Gk Expected Paper - 4

Vocabulary flashcards covering topics from GK Expected Paper-04 including architecture, plant physiology, sports history, geography, polity, literature, biology, and physics.

CSMT Mumbai (Victoria Terminus)

UNESCO World Heritage Site built in 1887 (Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee) and designed by Frederick William Stevens in the Victorian Gothic Revival style.

Victorian Gothic Revival

Architectural style characterized by pointed arches, ribbed vaults, stained glass windows, flying buttresses, and high stone domes.

Indo-Saracenic Style

Architectural style blending Indian elements (Mughal/Rajput chhatris, jali lattice work) with Gothic and Islamic domes; examples include Gateway of India and Sidi Saiyyed Mosque.

Gateway of India (Mumbai)

Indo-Saracenic monument designed by George Wittet (1911) to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary for the 3rd Delhi Durbar.

Sidi Saiyyed Mosque

Mosque in Ahmedabad known for its famous carved stone tree lattice jali in the Indo-Saracenic style.

Core Reaction Centre

Specialized pair of Chlorophyll 'a' molecules in photosystems that form the central reaction site (P680 in PS-II and P700 in PS-I).

Photosystem II (PS-II)

Photosynthetic reaction centre complex with an absorption peak at $P680\text{ nm}$.

Photosystem I (PS-I)

Photosynthetic reaction centre complex with an absorption peak at $P700\text{ nm}$.

Light-Harvesting (Antenna) Complex

Outer ring containing accessory pigments—Chlorophyll 'b' (yellow-green), Carotenoids (orange), and Xanthophylls (yellow)—that absorb broader light spectra and pass energy via resonance to Chlorophyll 'a'.

Thylakoid Membranes (Grana)

Organelle sites where the light reaction of photosynthesis occurs.

Stroma

Fluid matrix of the chloroplast where the dark reaction (Calvin Cycle / $\text{CO}_2$ fixation) occurs.

Digboi

Oldest operating oil refinery in India and Asia, drilled in 1867 with the refinery built in 1901, located in the Upper Assam basin.

Mumbai High (Bombay High)

India's largest oilfield, discovered in 1974; an offshore oilfield in the Arabian Sea $\text{\textasciitilde} 160\text{ km}$ west of the Mumbai coast operated via the Sagar Samrat drillship.

Rural-Urban Fringe

Transition zone situated between strictly urban built-up areas and rural agricultural hinterland where land uses overlap and mix dynamically.

Rural-Urban Continuum

Sociological concept showing that rural and urban societies are interconnected along a continuous spectrum with gradual changes, rather than isolated entities.

Economic Remittances

Money sent by urban internal migrants to their native villages, constituting a primary lifeline and economic linkage.

Shield Volcanoes

Volcanoes built almost entirely of fluid basaltic lava that spreads over wide distances, giving them gentle, non-steep slopes (e.g., Hawaiian volcanoes like Mauna Loa).

Composite Volcanoes (Stratovolcanoes)

Volcanoes built of viscous, cooler andesitic/dacitic lava with explosive pyroclasts, forming steep symmetrical cones (e.g., Mt. Fuji, Mt. Vesuvius).

Barren Island

India's only active volcano, situated in the Andaman Sea, $\text{\textasciitilde} 138\text{ km}$ northeast of Port Blair.

Narcondam Island

Dormant volcanic island located near Barren Island in the Andaman Sea.

Board of Control (Pitt's India Act 1784)

A 6-member body of British commissioners appointed by the Crown to superintend, direct, and control all civil, military, and revenue affairs of British territorial possessions in India.

Dual Control System (1784)

Governance structure under Pitt's India Act 1784 where the Court of Directors (EIC) managed commercial functions and the Board of Control (British Govt) supervised political and administrative governance.

Ramachandra Guha

Celebrated historian who authored 'India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy' and 'Gandhi: The Years That Changed the World'.

Amartya Sen

Nobel Memorial Prize (1998) and Bharat Ratna (1999) recipient who authored 'Development as Freedom', 'The Argumentative Indian', and 'The Idea of Justice', and contributed to the 1990 HDI formulation with Mahbub ul Haq.

Sunil Khilnani

Author of 'The Idea of India' and 'Incarnations'.

Raja Bhalindra Singh Trophy

Prestigious rolling trophy presented to the overall champion team of the National Games of India (won by Maharashtra in the 37th edition in Goa, 2023).

Green Revolution Phase 1

Period from mid-1960s to mid-1970s characterized by High Yielding Varieties (HYV) seed technology predominantly successful in wheat, geographically restricted to Punjab, Haryana, Western UP, and coastal Andhra/Tamil Nadu.

Norman Borlaug

Father of Green Revolution globally; developed semi-dwarf wheat at CIMMYT, Mexico, and awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970.

M.S. Swaminathan

Father of Green Revolution in India, awarded the Bharat Ratna in 2024.

Bastar Dussehra

75-day tribal festival in Chhattisgarh dedicated to Goddess Danteshwari, recognized as one of the longest continuous festivals in the world, where no effigies of Ravana or Kumbhakarna are burned.

