20 July 2026

Quiz — 20 July 2026

Every prelims question from this edition. Tap an option to check it; what you answer is remembered on this device.

Questions

1. Which of the following areas is identified as a core capability being developed under India's electronics manufacturing ecosystem?

   1. A Traditional heavy machinery manufacturing
   2. B Chip design, fabrication, testing, and packaging
   3. C Only software application development
   4. D Agricultural equipment automation

2. Which of the following best describes the primary advantage of using 3D-printed engines in rocket manufacturing as demonstrated by recent private Indian space startups?

   1. A Reduction in the number of components, mass, and manufacturing lead time
   2. B Ability to launch heavier payloads than the PSLV
   3. C Complete removal of the requirement for quality control inspections
   4. D Elimination of the need for liquid propellant

3. What is the current status of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Indian launch vehicles as per recent policy updates?

   1. A Up to 74% FDI allowed through the automatic route
   2. B FDI is strictly prohibited in the space launch sector
   3. C Up to 49% FDI allowed through the automatic route
   4. D 100% FDI allowed through the government route

4. According to the PLFS 2023-24 data, what is the primary reason for the high unemployment rate among Gen Z graduates in India?

   1. A A lack of interest in seeking employment among the youth
   2. B A government policy mandating early retirement for graduates
   3. C A mismatch between the education system and labour market requirements
   4. D A total absence of educational institutions in urban areas

5. Which of the following best describes the 'demographic dividend' in the context of India's current economic landscape?

   1. A The economic growth potential resulting from a shift in age structure towards a working-age population
   2. B A guaranteed outcome of high literacy rates among the population
   3. C The reduction of rural-to-urban migration through agricultural subsidies
   4. D An automatic increase in GDP due to a large elderly population

6. Under the current provisions of the Indian Constitution, the allocation of Lok Sabha seats among the States is based on which Census?

   1. A 1951 Census
   2. B 2001 Census
   3. C 1971 Census
   4. D 2011 Census

7. Which of the following articles of the Constitution of India deal with the readjustment of representation in the Lok Sabha after each census?

   1. A Articles 85 and 86
   2. B Articles 79 and 80
   3. C Articles 81 and 82
   4. D Articles 83 and 84

8. What is the primary reason for the phenomenon of 'phase separation' in E20 fuel storage tanks?

   1. A Excessive pressure in the underground dispensing units
   2. B High temperature causing ethanol evaporation
   3. C Chemical reaction between petrol and metal storage tanks
   4. D The hygroscopic nature of ethanol absorbing water beyond a threshold

9. Which of the following is a stated objective of the Ethanol Blended Programme in India?

   1. A To eliminate the need for fuel filters in modern engines
   2. B To increase the cost of fuel for consumers
   3. C To reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels
   4. D To replace all petrol vehicles with electric vehicles

10. What is the primary objective of the investment norms laid down by the IRDAI for insurance companies?

    1. A Reducing the tax liability of insurance firms
    2. B Promoting investment exclusively in tech startups
    3. C Maximizing short-term returns for shareholders
    4. D Ensuring the safety of policyholders' funds

11. In the context of insurance business, what does 'underwriting profit' refer to?

    1. A Profit accumulated from the sale of company assets
    2. B Profit derived from the core insurance business operations
    3. C Profit generated from investments in the securities market
    4. D Profit earned from international currency fluctuations

12. Which of the following statements regarding Electronic Gold Receipts (EGRs) is correct?

    1. A EGRs are only available in 1-gram denominations.
    2. B EGRs can be converted into physical gold through a prescribed process.
    3. C EGRs are subject to a 3% GST at the time of trading on the stock exchange.
    4. D EGRs are regulated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

13. Under the current regulatory framework, which act governs the notification of Electronic Gold Receipts as securities?

    1. A Companies Act, 2013
    2. B Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956
    3. C Banking Regulation Act, 1949
    4. D Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999

14. According to recent SEBI findings regarding the Indian F&O market, which of the following best describes the source of institutional and proprietary trading profits?

    1. A Algorithmic and high-frequency trading
    2. B Manual high-volume day trading
    3. C Long-term fundamental analysis
    4. D Arbitrage based on physical asset delivery

15. Which of the following regulatory measures has NOT been implemented by SEBI to address risks in the F&O segment as mentioned in the text?

    1. A Mandating upfront premiums
    2. B Enforcing a 50% cash collateral rule
    3. C Banning all retail participation in derivatives
    4. D Increasing minimum contract sizes

16. Which of the following factors is identified as a significant hurdle for Indian MSMEs in utilizing the benefits of the India-U.K. CETA?

    1. A Lack of interest from the U.K. market
    2. B High tariff barriers on Indian goods
    3. C Compliance with stringent sanitary, phytosanitary, and sustainability standards
    4. D Absence of a trade surplus with the U.K.

