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.
In the joining of railway tracks, iron oxide is made to react with
Railway tracks are joined by the thermite process, in which aluminium powder reduces iron oxide to molten iron. The reaction is Fe₂O₃ + 2Al → 2Fe + Al₂O₃.
Read the full explanation →Which one among the following State capitals is closest to the Equator ?
Panaji, the capital of Goa, lies at about 15.5° N latitude, the lowest of the four cities, so it is the closest to the Equator.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following events leading to the Indian Independence : 1. Lucknow Pact 2. Return of Subhash Chandra Bose to India 3. Cripps Mission 4. Naval Mutiny in Bombay Select the chronological sequence of these events (earliest to latest) from the code given below:
The events run from the Lucknow Pact of 1916, through Subhas Chandra Bose's return to India in the 1920s and 1930s, to the Cripps Mission of 1942 and the Naval Mutiny of 1946.
Read the full explanation →If atomic number of an element is 11, the correct name, symbol and valency are :
The element with atomic number 11 is sodium, and with one electron in its outermost shell its valency is 1.
Read the full explanation →Which among the following are the purposes of deploying a Firewall ? 1. Examine each packet arriving from Internet 2. Prevent unauthorised access 3. Block suspicious activity 4. Interconnect telephones Select the answer using the code given below :
A firewall inspects incoming traffic, keeps out unauthorised users and blocks suspicious activity, but it has nothing to do with connecting telephones.
Read the full explanation →During the period 100 BCE - 200 CE, valuable evidence of India's maritime trade links has been identified from which of the following sites on the Coromandel Coast ?
Arikamedu, near Puducherry on the Coromandel Coast, has yielded clear evidence of trade with the Roman world between about the first century BCE and the second century CE.
Read the full explanation →A car of mass 800 kg is travelling at a speed of 40 km/h on a straight road. A force of 1000 N is applied on it in the direction of its velocity for 12 s. Which one among the following is the final speed of the car?
The force gives the car an extra 15 m/s, which is 54 km/h, and 40 + 54 = 94 km/h. By Newton's second law, acceleration a = F/m = 1000 N ÷ 800 kg = 1.25 m/s².
Read the full explanation →Consider the electromagnetic radiations having wavelengths 200 nm, 500 nm and 1000 nm. Which wavelength(s) of the following can make visual sensation to a human eye?
The human eye responds only to visible light, which lies roughly between 400 nm (violet) and 700 nm (red), and 500 nm is the only one of the three values in that range.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following Schedules of the Constitution of India has fixed the number of Members of the Rajya Sabha to be elected from each State?
The Fourth Schedule allocates seats in the Rajya Sabha to each State and Union Territory, read with Articles 4(1) and 80(2).
Read the full explanation →Bright light is found to emit from photographer's flashgun. This brightness is due to the presence of which one of the following noble gases?
A photographer's flash tube is filled with xenon, which gives an intense burst of white light when a high-voltage spark passes through it.
Read the full explanation →Who was the founder of Mahakali Pathshala in Calcutta?
Mataji Tapaswini founded the Mahakali Pathshala in Calcutta in 1893 to give girls an education rooted in Indian tradition. Tapaswini was a woman ascetic from Maharashtra who settled in Calcutta and won the support of leading Bengali families for her school.
Read the full explanation →Which Greek philosopher coined the term "Geography" in the 3rd century B.C.E. ?
Eratosthenes of Cyrene first used the word "geographia", from the Greek "geo" (earth) and "graphe" (description), so geography means a description of the Earth.
Read the full explanation →Which one among the following is not a character of a secular State?
Secularism concerns the relation between the State and religion, and being democratic is not part of its definition. A secular State is not run by a religious order, keeps religious institutions and State institutions apart, and does not favour or persecute any religion.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following statements about primary waves of earthquakes is not correct ?
This statement is false because primary waves pass through solids, liquids and gases alike. Primary or P-waves are longitudinal waves: they push and pull the rock in the same direction in which the wave travels, compressing and stretching the material just as sound waves compress air.
Read the full explanation →Swami Dayanand Saraswati took inspiration from
Swami Dayanand Saraswati held the Vedas to be the only true and infallible source of knowledge, and his call was "Go back to the Vedas".
Read the full explanation →Which of the following terms were used in the Indo-Persian sources of the Mughal period to denote a peasant ? 1. Raiyat 2. Asami 3. Muzarian 4. Majur Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Raiyat, muzarian and asami were all used for the peasant in Mughal-period sources, while majur means a labourer. The Indo-Persian sources of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries most often called the peasant raiyat (plural riaya) or muzarian; the words kisan and asami also appear.
Read the full explanation →Storage of biological tissues such as blood, organs, semen requires low temperature which is achieved upon the usage of
Liquid nitrogen boils at about −196 °C, cold enough to stop almost all biological activity, and it is cheap, inert and safe to handle.
Read the full explanation →Which one among the following States has the longest extension in north-south direction?
Chhattisgarh is a long, narrow state that stretches from about 17.8° N in Sukma district to about 24.1° N in Balrampur district, a north-south length of roughly 700 km.
Read the full explanation →Identify the type of soil on the basis of given characteristics : 1. They contain a large proportion of sodium, potassium and magnesium, and thus, they are infertile. 2. Their structure ranges from sandy to loamy. 3. They are more widespread in western Gujarat, deltas of the eastern coast and in Sunderban areas of West Bengal.
All three features listed, excess salts of sodium, potassium and magnesium, a sandy to loamy texture and their spread in western Gujarat, the eastern deltas and the Sundarbans, describe saline soils.
Read the full explanation →The Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope consists of
The Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) is an array of 30 fully steerable parabolic dish antennas, each 45 metres across.
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