Free daily practice · Prelims and Mains
Daily Current Affairs Quiz 21 October 2026
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Daily Current Affairs Quiz · Free
Before you start
- 20 questions from 21 October’s current affairs, 20 minutes.
- Test timer counts down and submits at zero; a clock on each question shows your time.
- +2 for right, −0.67 for wrong; blanks carry no penalty.
- Answers, explanations and your time per question appear after you submit.
- Your first attempt today is ranked (ties go to less time); later attempts are practice.
- Free, no login. Mains practice with model answers is below.
Mains practice
2 questions · write first, then compareGS-215 marks250 words
Q1. The Centre's draft framework for Ladakh proposes a constitutionally recognised UT-level elected body, with the Lieutenant-Governor's assent needed for every regulation. Examine how far this addresses the demands of the people of Ladakh, including the demand for Sixth Schedule status.
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Introduction
After Article 370 stopped applying to Jammu and Kashmir in 2019, Ladakh became a Union Territory without a legislature. The Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) have since demanded constitutional safeguards and Sixth Schedule status. The Centre's draft would add a new Article giving a UT-wide elected body constitutional status, but every regulation would take effect only after the L-G's assent.
What the draft offers
- Elected voice: a constitutional elected body, with hill councils (LAHDCs) in all eight districts.
- Inclusion: options to reserve one-third or up to 50% of seats for women.
- Fair delimitation: options to weigh area, remoteness and panchayat boundaries, not just population.
- Legal route: regulations under Article 240 with a clear list of subjects.
Where it falls short
- Final power stays with the L-G, so the body may be advisory in practice.
- Unlike Sixth Schedule councils, it has no clear law-making powers on land, forests and customs.
- There are no firm safeguards yet on land, jobs and culture, which are the core worries.
- Low trust after years of protests.
Way forward
- Give assent a time limit and require written reasons when a regulation is returned.
- Write land and domicile-job protections into the amendment.
- Give the hill councils constitutional status and real funds.
- Keep the LAB and KDA talks open and time-bound.
Conclusion
The draft is a step towards democracy in Ladakh. It will win trust only if the elected body has real powers and Sixth-Schedule-like protections, while the Centre keeps the strategic oversight a border region needs.
263 words · Battle IAS model answer
GS-315 marks250 words
Q2. China's new licensing of exports of tunnel-boring machines, after its curbs on rare earth magnets, shows the use of trade controls as a strategic tool. Discuss the implications for India's infrastructure and manufacturing, and suggest measures to reduce such vulnerabilities.
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Introduction
China will require a licence to export tunnel-boring machines (TBMs) and high-altitude construction machinery to 'sensitive countries' in dispute with it, calling them dual-use items. This follows its curbs on rare earth magnets and plans to control 40 advanced technologies. India's TBM imports have been delayed since 2024.
Implications for India
- Infrastructure: metros, border tunnels and the Mumbai–Ahmedabad bullet train (including a 7-km undersea tunnel) depend on TBMs, so delays raise costs.
- Security: border roads and tunnels at high altitude are exactly the projects named in the curbs.
- Manufacturing: even European firms such as Herrenknecht make TBMs in China, so the dependence is hidden.
- Trade: the deficit with China ($69 billion in the first half of 2026-27) gives Beijing leverage.
Measures
- Build capital goods at home through Make in India, PLI-style support and joint ventures with German and Japanese makers.
- Diversify suppliers through Quad, EU and Japan supply-chain partnerships.
- Order early and keep spares and buffer machines for critical projects.
- Use WTO-compatible trade remedies (anti-dumping through the DGTR) while staying open to investment that is safe.
- Build export-control diplomacy: India's place in the Wassenaar Arrangement and its own SCOMET list.
Conclusion
Trade controls are now tools of power. India's answer must be resilient supply chains and its own capital-goods base, so that its key infrastructure is never held hostage.
227 words · Battle IAS model answer