UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — India’s Gen Z wants Pak. to end terror activities: govt.

Q1. Which of the following are correctly identified as positions articulated by the Ministry of External Affairs in its official briefing of 28 July 2026? 1. The people of India, including Gen Z, have been demanding that Pakistani state-sponsored cross-border terrorism must come to an end. 2. The legislative assembly elections in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir are a 'cosmetic electoral exercise' meant to camouflage illegal occupation. 3. The mass protests in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir are a direct consequence of Islamabad's decades-long systemic economic exploitation and denial of fundamental rights. 4. Twenty-three Pakistan-based individuals belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba stand designated as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. The people of India, including Gen Z, have been demanding that Pakistani state-sponsored cross-border terrorism must come to an end.
  2. The legislative assembly elections in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir are a 'cosmetic electoral exercise' meant to camouflage illegal occupation.
  3. The mass protests in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir are a direct consequence of Islamabad's decades-long systemic economic exploitation and denial of fundamental rights.
  4. Twenty-three Pakistan-based individuals belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba stand designated as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 1 and 4 only

Q2. The Media Centre of the Ministry of External Affairs, through which the Official Spokesperson conducts press briefings, functions under which one of the following divisions of the Ministry?

  • A. The Policy Planning and Research Division, headed by a Joint Secretary
  • B. The External Publicity and Public Diplomacy Division, headed by a Joint Secretary
  • C. The Consular, Passport and Visa Division, headed by a Joint Secretary
  • D. The Development Partnership Administration Division, headed by a Joint Secretary

Q3. As reiterated by the Ministry of External Affairs, the principal target of India's military response to cross-border terrorism is stated to be which one of the following?

  • A. Terrorist infrastructure, against which India asserts every right to defend itself
  • B. The entire military command structure of Pakistan, without any exception
  • C. All Pakistani naval assets deployed in the Arabian Sea, without exception
  • D. Every airbase maintained by Pakistan in its Punjab province, in their entirety

Q4. Which one of the following most precisely describes India's stated position that 'terrorism and talks cannot go together', as applied to Pakistan after the Pahalgam attack?

  • A. No dialogue with Pakistan is possible unless it acts against cross-border terrorism emanating from territory under its control
  • B. Dialogue with Pakistan may continue on terrorism alone, while all other bilateral subjects stand suspended till attacks cease
  • C. Dialogue with Pakistan is possible only when mediated by a third country that certifies an end to cross-border attacks
  • D. Dialogue with Pakistan stands suspended only for the duration of any ongoing military operation launched in response

Q5. Which of the following are correctly identified in respect of the 2026 Jantar Mantar student agitation in Delhi? 1. It began on 6 June 2026 against repeated question-paper leaks in entrance and recruitment examinations. 2. Student organisations including SFI, AISA and NSUI were associated with the agitation. 3. Activist Sonam Wangchuk joined the agitation with an indefinite hunger strike on 28 June 2026. 4. It was called off on 25 July 2026 after the Centre accepted all three of the key demands raised by its organisers. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. It began on 6 June 2026 against repeated question-paper leaks in entrance and recruitment examinations.
  2. Student organisations including SFI, AISA and NSUI were associated with the agitation.
  3. Activist Sonam Wangchuk joined the agitation with an indefinite hunger strike on 28 June 2026.
  4. It was called off on 25 July 2026 after the Centre accepted all three of the key demands raised by its organisers.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 2, 3 and 4
  • C. 1 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 3 and 4

Q6. The Supreme Court Bench that on 27 July 2026 heard pleas seeking uniform nationwide guidelines permitting peaceful protests was headed by which one of the following?

  • A. Justice Joymalya Bagchi, sitting with two companion judges of the Court
  • B. Chief Justice Surya Kant, sitting with two companion judges of the Court
  • C. Justice V. Mohana, sitting with two companion judges of the Court
  • D. Justice B. R. Gavai, sitting with two companion judges of the Court

Q7. Under which one of the following provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 may the Central Government notify the name of an individual believed to be involved in terrorism?

  • A. Section 3, under which any association may be declared unlawful permanently and for all purposes
  • B. Section 15, which defines a terrorist act and thereby lists every person accused of it
  • C. Section 25, which permits attachment of all proceeds of terrorism without any judicial oversight
  • D. Section 35, which empowers the Centre to add such a name to a Schedule of the Act

Q8. 'The Resistance Front', invoked by India in the context of the April 2025 Pahalgam attack, is best described as which one of the following?

  • A. A terrorist outfit linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba, blamed by India along with Pakistan's deep state
  • B. A political alliance that contests every seat in the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir assembly elections
  • C. A students' body that led all the mass protests recorded across Pakistan-occupied Kashmir
  • D. A media network that exclusively runs Pakistan's social-media campaigns targeting Indian youth

Q9. In July 2026, twenty-three Pakistan-based individuals were designated as terrorists partly for indoctrination of youth using social media and drone-based weapons delivery. Which authority made this designation?

  • A. The Ministry of External Affairs, through its External Publicity and Public Diplomacy Division
  • B. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, through its cyber-coordination wing
  • C. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs, acting under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967
  • D. The National Investigation Agency, functioning under the Ministry of Law and Justice

Q10. The names of individuals declared terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 — as in the July 2026 listing of Pakistan-based operatives — are entered in which one of the following?

  • A. The First Schedule to the Act, which carries the list of declared terrorist organisations
  • B. The Fourth Schedule to the Act, a listing power introduced by the 2019 amendment
  • C. The Second Schedule to the Act, which carries the procedure for review by a tribunal
  • D. The Third Schedule to the Act, which carries the forms for attachment of terror proceeds

Q11. How many Central Reserve Police Force personnel were killed in the suicide bombing of a convoy at Pulwama on 14 February 2019?

  • A. 26
  • B. 40
  • C. 12
  • D. 44

Q12. What is the approximate present cadre strength of the Indian Foreign Service, and roughly how many Indian Missions and Posts abroad does it man?

  • A. About 450 officers, manning around 160 Indian Missions and Posts abroad
  • B. About 600 officers, manning around 120 Indian Missions and Posts abroad
  • C. About 850 officers, manning around 193 Indian Missions and Posts abroad
  • D. About 1,200 officers, manning around 210 Indian Missions and Posts abroad