September 1 — This Day in History

 Question 1 — ₹1,000

World War II officially began on September 1, 1939, after Nazi Germany invaded which European country?

A) France

B) Poland

C) Austria

D) Czechoslovakia

Correct Answer: B) Poland

Explanation: On September 1, 1939, German troops invaded Poland, prompting Britain and France to declare war on Germany and marking the start of World War II.

Question 2 — ₹5,000

In 1985, a joint U.S.-French expedition discovered the wreckage of which legendary ship resting on the Atlantic Ocean floor?

A) RMS Titanic

B) Lusitania

C) Bismarck

D) HMHS Britannic

Correct Answer: A) RMS Titanic

Explanation: The wreckage of the RMS Titanic was located on September 1, 1985, approximately 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland, 73 years after it sank in 1912.

Question 3 — ₹10,000

Which Pulitzer Prize-winning novella by Ernest Hemingway was published in its entirety by Life magazine on September 1, 1952?

A) A Farewell to Arms

B) For Whom the Bell Tolls

C) The Old Man and the Sea

D) The Sun Also Rises

Correct Answer: C) The Old Man and the Sea

Explanation: Life magazine published The Old Man and the Sea on September 1, 1952; the celebrated work went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1953.

Question 4 — ₹20,000

In 1897, the first underground rapid transit subway system in North America opened in which American city?

A) New York City

B) Chicago

C) Philadelphia

D) Boston

Correct Answer: D) Boston

Explanation: Boston opened the Tremont Street subway on September 1, 1897, establishing the first underground rapid transit line on the North American continent.

Question 5 — ₹40,000

In 1972, Bobby Fischer claimed the World Chess Championship title in Reykjavik after defeating which reigning Soviet champion?

A) Boris Spassky

B) Anatoly Karpov

C) Garry Kasparov

D) Mikhail Tal

Correct Answer: A) Boris Spassky

Explanation: In the famous "Match of the Century" in Reykjavik, Iceland, Bobby Fischer defeated Boris Spassky when the Soviet champion resigned before the resumption of the 21st game.

Question 6 — ₹80,000

The 1914 extinction of which once-abundant North American bird species was confirmed when the last known survivor, named Martha, died at the Cincinnati Zoo?

A) Dodo

B) Passenger Pigeon

C) Carolina Parakeet

D) Great Auk

Correct Answer: B) Passenger Pigeon

Explanation: The passenger pigeon, once numbering in the billions across North America, became extinct on September 1, 1914, when the last surviving bird, Martha, died in captivity.

Question 7 — ₹3,20,000

A devastating magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck Japan on September 1, 1923, claiming around 140,000 lives across Yokohama and which other major city?

A) Osaka

B) Kyoto

C) Tokyo

D) Hiroshima

Correct Answer: C) Tokyo

Explanation: The Great Kantō Earthquake struck the Kantō Plain on September 1, 1923, devastating Tokyo and the port city of Yokohama through extreme tremors and widespread firestorms.

Question 8 — ₹6,40,000

On September 1, 1969, a military coup led by young army officers overthrew King Idris and brought which leader to power in Libya?

A) Muammar Gaddafi

B) Gamal Abdel Nasser

C) Anwar Sadat

D) Habib Bourguiba

Correct Answer: A) Muammar Gaddafi

Explanation: 27-year-old Captain Muammar Gaddafi led a bloodless coup against King Idris I on September 1, 1969, establishing the Libyan Arab Republic.

Question 9 — ₹50,00,000

Known as the "Sun King," Louis XIV died on September 1, 1715, after ruling France for how many years?

A) 54 years

B) 60 years

C) 68 years

D) 72 years

Correct Answer: D) 72 years

Explanation: King Louis XIV of France reigned for 72 years and 110 days (1643–1715), making his rule the longest recorded reign of any monarch in European history.

Question 10 — ₹1 Crore

On September 1, 1983, a Soviet Su-15 interceptor shot down a commercial Korean Air Lines Boeing 747 carrying 269 people near which island?

A) Sakhalin Island

B) Kuril Island

C) Kamchatka Island

D) Wrangel Island

Correct Answer: A) Sakhalin Island

Explanation: Korean Air Lines Flight 007 (KAL 007) strayed into prohibited Soviet airspace and was shot down by a Soviet fighter jet west of Sakhalin Island, killing all 269 passengers and crew.