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CDS Previous Year GK Questions

Previous-year questions are the most reliable guide to the CDS General Knowledge paper, because the syllabus in the notice is one paragraph long and the paper is not. UPSC uploads the question papers of every CDS on upsc.gov.in the day after the exam, so a full record of what was asked exists for each cycle. Reading them shows the weight of each area, the depth UPSC expects in Polity, History, Geography, Economy and Science, and the question forms it prefers: statements with "which of the above are correct", "how many of the following pairs are correctly matched", match the lists, and arrange in chronological order. Many topics return: writs and constitutional bodies, dynasties and reform movements, Ramsar sites and World Heritage sites, budget and balance-of-payments terms, and school science applied to everyday situations. This page collects CDS previous-year General Knowledge questions in English and Hindi, each with the correct answer, an explanation and the topic it belongs to, so that a question leads you to the GK note that covers it. Use them in three passes: untimed to learn, timed to build speed, and a week later to revisit your wrong answers.

Previous Year Questions

Q321.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2025, GKEasy

Which of the following represent disaccharides?

  1. A.Starch and glycogen
  2. B.Glucose and galactose
  3. C.Maltose and lactose
  4. D.Ribose and xylose
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Maltose and lactose

Each of them is made of two simple sugar units joined together, which is exactly what a disaccharide is. Carbohydrates are grouped by the number of sugar units they contain.

Q322.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2016, GKMedium

Statement I : King Ashoka abolished capital punishment and disbanded his army.

Statement II : After Kalinga War, Ashoka was remorseful and became a Buddhist.

  1. A.Both the statements are individually true and Statement II is the correct explanation of Statement I
  2. B.Both the statements are individually true but Statement II is not the correct explanation of Statement I
  3. C.Statement I is true but Statement II is false
  4. D.Statement I is false but Statement II is true
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Statement I is false but Statement II is true

Ashoka turned to Buddhism after the Kalinga war, but he neither abolished the death penalty nor disbanded his army. The Kalinga war, fought around 261 BCE in the eighth year of his reign, left over a lakh dead, and in Rock Edict XIII Ashoka records his deep remorse.

Q324.Indian PolityAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2018, GKMedium

Which of the following are the functions of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)? 1. Inquiry at its own initiative on the violation of human rights 2. Inquiry on a petition presented to it by a victim 3. Visit to jails to study the condition of the inmates 4. Undertaking and promoting research in the field of human rights Select the correct answer using the code given below.

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

Section 12 of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 gives the NHRC every one of these four functions. The NHRC is a statutory body, not a constitutional one, set up on 12 October 1993 under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993.

Q326.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2019, GKHard

Two identical solid pieces, one of gold and other of silver, when immersed completely in water exhibit equal weights. When weighed in air (given that density of gold is greater than that of silver)

  1. A.the gold piece will weigh more
  2. B.the silver piece will weigh more
  3. C.both silver and gold pieces weigh equal
  4. D.weighing will depend on their masses
Show answer
Correct answer: B. the silver piece will weigh more

Silver is less dense, so a silver piece takes up more volume, loses more weight to buoyancy in water, and must therefore be heavier in air to show the same weight under water.

Q327.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2020, GKMedium

The Hunter Commission (1882) appointed to survey the state of education in India

  1. A.deprecated University education
  2. B.overruled the Despatch of 1854
  3. C.endorsed the Despatch of 1854 with greater emphasis on primary education
  4. D.criticized the grants-in-aid system of schooling
Show answer
Correct answer: C. endorsed the Despatch of 1854 with greater emphasis on primary education

The commission upheld Wood's Despatch but asked the state to give special care to the spread of primary education. The Indian Education Commission was appointed in 1882 by Lord Ripon under the chairmanship of Sir William Wilson Hunter, to review how far the Despatch of 1854 had been carried out.

Q329.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2021, GKEasy

The direction of acceleration in uniform circular motion is along the

  1. A.direction of motion.
  2. B.tangent to the circle at the point of observation.
  3. C.direction of velocity.
  4. D.direction perpendicular to velocity.
Show answer
Correct answer: D. direction perpendicular to velocity.

