Prelims-2019-GS: Overall Observations
Before we solve the Geography MCQs, let’s look at the overall picture of Prelims-2019 Paper1.
| Length | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct Four Options (A,B,C,D) | 42 | 41 | 49 |
| 2 Statements True/False (2TF) | 22 | 17 | 11 |
| 3TF | 32 | 30 | 27 |
| 4TF | 4 | 8 | 11 |
| 5TF | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 6TF | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 7TF | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 100 | 100 | 100 |
Less Time Consuming than Previous Exams
- To make the paper lengthier, UPSC Examiner had gotten into the habit of asking multi-statement questions. Multi-statement questions eat up more time in reading the statements, pausing, thinking and reflecting.
- In 2018, Examinerâs enthusiasm went all the way upto 6-7 statement based true/false questions.
- In comparison, 2019âs paper is less lengthy than 2017 and 2018, because it has more number of questions with direct four options (A,B,C,D). So, less time would have been gone in reading them.
Lowest Current Affairs from (D-1) Year
| Span | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theory | 60 | 51 | 43 |
| Current Affairs from (D-1) Year | 16 | 13 | 9 |
| Contemporary | 24 | 36 | 48 |
| Total | 100 | 100 | 100 |
- In last three papers, each year the current affairs questions from (D-1) year are declining. (that from the first january of previous calendar year)
- Although, this vacuum is not filled by theory questions. In Fact, theory questions too are declining each year. And the vacuum is being filled by Contemporary Affairs questions.
- So, perhaps those who excessively fear or obsess with the (D-1) current affairs (and their PDF compilations) of last one year- should revamp their strategies accordingly.
- Out of the 48 questions from contemporary affairs, SEVEN questions find their traces directly in the news-articles of 2017. Which indicates the examiner has used question bank from (D-2) year at some places.
- PIB is overrated: While candidates unnecessarily lose sleep over âPIBâ and its âcompilationsâ but hardly any question in Prelims-2019 required referring to the PIB news items.
However, UPSC examiner has remained consistent / predictable in two areas:
- As usual avoided the Hot-Topics: As such, the number of CA questions are few. And even among them, hot topics (those whoâre in too much news) are almost avoided whether itâs General Election 2019, or RBIâs Dividend / NPA / Feb21 Circular, or ISROâs satellites.
- As usual avoided âPersons in Newsâ (PIN), Sports, Books-Authors, Awards, Appointments etc..
2019âs Paper was less tough than 2018
| Toughness | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Easy | 42 | 32 | 31 |
| Medium | 23 | 22 | 33 |
| Tough | 35 | 46 | 36 (Less number of Tough Qs than 2018) |
| Total | 100 | 100 | 100 |
2018 is indisputably the toughest paper in recent history, both in terms of number of questions and corresponding cutoffs.
- When we compare only the easy questions, both 2018 and 2019 have about ~30 Easy questions, so neither of them was easier than 2017, (or 2016- which was a dream paper for the Guessmasters and mercurial elements.)
- But when comparing the level of medium and tough questions, itâs evident that 2019âs paper had less of tough questions and more of medium questions than 2018.
Unknown Facts about familiar Topics
- This time to make the paper tough, UPSC examiner has asked unknown facts about known topics where students are familiar with the basic gist but donât know the advanced details / salient features asked in the questions.
- Examples: LTE-VolTE, Agriculture Soil emission, digital signature, drug resistance, Maternity benefit Act, Patent Act, Five Year Plans, FCIâs operations, Poverty Line, Remote Sensing, PVTG, Forest right, Augmented Reality (AR) etc.
Solve Old Papers Topicwise
Solve old question papers in topicwise manner, because questions / topics are sometimes recycled. This is true both for prelims as well as Mains. Observe:
- Prelim-2018: CAS9 given as one of the wrong option in a physics question.
- Prelim-2019: Asked what is CAS9?
Hereâs another one:
- Prelims-2015: Which of the following country doesnât open out to the Mediterranean Sea?
- Prelims-2017: Mediterranean Sea is a border of which of the following countries?
- Prelim-2018: 5 Seas and adjoining nations asked including Mediterranean
Similarly in Mains
- Mains-2015: What are the economic significances of discovery of oil in Arctic Sea and its possible environmental consequences?
- Mains-2018: Why is India taking keen interest in resources of Arctic Region?
Due to paucity of time and space I am not giving all examples, but suffice to say it helps at least in 50:50 elimination in Prelims and assembling a rag-tag answer in Mains.
