27 October 2026
The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has introduced a Concessional Local Pass for owners of non-commercial vehicles who live within 20 km of a national highway fee plaza and hold a valid, active FASTag. The pass costs Rs. 1,500 per year at fee plazas outside municipal or local town areas and Rs. 3,000 per year at fee plazas within those limits. It has been notified through the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) (Fifth Amendment) Rules, 2026, and is valid only at the single fee plaza for which it is issued. It becomes available at eligible fee plazas from 01st November 2026 and on the Rajmargyatra App from 01.12.2026. The Ministry says over 13 crore FASTags have been issued in the country.
Distance limit:
20 km from the fee plaza
Annual fee outside town limits:
Rs. 1,500
Annual fee within town limits:
Rs. 3,000
FASTags issued:
over 13 crore
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that user fee on national highways is levied under rules made under the National Highways Act, 1956, that the nodal ministry is the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, that FASTag is the electronic toll collection system run on the National Electronic Toll Collection programme, and that Rajmargyatra is the Ministry's highway user app.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
FASTag Electronic toll collection tag using RFID — A prepaid tag fixed on the windscreen that pays highway user fee electronically.
MoRTH Ministry of Road Transport & Highways — The Union ministry in charge of national highways and road transport.
27 October 2026
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has launched the sixth edition of the National Startup Awards, called NSA 6.0, as part of the Startup India initiative. The edition has 20 sectoral categories, of which 12 are new, including Biomanufacturing, Defence & Security, Ocean & Blue Economy, Space-Tech & Aerospace and Future Mobility & Automotive. It also has three special categories: Women-Led Startups, Startups from the North-Eastern Region and a new Student Innovator / Aspiring Entrepreneur Award. Winners in each sectoral category receive Rs 25 lakh, and the student award carries a Rs 25 lakh prize pool across four sub-categories. Applications are open on the Startup India portal till 20 November 2026.
Sectoral categories:
20, of which 12 are new
Special categories:
3
Prize per category:
Rs 25 lakh
Last date to apply:
20 November 2026
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that the National Startup Awards are given by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, that DPIIT also recognises startups under the Startup India initiative launched in 2016, and that the prize for a sectoral category is Rs 25 lakh.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
In plain words
DPIIT Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade — The department under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry that runs Startup India and recognises startups.
27 October 2026
President Droupadi Murmu received Hereditary Prince Alois and Hereditary Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein at Rashtrapati Bhavan and hosted a banquet in their honour. The President said India-Liechtenstein cooperation is growing in trade, investment, science and technology, innovation, culture and people-to-people exchanges. She noted that the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement between India and the European Free Trade Association, concluded in 2024, has opened new avenues for trade and investment, and referred to the commitment to facilitate 100 billion dollars of investment in India and create 1 million direct jobs over the next 15 years. Liechtenstein companies were described as interested in advanced manufacturing, fintech, agricultural research, sustainable infrastructure, healthcare and materials science.
Investment commitment under India-EFTA agreement:
100 billion dollars over 15 years
Direct jobs expected:
1 million
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that Liechtenstein is a landlocked European principality with Vaduz as its capital and is one of the four members of the European Free Trade Association, and that India's agreement with EFTA is called the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
EFTA European Free Trade Association — A four-member bloc of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland; it is not part of the European Union.
TEPA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement — The name of the trade agreement between India and the EFTA states.
26 October 2026
The Ministry of Culture has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Bibliotheque nationale de France in Paris to strengthen cooperation in the preservation, digitisation, research and dissemination of manuscript and documentary heritage. It was signed by Shri Vivek Aggarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Culture, and Gilles Pecout, President of the Bibliotheque nationale de France. The MoU is implemented through the Gyan Bharatam Mission, the Ministry's flagship manuscript heritage initiative, with the National Archives of India in New Delhi and the National Library in Kolkata as participating institutions. It covers five areas of cooperation: digitisation, cross-sharing on the National Digital Repository, technology exchange, conservation, and research and development. Work will include identifying and digitising Indic-origin manuscripts held by the French library and exchanging expertise on cataloguing standards and OCR and HTR tools for Indian scripts.
