PPSC General Knowledge Past Paper 2023 Solved MCQs with Answers
Solved General Knowledge MCQs from the PPSC 2023 past paper, each with the correct answer and a clear explanation. Ideal practice for PPSC, FPSC, NTS, CSS and PMS. All questions are extracted from the actual 2023 paper and verified before publication.
Myanmar got independence in which year?
Myanmar, then called Burma, gained independence from Britain on 4 January 1948.
The "CN Tower" is located where?
The CN Tower, 553 metres tall, stands in Toronto, Canada.
Who was the first Asian Secretary-General of the United Nations?
U Thant of Burma was the first Asian Secretary-General of the United Nations, serving from 1961 to 1971.
In which year was Amazon founded?
Amazon was founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994, beginning as an online bookstore.
Diego Garcia, in the Indian Ocean, hosts a major military base for which country?
Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean hosts a major United States military base, on territory administered by Britain.
In which year was Indira Gandhi assassinated on 31 October?
Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India, was assassinated by her own bodyguards on 31 October 1984, after Operation Blue Star.
The novel Pride and Prejudice was written by?
Jane Austen wrote 'Pride and Prejudice', published in 1813.
How many players are in each team in a basketball game?
A basketball team has five players on the court at a time.
The Khilafat in Türkiye was abolished by?
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk abolished the Caliphate in Turkey in 1924.
In which year did Israel capture East Jerusalem?
Israel captured East Jerusalem from Jordan during the Six Day War of 1967.
Anwar Sadat was the president of which country?
Anwar Sadat was President of Egypt from 1970 until his assassination in 1981, and signed the Camp David Accords with Israel.
Where is the Louvre Museum located?
The Louvre, the world's most visited museum, is in Paris, France.
Where was the Zika virus, a mosquito-borne virus, first identified?
The Zika virus was first identified in 1947 in the Zika Forest of Uganda.
About in width is the runway for the long jump?
The runway for the long jump is about 1.22 metres wide, the standard width set by World Athletics.
Who called for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons in 1946?
The first resolution of the United Nations General Assembly, adopted in 1946, called for the elimination of atomic weapons.
Afghanistan was invaded by the Soviet Union when?
The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan on 24 December 1979, beginning a war that lasted until 1989.
The Father of the Indian Constitution is popularly known as?
Dr B. R. Ambedkar, who chaired the drafting committee, is known as the Father of the Indian Constitution.
With which game are the terms cue, bolting, and break associated?
Cue, bolting and break are terms used in billiards.
Which one of the following is not a NATO member?
China is not a member of NATO, which is a North Atlantic alliance of European and North American states.
How many countries are currently members of NATO?
NATO has 32 member countries, following the accession of Finland in 2023 and Sweden in 2024.
Which is the largest ocean of the world?
The Pacific is the largest and deepest ocean, covering about a third of the earth's surface.
Cloud Gate is located in which place?
Cloud Gate, the sculpture known as 'The Bean', stands in Millennium Park, Chicago.
In which city is the headquarters of the International Labour Organization (ILO)?
The International Labour Organisation has its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
FAO stands for?
FAO stands for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, based in Rome.
6 days Arab-Israel war won by?
Israel won the Six Day War of June 1967 against Egypt, Jordan and Syria, capturing Sinai, Gaza, the West Bank and the Golan Heights.
The capital of Somalia is which one?
Mogadishu is the capital of Somalia, on the Indian Ocean coast.
What is Chinese astronaut Wang Yaping famous for?
Wang Yaping became the first Chinese woman to perform a spacewalk, in November 2021.
Geneva is a city of which country?
Geneva is a city in Switzerland, and the seat of many United Nations agencies.
In which year was Regional Cooperation for Development founded?
Regional Cooperation for Development was founded in 1964 by Pakistan, Iran and Turkey. It later became the Economic Cooperation Organisation.
What is name of Iran's new currency?
Iran approved replacing the rial with the toman, at a rate of one toman to ten thousand rials.
What is the interdisciplinary study of human population called?
Demography is the interdisciplinary statistical study of human populations, covering size, structure and change.
From where did Israel withdraw its troops in 2000, after more than two decades of occupation?
Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000, ending an occupation that had begun in 1978.
Who wrote the famous book "The Republic"?
Plato wrote 'The Republic', his dialogue on justice and the ideal state.
