UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Cabinet approves 'Samudra Manthan' (National Offshore Exploration Scheme) with an outlay of Rs.84,084 crore

Q1. With reference to the 'Samudra Manthan' (National Offshore Exploration Scheme), consider the following: 1. It is a Central Sector Scheme approved with an outlay of Rs. 84,084 crore. 2. Its implementation period extends up to the financial year 2035-36. 3. It targets reserve accretion exceeding 600 Million Metric Tons of Oil Equivalent. 4. Setting up an Oil & Gas Manufacturing Zone is one of its components. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. It is a Central Sector Scheme approved with an outlay of Rs. 84,084 crore.
  2. Its implementation period extends up to the financial year 2035-36.
  3. It targets reserve accretion exceeding 600 Million Metric Tons of Oil Equivalent.
  4. Setting up an Oil & Gas Manufacturing Zone is one of its components.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 3 and 4
  • D. 1, 2 and 4

Q2. The Rs. 84,084 crore outlay for the National Offshore Exploration Scheme received its final sanction from which one of the following?

  • A. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by the Prime Minister
  • B. The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister
  • C. The Cabinet Committee on Investment and Growth chaired by the Prime Minister
  • D. The Public Investment Board under the Department of Expenditure

Q3. Samudra Manthan has been classified as a 'Central Sector Scheme'. In Indian budgetary practice, which one of the following describes such a scheme?

  • A. It is financed wholly by the Union Government and executed by a Union ministry or its agencies
  • B. It is financed wholly by the Union Government but must necessarily be executed by all State Governments
  • C. It is financed jointly by the Centre and the States, the State share being invariably 40 per cent in every case
  • D. It is financed wholly by the States and executed by the Union Government through its central agencies

Q4. Consider the following statements comparing the Samudra Manthan scheme with the Deep Ocean Mission: 1. The Deep Ocean Mission was launched in 2021, whereas Samudra Manthan received Cabinet approval in 2026. 2. The outlay approved for Samudra Manthan is more than ten times the outlay approved for the Deep Ocean Mission. 3. Both have as their central objective the recovery of polymetallic nodules from the deep seabed. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The Deep Ocean Mission was launched in 2021, whereas Samudra Manthan received Cabinet approval in 2026.
  2. The outlay approved for Samudra Manthan is more than ten times the outlay approved for the Deep Ocean Mission.
  3. Both have as their central objective the recovery of polymetallic nodules from the deep seabed.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q5. Which one of the following is the apex technical body under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas that administers exploration blocks and monitors upstream exploration and production activity in India?

  • A. The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board
  • B. The Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell
  • C. The Directorate General of Hydrocarbons
  • D. The Oil Industry Development Board

Q6. Under the Open Acreage Licensing Policy administered by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons, how many exploration blocks in all had been awarded across the first nine bid rounds?

  • A. 92
  • B. 172
  • C. 254
  • D. 331

Q7. The offshore exploration mission announced by the Prime Minister in his 79th Independence Day address has been operationalised as a Central Sector Scheme by which one of the following ministries?

  • A. The Ministry of Earth Sciences, which runs India's ocean survey and exploration programmes
  • B. The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, which handles maritime and Blue Economy affairs
  • C. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, which handles offshore energy generation projects
  • D. The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas

Q8. Consider the following statements regarding the announcement and the subsequent approval of India's offshore exploration initiative: 1. The mission announced from the Red Fort in 2025 was styled the National Deepwater Exploration Mission, while the scheme approved by the Cabinet in 2026 is titled the National Offshore Exploration Scheme. 2. The Independence Day announcement itself specified the entire financial outlay and the terminal financial year of the scheme. 3. A domestically manufactured semiconductor chip and Mission Sudarshan Chakra were among the other initiatives announced in the same Independence Day address. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The mission announced from the Red Fort in 2025 was styled the National Deepwater Exploration Mission, while the scheme approved by the Cabinet in 2026 is titled the National Offshore Exploration Scheme.
  2. The Independence Day announcement itself specified the entire financial outlay and the terminal financial year of the scheme.
  3. A domestically manufactured semiconductor chip and Mission Sudarshan Chakra were among the other initiatives announced in the same Independence Day address.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q9. India's sedimentary basins, counting the deep offshore areas extending up to the Exclusive Economic Zone, number how many in all?

  • A. 16
  • B. 21
  • C. 26
  • D. 32

Q10. The cloud-based National Data Repository for India's upstream sector was built by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons in collaboration with which one of the following organisations?

  • A. The National Informatics Centre
  • B. The National Remote Sensing Centre
  • C. The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing
  • D. The National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research

Q11. Of the following six companies engaged with India's offshore exploration ecosystem — Reliance Industries, Cairn India, Invenire Energy, Adani Welspun Exploration, Shell and TGS — how many are classed as private operators rather than as global E&P majors or as seismic service and technology providers?

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

Q12. India's crude oil 'import dependence', officially placed at about 88 per cent, is a measure of which one of the following?

  • A. The proportion of India's total crude oil requirement that is met from overseas purchases
  • B. The proportion of India's foreign exchange outgo that is accounted for by purchases of crude oil
  • C. The proportion of India's installed refining capacity that is held by foreign-owned oil companies
  • D. The proportion of India's petroleum product consumption that is met by bringing in finished products