UPSC Prelims PYQs with explanations
Real questions from official papers, mapped to syllabus topics. Attempt each one; the answer and the reason appear instantly.
If for a sample data Mean < Median < Mode then the distribution is
Answer (d) & explanation
The distribution is skewed to the left (d). Step 1: in a balanced, symmetric set, the mean, median and mode are all equal. So option (a) is out. Step 2: a few very small values pull the mean down the most, then the median a little. The mode stays at the peak. Step 3: so Mean < Median < Mode means a long tail on the small, left side. That is left skew, also called negative skew. Option (b), skewed to the right, would give Mean > Median > Mode. Option (c) is not a real category here.
Tip: the mean always moves towards the long tail. If the mean is the smallest of the three, the tail is on the left.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
One of the implications of equality in society is the absence of
Answer (a) & explanation
Equality means the absence of privileges (a). In political theory, equality means no person or group gets special rights by birth, caste, wealth or status. Harold Laski said equality first means the absence of special privilege and second means adequate opportunities for all. Restraints (b) still exist in an equal society, since the law restrains everyone equally. Competition (c) can be healthy with equal opportunity. Ideology (d) has nothing to do with it.
The Constitution puts this into practice through Articles 14–18. Article 15 bans discrimination, Article 17 abolishes untouchability, and Article 18 abolishes titles, removing hereditary privilege. Notice that protective discrimination (reservations) is not a privilege. It helps those held back, to create real, not just formal, equality.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following pairs :
| Person | Association
| 1. Radhakanta Deb | First President of the British Indian Association
| 2. Gazulu Lakshminarasu Chetty | Founder of the Madras Mahajana Sabha
| 3. Surendranath Banerjee | Founder of the Indian Association
Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Pairs 1 and 3 are correct (b). Radhakanta Deb was the first president of the British Indian Association (1851) in Calcutta, with Debendranath Tagore as its secretary (1). Surendranath Banerjea and Ananda Mohan Bose founded the Indian Association in 1876 (3). Pair 2 is wrong because Gazulu Lakshminarasu Chetty founded the Madras Native Association (1852). The Madras Mahajana Sabha (1884) came from M. Viraraghavachari, G. Subramania Iyer and P. Ananda Charlu.
Notice the order of pre-Congress bodies: the Landholders' Society (1838), British Indian Association (1851), Poona Sarvajanik Sabha (1870, M. G. Ranade), Indian Association (1876), Bombay Presidency Association (1885), and then the INC in December 1885.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
The nation-wide 'Soil Health Card Scheme' aims at
- 1. expanding the cultivable area under irrigation.
- 2. enabling the banks to assess the quantum of loans to be granted to farmers on the basis of soil quality.
- 3. checking the overuse of fertilizers in farmlands.
Which of the above statements is/are correct ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Only statement 3 is correct (b). The Soil Health Card Scheme, launched in February 2015 at Suratgarh, Rajasthan, tests each farm's soil every two years for 12 parameters. These are macronutrients (N, P, K, S), micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn, Bo) and physical properties (pH, EC, organic carbon). It then recommends the right fertiliser doses, so it helps check overuse of fertilisers (3). It does nothing to expand irrigation (1), which comes under PMKSY. Banks do not use it to decide loan amounts (2).
It is now part of the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana. Notice the problem it targets: India's N:P:K ratio is far from the ideal 4:2:1 because urea is heavily subsidised, which led to neem-coated urea and nano urea.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The mind of the makers of the Constitution of India is reflected in which of the following?
Answer (a) & explanation
The Preamble reflects the mind of the makers (a). The Preamble grew out of the Objectives Resolution, which Nehru moved on 13 December 1946 and the Assembly adopted in January 1947. In Berubari (1960), the Supreme Court called it the key to open the minds of the makers. In Kesavananda Bharati (1973), it said the Preamble is part of the Constitution and can be amended, but not in a way that harms the basic structure. Fundamental Rights (b), Directive Principles (c) and Fundamental Duties (d) carry out these ideals but do not sum them up.
The Preamble was amended once, by the 42nd Amendment. Notice its four parts: the source of authority (We, the People), the nature of the state, its objectives, and the date of adoption (26 November 1949).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
A watch loses 2 minutes in every 24 hours while another watch gains 2 minutes in every 24 hours. At a particular instant, the two watches showed an identical time. Which of the following statements is correct if 24-hour clock is followed?
