The 16th edition of Indo-Nepal annual joint training exercise in jungle warfare and counterterrorism operations was held in December 2022 at Nepal Army Battle School, Saljhandi. What is the name of this exercise?
- (a)Sampriti
- (b)Mitra Shakti
- (c)Yudh Abhyas
- (d)Surya Kiran
Correct — D, Surya Kiran. Surya Kiran is the annual bilateral army exercise between India and Nepal, and its subject is exactly what the stem describes — jungle warfare, counter-terrorism operations in mountainous terrain, and disaster relief. The sixteenth edition was held in December 2022 at the Nepal Army Battle School at Saljhandi in Rupandehi district, and the two armies alternate as hosts from one edition to the next. The series has continued since: the eighteenth edition ran from December 2024 into January 2025, with urban warfare and jungle survival among the themes.
- (a)Sampriti — Sampriti is the India-Bangladesh army exercise, held alternately in the two countries. Its name is Bengali for goodwill, which is a useful mnemonic for the partner.
- (b)Mitra Shakti — Mitra Shakti is the India-Sri Lanka army exercise. UPSC set a whole question on the 2023 edition of it, held at Aundh in Pune, in the 2024 prelims — and the trap there was a statement calling it an India-Bangladesh exercise, which is exactly the confusion this option invites.
- (c)Yudh Abhyas — Yudh Abhyas is the India-United States army exercise, held alternately in the two countries. It is the largest of India’s bilateral army exercises with a non-neighbour, and it is not the Nepal series.
India runs a standing calendar of named bilateral and multilateral military exercises, most of them annual and most of them alternating host countries. The names are worth learning as pairs, because the examiners test the pairing rather than the content — Surya Kiran with Nepal, Sampriti with Bangladesh, Mitra Shakti with Sri Lanka, Yudh Abhyas with the United States, Garuda Shakti with Indonesia, Indra with Russia, Malabar as the naval exercise with the United States, Japan and Australia.
This is a pure pairing item, and the stem gives away more than it needs to: the venue is a Nepal Army school, so the partner is Nepal, and only one of the four names belongs to Nepal. Where candidates lose the mark is in reading past the venue. Three of the four names are real Indian exercises with other partners, so a guess has a one-in-four chance and no more. Two features of Surya Kiran are worth carrying beyond the name. The content is jungle warfare, counter-terrorism in mountains and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, which suits the open Indo-Nepal border; and the edition number rises by one a year, so the sixteenth in December 2022 places the seventeenth in 2023 and the eighteenth across the turn of 2024 into 2025. Do not confuse the exercise with the Indian Air Force's Surya Kiran aerobatic display team, which shares the name.
- Surya Kiran is the annual India-Nepal joint army exercise, hosted alternately by the two countries.
- Its sixteenth edition was held in December 2022 at the Nepal Army Battle School, Saljhandi.
- The training covers jungle warfare, counter-terrorism in mountainous terrain and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
- Sampriti is with Bangladesh, Mitra Shakti with Sri Lanka and Yudh Abhyas with the United States.
- The eighteenth edition of Surya Kiran ran from December 2024 into January 2025.
The examiner tests the pairing, not the drills. Learn the list as name-and-partner.
- Pairing Mitra Shakti with Bangladesh instead of Sri Lanka; UPSC has set exactly this error as a distractor.
- Mixing up the Surya Kiran exercise with the Indian Air Force's Surya Kiran aerobatic team.
- Ignoring the venue named in the stem, which usually gives the partner country away.
As a name-the-exercise or name-the-partner item, and increasingly as a multi-statement question on a single recent edition.
Which of the following statements about 'Exercise Mitra Shakti-2023' are correct? 1. This was a joint military exercise between India and Bangladesh. 2. It commenced in Aundh (Pune). 3. Joint response during counter-terrorism operations was a goal of this operation. 4. Indian Air Force was a part of this exercise. Select the answer using the code given below :
- (a) 1, 2 and 3
- (b) 1, 2 and 4
- (c) 1, 3 and 4
- (d) 2, 3 and 4
Answer(d) 2, 3 and 4
The clinching companion. That item fails a statement solely because it gives Mitra Shakti the wrong partner country, which is the same confusion option (b) is planted here to exploit.
CDS_GK_2020_I_Q802020What was the code name given to the first ever tri-service military exercise between India and USA?
- (a) Lion Triumph
- (b) Elephant Triumph
- (c) Tiger Triumph
- (d) Bison Triumph
Answer(c) Tiger Triumph
CDS returns to the exercise calendar in almost every session. The recall demanded is always the same — a code name matched to its partner country and, where it matters, to the services involved.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The joint military exercise Sampriti is conducted between India and
- (a)Nepal
- (b)Bangladesh
- (c)Sri Lanka
- (d)Myanmar
Answer(b) Bangladesh — Sampriti is the annual India-Bangladesh army exercise.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Exercise Yudh Abhyas is held between the armies of India and
- (a)Russia
- (b)France
- (c)The United States
- (d)Japan
Answer(c) The United States — its 2022 edition was conducted at Auli in Uttarakhand.