Environment MCQs for UPSC Prelims — July 2026
Q1. With reference to India's renewable energy targets within which the Pradhan Mantri Surya Sarovar Yojana is situated, consider the following statements:
1. India announced at COP26 in Glasgow a target of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel-based installed electricity capacity by 2030.
2. The National Solar Mission was launched in January 2010.
3. India attained the target of 50 per cent of installed electricity capacity from non-fossil sources ahead of the 2030 deadline.
4. The Panchamrit commitments require India to source its entire electricity generation from non-fossil sources by 2030.
Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?
- India announced at COP26 in Glasgow a target of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel-based installed electricity capacity by 2030.
- The National Solar Mission was launched in January 2010.
- India attained the target of 50 per cent of installed electricity capacity from non-fossil sources ahead of the 2030 deadline.
- The Panchamrit commitments require India to source its entire electricity generation from non-fossil sources by 2030.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 1, 3 and 4
- D. 4 only
Q2. Of India's total identified reservoir area of about 10,726 sq km examined in the floating solar potential assessment, approximately what share was found technically feasible for floating solar photovoltaic deployment?
- A. About 7 per cent
- B. About 18 per cent
- C. About 33 per cent
- D. About 50 per cent
Q3. India's Floating Solar Potential Map, which assesses reservoir-surface potential separately from the wasteland-based potential assessed for ground-mounted plants, was placed in the public domain by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in which year?
- A. 2014
- B. 2021
- C. 2025
- D. 2026
Q4. Consider the following statements regarding the recent solar resource potential assessments carried out under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy:
1. The ground-mounted solar potential was assessed at about 3,343 GWp, a substantial upward revision from the earlier estimate of about 749 GWp.
2. The floating solar photovoltaic potential across reservoirs and inland water bodies was assessed at about 102 GWp.
3. The ground-mounted potential figure corresponds to the utilisation of about 18 per cent of India's identified feasible wasteland.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- The ground-mounted solar potential was assessed at about 3,343 GWp, a substantial upward revision from the earlier estimate of about 749 GWp.
- The floating solar photovoltaic potential across reservoirs and inland water bodies was assessed at about 102 GWp.
- The ground-mounted potential figure corresponds to the utilisation of about 18 per cent of India's identified feasible wasteland.
- A. 1 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1 and 2 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q5. The assessment of India's floating solar photovoltaic potential that preceded the approval of PM-SSY was prepared, in association with IIT Roorkee, under the lead of which one of the following bodies?
- A. Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited
- B. National Institute of Wind Energy, Chennai
- C. National Institute of Solar Energy, Gurugram
- D. Central Electricity Authority, New Delhi
Q6. With reference to India's renewable energy targets within which the Pradhan Mantri Surya Sarovar Yojana is situated, consider the following statements:
1. India announced at COP26 in Glasgow a target of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel-based installed electricity capacity by 2030.
2. The National Solar Mission was launched in January 2010.
3. India attained the target of 50 per cent of installed electricity capacity from non-fossil sources ahead of the 2030 deadline.
4. The Panchamrit commitments require India to source its entire electricity generation from non-fossil sources by 2030.
Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?
- India announced at COP26 in Glasgow a target of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel-based installed electricity capacity by 2030.
- The National Solar Mission was launched in January 2010.
- India attained the target of 50 per cent of installed electricity capacity from non-fossil sources ahead of the 2030 deadline.
- The Panchamrit commitments require India to source its entire electricity generation from non-fossil sources by 2030.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 1, 3 and 4
- D. 4 only
Q7. Of India's total identified reservoir area of about 10,726 sq km examined in the floating solar potential assessment, approximately what share was found technically feasible for floating solar photovoltaic deployment?
- A. About 7 per cent
- B. About 18 per cent
- C. About 33 per cent
- D. About 50 per cent
Q8. India's Floating Solar Potential Map, which assesses reservoir-surface potential separately from the wasteland-based potential assessed for ground-mounted plants, was placed in the public domain by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in which year?
- A. 2014
- B. 2021
- C. 2025
- D. 2026
Q9. Consider the following statements regarding the recent solar resource potential assessments carried out under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy:
1. The ground-mounted solar potential was assessed at about 3,343 GWp, a substantial upward revision from the earlier estimate of about 749 GWp.
2. The floating solar photovoltaic potential across reservoirs and inland water bodies was assessed at about 102 GWp.
3. The ground-mounted potential figure corresponds to the utilisation of about 18 per cent of India's identified feasible wasteland.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- The ground-mounted solar potential was assessed at about 3,343 GWp, a substantial upward revision from the earlier estimate of about 749 GWp.
