UPPSC PYQ 1 (2020) — Geography
Which of the following ocean currents is associated with Indian Ocean?
- Florida current
- Canary current
- Agulhas current
- Kurile current
Answer: C. Agulhas current
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On July 18, 2026, Hyderabad-based Skyroot Aerospace successfully launched Vikram-1 — India's first privately developed orbital-class rocket — from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota under 'Mission Aagaman' (Sanskrit for 'The Arrival'). The launch placed multiple technology demonstration payloads into a 450 km Low Earth Orbit at a 60-degree inclination, making India only the third country globally to achieve private-sector orbital launch capability using a rocket built entirely by a private company, after the United States and China.
The mission carries deep symbolic weight: it came almost exactly 46 years after ISRO's SLV-3 placed the Rohini (RS-1) satellite into orbit from the same launch complex on July 18, 1980 — linking two landmark moments in India's space journey, one state-led and one private-led.
For aspirants preparing for UPSC, UPPSC, MPSC, and other state PSC exams, this topic is directly relevant for GS Paper 3 (Science and Technology, Indigenisation of Technology, Space Policy) and frequently appears as a source-based current affairs question on India's private space sector reforms.
India's private space sector was formally opened up in June 2020, when the government created the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) as a single-window, independent nodal agency under the Department of Space to authorise and promote private participation in space activities. This followed space sector reforms allowing private companies to build satellites, launch vehicles, and provide space-based services — activities that were, until then, the exclusive domain of ISRO.
Skyroot Aerospace, founded in 2018 by former ISRO scientists Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka, became the first Indian private company to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with ISRO (2019) and later with IN-SPACe. It first made headlines in November 2022 with the sub-orbital demonstration flight Vikram-S under Mission Prarambh ('The Beginning'), which validated key technologies but did not reach orbit.
Vikram-1 under Mission Aagaman is the natural successor — a full orbital-class vehicle designed to carry commercial payloads of up to 350 kg into Low Earth Orbit. Its success moves India from a state-monopoly launch model toward a mixed public-private space economy.
Launch Details
Rocket Specifications
Payloads Carried
Significance
Political and Constitutional Dimensions Space activity falls under the Union List (List I), placing exclusive legislative and regulatory competence with Parliament and the Department of Space. The launch reinforces the executive's use of delegated regulatory bodies — here IN-SPACe, created by an executive order rather than a standalone statute — to authorise private actors in a domain previously reserved to a public sector undertaking (ISRO). India still lacks a comprehensive Space Activities Act to bind private operators to liability and safety obligations in statute, a point of ongoing policy debate.
Economic and Financial Dimensions India's space economy is targeted to grow from roughly $8 billion today to over $44 billion by 2033 under the Indian Space Policy 2023, with private players expected to capture a growing share of launch services and satellite manufacturing. A repeatable private orbital launch capability reduces dependency on ISRO's launch manifest for commercial and small-satellite customers, and reinforces investor confidence into India's roughly 200-strong space-tech startup ecosystem.
Social Dimensions The mission underscores a shift in aspirational science careers in India, with private aerospace increasingly seen as a viable destination for engineering talent alongside ISRO and the armed forces. Public reactions, including congratulatory messages from public figures, reflect the mission's resonance as a national achievement.
Governance and Administrative Dimensions The launch was conducted from ISRO's Satish Dhawan Space Centre under an infrastructure-sharing arrangement facilitated by IN-SPACe, illustrating the 'authorisation and promotion' model where public infrastructure is opened to private players under safety and technical oversight, without diluting ISRO's own launch schedule for national missions.
International Perspective Vikram-1's success places India alongside the United States and China as the only countries where a privately built rocket has reached orbit, ahead of established private-launch aspirants in Europe, Japan, and South Korea, strengthening India's position in the global commercial launch market.
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Which of the following ocean currents is associated with Indian Ocean?
Answer: C. Agulhas current
Without green house effect, the average temperature of earth surface would be
Answer: B. –18°C
1. In Ease of Doing Business Report 2020, India's rank is 63. 2. India ranking for Ease of Doing Business in the year 2019 was 77.
With reference to the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business Report, which of the following statement(s) is/are correct?
Answer: B. 2 only
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Geography · 2020Which of the following ocean currents is associated with Indian Ocean?
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