Areas of cooperation:
5
Signed at:
Paris
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that the Gyan Bharatam Mission is the Ministry of Culture's mission for India's manuscript heritage, that the National Archives of India is at New Delhi and the National Library of India at Kolkata, and that the Bibliotheque nationale de France is the national library of France.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Gyan Bharatam Mission Ministry of Culture mission on manuscript heritage — It identifies, documents, conserves, digitises and disseminates India's manuscript heritage and runs the National Digital Repository.
HTR Handwritten Text Recognition — Software that reads handwriting in scanned manuscripts, as OCR reads printed text.
26 October 2026
The 33rd edition of the Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise, SIMBEX-2026, has concluded. The Indian Navy hosted the exercise at Visakhapatnam, and the Sea Phase was held in the Bay of Bengal. The Republic of Singapore Navy was represented by RSS Supreme, a Formidable-class stealth frigate, with an embarked SH-70B helicopter. The Indian Navy participated with the indigenously built stealth frigate INS Nilgiri and the anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kamorta, along with P-8I and Dornier maritime patrol aircraft, Hawk Advanced Jet Trainers and MH-60R helicopters. The Harbour Phase covered subject matter expert exchanges, cross-deck visits and planning conferences, while the Sea Phase covered maritime interdiction and anti-submarine, anti-air and anti-surface warfare drills. Colonel Bertram Ang, Fleet Commander of the Republic of Singapore Navy, called on Rear Admiral Vishal Bishnoi, Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet.
Edition:
33rd
Host port:
Visakhapatnam
Sea Phase area:
Bay of Bengal
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that SIMBEX stands for Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise, that it is held between the Indian Navy and the Republic of Singapore Navy, that Visakhapatnam is the headquarters of the Eastern Naval Command, and that INS Nilgiri is the lead ship of the Nilgiri class built under Project 17A.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
SIMBEX Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise — The annual naval exercise between India and Singapore, among India's longest running bilateral naval exercises.
27 October 2026
The ARISE Cities Forum 2026 opened at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, with the theme 'From Bharat to Antalya - Commit. Implement. Deliver'. It is organised by ICLEI South Asia with the National Institute of Urban Affairs and supported by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, and was opened by Minister of State Shri Tokhan Sahu. The two-day forum brings together over 200 delegates from more than 50 cities in over 18 countries of the Global South, with three technical plenaries and fourteen technical sessions. Its discussions feed into the Delhi Declaration on Local Action for Global Climate Goals 2026, which will be adopted at the close and presented at COP31 in Antalya, Turkiye, where COP31 Climate Champion Samed Agirbas will receive it. The forum also saw the launch of the Centre for Sustainable Urban Mobility and Integrated Transportation, and mayors of Kochi, Fuvahmulah, Karjanha and Samdrup Jongkhar took part.
Delegates:
200+
Cities represented:
50+ from 18+ countries
Venue:
India Habitat Centre, New Delhi
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that the National Institute of Urban Affairs works under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, that ICLEI is a global network of local governments for sustainability, and that COP31 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is being held at Antalya in Turkiye.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
NIUA National Institute of Urban Affairs — An urban research and capacity-building institute under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability — A global network of cities and local governments working on sustainability; its South Asia secretariat is in New Delhi.
27 October 2026
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has reported the nationwide progress of the NAMASTE scheme, which stands for National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem, at an event in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh where Minister of State Shri B. L. Verma distributed Personal Protective Equipment kits and Ayushman Cards to Safai Mitras. Under the scheme, 90,194 Sewer and Septic Tank Workers have been verified, 88,222 have been provided PPE kits and 80,180 have been covered under health insurance through Ayushman Cards, while 3,36,492 waste pickers have been profiled. In Moradabad district, 307 Sewer and Septic Tank Workers have been profiled and given PPE kits and 1,190 waste pickers have been validated. The scheme aims at the dignity, safety, health and social security of sanitation workers.
Workers verified:
90,194
PPE kits provided:
88,222
Covered by Ayushman Cards:
80,180
Waste pickers profiled:
3,36,492
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that NAMASTE stands for National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem, that it is run by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, and that the Ayushman Card is issued under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
NAMASTE National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem — A central scheme to mechanise sewer and septic tank cleaning and protect sanitation workers.
Safai Mitra Term used for sanitation workers in central schemes — The official term for sewer and septic tank workers and waste pickers covered by the scheme.
