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UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) sample questions with full solutions

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Question 1 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Inference and conclusion Difficult

Read the passage and answer the question. Every few months a recruitment exam somewhere in India is cancelled after its question paper leaks, and lakhs of candidates who travelled, paid fees and spent a year preparing must start again. New laws now promise long prison terms for those who leak papers. Investigations, however, keep tracing leaks to the same weak points: printing presses, transport of sealed boxes and staff at exam centres. A paper that passes through many hands over many days creates many chances to steal it. Computer-based tests reduce the number of hands, but only if the testing centres themselves are well supervised; several recent leaks happened inside such centres. Which one of the following is the most logical inference from the passage? ⏱ Target time: 2 minutes

  1. AHarsher punishment will end paper leaks.
  2. BReducing the number of people and days a paper passes through matters at least as much as harsher punishment.
  3. CComputer-based tests make paper leaks impossible.
  4. DMost paper leaks are caused by candidates themselves.
Show answer & solution

Answer: B

Target time: 2 minutes. Read the question first, then look for the sentence that explains the cause. Step 1: The passage says leaks keep coming from the same weak points — presses, transport and centre staff — and that 'many hands over many days' create 'many chances'. So the real lever is fewer hands and fewer days. That is option B. Step 2: Why the others are wrong. Option A is the trap: the passage mentions new laws, but the word 'however' signals that they do not touch the weak points. Option C is too strong — several leaks 'happened inside such centres'. Option D is never said; investigations trace leaks to staff and logistics, not candidates.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 2 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · HCF, LCM, remainders and cyclicity Difficult

What is the remainder when 7^2026 is divided by 100? (That is, what are the last two digits of 7 multiplied by itself 2026 times?) ⏱ Target time: 75 seconds

  1. A1
  2. B43
  3. C49
  4. D7
Show answer & solution

Answer: C

Target time: 75 seconds — impossible by multiplying, easy once you see the repeat. Step 1: Look at the last two digits of the first few powers of 7: 7, 49, 343 → 43, 2401 → 01. The fourth power ends in 01. Step 2: Anything ending in 01, multiplied by itself, still ends in 01. So the last two digits repeat every 4 powers: 07, 49, 43, 01, 07, 49, … Step 3: Divide 2026 by 4: 2026 = 4 × 506 + 2. The remainder 2 tells you to take the 2nd item in the cycle, which is 49. Trap: '7' or '43' come from using the cycle of the last digit only (7, 9, 3, 1), or from picking the wrong position in the cycle.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 3 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Logical puzzles and sequencing Difficult

On an island, every person either always tells the truth or always lies. You meet three islanders, A, B and C. A says: "B is a liar." B says: "A and C are the same type — both truth-tellers or both liars." C says: "A and B are both liars." Which one of the following must be true? ⏱ Target time: 2 minutes

  1. AA is a truth-teller.
  2. BC is a liar.
  3. CB is a truth-teller.
  4. DAll three are liars.
Show answer & solution

Answer: B

Target time: 2 minutes. Test the boldest claim first. Step 1: Suppose C tells the truth. Then A and B are both liars. But if A is a liar, A's statement 'B is a liar' is false, so B would be a truth-teller — a contradiction. So C must be a liar. Step 2: Since C lies, A and B are not both liars. A says 'B is a liar', so exactly one of A and B tells the truth. Try A truthful: B lies, and B's claim 'A and C are the same type' is false (A truthful, C liar) — consistent. Try B truthful: A lies, and A and C are both liars — the same type, so B's claim is true — also consistent. Step 3: Both cases work, so we cannot tell whether A or B is the truth-teller. The only fact true in every case is that C is a liar. Trap: picking 'A is a truth-teller' after finding the first case that works, without checking the other.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 4 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Argument analysis (assumption, strengthen, weaken, application) Difficult

Read the passage and answer the question. Companies in several countries have tried a four-day working week with no cut in pay, and most reported that output stayed the same while staff took fewer sick days and fewer people resigned. Supporters say this proves that long hours are wasted hours. The trials, however, were voluntary: the firms that joined were mostly small offices whose managers already believed in the idea, and whose work could be measured by results rather than by hours at a desk. Hospitals, factories and shops, where someone must be present at every hour of opening, were largely absent. Which one of the following, if true, would most strengthen the supporters' claim? ⏱ Target time: 2 minutes

