Security, defence & exercises

Answer: (a) 1, 2 and 3

Prime Minister Modi announced Mission Sudarshan Chakra in his 15 August 2025 address as a defence shield with offensive and deterrent strength. Its stated aims are rapid, precise and powerful defence responses that reinforce strategic autonomy, and a nationwide security shield over all public places by 2035. The Defence Minister has described it as a multi-level missile defence system.

• ✓ 1. The Mission is meant to strengthen India's offensive and deterrent capabilities and neutralise enemy defence infiltrations; the Defence Minister calls it a multi-level missile defence system.
• ✓ 2. The official summary says the initiative is designed to enhance rapid, precise and powerful defence responses, reinforcing India's strategic autonomy.
• ✓ 3. The official summary says all public places will be covered by an expanded nationwide security shield by 2035.

Remember · Mission Sudarshan Chakra (announced 15 Aug 2025): multi-level missile defence with offensive strength, strategic autonomy, and a nationwide shield covering public places by 2035.

Question and answer: UPSC's provisional GS Paper I (2026, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) 33 Corps: Srinagar

Srinagar is the seat of 15 Corps, the Chinar Corps, not 33 Corps. 33 Corps is located at Siliguri in North Bengal. The other three pairs are correct.

• ✓ (d) This is the mismatched pair: 33 Corps is at Siliguri in North Bengal, while Srinagar is the station of 15 Corps (Chinar Corps).
• ✗ (a) 3 Corps is at Dimapur, so this pair is correctly matched.
• ✗ (b) 4 Corps is at Tezpur, so this pair is correctly matched.
• ✗ (c) 14 Corps is at Leh, so this pair is correctly matched.

Remember · Corps stations: 3 Dimapur, 4 Tezpur, 14 Leh, 15 Srinagar (Chinar Corps), 33 Siliguri, 16 Nagrota, 9 Yol, 21 Bhopal.

Question and answer: UPSC's provisional GS Paper I (2026, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) A-4, B-2, C-1, D-3

INTERPOL's Silver Notice targets criminal assets, the Blue Notice seeks information on a person of interest in an investigation, the Black Notice identifies dead bodies and the Green Notice warns about a person's criminal activities. That gives A-4, B-2, C-1, D-3.

• ✓ A The Silver Notice, piloted from January 2025, targets criminal assets: it lets countries request information on property and assets linked to serious organised crime (4).
• ✓ B A Blue Notice is used to obtain information on, locate or identify a person of interest in a criminal investigation (2).
• ✓ C A Black Notice is published to identify dead bodies that police have found but not yet identified (1).
• ✓ D A Green Notice warns about a person's criminal activities, when the person is considered a possible threat to public safety (3).

Remember · INTERPOL notices: Blue seeks information on a person of interest, Green warns about a person's criminal activities, Black identifies dead bodies, Silver targets criminal assets.

Question and answer: UPSC's provisional GS Paper I (2026, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) None

A fifth-generation fighter is built around stealth (low-observable shaping, weapons carried inside the body), fused sensor data and network-centric operations; Lockheed Martin describes the F-35 this way, and ADA lists the same features for India's own fifth-generation project, the AMCA. UPSC's key counts none of the three listed aircraft as fifth generation, and ADA's Tejas Mk-1 page lists fly-by-wire controls, a glass cockpit and a multi-mode radar, with external stores and drop tanks, and no stealth features.

• ✗ 1. The Rafale (printed 'Rafael') is a French twin-engine multirole fighter. UPSC's official key treats it as not fifth generation; we could not confirm its generation label from an official source, so we do not explain it here.
• ✗ 2. The MiG-29 is a Soviet-designed fighter. UPSC's official key treats it as not fifth generation; we could not confirm its generation label from an official source, so we do not explain it here.
• ✗ 3. ADA's page for Tejas Mk-1 lists relaxed static stability, fly-by-wire control, a glass cockpit and a multi-mode radar, with external stores and drop tanks; the low-observability shaping and internal weapons that ADA lists belong to the AMCA, India's own fifth-generation project.

Remember · Fifth-gen = stealth shaping + internal weapons + sensor fusion + networking (F-35, and India's AMCA). Tejas Mk-1 has none of the stealth features.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) 3 only

Only row 3 is a true equivalence: an Army Major ranks with a Squadron Leader in the Air Force and a Lieutenant Commander in the Navy. In the other rows the Navy rank is misplaced: Commander is not a Brigadier's counterpart, Vice Admiral is not a Major General's, and Captain is not a Lieutenant Colonel's.

