CUET UG 2027 / Geography syllabus
CUET UG 2027 · Paper 313
CUET Geography Syllabus 2027: Units, Chapters and Books
The official CUET UG Geography / Geology syllabus (paper 313), unit by unit, with the book chapter each unit comes from, what changed from 2025 to 2026, and where to practise.
2027 status: NTA has not released the CUET UG 2027 syllabus. This page shows the official CUET UG 2026 Geography syllabus, the latest available, and will be updated when NTA publishes the 2027 version.
CUET Geography at a glance
- Paper code
- 313 (Geography / Geology)
- Questions
- 50 multiple-choice questions, all compulsory
- Time
- 60 minutes
- Marking
- +5 for a correct answer, minus 1 for a wrong answer; 250 maximum
- Syllabus
- 9 units, 17 chapters in our chapter map
How the CUET Geography paper is structured
CUET Geography (paper 313, listed as Geography / Geology) has two parts that follow the two NCERT class 12 Geography books: Part A Fundamentals of Human Geography (4 units) and Part B India: People and Economy (5 units). Despite the name, the PDF contains no geology content.
The practical book (Practical Work in Geography Part II) is not in the syllabus.
CUET Geography syllabus, unit by unit
Unit titles and topics as printed in NTA’s CUET UG 2026 syllabus PDF.
Part A: Fundamentals of Human Geography
Unit I
Human Geography - Nature and Scope
- Human Geography - Nature and Scope (no sub-topics listed)
Unit II
People
- Population of the world - distribution, density and growth;
- Population change - spatial patterns and structure; determinants of population change;
- Human development - concept; selected indicators, international comparisons.
Unit III
Human Activities
- Primary activities - concept and changing trends; gathering, pastoral, mining, subsistence agriculture, modern agriculture; people engaged in agriculture and allied activities - some examples from selected countries;
- Secondary activities - concept; manufacturing; agro-processing, household, small-scale, large-scale Industries, people engaged in secondary activities
- Tertiary activities - some examples from selected countries;
- Quaternary activities - concept; knowledge-based industries; people engaged in quaternary activities - some examples from selected countries.
Unit IV
Transport, Communication and Trade
- Land transport - roads, railways - rail network; trans-continental railways;
- Water transport - inland waterways; major ocean routes;
- Air transport - Intercontinental air routes;
- Oil and gas pipelines;
- Satellite communication and cyberspace;
- International trade - basis and changing patterns; ports as gateways of international trade, role of WTO in International trade.
Part B: India: People and Economy
Unit I
People
- Population - distribution density and growth, composition of population - linguistic and religious, rural - urban population occupational; change through time - regional variations.
Unit II
Human Settlements
- Rural settlements - Types and distribution.
- Urban settlements - Types, distribution and functional classification.
Unit III
Resources and Development
- Land resources - general land use; agriculture land use - major crops; agricultural development and problems, common property resources.
- Water resources - availability and utilization - irrigation, domestic, industrial and other uses; scarcity of water and conservation methods - rain water harvesting and watershed management.
- Mineral and energy resources - metallic and non-metallic minerals and their distribution; conventional and non-conventional energy sources.
- Planning in India - target area planning (case study); idea of sustainable development (case study).
Unit IV
Transport, Communication and International Trade
- Transport and communication - roads, railways, waterways and airways; oil and gas pipelines; communication networking - radio, television, satellite and internet.
- International trade - changing pattern of India's foreign trade; seaports and their hinterland and airports.
Unit V
Geographical Perspective on Selected Issues and Problems
- Environmental pollution; Urban - waste disposal;
- Urbanization - rural-urban migration; problems of slums;
- Land degradation.
Chapter map
Each row is one chapter of study, with the book it comes from. Where a syllabus topic is missing from that book, the row says so.
- Human Geography: Nature and ScopeNCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 1
- The World Population: Distribution, Density and GrowthNCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 2
- Human DevelopmentNCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 3
- Primary ActivitiesNCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 4
- Secondary ActivitiesNCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 5
- Tertiary and Quaternary ActivitiesNCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 6
- Transport and CommunicationNCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 7
- International TradeNCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 8
- Population: Distribution, Density, Growth and CompositionNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 1
- Human SettlementsNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 2
- Land Resources and AgricultureNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 3
- Water ResourcesNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 4
- Mineral and Energy ResourcesNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 5
- Planning and Sustainable Development in Indian ContextNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 6
- Transport and CommunicationNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 7
- International TradeNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 8
- Geographical Perspective on Selected Issues and ProblemsNCERT India: People and Economy, chapter 9
What changed from 2025 to 2026
- Essentially unchanged. Wording only: Part A Unit III secondary activities adds 'people engaged in secondary activities'; Part B Unit III marks target area planning and sustainable development as '(case study)'; typo 'slumps' fixed to 'slums'.
Compared against NTA’s CUET UG 2025 syllabus PDF. When the 2027 syllabus is out, this section will compare 2027 with 2026.
Books to study from
- NCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography (class 12)
- NCERT India: People and Economy (class 12)
NCERT books are on ncert.nic.in; NIOS course material is on nios.ac.in.
Practise CUET Geography chapter by chapter
The Study OS CUET track follows the chapter map above. Choose Geography as one of your papers, revise a chapter, then test it with exam-style questions and read the explanation after every answer.
Frequently asked questions
What is the exam pattern of the CUET Geography paper?
CUET UG Geography (paper code 313) has 50 compulsory multiple-choice questions to be answered in 60 minutes. A correct answer earns 5 marks and a wrong answer costs 1 mark, so the paper is out of 250. This is the CUET UG 2026 pattern; NTA has not announced any change for 2027.
Has NTA released the CUET Geography syllabus for 2027?
Not yet. The syllabus on this page is the official CUET UG 2026 Geography syllabus, which is the latest one NTA has published. This page will be updated when the 2027 syllabus is released.
Which books should I study for CUET Geography?
Study from: NCERT Fundamentals of Human Geography (class 12); NCERT India: People and Economy (class 12).
What changed in the CUET Geography syllabus?
Essentially unchanged; 2026 made small wording fixes and marks two topics as case studies. This compares the 2025 and 2026 syllabi; the 2027 syllabus is not out yet.
Is Geology part of the CUET Geography paper?
No. Although the paper is called Geography / Geology, the 2026 syllabus covers only human geography and the geography of India's people and economy.
Is the Geography practical book in the CUET syllabus?
No. NCERT Practical Work in Geography Part II is not part of the CUET Geography syllabus.
Other CUET UG 2027 syllabi
CUET UG 2027 overview: exam pattern, dates and how to choose subjects