28 October 2026
The Kerala Legislative Assembly passed the Kerala Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Bill, 2026. It provides for dedicated yards at the taluk level to store vehicles seized for non-payment of motor vehicle tax. Owners will have to pay transportation charges for moving a seized vehicle to the yard and parking fees for the period it is kept there, and a vehicle is released only after those charges are cleared, even if the pending tax has been paid. The government will fix the rates separately. Transport Minister C P John replied to the amendments moved by members, saying there is at present no law to seize and store the vehicles of tax evaders. The Bill becomes law after the Governor's assent.
Level at which yards are to be set up:
Taluk
Charges payable by the owner:
Transportation charges and parking fees
Why it matters for exams: Kerala PSC asks which State Bill amends which parent Act and what happens to a Bill after the House passes it; here the parent law is the Kerala Motor Vehicles Taxation Act and the next step is the Governor's assent under Article 200.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Taluk Revenue sub-division of a district — Kerala has 77 taluks, each headed by a Tahsildar.
26 October 2026
The Kerala High Court has notified an amended Internship Policy for the High Court of Kerala, 2026. Only students in the last two years of their law course may intern, except for interns working under Judges. Applications go through an online module and must be forwarded by the head of the institution, the Registrar General fixes the maximum number of interns, and only applicants who attended a mandatory pre-induction briefing may apply. Dress must follow the Bar Council of India rules framed under Section 49(1)(gg) of the Advocates Act, except for coat, bands and gown. Internships under the IT Directorate, the Kerala Judicial Academy and programmes run with NUALS are outside the policy. The All India Lawyers Union wrote to the Chief Justice seeking withdrawal, saying there was no meaningful consultation with the Bar Council of Kerala and the Kerala High Court Advocates' Association.
Who may intern:
Students in the last two years of the course
Officer who fixes the intake:
Registrar General
Why it matters for exams: The Advocates Act, 1961 and the Bar Council of India are recurring Polity and Law questions; Section 49 is the provision under which the Bar Council of India makes its general rules.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
NUALS National University of Advanced Legal Studies — The national law university at Kochi in Kerala.
BCI Bar Council of India — The statutory body that regulates legal practice and legal education in India.
14 October 2026
A Bill to amend the Kerala Maritime Board Act, 2017 was introduced in the Kerala Legislative Assembly by Chief Minister V D Satheesan as part of the State's Mission Samudra. Under it the Chief Minister would head the Kerala Maritime Board directly; until now the chair came from serving or retired IAS officers or former heads of public sector undertakings. A separate port development authority would be set up under the Board for each port. State-owned land linked to ports would be pooled into a maritime land bank, with land held by other departments transferred to the Board. The Board can at present lease land for up to 30 years; the amendments would let it transfer land for public-private partnership projects and extend lease periods where a project brings higher investment. More than 20 port-based projects that had finished planning were stalled for want of a legal provision to hand over land for PPP projects.
Act being amended:
Kerala Maritime Board Act, 2017
Present lease limit:
30 years
Stalled port-based projects:
More than 20
Why it matters for exams: Kerala PSC asks which body runs the State's non-major ports and under which Act; the Kerala Maritime Board Act, 2017 and the division between major and non-major ports are the durable facts here.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
PPP Public-private partnership — A project built or run jointly by a government body and a private company.
28 October 2026
The Kerala Cabinet approved a Bill to raise the salaries and allowances of Ministers and Members of the Legislative Assembly. The Bill will go before the Kerala Legislative Assembly. Salaries and allowances of members of a State Legislature are fixed by the Legislature itself by law.
Who the Bill covers:
Ministers and Members of the Legislative Assembly
Why it matters for exams: Which authority fixes the pay of legislators is a direct Polity question: Article 195 leaves the salaries and allowances of members of a State Legislature to be decided by that Legislature by law.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
MLA Member of the Legislative Assembly — An elected member of a State's Legislative Assembly. Kerala's Assembly has 140 elected seats.
28 October 2026
The Kerala Cabinet decided that the State Vigilance will investigate procedural lapses in the approval of a land acquisition in Kannur district carried out through the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board. The Finance and Revenue departments will provide technical support to the inquiry. Chief Minister V D Satheesan announced the inquiry in the Assembly a day earlier, questioning the acquisition of about 1,000 acres.