2019âs paper has less opportunities for Guessmasters
| Guessmastergiri | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Possible to arrive at right answer #without-studying-anything | 7 | 16 | 20 |
| Anti-GM Questions | 8 | 9 | 13 |
| Not Applicable | 85 | 75 | 67 |
Compared to previous papers, 2019âs paper offered very few opportunities to apply the rules of Guessmaster-giri.
- So, it appears that UPSC-examiner has taken cognizance of this matter (either through my Sustained Campaign about this matter in the last 3 years or because of the à€à€à€à€Č à€€à€€à„à€” (mercurial elements) who were bragging about such shortcuts/cheats/hacks through their clickbait channels on Youtube).
- Either way, UPSC has improved the quality of framing statements, so Guessmaster-giriâs days are almost over.
- There is no shortcut or even springboard that can help you clear prelims without hardwork.
So, those were the observations about overall GS paper. As such, Iâm done publishing Answerkey for all subjects except one, Geography- that iâll finish here now:
Geography in Prelims-19: Observation / Analysis about
- UPSC conducted civil services IAS/IPS preliminary exam on 2nd June 2019.
- Total 7 out of 100 questions in General Studies Paper-1 were devoted to Geography
| Geography in Prelim 2018 and before | Prelim-2019: Continuity and Change |
|---|---|
| – The number of MCQs from Geography reduced from two-digit to single digit to make space for Environment and Agriculture. – Since Prelims-2016, Geography has been receiving alternate weightage of 4MCQ-7MCQ-4MCQ-7MCQs. |
Pattern continued, this year 7 MCQ. Although in Mains GS Paper-1, 100+ marks worth Geography is asked so itâs not like UPSC is showing âdisrespectâ to the subject. |
| Map based complex questions â 2017: If you travel by road from Kohima to Kottayam, how many states youâve to cross? â 2017: Which of the following is geographically closest to Great Nicobar? â 2018: Which of the following cities lies on a longitude closest to Delhi? |
Sadism has continued: – 5 out of 6 MCQs are based on maps. – To make the map based questions Complex this time- they asked 3-5 places asked in every individual question. So, to get one answer correct, you needed much more information than before. |
| Low profile tributaries of famous rivers asked e.g. Godavari, Bramhaputra, Teesta in 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively. | Sadism re-emerged with two questions on low-profile rivers. |
| Before 2016, there was a trend of asking about tribal group vs. state where they live, especially PVTGs. | Re-emerged with a question on PVTGs. |
| 2015 and 2017 asked Map based question on Mediterranean Sea. | Expanded beyond just Mediterranean and asked about five different seas in a single MCQ. |
| 2018âs World Geography was centred around current / contemporary affairs places such Mosul and outbreak of famine in âxâ country. | Straight forward school atlas based question in world geography. |
Anyways, when barely 4-7 questions are asked, there is not much space left to compare and contrast with past year.
Geography Strategy for Prelims-2020
Geography-Physical
(Pre19-SetA) Q20. On 21st June the sun
(a) Does not set below the horizon at the Arctic circle
(b) Does not set below the horizon at Antarctic circle
(c) Shines vertically overhead at noon on the Equator
(d) Shines vertically overhead at the tropic of Capricorn
Difficulty: Easy. Basic concept asked from NCERT.
ANS: NCERT Class 6 ch3 page 20
- on 21st June, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the sun. The rays of the sun fall directly on the Tropic of Cancer. So, C and D are wrong.
- Places beyond the Arctic Circle experience continuous daylight for about six months. So A is correct.
GuessmastergiriTM: Not Applicable.
(Pre19-SetA) Q44. Why are dewdrops not formed on a cloudy night?
(a) Clouds absorb the radiation released from the Earthâs surface.
(b) Clouds reflect back the Earthâs radiation.
(c) The Earthâs surface would have low temperature on cloudy nights.
(d) Clouds deflect the blowing wind to ground level.
Difficulty: Medium to Tough. While NCERT mentions that clear sky is necessary for dew formation but it doesnât help why / how clouds will not let dew form. So, youâve to interpret & apply the theory.
ANS:
- The favorable weather elements for dew include clear skies, light wind, decent soil moisture. âŠ.Clear skies allow for the maximum release of longwave radiation to space. Cloudy skies will reflect and absorb while re-emitting longwave radiation back to the surface and that prevents as much cooling from occurring, says this US Government website. So B is the most appropriate reason.
GuessmastergiriTM: Not Applicable.
Geography: India
(Pre19-SetA) Q23. Consider the following pairs :
Famous place: River
- Pandharpur : Chandrabhaga
- Tiruchirapalli : Cauvery
- Hampi : Malaprabha
Which of the pair given above are correctly matched
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Difficulty: Tough. Who can memorize so many low-profile rivers?
