Minimalist IAS
CSAT

CSAT · 299 questions

Reading comprehension

Every UPSC CSAT question on this topic, 2016–2026, newest first. Tap an option to check yourself; the answer and explanation open below it.

Reading comprehension questions per year: 2016: 27, 2017: 31, 2018: 26, 2019: 30, 2020: 25, 2021: 27, 2022: 27, 2023: 27, 2024: 27, 2025: 29, 2026: 23 Asked in 11 of 11 years · most in 2017 (31)

UPSC syllabus: “Comprehension;” See the full syllabus →

CSAT 2022 · Q1

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

The main threat to maintaining progress in human development comes from the increasingly evident unsustainability of production and consumption patterns. Current production models rely heavily on fossil fuels. We now know that this is unsustainable because the resources are finite. The close link between economic growth and greenhouse gas emissions needs to be severed for human development to become truly sustainable. Some developed countries have begun to alleviate the worst effects by expanding recycling and investing in public transport and infrastructure. But most developing countries are hampered by the high costs and low availability of clean energy sources. Developed countries need to support developing countries’ transition to sustainable human development.

Unsustainability in production pattern is due to which of the following?

  1. 1.Heavy dependence on fossil fuels
  2. 2.Limited availability of resources
  3. 3.Expansion of recycling

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) 1 and 2 only

The passage says current production models rely heavily on fossil fuels and that this is unsustainable because the resources are finite. Recycling appears only as a remedy some developed countries are using, never as a cause.

  • ✓ 1. “Current production models rely heavily on fossil fuels. We now know that this is unsustainable…” — heavy dependence on fossil fuels is named as the problem.
  • ✓ 2. The reason given is “because the resources are finite” — that is, resources are available only in limited amounts.
  • ✗ 3. Expanding recycling is how some developed countries “alleviate the worst effects”. It eases the problem; it does not cause it.

Remember · Separate cause from remedy: whatever a passage lists as a fix for a problem cannot also be its cause.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q2

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

The main threat to maintaining progress in human development comes from the increasingly evident unsustainability of production and consumption patterns. Current production models rely heavily on fossil fuels. We now know that this is unsustainable because the resources are finite. The close link between economic growth and greenhouse gas emissions needs to be severed for human development to become truly sustainable. Some developed countries have begun to alleviate the worst effects by expanding recycling and investing in public transport and infrastructure. But most developing countries are hampered by the high costs and low availability of clean energy sources. Developed countries need to support developing countries’ transition to sustainable human development.

Consider the following statements:

Developed countries can support developing countries’ transition to sustainable human development by

  1. 1.making clean energy sources available at low cost
  2. 2.providing loans for improving their public transport at nominal interest rates
  3. 3.encouraging them to change their production and consumption patterns

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) 1 and 2 only

The passage names what holds developing countries back — “the high costs and low availability of clean energy sources” — and cites public transport and infrastructure as steps that ease the damage. Real support therefore means removing these material barriers; merely encouraging a change of habits does not.

  • ✓ 1. It answers the exact hurdle the passage names: developing countries are “hampered by the high costs and low availability of clean energy sources”.
  • ✓ 2. The passage cites “investing in public transport and infrastructure” as a way to alleviate the worst effects; cheap loans let developing countries, held back by cost, do the same.
  • ✗ 3. The passage does not say developing countries lack the will to change — it says they are hampered by cost and availability. Encouragement does not touch that barrier, so it is not the support the passage calls for.

Remember · In ‘how can X help Y’ items, match the help to the obstacle the passage names; exhortation is rarely the support meant.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q3

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

Unless the forces and tendencies which are responsible for destroying the country’s environment are checked in the near future and afforestation of denuded areas is taken up on a massive scale, the harshness of the climatic conditions and soil erosion by wind and water will increase to such an extent that agriculture, which is the mainstay of our people, will gradually become impossible. The desert countries of the world and our own desert areas in Rajasthan are a grim reminder of the consequences of large-scale deforestation. Pockets of desert-like landscape are now appearing in other parts of the country including the Sutlej-Ganga Plains and the Deccan Plateau. Where only a few decades back there used to be lush green forests with perennial streams and springs, there is only brown earth, bare of vegetation, without any water in the streams and springs except in the rainy season.

According to the passage given above, deforestation and denudation will ultimately lead to which of the following?

  1. 1.Depletion of soil resource
  2. 2.Shortage of land for the common man
  3. 3.Lack of water for cultivation

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Answer & explanation

Answer: (c) 1 and 3 only

The passage predicts “soil erosion by wind and water” and describes land left “without any water in the streams and springs except in the rainy season”, so soil and water are both lost. It says nothing about land becoming scarce for people.

  • ✓ 1. “Soil erosion by wind and water will increase”, leaving “brown earth, bare of vegetation” — the soil resource is depleted.
  • ✗ 2. The land does not disappear; it degrades so that agriculture becomes impossible. A shortage of land for the common man is not mentioned.
  • ✓ 3. Former perennial streams and springs now have no water “except in the rainy season”, and agriculture “will gradually become impossible”.

