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UPSC Prelims 2026 GS Paper I: answer key and question paper

Held 24 May 2026 · Series A · 100 questions · 2 hours · +2 / −0.66

The complete Series A answer key for the 2026 Civil Services Prelims General Studies Paper I, from UPSC's official provisional answer key, with the questions UPSC dropped, the subject-wise split and three questions explained in full.

Take the full 2026 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.

Take the 2026 paper

Key facts

ExamUPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2026, General Studies Paper I
Date24 May 2026
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 provisional answer key, checked against the file on upsc.gov.in
Dropped questionsQ64
Maximum marks198

Answer key, Series A

UPSC dropped 1 question (Q64) from scoring, so the paper is marked out of 198. This is the provisional key UPSC published after the exam. When UPSC releases the final key we compare every answer, correct this page and re-score every attempt on 1way automatically if anything changes. 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. 1d
  2. 2a
  3. 3c
  4. 4b
  5. 5b
  6. 6a
  7. 7d
  8. 8a
  9. 9c
  10. 10c
  11. 11d
  12. 12a
  13. 13c
  14. 14b
  15. 15b
  16. 16b
  17. 17a
  18. 18d
  19. 19d
  20. 20b
  21. 21b
  22. 22b
  23. 23d
  24. 24d
  25. 25c
  26. 26c
  27. 27a
  28. 28d
  29. 29c
  30. 30b
  31. 31a
  32. 32b
  33. 33b
  34. 34b
  35. 35b
  36. 36b
  37. 37c
  38. 38b
  39. 39b
  40. 40c
  41. 41c
  42. 42b
  43. 43c
  44. 44b
  45. 45b
  46. 46c
  47. 47b
  48. 48b
  49. 49c
  50. 50b
  51. 51c
  52. 52a
  53. 53b
  54. 54d
  55. 55b
  56. 56b
  57. 57a
  58. 58c
  59. 59d
  60. 60a
  61. 61d
  62. 62d
  63. 63a
  64. 64Dropped
  65. 65d
  66. 66a
  67. 67b
  68. 68a
  69. 69c
  70. 70a
  71. 71b
  72. 72c
  73. 73d
  74. 74b
  75. 75c
  76. 76c
  77. 77b
  78. 78b
  79. 79c
  80. 80c
  81. 81c
  82. 82a
  83. 83c
  84. 84a
  85. 85a
  86. 86c
  87. 87a
  88. 88c
  89. 89c
  90. 90d
  91. 91a
  92. 92c
  93. 93b
  94. 94b
  95. 95a
  96. 96c
  97. 97c
  98. 98d
  99. 99a
  100. 100a

Subject-wise split

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

SubjectQuestionsShare
Economy17
Science & Technology14
History13
International Relations10
Environment9
Geography9
Art & Culture8
Current Affairs & Misc8
Polity8
Governance & Ethics4

Three questions from the 2026 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 24 · Economy

In what way(s) does the Vizhinjam International Seaport represent a structural shift in India’s maritime trade and logistics policy ?

Select the answer using the code given below :

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

Answer: (d) 3 only

Statement 1 is wrong: Vizhinjam in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, is not a domestic-only cargo hub; it is India's first dedicated deep-water container transshipment port, built for international mainline vessels, and it was developed through a public-private partnership between the Kerala government and Adani Ports, with foreign shipping lines calling there. Statement 2 is wrong: it is a container transshipment terminal, not a cruise or heritage-shipping port. Statement 3 is correct: a natural depth of about 18-20 m close to shore and a location only about 10 nautical miles from the East-West international shipping route let it handle the largest container ships, reducing India's reliance on Colombo, Singapore and Salalah for transshipment and keeping handling revenue at home. It was commissioned by the Prime Minister on 2 May 2025. So only 3 is correct.

Question 41 · Science & Technology

Which of the following statements with regard to genetic medicine is/are correct ?

Select the answer using the code given below :

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

Answer: (c) 1 and 2 only

Statement 1 is correct: genetic medicines (gene therapy, gene editing and RNA-based drugs) act on the genetic cause of a disease. They add a working copy of a faulty gene, silence or correct it, or supply the instructions for a missing protein. Statement 2 is correct: the genetic cargo has to be delivered into cells, and the two main carriers are engineered viral vectors (such as adeno-associated virus and lentivirus) and lipid nanoparticles, which also carried the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines. Statement 3 is incorrect: these therapies target a specific gene, or even a single DNA letter; they do not rewrite a person's entire DNA sequence of about 3 billion base pairs. Statements 1 and 2 are correct, so the answer is (c).

Question 2 · History

The artificially fixed rupee-sterling exchange rate prescribed by the Hilton-Young Commission (1926) was adopted by the British Government for which one of the following reasons ?

  1. (a)Aiding the flow of remittances from India and maintaining India’s creditworthiness
  2. (b)Providing support to Indian importers
  3. (c)Encouraging export of cotton produce from India
  4. (d)Preventing depreciation of the Rupee in terms of gold
Show the answer and explanation

Answer: (a) Aiding the flow of remittances from India and maintaining India’s creditworthiness

The Hilton-Young Commission (Royal Commission on Indian Currency and Finance) recommended fixing the rupee at 1s 6d sterling instead of the pre-war 1s 4d, and the Currency Act of 1927 enacted it. A dearer rupee meant fewer rupees were needed to meet India's sterling payments in London, the Home Charges, pensions, interest on debt and remittances of profits, and it kept India's credit sound in the London market. That is (a). (b) is wrong: cheaper imports were a side-effect that mainly helped British exporters, not a stated aim. (c) is wrong: an overvalued rupee made Indian cotton and other exports costlier abroad, which is why Indian business leaders such as Purshotamdas Thakurdas opposed the ratio. (d) is wrong: guarding the rupee's gold value was not the motive for choosing this sterling ratio.

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.

Take the 2026 paper

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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