UPSC solved previous year questions
160 solved questions from the UPSC 2024 examination, each with an answer and explanation.
Insects Cicadas, froghoppers and pond skaters are all insects belonging to class Insecta. Cicadas and froghoppers are sap-feeding insects, while pond skaters are adapted to moving across the water surface.…
Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I. Statement-I is correct because discarded chewing gum persists in the environment and contributes to litter and pollution.…
None Pair 1 is incorrect because the indri is a lemur endemic to Madagascar, not Brazil. Pair 2 is incorrect because elk are native to North America and parts of Eurasia, not Indonesia.…
2 only Statement 1 is incorrect because the World Toilet Organization is an independent, non-governmental organization, not a United Nations agency.…
1 and 2 only Statement 1 is correct because lions can breed throughout the year and do not have a fixed, species-wide breeding season.…
It is a platform for accelerating the transition towards food and water systems that are net-zero (carbon), nature-positive and that aims to increase farmer resilience.…
All four Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) are small-scale energy generation, storage or related resources located close to where electricity is consumed. Battery storage can store and release electricity locally.…
Fig Fig trees have a highly specialized mutualistic relationship with fig wasps. In many fig species, a particular wasp species is the exclusive pollinator, and the wasp depends on the fig for reproduction.…
All three Poisonous species occur among all three groups. Some butterflies, such as monarchs, accumulate toxic compounds from their larval host plants and become unpalatable to predators.…
Only one Cashew is native to tropical South America, particularly Brazil, and was introduced into India by the Portuguese. Papaya is native to tropical America, not India.…
2 and 3 only Statement 1 is incorrect because RTGs are not fission reactors. They convert heat released by radioactive decay directly into electricity through thermoelectric materials; they do not sustain a nuclear fission chain reaction.…
Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct. Statement-I is incorrect because massive, luminous giant stars generally consume their nuclear fuel much faster and therefore have shorter lifetimes than low-mass dwarf stars such as…
Nitric oxide Nitric oxide (NO) is synthesized by endothelial cells and acts as a signalling molecule that relaxes vascular smooth muscle, causing vasodilation and increasing blood flow.…
All three Radar and related electromagnetic sensing technologies have applications across all three activities. Advanced radar-based or millimetre-wave screening systems can assist in security screening, including the detection of…
None The Rafale is generally classified as a 4.5-generation multirole fighter. The MiG-29 is a fourth-generation fighter, while the Tejas Mk-1 is also generally classified as a fourth-generation light combat aircraft.…
1, 2 and 3 Statement 1 is correct because hydrogels can absorb and retain water and are used in controlled drug-delivery systems.…
Water vapour In a hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle, hydrogen reacts electrochemically with oxygen from the air to generate electricity.…
Long duration energy storage Pumped-storage hydropower stores energy by pumping water from a lower reservoir to a higher reservoir when electricity is available or demand is low.…
Wastewater treatment technologies Membrane Bioreactors (MBRs) combine biological wastewater treatment with membrane filtration.…
Money market Collateralised Borrowing and Lending Obligations (CBLOs) were short-term money-market instruments used to facilitate secured borrowing and lending, generally against eligible securities such as government securities.…
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