UPSC Quiz – 2026 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz 25th September 2026

Solution (d)
Explanation: Transfer pricing is the price charged for goods, services, loans, intellectual property or other transactions between related entities of the same multinational group—for example, an Indian subsidiary buying goods from its foreign parent. The governing principle is the Arm’s Length Principle (ALP): the transaction should be priced as though the parties were independent/unrelated enterprises. India applies ALP to international transactions between associated enterprises. Transfer pricing rules serve four broad purposes: preventing profit shifting, protecting the tax base, avoiding double taxation, and improving tax certainty. They are closely tied to the BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) framework, with more than 100 jurisdictions using ALP and OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines.
Why this question? Tests the conceptual core (ALP) plus the rationale chain, not merely the definition—UPSC’s preferred economy framing.
Why important for UPSC? International taxation, BEPS and tax-base protection are recurring economy-governance themes.
PYQ Pattern Link: Similar to questions on BEPS, tax avoidance frameworks and India’s international tax cooperation initiatives.

Solution (b)
Explanation: The OECD was established in 1961, headquartered in Paris, with its predecessor being the OEEC (1948), created to administer the Marshall Plan. Statement 1 is incorrect because the OECD is an intergovernmental organisation and is explicitly NOT a UN specialised agency—this is a frequently tested distinction. It has 38 members. Statement 2 is correct: India is not an OECD member but has a long-standing cooperation programme and participates in several OECD committees. Statement 3 is correct: the OECD publishes the Economic Outlook, Economic Surveys, PISA assessments and BEPS standards. It recently raised India’s FY 2026–27 real GDP growth forecast to 7.1%.
Why this question? The “UN specialised agency” claim is a classic institutional-status trap with high elimination value.
Why important for UPSC? International organisations’ nature, membership and publications are recurring prelims content.
PYQ Pattern Link: Mirrors questions distinguishing UN specialised agencies from other intergovernmental bodies (e.g., WTO, IMF, World Bank classifications).

Solution (b)
Explanation: Black carbon is a dark, soot-like particulate produced mainly through incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, biomass and biofuels. Statement 1 is the trap: black carbon is a particle, NOT a greenhouse gas—this is explicitly stated as a distinguishing feature from CO₂. It is, however, a component of PM2.5. Statement 2 is correct: deposited black carbon reduces albedo, causing snow and ice to absorb more solar radiation and melt faster; a recent report attributes about one-third of Himalayan glacier mass loss to South Asian black carbon, with brick kilns contributing 32–42% of anthropogenic black-carbon deposition. Statement 3 is correct: black carbon is a Short-Lived Climate Pollutant (SLCP), lasting days to weeks, alongside methane, tropospheric ozone and HFCs.
Why this question? The “greenhouse gas vs. particle” distinction is a high-value conceptual trap that filters superficial readers.
Why important for UPSC? Climate change, Himalayan ecology and air pollution are core environment themes with recurring prelims presence.
PYQ Pattern Link: Similar to questions distinguishing greenhouse gases from other climate forcers and testing SLCP classifications.

Solution (b)
Explanation: Tulu belongs to the Dravidian language family and is spoken mainly in coastal Karnataka (Dakshina Kannada and Udupi) and northern Kasaragod, Kerala. The Karnataka Cabinet accorded Tulu the status of second additional official language in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts. Option (a) is incorrect because Tulu is NOT in the Eighth Schedule—which currently contains 22 languages. Option (c) is incorrect on both language family and geography. Option (d) is incorrect: Tulu has not been granted classical language status; the six classical languages are Tamil, Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Odia. The Article 345 route (State Legislature adopting official languages) is the correct constitutional basis.
Why this question? Tests the critical distinction between Eighth Schedule status, classical language status, and State-level official language status.
Why important for UPSC? Language policy and constitutional provisions on official languages are recurring culture-polity crossover topics.
PYQ Pattern Link: Mirrors questions on Eighth Schedule languages, classical language criteria and Article 345 powers.

Solution (b)
Explanation: OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) uses carbon-based organic molecules that emit light when an electric current passes through them. Crucially, OLED pixels are self-emissive—each pixel produces its own light and therefore does not require a separate backlight. LCDs, by contrast, require a backlight that operates continuously. This fundamental difference explains OLED’s high contrast and deep blacks (individual pixels can be switched off), wider viewing angles, faster response times, thinner structure, and ability to be made transparent, flexible, foldable, rollable and stretchable. Option (c) reverses the technologies, and option (d) contradicts OLED’s known flexibility advantage. Variants include AMOLED, PHOLED and WOLED.
Why this question? One-liner testing the single defining technological principle, with reversed-option traps typical of UPSC S&T questions.
Why important for UPSC? Display technology, semiconductor/electronics manufacturing and India’s import dependence are emerging S&T-economy themes.
PYQ Pattern Link: Similar to one-liner conceptual questions distinguishing technologies by their core operating principle (e.g., LED vs. LCD, 4G vs. 5G architecture).