1. Which company developed 'Mission Drishti', billed as the first OptoSAR satellite in the world and the biggest privately built Earth-observation satellite from India?
Answer: D. Bengaluru's GalaxEye Space, incubated at IIT Madras, built it. It flew on a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, on 3 May 2026 to low Earth orbit, but was lost when a geomagnetic solar storm damaged a key onboard system.
2. What does the 'OptoSAR' technology used in Mission Drishti mean?
Answer: C. It pairs electro-optical cameras, which need daylight and clear skies, with SAR radar that works in any weather, day or night. Together they serve defence, disaster management, agriculture and infrastructure monitoring.
3. In UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2026, where did India rank among global FDI recipients in 2025?
Answer: A. India moved up two places from 13th in 2024, with inflows rising 44% to $38.89 billion in 2025 on the back of advanced manufacturing and Alphabet's record $14.5 bn greenfield data-centre plan. Its outward FDI was $35.7 bn, ranking 18th.
4. Which country remained the top FDI destination in 2025, drawing $277 billion, according to UNCTAD's WIR 2026?
Answer: B. US inflows of $277 bn were 2% lower, while China came 4th as its inflows fell from $116.24 bn to $104.66 bn. Developing economies rose 2% and Developing Asia 3%; UNCTAD has published this flagship report annually since 1991.
5. An investment counts as FDI when a foreign entity owns at least what share of a business's equity?
Answer: E. A stake of 10% or more signals a lasting interest and a say in management. Greenfield means starting a new project from the ground up, while brownfield means buying or expanding something that already exists.
6. Which country led the Global Passport Index (GPI) 2026 with a score of 96.05?
Answer: D. Sweden topped the fifth GPI, ahead of Switzerland, Finland, Germany and the Netherlands. Portugal-based Global Citizen Solutions publishes it, ranking 197 countries on Enhanced Mobility (50%), Investment (25%) and Quality of Life (25%).
7. Where does India stand in the Global Passport Index (GPI) 2026?
Answer: A. India placed 125th of 197 with 45.1 points, its best score in five years, though it fell one place from 124th in 2025. It was 136th in Enhanced Mobility, 118th in Quality of Life and 94th in Investment.
8. INS Mahendragiri (F38), due for commissioning on 11 July 2026, takes its name from a mountain range in which state?
Answer: B. The range is in the Eastern Ghats of Odisha and holds the state's second-highest peak at about 1,501 m. The frigate is the sixth of seven Project 17A (Nilgiri-class) ships, designed by the Warship Design Bureau, built by Mazagon Dock in Mumbai with over 75% indigenous content, and will join the Eastern Fleet.
9. Seven stealth frigates are being built under Project 17A. How is the work split between the shipyards?
Answer: C. The roughly ₹45,000 crore programme follows the Shivalik-class Project 17, with MDL building four ships and GRSE three. It engaged over 200 MSMEs and created around 4,000 direct and 10,000 indirect jobs; the lead ship INS Nilgiri was handed over in December 2024.
10. The 17th-century Jestha Varna Mahavihar won the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Award of Merit 2025. In which place is it located?
Answer: E. This Buddhist monastery, also called Jyaba Bahi or Chakrabahil, stands 300 metres from Patan Durbar Square in Lalitpur. It was honoured for community-led restoration after the 7.8-magnitude 2015 Gorkha earthquake, paid for by India's NPR 13.78 crore heritage grant.
11. Nepal is home to how many UNESCO World Heritage Sites?
Answer: C. The four are Kathmandu Valley (1979), Sagarmatha National Park (1979), Chitwan National Park (1984) and Lumbini (1997), the Buddha's birthplace. UNESCO itself was founded on 16 November 1945 in Paris, and India joined on 4 November 1946.
12. Who has been named Director General of the Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPR&D)?
Answer: B. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet picked Mittal for BPR&D, Amit Garg for NCRB and Sujeet Pandey for SVPNPA. All three are senior IPS officers of the 1993-94 batches.
13. Which NPCI official has joined the Supervisory Board of SWIFT?
Answer: A. NPCI's MD & CEO got the seat, which reflects India's rising weight in global digital payments infrastructure and recognition of the UPI-driven ecosystem.
14. A consortium led by TPG Rise Climate, with GIC and ICICI Bank, agreed to buy a 100% stake in Aseem Infrastructure Finance. Who is the seller?
Answer: E. The buyers will take full ownership from the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund in one of India's largest private climate-focused infrastructure deals, which should add to climate financing.
15. China put the HY-2E (Haiyang-2E) satellite into orbit on a Long March-4B rocket. What is it meant for?
Answer: D. The ocean-observation satellite will track sea conditions, weather and marine ecosystems and assist disaster management. The launch was China's 47th space mission of 2026.
16. How many medals did India win at the U15 and U20 Asian Wrestling Championships in Pattaya, Thailand?
Answer: A. India collected 41 medals, comprising 12 gold, 13 silver and 16 bronze, which underlines the country's growing depth in junior wrestling.
17. Girish Bharadwaj died aged 76. By what popular title was he known?
Answer: E. The Padma Shri recipient earned the nickname by building more than 150 low-cost suspension bridges in five states, which greatly improved connectivity for remote rural communities.
18. From which Indian state did APEDA help send Amrapali mangoes to Dubai?
Answer: B. Two metric tonnes came from Gumla and Deoghar, supplied by women-led Farmer Producer Companies for sale at Lulu stores. Farmers' returns rose about 180%, and the shipment promotes exports from tribal areas.
19. In which city did the Ministry of Panchayati Raj hold the third Outreach Workshop on the Atmanirbhar Panchayat Programme?
Answer: C. Kochi in Kerala hosted more than 800 Panchayats to discuss financial self-reliance, mobilising local resources and sustainable rural governance, and urged them to raise their own revenue and prepare bankable projects.
20. What is the 2026 theme of World Kiswahili Language Day, observed on 7 July under UNESCO?
Answer: D. UNESCO marks the day every 7 July, and this year's theme highlights Kiswahili's part in promoting unity, cultural exchange and international cooperation.
21. World Bioproduct Day, held on 7 July to promote renewable bio-based products, was begun in 2021 by which organisations?
Answer: B. Those two bodies started the day in 2021 to point out how bioproducts help environmental sustainability, climate action and the circular bioeconomy.
22. Among the three categories of the Global Passport Index 2026, in which one did India do best?
Answer: A. Investment gave India its best position at 94th, up 3, versus 118th in Quality of Life (up 11) and 136th in Enhanced Mobility (down 1). Enhanced Mobility has the heaviest weight at 50%, with Investment and Quality of Life at 25% each.
23. Of these pairings of global indices with India's latest ranks, which one is wrong?
Answer: E. India is 102nd of 123 in the 2025 Global Hunger Index, not 55th. The other ranks are right: HDI 130/193, GII 38/139, WPFI 151/180 and SDG Index 94/167; CPI is 91/182, Global Peace Index 115/163 and World Happiness Report 116/147.