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Prelims GS I

Prelims GS I · 235 questions · 2011–2026

Geography: every Prelims question, by topic

UPSC syllabus: “Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.” Below, the topics inside it — most asked first — and how often each came up year by year.

Geography in Prelims 2026: 11 questions

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Timed · 30 minutes a set Practise Geography as timed tests 6 sets of about 25 questions with UPSC's marking — every question on Geography since 2011. Start practising

Geography in UPSC Prelims at a glance

UPSC has asked 235 questions on Geography in GS Paper I from 2011 to 2026 — about 15 a year, the most in 2023 (23). The most-asked topic is Agriculture & crops (44 questions).

Year2011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023202420252026
Questions1417161313108131214122023211811

Counted from UPSC's own papers in the Vault, each question under its main subject · updated 8 Nov 2026.

  1. Agriculture & crops44 questions · asked in 15 of 16 years Agriculture & crops per year: 2011: 4, 2012: 4, 2013: 1, 2014: 4, 2015: 1, 2016: 3, 2017: 1, 2018: 2, 2019: 4, 2020: 7, 2021: 4, 2022: 3, 2023: 3, 2024: 2, 2025: 1, 2026: 0
  2. India: relief, rivers & drainage38 questions · asked in 15 of 16 years India: relief, rivers & drainage per year: 2011: 1, 2012: 1, 2013: 1, 2014: 3, 2015: 3, 2016: 3, 2017: 4, 2018: 3, 2019: 3, 2020: 1, 2021: 3, 2022: 3, 2023: 3, 2024: 2, 2025: 0, 2026: 4
  3. Minerals, energy & industry38 questions · asked in 14 of 16 years Minerals, energy & industry per year: 2011: 1, 2012: 3, 2013: 4, 2014: 1, 2015: 1, 2016: 4, 2017: 0, 2018: 2, 2019: 1, 2020: 3, 2021: 0, 2022: 3, 2023: 6, 2024: 2, 2025: 6, 2026: 1
  4. World: places, rivers & mapping37 questions · asked in 14 of 16 years World: places, rivers & mapping per year: 2011: 2, 2012: 1, 2013: 1, 2014: 2, 2015: 1, 2016: 0, 2017: 2, 2018: 3, 2019: 1, 2020: 1, 2021: 0, 2022: 8, 2023: 4, 2024: 3, 2025: 5, 2026: 3
  5. Climate & atmosphere30 questions · asked in 13 of 16 years Climate & atmosphere per year: 2011: 5, 2012: 2, 2013: 3, 2014: 1, 2015: 3, 2016: 0, 2017: 1, 2018: 0, 2019: 1, 2020: 1, 2021: 0, 2022: 1, 2023: 2, 2024: 6, 2025: 3, 2026: 1
  6. Earth, landforms & geomorphology15 questions · asked in 8 of 16 years Earth, landforms & geomorphology per year: 2011: 0, 2012: 2, 2013: 1, 2014: 0, 2015: 0, 2016: 0, 2017: 0, 2018: 1, 2019: 1, 2020: 0, 2021: 0, 2022: 1, 2023: 2, 2024: 4, 2025: 3, 2026: 0
  7. Oceans13 questions · asked in 10 of 16 years Oceans per year: 2011: 1, 2012: 1, 2013: 2, 2014: 0, 2015: 1, 2016: 0, 2017: 0, 2018: 1, 2019: 0, 2020: 1, 2021: 3, 2022: 1, 2023: 0, 2024: 1, 2025: 0, 2026: 1
  8. India: climate, soils & vegetation13 questions · asked in 9 of 16 years India: climate, soils & vegetation per year: 2011: 0, 2012: 2, 2013: 2, 2014: 1, 2015: 3, 2016: 0, 2017: 0, 2018: 1, 2019: 1, 2020: 0, 2021: 1, 2022: 0, 2023: 1, 2024: 0, 2025: 0, 2026: 1
  9. Population, settlement & transport7 questions · asked in 6 of 16 years Population, settlement & transport per year: 2011: 0, 2012: 1, 2013: 1, 2014: 1, 2015: 0, 2016: 0, 2017: 0, 2018: 0, 2019: 0, 2020: 0, 2021: 1, 2022: 0, 2023: 2, 2024: 1, 2025: 0, 2026: 0

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The same ground in Mains

These official Mains syllabus lines cover Geography. Prelims facts become Mains arguments.

Geography PYQs as a PDF — free

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Every Geography question from 2011 to 2026, topic-wise, with answers and explanations — 124 pages. Free; sign up once.

Geography PYQs: quick answers

How many Geography questions has UPSC asked in Prelims from 2011 to 2026?

235 questions in GS Paper I — about 15 a year, the most in 2023 (23). Every one is on this page, under its topic, with UPSC's answer and an explanation.

Which Geography topic does UPSC ask most in Prelims?

Agriculture & crops: 44 questions between 2011 and 2026, asked in 15 of 16 years. The topics are listed above, most asked first, each with its year-by-year trend.

Are the answers UPSC's official answer keys?

From 2016, yes: every answer is from UPSC's final answer key (2016–2025); for 2011–2015, where UPSC published no key online, each answer is worked out from official sources and reviewed independently; for 2026 UPSC has so far published a provisional key, and those answers are labelled. Explanations cite official sources — NCERT and government pages first.

Can I download the Geography PYQs as a PDF?

Yes — a print-ready PDF of every Geography question with answers and explanations (124 pages, 2.5 MB), free after a one-time sign-up, from the Vault's downloads page.

Counted from UPSC's own papers in the Vault; answers are UPSC's keys.