3 November 2026
Scientists at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics have used data from Aditya-L1 to study how a solar eruption grew as it left the Sun.
Until now a coronal mass ejection was pictured as a bubble that swells evenly on all sides.
The team looked at an eruption of 5 August 2024 from an active region near the Sun's western edge.
Readings from the Visible Emission Line Coronagraph were combined with images from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory and with three-dimensional modelling.
The expansion turned out to be lopsided, which gives the cloud an irregular shape.
That shape can change its speed and the time it takes to reach the Earth, so forecasts of space weather for satellites and radio links are affected.
The work has appeared in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
Emission line used:
530.3 nm
Coronal plasma temperature:
about 1.8 million kelvin
Eruption studied:
5 August 2024
Why it matters for exams: The Visible Emission Line Coronagraph is the main payload of Aditya-L1, India's first solar mission, which observes from the Sun-Earth L1 point.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
VELC Visible Emission Line Coronagraph — The primary of Aditya-L1's seven payloads, which blocks the Sun's disc to study the corona.
CME Coronal Mass Ejection — A large cloud of plasma and magnetic field thrown out by the Sun.
IIA Indian Institute of Astrophysics — An autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology, with its laboratory at Hosakote.
3 November 2026
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has issued the Telecommunication Interconnection (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2026, after a review of its interconnection rules of 2018.
Interconnection is the arrangement by which a call from one operator's network reaches a customer of another.
Until now the points where networks met were fixed at the level of small local areas; operators may now agree on them at the level of a Licensed Service Area, and existing traffic is to shift over three years.
Every new interconnection after the rules take effect must be IP-based, and old circuit-switched links must also be converted in phases over three years.
A new framework lets an operator give up a point of interconnection voluntarily, which is different from disconnection in a dispute.
The gap between reassessments of bank guarantees, and their validity after reassessment, go up from six months to twelve.
Interest on late interconnection payments may be agreed between operators but cannot exceed the State Bank of India's one-year MCLR plus two percentage points.
The regulations come into force on 1 January 2027.
In force from:
1 January 2027
Cap on late payment interest:
SBI one-year MCLR plus 2 percentage points
Parent regulations reviewed:
Telecommunication Interconnection Regulations, 2018
Why it matters for exams: TRAI's Telecommunication Interconnection (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2026 shift points of interconnection to the Licensed Service Area level and make all new interconnection IP-based from 1 January 2027.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
In plain words
TRAI Telecom Regulatory Authority of India — The statutory telecom regulator set up under the TRAI Act, 1997.
POI Point of Interconnection — The physical point at which two operators' networks are joined.
LSA Licensed Service Area — The licence unit for telecom service in India, usually a state or a large circle.
3 November 2026
The Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare has begun its fifth nationwide campaign for digital life certificates.
A pensioner must show every year that he or she is alive before the pension continues, and the digital certificate replaces a visit to the bank with a check done on a smartphone.
Face authentication, brought in during 2021, lets a pensioner complete the process at home without depending on anyone else.
A large camp was held at the Punjab National Bank branch on Sansad Marg in New Delhi, with a talk with senior pensioners and a medical camp alongside.
In the previous campaign more than 14 lakh pensioners aged 80 and above filed their certificates this way.
Certificates filed through face authentication rose from 50 lakh to about 1.25 crore.
For those who cannot reach a camp, banks and post offices provide the service at home.
Digital life certificates have been accepted since 2014.
Edition of campaign:
Fifth
Face authentication certificates:
rose from 50 lakh to about 1.25 crore
Pensioners aged 80 and above in last campaign:
more than 14 lakh
Why it matters for exams: The Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare, under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, runs the digital life certificate system, in which face authentication was introduced in 2021.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
DLC Digital Life Certificate — The electronic proof of being alive that a pensioner files each year.
DoPPW Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare — The nodal department for central civil pensioners, under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.
3 November 2026
The Coal Controller Organisation, which works under the Ministry of Coal, has released a digital tool named SUVIKALP, described as a mine repurposing tool.
It helps decide what a coal or lignite mine should be used for once mining there ends.
A user enters details of the site, and the tool builds a profile from land and mining features, the state of the environment, available infrastructure, how far the resource is depleted, money matters and social conditions.
It then scores and ranks the possible new uses by a multi-criteria decision-making approach built on TOPSIS, which stands for Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution.
A component named RECLAIM, the community engagement and development framework, brings in what local people want, such as jobs, livelihoods and lasting gains for the area.
PRISM, the Post-Mining Repurposing Implementation Strategic Model, carries a chosen option into planning, investment and monitoring, and comes with concept notes, case studies and sample tender papers.
The tool is tied to the Mining Plan Guidelines for Coal and Lignite Mine, 2025.