• ✗ 1. Brigadier and Air Commodore are equivalent, but the Navy counterpart is Commodore. Commander sits two steps lower in the Navy ladder and corresponds to Lieutenant Colonel and Wing Commander.
• ✗ 2. Major General and Air Vice Marshal are equivalent to Rear Admiral. Vice Admiral is the next rank up, equal to Lieutenant General and Air Marshal.
• ✓ 3. Major, Squadron Leader and Lieutenant Commander are the equivalent mid-level officer ranks in the three services.
• ✗ 4. Lieutenant Colonel corresponds to Wing Commander and Commander. Group Captain and Captain (Navy) are equivalent to a Colonel, one rank higher.

Remember · Ladder of equivalents: Major = Squadron Leader = Lieutenant Commander; Lt Colonel = Wing Commander = Commander; Colonel = Group Captain = Captain; Brigadier = Air Commodore = Commodore.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) 1 and 3 only

As the Government of India has defined the post, the CDS is the Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee and the Principal Military Adviser to the Raksha Mantri on all tri-services matters, and he is also Secretary of the Department of Military Affairs. The Cabinet decision says he will not exercise any military command, including over the three Service Chiefs; the Chiefs go on advising the Raksha Mantri on matters exclusively concerning their own Services.

• ✓ 1. The CDS is the Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, alongside being Secretary of the Department of Military Affairs.
• ✗ 2. The Cabinet decision of 24 December 2019 says the CDS will not exercise any military command, including over the three Service Chiefs, so that he can give impartial advice. The three Chiefs continue to advise the Raksha Mantri on matters exclusively concerning their respective Services.
• ✓ 3. The CDS acts as the Principal Military Adviser to the Raksha Mantri on all tri-services matters.

Remember · CDS: Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, Principal Military Adviser to the Raksha Mantri on tri-services matters, and Secretary of the Department of Military Affairs. He does not command the Service Chiefs.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) Operation Sadbhavana

Operation Sadbhavana is the Indian Army's Military Civic Action programme for 'winning hearts and minds' in remote border areas. It runs projects in healthcare, education, women empowerment and similar fields, so it fits the description of uplifting local people and meeting their basic needs.

• ✓ (c) The Ministry of Defence names Operation Sadbhavana, along with Operation Samaritan, as the Army's vehicle for Military Civic Action among people in remote border areas. Its projects cover healthcare, human resource development, women empowerment, environment protection, education, sports and national integration.
• ✗ (a) Operation Sankalp is the Indian Navy's maritime security operation, not an Army programme. PIB describes it as ongoing maritime security operations, for example the response to the hijacking of MV Ruen in December 2023.
• ✗ (b) Operation Maitri was India's response to the April 2015 Nepal earthquake, using IAF aircraft, an Army engineer task force, NDRF teams and MEA diplomacy. It is relief work, not a long-term civic-action programme.
• ✗ (d) Operation Madad was the Southern Naval Command's 2018 Kerala flood rescue and relief effort, ended on 24 August 2018. It was a Navy disaster-relief operation, not the Army's civic-action programme.

Remember · Operation Sadbhavana is the Army's civic-action programme to win hearts and minds in remote border areas, alongside Operation Samaritan.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) 2, 3 and 4

Mitra Shakti-2023 was the ninth edition of the joint military exercise between India and Sri Lanka, held at Aundh (Pune) in November 2023. Its scope covered joint responses in counter-terrorist operations, and Indian Air Force personnel took part. Only statement 1, which names Bangladesh, is wrong.

• ✗ 1. The partner was Sri Lanka, not Bangladesh. The Indian contingent came mainly from the Maratha Light Infantry Regiment and the Sri Lankan side from its 53 Infantry Division.
• ✓ 2. The ninth edition commenced on 16 November 2023 at Aundh, Pune, and ran till 29 November 2023.
• ✓ 3. The scope of the exercise included synergising joint responses during counter-terrorist operations, under sub-conventional operations as envisaged in Chapter VII of the UN Charter.
• ✓ 4. 15 Indian Air Force personnel, along with five from the Sri Lankan Air Force, also took part.

Remember · Mitra Shakti is the India–Sri Lanka joint military exercise. Its ninth edition (2023) was held at Aundh, Pune, with counter-terrorism drills and Indian Air Force participation.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I

Both statements are correct. UN briefings to the Security Council describe armed groups and violent extremists gaining influence across West Africa and the Sahel, with security deteriorating in large parts of the region. Repeated military coups, in Mali and Burkina Faso among others, are themselves destabilizing governments, so Statement-II helps explain Statement-I.

