19September 2026
Today’s poster
What to note today
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Practice
Topic-wise Questions
Twenty-four topic-wise questions with answers are below — six each in quantitative aptitude, reasoning, English and general awareness, each labelled with its topic, in the forms SSC CGL, the bank prelims and RRB NTPC use. Every explanation names the method, because the method is what transfers to the next question on that topic.
Topic-wise practice is how a new idea becomes reliable. You have just read about percentage change or syllogism or coordination compounds; twenty questions on that one topic, done immediately, is what converts having understood it into being able to use it.
It also has a well-known limitation, and knowing when you have hit it is most of the skill. Practising twenty questions on one topic means you already know which method to apply — which is exactly the part the exam will not tell you.
Current affairs · 19 September 2026
Today’s current affairs, checked at the source
Every item is dated, read on the conducting body’s or ministry’s own site, and written with the question it becomes. Read today’s items, take the quiz, or download the month as a PDF.
Topic-wise questions with answers
Quantitative aptitude, reasoning, English and general awareness — by topic
Maths questions for competitive exams — percentage, ratio, time and work, interest, average, speed
One question on each of the six arithmetic topics that carry most of the marks in SSC CGL Tier 1, the bank prelims and RRB NTPC. The explanations use the unitary, LCM and successive-percentage methods that make these questions two-line calculations rather than equations.
Q1Percentage: If the price of sugar rises by 25 per cent, by what percentage must a household cut consumption to keep its expenditure unchanged?
- A20 per cent
- B25 per cent
- C30 per cent
- D33⅓ per cent
Show answerHide answer
A. 20 per cent — Reduction = 25 ÷ 125 = 20 per cent. The general form is r ÷ (100 + r); a 25 per cent rise is offset by a 20 per cent cut, never by a 25 per cent one.
Q2Ratio: Two numbers are in the ratio 3 : 5. When 9 is added to each, the ratio becomes 3 : 4. What are the numbers?
- A9 and 15
- B12 and 20
- C6 and 10
- D15 and 25
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A. 9 and 15 — (3x + 9) ÷ (5x + 9) = 3 ÷ 4 → 12x + 36 = 15x + 27 → x = 3, so the numbers are 9 and 15. Check: 18 : 24 = 3 : 4.
Q3Time and work: A can finish a job in 12 days and B in 18 days. Working together, how long do they take?
- A6 days
- B7.2 days
- C8 days
- D9 days
Show answerHide answer
B. 7.2 days — Take the work as 36 units: A does 3 a day, B does 2, together 5 a day, so 36 ÷ 5 = 7.2 days. The LCM method avoids fractions entirely.
Q4Compound interest: What is the compound interest on ₹10,000 at 10 per cent per annum for 2 years, compounded annually?
- A₹2,000
- B₹2,100
- C₹2,200
- D₹2,400
Show answerHide answer
B. ₹2,100 — Amount = 10,000 × 1.1 × 1.1 = ₹12,100, so the interest is ₹2,100 — ₹100 more than simple interest, the interest on the first year’s interest.
Q5Average: The average of five numbers is 27. When one number is removed the average of the rest is 25. Which number was removed?
- A30
- B33
- C35
- D37
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C. 35 — Total of five = 135; total of the remaining four = 100; the number removed is 135 − 100 = 35.
Q6Speed and distance: A 150-metre train crosses a pole in 9 seconds. What is its speed in km/h?
- A54 km/h
- B60 km/h
- C72 km/h
- D90 km/h
Show answerHide answer
B. 60 km/h — 150 ÷ 9 = 16.67 m/s; multiply by 18 ÷ 5 to get 60 km/h. Crossing a pole means covering the train’s own length.
Reasoning questions — series, coding-decoding, syllogism, blood relations, direction, odd one out
The six reasoning topics that appear in nearly every SSC, bank and railway paper. The skill in each is recognising the rule quickly; the explanations show the rule and the check.
Q1Number series: 2, 6, 12, 20, 30, ?
- A40
- B42
- C44
- D48
Show answerHide answer
B. 42 — The differences are 4, 6, 8, 10, so the next is 12 and the term is 42 — equivalently n(n + 1) for n = 6.
Q2Coding-decoding: If CAT is coded as 24, what is the code for DOG?
