UPSC 2019 Geography PYQs with Answers

Hepatitis B has an effective vaccine; Hepatitis C currently does not have a widely used vaccine. Therefore the statement saying Hepatitis B does not have a vaccine is not correct.

A digital signature is an electronic method for signing an electronic document and verifying integrity/non-tampering. Statements 1 and 2 describe aspects closer to digital certificates/identity, not the digital signature itself.

AR overlays digital content onto the real world, often using a phone/camera. VR shuts out the physical world and creates immersive simulated experience. Thus statements 3 and 4 are correct.

India signed the nuclear cooperation action plan with Russia.

The General Data Protection Regulation was adopted by the European Union and became applicable from 25 May 2018.

Rice has the largest kharif crop area, and cotton area exceeds sugarcane area. Jowar area is not more than oilseeds, and sugarcane area has not steadily decreased.

PPP exchange rates compare prices of a common basket across countries. In PPP terms India was among the top economies, not sixth at the relevant time, so only statement 1 is correct.

The 2017 amendment gives 26 weeks leave for eligible women, not exactly three months before and after delivery; crèche visits are four per day, not six; women with two or more surviving children have reduced entitlement. Only statement 3 is correct.

PNGRB was not India's first regulator. It works to ensure competitive petroleum/gas markets, and appeals lie with the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity.

Most of India's external debt is private/non-government debt, and it is denominated in multiple currencies, not only US dollars. Hence neither statement is correct.

Sand is a minor mineral, and State Governments frame rules for minor mineral concessions and illegal-mining prevention. Rule-making for minor minerals lies with States, not the Centre.

The Environment Protection Act empowers the Government to prescribe standards for emissions/discharges. Public participation requirements are generally part of EIA notifications/procedures rather than the stated direct power in the Act itself.

Biological processes for producing seeds are not patentable in India, and plant varieties are protected under a separate plant varieties law rather than patents. At the time of the question, IPAB existed, so only statement 3 is correct.

UNCAC does not contain the Smuggling of Migrants Protocol; that belongs to UNTOC. UNCAC is the first legally binding global anti-corruption instrument, and UNODC assists implementation of both UNCAC and UNTOC. Asset recovery chapter is a highlight of UNCAC, not UNTOC.

There are 75 PVTGs, not 95. They reside in 18 States and one UT; stagnant/declining population is a criterion, and Irular and Konda Reddi are PVTGs.

Clouds reflect/re-radiate terrestrial longwave radiation back toward the surface, reducing night-time cooling; dew forms when surfaces cool sufficiently, so cloudy nights inhibit dew formation.

Ramsar obligations apply to designated wetlands rather than every wetland in India, and the 2010 Rules were not simply framed as Ramsar recommendations. The Rules include wetland drainage/catchment areas as determined by authority, so only statement 3 is correct.

Bandarpunch feeds the Yamuna system, Bara Shigri feeds the Chenab system, and Siachen feeds the Nubra. Milam is linked to Gori Ganga, and Zemu to Teesta, not Manas.

Among the listed States, forest-cover percentage ascends as Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh.

Himalayan nettle is valued as a sustainable natural textile fibre source.

Blue-finned mahseer occurs in the Cauvery system and rusty-spotted cat occurs in parts of the Eastern Ghats. Irrawaddy dolphin is not naturally found in the Chambal River.

Pandharpur is on the Chandrabhaga/Bhima river and Tiruchirappalli is on the Cauvery. Hampi is on the Tungabhadra, not Malaprabha.

The Asiatic lion is naturally found in the wild only in India today. Double-humped camels occur naturally in Central Asia, and one-horned rhinoceroses also occur in Nepal, so only statement 1 is correct.

Tobacco, cocoa and rubber are New World crops/plants that were domesticated in the Americas and later introduced to the Old World.

On 21 June, the Northern Hemisphere has summer solstice, and at the Arctic Circle the Sun does not set below the horizon.

A central objective of land reforms was redistributing agricultural land and providing land to the landless/tenants. Ceiling laws generally applied to individual holdings with family-based variations and exemptions, so the best statement is the land-to-landless objective.