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Mock Test CGPSC Prelims (practice) · 30 questions

CGPSC Prelims Practice Set 1 (Mock Test)

Attempt a 30-question CGPSC Prelims Paper I practice set online — India GS and Chhattisgarh GK, timed, auto-scored with one-third negative marking and explanations.

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CGPSC Prelims Practice Set 1 — 30 questions, 36 minutes. Marking: +2 / −0.67 (one-third). Original practice questions in the CGPSC Paper I pattern — not a past paper. Explanations are ours.

Question 1 · India GS

The First Battle of Panipat (1526) was fought between:

  1. Akbar and Hemu
  2. Babur and Rana Sanga
  3. Ahmad Shah Abdali and the Marathas
  4. Babur and Ibrahim Lodi
Answer & solution

Answer: Option D — Babur and Ibrahim Lodi

In 1526 Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat and founded Mughal rule in India. Akbar’s forces defeated Hemu in the Second Battle of Panipat (1556), Babur defeated Rana Sanga at Khanwa (1527), and Ahmad Shah Abdali defeated the Marathas in the Third Battle of Panipat (1761).

Question 2 · India GS

The first session of the Indian National Congress (1885) was held at ______ and presided over by ______.

  1. Calcutta – Dadabhai Naoroji
  2. Madras – Badruddin Tyabji
  3. Poona – A. O. Hume
  4. Bombay – W. C. Bonnerjee
Answer & solution

Answer: Option D — Bombay – W. C. Bonnerjee

The first session met in Bombay in December 1885 under W. C. Bonnerjee. It had been planned for Poona but was shifted to Bombay because of a cholera outbreak, which is why Poona is a tempting distractor. A. O. Hume was a founder, not the president.

Question 3 · India GS

Strict market-control measures, with fixed prices for grain and other goods in Delhi, are associated with which Sultan?

  1. Iltutmish
  2. Muhammad bin Tughlaq
  3. Alauddin Khalji
  4. Firoz Shah Tughlaq
Answer & solution

Answer: Option C — Alauddin Khalji

Alauddin Khalji fixed prices and set up market officials to keep his large standing army affordable. Muhammad bin Tughlaq is remembered for the token currency and the shift of capital to Daulatabad, a different set of experiments.

Question 4 · India GS

Consider the following statements: 1. Article 17 abolishes untouchability and forbids its practice in any form. 2. Article 18 abolishes titles, but exempts military and academic distinctions. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer & solution

Answer: Option C — Both 1 and 2

Both are correct. Article 17 abolishes untouchability and makes its practice an offence punishable by law. Article 18 bars the State from conferring titles other than military or academic distinctions.

Question 5 · India GS

Consider the following statements: 1. Fundamental Duties were added by the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976, on the recommendation of the Swaran Singh Committee. 2. They are contained in Article 51A in Part IVA of the Constitution. 3. Like Fundamental Rights, they can be directly enforced through writs issued by the Supreme Court. Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. 1 and 2 only
  2. 2 and 3 only
  3. 1 and 3 only
  4. 1, 2 and 3
Answer & solution

Answer: Option A — 1 and 2 only

Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Statement 3 is wrong: Fundamental Duties are not enforceable through writs the way Fundamental Rights are under Article 32, although Parliament can give effect to them through laws.

Question 6 · India GS

Consider the following statements: 1. Nominated members of Parliament take part in the election of the President of India. 2. Elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the states take part in the election of the President. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer & solution

Answer: Option B — 2 only

Under Article 54 the President is elected by an electoral college of the elected members of both Houses of Parliament and the elected members of the state Legislative Assemblies (including Delhi and Puducherry). Nominated members do not vote, so statement 1 is wrong.

Question 7 · India GS

The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in disputes between the Government of India and one or more states is provided under:

  1. Article 32
  2. Article 131
  3. Article 143
  4. Article 226
Answer & solution

Answer: Option B — Article 131

Article 131 gives the Supreme Court exclusive original jurisdiction over Centre–state and inter-state disputes. Article 32 concerns writs for Fundamental Rights, Article 143 the President’s power to seek the Court’s advisory opinion, and Article 226 the writ jurisdiction of High Courts.

