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CDS GK Questions 2026

Static GK carries most of the 100 marks of the CDS General Knowledge paper. Of the 120 questions in the CDS (II) 2026 paper, about 20 were on Indian Polity, about 20 on the History of India, about 15 on Geography and the environment, about 10 on the Indian Economy and about 37 on Physics, Chemistry and Biology, which makes CDS the most science-heavy General Knowledge paper among the major recruitment exams. Polity questions test writs, the NHRC, electoral systems, disqualification of legislators, GST and delimitation. History runs from the Upanishads and the Shunga dynasty to Vijayanagara, temple architecture, the Sylhet referendum and the SNDP Yogam. Geography asks about the atmosphere, earthquakes and tsunamis, Ramsar sites, mangroves and World Heritage sites. Science stays at school level but expects reasoning: a lens problem, a magnetic field direction, molarity versus molality, what cooking soda is, how enzymes act. This page holds GK24's topic-wise GK notes for CDS, written as short facts and tables so that a topic can be revised in one sitting. Read a topic, then solve its previous-year questions and quiz on this site to check what stayed with you.

CDS GK Questions with Answers

Q2201.Books & AuthorsAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2023, GKEasy

Who among the following is the author of the book 'The Indian Struggle 1920 - 1942'?

  1. A.Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
  2. B.Subhas Chandra Bose
  3. C.Vallabhbhai Patel
  4. D.Sarat Chandra Bose
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Subhas Chandra Bose

Netaji wrote The Indian Struggle, his own political account of India's freedom movement. Bose wrote the first part, covering 1920 to 1934, while living in Europe for medical treatment; it was published in London in 1935 and was banned in India by the British government.

Q2202.Indian PolityAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2024, GKHard

As per Article 371G of the Constitution of India, special provisions have been made with respect to the state of Mizoram. Accordingly, no Act of Parliament shall apply on certain matters unless the Legislative Assembly of Mizoram so decides by a resolution. Which one of the following matters is not covered under this Article ?

  1. A.Religious or social practices of the Mizos
  2. B.Mizo customary law and procedure
  3. C.Administration of civil and criminal justice involving decisions according to Mizo customary law
  4. D.Ownership and transfer of natural resources
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Ownership and transfer of natural resources

Article 371G protects the ownership and transfer of land in Mizoram, not of natural resources in general. Article 371G was added by the 53rd Amendment Act, 1986, when Mizoram became a state after the Mizo Peace Accord.

Q2203.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2025, GKHard

Which one of the following statements about the grammarian Katyayana is correct ?

  1. A.He was a contemporary of Panini.
  2. B.He was a contemporary of Patanjali.
  3. C.He belonged to a period between Panini and Patanjali.
  4. D.He belonged to a period later than both Panini and Patanjali.
Show answer
Correct answer: C. He belonged to a period between Panini and Patanjali.

Katyayana commented on Panini's grammar, and Patanjali in turn commented on both Panini and Katyayana. Panini wrote the Ashtadhyayi, the foundational Sanskrit grammar of about 4,000 sutras, around the 5th or 4th century BCE.

Q2204.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2025, GKMedium

Which one among the following pairs of type of firm and feature is not correctly matched ?

  1. A.Oligopoly firm : Interdependence in decision-making
  2. B.Monopolistic competitive firm : Firm is a price setter
  3. C.Monopoly firm : Produces an efficient level of output
  4. D.Perfectly competitive firm : Produces socially optimum output
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Monopoly firm : Produces an efficient level of output

A monopolist restricts output and charges a higher price, so it does not produce the efficient level of output. A monopoly is a single seller of a product with no close substitutes and strong barriers to entry.

Q2206.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2016, GKEasy

The pressure exerted by a 760 mm column of mercury at 0 °C is known as

  1. A.1 pascal
  2. B.1 atmosphere
  3. C.1 bar
  4. D.1 poise
Show answer
Correct answer: B. 1 atmosphere

Standard atmospheric pressure at sea level is defined as the pressure of a 760 mm column of mercury at 0 °C. In 1643 Evangelista Torricelli showed that air pressure holds up a column of mercury about 760 mm (76 cm) tall in a glass tube, inventing the mercury barometer.

Q2207.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2017, GKMedium

Which one of the following is the correct sequence of occurrences of rivers from Chennai to Kolkata when travelled by road (shortest distance)?

  1. A.Krishna, Kaveri, Godavari, Mahanadi, Subarnarekha
  2. B.Krishna, Periyar, Godavari, Mahanadi, Subarnarekha
  3. C.Penneru, Krishna, Godavari, Mahanadi, Subarnarekha
  4. D.Penneru, Mahanadi, Subarnarekha, Godavari, Krishna
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Penneru, Krishna, Godavari, Mahanadi, Subarnarekha

Going north along the east coast from Chennai, these rivers are crossed in exactly this order. The shortest road from Chennai to Kolkata runs up the eastern coastal plain.

Q2209.Environment & EcologyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2018, GKEasy

Which one of the following statements with regard to growth of coral reefs is not correct?

