmese Microplate.

Explanation

The P-Quest Group (Precision Quantum Engineering, Science and Technology) at IIT Bombay, led by Associate Professor Kasturi Saha, developed India's first indigenous Quantum Diamond Microscope (QDM) in November 2025. Created under the National Quantum Mission of the Department of Science and Technology, the instrument utilizes nitrogen-vacancy centers in synthetic diamonds to enable widefield, three-dimensional nanoscale magnetic field imaging at room temperature. The breakthrough earned India its first patent in the quantum sensing domain and supports non-destructive testing in semiconductor diagnostics, neuroscience, and advanced materials research.

Explanation

Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) was launched by the Ministry of Rural Development in September 2014 under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission. The scheme targets rural youth aged 15 to 35 from poor households, offering them demand-driven skill training and guaranteed placement in wage employment to enable income diversification and sustainable economic independence.

Explanation

The 100th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2015 amended the First Schedule of the Constitution of India to give effect to the acquisition of certain territories by India and the transfer of certain other territories to Bangladesh. This amendment ratified the historic 1974 Land Boundary Agreement and its 2011 Protocol, resulting in the exchange of 111 enclaves from India to Bangladesh and 51 enclaves from Bangladesh to India, thereby resolving the long-standing border dispute between the two nations.

Explanation

Spreadsheet software is designed around a grid of cells primarily to organize data, perform numerical analysis, and execute mathematical operations automatically using formulas and functions. Automated computation using cell references and dynamic formula evaluation forms the core defining functionality of spreadsheet applications.

Explanation

The Taskbar in Microsoft Windows is an element of the graphical user interface designed for fast navigation and multitasking. It allows users to pin frequently used applications for quick one-click launching, monitor and switch between active open windows, and access essential system settings and controls through the system tray, notification area, and the Start button.

Explanation

The Calvin-Benson cycle, also known as the dark reaction or light-independent phase of photosynthesis, occurs in the stroma of chloroplasts. In this cycle, the enzyme RuBisCO catalyzes the fixation of atmospheric inorganic carbon dioxide (CO₂) by combining it with ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate (RuBP). Utilizing the ATP and NADPH produced during the light-dependent reactions, the fixed carbon is reduced to synthesize organic sugars such as glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate (G3P) and glucose.

Explanation

Part XVII of the Indian Constitution (Articles 343 to 351) deals with the Official Language of the Union, regional languages, languages of the Supreme Court and High Courts, and special directives. Article 343 specifically specifies Hindi in Devanagari script as the official language of the Union, alongside provisions for the continued use of English for official purposes.

Explanation

Under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), launched in 2016, the premium rates payable by farmers are heavily subsidized to provide comprehensive risk coverage against non-preventable natural risks. For annual commercial and horticultural crops, the maximum premium rate payable by farmers is fixed at 5% of the sum insured or the actuarial rate, whichever is lower. The balance premium is shared equally between the Central Government and the State Government as a subsidy.

Explanation

The primary purpose of the Sustainable Development Goals - National Indicator Framework Progress Report, published by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), is to monitor national-level progress across all 17 Sustainable Development Goals in India. The report provides data-driven tracking, time-series indicators, and key highlights to serve as an official tool for policymakers to assess development outcomes, identify priority sectors, and guide evidence-based policy formulation.

Explanation

The five major rivers of the Punjab region — Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Satluj — join together step-by-step to form the Panjnad River. The Panjnad then flows southwest for a short distance before merging into the main stream of the Indus River near Mithankot in Pakistan, completing the drainage of the entire Punjab tributary network into the Indus system.

Explanation

The 16th quadrennial session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD16) took place from 20 to 23 October 2025 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. Held under the theme "Shaping the future: Driving economic transformation for equitable, inclusive and sustainable development", the conference convened member states, international organizations, and key stakeholders to discuss global trends in trade, debt, finance, digital economy, and investment. It focused on fostering structural economic changes to ensure shared prosperity and resilience across developing and developed nations.

Explanation

Dollu Kunitha is a traditional folk drum dance from Karnataka, performed primarily by the Kuruba Gowda community in devotion to Lord Shiva, who is worshipped in the form of Sree Beeralingeshwara. According to local oral traditions and the Halumatha Purana, Lord Shiva created the first dollu drum from the hide of the demon Dolasura after defeating him. The performance features high-energy acrobatic movements and synchronized drumming using heavy wooden drums slung around the waist or neck, serving as a sacred ritual during Shaivite temple festivals and processions across the state.

Explanation

In the Asia Power Index published by the Lowy Institute, India secured the third position in comprehensive power rankings, trailing only the United States and China. India achieved an overall score exceeding 40 points, crossing the threshold required to be classified as a major power in the region. This standing was driven by strong post-pandemic economic growth, an expanding labor force under future resources, and enhanced military capability.

