Defence Current Affairs MCQs

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Indian Naval Ships INS Rana and INS Jyoti took part in the 12th edition of Sri Lanka–India Naval Exercise (SLINEX-25). SLINEX is a bilateral naval exercise between India and Sri Lanka, started in 2005. It has enhanced maritime cooperation and interoperability for nearly two decades. The last edition was held in Visakhapatnam, India, in 2024. SLINEX-25 is conducted in two phases – Harbour phase and Sea phase. Harbour phase includes Subject Matter Expert Exchange (SMEE), cultural programs, yoga, sports, and best practice sharing. Sea phase covers gunnery firing, navigation, seamanship, fueling at sea, communication, and Visit Board Search and Seizure (VBSS).

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the launch of Mission Sudarshan Chakra three months after cross-border hostilities with Pakistan. The mission aims to build a multi-layered integrated air and missile defence shield for India. It will include early-warning and tracking sensors, command and control posts, land and sea-based interceptor missile batteries and other advanced weapons. Space-based assets will also be used for early warning and threat tracking. The shield will cover both strategic areas and civilian places like hospitals, railways and centres of faith by 2035.

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The Indian Air Force (IAF) will acquire more Israeli-origin Rampage supersonic air-to-surface missiles after their successful use in Operation Sindoor against Pakistan. Rampage missiles, developed by Israel Aerospace Industries, are long-range precision strike weapons with a range of up to 250 km and supersonic speed, making them hard to detect. They are already integrated with IAF’s Su-30 MKI, Jaguar, MiG-29, and Indian Navy’s MiG-29K jets. The new order aims to equip all Rampage-compatible fighter aircraft and expand integration to other fleets.

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Indian Army organised the maiden Exercise Aarogya Setu at Rupai, Doomdooma in Tinsukia district of Assam. It was the first civil-military medical fusion exercise in the region. It aims to strengthen cooperation between Army Medical Corps, senior civil doctors, Primary Health Centres (PHCs), and Northern Frontier Railway Hospital, Tinsukia. The focus was on joint response of Army and Civil medical teams during disasters and war-like situations. A doctor from Northern Frontier Railway Hospital introduced the concept of train ambulances for large-scale casualty evacuation.

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Indian naval stealth frigate INS Trikand arrived at Alexandria, Egypt on Monday for operational deployment in the Mediterranean Sea. INS Trikand participated in Exercise Bright Star 2025, a major multilateral drill hosted by Egypt from September 1 to 10. Exercise Bright Star is conducted under the aegis of U.S. Central Command to enhance interoperability, strengthen regional security, and address hybrid threat scenarios. Participating nations include India, Egypt, United States, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Greece, Cyprus, and Italy. The exercise aims to deepen bilateral and multilateral ties among participating countries.

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The Nepali Army and China’s People’s Liberation Army launched the fourth joint exercise, Sagarmatha Friendship-2025, in Kathmandu. The drill runs until 16 September 2025. It aims to enhance cooperation in counter-terrorism, disaster management, and United Nations (UN) peacekeeping missions. The exercise, first held in 2017, alternates between Nepal and China. Sagarmatha Friendship-2025 focuses on building capacity, addressing security challenges, and fostering mutual trust and military-to-military ties.

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Russia recently struck Ukraine’s Cabinet building with an Iskander-K missile. Iskander-K is a Russian-made mobile short-range cruise missile launcher vehicle on an 8×8 military truck chassis. It looks similar to Iskander-M, which is a ballistic missile launcher vehicle. Also called SSC-8, it entered service with Russian Armed Forces in February 2017. It is built for tactical-operational strikes.

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The Indian Army conducted Exercise Siyom Prahar from 8–10 September 2025 in Arunachal Pradesh to validate drone use in tactical operations. The exercise aimed to integrate drones across tactical and operational levels under realistic battlefield conditions. Drones were employed for persistent surveillance, battlefield reconnaissance, target acquisition, and precision strikes. The exercise focused on developing and validating new tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) for future battlefields. It demonstrated integration of drone inputs with conventional firepower, joint targeting, and rapid decision-making in dynamic combat scenarios.

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The Annual Joint Exercise Siam Bharat 2025 was conducted from 08–11 September 2025 at Pattaya, Thailand. The exercise involved the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) focusing on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR). Both air forces exchanged knowledge and niche technology to enhance inter-operability and operational synergy. The exercise reinforced bilateral friendship and strengthened strategic ties between India and Thailand.

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STAR (Supersonic TARget) missile is India’s indigenous high-speed target missile developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). It simulates hostile supersonic threats, including modern anti-ship cruise missiles, to train Indian Armed Forces in realistic conditions. It has a two-stage propulsion: solid booster rocket for lift-off and Liquid Fuel Ramjet (LFRJ) for sustained supersonic flight. DRDO is developing two variants: Air-Launched STAR for LCA Tejas and joint exercises, Ground-Launched STAR for mobile Navy/Army drills. STAR ends dependence on expensive imports and supports Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) in missile training and R&D.