Geography: previous-year questions
167 real UPSC Prelims questions (2011–2026) with the official answer and a clear explanation. 67 of them came in the last five papers.
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Questions per year, counted from the official papers.
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The most important fishing grounds of the world are found in the regions where
Answer (c) & explanation
Where warm and cold ocean currents meet is correct (c). When warm and cold currents meet, the mixing brings up nutrients from deep water; plankton thrives in the sunlit surface and feeds huge fish stocks. Examples are the Grand Banks off Newfoundland (Gulf Stream and Labrador current) and the waters off Japan (Kuroshio and Oyashio). (a) is wrong: atmospheric currents are winds, not the cause. (b) is wrong: river mouths can be rich, but they are not the main world fishing grounds. (d) is wrong: a shallow, broad continental shelf helps, but 'undulating' is not the key.
Notice the other cause: cold upwelling off Peru (Humboldt current) gives the anchovy fishery, which collapses in El Niño years. The North Sea's Dogger Bank is another rich ground. Trap: wind and water currents are confused.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following is/are unique characteristic/characteristics of equatorial forests?
- 1. Presence of tall, closely set trees with crowns forming a continuous canopy
- 2. Coexistence of a large number of species
- 3. Presence of numerous varieties of epiphytes
Select the correct answer using the codes given below.
Answer (d) & explanation
All three are correct (d). Constant heat and heavy rain all year give equatorial rainforests tall, closely set trees whose crowns form a continuous canopy, with emergents rising above (1). They hold the highest species diversity of any land ecosystem, with many species living side by side (2). Many epiphytes, such as orchids, ferns and bromeliads, grow on tree branches to reach the light (3). So options (a), (b) and (c) leave out real features.
Notice the structure: layers of emergent, canopy, understorey and a dim forest floor; soils are surprisingly poor, as nutrients are locked in plants. The Amazon, Congo and South-East Asian forests are the main blocks; India's nearest equivalents are in the Western Ghats, the north-east and the Andaman Islands. Trap: 'unique' does not exclude any of the three.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The annual range of temperature in the interior of the continents is high as compared to coastal areas. What is/are the reason/reasons?
- 1. Thermal difference between land and water
- 2. Variation in altitude between continents and oceans
- 3. Presence of strong winds in the interior
- 4. Heavy rains in the interior as compared to coasts
Select the correct answer using the codes given below.
Answer (a) & explanation
Statement 1 only is correct (a). Land heats up and cools down much faster than water, which has a higher specific heat, mixes heat downwards and is partly transparent. Coasts are moderated by the sea, but far inland there is no such effect, so summers are very hot and winters very cold. This is continentality (1). Statement 2 is wrong: altitude affects temperature levels, not this contrast. Statement 3 is wrong: strong winds are not typical of interiors. Statement 4 is wrong: interiors usually get less rain, not more. So (b), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice the examples: Verkhoyansk in Siberia has an annual range of over 60°C, while Mumbai's is a few degrees; Delhi's range is much larger than Chennai's. Trap: rain and wind sound climatic but are not the cause here.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following is/are the characteristic/characteristics of Indian coal?
- 1. High ash content
- 2. Low sulphur content
- 3. Low ash fusion temperature
Select the correct answer using the codes given below.
Answer (a) & explanation
Statements 1 and 2 are correct (a). Most Indian coal is Gondwana coal with high ash content, often 30–45% (1), and low sulphur, usually under 1% (2). Statement 3 is wrong: Indian coal ash has a high ash fusion temperature, meaning the ash melts only at high heat, because it is rich in silica and alumina. So (b), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice the consequences: high ash lowers heat value and creates huge fly ash volumes; rules push 100% fly ash use in bricks, cement and roads. High ash also makes India import coking coal for steel. Low sulphur is a plus, which is partly why most plants were exempted from FGD rules in July 2025. Tertiary coal of the north-east is high in sulphur. Trap: the third statement inverts the ash melting property.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following statements regarding laterite soils of India are correct?
- 1. They are generally red in colour.
- 2. They are rich in nitrogen and potash.
- 3. They are well-developed in Rajasthan and UP.
- 4. Tapioca and cashew nuts grow well on these soils.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below.
Answer (c) & explanation
Statements 1 and 4 are correct (c). Laterite soils form under heavy rain and high heat, which leach away silica and nutrients and leave iron and aluminium oxides. They are generally red from iron oxide (1). With manure and fertiliser they grow cashew, tapioca, tea, coffee and rubber well (4). Statement 2 is wrong: they are poor in nitrogen, potash, phosphate and lime. Statement 3 is wrong: they are found in the Western Ghats, Kerala, Karnataka, Odisha, Meghalaya and the north-east, not in dry Rajasthan and UP. So (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Notice the name: 'laterite' comes from Latin later, brick, since the soil hardens on exposure and was cut into building blocks, as in Kerala and Goa. Trap: red soil is not rich soil.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. Natural gas occurs in the Gondwana beds.
