2021 UPSC CSE Mains General Studies Paper 1 PYQs

The UPSC Civil Services Mains 2021 General Studies Paper 1 is a critical part of the examination, focusing on key subjects such as Indian History, World History, Geography, and Social Issues. In History, the focus spans ancient, medieval, and modern Indian history, along with themes of post-independence consolidation and world history events like industrialization, colonization, and revolutions. Geography covers physical geography of the world, distribution of key natural resources, and climate change impacts, while Social Issues delve into topics like poverty, urbanization, caste, and gender inequality.

This post provides a comprehensive list of Previous Year Questions (PYQs), helping aspirants analyze the exam pattern, understand syllabus coverage, and prepare strategically for future UPSC Mains. Practicing these 2021 General Studies Paper 1 PYQs will enable candidates to strengthen their grasp of important concepts and improve their answer-writing skills.

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History

1. Evaluate the nature of the Bhakti literature and its contribution to Indian culture.
2. Trace the rise and growth of socio-religious reform movements with special reference to Young Bengal and Brahmo Samaj.
3. To what extent did the role of the Moderates prepare a base for the wider freedom movement? Comment.
4. Assess the main administrative issues and socio-cultural problems in the integration process of India Princely States.
5. “There arose a serious challenge to the Democratic State System between the two World Wars.” Evaluate the Statement.

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Social Science

1. Examine the uniqueness of tribal knowledge system when compared with mainstream knowledge and cultural systems.
2. How does Indian society maintain continuity in traditional social values? Enumerate the changes taking place in it.
3. Discuss the main objectives of Population Education and point out the measures to achieve them in India in detail.
4. What is crypto currency ? How does it affect global society ? Has it been affecting Indian Society also?
5. Examine the role of ‘Gig Economy’ in the process of empowerment of women in India.

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Geography

1. Differentitate the causes of landslides in the Himalayan region and Western Ghats.
2. Mention the global occurence of volcanic eruptions in 2021 and their impact on regional environment.
3. Why in India considered as a subcontinent? Elaborate your answer.
4. Briefly mention the alignment of major mountain ranges of the world and explain their impact on local weather conditions, with examples.
5. How do the melting of the Artic ice and glaciers of the Antarctic differently affect the weather patterns and human activities on the Earth? Explain.
6. Despite India being one of the countries of the Gondwanaland, its mining industry contributes much less to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in percentage. Discuss.
7. What are the environmental implications of the reclamation of water bodies into urban land use? Explain with examples.
8. Discuss the multi-dimensional implications of uneven distribution of mineral oil in the world.
9. What are the main socio-economic implications arising out of the development of IT industries in major cities of India?

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