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Question

The element commonly referred to as the "building block of life" is:

This question was previously asked in
RRB Technician 2026 Grade 3 Question Paper (7-Oct-2026) (Shift 3)
The correct answer is

Carbon

Carbon is tetravalent and shows catenation — it can bond with itself and with H, O, N, etc. to form long chains, branches and rings.

This allows a huge variety of organic molecules — carbohydrates, proteins, lipids and nucleic acids — that make up living things.

Iron and sulphur are needed only in small amounts, and helium is an inert gas.

Hence, carbon is called the building block of life.

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