Exercise Varuna is a joint naval exercise between India and which country?

The correct answer is A, India and the United Kingdom. Ajeya Warrior is the bilateral army exercise between India and the United Kingdom, held alternately in the two countries, in which the two armies train together in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations in a built-up and semi-urban setting. India holds three exercises with the United Kingdom, one for each service: Ajeya Warrior with the army, Konkan with the navy and Indradhanush with the air force. Option B is wrong because India has no army exercise of this name with Israel; India takes part in the multinational air exercise Blue Flag hosted by Israel. Option C is wrong because the army exercise with France is Shakti, while Varuna is naval and Garuda is with the air force. Option D is wrong because the army exercises with the United States are Yudh Abhyas and the special forces exercise Vajra Prahar.

The correct answer is C, Nepal. Surya Kiran is the battalion-level army exercise between India and Nepal, held alternately in the two countries, in which the Indian Army and the Nepali Army train in jungle warfare, counter-insurgency and disaster relief. It is the only named bilateral exercise India holds with Nepal, which makes it an easy mark in an examination. Option A is wrong because the exercises with Bangladesh are Sampriti for the armies and Bongosagar for the navies, with a coordinated patrol in the Bay of Bengal. Option B is wrong because the exercises with Sri Lanka are Mitra Shakti for the armies and SLINEX for the navies. Option D is wrong because India holds no named bilateral exercise with Bhutan; cooperation there runs through training assistance and the Indian Military Training Team.

The correct answer is C, the United States. Malabar started in 1992 as a bilateral naval exercise between the Indian Navy and the United States Navy. Japan took part in some editions and became a permanent participant in 2015, and Australia joined in 2020, so Malabar is now held among the four Quad navies. Option A is wrong because Japan, although a permanent participant since 2015, was not a founding partner; the bilateral naval exercise with Japan is JIMEX. Option B is wrong because Australia was the last of the four to join, in 2020, and its bilateral naval exercise with India is AUSINDEX, which began in 2015. Option D is wrong because the naval exercise with the United Kingdom is Konkan, and the United Kingdom is not a Malabar participant.

The correct answer is A, China. Hand-in-Hand is the counter-terrorism army exercise between India and China, in which small contingents of the two armies train together in cordon and search operations and in joint tactical drills. It is the only named bilateral exercise between the two countries. Option B is wrong because the exercises with Myanmar are the India-Myanmar bilateral army exercise IMBEX and the coordinated naval patrol IMCOR. Option C is wrong because the army exercise with Vietnam is VINBAX, which has a United Nations peacekeeping and engineering theme. Option D is wrong because the exercise with Mongolia is Nomadic Elephant, a long-running army exercise focused on counter-insurgency under a United Nations mandate. Remembering the name in the partner's idiom or language helps; here the plain English name belongs to China.

The correct answer is B, Russia. Indra is the joint exercise between India and Russia; it began as separate army and naval exercises and has also been held as a tri-service exercise, while Aviaindra is the exercise between the two air forces. Option A is wrong, and is the trap in this question, because the exercises with Indonesia are Garuda Shakti for the special forces and Samudra Shakti for the navies, along with a coordinated patrol in the Andaman Sea; the similarity of the words Indra and Indonesia is deliberate. Option C is wrong because with Israel India has no named bilateral field exercise of this kind, taking part instead in the multinational Blue Flag air exercise. Option D is wrong because India holds no such named exercise with Iran, though Indian ships make port calls at Chabahar.