- A24
- B25
- C26
- D27
Show answerHide answer
C. 26 — CAT = 3 + 1 + 20 = 24, the sum of the letters’ positions; DOG = 4 + 15 + 7 = 26.
Q3Syllogism: Statements — All pens are books. Some books are tables. Conclusions — I. Some pens are tables. II. Some tables are books. Which follows?
- AOnly I
- BOnly II
- CBoth I and II
- DNeither
Show answerHide answer
B. Only II — “Some books are tables” converts to “some tables are books”, so II follows. I does not: the tables may be among the books that are not pens.
Q4Blood relations: Pointing to a photograph, Ravi says, “She is the daughter of my grandfather’s only son.” How is the woman related to Ravi?
- ASister
- BCousin
- CMother
- DAunt
Show answerHide answer
A. Sister — The grandfather’s only son is Ravi’s father, and the father’s daughter is Ravi’s sister.
Q5Direction sense: A man walks 5 km north, turns right and walks 3 km, then turns right again and walks 5 km. How far and in which direction is he from the start?
- A3 km east
- B3 km west
- C8 km north
- D13 km south
Show answerHide answer
A. 3 km east — North 5, then east 3, then south 5 brings him level with the start, 3 km to its east. Draw it — direction questions are rarely worth doing in the head.
Q6Odd one out: 121, 144, 169, 190, 225
- A144
- B169
- C190
- D225
Show answerHide answer
C. 190 — The others are perfect squares (11², 12², 13², 15²); 190 is not.
English questions — error spotting, synonyms, antonyms, idioms, prepositions, one-word substitution
Grammar and vocabulary in the objective forms SSC CGL and the bank examinations use. The error-spotting questions turn on a small number of rules — subject–verb agreement, “one of” and “each”, tense with “since” and “for” — that are worth learning as rules rather than by ear.
Q1Spot the error: “Each of the students (a) / have submitted (b) / their assignments on time. (c) / No error (d)”
- APart (a)
- BPart (b)
- CPart (c)
- DNo error (d)
Show answerHide answer
B. Part (b) — “Each” is singular and takes a singular verb: “has submitted”. The plural noun after “of” does not change the subject.
Q2Choose the word closest in meaning to CANDID.
- ASecretive
- BFrank
- CRude
- DTimid
Show answerHide answer
B. Frank — Candid means frank, open and honest; it is often confused with “blunt”, which adds rudeness the word does not carry.
Q3Choose the word opposite in meaning to BENEVOLENT.
- AKind
- BGenerous
- CMalevolent
- DCharitable
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C. Malevolent — Benevolent means well-meaning and kindly; malevolent — wishing harm — is its direct opposite.
Q4What does the idiom “to bury the hatchet” mean?
- ATo hide a weapon
- BTo make peace
- CTo dig deep for something
- DTo start a fight
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B. To make peace — To end a quarrel and become friendly again; the phrase comes from a Native American peace ceremony in which weapons were buried.
Q5Fill in the blank: “She has been working in this office ___ 2019.”
- Afor
- Bsince
- Cfrom
- Dby
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B. since — The present perfect continuous with a point in time takes “since”; “for” goes with a duration (“for seven years”).
Q6One-word substitution: a person who speaks many languages.
- ALinguist
- BPolyglot
- COrator
- DPhilologist
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B. Polyglot — A polyglot speaks several languages; a linguist studies language, a philologist studies its history and an orator is a public speaker.
GK questions with answers — polity, history, geography, economy, science, static GK
One question from each of the six general-awareness areas, at the level of SSC CGL and the state PSC prelims. Each answer adds the two or three adjacent facts that the next question on the topic will ask.
Q1Polity: What is the minimum age to be a member of the Rajya Sabha?
- A25 years
- B30 years
- C35 years
- D21 years
Show answerHide answer
B. 30 years — Thirty, under Article 84(b); the Lok Sabha and state assemblies require 25, and the President and Vice-President 35.
Q2History: In which year was the Battle of Plassey fought?
- A1757
- B1764
- C1761
- D1857
Show answerHide answer
A. 1757 — On 23 June 1757, Robert Clive defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah; 1764 is Buxar, 1761 the third battle of Panipat and 1857 the revolt.
Q3Geography: Which is the highest peak located within India’s administered territory?
