UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Raksha Mantri chairs first IGoM meeting to review West Asia situation & its impact on India

Q1. With reference to mechanisms of inter-ministerial coordination in the Government of India, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. A formal Group of Ministers (GoM) derives its sanctity from the Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961.
2. An Informal Group of Ministers (IGoM), such as the one set up on the West Asia situation, is a statutory body created by an Act of Parliament.
3. The Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules are framed under Article 77(3) of the Constitution.
4. An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) can take decisions without subsequent Cabinet approval.

• A. 1 and 2
• B. 1, 3 and 4
• C. 2 and 4
• D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q2. The Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961, which govern the constitution of formal Groups of Ministers, are framed under which provision of the Constitution of India?

• A. Article 74
• B. Article 75
• C. Article 77(3)
• D. Article 78

Q3. At the first meeting of the Informal Group of Ministers on the West Asia situation (March 2026), how many Empowered Groups of Secretaries (EGoS) made sectoral presentations?

• A. Five
• B. Six
• C. Seven
• D. Nine

Q4. Within the whole-of-government architecture represented in the West Asia IGoM, which Union Ministry is the nodal ministry for the evacuation and consular protection of Indian nationals abroad?

• A. Ministry of Home Affairs
• B. Ministry of External Affairs
• C. Ministry of Defence
• D. Ministry of Civil Aviation

Q5. India's Strategic Petroleum Reserves are built and managed by the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Ltd (ISPRL), which functions under the administrative control of which Union Ministry?

• A. Ministry of Finance
• B. Ministry of Commerce and Industry
• C. Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas
• D. Ministry of Mines

Q6. As declared at the fifth IGoM meeting on West Asia (May 2026), India's rolling stock of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) was reported sufficient for how many days?

• A. 30 days
• B. 45 days
• C. 60 days
• D. 90 days

Q7. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which today hosts the largest concentration of the Indian diaspora in West Asia, was established in which year?

• A. 1971
• B. 1981
• C. 1989
• D. 1991

Q8. Consider the following pairs of India's overseas evacuation operations and the country from which Indian nationals were evacuated: Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

1. Operation Sukoon — Lebanon
2. Operation Raahat — Sudan
3. Operation Kaveri — Sudan
4. Operation Sindhu — Iran

• A. 1 and 2
• B. 1, 3 and 4
• C. 2 and 4
• D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q9. The Suo Motu Statement on 'The Situation in West Asia', delivered in the Rajya Sabha in March 2026, was made by which of the following Union Ministers?

• A. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh
• B. External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar
• C. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju
• D. Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri

Q10. In the context of India's engagement with West Asia, the term 'IMEC' refers to which of the following?

• A. A regional collective-security pact between India and the Gulf states
• B. The India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor, a connectivity initiative announced on the sidelines of the 2023 G20 Summit
• C. A crude-oil price-stabilisation mechanism of the OPEC+ group
• D. A multinational counter-piracy naval task force in the Gulf of Aden

Q11. With reference to India's crisis-coordination and national-security bodies, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. Unlike the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), the Informal Group of Ministers on West Asia is a non-statutory, ad-hoc forum.
2. The Cabinet Committee on Security is chaired by the Union Minister of Defence.
3. The National Security Council of India was constituted in 1998.

• A. 1 only
• B. 1 and 3 only
• C. 2 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 3