  1. A.Coral can grow abundantly in freshwater.
  2. B.It requires warm water between 23 °C-25 °C.
  3. C.It requires shallow saltwater, not deeper than 50 metres.
  4. D.It requires plenty of sunlight to aid photosynthesis.
Show answer
Correct answer: A. Coral can grow abundantly in freshwater.

Reef-building corals are marine animals and die in fresh water, so this statement is false. Corals are tiny polyps that build skeletons of calcium carbonate and live with algae called zooxanthellae inside their tissues.

Q2210.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2019, GKMedium

Which one of the following statements is not correct?

  1. A.When total utility is maximum, marginal utility is zero.
  2. B.When total utility is decreasing, marginal utility is negative.
  3. C.When total utility is increasing, marginal utility is positive.
  4. D.When total utility is maximum, marginal and average utility are equal to each other.
Show answer
Correct answer: D. When total utility is maximum, marginal and average utility are equal to each other.

At the point where total utility is highest, marginal utility is zero but average utility is still positive, so the two cannot be equal.

Q2211.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2019, GKEasy

Which one of the following regions is an important supplier of citrus fruits ?

  1. A.Equatorial region
  2. B.Mediterranean region
  3. C.Desert region
  4. D.Sub-humid region
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Mediterranean region

Lands with a Mediterranean climate are the world's great orchards of oranges, lemons, grapes and olives. The Mediterranean climate has hot, dry, sunny summers and mild, rainy winters, the rain coming from westerly winds.

Q2212.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2020, GKEasy

Which one of the following is not an objective of the MGNREGA?

  1. A.Providing up to 100 days of skilled labour in a financial year
  2. B.Creation of productive assets
  3. C.Enhancing livelihood security
  4. D.Ensuring empowerment to women
Show answer
Correct answer: A. Providing up to 100 days of skilled labour in a financial year

The Act guarantees at least 100 days of unskilled manual work, not skilled labour.

Q2213.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2020, GKEasy

Which one among the following Union Territories of India is the smallest in geographical area?

  1. A.Chandigarh
  2. B.Puducherry
  3. C.Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu
  4. D.Lakshadweep
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Lakshadweep

With a land area of only about 32 square kilometres, Lakshadweep is the smallest Union Territory of India. Lakshadweep is a group of 36 coral islands in the Arabian Sea off the Kerala coast, of which only about ten are inhabited.

Q2214.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2021, GKHard

Chronologically arrange the following treaties/conventions signed between the Marathas and the British (starting with the earliest): 1. Treaty of Salbai 2. Treaty of Purandar 3. Convention of Wadgaon 4. Treaty of Surat Select the correct answer using the code given below :

  1. A.4-2-3-1
  2. B.4-3-2-1
  3. C.1-3-2-4
  4. D.1-2-3-4
Show answer
Correct answer: A. 4-2-3-1

All four belong to the First Anglo-Maratha War: Surat (1775), Purandar (1776), Wadgaon (1779) and Salbai (1782). In 1775 the Bombay government signed the Treaty of Surat with Raghunathrao, promising to put him in power as Peshwa in return for Salsette and Bassein.

Q2215.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2021, GKEasy

Which one of the following is the opportunity cost of a chosen activity ?

  1. A.Out of pocket cost
  2. B.Out of pocket cost plus cost incurred by the Government
  3. C.Value of all opportunities forgone
  4. D.Value of next best alternative that is given up
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Value of next best alternative that is given up

Opportunity cost is what you sacrifice by choosing one option, measured by the best option you did not take. Because resources such as time, money and land are scarce, choosing one use means giving up others.

Q2218.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2023, GKEasy

Sound and light waves are

  1. A.respectively longitudinal and transverse in air
  2. B.respectively transverse and longitudinal in air
  3. C.both longitudinal in air
  4. D.both transverse in air
Show answer
Correct answer: A. respectively longitudinal and transverse in air

Sound travels as compressions and rarefactions, while light is a transverse electromagnetic wave. In a longitudinal wave the particles of the medium vibrate back and forth along the direction in which the wave moves.

Q2219.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2023, GKHard

Arrange the following events associated with Shivaji in chronological order : 1. Attack on Afzal Khan 2. Capture of Torna 3. Attack on Shaista Khan 4. Annexation of Javli Select the correct answer using the code given below:

  1. A.2, 4, 1, 3
  2. B.4, 2, 1, 3
  3. C.1, 2, 3, 4
  4. D.3, 1, 2, 4
Show answer
Correct answer: A. 2, 4, 1, 3

Shivaji took Torna first, then Javli, then killed Afzal Khan, and later raided Shaista Khan's camp. In 1646, still a teenager, Shivaji captured the fort of Torna from the Bijapur Sultanate, his first major conquest.

Q2220.Environment & EcologyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2024, GKEasy

Which one of the following biosphere reserves is spread over three States in India?

  1. A.Nilgiri
  2. B.Achanakmar-Amarkantak
  3. C.Seshachalam
  4. D.Agasthyamalai
Show answer
Correct answer: A. Nilgiri

The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve spreads across Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. Set up in 1986, Nilgiri was India's first biosphere reserve, and in 2000 it became the first Indian reserve on UNESCO's World Network of Biosphere Reserves.