Answer (d) & explanation
None of the statements is correct (d). Step 1: one watch loses 2 minutes a day and the other gains 2 minutes a day. So they drift apart by 4 minutes a day. Step 2: on a 24-hour clock, they show the same time again only when the gap is a full 24 hours, which is 1440 minutes. Step 3: days needed = 1440 ÷ 4 = 360 days. This is not 30, 90 or 120. So options (a), (b) and (c) are wrong. Option (b), 90 days, would be the answer only for a 6-hour gap.
Tip: on a 12-hour clock the full gap is 720 minutes; on a 24-hour clock it is 1440. Read which clock the question uses.
on a 12-hour dial the answer would be 180 days. The question says 24-hour clock, and none of the options fit either way.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
A landscape-scale approach to land use can encourage greater biodiversity outside protected areas. During hurricane ‘Mitch’ in 1998, farms using ecoagricultural practices suffered 58 per cent, 70 per cent and 99 per cent less damage in Honduras, Nicaragua and Guatemala, respectively, than farms using conventional techniques. In Costa Rica, vegetative windbreaks and fencerows boosted farmers’ income from pasture and coffee while also increasing bird diversity. Bee pollination is more effective when agricultural fields are closer to natural or seminatural habitat, a finding that matters because 87 per cent of the world’s 107 leading crops depend on animal pollinators. In Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Colombia silvopastoral systems that integrate trees with pastureland are improving the sustainability of cattle production, and diversifying and increasing farmers’ income.
Which among the following is the most logical and rational inference that can be made from the above passage?
Answer (a) & explanation
Farming that boosts biodiversity can often raise output and reduce disaster risk (a). Step 1: the passage says ecofarms suffered far less hurricane damage, and windbreaks and pollinators raised income. So such practices help output and resilience. That is option (a). Step 2: option (b) says replace ecoagriculture with conventional farming. That reverses the lesson. Step 3: option (c) is about protected areas, but the approach works outside them, so (c) misreads it. Option (d) says yields will be very high, which is overstated.
Tip: ecoagriculture means farming that also protects nature, like agroforestry. Watch for options that flip the passage's lesson.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Local self-government can be best explained as an exercise in
Answer (b) & explanation
Local self-government is democratic decentralisation (b). It moves power and decision-making down to elected bodies close to the people, such as panchayats and municipalities. The Balwantrai Mehta Committee (1957) used the term "democratic decentralisation" and recommended the three-tier panchayati raj system, which Rajasthan began first at Nagaur in 1959. Federalism (a) divides power between the Union and States. Administrative delegation (c) just passes tasks to officials, not to elected bodies. Direct democracy (d), where people decide directly, happens only in the gram sabha.
The 73rd and 74th Amendments (1992) gave these bodies constitutional status. Notice the Eleventh and Twelfth Schedules, with 29 and 18 subjects that can be handed down to them.
(c) delegation keeps control with the top. Decentralisation hands it to elected local bodies.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The Parliament of India exercises control over the functions of the Council of Ministers through
- 1. Adjournment motion
- 2. Question hour
- 3. Supplementary questions
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
Answer (d) & explanation
All three are tools of control (d). An adjournment motion (1) sets aside normal business to discuss an urgent matter of public importance. It needs 50 members to support it, is allowed only in the Lok Sabha, and works as a kind of censure. Question Hour (2), the first hour of a sitting, makes ministers answer starred (oral), unstarred (written) and short-notice questions. Supplementary questions (3) follow up on oral answers and often catch ministers off guard.
Other tools include calling attention motions, the Zero Hour, debates on the President's address, no-confidence motions and financial committees such as the PAC. Notice that ministers answer to Parliament because of collective responsibility (Art. 75(3)).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. India has ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of WTO.
- 2. TFA is a part of WTO's Bali Ministerial Package of 2013.
- 3. TFA came into force in January 2016.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (a) & explanation
Statements 1 and 2 are correct (a). The Trade Facilitation Agreement, part of the WTO's Bali Ministerial Package (2013) (2), simplifies and speeds up customs procedures to cut trade costs. It is the WTO's first multilateral agreement since 1995. India ratified it in April 2016 (1), after linking its support to a permanent solution on food stockholding. Statement 3 is wrong because it came into force on 22 February 2017, once two-thirds of WTO members had ratified it.
India uses the SWIFT single-window and Turant Customs under its National Trade Facilitation Action Plan. Notice the Bali "peace clause", which protects India's public food stocks for the MSP and PDS from legal challenge.
a date one year early. Remember: TFA needed two-thirds ratification and got it in February 2017.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
(Same information as the question above.)
With reference to the above information, consider the following statements :
- 1. Some supporters of 'party X' knew Z.
