World geography and places in the news (mapping): previous-year questions
36 real UPSC Prelims questions (2011–2026) with the official answer and a clear explanation. 25 of them came in the last five papers.
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Questions per year, counted from the official papers.
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Ships from which of the following countries have to cross the Strait of Hormuz to reach out to the Indian Ocean ?
- 1. Bahrain
- 2. Syria
- 3. Qatar
- 4. Egypt
Select the answer using the code given below :
Answer (b) & explanation
Bahrain and Qatar must cross the Strait of Hormuz (b). The Strait of Hormuz, between Iran and Oman, is the only sea exit from the Persian Gulf. Items 1 and 3 are right: Bahrain and Qatar lie wholly inside the Gulf, so their ships must pass it. Item 2 is wrong: Syria is on the Mediterranean. Item 4 is wrong: Egypt reaches the Indian Ocean through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea. So options (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice its importance: about a fifth of the world's oil passes through Hormuz, and much of India's crude and LNG (Qatar is a top LNG supplier). Iran's threats to close it raise prices. The UAE's pipeline to Fujairah and Saudi pipelines to the Red Sea help bypass it.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Tungurahua Volcano, which was declared a Global Geopark by UNESCO in 2025, is situated in which one among the following countries ?
Answer (a) & explanation
Tungurahua is in Ecuador (a). Tungurahua, meaning "throat of fire", is an active stratovolcano in the Andes of central Ecuador, above the town of Baños. UNESCO named the area around it a Global Geopark in 2025. Options (b), (c) and (d), Peru, Bolivia and Colombia, are wrong, though the Andes pass through all of them too.
Notice Ecuador's other famous volcanoes: Cotopaxi, one of the highest active volcanoes, and Chimborazo, whose summit is the point farthest from Earth's centre, because of the equatorial bulge. Ecuador also owns the Galápagos Islands. A Global Geopark honours geological heritage; India has none yet, though sites like Lonar have been proposed.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following statements with reference to Lake Turkana is/are correct ?
- 1. It is the largest desert lake in the world.
- 2. The lake is situated in South Sudan along the eastern fringe of the Sahara desert.
- 3. The lake is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is also referred to as the ‘Jade Sea’.
Select the answer using the code given below :
Answer (b) & explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are correct (b). Statement 1 is right: Lake Turkana is the world's largest permanent desert lake and its largest alkaline lake. Statement 3 is right: its national parks are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its green colour gives it the name "Jade Sea". Statement 2 is wrong: it lies in the Rift Valley of northern Kenya, with its northern tip in Ethiopia, not in South Sudan at the Sahara's edge. So options (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice its fame for human origins: Turkana Boy, a nearly complete Homo erectus skeleton about 1.5 million years old, was found here. Ethiopia's Gibe III dam on the Omo River, the lake's main feeder, threatens its water level.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements about river bridges connecting India with neighbouring countries :
- 1. ‘Maitri Setu’, built over Feni river, connects Ramgarh in India with Sabroom in Bangladesh.
- 2. Jhulaghat suspension bridge connects India with Myanmar.
- 3. Mechi bridge and its approaches connect Panitanki Bypass in India with Kakarvitta in Nepal.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (d) & explanation
Only statement 3 is correct (d). Statement 3 is right: the Mechi bridge links Panitanki in West Bengal with Kakarvitta in Nepal. Statement 1 is wrong: Maitri Setu over the Feni river links Sabroom in Tripura with Ramgarh in Bangladesh; the statement swaps the towns. Statement 2 is wrong: the Jhulaghat suspension bridge crosses the Kali river between Pithoragarh (Uttarakhand) and Nepal, not Myanmar. So options (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Notice why Maitri Setu matters: it gives Tripura access to Chittagong port, only about 80 km away, easing the North-East's dependence on the narrow Siliguri Corridor. It was inaugurated in 2021. The Kali river also forms the India–Nepal border in the Kalapani dispute.
Statement 1 has the right river and the right towns, but each town is in the other country.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following pairs :
| Region | Country
| I. Mallorca | Italy
| II. Normandy | Spain
| III. Sardinia | France
In how many of the above rows is the given information correctly matched?
