UPSC Prelims 2026 Answer Key

Which one of the following Carnatic music ragas is similar to Raga Bilawal in Hindustani music?

The artificially fixed rupee-sterling exchange rate prescribed by the Hilton-Young Commission (1926) was adopted by the British Government for which one of the following reasons?

Consider the following statements: I. Pali texts contain the first definite references to coins, e.g., kahapana, nikkha, kamsa, and kakanika. II. The literary evidence from Pali texts is corroborated by archaeological evidence of punch-marked coins from many sites, most of them made of silver. The above statements have been associated with which of the following? 1. Emergence of urban life 2. Transition to money economy

Which of the following temples has/have a Nagara-style shikhara? 1. Malegitti Shivalaya, Badami 2. Huchimalligudi Temple, Aihole 3. Dashavatara Temple, Deogarh 4. Virupaksha Temple, Pattadakal

Among the four main forms of existence of life recognized in Jainism, which one of the following is not included?

The Hallisalasya painting in the Bagh Caves represents:

Consider the following statements relating to the use of the place-value system in India: 1. The earliest epigraphic use of the place-value system in India is found in the Mankani plates from Gujarat (AD 595–596). 2. In the ninth century, place-values become general in inscriptions all over India. 3. The place-values have been found in Sanskrit inscriptions in South-east Asia as early as the seventh century.

Consider the following statements about the archaeological findings in Harappan towns: I. Wide occurrence of spindle-whorls but absence of spinning wheels. II. Weights and measurement scales with graduations discovered. III. Houses built with baked bricks, with own wells, bathing platforms, and large rooms. Which of the following inferences can be drawn? 1. Statement I suggests spinning was laborious, done at home. 2. Statement II suggests the extent of scientific knowledge. 3. Statement III suggests emergence of a common property system.

Which one of the following statements about the Eka Movement and Bardoli Satyagraha is correct?

Consider the following statements about the Rigvedic period: I. Irrigation from wells allowed agriculture to expand. II. Draught-animal power was employed to draw up water from wells. Which information supports the above? 1. Evidence in Rigveda of ashma chakra and ahava. 2. Rigveda mentions parashu/kulisha (axe) and datra/sreni (sickle). 3. History of ox use even before Rigveda for ploughing and pulling carts.

Consider the following assertion: In the Pleistocene period either the Yamuna once flowed into the Indus, or the Sutlej flowed into the Yamuna. Which is/are the basis of this assertion? 1. The Nadi-Sukta of the Rigveda 2. The explorations of the Sutlej and Yamuna by Robert Bruce Foote 3. The presence of the same species of dolphins in both the Indus and Ganga river systems

What does an empty seat represent in early Buddhist iconography?

Which of the following pairs of ancient and modern names of rivers is/are correctly matched? 1. Vitasta: Chenab 2. Asikni: Jhelum 3. Parushni: Ravi 4. Yavyavati: Beas

Which of the following statements on the Amaravati Stupa and its relief sculpture is/are correct? 1. It was located in the lower Krishna valley. 2. In India, it was next only to the Sanchi Stupa in size. 3. The Amaravati school made a lasting impact on South Indian sculpture and its products were carried to Sri Lanka and South-east Asia.

Which of the following pairs of the king and his dynasty in early historical Tamilakam is/are not correctly matched? 1. Senguttuvan: Chera 2. Udiyanjeral: Chola 3. Nedunjeliyan: Pandya