HPAS 2025 Prelims Question 92

Given below are two statements:

Statement I: India is the second largest arms importer after Ukraine during 2020-24, as per the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute report.

Statement II: India has developed two defence industrial corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu to boost the defence manufacturing.

In the light of the above statements, choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:

(A) Both Statement I and Statement II are correct

(B) Both Statement I and Statement II are incorrect

(C) Statement I is correct and Statement II is incorrect

(D) Statement I is incorrect and Statement II is correct

The correct answer is: (A) Both statements are correct.

Statement Analysis

• Statement I: “India is the second largest arms importer after Ukraine during 2020-24, as per the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute report.”
  • This statement is true. According to the SIPRI report (2020-24), Ukraine was the world’s top arms importer due to the ongoing conflict, while India ranked second, accounting for 8.3% of global arms imports during this period.
• Statement II: “India has developed two defence industrial corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu to boost the defence manufacturing.”
  • This statement is also correct. The Government of India has established two Defence Industrial Corridors—one each in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu—to promote indigenous defence manufacturing and reduce dependence on imports.