Persons, awards & miscellany

Answer: (d) 1, 2 and 3

All three statements are wrong, so the answer is 1, 2 and 3. The awards are not 'titles' (they cannot be used as a prefix or suffix to the name), the Padma Awards were interrupted twice (1978-79 and 1993-97), and Bharat Ratna is limited to three a year, not five.

• ✗ 1. Article 18(1) bars the State from conferring titles. The Ministry of Home Affairs states that the Padma award does not amount to a title and cannot be used as a suffix or prefix to the awardee's name; Bharat Ratna is treated the same way.
• ✗ 2. The Padma Awards were instituted in 1954 but were interrupted in 1978-79 and again from 1993 to 1997, so they were suspended twice, not once.
• ✗ 3. The number of Bharat Ratna awards is restricted to a maximum of three in a particular year, not five.

Remember · Bharat Ratna: maximum three a year. Padma Awards (1954) were interrupted in 1978-79 and 1993-97. Neither is a 'title' under Article 18(1); neither may be a name prefix or suffix.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) Statement 1 is not correct but Statement 2 is correct

Statement 1 is wrong because the 'Tree Cities of the World' recognition is given by the Arbor Day Foundation together with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), not the UN Capital Development Fund. Statement 2 is correct: Hyderabad was among the 120 cities recognised for 2020 for meeting the programme's urban-forest standards.

• ✗ Statement 1 The programme is a partnership of FAO and the Arbor Day Foundation, launched in 2019. UNCDF, which is a UN fund for least developed countries' finance, has no role in it, so naming it makes the statement wrong although Hyderabad and the Arbor Day Foundation are right.
• ✓ Statement 2 Hyderabad was one of 120 cities in 23 countries recognised for 2020. Each city has to meet five qualifying standards on managing and celebrating its urban forests.

Remember · Tree Cities of the World = FAO + Arbor Day Foundation (from 2019). Hyderabad was recognised for 2020. The UN Capital Development Fund is not involved.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) 1 and 3 only

Statements 1 and 3 are correct. Tiger Woods won the very first Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award (2000), and Roger Federer had won more Laureus awards than anyone else. Statement 2 is wrong: Formula One drivers won only a handful of the Sportsman awards, while tennis players, athletes and golfers won most.

• ✓ 1. The Laureus list of past winners begins with Tiger Woods for 2000 (and 2001) in the Sportsman of the Year category. The first Laureus World Sports Awards were held in 2000.
• ✗ 2. Among the Sportsman of the Year winners from 2000 to 2021, Formula One drivers won only four times (Michael Schumacher twice, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton). Federer, Djokovic, Bolt and Nadal won far more.
• ✓ 3. Federer won the Sportsman award in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2018 and also the Comeback award in 2018; Laureus called him the most decorated winner in its history.
• • Since then Since the exam, Novak Djokovic has also reached five Sportsman of the Year awards (2012, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2024 on Laureus's list).

Remember · Laureus World Sports Awards began in 2000: Tiger Woods won the first Sportsman award; Roger Federer, with five Sportsman awards plus others, was the most decorated winner.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (b) 2 only

Only statement 2 is correct. The 32nd Summer Olympics (Tokyo 2020, held in 2021 after a one-year postponement) had the official motto 'United by Emotion', not 'A New World'. The IOC added five new sports for Tokyo: baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing.

• ✗ 1. The Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee announced 'United by Emotion' as the official Games motto, stressing that sport brings people of every background together.
• ✓ 2. The IOC agreed to add baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing to the Tokyo 2020 programme; karate, surfing, sport climbing and skateboarding made their Olympic debut.

Remember · Tokyo 2020 (32nd Summer Olympics, held July-August 2021): motto 'United by Emotion'; five new sports were baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2

Both statements are wrong. In the 2019-21 World Test Championship the teams were ranked by the percentage of points they won, not by matches won, and the top two (India and New Zealand) reached the final. New Zealand finished ahead of England on percentage (70.0 against 61.4), even though England won more matches (11 against 7).

• ✗ 1. Because Covid-19 disrupted the schedule, the ICC changed the league standings from series points to the percentage of points won out of the points contested. The finalists were the top two on that percentage.
• ✗ 2. The final table gave India 72.2, New Zealand 70.0, Australia 69.2 and England 61.4 per cent. England won 11 of its 21 Tests and New Zealand 7 of its 11, so New Zealand was ahead on percentage, not on wins.

Remember · WTC 2019-21 ranked teams by percentage of points, not by matches won: India 72.2, New Zealand 70.0, Australia 69.2, England 61.4. India and New Zealand played the final.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error