UPSC Prelims 2006 — GS Paper 1 Question Paper with Solutions
Complete 2006 UPSC CSE Prelims GS1 paper with 150 questions, answers, and detailed explanations. Attempt all questions with show/hide answers, or take the timed quiz.
150
Questions
75
Easy
70
Moderate
5
Difficult
Paper Analysis — 2006
The Civil Services Preliminary Examination of 2006 maintained UPSC’s trademark breadth, yet it revealed some clear skews that aspirants should note. Of the 150 questions, Science & Technology (38) and Current Affairs (32) together accounted for nearly half the paper, signalling the Commission’s growing emphasis on contemporary scientific developments and day-to-day national and international events. Geography (20) continued to be a heavyweight, whereas Art & Culture (14) received an unexpectedly generous share, hinting at UPSC’s endeavour to test cultural literacy beyond standard history segments. Conventional strongholds such as Modern History (10) and Indian Polity (11) were present but comparatively lean, while Environment & Ecology, today a staple, appeared with only 2 questions — a sharp contrast to later years.
Difficulty distribution leaned towards accessibility: 75 questions were tagged easy, 70 moderate and a mere 5 difficult. The easy basket was dominated by direct fact-based items in Geography, Ancient/Medieval History and basic Science; meanwhile, the moderate tier featured interpretative Current Affairs and multi-statement Polity problems that required elimination techniques. The handful of difficult questions were largely conceptual, revolving around cutting-edge biotech and obscure cultural terminologies.
Two patterns surprised veterans: first, the virtual absence of economy-related numerical questions despite a respectable 13-question share; second, minimal environment coverage despite global attention on climate debates in 2005-06. Overall, the 2006 paper rewarded breadth of reading, up-to-date awareness and the ability to quickly sieve through factual clutter — a template that has only intensified in subsequent editions.
Q: Match List – I with List – II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List – I (National Park / Wildlife Sanctuary)
A. Chandra Prabha
B. Karera
C. Jaisamand
D. Nahargarh
List – II (Nearby Town)
1. Jaipur
2. Jhansi
3. Agra
4. Varanasi
5. Udaipur
Code: A B C D
Q: Match List – I with List – II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List – I (Place of Archaeological Monument)
A. Sisupalgarh
B. Piprahwa
C. Goalpara
D. Bishnupur
List – II (State)
1. Assam
2. Manipur
3. Orissa
4. Uttar Pradesh
Code: A B C D
Q: Consider the following chemicals:
1. Benzene
2. Carbon tetrachloride
3. Sodium carbonate
4. Trichloroethylene
Which of the above is/are used as dry-cleaning chemicals?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Caffeine, a constituent of tea and coffee, is a diuretic.
2. Citric acid is used in soft drinks.
3. Ascorbic acid is essential for the formation of bones and teeth.
4. Citric acid is a good substitution for ascorbic acid in our nutrition.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. There is no provision in the Constitution of India to encourage equal pay for equal work for both men and women.
2. The Constitution of India does not define backward classes.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Sikkim has the minimum area among the 28 Indian States (Delhi and Pondicherry not included).
2. Chandigarh has the highest literacy rate among Pondicherry, NCT of Delhi and other Union Territories.
3. Maharashtra has the highest population after Uttar Pradesh among the 28 Indian States (Delhi and Pondicherry not included).
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Match List – I with List – II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List – I (Centre of Handicrafts)
A. Mon
B. Nalbari
C. Pasighat
D. Tura
List – II (State)
1. Arunachal Pradesh
2. Assam
3. Meghalaya
4. Nagaland
Code: A B C D
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. The Rajya Sabha alone has the power to declare that it would be in the national interest for Parliament to legislate with respect to a matter in the State List.
2. Resolutions approving the Proclamation of Emergency are passed only by the Lok Sabha.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements with reference to the human body:
1. The common bile duct releases its contents into the stomach.
2. The pancreatic duct releases its contents into the duodenum.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Assertion (A): ‘Balance of Payments’ represents a better picture of a country’s economic transactions with the rest of the world than the ‘Balance of Trade’.
Reason (R): ‘Balance of Payments’ takes into account the exchanges of both visible and invisible items whereas ‘Balance of Trade’ does not.
(a)Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
(b)Both A and R are true but R is not a correct explanation of A
Q: Assertion (A): In India, every State has a High Court in its territory.
Reason (R): The Constitution of India provides for a High Court in each State.
(a)Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
(b)Both A and R are true but R is not a correct explanation of A
Q: Assertion (A): To orbit around the Sun, the planet Mars takes lesser time than the time taken by the Earth.
