UPSC Civil Services Examination (Prelims) Geography Previous Year Questions

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
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Which of the following with reference to Indian States is/are not correct?

1. Uttar Pradesh shares its boundary with the highest number of other Indian States.
2. Rajasthan shares the longest international border among all Indian States.
3. Sikkim is the only State that shares its boundary with just one other Indian State.

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Identify the river of the Indian sub-continent on the basis of the following information:

1. It has an antecedent drainage system.
2. It flows through three countries.
3. It originates in the Tibetan Plateau and is an important river for irrigation.
4. It does not form distributaries.

Select the answer from the following:

Consider the following assertion:

In the Pleistocene period either the Yamuna once flowed into the Indus, or the Sutlej flowed into the Yamuna and one major tributary of either had shifted from the Ganga to the Indus or vice versa.

Which of the following is/are the basis of the above assertion?

1. The Nadi-Sukta of the Rigveda
2. The explorations of the Sutlej and the Yamuna by Robert Bruce Foote
3. The presence of the same species of dolphins in both the Indus and the Ganga river systems
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With reference to the climate of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which of the following statements is/are correct?

1. The climate can be defined as a humid, tropical coastal climate.
2. It receives rainfall from both South-west monsoon and North-east monsoon.
3. Maximum precipitation is between December and May.
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Tungurahua Volcano, which was declared a Global Geopark by UNESCO in 2025, is situated in which one among the following countries?

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'.
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Which of the following geographical features or phenomena is/are associated with the Peninsular Block of India?

1. Submergence of parts of the western coast due to tectonic activity
2. Presence of residual mountain ranges such as the Veliconda hills and Mahendragiri hills
3. Deep, V-shaped river valleys formed by fast-flowing rivers
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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?

Consider the following countries:
I. Bolivia
II. Brazil
III. Colombia
IV. Ecuador
V. Paraguay
VI. Venezuela

Andean mountains pass through how many of the above countries?

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?

Consider the following statements:
Statement I: Of the two major ethanol producers in the world, Brazil and the United States of America, the former produces more ethanol than the latter.
Statement II: Unlike the United States of America where corn is the principal feedstock for ethanol production, sugarcane is the principal feedstock for ethanol production in Brazil.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

Consider the following water bodies:
I. Lake Tanganyika
II. Lake Tonlé Sap
III. Patos Lagoon

Through how many of them does the equator pass?

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?

Consider the following statements about turmeric during the year 2022-23:
I. India is the largest producer and exporter of turmeric in the world.
II. More than 30 varieties of turmeric are grown in India.
III. Maharashtra, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are major turmeric producing States in India.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

Consider the following statements:
I. Anadyr in Siberia and Nome in Alaska are a few kilometers from each other, but when people are waking up and getting set for breakfast in these cities, it would be different days.
II. When it is Monday in Anadyr, it is Tuesday in Nome.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Which of the following are the evidences of the phenomenon of continental drift?
I. The belt of ancient rocks from Brazil coast matches with those from Western Africa.
II. The gold deposits of Ghana are derived from the Brazil plateau when the two continents lay side by side.
III. The Gondwana system of sediments in India is known to have its counterparts in six different landmasses of the Southern Hemisphere.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Consider the following statements:
Statement I: The amount of dust particles in the atmosphere is more in subtropical and temperate areas than in equatorial and polar regions.
Statement II: Subtropical and temperate areas have less dry winds.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

Consider the following statements:
Statement I: In January, in the Northern Hemisphere, the isotherms bend equatorward while crossing the landmasses, and poleward while crossing the oceans.
Statement II: In January, the air over the oceans is warmer than that over the landmasses in the Northern Hemisphere.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

Consider the following statements:
Statement I: In the context of effect of water on rocks, chalk is known as a very permeable rock whereas clay is known as quite an impermeable or least permeable rock.
Statement II: Chalk is porous and hence can absorb water.
Statement III: Clay is not at all porous.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?