13 October 2026
Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired the first meeting of BIMSTEC Home Ministers in New Delhi on 13 October 2026.
The seven member states are Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
The ministers approved a BIMSTEC Convention against Trafficking in Persons and a BIMSTEC Plan of Action on Drug Control.
They also approved an MoU on capacity building to combat money laundering and terror financing, and a Plan of Action on Illicit Financial Flows.
Mr Shah said the proposed BIMSTEC Disaster Management Centre is planned to be established in Jamnagar, Gujarat.
The Home Ministers' mechanism was welcomed at the 6th BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok on 4 April 2025.
Venue:
New Delhi
Member states:
7
Proposed Disaster Management Centre:
Jamnagar, Gujarat
Why it matters for exams: Regional groupings, their members and India-hosted ministerial meetings are staple questions in UPSC and Kerala PSC papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
BIMSTEC Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation — A seven-nation regional grouping around the Bay of Bengal.
Illicit financial flows Illicit financial flows — Money moved across borders in breach of law, such as proceeds of crime.
13 October 2026
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in New Delhi on 13 October 2026, the forum's debut in India.
He presented the idea of 'Power to Empower', saying the true value of power lies in its purpose.
He said startups have grown from a few hundred in 2014 to over 2.5 lakh, with over 45 percent led by women.
He cited the open-source CoWIN platform as an example of India sharing digital capability with partner countries.
He said India surpassed its target of 40 percent non-fossil installed electricity capacity in November 2021, nine years ahead of schedule.
He said India supplied vaccines to over 100 countries during the pandemic.
Theme of address:
Power to Empower
Startups:
over 2.5 lakh
Non-fossil capacity target met:
November 2021
Why it matters for exams: Questions on digital public infrastructure, the startup ecosystem and India's non-fossil capacity target are common in current affairs papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
CoWIN COVID Vaccine Intelligence Network — India's open-source platform used to run COVID-19 vaccination.
JAM Trinity Jan Dhan, Aadhaar, Mobile — The link of bank accounts, Aadhaar identity and mobile numbers used for direct benefit transfers.
13 October 2026
The PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, launched in October 2021, completes five years.
Its geospatial digital platform was developed indigenously by BISAG-N, the Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics.
The platform integrates more than 1,800 data layers, covering 58 Central Ministries/Departments and all 36 States/Union Territories.
The Network Planning Group evaluated over 400 infrastructure projects worth approximately ₹20.23 lakh crore.
The PM GatiShakti Public platform, through the Unified Geospatial Interface, was launched in September 2025.
The Government has decided to set up an Integrated Transport and Logistics Authority (ITLA) for long-term transport planning.
Data layers integrated:
more than 1,800
Projects evaluated by NPG:
over 400, worth approximately ₹20.23 lakh crore
Developer:
BISAG-N
Why it matters for exams: GatiShakti is a flagship infrastructure planning framework; its developer, scale and the new logistics authority are likely recall questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
BISAG-N Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics — The institute that built the PM GatiShakti geospatial platform.
NPG Network Planning Group — The body that evaluates infrastructure projects on PM GatiShakti principles.
ITLA Integrated Transport and Logistics Authority — The authority the Government has decided to set up (also approved by the Union Cabinet) to strengthen research, planning, appraisal, monitoring and impact assessment in transport and logistics.
13 October 2026
Indian Railways loaded 135.35 million tonnes of freight in September 2026, against 127.52 million tonnes in September 2025.
This is a growth of 6.14 per cent over the corresponding month last year.
Food grain loading grew by 25 per cent, clinker by 20 per cent, domestic container by 10 per cent and coal by 9 per cent.
Coal rakes supplied to power houses averaged 443 per day, against 397 per day in September 2025, a rise of 11.6 per cent.
Freight revenue rose by ₹1,266 crore, or 9.3 per cent, over September 2025.
Cumulative loading in April-September 2026 was 833.7 million tonnes, up 4.1 per cent.
September 2026 freight loading:
135.35 million tonnes
Growth:
6.14%
April-September 2026 loading:
833.7 million tonnes
Why it matters for exams: Monthly freight data from the Ministry of Railways is a regular source of economy and infrastructure questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Clinker Cement clinker — The intermediate product ground with gypsum to make cement.
13 October 2026
The Indian Navy is set to commission Samarthak at Naval Base, Karwar on 16 October 2026.