- 2. Some supporters of 'party X', who opposed Z's campaign strategy, knew Z.
- 3. No supporters of 'party X' supported Z's campaign strategy.
Which of the statements given above is/are not correct?
Answer (c) & explanation
Only statement 3 is not correct (c). Step 1: the information talks about X supporters who knew Z and supported his strategy. So some X supporters knew Z, and statement 1 is correct. Step 2: statement 3 says no X supporter backed Z's strategy. That plainly contradicts the information, so 3 is not correct. Step 3: statement 2 is about other X supporters, who opposed Z's strategy but knew him. The information neither confirms nor denies this. So it cannot be called wrong. Options (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Tip: "not correct" means proven false. A statement the facts do not mention is "unknown", not "incorrect". Keep these three groups apart: true, false and unknown.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
There has been a significant trend worldwide towards regionalism in government, resulting in a widespread transfer of powers downwards towards regions and communities since 1990s. This process, which involves the creation of new political entities and bodies at a sub-national level and an increase in their content and powers, is known as devolution. Devolution has been characterized as being made up of three factors—political legitimacy, decentralization of authority and decentralization of resources. Political legitimacy here means a mass demand from below for the decentralization process, which is able to create a political force for it to take place. In many cases, decentralization is initiated by the upper tier of government without sufficient political mobilization for it at the grassroots level, and in such cases the decentralization process often does not fulfil its objectives.
Which among the following is the most logical, rational and critical inference that can be made from the above passage?
Answer (c) & explanation
Devolution needs democracy with free expression and active participation at the grassroots (c). Step 1: the passage says devolution needs "a mass demand from below". It adds that decentralisation imposed from the top "often does not fulfil its objectives". So people's will and participation at lower levels are key. That is option (c). Step 2: option (b), imposing devolution from the top, is exactly what the passage says fails. Step 3: option (a), powerful mass leaders, is not mentioned. Option (d), strong regionalism, is not required.
Tip: India's 73rd and 74th Amendments set up panchayats and municipalities. They work best where local people actively take part, as the passage suggests.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The monthly incomes of X and Y are in the ratio of 4 : 3 and their monthly expenses are in the ratio of 3 : 2. However, each saves ₹ 6,000 per month. What is their total monthly income?
Answer (b) & explanation
Their total monthly income is Rs 42,000 (b). Step 1: test the options. Split the total income in the ratio 4 : 3, subtract Rs 6,000 savings from each, and check whether expenses come out as 3 : 2. Step 2: option (b): incomes Rs 24,000 and Rs 18,000. Expenses Rs 18,000 and Rs 12,000. 18 : 12 = 3 : 2. It works. Step 3: option (a), Rs 28,000: incomes 16,000 and 12,000, expenses 10,000 and 6,000 = 5 : 3. It fails. Options (c) and (d) also fail the expense ratio.
Tip: algebra works too: 4x − 6000 : 3x − 6000 = 3 : 2 gives x = 6000. But testing options is often faster in CSAT.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The term 'Domestic Content Requirement' is sometimes seen in the news with reference to
Answer (a) & explanation
Domestic Content Requirement is linked to solar power (a). Under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (2010), some projects had to use solar cells and modules made in India. The USA challenged this at the WTO. In 2016, the Appellate Body ruled the DCR against India's national treatment duties under GATT Article III and the TRIMs Agreement, and India changed the rule. DCR has nothing to do with foreign TV channels (b), food exports (c), or foreign university campuses (d).
India now backs local manufacturing differently: the ALMM list of approved modules, the PLI scheme for high-efficiency modules, and DCR only for government-funded projects such as PM-KUSUM and PM Surya Ghar, which WTO rules allow under government procurement.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to 'National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF)', which of the statements given below is/are correct ?
- 1. Under NSQF, a learner can acquire the certification for competency only through formal learning.
- 2. An outcome expected from the implementation of NSQF is the mobility between vocational and general education.
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
Answer (b) & explanation
Only statement 2 is correct (b). The National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF), notified in 2013, arranges qualifications in ten levels based on what a learner can actually do. Statement 1 is wrong because certification is possible through formal, non-formal or informal learning, including Recognition of Prior Learning. Statement 2 is right because a key aim is to let learners move between vocational and general education, and between study and jobs, without losing credit.
The National Credit Framework (2023) and NEP 2020 build on this by joining vocational and academic credits. Notice the bodies involved: NCVET (2018) regulates vocational training, and Sector Skill Councils under NSDC set the job standards.
"only" in statement 1. Recognising skills learnt outside school is a core purpose of NSQF.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. Tax revenue as a percent of GDP of India has steadily increased in the last decade.
