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Current Affairs Quiz

UPSC Civil Services Weekly Current Affairs Quiz: 19–25 October 2026

  • 30 questions
  • 30 minutes
  • Difficulty: Medium
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About this quiz

This UPSC Civil Services current affairs quiz puts 30 multiple-choice questions to you from 30 stories published in the week of 19–25 October 2026 that matter for the UPSC Civil Services general awareness section. The questions are the same verified MCQs that accompany GK24's articles, chosen here for their relevance to UPSC Civil Services, and every one carries a full explanation of the correct option and of why the other options are wrong. Attempt the quiz within the timer, review the explanations at the end, and read the stories behind the questions on their articles or the day's edition page. Bookmark it for a quick revision before the exam.

Questions in this quiz

30 questions with answers and explanations

Q1.InternationalMedium

Which Indian body signed the Memorandum of Cooperation on electronic origin data exchange with the New Zealand Customs Service?

  1. A.Directorate General of Foreign Trade
  2. B.Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs
  3. C.NITI Aayog
  4. D.Reserve Bank of India
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs

The memorandum concerning the electronic exchange of origin data on trade in goods was signed by the CBIC on behalf of India and by the New Zealand Customs Service on the other side, with CBIC Chairman Vivek Chaturvedi and NZCS Comptroller and Chief Executive Christine Stevenson putting their names to…

Q2.InternationalEasy

Who, as Secretary DARE and Director General ICAR, addressed a roundtable at the Norman E Borlaug International Dialogue?

  1. A.Dr M. L. Jat
  2. B.Dr B. S. Dwivedi
  3. C.Dr Karim Meredia
  4. D.Dr P. V. Varaprasad
Show answer
Correct answer: A. Dr M. L. Jat

He is Secretary of the Department of Agricultural Research and Education and Director General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, and he addressed the roundtable virtually, speaking in his capacity as President of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, India.

Q3.EnvironmentMedium

Stage-I of the Graded Response Action Plan is invoked when Delhi's air quality falls in which category?

  1. A.Moderate, an AQI of 101 to 200
  2. B.Poor, an AQI of 201 to 300
  3. C.Very Poor, an AQI of 301 to 400
  4. D.Severe, an AQI above 400
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Poor, an AQI of 201 to 300

Stage-I of the Graded Response Action Plan is the stage meant for poor air, and it was invoked across the National Capital Region after Delhi's daily average index was recorded at 244 at 2 PM and then at 245 by 4 PM, both of which sit inside that band.

Q9.Government SchemesEasy

Which portal for farmers was launched by Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan?

  1. A.Kisan Suvidha Portal
  2. B.Agri Welfare Portal
  3. C.AgriStack Portal
  4. D.Annadata Seva Portal
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Agri Welfare Portal

Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan formally launched this revamped portal on the Navami day of Navratri, so that scheme information, financial assistance and farming advice reach farmers directly on their mobile phones instead of through visits to offices or through intermediaries.

Q13.NationalMedium

Under which law did the DRI seize the amphetamine and cocaine recovered in these three operations?

  1. A.The Customs Act, 1962
  2. B.The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985
  3. C.The Explosives Act, 1884
  4. D.The Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002
Show answer
Correct answer: B. The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985

Amphetamine is a psychotropic substance and cocaine is a narcotic drug, so all three consignments, the one recovered at the Bengaluru airport, the one taken from a backpack near Nagpur and the one found at Terminal 3 of the Delhi airport, were seized under this Act and the arrests were…

Q14.EconomyMedium

Under which law were the three persons arrested in the DRI's Gujarat gold smuggling case?

  1. A.The Customs Act, 1962
  2. B.The NDPS Act, 1985
  3. C.The Gold Control Act, 1968
  4. D.The Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999
Show answer
Correct answer: A. The Customs Act, 1962

Gold brought into the country without declaration and without payment of duty is smuggled goods, so the three arrests in this case, which covered dealings in 13.017 kg of foreign-origin gold valued at about Rs 19.41 crore, were made under that Act.

Q16.DefenceEasy

Swavlamban 2026, the fifth edition of the Indian Navy's innovation and indigenisation seminar, will be held at which venue?

  1. A.Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi
  2. B.Manekshaw Centre, New Delhi
  3. C.Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi
  4. D.INS Shikra, Mumbai
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Manekshaw Centre, New Delhi

The fifth edition of Swavlamban, the Navy's annual NIIO seminar on innovation and indigenisation, is scheduled there on 26 and 27 October 2026, as announced at the curtain raiser press conference chaired by Vice Admiral Ajay Kochhar, Vice Chief of the Naval Staff.

Q20.Government SchemesMedium

The NFSC fellowship, in the news for supporting a Solapur scholar's doctorate, is run by which ministry?

  1. A.Ministry of Education
  2. B.Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
  3. C.Ministry of Tribal Affairs
  4. D.Ministry of Science and Technology
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment

The National Fellowship for Scheduled Caste Students, or NFSC, is that ministry's scheme and gives financial assistance to eligible Scheduled Caste students pursuing advanced education and research.

Q23.Banking & FinanceEasy

The saturation campaign of financial inclusion schemes announced by the Ministry of Finance will run during which period?

  1. A.2 October 2026 to 31 October 2026
  2. B.21 October 2026 to 31 December 2026
  3. C.1 November 2026 to 31 March 2027
  4. D.21 October 2026 to 26 January 2027
Show answer
Correct answer: B. 21 October 2026 to 31 December 2026

The Department of Financial Services fixed this window for the countrywide drive, which reaches every gram panchayat and urban local body and asks banks to hold camps through the period.

Q24.NationalMedium

PRAGATI 2026, the national seminar on standardisation in Ayurveda and Yoga, was organised by which body?

  1. A.Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
  2. B.Bureau of Indian Standards
  3. C.National Medical Commission
  4. D.Quality Council of India
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Bureau of Indian Standards

BIS is the national standards body of India, responsible for standardisation and conformity assessment, and its AYUSH department organised the seminar at Belagavi in Karnataka as well as a parallel session on Sowa-Rigpa at Leh.

Q26.InternationalMedium

The India-Saudi Arabia Electrical Interconnection initiative was reviewed in a virtual bilateral meeting led on the Indian side by which official?

  1. A.The Secretary, Ministry of Power
  2. B.The Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs
  3. C.The Chairperson, Central Electricity Authority
  4. D.The Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
Show answer
Correct answer: A. The Secretary, Ministry of Power

The correct answer is the Secretary, Ministry of Power, Pankaj Agarwal, who held the virtual bilateral meeting with his Saudi counterpart to review progress on the proposed cross-border link.

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