The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has released the National Health Accounts (NHA) Estimates for India for 2023-24.
The estimates track where the money spent on health in the country comes from.
The share of total health expenditure paid directly by households, called Out-of-Pocket Expenditure, has come down from 64.2 per cent in 2013-14 to 42.7 per cent in 2023-24.
That is a fall of 21.5 percentage points over the decade.
In the latest year alone the share moved down from 43.4 per cent to 42.7 per cent.
Government Health Expenditure over the same decade rose from about one lakh thirty thousand crore rupees to about four lakh fourteen thousand crore rupees.
The Ministry links the shift to the wider reach of government-funded treatment, free medicines and diagnostics.
NHA estimates are the standard source for questions on how India pays for health care.
Why it matters for exams: The National Health Accounts Estimates are published by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and Out-of-Pocket Expenditure is the key indicator they report.
The Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, Amit Shah, performed the Bhoomi Pujan for the revival of the NHEC Multi-State Cooperative Society at Talegaon Dabhade in Pune district, Maharashtra.
NHEC stands for National Heavy Engineering Cooperative.
At the same event he inaugurated, virtually, the Western Regional Office of the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies.
The Central Registrar is the authority that registers and regulates multi-state cooperative societies.
He also launched Bharat Taxi services in Pune, a ride-hailing service run on cooperative lines.
The Minister described the work as part of the Ministry of Cooperation's aim of Sahkar se Samriddhi, or prosperity through cooperation.
He recalled Pune's place in the growth of the cooperative movement in western India.
The separate Ministry of Cooperation at the Centre is the body under which all these steps are taken.
Society revived:NHEC Multi-State Cooperative SocietyOffice inaugurated:Western Regional Office of the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies
Why it matters for exams: NHEC expands to National Heavy Engineering Cooperative, and multi-state cooperative societies are registered by the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies under the Ministry of Cooperation.
The Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, Mansukh Mandaviya, and the Chief Minister of Telangana, A. Revanth Reddy, unveiled the logo and mascot of the eighth edition of the Khelo India Youth Games.
The Games will be held in Telangana from 11 to 22 December 2026.
Around 8,000 athletes and support staff are expected.
Events will be spread across six cities in the state: Hyderabad, Khammam, Karimnagar, Hanumakonda, Mahabubnagar and Nizamabad.
The Khelo India Youth Games are one strand of the Khelo India programme of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
Other strands include the Khelo India Beach Games, the Winter Games and the Tribal Games.
The Union Minister said the programme is meant to draw more young people into organised sport.
The host state and the edition number are the facts that stay useful for exams.
Edition:8th Khelo India Youth GamesHost state:TelanganaDates:December 11 to 22, 2026
Why it matters for exams: The eighth Khelo India Youth Games will be hosted by Telangana, and Khelo India is run by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
India and the International Centre for Theoretical Physics have begun work on an India-ICTP Co-operation Fund.
A Letter of Intent for the fund was signed between the Department of Science and Technology and the Centre.
It was signed during the visit of the Union Minister of State for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Jitendra Singh, to the Centre at Trieste in Italy.
For the Indian side the document was exchanged by Praveenkumar Somasundaram, who heads international cooperation in the department.
The Centre is a global hub for research and teaching in physics, mathematics and related fields.
Indian bodies including the Department of Science and Technology, CSIR, universities and the IITs have long worked with it through joint research and exchange programmes.
The new fund is meant to give that engagement a steadier structure and to help more Indian researchers travel and work there.
The name of the fund, the Indian department involved and the Centre's city are the facts worth holding.
New instrument:India-ICTP Co-operation FundDocument signed:Letter of Intent
Why it matters for exams: ICTP expands to International Centre for Theoretical Physics, it is at Trieste in Italy, and the Letter of Intent for the India-ICTP Co-operation Fund was signed by the Department of Science and Technology.
The Sacred Relics of Shakyamuni Buddha reached Namsai in Arunachal Pradesh, opening the third and final phase of their exposition in the state.
They were received and enshrined at the Golden Pagoda, which is also called Kongmu Kham.
The Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, Lieutenant General Kaiwalya Trivikram Parnaik, received the relics at the Nalung helipad in Namsai.
Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, state ministers and religious leaders were present.
The exposition was formally inaugurated at the Golden Pagoda after the enshrinement.
The Director General of the International Buddhist Confederation, Raghav Prasad Bhatnagar, attended along with members of the Buddhist Sangha.
The Governor thanked the Ministry of Culture, the state government, the National Museum in New Delhi and the International Buddhist Confederation for organising it.
Two exhibitions were opened at the pagoda's meditation centre, one of them on the Piprahwa relics found in Uttar Pradesh.
