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 61–70 of 505 questions
Browse General Knowledge chaptersBrowse by year
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Contemporary Events: India
Q61. Consider the following houses: 1. Christie’s 2. Osian’s 3. Sotheby’s Which of the above is/are auctioneer/auctioneers?
Explanation
Option 1 is correct, Christie’s is a well-known auction house that conducts auctions in fine art, antiques, jewelry, and various other categories. It is one of the largest and most famous auction houses globally.
Option 2 is correct, Osian’s Connoisseurs of Art, founded by Neville Tuli in 2000, is India’s first auction house dedicated to fine arts, antiquities, vintage and classic automobiles, and film memorabilia. Option 3 is correct, Sotheby’s is another prestigious and renowned auction house, known for dealing in fine art, collectibles, antiques, and real estate auctions. It is a major global player in the auction industry.
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Contemporary Events: India
Q62. Which one of the following Union Ministries implements the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety?
Explanation
The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety is an international agreement that aims to ensure the safe handling, transport, and use of living modified organisms (LMOs) resulting from modern biotechnology. The protocol is a supplementary agreement to CBD, Convention on Biological Diversity. In India, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) is responsible for the implementation of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety. The ministry handles issues related to biodiversity, the environment, and biosafety regulations. Specifically, the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) and the Biosafety Clearing-House (BCH) play key roles in the enforcement of the protocol.
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Contemporary Events: India
Q63. With which one of the following has the B.K. Chaturvedi Committee dealt?
Explanation
B.K. Chaturvedi committee was set up for a permanent and transparent method of pricing petroleum products in India. A key aspect of their mandate was to assess the financial position of public sector oil companies and propose measures to ensure their long-term viability.
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Contemporary Events: India
Q64. In the context of global economy, which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched?
Explanation
Roche Holding AG: It is a pharmaceutical and diagnostics company, not a financial services firm. It is one of the world’s largest biotech companies and focuses on healthcare, specifically in drugs and diagnostics.
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Sports and Games
Q65. Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched?
Explanation
Pair (b) is incorrectly matched: Pamela Jelimo is a renowned Kenyan middle-distance runner, specializing in the 800 meters. At just 18, she made history by winning the Olympic gold medal in 2008, becoming the youngest Olympic champion in the 800 meters event.
Additional insight:
Barbora Spotakova: Czech javelin legend, 2x Olympic gold medalist (2008, 2012). (Neeraj Chopra: Indian javelin thrower, won India’s first Olympic track and field gold (Tokyo 2020).) Sanya Richards-Ross: American sprinter, Olympic gold medalist (2012), World Champion (2009). Yelena Isinbayeva: Russian pole vault legend, widely regarded as one of the greatest female pole vaulters.
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Sports and Games
Q66. Who of the following is a football player?
Explanation
Nicolas Anelka is a retired French professional footballer who played as a forward for several top-tier clubs, including Arsenal, Real Madrid, and Chelsea.
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Sports and Games
Q67. Among the following, which one is not a football club?
Explanation
Monte Carlo is the largest and most populous ward of the Principality of Monaco, a sovereign city-state located on the French Riviera. It is famous for its casinos, luxury hotels, and yacht-lined harbor, making it a popular destination for the wealthy and famous.
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Sports and Games
Q68. Consider the following pairs: Persons Sport 1. Anand Pawar: Chess 2. Akhil Kumar: Boxing 3. Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia: Golf Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
Explanation
Pair 1 is incorrectly matched: Anand Pawar is an Indian badminton player who has represented India in Thomas Cup, Sudirman Cup, and Asian Badminton Championships.
Pair 2 is correctly matched: Akhil Kumar is a renowned Indian boxer known for his "open guarded" style, winning multiple international and national awards, including the Arjuna Award in 2005.
Pair 3 is correctly matched: Shiv Shankar Prasad Chawrasia is an Indian professional golfer.
UPSC 2009General Knowledge · Sports and Games
Q69. When Leander Paes won the "mixed doubles" at the US Open in the year 2008, who of the following was his partner?
Explanation
In the 2008 US Open, Leander Paes won the Mixed Doubles Title partnering Cara Black from Zimbabwe. They defeated Liezel Huber (USA) and Jamie Murray (UK) with a score of 7-6(8-6), 6-4.
Additional insight:
In the 2016 French Open mixed doubles final, Leander Paes (India) and Martina Hingis (Switzerland) defeated Sania Mirza (India) and Ivan Dodig (Croatia) In the 2024 US Open men’s doubles final, Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson from Australia defeated Germany’s Kevin Krawietz and Tim Putz. In the 2024 US Open women’s doubles final, Lyudmyla Kichenok of Ukraine and Jeena Ostapenko of Latvia triumphed over France’s Kristina Mladenovic and China’s Zhang Shuai. In the 2024 US Open mixed doubles final, Italy’s Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori defeated Americans Taylor Townsend and Donald Young
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q70. Yom Kippur War was fought between which sides/ countries?
Explanation
The Yom Kippur War, also known as the October War or Ramadan War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab countries led by Egypt and Syria.
Answer key for these questions
Q
UPSC year
Correct answer
61
2009
(d) 1, 2 and 3
62
2009
(c) Ministry of Environment and Forests
63
2009
(d) Price reforms in the oil sector
64
2009
(b) Roche Holding AG: Financial Services
65
2009
(b) Pamela Jelimo: Weightlifting
66
2009
(d) Nicolas Anelka
67
2009
(d) Monte Carlo
68
2009
(b) 2 and 3 only
69
2009
(b) Cara Black
70
2008
(c) Israel, and Arab countries led by Egypt and Syria
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.
