TDB Clears Rs 285 Crore for Ubifly's Indigenous ePlane e200X

The correct answer is Rs 285 crore. The Technology Development Board, which functions under the Department of Science and Technology, approved that amount for Ubifly Technologies Private Limited of Chennai out of the Research Development and Innovation Fund, for its indigenous ePlane advanced air mobility solution. Option C is the figure most likely to mislead a candidate: it is the total approved cost of the project, not the Board's share, so the Board is meeting roughly half of the outlay while the rest comes from elsewhere. Option A and option D do not appear anywhere in the announcement and are simply plausible-looking amounts. The support is being extended through Optionally Convertible Debentures rather than as an outright grant, and its stated purpose is to carry the technology from Technology Readiness Level 6 to Level 9, which is the stage of an operationally demonstrated system.

The correct answer is a three-seater zero-emission advanced air mobility aircraft. The release describes the e200X as configured for one pilot and two passengers, with a targeted range of 110 km and an ideal speed of 160 kmph, and with a landing gear built for both conventional and vertical landing so that it can operate out of relatively small spaces. Option A is wrong because the aircraft is electrically powered and seats three, not two, and it is not described as a trainer. Option C is wrong because the configuration explicitly includes a pilot on board along with two passengers, so it is not an unmanned platform. Option D is wrong on every count, as the e200X is a small electric machine and not a turboprop airliner. Its indigenous elements include vertical rotors, forward propellers, proprietary flight-control algorithms, power-distribution controllers and battery packs with integrated cooling.

The correct answer is Optionally Convertible Debentures, usually shortened to OCD. The Technology Development Board is routing its support to Ubifly Technologies through this instrument, which is a form of debt that the holder has the option of converting into equity shares of the company after an agreed period. Option A is wrong because the release does not describe the money as a grant; the choice of a convertible instrument is precisely what distinguishes this kind of deep-tech support from a subsidy. Option B is wrong because sovereign green bonds are raised by the government in the market for environment-related spending and have nothing to do with this approval. Option D is wrong because viability gap funding is a support mechanism used mainly in infrastructure projects. The Research Development and Innovation Fund, from which this support comes, is a Rs 1 lakh crore pool aimed at private-sector-led technology development.