Question 8 · India GS

Black soil (regur), well suited to cotton, has mainly formed from:

  1. Deposits laid down by rivers in the northern plains
  2. Intense leaching under heavy rainfall and high temperature
  3. Wind-blown sand in arid regions
  4. Weathering of the basaltic lava rocks of the Deccan
Answer & solution

Answer: Option D — Weathering of the basaltic lava rocks of the Deccan

Regur develops from the weathering of Deccan Trap basalt; its high clay content holds moisture, which suits cotton. River deposits form alluvial soil, intense leaching produces laterite, and wind-blown sand gives desert (arid) soil.

Question 9 · India GS

Consider the following statements: 1. The IMF and the IBRD (World Bank) were conceived at the Bretton Woods Conference of 1944. 2. The headquarters of both the IMF and the World Bank are in Geneva. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer & solution

Answer: Option A — 1 only

Statement 1 is correct: both institutions came out of the 1944 Bretton Woods Conference in the USA. Statement 2 is wrong: both are headquartered in Washington, D.C. Geneva hosts bodies such as the WHO, ILO and WTO.

Question 10 · India GS

Fiscal deficit in the Union Budget is best described as:

  1. Revenue expenditure minus revenue receipts
  2. Total expenditure minus total receipts excluding borrowings and other liabilities
  3. Fiscal deficit minus interest payments
  4. Total expenditure minus total receipts including borrowings
Answer & solution

Answer: Option B — Total expenditure minus total receipts excluding borrowings and other liabilities

Fiscal deficit is the gap between total expenditure and total receipts other than borrowings, so it shows how much the government must borrow. Revenue expenditure minus revenue receipts is the revenue deficit, fiscal deficit minus interest payments is the primary deficit, and if borrowings are counted as receipts the gap disappears.

Question 11 · India GS

India's first satellite, Aryabhata (1975), was launched:

  1. By PSLV from Sriharikota
  2. By an American rocket from Cape Canaveral
  3. By a Soviet launch vehicle from the Soviet Union
  4. By ASLV from Thumba
Answer & solution

Answer: Option C — By a Soviet launch vehicle from the Soviet Union

Aryabhata was built by ISRO and launched in April 1975 on a Soviet rocket from Soviet territory. India’s own PSLV and ASLV came much later, and Thumba is a sounding-rocket station, not an orbital launch site.

Question 12 · India GS

The double-helix model of DNA was proposed in 1953 by:

  1. Gregor Mendel
  2. Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace
  3. Har Gobind Khorana
  4. James Watson and Francis Crick
Answer & solution

Answer: Option D — James Watson and Francis Crick

Watson and Crick proposed the double helix in 1953, drawing on X-ray diffraction work by Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins. Mendel gave the laws of inheritance, Darwin and Wallace the theory of natural selection, and Khorana worked on the genetic code.

Question 13 · India GS

Consider the following statements: 1. SAARC was established in 1985 at Dhaka. 2. The SAARC Secretariat is located in Kathmandu. 3. Myanmar is a member of SAARC. Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. 1 and 2 only
  2. 2 and 3 only
  3. 1 and 3 only
  4. 1, 2 and 3
Answer & solution

Answer: Option A — 1 and 2 only

Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Statement 3 is wrong: SAARC’s eight members are India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Afghanistan. Myanmar is a member of BIMSTEC and ASEAN, not SAARC.

Question 14 · India GS

Consider the following statements: 1. The Right to Information Act was enacted in 2005. 2. The Central Information Commission is a constitutional body. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer & solution

Answer: Option A — 1 only

Statement 1 is correct. Statement 2 is wrong: the Central Information Commission is a statutory body set up under the RTI Act, 2005, not under any Article of the Constitution.

Question 15 · India GS

Which water body separates India from Sri Lanka?

