Laisha / Degrees / Sustainability & Environment (Agri-Food Systems) / UPSC Civil Services Examination — Environment & Ecology (Prelims GS and Mains GS-III)UPSC Civil Services Examination — Environment & Ecology (Prelims GS and Mains GS-III)
India · Union Public Service Commission · civil-service · unverified source
690 practice questions written to this syllabus
39 subjects
Format Prelims: two objective papers (GS Paper I and CSAT). Mains: nine descriptive papers. Interview.
Sections Prelims GS: general issues on environmental ecology, biodiversity and climate change Mains GS-III: conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, EIA, disaster management Over the years Environment is a named part of both stages and is among the most asked areas of current affairs. Not a specialist exam, but many environmental science graduates sit it. Built from general knowledge of the syllabus.
Official source: https://upsc.gov.in/
Subjects this exam draws on Principles of Environmental Science 27 questions Ecology & Ecosystem Science 7 questions Earth Systems & Environmental Geoscience 9 questions Soil Science & Soil Health 5 questions Hydrology & Water Resources for Environmental Scientists 1 questions Sustainability Science: Concepts, History & Ethics 51 questions Atmospheric Science & Agrometeorology 9 questions Climate System Science 21 questions Climate Models, Scenarios & Downscaling 3 questions Climate Change Impacts on Agriculture & Food Systems 17 questions Climate Adaptation, Climate-Smart Agriculture & Disaster Risk 23 questions Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Emissions & Mitigation 7 questions Soil Organic Carbon & Carbon Sequestration 2 questions Land Degradation, Desertification & Soil Conservation 13 questions Agricultural Water Conservation, Water Footprint & Governance 10 questions Water Quality & Agricultural Non-point Source Pollution 5 questions Biodiversity Science & Conservation 60 questions Agrobiodiversity & Genetic Resources 45 questions Ecosystem Services & Pollinators in Agricultural Landscapes 24 questions Landscape Ecology, Protected Areas & Human-Wildlife Interactions 49 questions Wetlands, Coastal Ecosystems & Blue Carbon 41 questions Air & Noise Pollution: Monitoring & Control 7 questions Water & Wastewater Treatment 5 questions Solid & Hazardous Waste Management 10 questions Soil Contamination, Toxicology & Remediation 5 questions Nutrient Stewardship & Nitrogen Management 5 questions Livestock & the Environment 6 questions Sustainable Food Systems, Diets & Food Loss 30 questions Environmental Impact Assessment & Strategic Environmental Assessment 17 questions Carbon Accounting & Greenhouse Gas Inventories 2 questions Carbon Markets, Offsets & Payments for Ecosystem Services 10 questions Circular Economy & Bio-based Resources 8 questions Environmental Management Systems, Auditing & Standards 5 questions Sustainability Reporting & ESG Disclosure 10 questions Sustainable Agri-food Supply Chains & Deforestation-free Sourcing 15 questions Environmental Law, Policy & International Agreements 86 questions Energy, Environment & Agri-energy Transitions 15 questions Climate Finance, Climate Risk & Sustainable Investment 13 questions Sustainability Transitions, Governance & Social Dimensions 12 questions Five practice questions, worked
Original questions written to this exam's published syllabus and pattern. Not past papers.
1. Which conference in 1972 led to the creation of the United Nations Environment Programme?
The Kyoto climate conference The Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development The Rio Earth Summit The UN Conference on the Human Environment, Stockholm Answer and working D. The UN Conference on the Human Environment, Stockholm
Stockholm 1972 created UNEP and established World Environment Day (5 June). Rio was 1992, Johannesburg 2002, Kyoto 1997.
Principles of Environmental Science · Scope of environmental science and its links with agriculture
2. Removing the starfish Pisaster from rocky shores led mussels to dominate and diversity to fall. Pisaster is therefore an example of a
keystone species pioneer species indicator species flagship species Answer and working A. keystone species
Paine's experiment (1966) showed Pisaster's disproportionate effect on community structure, the definition of a keystone species.
Ecology & Ecosystem Science · Habitat, niche and the competitive exclusion principle
3. Which Indian seismic zone is the most hazardous under IS 1893?
Zone V Zone III Zone I Zone II Answer and working A. Zone V
Zone V includes the north-east, parts of the Himalaya and Kutch.
Earth Systems & Environmental Geoscience · Earth's interior, plate tectonics and earthquakes
4. 'Khaira' disease of rice is caused by deficiency of:
Zinc Copper Nitrogen Iron Answer and working A. Zinc
Zinc deficiency is widespread in intensively cropped Indian soils.
Soil Science & Soil Health · Essential plant nutrients and their forms in soil
5. Which threat to Himalayan rivers such as the Indus and Ganga is linked to climate change?
Increase in ocean salinity far upstream Seawater intrusion at their mountain sources Changing glacier and snow melt Volcanic activity in the Himalaya Answer and working C. Changing glacier and snow melt
Glacier and snow melt sustain dry-season flows; warming alters their timing and volume.
Hydrology & Water Resources for Environmental Scientists · Global water resources: distribution, quality and threats
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