Reason (R): The diameter of the planet Mars is less than that of the Earth.
(a)Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
(b)Both A and R are true but R is not a correct explanation of A
Q: Assertion (A): Muhammad bin Tughlaq issued a new gold coin which was called Dinar by Ibn Batutah.
Reason (R): Muhammad bin Tughlaq wanted to issue token currency in gold coins to promote trade with West Asian and North African countries.
(a)Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
(b)Both A and R are true but R is not a correct explanation of A
Q: Assertion (A): The percentage of net sown area in the total area of Andhra Pradesh is less as compared to that of West Bengal.
Reason (R): The soil of most of Andhra Pradesh is laterite.
(a)Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
(b)Both A and R are true but R is not a correct explanation of A
Q: Consider the following statements in respect of welfare schemes launched by the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India:
1. Drinking water for rural areas is one of the components of the Bharat Nirman Plan.
2. In the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 there is a provision that the statutory minimum wage applicable to agriculture workers in the State has to be paid to the workers under the Act.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Petronet LNG Ltd. is setting up another LNG terminal at Mangalore.
2. The Head Office of the Dredging Corporation of India is at Visakhapatnam.
3. The Narwapahar Mine is operated by the Uranium Corporation of India Limited.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Q: Match List – I with List – II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List – I ( Finding / Invention / Calculation )
A. Time taken by the Earth to orbit the Sun
B. Calculation of the value of ‘pi’
C. Invention of the digit zero
D. The game of snakes and ladders
List – II ( Ancient Indian Scholar )
1. Aryabhatta
2. Bhaskaracharya
3. Budhayana
4. Gyandev
Code:
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Meningococcal Meningitis is transmitted from person to person by mosquito bites.
2. Vomiting and neck pain are two of the symptoms of Meningococcal meningitis.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. In India, during the financial year 2004-2005 an increase of below 10 % over the value of exports (in rupee terms) in the financial year 2003-2004 was reported.
2. According to the WTO, India’s share in the world merchandise exports is 2 % in the year 2005.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Match List – I with List – II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List – I ( Author )
A. Amartya Sen
B. Bimal Jalan
C. Arundhati Roy
D. Mani Shankar
List – II ( Book )
1. An Ordinary Person’s Guide to Empire
2. The Argumentative Indian
3. The Future of India
4. Confessions of a Secular Fundamentalist
Code:
Q: A watch showed a time of fourteen minutes past nine (9 hrs 14 minutes). The positions of the hour-hand and the minute-hand of the watch are exactly interchanged. The new time shown by the watch is closest to which one of the following?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. The agreement on South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) came into effect from 1st December 2005.
2. As per SAFTA agreement terms, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have to decrease their custom duties to the level of 0 % to 5 % by the year 2013.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Which of the following pairs is/are correctly matched?
Inventor : Invention
1. Christopher Cockerell : Hovercraft
2. David Bushnell : Submarine
3. J. C. Perrier : Steamship
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. A person who has held office as a permanent Judge of a High Court cannot plead or act in any court or before any authority in India except the Supreme Court.
2. A person is not qualified for appointment as a Judge of a High Court in India unless he has for at least five years held a judicial office in the territory of India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Each of 8 identical balls is to be placed in the squares shown in the figure given above in a horizontal direction such that one horizontal row contains 6 balls and the other horizontal row contains 2 balls. In how many maximum different ways can this be done?
Q: Consider the following statements :
1. Length of a terrestrial mile is lesser than that of a nautical mile.
2. Harmattan is a dusty land-wind of the East African Coast.
3. Greece and Albania form a part of the Iberian Peninsula.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Q: In a tournament each of the participants was to play one match against each of the other participants. 3 players fell ill after each of them had played three matches and had to leave the tournament. What was the total number of participants at the beginning, if the total number of matches played was 75 ?
Q: P, Q, R, S and T reside in a 5-storeyed (Ground + 4) building, and each of them resides on a separate floor. Further,
1. T does not reside on the topmost floor.
2. Q does not reside on the ground floor.
3. S resides on one storey above that of P and one storey below that of R.
To know as to which of the 5 persons resides on the ground floor which of the above statements are sufficient / insufficient?
Q: A box contains 5 sets of balls while there are 3 balls in each set. Each set of balls has one colour which is different from every other set. What is the least number of balls that must be removed from the box in order to claim with certainty that a pair of balls of the same colour has been removed?
