KPSC Mains 2005: previous year questions

GS

1. To what extent were the social reform movements of the 19th century indicative of a “renaissance”? Answer with special reference to Brahmo Samaj and Arya Samaj.Write your answer →
2. What are the legacies of the Indian national movement?Write your answer →
3. Write an essay on the Jain element in the cultural heritage of Karnataka.Write your answer →
4. How far can Tippu Sultan be described as the harbinger of modernity in Karnataka?Write your answer →
5. How acceptable is the ‘safety valve theory’ of A.O. Hume as an explanation for the foundation of the Indian National Congress?Write your answer →
6. How did Gandhiji’s stint in South Africa influence his programs in India?Write your answer →
7. Trace the stages through which communalism developed in India till 1906.Write your answer →
8. Comment on the way in which the British annexed Coorg.Write your answer →
9. Assess the contribution of Sir Mirza Ismail as Dewan of Mysore.Write your answer →
10. Trace the growth of Karnataka theatre in the 20th century.Write your answer →
11. Bring out the importance of Shivaji and Ganesha festivals popularized by Tilak.Write your answer →
12. What was the significance of the INA trials?Write your answer →
13. Give a brief account of the Vidurashwatha episode.Write your answer →
14. Write short notes on: Jalianwallah Bagh, Salt Satyagraha, Sir Stafford Cripps, Yakshagana - Bayalata, Masti Venkatesha Iyengar.Write your answer →
15. What were the stated reasons for the USA and UK going to war on Iraq? Did later developments vindicate their position?Write your answer →
16. How do you assess the progress made in Indo-Pak relations after the Kargil war?Write your answer →
17. Compare the response of the developed world to the Tsunami disaster in 2004 on the one hand and that to 9/11 on the other.Write your answer →
18. Assess the potential of Karnataka emerging as a Biotechnology hub.Write your answer →
19. Examine the impact that AIDS has had on the African continent and assess the response of the rest of the world to it.Write your answer →
20. Critically examine the use of information and communication technology in administration for improving the quality of service delivery. Give illustrations from Karnataka.Syllabus:  Concept of public service, philosophical basis of governance…Write your answer →
21. Do you think the prospects of a solution for the Palestinian question have brightened in the post-Arafat era?Write your answer →
22. What are the implications of the French and Dutch rejection of the constitution for the European Union?Write your answer →
23. Critically examine the work of Lokayukta in checking corruption in Karnataka.Write your answer →
24. State your position in the controversy regarding NCERT textbooks.Write your answer →
25. Was Jinnah a secularist?Write your answer →
26. What are the issues involved in the Bababudangiri dispute?Write your answer →
27. Account for the growing popularity of Indo-Anglican novels with special reference to Arundhati Roy, Vikram Seth, and Amitav Ghosh.Write your answer →
28. Discuss the multi-cultural roots of modern Kannada literature.Syllabus: Social and Cultural developmentsWrite your answer →
29. Do you think over-emphasis on cricket has elbowed out other games in India?Write your answer →
30. Is disinvestment in a profit-making public sector undertaking like BHEL justified?Write your answer →
31. Write short notes on: Abu Gharib prison abuses, G8 decision to write off African debt, India rejecting citizenship to Taslima Nasreen, process patent vs. product patent, VAT vs. Sales Tax, elements of genius in M.F. Hussain’s paintings.Write your answer →
32. Write brief notes on: Global warming, All Party Hurriyat Conference, Kaveri water dispute, ‘Doosra’ bowling, Sania Mirza, H.H. Narasimhaiah, Azim Premji, Project Tiger, Girish Kasarvalli, The Da Vinci Code.Syllabus: Global Environmental issues like Climate change, acid rains, global…Write your answer →
33. Represent the given data on imports and exports in a double chart and comment on it.Write your answer →
34. Compute the mean score of a class with three sections scoring 40, 44, and 50, and determine the new mean after giving 5 grace marks to each student.Write your answer →
35. Determine the median amount of pocket money carried by a team of 11 friends and how it changes if one member forgets his purse.Write your answer →
36. Explain the concept of correlation with examples and compute the correlation coefficient for a given dataset.Write your answer →
37. Compute the percentage of lady teachers in a region who are aged less than 25 years and between 25 and 34 years.Write your answer →
38. Determine the number of ways 5 textbooks can be arranged on a shelf and the number of ways a team of 4 can be formed from 6 persons.Write your answer →
39. Outline the different modes of acquiring Indian Citizenship.Write your answer →
40. Trace the major stages in the growth and development of Farmers’ movements in Karnataka, following the Navalgund and Nargund outbursts.Syllabus: India and International economic relationsWrite your answer →
41. “The anti-incumbency factor in electoral behavior is indicative of a deepening of Indian democracy.” Comment.Write your answer →
42. Should the ‘creamy layer’ from among backward classes be denied the benefits of reservation? Give reasons for your answer.Write your answer →
43. Explain the process of the election of the President of India.Write your answer →
44. Trace the process that was employed by the Government of Karnataka to resolve the communal stand-off at Hubli Idgah Maidan in the late 1990s.Write your answer →
45. Outline the major provisions of the Bachawat Award regarding the sharing of Krishna waters.Write your answer →
46. To what extent has the Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act, 1985 influenced the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act?Write your answer →
47. Highlight the observations of the Supreme Court in the Bommai case, 1989.Write your answer →
48. Why did Karnataka make a plea to include Hyderabad Karnataka under the provisions of Article 371 of the Indian Constitution?Write your answer →
49. What are the composition and powers of the National Human Rights Commission?Syllabus: Welfare mechanism in IndiaWrite your answer →
50. Which minority rights are guaranteed as Fundamental Rights under the Indian Constitution?Write your answer →
51. Highlight the provisions of the anti-defection law in India.Write your answer →
52. Write short notes on: Zero Hour, appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, NSCN, ULFA, National Security Council, All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Central Sahitya Academy, Gokak Report, Stri Shakti, Mahajan Commission.Syllabus: Welfare mechanism in IndiaWrite your answer →
53. Examine the implications of IT industry growth for Bangalore’s infrastructure.Write your answer →
54. Discuss Nuclear energy as an option to mitigate global climate change with political, social, and security fallouts.Syllabus: Rural DevelopmentWrite your answer →
55. What is Remote Sensing? How does it help in better management of natural resources, agriculture, and disasters?Syllabus: Physiographic divisionsWrite your answer →
56. Write brief notes on: Bio-Informatics, IPR and Patents, Urbanization and its environmental impact, Urban Metro Rail services and financial feasibility, Stem cell research, Western Ghats as an Ecological Hotspot.Write your answer →
57. Write short notes on: Nano-Technology, Light Combat Aircraft, Voice over internet, NMR Imaging, Kaiga Atomic Power Plant, Cloning, CNR Rao, Honge oil, Devara Kadw in Kodagu, Information Kiosks.Write your answer →