In uniform circular motion the acceleration points towards the centre of the circle, at right angles to the velocity. In uniform circular motion the speed stays the same, but the direction of motion changes at every point, so the velocity keeps changing and the body is accelerating.

Q330.Environment & EcologyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2022, GKEasy

The 'Ramsar Convention' relates to which one of the following areas ?

  1. A.Wetland preservation
  2. B.Promote afforestation
  3. C.Action plan on climate change
  4. D.Combat desertification
Show answer
Correct answer: A. Wetland preservation

The Ramsar Convention is the international treaty for the conservation and wise use of wetlands. It was signed on 2 February 1971 at Ramsar, a town in Iran on the Caspian Sea, and came into force in 1975.

Q332.Environment & EcologyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2023, GKMedium

A new species of pit-viper was discovered in 2019 and named after the State in which it was found. Identify the State from among the following :

  1. A.Kerala
  2. B.Arunachal Pradesh
  3. C.Andaman and Nicobar Islands
  4. D.Assam
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Arunachal Pradesh

The species was named Trimeresurus arunachalensis, the Arunachal pit viper, after the state where it was found. Pit vipers are venomous snakes with a heat-sensing pit between each eye and nostril, which lets them detect warm-blooded prey in the dark.

Q333.Indian PolityAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2024, GKHard

As per the State List under the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India, the States have jurisdiction over agricultural land in connection with which of the following subjects? 1. Taxes on agricultural income 2. Duties in respect of succession of agricultural land 3. Estate duty in respect of agricultural land Select the correct answer using the code given below.

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

All three are State List subjects: taxes on agricultural income, duties on succession to agricultural land and estate duty on agricultural land.

Q334.Indian PolityAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2025, GKMedium

Which of the following statements is/are correct? 1. First Law Commission recommended Indian Penal Code, 1860. 2. Indian Penal Code, 1860 has been completely replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. Select the answer using the code given below :

  1. A.1 only
  2. B.2 only
  3. C.Both 1 and 2
  4. D.Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Both 1 and 2

The Indian Penal Code was drafted on the recommendation of the First Law Commission, and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 repealed and replaced it.

Q336.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2016, GKHard

Statement I : The Zamindars were an exploitative class in Mughal India.

Statement II : The Zamindars often received the support of the peasantry in a large number of agrarian uprisings in North India in the seventeenth century.

  1. A.Both the statements are individually true and Statement II is the correct explanation of Statement I
  2. B.Both the statements are individually true but Statement II is not the correct explanation of Statement I
  3. C.Statement I is true but Statement II is false
  4. D.Statement I is false but Statement II is true
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Both the statements are individually true but Statement II is not the correct explanation of Statement I

The zamindars did exploit the peasants, and yet peasants often backed them against the Mughal state. Zamindars held rights over land and collected revenue on behalf of the state, keeping a share for themselves.

Q337.Static GKAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2017, GKMedium

India became a member of which one of the following in 2016?

  1. A.Non-Proliferation Treaty
  2. B.Missile Technology Control Regime
  3. C.Nuclear Suppliers Group
  4. D.Wassenaar Arrangement
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Missile Technology Control Regime

India joined the MTCR as its 35th member on 27 June 2016. The MTCR was set up in 1987 by the G7 countries as an informal group that limits the spread of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles able to carry weapons of mass destruction.

Q338.Banking & Financial AwarenessAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2018, GKHard

Which of the following statements about the India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) is/are correct? 1. It has been incorporated as a Public Limited Company. 2. It started its operation by establishing two pilot branches at Hyderabad and Varanasi. Select the correct answer using the code given below.

  1. A.1 only
  2. B.2 only
  3. C.Both 1 and 2
  4. D.Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer
Correct answer: A. 1 only

IPPB was incorporated as a public limited company, but its two pilot branches opened at Raipur and Ranchi, not at Hyderabad and Varanasi.

All Defence previous year questions