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UPSC Civil Services GK Questions 2026

Static general knowledge is six of the seven lines of the General Studies Paper-I syllabus in the UPSC CSE notice: History of India and the Indian National Movement; Indian and World Geography; Indian Polity and Governance; Economic and Social Development; Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change; and General Science. The Commission tests understanding rather than recall, through statements to be judged correct or incorrect, pairs to be matched and assertion-reason items, and it likes the edges of a topic: a lesser-known provision of the Constitution, a river's tributary, a species' conservation status, the mandate of a statutory body. This page holds GK24's topic-wise GK notes for UPSC, written as short facts and tables, in English and Hindi, with each note linked to the current affairs and previous-year questions on the same topic. Start with Polity and Modern History, which carry the most questions, then Geography, the Economy, Environment, Ancient and Medieval culture and Science. Read a note, solve its PYQs, take its quiz, and come back to it in your monthly revision. A candidate who knows these notes and reads the daily current affairs has covered the syllabus the notice prescribes for Paper-I.

UPSC Civil Services GK Questions with Answers

Q2264.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2021, GKEasy

The Government wants to prepare a plan for drought prone areas of the country. Which one of the following regions will be predominantly focused?

  1. A.Coastal Andhra Pradesh
  2. B.Ganga plains
  3. C.North-eastern region
  4. D.Kutch region
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Kutch region

The Kutch region of Gujarat is one of the driest parts of India, with low and highly uncertain rainfall, often below 40 cm a year, and failures of the monsoon in many years.

Q2266.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2022, GKHard

The Indian desert also known as Marusthali is believed to be under the sea during which one of the following eras?

  1. A.Cenozoic era
  2. B.Palaeozoic era
  3. C.Mesozoic era
  4. D.Archaean and Pre-Cambrian era
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Mesozoic era

The Great Indian Desert, or Marusthali, lies to the north-west of the Aravalli hills in western Rajasthan. It is believed that during the Mesozoic era, the age of the dinosaurs some 250 to 66 million years ago, this region lay under the sea.

Q2267.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2023, GKHard

Which of the following dynasties of South India issued their documents first in Prakrit and later in Sanskrit ?

  1. A.The Cholas of Tamil Nadu
  2. B.The Pandyas of the post-Sangam Age
  3. C.The Pallavas of Tondaimandalam
  4. D.The Gangas of Kalinganagara
Show answer
Correct answer: C. The Pallavas of Tondaimandalam

The Pallavas, who ruled the Tondaimandalam region around Kanchipuram, issued their earliest copper-plate grants, such as the Mayidavolu and Hirahadagalli plates of Shivaskandavarman, in Prakrit.

Q2268.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2024, GKMedium

Consider the following statements : 1. Ocean currents are dominated by huge surface gyres that are driven by the global surface wind pattern. 2. Equatorial currents move cold water westward and then poleward along the east coasts of continents. With regard to the statements given above, which of the following is correct ?

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

The surface circulation of the oceans is organised into huge, roughly circular loops called gyres, one in each major ocean basin.

Q2270.Static GKAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2026, GKMedium

Consider the following statements about the position of the Chief of Defence Staff : 1. He is the Head of the Department of Military Affairs within the Ministry of Defence. 2. He is the Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. 3. He does not exercise any military command over the three Service Chiefs. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A.1 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

The post of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) was created in December 2019 on the advice of the Kargil Review Committee and later expert groups, and the first CDS took office on 1 January 2020.

Q2272.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2017, GKEasy

Tsunami waves are the undersea occurrence of earthquake exceeding 7.5 on Richter scale. Which one of the following statements regarding this is not correct?

  1. A.It often generates strong waves.
  2. B.The Pacific coasts are most vulnerable to Tsunami waves.
  3. C.Tsunami waves are also called high-energy tidal waves or seismic sea waves.
  4. D.Tsunami is a Latin word.
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Tsunami is a Latin word.

The statement is not correct because tsunami is a Japanese word, from tsu (harbour) and nami (wave), meaning a harbour wave.

Q2274.GeographyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2018, GKHard

Which one of the following is the correct ascending sequence of States with regard to percentage of urban population (2011)?

  1. A.Tamil Nadu—Mizoram—Goa—Maharashtra
  2. B.Goa—Mizoram—Maharashtra—Kerala
  3. C.Maharashtra—Kerala—Mizoram—Goa
  4. D.Mizoram—Goa—Maharashtra—Kerala
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Maharashtra—Kerala—Mizoram—Goa

According to Census 2011, the share of people living in urban areas was about 45.2 per cent in Maharashtra, 47.7 per cent in Kerala, 52.1 per cent in Mizoram and 62.2 per cent in Goa, so this order runs from lowest to highest.

Q2276.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2019, GKHard

Statement I : The Oudh Kisan Sabha established in 1920 failed to bring under its wing any Kisan Sabhas. Statement II : The Oudh Kisan Sabha asked the Kisans to refuse to till bedakhli land, not to offer hari and begar.

  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

The Oudh Kisan Sabha was set up in October 1920 at Pratapgarh by Baba Ramchandra, Gauri Shankar Misra, Jawaharlal Nehru and others, to unite the tenants of Awadh against high rents, illegal cesses and eviction by taluqdars.

Q2277.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2020, GKMedium

The 'Tattvabodhini Sabha' was established by

  1. A.Devendranath Tagore in 1839
  2. B.Keshab Chandra Sen in 1857
  3. C.Akshay Kumar Datta in 1850
  4. D.Dwarakanath Tagore in 1840
Show answer
Correct answer: A. Devendranath Tagore in 1839

Debendranath (Devendranath) Tagore founded the Tattvabodhini Sabha in Calcutta in 1839 to spread the monotheistic ideas of Raja Rammohan Roy and the study of the Upanishads.