UPSC Disaster Management – Chapter 10: Lightning, Cold Waves and Forest Fires (20 MCQs)

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UPSC Disaster Management – Chapter 10: Lightning, Cold Waves and Forest Fires (20 MCQs) – 20 questions, subject: Disaster Management. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

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1.  

The Damini app, which gives lightning alerts, was developed by the:

Correct Answer: B [Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune]

Explanation:

The Damini app was developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, and launched in 2020.

2.  

Most lightning deaths in India occur among:

Correct Answer: A [farmers and labourers in open fields]

Explanation:

Farmers and labourers working in open fields during storms, often sheltering under trees, make up most lightning victims in India.

3.  

Lightning activity in India is highest during the:

Correct Answer: D [pre-monsoon and monsoon months]

Explanation:

Strong heating and convection build cumulonimbus clouds in April–June, and thunderstorms continue through the monsoon, so lightning peaks then.

4.  

Data on lightning deaths in India are compiled by the:

Correct Answer: C [National Crime Records Bureau]

Explanation:

Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India.

5.  

In the plains, IMD declares a cold wave when the minimum temperature is 10 °C or less and is below normal by at least:

Correct Answer: A [4.5 °C]

Explanation:

In the plains a cold wave needs a minimum of 10 °C or less with a fall of 4.5–6.4 °C below normal.

6.  

The forest-fire alert system that sends satellite-based alerts to forest officials by SMS and email is run by the:

Correct Answer: D [Forest Survey of India]

Explanation:

The Forest Survey of India, Dehradun, sends near-real-time fire alerts from MODIS and SNPP-VIIRS satellite data to forest officials by SMS and email.

7.  

The most common type of forest fire in India is the:

Correct Answer: C [surface fire]

Explanation:

Surface fires burning leaf litter, grass and shrubs on the forest floor are the most common type of forest fire in India.

8.  

The National Action Plan on Forest Fires was prepared in 2018 by the Ministry of:

Correct Answer: C [Environment, Forest and Climate Change]

Explanation:

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change prepared the National Action Plan on Forest Fires in 2018, stressing forest-fringe communities.

9.  

The peak forest-fire season in India is:

Correct Answer: D [March–April]

Explanation:

Forest fires peak in March–April, when leaf litter is driest within the February–June fire season.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. Most forest fires in India are caused by human activities.
2. Chir pine needles make Uttarakhand's forests highly flammable.
3. Ground fires spread fastest through the tree tops.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

Statements 1 and 2 are right; statement 3 is wrong because crown fires, not ground fires, spread through tree tops.

11.  

Assertion (A): Standing under a tall tree during a thunderstorm is dangerous.

Reason (R): Tall objects are more likely to be struck by lightning.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

Tall objects are struck more often, so a tall tree attracts lightning and makes sheltering under it dangerous; R explains A.

12.  

Cold waves over north India often follow the passage of:

Correct Answer: D [western disturbances]

Explanation:

After a western disturbance passes, skies clear and cold north-westerly winds set in, bringing cold waves to north India.

13.  

In the plains, an actual minimum temperature of 2 °C or less is classed by IMD as:

Correct Answer: A [severe cold wave]

Explanation:

In the plains IMD classes an actual minimum of 2 °C or less as a severe cold wave.

14.  

A "fire line" in forest management is:

Correct Answer: A [a cleared strip of land that stops a fire from spreading]

Explanation:

A fire line is a strip cleared of vegetation that removes fuel and stops a fire from spreading.

15.  

NDMA's guidelines on thunderstorm, lightning, squall, dust, hailstorm and strong winds were issued in:

Correct Answer: B [2019]

Explanation:

NDMA issued its guidelines on thunderstorm, lightning, squall, dust, hailstorm and strong winds in 2019.

16.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Damini app
2. Uttarakhand forest fires
3. National Action Plan on Forest Fires
4. NDMA thunderstorm and lightning guidelines

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [2-3-4-1]

Explanation:

2016, 2018, 2019, 2020.

17.  

The Kurangani forest fire of March 2018, in which many trekkers died, occurred in which district of Tamil Nadu?

Correct Answer: A [Theni]

Explanation:

Kurangani lies in the Bodi hills of Theni district; the fire of 11 March 2018 trapped trekking groups on the slopes.

18.  

If a person is caught in the open during lightning with no shelter nearby, the advice is to:

Correct Answer: D [crouch low with feet together and head down]

Explanation:

Crouching low with feet together and head down reduces height and ground contact, lowering the risk of a strike and ground current.

19.  

Which of the following was added to the national list of notified disasters for SDRF and NDRF help in the guidelines for 2026–31?

Correct Answer: B [Lightning]

Explanation:

lightning (with heat wave) was added for 2026–31; earlier only some States notified it.

20.  

A forest fire needs three things together, the "fire triangle":

Correct Answer: D [heat, fuel and oxygen]

Explanation:

remove any one and the fire goes out.

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