UPSC Current Affairs Quiz : 3 April 2026

Solution: B

• The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) is a specialized committee of the Union Cabinet with a narrow but powerful focus on strategic issues.
• Statement 1 is correct; it is the apex body responsible for reviewing and approving high-value capital acquisitions for the Indian Armed Forces and formulating strategies to counter both internal and external threats.
• Statement 2 is incorrect; the membership of the CCS is traditionally restricted to the “Big Five”: the Prime Minister (Chair), Minister of Defence, Minister of Home Affairs, Minister of External Affairs, and Minister of Finance. The Minister of Parliamentary Affairs is not a standing member of this specific committee.
• Statement 3 is correct; while its name implies a focus on external threats, its mandate heavily involves internal security, including policies to handle terrorism, insurgency, and major law-and-order crises. The CCS ensures a centralized platform for the highest political leadership to coordinate rapid responses.
• Its recent special meetings on the West Asia conflict highlight its role in protecting national interests during global volatility, ensuring the stability of essential commodities like LPG and LNG.

Solution: A

• Raja Ravi Varma (1848–1906) is credited with bridging the gap between traditional Indian art and the modern era.
• His work Shakuntala (I-B-2) is a quintessential example of his use of European academic techniques like perspective and chiaroscuro to depict Indian mythological narratives; it captures the moment she looks back for Dushyanta.
• Yashoda and Krishna (II-A-2) portrays maternal love using European Realism, a technique unconventional for Indian artists of that time; it recently fetched a record-breaking price at auction, underscoring its status as a National Treasure.
• Saraswati & Lakshmi (III-C-3) represent his most influential contribution—the standardization of Hindu deities. By establishing a lithographic press in 1894, Ravi Varma mass-produced these images as affordable oleographs.
• This democratized art, moving sacred imagery from elite temples and palaces into the homes of ordinary citizens. His depictions became so ingrained in the Indian psyche that they continue to shape the “standard” visual representation of these goddesses in calendar art and films today.

Solution: B

• GLP-1 receptor agonists represent a significant advancement in metabolic medicine.
• Statement 1 is incorrect; these drugs are approved for Type 2 diabetes and obesity management, not Type 1 diabetes (where insulin production is absent due to autoimmune destruction). They require some pancreatic function to stimulate insulin release.
• Statement 2 is correct; they mimic the natural GLP-1 hormone, which targets brain regions regulating appetite and slows gastric emptying, making the patient feel full longer.
• Statement 3 is incorrect; in India, these medicines are strictly regulated and can only be prescribed by specific specialists: endocrinologists, internal medicine specialists, and cardiologists. Unauthorized sale through online platforms or wellness clinics without such oversight is a growing concern.
• Statement 4 is correct; while originally developed by global pharmaceutical giants, the market has seen a “flooding” of generic versions, which has led to increased accessibility and crashing prices. This has prompted the government to intensify surveillance on businesses to prevent misuse and ensure compliance with prescription protocols.

Solution: C

• The ‘Sanshodhak’ (Yard 3028) is the fourth and final ship of the Survey Vessel (Large) (SVL) project of the Indian Navy. Its name, meaning “Researcher,” directly reflects its primary function as a data-collection platform.
• Statement (c) is the correct description. Built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), it boasts over 80% indigenous content, aligning with the “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” initiative. The vessel is designed to replace the older Sandhayak Class ships and is equipped with state-of-the-art tools such as Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV), Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV), and Digital Side Scan Sonar.
• Its primary applications include performing hydrographic surveys of port approaches, determining navigational channels, and gathering oceanographic and geophysical data. This data is critical for both defense applications (naval operations) and civil applications (maritime trade and environmental research).
• Achieving speeds of over 18 knots with a displacement of 3,400 tons, it enhances India’s maritime prowess in the Indian Ocean Region by ensuring safe and mapped passage for ships.

Solution: D

• Indonesia’s geography is defined by its tectonic complexity and archipelagic nature.
• Statement 1 is incorrect; while it is the world’s largest archipelagic state, it shares land borders with only three countries: Malaysia (on Borneo), Papua New Guinea (on New Guinea), and Timor-Leste (on Timor). It does not share a land border with the Philippines.
• Statement 2 is incorrect; Indonesia sits between the Sunda Shelf and the Sahul Shelf and hosts one of the highest densities of active volcanoes in the world, forming a massive volcanic arc from Sumatra to the Lesser Sunda Islands. It is a central part of the Pacific Ring of Fire.
• Statement 3 is incorrect; Jakarta is located on the island of Java, not Sumatra. The region’s seismic activity is highlighted by recent earthquakes in the Molucca Sea, a highly active tectonic zone. This tectonic position makes Indonesia a critical site for studying earthquake dynamics and tsunami modeling. Most of its larger islands feature rugged mountain ranges and dense tropical rainforests, contributing to its status as a biodiversity hotspot.

