(Test Your Defence IQ) August 2026

 TEST YOUR DEFENCE IQ

Bharat's Strategic Engine — 9 July to 9 August, 2026

Q1. Which frigate did the Navy commission on 11 July, and what class does it belong to?

A. INS Malvan, the Mahe-class Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft

B. INS Mahendragiri, the sixth and final Project 17A stealth frigate

C. INS Vikrant, an indigenous aircraft carrier

D. INS Arihant, a nuclear-powered submarine

Q2. Approximately what percentage of INS Mahendragiri's content is indigenous?

A. 50 percent

B. 60 percent

C. 75 percent

D. 90 percent

Q3. Where and when was INS Malvan commissioned?

A. Visakhapatnam, 11 July

B. Karwar, 22 July

C. Mumbai, 15 July

D. Kochi, 3 August

Q4. What minimum range did the Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket achieve in its DRDO flight test at Chandipur?

A. 40 kilometres

B. 60 kilometres

C. 90 kilometres

D. 120 kilometres

Q5. Kusha, flight-tested on 23 July, is best described as:

A. An anti-submarine warfare shallow water craft

B. An indigenous Long-Range Surface-to-Air Missile system

C. A stealth frigate

D. An expendable turbojet engine

Q6. Which company will participate as the Development Cum Production Partner for AEW&C Mk-II mission systems?

A. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders

B. Azad Engineering

C. Adani Defence Systems and Technologies

D. Esri India

Q7. How many A321 aircraft will be converted under the AEW&C Mk-II programme?

A. Four

B. Six

C. Eight

D. Ten

Q8. Which organisation is leading the revived Kaveri 2.0 engine programme?

A. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders

B. Gas Turbine Research Establishment

C. Bharat Electronics Limited

D. Warship Design Bureau

Q9. What value of additional defence orders did Bharat Electronics Limited secure by the end of July?

A. ₹450 crore

B. ₹620 crore

C. ₹847 crore

D. ₹1,200 crore

Q10. The CG Semi OSAT facility, which began commercial production in early July, is located in:

A. Visakhapatnam

B. Chandipur

C. Sanand, Gujarat

D. Karwar

Q11. The commissioning of both INS Mahendragiri and INS Malvan in July chiefly illustrates Bharat's naval strategy by:

A. Focusing exclusively on blue-water operations at the expense of coastal defence

B. Combining blue-water capability with shallow-water requirements to meet varied maritime needs

C. Replacing indigenous shipbuilding with foreign procurement

D. Prioritising submarine construction over surface combatants

Q12. The significance of testing the Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket from the existing launcher lies in:

A. Demonstrating that Bharat requires an entirely new launch architecture for future upgrades

B. Achieving greater range without the cost and delay of building new launch infrastructure

C. Proving that volume of fire matters more than precision

D. Showing that the Pinaka system has been discontinued

Q13. The review frames Kusha's maiden flight test as important primarily because:

A. It completes Bharat's air-defence network

B. It marks a meaningful step in an ongoing programme to build a layered, self-reliant air-defence architecture

C. It removes the need for any further testing

D. It confirms that dependence on imported air-defence systems will increase

Q14. The revival of the Kaveri engine programme is presented with caution mainly because:

A. Fighter engines are among the hardest defence technologies to develop, and Bharat has fallen short before

B. The programme has already achieved all its major development milestones

C. GTRE has abandoned work on thrust and weight performance

D. The AMCA programme has been cancelled

Q15. Why does the review consider the CG Semi OSAT facility, though not a defence plant, relevant to national security?

A. It manufactures missile launchers directly

B. It removes the need for indigenous weapons platforms

C. Modern weapons depend on electronics, which in turn depend on secure semiconductor supply chains

D. It is jointly operated by the Navy and DRDO

Q16. The Bharat-Belgium Strategic Dialogue is highlighted in the review chiefly to illustrate:

A. Bharat's withdrawal from European engagement

B. That Bharat's European partnerships are broadening beyond the traditional major powers

C. A shift of focus away from defence and technology cooperation

D. Belgium's role as Bharat's largest arms supplier

Q17. The Guwahati Declaration, concluded during Bharat's BRICS chairship, is significant for the Northeast because it:

A. Focuses on naval cooperation in the Indian Ocean

B. Addresses drug trafficking and organised crime concerns tied to cross-border vulnerabilities

C. Establishes a new integrated theatre command

D. Deals primarily with semiconductor supply chains

Q18. The BEL-Esri India MoU on GeoAI reflects the broader trend, described in the review, that:

A. Geospatial intelligence is becoming central to surveillance, logistics and decision-making

B. Bharat is reducing its investment in electronics manufacturing

C. Mapping technology has no defence application

D. Bharat Electronics is shifting entirely away from defence orders

Q19. According to the "Strategic Verdict" section, the central pattern across July's developments is that Bharat is:

A. Focused solely on acquiring individual weapons systems

B. Building the broader industrial, technological and diplomatic ecosystem that sustains military power

C. Reducing its diplomatic engagement to concentrate on the military

D. Dependent on a single high-visibility announcement to define its strategic position

Q20. The review's closing lines frame the "next test" for Bharat as being about:

A. Whether Bharat can produce a single advanced weapon

B. Whether Bharat can build the entire system around the weapon

C. Whether Bharat can end all of its diplomatic partnerships

D. Whether Bharat can revert to full import dependence

ANSWERS:  1-B | 2-C | 3-B | 4-B | 5-B | 6-C | 7-B | 8-B | 9-C | 10-C | 11-B | 12-B | 13-B | 14-A | 15-C | 16-B | 17-B | 18-A | 19-B | 20-B

Seema Sanghosh English: August 2026