UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — PM chairs Cabinet panel meeting over West Asia conflict

Q1. Which body provides secretarial assistance to the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) in India?

  • A. The Cabinet Secretariat
  • B. The Prime Minister's Office
  • C. The National Security Council Secretariat
  • D. The Ministry of Home Affairs

Q2. Under which of the following is the Cabinet Committee on Security constituted and reconstituted?

  • A. Article 352 of the Constitution
  • B. The Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961
  • C. The Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961
  • D. The Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha

Q3. As part of its supply diversification, India currently imports crude oil from approximately how many countries?

  • A. About 10
  • B. About 20
  • C. About 40
  • D. About 70

Q4. Which Union ministry is the nodal authority for India's crude oil imports and the Strategic Petroleum Reserves programme?

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

Q5. Which Union ministry is the sole nodal agency for the welfare and evacuation of overseas Indians, as seen in operations such as Operation Kaveri?

  • A. The Ministry of External Affairs
  • B. The Ministry of Home Affairs
  • C. The Ministry of Labour and Employment
  • D. The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs

Q6. In the context of India's Gulf diaspora, the term 'GCC' most precisely refers to which of the following?

  • A. A regional union of six Arab monarchies of the Persian Gulf
  • B. A UN agency coordinating migrant-worker welfare
  • C. An OPEC sub-group fixing Gulf crude prices
  • D. A bilateral India–Gulf labour mobility agreement

Q7. Which of the following is the world's single most important oil transit chokepoint by volume of petroleum passing through it?

  • A. The Strait of Hormuz
  • B. The Strait of Malacca
  • C. The Suez Canal
  • D. The Bab-el-Mandeb

Q8. With reference to the Strait of Hormuz, consider the following statements: 1. It lies between Iran to the north and Oman's Musandam exclave to the south. 2. It directly connects the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea. 3. At its narrowest point it is about 33 km wide. 4. Its tanker shipping lanes are only about 3 km wide in each direction. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. It lies between Iran to the north and Oman's Musandam exclave to the south.
  2. It directly connects the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea.
  3. At its narrowest point it is about 33 km wide.
  4. Its tanker shipping lanes are only about 3 km wide in each direction.
  • A. 1, 3 and 4
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2 and 4 only
  • D. 1 and 2 only

Q9. Suo Motu statements by ministers, such as the External Affairs Minister's statement on West Asia, are made under which Rule of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha?

  • A. Rule 193
  • B. Rule 267
  • C. Rule 372
  • D. Rule 377

Q10. Under its long-term agreement with Saudi Arabia effective from 2025-26, approximately how much DAP fertiliser per year is India to procure?

  • A. 1.2 million tonnes
  • B. 3.1 million tonnes
  • C. 5.6 million tonnes
  • D. 8.6 million tonnes

Q11. As part of the government's fiscal response to the West Asia crisis, by approximately what percentage is India's annual fertiliser subsidy bill expected to rise?

  • A. About 5%
  • B. About 20%
  • C. About 40%
  • D. About 70%

Q12. Consider the following statements comparing India's cabinet committees: 1. The Cabinet Committee on Security is chaired by the Prime Minister, whereas the Committee on Accommodation is not chaired by the Prime Minister. 2. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs currently has a larger membership than the Cabinet Committee on Security. 3. Cabinet committees, including the CCS, derive their authority from an express provision of the Constitution rather than from the Transaction of Business Rules. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The Cabinet Committee on Security is chaired by the Prime Minister, whereas the Committee on Accommodation is not chaired by the Prime Minister.
  2. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs currently has a larger membership than the Cabinet Committee on Security.
  3. Cabinet committees, including the CCS, derive their authority from an express provision of the Constitution rather than from the Transaction of Business Rules.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3