Remember · Pick only the consequences the passage actually describes; a plausible real-world effect missing from the text is out.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q11

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

“In simple matters like shoe-making, we think only a specially trained person will serve our purpose, but in politics, we presume that everyone who knows how to get votes knows how to administer a State. When we are ill, we call for a trained physician, whose degree is a guarantee of specific preparation and technical competence—we do not ask for the handsomest physician, or the most eloquent one: well then, when the whole State is ill should we not look for the service and guidance of the wisest and the best?”

Which one of the following statements best reflects the message of the author of the passage?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (c) We need to devise a method of barring incompetence from public office.

The author contrasts our insistence on trained shoe-makers and physicians with our acceptance of anyone who can win votes as fit to run the State. The closing question asks for “the wisest and the best”, so the message is that incompetence must be kept out of public office.

  • ✗ (a) This is the presumption the author attacks (“we presume that everyone who knows how to get votes knows how to administer a State”). It describes the problem, not the message.
  • ✗ (b) Too narrow and specific. The author asks for “the wisest and the best”; the physician analogy is about proven competence, not a rule that politicians must come from administrative training.
  • ✓ (c) “Should we not look for the service and guidance of the wisest and the best?” implies that we must find a way to keep the incompetent from governing.
  • ✗ (d) Reverses the author’s view — the passage questions exactly the idea that winning votes proves fitness to govern.

Remember · In ‘message of the author’ items, the closing rhetorical question usually carries the message; options restating the criticised view are traps.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q12

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

The poverty line is quite unsatisfactory when it comes to grasping the extent of poverty in India. It is not only because of its extremely narrow definition of ‘who is poor’ and the debatable methodology used to count the poor, but also because of a more fundamental assumption underlying it. It exclusively relies on the notion of poverty as insufficient income or insufficient purchasing power. One can better categorize it by calling it income poverty. If poverty is ultimately about deprivations affecting human well-being, then income poverty is only one aspect of it. Poverty of a life, in our view, lies not merely in the impoverished state in which the person actually lives, but also in the lack of real opportunity given by social constraints as well as personal circumstances—to choose other types of living. Even the relevance of low incomes, meagre possessions, and other aspects of what are standardly seen as economic poverty relate ultimately to their role in curtailing capabilities, i.e., their role in severely restricting the choices people have to lead variable and valued lives.

Why is the methodology adopted in India to count the ‘poor’ debatable?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) It is based on the proposition of poverty as meagre income or buying capacity.

The passage’s criticism of how the poor are counted is that it “exclusively relies on the notion of poverty as insufficient income or insufficient purchasing power”. Of the four options, only this idea comes from the passage; the others bring in reasons it never mentions.

  • ✗ (a) The passage calls the definition “extremely narrow”, not confused; no confusion about what the line should be is mentioned.
  • ✗ (b) Rural–urban differences are not discussed anywhere in the passage.
  • ✗ (c) A global standard is never mentioned; this is outside the passage.
  • ✓ (d) The counting rests on “the notion of poverty as insufficient income or insufficient purchasing power” — that is, meagre income or buying capacity.

Remember · When every other option imports facts the passage never states, choose the one that paraphrases the passage’s own words.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q13

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

The poverty line is quite unsatisfactory when it comes to grasping the extent of poverty in India. It is not only because of its extremely narrow definition of ‘who is poor’ and the debatable methodology used to count the poor, but also because of a more fundamental assumption underlying it. It exclusively relies on the notion of poverty as insufficient income or insufficient purchasing power. One can better categorize it by calling it income poverty. If poverty is ultimately about deprivations affecting human well-being, then income poverty is only one aspect of it. Poverty of a life, in our view, lies not merely in the impoverished state in which the person actually lives, but also in the lack of real opportunity given by social constraints as well as personal circumstances—to choose other types of living. Even the relevance of low incomes, meagre possessions, and other aspects of what are standardly seen as economic poverty relate ultimately to their role in curtailing capabilities, i.e., their role in severely restricting the choices people have to lead variable and valued lives.

Why is income poverty only one measure of counting the ‘poor’?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) It talks of only one kind of deprivation ignoring all others.

If poverty is about all the deprivations that affect well-being, income poverty captures only one of them: “income poverty is only one aspect of it”. Other deprivations, such as the lack of real opportunity, are left out.

  • ✓ (a) “If poverty is ultimately about deprivations affecting human well-being, then income poverty is only one aspect of it” — one kind of deprivation, ignoring others such as lack of real opportunity.
  • ✗ (b) Too extreme. The passage links low incomes to “curtailing capabilities”; it never says other deprivations are unrelated to purchasing power.
  • ✗ (c) Whether income poverty is temporary or permanent is not discussed.
  • ✗ (d) “Only at a point of time” is not in the passage; the author’s point is about the narrow range of what is counted, not about timing.

Remember · Distrust absolute words like ‘nothing to do with’; passages rarely support such extremes.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q14

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

The poverty line is quite unsatisfactory when it comes to grasping the extent of poverty in India. It is not only because of its extremely narrow definition of ‘who is poor’ and the debatable methodology used to count the poor, but also because of a more fundamental assumption underlying it. It exclusively relies on the notion of poverty as insufficient income or insufficient purchasing power. One can better categorize it by calling it income poverty. If poverty is ultimately about deprivations affecting human well-being, then income poverty is only one aspect of it. Poverty of a life, in our view, lies not merely in the impoverished state in which the person actually lives, but also in the lack of real opportunity given by social constraints as well as personal circumstances—to choose other types of living. Even the relevance of low incomes, meagre possessions, and other aspects of what are standardly seen as economic poverty relate ultimately to their role in curtailing capabilities, i.e., their role in severely restricting the choices people have to lead variable and valued lives.

