Pre 2014

1. Which of the following phenomena might have influenced the evolution of organisms?

1. Continental drift
2. Glacial cycles

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

• Common sense. Continental drift would mean some animals would be stuck to one continent, others on different with no chance of meeting and mating.
• Similarly glacial cycles would affect evolution  as many would not be able to tolerate extreme cold and would become extinct plus sea level rise due to glacial melt

2. The seasonal reversal of winds is the typical characteristic of

1. Equatorial climate
2. Mediterranean climate
3. Monsoon climate
4. All of the above climates

5th Std kids know the answer

Learning – Learn everything about monsoon given in NCERT

3. With reference to ‘Changpa’ community of India, consider the following statement:

1. They live mainly in the State of Uttarakhand.
2. They rear the Pashmina goats that yield a fine wool.
3. They are kept in the category of Scheduled Tribes.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 3 only
4. 1, 2 and 3

• Pashmima goat is found in jammu and Kashmir not in uttarakhand. So 1 and 2 can not be correct simultaneously
• If such a community is asked, it must be tribal. UPSC asks about tribes.
• Now look at the options
• Tribes are asked but it’s difficult to remember all of them. Just focus on ones in the news, It’s tribe of Jammu and Kashmir

4. Consider the following towns of India:

1. Bhadrachalam
2. Chanderi
3. Kancheepuram
4. Karnal

Which of the above are famous for the production of traditional sarees / fabric?

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 1, 2 and 3
4. 1, 3 and 4

• Kanchipuram is famous for sarees plus this has been asked in previous year
• Karnal is in Haryana, no such thing there
• You have eliminated two options
• Now look at Bhadrachalam – it’s not famous.  You may not know it but as you have been able to eliminate 2 options, make a guess

5. Consider the following rivers:

1. Barak
2. Lohit
3. Subansiri

Which of the above flows / flow through Arunachal Pradesh?

1. 1 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 1 and 3 only
4. 1, 2 and 3

• NCERT – tributaries of Brahmputra
• Barak river you must know as it’s part of national waterway 6. You know it’s course. Also important because of issues over Teepaimukh dam
• Exclude it, you reach the answer

Learning – National waterways, rivers and their tributaries given in NCERT, Surma – Meghna river system

6. Consider these pairs

Which of the above pairs are correctly matched?

1. 1 and 2
2. 2 and 3
3. 3 and 4
4. 2 and 4

Look at this image in your atlas and try to learn the locations. It;s very imp

• See, mahadeo hills was asked in 2015 also
• It’s in m.p. ie central India. 3 is definitely correct
• Now b/w 2 and 4, mikir in North East
• Or if you Kaimur hills is in central highlands, you can exclude all other options
• Cardamom hills you know are on the western ghats while coromandel coast is east coast

Learning – Hills and plateau of India and rivers originating from them are very important. Just look at the map

7. 

Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 3 only
3. 1, 2 and 3
4. None

• No need to remember all the highways
• This question was not doable

8. Which one of the following pairs of islands is separated from each other by the ‘Ten Degree Channel’?

1. Andaman and Nicobar
2. Nicobar and Sumatra
3. Maldives and Lakshadweep
4. Sumatra and Java

• Easy. NCERT Question
• You know the southern most point is in Great nikobar and is 6 degree 45 so 10 degree channel would not be south of India but b/w Andaman and Nikobar or Maldives and Lakshdweep
• 8 degree channel is b/w Maldives and Minicoy

Learning – Southern most point of India v/s southern most point of mainland India, Eastern and western most point of India, Duncan passage, 8 degree channel, Importance of Andaman and Nikobar island

9. Turkey is located between

1. Black Sea and Caspian Sea
2. Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea
3. Gulf of Suez and Mediterranean Sea
4. Gulf of Aqaba and Dead Sea

• Very easy. Map based question
• Turkey in news due to civil war in Syria
• You know turkey is in Asia and Europe

Learning – Bosphorous, sea of marmara, dedanalles strait, Gulf of Suez, Gulf of Aqaba

10. What is the correct sequence of occurrence of the following cities in South-East Asia as one proceeds from south to north? 1.Bangkok 2.Hanoi 3.Jakarta 4.Singapore Select the correct answer using the code given below.

1. 4-2-1-3
2. 3-2-4-1
3. 3-4-1-2
4. 4-3-2-1

Map based difficult question

P.S. – Not all questions were doable in this paper but don’t go after them. Just focus on doable questions.

P.P.S. – Everyone is free to point out mistakes. Free to criticize, suggest changes etc. Everything is welcome but do so without insinuating or attributing motives