- AK2
- BNanda Devi
- CKangchenjunga
- DKamet
Show answerHide answer
C. Kangchenjunga — Kangchenjunga (8,586 m) on the Sikkim–Nepal border; K2 lies in Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan, and Nanda Devi (7,816 m) is the highest peak entirely within India.
Q4Economy: NITI Aayog replaced the Planning Commission with effect from which date?
- A1 January 2014
- B1 January 2015
- C1 April 2016
- D1 April 2017
Show answerHide answer
B. 1 January 2015 — The National Institution for Transforming India was set up by a Cabinet resolution on 1 January 2015; the Prime Minister is its chairperson.
Q5Science: A deficiency of which vitamin causes scurvy?
- AVitamin A
- BVitamin B12
- CVitamin C
- DVitamin D
Show answerHide answer
C. Vitamin C — Vitamin C (ascorbic acid), needed for collagen synthesis; deficiency of A causes night blindness, of D rickets and of B12 pernicious anaemia.
Q6Static GK: The Reserve Bank of India was established in which year?
- A1935
- B1947
- C1949
- D1955
Show answerHide answer
A. 1935 — On 1 April 1935 under the RBI Act, 1934, on the recommendation of the Hilton Young Commission; it was nationalised in 1949.
When to use it
Topic-wise practice, and its ceiling
- Use it immediately after learning a topic
- While the method is fresh, twenty questions on the same idea builds the fluency that makes it automatic. This is the point at which topic-wise practice is irreplaceable.
- Use it to repair a specific weakness
- When mock analysis shows a topic failing repeatedly, concentrated practice on that topic is the direct fix — and far more efficient than another general mock.
- Stop when your accuracy is stable
- Once you are consistently right on a topic in isolation, further drilling adds little. The remaining difficulty is recognition, not method.
- Then switch to mixed practice
- Because the exam does not label its questions. Recognising which method a question calls for is a separate skill, and only mixed sets build it.
How to practise
Making a topic set actually work
- Solve before consulting the solution, every time. A solution you have read is not a problem you can do.
- Do the set untimed first, then timed. Understanding first, speed second. Reversing that produces fast wrong answers.
- Note the shapes, not just the answers. "Two workers, different rates, working together" is a shape. Recognising it is faster than re-deriving the method.
- Return to the topic after three days and after two weeks. Two short revisits beat one long session.
- Then move to mixed sets containing that topic. To build recognition alongside method.
Related practice
Sectional tests Question bank Study material by subject Free mock tests
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Topic-wise Questions — FAQs
Which reasoning topics carry the most questions in SSC CGL and the bank prelims?
In SSC CGL Tier 1, analogy, classification, series, coding-decoding, syllogism, blood relations, direction sense, Venn diagrams, mirror and paper-folding figures and the missing-number matrix account for most of the 25 questions, and nearly all are single-step. The bank prelims lean the other way: puzzles and seating arrangements take 15 to 20 of 35 questions, with syllogism, inequality, coding and blood relations filling the rest. The topic sets above cover the shared core; puzzle practice needs full sets, which the sectional tests provide.
Are there topic-wise questions with answers in PDF form?
The questions here are on the page rather than in a PDF, so each answer can be revealed after an attempt, and the sets are added to rather than replaced. For a printable set, the previous-year-questions pages carry the actual examination questions by topic and year, which are better for a PDF-style sitting than assembled practice sets, and the study-material pages carry twenty to forty questions per topic with the lesson.
When should I use topic-wise practice?
Immediately after learning a topic, while the method is fresh — twenty questions on the same idea is what converts understanding into fluency. And when mock analysis shows a specific topic failing repeatedly, since concentrated practice on it is a far more efficient fix than another general mock. In both cases the point is to make one method automatic before moving on.
What is the limitation of topic-wise practice?
It tells you which method to use. When every question in a set is a percentage question, you never have to work out that it is one — and in the exam, nothing labels the question. That recognition step is a separate skill, and it is built by mixed practice rather than topic sets. The usual sequence is topic-wise until your accuracy is stable, then mixed sets containing that topic alongside others.
How do I know when to stop drilling a topic?
When your accuracy is stable rather than when you feel confident — the two are different signals, and confidence tends to arrive first. Once you are consistently right on a topic in isolation, further drilling adds little, because the remaining difficulty is recognising the topic in disguise rather than executing the method. At that point mixed practice is the better use of the same hour.
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