Defence Exams (NDA, CDS, CAPF) Current Affairs Questions and Answers May 2026

Practice questions

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1. The Rajasthan Medical and Health Department received which WHO award on 19 May 2026?

   1. Global Health Champion Award
   2. Healthy Cities Award
   3. Polio Eradication Award
   4. World No Tobacco Day Award 2026
   Show answer

   Answer: D. World No Tobacco Day Award 2026 — It was the award for the South-East Asia Region, for strict enforcement of tobacco laws.

2. According to NITI Aayog, what share of India's integrated class 1-12 schools is in Rajasthan?

   1. 5.4%
   2. 35%
   3. 15%
   4. 50%
   Show answer

   Answer: B. 35% — Such schools are 5.4% of all schools, but 35% of them are in Rajasthan.

3. Who became Kerala's Chief Minister after the UDF ended ten years of LDF rule in May 2026?

   1. Pinarayi Vijayan
   2. K. Sudhakaran
   3. V. D. Satheesan
   4. Ramesh Chennithala
   Show answer

   Answer: C. V. D. Satheesan — The Congress-led UDF won Kerala and V. D. Satheesan became the new Chief Minister.

4. Who was named chairman of the Lok Sabha Public Accounts Committee for 2026-27?

   1. Baijayant Panda
   2. K. C. Venugopal
   3. Faggan Singh Kulaste
   4. Sanjay Jaiswal
   Show answer

   Answer: B. K. C. Venugopal — Congress MP K. C. Venugopal got the PAC; Panda got Public Undertakings, Jaiswal Estimates and Kulaste the SC-ST welfare committee.

5. Which organisation built the indigenous Cell Broadcast System for disaster alerts, with NDMA and the Home Ministry?

   1. ISRO
   2. BSNL
   3. C-DOT
   4. TRAI
   Show answer

   Answer: C. C-DOT — C-DOT, a Department of Telecommunications lab, developed the CBS, which alerts all phones in an area at once.

6. In which type of rock does the IIT Bombay CCUS field laboratory work on storing carbon dioxide?

   1. Basalt
   2. Granite
   3. Limestone
   4. Sandstone
   Show answer

   Answer: A. Basalt — The lab, led by Prof. Vikram Vishal, studies CO2 storage in basalt rocks using non-potable water.

7. In which city was the India-Nordic Summit held on 9 May 2026?

   1. Stockholm
   2. Oslo
   3. Copenhagen
   4. Helsinki
   Show answer

   Answer: B. Oslo — Earlier summits were at Stockholm (2018) and Copenhagen (2022).

8. Which Vietnamese leader visited India from 5 to 7 May 2026?

   1. President Vo Van Thuong
   2. General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong
   3. President To Lam
   4. President Luong Cuong
   Show answer

   Answer: C. President To Lam — To Lam's visit led to a plan for a 2+2 dialogue and a $25 billion trade target by 2030.

9. Which emergency medical kit will India gift to Cyprus?

   1. Bhishm Cube
   2. Sanjeevani Box
   3. Jeevan Raksha Pod
   4. Arogya Kit
   Show answer

   Answer: A. Bhishm Cube — The gift was announced during the Cyprus President's visit of 20-23 May 2026.

10. India and Italy reaffirmed a trade target of how much by 2029?

    1. €10 billion
    2. €15 billion
    3. €30 billion
    4. €20 billion
    Show answer

    Answer: D. €20 billion — The two sides also agreed on an innovation centre called SINNOVIT India.

11. How much crude oil may ADNOC store in India's strategic petroleum reserve?

    1. 10 million barrels
    2. 30 million barrels
    3. 50 million barrels
    4. 100 million barrels
    Show answer

    Answer: B. 30 million barrels — The UAE is India's only partner in the strategic petroleum reserve programme.

12. How much money does the Quad's Critical Minerals Initiative framework aim to raise?

    1. About ₹16,000 crore
    2. About ₹60,000 crore
    3. About ₹1.6 lakh crore
    4. About ₹3.2 lakh crore
    Show answer

    Answer: C. About ₹1.6 lakh crore — The framework is meant to secure mineral supply chains in the Indo-Pacific.

