2 November 2026
The Kerala government has reshuffled its senior civil servants through an order of the General Administration Department signed by Chief Secretary Bishwanath Sinha. Prasanth N is the new Chairman and Managing Director of the Kerala State Electricity Board, taking over from MG Rajamanickam, who moves to the Local Self Government department with additional charge of Revenue (Devaswom) and as commissioner of the Guruvayur and Koodalmanikyam Devaswoms. K R Jyothilal becomes Additional Chief Secretary for Home and Vigilance, swapping places with Minhaj Alam, who takes Finance along with Taxes and the Rebuild Kerala Initiative and the chair of the Kerala Financial Corporation. Mohammed Hanish APM moves to Health and Family Welfare, and Dr Sharmila Mary Joseph to Transport. Dr M Beena returns from central deputation as Principal Secretary, Industries, and Jafar Malik as Commissioner, State GST. Anu Kumari becomes Director of Tourism. The order reassigns 35 officers, among them four Additional Chief Secretaries and two Principal Secretaries, and gives additional charge to several of them.
New KSEB Chairman and MD:
Prasanth N
Home and Vigilance:
K R Jyothilal, Additional Chief Secretary
Finance:
Minhaj Alam, Additional Chief Secretary
Order issued by:
General Administration Department; signed by Chief Secretary Bishwanath Sinha
Officers reassigned:
35, including four Additional Chief Secretaries and two Principal Secretaries
Why it matters for exams: Prasanth N is the new Chairman and Managing Director of the Kerala State Electricity Board, and the reshuffle order was issued by the General Administration Department under Chief Secretary Bishwanath Sinha.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
KSEB Kerala State Electricity Board — The State utility that generates, transmits and distributes electricity in Kerala.
GAD General Administration Department — The Secretariat department that handles postings and service matters of State officers.
2 November 2026
A Division Bench of the Keralam High Court, Justice Anil K Narendran and Justice Muralee Krishnan S, has reserved judgment in Writ Appeal No. 2276 of 2026, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit v. Archana P S and others. The university is appealing a Single Judge's interim order of 30 October that allowed 16 suspended students to sit examinations due to begin on 4 November. The university argues the interim order effectively grants the main relief sought in the writ petition without first deciding whether the suspension itself was lawful. The Single Judge had said the students' participation would be subject to the final outcome and would create no right or equity for them. The students were suspended on 1 September pending a disciplinary enquiry after a protest during a Syndicate meeting on the Kalady campus on 13 August. The enquiry committee held hearings in late September and reported that action was called for but procedural defects needed correcting. The university's Syndicate has separately offered to reinstate 12 of the 16 students if they submit apologies, while disciplinary action against the remaining four would continue.
Case:
Writ Appeal No. 2276 of 2026, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit v. Archana P S and others
Students involved:
16, suspended pending enquiry
Interim order appealed:
Single Judge order of 30 October
University campus:
Kalady
Why it matters for exams: The appeal is by the Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, whose campus is at Kalady, and it turns on whether an interim order may grant the main relief sought in a writ petition.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Writ appeal Writ appeal — An appeal to a Division Bench against the order of a Single Judge in a writ petition.
Syndicate Syndicate — The executive body of a university that takes administrative decisions.
2 November 2026
Chief Minister V D Satheesan has directed that an order for repairs worth over ₹1 crore at Cliff House, the official residence of the Chief Minister of Keralam in Thiruvananthapuram, be cancelled. He has asked the Public Works Department Secretary for a report on why the order was issued without informing him or his office. The PWD said the order followed a safety audit carried out in 2022. The Chief Minister had earlier told officials not to take up unnecessary renovation or construction at Cliff House, and had instructed that no work be done on the previous government's estimates, with only necessary repairs to proceed. The Public Works Department is the State department that builds and maintains government buildings and official residences. Cliff House has been the Chief Minister's official residence in the capital for decades, and the Chief Minister's Office functions separately from it.
