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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

Q13781.DefenceMedium

Who led the surgical team at the Tangdhar mega eye camp?

  1. A.Air Marshal Sandeep Thareja
  2. B.General Dhiraj Seth
  3. C.Brigadier Sanjay Kumar Mishra
  4. D.Manoj Sinha
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Brigadier Sanjay Kumar Mishra

The correct answer is Brigadier Sanjay Kumar Mishra, Head of Ophthalmology at the Army Hospital (Research and Referral), Delhi Cantonment, whose team carried advanced phacoemulsification, vitreoretinal and glaucoma equipment across mountainous terrain to reach Tangdhar.

Q13784.DefenceMedium

MAHASAGAR, the maritime vision reflected in this mission, stands for which of the following?

  1. A.Maritime Advancement for Harbour, Security and Growth Across Regions
  2. B.Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions
  3. C.Mutual Assistance for Shipping, Growth and Regional Security
  4. D.Maritime Harmony and Security Growth Around Regions
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions

MAHASAGAR is the name given to India's maritime vision, and the QUAD-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission is described as an expression of it, alongside the Indian Coast Guard's own commitment to collective engagement and a secure maritime environment in the Indo-Pacific.

Q13785.DefenceMedium

How many Sea Riders embarked on the Indian Coast Guard ship for the QUAD-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission?

  1. A.Four
  2. B.Six
  3. C.Eight
  4. D.Ten
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Six

The officers who boarded the ship for the passage are called Sea Riders, and the split is worth memorising because a paper setter can ask about it directly: India and Japan contributed two officers each, while Australia and the United States contributed one officer each, which adds up to six…

Q13787.EconomyMedium

What is the Ways and Means Advances limit fixed by the RBI for the second half of FY 2026-27?

  1. A.Rs 30,000 crore
  2. B.Rs 40,000 crore
  3. C.Rs 60,000 crore
  4. D.Rs 50,000 crore
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Rs 50,000 crore

Ways and Means Advances is the facility through which the Reserve Bank of India lets the Centre bridge short-lived mismatches between money received and money paid out, and for the second half of FY 2026-27 the ceiling on this facility has been set at Rs 50,000 crore.

Q13789.EconomyEasy

How much does the Government of India plan to borrow from the market in the second half of FY 2026-27?

  1. A.Rs 6,86,000 crore
  2. B.Rs 7,86,000 crore
  3. C.Rs 8,86,000 crore
  4. D.Rs 9,86,000 crore
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Rs 7,86,000 crore

The Finance Ministry, after consulting the Reserve Bank of India, settled on this gross market borrowing figure for the closing half of FY 2026-27, and the whole sum is to be raised through 23 weekly auctions of dated securities.

Q13793.Indian HistoryAsked in: RRB Group D · 20 Sept 2018, Shift 3Easy

What does Triratna mean in Buddhism?

  1. A.Tripitaka
  2. B.Buddha, Dhamma (dharma), Sangha
  3. C.Satya, Ahimsa, Karuna
  4. D.Sheel, Samadhi, Sangha
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Buddha, Dhamma (dharma), Sangha

Triratna means the three jewels in which a Buddhist takes refuge. Buddha is the enlightened teacher, Dhamma is his teaching of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, and Sangha is the order of monks and nuns that carries the teaching forward.

Q13794.Indian HistoryAsked in: RRB Group D · 20 Sept 2018, Shift 3Easy

In which year did the Boston Tea Party take place?

  1. A.1773
  2. B.1776
  3. C.1775
  4. D.1774
Show answer
Correct answer: A. 1773

The Boston Tea Party took place on 16 December 1773, when American colonists threw British tea into Boston harbour. The protest was against the Tea Act of 1773, which let the East India Company sell tea in the colonies without paying the usual duties and undercut local merchants.

Q13798.Science & TechnologyMedium

According to the study, how does a black hole jet affect the gas around a galaxy?

  1. A.It cools the gas equally in all directions so that stars form faster
  2. B.It energises the gas only along its own direction and suppresses star formation
  3. C.It pulls the entire gas envelope into the black hole within a few years
  4. D.It has no measurable effect beyond the central region of the galaxy
Show answer
Correct answer: B. It energises the gas only along its own direction and suppresses star formation

When the team averaged their measurements over all directions around the galaxies they picked up no signal, but when they probed along the direction of the jet they found a strong one, which showed that the jet illuminates only the gas in its path.

Q13799.Science & TechnologyEasy

Which Indian institute, along with Arizona State University, carried out the study on black hole jets and star formation?

  1. A.Indian Institute of Astrophysics
  2. B.Raman Research Institute
  3. C.Physical Research Laboratory
  4. D.Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Raman Research Institute

The lead author of the paper, published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, is Namrata Roy, an assistant professor in the astronomy and astrophysics division of that institute, and a co-author quoted on the finding is Sanchayeeta Borthakur of the American university.

Q13800.Science & TechnologyMedium

The circumgalactic medium (CGM) referred to in the study is best described as

  1. A.The dense core of a galaxy where stars are packed together
  2. B.The faint envelope of gas surrounding a galaxy beyond its disc
  3. C.The ring of dust that forms the spiral arms of a galaxy
  4. D.The region inside the event horizon of a black hole
Show answer
Correct answer: B. The faint envelope of gas surrounding a galaxy beyond its disc

The study describes the circumgalactic medium as a diffuse, ghostly reservoir of gas that lies past the edge of the stellar disc and spreads out to between ten and twenty times the size of the galaxy, and this reservoir supplies the fuel from which stars are eventually made.