What does the author mean by ‘poverty of a life’?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) All deprivations in a human life which stem not only from lack of income but lack of real opportunities

The author says poverty of a life lies “not merely in the impoverished state in which the person actually lives, but also in the lack of real opportunity” to choose other ways of living. That means deprivation from lack of income and from lack of real opportunities together.

  • ✓ (a) Matches both halves of the definition: the impoverished state and “the lack of real opportunity given by social constraints as well as personal circumstances”.
  • ✗ (b) Covers only the first half (the impoverished state), and the rural–urban angle is not in the passage.
  • ✗ (c) Only a fragment: personal circumstances are one source of lost opportunity, and the impoverished state is left out.
  • ✗ (d) “Permanently” is added; the passage speaks of restricting choices, never of a permanent restriction.

Remember · For ‘what does the author mean by’ items, find the defining sentence and pick the option covering all its parts — nothing added.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q21

Easy
Read the passage (Passage) — this item is based on it

In some places in the world, the productivity of staples such as rice and wheat has reached a plateau. Neither new strains nor fancy agrochemicals are raising the yields. Nor is there much unfarmed land left that is suitable to be brought under the plough. If global temperature continues to rise, some places will become unsuitable for farming. Application of technology can help overcome these problems. Agricultural technology is changing fast. Much of this change is brought about by affluent farmers in the West/Americas. Techniques developed in the West are being adapted in some places to make tropical crops more productive. Technology is of little use if it is not adapted. In the developing world, that applies as much to existing farming techniques as it does to the latest advances in genetic modification. Extending to the smallholders and subsistence farmers of Africa and Asia the best of today’s agricultural practices, in such simple matters as how much fertilizers to apply and when, would lead to a greatly increased availability of food for humanity. So would things like better roads and storage facilities, to allow for the carriage of surpluses to markets and reduce wastage.

Based on the above passage, the following assumptions have been made:

  1. 1.Development of agricultural technology is confined to developed countries.
  2. 2.Agricultural technology is not adapted in developing countries.

Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2

The passage says “much” of the change comes from affluent farmers in the West — not all of it — and that Western techniques “are being adapted in some places”. Both assumptions overstate or contradict the text.

  • ✗ 1. “Much of this change is brought about by affluent farmers in the West/Americas” — much, not all. “Confined to” is too strong.
  • ✗ 2. Contradicted: “Techniques developed in the West are being adapted in some places to make tropical crops more productive.”

Remember · Assumptions using ‘confined to’, ‘only’ or ‘never’ fail when the passage says ‘much’, ‘some’ or ‘in some places’.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q22

Medium
Read the passage (Passage) — this item is based on it

In some places in the world, the productivity of staples such as rice and wheat has reached a plateau. Neither new strains nor fancy agrochemicals are raising the yields. Nor is there much unfarmed land left that is suitable to be brought under the plough. If global temperature continues to rise, some places will become unsuitable for farming. Application of technology can help overcome these problems. Agricultural technology is changing fast. Much of this change is brought about by affluent farmers in the West/Americas. Techniques developed in the West are being adapted in some places to make tropical crops more productive. Technology is of little use if it is not adapted. In the developing world, that applies as much to existing farming techniques as it does to the latest advances in genetic modification. Extending to the smallholders and subsistence farmers of Africa and Asia the best of today’s agricultural practices, in such simple matters as how much fertilizers to apply and when, would lead to a greatly increased availability of food for humanity. So would things like better roads and storage facilities, to allow for the carriage of surpluses to markets and reduce wastage.

Based on the above passage, the following assumptions have been made:

  1. 1.Poor countries need to bring about change in their existing farming techniques.
  2. 2.Developed countries have better infrastructure and they waste less food.

Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) 1 only

The author says technology is of little use unless it is adapted, and that in the developing world this applies “as much to existing farming techniques” — so poor countries must change how they farm. The passage makes no comparison of infrastructure or food waste with developed countries.

  • ✓ 1. Extending “the best of today’s agricultural practices”, such as how much fertilizer to apply and when, to smallholders in Africa and Asia would greatly raise food supply — the author takes it for granted that their present techniques need to change.
  • ✗ 2. Better roads and storage are recommended for the developing world, but the passage never says developed countries have better infrastructure or waste less food.

Remember · An assumption must be something the author’s argument needs; a comparison the passage never draws is not one.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q23

Easy
Read the passage (Passage) — this item is based on it

In some places in the world, the productivity of staples such as rice and wheat has reached a plateau. Neither new strains nor fancy agrochemicals are raising the yields. Nor is there much unfarmed land left that is suitable to be brought under the plough. If global temperature continues to rise, some places will become unsuitable for farming. Application of technology can help overcome these problems. Agricultural technology is changing fast. Much of this change is brought about by affluent farmers in the West/Americas. Techniques developed in the West are being adapted in some places to make tropical crops more productive. Technology is of little use if it is not adapted. In the developing world, that applies as much to existing farming techniques as it does to the latest advances in genetic modification. Extending to the smallholders and subsistence farmers of Africa and Asia the best of today’s agricultural practices, in such simple matters as how much fertilizers to apply and when, would lead to a greatly increased availability of food for humanity. So would things like better roads and storage facilities, to allow for the carriage of surpluses to markets and reduce wastage.

