General Knowledge: UPSC Previous Year Questions (Prelims)
505 previous year UPSC Prelims General Knowledge questions are on this page, from 1996 to 2010, in 5 chapters. In those years UPSC tested general awareness directly: people, books, institutions, places and events of the time. General Awareness: India is the largest chapter, followed by Contemporary Events: India and General Awareness: World. Every explanation states facts as they stood in the year of the question.
Explanations state facts as of the year each question was asked; words like “recently” refer to that year.
Showing 251–260 of 505 questions
Browse General Knowledge chaptersBrowse by year
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · General Awareness: India
Q251. Which of the following pairs are correctly matched?
Publication
Group
1. Sportstar
The Hindu Publication Group
2. Business-World
ABP Group
3. The Week
Malayala Manorama Publication Group
4. Reader’s Digest
Indian Express Publication Group
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
Explanation
Pair 1 and 3 are correctly matched:
Sportstar is an Indian sports magazine published by the Hindu Group. The Week is an Indian news magazine published by the Malayala Manorama Group.
Pair 2 and 4 are incorrectly matched:
BusinessWorld is one of India’s leading business magazines but it is not published by the ABP Group. It was initially part of the Ananda bazar Patrika (ABP) Group, but later ownership changed. Reader’s Digest (India) is published by the India Today group not Indian Express Group.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · General Awareness: India
Q252. Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List-I (Distinguished person)
List-II (Area of Work)
A. B.V Rao
1. Automobiles Manufacture
B. C.K. Prahald
2. Fisheries Economy
C. Johan Kurien
3. Information Technology and Software
D. Kiran Karnik
4. Poultry Farming
5. Management Science
Explanation
A-4: Dr. B.V. Rao is regarded as the father of the Indian poultry industry. He played a crucial role in modernizing poultry farming in India. B-5: C.K. Prahalad was a well-known management thinker, famous for the concept of "The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid." He specialized in corporate strategy and management science. C-2: Dr. John Kurien is an expert in fisheries economics. He played a key role in developing India’s fisheries sector and sustainable marine policies. D-3: Kiran Karnik was the former President of NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Service Companies). He contributed significantly to the IT and software industry in India.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · General Awareness: India
Q253. Which one of the following was probed by the Liberhan Commission?
Explanation
The Liberhan Commission was set up by the Government of India on December 16, 1992, to investigate the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992. It was led by Justice M.S. Liberhan, became one of the longest-running commissions in India’s history, taking 17 years to submit its final report in 2009.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · General Awareness: India
Q254. Whose autobiography is the book ‘My Music, My Life’?
Explanation
The book "My Music, My Life" is the autobiography of Pandit Ravi Shankar. It provides insights into his journey as a legendary sitar maestro, his experiences with Indian classical music and his collaborations with international musicians.
Additional insight:
Pandit Ravi Shankar was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world’s best-known expert of Indian classical music (in Sitar) in the second half of the 20th century. Received Bharat Ratna in 1999 and Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1992. He composed the music for the Apu Trilogy by Satyajit Ray, which became internationally acclaimed.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · General Awareness: India
Q255. Which one of the following airports in India is the first to be owned by a public limited company?
Explanation
The Cochin International Airport in Kerala is the first airport in India to be owned by a public limited company. Established in 1999, it became India’s first greenfield airport developed under a PPP model. In 2015, it became the world’s first fully solar-powered airport.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · General Awareness: India
Q256. Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched?
Explanation
Pair (b) is incorrectly matched: Phalcon is not a cruise missile. It is an Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AWACS) developed by Israel in collaboration with India. Pair (a), (c) and (d) are correctly matched:
Arjun MBT is India’s indigenously developed main battle tank, designed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Saras is a light civilian aircraft designed by the National Aerospace Laboratories, Bangalore. It is India’s first indigenously built civil aircraft. Operation Seabird refers to the construction of the Karwar Naval Base in Karnataka, aimed at reducing dependence on Mumbai and Visakhapatnam ports. INS Kadamba naval base in Karnataka is currently the third-largest Indian naval base, and is expected to become the largest naval base in the eastern hemisphere after completion of expansion Phase II.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · General Awareness: India
Q257. Who among the following is not a recipient of the Bharat Ratna Award?
Explanation
Raj Kapoor is widely regarded as one of the greatest icons of Indian cinema. He was honored with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1987 for his outstanding contribution to Indian films. However, he did not receive the Bharat Ratna.
