Daily PYQ MCQ – UPSC, BPSC & UPPCS
18 September 2026 | 30 Previous Year Questions
UPSC Modern History • BPSC Polity & Governance • UPPCS Geography
UPSC CSE Prelims 2018 – Modern History
Q1. Which one of the following is a very significant aspect of the Champaran Satyagraha?
A. Active all-India participation of lawyers, students and women in the National Movement
B. Active involvement of Dalit and Tribal communities of India in the National Movement
C. Joining of peasant unrest to India's National Movement
D. Drastic decrease in cultivation of plantation and commercial crops
Show Answer
Champaran brought the grievances of indigo peasants directly into the national movement and demonstrated Gandhi's method of mass-based Satyagraha.
Q2. Which of the following led to the introduction of English Education in India?
1. Charter Act of 1813
2. General Committee of Public Instruction, 1823
3. Orientalist and Anglicist Controversy
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
A. 1 and 2 only
B. 2 only
C. 1 and 3 only
D. 1, 2 and 3
Show Answer
All three contributed to the evolution of British educational policy, culminating in the Anglicist victory associated with Macaulay's Minute of 1835.
Q3. After the Santhal Uprising subsided, what measure/measures were taken by the colonial government?
1. The territories called Santhal Parganas were created.
2. Restrictions were imposed on transfer of Santhal land to non-Santhals.
Select the correct answer:
A. 1 only
B. 2 only
C. Both 1 and 2
D. Neither 1 nor 2
Show Answer
A separate Santhal Parganas administrative unit was created and legal protections against alienation of tribal land were subsequently introduced.
Q4. In the federation envisaged under the Government of India Act, 1935, residuary powers were given to the:
A. Federal Legislature
B. Governor-General
C. Provincial Legislature
D. Provincial Governors
Show Answer
The Government of India Act, 1935 vested residuary legislative authority in the Governor-General, who could allocate such subjects.
Q5. With reference to educational institutions during colonial rule, consider the following pairs:
1. Sanskrit College at Benaras — William Jones
2. Calcutta Madrasa — Warren Hastings
3. Fort William College — Arthur Wellesley
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
A. 1 and 2
B. 2 only
C. 1 and 3
D. 3 only
Show Answer
Calcutta Madrasa was founded by Warren Hastings. Sanskrit College at Benaras is associated with Jonathan Duncan, while Fort William College was founded by Lord Wellesley.
Q6. Which one of the following statements does NOT apply to the Subsidiary Alliance introduced by Lord Wellesley?
A. Maintaining a large standing army at another's expense
B. Securing a fixed income for the Company
C. Keeping India safe from Napoleonic danger
D. Establishing British paramountcy over Indian States
Show Answer
The Subsidiary Alliance was primarily a political-military instrument. Securing fixed revenue was more closely associated with land-revenue arrangements.
Q7. Who among the following were associated with the founding of the Hind Mazdoor Sabha in 1948?
A. B. Krishna Pillai, E.M.S. Namboodiripad and K.C. George
B. Jayaprakash Narayan, Deendayal Upadhyaya and M.N. Roy
C. C.P. Ramaswamy Iyer, K. Kamaraj and Veeresalingam Pantulu
D. Ashok Mehta, T.S. Ramanujam and G.G. Mehta
Show Answer
Ashok Mehta, T.S. Ramanujam and G.G. Mehta were among the important personalities associated with the establishment of Hind Mazdoor Sabha.
Q8. In 1920, which of the following changed its name to “Swarajya Sabha”?
A. All India Home Rule League
B. Hindu Mahasabha
C. South Indian Liberal Federation
D. Servants of India Society
Show Answer
The All India Home Rule League was renamed Swarajya Sabha in 1920.
Q9. He wrote biographies of Mazzini, Garibaldi, Shivaji and Shrikrishna, stayed in America for some time and was also elected to the Central Assembly. He was:
A. Aurobindo Ghosh
B. Bipin Chandra Pal
C. Lala Lajpat Rai
D. Motilal Nehru
Show Answer
The personality described is Lala Lajpat Rai, who also established the Indian Home Rule League of America.
Q10. Economically, one of the results of British rule in India in the nineteenth century was:
A. Increase in export of Indian handicrafts
B. Growth in the number of Indian-owned factories
C. Commercialisation of Indian agriculture
D. Rapid increase in urban population
Show Answer
Colonial economic policy encouraged production of commercial crops and raw materials required for British industry and overseas trade.
65th BPSC CCE Prelims 2019 – Polity & Governance
Q1. Who among the following is a land-record officer?
A. Patwari
B. Lambardar
C. Zamindar
D. Zaildar
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
A Patwari traditionally maintains village land records, including ownership, cultivation and revenue-related information.
Q2. Which one of the following characteristics is NOT true of a unitary form of government?
A. Swift decision-making
B. Flexibility
C. Ideal for large countries
D. Uniformity of laws
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
Unitary systems are generally considered more suitable for relatively smaller and more homogeneous states; large diverse countries often adopt federal arrangements.
Q3. What is the objective of Community Development Programmes?
