UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Union Commerce and Industry Minister Shri Piyush Goyal Launches National Strategic Trade Command Centre at Vanijya Bhawan

Q1. With reference to India's SCOMET (Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies) control list, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Listing an item on SCOMET subjects its export to licensing scrutiny, and pending licence applications can be examined by an inter-ministerial body.
  2. Because the list targets proliferation risks, its controls apply only to exports bound for countries under UN Security Council sanctions.
  3. The list is revised from time to time to harmonise it with the guidelines of multilateral export control regimes and with a treaty banning chemical weapons.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 and 3 only

Q2. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. India's SCOMET list is updated from time to time to harmonise it with the guidelines of the Missile Technology Control Regime, the Wassenaar Arrangement and the Australia Group.
  2. These three regimes are international treaties whose control lists become legally binding on India once ratified by Parliament.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q3. Consider the following facts: India became a member of the Missile Technology Control Regime in June 2016, the Wassenaar Arrangement in December 2017 and the Australia Group in January 2018. India's national control list (SCOMET) is updated from time to time to harmonise it with the guidelines of these regimes and the Chemical Weapons Convention. Which of the following inferences can be drawn from the above?

  1. India's national control list must cover missile-related items, conventional arms and dual-use goods, and chemical-biological items.
  2. Admission to the Wassenaar Arrangement was a precondition for India's later admission to the Australia Group.
  3. After harmonisation, individual SCOMET licensing decisions require the prior approval of the other participants of these regimes.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q4. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. India's admission to the Australia Group in 2018 required the agreement of all the then-existing participants of the Group.
  2. The Australia Group coordinates export controls on chemical and biological items and related technologies among its participants.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q5. With reference to the Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) scheme, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The export obligation is fixed as a multiple of the duties saved, so a firm importing costlier machinery takes on a larger export obligation.
  2. Capital goods imported under the scheme carry an actual user condition, so they cannot be imported merely for resale.
  3. The scheme confines duty relief to machinery used at the production stage, excluding pre-production and post-production equipment.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1 only

Q6. Consider the following assertion: A free trade agreement can remain under-utilised even while a country's exports to that partner are growing. Which of the following statements support/supports the above assertion?

  1. Goods that do not qualify under the agreement's rules of origin can still be exported to the partner by paying the ordinary, non-preferential tariff.
  2. Where the partner's ordinary tariff on a product is already zero or negligible, an exporter gains little by documenting origin to claim the preference.
  3. A rise in exports to a free trade partner is necessarily the result of the tariff preferences granted under that agreement.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2 only
  • D. 1 and 3 only