UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — UPSC To Release Provisional Answer Key for Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination – 2026, soon after the Conduct of Examination

Q1. Consider the following statements regarding the functions of the Union Public Service Commission as enumerated under Article 320 of the Constitution of India: 1. It conducts examinations for appointments to the All India Services and Central Services of the Union. 2. It is consulted on all matters relating to methods of recruitment to civil services and for civil posts under the Union. 3. It frames and amends the recruitment rules for all civil services and posts of the Union as well as of every State. 4. It is consulted on disciplinary matters affecting a person serving under the Government of India in a civil capacity, including memorials or petitions relating to such matters. Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

1. It conducts examinations for appointments to the All India Services and Central Services of the Union.
2. It is consulted on all matters relating to methods of recruitment to civil services and for civil posts under the Union.
3. It frames and amends the recruitment rules for all civil services and posts of the Union as well as of every State.
4. It is consulted on disciplinary matters affecting a person serving under the Government of India in a civil capacity, including memorials or petitions relating to such matters.

• A. 1 and 3
• B. 2 and 4
• C. 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 4

Q2. Under the Constitution of India, the Chairman of the Union Public Service Commission can be removed from his office only by which one of the following authorities and by which one of the following procedures?

• A. The President of India, on his own satisfaction, without any external inquiry
• B. The Parliament, by a resolution passed by a special majority of both Houses
• C. The President of India, on the basis of an inquiry and report by the Supreme Court on a reference made by the President
• D. The Prime Minister, on the recommendation of the Department of Personnel and Training

Q3. With reference to the recommendations made by the Union Public Service Commission under Article 320, which one of the following statements most accurately describes their constitutional status?

• A. They are binding on the Government of India, and any deviation requires prior approval of the President.
• B. They are merely advisory; however, where the advice is not accepted by the Government, the reasons for non-acceptance must be laid before each House of Parliament along with the Commission's annual report.
• C. They are binding in respect of disciplinary matters but advisory in matters of recruitment and promotions.
• D. They acquire binding force only after being ratified by a resolution of the Council of Ministers.

Q4. Which one of the following authorities is empowered by the Constitution of India to remove the Chairman of a State Public Service Commission from office on the ground of misbehaviour?

• A. The Governor of the State concerned
• B. The President of India
• C. The Chief Justice of the High Court of the State
• D. The State Legislative Assembly by a resolution passed by a two-thirds majority

Q5. With reference to the constitutional provisions governing the State Public Service Commission and its relationship with the Union Public Service Commission, consider the following statements: 1. The Chairman and other members of a State Public Service Commission are appointed by the Governor of the State concerned. 2. A member of a State Public Service Commission holds office for a term of six years from the date of entering upon office or until he attains the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier. 3. A Joint State Public Service Commission for two or more States can be created by Parliament by law, only on resolutions to that effect passed by the Legislatures of each of the concerned States. 4. The Chairman of a State Public Service Commission can be removed from office only by the Governor of that State on the ground of misbehaviour, after an inquiry by the High Court. Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

1. The Chairman and other members of a State Public Service Commission are appointed by the Governor of the State concerned.
2. A member of a State Public Service Commission holds office for a term of six years from the date of entering upon office or until he attains the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier.
3. A Joint State Public Service Commission for two or more States can be created by Parliament by law, only on resolutions to that effect passed by the Legislatures of each of the concerned States.
4. The Chairman of a State Public Service Commission can be removed from office only by the Governor of that State on the ground of misbehaviour, after an inquiry by the High Court.

• A. 1 and 3 only
• B. 2 and 4 only
• C. 2, 3 and 4 only
• D. 4 only

Q6. With reference to recent reforms by the Union Public Service Commission, what is the 'QPRep' portal that was in news in 2026?

• A. An online portal through which candidates submit representations against the provisional answer key of UPSC examinations
• B. A portal for online registration and one-time application-form correction for the Civil Services Examination
• C. A real-time face authentication and biometric verification platform deployed at UPSC examination venues
• D. A portal through which UPSC publishes final marks and category-wise cut-offs after each examination cycle

Q7. With reference to the reforms introduced by the Union Public Service Commission under Chairman Dr. Ajay Kumar for the Civil Services Examination, 2026, consider the following: 1. Release of a Provisional Answer Key soon after the Preliminary examination, for the first time in the Commission's history. 2. A one-time, three-day 'Correction Window' for candidates to rectify mistakes in CSE and IFoS application forms. 3. Real-time face authentication of candidates at all examination venues. 4. Replacement of the two-paper Preliminary Examination with a single objective paper by merging General Studies Paper-I and CSAT. Which of the above is/are correctly identified as reforms introduced for CSE 2026?

