Which among the following are India's permanent and operational research stations in Antarctica?

The correct answer is C) Bharati and Maitri. India runs its Antarctic programme from two permanent stations today: Maitri, set up in 1989 on the Schirmacher Oasis, and Bharati, commissioned in 2012 at Larsemann Hills. Both are year-round, operational stations under NCPOR and the Ministry of Earth Sciences.

• Dakshin Gangotri was India's first station (1983). It was buried under ice and given up as a station, so it cannot be called operational. This is the main reason option D fails.
• Arya is not one of the standard permanent stations, so option A fails.
• Option B fails because it includes Dakshin Gangotri.

The core concept here is the distinction between a permanent station, a field or seasonal facility, and a decommissioned station. For Mains, this links to India's Antarctic Treaty obligations (ratified 1983), the Antarctic Treaty System, and the Indian Antarctic Act, 2022, which governs activity there.

Trap: aspirants remember Dakshin Gangotri as India's first station and assume it is still active. Check the current status of any station the question names.