✅ Answer: A) 1 and 2 onlyPairs 1 and 2 are correctly matched. Agni-V is an ICBM with range 5,000-8,000 km. BrahMos is a supersonic cruise missile (Mach 2.8). Pair 3 is incorrect — Akash is a surface-to-air missile (SAM) for air defence, not anti-tank. Nag is the anti-tank missile. Trishul was a short-range surface-to-air missile (now retired). All these were part of the IGMDP programme.

✅ Answer: C) 1998Pokhran-II (Operation Shakti) was conducted on May 11-13, 1998 under PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Five nuclear tests were conducted. India declared itself a nuclear weapons state. The tests were conducted at Pokhran, Rajasthan. Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and Dr. R. Chidambaram were the key scientists. The USA and other countries imposed sanctions on India after the tests. India-Pakistan nuclear standoff followed as Pakistan also tested in May 1998.

✅ Answer: C) 1958DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) was established in 1958 by merging the Technical Development Establishment (TDE) and the Directorate of Technical Development and Production (DTDP). Its headquarters is in New Delhi. It has 50+ laboratories across India. DRDO works under the Ministry of Defence. It develops weapons, electronics, materials, and other defence technologies for the Indian Armed Forces.

✅ Answer: A) Surface-to-surface ballistic missilePrithvi is a surface-to-surface short-range ballistic missile developed by DRDO. It has three variants: Prithvi-I (150 km, Army), Prithvi-II (250-350 km, Air Force), Prithvi-III (350 km, Navy — also called Dhanush). It uses liquid fuel. It is nuclear-capable. Prithvi was the first missile developed under the IGMDP programme. It was first tested in 1988.

✅ Answer: A) Land, Sea, and AirIndia’s nuclear triad consists of: Land (Agni ballistic missiles), Sea (INS Arihant nuclear submarine with K-15/K-4 missiles), and Air (aircraft like Mirage 2000, Jaguar, Rafale). A nuclear triad ensures second-strike capability — even if two legs are destroyed, the third can retaliate. INS Arihant (2016) completed India’s nuclear triad. Only USA, Russia, China, France, UK, and India have a complete nuclear triad.

✅ Answer: A) HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited)Tejas was developed by HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) with DRDO support. The Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) under DRDO was the nodal agency. HAL manufactures the aircraft. Tejas is a 4th generation, single-engine, multirole fighter. It was inducted into IAF in 2016. India has ordered 83 Tejas Mk1A aircraft. HAL is headquartered in Bengaluru and is India’s largest aerospace company.

✅ Answer: C) 1983The IGMDP (Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme) was launched in 1983 under the leadership of Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. It aimed to develop 5 missile systems: Agni (ballistic), Prithvi (surface-to-surface), Akash (surface-to-air), Nag (anti-tank), and Trishul (short-range SAM). The programme was formally closed in 2008 after achieving its objectives. It made India self-reliant in missile technology.

✅ Answer: B) Main Battle TankArjun is India’s indigenously developed Main Battle Tank (MBT), developed by DRDO’s CVRDE (Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment) in Chennai. It weighs 68 tonnes and has a 120mm rifled gun. Arjun Mk1A is the upgraded version with 72 improvements. It is used by the Indian Army. India also uses T-90 (Russian) and T-72 tanks. The Arjun programme started in 1974 and the tank was inducted in 2004.

✅ Answer: B) Hypersonic missile (Mach 7+)BrahMos-II is being developed as a hypersonic missile with a speed of Mach 7+ (7 times the speed of sound). The current BrahMos travels at Mach 2.8 (supersonic). Hypersonic missiles are extremely difficult to intercept due to their speed and maneuverability. India, USA, Russia, and China are developing hypersonic weapons. India also tested the Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) in 2020.

✅ Answer: B) Shoot down a satellite in space (ASAT)Mission Shakti (March 27, 2019) demonstrated India’s Anti-Satellite (ASAT) capability. India shot down its own satellite (Microsat-R) at 300 km altitude using a ground-based missile. India became the 4th country to demonstrate ASAT capability (after USA, Russia, China). PM Narendra Modi announced the success. The debris was in low orbit and decayed within weeks. This made India a “space power.”