A. Providing educational facilities
B. Improving standards of living
C. Political training
D. Helping villages in planning
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
Community Development had multiple objectives, including improvement of living standards and encouraging local participation in village planning.
Q4. In the context of the 65th BPSC examination, Aam Aadmi Party was a:
A. State party
B. National party
C. Regional party
D. Registered party
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
The BPSC official key marked “None of the above/More than one of the above.” Treat this as a historical PYQ tied to the party-status terminology applicable at the time of the examination.
Q5. Which one of the following constitutional remedies is also described as “postmortem”?
A. Prohibition
B. Mandamus
C. Certiorari
D. Quo Warranto
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
Certiorari is corrective: a higher court can quash an order already passed by an inferior court or tribunal. Prohibition, by contrast, is preventive.
Q6. What was the version of the VVPAT machine referred to in the 65th BPSC paper?
A. M1
B. Z1
C. M3
D. Z3
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
The answer keyed in the 65th BPSC paper is M3.
Q7. Among the following States, which has the largest number of members in its State Legislative Assembly?
A. Arunachal Pradesh
B. Himachal Pradesh
C. Manipur
D. Meghalaya
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
Himachal Pradesh has 68 Assembly seats; Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Meghalaya have 60 each.
Q8. In the Indian Order of Precedence, who among the following was placed first according to the 65th BPSC answer key?
A. Chairman of UPSC
B. Chief Election Commissioner
C. Comptroller and Auditor General
D. Chief Justice of a High Court
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
For this PYQ, the official BPSC key accepted the Chairman of UPSC as the answer among the options given.
Q9. Which one of the following statements correctly describes the parliamentary form of government?
A. Legislature is responsible to Judiciary
B. Legislature is responsible to Executive
C. Legislature and Executive are independent of each other
D. President is responsible to Judiciary
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
In a parliamentary system, the real Executive is collectively responsible to the Legislature. None of options A–D states this correctly.
Q10. Which of the following is constituted under the Panchayati Raj system?
A. Khap Panchayat
B. Caste Panchayat
C. Gram Panchayat
D. Jan Panchayat
E. None of the above/More than one of the above
Show Answer
Gram Panchayat is the elected institution at the village level within the constitutional Panchayati Raj framework.
UPPCS Prelims 2018 – Geography
Q1. The statement “Vegetation is a true index of climate” is associated with:
A. Thornthwaite
B. Köppen
C. Trewartha
D. Stamp
Show Answer
Köppen's climate classification gives major importance to the relationship between natural vegetation and climatic conditions.
Q2. In which of the following countries are the Pampas grasslands located?
A. Argentina
B. Brazil
C. Chile
D. Ecuador
Show Answer
The Pampas are extensive temperate grasslands centred mainly in Argentina and extending into Uruguay.
Q3. Which of the following Desert–Country pairs is NOT correctly matched?
A. Sonoran — United States of America
B. Taklamakan — China
C. Karakum — Turkmenistan
D. Gibson — Brazil
Show Answer
The Gibson Desert is located in Western Australia, not Brazil.
Q4. Arrange the following coffee-producing countries in descending order of coffee production as referred to in the 2018 paper:
A. Colombia
B. Vietnam
C. Brazil
D. Indonesia
Select the correct sequence:
A. D, C, B, A
B. C, B, A, D
C. B, D, C, A
D. C, A, B, D
Show Answer
The order used in the question is Brazil → Vietnam → Colombia → Indonesia.
Q5. After construction of the Suez Canal, the sea distance between India and Europe was reduced by approximately:
A. 5,000 km
B. 7,000 km
C. 8,000 km
D. 10,000 km
Show Answer
The Suez Canal provides a much shorter Europe–Asia sea route by avoiding the voyage around the Cape of Good Hope.
Q6. Which of the following statements about black soil is NOT correct?
A. Black soil is locally known as Regur soil.
B. It is regarded as a mature soil in the classification referred to in the question.
C. It has high moisture-retention capacity.
D. It is characteristically found in the Himalayan region.
Show Answer
Black soils are strongly associated with the Deccan Trap basalt region rather than the Himalayan belt.
Q7. The McMahon Line forms a boundary between:
A. India and China
B. India and Pakistan
C. India and Myanmar
D. India and Nepal
Show Answer
The McMahon Line is associated with the eastern sector of the India–China boundary.
Q8. Which of the following rivers forms a “bird's-foot” type delta at its mouth?
A. Huang He
B. Nile
C. Danube
D. Mississippi
Show Answer
The Mississippi Delta is a classic example of a bird's-foot delta formed by distributaries extending into the sea.
Q9. Natural increase of population is determined by which of the following?
A. Crude Birth Rate
B. Crude Death Rate
C. Migration
D. Marriage
Select the correct combination:
A. A only
B. C only
C. B and D
D. A and B
Show Answer
Natural population increase equals births minus deaths. Migration changes total population growth but is excluded from natural increase.
Q10. The Human Development Index was first introduced through the work of:
A. UNDP
B. IMF
C. UNICEF
D. UNCTAD
Show Answer
HDI was introduced in the UNDP Human Development Report framework to assess development beyond income alone.
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