Based on the above passage, the following assumptions have been made:

  1. 1.Growing enough food for future generations will be a challenge.
  2. 2.Corporate farming is a viable option for food security in poor countries.

Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) 1 only

The passage opens with plateauing yields, little unfarmed land left and rising temperatures — the author assumes that feeding people in future will be hard. Corporate farming is never mentioned; the focus is on smallholders and subsistence farmers.

  • ✓ 1. Yields have “reached a plateau”, there is not “much unfarmed land left”, and some places “will become unsuitable for farming” — the case for technology rests on food supply becoming a challenge.
  • ✗ 2. The passage speaks of extending best practices to “smallholders and subsistence farmers”; corporate farming lies outside the passage.

Remember · Reject any assumption that brings in a new solution (here corporate farming) the author never discusses.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q31

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

Natural selection cannot anticipate future environments on the earth. Therefore, the set of existing organisms can never be fully prepared for environmental catastrophes that await life. An outcome of this is the extinction of those species which cannot overcome environmental adversity. This failure to survive, in modern terms, can be attributed to the genomes which are unable to withstand geological vagaries or biological mishaps (infections, diseases and so on). In biological evolution on the earth, extinction of species has been a major feature. The earth may presently have up to ten million species, yet more than 90% of species that have ever lived on the earth are now extinct. Once again, the creationist doctrines fail to satisfactorily address why a divine creator will firstly bother to create millions of species and then allow them to perish. The Darwinian explanation for extinct life is once again simple, elegant and at once convincing—organisms go extinct as a function of environmental or biological assaults for which their inheritance deems them ill-equipped. Therefore, the so-called Darwinian theory of evolution is not a theory at all. Evolution happens—this is a fact. The mechanism of evolution (Darwin proposed natural selection) is amply supported by scientific data. Indeed, to date no single zoological, botanical, geological, paleontological, genetic or physical evidence has refuted either of the central two main Darwinian ideas. If religion is not taken into consideration, Darwinian laws are acceptable just like the laws proposed by Copernicus, Galileo, Newton and Einstein—sets of natural laws that explain natural phenomena in the universe.

According to the passage, natural selection cannot anticipate future environments on the earth as

  1. 1.species not fully prepared to face the environmental changes that await them will face extinction
  2. 2.all the existing species would get extinct as their genomes will not withstand biological mishaps
  3. 3.inability of the genome to withstand environmental changes would result in extinction
  4. 4.extinction of species is a common feature

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Answer & explanation

Answer: (c) 1, 3 and 4

The passage says unprepared species go extinct, that this is due to genomes unable to withstand geological vagaries or biological mishaps, and that extinction “has been a major feature”. It never says that all existing species will go extinct.

  • ✓ 1. “The set of existing organisms can never be fully prepared for environmental catastrophes… An outcome of this is the extinction of those species which cannot overcome environmental adversity.”
  • ✗ 2. Too extreme: extinction is said to strike “those species which cannot overcome” adversity, not all existing species.
  • ✓ 3. “This failure to survive… can be attributed to the genomes which are unable to withstand geological vagaries or biological mishaps.”
  • ✓ 4. “Extinction of species has been a major feature”, and more than 90% of species that ever lived are now extinct.

Remember · Knock out the ‘all’ statement first: if the passage limits a claim to ‘those which…’, a universal claim fails.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q32

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

Natural selection cannot anticipate future environments on the earth. Therefore, the set of existing organisms can never be fully prepared for environmental catastrophes that await life. An outcome of this is the extinction of those species which cannot overcome environmental adversity. This failure to survive, in modern terms, can be attributed to the genomes which are unable to withstand geological vagaries or biological mishaps (infections, diseases and so on). In biological evolution on the earth, extinction of species has been a major feature. The earth may presently have up to ten million species, yet more than 90% of species that have ever lived on the earth are now extinct. Once again, the creationist doctrines fail to satisfactorily address why a divine creator will firstly bother to create millions of species and then allow them to perish. The Darwinian explanation for extinct life is once again simple, elegant and at once convincing—organisms go extinct as a function of environmental or biological assaults for which their inheritance deems them ill-equipped. Therefore, the so-called Darwinian theory of evolution is not a theory at all. Evolution happens—this is a fact. The mechanism of evolution (Darwin proposed natural selection) is amply supported by scientific data. Indeed, to date no single zoological, botanical, geological, paleontological, genetic or physical evidence has refuted either of the central two main Darwinian ideas. If religion is not taken into consideration, Darwinian laws are acceptable just like the laws proposed by Copernicus, Galileo, Newton and Einstein—sets of natural laws that explain natural phenomena in the universe.

The passage suggests that Darwinian theory of evolution is not a theory at all because

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) extinction is a function of environment and biological assaults

“Therefore, the so-called Darwinian theory of evolution is not a theory at all” follows directly from the Darwinian explanation that organisms go extinct “as a function of environmental or biological assaults”. That explanation, being simple and convincing, is what makes the author treat evolution as fact rather than theory.

