UPSC Prelims 2024 IR and Current Affairs questions: topic-wise weightage
UPSC Prelims 2024 asked 10 current affairs questions in GS Paper I, spread over 2 topics. See the current affairs weightage for 2024 below, then attempt each question with the official answer and an explanation.
IR and Current Affairs 2024: questions by topic
- International organisations, groupings and India's relations3
- Schemes, reports, indices and other current affairs7
Counted from the 10 questions on this page, tagged by topic in the Battle IAS PYQ bank.
Seeing 10 IR and Current Affairs questions spread over 2 topics can feel overwhelming. That's exactly why the Battle IAS PYQ Book maps every question topic by topic, so you know what to study first. Download free sample
International organisations, groupings and India's relations 3
Consider the following pairs :
| Country | Reason for being in the news
| 1. Argentina | Worst economic crisis
| 2. Sudan | War between the country’s regular army and paramilitary forces
| 3. Turkey | Rescinded its membership of NATO
How many of the pairs given above are correctly matched ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Only two pairs are correctly matched (b). Pair 1 is right: Argentina faced triple-digit inflation and its worst economic crisis in decades, which led to the election of Javier Milei in 2023. Pair 2 is right: Sudan's army, the SAF, has been at war with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023, causing one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. Pair 3 is wrong: Turkey is still in NATO. It delayed Sweden's entry but approved it in January 2024.
Notice the NATO growth: Finland joined in 2023 and Sweden in 2024, taking members to 32, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. India ran Operation Kaveri to evacuate its citizens from Sudan.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
Statement-I : There is instability and worsening security situation in the Sahel region.
Statement-II : There have been military takeovers/coups d’état in several countries of the Sahel region in the recent past.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements ?
Answer (a) & explanation
Both are correct and Statement II explains Statement I (a). Statement II is right: there were coups in Mali (2020, 2021), Burkina Faso (2022) and Niger (2023). Statement I is right because of them: the juntas pushed out French and UN forces, weakening counter-insurgency, and jihadist violence spread across the Sahel. Options (b), (c) and (d) miss this cause and effect.
Notice the later moves: the three juntas formed the Alliance of Sahel States, left ECOWAS in 2025, and turned towards Russia for security help. The Sahel is the semi-arid belt south of the Sahara, from Senegal to Sudan, also hit by desertification and climate stress.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
Statement-I : The European Parliament approved The Net-Zero Industry Act recently.
Statement-II : The European Union intends to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040 and therefore aims to develop all of its own clean technology by that time.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements ?
Answer (c) & explanation
Statement I is correct, Statement II is wrong (c). Statement I is right: the European Parliament approved the Net-Zero Industry Act in April 2024, to boost Europe's own making of clean technologies such as solar panels, batteries, wind turbines and heat pumps. Statement II is wrong on two counts: the EU's climate-neutrality target is 2050, not 2040, and the Act aims for Europe to make 40% of its clean-tech needs by 2030, not all of it. So options (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Notice the related EU tools: the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which affects Indian steel and aluminium exports, and the Critical Raw Materials Act. India's own net-zero target is 2070.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Schemes, reports, indices and other current affairs 7
Consider the following aircraft :
- 1. Rafael
- 2. MiG-29
- 3. Tejas MK-1
How many of the above are considered fifth generation fighter aircraft ?
Answer (d) & explanation
None of them is a fifth-generation fighter (d). Item 1 is wrong: the Rafale is a 4.5-generation fighter, bought from France. Item 2 is wrong: the MiG-29 is a fourth-generation fighter. Item 3 is wrong: the Tejas Mk-1 is a 4/4.5-generation light combat aircraft, built by HAL. A fifth-generation jet needs stealth, supercruise (supersonic flight without afterburners) and sensor fusion, like the US F-35 and F-22, Russia's Su-57 or China's J-20.
Notice India's own plan, the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), a fifth-generation stealth fighter designed by DRDO's Aeronautical Development Agency. In 2025, the government approved a model that lets private firms take part in building it.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following is/are correctly matched in terms of equivalent rank in the three services of Indian Defence forces ?
| Army | Airforce | Navy
| 1. Brigadier | Air Commodore | Commander
| 2. Major General | Air Vice Marshal | Vice Admiral
| 3. Major | Squadron Leader | Lieutenant Commander
| 4. Lieutenant Colonel | Group Captain | Captain
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
Answer (d) & explanation
Only row 3 is correctly matched (d). Row 3 is right: Major = Squadron Leader = Lieutenant Commander. Row 1 is wrong: Brigadier = Air Commodore = Commodore, not Commander. Row 2 is wrong: Major General = Air Vice Marshal = Rear Admiral; a Vice Admiral matches a Lieutenant General. Row 4 is wrong: Lieutenant Colonel = Wing Commander = Commander. Group Captain and Captain (Navy) go with Colonel.
