CSAT (Paper II): previous-year questions
1280 real UPSC Prelims questions (2011–2026) with the official answer and a clear explanation. 400 of them came in the last five papers.
How often UPSC asks this
Questions per year, counted from the official papers.
Subtopics
Arrangements, ranking, ordering and puzzles
142 questions
Clocks and calendars
5 questions
Coding-decoding, series, patterns, cubes, dice and visual reasoning
110 questions
Communication, interpersonal skills and decision-making
10 questions
Counting, permutations, combinations and probability
1 questions
Directions, blood relations and Venn diagrams
60 questions
General English: grammar, vocabulary and comprehension
20 questions
General Hindi: grammar, vocabulary, dialects and comprehension
25 questions
Geometry and mensuration
26 questions
Number system and basic algebra (divisibility, HCF/LCM, remainders, digits, equations)
196 questions
Percentages, profit and loss, discount, simple and compound interest
47 questions
Ratio, proportion, averages, mixtures and alligation
47 questions
Syllogisms, statements and conclusions, assumptions and arguments
89 questions
Time and work; pipes and cisterns
2 questions
Time, speed and distance; trains, boats and streams; races
48 questions
Attempt the questions
Newest papers first. Tap an option; the answer and the reason appear instantly.
Read the passage
There has been no democracy that has grown economically without corporate capitalism. It helps in modernizing the economy and enabling the transition from rural to urban, and agriculture to industry and services, which are inevitable with growth. It generates jobs - and there is no other way to fix a country’s unemployment challenge without a further impetus to private business. Big companies can operate on a large scale and become competitive both domestically and externally. A vibrant corporate capitalist base also leads to additional revenues for the State - which in turn, can be used for greater welfare for the marginalized and creating a more level playing field in terms of opportunities.
Which one of the following statements best reflects the critical message conveyed by the author of the passage?
Answer (a) & explanation
The critical message is that corporate capitalism matters for economic growth and also for democracy (a). Step 1: the passage opens: "no democracy has grown economically without corporate capitalism." Step 2: it lists benefits: modernisation, jobs, global competitiveness, and revenue for welfare and a level playing field. So it supports both growth and democratic goals: (a). Step 3: option (b), political objectives, is not the focus. Option (c) widens the claim to "no State", though the passage speaks of democracies. Option (d) invents a two-way mutual dependence.
Tip: match the scope of the passage exactly. If it talks about democracies, reject options that talk about all States.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
What comes at X and Y respectively in the following sequence?
January, January, December, October, X, March, October, Y, September
Answer (b) & explanation
X is July and Y is April (b). Step 1: write the months as numbers: 1, 1, 12, 10, X, 3, 10, Y, 9. Step 2: each step goes back by one more month than before: back 0 (Jan to Jan), back 1 (Jan to Dec), back 2 (Dec to Oct), back 3 (Oct to July, X = 7), back 4 (July to March) ✓. Step 3: continue: back 5 (March to October) ✓, back 6 (October to April, Y = 4), back 7 (April to September) ✓. Options (a), (c) and (d) break the pattern.
Tip: turn months or letters into numbers, and count around the circle (after 1 comes 12). Then look for steps that grow by one each time.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
If N2 = 12345678987654321, then how many digits does the number N have?
Answer (b) & explanation
N has 9 digits (b). Step 1: recall the pattern: 11² = 121, 111² = 12321, 1111² = 1234321, and so on. The square rises to the number of 1s, then falls. Step 2: 12345678987654321 rises to 9, so N = 111111111, which has 9 digits. Step 3: quick check: the square has 17 digits. A number with d digits has a square of 2d − 1 or 2d digits, so d = 9. Options (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Tip: learn this palindrome pattern of repunits (numbers made of 1s). It works up to nine 1s; after that, carries spoil it.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
Trust stands commonly defined as being vulnerable to others. Entrepreneurship implies trust in others and willingness to expose oneself to betrayal. Trust in expert systems is the essence of globalizing behaviour; trust itself emerges as a super-commodity in the social market and defines the characteristics of goods and services in a global market. Trusting conduct also means holding others in good esteem, and an optimism that they are, or will be, competent in certain respects.