  1. AWorkers in the trials said they enjoyed having a longer weekend.
  2. BMany of the firms in the trials were technology companies.
  3. CSick days also fell in firms that did not shorten the week.
  4. DA trial that assigned firms at random, including factories and shops, found the same results.
Show answer & solution

Answer: D

Target time: 2 minutes. To strengthen a claim, first find its weak spot — the passage hands it to you. Step 1: The passage's objection is about who took part: volunteer firms, believing managers, results-based work, and almost no hospitals, factories or shops. So the results might come from the type of firm, not the shorter week. Step 2: Option D removes exactly that objection: firms chosen at random, including the missing kinds of workplace, still show the same results. That is the strongest support. Step 3: Option A is about enjoyment, not output. Option B actually deepens the doubt — it adds to the 'special kind of firm' problem. Option C is the trap that weakens the claim: if sick days fell anyway, the shorter week may not be the reason.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 5 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Time, speed and distance Difficult

A cyclist and a runner start together from the same point on a 600-metre circular track and move in the same direction at 5 m/s and 3 m/s respectively. After how many seconds will they first be together again at the starting point? ⏱ Target time: 90 seconds

  1. A600
  2. B300
  3. C120
  4. D75
Show answer & solution

Answer: A

Target time: 90 seconds. Read the last words carefully: 'at the starting point'. Step 1: Time for one lap — cyclist 600 ÷ 5 = 120 s, runner 600 ÷ 3 = 200 s. Step 2: The cyclist is at the start at 120, 240, 360, 480, 600 … seconds; the runner at 200, 400, 600 … seconds. The first time both lists share is 600 s (the LCM of 120 and 200). Trap: 300 s is when the cyclist first catches up with the runner — the gap of one lap (600 m) closes at 5 − 3 = 2 m/s, which takes 300 s. But at 300 s they meet somewhere on the track (the runner has gone 900 m, 1.5 laps), not at the start. 75 s is 600 ÷ (5 + 3), the meeting time if they ran in opposite directions.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 6 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Direction sense Difficult

One morning, just after sunrise, Rohan stood facing an electric pole. The shadow of the pole fell exactly to his right. Which direction was Rohan facing? ⏱ Target time: 45 seconds

  1. ANorth
  2. BSouth
  3. CEast
  4. DWest
Show answer & solution

Answer: B

Target time: 45 seconds. Two layers: where the sun is, and which way 'right' points. Step 1: Just after sunrise the sun is in the east, so shadows fall towards the west. The pole's shadow points west. Step 2: That shadow is on Rohan's right, so his right hand points west. Stand facing south and your right hand points west — so Rohan faces south. Trap: 'North' comes from thinking 'right = east' out of habit (true only when facing north). 'West' and 'East' confuse the shadow's direction with the direction he faces.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 7 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Inference and conclusion Difficult

Read the passage and answer the question. Voter turnout in many large Indian cities is lower than in the villages around them, and the usual explanation is that urban voters are indifferent. Surveys suggest a more ordinary reason. Many city residents are migrants whose names remain on the electoral roll of their home town; others have moved house within the city and been dropped from the roll at the old address without being added at the new one. Polling day is a holiday, but a migrant cannot travel home for a single day. Where election officials ran drives to register residents at their present addresses, turnout rose noticeably. With reference to the passage, consider the following statements: 1. Low urban turnout shows that most city residents do not care about elections. 2. Part of the gap in turnout may be due to the way voters are recorded rather than to their attitude. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? ⏱ Target time: 2 minutes

  1. A1 only
  2. B2 only
  3. CBoth 1 and 2
  4. DNeither 1 nor 2
Show answer & solution

Answer: B

Target time: 2 minutes. The passage sets up a common belief and then replaces it — watch for that turn. Step 1: Statement 1 is the 'usual explanation' that the passage questions. It offers a 'more ordinary reason' instead, so statement 1 is not supported. Step 2: Statement 2 matches the evidence: names stuck at the home-town roll, residents dropped when they move, and turnout rising when officials registered people at their present addresses. That points to how voters are recorded. Answer: 2 only. Trap: picking 'Both' because statement 1 sounds familiar from news reports.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 8 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Time, work and pipes Difficult

A can finish a piece of work in 12 days and B can finish it in 18 days. They work on alternate days, with A working on the first day, B on the second, and so on. In how many days will the work be finished? ⏱ Target time: 2 minutes