What is a government run by officials called?
Bureaucracy is government run by appointed officials organised in a hierarchy of departments.
NAFTA stands for?
NAFTA stands for the North American Free Trade Agreement, between the United States, Canada and Mexico.
What is the study of the life of an individual called?
A biography is the written account of an individual's life.
Where is the Fifth Fleet of the USA located?
The United States Fifth Fleet is based at Manama, Bahrain, covering the Gulf and the Arabian Sea.
The African Union was established in which year?
The African Union was established in 2002, succeeding the Organisation of African Unity.
In which year did WW2 end?
The Second World War ended in 1945, with Germany surrendering in May and Japan in September.
On which date is International Women's Day celebrated each year?
International Women's Day is celebrated on 8 March each year.
The World Bank is also known as?
The World Bank's original institution is the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, created at Bretton Woods in 1944.
Which is the largest cluster of population?
South Asia is the world's largest cluster of population, holding roughly a quarter of humanity.
How many essential elements are required for a state to exist?
A state requires four essential elements: population, defined territory, government and sovereignty.
What are animals that are no longer present on Earth called?
Animals that no longer exist anywhere on earth are described as extinct.
In which year did Taiwan separate from China?
Taiwan separated from mainland China in 1949, when the Nationalist government withdrew to the island.
Which type of skill is involved in sports such as Netball, Hockey, and Football?
Netball, hockey and football involve open skills, performed in a changing and unpredictable environment, unlike the closed skills of archery or gymnastics.
When China joined World Trade Organization?
China joined the World Trade Organisation in December 2001.
To which country did Nelson Mandela belong?
Nelson Mandela belonged to South Africa, becoming its first democratically elected president in 1994.
Which currency is used in Sri Lanka?
Sri Lanka uses the rupee as its currency.
Name the first Muslim Hijab woman elected as Member of Israeli Parliament in March 2020 elections?
Iman Khatib-Yasin became the first hijab-wearing Muslim woman elected to the Israeli Knesset, in March 2020.
CENTO stands for?
CENTO stands for the Central Treaty Organization, the Cold War alliance formerly called the Baghdad Pact. Pakistan was a member.
The Gulf of Bothnia is situated between which two countries?
The Gulf of Bothnia lies between Finland and Sweden, the northern arm of the Baltic Sea.
The Rhine River passes through how many countries?
The Rhine flows through six countries: Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, France and the Netherlands.
Which battle support was most needed in World War II?
Air support proved the most decisive form of battlefield support in the Second World War, since control of the air governed the success of operations on land and at sea.
The Taj Mahal is located where?
The Taj Mahal is at Agra in India, built by Shah Jahan for Mumtaz Mahal.
When was Alibaba Group founded?
Alibaba Group was founded by Jack Ma in 1999 at Hangzhou, China.
Where is the headquarters of the OIC located?
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation has its headquarters at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
What is the main Cold War strategy named?
Containment was the main American strategy of the Cold War, aimed at preventing the spread of Soviet influence rather than rolling it back.
On which type of court is the Australian Open tennis tournament played?
The Australian Open is played on hard courts, at Melbourne Park.
When was the Sykes-Picot Agreement, also called the Asia Minor Agreement, signed?
The Sykes-Picot Agreement, also called the Asia Minor Agreement, was signed in 1916 to divide Ottoman territory between Britain and France.
Where is Waterloo located?
Waterloo, where Napoleon was finally defeated in 1815, is in present-day Belgium.
Which city is the capital of Laos?
Vientiane is the capital of Laos, on the Mekong River.
What is the false start reaction time threshold in a hundred-meter race?
A reaction quicker than 0.1 seconds after the gun counts as a false start, since it is taken to be faster than humanly possible.
In which field is the Nobel Prize not awarded?
There is no Nobel Prize in astronomy. The prizes are for Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature, Peace and Economic Sciences.
The Berber tribes were residents of which region?
The Berbers, who call themselves Amazigh, are the indigenous people of North Africa.
When did Iraq invade Kuwait?
Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, which led to the Gulf War of 1991.
Planning, organizing, and delivering an appropriate range of sports is the responsibility of a Sports ________?
A sports administrator is responsible for planning, organising and delivering sports programmes.
Who is the famous poetess of the Kashmir language?
Habba Khatoon, known as the Nightingale of Kashmir, is the most famous poetess of the Kashmiri language.
