Skip to content
Start free

UPSC Mains PYQs

1053 questions

Every General Studies question since 2013, ready to attempt. Model answers arrive week by week.

79 questions

Clear filters

2020

  1. 2020 · GS4 · 10 marks“The will to power exists, but it can be tamed and be guided by rationality and principles of moral duty.” Examine this statement in the context of international relations.
  2. 2020 · GS4 · 10 marksWhat does this quotation mean to you “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Mahatma Gandhi
  3. 2020 · GS4 · 10 marksWhat does this quotation mean to you “Condemn none: if you can stretch out a helping hand, do so. If not, fold your hands, bless your brothers, and let them go their own way.” – Swami Vivekanand
  4. 2020 · GS4 · 10 marksWhat does this quotation mean to you “A system of morality which is based on relative emotional values is a mere illusion, a thoroughly vulgar conception which has nothing sound in it and nothing true.” – Socrates
  5. 2020 · GS4 · 20 marksRampura, a remote district inhabited by a tribal population, is marked by extreme backwardness and abject poverty. Agriculture is the mainstay of the local population, though it is primarily subsistence due to the very small land holdings. There is insignificant industrial or mining activity. Even the targeted welfare programs have inadequately benefited the tribal population. In this restrictive scenario, the youth has begun to migrate to other states to supplement the family income. Plight of minor girls is that their parents are persuaded by labour contractors to send them to work in the Bt Cotton farms of a nearby state. The soft fingers of the minor girls are well suited for plucking the cotton. The inadequate living and working conditions in these farms have caused serious health issues for the minor girls. NGOS in the districts of domicile and the cotton farms appear to be compromised and have not effectively espoused the twin issues of child labour and development of the area. You are appointed as the District Collector of Rampura. Identify the ethical issues involved. Which specific steps will you initiate to ameliorate the conditions of minor girls of your district and to improve the over-all economic scenario in the district?
  6. 2020 · GS4 · 10 marksDiscuss the role of ethics and values in enhancing the following three major components of Comprehensive National Power (CNP) viz. human capital, soft power (culture and policies) and social harmony.
  7. 2020 · GS4 · 10 marksWhat teachings of Buddha are most relevant today and why? Discuss.
Start free

Browse another way

The syllabus, topic by topic

Every question is filed under the topic it tests. Open a topic to see what UPSC has asked there.

Open the syllabus