- 2. Fiscal deficit as a percent of GDP of India has steadily increased in the last decade.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (d) & explanation
Neither statement is correct (d). Between about 2007 and 2017, India's tax-to-GDP ratio fell after the 2008 global crisis, when stimulus tax cuts were made, and recovered only later, so it did not rise steadily (1). The fiscal deficit jumped from about 2.5% of GDP in 2007-08 to about 6.5% in 2009-10. It then came down to about 3.5% by 2016-17 under the FRBM path (2). Neither figure moved "steadily" in one direction.
The word "steadily" is the trap here. Notice the current numbers: the fiscal deficit target was 4.4% for 2025-26. From 2026-27, the government moved to a debt-to-GDP anchor of about 50% by 2031, under the revised FRBM approach.
"steadily" in both statements. In a decade with a world crisis, few numbers move in a straight line.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Read the passage
We have hard work ahead. There is no resting for any of us till we redeem our pledge in full, till we make all the people of India what destiny intends them to be. We are citizens of a great country, on the verge of bold advance, and we have to live up to that high standard. All of us, to whatever religion we may belong, are equally the children of India with equal rights, privileges and obligations. We cannot encourage communalism or narrow-mindedness, for no nation can be great whose people are narrow in thought or action.
The challenge the author of the above passage throws to the public is to achieve
Answer (d) & explanation
The challenge is hard work, brotherhood and national unity (d). Step 1: the passage says "we have hard work ahead", that all are "equally the children of India", and that communalism must be rejected. These are hard work, brotherhood and unity. That is option (d). Step 2: option (a) mentions a high standard of living. But the passage's "high standard" is about conduct, not wealth. Step 3: options (b) and (c), privileges, destiny, adventure and economic parity, pick words that are not the author's challenge.
Tip: match each idea in an option to a phrase in the passage before choosing.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The age of Mr. X last year was the square of a number and it would be the cube of a number next year. What is the least number of years he must wait for his age to become the cube of a number again?
Answer (b) & explanation
He must wait 38 years (b). Step 1: his age last year was a square, and next year will be a cube. These two ages are 2 years apart. Look for a square and a cube that differ by 2: 25 and 27. Step 2: so last year he was 25, next year he will be 27, and now he is 26. Step 3: the next cube after 27 is 64. He must wait 64 − 26 = 38 years. Option (a), 42, does not fit. Option (c), 25, and option (d), 16, are squares from the puzzle, not the wait.
Tip: learn small squares and cubes by heart: cubes are 1, 8, 27, 64, 125. Checking pairs from such lists solves these puzzles fast.
64 – 27 = 37 counts from next year, not from now.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements in respect of Trade Related Analysis of Fauna and Flora in Commerce (TRAFFIC) :
- 1. TRAFFIC is a bureau under United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
- 2. The mission of TRAFFIC is to ensure that trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to the conservation of nature.
Which of the above statements is/are correct ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Only statement 2 is correct (b). Statement 1 is wrong because TRAFFIC was set up in 1976 as a joint programme of WWF and IUCN, not as a bureau under UNEP. It is now an independent NGO based in Cambridge, UK. Statement 2 is right because its mission is to make sure trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to conservation. It tracks markets and smuggling routes, and supports CITES with data and training.
TRAFFIC India works with WWF-India and helps the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau fight trade in pangolins, star tortoises, red sanders and other species. Notice how often UPSC asks who runs what: TRAFFIC belongs to WWF+IUCN, while CITES's secretariat is run by UNEP.
TRAFFIC works with CITES (hosted by UNEP), but TRAFFIC itself is not part of UNEP.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to 'Quality Council of India (QCI)', consider the following statements :
- 1. QCI was set up jointly by the Government of India and the Indian Industry.
- 2. Chairman of QCI is appointed by the Prime Minister on the recommendations of the industry to the Government.
Which of the above statements is/are correct ?
Answer (c) & explanation
Both statements are correct (c). The Quality Council of India, set up in 1997, is an autonomous body formed jointly by the Government of India and industry bodies ASSOCHAM, CII and FICCI (1). It works as India's national accreditation system, through bodies such as NABL (laboratories), NABH (hospitals) and NABCB. Its chairman is appointed by the Prime Minister on the industry's recommendation (2). DPIIT (formerly DIPP) is its nodal department.
QCI also runs ZED certification for MSMEs and checks cleanliness rankings under Swachh Survekshan. Notice how it differs from BIS: QCI accredits the bodies that check quality, while BIS sets standards and issues product marks.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.