27 October 2026
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, with the Department of Economics and Statistics of Keralam, will hold a three-day workshop at Thiruvananthapuram on the base revision of the state-level Index of Industrial Production. The All-India Index of Industrial Production has already been shifted from the base year 2011-12 to the base year 2022-23, and the workshop will review the proposed changes for the revised index at the state level. Participants will finalise the items to be tracked and the factories that will report data, and give feedback on the revision of the National Industrial Classification-2025 and the National Product Classification. Around 60 officials from the Ministry and from the Directorates of Economics and Statistics of States and Union Territories are expected to attend.
Old base year of All-India IIP:
2011-12
New base year of All-India IIP:
2022-23
Officials expected:
around 60
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that the Index of Industrial Production is released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation through the National Statistics Office, that its base year has been changed from 2011-12 to 2022-23, and that industrial units are classified under the National Industrial Classification.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
In plain words
IIP Index of Industrial Production — A monthly index of the volume of production in mining, manufacturing and electricity.
MoSPI Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation — The ministry that brings out India's official statistics, including the IIP and the Consumer Price Index.
27 October 2026
A Supreme Court bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana has issued notice to the Centre on a petition by the Digital News Publishers Association challenging provisions of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act and the rules made under it. The petition, argued by senior advocate Madhavi Divan, also challenges the amendment to Section 8(1)(j) of the Right to Information Act, saying it narrows access to information about public officials. The association contends that the absence of an exemption for journalistic activity, the consent requirements and the Centre's powers to call for information could affect news reporting, investigative journalism and the confidentiality of sources. The matter has been listed for further hearing in November along with pending matters.
Petitioner:
Digital News Publishers Association
Provision of the RTI Act challenged:
Section 8(1)(j)
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 sets up the Data Protection Board of India, that Section 8(1)(j) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 is the exemption for personal information, and that the Right to Information Act was enacted in 2005.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
DPDP Act Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 — India's law on the processing of digital personal data; it establishes the Data Protection Board of India.
26 October 2026
In Bank of India versus S.M. Kamal Pasha, a Supreme Court bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K. Vinod Chandran has held that a Committee of Creditors cannot withdraw a resolution plan it has already approved merely because the corporate debtor's financial position has since improved. The Court held that once the creditors approve a plan, it binds both the Committee of Creditors and the successful resolution applicant even before the National Company Law Tribunal confirms it, and that withdrawal of the application is possible only until the Committee approves the plan. Relying on Ebix Singapore versus Committee of Creditors of Educomp Solutions, the Court said the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code does not allow unilateral withdrawal or modification of an approved plan. The approved plan in the case was worth Rs 172.55 crore. The Court upheld the order of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal.
Value of the approved resolution plan:
Rs 172.55 crore
Precedent relied on:
Ebix Singapore versus CoC of Educomp Solutions
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code was enacted in 2016, that the Committee of Creditors approves a resolution plan in the corporate insolvency resolution process, that the adjudicating authority for companies is the National Company Law Tribunal with appeals to the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, and that the regulator is the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of I
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
In plain words
CoC Committee of Creditors — The body of financial creditors that approves a resolution plan during insolvency proceedings.
CIRP Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process — The process under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code for resolving a company's insolvency.
26 October 2026
In Dakshin Gujarat Vij Company Limited versus Vaibhav Metal Crusher, a Supreme Court bench of Justices Manoj Misra and K.V. Viswanathan has held that a High Court may, in an appropriate case, order restoration of an electricity connection disconnected in a theft case if the consumer deposits at least fifty per cent of the provisionally assessed amount. The Court said this can be done only where the provisional assessment appears prima facie arbitrary and the court records its reasons. It held that the amount for restoration is to be worked out using the procedure in Section 126 of the Electricity Act, 2003 unless the Supply Code prescribes another method, and that an appeal against that assessment lies under Section 127. The Court added that such an appellate determination is final only for the purpose of restoration and does not bind the Special Court deciding civil liability under Section 154, and that any excess deposit must be refunded. The appeal by the distribution companies was dismissed.
Minimum deposit for restoration:
50 per cent of the provisional assessment
Provision for assessment:
Section 126 of the Electricity Act, 2003
Why it matters for exams: The durable facts are that electricity in India is governed by the Electricity Act, 2003, that Section 135 deals with theft of electricity and Section 126 with assessment for unauthorised use, that appeals lie under Section 127, and that electricity is a subject in the Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Supply Code Electricity Supply Code made by a State Electricity Regulatory Commission — Regulations that govern conditions of supply, metering and billing in a State.