Which one of the following statements best reflects the crux of the passage?
Answer (d) & explanation
The crux is that trust is important even though it carries risk (d). Step 1: the passage defines trust as "being vulnerable to others", and says entrepreneurship means a "willingness to expose oneself to betrayal". That is the risk. Step 2: it also calls trust "a super-commodity" and "the essence of globalizing behaviour". That is the importance. Both together give (d). Step 3: option (a) says trust cannot be expected in entrepreneurship, the opposite. Option (b) mixes up those who trust with those who are trustworthy. Option (c) says "no economic activity", too sweeping.
Tip: a good crux often joins two sides: "important but risky". Watch for word swaps like trusting versus trustworthy.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements:
- I. If A ≤ B > C < D > E > F ≥ G = H; then B is always greater than E.
- II. If P > Q = R ≥ S = T ≤ U = V > W; then S is always less than V.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer (d) & explanation
Neither statement is correct (d). Step 1: statement I: A ≤ B > C < D > E. The chain breaks at B > C < D: B and D are not linked, so B and E cannot be compared. B need not be greater than E. Step 2: statement II: S = T ≤ U = V gives S ≤ V. S could be equal to V, so "always less than V" fails. Step 3: both claims are not guaranteed. Options (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Tip: a conclusion holds only if all signs between the two letters point the same way. A "≤" in the chain means the result can be "equal", so "always less" is wrong.
a chain proves something only if every sign between the two letters points the same way.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
It is hard to predict how changes in the climate and the atmosphere’s chemistry will affect the prevalence and virulence of agricultural diseases. But there is a risk that such changes will make some plant infections more common in all climatic zones, perhaps catastrophically so. Part of the problem is that centuries of selective breeding have refined the genomes of most high-value crops. They are spectacular at growing in today’s conditions but genetic variations that are not immediately useful to them have been bred out. This is good for yields but bad for coping with changes. A minor disease or even an unknown one could suddenly rampage through a genetically honed crop.
Which one of the following statements best reflects the central idea conveyed by the passage?
Answer (b) & explanation
The central idea is that relying fully on genetically honed crops risks food insecurity (b). Step 1: the passage says selective breeding has made crops great at growing today, but has bred out genetic variety. Step 2: so they cope badly with change: "a minor disease or even an unknown one could suddenly rampage through a genetically honed crop". That threatens food supply: (b). Step 3: option (a) talks about productivity, but the passage is about disease risk. Option (c) is vague. Option (d), replacing crops with wild varieties, is an extreme remedy the passage never suggests.
Tip: genetic uniformity is a known danger: the Irish potato famine (1840s) wiped out a crop with little variety. Seed banks protect crop diversity.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the sequence AB_CC_A_BCCC_BBC_C that follows a certain pattern. Which one of the following completes the sequence?
Answer (c) & explanation
The blanks are B, C, B, A, C (c). Step 1: put option (c) into the five gaps: ABBCCCABBCCCABBCCC. Step 2: it reads ABBCCC ABBCCC ABBCCC: one A, two Bs and three Cs, repeated three times. A clear pattern. Step 3: the other options do not give a repeating block. For example, (a) puts A in the last gap, breaking the CCC at the end. So (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Tip: in letter-gap series, first count the total letters (here 18) and try block sizes that divide it. Then test options quickly rather than solving from scratch.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
There has been no democracy that has grown economically without corporate capitalism. It helps in modernizing the economy and enabling the transition from rural to urban, and agriculture to industry and services, which are inevitable with growth. It generates jobs - and there is no other way to fix a country’s unemployment challenge without a further impetus to private business. Big companies can operate on a large scale and become competitive both domestically and externally. A vibrant corporate capitalist base also leads to additional revenues for the State - which in turn, can be used for greater welfare for the marginalized and creating a more level playing field in terms of opportunities.
With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made:
- I. Corporate capitalism promotes the growth of labour force and provides more employment opportunities.