  • ✗ (a) The author criticises creationist doctrines; failing to satisfy them is not offered as the reason.
  • ✓ (b) The “Therefore” rests on the preceding sentence: organisms go extinct “as a function of environmental or biological assaults for which their inheritance deems them ill-equipped”.
  • ✗ (c) That no evidence has refuted Darwin’s ideas comes later, as support for the mechanism of evolution; it is not the reason attached to “not a theory at all”.
  • ✗ (d) Reverses the passage — attributing organisms to a creator is the creationist view the author rejects.

Remember · For ‘why does the author say X’, read the sentence just before the ‘Therefore’ — that is the stated reason.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q33

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

Natural selection cannot anticipate future environments on the earth. Therefore, the set of existing organisms can never be fully prepared for environmental catastrophes that await life. An outcome of this is the extinction of those species which cannot overcome environmental adversity. This failure to survive, in modern terms, can be attributed to the genomes which are unable to withstand geological vagaries or biological mishaps (infections, diseases and so on). In biological evolution on the earth, extinction of species has been a major feature. The earth may presently have up to ten million species, yet more than 90% of species that have ever lived on the earth are now extinct. Once again, the creationist doctrines fail to satisfactorily address why a divine creator will firstly bother to create millions of species and then allow them to perish. The Darwinian explanation for extinct life is once again simple, elegant and at once convincing—organisms go extinct as a function of environmental or biological assaults for which their inheritance deems them ill-equipped. Therefore, the so-called Darwinian theory of evolution is not a theory at all. Evolution happens—this is a fact. The mechanism of evolution (Darwin proposed natural selection) is amply supported by scientific data. Indeed, to date no single zoological, botanical, geological, paleontological, genetic or physical evidence has refuted either of the central two main Darwinian ideas. If religion is not taken into consideration, Darwinian laws are acceptable just like the laws proposed by Copernicus, Galileo, Newton and Einstein—sets of natural laws that explain natural phenomena in the universe.

With reference to the passage, the following assumptions have been made:

  1. 1.Only species that have the ability to overcome environmental catastrophes will survive and perpetuate.
  2. 2.More than 90% of the species on the earth are in the danger of getting extinct due to drastic changes in the environment.
  3. 3.Darwin’s theory explains all the natural phenomena.

Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) 1 only

The passage implies that only species able to overcome environmental adversity survive. The 90% figure is about species that ever lived and are now extinct, not present species at risk, and the passage never claims Darwin’s theory explains all natural phenomena.

  • ✓ 1. Extinction is “the extinction of those species which cannot overcome environmental adversity”; so only those that can overcome it survive and carry on.
  • ✗ 2. Misreads the figure: “more than 90% of species that have ever lived on the earth are now extinct” is about the past, not about present species being in danger.
  • ✗ 3. Overreach: Darwinian laws are compared with the laws of Copernicus, Galileo, Newton and Einstein that “explain natural phenomena”; the passage does not say Darwin’s theory explains all of them.

Remember · Check what a statistic actually counts; wrong options often shift its time frame or the group it covers.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q34

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

With steady economic growth, higher literacy and increasing skill levels, the number of Indian middle-class families has gone up exponentially. Direct results of the affluence have been changes in dietary patterns and energy consumption levels. People have moved to a higher protein-based diet like milk products, fish and meat, all of which need significantly more water to produce than cereal-based diets. Increasing use of electronic and electric machines/gadgets and motor vehicles needs more and more energy and generation of energy needs water.

Which one of the following statements best reflects the crux of the passage?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) Water management practices in India need to change dramatically in the coming years.

Both changes the passage describes — protein-rich diets that need more water, and more gadgets and vehicles whose energy needs water to generate — end in rising demand for water. The crux is that India must manage water very differently.

  • ✗ (a) The passage describes the move to protein-rich diets; it does not argue for persuading people back to cereal diets.
  • ✗ (b) Farm productivity and energy capacity are not the focus; the passage points to water as the common need behind both trends.
  • ✗ (c) The passage links affluence, not technology, to changing habits, and the change it stresses is the resulting demand for water.
  • ✓ (d) Diets that “need significantly more water” and energy whose “generation… needs water” both point to a growing water demand that current practices must be changed to meet.

Remember · For ‘crux’ items, find the idea every sentence leads to — here each trend ends in ‘water’.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q41

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

For two or three generations past, ever-increasing numbers of individuals have been living as workers merely, not as human beings. An excessive amount of labour is rule today in every circle of society, with the result that man’s spiritual element cannot thrive. He finds it very difficult to spend his little leisure in serious activities. He does not want to think; or he cannot even if he wants to. He seeks not self-improvement, but entertainment which would enable him to be mentally idle and to forget his usual activities. Therefore, the so-called culture of our age is dependant more on cinema than on theatre, more on newspapers, magazines and crime stories than on serious literature.

The passage is based on the idea that

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) the great evil of our age is overstrain

The passage traces everything — the stunted spiritual life, the craving for idle entertainment, the shallow culture — to “an excessive amount of labour”. The idea it rests on is that overwork, or overstrain, is the great evil of the age.