Solution: B

• The Nagoya Protocol is a landmark international treaty that functions as a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), not CITES.
• Statement 1 is therefore incorrect. The primary objective of the protocol is to implement one of the three core goals of the CBD: the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources. This involves creating a transparent legal framework for both providers and users of these resources.
• Statement 2 and 3 are correct as the protocol explicitly addresses the utilization of genetic resources and the traditional knowledge (TK) associated with them. It mandates that when such knowledge is accessed, it must be done with the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) or approval and involvement of the indigenous and local communities, and that Mutually Agreed Terms (MAT) for benefit-sharing must be established.
• India is a significant party to this protocol, having ratified it in 2012. The protocol is essential for preventing “biopiracy” and ensuring that the conservation of biological diversity is supported by the economic benefits derived from its use. By providing legal certainty and transparency, it encourages research and development while protecting the rights of sovereign nations over their natural resources.

Solution: C

• The Artemis II mission, scheduled for 2026, is the first crewed mission under NASA’s Artemis program.
• Statement (a) is incorrect because Artemis II is a test-ride mission that will fly around the Moon and return to Earth without landing on the lunar surface; the actual landing is planned for subsequent missions like Artemis III.
• Statement (b) is incorrect because while it is the first time humans will venture to the Moon’s neighborhood since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972, it is not since Apollo 11. Statement (d) is incorrect as the mission duration is approximately 10 days, involving a lunar flyby rather than a long-term orbital stay or base establishment.
• Statement (c) is correct because the mission relies on the Space Launch System (SLS), currently the most powerful rocket in NASA’s arsenal, and the Orion spacecraft, which houses the crew.
• A key feature of Artemis II is its high-power trajectory, allowing it to reach the Moon in just a few days, unlike fuel-efficient uncrewed missions like Chandrayaan-3 that take several weeks. By reaching 6,500 km from the Moon’s far side, the crew will travel farther into space than any human mission in history, validating critical life-support systems for future deep-space exploration.

Solution: A

• Algeria, the largest country in Africa and the Arab world, is located in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has a complex geography and shares land borders with seven entities. These include Tunisia (northeast), Libya (east), Niger (southeast), Mali and Mauritania (southwest), Western Sahara (west), and Morocco (northwest). Egypt does not share a border with Algeria; it is separated from Algeria by Libya.
• Geographically, Algeria is dominated by the Sahara Desert, which covers more than 80% of its territory. The northern part of the country features the Atlas Mountains (Tell Atlas and Saharan Atlas) and the fertile Tell region along the Mediterranean coast, where the majority of the population resides.
• Strategically, Algeria is vital for India’s energy security as a major producer of oil and natural gas. Additionally, it is a key source of phosphates and urea, which are critical for India’s agricultural sector. The recent 7th round of Foreign Office Consultations in Algiers emphasized strengthening cooperation in sectors like pharmaceuticals, mining, and counter-terrorism.

Solution: D

• Statement 1 is incorrect; while it is a significant national repository, it is not the “only” such facility in Asia.
• Statement 2 is incorrect because the centre is a scientific and taxonomic repository, not a regulatory body for mining licenses. Commercial licenses for deep-sea mining in international waters are regulated by the International Seabed Authority (ISA), and within Indian waters, other government departments handle such permissions.
• Statement 3 is incorrect as the centre was not established by the WWF; it is a specialized hub of the Centre for Marine Living Resources & Ecology (CMLRE), which is a government body under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES).
• The Bhavasagara Referral Centre’s true role is to preserve and document deep-sea marine life. It houses a vast collection of geo-referenced voucher specimens and genetic data. Its designation as a National Repository under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, gives it the statutory authority to hold “Type Specimens” of newly discovered species. This is essential for India’s marine biodiversity framework and supports the scientific data needed for the Blue Economy, but it does not involve the regulatory or commercial roles mentioned in the incorrect statements.

Solution: C

• Prior Informed Consent (PIC) is a fundamental pillar of the Nagoya Protocol.
• Statement (a) refers to Mutually Agreed Terms (MAT), which is the second pillar of the protocol. While PIC is about the “permission to access,” MAT is the “contractual agreement” on how the results, profits, or other benefits will be shared later.
• Statement (b) is incorrect; while the ABS Clearing-House is used for information exchange, PIC is a legal requirement for access, not just a publication mandate.
• Statement (c) is the correct definition: it is the formal administrative permission granted by the government (specifically the National Competent Authority) of a country that provides genetic resources. This consent must be obtained before (prior to) the resources are accessed. It ensures that the provider country is fully aware of what is being taken and for what purpose.
• Statement (d) is incorrect as the Nagoya Protocol deals with sovereign rights of nations over their resources, not a general UN consent for exploration. In India, the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) is the body that grants PIC, ensuring that the interests of local communities and the nation are protected before any biological resource is utilized by researchers or companies.