• ✓ Statement-I UN officials told the Security Council that security had again deteriorated in large parts of the region, and voiced concern at terrorist threats spreading from the Sahel towards coastal West African countries.
• ✓ Statement-II The President of the ECOWAS Commission cited a recent spate of military coups in the region, including in Mali and Burkina Faso. The UN briefing noted that such repeated coups are destabilizing governments, which adds to the instability in Statement-I.

Remember · Sahel: rising armed-group violence and repeated military coups (Mali, Burkina Faso and others) feed each other's instability.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2

Neither statement is correct, because both swap the facts. Ballistic missiles are rocket-boosted and then coast on an arc, while cruise missiles fly under jet power. Agni-V is India's solid-fuelled intercontinental ballistic missile, and BrahMos is a supersonic cruise missile.

• ✗ 1. It is reversed. A ballistic missile has a short powered boost phase and then flies a mostly unpowered ballistic path, so it is not jet-propelled throughout. A cruise missile is normally powered by jet engines for most or all of its flight.
• ✗ 2. Again reversed. Agni-V is a three-stage solid-propellant Inter Continental Ballistic Missile with a range of over 5,000 km. BrahMos is a long-range supersonic cruise missile, launched from land, sea or air.

Remember · Ballistic: rocket boost, then unpowered arc. Cruise: jet-powered flight in the atmosphere. Agni-V is a solid-fuelled ICBM; BrahMos is a supersonic cruise missile.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2023, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (b) Only two

Statements 2 and 3 are correct; statement 1 is wrong because Home Guards are a State subject raised under the Home Guards Acts and Rules of the States and Union Territories. There is no Central Home Guards Act.

• ✗ 1. The Ministry of Home Affairs has told Parliament that Home Guards are a State subject governed by the Home Guards Acts and Rules of the respective States/UTs, and that there is no Central Act on them.
• ✓ 2. The role of Home Guards is to serve as an auxiliary force to the police in maintaining internal security, and also to help the community in emergencies such as fire, cyclone or earthquake.
• ✓ 3. In border States, Border Wing Home Guards battalions (Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Meghalaya, Tripura and West Bengal) serve as an auxiliary to the Border Security Force for preventing infiltration on the international border and coastal areas.

Remember · Home Guards: a State subject, raised under State/UT Home Guards Acts (no Central Act); auxiliary to the police; Border Wing battalions assist the BSF in border States.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2023, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (b) Only two

Pairs 1 and 3 are correct; pair 2 is wrong. Misleading or interfering with police or armed-forces personnel on guard near a prohibited place is an offence under the Official Secrets Act, 1923, not the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, which only lays down rules of evidence in court.

• ✓ 1. Section 6 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923 punishes wearing, without lawful authority, any naval, military, air force, police or other official uniform for the purposes the section lists.
• ✗ 2. Section 7 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923 (interfering with officers of the police or members of the Armed Forces) bars anyone near a prohibited place from obstructing, knowingly misleading or otherwise interfering with them. The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 has no such offence.
• ✓ 3. The Arms (Amendment) Act, 2019 added sub-section (9) to section 25 of the Arms Act, 1959: using a firearm in celebratory gunfire so as to endanger human life or the personal safety of others is punishable with up to two years' imprisonment, a fine up to rupees one lakh, or both.

Remember · Uniform misuse and interference with police or armed forces near a prohibited place: Official Secrets Act, 1923 (sections 6 and 7). Celebratory gunfire: Arms Act, 1959 section 25(9), inserted in 2019.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2023, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) Successful coups

All four countries saw armed forces seize power in 2020-21: Mali in 2020 and again in May 2021, Chad in April 2021, Guinea in September 2021 and Sudan in October 2021. The UN itself described these as a wave of takeovers across the Sahel and West Africa.

• ✓ (d) Military takeovers happened in Mali, Chad, Guinea and Sudan between 2020 and 2021. This is the one feature common to all four; the UN linked them together while reacting to another coup in Burkina Faso in January 2022.
• ✗ (a) None of these events was about a rare-earth discovery. The four countries are in the news for political instability, not for a shared mineral find.
• ✗ (b) No shared story of Chinese military bases links the four countries.
• ✗ (c) Desertification of the Sahel is a regional concern, but it does not apply to all four: Guinea is a humid Atlantic-coast country, far from the Sahara, and the option does not describe why they were in the news.

