Science & Technology MCQs for UPSC Prelims — April 2026
Q1. How many ships were contracted under the Indian Navy's Survey Vessel (Large) project (the Sandhayak class of 2024 onwards)?
- A. Three
- B. Four
- C. Five
- D. Six
Q2. Which one of the following shipyards is the lead builder of the Indian Navy's Survey Vessel (Large) class, of which INS Sandhayak was the first?
- A. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited
- B. Cochin Shipyard Limited
- C. Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata
- D. Goa Shipyard Limited
Q3. In the context of the Navy's coastal survey programme, a 'hydrographic survey' is best defined as which one of the following?
- A. Measurement of depths, seabed configuration and coastline features of navigable waters to produce nautical charts for safe navigation
- B. Study of ocean currents, tides and salinity to forecast weather over the sea
- C. Mapping of coastal land boundaries and revenue holdings along the shoreline
- D. Assessment of marine biodiversity and fish stocks within territorial waters
Q4. The programme to complete the navigational survey of the entire Indian coast by 1982 was carried out by which one of the following?
- A. Survey of India
- B. Indian Coast Guard
- C. Indian Navy
- D. Geological Survey of India
Q5. According to the archival account of the Indian Navy's coastal survey programme, which one of the following was described as the Navy's first modern and largest survey ship of its time?
- A. INS Sutlej
- B. INS Jamuna
- C. INS Darshak
- D. INS Investigator
Q6. The National Hydrographic Office, India's national charting agency at Dehradun, was established (in its Dehradun Naval Hydrographic Office form) in which year?
- A. 1874
- B. 1954
- C. 1978
- D. 1997
Q7. Which one of the following is the designated national agency responsible for producing official Electronic Navigational Charts and Paper Charts for seagoing vessels in Indian waters?
- A. Survey of India
- B. National Hydrographic Office
- C. Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS)
- D. Directorate General of Shipping
Q8. The committee that recommended India's first comprehensive list of critical minerals (including rare earths) in 2023 was constituted by which of the following?
- A. Ministry of Mines
- B. Ministry of Coal
- C. Ministry of Science and Technology
- D. Department of Atomic Energy
Q9. Which one of the following statements about the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) is correct?
- A. It was established in 1984 as an autonomous telecom R&D centre of the Department of Telecommunications
- B. It was established in 1984 and is the sole body permitted to develop any telecom technology in India
- C. It is a private company wholly owned by domestic telecom operators
- D. It was created under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, to build alert systems
Q10. C-DOT's Cell Broadcast Solution was conferred which one of the following awards in 2025?
- A. SKOCH Award 2025
- B. National e-Governance Award 2025
- C. UN Sasakawa Award 2025
- D. Digital India Award 2025
Q11. The SACHET SMS-based alert system is stated to be operational across which set of jurisdictions? Considering the following, which one is NOT correctly associated with SACHET's stated attributes?
- Operational across all 36 States and Union Territories
- Delivers geo-targeted alerts in regional languages
- Developed by C-DOT for the NDMA
- Operational only in coastal States and Union Territories
Q12. In the context of India's telecom infrastructure, C-DOT — the developer of the Cell Broadcast System — is best described as which one of the following?
- A. The autonomous telecom R&D centre of the Department of Telecommunications
- B. A statutory telecom regulator constituted under an Act of Parliament
- C. A public sector undertaking manufacturing mobile handsets
- D. An attached office of the National Disaster Management Authority
Q13. The Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) that underpins India's Cell Broadcast System is standardised as a Recommendation by which one of the following international bodies?
- A. International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
- B. World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
- C. International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
- D. 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP)
Q14. With reference to the Chenab Bridge on the USBRL, consider the following statements:
1. It spans the Chenab river in Reasi district of Jammu & Kashmir.
2. Its steel arch has a span of 467 m.
3. It is Indian Railways' first cable-stayed railway bridge.
4. It rises higher above its riverbed than the height of the Eiffel Tower.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- It spans the Chenab river in Reasi district of Jammu & Kashmir.
- Its steel arch has a span of 467 m.
- It is Indian Railways' first cable-stayed railway bridge.
- It rises higher above its riverbed than the height of the Eiffel Tower.
- A. 1 only
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 3 only
- D. 3 and 4
Q15. The deck of the Chenab Bridge stands exactly how many metres above the riverbed?
- A. 193 m
- B. 331 m
- C. 359 m
- D. 467 m
Q16. With reference to the 2026 AI reconstruction of a Pompeii victim, consider the following statements:
1. It was produced by the Pompeii Archaeological Park in collaboration with the University of Padua.
2. It was based on archaeological survey data from excavations near the Porta Stabia necropolis.
3. It was the first application of the plaster-cast technique pioneered by Giuseppe Fiorelli.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- It was produced by the Pompeii Archaeological Park in collaboration with the University of Padua.
- It was based on archaeological survey data from excavations near the Porta Stabia necropolis.
- It was the first application of the plaster-cast technique pioneered by Giuseppe Fiorelli.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q17. The 2026 AI reconstruction of a Pompeii eruption victim was based on a skeleton found with several personal objects. Which of the following was/were among the artefacts recovered with him?