  1. Ten Degree Channel
  2. Eight Degree Channel
  3. Palk Strait
  4. Strait of Malacca
Answer & solution

Answer: Option C — Palk Strait

The Palk Strait (with the Gulf of Mannar) separates Tamil Nadu from Sri Lanka. The Ten Degree Channel separates the Andaman and Nicobar groups, the Eight Degree Channel lies between Minicoy and the Maldives, and the Strait of Malacca lies between Malaysia and Sumatra.

Question 16 · Chhattisgarh GK

Consider the following statements: 1. Chhattisgarh elects 11 members to the Lok Sabha. 2. Chhattisgarh has 5 seats in the Rajya Sabha. (Figures as of 2026.) Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer & solution

Answer: Option C — Both 1 and 2

Both are correct as of 2026: Chhattisgarh has 11 Lok Sabha constituencies and 5 Rajya Sabha seats, along with a 90-member Vidhan Sabha.

Question 17 · Chhattisgarh GK

Who was the first Governor of Chhattisgarh?

  1. Ajit Jogi
  2. Dinesh Nandan Sahay
  3. K. M. Seth
  4. Shekhar Dutt
Answer & solution

Answer: Option B — Dinesh Nandan Sahay

Dinesh Nandan Sahay was the first Governor (from 1 November 2000). Ajit Jogi was the first Chief Minister, not Governor; K. M. Seth and Shekhar Dutt were later Governors.

Question 18 · Chhattisgarh GK

Which is generally regarded as the highest peak of Chhattisgarh?

  1. Gaurlata
  2. Mainpat
  3. Sihawa
  4. Ramgarh
Answer & solution

Answer: Option A — Gaurlata

Gaurlata, on the Samri Pat in Balrampur district, is generally given as the highest peak of the state (about 1,225 m). Mainpat is a plateau, Sihawa hills are the source area of the Mahanadi, and Ramgarh is known for the Sitabenga and Jogimara caves.

Question 19 · Chhattisgarh GK

The Triveni Sangam at Rajim, venue of the annual Rajim Mela, is the confluence of which rivers?

  1. Mahanadi, Pairi and Sondur
  2. Mahanadi, Shivnath and Hasdeo
  3. Hasdeo, Mand and Kelo
  4. Arpa, Kharun and Shivnath
Answer & solution

Answer: Option A — Mahanadi, Pairi and Sondur

Rajim stands where the Pairi and Sondur meet the Mahanadi, which is why it is called the ‘Prayag of Chhattisgarh’. The Rajiv Lochan and Kuleshwar Mahadev temples are located here.

Question 20 · Chhattisgarh GK

Consider the following statements: 1. Achanakmar-Amarkantak was declared a Biosphere Reserve in 2005. 2. It extends over parts of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. 3. It was included in UNESCO's World Network of Biosphere Reserves in 2012. Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. 1 and 2 only
  2. 2 and 3 only
  3. 1 and 3 only
  4. 1, 2 and 3
Answer & solution

Answer: Option D — 1, 2 and 3

All three are correct. The reserve was notified in 2005, spans Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh (Amarkantak lies in Madhya Pradesh), and was added to UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere network in 2012.

Question 21 · Chhattisgarh GK

The Kandel Canal (Nahar) Satyagraha of 1920 in Dhamtari tehsil, in connection with which Gandhiji first visited Chhattisgarh, was led by:

  1. Veer Narayan Singh
  2. Pt. Sundarlal Sharma
  3. Gunda Dhur
  4. Bimbaji Bhonsle
Answer & solution

Answer: Option B — Pt. Sundarlal Sharma

Pt. Sundarlal Sharma, often called the ‘Gandhi of Chhattisgarh’, led the Kandel satyagraha against an irrigation water tax and invited Gandhiji, who visited in December 1920. Veer Narayan Singh belongs to 1857, Gunda Dhur to the 1910 Bhumkal, and Bimbaji to the 18th-century Maratha period.

Question 22 · Chhattisgarh GK

The 'Bison Horn' dance, performed with horned headgear, is associated with which tribal group of Bastar?

  1. Baiga
  2. Kamar
  3. Birhor
  4. Maria
Answer & solution

Answer: Option D — Maria

The Bison Horn dance is performed by the Maria (the Dandami or ‘Bison Horn’ Maria) of Bastar, who wear headdresses decorated with horns and feathers. The Baiga, Kamar and Birhor are PVTGs living mainly outside this part of Bastar.