- The floating solar photovoltaic potential across reservoirs and inland water bodies was assessed at about 102 GWp.
- The ground-mounted potential figure corresponds to the utilisation of about 18 per cent of India's identified feasible wasteland.
- A. 1 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1 and 2 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q10. The assessment of India's floating solar photovoltaic potential that preceded the approval of PM-SSY was prepared, in association with IIT Roorkee, under the lead of which one of the following bodies?
- A. Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited
- B. National Institute of Wind Energy, Chennai
- C. National Institute of Solar Energy, Gurugram
- D. Central Electricity Authority, New Delhi
Q11. GRIHA, frequently invoked in Indian discussions on sustainable construction, is best described as which one of the following?
- A. A statutory building code that prescribes minimum energy performance requirements binding on all commercial buildings in the country
- B. A national system for rating the environmental performance of buildings and habitats, whose latest version dates to 2019
- C. A central sector scheme extending capital subsidy for rooftop solar photovoltaic installations on residential housing societies
- D. A certification mark for construction materials issued under licence by the Bureau of Indian Standards
Q12. The study reports on 'Scenarios Towards Viksit Bharat and Net Zero', which examine India's long-term energy transition pathways, were released by which one of the following?
- A. NITI Aayog, the public policy think tank of the Government of India
- B. The Central Electricity Authority under the Ministry of Power
- C. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
- D. The Department of Atomic Energy under the Prime Minister's charge
Q13. Which one of the following is the world's only intergovernmental organisation devoted exclusively to tiger conservation, with its headquarters in New Delhi?
- A. Global Tiger Forum
- B. Global Tiger Initiative
- C. International Big Cat Alliance
- D. National Tiger Conservation Authority
Q14. Consider the following statements about the tiger's conservation status and legal protection:
1. Panthera tigris is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
2. All tiger subspecies are listed in Appendix I of CITES, so international commercial trade in tigers and their parts is prohibited.
3. Project Tiger was launched by the Government of India in 1973.
4. The National Tiger Conservation Authority was made a statutory body by the Wildlife (Protection) Act as originally enacted in 1972.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- Panthera tigris is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
- All tiger subspecies are listed in Appendix I of CITES, so international commercial trade in tigers and their parts is prohibited.
- Project Tiger was launched by the Government of India in 1973.
- The National Tiger Conservation Authority was made a statutory body by the Wildlife (Protection) Act as originally enacted in 1972.
- A. 1 and 4
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 1, 3 and 4
- D. 4 only
Q15. The All India Tiger Estimation, which placed India's tiger number at 3,682 in 2022, is carried out by which one of the following?
- A. The National Tiger Conservation Authority, along with the State Governments
- B. The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, along with the State Forest Departments
- C. The Central Zoo Authority, along with the State Biodiversity Boards
- D. The Global Tiger Forum, along with the tiger-range State Governments
Q16. Consider the following statements comparing India's and Nepal's tiger population assessments:
1. Like Nepal's national tiger census, India's All India Tiger Estimation is a quadrennial exercise.
2. India's estimate rose from 2,967 in 2018 to 3,682 in 2022, while over the same interval Nepal's rose from 235 to 355.
3. India's exercise is carried out by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, whereas Nepal's is carried out by the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- Like Nepal's national tiger census, India's All India Tiger Estimation is a quadrennial exercise.
- India's estimate rose from 2,967 in 2018 to 3,682 in 2022, while over the same interval Nepal's rose from 235 to 355.
- India's exercise is carried out by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, whereas Nepal's is carried out by the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q17. The Integrated Tiger Habitat Conservation Programme (ITHCP), under which transboundary India-Nepal projects have been implemented, is which one of the following?
- A. A grant programme managed by IUCN and funded by German Cooperation through the KfW Development Bank
- B. A grant programme managed by UNDP and funded by the Global Environment Facility through its biodiversity window
- C. A lending programme of the World Bank operated under the Global Tiger Initiative for range-country governments
- D. A grant programme of the Global Tiger Forum funded by the member tiger range countries through annual dues
Q18. In the transboundary Chitwan-Parsa-Valmiki complex, which single protected area acts as the source population supplying tigers to the other two reserves?
- A. Chitwan National Park
- B. Bardiya National Park
- C. Banke National Park
- D. Shuklaphanta National Park
Q19. The Terai Arc Landscape is best described as which one of the following?