Notice the top ranks: General = Air Chief Marshal = Admiral. The five-star ranks of Field Marshal, Marshal of the Air Force and Admiral of the Fleet are honorary; India's only holders were Manekshaw, Cariappa and Arjan Singh. The Chief of Defence Staff heads the joint military structure.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
What are the duties of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) as Head of the Department of Military Affairs ?
- 1. Permanent Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee
- 2. Exercise military command over the three Service Chiefs
- 3. Principal Military Advisor to Defence Minister on all tri-service matters
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
Answer (d) & explanation
Duties 1 and 3 are correct (d). Item 1 is right: the Chief of Defence Staff (post created in 2019) is the permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. Item 3 is right: the CDS is the principal military adviser to the Defence Minister on all tri-service matters, and heads the Department of Military Affairs. Item 2 is wrong: the CDS does not command the three Service Chiefs. Each chief keeps operational command of their own service, so options (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Notice the CDS's main task: jointness, meaning the three services train, buy and fight together, including setting up theatre commands. General Bipin Rawat was India's first CDS. The CDS also advises the Nuclear Command Authority.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Operations undertaken by the Army towards upliftment of the local population in remote areas to include addressing of their basic needs is called :
Answer (c) & explanation
Such Army work is called Operation Sadbhavana (c). Operation Sadbhavana, meaning "goodwill", is the Army's civic-action programme in Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and the North-East. It runs Army Goodwill Schools, health camps, water schemes and skill training to win hearts in remote areas. Option (a) is wrong: Sankalp is a Navy mission escorting Indian ships in the Gulf. Option (b) is wrong: Maitri was relief after the Nepal earthquake (2015). Option (d) is wrong: Madad is a Navy flood-relief operation, used in Kerala.
Notice other names UPSC likes: Operation Kaveri (Sudan evacuation, 2023), Operation Ajay (Israel, 2023), Operation Dost (Turkey earthquake, 2023) and Operation Sindoor (strikes on terror camps, 2025).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following statements about ‘Exercise Mitra Shakti-2023’ are correct ?
- 1. This was a joint military exercise between India and Bangladesh.
- 2. It commenced in Aundh (Pune).
- 3. Joint response during counter-terrorism operations was a goal of this operation.
- 4. Indian Air Force was a part of this exercise.
Select the answer using the code given below :
Answer (d) & explanation
Statements 2, 3 and 4 are correct (d). Statement 2 is right: the 2023 edition was held at Aundh, Pune. Statement 3 is right: it practised counter-terrorism operations under a UN peacekeeping mandate. Statement 4 is right: the Indian Air Force took part, alongside the Army. Statement 1 is wrong: Mitra Shakti is the India–Sri Lanka Army exercise. India and Bangladesh hold Sampriti, so options (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Notice other exercise pairs UPSC asks: Yudh Abhyas (USA), Garuda Shakti (Indonesia), Nomadic Elephant (Mongolia), Surya Kiran (Nepal), Dharma Guardian (Japan) and SLINEX (Sri Lanka, Navy). A trick: match the country, then the service.
Pairs to remember: Sampriti (Bangladesh), Mitra Shakti (Sri Lanka), Surya Kiran (Nepal), Ekuverin (Maldives).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Who of the following is the author of the books “The India Way” and “Why Bharat Matters” ?
Answer (d) & explanation
S. Jaishankar wrote both books (d). External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar wrote The India Way: Strategies for an Uncertain World (2020) and Why Bharat Matters (2024). Both set out his view of India's foreign policy in a multipolar world, with India dealing with all big powers on its own terms. Option (a) is wrong: Bhupender Yadav is the Environment Minister. Option (b) is wrong: Nalin Mehta writes on politics, such as The New BJP. Option (c) is wrong: Shashi Tharoor wrote An Era of Darkness and Why I Am a Hindu.
Notice Jaishankar's background: a career diplomat, earlier Foreign Secretary, and ambassador to China and the USA. His ideas include "strategic autonomy" and "multi-alignment".
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to the ‘Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan’, consider the following statements :
- 1. This scheme guarantees a minimum package of antenatal care services to women in their second and third trimesters of pregnancy and six months post-delivery health care service in any government health facility.
- 2. Under this scheme, private sector health care providers of certain specialities can volunteer to provide services at nearby government health facilities.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Only statement 2 is correct (b). Statement 2 is right: under the Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan (PMSMA, 2016), private doctors, such as obstetricians, volunteer their services at government facilities, under the "I Pledge for 9" call. Statement 1 is wrong: the scheme offers free, assured antenatal check-ups in the second and third trimesters on a fixed day, the 9th of every month. It does not include six months of post-delivery care.
Notice the aim: to cut maternal and infant deaths by catching high-risk pregnancies early. Related schemes include Janani Suraksha Yojana (cash for institutional delivery), PM Matru Vandana Yojana (₹5,000 for the first child) and LaQshya (labour room quality).
The antenatal part of statement 1 is accurate. The extra "six months post-delivery" clause is what makes it wrong.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
All years by topic
Every question from 2011 to 2026, grouped by syllabus topic, with year-wise trends.