Ranking method:
TOPSIS
Linked guidelines:
Mining Plan Guidelines for Coal and Lignite Mine, 2025
Why it matters for exams: SUVIKALP is the mine repurposing tool of the Coal Controller Organisation under the Ministry of Coal, and it ranks options by the TOPSIS method.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
CCO Coal Controller Organisation — The body under the Ministry of Coal that oversees coal mine records, grading and statistics.
PRISM Post-Mining Repurposing Implementation Strategic Model — The part of SUVIKALP that takes a chosen option into planning, investment and monitoring.
MCDM Multi-Criteria Decision-Making — A way of choosing between options scored against several criteria at once.
3 November 2026
Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav has set out in New Delhi what India will press for at COP31, the thirty-first Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The meeting is at Antalya in Turkiye from 9 to 20 November 2026.
India's first ask is a decision to start the Climate Finance Work Programme, with finance from developed countries that is predictable, mostly public and concessional and does not deepen the debt of poorer countries.
On mitigation and the Global Stocktake, India wants the process kept in the hands of the parties and free of penalties, with no targets imposed from above.
It wants indicators under the Global Goal on Adaptation to stay voluntary and never become a condition for getting finance, and it wants more money for adaptation.
India holds that developed countries should fund technology transfer and that barriers of cost, intellectual property and trade must be dealt with.
It also wants the Just Transition Work Programme continued through a party-driven mechanism, and participation in carbon markets left voluntary.
Side events include LeadIT 3.0 with Sweden.
Host city:
Antalya, Turkiye
Dates:
9 to 20 November 2026
Side event with Sweden:
LeadIT 3.0
Why it matters for exams: COP31 of the UNFCCC is at Antalya in Turkiye from 9 to 20 November 2026, and India's lead demand there is the launch of the Climate Finance Work Programme.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change — The 1992 treaty whose parties meet every year as the Conference of the Parties.
Global Stocktake Global Stocktake — The periodic review under the Paris Agreement of how far the world has got on its climate goals.
2 November 2026
India and the United States have opened the 5th edition of Exercise Tiger Triumph, their bilateral tri-service exercise on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
The opening ceremony was held at the Maritime Warfare Centre in Visakhapatnam.
Tri-service means the army, the navy and the air force of both countries take part.
This year it is run as a tabletop exercise, in which officers work a disaster through on maps and paper instead of moving troops and ships.
On the Indian side there are navy maritime specialists, army ground forces, air force representatives and special forces drawn from all three services.
A team from the National Disaster Response Force is taking part for the first time.
The United States has sent representatives of its air force, army, marine corps and navy, together with specialists in space, cyber, medical work and explosive ordnance disposal.
The point of the drill is to get the two sides planning together quickly when a large relief operation is needed.
Edition:
5th
Venue:
Maritime Warfare Centre (MWC), Visakhapatnam
Format:
Tabletop Exercise (TTX)
Why it matters for exams: Tiger Triumph is the India-United States bilateral tri-service humanitarian assistance and disaster relief exercise, and its 5th edition opened at the Maritime Warfare Centre, Visakhapatnam.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
HADR Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief — Military help given to civilians after a disaster.
NDRF National Disaster Response Force — India's specialist disaster response force raised under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.
TTX Tabletop Exercise — A discussion-based drill worked through on maps and documents, with no troops moved.
1 November 2026
Dr Padma Gurmet, Director of the National Institute of Sowa-Rigpa at Leh, has been given the Wellness Visionary Award.
Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh conferred it at the 3rd International Conference on Wellness, held from 30 October to 1 November 2026.
The award recognises her work in traditional medicine and whole-person health care.
Sowa-Rigpa is an old system of medicine of the Himalayan region, practised in Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and the Darjeeling hills.
The institute at Leh, known by the short form NISR, is the national body for teaching and research in that system.
It sits alongside the other Indian systems of medicine looked after by the Ayush side of government.
Award:
Wellness Visionary Award
Institute and place:
National Institute of Sowa-Rigpa (NISR), Leh
Conference:
3rd International Conference on Wellness, 30 October to 1 November 2026
Why it matters for exams: The National Institute of Sowa-Rigpa (NISR), the national institute for the Himalayan system of Sowa-Rigpa, is at Leh in Ladakh, and its Director Dr Padma Gurmet won the Wellness Visionary Award.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Sowa-Rigpa Sowa-Rigpa — A traditional Himalayan system of medicine, also called the Amchi system.
NISR National Institute of Sowa-Rigpa — The national institute for Sowa-Rigpa teaching and research, at Leh.
3 November 2026
The Department of Justice in the Ministry of Law and Justice has called a workshop named eFiling 3.0: From Process to Practice at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.
It is set for the afternoon of 4 November 2026 in Hall No. 5 on Maulana Azad Road.
The aim is to teach officers of government departments to file cases and papers in court electronically.
The government is the single largest litigant in India, so moving its filings online bears on how fast cases move.