13. Who visited India from 23 to 26 May 2026 as the US Secretary of State?

    1. Marco Rubio
    2. Antony Blinken
    3. Pete Hegseth
    4. Mike Pompeo
    Show answer

    Answer: A. Marco Rubio — Marco Rubio is the US Secretary of State in President Trump's government.

14. Tulsi Gabbard resigned from which US post?

    1. CIA Director
    2. Secretary of Defense
    3. FBI Director
    4. Director of National Intelligence
    Show answer

    Answer: D. Director of National Intelligence — She quit President Trump's cabinet as the Director of National Intelligence.

15. Where was the Indian War Memorial dedicated by Rajnath Singh in May 2026?

    1. Busan
    2. Incheon
    3. Imjingak Park, Seoul
    4. Panmunjom
    Show answer

    Answer: C. Imjingak Park, Seoul — Rajnath Singh dedicated it on 21 May 2026 during his South Korea visit.

16. Why was the India-Africa Forum Summit of 28-31 May 2026 postponed?

    1. Floods in the host country
    2. A coup in a host nation
    3. Lack of funds
    4. A rapid rise in Ebola cases
    Show answer

    Answer: D. A rapid rise in Ebola cases — Ebola cases were rising fast across the African continent.

One-liner questions: fill in the blank

1. A NITI Aayog report of May 2026 says Rajasthan is the only state where classes 1 to 12 are taught on the same school campus; _____ schools offer this.

   Show answer

   Answer: 27,889

2. Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia launched the indigenous _____, built by C-DOT with NDMA and the Home Ministry, which sends disaster alerts within seconds to every active phone in a chosen area.

   Show answer

   Answer: Cell Broadcast System (CBS)

3. India's first fully developed integrated _____ (carbon capture, utilisation and storage) field laboratory was opened at IIT Bombay under Bharat Innovates 2026; led by Prof. Vikram Vishal, it stores CO2 in basalt rocks using non-potable water.

   Show answer

   Answer: CCUS

4. The _____ (India, US, Japan, Australia) launched a Critical Minerals Initiative framework to raise about ₹1.6 lakh crore for secure mineral supply chains in the Indo-Pacific.

   Show answer

   Answer: Quad

5. During _____ on 5 May 2026, ADNOC was allowed to store up to 30 million barrels of crude oil in India's strategic petroleum reserve. The UAE is India's only partner in this programme, and Fujairah storage will also be explored.

   Show answer

   Answer: PM Modi's UAE visit

6. The second _____ was held on 7-8 May at South Western Command HQ, Jaipur, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and CDS General Anil Chauhan present.

   Show answer

   Answer: Joint Commanders' Conference 2026

7. The _____ was held in Oslo, Norway on 9 May 2026. It followed the Stockholm (2018) and Copenhagen (2022) summits and created a new strategic partnership on green technology and innovation.

   Show answer

   Answer: India-Nordic Summit

8. On 19 May 2026 the Rajasthan Medical and Health Department won the WHO _____ for the South-East Asia Region.

   Show answer

   Answer: World No Tobacco Day Award 2026

9. Integrated (class 1-12) schools are only 5.4% of schools in India, but _____ of them are in Rajasthan, so every third such school in the country is in the state.

   Show answer

   Answer: 35%

10. _____ became the Chief Minister of Assam again after the NDA's third straight win.

    Show answer

    Answer: Himanta Biswa Sarma

11. _____ became the new Chief Minister of West Bengal after the BJP won the state.

    Show answer

    Answer: Suvendu Adhikari

12. _____ became the new Chief Minister of Kerala after the UDF victory.

    Show answer

    Answer: V. D. Satheesan

13. _____ was appointed the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu after the May 2026 assembly election.

    Show answer

    Answer: Joseph Vijay

14. _____ of the All India N.R. Congress was appointed Chief Minister of Puducherry again. Turnout in the Union Territory was 89.87%.

    Show answer

    Answer: N. Rangasamy

15. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla named Dr _____ (BJP) as chairman of the Estimates Committee for 2026-27.

    Show answer

    Answer: Sanjay Jaiswal

16. _____ (BJP) was named chairman of the Committee on Public Undertakings for 2026-27.

    Show answer

    Answer: Baijayant Panda

17. Congress MP _____ was named chairman of the Public Accounts Committee for 2026-27.

    Show answer

    Answer: K. C. Venugopal

18. _____ (BJP) was named chairman of the Committee on the Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes for 2026-27.