1. Release of a Provisional Answer Key soon after the Preliminary examination, for the first time in the Commission's history.
2. A one-time, three-day 'Correction Window' for candidates to rectify mistakes in CSE and IFoS application forms.
3. Real-time face authentication of candidates at all examination venues.
4. Replacement of the two-paper Preliminary Examination with a single objective paper by merging General Studies Paper-I and CSAT.

• A. 1, 2 and 3 only
• B. 2 and 4 only
• C. 1 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q8. The Civil Services Examination Rules, under which the Union Public Service Commission conducts the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination each year, are notified by which one of the following?

• A. Union Public Service Commission
• B. Department of Personnel and Training, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
• C. Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances
• D. Cabinet Secretariat

Q9. With reference to the structure of the Civil Services Examination conducted by the UPSC, consider the following statements: 1. Both papers of the Preliminary Examination are of the objective (multiple-choice) type and carry 200 marks each. 2. Unlike the Preliminary Examination, the Main Examination consists entirely of merit-ranking papers and contains no qualifying paper. 3. The Civil Services Aptitude Test paper of the Preliminary Examination is qualifying in nature, with a minimum qualifying mark of 33 per cent. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. Both papers of the Preliminary Examination are of the objective (multiple-choice) type and carry 200 marks each.
2. Unlike the Preliminary Examination, the Main Examination consists entirely of merit-ranking papers and contains no qualifying paper.
3. The Civil Services Aptitude Test paper of the Preliminary Examination is qualifying in nature, with a minimum qualifying mark of 33 per cent.

• A. 1 and 2 only
• B. 1 and 3 only
• C. 2 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 3

Q10. In the context of the Union Public Service Commission, the statement that 'the salaries, allowances and pensions of the Chairman and members of the Commission shall be charged on the Consolidated Fund of India' is best understood to mean which one of the following?

• A. This expenditure is non-votable in Parliament, though it may be discussed by it
• B. This expenditure is met out of the Contingency Fund of India and is later recouped from the Consolidated Fund
• C. This expenditure requires the prior recommendation of the Comptroller and Auditor-General before it is incurred
• D. This expenditure is met from a special fund created by Parliament outside the Consolidated Fund of India

Q11. With reference to the constitutional safeguards securing the independence of the Union Public Service Commission, consider the following statements: 1. The salaries, allowances and pensions of the Chairman and members of the Commission are charged on the Consolidated Fund of India. 2. The Chairman of the Commission, on ceasing to hold office, is ineligible for any further employment under the Government of India or under the Government of any State. 3. A member of the Commission can be removed from office only by an order of the President passed after an address by each House of Parliament supported by a special majority. 4. The conditions of service of a member of the Commission cannot be varied to his disadvantage after his appointment. Which of the statements given above are correctly identified?

1. The salaries, allowances and pensions of the Chairman and members of the Commission are charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.
2. The Chairman of the Commission, on ceasing to hold office, is ineligible for any further employment under the Government of India or under the Government of any State.
3. A member of the Commission can be removed from office only by an order of the President passed after an address by each House of Parliament supported by a special majority.
4. The conditions of service of a member of the Commission cannot be varied to his disadvantage after his appointment.

• A. 1 and 3 only
• B. 2 and 4 only
• C. 1, 2 and 4 only
• D. 1, 3 and 4 only

Q12. With reference to the transparency and procedural reforms introduced by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for the Civil Services Examination, 2026, consider the following measures. Which of the above is/are NOT correctly identified as a reform introduced by UPSC for the CSE 2026 cycle?

1. Release of a Provisional Answer Key of the Preliminary Examination soon after the examination, instead of only after the full CSE cycle.
2. Launch of an Online Question Paper Representation Portal (QPRep) on upsconline.nic.in for candidate representations on the answer key.
3. Statutory obligation, notified by the Department of Personnel and Training, to publish the evaluated OMR answer scripts of every Preliminary candidate within thirty days of the examination.
4. Introduction of real-time face authentication at all examination venues to curb impersonation.

• A. 1 and 3 only
• B. 3 only
• C. 1, 2 and 4 only
• D. 2 and 4 only

Q13. With reference to the disclosure of answer keys and answer sheets in UPSC examinations as compared with earlier practice and judicial pronouncements, consider the following statements. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. Until the 2025 cycle, UPSC's settled practice was to release the final answer keys of the Civil Services Examination only after the entire CSE cycle (Prelims, Mains and Interview) was concluded, whereas from CSE 2026 a Provisional Answer Key is released soon after the Preliminary Examination.
2. In CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay (2011), the Supreme Court held that evaluated answer-books fall within the definition of 'information' under the Right to Information Act, 2005 and the fiduciary exemption under Section 8(1)(e) is not attracted.
3. In UPSC v. Angesh Kumar (2018), the Supreme Court directed UPSC to mechanically disclose individual raw and scaled marks along with the marking methodology of all Civil Services Preliminary candidates in the larger public interest.

• A. 1 and 2 only
• B. 2 and 3 only
• C. 1 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 3