UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — DRDO & Indian Navy successfully conduct maiden salvo launch of Naval Anti-ship Missile-Short Range
Q1. The NASM-SR is developed by the DRDO, an organisation that functions solely under which one of the following departments of the Ministry of Defence?
- A. Department of Defence Research and Development
- B. Department of Defence Production
- C. Department of Military Affairs
- D. Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare
Q2. With reference to the NASM-SR, which one of the following statements correctly describes its status in India's missile programme?
- A. It is India's first indigenous air-launched anti-ship missile
- B. It is India's first indigenous supersonic anti-ship missile
- C. It is India's first indigenous ship-launched surface-to-air missile
- D. It is India's first indigenous submarine-launched cruise missile
Q3. The trial of the NASM-SR conducted on 29 April 2026 was significant primarily because it was the first-ever demonstration of which one of the following capabilities for this missile system?
- A. Salvo launch of two missiles in quick succession from the same helicopter
- B. Sea-skimming trajectory against a surface target
- C. Launch from a naval helicopter platform
- D. Waterline-hit accuracy in a single-missile firing
Q4. In the maiden salvo launch of the NASM-SR, how many missiles were fired in quick succession from the same helicopter?
- A. Two
- B. Three
- C. Four
- D. Six
Q5. The Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, whose radar, electro-optical and telemetry instruments tracked the NASM-SR trial, is a facility operated by which one of the following organisations?
- A. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)
- B. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
- C. Directorate of Naval Armament Inspection, Indian Navy
- D. Ordnance Factory Board / Munitions India Limited
Q6. With reference to the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, consider the following statements:
1. It is located along the Bay of Bengal coast in Odisha.
2. Its journey as a test range began in the year 1982.
3. It was initially set up for the test and evaluation of systems under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
4. It functions as India's principal spaceport for satellite launch vehicles.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
- It is located along the Bay of Bengal coast in Odisha.
- Its journey as a test range began in the year 1982.
- It was initially set up for the test and evaluation of systems under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
- It functions as India's principal spaceport for satellite launch vehicles.
- A. 1, 2 and 3
- B. 2, 3 and 4
- C. 1 and 4 only
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q7. In the development of the NASM-SR, which one of the following Hyderabad-based DRDO laboratories acted as the lead/nodal laboratory?
- A. Research Centre Imarat (RCI)
- B. High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL)
- C. Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL)
- D. Integrated Test Range (ITR)
Q8. According to the DRDO, besides the lead laboratory Research Centre Imarat (RCI), the NASM-SR was developed in collaboration with how many other named DRDO laboratories (namely DRDL Hyderabad, HEMRL Pune, TBRL Chandigarh and ITR Chandipur)?
- A. Four
- B. Three
- C. Five
- D. Two
Q9. With reference to the NASM-SR and the system it is intended to replace, consider the following statements:
1. The Sea Eagle was the legacy anti-ship missile carried on Indian Navy helicopters such as the Sea King.
2. The NASM-SR is being developed to replace the ageing Sea Eagle missile.
3. The Sea Eagle was an indigenous missile designed and developed by the DRDO.
4. The NASM-SR was first flight-tested in May 2022.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
- The Sea Eagle was the legacy anti-ship missile carried on Indian Navy helicopters such as the Sea King.
- The NASM-SR is being developed to replace the ageing Sea Eagle missile.
- The Sea Eagle was an indigenous missile designed and developed by the DRDO.
- The NASM-SR was first flight-tested in May 2022.
- A. 1, 2 and 4
- B. 1, 2 and 3
- C. 2, 3 and 4
- D. 1 and 3 only
Q10. The NASM-SR, replacing the imported Sea Eagle on rotary-wing platforms, is being inducted as an air-launched anti-ship weapon by which one of the following as its end user?
- A. Indian Navy
- B. Indian Air Force
- C. Indian Coast Guard
- D. Indian Army
Q11. Under the Indian Navy's Aatmanirbhar Bharat drive, consider the following missile systems and their descriptions:
1. VL-SRSAM — a ship-borne short-range surface-to-air missile.
2. BrahMos — a long-range supersonic cruise missile.
3. NASM-SR — a long-range ballistic anti-ship missile.
4. MRSAM — a medium-range surface-to-air missile contracted from Bharat Dynamics Limited.
Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
- VL-SRSAM — a ship-borne short-range surface-to-air missile.
- BrahMos — a long-range supersonic cruise missile.
- NASM-SR — a long-range ballistic anti-ship missile.
- MRSAM — a medium-range surface-to-air missile contracted from Bharat Dynamics Limited.
- A. 1, 2 and 4
- B. 1, 2 and 3
- C. 2, 3 and 4
- D. 1 and 3 only
Q12. The first batch of indigenously manufactured BrahMos missiles — the long-range supersonic complement to the short-range, helicopter-launched NASM-SR — was flagged off from the BrahMos Integration and Testing Facility at Lucknow (UP Defence Corridor) in which year?
- A. 2025
- B. 2022
- C. 2023
- D. 2024