- II. Poor and marginalized sections of population are benefited by corporate capitalism due to trickle-down effect.
Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?
Answer (c) & explanation
Both assumptions are valid (c). Step 1: the passage says corporate capitalism "generates jobs", and that there is no other way to fix unemployment without private business. So it expands employment (I). Step 2: it adds that a strong corporate base brings extra revenue to the State, which can fund "greater welfare for the marginalized". So the poor benefit as gains flow down (II). Step 3: both follow from the text, so options (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Tip: "trickle-down" means benefits at the top reaching the poor over time, here through taxes funding welfare. Check that each assumption has a matching line in the passage.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Team X scored a total of N runs in 20 overs. Team Y tied the score in 10% less overs. Had team Y's average run rate (runs per over) been 50% higher, the scores would have been tied in 12 overs. How many runs were scored by team X?
Answer (d) & explanation
Team X's runs cannot be determined (d). Step 1: Y tied the score in 10% fewer overs: 18 overs. So Y's run rate = N/18. Step 2: 50% higher rate = 1.5 × N/18 = N/12. At that rate, N runs take N ÷ (N/12) = 12 overs, whatever N is. Step 3: so the second fact is automatically true and gives no new information. N can be any number. Options (a) 72, (b) 144 and (c) 216 all fit equally well.
Tip: if a "condition" turns out to be true for every value, it adds no information. Check whether each fact gives a new equation before solving.
a condition that is always true adds no information. Test it before you start solving.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
Over the next 30 years, many countries are promising to move to net-zero carbon, implying that household emissions will have to be cut to close to nothing. A leading climate scientist reckons that, at best, half the reduction might be achieved through demand-side measures, such as behavioural changes by individuals and households. And even that would require companies and governments to provide more incentives to change through supply-side investments to make low-carbon options cheaper and more widely available.
Which one of the following statements best reflects the central idea conveyed by the passage?
Answer (b) & explanation
The central idea is that low-carbon behaviour can be encouraged through incentives (b). Step 1: the passage says household emissions must fall almost to zero, and at best half can come from changes in people's behaviour. Step 2: even that needs "companies and governments to provide more incentives to change", by making low-carbon options cheaper and widely available. That is (b). Step 3: option (a) says net zero is possible "only" through households, too strong. Option (c) reverses the logic: investment makes low-carbon options cheaper, not the other way. Option (d), subsidies to industry, is not stated.
Tip: look for the "even that would require..." line; it often holds the key. India's Mission LiFE (2022) promotes such climate-friendly lifestyles.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
A question is given followed by two Statements I and II. Consider the Question and the Statements and mark the correct option.
Question: In a football match, team P playing against Q was behind by 3 goals with 10 minutes remaining. Does team P win the match?
Statement I: Team P scored 4 goals in the last 10 minutes.
Statement II: Team Q scored a total of 4 goals in the match.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above Question and the Statements?
Answer (d) & explanation
Even both statements together are not enough (d). Step 1: with 10 minutes left, P was 3 goals behind. Statement I: P scored 4 more goals. Statement II: Q finished with 4 goals in all. Step 2: Q's score with 10 minutes left could be 3 or 4 (it may or may not have scored again). If Q had 4 then, P had 1, ends with 5: P wins 5–4. If Q had 3 then and scored one more, P had 0, ends with 4: a 4–4 draw. Step 3: both cases fit all the facts, so we cannot say whether P won. Options (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Tip: when one team's late goals are unknown, test the extreme cases. If they give different results, the data is insufficient.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
What is the unit digit in the multiplication of 1 × 3 × 5 × 7 × 9 × . . . × 999?
Answer (c) & explanation
The unit digit is 5 (c). Step 1: the product 1 × 3 × 5 × … × 999 has only odd numbers, and one of them is 5. Step 2: any odd number × 5 ends in 5 (for example 3 × 5 = 15, 7 × 5 = 35). Step 3: to end in 0, the product would need a factor 2, and there is none. So the unit digit stays 5. Options (a), (b) and (d) are wrong.