- 2. Mica occurs in abundance in Kodarma.
- 3. Dharwars are famous for petroleum.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer (b) & explanation
Statement 2 only is correct (b). Koderma in Jharkhand, part of the Koderma–Giridih–Hazaribagh belt, is India's best-known mica region (2). Statement 1 is wrong: the Gondwana beds hold most of India's coal, not natural gas. Statement 3 is wrong: the ancient Dharwar rocks hold metallic minerals such as iron ore, manganese and gold (Kolar, Hutti), not petroleum. Petroleum and natural gas occur in much younger Tertiary sedimentary rocks, as in Assam, Gujarat, Bombay High and the KG basin. So (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice the twist: some coal-bed methane is extracted from Gondwana coal seams, as at Raniganj, but it is not 'natural gas in Gondwana beds' in the usual sense. India's mica output has fallen, and illegal mining has linked to child labour. Trap: rock-system ages decide which minerals they hold.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which one of the following pairs is correctly matched?
| Geographical Feature | Region
Answer (b) & explanation
Option (b) is correct. The Atlas Mountains run through Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia in north-west Africa; they are young fold mountains formed as Africa pressed against Europe. (a) is wrong: the Abyssinian Plateau is in Ethiopia, East Africa, not Arabia; the Blue Nile rises there from Lake Tana. (c) is wrong: the Guiana Highlands are in northern South America, home to Angel Falls in Venezuela. (d) is wrong: the Okavango Basin is in Botswana, southern Africa, where the river forms a great inland delta; Patagonia is in Argentina and Chile.
Notice the related fact: the Okavango Delta became UNESCO's 1,000th World Heritage Site (2014). Trap: each wrong pair swaps a real feature to the wrong continent.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Electrically charged particles from space travelling at speeds of several hundred km/sec can severely harm living beings if they reach the surface of the Earth. What prevents them from reaching the surface of the Earth?
Answer (a) & explanation
The Earth's magnetic field is correct (a). The solar wind and cosmic rays are streams of charged particles. The Earth's magnetic field (magnetosphere) deflects them, traps some in the Van Allen belts, and steers others towards the poles, where they collide with air and cause the auroras. (b) is wrong: the ozone layer absorbs ultraviolet light, not charged particles. (c) is wrong: moisture in the upper atmosphere does not block them. (d) fails because (a) is correct.
Notice the recent events: the strong geomagnetic storms of May 2024 produced auroras visible even in Ladakh. India's Aditya-L1 (2023) studies the solar wind from the L1 point. Trap: the ozone layer protects against light, not particles.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
A particular State in India has the following characteristics :
- 1. It is located on the same latitude which passes through northern Rajasthan.
- 2. It has over 80% of its area under forest cover.
- 3. Over 12% of forest cover constitutes Protected Area Network in this State.
Which one among the following States has all the above characteristics?
Answer (a) & explanation
Arunachal Pradesh is correct (a). Arunachal Pradesh lies at about 27°–29° N, the same band as northern Rajasthan around Bikaner and Sri Ganganagar (1). Its forest cover is about 79–80% of its area, among the highest in India (2), and a large share lies in protected areas such as Namdapha, Pakke and Dibang (3). (b) is wrong: Assam's forest share is far lower, about a third. (c) and (d) are wrong: Himachal (about 28%) and Uttarakhand (about 45%) have much less forest and lie farther north.
Notice the latest data: in ISFR 2023, Mizoram has the highest forest share by area (about 85%), while Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest area. Trap: the latitude clue rules out Himachal and Uttarakhand.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following factors :
- 1. Rotation of the Earth
- 2. Air pressure and wind
- 3. Density of ocean water
- 4. Revolution of the Earth
Which of the above factors influence the ocean currents?
Answer (b) & explanation
Factors 1, 2 and 3 are correct (b). The Earth's rotation creates the Coriolis force, which deflects currents to the right in the north and left in the south, shaping gyres (1). Air pressure and winds, such as the trade winds and westerlies, drag surface water along (2). Differences in density, caused by temperature and salinity, drive deep thermohaline circulation (3). Item 4 is wrong: the Earth's revolution round the Sun gives seasons but does not move currents. So (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice the related ideas: the global 'conveyor belt', the AMOC, which scientists warn is weakening, and the Indian Ocean's monsoon-driven reversal of currents. Coastline shape and the sea floor also steer currents. Trap: revolution and rotation are easily confused.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
When you travel in Himalayas, you will see the following :
- 1. Deep gorges
- 2. U-turn river courses
- 3. Parallel mountain ranges
- 4. Steep gradients causing land-sliding
Which of the above can be said to be the evidences for Himalayas being young fold mountains?