1. A fractured terracotta bowl held over his head
2. A ceramic oil lamp
3. Ten bronze coins
4. A gold necklace
Which of the above is/are correctly identified?
- A fractured terracotta bowl held over his head
- A ceramic oil lamp
- Ten bronze coins
- A gold necklace
- A. 1, 2 and 3
- B. 1 and 4 only
- C. 2, 3 and 4
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q18. In the context of IMD's recent announcements, the term 'Nowcast' is best defined as which one of the following?
- A. A highly localised weather forecast for the next three hours
- B. The seasonal outlook for the southwest monsoon
- C. A 4-to-10 day medium-range forecast
- D. A live display of raw satellite cloud imagery
Q19. In IMD's forecasting framework, a 'nowcast' provides guidance for a period of up to how many hours ahead?
- A. Up to 3 hours
- B. Up to 6 hours
- C. Up to 12 hours
- D. Up to 24 hours
Q20. The ability of a Doppler Weather Radar to measure the radial velocity of raindrops rests primarily on which one of the following physical principles?
- A. Rayleigh scattering of light
- B. The photoelectric effect
- C. The Doppler effect (frequency shift of reflected waves due to relative motion)
- D. Raman scattering
Q21. The frequently cited '250%-plus expansion' of India's Doppler Weather Radar network — from 14 operational units to 50 — is measured with reference to the operational strength of which base year?
- A. 2004
- B. 2009
- C. 2014
- D. 2019
Q22. The NASM-SR, replacing the imported Sea Eagle on rotary-wing platforms, is being inducted as an air-launched anti-ship weapon by which one of the following as its end user?
- A. Indian Navy
- B. Indian Air Force
- C. Indian Coast Guard
- D. Indian Army
Q23. With reference to the NASM-SR and the system it is intended to replace, consider the following statements:
1. The Sea Eagle was the legacy anti-ship missile carried on Indian Navy helicopters such as the Sea King.
2. The NASM-SR is being developed to replace the ageing Sea Eagle missile.
3. The Sea Eagle was an indigenous missile designed and developed by the DRDO.
4. The NASM-SR was first flight-tested in May 2022.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
- The Sea Eagle was the legacy anti-ship missile carried on Indian Navy helicopters such as the Sea King.
- The NASM-SR is being developed to replace the ageing Sea Eagle missile.
- The Sea Eagle was an indigenous missile designed and developed by the DRDO.
- The NASM-SR was first flight-tested in May 2022.
- A. 1, 2 and 4
- B. 1, 2 and 3
- C. 2, 3 and 4
- D. 1 and 3 only
Q24. According to the DRDO, besides the lead laboratory Research Centre Imarat (RCI), the NASM-SR was developed in collaboration with how many other named DRDO laboratories (namely DRDL Hyderabad, HEMRL Pune, TBRL Chandigarh and ITR Chandipur)?
- A. Four
- B. Three
- C. Five
- D. Two
Q25. In the development of the NASM-SR, which one of the following Hyderabad-based DRDO laboratories acted as the lead/nodal laboratory?
- A. Research Centre Imarat (RCI)
- B. High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL)
- C. Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL)
- D. Integrated Test Range (ITR)
Q26. With reference to the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, consider the following statements:
1. It is located along the Bay of Bengal coast in Odisha.
2. Its journey as a test range began in the year 1982.
3. It was initially set up for the test and evaluation of systems under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
4. It functions as India's principal spaceport for satellite launch vehicles.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
- It is located along the Bay of Bengal coast in Odisha.
- Its journey as a test range began in the year 1982.
- It was initially set up for the test and evaluation of systems under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
- It functions as India's principal spaceport for satellite launch vehicles.
- A. 1, 2 and 3
- B. 2, 3 and 4
- C. 1 and 4 only
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q27. The Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, whose radar, electro-optical and telemetry instruments tracked the NASM-SR trial, is a facility operated by which one of the following organisations?
- A. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)
- B. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
- C. Directorate of Naval Armament Inspection, Indian Navy
- D. Ordnance Factory Board / Munitions India Limited
Q28. With reference to the NASM-SR, which one of the following statements correctly describes its status in India's missile programme?
- A. It is India's first indigenous air-launched anti-ship missile
- B. It is India's first indigenous supersonic anti-ship missile
- C. It is India's first indigenous ship-launched surface-to-air missile
- D. It is India's first indigenous submarine-launched cruise missile
Q29. The NASM-SR is developed by the DRDO, an organisation that functions solely under which one of the following departments of the Ministry of Defence?
- A. Department of Defence Research and Development
- B. Department of Defence Production
- C. Department of Military Affairs
- D. Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare
Q30. With reference to national public warning/cell broadcast alert systems and the countries/blocs that operate them, consider the following pairings:
1. United States — Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA)
2. Japan — J-Alert
3. European Union — EU-Alert
4. Canada — SACHET
Which of the above is/are NOT correctly matched?
- United States — Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA)
- Japan — J-Alert
- European Union — EU-Alert
- Canada — SACHET
- A. 4 only
- B. 3 only
- C. 3 and 4
- D. 1 and 2