28 October 2026
The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved a rise of 3 percentage points over the existing rate of 60 per cent in the dearness allowance paid to central government employees and the dearness relief paid to pensioners. The increase takes effect from 1 July 2026. The combined annual financial implication is Rs 10,016.10 crore. About 48.54 lakh central government employees and 68.71 lakh pensioners will benefit. The revision follows the formula approved on the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission.
Increase:
3 percentage points over 60 per cent
Effective from:
1 July 2026
Annual financial implication:
Rs 10,016.10 crore
Employees and pensioners:
48.54 lakh and 68.71 lakh
Why it matters for exams: Dearness allowance revisions are decided by the Union Cabinet on the formula of the 7th Central Pay Commission -- a standing Polity and Economy fact.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
DA Dearness Allowance — A cost-of-living component of pay for serving employees.
DR Dearness Relief — The same cost-of-living component paid to pensioners.
28 October 2026
The Union Cabinet approved the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Gram Swaraj Yojana (PM VGSVY), a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for the period 2026-27 to 2030-31, which coincides with the award period of the Sixteenth Finance Commission. The total outlay is Rs 7,395.55 crore, of which the Centre's share is Rs 4,869.48 crore and the States' share Rs 2,526.07 crore. The scheme covers over 2.55 lakh panchayats and traditional local bodies and will support the preparation of 2.55 lakh Gram Panchayat Development Plans every year on the e-GramSwaraj portal, along with 2.55 lakh online audit plans annually. About 32 lakh elected representatives and panchayat functionaries are to be trained each year, and awareness campaigns are to reach at least 1 crore citizens. An AI-based multilingual platform named Panchm is among the tools. Areas outside Part IX of the Constitution, which have no panchayats, are covered through their traditional local bodies. No permanent posts will be created.
Total outlay:
Rs 7,395.55 crore
Centre's share:
Rs 4,869.48 crore
States' share:
Rs 2,526.07 crore
Period:
2026-27 to 2030-31
Panchayats covered:
over 2.55 lakh
Why it matters for exams: A new Centrally Sponsored Scheme for panchayats, tied to the Sixteenth Finance Commission period and run through the e-GramSwaraj portal and Gram Panchayat Development Plans -- all named items in Panchayati Raj questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
GPDP Gram Panchayat Development Plan — The annual plan a gram panchayat prepares for its own area.
CSS Centrally Sponsored Scheme — A scheme funded by the Centre and the States together and run by the States.
28 October 2026
The Union Cabinet approved the Khelo India Sports Equipment Manufacturing Scheme with a total outlay of Rs 1,856.67 crore for the period 2026 to 2033-34. The scheme was announced in the Union Budget 2026-27. It will set up Sports Goods Manufacturing Zones that place manufacturers, suppliers, testing facilities and design and prototyping centres together, alongside NICDC industrial parks. Anchor investment support and turnover-linked support carry a combined outlay of Rs 1,130 crore, and support for obtaining and renewing certification from international sports federations carries Rs 105 crore. The scheme also funds centres of excellence in leading institutions, research linked to the National Research Foundation, startup support under Startup India, skilling run with the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and global market access through the Niryat Sanvardhan Mission.
Total outlay:
Rs 1,856.67 crore
Period:
2026 to 2033-34
Anchor and turnover-linked support:
Rs 1,130 crore
Quality certification support:
Rs 105 crore
Why it matters for exams: A new scheme under the Khelo India umbrella of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, with Sports Goods Manufacturing Zones and the National Research Foundation named in it.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
SGMZ Sports Goods Manufacturing Zone — A cluster that places sports goods makers, suppliers and testing and design facilities together.
NRF National Research Foundation — The national body that funds and directs research across disciplines.