It is built by Larsen and Toubro Ltd under the Make in India initiative.
Samarthak is the first of four Multi-Purpose Vessels being inducted into the Navy.
She is designed primarily for maritime surveillance and patrol, and can also support Low Intensity Maritime Operations and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief.
She can serve as a target deployment and trials platform and as a mothership for unmanned and autonomous systems.
Her motto is 'Vijayartham Ekanishtata', meaning 'Victory is Our Sole Aim'.
Commissioning:
Naval Base, Karwar, 16 October 2026
Builder:
Larsen and Toubro Ltd
Series:
First of four Multi-Purpose Vessels
Why it matters for exams: Naval inductions, builders and the Make in India defence push are routine defence questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
LIMO Low Intensity Maritime Operations — Maritime tasks short of full-scale naval combat, such as patrol and interdiction.
HADR Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief — Armed forces' role in relief during disasters and humanitarian crises.
13 October 2026
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held a bilateral meeting in New Delhi on 13 October 2026 with Karel Havlíček, 1st Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic.
They reviewed the entire spectrum of defence industrial cooperation between the two countries.
Both sides agreed to expand cooperation, including under the India-Czech Joint Defence Committee, to promote Make-in-India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
They welcomed the successful establishment of various joint ventures.
Mr Havlíček is on a four-day visit to India and will visit industries in Bengaluru and Mumbai.
Visiting leader:
Karel Havlíček
Forum:
India-Czech Joint Defence Committee
Length of visit:
Four days
Why it matters for exams: Bilateral defence engagements and the bodies that anchor them, such as joint committees, are asked in international-relations and defence sections.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Joint Defence Committee India-Czech Joint Defence Committee — The bilateral forum that oversees defence cooperation between the two countries.
13 October 2026
Amnesty provisions were introduced as a transitional measure in the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) Scheme 2026, notified on 29 June 2026.
They allow one-time regularisation of exempt status of PF Trusts recognised under the Income Tax Act, 1961 but lacking a formal exemption order.
The missing order is one under section 17 of the EPF&MP Act, 1952 or section 143 of the Code on Social Security, 2020.
The window is open for six months and expires on 28 December 2026.
Benefits include waiver of the minimum employee headcount, corpus size and 3-year compliance rules, with flexibility to comply as exempt or unexempt afterwards.
Operational guidelines were issued in a circular of 11 July 2026.
Scheme notified:
29 June 2026
Amnesty window ends:
28 December 2026
Window length:
6 months
Why it matters for exams: Labour and social security law, and the Code on Social Security 2020, are staple topics for economy and governance papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
EPFO Employees' Provident Fund Organisation — The statutory body that administers provident fund schemes for workers.
Exempt establishment Exempt establishment — An employer allowed to run its own PF Trust instead of depositing with EPFO.
CoSS Code on Social Security, 2020 — The labour code that consolidates social security laws including provident fund.
13 October 2026
The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances released the 53rd monthly CPGRAMS report on Central Ministries/Departments for September 2026.
Central Ministries/Departments redressed 2,38,579 grievances; 2,27,837 were received and 85,687 remain pending.
The average grievance disposal time in 2026 is 13 days.
A total of 92,822 new users registered in September 2026, with the highest share from Uttar Pradesh (17%).
The Ministry of Labour and Employment received 37,492 grievances and the Department of Financial Services (Banking Division) 31,968.
The Department of Posts, the Insurance Division of the Department of Financial Services and the Department of Telecommunications are among the top performers in Group A of the Grievance Redressal Assessment and Index.
Grievances redressed, September 2026:
2,38,579
Average disposal time in 2026:
13 days
New users registered:
92,822
Why it matters for exams: Governance reforms, grievance redressal systems and their indices are regular questions in polity and administration papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
CPGRAMS Centralized Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System — The online portal through which citizens lodge grievances with Central Ministries and States.
DARPG Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances — The Union department that runs CPGRAMS and publishes its reports.
13 October 2026
The 21st Maritime State Development Council (MSDC) concluded in Mumbai, chaired by Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal.
It was the first meeting after the Council was recognised as a statutory consultative body under the Indian Ports Act, 2025, notified on 15 May 2026.
The Council was originally constituted in 1997.