Explanation

Gustatory receptors are specialized sensory receptor cells located primarily within taste buds on the surface of the tongue, soft palate, pharynx, and epiglottis. They detect dissolved chemical substances from food in saliva and generate nerve impulses, transmitting sensory signals for the five primary taste modalities—sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami—to the central nervous system via the facial, glossopharyngeal, and vagus nerves.

Explanation

Bal Gangadhar Tilak raised the iconic slogan "Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it" during the Extremist phase of the Indian national movement, particularly emphasizing it during the Home Rule League movement in 1916. Revered as 'Lokmanya', Tilak advocated for self-rule (Swaraj) as an absolute fundamental right of every Indian, utilizing popular festivals and newspapers like Kesari and Mahratta to mobilize the masses against colonial rule.

Explanation

Narmada and Tapi are major Peninsular rivers that flow from east to west into the Arabian Sea instead of flowing eastward into the Bay of Bengal. They flow through linear rift valleys created by faulting between the Vindhya, Satpura, and Mahadeo mountain ranges, which directs their course westward against the general east-sloping tilt of the Peninsular plateau.

Explanation

When unpolarized light of intensity I₀ passes through a polaroid filter, only the light wave components vibrating parallel to the polaroid's transmission axis are transmitted. Since unpolarized light has electric field vectors randomly oriented in all transverse directions, the average transmitted intensity according to Malus's law is given by I = ½ I₀. Thus, polaroid glass reduces the light intensity to half on account of polarization, effectively cutting down harsh surface reflections and glare in photographic cameras.

Explanation

The introduction of the Enfield rifle required sepoys to bite off the ends of paper cartridges before loading them into the barrel. A rumour spread rapidly that the grease used to lubricate these cartridges was derived from beef and pig fat. Since cows are sacred to Hindus and pigs are considered forbidden (haram) in Islam, using these cartridges deeply offended the core religious beliefs of both Hindu and Muslim sepoys, serving as the immediate catalyst for the Revolt of 1857.

Explanation

The Fourth Schedule of the Indian Constitution details the allocation of seats in the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) to each State and Union Territory. Articles 4(1) and 80(2) of the Constitution govern this distribution, which is determined on the basis of the population of each state and territory to ensure proportional representation in the Upper House of Parliament.

Explanation

The Thousand Pillar Temple, also known as the Rudreswara Swamy Temple, located at Hanamkonda near Warangal, was constructed in 1163 AD by King Rudra Deva of the Kakatiya dynasty. Built in the distinctive star-shaped Kakatiya architectural style, this Trikutalayam is dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu, and Surya.

Explanation

A-1: The Circle of Justice was a medieval political concept describing the mutual interdependence between the monarch, soldiers, tax revenue, and a prosperous peasantry.

B-2: Iqta was an administrative territorial assignment granted to governors and military officers (Muqtis) to collect land revenue and maintain troops.

C-3: Razia Sultan, the daughter of Sultan Iltutmish, was the first female ruler of the Delhi Sultanate who faced rebellion from conservative nobility due to gender norms.

D-4: Minhaj-us-Siraj was a 13th-century Persian chronicler who acknowledged Razia's political ability yet expressed critical views on women ruling the state.

Explanation

English is not among the 22 languages recognized under the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution. Although English is widely used for official, legal, and legislative administrative purposes across India and functions as an official language of the Union alongside Hindi under the Official Languages Act, 1963, it has not been included as a scheduled language in the Constitution.

Explanation

Real-time predictive analytics uses advanced statistical algorithms, machine learning models, and data mining techniques to process and analyze massive streams of live, rapidly changing data as it arrives. In financial trading and e-commerce, this capability enables instant identification of complex market trends, price volatility, and behavioral patterns, allowing traders and financial systems to forecast future market movements and make data-driven investment decisions instantaneously.

Explanation

Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) was launched by the Ministry of Rural Development to reduce rural poverty by enabling poor households to access gainful self-employment and skilled wage employment opportunities. It focuses on mobilizing rural poor women into Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and supporting them with financial inclusion, bank linkages, skill development, and credit to establish sustainable self-employment micro-enterprises.

Explanation

Chhau dance is a traditional semi-classical folk dance with martial art origins performed in eastern India. It originated in the region encompassing Seraikela in Jharkhand, Purulia in West Bengal, and Mayurbhanj in Odisha. The Seraikella Chhau style developed under royal patronage in the former Seraikela princely state, located in present-day Jharkhand, where dancers wear traditional masks to enact epic stories and folklore.

Explanation

LAN stands for Local Area Network. It refers to a computer network that interconnects devices within a limited geographical area, such as a school, office building, home, or laboratory, enabling shared access to data, hardware, and internet connectivity.