28 October 2026
The Union Cabinet approved the Container Manufacturing Promotion Scheme (CMPS) with a total outlay of Rs 10,000 crore, running up to the financial year 2039-40. The scheme was announced in the Union Budget 2026-27 and aims to build a domestic container manufacturing base and cut import dependence. It has three components: Interest Subvention Assistance of Rs 859 crore, giving a 3 per cent annual interest subvention on eligible term loans for new units or expansion of existing ones; Operational Expenditure Assistance of Rs 8,891 crore for containers built to global shipping standards and sold by eligible manufacturers; and Rs 150 crore for testing and certification facilities such as dynamic longitudinal impact testing. Domestic annual container manufacturing capacity is expected to rise by up to 7.5 lakh TEU, about tenfold, with an estimated 3,000 direct jobs and over 50,000 indirect jobs.
Total outlay:
Rs 10,000 crore
Scheme period:
up to FY 2039-40
Interest subvention:
3 per cent a year, Rs 859 crore
Operational expenditure assistance:
Rs 8,891 crore
Capacity addition expected:
up to 7.5 lakh TEU a year
Why it matters for exams: A named Budget 2026-27 scheme with a stated outlay, three components and a capacity target in TEU -- the unit in which container traffic is always measured.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
TEU Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit — The standard unit for counting shipping containers, based on a twenty-foot container.
CMPS Container Manufacturing Promotion Scheme — The scheme approved to build container manufacturing capacity in India.
28 October 2026
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation released the flash estimate of the Index of Industrial Production for September 2026. The general index stood at 124.3 against 116.5 in September 2025, a growth of 6.7 per cent. The August 2026 growth figure has been revised to 7.8 per cent from the 8.0 per cent first reported. Among the four sectors, electricity and gas supply grew 11.2 per cent, manufacturing 7.6 per cent and water supply, sewerage and waste management 5.8 per cent, while mining and quarrying contracted 6.2 per cent. Among use-based categories, intermediate goods grew 12.2 per cent and capital goods 10.4 per cent, while consumer non-durables grew 1.4 per cent. The index uses 2022-23 as its base year.
IIP growth, September 2026:
6.7 per cent
General index:
124.3 against 116.5
Base year:
2022-23 = 100
Manufacturing:
7.6 per cent
Mining and quarrying:
-6.2 per cent
Why it matters for exams: The IIP is published by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, has 2022-23 as base year and is built on four sectors and use-based categories -- the standard set of facts asked about it.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
IIP Index of Industrial Production — A monthly index of the volume of industrial output.
MoSPI Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation — The ministry that compiles India's official statistics.
28 October 2026
The 14th International Tourism Mart will be held from 29 to 31 October 2026 at Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh. The Union Ministry of Tourism organises the mart with the Government of Arunachal Pradesh and the other north-eastern states. All eight north-eastern states -- Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura -- take part. More than 200 buyers and sellers from India and abroad are expected, including 43 international buyers from 22 countries. Union Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Minister of State Suresh Gopi and Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu are to attend the inauguration, at which the North East Bazaar opens. Familiarisation tours for international delegates begin from Guwahati. This is the first Tawang edition since the second mart was held there in 2013; the previous edition was at Gangtok in Sikkim.
Edition:
14th International Tourism Mart
Venue:
Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh
Dates:
29 to 31 October 2026
International buyers:
43 from 22 countries
Why it matters for exams: The International Tourism Mart is the Union Tourism Ministry's platform for the eight north-eastern states, and Tawang's location in Arunachal Pradesh is a standard map question.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ITM International Tourism Mart — The Tourism Ministry's annual buyer-seller event for the North East.
28 October 2026
The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change formed a high-level central team to investigate the death of a 19-month-old male cheetah of Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh. The animal, identified as KNG22 and an offspring of the cheetah Nirva, was found injured outside the protected area in the Morena forests on 25 October 2026 and rescued the same day from the Sheopur Territorial Forest Division. Veterinarians at an animal hospital in Jabalpur removed five gunshot pellets in emergency surgery. The cheetah died on 27 October 2026, and the medical examination found the pellets had caused several internal injuries. The central team comprises the Inspector General of Forests of the National Tiger Conservation Authority, an Additional Director of the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau and a Regional Deputy Director. It will work with the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department, review security and monitoring protocols and report to the ministry. The state has formed a Special Task Force of forest and police officers.
