UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — India’s Biodiversity: Commitments and Achievements

Q1. Under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 (as amended in 2023), which one of the following is the sole statutory authority empowered to grant approvals to foreign individuals, institutions or companies for access to biological resources occurring in India?

• A. National Biodiversity Authority
• B. State Biodiversity Board of the concerned State
• C. Biodiversity Management Committee of the local body concerned
• D. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

Q2. With reference to the changes introduced by the Biological Diversity (Amendment) Act, 2023 over the parent Act of 2002, consider the following statements: 1. The 2023 Amendment decriminalised the offences under the Act and replaced criminal prosecution with monetary penalties imposed by an adjudicating officer. 2. The 2023 Amendment exempted registered AYUSH practitioners using codified traditional knowledge and cultivated medicinal plants from the prior intimation requirement under the Act. 3. The 2023 Amendment shifted the headquarters of the National Biodiversity Authority from Chennai to New Delhi. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. The 2023 Amendment decriminalised the offences under the Act and replaced criminal prosecution with monetary penalties imposed by an adjudicating officer.
2. The 2023 Amendment exempted registered AYUSH practitioners using codified traditional knowledge and cultivated medicinal plants from the prior intimation requirement under the Act.
3. The 2023 Amendment shifted the headquarters of the National Biodiversity Authority from Chennai to New Delhi.

• A. 1 only
• B. 1 and 2 only
• C. 2 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 3

Q3. With reference to India's three-tier institutional structure for biodiversity governance under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, which of the following statements is/are NOT correct?

1. The National Biodiversity Authority is a statutory body with its headquarters at Chennai.
2. The Chairperson of a State Biodiversity Board is appointed by the Central Government.
3. Biodiversity Management Committees can be constituted only by rural panchayats and not by urban local bodies.
4. People's Biodiversity Registers are prepared by the Biodiversity Management Committees.

• A. 1 and 4 only
• B. 2 and 3 only
• C. 2, 3 and 4
• D. 1 only

Q4. The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA), the statutory apex body that operationalises the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, functions under the administrative control of which one of the following Union Ministries?

• A. Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
• B. Ministry of Science and Technology
• C. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
• D. Ministry of Tribal Affairs

Q5. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), 1992, to which India is a party, has how many principal objectives?

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

Q6. Which one of the following is the nodal agency in India for implementing the access and benefit-sharing provisions of the Nagoya Protocol under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002?

• A. Botanical Survey of India
• B. Wildlife Crime Control Bureau
• C. National Biodiversity Authority
• D. Central Pollution Control Board

Q7. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) was adopted in December 2022 at the 15th Conference of Parties (COP-15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity under the Presidency of which one of the following?

• A. Canada
• B. China
• C. Colombia
• D. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

Q8. With reference to how the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), 2022 differs from its predecessor, the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 (Aichi Biodiversity Targets), consider the following statements: 1. The KMGBF sets out 23 action-oriented global targets to be achieved by 2030, whereas the preceding Aichi Biodiversity Targets consisted of 20 targets for 2020. 2. Unlike the Aichi framework, the KMGBF contains an explicit target to ensure effective conservation and management of at least 30 per cent of terrestrial, inland water, and coastal and marine areas by 2030. 3. The KMGBF provided for a multilateral mechanism on benefit-sharing from Digital Sequence Information (DSI) on genetic resources, which was operationalized at COP-16 (2024) through the establishment of the 'Cali Fund'. Which of the statements given above are correct?

1. The KMGBF sets out 23 action-oriented global targets to be achieved by 2030, whereas the preceding Aichi Biodiversity Targets consisted of 20 targets for 2020.
2. Unlike the Aichi framework, the KMGBF contains an explicit target to ensure effective conservation and management of at least 30 per cent of terrestrial, inland water, and coastal and marine areas by 2030.
3. The KMGBF provided for a multilateral mechanism on benefit-sharing from Digital Sequence Information (DSI) on genetic resources, which was operationalized at COP-16 (2024) through the establishment of the 'Cali Fund'.

• A. 1 and 2 only
• B. 2 and 3 only
• C. 1 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 3

Q9. With reference to India's updated National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) released at the 16th Conference of Parties (COP-16) to the Convention on Biological Diversity, consider the following statements. Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

1. It was released in Cali, Colombia, in October 2024.
2. Its 23 National Biodiversity Targets are aligned with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
3. Its long-term vision is 'living in harmony with nature by 2050'.
4. It was prepared exclusively by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change without involving any other central Ministry.

• A. 1 and 2 only
• B. 2 and 3 only
• C. 1, 2 and 3 only
• D. 4 only

Q10. In the context of India's updated National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP, 2024), the term 'Whole-of-Government approach' refers to which one of the following?

• A. Coordinated involvement of multiple central Ministries and Departments, alongside States and communities, in formulating and implementing the national biodiversity targets
• B. Complete devolution of biodiversity planning powers to State Biodiversity Boards and Biodiversity Management Committees
• C. Direct supervision of biodiversity targets by the Prime Minister's Office through the National Biodiversity Authority
• D. A constitutional mechanism that places the National Biodiversity Authority under the joint control of Parliament and the Supreme Court

Q11. Which of the following are recognised as biodiversity hotspots whose Indian portion lies within the territory of India?

1. Western Ghats and Sri Lanka
2. Indo-Burma
3. Caucasus
4. Sundaland

• A. 1 and 2 only
• B. 1, 2 and 4 only
• C. 2, 3 and 4 only
• D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q12. The concept of 'Megadiverse Countries', under which India is listed as one of 17 such nations, was first identified and promoted by which one of the following organisations?

• A. International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
• B. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
• C. Conservation International (CI)
• D. World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)

Q13. Under the National Biodiversity Authority's Guidelines on Access to Biological Resources and Associated Knowledge and Benefits Sharing Regulations, 2014, how many distinct application forms are prescribed corresponding to the categories of ABS agreements?

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

Q14. Which one of the following statements best describes the 'International Big Cats Alliance' (IBCA) that recently came into force?

• A. A UNEP-led multilateral coalition of African and Asian range states formed exclusively for the conservation of the tiger and the snow leopard.
• B. A treaty-based intergovernmental organisation headquartered in India for the conservation of seven big cat species — tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar and puma.
• C. A specialist group constituted under the IUCN Species Survival Commission that prepares Red List assessments for all wild felid species.
• D. An enforcement mechanism set up under CITES to regulate cross-border trade in body parts and derivatives of big cats.

Q15. With reference to the International Big Cats Alliance (IBCA) vis-à-vis Project Tiger, consider the following statements: 1. Unlike Project Tiger, which is a domestic centrally sponsored conservation scheme, IBCA is a treaty-based intergovernmental international organisation headquartered in India. 2. Membership of IBCA is restricted exclusively to the natural range countries of the seven big cat species it covers. 3. IBCA was launched in 2023 on the occasion marking the commemoration of fifty years of Project Tiger. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. Unlike Project Tiger, which is a domestic centrally sponsored conservation scheme, IBCA is a treaty-based intergovernmental international organisation headquartered in India.
2. Membership of IBCA is restricted exclusively to the natural range countries of the seven big cat species it covers.
3. IBCA was launched in 2023 on the occasion marking the commemoration of fifty years of Project Tiger.

• A. 1 and 2 only
• B. 1 and 3 only
• C. 2 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 3