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UPSC CAPF Previous Year GK Questions

Previous-year questions are the most reliable guide to UPSC CAPF, because the notice lists six broad areas for Paper-I but does not say how many questions each will carry. Solving the papers of recent years shows the balance between current events and static GK, the level of detail UPSC expects in polity, history, geography, economy and science, and how often questions touch security, defence and human rights, areas the syllabus names in both papers. The Commission puts up the question papers of each exam on its website; the 2026 papers of General Ability and Intelligence and of General Studies, Essay and Comprehension went up on 20 July 2026, the day after the exam. This page is where GK24 collects UPSC CAPF previous-year questions of Paper-I, in English and Hindi, each with the correct answer, an explanation and the topic it belongs to, so that one question leads you to the GK note that covers it. Use them in three rounds: first untimed to learn the pattern, then timed to build speed under negative marking, and finally as a revision of the questions you got wrong. For Paper-II, read the past essay, argument and report topics. They show the kind of issues UPSC sets, such as security, governance, technology and society, and make a good list to practise writing on.

Previous Year Questions

Q541.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2024, Paper IMedium

Which one among the following statements about matter is NOT correct ?

  1. A.On increasing the temperature of solids, the kinetic energy of particles increases
  2. B.The maximum temperature at which a solid melts to become a liquid at atmospheric pressure is called its melting point
  3. C.Particles of steam have more energy than water at 100°C
  4. D.Direct change of gas to solid is called deposition
Show answer
Correct answer: B. The maximum temperature at which a solid melts to become a liquid at atmospheric pressure is called its melting point

The melting point is the minimum temperature at which a solid melts to become a liquid at atmospheric pressure, not the maximum.

Q542.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2018, Paper IMedium

If the amplitude of oscillation of a simple pendulum is very small, then its time period of oscillation 1. depends on the length of the pendulum, L 2. depends on the acceleration due to gravity, g 3. depends upon the mass of the bob of the pendulum, m 4. does not depend upon the amplitude of the pendulum, A Select the correct answer using the code given below.

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

For small swings the time period is T = 2π√(L/g), which contains the length and gravity but neither the mass nor the amplitude.

Q543.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2019, Paper IEasy

The increase in length of stems and roots in plants is due to

  1. A.lateral meristem
  2. B.intercalary meristem
  3. C.apical meristem
  4. D.secondary growth
Show answer
Correct answer: C. apical meristem

Apical meristem sits at the growing tips of stems and roots, and its dividing cells make them longer. Meristems are groups of cells that keep dividing throughout a plant's life.

Q544.Environment & EcologyAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2020, Paper IMedium

Which one of the following is NOT a component of photochemical smog ?

  1. A.Ozone
  2. B.Peroxyacetyl nitrate
  3. C.Polyaromatic hydrocarbons
  4. D.Nitric oxide
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Polyaromatic hydrocarbons

Polyaromatic hydrocarbons are soot-related pollutants from incomplete burning; they are not among the gases that make up photochemical smog. Photochemical smog forms on warm, sunny days in cities with heavy traffic.

Q546.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2025, Paper IHard

Arrange the following military operations undertaken by India against Pakistan in correct chronological order : 1. Operation Cactus Lily 2. Operation Riddle 3. Operation Meghdoot 4. Operation Safed Sagar Select the answer using the code given below.

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

The operations fall in 1965, 1971, 1984 and 1999, in that order: Riddle, Cactus Lily, Meghdoot, Safed Sagar. Operation Riddle was the Indian Army's thrust towards Lahore in September 1965, during the second India–Pakistan war.

Q547.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2018, Paper IMedium

Which one of the following statements about transport mechanism in plants is correct?

  1. A.Diffusion of ions and small molecules across cell membrane requires energy.
  2. B.Active transport of ions and small molecules across cell membrane against concentration gradient requires energy.
  3. C.Cells conserve energy and no energy is required for transport of ions and small molecules against concentration gradient.
  4. D.Cells do not transport ions across their membrane as these are charged molecules.
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Active transport of ions and small molecules across cell membrane against concentration gradient requires energy.

Moving a substance from low to high concentration is uphill work, and the cell pays for it with ATP.

