Skip to content
GK24

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

Q1902.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2023, GKEasy

What will be the correct sequence of cities on the bank of river Ganga if someone moves from west to east?

  1. A.Prayagraj, Kanpur, Bhagalpur, Patna
  2. B.Prayagraj, Kanpur, Patna, Bhagalpur
  3. C.Kanpur, Prayagraj, Bhagalpur, Patna
  4. D.Kanpur, Prayagraj, Patna, Bhagalpur
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Kanpur, Prayagraj, Patna, Bhagalpur

The Ganga flows from west to east across the northern plains, so the cities follow the order in which the river reaches them.

Q1903.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2024, GKHard

Consider the following statements about the early phase of the National Movement in India : 1. Ferozeshah Mehta, Badruddin Tyabji and others formed the Bombay Presidency Association. 2. Surendranath Banerjee and his group planned an Indian National Conference at Calcutta. 3. Allan Octavian Hume decided to create an all-India body as a rival to the above organisations to give vent to the grievances of the poor and marginalised Indians. How many of the above statements is/are correct?

  1. A.1
  2. B.2
  3. C.All
  4. D.None
Show answer
Correct answer: B. 2

Statements 1 and 2 are correct, but statement 3 is not. Statement 1 is correct: the Bombay Presidency Association was founded in January 1885 by Pherozeshah Mehta, Badruddin Tyabji and K. T. Telang, and its members hosted the first session of the Indian National Congress in Bombay that December.

Q1904.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2025, GKEasy

Isobars of elements have same :

  1. A.Atomic numbers.
  2. B.Number of electrons.
  3. C.Mass numbers.
  4. D.Number of neutrons.
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Mass numbers.

Isobars are atoms of different elements that have the same mass number but different atomic numbers. The mass number is the total of protons and neutrons in the nucleus, so isobars have the same number of nucleons arranged differently: more protons and fewer neutrons in one, the reverse in another.

Q1905.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2026, GKMedium

The Chalcolithic Ahar Culture has been identified in which of the following river systems ?

  1. A.Sarayu and Ganga river systems
  2. B.Krishna and Tungabhadra river systems
  3. C.Banas and Berach river systems
  4. D.Brahmaputra and Meghna river systems
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Banas and Berach river systems

The Ahar culture, also called the Banas culture, is a Chalcolithic (copper and stone age) culture of south-east Rajasthan, spread along the Banas river and its tributary the Berach, roughly between 3000 and 1500 BCE.

Q1906.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2026, GKMedium

Three resistors, R1, R2 and R3, (R1 > R2 > R3), are connected to a battery of voltage V, such that the circuit generates maximum heat per unit time. Which one among the following is the correct circuit combination for this ?

  1. A.R1, R2 and R3 are connected in series combination
  2. B.R1, R2 and R3 are connected in parallel combination
  3. C.R1 and R3 are connected in parallel and R2 is connected in series to the combination
  4. D.R1 and R3 are connected in series and R2 is connected parallel to the combination
Show answer
Correct answer: B. R1, R2 and R3 are connected in parallel combination

Heat produced per unit time is the power, and with a fixed battery voltage the power is P = V²/R. So the circuit gives the most heat when its total resistance is the smallest, and the smallest possible resistance comes from joining all three resistors in parallel.

Q1907.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2016, GKEasy

Which of the following cells do not contain nucleus? 1. Root hair cells 2. Red blood cells 3. Platelets 4. Monocytes Select the correct answer using the code given below.

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

Mature human red blood cells and platelets have no nucleus. Red blood cells lose their nucleus as they mature in the bone marrow; this gives their biconcave disc shape more room for haemoglobin to carry oxygen, but it also means they cannot divide or repair themselves and live only about…

Q1908.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2017, GKMedium

The plant growth regulators are small, simple molecules of diverse chemical composition. They are

  1. A.carbohydrates, fats and proteins
  2. B.indole compounds, adenine derivatives, carotenoids and terpenes
  3. C.fatty acids, glucose and vitamins
  4. D.vitamin C, vitamin D and glucose
Show answer
Correct answer: B. indole compounds, adenine derivatives, carotenoids and terpenes

Plant growth regulators, or plant hormones, are small molecules that control growth even in tiny amounts, and each main group comes from a different chemical family.

