1. Which country is hosting the 2025 ASEAN Summit, at which India will balance its ties with the Quad and BRICS?
Answer: B. Kuala Lumpur hosts the ASEAN and East Asia Summits from 26 to 28 October 2025, and PM Modi is to attend while balancing strategic relationships.
2. Which body brought in the Graded Response Action Plan against air pollution in Delhi-NCR?
Answer: E. The Commission for Air Quality Management implements GRAP, a four-stage plan in force in Delhi-NCR since 2017 under directions from the Supreme Court.
3. Which Chandrayaan-2 instrument recorded the first observation of a solar coronal mass ejection hitting the Moon?
Answer: B. CHACE-2 on the Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter captured the CME impact and showed the density of the lunar exosphere rising about tenfold.
4. The 2025 Global MPI Report says what share of India's poor people live in regions vulnerable to climate hazards?
Answer: D. The UNDP–OPHI report finds nearly all of India's poor in climate-exposed areas, underlining the connection between poverty and climate risk.
5. The latest RBI report says India's GDP growth stays above which level?
Answer: A. The report points to economic resilience, with growth over 7% backed by solid domestic demand, infrastructure spending and steady inflation.
6. The RBI's proposal letting banks form subsidiaries without prior approval leaves out which areas?
Answer: C. Banks would be free to set up subsidiaries except in insurance and asset management, where IRDAI and SEBI approvals respectively are still required.
7. Direct rupee reference rates are to be set first for which set of countries, as the RBI aims?
Answer: A. As part of internationalising the rupee, the RBI is setting such rates with large trade partners like these three in order to cut reliance on the US dollar.
8. Which monthly GST return do taxpayers use to declare outward and inward supplies together with ITC?
Answer: C. GSTR-3B is a monthly self-declared summary in which registered taxpayers report supplies, input tax credit and the tax they pay.
9. Under which authority is the upgraded Unclaimed Shares Portal 2.0 being built?
Answer: E. The Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority, under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, is rolling out the portal with AI and Aadhaar KYC to settle unclaimed share claims faster.
10. Which government scheme encourages efficient irrigation and better water use in climate-resilient farming?
Answer: B. PMKSY works to widen irrigation coverage and raise water-use efficiency through methods such as drip irrigation and rainwater harvesting, making farming more sustainable.
11. Which ministerial post did Sanae Takaichi hold from August 2022 to October 2024?
Answer: D. She served as Economic Security Minister under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida before becoming PM.
12. FSSAI's ORS order withdrew earlier permissions issued in which months?
Answer: B. The order revoked the July 2022 and February 2024 directions that had allowed ORS labelling with disclaimers.
13. Where is the headquarters of ASEAN, as given in the notes on the ASEAN Summit 2025?
Answer: C. ASEAN is headquartered in Jakarta, Indonesia.
14. GRAP Stage II applies to which AQI range in Delhi-NCR?
Answer: B. Stage II covers the very poor category, 301 to 400.
15. Which payload on Chandrayaan-2 observed a solar CME impacting the Moon for the first time?
Answer: A. CHACE-2 made the first direct observation, per the notes.