  • ✗ (a) The author objects to excessive labour, not to hard work as such; “should not work hard” is a prescription the passage never makes.
  • ✓ (b) “An excessive amount of labour is rule today in every circle of society, with the result that man’s spiritual element cannot thrive” — every other problem flows from this overstrain.
  • ✗ (c) “He does not want to think; or he cannot even if he wants to” is a symptom of overwork, not the idea the passage is built on.
  • ✗ (d) The spiritual element failing to thrive is a result of excessive labour; the option picks an effect, not the underlying idea.

Remember · For ‘based on the idea’ items, find the cause from which the other statements flow; effects and symptoms are traps.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q42

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

For two or three generations past, ever-increasing numbers of individuals have been living as workers merely, not as human beings. An excessive amount of labour is rule today in every circle of society, with the result that man’s spiritual element cannot thrive. He finds it very difficult to spend his little leisure in serious activities. He does not want to think; or he cannot even if he wants to. He seeks not self-improvement, but entertainment which would enable him to be mentally idle and to forget his usual activities. Therefore, the so-called culture of our age is dependant more on cinema than on theatre, more on newspapers, magazines and crime stories than on serious literature.

Man does not seek self-improvement because he

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) loves amusement and is mentally idle

The passage answers this directly: “He seeks not self-improvement, but entertainment which would enable him to be mentally idle.” The overworked man picks amusement that lets his mind rest.

  • ✗ (a) His ability is never questioned; the passage says he does not want to think, or cannot after excessive labour.
  • ✗ (b) He has “little leisure”, not none; the issue is how he spends it.
  • ✗ (c) Materialism is not mentioned; the distraction the passage names is entertainment.
  • ✓ (d) He seeks “entertainment which would enable him to be mentally idle and to forget his usual activities”.

Remember · When the passage answers the ‘why’ in one sentence, match that sentence; do not infer a new cause.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q43

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

The demographic dividend, which has begun in India and is expected to last another few decades, is a great window of opportunity. The demographic dividend is basically a swelling in the working age population, which conversely means that the relative ratio of very young and very old will, for a while, be on the decline. From the experience of Ireland and China, we know that this can be a source of energy and an engine of economic growth. The demographic dividend tends to raise a nation’s savings rate since in any nation, it is the working age population that is the main saver. And since the savings rate is an important driver of growth, this should help elevate our growth rate. However, the benefits of demographic dividend depend on the quality of the working age population. And this implies bringing back the importance of education, acquisition of skills and human capital.

Which of the following would invariably happen in a country, when the demographic dividend has begun to operate?

  1. 1.The number of illiterate people will decrease.
  2. 2.The ratio of very old and very young will decrease for a while.
  3. 3.Population growth rate will quickly stabilize.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) 2 only

By the passage’s own definition, the demographic dividend means “the relative ratio of very young and very old will, for a while, be on the decline”. Rising literacy and a stable population growth rate are not stated as automatic results.

  • ✗ 1. The passage says the benefits depend on the quality of the workforce and calls for “bringing back the importance of education” — literacy does not rise automatically.
  • ✓ 2. This is the definition itself: the ratio of very young and very old will “for a while, be on the decline”.
  • ✗ 3. Stabilisation of the population growth rate is not mentioned at all.

Remember · ‘Invariably’ admits only what follows by definition; benefits the passage makes conditional are out.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q44

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

The demographic dividend, which has begun in India and is expected to last another few decades, is a great window of opportunity. The demographic dividend is basically a swelling in the working age population, which conversely means that the relative ratio of very young and very old will, for a while, be on the decline. From the experience of Ireland and China, we know that this can be a source of energy and an engine of economic growth. The demographic dividend tends to raise a nation’s savings rate since in any nation, it is the working age population that is the main saver. And since the savings rate is an important driver of growth, this should help elevate our growth rate. However, the benefits of demographic dividend depend on the quality of the working age population. And this implies bringing back the importance of education, acquisition of skills and human capital.

With reference to the passage, which of the following inferences can be drawn?

  1. 1.Demographic dividend is an essential condition for a country to rapidly increase its economic growth rate.
  2. 2.Promotion of higher education is an essential condition for a country for its rapid economic growth.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2

The passage says the demographic dividend can drive growth and that its benefits depend on education and skills. It never calls either an essential condition for rapid growth, and it does not single out higher education.

  • ✗ 1. The dividend “can be a source of energy and an engine of economic growth” — a help, not a precondition; nothing says growth is impossible without it.
  • ✗ 2. The passage names education, skills and human capital as what makes the dividend pay off; making higher education an essential condition for all rapid growth goes beyond it.

Remember · ‘Can help’ is not ‘essential condition’; reject inferences that turn a contributing factor into a necessity.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q51

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

In an economic organization, allowing mankind to benefit by the productivity of machines should lead to a very good life of leisure, and much leisure is apt to be tedious except to those who have intelligent activities and interests. If a leisured population is to be happy, it must be an educated population, and must be educated with a view to enjoyment as well as to the direct usefulness of technical knowledge.

Which of the following statements best reflects the underlying tone of the passage?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) Only an educated population can best make use of the benefits of economic progress.

Machines can give people leisure, but leisure is tedious except for those with intelligent interests, and a leisured population can be happy only if it is educated. So only an educated people can truly enjoy the fruits of economic progress.