Value of order cancelled:
Over ₹1 crore
Building:
Cliff House, official residence of the Chief Minister, Thiruvananthapuram
Department:
Public Works Department
Report sought from:
PWD Secretary
Why it matters for exams: Cliff House in Thiruvananthapuram is the official residence of the Chief Minister of Keralam, and government residences are built and maintained by the Public Works Department.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
PWD Public Works Department — The State department that builds and maintains government buildings, roads and bridges.
2 November 2026
Private bus owners in Keralam have called off a strike that was to begin on Tuesday, after Transport Minister C P John met their strike committee and assured them the government would consider their demands favourably. Their central demand is that the free travel now given to women on Kerala State Road Transport Corporation services be extended to women travelling on private buses, with the government meeting the cost. The strike committee holds that the Priyadarshini scheme on KSRTC services has pushed private operators into a financial crisis and left many in debt. The two sides agreed on several points, including the government leasing private buses and revising bus schedules periodically. No decision was reached on raising fares or on concession rates. The government appointed a special commission on 2 September to look at losses in the private bus sector; it has submitted recommendations that are not yet implemented.
Minister who held talks:
Transport Minister C P John
Main demand:
Free travel for women on private buses, reimbursed by the government
Special commission appointed:
2 September, on losses in the private bus sector
Points agreed:
Government leasing of private buses; periodic revision of schedules
Left undecided:
Fare increase and concession rates
Why it matters for exams: Keralam's Transport Minister is C P John, and the private bus owners' demand is that the KSRTC Priyadarshini free-travel benefit be extended to private buses at government cost.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
KSRTC Kerala State Road Transport Corporation — The State-owned bus corporation that runs Keralam's public road transport.
Priyadarshini Priyadarshini scheme — Keralam's scheme of free travel for women and transgender persons on KSRTC ordinary services.
2 November 2026
The Crime Branch Special Investigation Team looking into the Kerala Public Service Commission examination for the Planning Board Chief post has reported that the explanation of technical evaluation errors does not hold. The test was taken by 228 candidates in 2023 by the OMR method. Evaluation left out 10 questions for 177 candidates and 9 questions for 51 candidates, a mismatch the SIT describes as proof of malpractice. Technical experts who examined the onscreen marking software found no fault in it. The SIT reviewed all 228 answer sheets and the server data from the valuation camp and ran a dummy examination to work out the method used. It found that a former PSC Deputy Secretary who was in charge of the valuation camp did not assign questions carrying 58 marks to panel members, and that evaluation was closed even after the software warned that not all questions had been valued. He is in remand, and the SIT is to question other Commission officials.
Candidates:
228
Questions left unvalued:
10 for 177 candidates; 9 for 51 candidates
Marks not assigned to panel:
58
Investigating agency:
Crime Branch Special Investigation Team
Method of examination:
OMR
Why it matters for exams: The Kerala Public Service Commission is the constitutional body that conducts State recruitment, and this examination for the Planning Board Chief post was taken by the OMR - Optical Mark Recognition - method.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
KPSC Kerala Public Service Commission — The constitutional body that conducts recruitment to Keralam government service.
OMR Optical Mark Recognition — A method in which answers marked on a sheet are read by machine.
SIT Special Investigation Team — A team formed for one particular investigation.
1 November 2026
Justice Harisankar V Menon of the Keralam High Court has held that couples who have crossed the upper age limit in Section 21(g) of the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021 cannot be allowed treatment merely on an undertaking, in a ruling carrying the neutral citation 2026:KER:80986. The Court declined to follow the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which had allowed treatment on an undertaking without considering the Keralam Division Bench judgment that upheld Section 21(g). Having earlier allowed such treatment, the Court reversed itself once that Division Bench judgment was noticed. Permission was also refused to couples who had begun treatment before crossing the age limit. A Supreme Court decision the petitioners relied on could not be applied, the Court said, because it arose under the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021 rather than the ART Act, even though the two provisions are similar. The upper age limit under the ART Act is the point on which fertility treatment petitions most often reach the High Courts.