Additional insight:
Ustad Bismillah Khan received Bharat Ratna in 2001, Satyajit ray in 1992 and Lata Mangeshkar in 2001. About Bharat Ratna:
Instituted in 1954, the Bharat Ratna is India’s highest civilian award, conferred on the recommendation of the Prime Minister to the President without formal nominations. A maximum of three awards can be given annually, with exceptions in 1999 and 2024, when four and five were awarded respectively. The award consists of a peepal leaf-shaped medallion, inscribed with "Bharat Ratna" on the front and the State Emblem of India with "Satyameva Jayate" on the reverse, along with a certificate (sanad). It is minted at the Alipore Mint, Kolkata. The first recipients in 1954 were C. Rajagopalachari, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, and C. V. Raman. Initially, posthumous awards were not allowed, but this changed in 1966, with Lal Bahadur Shastri becoming the first posthumous recipient. The award is generally reserved for Indian citizens, but exceptions have been made for Mother Teresa, Abdul Ghaffar Khan, and Nelson Mandela in recognition of their contributions to humanity.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · Contemporary Events: India
Q258. Consider the following statements: 1. Global Trust Bank has been amalgamated with the Punjab National bank. 2. The second report of the Kelkar Committee dealing with direct and indirect taxes has maintained its Original recommendation including the abolition of exemptions relating to housing loans. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Explanation
Statement 1 is incorrect: Global Trust Bank (GTB) was merged with Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) on 14th August 2004, not Punjab National Bank (PNB), after financial instability.
Statement 2 is correct: The 2003 Kelkar Committee report retained its tax reform recommendations, including abolishing housing loan tax exemptions. However they were not fully implemented due to opposition from various stakeholders.
Additional insight:
In 2019, Bank of Baroda merged with Vijaya Bank and Dena Bank, forming India’s third-largest public sector bank. Post 2020, Canara Bank merged with Syndicate Bank, Union Bank merged with Andhra and Corporation Bank, and Indian Bank with Allahabad Bank. In July 2023, HDFC Bank completed its merger with HDFC Ltd.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · Contemporary Events: India
Q259. Who among the following is not a member of the investment Commission formed in December 2004?
Explanation
The Investment Commission was formed in December 2004 by the Government of India to promote and facilitate investment in the country. It had three members Ratan Tata (Chairman), Deepak Parekh, Ashok Ganguly.
UPSC 2005General Knowledge · Contemporary Events: India
Q260. Match items in List-I with those in the List-II and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists:
List-I (Location)
List-II (Known for/ in News for)
A. Kakinada
1. Sky Bus Metro rail test-run
B. Dundigal
2. ITC paper board unit
C. Margao
3. Biodiesel plant
D. Bhadrachalam
4. Indian Air Force Academy
Explanation
Kakinada - Known for its biodiesel plant. In 2005, Naturol Bioenergy Limited announced plans to set up a 300 tons per day biodiesel plant in Kakinada. Dundigal - Home to the Indian Air Force Academy. The Air Force Academy is located in Dundigal, near Hyderabad. Margao - Associated with the Sky Bus Metro rail test-run. The Sky Bus Metro project was tested in Margao, Goa. Bhadrachalam - Location of an ITC paper board unit. ITC has a significant paperboard manufacturing facility in Bhadrachalam.
Answer key for these questions
Q
UPSC year
Correct answer
251
2005
(d) 1 and 3
252
2005
(d) A - 4; B -5; C - 2; D - 3
253
2005
(d) Demolition of the disputed structure at Ayodhya.
254
2005
(c) Pandit Ravi Shankar
255
2005
(b) Cochin airport
256
2005
(b) Phalcon: Cruise missile supplied by Russia to India.
257
2005
(d) Raj Kapoor
258
2005
(b) 2 only
259
2005
(d) Kumar Mangalam Birla
260
2005
(b) A-3; B-4; C-1; D-2
What UPSC has tested in General Knowledge
These are single-fact questions: who wrote a book, where an organisation is headquartered, which country hosted an event.
Contemporary-events questions refer to the news of their year, so answers describe the position then, not today.
The chapters split by world and India, and by general awareness and current events, plus sports and games.
Later years’ questions sit under the other subjects on this site and lean toward analytical, statement-based formats.
Frequently asked questions
How many previous year UPSC questions are there on General Knowledge?
This page covers 505 previous year UPSC Prelims GS Paper-I questions on General Knowledge, asked from 1996 to 2010. Each has the correct answer and an explanation.
Which General Knowledge chapters have the most questions?
General Awareness: India has the most with 138 questions, followed by Contemporary Events: India with 118, General Awareness: World with 110, Contemporary Events: World with 99 and Sports and Games with 40.
Are General Knowledge facts still current?
Many remain true, such as authorship and headquarters, but contemporary-events answers describe the position in the year each question was asked. Always check a recent source for the present position before relying on an item.
Why practise these older questions?
They show the style of general-awareness questions UPSC used and the breadth of topics it covered, from literature and institutions to sports. The explanations also build a base of facts that still helps with current affairs.