Tip: odd × 5 always ends in 5; even × 5 always ends in 0. Check for 2s and 5s first in unit-digit questions; they decide the answer quickly.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
It is hard to predict how changes in the climate and the atmosphere’s chemistry will affect the prevalence and virulence of agricultural diseases. But there is a risk that such changes will make some plant infections more common in all climatic zones, perhaps catastrophically so. Part of the problem is that centuries of selective breeding have refined the genomes of most high-value crops. They are spectacular at growing in today’s conditions but genetic variations that are not immediately useful to them have been bred out. This is good for yields but bad for coping with changes. A minor disease or even an unknown one could suddenly rampage through a genetically honed crop.
With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made
- I. Global climate change can result in the migration of several plant diseases to new areas.
- II. Scientific understanding of the wild relatives of our present crops would enable us to strengthen food security.
Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?
Answer (c) & explanation
Both assumptions are valid (c). Step 1: the passage says climate change may make plant infections "more common in all climatic zones". So diseases can spread to new areas (I). Step 2: it says useful genetic variety has been bred out of modern crops. That variety still exists in wild relatives of crops, so studying them can help breed hardier crops and protect food security (II). Step 3: both fit the passage's argument. Options (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Tip: wild relatives of crops carry genes for disease and drought resistance. India's National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources in New Delhi runs one of the world's largest gene banks.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
In our country, regrettably, teaching and learning for the examination have been our forte but the new demands of society and the future of work require critical and independent thinking, learning through doing, asking questions from multiple disciplinary perspectives on the same issue, using evidence for building arguments, and reflecting and articulation. Higher education should not “either be a mere servant of the government policy or a passive respondent to public mood.” Higher learning is all about how to think rather than what to think. Teaching has to be re-invented.
Which one of the following statements best reflects the central idea conveyed by the passage?
Answer (d) & explanation
The central idea is that the classroom must be reimagined and teaching re-invented (d). Step 1: the passage says Indian education has focused on exams, but society now needs critical thinking, learning by doing, questioning and evidence-based argument. Step 2: it ends: higher learning is about "how to think rather than what to think. Teaching has to be re-invented." That is (d). Step 3: option (a), lack of resources, is never discussed. Option (b) misreads "not a mere servant of government policy" as "no government control". Option (c), doing away with classrooms, is extreme; the author wants them changed, not removed.
Tip: the last line often states the central idea. The National Education Policy 2020 also stresses critical thinking over rote learning.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
“A network of voluntary associations stands as a ‘buffer’ between the relatively powerless individual and the potentially powerful State.”
Which one of the following statements reflects the best explanation of the above passage?
Answer (c) & explanation
The best explanation is that associations take individuals out of isolation and let them join common efforts (c). Step 1: the passage calls voluntary associations a "buffer" between the "relatively powerless individual" and the "potentially powerful State". Step 2: alone, a person is weak. By joining groups, people act together and gain a voice. That is (c). Step 3: option (a) says the State cannot enforce its will, but the passage calls the State powerful, so (a) reverses it. Options (b) and (d) describe other features of associations, not the buffer idea.
Tip: unpack the metaphor ("buffer") first. Civil society groups like unions, NGOs and cooperatives play this role; Article 19(1)(c) protects the right to form associations.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The price (p) of a commodity is first increased by k%; then decreased by k%; again increased by k%; and again decreased by k%. If the new price is q, then what is the relation between p and q?
Answer (a) & explanation
1. Put k = 0. Then the price never changes, so q = p. Check each option: (a) gives p × 10⁸ = q × 10⁸, so p = q. Works. (c) also gives p = q. (b) and (d) fail.
2. To choose between (a) and (c): each "up k%, then down k%" round multiplies the price by (10⁴ − k²) ÷ 10⁴. Example: up 10% and down 10% turns 100 into 99, and (10000 − 100) ÷ 10000 = 0·99.