Remember · Mali (2020, 2021), Chad (2021), Guinea (2021), Sudan (2021) and later Burkina Faso (2022) all saw military seizures of power; the common thread is coups.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2023, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) A missile is put into a stable orbit around the Earth and deorbits over a target on the Earth.

A Fractional Orbital Bombardment System (FOBS) sends a warhead into a low Earth orbit and brings it down over the target before it completes a full circuit — hence 'fractional'. Because it can approach from any direction, even over the South Pole, it is hard for early-warning radars to track. The Soviet Union built one in the 1960s, and it returned to the news in 2021 after reports of a Chinese test.

• ✓ (c) FOBS places a weapon in orbit around the Earth and then deorbits it onto a target, instead of following the arcing path of an intercontinental ballistic missile.
• ✗ (a) Deflecting or destroying an incoming asteroid is planetary defence (for example NASA's DART mission), not a bombardment system aimed at Earth.
• ✗ (b) Orbiting a planet several times before landing describes a planetary landing mission, unrelated to weapons.

Remember · FOBS: nuclear warhead put into low partial Earth orbit, deorbited onto target — evades radars facing the usual ICBM routes; Soviet system banned under SALT II (1979).

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (b) China and Japan engage in maritime disputes over these islands in East China Sea.

The Senkaku Islands are a group of small uninhabited islands in the East China Sea that Japan administers and China (and Taiwan) also claim, so China and Japan are in a maritime dispute over them. The other options describe things that have no basis: they are natural islands, not in the South China Sea, and no US base or ICJ ruling is involved.

• ✓ (b) Japan administers the islands, which it places under Ishigaki City, Okinawa. China and Taiwan press their own claims, which they began asserting around 1970-71 after a UN-linked survey pointed to possible oil under the seabed.
• ✗ (a) They are natural islands and rocks in the East China Sea, not artificial islands and not in the South China Sea.
• ✗ (c) The islands are uninhabited and no permanent American base has been set up on them to help Taiwan.
• ✗ (d) The International Court of Justice has not ruled on them, and the claimants are Japan, China and Taiwan, not South-East Asian countries.

Remember · Senkaku (Japanese name) or Diaoyu (Chinese name) islands: East China Sea, administered by Japan, claimed by China and Taiwan.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (d) North of Nubra Valley

Siachen Glacier lies in the eastern Karakoram range, up the Nubra Valley of Ladakh, so it is north of the Nubra Valley. It is not east of Leh, east of Aksai Chin or north of Gilgit.

• ✓ (d) The Nubra Valley runs up towards the Siachen Glacier, which sits at its head in the eastern Karakoram; the glacier is therefore north of the valley.
• ✗ (b) Siachen is north of Leh, across the Ladakh range and the Nubra and Shyok valleys, not to its east.
• ✗ (c) Gilgit lies to the west of the Karakoram range, so Siachen is south-east of Gilgit, not north of it.
• ✗ (a) Aksai Chin is on the plateau to the east of the Karakoram, so Siachen lies west of it.

Remember · Siachen Glacier: eastern Karakoram, at the head of the Nubra Valley, Ladakh; the Nubra River begins from its snout.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2020, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (b) 1 and 4

Aleppo is in Syria and Mazar-i-Sharif is in Afghanistan, so pairs 1 and 4 are correct. Kirkuk and Mosul are both cities of Iraq, not of Yemen or Palestine.

• ✓ 1. Aleppo is a historic city of Syria; its Ancient City is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in that country.
• ✗ 2. Kirkuk is in Iraq, where its Citadel is on the country's UNESCO tentative list. It is not in Yemen.
• ✗ 3. Mosul is in Iraq. India's Ministry of External Affairs records that 39 Indian nationals were killed in Mosul, and their remains were brought back from Baghdad in April 2018. It is not in Palestine.
• ✓ 4. Mazar-i-Sharif (also spelt Mazar-e-Sharif) is one of the main cities of Afghanistan; India has run an Indian Medical Mission there.

Remember · Aleppo: Syria. Mosul and Kirkuk: Iraq. Mazar-i-Sharif: Afghanistan.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2018, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) An American anti-missile system

THAAD is an American anti-missile system. It is a land-based system of the US Missile Defense Agency and US Army that destroys ballistic missiles in their final (terminal) phase of flight, using hit-to-kill interceptors.