Answer (d) & explanation
All four are correct (d). The Himalayas are young fold mountains, still rising as the Indian plate pushes into Asia. Fast uplift makes rivers cut deep gorges (1), such as the Indus, Sutlej and Dihang gorges, and take sharp U-turns at the syntaxial bends (2). The parallel ranges, Shiwalik, Lesser and Greater Himalaya, are sharp-crested and little eroded (3). Steep, unstable slopes cause frequent landslides (4). So options (a), (b) and (c) leave out real evidence.
Notice the contrast: old mountains like the Aravallis are worn down and gentle. Frequent earthquakes are further evidence. The Joshimath subsidence (2023) and the 2025 Dharali flash flood show the risks of building on young slopes. Trap: rivers older than the mountains are called antecedent rivers.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Normally, the temperature decreases with the increase in height from the Earth’s surface, because
- 1. the atmosphere can be heated upwards only from the Earth’s surface
- 2. there is more moisture in the upper atmosphere
- 3. the air is less dense in the upper atmosphere
Select the correct answer using the codes given below :
Answer (c) & explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are correct (c). Sunlight passes through the air and heats the ground first; the ground then heats the air from below by radiation, conduction and convection (1). Higher up, the air is thinner, with fewer molecules and less water vapour and CO₂ to absorb and hold heat (3). So temperature falls about 6.5°C per km, the normal lapse rate. Statement 2 is wrong: moisture is greatest near the surface, not higher up. So (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Notice the exceptions: a temperature inversion, common on winter nights and in valleys, traps smog, as in Delhi each winter. In the stratosphere, temperature rises with height because ozone absorbs UV. Trap: statement 2 reverses where water vapour sits.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Despite having large reserves of coal, why does India import millions of tonnes of coal?
- 1. It is the policy of India to save its own coal reserves for future, and import it from other countries for the present use.
- 2. Most of the power plants in India are coal-based and they are not able to get sufficient supplies of coal from within the country.
- 3. Steel companies need large quantity of coking coal which has to be imported.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer (b) & explanation
Statements 2 and 3 are correct (b). Most of India's electricity is coal-based, and domestic output has often not kept pace with demand from thermal plants, besides being of high-ash quality, so coastal plants import coal (2). India also has little good coking coal for steel, so steel makers import it, mainly from Australia (3). Statement 1 is wrong: there is no policy to save domestic coal for the future while importing for now. So (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice the trend: India's coal output crossed 1 billion tonnes in 2024–25, and imports of thermal coal for blending have fallen, but coking coal imports remain high. Mission Coking Coal aims to raise domestic supply. Trap: India has the world's fifth-largest reserves, yet still imports.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
A person stood alone in a desert on a dark night and wanted to reach his village which was situated 5 km east of the point where he was standing. He had no instruments to find the direction but he located the polestar. The most convenient way now to reach his village is to walk in the
Answer (c) & explanation
Keeping the pole star to his left is correct (c). The pole star (Polaris) sits almost directly over the North Pole, so it marks north. The village lies to the east. Facing east, north is on your left, so he should walk with the pole star on his left. (a) is wrong: facing the pole star means walking north. (b) is wrong: walking away from it means going south. (d) is wrong: the pole star on the right means walking west.
Notice the related tricks: Polaris is found by following the two 'pointer' stars of the Big Dipper (Saptarishi). Its height above the horizon roughly equals your latitude, which is why it cannot be seen from the southern hemisphere. Trap: confusing left and right when imagining the turn.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. The duration of the monsoon decreases from southern India to northern India.
- 2. The amount of annual rainfall in the northern plains of India decreases from east to west.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer (c) & explanation
Both statements are correct (c). The monsoon arrives first in Kerala around 1 June and withdraws from the south last, in October–December, while it reaches north-west India in July and leaves in September, so its duration decreases from south to north (1). In the northern plains, the Bay of Bengal branch loses moisture as it moves west, so annual rainfall decreases from east to west, from over 150 cm in West Bengal to under 50 cm in western Rajasthan (2). So (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Notice the related rule: rainfall also decreases inland from the Western Ghats, leaving a rain-shadow in the Deccan. The 2025 monsoon onset over Kerala came early, on 24 May. Trap: both are standard gradients.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which one of the following is the characteristic climate of the Tropical Savannah Region?