Majlis is the name of the parliament of which country?
The Majlis is the parliament of Iran, formally the Islamic Consultative Assembly.
Which type of warfare is primarily conducted through non-kinetic military action?
Fifth-generation warfare is conducted mainly through non-kinetic means such as disinformation, cyber operations and economic pressure rather than direct combat.
Doha Agreement was signed between US and Taliban in?
The Doha Agreement between the United States and the Taliban was signed in February 2020.
The Atlantic Charter was signed by whom in August 1941?
The Atlantic Charter was agreed in August 1941 by Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill, setting out shared goals for the post-war world.
In which year did the Yemen Crisis start?
The Yemen crisis began in 2011 with the Arab Spring protests against President Saleh.
What is the Kyrgyzstan Revolution also known as?
The Kyrgyzstan revolution of 2005, which removed President Askar Akayev, is known as the Tulip Revolution.
Which United Nations agency leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security?
The Food and Agriculture Organization leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition.
When did Jabir Bin Hayyan die?
Jabir bin Hayyan, the great Muslim alchemist regarded as a father of chemistry, died around 815 AD.
The Bundestag is the lower house of the parliament of which country?
The Bundestag is the lower house of the German parliament. The upper house is the Bundesrat.
Which of the following countries is a key participant in the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC)?
India is a key participant in the International North-South Transport Corridor, which links India to Russia through Iran.
The member countries of the World Bank are represented by which board, whose members are the ultimate policymakers of the World Bank?
The member countries of the World Bank are represented by the Board of Governors, on which each member appoints a governor.
Where is the headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) de facto situated?
The Palestine Liberation Organisation's de facto headquarters is at Ramallah in the West Bank.
Which was the first Malaysian Prime Minister who played a key role in gaining freedom from the British?
Tunku Abdul Rahman was the first Prime Minister of Malaysia and led the country to independence from Britain in 1957.
On which date did India announce the new Domicile Law for Jammu and Kashmir?
India announced the new domicile law for Jammu and Kashmir on 1 April 2020, after revoking the region's special status in 2019.
Who became the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional expert in the world at the age of 9?
Arfa Karim of Pakistan became the world's youngest Microsoft Certified Professional in 2004, at the age of nine.
In 2006, which country joined the UNO?
Montenegro joined the United Nations in 2006, after separating from Serbia.
Which United Nations specialized agency is responsible for information and communication technologies (ICTs)?
The International Telecommunication Union is the UN specialised agency for information and communication technologies.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has its headquarters in Manila. How many member countries does it currently have?
The Asian Development Bank, headquartered at Manila, has 69 member countries.
Where is the headquarters of UNICEF located?
UNICEF has its headquarters in New York.
The Commonwealth has how many member countries?
The Commonwealth has 56 member countries, most of them former British territories.
What is the six-year program of aid for Southern Asia, mapped out by the Commonwealth of Nations, also known as?
The Colombo Plan, launched in 1950, was the cooperative programme of aid for the economic development of South and South East Asia.
SAARC stands for?
SAARC stands for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, founded in 1985.
The first nuclear atomic bomb was tested in which U.S. state?
The first atomic bomb was tested at the Trinity site in New Mexico, on 16 July 1945.
Which United Nations office is specifically mandated to assist Member States in their struggle against illicit drugs, crime, corruption, and terrorism?
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime assists member states in their struggle against drugs, organised crime and terrorism.
About the PPSC General Knowledge Past Paper 2023
Every MCQ above is taken from the Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) General Knowledge papers held in 2023, with the correct answer and a written explanation for each. Past-paper practice is the most dependable way to prepare for PPSC, FPSC, NTS, CSS and PMS, because these papers repeat their themes, and often the questions themselves, from one year to the next.
Questions were checked against reliable sources before publication. Where a circulating source sheet carried a factual or wording error, we corrected it rather than reproducing the mistake. For chapter-wise preparation, work through our General Knowledge MCQs hub, which also lists every other year’s paper. Further reading: Pakistan Movement and the PPSC official website.
How to Use This Paper
Attempt the full quiz before looking at any answer, then read the explanation for every question you got wrong, including those you guessed correctly. A past paper is only useful if you close the gaps it exposes. Pro members can download the complete paper as a PDF with all answers and explanations for offline revision.