Answer (d) & explanation
None of the rows is correctly matched (d). Row I is wrong: Mallorca is a Balearic island of Spain, not Italy. Row II is wrong: Normandy is in northern France, not Spain. Row III is wrong: Sardinia is an island of Italy, not France. Each region has been paired with a wrong neighbour, so options (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Notice the nearby trap: Corsica, just north of Sardinia, belongs to France and was Napoleon's birthplace. Normandy is famous for the D-Day landings of June 1944 in World War II. Sicily is Italy's largest island. UPSC often tests islands of the Mediterranean that sit close to a different country.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following countries :
- I. Bolivia
- II. Brazil
- III. Colombia
- IV. Ecuador
- V. Paraguay
- VI. Venezuela
Andes mountains pass through how many of the above countries?
Answer (c) & explanation
The Andes pass through four of these countries (c). The Andes, the world's longest mountain range above sea, run down the west of South America through Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina. From this list, that is Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela. Items II and V are wrong: Brazil and Paraguay lie east of the range, on the Brazilian Highlands and the Gran Chaco plains.
Notice the facts UPSC likes: Aconcagua in Argentina is the highest peak outside Asia; the Atacama Desert lies in their rain shadow; and Lake Titicaca, on the Peru–Bolivia border, is the highest navigable lake. The range is a fold mountain chain on the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following water bodies :
- I. Lake Tanganyika
- II. Lake Tonlé Sap
- III. Patos Lagoon
Through how many of them does the equator pass?
Answer (d) & explanation
The equator passes through none of them (d). Item I is wrong: Lake Tanganyika lies in the Rift Valley a few degrees south of the equator. Item II is wrong: Tonlé Sap is in Cambodia, at about 12°N. Item III is wrong: Patos Lagoon is in southern Brazil, near 31°S. The equator crosses Lake Victoria, not Tanganyika.
Notice Tonlé Sap's oddity: its river reverses flow in the monsoon, when the swollen Mekong pushes water back into the lake. Tanganyika is the world's longest freshwater lake and second deepest, after Baikal. The equator also passes through Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, Kenya, the DR Congo and Indonesia.
Tanganyika is close to the equator and the trap. The East African lake on the equator is Victoria.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following countries :
- I. United Kingdom
- II. Denmark
- III. New Zealand
- IV. Australia
- V. Brazil
How many of the above countries have more than four time zones?
Answer (b) & explanation
Four of the five have more than four time zones (b). Overseas territories add time zones. Item I is right: the UK has nine, with places like the Falklands and Pitcairn. Item IV is right: Australia has nine with its territories. Item II is right: Denmark has five with Greenland and the Faroes. Item III is right: New Zealand has five with the Chatham Islands, Tokelau, the Cook Islands and Niue. Item V is wrong: Brazil has four, so it does not qualify.
Notice the record holder: France has the most time zones, 12, thanks to territories across the world. Russia has 11 on its mainland. India uses one zone, IST, set at 82.5°E near Mirzapur, five and a half hours ahead of GMT.
Count the islands and territories, not only the mainland. Mainland Denmark has a single zone.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following pairs :
| Country | Resource-rich in
| I. Botswana | Diamond
| II. Chile | Lithium
| III. Indonesia | Nickel
In how many of the above rows is the given information correctly matched?
Answer (c) & explanation
All three rows are correctly matched (c). Row I is right: Botswana is among the top diamond producers, from mines such as Jwaneng, one of the richest. Row II is right: Chile has the world's largest lithium reserves, in the Atacama salt flats. Row III is right: Indonesia is the largest nickel producer, and has banned raw ore exports to build its own processing. So options (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Notice the "Lithium Triangle": Chile, Argentina and Bolivia together hold most of the world's lithium. India's KABIL has bought lithium blocks in Argentina. Nickel and lithium are both critical minerals for EV batteries, and Indonesia's ore ban is a model of resource nationalism.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following countries :
- 1. Finland
- 2. Germany
- 3. Norway
- 4. Russia
How many of the above countries have a border with the North Sea ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Two of the four border the North Sea (b). The North Sea is bordered by the UK, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France. So Germany (item 2) and Norway (item 3) qualify. Item 1 is wrong: Finland lies on the Baltic Sea, between the Gulf of Bothnia and the Gulf of Finland. Item 4 is wrong: Russia reaches the Baltic, through St Petersburg and Kaliningrad, and the Arctic, but not the North Sea.