  1. A14 1/2 days
  2. B15 days
  3. C14 1/3 days
  4. D7.2 days
Show answer & solution

Answer: C

Target time: 2 minutes. Think of the work as 36 units (36 is divisible by both 12 and 18). Step 1: A does 36 ÷ 12 = 3 units a day; B does 36 ÷ 18 = 2 units a day. One A-day plus one B-day = 5 units every 2 days. Step 2: After 7 such pairs (14 days), 7 × 5 = 35 units are done; 1 unit is left. Step 3: Day 15 is A's turn. A does 3 units in a full day, so 1 unit takes 1/3 of a day. Total = 14 1/3 days. Traps: '7.2 days' is the time if they worked together every day. '15 days' counts A's last day as a full day. '14 1/2 days' gives the last day to B, who would need half a day.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 9 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Calendar and clock Difficult

26 January 2027 is a Tuesday. On which day of the week will 15 August 2027 fall? ⏱ Target time: 90 seconds

  1. ASaturday
  2. BMonday
  3. CFriday
  4. DSunday
Show answer & solution

Answer: D

Target time: 90 seconds. Count only the 'odd days' — the days left over after full weeks. Step 1: Days from 26 January to 15 August: the rest of January after the 26th = 5 days; February 28 (2027 is not a leap year); March 31; April 30; May 31; June 30; July 31; and 15 days of August. Total = 5 + 28 + 31 + 30 + 31 + 30 + 31 + 15 = 201 days. Step 2: 201 = 28 weeks + 5 days. Moving 5 days on from Tuesday: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Traps: 'Saturday' comes from including 26 January itself in the count (6 + … = 202 days is wrong by one), and 'Monday' from treating February as 29 days.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 10 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Main idea and summary Difficult

Read the passage and answer the question. Sand is the most heavily used raw material in the world after water, and construction in India's growing cities consumes it in enormous quantities. Most of it is dug from riverbeds, often far beyond permitted limits. Rivers carry sand down slowly over years; removing it faster lowers the riverbed, which weakens bridge foundations, drains wells along the banks and lets salt water travel further upstream near the coast. Sand made by crushing rock is now available and is used in some states, but it costs more where riverbed sand is mined illegally, because illegal sand pays no royalty and bears none of the damage it causes. Which one of the following best expresses the central idea of the passage? ⏱ Target time: 2 minutes

  1. AIllegal riverbed sand looks cheap only because its real costs are borne by others.
  2. BIndia should stop all construction until rivers recover.
  3. CCrushed-rock sand is of better quality than river sand.
  4. DSand mining mainly harms coastal regions.
Show answer & solution

Answer: A

Target time: 2 minutes. The central idea usually sits where the passage explains 'why' — here, in the last sentence. Step 1: The passage lists the damage (bridges, wells, salt water) and then explains why the cleaner option loses: illegal sand 'pays no royalty and bears none of the damage it causes'. So its low price hides costs that fall on others. That is option A. Step 2: Option B is an extreme the author never suggests. Option C compares quality, which the passage does not discuss — it compares price. Option D picks one effect (salt water near the coast) and makes it the main point; bridges and wells are inland too.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 11 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Permutation, combination and probability Difficult

Two fair dice are thrown together. You are told that at least one of them shows a 6. What is the probability that both of them show a 6? ⏱ Target time: 90 seconds

  1. A1/6
  2. B1/36
  3. C1/12
  4. D1/11
Show answer & solution

Answer: D

Target time: 90 seconds. The words 'you are told' shrink the list of possible outcomes — that is the second layer. Step 1: Two dice give 6 × 6 = 36 equally likely outcomes. Count those with at least one 6: the first die shows 6 in 6 outcomes, the second die shows 6 in 6 outcomes, and (6, 6) has been counted twice, so 6 + 6 − 1 = 11 outcomes. Step 2: Only one of these 11 is (6, 6). So the probability is 1/11. Traps: '1/36' ignores the information given. '1/6' assumes 'the other die' is just one free die — but we do not know which die shows the 6. '1/12' comes from counting 12 outcomes, forgetting that (6, 6) was counted twice.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 12 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Linear and circular arrangements Difficult

Five friends — P, Q, R, S and T — sit in a row, all facing north. • Neither Q nor R sits at either end of the row. • P sits immediately to the right of R. • T sits third to the right of Q. • S does not sit next to P. Who sits in the middle of the row? ⏱ Target time: 2 minutes