It resolved that One Nation One Port Process reforms and integration with the Maritime Single Window (Sagar Setu) be implemented across all ports by March 2027.
States and Union Territories were told to notify subordinate rules under Section 77 of the Act within three months.
Two credit risk insurance products for shipbuilders were introduced under the National Shipbuilding Mission.
The Shipbuilding Project Credit Risk Insurance Policy for export projects was developed by ECGC Ltd., and the Business Credit Shield Policy-Shipbuilders for domestic projects by The New India Assurance Co. Ltd.
Council first constituted:
1997
Indian Ports Act, 2025 notified:
15 May 2026
Deadline for ONOP and Sagar Setu integration:
March 2027
Why it matters for exams: Port governance, shipbuilding policy and the Indian Ports Act, 2025 are topics in economy and infrastructure sections.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
MSDC Maritime State Development Council — The forum of the Centre and coastal States for coordinating port and maritime policy.
ONOP One Nation One Port Process — Reforms to standardise documentation and processes across all ports.
ECGC Export Credit Guarantee Corporation — The state-owned export credit insurer.
13 October 2026
Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Dr P. K. Mishra delivered the keynote at the inaugural session of the Conference of State Planning, Finance and IT Secretaries in New Delhi.
The conference was organised by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
He said a strong statistical system is essential for evidence-based policymaking and Viksit Bharat @ 2047.
He cited the new National Accounts Series with 2022-23 as the base year, with updated Consumer Price Index and Index of Industrial Production series.
He called statistics an instrument of cooperative federalism and said granular State, district and local data would be increasingly necessary.
He said AI and satellite imagery offer significant opportunities to improve official statistics, but that speed cannot come at the cost of accuracy.
Organiser:
MoSPI
Base year of new National Accounts Series:
2022-23
Why it matters for exams: The base-year revision of national accounts, CPI and IIP, and MoSPI's role are frequent economy questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
MoSPI Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation — The Union ministry responsible for official statistics such as GDP, CPI and IIP.
Base year Base year — The reference year against which an index or series is measured.
13 October 2026
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said on 13 October 2026 that the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan has completed five years since Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched it in October 2021.
The platform now integrates more than 1,800 data layers from 58 Central Ministries/Departments and all 36 States and Union Territories.
It supports more than 65 software modules and tools and over 100 mobile and web applications.
The Network Planning Group has evaluated 421 infrastructure projects worth approximately ₹20.23 Lakh Crore.
The platform was developed indigenously by the Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG-N).
The Union Cabinet has approved an Integrated Transport and Logistics Authority to strengthen research, planning, evaluation, monitoring and impact assessment in transport and logistics.
Launched:
October 2021
Data layers:
more than 1,800
Ministries/Departments:
58
Projects evaluated:
421
Value of projects:
₹20.23 Lakh Crore
Why it matters for exams: The launch year, the developing agency BISAG-N, the Network Planning Group and the new Integrated Transport and Logistics Authority are directly askable facts.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
BISAG-N Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics — A central government institute that builds geospatial platforms and applications.
NPG Network Planning Group — The body that appraises infrastructure projects for integrated multimodal planning under PM GatiShakti.
13 October 2026
The Ministry of Railways said on 13 October 2026 that freight loading in September 2026 was 135.35 million tonnes, up 6.14 per cent from 127.52 million tonnes in September 2025.
Commodity-wise growth was led by Food Grain at 25 per cent, Clinker at 20 per cent and Domestic Container at 10 per cent, with Coal at 9 per cent.
Coal rakes supplied to power plants rose to 443 per day from 397, a growth of 11.6 per cent.
September freight revenue rose by ₹1,266 crore, a growth of 9.3 per cent.
Cumulative loading from April to September 2026 stood at 833.7 million tonnes, up 4.1 per cent, with cumulative freight revenue up 3.7 per cent.
Loading, September 2026:
135.35 million tonnes
Loading, September 2025:
127.52 million tonnes
Growth:
6.14 per cent
Coal rakes per day:
443 (from 397)
Freight revenue rise:
₹1,266 crore
April–September 2026 loading:
833.7 million tonnes
Why it matters for exams: Monthly railway freight figures are a standard source of economy questions and of data for Indian Railways descriptive answers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Rake — A full set of railway wagons moved together as one train load.
Clinker — An intermediate product of cement manufacture, carried in bulk by rail.