Answer (d) & explanation
A definite dry and wet season is correct (d). The tropical savanna, or Sudan-type, climate lies between about 5° and 20° latitude, with a hot, wet summer when the ITCZ arrives and a long, dry winter when it retreats. This suits tall grasses with scattered trees, as in Africa's savannas and the Brazilian campos. (a) is wrong: rain throughout the year is the equatorial climate. (b) is wrong: winter-only rain is the Mediterranean climate. (c) is wrong: the savanna's dry season is long, not short.
Notice the fauna: savannas host the great herds of East Africa, with zebras, wildebeest and lions. Much of peninsular India has a tropical wet and dry (Aw) climate in Köppen's scheme. Trap: (c) describes the tropical monsoon fringe, not the savanna.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
A state in India has the following characteristics :
- 1. Its northern part is arid and semi-arid.
- 2. Its central part produces cotton.
- 3. Cultivation of cash crops is predominant over food crops.
Which one of the following states has all of the above characteristics ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Gujarat is correct (b). Gujarat's north, including Kutch and Banaskantha, is arid and semi-arid (1). Its central and Saurashtra black-soil belt grows a large share of India's cotton, making it India's top cotton state in most years (2). Cash crops such as cotton, groundnut, castor and tobacco take more land than food grains (3). (a) is wrong: Andhra Pradesh is a rice state. (c) is wrong: Karnataka's north is semi-arid, but its cotton belt is not central and food crops dominate. (d) is wrong: Tamil Nadu has no arid north and is mostly rice-based.
Notice the wider facts: Gujarat leads India in castor, groundnut and cumin, and in Bt cotton area. Trap: Karnataka fits part, but only Gujarat fits all three.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
A layer in the Earth’s atmosphere called Ionosphere facilitates radio communication. Why ?
- 1. The presence of ozone causes the reflection of radio waves to Earth.
- 2. Radio waves have a very long wavelength.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (d) & explanation
Neither statement is correct (d). The ionosphere (about 80–600 km up) reflects radio waves back to Earth because solar radiation fills it with ions and free electrons, which bend and reflect medium- and short-wave signals. Statement 1 is wrong: ozone sits much lower, in the stratosphere, and absorbs ultraviolet rays; it plays no part in radio reflection. Statement 2 is wrong: radio waves do have long wavelengths, but that alone does not explain why a layer reflects them; it is the electron density that matters. So (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Notice the wider idea: very high frequencies (TV, FM, satellite signals) pass through the ionosphere, which is why satellites are needed for them. Solar flares disturb the ionosphere and cause radio blackouts.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
La Nina is suspected to have caused recent floods in Australia. How is La Nina different from El Nino ?
- 1. La Nina is characterised by unusually cold ocean temperature in equatorial Indian Ocean whereas El Nino is characterised by unusually warm ocean temperature in the equatorial Pacific Ocean.
- 2. El Nino has adverse effect on south-west monsoon of India, but La Nina has no effect on monsoon climate.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (d) & explanation
Neither statement is correct (d). Statement 1 is wrong: both El Niño (unusual warming) and La Niña (unusual cooling) refer to the equatorial Pacific Ocean, not the Indian Ocean. Statement 2 is wrong: El Niño does tend to weaken India's south-west monsoon, but La Niña usually strengthens it, so it is not without effect. So (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Notice the wider frame: both are phases of ENSO (El Niño–Southern Oscillation). The Indian Ocean has its own see-saw, the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD); a positive IOD can offset a bad El Niño year, as in 1997. La Niña brings floods to eastern Australia, as in 2010–11. Trap: the ocean is swapped in statement 1.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Among the following States, which one has the most suitable climatic conditions for the cultivation of a large variety of orchids with minimum cost of production, and can develop an export oriented industry in this field ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Arunachal Pradesh is correct (b). Orchids need warm, humid, shaded conditions with heavy rain and varied altitudes. Arunachal Pradesh has over 600 orchid species, the most of any Indian state, and an Orchid Research Centre at Tipi, which make it India's 'orchid paradise' with export potential. (a) is wrong: Andhra Pradesh is drier and warmer. (c) is wrong: Madhya Pradesh is semi-arid inland. (d) is wrong: Uttar Pradesh's plains are too hot and dry in summer.
Notice the wider pattern: the Northeast and the Western Ghats together hold most of India's roughly 1,300 orchid species; Sikkim's state flower is the noble dendrobium orchid. Trap: three of the four states lack the humid, hilly conditions orchids need.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.