UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Shri Pralhad Joshi Reaffirms Commitment towards Global Solar Cooperation During BRE Summit & Expo 2026

Q1. With reference to the institutional design of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A country that has signed the ISA Framework Agreement but not yet ratified it is counted as a full Member of the ISA.
  2. The ISA Assembly, in which member countries are represented at ministerial level, is the apex decision-making body of the ISA.
  3. The ISA's juridical personality in India, including its capacity to contract and hold property, derives from a Host Country Agreement it signed with India.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3
  • D. 3 only

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

  1. As of 2026, a UN Member State lying entirely outside the tropics cannot become a full Member of the International Solar Alliance.
  2. The International Solar Alliance was originally conceived as a grouping of solar-resource-rich countries lying fully or partly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.
  • 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. With reference to 'One Sun One World One Grid' (OSOWOG), consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. OSOWOG rests on the idea that the sun is always shining over some part of the world, so interconnected grids could carry solar power across time zones.
  2. OSOWOG was launched at COP21 in Paris as a joint India–France initiative, alongside the International Solar Alliance.
  3. The Green Grids Initiative, a United Kingdom initiative, was merged with OSOWOG to form a joint initiative.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1 only

Q4. The International Solar Alliance's Africa Solar Facility and the Nigeria Distributed Renewable Energy Fund are described as tools to unlock private investment through blended finance. In this context, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Blended finance replaces private investment with public grants, so that the projects financed need not earn commercial returns.
  2. Concessional public money can take the first loss on a project, lowering the risk borne by private lenders.
  3. When an African solar company earning in local currency borrows in US dollars, currency risk shifts away from the company because its debt is held in a stable currency.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 2 only

Q5. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Pooling the solar-and-storage procurement of several Small Island Developing States can lower the per-unit cost of equipment for each of them.
  2. Small, isolated island grids need storage to absorb the variability of solar generation.
  • 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