3 November 2026
A high-level meeting at Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, reviewed preparations for Kashi Tamil Sangamam 5.0, organised by the Ministry of Education. The theme is Thirukkural Payilvom - Thirukkural Abhyas Karen, built around the Tamil classic Thirukkural. The programme runs from 28 November to 12 December 2026 at Varanasi. About 1,400 participants will travel from Tamil Nadu in seven groups of about 200 each, on an eight-day journey covering Varanasi, Prayagraj and Ayodhya. Fifty teachers from Tamil Nadu will teach the Thirukkural in schools and colleges in Uttar Pradesh. A students' engagement programme will run across 1,000 higher education institutions. IIT Madras and BHU are the nodal coordinating institutions for Tamil Nadu and Kashi, while the Central Institute of Classical Tamil, Chennai, leads digital outreach and publications. The review was chaired by Deepti Gaur Mukerjee, Secretary of the Department of Higher Education.
Theme:
Thirukkural Payilvom- Thirukkural Abhyas Karen
Participants:
About 1,400 in seven groups
Teachers deputed:
50 from Tamil Nadu
Institutions covered:
1,000 higher education institutions
Why it matters for exams: Kashi Tamil Sangamam is a Ministry of Education programme; its fifth edition is themed on the Thirukkural, with IIT Madras and BHU as nodal institutions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
CICT Central Institute of Classical Tamil — A Chennai institute for classical Tamil studies under the Ministry of Education.
3 November 2026
The Reserve Bank of India launched the November 2026 round of its Rural Consumer Confidence Survey. The survey covers households in rural and semi-urban areas of 31 States and Union Territories, including Keralam, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Ladakh and the NCT of Delhi. It records households' present perceptions and their expectations one year ahead on the general economic situation, the employment scenario, the overall price situation and their own income and spending. The Reserve Bank says the results are useful inputs for monetary policy. Field work is done on the Bank's behalf by Ipsos Research Private Ltd, Gurugram, whose staff approach selected households. Other households may also respond by filling the survey schedule and emailing it to the Bank. The Division of Household Surveys in the Department of Statistics and Information Management handles the survey. A matching Urban Consumer Confidence Survey round was launched the same day.
Coverage:
31 States and Union Territories
Field agency:
Ipsos Research Private Ltd, Gurugram
What it measures:
Economic situation, employment, prices, income and spending
Why it matters for exams: The Rural Consumer Confidence Survey is an RBI household survey feeding monetary policy, covering rural and semi-urban households in 31 States and Union Territories.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
RCCS Rural Consumer Confidence Survey — An RBI survey of rural and semi-urban households' economic perceptions.
4 November 2026
The Supreme Court rejected a plea seeking mandatory rotation of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in State Legislative Assemblies and Parliament. The Court held that the question falls within Parliament's legislative domain and cannot be directed by the courts. The petitioner, an elector of the Kadipur Assembly constituency in Sultanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, said the seat had stayed reserved for Scheduled Castes for nearly seven decades. He asked for rotation on the model of Articles 243D and 243T, which apply to panchayats and municipalities. The Allahabad High Court had earlier upheld Section 9(1)(c) of the Delimitation Act, 2002, which places reserved constituencies in areas with a comparatively large proportion of Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe population. The Court said it could not add a rotation requirement that is absent from Articles 330 and 332 and from the Act. It left the petitioner free to approach elected representatives.
Provision upheld:
Section 9(1)(c), Delimitation Act, 2002
Articles cited:
Articles 330, 332, 327, 243D and 243T
High Court below:
Allahabad High Court
Why it matters for exams: Articles 330 and 332 reserve seats for SCs and STs in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies, and Section 9(1)(c) of the Delimitation Act, 2002 decides where those seats are placed.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Delimitation Redrawing the boundaries of constituencies — The exercise of fixing constituency boundaries and the seats reserved in them.
4 November 2026
The Union Health Ministry has proposed amending the Drugs Rules, 1945 to allow immediate suspension of a manufacturing licence when a drug is declared Not of Standard Quality. The power would apply where the failure is on Assay, Dissolution, Related Substances, Impurities or Sterility. The Central Licensing Approving Authority or the State Licensing Authority, as applicable, could act straight away on receiving the Government Analyst's report. At present a show-cause notice must come first, which can keep a substandard drug in circulation while the process runs. The suspension would continue until the manufacturer completes a Root Cause Analysis and a Corrective and Preventive Action plan to the Licensing Authority's satisfaction. Form 13, the Government Analyst's test report, would also go to the Drugs Controller General of India, the State or Union Territory Licensing Authority where the site is, and the manufacturer and marketer. The 65th Drugs Consultative Committee and the 92nd Drugs Technical Advisory Board had recommended the change, and objections may be filed within 30 days.