17. Which of the following is a key component of the recent India-Australia bilateral agreements regarding energy security?

    1. A A total ban on coal imports from Australia to India
    2. B Commitment to Australian uranium exports to India for peaceful purposes
    3. C A joint venture for offshore wind energy production
    4. D The establishment of a joint nuclear power plant in Western Australia

18. Which of the following categories is explicitly exempted from the proposed Madhya Pradesh Uniform Civil Code Bill to protect their cultural heritage?

    1. A Religious minorities
    2. B Non-resident Indians
    3. C Government employees
    4. D Scheduled Tribes

19. Under the proposed Madhya Pradesh UCC Bill, what is the legal status of children born from live-in relationships regarding inheritance?

    1. A They are considered illegitimate and have no inheritance rights
    2. B They are entitled to inheritance only through a court order
    3. C They are considered legitimate and entitled to full inheritance rights
    4. D They are entitled to inheritance only if the parents marry later

20. The Ken-Betwa river link project involves which of the following states?

    1. A Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan
    2. B Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh
    3. C Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh
    4. D Uttar Pradesh and Bihar

21. According to the 2011 Census data for Maharashtra, which of the following religious groups among the Scheduled Tribe population witnessed a growth of over 100% between 2001 and 2011?

    1. A Christian STs
    2. B Muslim STs
    3. C Jain STs
    4. D Buddhist STs

22. Which of the following best describes the trend of Indian student enrollment in Canada between 2023 and 2025?

    1. A A decline of 66%
    2. B A decline of 44%
    3. C No significant change
    4. D A steady increase of 66%

23. Which section of the Indian Penal Code pertains to 'obscene acts and songs', often cited in judicial interpretations regarding the threshold of obscenity?

    1. A Section 124(A)
    2. B Section 377
    3. C Section 294(b)
    4. D Section 499

24. According to the Supreme Court, which of the following is a necessary condition for language to be classified as 'obscene' in law?

    1. A It must be merely distasteful or uncivil to the listener.
    2. B It must evoke a feeling of disgust or revulsion.
    3. C It must appeal to prurient interests and have a tendency to deprave or corrupt.
    4. D It must be spoken in a public place by a person over the age of 60.

25. The Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, proposes to amend which section of the original 1971 Act?

    1. A Section 2
    2. B Section 3
    3. C Section 4
    4. D Section 1

26. According to the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, which of the following is a mandatory requirement for the composition of a State Waqf Board?

    1. A Equal representation of all religious minorities in the state
    2. B At least one Shia Muslim member and two non-Muslim members
    3. C Exclusively Sunni Muslim members
    4. D A majority of members must be retired judicial officers

27. In the context of drought management in India, what does the term 'dead storage' in a reservoir refer to?

    1. A The water level below which the reservoir cannot be drained by gravity
    2. B The volume of water that can be used for irrigation during peak summer
    3. C The volume of water reserved exclusively for industrial use
    4. D The total capacity of the reservoir including silt accumulation

28. Under the constitutional framework of India, which body is primarily responsible for recommending the distribution of net proceeds of taxes between the Union and the States?

    1. A Comptroller and Auditor General
    2. B NITI Aayog
    3. C Public Accounts Committee
    4. D Finance Commission

29. Tele MANAS, often cited in the context of mental health support in India, stands for:

    1. A Tele Mental Health Assistance and Networking Across States
    2. B Tele Mental Health Advocacy and Network for Academic Students
    3. C Tele Mental Health and National Support
    4. D Tele Mental Health Assistance and National Action Service

30. Which of the following best describes the legal status of 'Straits Used for International Navigation' regarding the imposition of transit fees?

    1. A International law generally prohibits the imposition of fees or tolls on ships exercising transit passage.
    2. B Fees can be imposed only if the strait falls entirely within the territorial waters of a single nation.
    3. C The International Maritime Organization (IMO) mandates a uniform global toll system for all strategic straits.
    4. D Coastal states have the absolute right to levy tolls to fund infrastructure maintenance.

31. According to the study published in the journal Nature, by what percentage have shark and ray populations declined since 1970?

    1. A 50%
    2. B 61%
    3. C 81%
    4. D 71%

32. What is the primary regulatory purpose of the '5% fin-to-carcass weight' rule in international shark fishing conventions?

    1. A To maximize the commercial value of the shark carcass
    2. B To standardize the processing of shark products for international trade
    3. C To prevent the practice of shark finning by limiting fin retention
    4. D To ensure the sustainability of tuna populations in the Atlantic

33. Which of the following is identified as a potential 'cognitive burden' for students taking computer-based examinations without prior digital exposure?

