UPSC Mains 2025 Geography Optional Paper I questions

28 questions from the Civil Services (Main) Examination 2025. Official UPSC paper (PDF) · All Geography Optional PYQs

1. Explain the causes of glacial lake outburst flood.

2. What is solifluction? What are its impacts?

3. What geological and tectonic processes lead to the formation of nappes in orogenic belts?

4. Explain the relationship between air masses and local winds.

5. What are the fundamental differences among ocean wave, ocean current and tide?

6. How does denudation chronology help in understanding the sequential development of landscapes and landforms? Elucidate.

   20 marks

7. What is deep-sea mining? What are the potential benefits and risks associated with it?

   5 marks

8. Man and wildlife conflicts are ever increasing. Discuss its causes, consequences and remedies.

   5 marks

9. Examine the formation of atmospheric tricellular circulation system. Describe with example its importance in making the Earth a living planet.

   20 marks

10. What is the 'UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration'? How does it balance ecological goals with emerging socio-economic needs like food security and development?

    5 marks

11. "The Himalaya is still rising." Expand this statement and describe the processes involved in it with suitable sketches and examples.

    5 marks

12. What are the ecological consequences of agricultural deforestation in the Amazon and Congo Basins, particularly concerning biodiversity and climate regulation?

    20 marks

13. Examine the distribution and balance of energy in the Earth's atmosphere system.

    5 marks

14. Describe the process of formation of barrier islands and explain their significance.

    5 marks

15. Why did the Welfare Approach in Human Geography emerge as a significant perspective in 970s?

16. What are the key environmental and economic challenges linked to the extraction and processing of critical minerals?

17. "Pull factors in internal migration are often based on perceptions rather than reality." Explain.

18. "Regional imbalances are the product of in situ and ex situ factors." Elucidate it with examples.

19. Why is systems analysis important in urban planning and what are its limitations? [P-T:0.

20. How have dichotomy and dualism affected the methodological development of Geography? Describe.

    20 marks

21. Analyze the role of language and religion in delineating major cultural regions of the world.

22. Analyze the spatial patterns and regional specialization of plantation crops across tropical and subtropical regions.

23. Why is oil important for energy security? What is the role of oil in clean energy transition?

    20 marks

24. Critically evaluate the role of primate cities in dominating the urban spheres of influence in developing countries.

    5 marks

25. "The global demographic landscape is evolving with rapid population growth in some places and rapid ageing in others." Elucidate with examples.

    5 marks

26. Why has F. Perroux's theory of growth pole as a model of regional growth been criticised? Explain with examples.

    20 marks

27. Analyze the role of demographic transition theory in explaining variations in fertility and mortality rates globally.

    5 marks

28. How do regional components make the regional synthesis in spatial arrangement? Explain.