Cheetah:
KNG22, a 19-month-old male
Park:
Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh
Pellets removed:
five
Team members:
NTCA Inspector General of Forests, WCCB Additional Director, Regional Deputy Director
Why it matters for exams: Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh is the site of Project Cheetah, and the NTCA and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau are the two central wildlife bodies named in the inquiry.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
NTCA National Tiger Conservation Authority — The statutory authority under the Wild Life (Protection) Act that oversees tiger reserves and the cheetah project.
WCCB Wildlife Crime Control Bureau — The central bureau that tackles organised wildlife crime.
28 October 2026
In Union of India v. Mohamed Rifas @ Mohamed Rigbas, 2026 INSC 1160, the Supreme Court held that the bar on bail under Section 43D(7) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act applies to a foreign national only if his initial entry into India was unauthorised or illegal. The Bench of Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi read the provision as carrying three conditions -- that the person faces a charge under the UAPA, is not an Indian citizen, and entered India without authorisation -- and held the second and third to be conjunctive, so proof of foreign nationality alone is not enough. A lawful entry does not become illegal in retrospect because a visa later expired, and such an overstay is dealt with under the Foreigners Act. The Court also held that the overriding effect of the provision covers only sub-sections (5) and (6), so it does not take away statutory default bail under Section 43D(2). The appeal of the Union of India was dismissed and the Madras High Court order granting bail was upheld. The Court added that bail for a foreign national to whom the bar does apply is possible only in very exceptional circumstances, with reasons recorded in writing.
Case:
Union of India v. Mohamed Rifas @ Mohamed Rigbas
Citation:
2026 INSC 1160
Provision:
Section 43D(7), UAPA
High Court order upheld:
Madras High Court
Why it matters for exams: The ruling turns on Section 43D of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and its relationship with the Foreigners Act -- both named statutes that recur in Polity and law questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
UAPA അൺലോഫുൾ ആക്ടിവിറ്റീസ് (പ്രിവൻഷൻ) ആക്ട് — India's principal anti-terror law, enacted in 1967.
Default bail Statutory bail on failure to file a chargesheet in time — Bail a court must grant when the investigation is not completed within the period the law allows.
28 October 2026
In Balakrishna (dead) through legal representatives v. G.N. Kanniah Naidu (dead) through legal representatives, the Supreme Court held that a person who is not a party to a decree can resist its execution by an application under Order XXI, Rules 97 to 101 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, and need not file a separate suit to challenge the decree. Such an application stands on par with a regular suit, so the executing court itself must decide the question of title; Rule 101 bars a separate suit. The Bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva called the executing court's direction to approach a civil court wholly unsustainable in law and said the Karnataka High Court's view that the executing court's jurisdiction was limited showed no application of mind to the scheme of Rules 97 to 101. The dispute concerned Site No. 261, Munnekolala New Extension, Varthur Hobli, where both sides claimed land grants under a Hakkupatra dated 5 January 1972. The Court found the objector's original Hakkupatra genuine, set aside the High Court judgment, the executing court's order and the 1999 decree, and declared his legal representatives the lawful owners.
Case:
Balakrishna (dead) thr. LRs v. G.N. Kanniah Naidu (dead) thr. LRs
Provision:
Order XXI, Rules 97 to 101, CPC, 1908
High Court judgment set aside:
Karnataka High Court
Document in dispute:
Hakkupatra dated 5 January 1972
Why it matters for exams: The ruling settles the scope of Order XXI, Rules 97 to 101 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 -- the execution provisions that are a standing question in law papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
CPC Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 — The law that lays down the procedure of civil courts in India, including execution of decrees.
Decree A court's formal adjudication of rights — The formal order that conclusively determines the rights of the parties in a civil suit.