3. There are two such rounds, so the bracket comes twice (squared) and 10⁴ comes twice (10⁸).
4. Answer: (a).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
Over the next 30 years, many countries are promising to move to net-zero carbon, implying that household emissions will have to be cut to close to nothing. A leading climate scientist reckons that, at best, half the reduction might be achieved through demand-side measures, such as behavioural changes by individuals and households. And even that would require companies and governments to provide more incentives to change through supply-side investments to make low-carbon options cheaper and more widely available.
With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made:
- I. Supply-side investments in companies can result in low-carbon behaviour in people.
- II. People are not capable of adapting low-carbon behaviour without the involvement Government and Companies.
Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?
Answer (a) & explanation
Only assumption I is valid (a). Step 1: the passage says supply-side investments make low-carbon options "cheaper and more widely available", which encourages people to change. So such investments can lead to low-carbon behaviour (I). Step 2: assumption II says people are "not capable" of changing without government and companies. The passage only says incentives help; it never says people cannot change on their own. Step 3: "not capable" overstates it. Options (b), (c) and (d) fail.
Tip: "needs help to do more" is not the same as "cannot do at all". Strong words like "not capable" or "impossible" usually make an assumption invalid.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
A question is given followed by two Statements I and II. Consider the Question and the Statements and mark the correct option.
Question: Is (p + q)2 − 4pq, where p, q are natural numbers, positive?
Statement I: p < q.
Statement II: p > q.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above Question and the Statements?
Answer (b) & explanation
Either statement alone is enough (b). Step 1: simplify: (p + q)² − 4pq = p² + 2pq + q² − 4pq = (p − q)². Step 2: a square is positive whenever p and q are different, and zero only when p = q. Step 3: statement I (p < q) and statement II (p > q) each say p ≠ q. So each alone answers "yes, it is positive". Options (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Tip: always simplify the expression before reading the statements. (p + q)² − 4pq = (p − q)² is a standard identity worth remembering.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
One of the dismal realities of the agricultural sector in independent India has been that it never experienced a high-growth phase, unlike the non-agricultural economy. The highest decadal growth (compound annual growth rate or CAGR) for agriculture has been just 3·5% in the 1980s. Also, after experiencing a spurt in decadal growth during the 1980s, agricultural growth suffered relative stagnation thereafter. This is in sharp contrast to non-agricultural growth, which consistently increased from the 1980s to 2000s.
Which one of the following statements best reflects the corollary to the above passage?
Answer (a) & explanation
The corollary is that reform benefits reach agriculture more slowly than other sectors (a). Step 1: a corollary is something that follows naturally from the passage. Step 2: the passage says farm growth peaked at 3.5% in the 1980s and then stagnated, while non-farm growth rose steadily from the 1980s to the 2000s, the reform era. So the gains of reform reached farming more slowly: (a). Step 3: options (b) the Green Revolution, (c) mechanisation and (d) migration are not discussed at all.
Tip: a corollary stays close to the passage's facts. India's economic reforms began in 1991; agriculture still employs over 40% of workers but gives a much smaller share of GDP.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
“A good statesman, like any other sensible human being, learns more from his opponents than from his fervent supporters. For his supporters will push him to disaster unless his opponents show him where the dangers are. So if he is wise he will often pray to be delivered from his friends, because they will ruin him. But, though it hurts, he ought also to pray never to be left without opponents; for they keep him on the path of reason and good sense. The national unity of free people depends upon a sufficiently even balance of political power to make it impracticable for the administration to be arbitrary and for opposition to be revolutionary and irreconcilable.”
Which one of the following statements best reflects the critical message conveyed by the author of the passage?
Answer (d) & explanation
The message is that opposition is indispensable for balance of power and good governance in a democracy (d). Step 1: the passage says a statesman learns more from opponents than from supporters, because opponents "keep him on the path of reason and good sense". Step 2: it ends: free people's unity needs "a sufficiently even balance of political power". So opposition is essential: (d). Step 3: option (a) says government improves without opposition, the opposite. Option (b) wants revolutionary opposition; the passage warns against that. Option (c) says rulers need opposition's support, a misreading.
Tip: the last sentence often holds the political message. In India, the Leader of the Opposition holds an official, recognised role in Parliament.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.