  • ✓ (a) “If a leisured population is to be happy, it must be an educated population” — education is what lets people benefit from the leisure that productivity brings.
  • ✗ (b) The passage says productivity “should lead to” leisure; it does not say all development should aim at leisure.
  • ✗ (c) Reverses the logic: education is necessary for happy leisure, not a guarantee that more education raises happiness.
  • ✗ (d) The passage does not urge using machines to create leisure; it takes leisure as given and asks what makes it happy.

Remember · ‘Must be X if Y is to happen’ states a necessary condition; options turning it into a sufficient cause are wrong.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q52

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

If presents bring less thrill now that we are grown up, perhaps it is because we have too much already; or perhaps it is because we have lost the fullness of the joy of giving, and with it the fullness of the joy of receiving. Children’s fears are poignant, their miseries are acute, but they do not look too forward nor too far backward. Their joys are clear and complete, because they have not yet learnt always to add ‘but’ to every proposition. Perhaps we are too cautious, too anxious, too sceptical. Perhaps some of our cares would shrink if we thought less about them and entered with more single-minded enjoyment into the happiness that come our way.

With reference to the passage, which one of the following statements is correct?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) There can be more than one reason why adults feel less thrilled by presents.

The author offers two possible reasons with “perhaps… or perhaps”: we already have too much, or we have lost the fullness of the joy of giving. So there can be more than one reason why adults are less thrilled by presents.

  • ✗ (a) Too extreme: presents bring “less thrill”, not no thrill.
  • ✓ (b) “Perhaps it is because we have too much already; or perhaps it is because we have lost the fullness of the joy of giving” — two possible reasons.
  • ✗ (c) The author is tentative but does offer reasons; saying he does not know overstates his doubt.
  • ✗ (d) The passage speaks of the joy of giving and receiving presents, not of loving or being loved.

Remember · ‘Perhaps… or perhaps…’ signals more than one possible reason; options saying ‘impossible’ or ‘does not know’ overshoot.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q53

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

If presents bring less thrill now that we are grown up, perhaps it is because we have too much already; or perhaps it is because we have lost the fullness of the joy of giving, and with it the fullness of the joy of receiving. Children’s fears are poignant, their miseries are acute, but they do not look too forward nor too far backward. Their joys are clear and complete, because they have not yet learnt always to add ‘but’ to every proposition. Perhaps we are too cautious, too anxious, too sceptical. Perhaps some of our cares would shrink if we thought less about them and entered with more single-minded enjoyment into the happiness that come our way.

The author of the passage is against

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) worrying too much about the past and future

Children’s joys are complete because they “do not look too forward nor too far backward”, and the author feels our cares would shrink “if we thought less about them”. He is against excessive worry about the past and the future.

  • ✓ (a) The contrast with children, who “do not look too forward nor too far backward”, and the regret that we are “too cautious, too anxious, too sceptical” show what he opposes.
  • ✗ (b) Presents are only the opening example; thinking about them is never criticised.
  • ✗ (c) Feeling less thrilled is the puzzle the author explores, not the attitude he argues against; ‘new things’ are not mentioned.
  • ✗ (d) Losing the fullness of the joy of giving is one tentative explanation for the lesser thrill, not what the passage as a whole argues against.

Remember · For ‘author is against’, read the advice at the end (think less, worry less); it names what he opposes.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q61

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

The majority of people who fail to accumulate money sufficient for their needs, are generally, easily influenced by the opinions of others. They permit the newspapers and the gossiping neighbours to do their thinking for them. Opinions are the cheapest commodities on the earth. Everyone has a flock of opinions ready to be wished upon by anyone who will accept them. If you are influenced by opinions when you reach decisions, you will not succeed in any undertaking.

Which one of the following is implied by the passage?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (c) There are people who fail to accumulate money for their needs.

The passage opens with “The majority of people who fail to accumulate money sufficient for their needs…”, which takes for granted that such people exist. It says nothing about how many people in all fail or succeed.

  • ✗ (a) “Majority” refers to those among the people who fail who are easily influenced, not to most people in general.
  • ✗ (b) No claim about most people succeeding is made; outside the passage.
  • ✓ (c) Speaking of “people who fail to accumulate money sufficient for their needs” implies that such people exist.
  • ✗ (d) The passage treats having money sufficient for one’s needs as desirable; it never says there is no need for it.

Remember · ‘Implied’ often means ‘presupposed’: what must be true for the author’s sentence to make sense at all.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q62

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

The majority of people who fail to accumulate money sufficient for their needs, are generally, easily influenced by the opinions of others. They permit the newspapers and the gossiping neighbours to do their thinking for them. Opinions are the cheapest commodities on the earth. Everyone has a flock of opinions ready to be wished upon by anyone who will accept them. If you are influenced by opinions when you reach decisions, you will not succeed in any undertaking.

What is the main idea of the passage?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) People should not be influenced by the opinions of others.

The passage links failure to being “easily influenced by the opinions of others” and warns that anyone influenced by opinions when deciding “will not succeed in any undertaking”. The main idea is to resist others’ opinions.