Phase of exposition:Third and final phase in Arunachal PradeshSite:Golden Pagoda (Kongmu Kham), Namsai
Why it matters for exams: The Golden Pagoda at Namsai is also known as Kongmu Kham, and the relic exposition is organised by the Ministry of Culture with the National Museum and the International Buddhist Confederation.
The Prime Minister took part by video conference in the Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas programme at Gadchiroli in Maharashtra.
He inaugurated and laid foundation stones for 246 development projects worth about three thousand crore rupees.
The day marks the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, who is honoured with the title Dharti Aaba.
This was his 151st birth anniversary.
The observance of Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas was begun on 15 November 2021.
In his address the Prime Minister recalled tribal resistance to colonial rule, from Tirot Sing in the Khasi Hills and the Kol movement of Chota Nagpur to the Santhal revolution led by Sido and Kanhu.
He also named Rani Gaidinliu, Tantya Bhil, Alluri Sitarama Raju and Rani Durgavati.
The Ulgulan, the uprising led by Birsa Munda, was described as a continuing source of inspiration.
Projects:246 projects worth around ₹3,000 croreAnniversary:151st birth anniversary of Birsa Munda
Why it matters for exams: Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas marks the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, whose uprising is called the Ulgulan and who is titled Dharti Aaba.
Akashvani is starting the first season of AIR Rising Stars, a national series of concerts for young musicians.
Only artists below thirty years of age will perform.
The concerts will be held at twenty-six locations across the country between 17 and 30 November 2026.
They will mainly feature young graded artists of Akashvani, with deserving ungraded young artists also allowed where graded artists are not available.
The series covers Hindustani and Carnatic classical music, both vocal and instrumental, as well as light and folk music, western music and regional forms.
Participating stations include Thiruvananthapuram, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Imphal and Guwahati.
The initiative is part of the celebrations marking ninety years of Akashvani.
The name of the series, the age limit and the ninety-year milestone are the points to carry forward.
Locations:26 Akashvani stationsDates:17th to 30th November 2026Age limit:Below 30 years
Why it matters for exams: AIR Rising Stars is a new Akashvani concert series for artists below thirty, launched as part of ninety years of Akashvani.
The Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla, will inaugurate the Conference of Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians, India Region, at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru on 17 November 2026.
The Chief Minister of Karnataka will deliver the keynote address at the inaugural session.
The Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, Harivansh, and the Chairperson of the CWP India Region, Daggubati Purandeswari, will also speak.
Running over two days, it is themed 'Strong Foundations, Stronger Voices' and carries the sub-title 'Inclusive Cyberspace and Mentorship Pathways for New Women Legislators'.
Two plenary sessions are planned, one on safe digital participation and one on capacity building and mentorship.
UN Women India will hold a side event on menopause during the conference.
Women legislators from Parliament and from state and union territory legislatures will take part.
Venue:Vidhana Soudha, BengaluruDates:17 and 18 November 2026
Why it matters for exams: CWP expands to Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians, its India Region is chaired by Daggubati Purandeswari, and Vidhana Soudha is the seat of the Karnataka legislature.
Sir C V Raman, the Indian physicist and Nobel Laureate, founded the Raman Research Institute at Bangalore in 1948, so that he could keep up his own studies and basic research once he had left the Indian Institute of Science on retirement. Its overview page records that he stayed on as its director and kept up his personal research till his demise in 1970, and that the institute was paid for by him personally together with donations from private sources. The page traces the land back to December 1934, when the Government of Mysore gifted a plot in Bangalore to Professor Raman for the creation of a research institute. The Indian Academy of Sciences was founded by him in the same year, and some years after the institute was created he gifted the Academy a range of movable and immovable properties, to be held for the use and the benefit of the institute. After his demise in November 1970 the Academy created a public charitable trust called the Raman Research Institute Trust, and the lands, buildings, deposits, securities, laboratories, instruments and other properties the Academy held for the institute were transferred to it. The foremost function of that trust was to maintain, conduct and sustain the institute. In 1972 the institute was restructured into an autonomous research institute of the aided kind, with its funds coming from the Department of Science and Technology under the union government. The page lists its main areas of research today as astronomy and astrophysics, light and matter physics, soft condensed matter, and theoretical physics.
Founded:1948, at BangaloreFounder:Sir C V RamanFunding department:Department of Science and TechnologyTrust:Raman Research Institute Trust
Why it matters for exams: The founder, the 1934 land gift by the Government of Mysore, the trust created by the Indian Academy of Sciences and the funding department are the durable facts about this institute.
