100+ Free ESE CE Prelims Practice Questions

Pass your UPSC Engineering Services Examination — Prelims (Civil Engineering: Paper I GS&E + Paper II Civil) exam on the first try — instant access, no signup required.

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UPSC ESE/IES Prelims — Electrical Engineering

Practice Questions100 questions

2026 Statistics

Key Facts: ESE CE Prelims Exam

100 + 150 MCQs

Paper I + Paper II question counts (500 marks combined)

UPSC ESE exam pattern

2 h + 3 h

Paper I and Paper II durations

UPSC ESE exam pattern

−1/3 per wrong

Negative marking on assigned question marks

UPSC ESE notification

INR 200

Application fee (with exemptions)

UPSC ESE 2026 notification

40 / 60

Practice split: Paper I GS&E / Paper II Civil (of 100 free MCQs)

OpenExamPrep blueprint scaled to prelims marks

ESE Civil Prelims totals 250 MCQs / 500 marks: Paper I GS&E (100 Q, 2 h, 200 marks) + Paper II Civil (150 Q, 3 h, 300 marks), with −1/3 per wrong answer. Application fee is INR 200 (exemptions for Female/SC/ST/PwBD).

Sample ESE CE Prelims Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to test your ESE CE Prelims exam readiness. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1Which Indian initiative primarily aims to develop 100 smart cities with improved urban infrastructure and e-governance?

A.Smart Cities Mission

B.AMRUT

C.HRIDAY

D.PMAY-Urban

Explanation: The Smart Cities Mission (Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs) selects cities for area-based and pan-city smart solutions. AMRUT focuses on basic urban services; HRIDAY on heritage cities; PMAY on housing.

2The Paris Agreement (2015) under UNFCCC primarily commits parties to limit global temperature rise well below:

A.1.0°C above pre-industrial levels

B.1.5–2°C above pre-industrial levels

C.3°C above pre-industrial levels

D.4°C above pre-industrial levels

Explanation: The Paris Agreement aims to keep warming well below 2°C and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels — a core GS&E environment/current-affairs theme.

3In India, which body publishes the official Index of Industrial Production (IIP)?

A.NITI Aayog

B.Reserve Bank of India

C.National Statistical Office (MoSPI)

D.SEBI

Explanation: The National Statistical Office under MoSPI compiles and releases the IIP, a key short-term industrial activity indicator relevant to economic and industrial development questions in Paper I.

4Which of the following best describes the primary objective of India’s National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP)?

A.Privatise all PSUs within five years

B.Mandate only PPP for all highways

C.Replace GST with a single central tax

D.Provide a forward calendar of infrastructure projects across sectors

Explanation: NIP catalogues planned infrastructure investment projects (energy, roads, railways, urban, etc.) to improve visibility for public and private capital — an industrial-development current-affairs topic.

5In a certain code, CIVIL is written as DJWJM. How is STEEL written in the same code?

A.TUFFM

B.TUF FM

C.RUDFK

D.TUFFN

Explanation: Each letter is shifted +1 in the alphabet: C→D, I→J, V→W, I→J, L→M. Likewise S→T, T→U, E→F, E→F, L→M → TUFFM.

6Find the next number in the series: 2, 6, 12, 20, 30, ?

A.40

B.42

C.44

D.36

Explanation: Differences are +4, +6, +8, +10; next difference is +12, so 30 + 12 = 42. Equivalently, terms are n(n+1) for n = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

7All dams are structures. Some structures are bridges. Which conclusion necessarily follows?

A.All bridges are dams

B.Some bridges are dams

C.Some structures are dams

D.No dam is a structure

Explanation: From “All dams are structures,” with the usual exam-syllogism existential reading, it follows that some structures are dams. Bridges need not overlap dams, so “all/some bridges are dams” and “no dam is a structure” do not follow.

8A project network has activities A→B→D and A→C→D. Durations: A=2, B=4, C=3, D=5 (days). What is the earliest finish of D?

A.9 days

B.10 days

C.14 days

D.11 days

Explanation: Path A-B-D finishes at 2+4+5=11; path A-C-D finishes at 2+3+5=10. Earliest finish of D is governed by the longer predecessor path → 11 days.

9The rank of the matrix [[1, 2, 3], [2, 4, 6], [1, 1, 1]] is:

A.2

B.1

C.3

D.0

Explanation: Row 2 = 2 × Row 1, so those rows are linearly dependent. Row 3 is independent of Row 1, giving two independent rows → rank 2.

10If y = e^(2x), then d²y/dx² equals:

A.2e^(2x)

B.4e^(2x)

C.e^(2x)

D.4x e^(2x)

Explanation: dy/dx = 2e^(2x); differentiating again gives 4e^(2x).

About the ESE CE Prelims Exam

UPSC Engineering Services Examination (ESE/IES) Prelims for Civil Engineering combines Paper I (General Studies & Engineering Aptitude — 100 MCQs, 200 marks, 2 hours) with Paper II (Civil Engineering — 150 MCQs, 300 marks, 3 hours). Paper I covers current issues, aptitude, engineering mathematics, design/safety, standards & quality, energy & environment, project management, material science, ICT, and ethics. Paper II spans building materials, solid mechanics, structural analysis, steel and concrete design, construction management, fluid mechanics, water resources, environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, surveying, and transportation. Wrong answers incur a penalty of one-third of the marks assigned to that question.

