UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Innovation is the buzzword at Deep Tech Summit 2026
Q1. In the context of India's deep-tech startup ecosystem, the acronym 'GENESIS' used for a MeitY scheme stands for which one of the following?
- A. Gen-Next Support for Innovative Startups
- B. Generation-Next Scheme for Indigenous Startups
- C. Grassroots Entrepreneurship Network for Innovation and Startups
- D. Growth Enablement Network for Emerging Software-based Innovative Startups
Q2. The GENESIS scheme for deep-tech and Tier-2/Tier-3 city startups is operationalised through which one of the following?
- A. MeitY Startup Hub (MSH)
- B. Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog
- C. Startup India Hub, DPIIT
- D. Technology Development Board, Department of Science and Technology
Q3. Which one of the following MeitY startup-support schemes was the earliest to be launched?
- A. SAMRIDH
- B. GENESIS
- C. TIDE 2.0
- D. Design Linked Incentive (DLI) Scheme
Q4. The SAMRIDH scheme, launched by MeitY to accelerate product-based startups, was launched in which year?
- A. 2019
- B. 2020
- C. 2021
- D. 2022
Q5. The Startup India initiative — the Government of India's flagship programme for building the country's startup ecosystem — was launched in which year?
- A. 2014
- B. 2015
- C. 2016
- D. 2017
Q6. The Startup India initiative is administered by which one of the following?
- A. Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry
- B. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
- C. Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
- D. NITI Aayog
Q7. The National Deep Tech Startup Policy (NDTSP) was drafted and coordinated primarily by which one of the following?
- A. Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India
- B. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
- C. Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade
- D. NITI Aayog
Q8. With reference to the thematic priority areas identified under the National Deep Tech Startup Policy (NDTSP), consider the following:
1. Nurturing research, development and innovation
2. Strengthening the intellectual property regime
3. Facilitating access to funding
4. Imposing a uniform 20-year corporate tax holiday on all deep-tech startups
Which of the above is/are correctly identified?
- Nurturing research, development and innovation
- Strengthening the intellectual property regime
- Facilitating access to funding
- Imposing a uniform 20-year corporate tax holiday on all deep-tech startups
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2, 3 and 4
- C. 1, 2 and 3
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q9. AgriStack, the Digital Public Infrastructure for agriculture, is anchored on three federated registries. Consider the following:
1. Farmers' Registry
2. Geo-Referenced Village Maps
3. Crop Sown Registry
4. Agricultural Credit Default Registry
Which of the above is/are correctly identified as a core registry of AgriStack?
- Farmers' Registry
- Geo-Referenced Village Maps
- Crop Sown Registry
- Agricultural Credit Default Registry
- A. 1 and 3 only
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 1, 2 and 3
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q10. With reference to the MeitY Startup Hub (MSH), consider the following statements:
1. It functions under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, unlike the Startup India Hub which is anchored in DPIIT.
2. It serves as the nodal/implementing agency for the GENESIS, TIDE 2.0 and SAMRIDH schemes.
3. It is a statutory body constituted under a dedicated Act of Parliament.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- It functions under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, unlike the Startup India Hub which is anchored in DPIIT.
- It serves as the nodal/implementing agency for the GENESIS, TIDE 2.0 and SAMRIDH schemes.
- It is a statutory body constituted under a dedicated Act of Parliament.
- A. 1 only
- B. 1 and 2 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q11. The Deep Tech Summit 2026, held in Chennai, was organised by The Hindu Group in association with which one of the following institutions?
- A. Indian Institute of Technology Madras
- B. SRM Institute of Science and Technology
- C. Anna University
- D. Vellore Institute of Technology
Q12. Under the DPIIT's Startup India recognition framework, a 'DeepTech startup' is recognised as a startup for a period of up to how many years from the date of its incorporation (against 10 years for a conventional startup)?