Q551.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2023, Paper IHard

Consider the following redox reaction : 2Cu2O (s) + Cu2S (s) → 6Cu (s) + SO2 (g) Identify the species among the following acting as oxidant and reductant, respectively :

  1. A.Cu(I) and S of Cu2S
  2. B.Cu and S of SO2
  3. C.Cu and O of SO2
  4. D.Cu(I) and O of SO2
Show answer
Correct answer: A. Cu(I) and S of Cu2S

Copper in the +1 state is reduced to metal, so it is the oxidant; sulphur of Cu2S is oxidised, so it is the reductant.

Q552.GeographyAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2024, Paper IEasy

Which one of the following statements about the solstices, an event that occurs when the Sun appears to reach most northerly or southerly, is correct?

  1. A.The winter solstice takes place on June 21 in both the northern and southern hemispheres
  2. B.The winter solstice takes place on December 21 in both the northern and southern hemispheres
  3. C.The summer solstice occurs in northern hemisphere on June 21 and on December 21 in southern hemisphere
  4. D.The summer solstice occurs in northern hemisphere on December 21 and on June 21 in southern hemisphere
Show answer
Correct answer: C. The summer solstice occurs in northern hemisphere on June 21 and on December 21 in southern hemisphere

The two hemispheres always have opposite seasons, so one hemisphere's summer solstice is the other's winter solstice. On about 21 June the Sun is overhead at the Tropic of Cancer; the northern hemisphere has its longest day and summer begins there, while the southern hemisphere has its shortest day.

Q553.Uttar PradeshAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2025, Paper IMedium

The Ghatampur Thermal Power Project is located at

  1. A.Bihar
  2. B.Uttar Pradesh
  3. C.Madhya Pradesh
  4. D.Gujarat
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Uttar Pradesh

The Ghatampur Thermal Power Project stands at Ghatampur in Kanpur Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh. It is a coal-based plant of three units of 660 MW each, built by Neyveli Uttar Pradesh Power Limited, a joint venture of NLC India Limited and the Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam.

Q554.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2018, Paper IEasy

Which one of the following statements about proteins in mammalian cells is correct?

  1. A.Proteins in mammalian cells are synthesized in cell membrane.
  2. B.Proteins in mammalian cells are not synthesized in cell membrane but directly absorbed from food.
  3. C.Proteins in mammalian cells are synthesized in rough endoplasmic reticulum.
  4. D.Proteins in mammalian cells are synthesized in Golgi apparatus.
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Proteins in mammalian cells are synthesized in rough endoplasmic reticulum.

The RER is studded with ribosomes, the actual sites where amino acids are joined into proteins. Ribosomes read the message carried by mRNA and link amino acids in the right order.

Q555.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2019, Paper IEasy

Which one of the following will happen if the medium surrounding the cell has a higher concentration than the cell ?

  1. A.The cell will gain water
  2. B.The cell will die
  3. C.There will be no change
  4. D.The cell will lose water
Show answer
Correct answer: D. The cell will lose water

A medium more concentrated than the cell is hypertonic, so water leaves the cell by osmosis. In osmosis water moves across a selectively permeable membrane from the side with fewer dissolved particles to the side with more.

Q556.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2021, Paper IEasy

Which one of the following plant tissues has large air spaces?

  1. A.Sclerenchyma
  2. B.Meristem
  3. C.Collenchyma
  4. D.Aerenchyma
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Aerenchyma

Aerenchyma is a kind of parenchyma whose cells enclose large air-filled spaces. These air cavities keep aquatic plants such as water hyacinth, lotus and Hydrilla afloat and let oxygen move down to roots and stems that sit in waterlogged soil or under water.

Q557.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2023, Paper IMedium

Pure, demineralized water, free from all soluble mineral salts is obtained by which of the following method?

  1. A.Passing water through microfiltration membrane
  2. B.Calgon's method
  3. C.Passing water through a cation exchange and an anion exchange resin bed
  4. D.By boiling
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Passing water through a cation exchange and an anion exchange resin bed

Together the two resins take out every dissolved ion, which leaves demineralised water. In the cation exchange resin (written RH), metal ions such as Ca2+, Mg2+ and Na+ are swapped for H+ ions.

Q560.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2019, Paper IEasy

Which one of the following statements is correct ?

  1. A.Bacteria contain cytoplasm but viruses do not
  2. B.Bacteria contain mitochondria but viruses do not
  3. C.Viruses contain mitochondria but bacteria do not
  4. D.Viruses have a cell membrane but bacteria do not
Show answer
Correct answer: A. Bacteria contain cytoplasm but viruses do not

A bacterium is a living cell filled with cytoplasm, while a virus is only genetic material inside a protein coat.

All UPSC previous year questions