UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — India’s space economy at $8.4 billion, nearly 400 start-ups active after sector opened to private players: Dr. Jitendra Singh

Q1. IN-SPACe, the single-window authoriser for private space activities in India, functions as an autonomous body under which one of the following?

  • A. Department of Space
  • B. Ministry of Communications
  • C. Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)
  • D. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

Q2. Which one of the following is the single-window nodal agency for the authorisation and promotion of space activities of both government and non-government entities?

  • A. IN-SPACe
  • B. ISRO
  • C. NewSpace India Limited
  • D. Antrix Corporation Limited

Q3. The Indian Space Policy 2023 explicitly delineates the roles of how many principal stakeholders of the space sector?

  • A. Two
  • B. Three
  • C. Four
  • D. Five

Q4. The Indian Space Policy 2023 was approved by which one of the following authorities?

  • A. The Union Cabinet
  • B. The Space Commission
  • C. The IN-SPACe Board
  • D. Parliament through a dedicated statute

Q5. Under the 2024 amendment to the FDI policy on the space sector, foreign investment up to 74% is permitted through the automatic route in certain sub-sectors. Consider the following: 1. Satellite manufacturing and operation 2. Satellite data products 3. Ground segment and user segment 4. Creation of spaceports Which of the above is/are NOT correctly placed in the up-to-74% automatic-route category?

  1. Satellite manufacturing and operation
  2. Satellite data products
  3. Ground segment and user segment
  4. Creation of spaceports
  • A. 1 and 2
  • B. 3 only
  • C. 4 only
  • D. 2 and 4

Q6. The 2024 FDI amendment for the space sector liberalised foreign investment across how many distinct sub-sector categories, each carrying its own automatic-route entry threshold?

  • A. Two
  • B. Three
  • C. Four
  • D. Five

Q7. NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), the commercial arm of the Department of Space, was incorporated in which year?

  • A. 2017
  • B. 2019
  • C. 2020
  • D. 2023

Q8. Which one of the following is presently the principal commercial arm of the Department of Space, mandated to carry out end-to-end commercial space business?

  • A. NewSpace India Limited
  • B. Antrix Corporation Limited
  • C. IN-SPACe
  • D. ISRO

Q9. The official count of registered space start-ups in India is maintained on which one of the following platforms?

  • A. DPIIT Startup India Portal
  • B. IN-SPACe NGE registry
  • C. ISRO industry-interface portal
  • D. NSIL commercial database

Q10. With reference to the current state of India's space economy, consider the following statements: 1. India's space economy is estimated at about $8.4 billion, roughly 2% of the global space economy. 2. The number of active space start-ups grew from 189 in 2014 to 399 at present. 3. The sector is projected to grow four to five times to about $40–45 billion over the next 8–10 years. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. India's space economy is estimated at about $8.4 billion, roughly 2% of the global space economy.
  2. The number of active space start-ups grew from 189 in 2014 to 399 at present.
  3. The sector is projected to grow four to five times to about $40–45 billion over the next 8–10 years.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q11. The Department of Space implements the Indian space programme mainly through how many organisations?

  • A. Three
  • B. Four
  • C. Five
  • D. Six