Act and section:
Section 21(g), Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021
Case:
Dileep A & Anr. v. Union of India & Ors., 2026:KER:80986
Judge:
Justice Harisankar V Menon
Binding judgment followed:
Union of India v. Nandini K, which upheld Section 21(g)
Ruling not followed:
Dr. Pushpa v. Union of India, Punjab and Haryana High Court
Why it matters for exams: The upper age limit for a couple seeking assisted reproductive technology is in Section 21(g) of the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ART Act Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021 — The central law regulating fertility clinics and assisted reproduction in India.
Neutral citation Neutral citation — A court's own numbering for a judgment, independent of any law report.
2 November 2026
Chief Minister V D Satheesan has said Keralam is examining a special Act to deal with insults and attacks on women on social media.
He said this in Thiruvananthapuram at a two-day event on a new-era women's policy, the HER Summit 2026, held under the Makaloppam initiative of the Women and Child Development Department.
According to him the laws now in force give women very little protection of this kind, and the new law is meant to put those who attack women online in prison.
The legal side is still under study and no Bill has reached the House.
A fresh women's policy for the State is being drawn up from the public consultations held at the summit.
He added that the government is working on the financial independence of women and that a large project covering every Kudumbashree member would begin soon.
Abuse on social media is handled at present under the general criminal law and the information technology law, so a State Act of its own would be a change.
Announced at:
Puthuyuga Women's Policy — HER Summit 2026, Thiruvananthapuram
Organised by:
Women and Child Development Department, under the Makaloppam initiative
Stage:
Legal aspects under examination; no Bill tabled
Also announced:
Financial independence programmes, including a project for Kudumbashree members
Why it matters for exams: Keralam's proposed special Act against online attacks on women was announced at the HER Summit 2026, organised by the Women and Child Development Department under the Makaloppam initiative.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Kudumbashree Kudumbashree — Keralam's State poverty eradication mission built on women's neighbourhood groups.
WCD Women and Child Development Department — The State department responsible for women's and children's welfare programmes.
Background
The Keralam High Court has just completed seventy years, and the breadth of its writ power under Article 226 was the theme of the jubilee. A recent ruling shows what that breadth means in practice. In M R Ajayan v. The Director, CBI, Justice A Badharudeen held that statutory restrictions cannot limit the High Court's power under Article 226 to direct the registration of an FIR or an investigation where the material before it discloses a cognizable offence. The case is reported as 2026 LiveLaw (Ker) 602. Article 226 of the Constitution empowers every High Court to issue writs, orders and directions for the enforcement of fundamental rights and for any other purpose. That last phrase is why Article 226 is wider than Article 32, which lets the Supreme Court issue writs only for fundamental rights. A writ under Article 226 may run against any authority within the territorial jurisdiction of that High Court. Habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, certiorari and quo warranto are the five writs it covers.
Article:
226 — writ jurisdiction of High Courts
Comparable Article:
32 — writ jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, for fundamental rights only
The five writs:
Habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, certiorari, quo warranto
Case cited:
M R Ajayan v. The Director, CBI, 2026 LiveLaw (Ker) 602
Why it matters for exams: Article 226 lets a High Court issue writs both for fundamental rights and for any other purpose, which makes it wider than Article 32.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Article 226 Article 226 of the Constitution — The provision that gives every High Court power to issue writs for fundamental rights and for any other purpose.
Cognizable offence Cognizable offence — An offence in which the police may register a case and investigate without a magistrate's order.
Background
Keralam has just passed the SARAL Keralam Act, 2026, which moves industrial licensing power to one statutory authority, so it is worth knowing what it replaces. The State's single-window clearance system dates to an Act of 1999, with a clearance timeline first of 45 days and later of 30 days. The online system built on it is K-SWIFT, the Kerala Single Window Interface for Fast and Transparent Clearance. Under K-SWIFT the individual departments still issued the licences; the investor's advantage was a deemed consent, under which approval is taken as given if a department does not decide within 30 days. SARAL changes that structure: licensing power itself moves to an Approval Committee, and departments keep only their inspection and compliance rights. The difference is between a window that forwards an application and an authority that decides it. The SARAL timeline is longer at 75 days, but it ends in a single Integrated Enterprise Clearance Certificate rather than a set of departmental licences.