ANS:
- The Chandrabhaga (Bhima) river flows through the Pandharpur. Ref: their official district website. So #1 is right.
- Tiruchirappalli, situated on the banks of the river Cauvery is the fourth largest city in Tamil Nadu. Ref: their official district website. So #2 is right.
- Hampi, the 14th century capital of one of the greatest empires of medieval India called the Vijayanagar Empire, lies in the state of Karnataka protected by the tempestuous river Tungabhadra. Ref: Government website ‘KnowIndia’. So #3 is wrong.
GuessmastergiriTM: Not Applicable.
(Pre19-SetA) Q38. Consider the following Pairs :
Glacier: River
- Bandarpunch : Yamuna
- Bara Shigri : Chenab
- Milam : Mandakini
- Siachen : Nubra
- Zemu : Manas
Which of the following pairs given above are correctly matched?
(a) 1,2 and 4
(b) 1,3 and 4
(c) 2 and 5
(d) 3 and 5
Difficulty: Tough. Who prepares in this much detail- 5 glaciers and 5 rivers!?
ANS:
- Siachen Glacier, one of the worldâs longest mountain glaciers, lying in the Karakoram Range system of Kashmir. It is the source for Nubra River, says Majid page 16.23 and Encyclopedia Britannica. #4 is right, this eliminates C and D.
- In both A and B, #1 is common so weâve to accept Bandarpunch: Yamuna as correct. Now everything boils down to #2 and #3, but their glaciar origin names not given in Majid.
- River Mandakini actually originates from the springs fed by melting snow of Charabari glacier about one km above Kedarnath temple. Says Rudraprayag district website. Whereas, The Sarda or Saryu river rises in the Milam glacier in the Nepal Himalayas says NCERT Class11 India: Physical page 26 . So, #3 is wrong, we are left with answer A.
- Just to cross check, Bara Shigri is the largest glacier located in Lahaul Spiti region in Chandra Valley, Himachal Pradesh. It is a 30-km long glacier, the second longest glacier in the Himalayas after Gangotri. It flows northwards and feeds the Chenab river, says com
GuessmastergiriTM: Not Applicable.
(Pre19-SetA) Q42. Which is common to the places known as Aliyar, Isapur and Kangsabati?
(a) Recently discovered uranium deposits
(b) Tropical rain forests
(c) Underground cave systems
(d) Water reservoirs
Difficulty: Tough. These places not available in NCERT or Majid or IYB.
ANS: Aliyar (Tamilnadu), Isapur (Maharashtra) and Kangsabati (W.Bengal) are water Reservoirs as per this Government PDF.
GuessmastergiriTM: Not Applicable.
(Pre19-SetA) Q51. Consider the following statements about particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in India:
- PVTGs reside in 18 states and one union Territory.
- A stagnant or declining population is one of the criteria for determining PVTG status.
- There are 92 PVTGs officially notified in the country so far.
- Irular and Konda Reddi tribes are included in the list of PVTGs.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1,2 and 3
(b) 2,3 and 4
(c) 1, 2 and 4
(d) 1,3 and 4
Difficulty: Tough. Statement 1 and 3 are absolute GK, which are not easily available in routine prep sources.
ANS:
- 75 tribal groups have been categorized categorized by Ministry of Home Affairs as Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG)s. PVTGs reside in 18 States and UT of A&N Islands. Says Tribal Ministry website. So, #1 is right but #3 is wrong. This eliminates all options except C.
- Btw, Konda Reddi reside in Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana) and Irular reside in Tamilnadu.
!gm Because gm-rule#2 all dates, numbers and figures are wrong but here statement#1 and #3 contain numbers but even if you believe them to be wrong, there is no option without either statement#1 or #3.
Geography: World
(Pre19-SetA) Q36. Consider the following pairs :
Sea: Bordering country
- Adriatic Sea: Albania
- Black Sea: Croatia
- Caspian Sea: Kazakhstan
- Mediterranean Sea: Morocco
- Red Sea: Syria
Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
(a) 1,2 and 4 only
(b) 1,3 and 4 only
(c) 2 and 5 only
(d) 1,2,3,4 and 5
Difficulty: Medium to Tough depending on your mastery over School Atlas.
ANS: Go through School Atlas:
- #3 Caspian Sea: Kazakhstan is correct. So A and C are eliminated.
- #5: Syria touches Mediterranean sea and not Black Sea. So, #5 is wrong, this eliminates D.
- Thus, we are left with answer B.
GuessmastergiriTM: Not Applicable.
This concludes the article series on the answer key for prelim 2019. you can access all the articles at: http://Mrunal.org/Prelims