Notice the North Sea's importance: it has oil and gas fields shared by the UK and Norway, and is now a hub of offshore wind power. The Dogger Bank is a famous fishing ground. Finland joined NATO in 2023, Sweden in 2024, turning the Baltic into a NATO lake.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following information :
| Region | Name of the mountain range | Type of mountain
| 1. Central Asia | Vosges | Fold mountain
| 2. Europe | Alps | Block mountain
| 3. North America | Appalachians | Fold mountain
| 4. South America | Andes | Fold mountain
In how many of the above rows is the given information correctly matched ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Two rows are correctly matched (b). Row 3 is right: the Appalachians in North America are old fold mountains, worn down over hundreds of millions of years. Row 4 is right: the Andes in South America are young fold mountains, rising where the Nazca plate sinks under South America. Row 1 is wrong: the Vosges are in France, in Europe, not Central Asia, and they are a classic block mountain, with the Black Forest across the Rhine rift valley. Row 2 is wrong: the Alps are young fold mountains, not block mountains.
Notice the types: fold mountains form from compression (Himalayas, Rockies), block mountains from faulting (Vosges, Black Forest, India's Satpura), and volcanic mountains from eruptions (Kilimanjaro, Fuji).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following countries :
- 1. Italy
- 2. Japan
- 3. Nigeria
- 4. South Korea
- 5. South Africa
Which of the above countries are frequently mentioned in the media for their low birth rates, or ageing population or declining population ?
Answer (a) & explanation
Italy, Japan and South Korea face low births and ageing (a). Item 4 is right: South Korea has the world's lowest fertility rate, below 0.8 children per woman. Item 2 is right: Japan has one of the oldest populations, and it has been shrinking for over a decade. Item 1 is right: Italy has very low births and an ageing population. Item 3 is wrong: Nigeria has one of the fastest-growing, youngest populations. Item 5 is wrong: South Africa is also young and still growing.
Notice the term: a replacement fertility rate is about 2.1. China's population has also fallen since 2022. India's fertility rate has dropped to about 2.0, below replacement, while its demographic dividend continues for now.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The longest border between any two countries in the world is between :
Answer (a) & explanation
Canada and the USA share the longest border (a). The Canada–USA border, including the Alaska–Canada section, is about 8,890 km long, the longest between any two countries. Option (d) is wrong: Kazakhstan–Russia, about 7,600 km, is the longest continuous land border, but shorter overall. Option (b) is wrong: Chile–Argentina runs about 5,300 km along the Andes. Option (c) is wrong: the India–China border is about 3,488 km.
Notice India's own longest border: with Bangladesh, about 4,096 km, followed by China and Pakistan. Much of the Canada–USA border follows the 49th parallel and the Great Lakes, and it is called the world's longest undefended border.
Kazakhstan–Russia is the longest unbroken border, but the question asks about the border between two countries, so Alaska counts.
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Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
Statement-I : Sumed pipeline is a strategic route for Persian Gulf oil and natural gas shipments to Europe.
Statement-II : Sumed pipeline connects the Red Sea with the Mediterranean Sea.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements ?
Answer (a) & explanation
Both are correct and Statement II explains Statement I (a). Statement II is right: Egypt's SUMED (Suez–Mediterranean) line is a pair of oil pipes from Ain Sukhna on the Gulf of Suez (Red Sea) to Sidi Kerir near Alexandria on the Mediterranean. Statement I is right because of it: Persian Gulf crude bound for Europe can be pumped across, bypassing the Suez Canal, especially for giant tankers too deep for the canal. Options (b), (c) and (d) miss this link.
Notice why it mattered recently: Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping from late 2023 pushed many ships around Africa's Cape of Good Hope. Other chokepoints: Bab-el-Mandeb, Hormuz and Malacca.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. The Red Sea receives very little precipitation in any form.
