UPSC Prelims 2026 Q78: Merz's India Visit Outcomes — Explained
The Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany visited India in January, 2026. Which of the following is/are not correct in terms of outcomes of this visit?
1. Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the All India Institute of Ayurveda and the University of Hamburg
2. Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Youth Hockey Development between Hockey India and the German Hockey Federation
3. Establishment of a bilateral dialogue mechanism on the Indo-Pacific
4. Opening of an Honorary Consul of Germany in Lucknow
- 2 and 3
- 1 and 4
- 3 and 4
- 1 only
Answer: (b) 1 and 4
Statement-wise explanation
- 1: incorrect — An Ayurveda MoU was signed during the visit, but the German partner was not the University of Hamburg. The official List of Outcomes (12–13 January 2026) records an MoU on traditional medicine between the All India Institute of Ayurveda, New Delhi, and Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin. Charité is Germany's best-known university hospital. UPSC kept the real Indian institution and changed the German one, so the statement is incorrect.
- 2: correct — The List of Outcomes includes an MoU on Youth Hockey Development between Hockey India and the German Hockey Federation (Deutscher Hockey-Bund e.V.). Both countries are leading hockey nations, and sport was one of the people-to-people items of the visit.
- 3: correct — In the India–Germany Joint Statement, the two leaders announced a new bilateral Indo-Pacific consultation mechanism. They also reaffirmed a free and open Indo-Pacific based on international law, including UNCLOS. This fits Germany's Indo-Pacific policy guidelines, adopted in 2020.
- 4: incorrect — The outcome was the opening of an Honorary Consul of Germany in Ahmedabad, not Lucknow. Merz's visit began in Ahmedabad (Gujarat), and Germany later appointed Abhay Kamal Mangaldas as its Honorary Consul there. He offers limited consular help within Gujarat. Lucknow was not part of any visit outcome.
How to eliminate
This is a current-affairs question, and mostly you need the facts. Logic can still narrow it down. The visit ran 12–13 January 2026 in Ahmedabad and Bengaluru. If you remember that it opened in Gujarat, an Honorary Consul in Lucknow looks out of place and an Ahmedabad office looks likely. Once Statement 4 is marked wrong, only the options containing 4 are left: '1 and 4' and '3 and 4'. Statement 3 sounds right because Germany has had Indo-Pacific guidelines since 2020 and India and Germany often discuss the region. That leaves '1 and 4'. Statement 1 shows how UPSC builds traps: it keeps the real Indian institution (AIIA) and swaps the foreign partner (Hamburg for Charité, Berlin). Facts to remember: AIIA–Charité MoU, Honorary Consul in Ahmedabad, Hockey India–German Hockey Federation MoU, and the new Indo-Pacific consultation mechanism. Also note that the question asks which statements are 'not correct'.
Know more
India–Germany relations: the key markers
Friedrich Merz made his first official visit to India, and his first to Asia as Chancellor, on 12–13 January 2026. It came in a double-anniversary year: 25 years of the Strategic Partnership (2000) and 75 years of diplomatic relations (1951).
| Area | Outcome of the Jan 2026 visit |
|---|---|
| Defence | Joint Declaration of Intent on defence industrial cooperation (co-development, co-production) |
| Technology | JDIs on semiconductors, critical minerals, telecom |
| Economy | India–Germany CEOs' Forum; support for concluding the India–EU FTA |
| Climate | €1.24 billion fresh commitment under the Green and Sustainable Development Partnership (GSDP, 2022); green ammonia offtake |
| Mobility | Visa-free transit for Indian passport holders through Germany |
| Strategic | New bilateral Indo-Pacific consultation mechanism; Track 1.5 foreign policy and security dialogue |
| People | AIIA–Charité Ayurveda MoU; Hockey India–German Hockey Federation youth hockey MoU; Honorary Consul in Ahmedabad |
Other recurring facts
- Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC): a whole-of-government summit format that Germany holds with only a few partners. The 7th IGC was held in New Delhi in October 2024.
- Trade: about US$51 billion. Germany is India's largest trading partner in the EU.
What is an Honorary Consul? An honorary consul is usually a prominent local resident, not a career diplomat. They are appointed by a foreign state to give limited consular help, such as facilitation and certain attestations, in a city with no full consulate. Their status is governed by Chapter III of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963. Germany's career missions in India are its Embassy in New Delhi and its Consulates General. Honorary consuls fill the gaps between these.
In the news
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz made his first official visit to India on 12–13 January 2026. It marked 25 years of the India–Germany Strategic Partnership, and 19 MoUs and announcements came out of it. UPSC took the official List of Outcomes and changed the details of two items: the German university partner and the city.