Q1909.Indian PolityAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2017, GKEasy

Which of the following features were borrowed by the Constitution of India from the British Constitution? 1. Rule of Law 2. Law-making Procedure 3. Independence of Judiciary 4. Parliamentary System Select the correct answer using the code given below.

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

The Constitution of India borrowed the rule of law, the law-making procedure and the parliamentary system from the British Constitution, but took the independence of the judiciary from the US Constitution.

Q1911.Art & CultureAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2019, GKHard

Who designed the Bombay Secretariat in the 1870s?

  1. A.H. St. Clair Wilkins
  2. B.Sir Cowasjee Jehangir Readymoney
  3. C.Purushottamdas Thakurdas
  4. D.Nusserwanji Tata
Show answer
Correct answer: A. H. St. Clair Wilkins

Henry St. Clair Wilkins, an officer of the Royal Engineers, designed the Bombay Secretariat, completed in 1874 as part of the grand row of public buildings that rose along the Oval in Bombay after the old fort walls were pulled down in the 1860s. The building is in the Venetian…

Q1913.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2020, GKMedium

The Cash Reserve Ratio refers to

  1. A.the share of Net Demand and Time Liabilities that banks have to hold as liquid assets
  2. B.the share of Net Demand and Time Liabilities that banks have to hold as balances with the RBI
  3. C.the share of Net Demand and Time Liabilities that banks have to hold as part of their cash reserves
  4. D.the ratio of cash holding to reserves of banks
Show answer
Correct answer: B. the share of Net Demand and Time Liabilities that banks have to hold as balances with the RBI

The Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) is the part of a bank's net demand and time liabilities (mainly its deposits) that it must keep as cash balances with the Reserve Bank of India.

Q1915.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2021, GKEasy

Which one of the following is a type of igneous rock ?

  1. A.Marble
  2. B.Halite
  3. C.Granite
  4. D.Shale
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Granite

Granite is an igneous rock, formed when molten magma cools and hardens. Because it cools slowly deep inside the earth's crust, its crystals grow large enough to be seen by the naked eye, so it is called an intrusive or plutonic igneous rock.

Q1917.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2022, GKEasy

Which of the following factors signify monopolistic competition ? 1. Differentiated products 2. Large number of buyers and sellers 3. Barriers to entry 4. Homogeneous products Select the correct answer using the code given below:

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

Monopolistic competition is a market with many buyers and sellers, each seller offering a product that is slightly different from the others.

Q1918.Art & CultureAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2023, GKEasy

Manav is planning to visit all UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Delhi. He will be visiting

  1. A.Red Fort, Qutab Minar, Jama Masjid
  2. B.Red Fort, India Gate, Qutab Minar
  3. C.Red Fort, Qutab Minar, Humayun Tomb
  4. D.Red Fort, Humayun Tomb, India Gate
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Red Fort, Qutab Minar, Humayun Tomb

Delhi has three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and they are exactly these three. Humayun's Tomb was inscribed in 1993; built in the 1560s at the wish of his widow Bega Begum, it was the first garden-tomb on the Indian subcontinent and a model for the Taj Mahal.

Q1919.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2023, GKMedium

Which of the following concepts are considered as pillars of Human Development ? 1. Equity 2. Sustainability 3. Productivity 4. Security Select the correct answer using the code given below:

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

The idea of human development, put forward by Mahbub ul Haq and Amartya Sen, rests on four pillars: equity, sustainability, productivity and empowerment.

Q1920.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2024, GKEasy

Which of the following industries was most affected by the 'deindustrialisation' of India in the 19th century?

  1. A.Silk manufacture
  2. B.Cotton textiles
  3. C.Iron and steel
  4. D.Woolen manufacture
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Cotton textiles

Handloom cotton weaving was India's largest industry, and it suffered most when British rule opened India to machine-made cloth. Before the 19th century, Indian muslins, calicoes and chintz from Bengal, Gujarat and the Coromandel coast were sold across the world.