Laghu (Carnatic Music)

A beat and finger count component of the Carnatic Tala System whose duration varies by Jaati (Tisra: 3, Chaturasra: 4, Khanda: 5, Misra: 7, Sankeerna: 9 counts).

Trinity of Carnatic Music

The revered trio of classical music composers: Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar, and Syama Sastri.

Purandara Dasa

Revered composer recognized as the Father (Pitamaha) of Carnatic Music.

Taekwondo

Traditional Korean martial art developed during the 1940s–1950s characterized by head-height kicks; made its official medal debut at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

Judo

Japanese martial art founded in 1882 by Kano Jigoro (Kodokan Judo Institute) derived from Jujutsu; introduced to the Olympics at Tokyo in 1964.

TEPA (Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement)

Free trade agreement signed on 10 March 2024 between India and EFTA (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland) featuring a commitment of $\text{\textdollar}100\text{ Billion}$ investment over 15 years and 1 million direct jobs.

'Watershed' (Book)

Environmental literature titled "Watershed: How We Destroyed India's Water and How We Can Save It" authored by climate investor Mridula Ramesh.

Cirque

Deep, amphitheatre-like, bowl-shaped erosional depression at the head of a glacial valley where tarn lakes form.

Horn (Glacial Landform)

Sharp, steep-sided, pyramidal peak formed when three or more radiating cirques erode headward into a central mountain summit (e.g., Matterhorn).

Arête

Serrated, knife-edge narrow ridge separating two adjacent glacial cirques.

Drumlins

Depositional glacial landform composed of till that forms a "basket of eggs" topography.

Vyommitra

ISRO's female half-humanoid robot ("Space Friend") designed to simulate human physiological parameters and monitor life support and environmental systems during uncrewed orbital test flights.

Human-Rated LVM3 (HLVM3)

Gaganyaan launch vehicle featuring 2 x HS200 solid boosters, L110 Vikas liquid core engines, C25 cryogenic upper stage, and a Crew Escape System (CES).

National Population Policy (NPP) 2000

Policy setting targets for MMR $< 100$ per 100,000 live births, IMR $< 30$ per 1,000 live births, replacement fertility ($\text{TFR} = 2.1$) by 2010, and a stable population by 2045 via voluntary informed choice.

Glycolysis

Anaerobic first stage of cellular respiration occurring in the cytoplasm (cytosol) that converts Glucose (6C) into 2 Pyruvate (3C), yielding net $2\text{ ATP}$ and $2\text{ NADH}$.

Link Reaction

Stage of cellular respiration in the mitochondrial matrix where Pyruvate is oxidized to Acetyl-CoA and $\text{CO}_2$.

Krebs Cycle

Respiration stage in the mitochondrial matrix where Acetyl-CoA is oxidized to produce $\text{CO}_2$, $2\text{ ATP}$, $6\text{ NADH}$, and $2\text{ FADH}_2$.

Electron Transport Chain (ETC / Ox-Phos)

Respiration stage located in the inner mitochondrial membrane (cristae) generating a proton gradient via ATP Synthase to produce $\text{\textasciitilde} 32\text{--}34\text{ ATP}$ with $\text{O}_2$ as the final electron acceptor.

States Reorganisation Commission (SRC)

Commission appointed in Dec 1953 under Justice Fazal Ali (members H.N. Kunzru, K.M. Panikkar) that led to the creation of Zonal Councils in 1956.

Zonal Councils

Statutory governance bodies created by the States Reorganisation Act 1956 (5 original) and NE Council Act 1971 (6th), chaired by the Union Home Minister with state Chief Ministers acting as Vice-Chairmen on annual rotation.

Linear Speed Formula (Rotational Motion)

Formula $v = r \times \times \text{\textbackslash}omega$ showing linear speed $v$ is directly proportional to distance $r$ from the axis of rotation ($v \text{\textbackslash}propto r$) in a rigid body.

Moment of Inertia Formula

Rotational physics formula represented as $I = \text{\textbackslash}sum m r^2$.

Angular Momentum Formula

Rotational physics formula represented as $L = I \times \text{\textbackslash}omega$.

PM Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)

Financial inclusion scheme launched on 28 August 2014 offering zero minimum balance accounts, RuPay debit card with ₹2 Lakh accidental insurance, and overdraft facility up to ₹10,000.

Global Peace Index (GPI)

Index published by the Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP, Sydney) evaluating Societal Safety and Security, Ongoing Domestic/International Conflict, and Militarisation; Iceland ranks 1st.

Joint Sector Industries

Industries owned, managed, and operated jointly by the State (Govt) and private individuals or groups (e.g., Oil India Limited - OIL, Gujarat State Fertilizers).

Cooperative Sector Industries

Industries owned, operated, and managed by the producers/suppliers of raw materials or workers (e.g., AMUL, Lijjat Papad).

Mission Mausam

Scheme approved in Sept 2024 under Ministry of Earth Sciences (outlay ₹2,000 Crore over 2 years) to enhance weather forecasting, atmospheric research, and surveillance via Doppler radars, wind profilers, and HPC.