- A. About 28,000 sq km of forested habitat in the Himalayan foothills of northern India and southern Nepal
- B. About 28,000 sq km of forest and grassland in the foothills of southern Bhutan and north-eastern India
- C. About 84,500 sq km of notified tiger reserves spread across the tiger-range States of India
- D. About 3,669 sq km of contiguous protected areas shared between Nepal and India along their border
Q20. Consider the following statements regarding the Terai Arc Landscape and Nepal's tigers:
1. The Terai Arc Landscape lies entirely within Nepal and no part of it extends into India.
2. It stretches for about 800 km from the river Yamuna in the west to the river Bagmati in the east.
3. Nepal's tiger-bearing national parks within this landscape are Chitwan, Bardiya, Parsa, Banke and Shuklaphanta.
4. In the 2026 census, every one of Nepal's tiger-bearing national parks recorded a rise over its 2022 figure.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- The Terai Arc Landscape lies entirely within Nepal and no part of it extends into India.
- It stretches for about 800 km from the river Yamuna in the west to the river Bagmati in the east.
- Nepal's tiger-bearing national parks within this landscape are Chitwan, Bardiya, Parsa, Banke and Shuklaphanta.
- In the 2026 census, every one of Nepal's tiger-bearing national parks recorded a rise over its 2022 figure.
- A. 1 and 4
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 1, 2 and 4
- D. 4 only
Q21. The 'TX2' commitment adopted at the St Petersburg Tiger Summit of 2010 refers to which one of the following?
- A. A pledge by the 13 tiger range countries to double the number of wild tigers by the year 2022
- B. A pledge by the 13 tiger range countries to double the area of protected tiger habitat by the year 2022
- C. A pledge by the 13 tiger range countries to double the global wild tiger number by the year 2030
- D. A pledge by the 13 tiger range countries to double their financial outlay on anti-poaching by 2022
Q22. The figure of 429 tigers reported by Nepal in 2026 refers to a population estimated over which one of the following areas?
- A. Five national parks of the Terai Arc Landscape together with their buffer zones, forests and wildlife corridors
- B. Only the core zones of the five tiger-bearing national parks, buffer zones being excluded from the estimate
- C. All national parks and wildlife reserves of the country, including the high-altitude Himalayan protected areas
- D. The Chitwan-Parsa complex and its adjoining transboundary corridor with India, taken as one survey unit
Q23. With reference to the national tiger census of Nepal whose results were released in July 2026, which one of the following statements is correct?
- A. It is led by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation and is carried out once every four years
- B. It is led by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation and is carried out once every ten years
- C. It is led by the Department of Forests and Soil Conservation and is carried out once every four years
- D. It is led by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Environment and is carried out once every five years
Q24. Which one of the following is the principal environmental gain attributed to beneficiating coal at the pithead before dispatch?
- A. Complete removal of sulphur from coal, rendering flue-gas desulphurisation unnecessary at the receiving plant
- B. Total elimination of solid waste, since the entire reject fraction is consumed within the washery premises itself
- C. Permanent removal of the requirement that coal be moved in covered railway wagons or covered conveyors
- D. Lower ash in the delivered coal, cutting fly ash generated at the plant and the inert load hauled by rail
Q25. Consider the following uses of coal washery rejects:
1. Extraction of energy.
2. Reclamation of land.
3. Brick making.
4. Blending with imported coking coal for direct supply to steel plants.
Which of the above is/are correctly identified as uses permitted under the policy governing disposal of washery rejects?
- Extraction of energy.
- Reclamation of land.
- Brick making.
- Blending with imported coking coal for direct supply to steel plants.
- A. 1 and 4
- B. 2, 3 and 4
- C. 1, 2 and 3
- D. 3 only
Q26. The requirement of prior permission of the Coal Controller's Organisation for disposal of coal washery rejects was dispensed with for two of the three permitted routes by:
- A. The Colliery Control (Amendment) Rules, 2025, which also empowered Boards of coal companies on mine opening
- B. The Gazette notification dated 21 May 2020 governing use of coal by coal-based thermal power plants
- C. An Office Memorandum of the Ministry of Coal issued in December 2025 amending the existing policy
- D. The Coal Mines (Conservation and Development) Act, 1974 read with the rules framed under it in 1975
Q27. How many elephant corridors have been identified in India, and across how many States do they extend?
- A. 32 corridors across 15 States
- B. 33 corridors across 14 States
- C. 150 corridors across 18 States
- D. 150 corridors across 15 States
Q28. Approximately what proportion of India's estimated 3,682 tigers inhabits areas outside notified tiger reserves?
- A. About 15%
- B. About 30%
- C. About 45%
- D. About 55%
Q29. How many laureates were named by the United Nations Environment Programme as Champions of the Earth in 2025?
- A. Three
- B. Four
- C. Five
- D. Seven
Q30. Of the 667 tiger deaths recorded in India between 2021 and 2025, how many occurred outside tiger reserves?