Area questioned:
About 1,000 acres
Departments giving technical support:
Finance and Revenue
Why it matters for exams: KIIFB and the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau are both named bodies Kerala PSC asks about: what the abbreviation expands to and which department each sits under.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
KIIFB Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board — A State body that raises money outside the Budget to fund infrastructure projects in Kerala.
28 October 2026
The Kerala Cabinet decided to change the male-female ratio for the appointment of Police Constables from 9:1 to 7:3. The change raises the share of women in constable appointments from 10 per cent to 30 per cent. The Cabinet also decided that 48 of 86 Sub-Inspector posts redistributed within the Police Department will be reported to the Kerala Public Service Commission as permanent vacancies.
Old ratio:
9:1
New ratio:
7:3
Women's share:
10% to 30%
Sub-Inspector posts reported as permanent vacancies:
48 of 86
Why it matters for exams: The body that recruits for State services is a repeat Kerala PSC question: Article 315 creates the Public Service Commission and Article 320 sets out its functions, and police recruitment in Kerala runs through the PSC.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
PSC Public Service Commission — The Kerala Public Service Commission conducts recruitment to State and subordinate services.
Background
Kannur district, on Kerala's northern coast, carries the record of several layers of outside rule. St. Angelo Fort was built in 1505 by Dom Francisco de Almeida, the first Portuguese Viceroy of India, and it stands by the Laccadive Sea about 3 km from Kannur town. The Portuguese rule over Cananor, as they spelt it, lasted 158 years; the Dutch captured the fort in 1663 and gave it its present appearance, sold it to the Arakkal Royal family in 1772, and the British conquered it in 1790 and used it as one of their major military stations on the Malabar Coast. The district administration says it is fairly well preserved as a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India. Earlier, Kannur was the capital of the Kolattiri Rajas, whose kingdom had trading relations with Arabia and Persia in the 12th and 13th centuries, and in the 17th century Kannur was the capital city of the only Muslim Sultanate in India, known as Arakkal. The district also saw one of the longest and bloodiest resistances to British rule in India, the revolt led by Pazhassi Raja, which kept a large part of it in a state of war; and Payyannur was the main venue of the Salt Satyagraha in Malabar, where a batch of Congress volunteers under the leadership of K. Kelappan broke the salt laws. The administration puts the district's area at 2,966 km² and its annual rainfall at 3438 mm(Annual), and gives the population, as per the 2011 census, as 25.23 lakhs.
District area:
2,966 km²
District population:
25.23 lakhs
Annual rainfall:
3438 mm(Annual)
Why it matters for exams: Kerala PSC asks who built St. Angelo Fort, which sultanate had Kannur as its capital, and who led the Salt Satyagraha at Payyannur.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ASI Archaeological Survey of India — The central body that protects and maintains monuments of national importance.
Background
Kasaragod lies at the northern tip of Kerala, bounded by the Western ghats in the east and Arabian sea in the west, with twelve rivers flowing across its terrain. The district administration records 12 rivers in the district. The longest is Chandragiri (105 kms), which originates from Pattimala in Coorg and embraces the sea at Thalangara, near Kasargod. The river takes its name from Chandragupta Vasti, the place of its source, where the Maurya emperor Chandragupta is believed to have spent his last days as a sage. There are different views on where the name Kasaragod comes from: one is that it combines the Sanskrit words kaasaara, meaning lake or pond, and kroda, meaning a place where treasure is kept; another is that it is the place where Kaasaraka trees (Strychnos nux vomica, or Kaanjiram or Kaaraskara) grow in abundance. The administration treats both views as relevant, because the coastal belt has a large number of rivers, lakes and ponds besides thick flora with innumerable varieties of trees, shrubs etc., and particularly a plentitude of Kaasaraka trees The landscape is dotted with tiled-roof buildings topped with the famous Kasaragod tiles, made with the local hard red clay, and typically walled with laterite blocks.