Technical sessions by the National Informatics Centre will take participants through the platform's main features and workflow, including the facilities meant for government advocates and departments.
eFiling 3.0 belongs to Phase III of the eCourts Project, which aims at courts that are digital and paperless from end to end and at citizen-centric judicial eServices.
Venue:
Hall No. 5, Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi
Project phase:
Phase III of the eCourts Project
Why it matters for exams: eFiling 3.0 belongs to Phase III of the eCourts Project, run by the Department of Justice in the Ministry of Law and Justice with technical work by the National Informatics Centre.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
NIC National Informatics Centre — The government's technology arm, which builds and runs e-governance platforms.
eCourts Project eCourts Project — The national programme to computerise district and subordinate courts.
3 November 2026
NITI Aayog has launched an interactive platform named the India S&T Scoreboard, which gives one view of science and technology across the states and union territories.
Vice Chairman Ashok Kumar Lahiri unveiled it at the Civil Services Officers' Institute on KG Marg in New Delhi.
The platform pulls together data on higher education institutions, research and development institutions, deep tech startups and incubators, along with research publications and patents, shown as trends across years.
It measures research quality, impact, collaboration and open access, across three sectors: academia, government research laboratories and industry, and covers priority research areas.
Each state and union territory gets a profile that lists its policies and good practices, with tools to compare one with another.
The stated purpose is to let states see their strengths and gaps and to support decisions based on evidence rather than on output volume alone.
It is hosted at sts.niti.gov.in.
Launched by:
Ashok Kumar Lahiri, Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog
Sectors covered:
Academia, government R&D labs and industry
Website:
sts.niti.gov.in
Why it matters for exams: The India S&T Scoreboard is NITI Aayog's platform comparing states and union territories on research quality, impact, collaboration and open access, hosted at sts.niti.gov.in.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
NITI Aayog National Institution for Transforming India — The Union government's policy think tank, which replaced the Planning Commission in 2015.
Deep tech Deep technology — Startups built on hard science or engineering research rather than on a business model alone.
3 November 2026
The Indian Coast Guard and the Sri Lanka Coast Guard have held their 9th High-Level Meeting at Mirissa in Sri Lanka.
Director General Paramesh Sivamani led the Indian delegation and Rear Admiral Ruwan Rupasena, Director General of the Sri Lanka Coast Guard, led the host side.
The talks covered three working areas: responding to marine pollution, search and rescue at sea, and enforcement of maritime law.
The two sides also discussed capacity building and technical assistance so that the two services can work together more closely at sea.
Both delegations said they would keep up a coordinated response to maritime emergencies in the waters they share.
They framed the aim as maritime security together with protection of the marine environment of the Indian Ocean region.
The Indian Coast Guard is an armed force of the Union raised under its own Act of 1978 and functions under the Ministry of Defence.
Meeting:
9th High-Level Meeting
Place:
Mirissa, Sri Lanka
Indian delegation head:
Director General Paramesh Sivamani
Why it matters for exams: The 9th High-Level Meeting of the Indian Coast Guard and the Sri Lanka Coast Guard was held at Mirissa in Sri Lanka, led by Director General Paramesh Sivamani for India.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
ICG Indian Coast Guard — An armed force of the Union under the Ministry of Defence, raised under the Coast Guard Act, 1978.
3 November 2026
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has launched the Vayo Samman Rashtriya Abhiyan, a national intergenerational bonding campaign, under the Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana.
Union Minister Dr Virendra Kumar is to launch it in the national capital.
The ministry cites projections that the population aged 60 and above will grow from about 10 crore in 2011 to 23 crore by 2036, and from 8.4 per cent of the population to 14.9 per cent.
It argues that migration, urban living and smaller families have cut down ordinary contact between the old and the young, and treats older people as mentors and contributors rather than only as recipients of welfare.
The campaign rests on a five-part model: Connect, Converse, Co-create, Contribute and Continue.
Twelve themes cover companionship, oral history, cultural exchange, digital literacy, health awareness and seniors as mentors, and the young are asked to help older people use digital services and spot cyber fraud.
A volunteer wing named Vayo SAATHI, open to anyone aged 18 and above, registers through the Senior Citizens Welfare SAMAVESH portal or the JEEVAN app and receives a certificate.
Parent scheme:
Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana (AVYAY)
Population aged 60 and above:
about 10 crore in 2011 to 23 crore by 2036
Volunteer wing:
Vayo SAATHI, for citizens aged 18 and above
Why it matters for exams: The Vayo Samman Rashtriya Abhiyan is the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment's intergenerational campaign under the Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana, built on the five components Connect, Converse, Co-create, Contribute and Continue.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
AVYAY Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana — The Union umbrella scheme for the welfare of senior citizens.
Vayo SAATHI Support, Awareness, Assistance, Training, Health and Inclusion — The campaign's volunteer initiative for helping senior citizens.