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Practice UPSC New previous year questions on Anantam IAS: 0 Prelims MCQs and 596 Mains Q&A with answer keys, explanations and topic-wise links.
Prelims MCQs 0
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Mains Q&A 596
The India-US 2+2 ministerial dialogue and the iCET framework have shifted the bilateral from buyer-seller defence ties to co-development. Examine the breakthroughs and the residual frictions, with reference to GE F414 jet engines and the Sonobuoy MoU.
India’s defence dependence on Russia fell from 70 percent in 2011-15 to 40 percent in 2021-25 per SIPRI, while Russia became India’s top crude supplier at about 35 percent. Examine the changing texture of India-Russia ties.
India and China agreed on patrolling arrangements at Depsang and Demchok on 21 October 2024 but the larger force build-up persists. Examine the meaning of ‘disengagement’ and what a full normalisation would require.
The UN Security Council’s permanent membership structure has not changed since 1945 even as the General Assembly’s Pact for the Future (September 2024) and the G4 push for reform continue. Examine India’s case for permanent membership.
The World Trade Organization’s Appellate Body has been paralysed since 2019 and the MC13 Abu Dhabi outcome (2024) did not restore it. Discuss the implications for India’s trade policy.
The G20 New Delhi Declaration (September 2023) was the first G20 consensus that did not name Russia, and it admitted the African Union as a permanent member. Examine its enduring impact on India’s global standing.
US secondary tariffs raised duties on Indian goods to 50 percent in August 2025 over Russian-oil purchases before the 6 February 2026 framework rolled them back to 18 percent. Examine how this episode tested India’s strategic autonomy.
The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) enters full reporting from 2026 and tariffs from January 2026 on six carbon-intensive sectors. Examine its implications for India’s exports and climate diplomacy.
China’s export licensing on seven rare earths (4 April 2025) extended to foreign-made products containing Chinese-origin material from 1 December 2025. Discuss the chokepoint logic and the implications for India’s clean-energy transition.
India has the world’s largest diaspora at about 35.4 million Persons of Indian Origin and Non-Resident Indians, contributing record remittances of $135 billion in FY25. Examine the policy frameworks that engage the diaspora.
The Immigration and Foreigners Act 2025 consolidates four colonial-era laws and creates a Bureau of Immigration. Examine its impact on India’s diaspora engagement and overseas labour mobility.
India’s Nepal policy has oscillated between an open-border, currency-pegged friendship and friction over the 2015 Constitution, the Kalapani map and EPG report non-acceptance. Examine the structural irritants and the recent stabilisation.
BIMSTEC was revived as the Bay of Bengal alternative to a deadlocked SAARC, with the Charter entering force in May 2024. Examine its present trajectory, with reference to the 2025 outcomes and connectivity priorities.
The Quad’s 2025 Wilmington-to-2025 framework has shifted from a security caucus toward technology, supply chains and maritime security. Discuss India’s role and the limits of the Quad as a coalition for the Indo-Pacific.
BRICS has grown from five members to ten, but the foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi (14-15 May 2026) ended without a joint statement on the Iran-Israel war. Critically analyse whether BRICS embodies multipolarity or only its weight.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation has expanded to nine members with Iran and Belarus joining recently. Examine its relevance for India’s Eurasian strategy, with reference to the SCO Tianjin Summit (2025).
ASEAN centrality remains a core principle of India’s Indo-Pacific Initiative, but the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (2010) is widely seen as a one-way arrangement. Examine the case for and against an AITIGA review.
Neighbourhood First is being stress-tested as governments in Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and the Maldives change against incumbents friendly to India. With reference to specific instruments such as MAHASAGAR and the Greater Male Connectivity Project, examine India’s recalibration.
China’s Belt and Road Initiative and India’s refusal to join it rest on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor’s passage through Gilgit-Baltistan. Examine how this sovereignty position has shaped India’s connectivity diplomacy.