UPSC 2022 Geography PYQs with Answers

B cells and T cells are lymphocytes of the adaptive immune system that protect the body against diseases caused by pathogens.

Protected animals receive legal protection whether inside or outside protected areas. Wild animals are not simply sole government property in the sense stated, and mere apprehension of danger is not sufficient ground for killing/capture without legal process.

Anatolia is in Turkey and Amhara is in Ethiopia. Cabo Delgado is in Mozambique, not Spain, and Catalonia is in Spain, not Italy. Two pairs are correct.

The Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands dispute is between China and Japan in the East China Sea.

Kerala's Cochin International Airport is fully solar-powered. The largest solar park is not in Gujarat in this framing, and the largest floating solar project is not in Goa.

Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan are members of the Organization of Turkic States. Armenia, Croatia and Romania are not members.

Bidibidi is in Uganda, not north-western Kenya, but it hosts South Sudanese refugees. Dadaab in Kenya hosts Somali refugees. Statements 2 and 3 are correct.

High clouds tend to trap outgoing infrared radiation and warm the surface, while low clouds primarily reflect solar radiation and cool the surface. The statements reverse these effects, so neither is correct.

Greenwashing means misleadingly presenting products, activities or policies as environmentally friendly when they are not.

Tea Board is a statutory body under the Commerce Ministry, headquartered at Kolkata, with overseas offices including Dubai and Moscow. Thus statements 1 and 4 are correct.

The UN General Assembly can grant observer status to non-member states and intergovernmental organizations, and permanent observers may maintain missions at UN Headquarters.

The Polar Code is the IMO international code for safety and pollution prevention for ships operating in polar waters.

India Sanitation Coalition is not funded jointly by Government of India and WHO as stated, and NIUA is an autonomous institute under MoHUA, not an apex body in the exact manner stated. Hence neither statement is correct.

CCO is a key source of coal statistics, monitors captive coal/lignite block development, and hears objections under coal-bearing area acquisition law. It does not ensure end-user delivery timelines.

NFTs can represent digital/physical assets and are unique blockchain tokens. Because they are non-fungible, they are not exchanged at equivalency like currency.

Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh and Tripura all have tea-producing areas, so all four are generally known as tea-producing States.

During Alauddin Khalji's reign, a Mongol force besieged Delhi. The first Mongol invasion was earlier, during Iltutmish's period, and Muhammad bin Tughlaq did not lose the north-west to Mongols as stated.

Biorock technology uses low-voltage current to accrete minerals and is used in coral reef restoration.

Gucchi is morel mushroom, a fungus found in Himalayan forests. It is not commercially cultivated in the north-eastern Himalayan foothills in the way stated.

The WHO 2021 guideline values include 24-hour PM2.5 of 15 ug/m3 and annual PM2.5 of 5 ug/m3, and ozone can trigger asthma. Ozone peaks in sunny/stagnant photochemical conditions, not inclement weather, and PM2.5 rather than PM10 is most associated with entering bloodstream.

Wetlands act like kidneys because aquatic plants and wetland processes filter pollutants, absorb heavy metals and remove excess nutrients from water.

The Climate Group is an international non-profit network organization; EP100 brings companies together around energy productivity/efficiency; Indian companies are members. EP100 is not launched with IEA, and IEA is not the Under2 Coalition secretariat.

Climate Action Tracker is an independent database/analysis project run by a consortium of research organizations tracking countries' climate pledges and action.

Covishield is a viral vector vaccine, not mRNA. Sputnik V is vector-based and Covaxin is an inactivated whole-virion vaccine.

Probiotics can contain bacteria and yeasts, and some help digest lactose/milk sugars. Many probiotic organisms also naturally occur in the human gut, so statement 2 is wrong.

Biofilms can form on implants, food/processing surfaces and often show increased resistance to antibiotics/disinfectants.

SaaS applications allow configurable interfaces/data fields, mobile access and include webmail services such as Outlook, Hotmail and Yahoo Mail. All three statements are correct.

Web 3.0 is associated with user control of data, blockchain-based applications/social networks and collectively operated decentralized systems rather than centralized corporate control.

Renuka Wetland is in Himachal Pradesh and Rudrasagar Lake is in Tripura. Hokera is in Jammu and Kashmir, not Punjab; Sasthamkotta is in Kerala, not Tamil Nadu. Two pairs are correct.

The longest day in the Northern Hemisphere occurs around the June solstice, normally in the second half of June.

Nanda Devi is in the Kumaon Himalaya. Namcha Barwa is in the eastern Himalaya, and Nokrek is in Meghalaya/Garo Hills, not Sikkim Himalaya.

Gandikota canyon in Andhra Pradesh was cut by the Pennar river.

Lake Faguibine in Mali/West Africa has largely dried up and become desertified.

SRI reduces seed requirement, alternate wetting and drying reduces methane emissions, and less pumping/irrigation can reduce electricity use. All three are benefits.

Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission is voluntary for hospitals/citizens, not mandatory for all; it provides nationwide portability/interoperability of digital health records/services.

Mandamus generally does not lie against a private body unless it performs public duty; it may lie against a government company if public duty exists, so statement 2 is too absolute. Quo warranto can be sought by any public-spirited person.

A nominated legislator may join a party within six months without disqualification; after that, joining attracts anti-defection provisions. No statutory time-frame is prescribed for the presiding officer to decide defection cases.

Advocates are individuals enrolled under the Advocates Act; legal firms are not themselves advocates, and corporate lawyers/patent attorneys may be advocates if enrolled. Bar Councils do regulate legal education and law college recognition standards.

Household financial savings partly finance government borrowings through banks, insurance, small savings and securities; dated securities issued through auctions are a major part of internal debt.

Acquiring new technology creates enduring productive capacity and is capital expenditure. Debt and equity financing are financing methods, not expenditure categories of that kind.

FDI rules for foreign-owned e-commerce marketplaces restrict inventory-led selling of their own goods and limit ownership/control over sellers on their platforms. Hence neither statement as framed is correct.

The G20 Common Framework is endorsed by G20 and the Paris Club and supports debt treatment for low-income countries with unsustainable debt.