UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Rupture across the Durand Line

Q1. The Durand Line, the international boundary between Afghanistan and Pakistan, runs for approximately how long?

  • A. 2,600 km
  • B. 2,000 km
  • C. 2,900 km
  • D. 2,300 km

Q2. After which British Indian official, who negotiated the 1893 boundary agreement with Emir Abdur Rahman Khan, is the Afghanistan–Pakistan boundary named?

  • A. Sir Henry Mortimer Durand
  • B. Sir Cyril Radcliffe
  • C. Sir Henry McMahon
  • D. Lord Curzon

Q3. The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was founded in which year and under whose leadership?

  • A. 2007, under Baitullah Mehsud
  • B. 2007, under Noor Wali Mehsud
  • C. 2014, under Hakimullah Mehsud
  • D. 2018, under Mullah Fazlullah

Q4. According to the UN Mission in Afghanistan, how many total civilian casualties were verified inside Afghanistan from late February to 5 March 2026 during the escalation?

  • A. 185
  • B. 56
  • C. 129
  • D. 478

Q5. Which one of the following marked the first major Pakistani military strike inside Afghan territory in the 2025–26 conflict?

  • A. The October 2025 air strike in Kabul targeting TTP leader Noor Wali Mehsud
  • B. The late-February 2026 airstrikes on militant targets in eastern Afghanistan
  • C. The 2017 commencement of border-fence construction along the Durand Line
  • D. The February 2026 ground offensive following the Islamabad suicide bombing

Q6. As reported by the UN refugee agency during the active border conflict, approximately how many people were internally displaced within Afghanistan?

  • A. 115,000
  • B. 3,000
  • C. 70,000
  • D. 478,000

Q7. The February 2026 appeal that the Afghanistan–Pakistan situation 'calls for urgent political dialogue, rather than escalating the use of force' was issued by the holder of which UN office?

  • A. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
  • B. UN Secretary-General
  • C. UN High Commissioner for Refugees
  • D. Head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA)

Q8. The demand for an independent 'Pashtunistan' to be carved from Pashtun areas lying on the Pakistani side of the Durand Line has historically been championed by which state?

  • A. Afghanistan
  • B. Iran
  • C. Tajikistan
  • D. Pakistan

Q9. In the context of India's strategic interests in the Af-Pak region, the significance of the Chabahar port lies primarily in that it:

  • A. Provides India sea-and-land transit access to Afghanistan and Central Asia while bypassing Pakistan
  • B. Serves as an Indian naval base securing the Strait of Hormuz
  • C. Is a Pakistani port India funds under the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor
  • D. Is located on Afghanistan's coastline giving it direct maritime access

Q10. How many erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (tribal agencies) were merged into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in the 2018 reorganisation?

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

Q11. Pakistan's construction of a fence along the Durand Line — a persistent irritant in its relations with successive Afghan governments — began in which year?

  • A. 2017
  • B. 2014
  • C. 2018
  • D. 2021
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