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UPSC Prelims 2018 GS Paper I: answer key and question paper

Held 3 June 2018 · Series A · 100 questions · 2 hours · +2 / −0.66

The complete Series A answer key for the 2018 Civil Services Prelims General Studies Paper I, from UPSC's official final answer key, with the subject-wise split and three questions explained in full.

Take the full 2018 paper under exam conditions. 100 questions, 2 hours, +2 / −0.66, exactly as UPSC set them. Then see your score, UPSC's key for every question and explanations for 10 of them, starting with your mistakes. Free with Google sign-in; Pro unlocks every explanation in English and தமிழ்.

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Key facts

ExamUPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2018, General Studies Paper I
Date3 June 2018
Question bookletSeries A, 100 questions, 2 hours
Marking+2 for a correct answer, −0.66 for a wrong one, 0 if left blank
Answer keyUPSC's official final answer key, checked against the file on upsc.gov.in
Dropped questionsNone
Maximum marks200

Answer key, Series A

UPSC dropped no questions, so the paper is marked out of the full 200. Other booklet series (B, C, D) have the same questions in a different order, so match your booklet to Series A before checking answers.

  1. 1b
  2. 2d
  3. 3c
  4. 4b
  5. 5a
  6. 6c
  7. 7a
  8. 8d
  9. 9c
  10. 10a
  11. 11c
  12. 12d
  13. 13a
  14. 14d
  15. 15c
  16. 16a
  17. 17c
  18. 18d
  19. 19a
  20. 20b
  21. 21b
  22. 22b
  23. 23a
  24. 24b
  25. 25b
  26. 26d
  27. 27d
  28. 28a
  29. 29a
  30. 30a
  31. 31c
  32. 32a
  33. 33a
  34. 34c
  35. 35b
  36. 36b
  37. 37b
  38. 38b
  39. 39a
  40. 40b
  41. 41c
  42. 42d
  43. 43c
  44. 44b
  45. 45c
  46. 46b
  47. 47c
  48. 48c
  49. 49c
  50. 50d
  51. 51c
  52. 52c
  53. 53b
  54. 54a
  55. 55d
  56. 56c
  57. 57c
  58. 58c
  59. 59c
  60. 60d
  61. 61a
  62. 62d
  63. 63b
  64. 64b
  65. 65a
  66. 66b
  67. 67d
  68. 68d
  69. 69c
  70. 70d
  71. 71b
  72. 72d
  73. 73b
  74. 74c
  75. 75c
  76. 76d
  77. 77a
  78. 78c
  79. 79a
  80. 80b
  81. 81b
  82. 82b
  83. 83b
  84. 84d
  85. 85a
  86. 86b
  87. 87d
  88. 88c
  89. 89b
  90. 90c
  91. 91b
  92. 92c
  93. 93b
  94. 94a
  95. 95a
  96. 96b
  97. 97c
  98. 98a
  99. 99d
  100. 100b

Subject-wise split

How the 100 questions divide across the syllabus, by 1way's classification of each question.

SubjectQuestionsShare
Economy23
History14
Science & Technology13
Environment12
Polity12
Art & Culture7
Geography7
International Relations7
Governance & Ethics4
Current Affairs & Misc1

Three questions from the 2018 paper, explained

Try each one before opening the answer. This is the kind of explanation you get after taking the paper: the reasoning behind every option, with sources.

Question 3 · Economy

As per the NSSO 70th Round “Situation Assessment Survey of Agricultural Households”, consider the following statements :

Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

  1. (a)2 and 3 only
  2. (b)2 only
  3. (c)1 and 3 only
  4. (d)1, 2 and 3
Show the answer and explanation

Answer: (c) 1 and 3 only

The survey covered the agricultural year July 2012 to June 2013. Statement 1 is correct: Rajasthan had the highest share, with about 78.4% of its rural households being agricultural households. Statement 2 is incorrect: about 45% of all agricultural households in the country belonged to Other Backward Classes, well short of 60%. Statement 3 is correct: in Kerala about 61% of agricultural households reported receiving their maximum income from sources other than agricultural activities, reflecting the importance of wages, services and remittances there. Hence 1 and 3 only.

Question 11 · History

He wrote biographies of Mazzini, Garibaldi, Shivaji and Shrikrishna; stayed in America for some time; and was also elected to the Central Assembly. He was

  1. (a)Aurobindo Ghosh
  2. (b)Bipin Chandra Pal
  3. (c)Lala Lajpat Rai
  4. (d)Motilal Nehru
Show the answer and explanation

Answer: (c) Lala Lajpat Rai

Lala Lajpat Rai, the 'Punjab Kesari', wrote biographical works on Mazzini, Garibaldi, Shivaji and Shrikrishna to rouse patriotic feeling. He lived in the United States during the First World War (roughly 1914 to 1919), where he founded the Indian Home Rule League of America in 1917 and wrote on Indian nationalism. In 1926 he was elected to the Central Legislative Assembly. Aurobindo Ghosh withdrew from active politics to Pondicherry in 1910 and never sat in the Assembly; Bipin Chandra Pal, famed for Swadeshi-era journalism and oratory, did not write this set of biographies or stay in America; Motilal Nehru led the Swaraj Party in the Central Assembly but neither lived in America nor wrote these works. Hence Lala Lajpat Rai.

Question 2 · Science & Technology

Which of the following leaf modifications occur(s) in the desert areas to inhibit water loss ?

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

  1. (a)2 and 3 only
  2. (b)2 only
  3. (c)3 only
  4. (d)1, 2 and 3
Show the answer and explanation

Answer: (d) 1, 2 and 3

All three are xerophytic adaptations that cut water loss by transpiration. Statement 1 is correct: hard, leathery leaves with a thick waxy cuticle, as in Calotropis and oleander, reflect heat and stop water escaping through the leaf surface. Statement 2 is correct: tiny or scale-like leaves, as in tamarisk (Tamarix) and many acacias, reduce the surface area and the number of stomata exposed to hot, dry air. Statement 3 is correct: in cacti such as Opuntia the leaves are reduced to spines or thorns, while the green, fleshy stem carries out photosynthesis and stores water; the thorns also deter grazing animals. Hence 1, 2 and 3.

The other 97 questions are waiting. 100 questions, 2 hours, +2 / −0.66, exactly as UPSC set them. Then see your score, UPSC's key for every question and explanations for 10 of them, starting with your mistakes. Free with Google sign-in; Pro unlocks every explanation in English and தமிழ்.

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Other years

Every UPSC Prelims GS Paper I from 2016 to 2026, each with UPSC's official key. See all past papers.

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