The National Silkworm Seed Organization is a unit of the Central Silk Board and works from Bengaluru. A release of the Press Information Bureau records its inception in 1975. Its work is the production and the nationwide supply of quality, disease-free silkworm seed. The release describes the organisation as a cornerstone of reliability in the Indian sericulture sector, and credits it with work in scientific advancement, seed technology and quality assurance. It says the organisation has played a role in shaping the growth and the global recognition of the silk industry of the country. Its mission, as the release sets it out, is to empower the sericulture community of the country, to promote technological innovation, and to keep to global standards of quality, biosecurity and sustainability in silkworm seed production. The release was issued for the organisation's Golden Jubilee, and sets out its aim of carrying on the legacy of delivering Quality Seed for Quality Silk.
Parent body:Central Silk BoardCity:BengaluruInception:1975Work:Nationwide supply of quality, disease-free silkworm seed
Why it matters for exams: The parent board, the city, the inception year and the disease-free silkworm seed role are the examinable facts about this little known Central Silk Board unit.
The Spices Board was constituted on 26 February 1987 with the merger of the erstwhile Cardamom Board and the Spices Export Promotion Council. A release of the Press Information Bureau places the Board under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of the Government of India. The release calls it the flagship organisation for the development and the worldwide promotion of Indian spices. It records that the Board functions as an international link between Indian exporters and importers abroad, and that it has taken up activities touching every segment of the spices sector. The release also notes an appeal mechanism designed into the Quality Management System of the Board for the export of spices. It describes a nationwide campaign the Board ran on Clean and Safe Spices, covering more than 20 states and union territories, to spread awareness on food safety and on the quality of spices.
Constituted on:26 February 1987Bodies merged:Cardamom Board and Spices Export Promotion CouncilMinistry:Ministry of Commerce and Industry
Why it matters for exams: The two bodies merged to form the Spices Board, the date of its constitution and the ministry it sits under are standard commodity board questions.
India's space programme began with a government-led institutional base.
The Indian National Committee for Space Research, or INCOSPAR, was set up in 1962 under the Department of Atomic Energy.
The Indian Space Research Organisation was established in August 1969 and replaced INCOSPAR.
In June 1972 the government constituted the Space Commission and set up the Department of Space, and ISRO was brought under the department in September 1972.
Later reforms opened the whole space value chain to non-government entities.
IN-SPACe became the single-window interface between the government and private players, while NSIL works as the commercial arm.
The Indian Space Policy 2023 set out the role of each institution.
To help start-ups, the rules on foreign investment were eased, the steps for getting authorisation were made clearer and separate funding schemes were created.
INCOSPAR set up:1962, under the Department of Atomic EnergyDepartment of Space set up:June 1972
Why it matters for exams: ISRO was established in August 1969 replacing INCOSPAR, IN-SPACe is the single-window interface for private space activity and the Indian Space Policy 2023 defines each body's role.
The Lakhpati Didi initiative works to raise the incomes of rural women through enterprise and varied livelihoods.
A Lakhpati Didi is a member of a Self-Help Group whose household earns at least one lakh rupees a year.
The benchmark looks at total household income, not individual earnings, and is counted after expenses.
The initiative is built on the network of the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission.
It was announced on 15 August 2023 with a target of two crore women from Self-Help Group households, which was raised to three crore in February 2024.
The target now stands at six crore Lakhpati Didis by March 2029.
By June 2026 the initiative had enabled 3.76 crore Lakhpati Didis.
An independent assessment by the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad reported a 61 per cent rise in average monthly household income in these households.
Income benchmark:at least ₹1 lakh annuallyAchieved by June 2026:3.76 crore Lakhpati DidisTarget:six crore by March 2029
Why it matters for exams: A Lakhpati Didi is a Self-Help Group member whose household earns at least one lakh rupees a year, and the initiative runs under DAY-NRLM.
Adi Vaani is a platform of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs that uses artificial intelligence to make tribal languages easier to use.
It offers translation and other digital tools for languages that have little written or digital material.
As on 15 October 2026 the platform supported text translation in nine tribal languages and had crossed thirty-five thousand Android downloads.
State Tribal Research Institutes contributed roughly 13.9 lakh text sentences, along with close to three hundred hours of recorded speech, for training the models.
A Working Group on Tribal Languages held its first sitting on 15 October 2026 and took up the idea of making Adi Vaani the National Tribal Language Repository.
Many tribal languages are low-resource languages, carried mainly through speech rather than writing.
By lowering the language barrier the platform is expected to help mother-tongue teaching, health communication and access to public services.
The Ministry of Tribal Affairs launched the platform on 1 September 2025, and it was developed by a national consortium led by IIT Delhi.
Languages supported:nine tribal languagesTraining data:about 13.9 lakh text sentences and around 300 hours of speech data
Why it matters for exams: Adi Vaani is an artificial intelligence platform of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, supporting nine tribal languages and proposed as the National Tribal Language Repository.