Q: Consider the following statements in respect of India's advanced satellite INSAT–4A :
1. INSAT–4A was launched in December, 2005 from New Mexico.
2. The European commercial launch service provider Arianespace was associated with the launch of INSAT–4A.
3. Tata-Sky—a digital cable service provider is associated with DTH television broadcasting services from INSAT-4A.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Appellate Tribunal for Electricity has been established by each State Government in India.
2. One of the components of the Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme (APDRP) is upgradation of sub-transmission and distribution system for electricity in India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists :
List – I (Valley)
A. Markha Valley
B. Dzukou Valley
C. Sangla Valley
D. Yumthang Valley
List – II (State)
1. Sikkim
2. Himachal Pradesh
3. Jammu and Kashmir
4. Nagaland
Codes :
A B C D
Q: Consider the following statements :
1. According to the Census 2001, Kerala has the smallest gap in male and female literacy rates among the 28 states of India (Delhi and Pondicherry not included).
2. According to the Census 2001, Rajasthan has literacy rate above the national average literacy rate.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements in respect of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 :
1. Under the provisions of the Act, 100 days of employment in a year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work has become a fundamental right.
2. Under the provisions of the Act, women are to get priority to the extent that one-half of persons who are given employment are women who have asked for work.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Each of the six faces of a cube is numbered by one of the six digits from 1 to 6. This cube is shown in its four different positions in the figures I, II, III and IV.
Consider the following statements:
1. Figures II and III are sufficient to know as to which face is opposite to the face numbered 6.
2. Figures II and III are sufficient to know as to which face is opposite to the face numbered 4.
3. Figures I and IV are sufficient to know as to which face is opposite to the face numbered 4.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements about Madam Bhikaji Cama :
1. Madam Cama unfurled the National Flag at the International Socialist Conference in Paris in the year 1907.
2. Madam Cama served as private secretary to Dadabhai Naoroji.
3. Madam Cama was born to Parsi parents.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Indian Airlines (now renamed ‘Indian’) have redesigned their logo which is a graphic wheel. This logo has been inspired from which one of the following?
Q: Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists :
List-I
A. E. C. G. Sudarshan
B. V. Shanta
C. T. N. Krishnan
D. Mahesh Dattani
List-II
1. Theatre
2. Violin
3. Research in Physics
4. Cancer treatment
5. Water-harvesting
A B C D
Q: Consider the following statements :
1. The Richter scale is a logarithmic scale and so an increase of 1 magnitude unit represents a factor of 10 times in amplitude.
2. Each integer reading of the Richter scale has an energy 100 times that of the previous integer reading.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Assam shares a border with Bhutan and Bangladesh.
2. West Bengal shares a border with Bhutan and Nepal.
3. Mizoram shares a border with Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Q: In a question paper, there are four multiple-choice questions. Each question has five choices with only one choice for its correct answer. What is the total number of ways in which a candidate will not get all the four answers correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Free and compulsory education to the children of 6-14 years age group by the State was made a Fundamental Right by the 76th Amendment to the Constitution of India.
2. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan seeks to provide computer education even in rural areas.
3. Education was included in the Concurrent List by the 42nd Amendment, 1976 to the Constitution of India.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Q: There are 8 equidistant points A, B, C, D, E, F, G and H in the clockwise direction on the periphery of a circle. In a time-interval t, a person reaches from A to C with uniform motion while another person reaches the point E from the point B during the same time-interval with uniform motion. Both the persons move in the same direction along the circumference of the circle and start at the same instant. How much time after the start will the two persons meet each other?
Q: Each of the persons A, B, C, D and E possesses unequal number (<10) of similar items. A, B and C possess 21 items in all, while C, D and E possess 7 items in all. How many items do A and B possess in all?
Q: Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List-I (Leading Woman Lawn Tennis Player)
A. Daniela Hantuchova
B. Patty Schnyder
C. Nadia Petrova
D. Amelie Mauresmo
List-II (Country)
1. Russia
2. Slovakia
3. France
4. Switzerland
Q: There are three parallel straight lines. Two points A and B are marked on the first line, points C and D are marked on the second line, and points E and F are marked on the third line. Each of these six points can move to any position on its respective straight line.
Consider the following statements:
1. The minimum number of triangles that can be formed by joining these points is zero.
2. The maximum number of triangles that can be formed by joining these points is twenty.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: A mixed doubles tennis game is to be played between two teams (each team consists of one male and one female). There are 4 married couples. No team is to consist of a husband and his wife. What is the maximum number of games that can be played?
Q: In an office, the number of persons who take tea is twice the number of persons who take only coffee. The number of persons who take coffee is twice the number of persons who take only tea.
