UPSC 2016 Geography PYQs with Answers

The minimum age for Panchayat membership is 21 years, not 25. A Panchayat reconstituted after premature dissolution serves only the remainder of the original term.

The SDGs were adopted through the UN 2030 Agenda, not first proposed by the Club of Rome in 1972. They are to be achieved by 2030.

The Paris Agreement aims to keep global temperature rise well below 2°C and pursue efforts toward 1.5°C. It did not enter into force in 2017 as stated, and the finance figure was $100 billion annually, not $1000 billion.

Rajasthan explored an artificial inland port connected to the sea by a long navigational channel, often discussed in relation to the Jalore/barmer region and Gujarat coast connectivity.

Khajuraho is in Bundelkhand and Tirupati is in Rayalaseema. Bodhgaya is in Magadh, Shirdi is not Vidarbha, and Nashik is not Malwa.

Maharashtra was the first State to declare a State Butterfly, the Blue Mormon.

The Godavari-Krishna river linking was undertaken through projects such as the Pattiseema lift scheme, transferring Godavari water to the Krishna basin.

DigiLocker is a Government of India digital locker service under Digital India, allowing users to access digital documents online from anywhere.

Drip irrigation delivers water near plant roots, reducing weed growth and runoff/soil erosion. It does not necessarily reduce soil salinity as a general advantage in this framing.

The International Solar Alliance was launched at the 2015 Paris climate conference. It did not include all UN member countries; it was initially focused on solar-resource-rich countries between the tropics.

Atal Pension Yojana is a guaranteed pension scheme mainly for unorganized-sector workers, and the same pension is payable to the spouse after the subscriber's death. More than one eligible family member can join, so statement 2 is incorrect.

Shale gas resources have been identified in Cambay, Cauvery and Krishna-Godavari basins, among others.

Ajanta and Mahabalipuram are from different periods and religious contexts, but both include rock-cut monuments. Therefore only statement 3 is common.

District Mineral Foundations are meant to work for the interest and benefit of persons and areas affected by mining operations. They do not promote exploration or issue licences.

Viruses infect bacteria, fungi and plants; examples include bacteriophages, mycoviruses and plant viruses.

Agenda 21 is a global action plan for sustainable development adopted at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, not at the 2002 Johannesburg summit.

The 2015 India-Africa Forum Summit was the third such summit. The summit process began in 2008, not with Jawaharlal Nehru in 1951.

The TPP did not include all Pacific Rim countries; China and Russia were not the only exclusions. It was primarily a trade/economic agreement, not a maritime-security alliance. Hence neither statement is correct.

Gram Nyayalayas can try both civil and criminal matters specified under the Act, so statement 1 is wrong. The Act allows conciliators/mediators including local social activists, so statement 2 is correct.

Green India Mission aims to increase/restor forest and tree cover and respond to climate change through adaptation and mitigation. It is not green accounting or a second Green Revolution programme.

Dibang, Kameng and Lohit are all tributaries/sub-tributary systems of the Brahmaputra river system.

Stand Up India promotes bank loans for SC/ST and women entrepreneurs and includes refinance support through SIDBI. Both statements are correct.

The Great Indian Hornbill inhabits dense evergreen and moist forests, including the Western Ghats. The other listed habitats are not its typical natural habitat.

PMFBY premiums are not a uniform 2% for every crop and season; rates differ for kharif, rabi and commercial/horticultural crops. The scheme covers specified localized and post-harvest losses due to events such as cyclones and unseasonal rains.

UDAY, or Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana, aimed at the financial turnaround and revival of power distribution companies.

LiFi uses visible light for high-speed wireless data transmission and has been demonstrated as much faster than conventional WiFi under suitable conditions.