Rules to be amended:
Drugs Rules, 1945
Parameters covered:
Assay, Dissolution, Related Substances, Impurities, Sterility
Comment period:
30 days
Why it matters for exams: The Drugs Rules, 1945 are to be amended so that an NSQ finding on five named parameters can suspend a manufacturing licence at once, with revocation only after Root Cause Analysis and CAPA.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
NSQ Not of Standard Quality — A drug that fails the standards prescribed for it on testing.
CAPA Corrective and Preventive Action — Steps a manufacturer must take to fix a fault and stop it recurring.
3 November 2026
Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav released India's new I-OECM Guidelines 2026 at a side event of CBD COP-17 in Yerevan, Armenia. Their full title is Guidelines for the Designation of India's Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures. An OECM is land or water outside legally protected areas and forests that nonetheless conserves biodiversity where it stands. Biodiversity parks, sacred groves, community-managed irrigation tanks, seagrass beds and fisheries seasonal ban areas can all qualify. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change drew them up with the National Biodiversity Authority. A site needs defined boundaries, must not already be legally protected, and must not overlap entries in the World Database on Protected Areas. Recognition leaves ownership and legal status untouched, and each site is reassessed at least once in five years. The work feeds Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, the 30x30 goal. A project worth USD 60.79 million will test the guidelines in six demonstration landscapes and seascapes, among them the Lakshadweep Islands Marinescape.
Released at:
CBD COP-17 side event, Yerevan, Armenia
Project size:
USD 60.79 million
Goal:
Add 3% of India's land and marine area to the conservation estate
Demonstration sites:
Six landscapes and seascapes
Why it matters for exams: I-OECM is India's new category for conservation outside protected areas, prepared by MoEFCC with the National Biodiversity Authority and tied to Target 3 (30x30) of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
OECM Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures — Areas outside protected areas that still conserve biodiversity in place.
4 November 2026
The Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA), an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, signed a memorandum of understanding with the International Arbitration and Mediation Centre (IAMC), Hyderabad. IAMC is an autonomous institution that the Telangana government and the State's High Court helped establish. The pact covers specialised capacity building, mediation support for micro, small and medium enterprises, and policy-oriented research. The two bodies plan to build a pool of arbitrators, mediators and dispute resolution professionals through short and long courses, workshops and skill programmes. The memorandum was signed by IICA's Chief Administrative Officer Col. Amandeep Singh Puri and IAMC's CEO and Registrar A. J. Jawad, with IICA's Director-General and CEO Gyaneshwar Kumar Singh present. IICA's Centre for Excellence in Alternative Dispute Resolution organised the signing.
IICA's ministry:
Ministry of Corporate Affairs
IAMC location:
Hyderabad, Telangana
Focus sector:
Mediation for MSMEs
Why it matters for exams: IICA works under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, and IAMC Hyderabad was set up with the Government of Telangana and the High Court of Telangana.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ADR Alternative Dispute Resolution — Settling disputes outside court through arbitration, mediation or conciliation.
4 November 2026
Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi said the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana has turned into a mass movement. Speaking at the Bharat Renewable Energy Summit and Expo 2026, he said India is adding about one lakh rooftop solar installations every six days. Millions of households have reached zero electricity bills and now earn income by selling surplus power to the grid. He said India's installed solar capacity has risen from 3 GW in 2014 to 172 GW. The scheme is run by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and gives central subsidy for rooftop solar systems on homes. The Minister also referred to the National Green Hydrogen Mission, which aims for an annual green hydrogen production capacity of 5 million tonnes by 2030.
Pace of installations:
About one lakh every six days
Installed solar capacity:
172 GW, from 3 GW in 2014
Green hydrogen target:
5 million tonnes a year by 2030
Why it matters for exams: PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana is a rooftop solar scheme of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy; India's installed solar capacity is now put at 172 GW.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
GW Gigawatt — A unit of power equal to one thousand megawatts.
4 November 2026
India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri held a series of meetings during a two-day official visit to Kathmandu. His bilateral talks with Nepal's Foreign Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai covered connectivity, trade, energy, development assistance, senior-level visits and ties between the two peoples. The two sides prepared for the forthcoming visit of Nepal's Prime Minister to India. Misri also met Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal, Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle, Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha and Infrastructure Development Minister Sunil Lamsal. He was received at Tribhuvan International Airport by India's Ambassador to Nepal, Sudhakar Dalela. He was also to call on Prime Minister Balendra Shah before returning to New Delhi.
Length of visit:
Two days, Kathmandu
Counterpart:
Amrit Bahadur Rai, Foreign Secretary of Nepal
Subjects:
Connectivity, trade, development cooperation, energy
Why it matters for exams: Vikram Misri is India's Foreign Secretary; Balendra Shah is Nepal's Prime Minister and Sudhakar Dalela is India's Ambassador to Nepal.