Background
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is an autonomous organisation under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. It was formerly known as the Imperial Council of Agricultural Research and was established on 16 July 1929 as a registered society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860, in pursuance of the report of the Royal Commission on Agriculture. ICAR has its headquarters at New Delhi. The Council is the apex body for co-ordinating, guiding and managing research and education in agriculture including horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences in the entire country. With 113 ICAR institutes and 74 agricultural universities spread across the country, ICAR describes itself as one of the largest national agricultural systems in the world, and credits its research and technology development with a pioneering role in the Green Revolution.
Former name:
Imperial Council of Agricultural Research
Registered under:
Societies Registration Act, 1860
Network:
113 ICAR institutes and 74 agricultural universities
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are the former name, Imperial Council of Agricultural Research; the registration as a society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860; the Royal Commission on Agriculture whose report led to it; and the parent Department, DARE, under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
ICAR Indian Council of Agricultural Research — The apex body for agricultural research and education in India.
DARE Department of Agricultural Research and Education — The Union Department under which ICAR functions.
Royal Commission on Agriculture A colonial-era commission on Indian agriculture — Its report led to the setting up of the Imperial Council of Agricultural Research.
Background
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) traces its own history to the Indian Research Fund Association (IRFA), which was established by Sir Harcourt Butler in 1911. IRFA was renamed the Indian Council of Medical Research in 1949. ICMR states its mandate in three parts: it is the apex body in India for formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical research; it conducts, coordinates and implements medical research for the benefit of the Society; and it translates medical innovations into products and processes and introduces them into the public health system. Its stated vision is translating research into action for improving the health of the population. Among the missions it sets itself are increasing the focus of research on the health problems of the vulnerable, the disadvantaged and marginalized sections of the society, and inculcating a culture of research in medical colleges and other health research institutions. The headquarters of ICMR is at V. Ramalingaswami Bhawan, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi.
Original name:
Indian Research Fund Association (IRFA), 1911
Renamed:
Indian Council of Medical Research, 1949
Headquarters:
V. Ramalingaswami Bhawan, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are the original name, the Indian Research Fund Association, founded by Sir Harcourt Butler; the renaming as the Indian Council of Medical Research; and the self-stated role of apex body for biomedical research in India.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
ICMR Indian Council of Medical Research — The apex body for biomedical research in India.
IRFA Indian Research Fund Association — The body from which ICMR grew.
Biomedical research Research on the biology of health and disease — It covers laboratory, clinical and public health research together.
Background
The Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) describes itself as a contemporary research and development organisation with a dynamic network of 37 national laboratories, 39 outreach centres, 1 Innovation Complexes and three units, with a pan-India presence. Its work spans oceanography, geophysics, chemicals, drugs, genomics, biotechnology and nanotechnology through to mining, aeronautics, instrumentation, environmental engineering and information technology, and it intervenes in areas such as environment, health, drinking water, food, housing, energy and the farm and non-farm sectors. CSIR calls itself the pioneer of the intellectual property movement of India and says it is a leader among publicly funded research organisations globally in filing and securing patents. Its long-term vision, CSIR@2030, is to enhance the quality of life of the citizens of India through innovative science and technology and globally competitive research and development, by developing sustainable solutions and building capacity to fulfil the dream of Atmanirbhar Bharat, and CSIR says this vision is aligned to the vision of the Government of India for the next 25 years, Amrit Kal. The Prime Minister has chaired a meeting of the CSIR Society, telling it that CSIR works as an institutional arrangement to keep science, society and industry on the same page.
National laboratories:
37
Outreach centres:
39
Long term vision:
CSIR@2030
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are the full name, Council of Scientific & Industrial Research; the count of 37 national laboratories and 39 outreach centres; the CSIR@2030 vision; and the description of CSIR as the pioneer of the intellectual property movement of India.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
CSIR Council of Scientific & Industrial Research — The largest publicly funded research network in India.
Amrit Kal The vision of the Government of India for the next 25 years — CSIR says its own long-term vision is aligned to it.
Intellectual property Rights over inventions, designs and brands — Patents are the form CSIR mainly works with.