Assessment

Stage I Prelims is two offline OMR objective papers on the same day: Paper I General Studies & Engineering Aptitude (common) and Paper II Civil Engineering (discipline). Combined prelims total 500 marks. Qualifiers advance to conventional Mains (600 marks) and Personality Test (200 marks).

Time Limit

Paper I 120 minutes + Paper II 180 minutes (5 hours total)

Passing Score

Category-wise cut-off on combined 500 prelims marks; no fixed percentage published as a universal pass mark

Exam Fee

INR 200 (Female, SC, ST, and PwBD candidates exempt from fee payment) (Union Public Service Commission (UPSC))

ESE CE Prelims Exam Content Outline

40%

Paper I — GS & Engineering Aptitude

Current issues; logical aptitude; engineering mathematics; design/drawing/safety; standards & quality; energy & environment; project management; material science; ICT; engineering ethics

~5%

Building Materials

Cement, aggregates, steel, timber, bricks, plastics, fly ash, and admixtures

~5%

Solid Mechanics

Stress–strain, Mohr’s circle, bending, shear, torsion, failure theories

~5%

Structural Analysis

Determinate/indeterminate structures, influence lines, trusses, frames, dynamics

~5%

Steel Structures

IS 800 working stress/limit concepts, tension/compression members, beams, connections

~5%

Concrete & Masonry Structures

IS 456 limit state design, slabs, foundations, prestressed concrete, masonry

~5%

Construction Management

CPM/PERT, EVM, tendering, contracts, quality and site management

~5%

Fluid Mechanics & Hydraulics

Pipe flow, open channels, hydraulic machines, hydro-power

~5%

Hydrology & Water Resources

Hydrologic cycle, unit hydrograph, irrigation, dams, drainage

~5%

Environmental Engineering

Water supply, wastewater, solid waste, air and noise pollution

~5%

Geotechnical Engineering

Soil properties, seepage, consolidation, shear strength, foundations

~5%

Surveying & Geology

Levelling, traversing, GPS, photogrammetry, engineering geology

~5%

Transportation Engineering

Highways, pavements, traffic, railways, airports, harbours, tunnelling

How to Pass the ESE CE Prelims Exam

What You Need to Know

Passing score: Category-wise cut-off on combined 500 prelims marks; no fixed percentage published as a universal pass mark
Assessment: Stage I Prelims is two offline OMR objective papers on the same day: Paper I General Studies & Engineering Aptitude (common) and Paper II Civil Engineering (discipline). Combined prelims total 500 marks. Qualifiers advance to conventional Mains (600 marks) and Personality Test (200 marks).
Time limit: Paper I 120 minutes + Paper II 180 minutes (5 hours total)
Exam fee: INR 200 (Female, SC, ST, and PwBD candidates exempt from fee payment)

Keys to Passing

Complete 500+ practice questions
Score 80%+ consistently before scheduling
Focus on highest-weighted sections
Use our AI tutor for tough concepts

ESE CE Prelims Study Tips from Top Performers

1Balance Paper I Engineering Aptitude and Paper II Civil — prelims cut-off is on combined 500 marks, not Paper II alone

2Solve UPSC ESE Civil previous-year Paper I and Paper II PDFs from upsc.gov.in to match official style and difficulty

3Maintain formula sheets for structures, hydraulics, and geotech; numerical speed matters across 150 Paper II questions

4Practice OMR discipline: blind guesses cost 2/3 mark each — eliminate options before answering

5After prelims, shift to conventional Mains preparation; objective prelims tests breadth, Mains tests depth and descriptive problem-solving

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the UPSC ESE Civil Prelims exam pattern?

Prelims has two papers: Paper I (General Studies & Engineering Aptitude) — 100 MCQs, 200 marks, 2 hours; Paper II (Civil Engineering) — 150 MCQs, 300 marks, 3 hours. Both are offline OMR objective tests. Total prelims marks: 500.

What is the negative marking in ESE Civil Prelims?

For each wrong answer, one-third of the marks assigned to that question is deducted. Paper I and Paper II questions carry 2 marks each, so a wrong answer costs 2/3 mark. Unattempted questions score zero.

What is the ESE 2026 application fee?

As per the UPSC ESE 2026 notification, candidates (except Female, SC, ST, and PwBD who are exempt) pay an application fee of INR 200 through the prescribed online modes.

Does this practice bank cover Paper I or only Civil Paper II?

This free bank scales practice to both papers proportionally to prelims marks: about 40 questions on Paper I GS & Engineering Aptitude topics and 60 questions on Paper II Civil Engineering syllabus areas (100 total).

What is the syllabus for ESE Civil Prelims Paper II?

Paper II covers building materials; solid mechanics; structural analysis; steel design; concrete and masonry design; construction practice and management; fluid mechanics and hydro power; hydrology and water resources; environmental engineering; geotechnical and foundation engineering; surveying and geology; and transportation engineering.

Who is eligible for UPSC ESE Civil Engineering?

Candidates need a B.E./B.Tech in Civil Engineering (or equivalent) from a recognized university and must be 21-30 years of age on 1 January of the exam year, with relaxations for reserved categories. Medical fitness standards in the UPSC notification also apply.