Skip to content
GK24
Prime

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

Q5023.NationalMedium

Under which law were the ganja consignment and the truck carrying it seized?

  1. A.Customs Act, 1962
  2. B.Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985
  3. C.Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003
  4. D.Explosives Act, 1884
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985

Ganja is a narcotic drug, so the 591.3 kg recovered in Uttar Pradesh and the truck in which it travelled were both seized under that statute, which governs narcotic and psychotropic offences in India and allows the conveyance used in the crime to be taken as well.

Q5024.NationalMedium

Through which border crossing was the seized ganja consignment expected to enter Uttar Pradesh?

  1. A.Raxaul
  2. B.Sonauli
  3. C.Jogbani
  4. D.Banbasa
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Sonauli

The intelligence that set off the operation said the truck carrying ganja from Nepal would come into Uttar Pradesh through Sonauli, so officers of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence at Gorakhpur built their surveillance around that crossing, helped by teams at Lucknow, Patna and Varanasi.

Q5029.GeographyAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2019, Paper IMedium

Doldrum are

1. equatorial calms

2. calm and light winds

3. roaring forties

4. variable both in position and in extent

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

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

The doldrums are the equatorial belt of calm and light, variable winds, and the belt shifts with the seasons; they have nothing to do with the roaring forties.

Q5032.Indian EconomyAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2024, Paper IHard

Consider the following statements:

1. Burden of a tax on a commodity is independent of who (buyer or seller) it is explicitly imposed upon

2. Burden of a tax on a commodity depends on the slope of the demand and supply curves

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  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

Who finally bears a tax (its incidence) is decided by the market, through the elasticities of demand and supply, not by the law that says who must pay it.

Q5033.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2018, Paper IHard

Which one of the following groups belongs to the same school of thought?

  1. A.J. J. Rousseau, M. Robespierre, N. Bonaparte, O. Cromwell
  2. B.T. Jefferson, J. Madison, G. Washington, Abraham Lincoln
  3. C.F. Engels, K. Marx, M. Bakunin, J. S. Mill
  4. D.Georgi Plekhanov, Vera Zasulich, Alexandra Kollontai, V. I. Lenin
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Georgi Plekhanov, Vera Zasulich, Alexandra Kollontai, V. I. Lenin

All four were Russian Marxists, so they belong to one school of thought. Plekhanov is called the father of Russian Marxism; in 1883 he founded the Emancipation of Labour group in Geneva with Vera Zasulich, who had begun as a populist revolutionary.

Q5035.Environment & EcologyAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2017, Paper IMedium

Which of the following are the necessary conditions for the growth of coral reefs?

1. Photic conditions

2. Clean and sediment free water

3. Sea salinity of 6%

4. Tropical sea water with temperature of 20°C to 21°C

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

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

Corals need sunlit, clean, warm tropical water, but a salinity of 6% is far too high for them, so statement 3 is wrong.

Q5036.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2020, Paper IMedium

On which one of the following conditions, did the Marathas agree to serve the Mughal king with a cavalry contingent of 15,000 in the early 18th century?

  1. A.Grant of the jagir of Malwa province
  2. B.Control of the resources of Gujarat
  3. C.The right to levy chauth and sardeshmukhi in the Deccan and South India
  4. D.The right to mint coins in their own name
Show answer
Correct answer: C. The right to levy chauth and sardeshmukhi in the Deccan and South India

This was the heart of the 1719 agreement between Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath and the Mughal court. In 1718 Balaji Vishwanath, the first great Peshwa of Shahu, made a deal with the Sayyid brothers, the king-makers at Delhi.

Q5037.Indian EconomyAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2023, Paper IHard

Which of the following is/are not correct about the Mother's Absolute Affection Programme?

1. Allows all pregnant women to absolutely free and no-expense delivery in public health institutions.

2. Provides assured, comprehensive and quality antenatal care.

3. Promotes undiluted focus on breastfeeding.

4. Provides medical and nutritional care to severely acute malnourished children.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

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

The MAA (Mothers' Absolute Affection) programme is only about breastfeeding, so statement 3 is the one correct statement and 1, 2 and 4 are not.

Q5038.Environment & EcologyAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2026, Paper IMedium

Which one of the following Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) talks about protecting and restoring terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably managing forests, combating desertification, halting and reversing land degradation and stopping biodiversity loss?

  1. A.SDG 5
  2. B.SDG 13
  3. C.SDG 15
  4. D.SDG 16
Show answer
Correct answer: C. SDG 15

SDG 15, "Life on Land", covers terrestrial ecosystems, forests, desertification, land degradation and biodiversity loss. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 2015 as part of the 2030 Agenda, replacing the eight Millennium Development Goals.

Q5039.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2017, Paper IMedium

Which one of the following statements about land tenure system is NOT correct?

  1. A.During the British rule in India three categories of land tenure system, viz. Zamindari, Mahalwari and Ryotwari were introduced
  2. B.Under Zamindari system, land was held by one person or at the most by a few joint owners who were responsible for the payment of land revenue
  3. C.Under the Mahalwari system, the agricultural lands belonged to the Government
  4. D.Under Ryotwari system, the individual holders had the permanent rights over land and were directly responsible for payment of land revenue
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Under the Mahalwari system, the agricultural lands belonged to the Government

Under the Mahalwari system the land belonged to the village community (the mahal), which was jointly responsible for the revenue; it did not belong to the Government.

Q5040.Environment & EcologyAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2023, Paper IEasy

'Basel Convention', 'Rotterdam Convention' and 'Stockholm Convention' relate to which of the following?

  1. A.Human Rights of Prisoners
  2. B.Management of Pollutants
  3. C.Conservation of Wetlands
  4. D.Conservation of Rivers
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Management of Pollutants

All three treaties deal with hazardous chemicals and wastes, and they share a joint secretariat under UNEP. The Basel Convention (1989) controls the movement of hazardous wastes across borders and their disposal, mainly to stop rich countries dumping waste in poorer ones.