Rivers in the district:
12 rivers
Longest river:
Chandragiri (105 kms)
Boundaries:
Western ghats in the east and Arabian sea in the west
Why it matters for exams: Kasaragod's river count, its longest river Chandragiri and that river's source in Coorg are standard Kerala geography questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Kaasaraka Strychnos nux vomica — The tree also called Kaanjiram or Kaaraskara, which one view says gave Kasaragod its name.
Background
Thrissur district's own account of its past begins with trade. Kodungalloor, which had the unique distinction of being the "Primum Emporium India", also has the honour of having first given shelter to all the three communities which the district administration says contributed to the prosperity of Malabar - the Christians, the Jews and the Muslims. The history of the district from the 9th to the 12th centuries is the history of the Kulasekharas of Mahodayapuram, and from the 12th century it is the history of the rise and growth of Perumpadappu Swarupam, whose Moopil is referred to as the "Kerala Chakravarthi" in the "Sivavilasam" and some other works. One turning point in that history is the founding of an era called the Pudu Vaipu Era, traditionally believed to have commenced from the date on which the island of Vypeen was thrown from the sea. The Shakthan Thampuran Palace in Thrissur city, named as Vadakkekara Palace, was reconstructed in Kerala-Dutch style in 1795 by Ramavarma Thampuran of the erstwhile Princely State of Cochin, is preserved by the Archaeological Department and was converted into a museum in 2005; its main structure is a two-storeyed building with a traditional Kerala style Nālukettu. The district also claims the honour of having been in the forefront of the country-wide movement for temple entry and the abolition of untouchability, of which the Guruvayur Satyagraha is a memorable episode. After independence Cochin was the first princely state to join the Indian Union willingly, and E. Ikkanda Warrier became the first Prime Minister of Cochin. Travancore-Cochin came into being by the merger of Cochin and Travancore with Parur T. K. Narayana Pillai as the first chief minister, and the States Reorganisation Act then inaugurated Kerala, incorporating Travancore-Cochin, Malabar District, and the taluk of Kasargod, South Kanara.
Kodungalloor's distinction:
Primum Emporium India
Palace's other name:
Vadakkekara Palace
Units joined to form Kerala:
Travancore-Cochin, Malabar District, and the taluk of Kasargod, South Kanara
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts here are Kodungalloor as the Primum Emporium India, Cochin as the first princely state to join the Union willingly, and the three units the States Reorganisation Act joined to make Kerala.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Pudu Vaipu Era Pudu Vaipu Era — An era traditionally believed to begin from the date the island of Vypeen was thrown from the sea.
Background
The Kerala Legislature's own profile of the State sets out the long record. The first known mention of Kerala occurs on one of the rock inscriptions left by Asoka, the Mauryan emperor, during the third century B.C. It was then an independent kingdom known as Kerala putra, which was ruled by the powerful Chera dynasty until the fifth century A.D. The history from the sixth to the eighth centuries A.D. is obscure. From 825 AD - the year in which the "Kolla" era began - Kerala rose to prominence under the Kulasekhara dynasty, and the ninth and tenth centuries formed a golden age that marks the origin of Malayalam as a separate language. An eleventh-century hundred years' war with the Cholas broke the Chera kingdom into innumerable principalities; by the beginning of the 14th century the ruler Ravi Varma Kulasekhara established a short-lived supremacy over the whole of Southern India, and after his death Kerala became a conglomeration of warring chieftaincies, of which Calicut in the north and Travancore in the south were the most important. The year 1498, when Vasco de Gama landed at Calicut, marked the beginning of the era of foreign intervention and occupation. The Portuguese superseded the Arab traders in the 16th century; the Dutch ousted the Portuguese in the 17th but met a crushing defeat at the hands of King Marthanda Varma of Travancore in 1741. The invasions by Hyder Ali and Tippu Sultan between 1766 and 1790 paved the way for British power, and Cochin and Travancore were obliged to accept British suzerainty in 1791 and 1795. The Zamorins' territories in the north were annexed by the British and constituted into the Malabar district of the Madras presidency under their direct rule. Unsuccessful revolts against British rule were led by Pazhassi Raja of Malabar and by Velu Thampi of Travancore, both of whom were martyred. On 1st July 1949 Travancore and Cochin were integrated into a new State of Travancore-Cochin, and when the states were reorganised on a linguistic basis on 1st November 1956 the Malabar district was added to form the new state of Kerala; the Tamil speaking southern region of old Travancore became part of Tamilnadu. The word Malayalam, the profile notes, is an alternative name for Kerala and means "the land of mountains and sea".