• ✓ (c) THAAD batteries have a launcher, interceptors, an AN/TPY-2 radar and fire control. They are procured and fielded to the US Army, and the interceptor destroys the warhead by direct impact.
• ✗ (b) India's own anti-missile effort is the Ballistic Missile Defence programme of DRDO, which flight-tests indigenous interceptors. It is a separate programme from THAAD.
• ✗ (a) THAAD is developed and fielded by the United States (US Missile Defense Agency and US Army), not by Israel, and it is an interceptor system rather than only a radar.
• ✗ (d) THAAD is fielded to the US Army to protect US forces and allies. It is not a joint Japan–South Korea defence arrangement.

Remember · THAAD = Terminal High Altitude Area Defense: a US ground-based, hit-to-kill system against ballistic missiles in their terminal phase. India's own shield is DRDO's BMD.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2018, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) Cyber attacks

All three names belong to cyber attacks in 2017. WannaCry and Petya are ransomware, meaning malware that locks a victim's files, and EternalBlue is the Windows exploit through which they spread.

• ✓ (c) WannaCry encrypted files on infected Windows systems and spread through a Windows Server Message Block vulnerability, an exploit named EternalBlue. Variants of Petya ransomware later spread using the same exploit. India's CERT-In issued alerts for both in 2017.
• ✗ (b) These are malicious programs and an exploit, not digital currencies. CERT-In classifies WannaCry and Petya as ransomware.
• ✗ (a) Exoplanets are planets outside the Solar System and have no connection with these computer-security terms.
• ✗ (d) Mini satellites are small space vehicles. WannaCry, Petya and EternalBlue are software threats.

Remember · WannaCry and Petya = ransomware (2017). EternalBlue = the Windows SMB exploit that helped them spread. CERT-In is India's nodal agency for such alerts.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2018, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (b) 2 only

The inaugural IONS was held in New Delhi in February 2008, not 2015, so statement 1 is wrong. IONS is a voluntary forum that seeks to increase maritime co-operation among the navies of Indian Ocean littoral states, so statement 2 is correct.

• ✗ 1. The inaugural IONS took place in New Delhi in February 2008, with the Indian Navy as Chair for two years (2008–2010). The year 2015 is wrong, although the Indian Navy did chair the first edition.
• ✓ 2. IONS calls itself a voluntary initiative that seeks to increase maritime co-operation among navies of the littoral states of the Indian Ocean Region, offering an open and inclusive forum on regional maritime issues.

Remember · IONS: launched by the Indian Navy in 2008 (New Delhi); a voluntary, open forum of Indian Ocean littoral navies with a rotating Chair.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2017, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (b) 2 and 3 only

The OPCW, based in The Hague, is the global body that implements the Chemical Weapons Convention (in force since 29 April 1997); its members are States Parties from all over the world, not the European Union. Its work includes inspecting chemical industry so that weapons do not re-emerge, and helping member states protect themselves against chemical attack.

• ✗ 1. The OPCW is the implementing body of a worldwide treaty with 193 Member States today (India is one); it is not an EU agency, and its formal ties are with the United Nations, not NATO.
• ✓ 2. Through declarations and industry inspections under Article VI of the Convention, the OPCW works to prevent the re-emergence of chemical weapons, including by misuse of existing chemical facilities.
• ✓ 3. Article X of the Convention covers assistance and protection: the OPCW helps members build national protection capacity and can send assistance if chemical weapons are used against them.

Remember · OPCW: The Hague; implements the Chemical Weapons Convention (1997); verifies destruction of stockpiles, inspects industry, gives assistance and protection; Nobel Peace Prize 2013.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2016, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error

Answer: (c) Torpedo launch and recovery vessel

INS Astradharini is an indigenously built Torpedo Launch and Recovery Vessel, commissioned into the Indian Navy on 6 October 2015 at Visakhapatnam. It is a small support vessel used to launch and recover torpedoes during underwater weapon trials, not a warship or submarine.

• ✓ (c) The Ministry of Defence release describes it as an indigenously built Torpedo Launch and Recovery Vessel, 50 m long, with a catamaran hull and a large deck with torpedo launchers.
• ✗ (a) An amphibious warfare ship carries and lands troops and vehicles; Astradharini is a 50 m trials-support vessel.
• ✗ (b) A nuclear-powered submarine is a combat vessel; Astradharini is a surface vessel for torpedo trials.
• ✗ (d) Astradharini is only 50 m long and is not an aircraft carrier of any kind.

Remember · INS Astradharini (commissioned 6 October 2015) is an indigenously built torpedo launch and recovery vessel of the Indian Navy.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2016, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink · Report an error