  1. AP
  2. BQ
  3. CR
  4. DT
Show answer & solution

Answer: C

Target time: 2 minutes. Start with the clue that fixes positions the most. Step 1: Number the seats 1 to 5 from left to right (facing north, 'right' means towards seat 5). 'T is third to the right of Q' means T's seat = Q's seat + 3, so Q is in seat 1 or 2. Q cannot be at an end, so Q = 2 and T = 5. Step 2: R is not at an end, and P must be just to R's right. Seats left: 1, 3, 4. R = 3 and P = 4 is the only way to place R and P side by side. Step 3: S takes seat 1, which is not next to P (seat 4) — the last clue checks out. The row is S Q R P T, and R is in the middle. Trap: without the clue 'Q is not at an end', Q R P T S also fits, with P in the middle — students who skip one clue land on P.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 13 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Argument analysis (assumption, strengthen, weaken, application) Difficult

Read the passage and answer the question. A state that moved entirely to chemical-free farming is often held up as a model for the whole country. Its farmers receive a premium for organic produce, and its soils and streams carry fewer chemicals. Critics point out that the state is small and hilly, that its farms were already using little fertiliser before the change, and that much of its food is brought in from other states. Converting the plains of north India, which feed a large part of the nation, would be a different undertaking: there, yields depend heavily on fertiliser, and even a modest fall would affect food supplies far beyond the farm. The critics' argument assumes that: ⏱ Target time: 2 minutes

  1. Awhat worked under one set of conditions may not work the same way under very different conditions.
  2. Bchemical-free farming produces food that is less healthy.
  3. Cthe state's farmers do not really receive a premium for organic produce.
  4. Dfertiliser use in north India cannot be reduced at all.
Show answer & solution

Answer: A

Target time: 2 minutes. An assumption is the unstated link that the argument needs to hold. Step 1: The critics list differences — small and hilly, low fertiliser use already, food brought in — and conclude that the plains would be 'a different undertaking'. Their argument only works if differences in conditions can change the result. That is option A. Step 2: Option B is never claimed; the critics talk about yields, not health. Option C contradicts the passage, which accepts the premium. Option D is the trap — it is too strong: the critics say a fall in yield would matter, not that no reduction is possible.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 14 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Data sufficiency and comparison Difficult

Question: What is Ravi's present age? Statement I: Five years ago, Ravi was three times as old as his son. Statement II: Five years from now, Ravi will be twice as old as his son. Which one of the following is correct? ⏱ Target time: 75 seconds

  1. AStatement I alone is sufficient, but Statement II alone is not
  2. BStatement II alone is sufficient, but Statement I alone is not
  3. CBoth statements together are sufficient, but neither alone is
  4. DThe statements are not sufficient even together
Show answer & solution

Answer: C

Target time: 75 seconds. In data sufficiency you only need to know whether an answer can be found — you need not find it. Step 1: Statement I links Ravi's age and his son's age, but there are two unknowns and one relation, so many pairs fit (for example 35 and 15, or 41 and 17). Not sufficient. Step 2: Statement II alone is also one relation between two unknowns (35 and 15, or 45 and 20 …). Not sufficient. Step 3: Together there are two relations for two unknowns. Let the son be S now. From I: Ravi = 3(S − 5) + 5 = 3S − 10. From II: Ravi = 2(S + 5) − 5 = 2S + 5. So 3S − 10 = 2S + 5, S = 15 and Ravi = 35. Both together are needed. Trap: solving one statement for a 'nice' number and wrongly calling it sufficient.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

Question 15 UPSC CSAT (Civil Services Prelims Paper II) · Blood relations Difficult

Pointing to a man in a photograph, Asha said, "His mother's only daughter is my mother." How is Asha related to the man? ⏱ Target time: 60 seconds

  1. ANiece
  2. BDaughter
  3. CSister
  4. DCousin
Show answer & solution

Answer: A

Target time: 60 seconds. Decode the phrase from the inside out. Step 1: 'His mother's only daughter' — the only daughter of the man's mother is the man's sister (it cannot be the man himself, who is a son). Step 2: Asha says this sister is her mother. So the man is her mother's brother — her maternal uncle (mama). Step 3: Asha is the daughter of the man's sister, i.e. his niece. Trap: 'Daughter' comes from stopping at 'his mother … my mother' and not noticing 'only daughter'. 'Sister' would be right only if Asha were speaking about her grandmother.

Source: VPR Prep original — UPSC CSAT 2027 sample question

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