First known mention:
one of the rock inscriptions left by Asoka, the Mauryan emperor
Then known as:
Kerala putra
Meaning of Malayalam:
the land of mountains and sea
Why it matters for exams: Asoka's inscription as the first mention of Kerala, Kerala putra and the Chera dynasty, and the Malabar district of the Madras presidency are repeat questions in both Kerala PSC and UPSC history papers.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Kolla era Kolla era — The era whose beginning the Legislature's profile dates to 825 AD, when Kerala rose under the Kulasekhara dynasty.
Background
The Kerala Legislature's profile puts the State's area at 38,863 Sq.Kms, which is 1.18 percent of the total area of India, curving along the Arabian Sea on the Southwest Coast. It divides Kerala into three geographical regions: the highlands, midlands and the low lands. The highlands or eastern region is dominated by the Sahya Mountains or the Western Ghats, with dense tropical evergreen forests and misty peaks; Anamudi is the highest peak and Agasthyarkoodam the second highest, and Tea, Coffee, Rubber, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Oil Seeds and Sandalwood are extensively cultivated in the mountainous areas. The midlands have undulating hills and valleys growing coconut, arecanut, banana, mango, tapioca, pepper, ginger etc., while the sandy coastal low lands carry coconut groves, paddy fields, river deltas, backwaters and the sea. Kerala has 44 rivers, 41 west flowing and three east flowing, and there are 34 big and not so big backwaters in the state, the biggest being the vembanad lake, about 200 square kilometres in area. The land derived its name from "Keram", the coconut palm. The Legislature's profile also records that the State is divided into 14 districts, subdivided for revenue purposes into 63 taluks and 1453 revenue villages, that the hilly Idukki District is the largest in size while the coastal district of Alappuzha is the smallest, and that Wayanad is the least populated district in the state.
Area of the State:
38,863 Sq.Kms
Rivers:
44 rivers, 41 west flowing and three east flowing
Biggest backwater:
the vembanad lake
Why it matters for exams: The three regions, the count of west and east flowing rivers, the largest backwater and the smallest district are standard Kerala geography answers.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Sahya Mountains Western Ghats — The range that dominates Kerala's eastern highlands.
Background
The University of Kerala describes itself as one of the first 16 Universities in India, founded in 1937 and formerly called the University of Travancore. It came into being by a promulgation of the Maharajah of Travancore, who was also the first Chancellor of the University; Sir C. P Ramaswamy Ayyar, the then Diwan of the State, was the first Vice-Chancellor. The University says it was modelled after the best Universities of the United Kingdom and still retains some of those features, though its affiliating system evolved differently from the college system in British Universities. Its earliest origins are traced to two institutions of modern learning in Kerala - the University College, Thiruvananthapuram, and the Trivandrum Observatory. The University College was initially founded as the Maharaja's Free School by Maharaja Swathi Thirunal in 1834 with Mr John Roberts as Headmaster and grew into a college in 1866, affiliated to the Madras University; it remains an affiliated college. The Trivandrum Observatory was founded in 1838 with the scientist John Caldecott FRS as its first Director and is now the oldest institution under the Kerala University. The Kerala University Act (Act 14 of 1957) was brought into force and the University of Travancore was renamed University of Kerala, with campuses at Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam and Kozhikode. In 1968 the University Centre at Kozhikode became a full-fledged University, the University of Calicut, and CUSAT, Kerala Agricultural University and Mahatma Gandhi University were established later, so that the University of Kerala's jurisdiction is now Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha Districts and some parts of Pathanamthitta District.
Formerly called:
University of Travancore
Renaming Act:
Kerala University Act (Act 14 of 1957)
Oldest institution under it:
Trivandrum Observatory
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that the University of Kerala was formerly the University of Travancore, that its first Vice-Chancellor was Sir C. P Ramaswamy Ayyar, and that the Kerala University Act renamed it.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
CUSAT Cochin University of Science and Technology — One of the universities later established in Kerala, which took over the University's centre at Cochin.