- 2. No water enters the Red Sea from rivers.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (c) & explanation
Both statements are correct (c). Statement 1 is right: the Red Sea lies between the Sahara and Arabian deserts, so rainfall is tiny and evaporation is very high. Statement 2 is right: no permanent river flows into it. That is why it is one of the saltiest seas, at about 40 parts per thousand, against an ocean average of about 35. So options (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Notice its other features: it is a young ocean forming along a rift, as Africa and Arabia drift apart. Seasonal blooms of the alga Trichodesmium give it a reddish tinge, one reason for its name. Its warm, clear water holds rich coral reefs.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following countries are well known as the two largest cocoa producers in the world ?
Answer (c) & explanation
Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana are the two largest cocoa producers (c). The Gulf of Guinea belt of West Africa grows most of the world's cocoa. Côte d'Ivoire is first and Ghana second; together they produce more than half of the global crop. Cocoa needs a hot, humid equatorial climate with steady rain and shade. Option (a) is wrong: Algeria and Morocco are dry North African countries. Option (b) is wrong: Botswana and Namibia are known for diamonds. Option (d) is wrong: Madagascar is famous for vanilla, and Mozambique for gas and cashew.
Notice the 2024 price spike: bad weather, disease and ageing trees cut West African harvests, and cocoa prices hit records. India grows cocoa mainly in Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
About three-fourths of world’s cobalt, a metal required for the manufacture of batteries for electric motor vehicles, is produced by
Answer (c) & explanation
The DR Congo produces about three-fourths of the world's cobalt (c). The Democratic Republic of the Congo mines about 70–75% of the world's cobalt, mainly from the Katanga copper-cobalt belt in its south. Much of this cobalt is refined in China, which controls most of the supply chain. Cobalt is used in lithium-ion batteries for phones and electric vehicles. Argentina (a) is known for lithium, as part of the lithium triangle with Chile and Bolivia. Botswana (b) is famous for diamonds. Kazakhstan (d) is the top producer of uranium.
Notice the ethics issue: child labour in small artisanal mines has pushed EV makers to trace their supply. India's KABIL joint venture seeks such critical minerals abroad.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which one of the following is a part of the Congo Basin?
Answer (a) & explanation
Cameroon is part of the Congo Basin (a). The Congo Basin covers the DR Congo, the Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and south-eastern Cameroon. It holds the world's second-largest tropical rainforest after the Amazon, and its peatlands store huge amounts of carbon. Option (b) is wrong: Nigeria drains mainly to the Niger river. Option (c) is wrong: South Sudan drains to the White Nile. Option (d) is wrong: Uganda drains mostly to the Nile through Lake Victoria.
Notice that the Congo river crosses the Equator twice, so part of its basin always has a rainy season, giving it a steady flow. The basin is home to gorillas, bonobos and forest elephants.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following countries :
- 1. Bulgaria
- 2. Czech Republic
- 3. Hungary
- 4. Latvia
- 5. Lithuania
- 6. Romania
How many of the above-mentioned countries share a land border with Ukraine?
Answer (a) & explanation
Two of the countries border Ukraine (a). Ukraine shares land borders with Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova. From this list only Hungary (item 3) and Romania (item 6) qualify. Item 1 is wrong: Bulgaria lies across the Black Sea, with Romania in between. Item 2 is wrong: the Czech Republic is cut off by Slovakia and Poland. Items 4 and 5 are wrong: Latvia and Lithuania are Baltic states, separated from Ukraine by Belarus.
Notice the war's geography: Odesa port, the Danube grain route through Romania, and the Black Sea grain corridor. Moldova's breakaway Transnistria region, with Russian troops, borders Ukraine too.
Slovakia is a neighbour of Ukraine, and the Czech Republic is listed in its place.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which one of the following countries has been suffering from decades of civil strife and food shortages and was in news in the recent past for its very severe famine?
Answer (d) & explanation
Somalia has suffered civil strife and severe famine (d). Somalia has faced civil war since 1991 and the al-Shabaab insurgency since the mid-2000s. Five failed rainy seasons in a row (2020–23), the worst drought in decades, pushed it close to famine, after the deadly famines of 1992 and 2011, which killed about a quarter of a million people. Option (a) is wrong: Angola's civil war ended in 2002. Options (b) and (c) are wrong: Costa Rica and Ecuador in Latin America have not faced famine.
Notice the term IPC Phase 5, used by UN agencies to declare famine. In 2024, famine was confirmed in parts of Sudan, and in 2025 in Gaza. The Horn of Africa remains highly vulnerable to drought.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.