    1. A The inability to use physical reference materials during the test
    2. B A lack of standardisation in the difficulty level of questions
    3. C Increased reliance on rote memorisation of the syllabus
    4. D The need to manage an unfamiliar testing environment alongside solving questions

34. What is the primary focus of 'morphological computation' in the field of robotics?

    1. A Offloading cognitive tasks to the physical design and structure of the robot
    2. B Improving the speed of cloud-based AI processing units
    3. C Creating large-scale datasets for training humanoid robots
    4. D Developing software that mimics human neural pathways

35. How does neuromorphic AI differ from embodied AI?

    1. A Neuromorphic AI is designed for industrial sites, while embodied AI is designed for consumer electronics
    2. B There is no difference; the terms are used interchangeably in modern robotics
    3. C Neuromorphic AI focuses on hardware mimicking biological neurons, while embodied AI focuses on the distribution of cognition
    4. D Embodied AI is restricted to software, whereas neuromorphic AI is restricted to hardware

36. The Handri-Neeva irrigation project is primarily designed to benefit which of the following regions?

    1. A Rayalaseema
    2. B Coastal Andhra
    3. C North Coastal Andhra
    4. D Telangana

37. The Belwa-Minapur link channel, recently inaugurated in Bihar, is a component of which river interlinking project?

    1. A Bagmati-Budhi Gandak River Interlinking Project
    2. B Bagmati-Kosi River Interlinking Project
    3. C Kosi-Mechi River Interlinking Project
    4. D Gandak-Ganga River Interlinking Project

38. The 'CyberTipline', which facilitates the reporting of online child sexual exploitation, is operated by which of the following organizations?

    1. A Cyber Crime Investigation Cell of India
    2. B Interpol
    3. C National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
    4. D United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

39. Which body is responsible for the implementation of the 'Har Ghar Tiranga' campaign in Delhi as per the recent government initiative?

    1. A State Urban Livelihood Mission
    2. B Municipal Corporation of Delhi
    3. C National Rural Livelihood Mission
    4. D Ministry of Culture

40. Under which legislative provision can the Delhi government initiate the takeover of a private school's management due to systemic failures?

    1. A Delhi School Education Act, 1973
    2. B Juvenile Justice Act, 2015
    3. C Right to Education Act, 2009
    4. D POCSO Act, 2012

41. Which of the following agencies is primarily responsible for coordinating disaster response at the state level in India?

    1. A State Disaster Management Authority
    2. B National Disaster Response Force
    3. C National Disaster Management Authority
    4. D District Planning Committee

42. Which of the following bodies is responsible for the final determination regarding the recognition of a breakaway group within the Lok Sabha?

    1. A The Speaker of the Lok Sabha
    2. B The Election Commission of India
    3. C The Parliamentary Affairs Minister
    4. D The Business Advisory Committee

43. What is the projected Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) for the Indian embedded systems market between 2025 and 2032?

    1. A 9.2%
    2. B 12.1%
    3. C 10.3%
    4. D 8.5%

44. Chand Bibi, a prominent historical figure, was the queen-regent of which of the following Deccan sultanates?

    1. A Bidar
    2. B Golconda
    3. C Bijapur
    4. D Ahmadnagar

45. In which year did Chand Bibi defend the Deccan against Mughal imperial expansion?

    1. A 1605
    2. B 1595
    3. C 1526
    4. D 1556

46. Which of the following is identified as the 'third pillar' of academic success alongside intelligence and conscientiousness?

    1. A Technological proficiency
    2. B Extracurricular participation
    3. C Intellectual curiosity
    4. D Socio-economic background

47. In the context of portfolio management, what is the primary objective of utilizing a 'core-satellite' framework?

    1. A To balance long-term goal-based investing with short-term market opportunities
    2. B To eliminate all forms of market risk and ensure guaranteed returns
    3. C To exclusively invest in physical assets like gold and silver
    4. D To maximize short-term speculative gains through high-frequency trading

48. Which of the following behavioral biases is specifically addressed by the implementation of Systematic Investment Plans (SIPs)?

    1. A Regret bias
    2. B Present bias
    3. C Confirmation bias
    4. D Anchoring bias

49. Who served as the Agent to the Government of India in Ceylon in 1925?

    1. A S. Ranganathan
    2. B Lord Irwin
    3. C C. Rajagopalachari
    4. D Sir John Anderson

50. Which of the following is identified as a primary challenge for effective mentorship in Indian higher educational institutions?

