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.
Which one of the following is the purest form of Carbon ?
Fullerenes are made of carbon atoms alone, with no surface to trap other substances, so they are counted as the purest form of carbon.
Read the full explanation →A planet has a mass M₁ and radius R₁. The value of acceleration due to gravity on its surface is g₁. There is another planet 2, whose mass and radius both are two times that of the first planet. Which one of the following is the acceleration due to gravity on the surface of planet 2?
Surface gravity is g = GM/R², so doubling the mass doubles g while doubling the radius divides it by four, leaving g₁ × 2/4 = g₁/2.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following rivers was earlier known as "Vitasta" ?
The Jhelum was called the Vitasta in the Rig Veda and in later Sanskrit texts. The rivers of the Punjab region carried Vedic names: Vitasta for the Jhelum, Asikni for the Chenab, Parushni for the Ravi, Vipasha for the Beas and Shutudri for the Satluj.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following is the major constituent of biogas ?
Methane makes up the largest share of biogas, usually about 55 to 75 per cent, and it is the gas that burns.
Read the full explanation →A lemon kept in water in a glass tumbler appears to be larger than its actual size. It is because of
The lemon looks bigger because light from it bends as it passes from water through the curved glass into air.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following conclusions could not be derived from Rutherford's α-particle scattering experiment?
. Orbits of fixed energy were proposed by Niels Bohr in 1913; Rutherford's experiment said nothing about the energy of electrons.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following is the mechanism of action of oral contraceptive pills?
. Oral contraceptive pills prevent pregnancy mainly by stopping the ovary from releasing an egg.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following metal is NOT an essential component in stainless steel ?
Stainless steel is an alloy of iron with chromium and usually nickel and a little carbon; tin is not one of its components.
Read the full explanation →A car weighs 1000 kg. It is moving with a uniform velocity of 72 km/h towards a straight road. The driver suddenly presses the brakes. The car stops in 0.2 s. The retarding force applied on the car to stop it is
The car loses a momentum of 1000 kg × 20 m/s in 0.2 s, so the force is 20,000 ÷ 0.2 = 100,000 N, that is 100 kN.
Read the full explanation →Which one among the following plans is also known as Mahalanobis Plan ?
The Second Five Year Plan (1956–61) was built on a growth model prepared by the statistician P. C. Mahalanobis, so it is called the Mahalanobis Plan.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following tissues in plants is usually without protoplast and regarded as dead cells?
Mature sclerenchyma cells have thick walls hardened with lignin and lose their living contents, so they are dead cells that give the plant strength.
Read the full explanation →Which of the following statements is/are correct in respect of Portland cement ? I. Adding more water (higher water-cement ratio) accelerates the initial setting time of cement. II. The addition of a small percentage of gypsum gives the desired retardation. III. Gypsum is added during manufacturing to accelerate the setting time of cement. Select the answer using the code given below :
Only statement II is correct: a small amount of gypsum is added to cement to slow down its setting. Portland cement is made by heating limestone and clay to form clinker, which is then ground with about 2 to 3 per cent gypsum (calcium sulphate dihydrate).
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following properties is NOT true for graphite ?
In graphite each carbon atom is sp² hybridised, not sp³, so statement A is the one that is not true.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following is NOT a west flowing river ?
The Tamraparni rises in the Agasthyamalai hills of the Western Ghats and flows east through Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi districts of Tamil Nadu into the Gulf of Mannar.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following represents the correct order of electron releasing tendency of metals?
Zinc gives up electrons most readily, copper less so and silver least, so the order of electron-releasing tendency is Zn > Cu > Ag.
Read the full explanation →The correct relation between the radius of curvature R and focal length f of a spherical mirror is
For a spherical mirror of small aperture, the radius of curvature is twice the focal length, so f = R/2.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following acids is predominantly found in tomatoes?
In the list of natural sources of acids that school science teaches, tomato is matched with oxalic acid.
Read the full explanation →Which of the following statements about the Law Commission headed by Lord Macaulay is/are correct? 1. It attempted to codify the laws. 2. It was opposed to uniform system of Courts. Select the correct answer using the code given below :
The Law Commission under Macaulay set out to codify Indian law, and it was not opposed to a uniform system of courts.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following reactions is an example of decomposition reaction?
A single compound, silver chloride, breaks down into two simpler substances, silver and chlorine, which is exactly what a decomposition reaction is.
Read the full explanation →Which of the following statements about the Unionist Party is/are correct? 1. It was a political party representing the interests of landholders in Punjab. 2. It was opposed to the idea of the partition of India as India and Pakistan. Select the correct answer using the code given below.
The Unionist Party spoke for the landholders of Punjab and was against the partition of India. Founded in 1923 by Sir Fazl-i-Husain and Sir Chhotu Ram, the Unionist Party brought together Muslim, Hindu and Sikh landowners and peasants of Punjab on a platform of rural interests rather than religion.
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