    Show answer

    Answer: Faggan Singh Kulaste

19. The Centre made retired Justice _____ head of a high-level committee to study demographic changes caused by illegal immigration.

    Show answer

    Answer: Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar

20. Coal gasification means reacting coal with oxygen and steam under controlled conditions to make _____, a mix of gases such as carbon monoxide and hydrogen, instead of burning the coal fully.

    Show answer

    Answer: syngas

21. Three social security schemes, _____, completed 11 years in May 2026; all were launched on 9 May 2015 to give affordable insurance and pension cover to poorer groups.

    Show answer

    Answer: PMJJBY, PMSBY and APY

22. Unlike SMS, which goes from one number to another and can jam, _____ is area-based, reaches all phones in an area at once and is not affected by network congestion.

    Show answer

    Answer: cell broadcast

23. ICAR and ICMR launched the _____, an eight-year mission (2026-2033) linking farming, nutrition and health to curb malnutrition and disease.

    Show answer

    Answer: Sehat Mission

24. The Health Ministry introduced the _____, a digital system to track health records of mothers and newborn babies through the reproductive period.

    Show answer

    Answer: Janani platform

25. _____ was founded in 1960 at Baghdad by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, and the UAE joined in 1967. Eleven active members remain: Algeria, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.

    Show answer

    Answer: OPEC

26. _____ was formed in 2016 when OPEC members were joined by Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Brunei, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Oman, Russia, South Sudan and Sudan.

    Show answer

    Answer: OPEC+

27. _____, the US Director of National Intelligence, resigned from President Trump's cabinet.

    Show answer

    Answer: Tulsi Gabbard

28. _____, an active volcano in the Philippines, made news after a recent eruption.

    Show answer

    Answer: Mayon Volcano

29. The WHO estimates about _____ (2.21 crore) excess deaths linked to Covid-19 worldwide between 2020 and 2023.

    Show answer

    Answer: 22.1 million

30. _____ added a new clause to its nuclear doctrine: if leader Kim Jong-un is killed or unable to function, the military can launch an automatic nuclear counter-strike.

    Show answer

    Answer: North Korea

31. Saudi Arabia is set to join the _____ as its 26th member country.

    Show answer

    Answer: International Big Cat Alliance

32. _____ became Canada's first Sikh ship engineer to serve with a full beard at BC Ferries. He is from Kang village, Dhariwal tehsil, Gurdaspur (Punjab), and studied at BITS Pilani.

    Show answer

    Answer: Karambir Singh Kang

33. The _____, due on 28-31 May 2026, was postponed because Ebola cases were rising fast in Africa.

    Show answer

    Answer: India-Africa Forum Summit

34. People of Indian origin, about _____ in number, have become the largest migrant group in Australia.

    Show answer

    Answer: 9.17 lakh

35. In the _____, during Modi's second visit, both sides agreed to build a strategic partnership, signed a customs mutual-assistance pact and set up a joint trade and investment committee with a fast-track mechanism.

    Show answer

    Answer: Netherlands

36. In _____, at PM Giorgia Meloni's invitation, a foreign-minister-led mechanism was set up to deepen the Special Strategic Partnership, and the target of €20 billion trade by 2029 was reaffirmed.

    Show answer

    Answer: Italy

37. India and Italy agreed to set up an innovation centre named _____ and to hold the first ministerial meeting this year to speed up the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC).

    Show answer

    Answer: SINNOVIT India

38. Indian Navy chief _____ made a four-day official visit to Myanmar from 2 to 5 May 2026.

    Show answer

    Answer: Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi

39. Vietnam's President _____ visited India from 5 to 7 May 2026. Both sides agreed to start a diplomacy-defence 2+2 dialogue, Vietnam will join the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI), and the 2024-28 joint action plan will be implemented faster.

    Show answer

    Answer: To Lam

40. Rajasthan sent its biggest team (6 teams, 47 players) to the 47th All India Electricity Employees Sports Competition_____kho-kho team was runner-up, and Deepak Kumar of Jaipur Discom won wrestling silver a third time.

    Show answer

    Answer: in Pune, 6-8 May 2026. The women's