FREE Geography Mega Question Bank for UPSC Prelims 2024

Indian Geography

1. Natural Vegetation & Wildlife- Characteristics, importance, comparison & Significance
   • Classification of natural vegetation in India
   • Mangroves vegetation in India
   • Distribution of Forest Area
   • Factors of forest development
   • Extent of forest cover
   • Classification of forests in India
   • Forest Problems in India
   • Rainfall distribution
   • Biosphere reserves, national parks, etc.
   • Red-listed species
2. Mineral & Industries
   • Mineral distribution, Industrial policies, mining regions and Location
   • Mineral Resource
   • Types of minerals: Metallic minerals & Non-metallic mineral
   • Distribution, production and international trade of Metallic minerals: Ferrous metals: Iron ore
   • Non-metallic Minerals – Sulphur, Phosphates, Cement
3. – Characteristics, comparison & Significance
   • River basins
   • Regional development and planning
   • Hydropower projects and major dams
   • Interlinking of rivers
   • Classification of Drainage
   • Himalayan Drainage
   • Indus river system
   • Indus drainage system
   • Ganga River System
   • Brahmaputra river system
   • Peninsular River System
   • East flowing Rivers
   • West flowing Rivers
   • Mains Rivers and their tributaries
   • Famous cities and river banks
4. The basic idea about India
   • Location, Latitude, Longitude, Time zone, Local and Standard Time and the International Date Line, Calendar etc.
   • Neighbours of India
   • Important straits in India
   • Indian States and their position
   • States of India with their international boundaries
5. Physical features of India
   • Physiographic Sub-Units – Himalayans, Classification of The Himalayan System, Regional Division of the Himalayas.
   • Great Plains of India And Their Physiographic Division – Geological formation, physiographic divisions, climate, vegetation, soil, biodiversity, significance
   • Peninsular Plateau – Geological formation, Central Highlands, Deccan Plateau, Western Ghats, Eastern Ghats
   • Thar Desert – Indian Desert
   • Coastal Plain
   • The Islands
   • Mountain System
6. Climate in India
   • Factors influencing the climate of India
   • Monsoon
   • Mechanism of the Monsoon
   • Classical Theory
   • Jet stream theory
   • Modern theory
   • Air mass theory
   • Seasonal rhythm
   • Koppen’s Climatic classification
   • EL Nino and La Nina
   • Indian Droughts
   • Floods and their distribution in India
7. Agriculture & Allied-characteristics & Problems
   • Land utilisation
   • Agricultural Revolution in India
   • Subsistence Agriculture
   • Primitive Subsistence Agriculture
   • Intensive Subsistence Agriculture
   • Planation Agriculture
   • Mediterranean Agriculture
   • Viticulture in India
   • Market Gardening and Horticulture – Truck Farming
   • Cooperative Farming
   • Collective Farming
   • Green revolution
   • Classification of Soil in India
   • Irrigation
   • Land reforms
   • Animal husbandry
   • Major Crops in India
   • Government schemes
8. Economic infrastructure
   • Power and energy sector
   • Distribution of potential hydro-power
   • Hydro-electric power generation in India
   • Conventional and non-conventional sources of energy
   • Energy conservation
   • Natural Energy Resources
   • General trends of energy production and consumption
   • Reserves and sources of energy
   • Classification of energy
   • Production of conventional energy
   • Transportation – Relative importance of means of transport: Railways, Roads, Pipeline, Oceans, Air transport

World Geography

1. Regional Grouping of Countries of the World
   • Continents Countries and Cities
   • Continents and Important Cities of the World
   • Important Cities Situated on the Banks of Rivers
   • Economic Classification of Countries of the World
2. Regional geography of developed countries
   • Population problems of developed countries.
3. Regional geography of developing countries
   • Population problems of developing countries
4. Regional geography of South Asia
5. Events related to current affairs
   • Places on News

Human Geography

1. Demographics
   • Concept of human resources
   • Landforms
   • Climate
   • Soils
   • Economic Factors
   • Minerals
   • Urbanisation
   • Factors affecting the distribution of Population
   • Geographical Factors
   • Availability of water
   • Industrialisation
   • Socio-cultural factors
2. Census- 2011 of India
   • Highest & Lowest population
   • Literacy
   • sex-ratio
3. Human Development
   • Growth vs Development
4. Economic Activities
   • Tertiary
   • Quaternary
   • Quinary
5. Settlements
   • Urban Settlements
   • Rural Settlements
   • Issues of Urbanization in India
6. Current Events

Physical Geography

1. Climatic Zones of the World
   • Koppen’s Classification Climatic Zones
   • The Hot, Wet Equatorial Climate
   • The Tropical Monsoon and Tropical Marine Climates
   • The Savanna or Sudan Climate
   • The Hot Desert and Mid-Latitude Desert Climates
   • The Warm Temperate Western Margin Climate
   • The Temperate Continental
   • The Warm Temperate Eastern Margin
   • The Cool Temperate Western Margin
   • The Cool Temperate Continental Climate
   • The Cool Temperate Eastern Margin Climate
   • The Arctic or Polar Climate
2. Interior Structure of the Earth
   • Crust
   • Mantle
   • Core
   • Sources of Information – Direct and Indirect
   • Earth Quake Waves
   • Volcanoes
   • Theories – Suess Theory
3. The basic idea about Earth
   • Universe – Theories of development of Universe
   • Galaxy – Star and planet formation
   • Solar system
   • Moon
   • Asteroid
   • Meteor
   • Kupier belt
   • Comets
   • Dwarf planets
   • Earth Evolution
   • Geological History of Earth
   • Evolution of the Earth Layered Structure – Lithosphere, Atmosphere and Hydrosphere
4. Geomorphology
   • Geology and Rock system
   • Major Elements of the Earth’s Crust
   • Earth’s Surface – Exogenic Forces and Endogenic Forces
5. Mass Movements of landforms, erosion & deposits
   • Erosional landforms – Pediments, Pediplains, Playas, Deflation Hollows and Caves
   • Depositional Landforms – Barchans, Seif, Parabolic, Transverse
   • Ground Water (Karst Topography)
   • Permeable Rocks
   • Percolation
   • Bedding Plains
6. Climatology
   • Atmosphere
   • Inversion of Temperature
   • Winds and Pressure belts
   • Atmospheric Circulation and Weather Systems
   • Insolation
   • Heat Budget of the Earth
   • Heat Balance
   • Heating and cooling of atmosphere – Conduction, Convection and Advection
   • Air Mass, Fronts, Cyclones and Jet Stream
   • Thunderstorms
7. Oceanography
   • Hydrosphere
   • Water on the Surface of the Earth
   • Hydrological Cycle
   • Component
   • Processes
   • Ocean Currents
   • Ocean Waves
   • Types of Ocean Currents of the world – Warm and cold currents
8. Mapping
   • Important places in news, biosphere reserves, climatic zones, soils, grasslands etc.