1. Under which Seventh Schedule entry do cooperative societies working within a single State come?
Answer: D. Cooperation is a State subject, and the Union has authority only over multi-state societies via Entry 43 of the Union List. This split is why the Samyukt Kisan Morcha called the NCDC (Amendment) Act, 2026 an attack on States' federal rights.
2. The NCDC (Amendment) Act, 2026 changes the original National Co-operative Development Corporation Act of which year?
Answer: E. Parliament cleared the amendment on 12 August 2026 and the President assented on 14 August. NCDC may now lend to and hold shares in entities that help build the cooperative sector, and may share credit information with the Centre, RBI and banks.
3. What outlay has been sanctioned for the Pradhan Mantri Surya Sarovar Yojana?
Answer: A. The Cabinet cleared the MNRE scheme on 31 July 2026 for spending from FY 2026-27 to FY 2030-31. It aims at 5,000 MW of floating solar paired with 10,000 MWh of batteries, because solar peaks at noon while demand peaks in the evening.
4. How much battery energy storage is to be combined with the floating solar capacity planned under PM-SSY?
Answer: B. Floating panels sit on platforms anchored in reservoirs, dams, lakes and ponds, and the plan pairs them with 10,000 MWh of storage. Being land-neutral, they avoid land acquisition disputes and can use existing hydropower transmission lines.
5. By roughly how much can water cooling raise the output of floating solar panels?
Answer: C. Solar cells lose efficiency when hot, so the cooler air above water lifts generation compared with a similar land array. The panels in turn shade the water, reducing evaporation and algae growth.
6. India's first Soil Texture Map was created by NBSS&LUP. In which city is this institute headquartered?
Answer: D. The ICAR institute, set up in 1976 and led by Dr N.G. Patil, announced the map at its 50th Foundation Day. The July 2026 map offers hectare-level data by combining surveys, remote sensing and satellite images with AI.
7. What does soil texture describe?
Answer: E. Texture is a physical trait set by particle sizes, and it controls water retention, drainage, aeration and crop suitability. It differs from fertility, and since a field's texture hardly changes, a map of it stays useful for planning.
8. In regenerative agriculture, which on-farm bio-input is a botanical extract made from ten leaves and used against pests?
Answer: A. Dashparni is the ten-leaf pest-control extract, while Beejamrut treats seeds, Jeevamrut is a liquid microbial culture with GhanJeevamrut its solid form, and Neemastra is neem-based. Regenerative farming aims to rebuild soil fertility and biodiversity rather than just sustain them.
9. What share of the FY27 fertiliser subsidy budget had been spent by 19 August 2026?
Answer: B. Rs 99,128.70 crore went out in under five months, pushed by higher global urea prices tied to the West Asia conflict. India imports much of its urea and potash, and farmers' urea price is fixed administratively, so price shocks hit the subsidy bill.
10. The tightened quality norms require E20 petrol to keep chloride contamination below what level?
Answer: C. E20 is petrol with 20 per cent ethanol, and oil marketing companies are being made responsible for fuel quality. Ethanol absorbs water and chloride speeds corrosion of fuel-system parts, so strict limits matter for acceptance of higher blends.
11. The ILO-NCAER policy brief says India's platform workers numbered 7.7 million in 2020. How many were there in 2024-25?
Answer: D. The count reached 12 million, and the brief projects 23.5 million by 2029-30. Women are scarce, at under 1 per cent of urban two-wheeler delivery drivers, and 52 per cent of women versus 40 per cent of men say they lack the capital to join.
12. According to the same brief, what portion of outstanding individual bank credit did women hold as of March 2023?
Answer: E. Women now match men in account ownership, 89 per cent against 88 per cent in 2024, but owning an account is not the same as using it. Only 25.2 per cent of women can bank online, versus 47.1 per cent of men.
13. On how many parameters will SEBI's new Information Technology Resilience Index assess market infrastructure institutions?
Answer: A. The index looks at availability, security, integrity, governance, reliability and monitoring, business continuity, modularity and flexibility, scalability and other factors. Exchanges, depositories and clearing corporations must also set up an Early Warning System to spot deterioration early.
14. Under which provision of the RBI Act, 1934 were the three new part-time directors on the RBI Central Board appointed?
Answer: B. Annie George Mathew, Janmejaya Kumar Sinha and Syed Akbaruddin start four-year terms on 24 August 2026. Section 8 fixes the Board's makeup, and clause (c) covers directors the Central Government nominates from various fields.
15. An Se-young won the 2026 women's singles final against which opponent?
Answer: E. She beat Japan's Akane Yamaguchi 21-17, 21-14 for her second world title.