    1. A Absence of domain-specific knowledge among faculty
    2. B Mandatory government regulations prohibiting personal interaction
    3. C Faculty lacking formal training in counseling and psycho-social support
    4. D Lack of interest from students in receiving guidance

51. Which of the following is a key eligibility criterion for the Mohan T. Advani Centennial Scholarship?

    1. A Open to all engineering disciplines including Civil Engineering
    2. B Applicants must be in their final year of study
    3. C Open only to students studying abroad
    4. D Annual family income must not exceed ₹600,000

52. The National Renewable Energy Internship program is administered by which of the following?

    1. A Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
    2. B Ministry of Education
    3. C Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship
    4. D Ministry of Science and Technology

53. In the context of banking operations, what does the term 'evergreening of accounts' typically refer to?

    1. A Extending new loans to borrowers to enable them to repay interest on existing non-performing assets
    2. B The practice of maintaining high liquidity ratios to ensure environmental sustainability
    3. C The process of converting short-term debt into long-term equity
    4. D A strategy to increase the green energy portfolio of a bank's lending assets

54. The Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) is a scheme under which of the following ministries?

    1. A Ministry of Rural Development
    2. B Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
    3. C Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying
    4. D Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

55. Which of the following nations is being visited by the President of India as part of a recent three-nation European tour?

    1. A Moldova
    2. B Hungary
    3. C Bulgaria
    4. D Serbia

56. What is the primary objective of the newly inaugurated 'Shabdalok' museum?

    1. A To provide a digital database for the translation of foreign languages
    2. B To serve as a repository for ancient archaeological artifacts
    3. C To showcase the evolution of India's linguistic heritage through immersive technology
    4. D To act as a central archive for administrative government documents

57. Under whose aegis was the Museum of Word (Shabdalok) developed?

    1. A Archaeological Survey of India
    2. B Ministry of Tourism
    3. C National Library under the Union Culture Ministry
    4. D Ministry of Education

58. Which of the following best describes the origin of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust?

    1. A It was established by a Presidential Ordinance.
    2. B It was created following a directive from the Supreme Court of India.
    3. C It was formed by a private religious organization without government involvement.
    4. D It was established by an Act of Parliament.

59. The 'Manamitra' service, recently in the news regarding temple management, is associated with which of the following?

    1. A Public grievance redressal for municipal services
    2. B Agricultural advisory for farmers
    3. C Booking platform for temple darshan services
    4. D Digital health records for rural citizens

60. Which body is responsible for the sanctioning of new medical colleges and the enhancement of medical seats in India?

    1. A Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
    2. B National Medical Commission
    3. C University Grants Commission
    4. D Medical Council of India

61. Which of the following institutions is primarily responsible for conducting genome sequencing of viral samples in India to track COVID-19 variants?

    1. A National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC)
    2. B National Institute of Virology (NIV)
    3. C All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)
    4. D Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)

62. The Malayattoor and Vazhachal forest divisions, recently in the news regarding wildlife mortality investigations, are located in which Indian state?

    1. A Andhra Pradesh
    2. B Karnataka
    3. C Tamil Nadu
    4. D Kerala

63. The 'Hridayapoorvam' initiative, as discussed in the context of Kerala, primarily focuses on which of the following?

    1. A Setting up community kitchens for disaster relief
    2. B Providing financial aid to patients for surgery
    3. C Distributing free food packets in government hospitals
    4. D Providing free medical consultation in rural areas

64. The 'Meye-Cheleder Khela' initiative, which promotes mixed-gender football, is primarily aimed at:

    1. A Challenging gender-based social taboos and promoting inclusivity
    2. B Professionalizing football training for national leagues
    3. C Providing financial scholarships for underprivileged athletes
    4. D Organizing international tournaments for youth

65. What was the approximate year-on-year percentage increase in electricity consumption recorded in Haryana on July 18?

    1. A 25.50%
    2. B 32.18%
    3. C 76.37%
    4. D 40.25%

66. The 'Martyrs' Day' observed on July 21 in West Bengal commemorates a 1993 protest demanding which of the following reforms?

    1. A Establishment of a separate state secretariat
    2. B Implementation of the Right to Information Act
    3. C Reservation for youth in state government jobs
    4. D Mandatory use of voter identity cards for voting

67. Which of the following best describes the primary responsibility of hospital administration regarding patient safety in public health facilities?

    1. A Limiting the number of attendants allowed in hospital wards.
    2. B Maintaining physical infrastructure and equipment to prevent hazards.
    3. C Ensuring only the availability of specialized medical staff.
    4. D Prioritizing the installation of advanced air conditioning over basic ventilation.

68. Which of the following best describes the principle of 'bodily autonomy' in the context of medical treatment under Indian law?

    1. A The obligation of private hospitals to provide free treatment to all protesters.
    2. B The right of an individual to make decisions about their own body and medical care without undue interference.
    3. C The absolute right of the state to force medical treatment on any citizen in public spaces.
    4. D The power of the judiciary to mandate specific medical procedures for all citizens.