Kerala PSCUPSC
4 November 2026
Mera Yuva Bharat, known as MY Bharat, held 100 Yuva Samvads in a single day across 23 States and Union Territories. The programmes come under the Viksit Bharat Yuva Samvad: Know Your Vote campaign, which seeks to build electoral awareness and informed, responsible youth participation in democracy. The day's events drew more than 16,600 young people and featured 100 Youth Icons. Taken together with earlier events, the campaign has held 411 Yuva Samvads across 31 States and Union Territories, with about 77,500 young participants and 411 Youth Icons. MY Bharat works under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal joined the programme at Mehrauli in Delhi, and Members of Parliament took part at Bhiwani in Haryana, Dhemaji and Tezpur in Assam and Dhamtari in Chhattisgarh. CT University collaborated on the Ludhiana programme.
Samvads in a day:
100 across 23 States and Union Territories
Youth reached that day:
Over 16,600
Campaign total:
411 Yuva Samvads across 31 States and Union Territories
Why it matters for exams: MY Bharat stands for Mera Yuva Bharat and works under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports; its Viksit Bharat Yuva Samvad: Know Your Vote campaign is an electoral awareness drive.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
MY Bharat Mera Yuva Bharat — An autonomous body for youth development under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
3 November 2026
India and Canada held their inaugural Defence Dialogue in virtual format. From the Indian side it was co-chaired by Dr. Amit Telang, Joint Secretary (International Cooperation) in the Ministry of Defence. For Canada the co-chair was Mr. Scott Millar, who is Assistant Deputy Minister for Policy at that country's defence ministry. Each delegation set out how it reads defence policy and the wider strategic picture. They named defence industrial cooperation, military-technical cooperation and defence research and development as priority areas. The talks were built on the Joint Statement issued by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Mark Carney on 2 March 2026. Both sides agreed to stay in touch to carry the proposals forward.
Format:
Virtual, inaugural edition
Priority areas:
Defence industry, military-technical cooperation, R&D
Basis:
Joint Statement of 2 March 2026
Why it matters for exams: India-Canada defence ties now have a named institutional channel, the Defence Dialogue, resting on the Modi-Carney Joint Statement of 2 March 2026.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Department of National Defence Canada's defence ministry — The federal department that runs Canada's armed forces.
Background
The Commissions Of Inquiry Act, 1952 is Act 60 of 1952 and it provides for appointing Commissions of Inquiry and for vesting them with certain powers. The appropriate Government can appoint a Commission if it is of opinion that it is necessary to do so, and it is bound to appoint one if a resolution to that effect is passed by each House of Parliament or by the Legislature of the State. The inquiry has to be into a definite matter of public importance, and the notification in the Official Gazette fixes the functions and the time. The Act decides which Government is the appropriate Government by looking at the entries in the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution. A Commission can have one member or more, and where there are several one of them can be made Chairman. The Government has to lay the report before each House of Parliament, or the Legislature of the State, with a memorandum of the action taken on it, within six months of getting it. While inquiring, a Commission has the powers of a Civil Court trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 - summoning witnesses, requiring documents and requisitioning public records. If the Centre has appointed a Commission on a matter, no State can appoint another on the same matter without the Centre's approval while the first one is working.
Act number:
Act 60 of 1952
Report to the House:
within six months of submission
Why it matters for exams: The may-and-shall split in Section 3, the six-month rule for laying the report and the Civil Court powers of a commission of inquiry are repeated polity questions.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Appropriate Government Appropriate Government — Under this Act, the Centre or the State, decided by which Seventh Schedule list the subject of the inquiry falls in.
Commission of Inquiry Commission of Inquiry — A body appointed by notification to inquire into a definite matter of public importance.
Background
The Central Bureau of Investigation draws its legal authority from The Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946, which is Act 25 of 1946 and extends to the whole of India. Its forerunner was a police staff called the Special Police Establishment (War Department), set up by ordinance to look into bribery and corruption connected with departments of the Central Government. Under the Act the Central Government can set up a special police force, named the Delhi Special Police Establishment, to investigate in a Union Territory the offences notified for it. The Central Government specifies, by notification in the Official Gazette, which offences or classes of offences that force investigates. Superintendence of the force in matters under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 vests in the Commission; in every other matter it vests in the Central Government. Administration of the force vests in an officer appointed by the Central Government and called the Director, who exercises such powers of an Inspector-General of Police as the Central Government specifies. The Director is appointed on the recommendation of a Committee. Words not defined in this Act carry the meaning given in the Central Vigilance Commission Act, 2003, and the force's powers reach a State only with that State's consent.
Act number:
Act 25 of 1946
Head of administration:
Director, with powers of an Inspector-General of Police
Why it matters for exams: The CBI has no statute of its own name, and the general consent question turns on the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946, which is why papers ask about it.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
DSPE Delhi Special Police Establishment — The special police force constituted under the 1946 Act, known today as the Central Bureau of Investigation.
General consent General consent — A standing permission a State gives for the central force to investigate within it, which a State can also withdraw.