Single-window Act:
1999
Earlier timelines:
45 days, later 30 days
Online system:
K-SWIFT
Key feature:
Deemed consent if a department does not decide within 30 days
Under SARAL:
Licensing power moves to the Approval Committee; 75-day timeline
Why it matters for exams: K-SWIFT stands for Kerala Single Window Interface for Fast and Transparent Clearance, and it worked on a deemed consent after 30 days under the State's 1999 single-window law.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
K-SWIFT Kerala Single Window Interface for Fast and Transparent Clearance — The State's online single-window platform for industrial clearances.
Deemed consent Deemed consent — A rule under which approval is treated as granted if the authority does not decide in time.
Background
Keralam's private bus owners have just called off a strike demanding that the State's free-travel benefit be extended to their services, which makes the scheme itself worth setting out. Priyadarshini gives free travel to women and transgender persons on ordinary services of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation, with no registration, no income test and no restriction on age or distance in its first phase. It was announced after a Cabinet meeting and began on 15 June 2026, inaugurated by Chief Minister V D Satheesan at the KSRTC complex in Thiruvananthapuram. It is the first of the Indira Guarantee promises of the government. Buses carry Priyadarshini stickers and conductors issue a Zero Fare Ticket recording the boarding and destination points, and squads inspect tickets. The revenue KSRTC gives up is estimated at about ₹65 crore to ₹70 crore a month, or about ₹800 crore a year, which the State has undertaken to reimburse in full. That is over and above the State's existing support to KSRTC of about ₹125 crore a month.
Beneficiaries:
Women and transgender persons, no registration or income test
Services covered:
KSRTC ordinary services
Launched:
15 June 2026, at the KSRTC complex, Thiruvananthapuram
Ticket issued:
Zero Fare Ticket
Revenue forgone:
About ₹65 crore to ₹70 crore a month, about ₹800 crore a year
Programme:
First of the Indira Guarantee promises
Why it matters for exams: Priyadarshini gives free travel to women and transgender persons on KSRTC ordinary services, with a Zero Fare Ticket, at a cost of about ₹800 crore a year reimbursed by the State.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Zero Fare Ticket Zero Fare Ticket — The ticket a conductor issues under Priyadarshini, recording the journey without charging a fare.
Indira Guarantee Indira Guarantee — The set of promises the Keralam government announced, of which Priyadarshini is the first.
Background
The statewide private bus strike called for 3 November was dropped after the operators met the Transport Minister, with the government agreeing to look at raising the permitted operating life of a bus from 22 years to 25. Permits and operating conditions for buses are not matters of custom but of statute. Section 68 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 requires every State Government to set up, by notification in the Official Gazette, a State Transport Authority for the whole State. The same section requires it to set up Regional Transport Authorities, each for an area that the notification names as a region. The State Transport Authority holds the powers and functions listed in sub-section (3) of that section. In Kerala these bodies, and the Motor Vehicles Department under them, decide who may run a stage carriage and on what route. The Act is central law, so the same structure of a State Authority with Regional Authorities under it runs in every State.
Section:
Section 68
Act:
Motor Vehicles Act, 1988
Bodies constituted:
State Transport Authority and Regional Transport Authorities
Why it matters for exams: Which Act sets up the State and Regional Transport Authorities, and under which section, is a standard polity and transport question.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
STA State Transport Authority — The statewide body constituted under the Motor Vehicles Act for transport regulation.
RTA Regional Transport Authority — The body constituted for a notified region under the same Act.
Stage carriage Stage carriage — A bus that carries passengers for separate fares along a route.