Prelims CSAT (Paper II)Basic Numeracy & Data InterpretationHigh-yield

Speed, Distance & Time

गति, दूरी और समय

Speed, Distance & Time is part of the UPSC Prelims CSAT (Paper II) syllabus, under Basic Numeracy & Data Interpretation. It appeared in Prelims CSAT (Paper II) question papers in 4 of the 10 years from 2016 to 2025 (2016, 2019, 2021, 2023). It is marked high-yield: a topic worth revising more than once.

What should you study in Speed, Distance & Time?

  • Simple & compound interest — annual/half-yearly/quarterly
  • Effective rate of interest
  • Population growth / depreciation problems
  • Present value & future value basics

How often is Speed, Distance & Time asked in UPSC Prelims?

Asked in 4 of 10 years, including 2 of the last 5. Highlighted years below are the ones it appeared in.

  1. 2016: asked
  2. 2017: not asked
  3. 2018: not asked
  4. 2019: asked
  5. 2020: not asked
  6. 2021: asked
  7. 2022: not asked
  8. 2023: asked
  9. 2024: not asked
  10. 2025: not asked

About the Prelims CSAT (Paper II) paper

CSAT is Prelims Paper II: 80 multiple-choice questions for 200 marks. It is qualifying — you need 33% to pass, and the marks do not count towards the cut-off. See all 24 Prelims CSAT (Paper II) topics.

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