  • ✓ (a) The whole passage warns against letting newspapers and neighbours “do their thinking” for you.
  • ✗ (b) Money is the example, not the message; the passage never urges accumulating as much as possible.
  • ✗ (c) The author warns against being influenced by opinions; he does not forbid giving or accepting opinions altogether.
  • ✗ (d) Reverses the conditional: being influenced leads to failure, but rejecting all opinions is not said to guarantee success.

Remember · Main idea = the warning the example serves; and ‘if A then fail’ does not mean ‘if not A then succeed’.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q63

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

“The social order is a sacred right which is the basis of all other rights. Nevertheless, this right does not come from nature, and must therefore be founded on conventions.”

With reference to the above passage, which of the following statements is/are correct?

  1. 1.Conventions are the sources of rights of man.
  2. 2.Rights of man can be exercised only when there is a social order.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Answer & explanation

Answer: (c) Both 1 and 2

The social order is the basis of all other rights, and it is itself founded on conventions — so conventions are the source of man’s rights. And if the social order is the basis of all rights, those rights can be exercised only where a social order exists.

  • ✓ 1. Rights rest on the social order, and the social order “must therefore be founded on conventions”; so conventions are ultimately the source of man’s rights.
  • ✓ 2. The social order is “the basis of all other rights”; without that basis the other rights cannot be exercised.

Remember · Chain the links: if A is the basis of B and C is the basis of A, then C is the source of B.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q71

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

To encourage research is one of the functions of a university. Contemporary universities have encouraged research, not only in those cases where research is necessary, but on all sorts of entirely unprofitable subjects as well. Scientific research is probably never completely valueless. However silly and insignificant it may seem, however mechanical and unintelligent the labours of the researchers, there is always a chance that the results may be of value to the investigator of talent, who can use the facts collected for him by uninspired but industrious researchers as the basis of some fruitful generalization. But where research is not original, but consists in the mere rearrangement of existing materials, where its object is not scientific but literary or historical, then there is a risk of the whole business becoming merely futile.

The author’s assumption about scientific research is that

Answer & explanation

Answer: (c) it is never without some value

The author writes that “Scientific research is probably never completely valueless” — there is always a chance of some value. The assumption is that it is never without some value, not that it is always very valuable.

  • ✗ (a) The author says the results may be of value to an investigator of talent; “never very valuable” is not what he assumes.
  • ✗ (b) The passage does not grade research as sometimes very valuable; its claim is only about some value.
  • ✓ (c) “Probably never completely valueless” means never without some value.
  • ✗ (d) Too strong: the author admits research may seem “silly and insignificant” and claims only some value.

Remember · Match the strength of the passage’s claim: ‘never completely valueless’ is not ‘always very valuable’.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q72

Easy
Read the passage (Passage—1) — this item is based on it

To encourage research is one of the functions of a university. Contemporary universities have encouraged research, not only in those cases where research is necessary, but on all sorts of entirely unprofitable subjects as well. Scientific research is probably never completely valueless. However silly and insignificant it may seem, however mechanical and unintelligent the labours of the researchers, there is always a chance that the results may be of value to the investigator of talent, who can use the facts collected for him by uninspired but industrious researchers as the basis of some fruitful generalization. But where research is not original, but consists in the mere rearrangement of existing materials, where its object is not scientific but literary or historical, then there is a risk of the whole business becoming merely futile.

According to the author

Answer & explanation

Answer: (c) any research result can be of value to an intelligent investigator

“There is always a chance that the results may be of value to the investigator of talent” — so any result can be useful to such an investigator, though none is guaranteed to be.

  • ✗ (a) The author stresses that even silly-looking research can help; “not many” goes against the passage.
  • ✗ (b) “Always valuable” turns “always a chance” into a certainty.
  • ✓ (c) However silly the research, its results “may be of value” to an investigator of talent — they can be, not must be.
  • ✗ (d) “Must always be” is again a certainty; the passage speaks only of a chance.

Remember · ‘Always a chance that it may’ means ‘can’, not ‘always is’ or ‘must be’.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

CSAT 2022 · Q73

Medium
Read the passage (Passage—2) — this item is based on it

How best can the problems of floods and droughts be addressed so that the losses are minimal and the system becomes resilient? In this context, one important point that needs to be noted is that India gets ‘too much’ water (about 75% of annual precipitation) during 120 days (June to September) and ‘too little’ for the remaining 245 days. This skewed water availability has to be managed and regulated for its consumption throughout the year.

Which one of the following best reflects the practical, rational and lasting solution?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) Buffer stocking of water through dams and recharging aquifers

The problem is one of timing: about 75% of the rain falls in 120 days and too little in the other 245. The lasting fix is to store the monsoon water — in dams and in recharged aquifers — and use it through the year.

  • ✗ (a) Huge concrete tanks and canals across the country are neither practical nor lasting at that scale, and canals move water rather than store it.
  • ✗ (b) Changing cropping patterns adjusts demand; it does not manage the skewed availability the passage describes.
  • ✗ (c) Interlinking rivers moves water from place to place; the passage’s problem is uneven supply over the year.
  • ✓ (d) Buffer stocks in dams and recharged aquifers capture the ‘too much’ of June–September and release it in the ‘too little’ months — exactly the managed, year-round use the passage asks for.

Remember · Match the solution to the exact problem: uneven supply over time needs storage, not transfer or demand changes.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

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