Which one of the following is not correct regarding India’s position in Regional Organizations/Institutions ?
[amp_mcq option1=”Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) – Founder Member” option2=”Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) – Observer Member” option3=”East Asia Summit (EAS) – Member” option4=”Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) – Founder Member” correct=”option1″]
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CISF-AC-EXE – 2018
A) Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) – Founder Member: Incorrect. India became a full member of the SCO in 2017, along with Pakistan. The founder members are China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
B) Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) – Observer Member: Incorrect. India is neither a member nor an official observer of APEC. India has expressed interest in joining APEC, but there has been a moratorium on new members since 1997.
C) East Asia Summit (EAS) – Member: Correct. India is a founding member of the East Asia Summit, which was established in 2005.
D) Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) – Founder Member: Correct. India is a founding member of the AIIB and is the second-largest shareholder.
Both statements A and B are incorrect. However, A is often highlighted as India’s status changed from observer to full member recently (2017), while B describes a status India has never held. In the context of testing knowledge about specific international bodies, claiming ‘Founder Member’ status when the country joined much later as a full member is a clear factual error about historical status. Option A is the intended incorrect statement.