Question 23 · Chhattisgarh GK

Consider the following statements: 1. Raut Nacha is traditionally performed by the Yadav (Raut) community. 2. Panthi dance is associated with the Satnami community. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer & solution

Answer: Option C — Both 1 and 2

Both are correct. Raut Nacha is performed by the Yadav community around Diwali and Dev Uthani Ekadashi. Panthi is the dance of the Satnami community, followers of Guru Ghasidas.

Question 24 · Chhattisgarh GK

Cherchera, when children and youth go from house to house collecting newly harvested paddy, is celebrated on:

  1. Shravan Amavasya
  2. Bhado Amavasya
  3. Paush Purnima
  4. Kartik Purnima
Answer & solution

Answer: Option C — Paush Purnima

Cherchera is the post-harvest festival on Paush Purnima. Shravan Amavasya is Hareli and Bhado Amavasya is Pola, both festivals of the agricultural season.

Question 25 · Chhattisgarh GK

The Sitabenga and Jogimara caves, with ancient Brahmi inscriptions and rock-cut seating often described as an early theatre, are located in:

  1. Kanger Valley, Bastar
  2. Ramgarh hills, Surguja
  3. Sirpur, Mahasamund
  4. Malhar, Bilaspur
Answer & solution

Answer: Option B — Ramgarh hills, Surguja

The caves are in the Ramgarh hills of Surguja district. Some scholars see the Sitabenga cave as one of the oldest theatres in India, though this interpretation is debated. Kanger Valley is known for limestone caves such as Kotumsar.

Question 26 · Chhattisgarh GK

The Dhokra craft of Bastar is a form of:

  1. Lost-wax metal casting
  2. Terracotta pottery
  3. Bamboo weaving
  4. Kosa silk weaving
Answer & solution

Answer: Option A — Lost-wax metal casting

Dhokra is bell-metal and brass casting by the lost-wax (cire perdue) process, practised by artisans in Bastar and Kondagaon. Kosa silk is a separate tradition of the state, associated with weaving centres such as Champa.

Question 27 · Chhattisgarh GK

Before Ratanpur, the capital of the Kalachuri branch established in Dakshina Kosala by Kalingaraja was:

  1. Sirpur
  2. Malhar
  3. Raipur
  4. Tummana
Answer & solution

Answer: Option D — Tummana

Kalingaraja made Tummana his capital; his grandson Ratnadeva I later founded Ratanpur. Sirpur was the Panduvanshi capital, and Raipur became the seat of the later Raipur branch of the Kalachuris.

Question 28 · Chhattisgarh GK

The Danteshwari temple at Dantewada stands at the confluence of which rivers?

  1. Mahanadi and Pairi
  2. Indravati and Godavari
  3. Shankini and Dankini
  4. Arpa and Shivnath
Answer & solution

Answer: Option C — Shankini and Dankini

The Danteshwari temple is at the meeting point of the Shankini and Dankini rivers. Goddess Danteshwari is also the presiding deity of Bastar Dussehra.

Question 29 · Chhattisgarh GK

The unusual Rudra Shiva image, whose body is made up of animal and human figures, was found at:

  1. Bhoramdeo
  2. Rajim
  3. Sirpur
  4. Tala
Answer & solution

Answer: Option D — Tala

The Rudra Shiva image was found during excavations at the Devrani-Jethani temple complex at Tala, on the Maniyari river in Bilaspur district. Bhoramdeo, Rajim and Sirpur are known for other temples.

Question 30 · Chhattisgarh GK

Indravati National Park, also a Tiger Reserve, is located in which district?

  1. Bijapur
  2. Koriya
  3. Mungeli
  4. Gariaband
Answer & solution

Answer: Option A — Bijapur

Indravati National Park is in Bijapur district and is named after the Indravati river. Guru Ghasidas National Park is in the Koriya region, Achanakmar in the Mungeli area, and Udanti-Sitanadi Tiger Reserve in Gariaband-Dhamtari.