UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — India’s First Dedicated Venture Capital Fund for Space Startups Gains Momentum; Investments Expected from FY2027: Dr. Jitendra Singh

Q1. The Antariksh Venture Capital Fund, India's first dedicated venture capital fund for space startups, is anchored by a single institution that made the largest commitment of ₹1,000 crore to the fund. Which one of the following is that anchor investor?

  • A. IN-SPACe (Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre)
  • B. SIDBI Venture Capital Limited (SVCL)
  • C. NewSpace India Limited (NSIL)
  • D. Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)

Q2. The ₹1,000 crore Venture Capital Fund approved for the space sector under the aegis of IN-SPACe is, as per the approved structure, expected to support approximately how many space startups?

  • A. About 20
  • B. About 40
  • C. About 60
  • D. About 100

Q3. IN-SPACe, which operationalises and anchors the space venture capital fund, functions as a single-window autonomous nodal agency under which one of the following?

  • A. Department of Space
  • B. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
  • C. Department of Science and Technology
  • D. Ministry of Defence

Q4. The amendment to the Foreign Direct Investment policy that permits up to 100% FDI in the manufacturing of components and sub-systems for the space sector (through the automatic route) was approved by the Union Cabinet in which year?

  • A. 2020
  • B. 2022
  • C. 2023
  • D. 2024

Q5. Under the amended space-sector FDI policy, consider the following activity–automatic-route-limit pairings: 1. Manufacturing of components and sub-systems — up to 100%. 2. Satellite manufacturing and operation — up to 74%. 3. Launch vehicles and creation of spaceports — up to 49%. 4. Satellite data products and ground/user segment — up to 49%. Which of the above is/are NOT correctly matched?

  1. Manufacturing of components and sub-systems — up to 100% under the automatic route.
  2. Satellite manufacturing and operation — up to 74% under the automatic route.
  3. Launch vehicles and creation of spaceports — up to 49% under the automatic route.
  4. Satellite data products and ground/user segment — up to 49% under the automatic route.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 4 only
  • D. 3 and 4 only

Q6. The Indian Space Policy 2023 explicitly delineates the roles and responsibilities of how many distinct institutional stakeholders of India's space ecosystem?

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

Q7. Consider the following statements about how the Indian Space Policy 2023 differs from the pre-reform arrangement: 1. It enables non-government entities to participate across the entire value chain of space activities in an end-to-end manner, expanding their role beyond the earlier arrangement. 2. It positions NSIL to operate on a demand-driven model, a shift from India's earlier supply-driven approach to space commercialisation. 3. It was the instrument that first created IN-SPACe, which had not existed prior to the policy's notification. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. It enables non-government entities to participate across the entire value chain of space activities in an end-to-end manner, expanding their role beyond the earlier arrangement.
  2. It positions NSIL to operate on a demand-driven model, a shift from India's earlier supply-driven approach to space commercialisation.
  3. It was the instrument that first created IN-SPACe, which had not existed prior to the policy's notification.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q8. With reference to the establishment timeline of India's dedicated space venture capital fund, consider the following milestone–period pairings: 1. Union Cabinet approval of the ₹1,000 crore fund — 2024. 2. Grant of SEBI registration as an Alternative Investment Fund — 2025. 3. Achievement of the fund's initial closing at ₹1,005 crore — 2025. 4. Commencement of the first investments/disbursements into startups — FY2026. Which of the above are correctly identified?

  1. Union Cabinet approval of the ₹1,000 crore fund — 2024.
  2. Grant of SEBI registration as an Alternative Investment Fund — 2025.
  3. Achievement of the fund's initial closing at ₹1,005 crore — 2025.
  4. Commencement of the first investments/disbursements into startups — FY2026.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 1 and 4 only
  • C. 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q9. The fund achieved its initial closing at a committed corpus of ₹1,005 crore. By how many crore did this initial-closing corpus exceed IN-SPACe's Cabinet-approved anchor commitment of ₹1,000 crore?

  • A. ₹5 crore
  • B. ₹105 crore
  • C. ₹595 crore
  • D. ₹605 crore

Q10. Under the SEBI (Alternative Investment Funds) Regulations, 2012 — the regime under which India's space venture capital fund is registered — AIFs are classified into how many categories?

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

Q11. Which one of the following is the wholly-owned central public sector enterprise, incorporated in 2019, that serves as the commercial arm of the Department of Space on a demand-driven basis?

  • A. NewSpace India Limited (NSIL)
  • B. IN-SPACe
  • C. Antrix Corporation Limited
  • D. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)