Consider the following statements:
1. The sum of the number of persons who take either tea or coffee or both is four times the number of persons who take both coffee and tea.
2. The sum of the number of persons who take only coffee and those who take only tea is twice the number of persons who take both coffee and tea.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List-I
A. Harold Pinter
B. Jacques Diouf
C. Jose Manuel Barroso
D. Raymond Lafitte
List-II
1. Director-General, FAO
2. President, European Commission
3. World Bank appointed expert for adjudicating on the Baglihar Hydel Project
4. Litterateur
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Life Insurance Corporation of India is the oldest insurance company in India.
2. National Insurance Company Limited was nationalized in the year 1972 and made a subsidiary of General Insurance Corporation of India.
3. Headquarters of United India Insurance Company Limited are located at Chennai.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Q: Projects and Development India Limited is mainly engaged in design engineering, procurement and supervision of construction/commissioning in which area?
Q: Recently with which country’s government did ONGC-Mittal Energy Limited (OMEL) sign a joint-venture deal of $6 billion dealing with infrastructure, refinery and power?
Q: Recently Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the linking of two rivers as a link project. Which are these two rivers?
Q: Which is the correct chronological sequence of the major events given below?
1. SLV-3 Launch
2. Formation of Bangladesh
3. Sikkim becomes 22nd State of the Indian Union
4. Pokharan-I test
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Q: Which of the following substances are found in the beach sands of many parts of Kerala?
1. Ilmenite
2. Zircon
3. Sillimanite
4. Tungsten
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Q: Match List-I (Indian Scientist/Scholar) with List-II (Area of work) and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List I
A. C. N. R. Rao
B. Jagdish Bhagwati
C. G. N. Ramchandran
D. Ashok
List II
1. Telecommunication
2. Physics
3. Economics
4. Solid State Chemistry and Material Science
Code:
Q: Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List I (Person)
A. Ela Bhatt
B. Mahasweta Devi
C. Ebrahim Alkazi
D. Vijay Govindarajan
List II (Area of work)
1. Theatre training
2. Women’s labour sector
3. Management teaching
4. Litterateur and Social Worker for the country’s tribal communities
Codes:
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. The Charter Act 1853 abolished East India Company’s monopoly of Indian trade.
2. Under the Government of India Act, 1858, the British Parliament abolished the East India Company altogether and undertook the responsibility of ruling India directly.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. The Ikshvaku rulers of southern India were antagonistic towards Buddhism.
2. The Pala rulers of Eastern India were patrons of Buddhism.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Under whose presidency was the Lahore Session of the Indian National Congress held in the year 1929 wherein a resolution was adopted to gain complete independence from the British?
Q: Each of 2 women and 3 men is to occupy one chair out of 8 chairs, each of which is numbered from 1 to 8. First, women are to occupy any two chairs from those numbered 1 to 4; and then 3 men would occupy any three chairs out of the remaining 6 chairs. What is the maximum number of different ways in which this can be done?
Q: Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List I (Person)
A. Chandra
B. Amrita Patel
C. Indra Nooyi
D. Piyush Pandey
List II (Organization / Area of work)
1. Advertising
2. Banking
3. Dairy Development
4. Pepsi Co.
A B C D
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. Kofi Annan – the UN Secretary-General is from Nigeria.
2. Kofi Annan is the first UN Secretary-General to be appointed from the ranks of the United Nations staff.
3. Kofi Annan was appointed for a second term to the office of the UN Secretary-General.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. The Nobel Prize Awarding Ceremony takes place on December 10 every year.
2. The Nobel Prize for Literature was added later on to the other five areas – Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Peace and Economics.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Q: Bermuda triangle extends up to which of the following places?
1. Southern Florida
2. Puerto Rico
3. Hawaii Islands
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Q: Consider the following statements:
1. ELISA test is employed as the first and most basic test for an individual to detect cancer.
2. Almost 50% of human beings have Rh+ blood while the remaining have Rh- blood.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Was the 2006 Prelims paper easier than later years?▼
Yes. With 75 out of 150 questions classified as easy and only 5 deemed difficult, the 2006 paper is generally regarded as more scoring compared to the progressively tougher papers witnessed after 2010.
Which subject carried the highest weightage in 2006?▼
Science & Technology led with 38 questions, closely followed by Current Affairs at 32. Together they formed almost 47% of the paper.
Why is Environment & Ecology under-represented in the 2006 paper?▼
UPSC’s strong focus on environmental issues became pronounced only after the introduction of the CSAT pattern and global climate negotiations of the late 2000s. In 2006, the topic had not yet risen to its current prominence, hence only 2 questions appeared.